God Has Left The Building

When the show was over, the audience would stay in the concert hall and chant for Elvis to come back out until someone would announce "Elvis has left the building."  Since the 70s, churches have been in decline.  More and more church buildings have been left empty, with contents going on the auction block. In an obvious and dramatic way, God has left the building. Other church building are empty but for a few "faithful" hanging on to a by-gone day.  Few churches are actually growing. 

Interestingly, people are still very spiritual and hungering for God. They simply are not drawn to churches and are often repelled by them. I sat in an community action board meeting yesterday, listening to a young veteran tell how she was drawn to the Baptist service in the military but felt distant and isolated when returning from deployment. Instead of reaching out to her, they expected her to just blend in with them. She left. 

Young people from this generation are voting with their feet to close the churches as they walk away in droves, untouched, unhappy and disconnected with the closed society in most churches. They are not walking away from God, they are walking away from the churches, looking for Him. There is an empty place in their hearts and souls that only God can fill, and it is not being filled in most of our churches. 

When John The Baptist asked if Jesus was the one, Jesus sent this word back to him: "The blind receive sight, the lame walk, those who have leprosy are cleansed, the deaf hear, the dead are raised, and the good news is proclaimed to the poor" (Matt 11:5).  John wanted to know if the Messiah was here, was God in the building?  Jesus' proof to John was not in regard to doctrine or ritual, it was in ministry - meeting the needs of the people, not getting people to embrace tradition. 

Is your church touching lives, healing hurts, lifting souls, proclaiming good news?  Is God in your building?  Do your church members ever follow God out of the building to go where the lost and hurting are so that you can bring healing and proclaim good news?  Do you suppose that if you did that those people might follow you back to the building in order to commune with you as God ushers you both into fellowship there?  

God always leaves the building in order to reach the people where they are and then invites those healed by his presence to come to the table of fellowship with him and his children: "‘Go out to the roads and country lanes and compel them to come in, so that my house will be full'" (Luke 14:23).  God has left the building. Are you following him so that you can intersect with those he would reach out to, touch and invite back?  Or has God left your building never to return?  Jus' Ask'n.