Seeing The World From The Bottom Up

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When [Jesus] noticed how the guests picked the places of honor at the table, he told them this parable:
"When someone invites you to a wedding feast, do not take the place of honor, for a person more distinguished than you may have been invited.
If so, the host who invited both of you will come and say to you, 'Give this man your seat.' Then, humiliated, you will have to take the least important place.
But when you are invited, take the lowest place, so that when your host comes, he will say to you, 'Friend, move up to a better place.' Then you will be honored in the presence of all your fellow guests.
For everyone who exalts himself will be humbled, and he who humbles himself will be exalted."
Then Jesus said to his host, "When you give a luncheon or dinner, do not invite your friends, your brothers or relatives, or your rich neighbors; if you do, they may invite you back and so you will be repaid.
But when you give a banquet, invite the poor, the crippled, the lame, the blind,
and you will be blessed. Although they cannot repay you, you will be repaid at the resurrection of the righteous."
Luke 14:7-14



Click on the arrow in the middle of the video screen below to learn more of how Jesus teaches us to see the world from the bottom up.







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Becoming The Poor

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"Come to me, all you who are weary and burdened, and I will give you rest.
Take my yoke upon you and learn from me, for I am gentle and humble in heart, and you will find rest for your souls.
For my yoke is easy and my burden is light."
Matthew 11:28-30



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The Coming Faith

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In 1998, I spent the better part of a month in a third world country ministering largely among the poor of that country. Our team spent time on dirt floors in remote rural villages, in churches that met under aluminum roofs with no walls, and in huge sanctuaries in the major city that housed upwards of 5000-6000 believers at a time.

Before we left to return to America, a number of believers assured us that they would be praying for us, and told us that they already prayed every day for the American church. They wanted to give us a message to take back to the American church.

The message was this:

Believers in the third world spend much time every day in travailing prayer for the American church. The American church which has given birth to much of the third world church through it's missionary efforts of the 1950s, 60s and 70s, is now the one in desperate trouble, these believers shared.

"You don't know what's coming," they said with love. "You think that because 'America is a Christian country' that you will never know tribulation. But you are wrong. Even now, that tribulation is beginning for the American church. Soon, you will stand shoulder to shoulder with us in the knowledge that this tribulation is a gift from God, and that it will reverse the apathy, complacency and lukewarmness of the American church."

From that day forward, I have stayed in intimate communication with members of the third world church the world over. I am humbled by their faith, their trials, their stand for Christ. I am learning from them. It has changed how I live.

Pause for a moment if you would and consider the faith of our brethren in China. Pause for a moment and consider if these conditions were to exist in America. This is a very personal consideration, for it quickly brings the question, "Is my faith yet persecution-proof? Am I ready to live as my brethren already do virtually the world over? What must I do to prepare my soul and my faith and my life?"



Click on the arrow in the middle of the video screen to view the CBS News report on the house churches of China.







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Who Do You Trust?

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“Bill, do you trust me?”

There was no audible voice but I believe I clearly heard Him speaking into my spirit. After recording the message I wrote down my response.

“Yes, Lord,” I answered, excited to be communicating with the Divine yet somewhat apprehensive about what else I might hear. Displaying my own lack of self-confidence I quickly added, “But I do not trust myself.” The Lord’s reply flowed so quickly and effortlessly from my pen I really don’t remember it passing first through my own mind. When I saw what I had written I dropped my pen and stared at the words in disbelief.

“Do you trust me to trust you?”

Read the rest of Nameless, Faceless Love friend Bill's insightful and inspiring post, entitled Who Do You Trust?, over at Living Hope Thoughts.



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Every Member Brings: Part 7 (Conclusion)

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This is Part 7 of a multi-part series of posts entitled Every Member Brings.



Part 7: Conclusion

We have spent some time looking at the Biblical concept of every member bringing, expressed in 1 Corinthians 14:26. We have looked at the spiritual portrait of us presented by God’s Word, but reality may not immediately, or ever, take on the appearance of this spiritual portrait.

