Building Fellowship in the Church — Zac Poonen

Parents’ Responsibility to Train Their Children

I'd like to share something from God's word before we pray for these dear children. When God gives us children First of all we Must remember They are a gift of God and they were given to us with a purpose.

Psalm 127 children are I'm sorry children are a gift of the Lord. Psalm 127 verse 3 and They are like arrows In the hand of a warrior. You know what arrows are used for? Arrows are used for firing at the enemy.

And our enemy is Satan. So we have to bring up our children to Fight against Satan. In other words Jesus said I will build my church and the gates of hell Will not prevail against it so Our children must become effective members of the church that fights against Satan and You know how an arrow is fired.

In the olden days they didn't have guns and rifles. Put an arrow and pull the bow and fire. So I picture that God gives parents a bow and And We put this arrow which is our son or daughter and Pulling the bow is like Training that child for 18 years.

We usually have our children at home for about 18 years. Some people have them for more 25 years. I had my sons at home only for 18 years and I had to Pull the bow my wife and I not me alone. Pull the bow the string in 18 years trained them.

So that one when we release them They go and fight the devil so that responsibility is on parents. To bring up their children in the fear of God and if your children go astray I Always say never blame them.

I told my sons when they went away from home. I Said if any of you go astray one or two things one I will never blame you. I Will not blame you. I will say that I Did not bring you up properly. Because the Bible says train up the child in the way he should go and when he's old he will not depart from it.

Whatever may happen. He will not depart from it. So if you departed from it, that means I didn't train you up properly according to Psalm Proverbs 22 6 so The second thing I said was okay, even if it was my mistake and I did not do my job properly.

But you went astray, but I'm not going to let you keep on going astray just because I failed. You know because some parents have come to the church to CFC after their children have grown up. The children have already gone astray and then the parents are converted and come to the church.

Then What shall we do about them? Is there hope for them? Of course, there is hope for them because there's nothing impossible with God. But then I would I told my boys if that happens to you. I will pray that God will Deal with you drastically and bring you to a place of need in your life.

I mean, I pray you have a car crash or break your legs or something like that. So that you will turn back to him. So I asked parents whose children are going astray. Are you willing to let God break your leg?

You know children's legs in a car accident. So no, no, no, no. Okay, let them go to hell. That's better for you. You prefer that. Do you see how serious it is for a child to disobey and dishonor God? His legs broken is nothing if that will help him to come to his place of need.

It's very very important that parents take seriously Their responsibility and my children knew that I took my responsibility very seriously of Ensuring that they are not going to grow up to be a dishonor to God and a credit to Satan.

So don't let any child here parents. Don't let any child of yours Grow up to glorify Satan. Because you have pampered him or her and spoiled them by Giving them whatever they want maybe because you got lots of money and Not taught them the fear of God not them taught them obedience to parents not taught them to respect older people and Not urge them to fellowship with other people in the church of like mind.

My children were tremendously helped. Because I urge them to fellowship in the church with others More than they've fellowshiped with worldly friends. So there are ways to it's a wonderful thing to be in a church where we have godly values.

Valuing the Church and Rejecting Gossip

But it doesn't mean that just because you're in a godly church your children will grow up godly. It depends on what values you put for them. For example, my wife and I decided we will never sit at home and Criticize the brothers and sisters in the church.

Have you made that decision? You sit around the dining table and speak evil of the brothers and sisters. I can guarantee your children will go astray and When they go astray, you know the reason. They don't value the church because you the great expert have found so many things wrong with the church.

You yourself God has not used you to build any church. I have been criticized many times in my life. Do you know the people who have criticized me the most. The people have never built one church themselves so Learn to value the church learn teach your children to value the church.

Nobody in the church is perfect. The young people are not perfect, but teach them to value them and fellowship with them. So that they are protected from the evil there is in the rest of the world. So I want to encourage all of you I believe God is on our side.

The great encouragement we have is Do you know that God is on your side? To help you bring up your children properly. But you better also be on God's side and don't criticize his children. Because God does not like it if you spend your time criticizing his children.

Then he won't help you so much with your children. So you make it a decision in your life. That you're not going to spend your time criticizing the elders and criticizing the people in the church. When you yourself have done nothing.

