An unstoppable force for God’s glory

By Mark Mast
RR Ministerial

What comes to mind when you hear the word unstoppable? To me it expresses that something coming and there is nothing I can do to stop it. Unstoppable… like a tornado, or a tsunami, or a stampede.
Unstoppable is a word that describes the Early Church. Conflict and controversy threatened to take the new believers down, but instead of killing it, the challenges they faced only fueled a fire that spread across the first-century landscape like wild fire.
The Early Church faced immense obstacles. Acts 4:18 tells how Peter and John were repeatedly muzzled as they boldly proclaimed salvation through Jesus Christ and the blood of His cross. Several times the religious leaders of that day “commanded them not to speak or teach at all in the name of Jesus.” And, when Peter and John wouldn’t keep quiet, these leaders had them thrown into prison.
But then, God sent an angel to restart what had been stopped. “…During the night an angel of the Lord opened the doors of the jail and brought them out. ‘Go, stand in the temple courts,’ he said, ‘and tell the people the full message of this new life’” (Acts 5:19-20).
After miraculously freeing them, the angel exhorted the apostles to go back to the temple and pick up where they left off. In essence, the angel said, “Don’t lower the flag. Don’t soften the message. Don’t get strategic or subtle or clever. Just get back to work!”
“At daybreak they (Peter and John) entered the temple courts, as they had been told, and began to teach the people” (Acts 5:21). They went right back to doing what God had called them to do. In spite of rigorous attempts to douse the passion of the early church, Acts 6:7 tells us that, “…the word of God spread. The number of disciples in Jerusalem increased rapidly, and a large number of priests became obedient to the faith.”
You just can’t stop what God is doing. No matter what move people make, God trumps it. His purposes always prevail and move forward. God’s hands are never tied. His message is never muted. No matter what opposition is thrown in its path, when the church of Jesus Christ is what God intended it to be, it becomes a flat-out unstoppable force for God.
How about the town of Rainy River? Can we be an unstoppable force for God? Yes! Yes!! What unstoppable things is God accomplishing in our community? Are you aligned with His purpose for your life? Are you resisting Him or embracing Him? Are you following His lead? Is Jesus Christ the Lord and Saviour of your life? Call upon Him to save you! He will!! Then, let’s work together, and see Him make Rainy River an unstoppable force for God’s glory!