HeartCry!

Back to Basics: Breaking Down the High Places.

 

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Q: I’ve been a Christian for quite some time, and have realised that some of the things I’ve accepted as true, are actually not true according to the Bible. What can I do?

Proverbs 3:11-12
11  My son, do not despise the chastening of the LORD, Nor detest His correction;
12  For whom the LORD loves He corrects, Just as a father the son in whom he delights.

2 Chronicles 7:13-14
13  When I shut up heaven and there is no rain, or command the locusts to devour the land, or send pestilence among My people,
14  if My people who are called by My name will humble themselves, and pray and seek My face, and turn from their wicked ways, then I will hear from heaven, and will forgive their sin and heal their land.

Ezekiel 18:29-32
29  Yet the house of Israel says, ‘The way of the Lord is not fair.’ O house of Israel, is it not My ways which are fair, and your ways which are not fair?
30  “Therefore I will judge you, O house of Israel, every one according to his ways,” says the Lord GOD. “Repent, and turn from all your transgressions, so that iniquity will not be your ruin.
31  Cast away from you all the transgressions which you have committed, and get yourselves a new heart and a new spirit. For why should you die, O house of Israel?
32  For I have no pleasure in the death of one who dies,” says the Lord GOD. “Therefore turn and live!“

Joel 2:12-13, 25-27
12  “Now, therefore,” says the LORD, “Turn to Me with all your heart, With fasting, with weeping, and with mourning.”
13  So rend your heart, and not your garments; Return to the LORD your God, For He is gracious and merciful, Slow to anger, and of great kindness; And He relents from doing harm.
25  “So I will restore to you the years that the swarming locust has eaten, The crawling locust, The consuming locust, And the chewing locust, My great army which I sent among you.
26  You shall eat in plenty and be satisfied, And praise the name of the LORD your God, Who has dealt wondrously with you; And My people shall never be put to shame.
27  Then you shall know that I am in the midst of Israel: I am the LORD your God And there is no other. My people shall never be put to shame.

We can have confidence that the Lord brings correction and discipline to those He loves and calls His own. This may mean at times that, through the neglect of His Word, we may find ourselves in a place of disobedience, and as a result, in a place of spiritual dryness and pestilence. We should avoid falling into the popular trap of attributing every aspect of suffering to the devil, and begin to test ourselves in the light of Scripture, to see if what we are experiencing is actually the correction of the Lord Himself, with the aim of restoring us to Himself.

When we are in such a place, we can have confidence in the promise of His Word, that it is not His desire to leave us there. But rather it is His desire that we repent, or in other words turn back to Him and His ways, and find the life He has promised to us, restored again. What’s more He is willing and able to restore things in such a way that is impossible for us to do ourselves, in that He is able to restore that which even time spent in disobedience has caused to wither away.

1 Kings 18:3-4, 22
3  And Ahab had called Obadiah, who was in charge of his house. (Now Obadiah feared the LORD greatly.)
4  For so it was, while Jezebel massacred the prophets of the LORD, that Obadiah had taken one hundred prophets and hidden them, fifty to a cave, and had fed them with bread and water.)
22  Then Elijah said to the people, “I alone am left a prophet of the LORD; but Baal’s prophets are four hundred and fifty men.”

As we are awakened to wrongful ways in our lives, including those that have been established through wrong teaching within the church, we are called to reject them as sinful. As we seek to turn away from them and back to God and His ways, the first thing we often experience is the sense of being alone. In the verses above, Elijah only knew that Jezebel had massacred his fellow prophets of God, and felt totally alone and isolated, whilst being totally outnumbered by those opposed to him. In reality however, the Lord always has those He has set aside and who fear Him, and He is able through those people, to reserve for Himself those who will remain faithful. We must remember this, and not allow isolation to cause us to give in and back down to that which is false, even though that will always be the easier option.

Judges 6:15-16, 25-26
15  So he said to Him, “O my Lord, how can I save Israel? Indeed my clan is the weakest in Manasseh, and I am the least in my father’s house.”
16  And the LORD said to him, “Surely I will be with you, and you shall defeat the Midianites as one man.”
25  Now it came to pass the same night that the LORD said to him, “Take your father’s young bull, the second bull of seven years old, and tear down the altar of Baal that your father has, and cut down the wooden image that is beside it;
26  and build an altar to the LORD your God on top of this rock in the proper arrangement, and take the second bull and offer a burnt sacrifice with the wood of the image which you shall cut down.”

When we are in this situation, we may feel a strong comparison to that of Gideon in the verses above. We may feel insignificant in relation to the church in general, and definitely do not consider the church to be our enemy, for it is our family, so why would we want to offend or attack it? God’s response to us would be the same to us as to Gideon, that He is with us, He has identified the true enemy within the church, and shall defeat it through those faithful to Him, as one man. For it is not man that God is seeking to defeat, but rather our sinful and ungodly practices.

The command to us would be the same as to Gideon too. He was to take that which was being sacrificed to Baal, even though it would have been considered highly precious within his family, and tear down the alter that it was sacrificed upon. In its place, he was commanded to build an alter to the Lord, “in the proper arrangement”, and sacrifice what remained from the old sinful alter unto the Lord.

There is no room for sentiment in serving the Lord wholeheartedly in this way, for we are commanded to single mindedly tear down the error of our old ways, regardless of the consequence, and sacrifice them to the Lord God as we follow His ways instead. This may place us in a position where we find the relationships and things in our lives that are most precious to us, under threat as we surrender ourselves to the Lord and His ways above all else.

Luke 14:26-27
26  “If anyone comes to Me and does not hate his father and mother, wife and children, brothers and sisters, yes, and his own life also, he cannot be My disciple.
27  And whoever does not bear his cross and come after Me cannot be My disciple.

Q: I understand what I’m being called to do, but in a practical way, how do I carry this out?

2 Timothy 3:16-17
16  All Scripture is given by inspiration of God, and is profitable for doctrine, for reproof, for correction, for instruction in righteousness,
17  that the man of God may be complete, thoroughly equipped for every good work.

