A Vision for Life: Part III

After Margaret and I were married in 1980, we settled into life here in the city of Peterborough. Melody was born in 1984 and Matthew was born in 1986. Later in 1991, Stephanie was born.

It was during the 1980s that we found ourselves asking the question, "What kind of church does Jesus want?" "How should it look?" Should it look like the Baptist Church? Does it look like a Pentecostal Church? Should it look like some of the non-denominational churches that have been prevalent in North America throughout the last 25 years? We found ourselves asking whether the church of the 20th century should have any resemblance to the church of the first-century? While our culture might be different, and certainly our technology is different and perhaps more advanced, it is important to ask if the same truths that existed in the early church should be in evidence in the 20th century church.

The answer to our questions began to emerge as God began to open Ephesians 4:11-13 where Paul speaks about the importance of apostles, prophets, evangelists, pastors and teachers. These gifts, we saw, were not for the early church alone, but were meant to be in evidence to bring a revelation of what Jesus wants His church to be. It was exciting for us to see that the people who had these gifts were meant to equip the church, build the church up, and help each member become "mature in the Lord, measuring up to the full and complete standard of Christ" (Eph. 4:13, NLT) Here was part of our answer! We could not go backwards to what the original church was like, nor could we copy the specific practices of a denominational church, but instead, God was calling us on to fullness in Christ - to become a church that reflected His life, His character, and His priorities in every way! We were meant to be the body of Christ that was prepared by God for His Son before time began.

And so, throughout the 1980s and early 1990s, we held in our hearts the vision of a restored church - a church that God was seeking to raise up in every nation throughout the earth. A church of faith and love - a church where members knew how to live in covenant relationship. It would be a church that lived in victory and saw the kingdom of God coming to earth in power. Such a church would be filled with people who loved to praise, worship and adore our Lord - and a church that had as its foundation in the ministries of apostles and prophets who would help it grow strong and vibrant - full of life, health, and a powerful anointing for healing and miracles. Such a church would become a marvel to the world, for it would be amongst its members that people could come to find the help they needed. As the prophet Isaiah says, "People from many nations will come and say, 'Come, let us go up to the mountain of the Lord...There he will teach us his ways, and we will walk in his paths'" (2:3, NLT).