Childish ways?

When I was a child, I spoke like a child, I thought like a child, I reasoned like a child. When I became a man, I gave up childish ways. 1 Corinthians 13:11

Have you grown up? Have you left your ‘childish’ ways? Do you understand that the current institutional religious “Church” system is designed like the ‘primary’ grades of institutional education? Did you know that 90+% of all sermons are now given at a 3rd grade level? When in the primary grades you learn many of the ‘rules’ of the class, walking in the straight line, raising your hand to speak or ask a question, and you are grouped often with many others who are being taught to sit still and do as your instructed. All of these things are necessary things to learn in social skills and respect for others. But eventually you hope you will progress and graduate beyond the ‘school’ institutional system. What is the ‘graduation’ beyond the institutional Church system?

The institutional Church system and structure is actually designed like the primary (K-3) elementary institutional educational system and teaches the rules and commandments of the  old testament, like keeping the sabbath and tithing, and attending ‘class’ / service, and many other ‘requirements’. Yet… Jesus came to give us a ‘new covenant’ and a new way of interacting with God. But under the old system religious sects utilized fear and coercion as the way of commanding compliance. We are also (like in today’s churches) taught to be afraid of offending God, there is the fear of excommunication, expulsion, and ostracization from the fellowship if you go against the “voice of God” embodied within the religious leadership. 

Yet … Jesus opened the way for ALL to receive the Holy Spirit and have ‘direct’ communication with Him. Who determines what the ‘will’ of God is for your life now? Who can best tell you the ‘path’ you are to take? Are we to be ‘led’ by another man or now by the Spirit of God? Are you still in primary school? Are you still a ‘child’ spiritually? What is the Holy Spirit actually saying to you directly / personally? I agree that there are some benefits for new believers to be involved in some type of more structured religious services — in the beginning, but the need for them to be able to ask serious questions and be personally mentored is often severely missing within so many of those ‘Churches’. How does one actually do discipleship? By lecture? Or by meeting with one another and spending a lot of time together discussing all sorts of subjects? Asking one another lots of questions, and answering from you heart in transparency. Sitting in a ‘lecture’ hall and listening to a ‘lesson’ without asking any questions is the lowest form of teaching. The smaller the group the more is learned and discussed.

So what then should the ekklesia gatherings actually look like now? What is described in the Bible in the book of Acts? Have you ever looked at that closely? Do you fellowship with one another regularly in each others homes? Do you have meals together? Do you help one another out with needs? Where in Acts is the formal structure laid out on how to conduct a ‘religious’ service order? Do you ask questions of one another and have spiritual discussions? Do you discuss with your close friends what the Holy Spirit it teaching you personally? So much of the current institutional system looks like the old covenant way of conducting religious services. Going to synagogue and listening to a ‘rabbi’. Is there supposed to be a ‘different’ class of believers who are professionals / career ministers now who take the role of ‘shepherd’? Or is there only ‘One’ Shepherd now — and all of us are actually His …sheep? Or is like in Animal Farm where some animals are ‘better’ than others, and need to rule over others for the ‘good’ of the farm. Unfortunately the latter is all to common.

What happens when you actually graduate from the religious system? Do you just rejoin the system as a teacher or administrator (Pastor)? Or do you enter the world and become salt and light within that place? What does Jesus want us to do? What is the Holy Spirit directing you to do? Have you learned how to hear His Voice within you? Did your spiritual mentors teach you how to discern where your thoughts are coming from? Are you getting together with other brothers and sisters to discuss spiritual matters? Or are you just comfortable going back and just sitting in a 3rd grade class?

I’d encourage you to ‘grow up’ and learn to eat the ‘meat’ of the Word. To ask LOTS of questions of the Holy Spirit and to challenge one another personally to grow in the knowledge the Holy Spirit gives to all those who ask Him. To discuss subjects with vigor and honesty — and searching out the deep things of God in the scriptures for YOURSELF! Learn to ‘teach’ yourself all the while listening to the Voice of the Holy Spirit within you.

So how would you define your current spiritual maturity? Have you graduated beyond the third grade? Do you have other spiritually mature friends who you regularly discuss spiritual matters?