1 Peter 1:22-23
22  Since you have purified your souls in obeying the truth through the Spirit in sincere love of the brethren, love one another fervently with a pure heart,
23  having been born again, not of corruptible seed but incorruptible, through the word of God which lives and abides forever,

2 Corinthians 10:3-6
3  For though we walk in the flesh, we do not war according to the flesh.
4  For the weapons of our warfare are not carnal but mighty in God for pulling down strongholds,
5  casting down arguments and every high thing that exalts itself against the knowledge of God, bringing every thought into captivity to the obedience of Christ,
6  and being ready to punish all disobedience when your obedience is fulfilled.

If you have been following these studies, it may seem we have come full circle to the initial study called “How do we follow Jesus?”, for the answer always lies in the Word of God given to us through Scripture. As we obey the truth of His Word, through the Spirit within us, we will constantly hear His voice speaking to us, and guiding us in His ways.

It is pointless trying to make a list explaining all the ways in which we can be in error in the sight of God, for it would be too simple to check things off as fine, and then carry on regardless. Instead we must earnestly, and constantly press into His Word, meditating on it day and night. We must bring every thought captive to it, and every act into its light, that our lives may be completely laid open before Him. As we do this, in His great mercy, He will point out one by one, the things in our lives that need dealing with. He will give us the strength, wisdom and determination to break down these high places in our lives, but we must be willing to surrender ourselves to the task. A high place in this sense would be anything, either in thought or deed, past or present, that exalts itself against the knowledge of God revealed to us through His Word. Even if it’s something we’ve already done, we can still acknowledge the error of it, and refuse to stand by idly and allow others to be led along the same path unknowingly. As for our own part, God will restore all the years lost because of this error in our own life, as we acknowledge it for the sin that it is, turn away from it, and turn back to God.

Romans 8:13
13  For if you live according to the flesh you will die; but if by the Spirit you put to death the deeds of the body, you will live.

Colossians 3:9-11
9  Do not lie to one another, since you have put off the old man with his deeds,
10  and have put on the new man who is renewed in knowledge according to the image of Him who created him,
11  where there is neither Greek nor Jew, circumcised nor uncircumcised, barbarian, Scythian, slave nor free, but Christ is all and in all.

Ephesians 5:25-27
25  Husbands, love your wives, just as Christ also loved the church and gave Himself for her,
26  that He might sanctify and cleanse her with the washing of water by the word,
27  that He might present her to Himself a glorious church, not having spot or wrinkle or any such thing, but that she should be holy and without blemish.

We must understand that we cannot treat our life in Christ half heartedly. We have been called into a way of life that, though often painful, we shall be conformed more and more into the likeness of Christ, until that Last Day in which we are called into our eternal and glorious inheritance with Him. There are no short cuts, easy routes, or anything of the sort. But only a hard narrow path that demands our all if we are to walk in it, but if we are willing to surrender all, we have the promise of God that we shall overcome by His power and strength.

If we live a life claiming to be Christian, then it must be understood that we must walk the path of self denial, and death to self that Christ calls us along. We are either in Christ and our lives are hidden with His in God, until Christ, who is our life, is revealed in glory. Or we are outside of Christ, and remain under the threat of the Wrath of God that will surely fall upon the wicked that He judges in His Righteousness. There is no in between ground at all, and those truly in Christ have a similar mark. They will allow their lives to be examined in the light of the Word of God, and will constantly turn back to Him as its light exposes the error within them.

Do you long to be greeted by Christ Himself as, “good and faithful servant”? Do the words of Jesus that tell us, “many are called, but few are chosen” cause you to want to examine yourself closely to ensure He chooses you? Does it bring fear and trembling to your soul, to consider that many will say in that Day, “Lord, Lord! Have we not prophesied in Your name, and done many wonders in Your name?” only to be turned away as those He never knew, who practice lawlessness? If so, then seek to earnestly and sincerely join the apostle Paul in his exhortation to the Philippian church:

Philippians 3:7-21
7  But what things were gain to me, these I have counted loss for Christ.
8  Yet indeed I also count all things loss for the excellence of the knowledge of Christ Jesus my Lord, for whom I have suffered the loss of all things, and count them as rubbish, that I may gain Christ
9  and be found in Him, not having my own righteousness, which is from the law, but that which is through faith in Christ, the righteousness which is from God by faith;
10  that I may know Him and the power of His resurrection, and the fellowship of His sufferings, being conformed to His death,
11  if, by any means, I may attain to the resurrection from the dead.
12  Not that I have already attained, or am already perfected; but I press on, that I may lay hold of that for which Christ Jesus has also laid hold of me.
13  Brethren, I do not count myself to have apprehended; but one thing I do, forgetting those things which are behind and reaching forward to those things which are ahead,
14  I press toward the goal for the prize of the upward call of God in Christ Jesus.
15  Therefore let us, as many as are mature, have this mind; and if in anything you think otherwise, God will reveal even this to you.
16  Nevertheless, to the degree that we have already attained, let us walk by the same rule, let us be of the same mind.
17  Brethren, join in following my example, and note those who so walk, as you have us for a pattern.
18  For many walk, of whom I have told you often, and now tell you even weeping, that they are the enemies of the cross of Christ:
19  whose end is destruction, whose god is their belly, and whose glory is in their shame—who set their mind on earthly things.
20  For our citizenship is in heaven, from which we also eagerly wait for the Savior, the Lord Jesus Christ,
21  who will transform our lowly body that it may be conformed to His glorious body, according to the working by which He is able even to subdue all things to Himself.

Originally posted 2009-06-18 23:19:15. Republished by Blog Post Promoter

Back to Basics: Resting As We Follow Him.

 

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Q: How can we rest and follow Jesus at the same time?

Matthew 11:28-30
28  Come to Me, all you who labor and are heavy laden, and I will give you rest.
29  Take My yoke upon you and learn from Me, for I am gentle and lowly in heart, and you will find rest for your souls.
30  For My yoke is easy and My burden is light.”

