Tag: Be planted

Have you heard of the term church hopping? To put things in perspective, church hopping is the act of going from one church to another church to worship the Lord. Church hopping also indicates a believer’s inability to find a definitive local church to belong to.

As children of God, we are supposed to listen to Him and let Him direct us which church to be planted in. This means surrendering ourselves to Him, letting go of the hassles of our lives, and leaving up to the Lord to decide which church to join for the years to come.

As we live in this world filled with problems, challenges and confusion, it is natural for us to think of convenience about being part of the local church. Some people go to the church nearest to their homes. Some go to the church located in a community filled with lots of commercial joints to enjoy after attending services and activities. And some go to the church that has the least amount of problems with regards to traffic and parking spaces.

When it comes to joining a local church for the medium to long term, we must keep in mind the Lord who laid out plans for each of us. It is the Lord, not the conveniences and certainly not the other worldly factors that affect many, whom we must prioritize when it comes to being planted in a local church. Also remember always that the church is not just a building and certainly it is not an overgrown, corrupted worldly religion-led hierarchy…it is the community of people who believe in the Lord and live by the teachings of the Holy Bible (God’s Word) always pursuing Him and His holiness.

If God sends you a message (directly to you personally or by having one of His believers invite you to join the church) to join a local church, be assured that the said church is not only the right place for you but also has pastors who are very spirited in teaching His Word (the Holy Bible) and its members are sure to be welcoming, loving, caring and devoted as well. That being said, you should follow God’s instruction without question and do it without hesitation.  Learn from the holy scripture below.

Those who are planted in the house of the LORD Shall flourish in the courts of our God.

Psalm 92:13 (NKJV)

As you can see in the above scripture, God already laid out plans for you when it comes to joining a church whose community members will be your brothers and sisters in Christ! God always has good plans and He always keeps His promises for you. Once you get planted in God’s designated church for you, you will flourish! I know, because I myself experienced the love, direction and blessings of the Lord after getting planted by Him in a local church He chose for me. Church hopping has, literally, been buried in my past.

As mentioned earlier, whatever local church God chose for you is sure to be a really good one. Its pastor is sure to be anointed and in constant communication with the Lord, and this means he or she will teach you deep lessons from the Holy Bible as they are written. Their church members will welcome you with open arms, take care of you, help you in deepening your faith in the Lord, teach you how to pray in tongues, learn and perform the lessons of the bible and pray a lot with you. As the newly planted member, you will realize faith in the Lord is essential, having a personal relationship with Him is also essential. You will also learn that religion, unbelief, idols, traditions and rituals are unnecessary when it comes to having faith and the personal relationship with the Lord. Together with the pastor and church members, you will flourish and prosper with them. These I personally experienced.

That being said, it is notable that a good local church will teach you prosperity with ways to manage your finances in accordance to biblical principles. Not only that, you will get opportunities to tithe (give back 10% of your income to the Lord through the local church) and wait for God’s supernatural set-up for your prosperity to follow. Tithe, be patient and believe the promised blessings from Him will arrive. In other words, you sow (seeds) and you will reap under God. Learn from the scripture below.

Do not be deceived. God is not mocked; for whatever a man sows, that he will also reap.

Galatians 6:7 (NKJV)

To put things in perspective, Galatians 6:7 emphasizes seed faith. God has a timetable for every seed we plant. His holy timetable is not the same as our respective timetables. With seed sowing in the local church, think of the way seasons move. You will want to wait for God and not lose patience because His timing is perfect and the promised blessings will come…they will be worth the wait! While you keep on pursuing the Lord in your local church, keep on tithing/giving, keep on sowing and NEVER lose faith and patience in Him. The holy harvest of the God will come! Trust in Him! Learn from the words of Lord Jesus in the holy scripture below in the New King James Version (NKJV) and the Passion Translation (TPT).

“Give, and it will given to you: good measure, pressed down, shaken together, and running over will be put into your bosom. For with the measure that you use, it will be measured back to you.”

Luke 6:38 (NKJV)

“Give generously and generous gifts will be given back to you, shaken down to make room for more. Abundant gifts will pour out upon you with such an overflowing measure that it will run over the top! Your measurement of generosity becomes the measurement of your return.”

Luke 6:38 (TPT)

Luke 6:38 clearly emphasizes that God truly gives in return after you give. It is the law of divine reciprocity and this also means the Lord’s abundance. Think about this example: you put money in the bank and in due time the bank returns interest. You give 10% of your income back to God through the local church, and you will receive His abundant blessing in due time. When it comes to tithing, never look at it as an additional expense on your part. Instead, tithing is truly essential as it is part of your responsibility as a child of God. The Lord expects you to receive a harvest from your giving. That being said, do NOT follow the examples of others who do not even give back to God and still expect Him to give them something. Again, tithing is key in receiving blessings from Him and your local church will explain to you why it is part of prosperity. Kingdom wealth is real and so is heavenly income.

