Have you ever been fooled by a basket of plastic fruit on a table? Perhaps, it was a part of a decoration someone had in their kitchen. That apple looks so appetizing, you can almost taste it. As you grabbed it, you realized immediately that it was fake. You were instantly let down and then all you could think about was finding a real apple. I feel that this is happening in our churches today; people are looking for real fruit and all they find is plastic. Some ministries are built on money and ego and not dependent on the power of the Holy Spirit. Sometimes, I pass by small country churches and wonder if the Holy Spirit is more evident there than in the largest church in the nation. I truly believe it all begins with our dependency on God and a correct view of who He is.

Plastic fruit, from the outside, looks very good, just like some churches. There could be a beautiful church, beautiful worship music and a wonderful pastor: everything that one looking for a church would love to find when they walk through its doors. Maybe they have children; well, look at our nursery! Maybe they love music; well, listen to our praise team! Maybe they love to hear an inspiring message; well, listen to our preacher! They leave being satisfied with their needs being met. They also leave not being changed at all and not knowing Christ any more than when they walked in the doors.

How can we be changed if all we do is meet the needs that we set up for ourselves? When Moses went up to meet with God, the Israelites started to panic. Exodus 32:1 says, “When the people saw that Moses was so long in coming down from the mountain, they gathered around Aaron and said, ‘Come, make us gods who will go before us. As for this fellow Moses who brought us up out of Egypt, we don’t know what has happened to him.’” They had their list of needs and now that Moses was taking too long to come back, they wanted to move forward. They reverted back to making idols, which would serve their purpose but totally against God. Instead of waiting on Moses to deliver the commands of God, they took matters into their own hands.

We continue to read that Aaron quickly answered their demands and took the little gold they had and formed a golden calf. Exodus 32:4 says, “He took what they handed him and made it into an idol cast in the shape of a calf, fashioning it with a tool. Then they said, ‘These are your gods, Israel, who brought you up out of Egypt.’” Something that was not ever created only moments before, now, was recognized for saving them. Could this be said about the buildings we build and the programs we start? Were they created because of God or created in order to boast?

If we build our church solely to attract people, then we are nothing but plastic fruit. When people come that are hurting and desperately need to hear from God, are we equipped to provide them with the Gospel? Provide them with the promises of God and tell them about His faithfulness? If not, then we are in no position to offer living fruit to starving sinners. Real fruit has substance, can satisfy any hunger and is capable of producing seed for new life. That is what we need in our churches today. I would rather go to the most modest country church full of the Spirit than the biggest church ever made.

I have been guilty of trying to think of ways to draw people to church. I start to think that something is missing, and we need to come up with fancy new gimmicks. Like the Israelites, I’m guilty of not waiting to hear from God before I move. He won’t bless my actions if they are based on what I think needs to happen. He will bless those who wait on Him. I pray for the churches in Thomasville and world-wide in that we won’t get ahead of God. That we will act in response to what He is already doing in our church. We won’t make our own golden calf but wait on the answer to come from above.