Luke 10:38-42
38  Now it happened as they went that He entered a certain village; and a certain woman named Martha welcomed Him into her house.
39  And she had a sister called Mary, who also sat at Jesus’ feet and heard His word.
40  But Martha was distracted with much serving, and she approached Him and said, “Lord, do You not care that my sister has left me to serve alone? Therefore tell her to help me.”
41  And Jesus answered and said to her, “Martha, Martha, you are worried and troubled about many things.
42  But one thing is needed, and Mary has chosen that good part, which will not be taken away from her.”

We have to understand first of all that Jesus promises to give us rest, and it is not His desire that we should be distracted under a heavy workload. Even when the things that burden us could be considered service to Him, they can still become a distraction if we’re not careful. When Jesus calls us to follow, it’s not that He wants us to “do” things for Him, but rather “give” ourselves to Him in complete surrender. As with Mary, our part is surrendered to Him at His feet.

Philippians 1:6
6  being confident of this very thing, that He who has begun a good work in you will complete it until the day of Jesus Christ;

Colossians 2:8-10
8  Beware lest anyone cheat you through philosophy and empty deceit, according to the tradition of men, according to the basic principles of the world, and not according to Christ.
9  For in Him dwells all the fullness of the Godhead bodily;
10  and you are complete in Him, who is the head of all principality and power.

Hebrews 13:20-21
20  Now may the God of peace who brought up our Lord Jesus from the dead, that great Shepherd of the sheep, through the blood of the everlasting covenant,
21  make you complete in every good work to do His will, working in you what is well pleasing in His sight, through Jesus Christ, to whom be glory forever and ever. Amen.

John 19:30
30  So when Jesus had received the sour wine, He said, “It is finished!” And bowing His head, He gave up His spirit.

The work of Jesus Christ is finished, and when we are found in Him, our work is finished too, in the sense that we are complete in Him. We now trust in Him, and the works He completed, as our own. Our justification will never be found by anything that we have done or will do, but solely on the works that He has done for us.

When we trust in the completed work of Christ, God is able to make us complete in every good work that is pleasing in His sight. Rather than us anxiously striving to do things to please Him, those works that He desires for us will flow from us naturally and joyfully instead.

Q: What things must we do to follow Him then?

Acts 2:37-39
37  Now when they heard this, they were cut to the heart, and said to Peter and the rest of the apostles, “Men and brethren, what shall we do?”
38  Then Peter said to them, “Repent, and let every one of you be baptized in the name of Jesus Christ for the remission of sins; and you shall receive the gift of the Holy Spirit.
39  For the promise is to you and to your children, and to all who are afar off, as many as the Lord our God will call.”

Mark 16:16
16  He who believes and is baptized will be saved; but he who does not believe will be condemned.

Luke 12:50
50  But I have a baptism to be baptized with, and how distressed I am till it is accomplished!

Many times throughout the New Testament it relates repentance, belief and baptism all together. In fact, the most common process recorded in the book of Acts amongst the early believers, was to be baptized in water immediately upon coming to faith. We will go further into this subject shortly, but for now we will focus upon what baptism actually signifies, and that is our death alongside Christ. In the words of Jesus in Luke 12:50 above, it is obvious that Jesus is not simply talking of His distress concerning water baptism, as He had already been baptized in water at this point.

Romans 6:3-5
3  Or do you not know that as many of us as were baptized into Christ Jesus were baptized into His death?
4  Therefore we were buried with Him through baptism into death, that just as Christ was raised from the dead by the glory of the Father, even so we also should walk in newness of life.
5  For if we have been united together in the likeness of His death, certainly we also shall be in the likeness of His resurrection,

Colossians 2:11-12
11  In Him you were also circumcised with the circumcision made without hands, by putting off the body of the sins of the flesh, by the circumcision of Christ,
12  buried with Him in baptism, in which you also were raised with Him through faith in the working of God, who raised Him from the dead.

Mat 16:24 Then Jesus said to His disciples, “If anyone desires to come after Me, let him deny himself, and take up his cross, and follow Me.

We are reminded in these verses that when Jesus calls us to follow Him, we are called into a place of following Him firstly into death, in order that we may share in His resurrection life. Our baptism in water is a memorial of our own death alongside Christ, and as such, we should regard it reverently, and as a gift of God that aids
our following Him.

Conclusion:

There is obviously much that can be said concerning our faithfulness in following Christ when He calls us, but through this and the previous study, we can see a simplicity open before us that can begin to give us confidence to follow Him. We can begin to see some of the doubts and fears removed from our minds, especially concerning being able to identify His voice, understanding what He requires from us, and understanding where we stand in Him. Here are the points of note I have come up with, but I’m sure there are many more:

1. The Bible itself is the fully revealed Word of God, in written form, given to us in order to make us completely ready and able to follow Him. God’s instruction to us as believers is given so clearly in no other tangible place in our lives, either by any other written material, or by any other words from any other mouth, whether human or angelic. What’s more, if any instruction, from any other source, conflicts with the instruction given through it, either directly or by implication in the context of the whole Bible, it must be rejected as false.

2. We no longer have to rely on anything from ourselves for our justification before God, but solely the completed works of Jesus Christ done for us. Although we are called to a life of obedient service, how faithfully or successfully we serve has no bearing on what Christ has already acheived for us, for in Him we are already complete.

3. There are significant and specific changes in the lives of everyone claiming to follow Christ, and can be used as the litmus test on our own lives to ensure that our own faith is genuine:

a) REPENTANCE – We will come to a realisation of our own sinfulness before a Holy and Righteous God, aware of His Judgement against sin, and aware of our need for Him to save us. We will not only repent and turn to Him at the beginning of our walk, but we will also repent and turn back to Him each time we are made aware of our own continuing error and sinfulness.

b) BELIEF – Our faith in Christ will have a bearing upon every area of our lives. We will ultimately know Him as our Saviour and our Lord, and even when we know that we are in error, our consciences will be pricked by His Spirit, leading us again to acknowledge His Lordship over our lives. By faith, we will accept the redemption of His sacrifice for us, the inerrancy of His Word given to us, and the crucial need of His Holy Spirit to lead and guide us; and above all, we will grow in the knowledge of His overwhelming love for us.

c) BAPTISM – We will know that to enter into life in Him, we must first die to our own sinful nature, and continually deny our own selfish desires in order to follow Him. By faith, we will enter into the likeness of His death through baptism in the name of the Father, Son and Holy Spirit, for the remission of our sins. And by faith, we will be baptized by His Holy Spirit and fire, as we receive the deposit guaranteeing our inheritance in Christ.

