When we observe how the local church functions and how many people are
functioning in some capacity what do you see? Do we see all the members
actively working with other members building up the church? Do we see
75% of the members actively working with other members building up the
church? Do we see 50% of the members actively working with other members
building up the church? How about 25%? No, statistics reveal that
regardless of the size of a local church, less than 20% of the members
actively get involved with its function and many of them are heading
towards burnout. Why is this happening? Why does it seem to be almost
impossible to mobilize the members of the local church? I am sure that
there are numerous reason such as, a lack of leadership, a lack of
vision, a lack of discipleship, people are to busy, and so on. But I
believe the primary reason behind the limited mobilization of the
members of a local church comes down to one thing. Swapping the Lords
ingenious plan for man's faulty plan(s). Let's look at what the Holy
Spirit spoke through the apostle Paul.
"Therefore He says: "When He ascended on high, He led captivity captive, and gave gifts to men." (Ephesians 4:8) "And
He Himself gave some to be apostles, some prophets, some evangelists,
and some pastors and teachers, for the equipping of the saints for the
work of ministry, for the edifying of the body of Christ, till we all
come to the unity of the faith and of the knowledge of the Son of God,
to a perfect man, to the measure of the stature of the fullness of
Christ; that we should no longer be children, tossed to and fro and
carried about with every wind of doctrine, by the trickery of men, in
the cunning craftiness of deceitful plotting, but, speaking the truth in
love, may grow up in all things into Him who is the head, Christ, from
whom the whole body, joined and knit together by what every joint
supplies, according to the effective working by which every part does
its share, causes growth of the body for the edifying of itself in
love." (Ephesians 4:11-16)
Many church leaders for centuries have rejected the idea that the ministry gifts of the apostle and prophet
have continued beyond those of the early church. Their thinking is that
the gift or office of apostle and prophet have faded from the scene
when the apostles and prophets of the early church died. This thinking
goes even farther by saying that along with the passing of the apostles
and prophets miracles, signs and wonders have also passed away. They
site 1 Corinthians 15:8 which says, "Then last of all He (Jesus) was seen by me also, as by one born out of due time"
to mean that Paul was the last of the apostles appointed by the Lord.
They also use Ephesians 4:13-14 (shown above) along with 1 Corinthians
3:10; 13:11 to say that these gifts along with the miraculous only
functioned as scaffolding while the church was under initial
construction, and were removed or faded away once the structure had been
completed because the book we call the Bible is the totality of God’s
written revelation to the human race. Consequently, people now have
access to everything they need (2 Peter 1:3) to enter into a right
relationship with God via Christianity and the church of Christ. Without
doubt, the Bible is the totality of God’s written revelation to the
human race. However, if we look at Ephesians 4:8 again, some light will
shine upon us revealing the truth, "Therefore He says: "When He ascended on high, He led captivity captive, and gave gifts to men."
First, notice that it does not say that Jesus gave temporary gifts to
men or that He gave gifts to men only for a season or a certain period
of time. Paul tells us, "For the gifts and the calling of God are irrevocable." (Romans 11:29) James tells us, "Every
good gift and every perfect gift is from above, and comes down from the
Father of lights, with whom there is no variation or shadow of
turning." (James 1:17) The Lord does revoke the gifts and calling
that He gives to His church, because His gifts are good and perfect.
Also, notice that James reveals to us something about God that Malachi
also reveals, "For I am the LORD, I do not change..." (Malachi 3:6) The writer of Hebrews puts it this way, "Jesus Christ is the same yesterday, today, and forever."
(Hebrews 13:8) In other words, from eternity past to eternity future
there is no change in Gods character, nature, purposes, plan or his
mode of being. What He says is what He means, period. "God is not a
man, that He should lie, nor a son of man, that He should repent. Has He
said, and will He not do? Or has He spoken, and will He not make it
good?" (Numbers 23:19)
If we say that the gift/office of apostle and prophet
have faded away and have no need for them because we have the Bible,
then we also have to conclude that the gift/office of evangelist, pastor
and teacher have also faded away for the same reason. If we also say, "But when that which is perfect has come, then that which is in part will be done away"
meaning that the gifts of the Spirit, especially miracles have also
faded away, because we have the Bible, then we also have to conclude
that knowledge has also vanished. (see 1 Corinthians 13:8-10) The
context of what Paul is conveying in 1 Corinthians 13 has nothing
whatsoever to do with the fading away of gifts and the miraculous that
Christ gave to His church. Paul is telling the church to grow up or come
into maturity, especially to mature in love because without love the
gifts will not function properly. He is telling the church that when
Christ returns, "that which is perfect" there will be no further
need for any of the gifts that He gave to the church. So, how do we grow
up and mature especially in love until Christ returns? Let's reread
Ephesians 4:11-16
Another thing that we must consider is found in Paul's description of the church, "And He (Jesus) put
all things under His feet, and gave Him to be head over all things to
the church, which is His body, the fullness of Him who fills all in all.
(Ephesians 1:22-23, also see 1 Corinthians 12:12-27) The church is
describe as a body filled with the fullness of Christ the Head. So with
this in mind, how would a person operate if two of their fingers, say
their thumb and index finger, were missing from both hands? They could
function, but they certainly would be limited. What about if a person
was missing any two of their five senses? Again, they could function but
they would be limited. With that said, how can we logically believe
that the Lord would limit His body by removing two important
gifts/offices along with the miraculous?
How can we honestly think this especially when he gave all five of these
gifts/offices for maturing the church? His would not do such a thing!
Do we honestly believe that for the last seventeen hundred years the
church has reach or surpassed the maturity that Ephesian 4:1-16 is
talking about? Do we suppose that the last seventeen hundred years of
the church is more mature than the first three hundred years?