If you don't do it for the sake of the Lord at least do it for the sake of your children. That you preserve them from gossip backbiting evil speaking at home so that you're stretching your. Because every evil that you do or speak that string of the bow becomes Slack and then when you release the arrow, it doesn't fly it just flops over there.

Because you did not pull it tense with godliness and spiritual values. So that's a little picture you can keep in your mind. Remember God is there to help you to pull the string always remember God is there to help you to train your children.

Without God's help is impossible. But with God's help it's possible. I used to pray like this when my children were small. Today, you know that all my four children are following the Lord. They married godly women and they're bringing up their own children now in godly ways.

Raising Generations of Believers

But my what I used to pray for them was this. I say Lord today. They are small children. I Want them to grow up and become my brothers in Christ? That I can treat each one of them like a brother in Christ and that's what's happened.

You pray like that Lord. I don't want my children to always be children. Some of you your children are married. Or they are grown up they're in college they are working. Have they become your brothers and sisters in Christ?

Or you're like the Maharaja just Ordering them around that's sad as soon as my children grew up and started working before they got married. I Said Lord now they are my brothers in Christ. And I'm gonna treat them just like I treat any other young brother in the church.

I'm gonna talk with them and Relate to them about spiritual things just like a brother. So that is if your children are grown up and they've come to the place where they are Past college and working they should now have become your brother and sister in Christ.

Work towards that let's raise up in CFC Sharjah a whole group of wonderful young brothers and sisters who will grow up to marry godly men and women and Who will be another generation? Fighting against Satan.

I'm always very happy to pray for children because they are the next generation and Actually folks like them are almost third generation. But in we need in the church to keep on Producing generation after generation of godly people and Some of you have brought up your children already as Born again.

That's wonderful. Some of them are married. Now you must pray for the next generation your grandchildren. I Pray for my grandchildren. I pray that they will Grow up to be the third generation of witnesses for Jesus Christ.

I'm not happy with just one generation. I want the next generation. I Talked to them to the grandchildren about reading the Bible and about my wife is always talking to the grandchildren about the stories of the Bible and So we need to have generation after generation.

It's following the Lord. It's very very important. So I was sharing in the last session about the importance of being a spiritual Christian and not just an intellectual one. Jesus said the Thank you father.

You're hidden these things from clever intelligent people. But you have revealed them to babes. What do babes have which clever intelligent people don't have? Humility you cannot compete with a baby in humility a baby.

Newly born baby is the humblest Person on the face of the earth. There is no there is zero pride in a little baby and When Jesus said in Matthew 11 25 Thank you father. You have hidden these things from the clever.

The intelligent and you reveal them to babes. What he was saying is God's greatest truths are revealed to those who are humble. The humbler you are The more you will understand of the Bible not the cleverer you are.

The cleverer you are the less you will understand the truth of the Bible. But the humbler you are the more you understand. So what shall some of us do who are clever? I told the Lord. I said Lord. I have to acknowledge.

I am intelligent. I'm not stupid. But that intelligence I see is helpful in the world, but when it comes to the Bible, it's a handicap. I want to know and the Lord said doesn't matter you you can be intelligent and humble.

Why do you have to be proud of your intelligence? Why do you have to depend on your intelligence? Then I saw the secret. But even if you're clever and intelligent you can still understand the scriptures if you're humble yourself and come to the scripture and say Lord I cannot understand this unless you reveal it to me, and then you'll find that God speaks to you.

Not only through clever people. But through some very simple people. Who minister life it depends on what? You come to the church for you come to the church to get information. Or you go to the internet to listen to messages to get knowledge knowledge knowledge.

From Intellectual Knowledge to Spiritual Life

You'll go astray. You know this book and every sermon that you hear even of my sermons. You have a choice. It can be a tree of knowledge. Or a tree of life. There are about 1 ,000 sermons of mine on YouTube every one of them can be a tree of knowledge.

Or a tree of life that depends on you. Two people listening to the same sermon one person gets knowledge the other person gets life. Why is that because one person is humble. One person is trying to find out how to follow Jesus.

The other person is listening to get intellectual stimulation, and they think they are becoming spiritual. Because they get intellectual stimulation you can listen to me here and get intellectually stimulated.