Now for the next point about getting planted in a local church: The local church will help you on your relationships. Read the holy scripture below…

Those who are planted in the house of the LORD Shall flourish in the courts of our God. They shall still bear fruit in old age; They shall be fresh and flourishing, To declare that the LORD is upright; He is my rock, and there is no unrighteousness in Him.

Psalm 92:13-15 (NKJV)

The above scripture is another confirmation about God’s plans for each and every one of us. He made those plans before we were even created. In return for our unwavering faith and service to Him, God will bless us with prosperity, good health, happiness, love and a whole lot more. Going back to the plans He made, the restoration of our relationships with our biological family and other people in this world will manifest and the local church is part of the restoration process! In the local church, the pastor and other members can help you if you are willing to seek the Lord’s help through them. Do you have a strained relationship with your parents or your siblings? Did you break up with someone you once loved? Were you a victim of harassment or bullying? Do your classmates hate you in school? Whatever strained or trouble relationships you have, pray to the God in private, share the details and ask Him for help. In due time, the Lord will choose someone in the local church to help you. Trust Him on that and be ready to receive His help through a chosen instrument (someone faithful) of His.

Be aware that God does not want His children to live with strained relationships. For one thing, when one gets born again, he or she becomes a child of God and established a personal relationship with Him. Life for the child of God would not be complete without the restoration of relationships here on Earth. By simply being faithful and trusting in Him, restoration of relationships will transpire. Do not doubt, nor hesitate, let the Lord work on the restoration. With restoration, forgiveness, renewal of love, renewal of trust and peace between you and others will be realized.

God also does not want His children to be divided nor isolated. He is our Heavenly Father and the definitive creator. God also has His family and we the children who got born again, restored and blessed are the one who fill it. This is the spiritual family you will learn about. The spiritual family is God’s family, and the local church you plant yourself in is the spiritual family (on the local level, a branch of God’s family here on Earth). Being isolated, being self-centered, being filled with superiority over others and being filled with pride definitely will prevent you from earning your place in the spiritual family. Learn from the following scriptures below…

Let us hold fast the confession of our hope without wavering, for He who promised is faithful. And let us consider one another in order to stir up love and good words, not forsaking the assembling of ourselves together, as is the manner of some, but exhorting one another, and so much the more you see the Day approaching.

Hebrews 10:23-25 (NKJV)

A man who isolates himself seeks his own desire; He rages against all wise judgment.

Proverbs 18:1 (NKJV)

The confession of our hope written in verse 23 of Hebrews chapter 10 relates to hope of the future consummation of our salvation will never waver as long as it is grounded on the faithfulness of the Lord who promised (and always fulfilled His promises). Verses 24 and 25 emphasize the love for one another in Christ must manifest itself in works of love and gathering together in His name, especially in light of His Coming.

Hebrews 10:23-25 reflects the truth that God uses His believers to reach you with the intention to help you, bless you, and invest in your life to become what God wants you to be. In the local church, your presence is need so the Lord Himself will guide you, command you and bless you. Be aware that – as a planted believer – when you attend Sunday worship services at the local church in the presence of the pastor and other members (note: your fellow brothers and sisters in Christ), you are not a mere spectator but are member of the spiritual family in attendance! This truth makes clear that church hopping will limit you to being a spectator than a true church member. You want your membership in the local church to validated with holiness? Be planted, be faithful, open your heart to God and be in harmony with your brothers and sisters in Christ! It is the local church that the Lord blessed before you get planted. As such, be committed to God in the local church and live up to your responsibilities as His child.

Going back to what I mentioned earlier about isolation and the related factors, Proverbs 18:1 makes clear that being isolated will only lead you the wrong way and will lead you far away from God. If you are an isolationist, you certainly cannot commit yourself to the Lord in any church. Being an isolationist also makes you vulnerable to temptations by Satan and you will not even notice that. Don’t be an isolationist because being one will keep you out of the family of God.

As children of God, we go to church to please Him, not people. We follow His Word through learning and application. We humble ourselves to Him and open our hearts to Him. That being said, it is clear that we open ourselves to fellow faithful Christians in the local church who can offer spiritual assistance when needed. Learn from the scripture below…

As iron sharpens iron, So a man sharpens the countenance of his friend.

Proverbs 27:17 (NKJV)

Proverbs 27:17 clearly emphasizes that it is beneficial and helpful for children of the Lord to be support each other as God is always watching us. If a certain member in the local church is backsliding (losing faith), another member can offer to provide support needed to strengthen the faith. If a member is doing Christianity the wrong way, another member can offer correction. If you are already a member of the local church and got problems with regards to faith and practices, do not hesitate to reach out the pastor or other members already strong and edified. That being said, the truth about these is made clear in the holy scripture below…

Bear one another’s burdens, and so fulfill the law of Christ.

