Ichabod: Has Glory Departed From The Church?
The Israelites trembled at the foot of the thundering smoke of Sinai. The Holy One had descended on top of that mountain, and His people were not ready for Him. They could not put up with the physical manifestation of His Holiness. Going forward, the solution was that the Ancient of Days would only share a portion of His glory in the form of the Tabernacle, most particularly the Ark of the Covenant. That meant that wherever God’s people went, as long as the Ark was with them, God was with them. Hence, the context of the above verse is the day when the Ark was captured by the enemies, the worst day in Israel’s history – the day when the Almighty departed from them.
In the New Testament sense, the glory of God is present in the form of the Spirit of Christ inside every believer. Which means, as long as you are in Christ, God Himself is within you. This resident glory, however, is not something that we imagine its presence without any evidence of its reality whatsoever. On the contrary, those in Christ have changed; the old is gone with its nature; their speech and conduct are now under a new government. Not only that, but I believe there must be an outward expression of that glory in terms of one’s testimony before others. Even more, a certain degree of passion and enthusiasm is expected from those who have been transferred from death to life.
At this point, my brothers, is where I park the bus of my concern. I mean, what happened to the Christian zeal and passion among us? When I look at the New Testament, the book of Acts, for example, I see a people so zealous about the Lord of their salvation, from start to finish. It was unmistakable. It was even said of them, “These men who have turned the world upside down have come here also” (Act 17:6). “Being on fire for the Lord” – a term that we now use in a negative sense, to scoff at other believers – simply means being saved, being aware of that salvation, and living out that salvation in a way that is visible and directly affects people around you. Somehow, we have welcomed with open arms the false idea that it’s only the new believers who are supposed to express their passion for Christ. Apparently, as Christians, we are permitted (I don’t know by whom) to wax cold for our Saviour, to be unconcerned about His cause, and to be very much at ease with it. Again, I ask: Does Christian maturity mean that Jesus has to be less and less appealing to your heart?
I remember sometime in history when the Christian passion and dedication was clearly visible through the way they used to go knocking door to door, sharing the love of Christ. Oh! How I miss the heydays when the Church was busy with tent meetings and evangelism crusades in shopping centres. I mean, where were you when Saints were not ashamed of doing prison ministries and hospital visits? What happened to all these things? Ichabod: has the glory departed from the church?
Perhaps I should bring this all the way down to your own heart. Was there ever, any time in your life when you thought about Christ the whole day, where you couldn't help but share Him with others? Was there ever, anytime in your life, when you could not wait to get to church just to have fellowship with your Redeemer? Did you ever have such an experience in your life? Then what happened? Nothing embarrasses me than to see the world fully spirited in what they love: be it their football team or their favourite music artist. They turn up at the stadium hours in advance, and they leave long after the game is over. Not even bad weather can stop them. Then I turn around and be saddened to see Christ’s sheep who try by all means to make church time as short as possible so they can run back home to their favourite TV show.
Consider this verse and ponder on this meaning: Romans 12:11 Never be lacking in zeal, but keep your spiritual fervour, serving the Lord. It means we must love Christ and live for Him full speed, not lacking in zeal but keeping spiritual fervour! I am always tempted to ask this question to every believer: How about your private prayer life? Do you still find time to pray and seek the Lord, or Ichabod is now also written on the doorpost of your prayer closet? And since when did you last share Christ with an unbeliever?
My fellow redeemed ones: I bring up these matters with no intention to shame my fellow brethren or to elevate myself, but simply as a matter of fear that most of us are no longer intrigued by the Good News of our salvation. Why are we letting Christ grow dull in our hearts? Let us, therefore, resolve to return to that first love with Jesus. The only way our unsaved family and friends can be convinced by the reality and the seriousness of Christ is when we, ourselves, are passionate about Him. Go back to prayer and, like Samson, ask for that former strength one more time. Confess your cold heart to Him and pray that Christ and His cross may start being meaningful to your heart once again. That is the beginning of a revival.
Sinothi Ncube
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