WORTHY VISIONS FOR A BIBLE-BELIEVING CHURCH
“Where there is no vision, the people perish: but he who keeps the law, happy is he.”
Proverbs 29:18
We will use this definition of vision: “envisioning the future with hope”. Visions are an important part of Bible history and have a clearly defined future for the people of God. Concerning the days prior to our Lord’s return, Joel 2:28-29: “And it shall come to pass afterward That I will pour out My Spirit on all flesh; Your sons and your daughters shall prophesy, Your old men shall dream dreams, Your young men shall see visions. And also on My menservants and on My maidservants I will pour out My Spirit in those days” Joel 2:28-29 (NKJV)
I. THE BIBLE TEACHES OF VARIOUS TYPES OF VISIONS.
Some of the visions revealed in the Scripture occurred at mid-day; others in the night hours; some in the outdoors; some inside. There are many visions described in the Bible. Here are just a few:
Jacob’s a vision of the ladder, angels and the Lord.
“So he came to a certain place and stayed there all night, because the sun had set. And he took one of the stones of that place and put it at his head, and he lay down in that place to sleep. Then he dreamed, and behold, a ladder was set up on the earth, and its top reached to heaven; and there the angels of God were ascending and descending on it. And behold, the LORD stood above it and said: "I am the LORD God of Abraham your father and the God of Isaac; the land on which you lie I will give to you and your descendants.” Genesis 28:11-13 (NKJV)
Moses’ vision of the burning bush.
“Now Moses was tending the flock of Jethro his father-in-law, the priest of Midian. And he led the flock to the back of the desert, and came to Horeb, the mountain of God. And the Angel of the LORD appeared to him in a flame of fire from the midst of a bush. So he looked, and behold, the bush was burning with fire, but the bush was not consumed. Then Moses said, "I will now turn aside and see this great sight, why the bush does not burn." So when the LORD saw that he turned aside to look, God called to him from the midst of the bush and said, "Moses, Moses!" And he said, "Here I am." Then He said, "Do not draw near this place. Take your sandals off your feet, for the place where you stand is holy ground." Moreover He said, "I am the God of your father--the God of Abraham, the God of Isaac, and the God of Jacob." And Moses hid his face, for he was afraid to look upon God.” Exodus 3:1-6 (NKJV)
Gideon’s vision of the Lord while threshing wheat:
“Now the Angel of the LORD came and sat under the oak tree which was in Ophrah, which belonged to Joash, while his son Gideon threshed wheat in the winepress, in order to hide it from the Midianites. And the Angel of the LORD appeared to him, and said to him, "The LORD is with thee, thou mighty man of valor!" Judges 6:11-12 (NKJV*)
Elisha’s vision of the rapture of Elijah.
‘Then it happened, as they continued on and talked, that suddenly a chariot of fire appeared with horses of fire, and separated the two of them; and Elijah went up by a whirlwind into heaven.” 2 Kings 2:11 (NKJV)
Isaiah’s vision of the Lord in His glory:
“In the year that King Uzziah died, I saw the Lord sitting on a throne, high and lifted up, and the train of His robe filled the temple. Above it stood seraphim; each one had six wings: with two he covered his face, with two he covered his feet, and with two he flew. And one cried to another and said: "Holy, holy, holy is the LORD of hosts; The whole earth is full of His glory!" Isaiah 6:1-3 (NKJV)
Stephen’s vision of the Lord Jesus.
“When they heard these things they were cut to the heart, and they gnashed at him with their teeth. But he, being full of the Holy Spirit, gazed into heaven and saw the glory of God, and Jesus standing at the right hand of God, and said, "Look! I see the heavens opened and the Son of Man standing at the right hand of God!" Acts 7:54-56 (NKJV)
Paul’s vision on the road to Damascus.