Many proponents of the extinction of the apostle, prophet and miracles
will say to those who know that the Lord has not removed from His church
apostle, prophet and miracles , beware "For such are false apostles,
deceitful workers, transforming themselves into apostles of Christ. And
no wonder! For Satan himself transforms himself into an angel of light.
Therefore it is no great thing if his ministers also transform
themselves into ministers of righteousness, whose end will be according
to their works" (2 Corinthians 11:13-15) not even considering that
it is they that Satan has deceived. Certainly the church must beware
that false apostles and prophets
can appear, but the context in which this passage appears is Paul
defending his apostleship. He is not insinuating or alluding too at all
that when he leaves this life there will be no more apostles.
Next, we also see another fact that sheds light on the existence of
apostles (maybe not recognized) today. Paul, tells us the all of the
ascension gifts were given "till we all come to the unity of the faith and of the knowledge of
the Son of God, to a perfect man, to the measure of the stature of the
fullness of Christ." How can any church leader look at church
history for the past 1700 years and honestly believe that the church.
has arrived any time, "to the unity of the faith and of the knowledge of
the Son of God, to a perfect man, to the measure of the stature of the
fullness of Christ." Do we honest believe that what we call the
church is unified? That the church operates in the full knowledge of the
Son of God? That the church completely functions in the fullness of
Christ? Let's be honest. What we call the church today is not even close
to just being united, let alone these other important issue that makes
the church one in Christ.
So, why do statistics reveal that less than 20% of the members of most
local churches do all the work while 80% remain idle? I truly believe it is due to
eliminating the gift/office of the apostle and prophet by church
Pharisees who have embraced the philosophies of men over the word of
God. They have been blinded by the god of the world, Satan, who is still
at work against the church to do what he did in the beginning, that is,
discredit God and His Word. (Genesis 3:1-5) Jesus gave to the church "some to be apostles, some prophets, some evangelists, and some
pastors and teachers, to work together, "for the equipping of the saints for the work of
ministry." Their is not one verse of scripture (other than ones taken out of context) that says that the gift/office of the apostle and prophet have
faded away and are of no long any use once the early church apostles
and prophets died We do not seem to understand the harm that we have
done to ourselves by eliminating these key gifts/offices for our "better
ideas." Grace be with all those who
love our Lord Jesus Christ in sincerity. Amen
Monday, April 19, 2021
Building Together in Love
Monday, April 12, 2021
Thank You Lord Jesus
Once you have been in the church enough years and are exposed to
Christians from the many denominations that exist, you will find that
not to many of them realize the oneness that we have with our Lord and
Savior Jesus Christ. For most, Jesus was beaten, condemned, crucified,
died and raised from the dead and by confessing Him as Lord and
accepting Him as Savior who paid for our sins one escapes judgment and
will spend eternity in heaven. Although this is true, what most believers have
missed is what happened in the spiritual realm. It was what Jesus did
for humanity in the spiritual realm far surpasses what happened to Jesus
in the natural. All the people who surrounded the cross could only see
the physical man Jesus, hanging on the cross, beaten, bleeding and
physically dying. In the same way, all the people who watch movies
depicting the life and death of Jesus only see the same. However, man is
a spirit with a soul in a body and in the spiritual realm God the
Father, the angels and demons could see the real man hidden in His body.
So let us look at what took place beyond the beating and crucifixion of
His physical body.
"He has made Him who knew nothing of sin to be sin for us..." (2 Corinthians 5:21) But he was wounded because of our crimes, crushed because of our
sins; the disciplining that makes us whole fell on him, and by his
bruises we are healed. We all, like sheep, went astray; we turned, each
one, to his own way; yet Adonai laid on him the guilt of all of us." (Isaiah 53:5-6) "Christ
has redeemed us from the curse of the law, having become a curse for us
(for it is written, "Cursed is everyone who hangs on a tree") (Galatians
3:13) On the cross not only did Jesus become sin, but He became a curse
also. Is it any wonder that the Father had forsaken Him, "And about
the ninth hour Jesus cried out with a loud voice, saying, "Eli, Eli,
lama sabachthani?" that is, "My God, My God, why have You forsaken Me?" (Matthew 27:46)
As this awful drama continues we see that, "Surely He has borne our sicknesses and carried our diseases..." (Isaiah 53:4) Another translation says, "In fact, it was our diseases he bore, our pains from which he suffered..." Laid
upon Jesus as He hung on the cross was the sin, diseases and sicknesses
of the human race. Through the years the ignorance of some would blame
the Jews or even the Romans (Gentiles) for what had happened to Jesus.
But we see that, "it pleased the LORD to bruise Him; He has put Him to grief." (Isaiah 53:10) another version says, "it pleased Jehovah to crush Him; He has made Him sick." Finally, upon the cross Jesus' physical life was extinguished, "And Jesus cried out again with a loud voice, and yielded up His spirit."
(Matthew 27:50) Notice that He yielded up His spirit, not the Spirit.
All of the sin, sickness, disease and pains were not place on His
physical body, but upon His spirit. Once this happened He became mortal,
that is, subject to death. Remember what Jesus said, "...I lay down
My life that I may take it again. No one takes it from Me, but I lay it
down of Myself. I have power to lay it down, and I have power to take
it again..." (John 10:17-18)
No one could take His life from Him, He could not be killed. This may be
hard for some to believe, but even after He turned Himself over to be
put to death, His body could not die until sin had been placed upon His
spirit making Him mortal. In other words, Jesus had to die spiritually,
as Adam did, before He could die physically, as Adam also did. Once He
became one with fallen man in weakness, in sin, in disease and spiritual
death, He physically died and His spirit went to hell for three days
and three nights. (Matthew 12:40) Now let us look at what this all means
for the believer. To do this we must look beyond the natural realm and
think on terms of the spiritual realm.
