It is said, “The show must go on!” originated from the circus world of entertainment. When there was an injury in a performer’s act, the ringmaster diverted the attention of the crowd to some other area, to keep the show moving. Patrons had paid for their seat to be entertained and they were sitting there, so “The show must go on!”
What would happen in the church world if when the people came together there would just be earnest prayer, repentance from sin, and calling upon the Lord to fill with his Spirit and guide in his ways. A similar thing happened from time-to-time in the Old Testament, and great deliverances and reformation occurred. But today, you can’t just stop the show and really get things right with God and just pray until God moves. You would lose a large part of your congregation. They are there in their paid seats, in their place and function in the church to do the show. Gideon had a great army, but they were whittled down to only 300 watchful men, and through the direction and power of God, they defeated a great army. Jesus started with training only twelve men. But, they forsook all to just follow him and be trained by him to become effective fishers of men. These are still rocking the world for Jesus. Their obedience led to an upper room prayer meeting that unleashed the power of God on the earth that has not stopped to this day – and that was about 2000 years ago! Thousands were converted, the sick were healed, demons were cast out, and the dead were raised. The gospel spread in an exponential way. It was not man’s plans and programs that did it. It was the power of God manifesting through the lives of the people by the same anointing and power by which Jesus himself operated. In the revival history of the church, when somebody got desperate enough to stop the show and earnestly seek God until – it was then when reformation and revival broke out. When we can maintain “business as usual” and “the show must go on” in the face of desperate needs all around us, then we are obviously spiritually asleep. We might even know and preach about being spiritually asleep, and still be spiritually asleep ourselves. Yikes! Do you mean the Word really means it when it says he who knows to do good and he does not do it, to him it is a sin that will cauterize my conscience and rock me to sleep spiritually? (James 4:17) Then, I am totally insensitive to the crying needs around me. Then, I can do my own religious thing – without God’s power. There is a better way that starts with each of us personally. Stop the show. Let us do what we need to do for cleansing and hook up with God through the cross and Spirit of the Lord Jesus. Let’s allow God’s power to be seen.