Perhaps it would be a good thing at this point to consider these points for yourself, and meditate upon what they actually mean in regards to your own walk with Him. Also if there are a group of you, talk of these things with one another, and allow the Spirit to open up the truth of His Word in a deeper way to you all.

You can read this study being discussed at Faith Defenders community forum by clicking here.

Originally posted 2009-05-30 11:39:00. Republished by Blog Post Promoter

Back to Basics: Beware the False Shepherds!

 

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Q: Who should I trust to teach me about faith in Christ, and how to live in Him?

Matthew 7:15
15  “Beware of false prophets, who come to you in sheep’s clothing, but inwardly they are ravenous wolves.

2 Peter 2:1-3
1  But there were also false prophets among the people, even as there will be false teachers among you, who will secretly bring in destructive heresies, even denying the Lord who bought them, and bring on themselves swift destruction.
2  And many will follow their destructive ways, because of whom the way of truth will be blasphemed.
3  By covetousness they will exploit you with deceptive words; for a long time their judgment has not been idle, and their destruction does not slumber.

It is a common attitude amongst Christians to think that one of the safest places to be, is in church, the safest T.V. and radio is always Christian media, and the safest books to read are always written by Christian authors. In fact, many Christians would never dream of testing what is preached in their congregation, for fear of upsetting the pastors and teachers they love and respect. Nor would many consider anything wrong with simply tuning into any Christian radio or TV station, or reading any book written by a Christian author, with virtually no sense of precautionary alertness at all. However nothing could be further from the truth, for the warning of Scripture is that there will be false teachers amongst us, and we can know from so many places in the Bible that the devil is very subtle in the way he twists the truth of Scripture in order to deceive.

1 Corinthians 11:1
1  Imitate me, just as I also imitate Christ.

Hebrews 13:7-9
7  Remember those who rule over you, who have spoken the word of God to you, whose faith follow, considering the outcome of their conduct.
8  Jesus Christ is the same yesterday, today, and forever.
9  Do not be carried about with various and strange doctrines. For it is good that the heart be established by grace, not with foods which have not profited
those who have been occupied with them.

It is most often the case that when we come to faith in Christ, He will also provide us with those around us who have a more developed faith in Him, that we may
imitate them as they have imitated Him. However we must know without doubt that these people do not come with a convenient label attached, and many will
surround them claiming to take their place in your eyes. It is our responsiblity therefore, to follow or submit to no man, beyond the point that man
is submitted to Christ as Lord in their own life. To fail in this will result in us being carried away into various and strange doctrines, just as many are in the church
even today.

In His mercy God places these faithful believers to watch over us, but their only calling is to feed us from the meat of His Word, in order that we may grow to know
Him for ourselves. They are not responsible to lead us along the whole pathway to eternity, but only to the one true Shepherd, who is alone Christ Jesus. And as we
come to Him, that we may confidently know Him and obey Him as we recognise His voice, we may begin to also lead others in the same way. It is not something we
learn from Bible college, but it is through personal relationship with Christ Himself, knowing that He is the same always.

2 Peter 3:14-18
14  Therefore, beloved, looking forward to these things, be diligent to be found by Him in peace, without spot and blameless;
15  and consider that the longsuffering of our Lord is salvation—as also our beloved brother Paul, according to the wisdom given to him, has written to you,
16  as also in all his epistles, speaking in them of these things, in which are some things hard to understand, which untaught and unstable people twist to their own destruction, as they do also the rest of the Scriptures.
17  You therefore, beloved, since you know this beforehand, beware lest you also fall from your own steadfastness, being led away with the error of the wicked;
18  but grow in the grace and knowledge of our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ. To Him be the glory both now and forever. Amen.

Romans 12:2
2  And do not be conformed to this world, but be transformed by the renewing of your mind, that you may prove what is that good and acceptable and perfect will of God.

As it was pointed out clearly in the first study, “How do we follow Jesus?”, we hear His voice clearly through His own Word in Scripture. Every word of
instruction from every other mouth or pen, must submit to the authority of the Holy Bible. And to know intimately the Word of God through Scripture, is to know the
voice of the Lord to us. There is no short cut, or reliance upon others to do the work ascribed to us personally, but we must diligently give ourselves to seek Him,
through His Word prayerfully, and wholeheartedly. It is only through this place we may find the place where He alone is our Shepherd.

Q: If this is true, how can I know which church to join?

Acts 2:41-47
41  Then those who gladly received his word were baptized; and that day about three thousand souls were added to them.
42  And they continued steadfastly in the apostles’ doctrine and fellowship, in the breaking of bread, and in prayers.
43  Then fear came upon every soul, and many wonders and signs were done through the apostles.
44  Now all who believed were together, and had all things in common,
45  and sold their possessions and goods, and divided them among all, as anyone had need.
46  So continuing daily with one accord in the temple, and breaking bread from house to house, they ate their food with gladness and simplicity of heart,
47  praising God and having favor with all the people. And the Lord added to the church daily those who were being saved.

1 John 1:6-7
6  If we say that we have fellowship with Him, and walk in darkness, we lie and do not practice the truth.
7  But if we walk in the light as He is in the light, we have fellowship with one another, and the blood of Jesus Christ His Son cleanses us from all sin.

When many respond to the Gospel and receive Christ as their Saviour, it is often taken for granted that the next step should be to go out and find a church to join, almost as if your salvation depends on it. In my own personal opinion, and it must be made clear it is just that, I believe this can be the reason why so many become reliant upon others far more than Christ alone. There seems to be an automatic need to be “spiritually covered” by others in order to safeguard the work the Holy Spirit has begun. But in reality, this is simply not the case, for Christ alone is our covering in this way, and to put another in His rightful place is an offense to God.