The apostle Paul said, "I have been crucified with Christ..."
(Galatians 2:20) This means that Paul (all believers) were judged,
condemned, stripped naked and nailed to the cross with Jesus, "knowing
this, that our old man was crucified with Him, that the body of sin
might be done away with, that we should no longer be slaves of sin." (Romans 6:6) Next, Paul also tells us, "do
you not know that as many of us as were baptized into Christ Jesus were
baptized into His death? Therefore we were buried with Him through
baptism into death..." (Romans 6:3-4) When Jesus died and His spirit went to hell, we died and went to hell. "For
my soul hath been full of evils, and my life hath come to Sheol. I have
been reckoned with those going down [to] the pit, I have been as a man
without strength. Among the dead -- free, As pierced ones lying in the
grave, Whom Thou hast not remembered any more, Yea, they by Thy hand
have been cut off. Thou hast put me in the lowest pit, In dark places,
in depths." (Psalms 88:3-6)
Now look at the reality of what took place at the end of the three days and nights that Jesus spent in hell, "For
Christ also suffered once for sins, the just for the unjust, that He
might bring us to God, being put to death in the flesh but made alive by
the Spirit" (1 Peter 3:18) In the dark regions of hell Jesus was made alive by the Spirit. Concerning the believer Paul tells us, "even when we were dead in trespasses, made us alive together with Christ..." (Ephesians 2:5) "And you, being dead in your trespasses and the uncircumcision of your flesh, He has made alive together with Him" (Colossians 2:13) When Jesus was made alive we were made alive.
Next, we see another incredible truth concerning the believers identification with Christ, "and
what is the exceeding greatness of His power toward us who believe,
according to the working of His mighty power which He worked in Christ
when He raised Him from the dead and seated Him at His right hand in the
heavenly places, far above all principality and power and might and
dominion, and every name that is named, not only in this age but also in
that which is to come." (Ephesians 1:19-21) "and raised us up together, and made us sit together in the heavenly places in Christ Jesus"
(Ephesians 2:6) When Jesus was raised from the dead and sat down at the
Fathers right hand in the heavenly places, far above all principality
and power and might and dominion, and every name that is named, not only
in this age but also in that which is to come, we too were raised from
the dead and sit together with Christ.
For Christ to sit down at the Fathers right hand after being made sin
and for the believer to be seated with Christ in the heavenly places
could never happen for Christ or the believer if something miraculous did not happen first. "For
if by the one man's offense death reigned through the one, much more
those who receive abundance of grace and of the gift of righteousness
will reign in life through the One, Jesus Christ. Therefore, as through
one man's offense judgment came to all men, resulting in condemnation,
even so through one Man's righteous act the free gift came to all men,
resulting in justification of life. For as by one man's disobedience
many were made sinners, so also by one Man's obedience many will be made
righteous." (Romans 5:17-19) "God has fulfilled this for us their children, (the seed of Abraham)
in that He has raised up Jesus. As it is also written in the second
Psalm, You are My Son, today I have begotten You. And that He raised Him
from the dead, no more to return to corruption..." (Acts 13:33-34)
Jesus became mans substitute and was declared righteous because He had
satisfied the claims of justice. He was made so righteous, that He could
enter into the presences of the Father as though He had never been made
sin. But it doesn't stop there.
"Therefore, having been justified (declared righteous) by faith, we have peace with God through our Lord Jesus Christ" (Romans 5:1) "For He made Him who knew no sin to be sin for us, that we might become the righteousness of God in Him."
(2 Corinthians 5:21) Because Jesus was made righteous, then all who
confess Him as Lord and accept Him as Savior are automatically made the
righteousness of God in Christ. We also become completely new, "Therefore, if anyone is in Christ, he is a new creation; old things have passed away; behold, all things have become new."
(2 Corinthians 5:17) This all means that Satan and all of his forces of
darkness no longer have dominion over the believer. The believer is a
partaker of His divine nature (2 Peter 1:4) and therefore sin, disease
and sickness no longer belong to the New Created, Born Again believer.
The Father has made us one with Christ. (John 15:5) Hallelujah!
So, if you have been told or are still being told things such as, you
are still a sinner who was saved by grace; that you do not have the
ability to please God; that you have a dual nature, one of sin and one
righteousness; that God does not heal, deliver and make one whole today, then you
are struggling with "The Doctrines of the Dark Ages" and do not live the
abundant life that Jesus said He came to give. (John 10:10) Paul tells
us, "And the Lord is the Spirit; and where the Spirit of the Lord is, there is liberty." (2 Corinthians 3:17) and "It is for freedom that Christ set us free; stand firm therefore, and do not again be held under the yoke of slavery." (the fallen nature that you had before you were born again, Galatians 5:1) Also, "For you learned with regard to your former way of living that you must
cast off your old nature, (the fallen nature that you had before you were born again) which, yielding to deluding passions, grows
corrupt; That the very spirit of your minds must be constantly renewed;
(with God's Word) And that you must clothe yourselves in that new nature (the born again nature) which was
created to resemble God, with the righteousness and holiness springing
from the Truth (God's Word) (Ephesians 4:22-24)
It is OK to listen to what others say, but every Christian must do what they did in the City of Berea (located in southwestern Macedonia) where Paul and Silas preached the gospel, "...they welcomed the Message with great readiness, and daily examined the Scriptures to see if what was said was true."
(Acts 17:11) May the blessing of the Lord Jesus Christ, the love of
God, and the communion with the Holy Spirit, be with you all.