And you think you're getting spiritual you're not getting spiritual. You're just eating more and more the tree of knowledge of good and evil and Jesus said the Lord said to him you will die. And I've seen that people die.

Some of the cleverest people Are the ones who have left CFC churches in Kerala. They are not dumb people. They're clever people who cause splits and divisions and break away. Why is it? What they lack is not knowledge not cleverness.

What they lack is humility and the fear of God. There's a beautiful verse in Proverbs Chapter 22 and verse 4 please remember this all your life. Proverbs 22 verse 4 the reward of humility and the fear of the Lord our spiritual riches.

Spiritual honor and Spiritual life. So whenever you come to church to a meeting of the church. Whenever you listen to a message on the internet. Always say Lord. I don't want knowledge. It'll kill me.

Knowledge killed Adam and Eve in the Garden of Eden, and it'll kill me. I Want to go to the tree of life. I want to become a better Christian a humbler Christian after listening to this message. I Want to be more spiritual.

I? Want to build more fellowship with others and build the church more after listening to this message otherwise. With all this knowledge. It'll be like a balloon filled with air going up and up and up and up and Thinking that I am very spiritual and we can deceive ourselves.

I've seen that happen to so many people. There are people who listen to my messages just to get points for their sermons. You know that there are people in Many denominations who listen to my messages just to get points for sermons and to get information well.

They are destroying themselves. Don't let that happen to anybody here say Lord. I want life and One mark of that you've got life. I'll tell you this. Listen it'll bring you more into fellowship. With other members of the local body of Christ.

If it is not bringing you into fellowship with other members of the body of Christ. Something is wrong with your Christianity. Something's wrong with your holiness. You are an old covenant person. You may be a very godly person.

Even if you're as godly as John the Baptist. And John the Baptist was one of the most godly people in his generation. But he was an old covenant person. What did he lack in holiness. John the Baptist would not watch pornography.

He'll not be spending his time gossiping. He was a prophet he fasted and prayed, but what is it he did not have. He did not have fellowship. Whom could John the Baptist fellowship with nobody. He was a lonely holy person.

That is the finest old covenant person had no fellowship and same with Moses. He couldn't fellowship with his own brother and sister and there was nobody. He was a he was a very whole holy person. But he was a lonely person.

Isaiah. Jeremiah. Elijah. Whom did Elijah have fellowship with? The Lord told Elijah once there are 7 ,000 people in Israel. Who have not bowed down the knee to be all? But it did. I did Elijah have fellowship with any of them.

No. Because in the Old Testament the word fellowship is non-existent. There is no fellowship in the Old Testament. There is no church in the Old Testament. Only Congregation. 600 ,000 people. No fellowship.

All individuals. So remember if your holiness you may be a very holy person as holy as John the Baptist. But if you don't have fellowship with others. You are an old covenant Christian. That is the truth and you may possibly find that you don't even have fellowship with your wife or your husband.

I Mean you can have a friendship, but not a deep spiritual fellowship. And even if you do. You don't have fellowship with other brothers and other sisters in the body of Christ. Shall I tell you why. Listen because every church you go to.

You feel it's not good enough for you. You are so holy. No church is good enough for you. You will live and die as a lonely old man. A lonely old woman. Having wasted your life. Because you never built fellowship because everybody was inferior to you.

The Mystery of the One Body in Christ

May God have mercy on you. Do you know that Jesus did not come on earth to produce holy individuals? He came to produce a body to destroy all the distinctions that there are between people. I Told you about mystery.

I Told you the mystery of godliness that Christ came in a flesh. Always denied his own will. Rent the veil which is his flesh so that we could live in the spirit. That is how we can live in the spirit serve in the spirit worship in the spirit.

All you have to do is Say no to your own will every day. You'll be a worshiper in the spirit that the father appreciates. I want to show you another mystery. In Ephesians chapter 3, please turn with me to Ephesians in chapter 3.

He speaks here in verse 4. By referring to this when you read you can understand my insight into the mystery of Christ. What is this mystery verse 5. Which in other generations Was not made known to people but now it has been revealed to his holy apostles and prophets in the spirit and What is this mystery listen to this?

This is a mystery verse 6 that the Gentiles Are to be fellow heirs and fellow members of the body. Do you know what it means to tell a Jew about a Gentile? It's like in all Nations there are different groups of people one despise the other.