Galatians 6:2 (NKJV)

In the local church, the pastor is you mentor. He or she is to be followed in accordance to the Word of God. The pastor is NOT to be worshipped for that constitutes idolatry which is unholy. Follow the pastor and all the biblical teachings, but always focus your worship exclusively to the Lord. We were created to serve and worship God, His Son Lord Jesus and the Holy Spirit. Going back to the pastor, he or she will not only constantly study the Holy Bible, communicate with God and teach bible lessons to you. The pastor, along with the other members of the spiritual family in the local church, will pray for you.

Moving on, there is the truth that the local church will help you spiritually.

To put things in perspective, church attendance itself is great but it is not the definitive purpose because church is where we are planted to grow spiritually under the Lord. Each faith-led Christian and member of the local church has his or her own responsibilities to live up to, and spiritual growth is one of the requirements. You yourself want to be involved in the local church because your purpose is to grow spiritually, deepen your faith and establish your personal relationship with the Lord.

As members of the body of Christ (the church) and God’s family, we the children must come together to worship Him, learn His Word, do His will, and always maintain an unwavering faith in Him no matter what happens. The more you understand all the teachings of the Holy Bible entirely, the more you will understand the nature of the Lord and what He wants you to do in serving Him and helping Him save the many lost and unsaved souls around the world.

Understand that being planted is also about being obedient to the Lord. Keep on pursuing the Lord no matter what happens. Keep on tithing. Keep on being active in the local church with the goal of growing spiritually. Never limit yourself in honoring the Lord because in due time, He will allow something supernatural to happen to you. Great change will happen in your life. Learn from the final set of scriptures below…

If they obey and serve Him, They shall spend their days in prosperity, And their years in pleasures.

Job 36:11 (NKJV)

Within your heart you can make plans for your future, but the Lord chooses the steps you take to get there.

Proverbs 16:9 (TPT)

“But seek first the kingdom of God and His righteousness, and all these things shall be added to you.”

Matthew 6:33 (NKJV)

Delight yourself also in the LORD, And He shall give you the desires of your heart.

Psalm 37:4 (NKJV)

I hope you have learned why you must be planted in a local church through this article of mine. Always seek God’s kingdom, His righteousness and you will be blessed, protected, guided and go on to live holy under Him. Remember that church hopping is detrimental and won’t help you on establishing your relationship with God.

At this point, I would like to reach out to the lost and the unsaved people reading this. You can save yourselves by submitting to the Lord willingly. No force and no coercion here. You have time and freedom to decide. For those who have decided to get born again now, please read the instructions and follow the prayer that I learned from our pastor.

Are you ready? Firstly, open your heart to the Lord and pray this simple prayer in sincerity from your heart:

Dear God,

I believe that Jesus is Your Son, and that He died on the cross to pay the penalty of my sins. I believe that Jesus has been raised from the dead and that He is alive! Right now, I call on the name of Jesus. Jesus, come into my heart. I receive You as my personal Lord and Savior. Forgive me of my sins and cleanse me by the power of Your blood. Thank You for saving me and giving me eternal life! Help me now to follow Your plan for my life. Amen.

Congratulations! You are now a child of God! You have received Holy Spirit in your heart! This is easily your greatest decision ever made and also the greatest miracle of your life. Always praise, thank and honor the Lord. No more darkness in your life caused by politics, radicalism, toxicity, rebellion, religion, unbelief, evil, idolatry, traditions and rituals! Leave behind the darkness of your life and don’t look back to it. With Lord Jesus, you are already moving forward! You also have a personal relationship with God, a relationship that is strictly off-limits to others (even to your household members or biological family members).

With your new life realized, make an effort to acquire a copy of the Holy Bible (New King James Version is recommended), study it and apply its lessons into your life no matter what situation you are in right now. I also recommend you to join a Christian church near you and find your place in the spiritual family.  Be planted when the Lord shows you the way! Worship the Lord together with them and always remember that faith, not religion, is essential in your personal relationship with God.

The Holy Bible is the ultimate authority and nothing else comes close. Remember always that Lord Jesus did not die on the cross to start religion. He died to redeem us all and showed that we must be led by faith in Him, faith in the Holy Spirit and faith in God the Heavenly Father. He rose from the dead and made His earthly presence felt once more to those who believed in Him. Lord Jesus ascended to Heaven and He promised to return in the future.

In ending this, here are some Christian worship YouTube videos for you to enjoy and praise the Lord with. Always be the fearless and aggressive church of Lord Jesus! 

https://youtube.com/watch?v=Yx7KgxFw-k0%3Fstart%3D900

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