Monday, April 5, 2021
A Blessed Freedom
Freedom is defined in many ways, but I like to define it from the
position of what Jesus announced as His mission on earth to those in the
synagogue in Nazareth, "The Spirit of the Lord is upon me, because
He has anointed Me to preach the gospel to the poor. He has sent Me to
heal the brokenhearted, to preach deliverance to the captives and
recovery of sight to the blind, to set at liberty those who are
oppressed, to preach the acceptable year of the Lord." (Luke
4:18-19) In other words, to be free is to be released or
rescued from being confined, enslaved, captured, or imprisoned either
physically, emotionally or spiritually. Many believers talk about their
freedom in Christ without having a true biblical understanding of it.
Many seem to think that freedom in Christ is to cast off all restraint
and do whatever they "feel" like doing once they have made a profession
of faith. This means only obeying the scripture that they "feel" they
should and or that they can continue in their sin because after all "I
am free." Freedom is not based on our feelings or what scriptures "I"
decide to obey. Freedom finds its anchor through faith in Jesus Christ.
In Luke 17:1-4 Jesus teaches the apostle about offenses. He says, "It is impossible that no offenses should come..." The
apostles response should not only be a learning experience for every
believer, but also something that should be applied daily due to what
Jesus said. Their response was, "Increase our faith." (Luke 17:5)
This is the only place in the New Testament where the apostles ask
Jesus to increase their faith. They were not asking for more faith
to heal the sick, cast out demons or preach, but the faith to not
offend as well as the faith to deal with offenses when
they come. Remember, Jesus said that offenses would come and then He
them the power of faith, "If you have faith as a mustard seed, you
can say to this mulberry tree, be pulled up by the roots and be planted
in the sea, and it would obey you." (Luke 17:6)
Next, Jesus continues to speak to the apostles by asking them three questions,
"which of you, having a servant plowing or tending sheep, will say to
him when he has come in from the field, come at once and sit down to
eat? But will he not rather say to him, prepare something for my supper
and gird yourself and serve me till I have eaten and drunk, and
afterwards you will eat and drink? Does he thank that servant because he
did the things that were commanded him?" (Luke 17:7-9) What does this have to do with dealing with offenses? Much, if you understand that "the Spirit of God dwells in you." (1 Corinthians 3:16), that "you are not your own...you were bought with a price, therefore glorify God in your body and in your spirit, which are God's." (1 Corinthians 6:19-20), that "you are a new creation; old things have passed away..." (2 Corinthians 5:17), that "you are a new creation created according to God in righteousness and true holiness."
(Ephesians 4:24) (for the lack of space I will not site the numerous
verses of scripture that reveal who the believer is in Christ)
Finally, Jesus concludes this matter, "I think not. So likewise you,
when you have done all those things which are commanded, say, we are
unprofitable servants. We have done what was our duty." (Luke 17:10) What does Jesus mean, "We have done what was our duty?" When it
comes to dealing with offenses, what is the believers duty? If we know
who we are in Christ, we won't offend others nor will we become offended
by others, even if the offense comes from another believer. Look
what the Holy Spirit speaks through Peter, "Finally, all of you be of
one mind, having compassion for one another; love as brothers, (and
sisters) be tenderhearted, be courteous; not returning evil for evil or
reviling for reviling, but on the contrary blessing, knowing that
you were called to this, that you may inherit a blessing." (1 Peter
3:8-9)
This is the believers duty when it comes to dealing with
offenses. First, we should never offend another person, period! Our duty
is to have compassion for one another; love as brothers, (and sisters)
be tenderhearted, be courteous. If we do our duty as shown here, we will
never offend another person whether a believer or unbeliever. Next, if
you are offended by anyone, your duty is not returning evil for evil or reviling for reviling, but on the contrary blessing, knowing that you were called to this. Believers
are not to claim, receive or hold on to an offense. If they do, and
unfortunately many do, they will fail doing their duty and unfortunately, open the
door of their heart for the devil to hold them captive which prevents
God from blessing them.
In Matthew 18 Jesus tells us what believers are to do when someone
brings an offense. No matter how small or large the offense is,
believers are to forgive, period. (Matthew 18:21-27) As Peter said,
believers are to bless (forgive) not curse (hold unforgiveness). Jesus
also tells us what happens when a believer holds on
to unforgiveness. The believer is tormented because he/she has given
place to the devil (torturers). (Matthew 18:28-34) The sad thing is
Jesus' conclusion to this matter to believers who have unforgiveness, "So My heavenly Father also will do to you if each of you, from his heart, does not forgive his brother his trespasses." (Matthew 18:35)
If you have been offended and are dealing with unforgiveness, you can be
totally free from the hurt, torment and or ill feelings that you have
towards another person right now. First, let the offense out by speaking
what the offense was and who it was that offended you. Secondly, you
must completely forgive them no matter how difficult it may seem.
(Colossians 3:13) Next, purpose not to think (2 Corinthians 10:5)
or speak (Ephesians 4:29) anything concerning this matter ever again. In
doing so, you will not "give place to the devil." (Ephesians
4:27) Also, ask the Lord to forgive you for holding on to unforgiveness
(1 John 1:9) Finally, let 1 Peter 3:8-9 have place in your heart and
speak blessings over the one(s) who have offended you. In doing these
things, you not only release the one
that you have held captive in your heart through unforgiveness, but you
also will free yourself from being tormented due to unforgiveness.
Although Jesus said, "offenses will come" by applying these simple principles by faith
you will walk in freedom overcoming all offenses. With that said, I
have one final thought. Time does not heal wounds, only forgiveness from
the heart does. So let it all go and become the blessing that you are
called to be to others, so that you may inherit a blessing.