1 Corinthians 11:3-4
3  But I want you to know that the head of every man is Christ, the head of woman is man, and the head of Christ is God.
4  Every man praying or prophesying, having his head covered, dishonors his head.

1 Timothy 2:5-6
5  For there is one God and one Mediator between God and men, the Man Christ Jesus,
6  who gave Himself a ransom for all, to be testified in due time,

At the outset of our walk in Christ, we must understand that He has chosen us, He has begun a work in us, and He will complete it. It is a work that will remain untouched by mans hand, and at whatever point it is, it will be corrupted. If someone has preached the Gospel to you in such a way as to awaken you to sincere belief in Christ as Saviour, you can know without doubt they are anointed by God, for nobody can be brought to that place of belief in His Son unless drawn by God Himself.

Instead of feeling any desire whatsoever to run off seeking anyone more “qualified” in the sight of man, begin to imitate the faith of the one who has been faithful to you, by being faithful to Christ Himself, and His command to preach the Gospel to every creature. Don’t look to ministries, churches, or any man made “thing” to support you in Christ, but look to Christ Himself, who will be pointed to by those who are imitating Him, not necessarily those who have the label that seems to fit the task. If we keep this frame of mind steadfastly, the Lord Himself will provide the fellowship with other believers that we need, and we will find ourselves rapidly being knitted together with others to carry out His will.

Acts 2:47
47  praising God and having favor with all the people. And the Lord added to the church daily those who were being saved.

When we understand fully that the “church” God adds to daily, has absolutely nothing to do with any earthly ministry or congregation in its own right, we can begin to relax a little more as to where we actually attempt to “go to” church. The church spoken of in Scripture with regard to the Body of Christ, comes from the Greek word “ekklesia”, meaning an assembly of believers, called out by God Himself. The physical location of this assembly is not something that can be defined in one particular place or another, but is rather defined by the location of those who are called out by His Spirit, and have assembled together in His name.

Matthew 18:19-20
19  “Again I say to you that if two of you agree on earth concerning anything that they ask, it will be done for them by My Father in heaven.
20  For where two or three are gathered together in My name, I am there in the midst of them.”

1 Peter 2:4-5
4  Coming to Him as to a living stone, rejected indeed by men, but chosen by God and precious,
5  you also, as living stones, are being built up a spiritual house, a holy priesthood, to offer up spiritual sacrifices acceptable to God through Jesus Christ.

Matthew 16:18
18  And I also say to you that you are Peter, and on this rock I will build My church, and the gates of Hades shall not prevail against it.

Do not be anxious about whether or not you can find a “good church”, or be pressure by other Christians into feeling that you must suddenly submit yourself fully to one church or another before you are able to live a life holy unto the Lord. Look to Him alone to lead you wherever He may, offering yourself as a living stone to be placed according to His will and purpose, and rest assured, you will find yourself in the perfect place of His choosing, wherever it may be. It may very well be a place that no other Christian seems to want you to be, but remain faithfully submitted to the leading of the Holy Spirit, and your faithfulness will be openly rewarded.

Q: What should I do if I already hold some level of responsiblity in a church or Christian organization?

2 Timothy 4:1-5
1  I charge you therefore before God and the Lord Jesus Christ, who will judge the living and the dead at His appearing and His kingdom:
2  Preach the word! Be ready in season and out of season. Convince, rebuke, exhort, with all longsuffering and teaching.
3  For the time will come when they will not endure sound doctrine, but according to their own desires, because they have itching ears, they will heap up for themselves teachers;
4  and they will turn their ears away from the truth, and be turned aside to fables.
5  But you be watchful in all things, endure afflictions, do the work of an evangelist, fulfill your ministry.

Jude 1:3-5
3  Beloved, while I was very diligent to write to you concerning our common salvation, I found it necessary to write to you exhorting you to contend earnestly for the faith which was once for all delivered to the saints.
4  For certain men have crept in unnoticed, who long ago were marked out for this condemnation, ungodly men, who turn the grace of our God into lewdness and deny the only Lord God and our Lord Jesus Christ.
5  But I want to remind you, though you once knew this, that the Lord, having saved the people out of the land of Egypt, afterward destroyed those who did not believe.

If you have found yourself in the position of teacher within the Body of Christ, regardless of how you came to be in that position, you must realise the weight of responsiblity that rests upon your shoulders. Your duty is not to know everything that is true and teach others what you know, nor as it ever been that way. Your duty is to know the Word of God, live according to it yourself, contend and fight for the truth that is spoken by it, and preach it undiluted to all that will hear it.

The outcome of who believes and who doesn’t is totally in the hands of God, but have no doubt, you will be judged according to your own faithfullness in ministering to others in this way.

Matthew 23:9-13
9  Do not call anyone on earth your father; for One is your Father, He who is in heaven.
10  And do not be called teachers; for One is your Teacher, the Christ.
11  But he who is greatest among you shall be your servant.
12  And whoever exalts himself will be humbled, and he who humbles himself will be exalted.
13  “But woe to you, scribes and Pharisees, hypocrites! For you shut up the kingdom of heaven against men; for you neither go in yourselves, nor do you allow those who are entering to go in.

James 3:1
1  My brethren, let not many of you become teachers, knowing that we shall receive a stricter judgment.

If you truly desire to teach others in Christ, and to do it faithfully, then consider yourself not a teacher, but a servant to all. Lay your life down as if one dead, that Christ Himself may use you as an empty vessel to instruct others, as their only Teacher, and for His own glory. To do any less than this, and somehow make an attempt to lead those He has chosen by your own might, you will fail, you will lead them astray, and you will be held accountable!

