The Glorious Church

On Saturday, September 26th, a bunch of us from the church ventured down 95 to Washington, DC to be part of a great gathering of Christians at the Mall to pray and to recognize together America’s need for God to move. It was a glorious display of unity with tens, maybe hundreds of thousands there, representing different factions of the universal body of Christ. It reminded me of Ephesians 5:27 where Jesus presents to Himself “the church in all her glory, having no spot or wrinkle”. When the Bride of Christ comes together in a divine mission to petition His throne for His answers, it manifests the glory of His church. Twila Paris wrote a song about the Body of Christ: 

How beautiful the radient Bride who waits for her Groom with His light in her eyes. 
How beautiful when humble hearts give the fruit of pure lives so that others may live. 
How beautiful, how beautiful, how beautiful is the body of Christ. 

 

We got to the Mall just in time to hear Jonathan Cahn (a Messianic Rabbi) address the nation. He shared how strategic was the selection of this particular day, the 400-year anniversary of the Mayflower leaving England for the “New World”. He also spoke about John Winthrop and the promise God gave him on his way to the Massachusetts Bay Colony that God would bless this land as a “City upon a Hill”, but warned that the blessings would be removed if “we deal falsely with our God in this work”.   

 

I have read a number of Rabbi Cahn’s books recently that prophetically address the moral and spiritual degeneration of our society. In his speech, he said that America was at a crossroads and needed to decide its future. He likened it to Elijah challenging the people to decide between 2 opinions (1Kings 18:21), to follow God or follow Baal. He challenged believers in America to “humble themselves and pray and seek My face and turn from their wicked ways” (2Chronicles 7:14) to bring about America’s change in direction. He also took a jar and smashed it as a reference to God’s command to Jeremiah in Jeremiah 19:10-11 as a message to Jerusalem. It brought to mind 1Peter 4:17, which says that judgement begins with the household of God. It is up to us, the church to bring about this change in our society by being more committed to God and His commands than ever before! 

 

Just as there were many thousands at the Mall that day, I know there were many more who could not be there gathering to pray in their own locations for God to move mightily on behalf of our nation. We represented millions who were also coming together to make a difference through prayer. This is what the Body of Christ looks like: people from all walks of life in all locations agreeing on a divine purpose to change His people and nation and fulfill His call. 

 

Franklin Graham and a group of spiritual leaders travelled across the Mall, stopping to pray at 7 different locations beginning at the Lincoln Memorial and concluding at the Capital. We were able to catch up with this group at the National Archives (the 6th stop) and I recognized Pastor Andrew Brunson praying with Franklin Graham. Pastor Brunson was imprisoned in Turkey for 2 years, accused of “aiding terrorism” by President Erdogan. I went up to him after their prayer to thank him for his faithfulness to God and that I would be praying for other Christians falsely imprisoned around the world. His presence represented persecuted believers who have suffered for the Divine Cause. I was reminded of hearing Richard Wurmbrand speak to us at the Teamsters Union building over 30 years ago. He had such a sense of Heaven’s Purpose as a result of his suffering.  

 

We stood with all Christians on behalf of this nation, founded on God’s authority while having strayed far from its spiritual roots. It is my deepest hope that what took place on that day does not end with our return to normal life, but sparks a spiritual revival that will transform the glorious church and our nation. Arise my soul, arise! 

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