Monday, March 29, 2021
The Perfect Mediator
Now that resurrection Sunday 2015 has been celebrated, let us live
everyday never forgetting where we came from and mostly let us never
forgot what Christ did for us. Due to the fall of man in the Garden, all
mankind has paid the price for Adam's act of treason, "just as through one man sin entered the world, and death through sin, and thus death spread to all men." (Romans 5:12) Man has lost his approach to God and is described by Paul as "without Christ...having no hope and without God in the world." (Ephesians 2:12) Think about this. Man without Christ is hopeless, Godless, and in the world where Satan has the power of death. (Hebrews 2:14)
To take this sorrow even further, man is described as having become a
partaker of Satan's nature. He is not only a subject of Satan
politically, but he is vitally united with him. Jesus pointed this out
to the Pharisees when they feverishly tried to defend their
self-righteousness, "You are of your
father the devil, and the desires of your father you want to do. He was
a murderer from the beginning, and does not stand in the truth, because
there is no truth in him. When he speaks a lie, he speaks from his own resources, for he is a liar and the father of it." (John 8:44)
Job had a startling encounter that also reveals man's state without a mediator before God, "Now a word was secretly brought to me, and my ear received a whisper of it. In disquieting thoughts from the visions of the night, when deep sleep falls on men, fear came upon me, and trembling, which made all my bones shake. Then a spirit passed before my face; the hair on my body stood up. It stood still, but I could not discern its appearance. A form was before my eyes; there was silence; then I heard a voice saying: Can a mortal be more righteous than God? Can a man be more pure than his Maker?" (Job 4:12-17)
This
is the age old problem. This is the eternal problem that has confronted
the thinking man of all ages. Can mortal man be justified or acquitted
before God? Shall fallen man be pure in the presence of his Maker? Job
also paints a graphic picture of an aged man on his death-bed facing
eternity and the approach of judgment. Job continues and speaks out of
the agony within his soul. "Now my days are swifter than a runner; they flee away, they see no good. They pass by like swift ships, like an eagle swooping on its prey. If I say, ‘I will forget my complaint, I will put off my sad face and wear a smile, I am afraid of all my sufferings; I know that You will not hold me innocent. If I am condemned, why then do I labor in vain? If I wash myself with snow water, and cleanse my hands with soap, yet You will plunge me into the pit, and my own clothes (self-righteousness) will abhor me." (Job 9:25-31)
Job
knows that he cannot face God, for God is not mortal and He is not
under the bondage and guilt of sin as Job is. Job then utters the
saddest words that ever fell from the lips of a human. "There is no mediator between us, who may lay his hand on us both." (Job 9:33) In other words, there is no Mediator
between man and God who has a legal standing with God and at the same
time can sympathize, understand and represent man. This is Job's cry for
a mediator. But it is not the cry of Job alone. It is the age old cry
of man, who in vain has worked hard to sooth their guilty sin laden conscience by creating various
religions and or acts of the flesh. Some of the ways man has tried to
appease his conscience come in the form of so called Christian cults
such as Russelism, Mormonism and Christian Science. Others such as,
eastern religions of idolatry, human and animal sacrifices and the
beating of the flesh. Worshipers of Satan as well as others who go about
committing murder and mayhem in the name of Allah which are considered
good works.
All
of these twisted means are an attempt to get right with God. However,
even in all of these things, God's character has not changed and man's
fallen nature is still the same. Man today can no more approach God
without a Mediator than
he could throughout his entire history. Some men will even tell us that
if they live a good moral life, that this is all God can require of
them, and that if there is a heaven they have as much right to it as
those who trust in the merits of Jesus of Nazareth, the one and only
Mediator. Paul tells us, "For there is one God and one Mediator between God and men, the Man Christ Jesus, who gave Himself a ransom for all, to be testified in due time." (1 Timothy 2:5-6) Peter tells us, "Nor is there salvation in any other, for there is no other name under heaven given among men by which we must be saved." (Acts 4:12)
Only the people who have welcomed Jesus Christ as Savior and have
received the life that He brings from God, have an assured confidence
that they can once again can approach God without guilt, condemnation or
inferiority. Let no one deceive you. It is only by the grace of God
through faith in Jesus Christ alone that one can, "...come boldly to the throne of grace, that we may obtain mercy and find grace to help in time of need." (Hebrews 4:16) "...and truly our fellowship is with the Father and with His Son Jesus Christ." (1 John 1:3) The writers of the Bible all teach one great truth, "Man needs a Mediator." Today, scholarship if it is scholarship, knowledge if it is real knowledge, should lead all minds to the same goal. "How then can man be righteous before God? Or how can he be pure who is born of a woman?"
(Job 25:4) As with Job, it is still the cry of the human heart, man
needs a Mediator and that Mediator is Jesus Christ the Son of the Living
God.
Please take some time to ponder the words written here. There are people that you know who need Jesus the Mediator.
He is the only one who can set people free from the guilt of sin. He is
the only one whose sinless blood has paid in full the crimes of
humanity. He is the only one who came to give life and give it
more abundantly. Never forget what He has done for you. So, now go and tell
another person the Good News, Jesus is alive and "this is the promise that He has promised us, eternal life." (1 John 2:25) May the grace and peace of our LORD and Savior Jesus Christ be with you all...
