Submitted by Joel Oliver on Thu, Feb 11 - 4:35 pm
I am preaching through the Psalms of Ascent on Sunday Mornings (Psalms 120-134). Psalms 127 is a Psalm that is familiar to those in ministry. It says,
vs 1---"Except the Lord build the house, they labor in vain that build it: except the Lord keep the city, the watchmen waketh but in vain."
vs 2---It is vain for you to rise up early, to sit up late, to eat the bread of sorrows: for so He giveth His beloved sleep.
vs 3---Lo, children are a heritage of the Lord: and the fruit of the womb is his reward
vs 4---As arrows are in the hand of a mighty man; so are children of thy youth
vs 5---Happy is the man that hath his quiver full of them: they shall not be ashamed, but they shall speak with the enemies in the gate.
The writter was most likely dealing with the building of strong families. However, verse 1 is often used in reference to the building of the Church and there are great principals in this Psalms that can be applied to the family, City, Business and the Church.
I would like to look specifically at the building of the ministry of the Church. It is clear from this Psalm that we cannot build the Church, that is His job (vs 1a; Matt 16:18). If building the Church is His job, what are we to do? Take a few minutes and consider these four points from Psalms 127:
01) We are to REMOVE BARRIERS to CHURCH growth (vs 1a)
02) We are to MARK BORDERS so that we know what we believe and stand for (vs 1b)
03) We are to MAINTAIN BALANCE in life and in the Church (vs 2)
04) We are to help MATURE BELIEVERS so they can find their purpose and do it (vs 3-5)
The QUESTION for this blog is, "What are some of the barriers that can exist in a Church that keep people from coming and keep people from staying."
I would love to hear your thoughts!
Pastor Joel
vs 1---"Except the Lord build the house, they labor in vain that build it: except the Lord keep the city, the watchmen waketh but in vain."
vs 2---It is vain for you to rise up early, to sit up late, to eat the bread of sorrows: for so He giveth His beloved sleep.
vs 3---Lo, children are a heritage of the Lord: and the fruit of the womb is his reward
vs 4---As arrows are in the hand of a mighty man; so are children of thy youth
vs 5---Happy is the man that hath his quiver full of them: they shall not be ashamed, but they shall speak with the enemies in the gate.
The writter was most likely dealing with the building of strong families. However, verse 1 is often used in reference to the building of the Church and there are great principals in this Psalms that can be applied to the family, City, Business and the Church.
I would like to look specifically at the building of the ministry of the Church. It is clear from this Psalm that we cannot build the Church, that is His job (vs 1a; Matt 16:18). If building the Church is His job, what are we to do? Take a few minutes and consider these four points from Psalms 127:
01) We are to REMOVE BARRIERS to CHURCH growth (vs 1a)
02) We are to MARK BORDERS so that we know what we believe and stand for (vs 1b)
03) We are to MAINTAIN BALANCE in life and in the Church (vs 2)
04) We are to help MATURE BELIEVERS so they can find their purpose and do it (vs 3-5)
The QUESTION for this blog is, "What are some of the barriers that can exist in a Church that keep people from coming and keep people from staying."
I would love to hear your thoughts!
Pastor Joel
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