Something’s Missing

 

The book of the Kings are a personal favorite.  The books highlights the history of of Israel through it’s leadership.  Many of these kings loved God but most rejected God (the foolishness of one King even lead to the nation being divided into a northern and southern kingdom). God was not absent while kings rose and fell, during this time he sent many prophets to declare the word of the Lord.   One of those prophets was a man named Elisha.

Elisha was the apprentice of the famous prophet Elijah.  After Elijah’s amazing exit from earth, in a chariot of fire, Elisha received a double portion of spirit and was ready to carry on the mantle.  Because of God’s spirit Elisha turned the nation of Israel upside down and helped promote the worship of the true God.

One of those amazing stories involves Elisha and a group of young guys he was teaching and training (and who were a little tired of sleeping on Elisha’s couch and feeling a little cramped in his apartment).  Check out 2 Kings 6:1-7

“The sons of the prophets said to Elisha, “Please notice that the place where we live under your supervision is too small for us. ² Please let us go to the Jordan where we can each get a log and can build ourselves a place to live there.” “Go,” he said. ³ Then one said, “Please come with your servants.” “I’ll come,” he answered. ⁴ So he went with them, and when they came to the Jordan, they cut down trees. ⁵ As one of them was cutting down a tree, the iron ax head fell into the water, and he cried out, “Oh, my master, it was borrowed!” ⁶ Then the man of God asked, “Where did it fall?”When he showed him the place, the man of God cut a stick, threw it there, and made the iron float. ⁷ Then he said, “Pick it up.” So he reached out and took it.”

So they did what they needed to do, they built a place of their own.  I relate with these guys, they are young, wanting to go out on their own, but they didn’t have any tools.  I’m not much of a handy man, never been, actually pretty lousy at repairing stuff, but at least I do have a tool box.  These guys on the other hand, they had to borrow an ax to cut the wood.

No capitol campaigns and no pledge drives only a group of young preachers with  bunch of trees to chop.  A listen to learn, be careful what you loan young preachers, they may just loose it, in this case, the ax head flies off and sinks to the bottom of a river.  Panic.  Disaster.  No money to buy a new one (they’re young preachers).  Work is over.  Plans have failed.  Call it a day or call a prophet?

They call a prophet.

After an investigation, a stick in the water, and the power of God, the ax head floats.  God saves the day (and also frees up some living room space for Elisha).

Today’s church is not lacking vision statements, not lacking resources, not lacking buildings, not lacking trainings, not lacking conventions, not lacking educational seminaries, and not lacking volumes of teachings and writings (not even lacking blogs?).  Potlucks, preachers, pod-casts, and a plethora of more, we got it.  But when only 15% of millennials are professing Christ (according to Thom Rainer’s book I am a Church Member) one has to wonder, is the job getting done?  Something’s missing.

Somehow in the work, somehow in the midst of much ministry, we lost an ax head.  We lost the cutting tool that makes it possible.  We have lost something  very precious, something that belongs to the family of God.  We run to text books, we run to programs, we run to the trendiest church fad, and we run dogma, but do we really know what’s missing?

We are missing prayer meetings

The early church knew how to pray.  They called upon the Name of The Lord.  They took Christ at His Word; ask and you shall receive.  There was power in those prayer meetings.  The Spirit chose to descend upon the Believers in a prayer meeting.  A free Peter, who was no longer locked up but now he knocked on the door of a prayer meeting.  We’re missing the ax head of prayer meetings.

We are missing passionate preaching

Leonard Ravenhill said “If the sermon doesn’t burn in you (preacher), it won’t burn in anybody else, that’s for sure!”  There’s a place for the lecture, there’s a place for a chronological study of the nation of Israel, there’s a place to debate deep doctrines, and even a place to sit in a circle and discuss the latest Christian book.  It’s just not the pulpit.  The people in the crowd on Sunday morning are hurting, needy, struggling.  They need the truth of Scripture and they need it not to be boring.  Preach with passion. Preach the word.  It’s alive and active.  Christ rose from the dead, Christ can save people, Christ is coming back, and that’s a reason to get excited! We are missing passionate preaching.

We are missing personal evangelism

Fish for men.  Find them in the field, find them at wal-mart, find them across the street, find them at work.  Just go fishing. When was the last time you shared Christ with someone?  The last time you told them that Christ can save them?  Have you ever lead someone to The Lord?  How long ago was that?  It’s not just the preachers job, but every believer who has trusted in Christ.  We must tell people about the good news of Jesus.  You must tell people about Jesus.  I must tell people about Jesus.  We are missing personal evangelism.

Something is missing and we need to take a cue from the preacher boys.  Go find The Prophet.  Not just any prophet, but The Prophet, The Priest, and The King.  Go find Jesus. He’s what’s missing in our churches, He’s what’s missing in our work. Jesus can do more than raise an ax head, He can raise the dead.