Monday, March 22, 2021
Amazing Grace
"Behold, the days are coming, says the LORD, when I will make a new covenant with the house of Israel and with the house of Judah, not according to the covenant that I made with their fathers in the day that I took them by the hand to lead them out of the land of Egypt, My covenant which they broke, though I was a husband to them, says the LORD. But this is the covenant that I will make with the house of Israel after those days, says the LORD: I will put My law in their minds, and write it on their hearts; and I will be their God, and they shall be My people. No more shall every man teach his neighbor, and every man his brother, saying, 'Know the LORD, ' for they all shall know Me, from the least of them to the greatest of them, says the LORD. For I will forgive their iniquity, and their sin I will remember no more." (Jeremiah 31:31-34)
God said, "I will forgive them and will remember their sin no more" that is all sin, transgression and iniquity will be blotted out and never mentioned again (Isaiah 43:25, Acts 2:38) He will take people from among the nations, because salvation is for all people (John 3:16, Romans 1:16) He will sprinkle clean water and cleanse His New Covenant people with the water of His Word. (Ephesians 5:25-28) His people will be given oneness of heart manifested through God’s love (John 13:34, John 17:21) He will put a new spirit in these New Covenant people, that is, God will transform the dead human spirit and completely recreate it (2 Corinthians 5:17) and to put the icing on the cake, He will put His Spirit within them. (John 14:16-17) What does this all mean to you and I? The New Covenant is based on pure grace and nothing else but grace. According to the Bible, grace is defined as, "For it is God who works in you both to will and to do for His good pleasure." (Philippians 2:13) another translations says it this way, " For it is God Himself whose power creates within you the desire to do His will and also brings about the accomplishment of the desire."
Basically, God's grace is God giving us what we do not deserve such as, forgiveness, healing, provision, long live, eternal life, His ability, etc. However, it was Him, He alone made the decision to do everything it would take to satisfy justice and completely restore humanity to what He had intended before the fall. Not only did He do what He said He would do as He spoke through the prophets, but the amazing attribute of grace is He has given the believer His ability and the desire to do His will. Well, how can we implement this wonderful, amazing grace into our daily lives? "Therefore, having been declared righteous by faith, we have peace with God through our Lord Jesus Christ, through whom also we have access by faith into this grace in which we stand, and rejoice in hope of the glory of God." (Romans 5:1-2 )
Every believer can walk daily in the abundance of grace that God has if we are willing to "walk by faith and not by sight." (2 Corinthians 5:7) Notice carefully to what Paul says, "walk by faith." Simply reading and meditating on God's Word is not enough to build our faith. It only creates a capacity for faith. Faith is only built when believers acts upon God's Word through their daily lives and daily speech. James says it this way, "...I will show you my faith by my works" (James 2:18), that is, acting on God's Word. This is the kind of faith that pleases God (Mark 11:22-24) As we yield to the work of the Holy Spirit giving us revelation of God's Word we will become completely convinced that His Word is one hundred percent true and we no longer base His Word on experiences or a manifestation. We believe and act on God's Word because God’s Word says so, period. All believers must be fully convinced of this fact, "God is not a man, that He should lie, Nor a son of man, that He should repent. Has He said, and will He not do? Or has He spoken, and will He not make it good? (Numbers 23:19) May, the grace of our Lord Jesus Christ be with your spirit.
Monday, March 15, 2021
Front Line Leadership
One of the greatest need that is lacking in almost every area of every society is effective leadership.
Whether governments, businesses, organizations, churches or families,
the rise or fall of them lies upon the effectiveness of those who lead
them. The life of the church today depends on leaders who fully depend
upon the builder and leader of the church, the Lord Jesus Christ. Jesus
said, "I am the vine, you are the branches. He who abides in Me, and I in him, bears much fruit; for without Me you can do nothing." (John 15:5) Although this is meant for all believers, it should be the highest priority in the life of church leaders.
There are some things that we should take note of in this verse. First,
the vine (Jesus) does not bear the fruit, nor does the Holy Spirit. The
branches (believers) bear the fruit enabled by the Holy Spirit. Next, as
a branch cannot survive without the vine, the vine needs the branch to
bear the fruit. This speaks of an incredible oneness that believers have
with Christ. With this in mind let's look at some of the
characteristics that make a good leader.
"This is a faithful saying: If a man desires the position of a
bishop, he desires a good work. A bishop then must be blameless, the
husband of one wife, temperate, sober-minded, of good behavior,
hospitable, able to teach; not given to wine, not violent, not greedy
for money, but gentle, not quarrelsome, not covetous; one who rules his
own house well, having his children in submission with all reverence
(for if a man does not know how to rule his own house, how will he take
care of the church of God?); not a novice, lest being puffed up with
pride he fall into the same condemnation as the devil. Moreover he must
have a good testimony among those who are outside, lest he fall into
reproach and the snare of the devil." (1 Timothy 3:1-7)
Although the Holy Spirit through the apostle Paul is revealing the qualifications for an Elder
in the church, the leadership (government) of the early church was
first through Christ, then the Apostles and after that through Eldership
(and deacon as the need arose). When talking of Elders I mean the
leaders of the church. Those who are called by the Lord to oversee,
lead, make decisions and build up the church. We can clearly see from
the passage above that Elders must be qualified men before being
accepted into leadership. God demands moral and spiritual qualifications
to be met before a man can lead His people. As you can also see, being a
church leader has nothing to do with vocation whether a physician,
attorney, educator, being involved in public office, etc., because these
vocations can be held by men without spiritual or moral integrity. Now
let's look at the qualifications of an Elder (church leader) as shown
above. (There are other qualification and much more scripture that I
could share concerning church leaders but for the sake of space I will
only share the contents of the above passage in a more exhaustive way)
A bishop (Elder) then must be blameless, have unquestionable integrity.