The many members of the Body of Christ who are one are also human. That fact will always affect how we manifest this spiritual portrait in actual practice. Those who have walked in this for years know that. They have lived it, and are living that reality today.

Some people may not agree with what has been shared here; this study tends to get a very marked response from those who read it. Some people may consider this a “lightweight presentation” of God’s Word, and still others might consider it “out of reach” for today’s believers and impractical. That’s OK. Some may not agree because they reject the concept of eldership outright, or conversely believe that it should remain in place as it is today. And that’s OK if they feel that way. Some may never feel comfortable facing their fears and bringing forth what God has placed within them. They may never speak a word in gatherings. There may be many other responses, and that’s OK, too.

Coming to the place where we, as God’s people, begin to walk in this way of living and worshipping is not a tidy proposition. The Journey is based upon both individual and group learning, with the Word of God learned and lived through God’s Holy Spirit by individual members and the whole Body alike. It is a marked by shared mistakes and failed attempts, jointly experienced deadlocks and exhilarating breakthroughs. And that’s OK.

This same Journey, regardless of how each of us may or may not as individuals begin to embrace and live this Biblical spiritual portrait, produces in us a spiritual growth that is the hallmark of a genuine and spiritually growing spiritual community. Daily, we all grow to be a little more like Christ because of God and Him in those around us. Seasons characterized by giant leaps, or by baby steps, or by seeming setbacks waiting to be overcome through Christ Jesus are all OK. It’s all part of the Journey.

God loves us as we are, and He loves us enough not to want to leave us that way. As much as is within us, we must grab His hand and the hands of those around and embark on this Journey together. We must simply and in sincerity be who are in Christ and live the Journey day by day.

This spiritual portrait that we see in 1 Corinthians 14:26 gives us a picture of who we can be as a Body through Christ Jesus and God’s Holy Spirit. It establishes a Truth from God, and dispels a lie from satan.

We are not a boat full of holes, brethren, as satan would have us believe. If we see boards on the Ark that need more sealer lest we leak, or more pegs lest we come apart, it is not because we are falling apart. It is because He is still building us. He has but a little left to finish, and then it will begin to rain.

If we look at the horizon, we can see that there are clouds that are growing dark for this world. It is not growing dark for God’s children, though. Our path grows brighter and brighter until the last day, God tells us in His Word. The day will someday come, perhaps soon, when it will begin to rain. We, however, need not fear nor strive, for we are safe and sound upon the Ark of our salvation, Christ Jesus.

In God’s Word, we read of Nehemiah, who instructed his workers to work with a trowel in one hand and a sword in the other. Let us do likewise, serving in the Kingdom of God by making disciples with one hand through God’s Word, and with the other hand lovingly standing against the enemy satan who seeks to divide us.

We are one. Let us, with His help and one another’s, manifest it.

12-13 You can easily enough see how this kind of thing works by looking no further than your own body. Your body has many parts—limbs, organs, cells—but no matter how many parts you can name, you're still one body. It's exactly the same with Christ. By means of his one Spirit, we all said good-bye to our partial and piecemeal lives. We each used to independently call our own shots, but then we entered into a large and integrated life in which he has the final say in everything. (This is what we proclaimed in word and action when we were baptized.) Each of us is now a part of his resurrection body, refreshed and sustained at one fountain—his Spirit—where we all come to drink. The old labels we once used to identify ourselves—labels like Jew or Greek, slave or free—are no longer useful. We need something larger, more comprehensive.

14-18 I want you to think about how all this makes you more significant, not less. A body isn't just a single part blown up into something huge. It's all the different-but-similar parts arranged and functioning together. If Foot said, "I'm not elegant like Hand, embellished with rings; I guess I don't belong to this body," would that make it so? If Ear said, "I'm not beautiful like Eye, limpid and expressive; I don't deserve a place on the head," would you want to remove it from the body? If the body was all eye, how could it hear? If all ear, how could it smell? As it is, we see that God has carefully placed each part of the body right where he wanted it.

