But the hour is coming, and is now here, when the true worshipers will worship the Father in spirit and truth, for the Father is seeking such people to worship Him.
In a dream last night, I saw the body of Christ as a huge orchestra. Dressed in concert attire and seated on two sides of a massive room, many were positioned to take part. Not all had instruments ready, but they were poised and waiting for their cue. But there was no primary leader. Not even a podium or stage. They were all simply dressed, seated in place, and ready to make music.
I saw that numerous ones were holding violins, positioned and ready, waiting for the cue. I had mine, as well, and wondered if I should start playing to lead the way. And yet, I didn’t feel prompted to. I wasn’t even sure I was fully prepared to do so. But then as I was pondering what to do next, I heard someone else start to play. A simple melody, but pure and clear. Others started following. One by one. Single lines of melodies coming together to form a oneness of sound. Without any direction, the music had begun. Spontaneously from the heart. The sound started to grow and I was struck by this unexpected harmony of voices that seemed to come from another realm.
Upon waking, I had two lingering impressions. One was that there was no leader. No stage or podium was present. Evidently, it wasn’t central to the cause. The music they were to make would emanate from within, not directed from a stage. The second is that they were on two sides of the room. A distinct aisle down the middle separated them, but I didn’t know why. They all wore the same attire for the same purpose. Thankfully in the end, it didn’t prevent them from sounding as one.
“For in one Spirit we were all baptized into one body—Jews or Greeks, slaves or free—
and all were made to drink of one Spirit.” (1 Corinthians 12:13)
If this is a picture of the church right now, here are some thoughts:
The oneness of sound came from unity of the Spirit – not directed by a leader on stage. Perhaps we should not be so fixated on those we follow or who we take our cues from. Our unity is of the Spirit and not of man. The messages we carry should never be dependent on those with platforms and podiums, but on the unchanging standard of God’s Word (all orchestras tune to a standard pitch that never changes).
Secondly, the divisions we create must never be at the cost of our greater call and assignment. We must keep our hearts fixed on that which is eternal and central to our commission as believers. Even as we test and weigh who we follow and what we believe, let’s never forget our greater cause and that which should actually unify us.
Most importantly, we each have a part to play. A voice to use. A sound to carry. It doesn’t matter where you are positioned or seated in the whole. When you release a sound from the Spirit, it will carry weight and become a ripple effect throughout the whole. And it is this kind of unity and oneness of Spirit that will have the influence and impact to change hearts, and even destinies for those who listen.
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One Response
I agree that it will be by the Spirit that we will become one. Do you think, however, that God is working on getting His body back to the original design? Where there is order, where there are true Apostles who are handpicked by God to lead the body? Where the five fold gifts are evident? The bride being humbled to work with Holy Spirit to become one as Jesus prayed in John 17. One mind, one heart, one voice, visibly unified, no denominations. Just some thoughts.
I also wondered if the aisle signified a line between Catholic and Protestant? The original split. There is a remnant in the Catholic Church that are born again and spirit filled, that have been cleaned of the religious junk. Also the foundation of the original universal (Catholic) church is the true gospel and can be found in official Catholic Church teachings even though it is not being preached from the pulpit. The Catholics need to be included in the orchestra.