He must be the husband of one wife. This does not necessarily mean he
needs to be married, but if married it must be to one wife. He must be
temperate,
that is disciplined, exercising self-control. He must be sober-minded,
having a sound mind. He must be of good behavior, have a respectable
life-style. He must be hospitable, have a fondness and willingness to
receive people into his house. He must be able to teach, skilled in the
Word of God both in word and action. He must not be given to
wine, not addicted to alcoholic beverages or even allowing them to
impair his physiological functions in the slightest He must not be
violent, lash out with the hand or mouth. He must not be greedy for
money, work at acquiring money by any means. He must be gentle, patient,
considerate have the ability to remain calm. He must not be
quarrelsome,
contentious, argumentative or one who gets involved with fist fights. He
must not be covetous; that is not controlled by the lust of the eyes,
lust of the flesh or the pride of life. He must be one who rules his own
house well, he must preside over and manage his household in an
excellent manner. His children must be in
submission with all reverence, he must have his children under control
showing respect. He must not be a novice, that is he must not be new to
the faith but have wisdom, understanding and experience in the things of
the Spirit and the Word of God. He must have a good testimony among
those who are outside the church, neighbors, fellow employees, etc.
As you can see, God has set up qualifications for church leaders not
only for the leader himself but for the protection of the believer. As
it was in the early church we seem to be faced with the same lack in the
church today, quality, spirit filled leaders called by God to lead His
people. The apostle Paul said, "For though you might have ten thousand instructors in Christ, yet you do not have many fathers..."
(1 Corinthians 4:15) A modern interpretation of this verse could be,
"For though you might have ten thousand professional clergy, yet you do
not have many who nourish, protect, uphold, and lead." Not one Bible
college or seminary can produce qualified leaders. This does not imply
that a formal education does not have its place or have any value,
but it is God Himself who truly raises up and qualifies church
leaders. (Acts 4:13). Church leaders must be men who are born again and
filled with the Holy Spirit. They must be men of godly character, divine
ability, and possess the wisdom of God "to lead His children in and out that they not be like sheep which have no shepherd." (Numbers 27: 17)
I believe that even now God is restoring true New Testament leadership
to the church. The problem that the church faces is dealing with the
many non-biblical concepts of leadership that have infiltrated the
church. God will eliminate these concepts by changing the hearts of His
people and preparing them to accept scriptural principles and patterns
of true biblical leadership. How about you? Are you one of those who God
is calling, raising up and qualifying to be a leader? If so, then keep
looking unto Jesus, the author and finisher of our faith and He will qualify you to lead the way.
Monday, March 8, 2021
Prevailing Through the Storms
One of the many exciting stories recorded in the gospels of the life of
Jesus is found in the three synoptic gospels. Although the following
account is very similar in detail in all three gospels I will still
share some parts from all three.
"Now it happened, on a certain day, that He got into a boat with His
disciples. And He said to them, "Let us cross over to the other side of
the lake." And they launched out. But as they sailed He fell asleep. And
a windstorm came down on the lake, and they were filling with water,
and were in jeopardy. And they came to Him and awoke Him, saying,
"Master, Master, we are perishing!" Then He arose and rebuked the wind
and the raging of the water. And they ceased, and there was a calm. But
He said to them, "Where is your faith?" And they were afraid, and
marveled, saying to one another,"Who can this be? For He commands even
the winds and water, and they obey Him!" (Luke 8:22-25)
There are many interesting aspects to this story. First, we notice "a windstorm came down on the lake."
Naturally, windstorms do happen because storms are the result of the
fall of man. However, I believe this particular windstorm had demonic
origins. Why do I say this? Before
the fall, Adam was given dominion not only over the creatures that were
on the earth, but God made him to have dominion over all of the works
of His hands. (Psalm 8:6) Also, prior to this incident Mark records, "Jesus
healed many, so that as many as had afflictions pressed about Him to
touch Him. And the unclean spirits, whenever they saw Him, fell down
before Him and cried out, saying, "You are the Son of God." But He
sternly warned them that they should not make Him known. And He went up
on the mountain and called to Him those He Himself wanted. And they came
to Him. Then He appointed twelve, that they might be with Him and that
He might send them out to preach, and to have power to heal sicknesses
and to cast out demons:" (Mark 3:10-15) Think about it, at this
particular time all those on earth who either had direct authority or
delegated authority over the forces of darkness were in this boat. The
devil may have thought if he could take them out he would still have the
authority that Adam forfeited to him. (Luke 4:6)
Although the storm was filling the boat with water to the point that
they were in jeopardy, Jesus was still asleep. This is a very important
key for believers to understand if we are to walk daily in victory over
every circumstance in this life no matter how insurmountable they may
seem. We must keep in mind that Satan is defeated (Colossians 2:15,
Hebrews 2:14), that we have authority over all of the power of the enemy
(Luke 10:19), that we also have been given the power of attorney to use
the Name of Jesus which carries with it all authority (Matthew 28:18,
Mark 16:17-18, Philippians 2:5-11), that we also have God's Word that is
living and powerful (Hebrews 4:12) and the we are God's Children (John
1:12, Romans 8:15-16)
We all of these mighty weapons of God available to us. By using them, we
too can rest in the midst of the storm. However, do we apply to our
lives what Solomon said, "Trust in the LORD with all your heart, and
lean not on your own understanding; in all your ways acknowledge Him,
and He shall direct your paths." (Proverbs 3:5-6) You see, walking
in victory comes down to whose words you are going to believe, the words
of man, the words of the devil or the Word of God? (Matthew 16:13-23)
Naturally, we must believe God's Word over man's and Satan's words, but
how can we cause God's Word to work in our lives?
We must first understand that although reading the Bible and confessing
scripture is a great thing, if we are not acting upon it, then we are
not really applying faith. Simply put, this is how true Bible faith works, we believe God's Word and then act upon it. James tells us, "But
be doers of the word, and not hearers only, deceiving yourselves...But
someone will say, "You have faith, and I have works." Show me your faith
without your works, and I will show you my faith by my works." (James 1:22, 2:18) So how can I be a doer of the Word? How can I show my faith by my works?