Jeremiah 23:1-4
1  “Woe to the shepherds who destroy and scatter the sheep of My pasture!” says the LORD.
2  Therefore thus says the LORD God of Israel against the shepherds who feed My people: “You have scattered My flock, driven them away, and not attended to them. Behold, I will attend to you for the evil of your doings,” says the LORD.
3  “But I will gather the remnant of My flock out of all countries where I have driven them, and bring them back to their folds; and they shall be fruitful and increase.
4  I will set up shepherds over them who will feed them; and they shall fear no more, nor be dismayed, nor shall they be lacking,” says the LORD.

Unless everyone saved by Christ realises that everything belongs to Him, and is worked out by Him and for His glory, we are in a perilous place. From the outset we must understand that it is He who leads us, it is He who will provide those who will feed us faithfully, and it is He who will call us to faithfully feed others. We must also fully understand that not everything is as it may at first appear, for those we often run to for protection are nothing more than wolves in sheep’s clothing, and will remain in that clothing until they are exposed and recognised for who they really are. Not that we should wander around in a state of fearful paranoia, never trusting anyone. But that we may pledge our trust and allegiance to Christ alone, through the knowledge of His Word, that we may never settle for any other place than in the loving guidance of the one true Shepherd of the Flock.

If I could give any advice whatsoever from my own understanding, it would be this:

Submit to no man further than the point that man is submitted to Christ, and exhort no man to imitate you further than the point at which you imitate Christ Himself!

Either in following or leading others, the only true test is for the persons words and deeds to be scrutinized in the light of Scripture, just as the believers in Berea scrutinized the apostle Paul himself, and were commended by God for doing so.

Acts 17:10-12
10  Then the brethren immediately sent Paul and Silas away by night to Berea. When they arrived, they went into the synagogue of the Jews.
11  These were more fair-minded than those in Thessalonica, in that they received the word with all readiness, and searched the Scriptures daily to find out whether these things were so.
12  Therefore many of them believed, and also not a few of the Greeks, prominent women as well as men.

Let us all begin to realise that we are all personally accountable to God for our lives, and cannot constantly try to pass on this accountability to others. Let us stop wasting our time listening to teachings that tickle our ears, and instead choose only to listen to those who preach a message that crucifies our flesh by the power of His Word, and breaks down every high place in our life that stands against Christ Jesus.

This message is also posted on the Faith Defenders community forum here: http://faith-defenders.com/forum/index.php?topic=603.msg3566#msg3566 if you would like to discuss these matters with other believers.

Originally posted 2009-06-10 06:52:18. Republished by Blog Post Promoter

Back to Basics: Introduction

The following message is the first of the “Back to Basics” Bible studies, and contains an audio file, accompanied with text including Scriptures referenced in the audio, along with relevant points of note raised. Each of these studies will hold the same format of audio and text combination, and will be open to the input of those participating in these studies via comments on this website, and invitation to discuss matters more deeply at the Faith Defenders community forum.

All information that is brought forward by others via these means will be directly available by visiting either: http://unitedinjesus.org.uk or visiting http://faith-defenders.com/forum/ and following the links labelled clearly as “Back to Basics”. If you do desire to become a member of the forum, please note that automatic registration is disabled on the forum itself, and request must be made directly by email to: john@faith-defenders.com

Introduction

The audio message can be listened directly from this page through the player provided, or you can go directly to where it is located online to download or listen to it through a variety of formats at the following address: http://www.archive.org/details/BackToBasicsIntroduction

 

 Back to Basics: Introduction: Play Now | Play in Popup | Download

2Ti 3:1-17
(1)  But understand this, that in the last days there will come times of difficulty.
(2)  For people will be lovers of self, lovers of money, proud, arrogant, abusive, disobedient to their parents, ungrateful, unholy,
(3)  heartless, unappeasable, slanderous, without self-control, brutal, not loving good,
(4)  treacherous, reckless, swollen with conceit, lovers of pleasure rather than lovers of God,
(5)  having the appearance of godliness, but denying its power. Avoid such people.
(6)  For among them are those who creep into households and capture weak women, burdened with sins and led astray by various passions,
(7)  always learning and never able to arrive at a knowledge of the truth.
(8)  Just as Jannes and Jambres opposed Moses, so these men also oppose the truth, men corrupted in mind and disqualified regarding the faith.
(9)  But they will not get very far, for their folly will be plain to all, as was that of those two men.
(10)  You, however, have followed my teaching, my conduct, my aim in life, my faith, my patience, my love, my steadfastness,
(11)  my persecutions and sufferings that happened to me at Antioch, at Iconium, and at Lystra–which persecutions I endured; yet from them all the Lord rescued me.
(12)  Indeed, all who desire to live a godly life in Christ Jesus will be persecuted,
(13)  while evil people and impostors will go on from bad to worse, deceiving and being deceived.
(14)  But as for you, continue in what you have learned and have firmly believed, knowing from whom you learned it
(15)  and how from childhood you have been acquainted with the sacred writings, which are able to make you wise for salvation through faith in Christ Jesus.
(16)  All Scripture is breathed out by God and profitable for teaching, for reproof, for correction, and for training in righteousness,
(17)  that the man of God may be competent, [thoroughly] equipped for every good work.

Hi, and welcome to United in Jesus, “Back to Basics” Bible studies. The target of these studies will be to approach the primary issues of our faith in Christ in the light of Scripture, that we may find together a firm foundation on which all that we believe can rest upon. There will be no attempt made to approach debatable matters, but solely those fundamental truths of our faith that are firmly and undeniably backed up in Scripture.

The pattern we will follow in each study, is to provide an audio message, accompanied by a written article with relative Scriptures and issues brought up in the audio. Hopefully this will provide a means that will encourage those who are participating, to prayerfully examine these matters for themselves as the Spirit leads them.

Full recourse will be given to anyone making use of these studies by way of comment directly through the site. Also these studies will be place on the Faith Defenders forum, which is a sister ministry to United in Jesus, where the subjects will be discussed more deeply, and anyone participating through United in Jesus, will also be welcome to participate there should they wish to.

It is our desire that as each subject is approached, a resource will grow that offers much Scriptural insight and assurance over these matters, along with information highlighting ministries devoted to examining specific issues Scripturally, and also drawing attention to ministries that are openly promoting error through their teachings.

