There has always been a need for the church to come and work together for the greater good of God’s master plan through Jesus Christ our Lord and Savior.
“Endeavoring to keep the unity of the Spirit in the bond of peace. There is one body, and one Spirit, even as you are called in one hope of your calling; One Lord, one faith, one baptism, One God and Father of all, who is above all, and through all, and in you all. But unto every one of us is given grace according to the measure of the gift of Christ.” Ephesians 4: 3-7 KJV
Jesus stated that a house divided cannot stand (Matt. 12:22-28.) Children of God, open your eyes and be real within yourselves. There is a great falling away from the church.
The church has allowed pride, social status, cultural differences, ethnicities, political agendas, and for sure money, to keep us a part and not working together. It all belongs to God and sometimes people forget about that biblical truth.
Jefferson County has a population of roughly 72,000 with approximately 450 church buildings throughout. If everyone in the county attended worship service, the average size congregation would be 160 members per location. That would be awesome, but that’s not the case. There has been a great falling away from the church no matter who makes up the congregations.
Independent reporting for Pine Bluff & Jefferson County since 1879.
People ages 18 to 45 are not as visible in the church (congregations) today. Of course people will come up with every excuse and then some more on top of those. But we should not be forsaking the assembling of ourselves together, as the manner of some is; but exhorting one another: and so much the more, as ye see the day approaching, scripture says.
How do we reach the people ages 18-45? Well this group of people communicates through social media channels, text messages, websites and sometime emails. The different social media channels have a clearly defined goal. Integrate social media into church communications plans, then monitor social media channels for feedback.
Facebook, YouTube, Twitter, LinkedIn, Instagram, Tumblr and Snapchat are all tools that can be used effectively for the glory of God. Social media outlets are computer-mediated tools that let people, companies, organizations and the church create, share or exchange information, career interests, ideas, and pictures/videos in virtual communities and networks. This is just one tool to reach out to the church, the lost and communities.
A house divided cannot stand neither can the church because the body of Jesus Christ was created to fully operate as one body (church). There are capacity issues that every congregation faces right here in Jefferson County. I’m not saying there are not challenges in other places as well, but let us start here at home. Why was the Good Shepherd able to leave the 99 and go get the one lost? Because he had the capacity to do it. This is what’s missing in the church. (St Luke 15:1-7).
For the Son of Man has come to save that which was lost. We must be willing and able to reach the lost and to minister across the board. No one person, congregation, denomination, ethnicity or social group can do the work that God has called the church to achieve. Sunday should not be the most divided day of the week. Get over race because God created and loves all of us the same. (Genesis 1:27, Acts 10:34).
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Anthony A. Armstrong is senior pastor at Unity Christian Fellowship Church at Pine Bluff.
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Editor’s note: Pastors or associate pastors interested in writing for this section may submit articles to pbcnews@pbcommercial.com. Please include your phone number and the name and location of your church or ministry.