First, we we must be people who abide in God's Word (John 8:32-33) To
abide in God's Word is to accept it wholeheartedly with exception, to
believe it without doubting, to stand upon it without wavering. We must
be convinced that what God has promised He is also able to perform
(Romans 4:20-21). Now we find scripture that is directly related to the
circumstance, confess it with our mouth, believe it in our heart and
then thank Him for the answer even when there is not one shred of
physical evidence. You see, by thanking God for the desired results
(which must be according to His Will which is His Word 1 John 5:14-15) I
am acting on His Word. I thank Him not because of a manifestation, but
because I agree that His Word is true and it never fails. (Isaiah 55:11)
Jesus said it this way, "For assuredly, I say to you, whoever says
to this mountain, 'Be removed and be cast into the sea,' and does not
doubt in his heart, but believes that those things he says will be done,
he will have whatever he says. Therefore I say to you, whatever things
you ask when you pray, believe that you receive them, and you will have
them." (Mark 11:23-24)
Mark 11:23-24 is one of the most controversial passage of scripture to
most in the church today. However, this is the epitome of true Bible faith.
Doubt will always neutralize faith. Peter had faith to walk on the
water, and he did, but doubt caused him to sink. The doubt was brought
on by fear. Doubt neutralized his faith!!! (Matthew 14:28-31) Jesus
tells us that we must believe that those things we say will be done.
Finally, Jesus tells us that we must believe that we receive what we
have asked for and you will have them. Believe that you receive, not
receive and then believe. True Bible faith receives what God has already
said. What God has already promised. What God has already work through
Christ, even though there is no physical evidence. "Now faith is a
well-grounded assurance of that for which we hope, and a conviction of
the reality of things which we do not see." (Hebrews 11:1)
The apostle.Thomas did not exercise faith even though Jesus told His
disciple that after His death He would rise. (Matthew 16:21, Mark 8:31,
Luke 9:22) Nor did he believe even after many reported that in fact
Jesus was risen. Not only did Thomas have to see the risen Lord, but he
had to examine Him (the holes in His hands and feet, evidence seen)
before he would believe. (John 24-29) This is the greatest struggle for
most believers, believing that you have received without any physical
evidence. Why? Because most believers have been taught to be skeptical
of the supernatural. They have been trained to only accept things that
their five senses can understand. This is exactly what Thomas did and
Jesus rebuked him for it. He did not believe the Lord's Word concerning
His resurrection. If he had, once he heard that Jesus was risen, he
would have believed and acted upon it by rejoicing even though he
himself had not seen the Lord. Instead, he had to see the Lord to
believe that He was risen.
As the story winds down we see Jesus take control of the situation, He arose and rebuked the wind and the raging of the water. And they ceased, and there was a calm. This
should be the response of every believer when facing the difficulties
of life. James tells us to count it all joy when you fall into various
trials (James 1:2) In other words, do not let the trial have control,
let joy rise up and then stand on God's Word remembering that God did
not bring the trial (James 1:13) Also remember, believers are not called
to fight the devil, Jesus defeated him. We are called to fight the good
fight of faith. (1 Timothy 6:12) It is our faith in the integrity of God's Word that puts us over, not physical manifestations.
Think about this. If you are struggling with physical pain or some sort
of sickness in your body, do not deny its existence, that would be
lying. What you do, is deny its right to exist in your body which has
been purchased by Jesus and is the temple of the Holy Spirit (1
Corinthians 6:19-20) Why do you take this position? Because God's Word
says, "who Himself bore our sins in His own body on the tree, that
we, having died to sins, might live for righteousness, by whose stripes
you were (past tense) healed." (1 Peter 2:24 also see
Isaiah 53:4-5) You believe what Peter says, (it's God's Word) denying
the right of the physical manifestation of pain or sickness to have
place in your body. As Jesus rebuked the storm, you rebuke the devil and
the symptoms that he is trying to put upon you or has manifested in
your body.
Finally, Jesus confronts the disciples asking them, "Where is your faith?" The other accounts of this story say, "Why are you fearful, O you of little faith." (Matthew 8:26) and "Why are you so fearful? How is it that you have no faith?" (Mark 4:40) In either case, it comes down to an issue of faith.
Will we exercise faith in God's Word or will we let fear and or doubt
have place? Will we believe only if we see a manifestation or will we
believe because the Word of God says so? For most, this can be an
arduous ordeal. Why? It is because church leaders continue to teach
believers through a somewhat subliminal message to trust in their senses
and not God's Word. The only way to reverse these faithless words of
doubt, fear and unbelief that have filled the hearts of God's beloved
children, is to renew the mind with God's Word. (Romans 12:2, Ephesians
4:23) Renewing ones mind and dealing with these stronghold takes a
process of time. It comes down to each individual and just how deep
these strongholds have captured their mind.
But be of good cheer, because God has given you a measure of faith
(Romans 12:3) Through reading, studying and most importantly meditating
on God's Word your faith will grow. (Romans 10:17) So, if you find
yourself in the midst of a storm, "Let us not grow weary while doing good, for in due season we shall reap if we do not lose heart." (Galatians 6:9) Don't lose heart. Don't give up "Let us hold fast the confession of our faith without wavering, for He who promised is faithful." (Hebrews 10:23) God is faithful. His Word never fails. "It shall not return to Me void, but it shall accomplish what I please, and it shall prosper in the thing for which I sent it." (Isaiah 55:11) and always keeping in mind, "And they overcame him by the blood of the Lamb and by the word of their testimony (that is, the Word of God) (Revelation 12:11)