“As he journeyed he came near Damascus, and suddenly a light shone around him from heaven. Then he fell to the ground, and heard a voice saying to him, "Saul, Saul, why are you persecuting Me?" And he said, "Who are You, Lord?" Then the Lord said, "I am Jesus, whom you are persecuting. It is hard for you to kick against the goads." So he, trembling and astonished, said, "Lord, what do You want me to do?" Then the Lord said to him, "Arise and go into the city, and you will be told what you must do." Acts 9:3-6 (NKJV)
II. A SCRIPTURAL VISION OF THE OFFICE OF PASTOR
"And I will give you shepherds according to My heart, who will feed you with knowledge and understanding.” Jeremiah 3:15 (NKJV)
“And He Himself gave some to be apostles, some prophets, some evangelists, and some pastors and teachers, for the equipping of the saints for the work of ministry, for the edifying of the body of Christ.” Ephesians 4:11-12 (NKJV)
In these two passages, one from the Old Testament and the other from the New Testament establishes two fundamental truths:
1. The pastor is herein declared to be given by God to the church.
“I will give you shepherds…” “And He Himself gave some to be….pastors…”
2. The work of the pastor is to “feed you (the people of God) with knowledge and understanding”; “for equipping of the saints for the work of the ministry, for the edifying of the body of Christ.”
III. A VISION OF A CHURCH WITH AN OPEN DOOR.
“And they sang a new song, saying, "Worthy art Thou to take the book, and to break its seals; for Thou wast slain, and didst purchase for God with Thy blood men from every tribe and tongue and people and nation.” Revelation 5:9 (NASB)
“There is neither Jew nor Greek, there is neither slave nor free, there is neither male nor female; for you are all one in Christ Jesus.” Galatians 3:28 (NKJV)
Over the span of sixty (60) years in the Gospel ministry, God has blessed me with the privilege of having declared His Word to more than forty (40) nations. In a majority of those nations, because of the ethnic and/or cultural makeup of those nations, the extent of the fellowship within their churches and missions was limited to one ethnic or cultural group due to the makeup of the population.
That limitation does not exist in the United States. Here we have the great privilege of growing our churches with a multi-racial, multi-ethnic and multi-cultural vision in mind.
I certainly understand that, in our country, some of our churches will choose to maintain a mono-cultural or mono-racial emphasis in their makeup and outreach. I take no issue with this concept if a church deems that this approach is most suitable to the community where they are located. But I would be remiss not to advance the concept, that in many of our multi-racial, multi-ethnic and multi-cultural communities, the local church would do well to consider diligently advancing the effort to grow our churches so as to reflect the overall makeup of the community.
It is a worthy objective of any church to be a microcosm of “the Church of the First-born”, which following His glorious return, shall be seated around the great banquet table at the Marriage Feast of the Lamb. Doing this will declare to the world that in Him there is “neither Jew nor Gentile, slave nor free, male nor female, for we are all one in Christ Jesus”.
IV. THE CHURCH NEEDS A CLEAR VISION OF ITS DOCTRINE
“And they continued steadfastly in the apostles’ doctrine and fellowship, in the breaking of bread, and in prayers.” Acts 2:42 (NKJV)
“For the time will come when they will not endure sound doctrine, but according to their own desires, because they have itching ears, they will heap up for themselves teachers; and they will turn their ears away from the truth, and be turned aside to fables.” 2 Timothy 4:3-4 (NKJV).
The members of our churches need to know what they believe; why they believe it; and the scriptural basis for those beliefs. We need to diligently “search the Scriptures to see if these things be so”.
V. THE VISION CHRIST JESUS HAD FOR HIS CHURCH
"That they all may be one, as You, Father, are in Me, and I in You; that they also may be one in Us, that the world may believe that You sent Me. And the glory which You gave Me I have given them, that they may be one just as We are one.” John 17:21-22 (NKJV)
The vision the Lord had for His Church is clearly expressed in His prayer to the Father. We should adopt this as our vision. Only then can we truthfully sing the little chorus written by William and Gloria Gaither: “I’m so glad I’m a part of the family of God---I’ve been washed in the fountain, cleansed by His blood! Joint heirs with Jesus as we travel this sod; For I’m part of the family, the family of God.”