In some countries the whites despise the blacks. In Kerala you have churches for the scheduled caste and the churches for the Syrian Christians. There are two different classes. They cannot become one body.

No no no it's like Jews and Gentiles. The Jews Were complete they say I will never have anything to do with the Gentile. I mean Peter even after the day of Pentecost found it very reluctant to go to the house of a Gentile to preach the gospel.

That is how much they Stayed away from Gentiles. That there have been dividing walls like this in all Groups of people in the world and so when you come to a church you can also feel there are people who are very different from me.

Not as different as Jew and Gentile, but they are different from you. They're not exactly like you they don't have the same values but the great mystery is that God is making them into one body. That's an amazing thing.

People are completely different from me intellectually different. Community wise different racially different education wise different economically different. But God is making us one. That is the great thing in the body of Christ, and it says here in chapter 2 Verse 14 Ephesians 2 14.

He himself is our peace who had made both groups into one and broken down all the barriers of the dividing walls between them and he abolished in his flesh this enmity. So that he might make the two into one new man.

And when it says two it's not just two it's two million or any number of people into one new man so that we're 16 he might Reconcile them both in one body and present this one body to God. Do you know that Jesus is not presenting?

Thousands of holy individuals to God, but he's presenting one body that was not possible in the old covenant. That is one of the things we emphasize in CFC that we are not just preaching holiness. Which is one aspect of the new covenant, but the other most important aspect is that holy people become one with other holy people.

Imperfect holy people become one with other imperfect holy people because Jesus has broken down every barrier of the dividing wall. When he stretched out his arms on Calvary he was saying Jews Gentiles come Die on the cross with me and become one.

The only reason why two people cannot become one Only reason is because one or both of them are not willing to die on the cross. The only place of unity is the cross it says here. In the cross on the cross verse 15 He abolished in the enmity and In verse 16 he threw the cross did you see that?

Verse 16 middle through the cross he put the enmity to death. Enmity means what there's something in me that Repels That other person he's not like me. So I can't fellowship with him and it may not be enmity that I want to kill him.

The different shades of enmity. Worst enmity is where you want to kill him, but Enmity can also be. I don't want to get too close to him. Because he's so different from me, and he doesn't think like me and doesn't know the Bible like me and It doesn't have the same values, and I don't think he's spiritual like me so many things.

Jesus destroyed that enmity and through the cross he put it to death. So in the church you have to demonstrate How my holiness is not a holiness that has made me like John the Baptist one lonely individual.

But a holiness that has brought me into fellowship with other Imperfect holy individuals because I'm also an imperfect holy individual. I Want to ask you that has happened. Ask yourself how much have you?

Come into fellowship with people who are Completely different from you and who don't agree with you perhaps in some things. But you know that they are really godly people and You they may not be great preachers, but they love the Lord and you come into fellowship with them.

It's one of the wonderful things I have seen In our church in Bangalore is how God has broken down all these barriers and made People of completely different languages and you know Tamil Malayalam Telugu Anglo Indian all one all these Divisions make no difference that we are one in Christ, and that's how we know we have experienced new covenant life.

A Holiness. That does not bring you into fellowship with others is a deception. Don't keep on deceiving yourself. That you got holiness if it does not bring you into fellowship with others. Real holiness will always bring you into fellowship with others.

Will teach you to value them even if they are imperfect. I've been greatly challenged by Jesus. When he went to the Garden of Gethsemane. He wanted sometimes you know we need somebody to pray with us.

So I want to ask you a question if you want somebody to pray with you. Whom will you go to? You go to the elders right. Whom could Jesus go to. Shall I tell you whom he called to pray with him. Peter Who was going to deny him in the next few hours?

James and John Who were so carnal that they wanted to bring fire down and destroy the Samaritans. He said please come and pray with me. I've been tremendously challenged by that. But sometimes when I am in a need.

Probably I need to go to some young brother. Say brother. Will you come and pray with me? We got to pray through this. That's how Jesus was. But some of us are so spiritual that we can never pray with a younger brother.

No, what does he know? These are people who have not understood the body of Christ. Do you know in the body of Christ all of us need one another? And in the physical body there is no part of this body that despises another part.