Although there is an obvious plan as to what matters of doctrine we approach, there is absolutely no set agenda as to how we do this, and the Holy Spirit will have full freedom to lead us wherever He wishes, and take as long as He wishes to teach us.

These studies have been entitled “Back to Basics” out of a desire to return to the simplicity of faith described in the Book of Acts in chapter 2:

Act 2:38-47
(38)  And Peter said to them, “Repent and be baptized every one of you in the name of Jesus Christ for the forgiveness of your sins, and you will receive the gift of the Holy Spirit.
(39)  For the promise is for you and for your children and for all who are far off, everyone whom the Lord our God calls to himself.”
(40)  And with many other words he bore witness and continued to exhort them, saying, “Save yourselves from this crooked generation.”
(41)  So those who received his word were baptized, and there were added that day about three thousand souls.
(42)  And they devoted themselves to the apostles’ teaching and the fellowship, to the breaking of bread and the prayers.
(43)  And the fear of God came upon every soul, and many wonders and signs were being done through the apostles.
(44)  And all who believed were together and had all things in common.
(45)  And they were selling their possessions and belongings and distributing the proceeds to all, as any had need.
(46)  And day by day, attending the temple together and breaking bread in their homes, they received their food with glad and generous hearts,
(47)  praising God and having favor with all the people. And the Lord added to their number day by day those who were being saved.

For quite some time now I have been concerned at a growing desire within the church in general to seek after signs,wonders and spiritual manifestation, whilst leaving aside a desire to establish sound doctrine through a clear understanding of God’s Word. Often it seems that only lip service is paid to the most fundamental and core doctrines of our faith in Christ, and often scorn poured out upon anyone calling out to test the spirits by the Scriptures.

Often a gospel message is preached that has a tendency to be void of any attempt to highlight the sin that binds us, or our need to repent and turn back to God. The subject of dying to ourselves is virtually unheard from the pulpit, even though Jesus Himself in Matthew 10:38 says that anyone unwilling to do so is not worthy of Him. And the emphasis of the message so often seems to be aimed at meeting the needs of our flesh, rather than to emphasize that unless our spiritual need for salvation is met first, little else really matters for everything else is temporal.

The aim and objective of these studies is to encourage those who participate to turn first and foremost to the Spirit of God as their Teacher, and the Word of God as the means by which His wisdom will be made known. Developing a solid understanding of the fundamental issues of our faith in Christ, that each person can become confident in applying them in their own lives, and also in leading and teaching others to do the same.

It is not our intention to bring division to any church at all, but it is our desire to see people raised up with a Berean attitude, able to rightly divide the Word of God, that they may discern that which is preached from their church pulpits to be true. Not only that, but it is also our desire to equip those who do find error being promoted within the Body of Christ, to openly and firmly tackle it in a godly manner. For too long now, heresy and lies are allowed to be propogated from the pulpit, and remain unchallenged. Either because of ignorance on behalf of the congregation, or fear of offending someone considered to be their “superior” in Christ.

Finally I have to say that through these studies, many ingrained traditions within our churches will be brought into the light of Scripture, that we may see if what we do automatically in some case, has any Scriptural basis at all. These issues will always be tackled courteously and sensitively, but when error is found in our traditions, when undeniable in the light of Scripture, we will have no desire to try and justify what we have been doing, and no matter for how long we’ve been doing it. We will not hesitate in calling a spade a spade.

I would like to leave you with a couple of Scriptures that emphasize our desire to see believers unhitch their dependency upon man, no matter how godly they may be, and anchor it squarely on God alone; being equipped through His Word to carry out every good work in His name, identify wrong doing in their life, and confidently cast it out in the power of His Spirit.

Mat 10:24
(24)  “A disciple is not above his teacher, nor a servant above his master.

John 10:27-30
(27)  My sheep hear my voice, and I know them, and they follow me.
(28)  I give them eternal life, and they will never perish, and no one will snatch them out of my hand.
(29)  My Father, who has given them to me, is greater than all, and no one is able to snatch them out of the Father’s hand.
(30)  I and the Father are one.”

Heb 8:10-12
(10)  For this is the covenant that I will make with the house of Israel after those days, declares the Lord: I will put my laws into their minds, and write them on their hearts, and I will be their God, and they shall be my people.
(11)  And they shall not teach, each one his neighbor and each one his brother, saying, ‘Know the Lord,’ for they shall all know me, from the least of them to the greatest.
(12)  For I will be merciful toward their iniquities, and I will remember their sins no more.”

Isa 30:18-22
(18)  Therefore the LORD waits to be gracious to you, and therefore he exalts himself to show mercy to you. For the LORD is a God of justice; blessed are all those who wait for him.
(19)  For a people shall dwell in Zion, in Jerusalem; you shall weep no more. He will surely be gracious to you at the sound of your cry. As soon as he hears it, he answers you.
(20)  And though the Lord give you the bread of adversity and the water of affliction, yet your Teacher will not hide himself anymore, but your eyes shall see your Teacher.
(21)  And your ears shall hear a word behind you, saying, “This is the way, walk in it,” when you turn to the right or when you turn to the left.
(22)  Then you will defile your carved idols overlaid with silver and your gold-plated metal images. You will scatter them as unclean things. You will say to them, “Be gone!”

I thank you very much for your time, and pray that the Father in Heaven will bless you deeply as you seek Him earnestly through His Word. May His Spirit keep you and guide you, and give you peace beyond understanding. Amen.

Please feel free to make comments directly on this article through the link below this message. All comments will be subject to moderation, and are only displayed from those actually participating in these studies for themselves. Also comments will only be displayed that enhance that which the Scriptures referenced have revealed to us.

If you don’t feel inclined to make a comment, but do make use of these studies in some way, please consider letting us know by email at: john@unitedinjesus.org.uk . Your feedback in this way would be most welcome. We will not make any attempt to pester you in any way, and will only make contact with you should you express a desire for us to do so.

