No one can join the Church:
This just occurred to me,
This is no more so
Than a baby joins a family.
What input has a baby
In a decision regarding such?
Similarly, the born-again:
Now you tell me, how much?
Jesus said to Nicodemus
He must be born again
And to even understand the term
Nicodemus was in pain.
He saw the birth canal
And he revisited the same
For this was his only concept
Of being born again.
When one is born again,
He has no input in the process,
The Holy Spirit is the agent
At what the Spirit does best.
There is the matter of faith
The responder may exercise
But as to being born again
He cannot the least decide.
In the same way, understand,
No one can join the Church,
This might now be news to you
And in a way it may hurt.
I have been a church member
For a very long time
But it is only early this morning
This matter came to mind.
We set store by our church:
A local assembly I mean
And while this may be important
There is more to be gleaned.
And particularly so today
Regarding some assemblies
Where church membership is all
Particularly regarding money.
One’s money is required
If he must remain in good faith
And should he lack in this regard
He could lose his place.
By now you should have seen
The critical difference:
It’s the Church I am talking about
In the born-again sense.
Not a church or an assembly
Which one can easily join,
But the blood bought Church of Jesus Christ
To which one has to be joined.
The Lord does the joining:
Not a pastor or apostle
And without the work of the Spirit
This joining is impossible.
It’s a Spirit to spirit witness
Like the sperm that met the egg
When presto! I was conceived
Before my earthly leg.
No one can join the Church:
It is the Lord that does this act
And what better place to find this
Than in the book of Acts!
Acts 2:47
And the Lord added to the church
Daily such as should be saved.
Stewart Russell © May 29, 2021
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