Every Member Needs the Body

For example, we know the right hand is always in most of us more efficient. We sign letters and Everything with the right hand and the left hand is a weaker hand. But the right hand never despises the left hand.

If you want to play a musical instrument properly, you need the left hand as well. If you want to lift a heavy table, you need the left hand as well, even though it's a weaker vessel. There are many things.

You want to play a game with the ball you need both hands. So I Find that there is a illustration there of how a stronger member Realizes I need that weaker member. Even though he may not know as much as me and even though he's not as capable as me.

I need him. Because God has put him in the same body with me. That is the true church. True church is not just coming together once a week and listening to a message. No. That's why in Bangalore sometimes on a Sunday We wouldn't have a meeting we'd go for a picnic.

I think we were the only church in Bangalore that went for a picnic on Sunday. Because it's such a sin to go for a picnic, right? So Sunday means we must come and sit like holy people and listen to a message and have zero fellowship with each other.

I Said listen to a message you can sit at home and listen to it on the internet. Why do you have to come to a church on a Sunday? The purpose of coming together in a church meeting is what you cannot get on the internet.

For example somebody listening to this message on the internet. What is he he cannot get which we can get in a church fellowship. You can't get fellowship when you're sitting alone listening to a message and some people even though they are sitting in a church building.

Listening to it just like watching on the internet. They have no fellowship with others. Then the whole purpose of fellowship is defeated. So I believe that sometimes when he went for a picnic on a Sunday We accomplished more than when we were just made everybody sit there and listen to a message because we built fellowship.

We got to know one another. But the worldly Christians can't understand that because fellowship is not valued in most churches so long as you admire the pastor and pay your money and Go regularly. You're considered a good member, but that's not the mark of a true Christian.

A true Christian is one who values fellowship. How what would you think if you had say five children and none of them would mingle with the others? They all play by themselves. One plays with his game and the other plays the other game and five of them sitting in the same house tell me would you be happy as a father and one of your Children looks down on the other.

Yeah, he's in Much junior class. I can't have I can't well what time what would you think of such children? You'd think something seriously wrong in your family that the children can't Fellowship with one another because one is eight nine years older than the other so what?

That's the thing that the Lord the Father in heaven is concerned about that his children so often are not able to Fellowship with another and they deceive themselves that they are spiritual. Just because they like to listen to good messages.

So I want to ask all of you sitting here. I'm not preaching to the walls. I remember once after a meeting Somebody came to me and said brother Zach. Were you preaching to me? I said, yes I was not preaching to the walls on the chairs.

I was preaching to you only who else. So if you ask me after the meeting were you preaching to me I'll say yes, I was preaching to you only. I'm not. I don't preach to the walls in the chairs. It's for you.

Do you have? Fellowship. With other brothers and sisters in this church or not. Do you value them or do you despise them? Or are you a member or you feel you're too holy? To be in this church, why don't you do you know what I tell such people why don't you leave this church?

Don't waste our time. Go and sit somewhere else find that Holy Church and sit there. Don't waste our time here. We want the only people we want in this church are those who value fellowship with their brothers and sisters.

The 15 year old boy Can fellowship with his five-year-old sister at home? Even though he knows hundred times more than that five-year-old girl. Haven't you seen your children play like that? My my children were like that.

My oldest son was about nine years older than my younger brother. They play wonderfully together even today. What does it matter the older child may know much more than the other so what it's a family.

Do you have that sense of family in the church? Or do you always feel that I know more than the other person or it's not as spiritual as me. He's not as holy as me. Well, why don't you fellowship with them and make him as holy as you are?

Bishop we don't despise a child in the family just because he's sick or he's too short or he's not healthy. No. We I feel that we haven't understood the church as a family. We haven't understood the importance of fellowship together.

Cooperating in the Work of the Church

In a body body is even more than family. There is no part of this Body that does not cooperate in working with other with the other. I Want to ask you? Do you cooperate? Cooperate with the elders and With the other brothers in doing what this church is seeking to do.

Or are you a lazy member? Who just comes and sits here? Listens goes home and does nothing for this church except criticize. Are you like that? I hope God will shake you up. Before he destroys you, you know, there's a very serious verse Which says if anyone destroys the temple of God God will destroy him.

