What is God doing in 2015?

What is God doing in 2015?

My friend David Fredrickson wrote a blog on this topic recently but I felt like throwing in my

two cents.  Like him, I’m seeing tons of posts and articles from various “prophets” predicting what God is doing this year.  They all pretty much fall into one of three categories: 1. Those who say bad things are coming.  2. Those who say wealth and wonderful things are coming.  3. Those who say bad things are coming to the world but wealth and wonderful things are coming to believers.  So here is my in-depth look at what God is doing in 2015.

 

What is God doing in the government: I don’t know.

What is God doing in the economy: I don’t know. 

What is God doing in Russia, China, Iran, North Korea, and Israel:  I don’t know.  

What about A.I.D.S, Ebola, ISIS, terrorism, etc.? I don’t know.

What is God doing in the church?  I think I actually have some insight on this one.

 

I see Him doing three things in this season in the church and always. 

 

First, He is awakening us to His love.  Yes, we all know God loves us…mentally.  We’re supposed to believe that.  It’s Christianity 101.  But the fact is many, many believers don’t truly believe that.  His love has been mixed with obligation and a whole lot of nonsense that is anything but Him.  Love has been treated as merely one of many attributes God has rather than being His defining characteristic. God is opening the eyes of the church to just how much He loves each one of us.  As people are beginning to see that He is indeed an affectionate and loving Father their entire lives are changing.  They’re reading their Bibles differently, praying differently, and living differently.  Many of the beliefs they clung to for years are falling by the wayside as they’ve proven not to line up with what they now understand about their Father’s heart.  For the first time, many are truly enjoying their relationship with their heavenly Father as they are discovering that He is indeed their Abba.

 

Second, the church is discovering the liberty we have in Christ.  This is directly linked to the growing revelation of our Father’s love.  As the many in the Body of Christ are growing in His love they are realizing that much of their activities were rooted in trying make themselves worthy of His love, trying to make Him happy, trying to please Him, and/or trying to remove their guilt.  They were attempting to make themselves feel better about themselves by following rules to gain approval or perform well to be “more spiritual” or “better” than others.  It was all based on being “in” or “out.”  Lines were constantly drawn to determine who’s “in” and who’s “out.”  It was all shame based. 

 

But as the Body of Christ has been discovering how loved they are by their Father their shame has been disappearing and along with it all the drivenness that accompanied their attempts to deal with it.  The need to perform for approval has been fading as they’ve been discovering they’re already accepted by their Father.  The sense of having to add to themselves something that is lacking has been diminishing as many in the body of Christ have been finding they are already complete in Christ.  The church is discovering they’ve been trying to earn points with somebody who is not keeping score.  As believers are growing in the love of their Father they’re also discovering that He doesn’t place burdens on people, rather He removes them.   

 

The bottom line is the truth is setting the church free.  Jesus is the Truth.  And as people are seeing who He is all the religious additions are falling off.  They are discovering they are free indeed and no longer obligated to perform or do anything to prove they are His followers.  The proof is their lives not in religious activities. This is a big reason why many congregations are finding their numbers dwindling.  This is a mark of what God is doing, not Satan.  This doesn’t mean belonging to a congregation is wrong.  To say so would mean the church doesn’t have liberty.  But that’s the point.  Jesus is freeing His people to live in His life and joy.  If attending a congregation builds you up and helps you live in His life and joy, then more power to you!  It’s just for many it does not.  In this season they are discovering they’re free to abandon that which they don’t find life giving.  Many in the church are discovering a new freedom they have never known before.   

 

Third, the church is learning how to love one another.  This builds on the foundation of knowing Father’s love for us and living in His liberty.  As we are growing in His love we can’t help but reflect Him and love others.  And because believers are growing in His liberty they are able to truly love others, free from agendas with hearts to lift their burdens.  The body of Christ is learning the true meaning of words like friendship and family.  Through liberty the expectations we used to place on one another are being removed so we can accept one another as we are, function as we were built to function, and truly be family. It is here where the world will be changed.  As we love one another the world will see we are His and be drawn to Him. 

 

This is what I see Father doing in 2015 and beyond.  For some of those who haven’t yet come to understand the Father’s heart, this season is quite disconcerting.  They’ll continue to throw around words like “heresy” and accuse those who are living in Father’s love of “following the empty philosophies of men.”  But that’s to be expected.  And for those with vested interest in man-made kingdoms this season will be particularly problematic, not because God is “out to get them” but because they’re “kicking against the goads.”  It’s a tough place to live.  Having been there, I actually feel for them.  He’s building His church.  Jesus’ work never goes forth without resistance.  But I think this is such an awesome time to be alive!  The church is finally coming back to what really matters – Him and one another.