Topic: Principles in Building the City Church Part 1
Before we get started let me say we are not building a
fraternity, sorority, secret society, organization, club, network or
denomination. So this is not some new sect of Christianity, we are building the
Corporate Body of Christ within the city.
There are signs and wonders that we have not even tapped into until this
happens. A small picture of this can be
seen in Acts 4 where the Body within Jerusalem was together on one accord and
when they prayed on one accord the place where they were assembled was shaken
and all were filled with the Holy Ghost and spoke the word of God with boldness
(Acts 4:24-31). There is a release of
power that will make the earth shake when the sons of God are gathered together
on one accord. Let’s start looking at
some of the principles necessary to build the city church.
1. Identify David in the House
1 Chronicles 12:1: Now these are they that came to David at
Ziklag while he yet kept himself close because of Saul the son of Kish: and
they were among the mighty men, helpers of the war.
The first principle is you must identify the “David” in the
house. Notice in this Scripture that the
mighty men who are helpers of the war sought out David. We must seek out the
son carrying the grace in the house. He
must be a sent man, God’s appointed, understands proceeding truth, a passion
for God and wants to build God’s house.
When you find him, you seek to be partakers of the grace.
Philippians 1:7: Even
as it is meet for me to think this of you all, because I have you in my heart;
inasmuch as both in my bonds, and in the defence and confirmation of the
gospel, ye all are partakers of my grace.
In initially beginning to build the city church, you may
have to go out and seek honorable men but be careful and discerning and we will
discuss this but eventually you need to stop because the grace should attract
men because the grace is sufficient.
2. Helpers
1 Chronicles 12:1: Now these are they that came to David at
Ziklag while he yet kept himself close because of Saul the son of Kish: and
they were among the mighty men, helpers of the war.
Here in the Scripture the men that are coming are coming to
David in a place called Ziklag. Ziklag
means “winding road” or “grief”. It is
the city where David and his wife and children were kidnapped and the city
burned. It was a very grievous time for
David but he is here hiding out in Ziklag and the mighty men of war sought him
and found him there. You will come to
your Ziklag in building the city church because in the eyes of the world you
have failed but the helpers that God will send will be attracted to the grace
and will have a pure motive and not seek you for what they could get.
In the church we have a lot of seeker sensitive people. Asking questions like this:
What can the church do for me?
Can the church pay my bills?
Can the church pay my legal fees?
Beware of these people! Discern for the spirit of Jezebel,
Absalom and Adonaji. We will talk about
these spirits because they will come to disrupt and destroy what is being
built. The true helpers will carry the
spirit of an Aaron or an Hur. These people come to truly help.
3. A Crossing Over
1 Chronicles 12:2:
They were armed with bows, and could use both the right hand and the
left in hurling stones and shooting arrows out of a bow, even of Saul’s
brethren of Benjamin
In the Scripture we see the tribe of Benjamin switch over
and join with the tribe of Judah. In
addition in 1 Chronicles 12:8, the tribe of Gad crosses over to join with the
tribe of Judah. What are we seeing? This crossing over as it pertains to building
the city church is people must leave their racial, denominational/institutional
and ethnic biases in order to join in the building of the city church. I can tell you that here in the Southern
United States the grip of racism still exists and denominational rule is very
strong. As the Lord called me out of the
institutional church, it was very hard to understand and find my identity. However as I continue to seek the Lord, He
connected me to the grace within a man, who became my spiritual father and
through that relationship I began to see things the way the Father sees them
and trust me, in order to build His Corporate Body, racial,
denomination/institutional and ethnic biases must be rebuked and cleansed from
the sons in order to be used for His work in building His House. Paul said it best:
Galatians 3:28: There
is neither Jew nor Greek, there is neither bond nor free, there is neither male
nor female: for ye are all one in Christ Jesus
2 Corinthians 5:16:
Wherefore henceforth know we no man after the flesh: yea, though we have
known Christ after the flesh, yet now henceforth know we him no more.
God is raising a firstfruit company that will set His
standard in the city and people from every ethnicity will flow to the
grace. Race, ethnicity and
denominational/institutional rule must be rebuked because if it is allowed to
come into the city church it will continue to divide the body in a place where
there should be the ultimate unity.
In the next message we will continue to look at more
principles to build the city church. So
far we have:
1.Recognize the David (Son carrying the Grace) within the
House
2. Recognize the Helpers with a Pure Motive
3. Recognize the
Crossing Over Necessary to be Used for the Work
Peace and Love,
Calvin Calhoun
