Preference:

pref·er·ence/ˈpref(ə)rəns/Noun

1. A greater liking for one alternative over another or others.

We all have preferences.
We all have things that we favor over and above other choices.
We like different kinds of Ice Cream. My wife loves Drumsticks Ice Cream. It is vanilla ice cream in a waffle cone. The ice cream is covered in chocolate and has peanuts sprinkled on top. Me? I'm a straight chocolate kind of guy. We each have a preference.

Sometimes preference in what we like can take a nasty turn. Sometimes we take preference and turn it into doctrine or dogma. I guess what I am trying to say is that what we prefer in the way of styles or types of churches is elevated to the point that we lash out at others who do not hold our view.
I ran into this a lot when we first started our recovery meeting at Gadsden Vineyard. I was called names by people who had preferences that were different than mine. I had people get up and walk out during a meeting, only later to inform me that I was doing the devils business.

I wanted to lash out and defend myself, but God told me to simply love them. Every time I encountered someone who differed from me, I made the effort to let them know that we did not consider ourselves as being better because we did church in a different manner. I wanted them to know that different didn't mean better.......it just mean different. But I had to be true to what God has called me to do.

Since the style or model of the Church @ Rapha is born from a heart of wanting to serve God. I am fully aware that there are many who do not like what we do on Saturday nights. I'm o.k. with that. I know that we all gravitate to where God leads us. One of the greatest works God has done in me is that He has given me the ability to love the many "Flavors" of church and to recognize and see His hand at work.

There are churches where the pastor wears a suit and tie. There are churches where the pastor wears jeans and t-shirts. There are churches where the pastor wears a robe and collar. What do they have in common? God is there.  I have learned to be very carefull about comments I make and judgements I bring on others who don't do church or meetings the way I think they should.

I think the one thing that breaks my heart as I travel around the internet, is the nastiness and hatred found among believers. Lashing out and bringing not loving judement but fleshly judgement against others who are simply trying to hear and follow God. Now before you think I am soft and want to excuse all behavior of the shepherds of God's people......I do not. But know matter what, everything we say and do should be covered in great humility on our part, and do so from a heart of love.

I have found websites devoted to "uncovering false teachers."
The list they created of these so call false teachers, contain the names of men that I have studied under and listened to for a number of years. There seems to be a pride when someone becomes a purveyor of what is truth and what isn't. I do not desire such a post nor do I seek it. I have stood and taught crowds before and in the stumbling and fumbling of what we call "preaching" I have floundered a great deal. I'm sure that someone could take my messages and rip them to shreds, calling me legalistic and a pharisee or worse....."You have a religious Spirit." That is a code word for "You full of hell and there is no truth in you." People are being branded with this name on an ever increasing way.

You know....I would hope that if such a thing happened to me, the one who labeled me with such a name, would love me enough to come to me and pray with me and restore me. I fear that I don't see much of this happening in the body of Christ. It's so much easier to lash out toward anyone who disagrees with our theology.

Romans 5:8 reads: But God demonstrates His own love toward us, in that while we were yet sinners, Christ died for us.
How much more anti-God could you be than being sinner. Yet God did not lash out with names or accusations. He demonstrated right in front of us how to deal with this problem. Jesus Christ died for us. He opened a way that removed sin and brought cleansing and healing for every sinner who would come to Him.

When I encounter those who label and divide in the body of Christ, do I return the same behavior back to them, or do I demonstrate the love of God by going to them to have dialog? I want my every action, my every thought, my every word to be Christ-like. Before you think I have gone all mushy here and we are going to lock arms and sing "We Are The World," let it be known that Jesus could be harsh when the Father told him to be. I mean he called the religious rulers names...."You brood of vipers. You white washed tombs." But Jesus only did so under the guidance and release by His heavenly Father. I don't know if I could prove this or not, but I think most of the name calling and accusations that fly back and forth do so from the flesh and not from heaven.  What do you think?

All I know is that I want to love Jesus.
I want to love people who love Jesus.
I want to love people who don't love Jesus.
A wise man once told me that...(Thanks Kris)
I want to see God at work in every flavor of church there is.
Bliss Church....I bless and pray that God would grow and strengthen you.
Traditional Church....I bless and praise God for the heritage and tradition that has come through you.
High Church.....I bless you for the rituals and readings that point to Jesus.
Store Front Church....I bless you for the fire that burns in your heart to see something birthed into new life.
Recovery Church....I bless you for the ones that are being rescued from the kingdom of darkness.
Is God good or what?

God on you....
mb