Why is a "church" Meeting of Utmost Importance to the Lord?
What Kind of Meeting is the Lord Desiring?    by David Nelson     4-13-11

 

The Lord wants to do something new in the Church and yet it has always been what He has wanted. Just as Moses saw in heaven what God wanted on earth (the Tabernacle, the Temple), and as David and other prophetic people saw from heaven what God wanted in the Tabernacle of David, so too today God is showing people what He wants for His Church. Of course, He is the final architect and builder but He is showing the blue-print and the truths to people who are seeking Him. They will know what it should be and what it will look like as it comes into being. The following is a glimpse of the meetings God is looking to create.

 

The Lord can speak to you as you pray and fellowship with Him privately in your own room. Or He can reveal Himself to you in a vision or in a dream. But His higher goal is for you to share what you hear from Him with others. Sometimes He may say to you, "Don't share this with anyone till I tell you." But most often He shows us things to share with others. The Scriptural plan for how to do this and, I might say, the most practical and logical way to do this is to have believers gather at a meeting. This is God's way, this is the Bible way, to get the most from the Lord. Of course, we will never know until we get there what the Lord may do at a meeting totally open to the leading of the Holy Spirit. He may speak through everyone there in unique and powerful ways. Every person could even be used multiple times and the Lord can say everything He wants to us and show us everything He wants us to know at this time. If you miss the meeting God cannot use you (because you're not there) and you will miss what the Lord spoke through every one who did come. Let's get together and prepare our hearts to hear and see all the Lord has for us!

 

Also, when God brings people together as He has always wanted Biblically (Old Testament, New Testament, Jesus, the apostle Paul, the church meeting), God is able to shine in His multi-faceted glory in many ways as He is free to do through whomever, whatever He wants. And He will amaze us as to what He will do through the least of the brethren and even through you. If one person is good, it is not so much that 10 people are ten times better but perhaps a 1,000 times better. Remember one can put a 1,000 to flight but two can put 10,000 to flight. It is for God's glory that we gather.

 

(The following section has been gleaned from the book Azusa Street by Frank Bartleman but also describes what God is desiring for today)

 

Now, what kind of meeting is the Lord looking for? What kind of meeting can He be over and do everything He wants to do? Let's imagine some things and see what strikes you as to what the Lord would like. What if there was a place where there were meetings day and night, every day, 7 days a week, and 24 hours a day. That seems pretty radical but just imagine a place like that. The doors were always open. When you came to this place you didn't come to see man perform but you expected to meet with God and that He was going to reveal Himself to you if you came. Let's say whoever came to this place to hear from God that it didn't matter if there was a "leader" or a "preacher" there, God was going to reveal Himself through whoever came. No matter when you came the meeting was always being run by the Holy Spirit. The meetings moved along unguided by human hands. There was a Holy fear of God at this place and you could feel the fire of God burning there. Sometimes a burden would come upon you there that was almost unbearable. Sometimes Jesus' presence was so strong and so real you could not move and you could not look. Sometimes what you saw and heard made you speechless and even took your breath away. Every day the Holy Spirit was with you when you went to work or when you had to leave the meetings so that you could hardly talk about normal things. Earthly fellowship seemed so empty and it was a torment to you. Then when you were able to come back to the meetings within 2 or 3 blocks of the meeting place the conviction of the Holy Spirit would fall upon you. A divine love began to permeate your life more and more so that everyone you saw at the meetings or in your regular life you were touched in your heart with more love towards them than you ever had before. It was as though you were living in a sea of pure, divine love now. At these meetings, whenever you could come, nothing contrary to the pure Spirit was there, the Lord reigned there. The atmosphere was unbearable to the carnal spirit.

 

At these meetings there was no human program. People who came were sincerely seeking the Lord. People came to meet with God and He was always there. No one depended on human leadership there. Pride, self-assertion, self-importance, self-esteem, self-plans could not survive in that atmosphere though at times people would come in with this attitude. Our desire is to hear what God wants to say through whomever and however He would like to do it. When God moved or used someone every one recognized that God had done it. The meetings were started by God spontaneously. No one had to push things along, but a dozen people might be trembling under the power of God ready to speak at any one time. When someone shared, whether it be a child, woman, man, back seat or front seat it didn't matter, just let God have His way. Someone might be speaking and the Holy Spirit may suddenly fall on everyone and everyone would fall before God. Speakers knew what to say and when to stop (when the anointing stopped). Things were moving by the Holy Spirit at a higher level than just human efforts and each one who entered into the flow by contributing knew they were being used by the Holy Spirit and that they were in His anointing. Perfect love made fear go away. Even if someone moved in the flesh for a little while the Holy Spirit would not allow it to last too long, they would run out of steam (human effort), the move of God would not be de-railed because the meetings belonged to God.