Finally, you may read the follow up discussions of this study at the following address, which is at the Faith Defenders forum: http://faith-defenders.com/forum/index.php?topic=568.0

Blessings in Christ,

John Dunning.

Originally posted 2009-05-14 12:07:06. Republished by Blog Post Promoter

Back to Basics: How do we follow Jesus?

 

 How do we follow Jesus? [21:44m]: Play Now | Play in Popup | Download

Q: What call does Jesus make to us?

Matthew 4:19
19  Then He said to them, “Follow Me, and I will make you fishers of men.”

John 10:27-28
27  My sheep hear My voice, and I know them, and they follow Me.
28  And I give them eternal life, and they shall never perish; neither shall anyone snatch them out of My hand.

We are called by Jesus Christ to follow Him. If we follow Him faithfully He shall make us into fishers of men (we shall bear fruit in the salvation of others), He will give us eternal life, and nothing shall snatch us from His hand.

Q: The benefits of following Jesus are great, but how can we know that it is Him that we are following, when we cannot see Him? And how can we hear His voice when we can’t listen to Him with our ears?

We need someone to tangibly show us Jesus, and reveal to us what He is saying to us. The problem is however that the Bible tells us that the one who teaches us cannot be another man, but our Teacher must be God Himself.

Hebrews 8:11
11  And they shall not teach, each one his neighbor and each one his brother, saying, ‘Know the Lord,’ for they shall all know me, from the least of them to the greatest.

Isaiah 30:20-21 (ESV)
20  And though the Lord give you the bread of adversity and the water of affliction, yet your Teacher will not hide himself anymore, but your eyes shall see your Teacher.
21  And your ears shall hear a word behind you, saying, “This is the way, walk in it,” when you turn to the right or when you turn to the left.

(The correct translation must be in the way that God is our Teacher, otherwise it would be contradicting itself. So in translations where the word “teachers” is used, it can only refer to someone faithfully conveying what God Himself teaches us, not their own personal interpretation or opinion.)

According to the Scriptures, there is a direct relationship between Jesus Christ and God Almighty Himself.

John 1:1-3
1  In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God, and the Word was God.
2  He was in the beginning with God.
3  All things were made through Him, and without Him nothing was made that was made.

Colossians 1:9-18
9  For this reason we also, since the day we heard it, do not cease to pray for you, and to ask that you may be filled with the knowledge of His will in all wisdom and spiritual understanding;
10  that you may walk worthy of the Lord, fully pleasing Him, being fruitful in every good work and increasing in the knowledge of God;
11  strengthened with all might, according to His glorious power, for all patience and longsuffering with joy;
12  giving thanks to the Father who has qualified us to be partakers of the inheritance of the saints in the light.
13  He has delivered us from the power of darkness and conveyed us into the kingdom of the Son of His love,
14  in whom we have redemption through His blood, the forgiveness of sins.
15  He is the image of the invisible God, the firstborn over all creation.
16  For by Him all things were created that are in heaven and that are on earth, visible and invisible, whether thrones or dominions or principalities or powers. All things were created through Him and for Him.
17  And He is before all things, and in Him all things consist.
18  And He is the head of the body, the church, who is the beginning, the firstborn from the dead, that in all things He may have the preeminence.

Both of these portions of Scripture are directly describing Jesus Christ. He is Eternal, He is our Creator, He is our Deliverer, He is the Head of the Church, and He is God Himself revealed to us. So if this be true, then Jesus Christ is actually God Himself revealed to us, and thus is also our Teacher. So this brings us back full circle to the start again. Not only must we follow Jesus Christ in order to benefit from the promises He makes to those who do so, but we also know from Scripture that His identity is that of God Himself, and it must be His words alone that we rely on for our instruction and teaching. Even if we listen through the mouth of another teaching on his behalf, we must be able to know beyond doubt that what they are teaching us, is truly what God is teaching us.

There is only one place that we can hear directly the words of Jesus Christ, our Creator, our God, our Deliverer, and our Teacher, and that is in His revealed Word to us through Scripture. By faith we receive the Word of God given in Scripture, through the canon of the Holy Bible, as solely that which God has given to us as His Own Word in written and tangible form. So here is what the Bible has to say about itself with regard to how we should relate to it as believers and followers of Christ:

2 Timothy 3:14-17
14  But you must continue in the things which you have learned and been assured of, knowing from whom you have learned them,
15  and that from childhood you have known the Holy Scriptures, which are able to make you wise for salvation through faith which is in Christ Jesus.
16  All Scripture is given by inspiration of God, and is profitable for doctrine, for reproof, for correction, for instruction in righteousness,
17  that the man of God may be complete, thoroughly equipped for every good work.

The oldest doctrinal standard given to us after the Christian reformation is known as the Belgic Confession [http://www.reformed.org/documents/BelgicConfession.html]. This is what this document has to say about the authority of Scripture:

“We believe that this Holy Scripture fully contains the will of God and that all that man must believe in order to be saved is sufficiently taught therein. The whole manner of worship which God requires of us is written in it at length. It is therefore unlawful for any one, even for an apostle, to teach otherwise than we are now taught in Holy Scripture: yes, even if it be an angel from heaven, as the apostle Paul says. Since it is forbidden to add to or take away anything from the Word of God, it is evident that the doctrine thereof is most perfect and complete in all respects.
We may not consider any writings of men, however holy these men may have been, of equal value with the divine Scriptures; nor ought we to consider custom, or the great multitude, or antiquity, or succession of times and persons, or councils, decrees or statutes, as of equal value with the truth of God, since the truth is above all; for all men are of themselves liars, and lighter than a breath. We therefore reject with all our heart whatever does not agree with this infallible rule, as the apostles have taught us: Test the spirits to see whether they are of God. Likewise: If any one comes to you and does not bring this doctrine, do not receive him into your house or give him any greeting.” Article 7 of the Belgic Confession.

Please feel free to add your own comments by using the link at the foot of this message, and also visit the relating thread on the Faith Defenders Community Forum by clicking here.

Originally posted 2009-05-19 19:15:58. Republished by Blog Post Promoter