320. Increase the Flock
Ezekiel 36:37, 38 Thus saith the Lord God; I will yet for this be enquired of by the house of Israel, to do it for them; I will increase them with men like a flock. As the holy flock, as the flock of Jerusalem in her solemn feasts; so shall the waste cities be filled with flocks of men: and they shall know that I am the Lord.
Church growth is a promise. The Lord promises that He will increase the Church with people. The Church is a flock of people. He will fill empty and waste places with flocks of people. The result is that many people will know that He is the Lord. This growth of the Church has been taking place ever since.
The Lord also promises that when the Church asks the Lord for increase He will do it for them. There are many waste cities in the world still today, but these places will be filled with flocks of people. The promise has not as yet apparently been completely fulfilled, but we are told that when there is a filling the world will end. We, of course, do not know when that time will come. So we wait and work and watch the Lord fill the Church with people. The flock will increase and grow like a mustard seed.
The Kingdom of God is unseen to human eyes but God gives us pictures. The Kingdom is like a flock, like a seed, like a sower, like a treasure in the field, like a pearl of great price, like a temple building. One may plant, one may water, but God gives the increase. God builds, God grows. God increases.
The Kingdom of God has a transformative power on the world, on nations, on communities, on churches, on families, and finally on individuals. The Lord promises increase of spiritual life in the heart and He promises a filling of the waste places in the heart. Entrust yourself to the Lord and let Him work the growth and increase. We don’t always know what God is doing or how He is doing it, but we have His promise that He is doing something to cause growth and filling and increase.