It's a very serious thing. 1 Corinthians you destroy the temple of God. God will destroy you. Best is go and join some other religion and The outside but if you're a part of a church you must build up.

Build up that's our calling. Build up with the others. We cannot be a passive member. Which member of your body is a passive? Useless member tell me in your human body. I'll tell you the one that is paralyzed.

Think if my right hand is paralyzed. It's still a part of the body. Wherever I go this hand will come. Just like you go with this church wherever this church goes and you're here every Friday. But what do you do to Bless the rest of the body.

Nothing. You just come and sit there hang around. Receive whatever you can. You know this hand will paralyzed hand gets a lot of nourishment and all from the body. But it doesn't do anything. There are people like that.

They come to a church and they just receive receive receive. They don't do a single thing. They are the paralyzed members. And What such paralyzed members need is power. They need to be filled with the Holy Spirit.

But they think they are filled with the Holy Spirit, but they were filled with the Holy Spirit. They'd be cooperating in with the body, but they're not they just carried along by others. Honestly I wish such people would stop coming to CFC.

I Wish they would go and find some other church and not sit and waste our time here and. Then there are others Who are even stabbing? Us in the back. Here they will come and act as uh-huh we are all members of CFC when they go somewhere else.

They are cooperating with people who are against us who call us a cult and things like that. They are the backstabbers exactly like Judas Iscariot. And I want to say that what happened to Judas Iscariot will happen to them.

It's far. If you're a part of a church you must be loyal to the church. What would you think of a son of yours who's sitting in your home and working against your family? Working with your enemies. What sort of son is that?

Very dangerous. Anyone destroys the temple of God? God will destroy him. They had to be very very careful. I don't know whether you realize that the church is a temple of God. Please turn with me to 1Corinthians and 1Corinthians we read here chapter 3 and verse 16.

Do you not know that you're a temple of God? 1Corinthians 3 16 the Holy Spirit is here the church is the temple of God. Verse 17 read verse 17 if anyone destroys The church The temple of God God will destroy him because the temple of God is holy.

If anyone tries to destroy the church which the Lord is building with his backbiting and speaking evil and backstabbing. I Say that God will destroy him and his family. Do you want God to destroy you and your family?

I'll tell you the quickest way to do it. Do everything you can to destroy this church by speaking against it. Stabbing in stabbing them in the back spend your time speaking against the elders criticizing.

That is the surest way. You can go and destroy your own family and your children and your own life. 1Corinthians 3 17 those are not my words. We need to face up to the truth of God. Build fellowship. If you can't build fellowship at least stay away and don't do anything.

Building Rather Than Destroying

Herod and Pilate were better Than Judas Iscariot. Do you know that Pilate was a heathen and I believe some non-christians are better Than some believers who sit in our churches because those non-christians are not destroying the church.

But a believer who sits there finds fault and criticizes Backstabs Acts as if he's a part of the church then goes away and is different over there. I'd say I'd rather have Pilate as a member of our church.

Because he's not destroying the church, so we got to be very careful. Some of these verses are sometimes people don't read it or take it seriously. It's so important to build a fellowship. What does it mean to destroy the church?

I'll tell you Think of the church is building a building. Here are a number of masons working together working hard working overtime collecting bricks cement and all and building building building a house and at night.

Some of the masons who pretended to be working with them. Come and break down some of those bricks and pull it down and break down in the next morning you come hey. Somebody's broken down something here.

It was one of those masons only who was a deceiver. He pretended to be Working together with the other masons to build the house, but he was interested in destroying it. That's what I mean by destroying the temple of God.

It's much better those other people on the street who don't do anything just look at it and go away. But to destroy the temple of God. It's a very serious thing. You know nobody will tell you the truth like I tell you.

I remember I've often said this there was a brother in CFC Bangalore Newly came and he told somebody this brother Zack. He preaches so hard. So I called him I put my arm around him, and I said hey brother.

I love you. I know I preach hard, but in the day of judgment when you stand before God and You see what happened to these other people who listen to other preachers, and you see how your life was saved.

By my heart preaching that day you will thank me. I'm willing to wait for that day. Today you can think I'm a hard preacher or you can say what you like. I know in that day. You will appreciate what you don't appreciate today a Strong preaching that saved you from calamity.