19-24 But I also want you to think about how this keeps your significance from getting blown up into self-importance. For no matter how significant you are, it is only because of what you are a part of. An enormous eye or a gigantic hand wouldn't be a body, but a monster. What we have is one body with many parts, each its proper size and in its proper place. No part is important on its own. Can you imagine Eye telling Hand, "Get lost; I don't need you"? Or, Head telling Foot, "You're fired; your job has been phased out"? As a matter of fact, in practice it works the other way—the "lower" the part, the more basic, and therefore necessary. You can live without an eye, for instance, but not without a stomach. When it's a part of your own body you are concerned with, it makes no difference whether the part is visible or clothed, higher or lower. You give it dignity and honor just as it is, without comparisons. If anything, you have more concern for the lower parts than the higher. If you had to choose, wouldn't you prefer good digestion to full-bodied hair?

25-26 The way God designed our bodies is a model for understanding our lives together as a church: every part dependent on every other part, the parts we mention and the parts we don't, the parts we see and the parts we don't. If one part hurts, every other part is involved in the hurt, and in the healing. If one part flourishes, every other part enters into the exuberance.

1 Corinthians 12:12-26 (The Message Translation)

Every Member Brings: Part 6

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This is Part 6 of a multi-part series of posts entitled Every Member Brings.



Part 6: It Must Be Done For The Strengthening of the Church

Next, 1 Corinthians 14:26 goes on to say:

What then shall we say, brothers? When you come together, everyone has a hymn, or a word of instruction, a revelation, a tongue or an interpretation. All of these must be done.....

God is a loving God. Does He forgive when we err? Absolutely. But does He require obedience of us? He does. Does this make Him unloving? Hardly. God knows that obedience to His Word and will bring righteousness, safety, peace and blessing. Our God loves us SO much, and wants the very best for us!

Together, we can work as one to be obedient to the instruction God gives us in 1 Corinthians 14:26 and see righteousness, safety, peace and blessing spring up among us!

And finally, 1 Corinthians 14:26 tells us:

What then shall we say, brothers? When you come together, everyone has a hymn, or a word of instruction, a revelation, a tongue or an interpretation. All of these must be done for the strengthening of the church.

We see God’s ultimate purpose in having every member bring a a hymn, or a word of instruction, a revelation, a tongue or an interpretation - the strengthening of the church.

In these days, the church and its individual members are being attacked worldwide in a way not seen since the days of Acts.

We need to be strong, and we need to be one.
We need to be one, and we need to be strong.
And we must remember that our strength lies within our oneness with God and one another.

We intimately know the wiles of the devil, for he has sought to use them against each of us since the day we received Christ as our Saviour and Lord. This comes with the territory. There are Christians, however, that are more intimately familiar with satan’s attacks than they are with God and one another. Whatever our spiritual state, this is a day to draw near unto God and with one another as never before.

And it all starts with every member bringing.......what God gave them to bring today.

Every Member Brings: Part 5

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This is Part 5 of a multi-part series of posts entitled Every Member Brings.



Part 5: The Spiritual Buffet

There is one other thing that I am will share on this topic of The 5 Courses. It is the concept of the spiritual "buffet." This is what God intended the gatherings of His people to be - spiritual buffets that were supplied by Him, for His glory, through the entire church and for its edification.

Corn here, salad there, roast beef there, pie over there, fresh water there, bread over there. You get the picture. A spiritual buffet.

But how would you feel if you went to your local buffet-style restaurant, paid your money, got a plate and approached the buffet - only to find that each and every container on the buffet held corn? Most of us like the taste of corn, even love it. And it’s nutritious, as well. Nothin’ bad you can say about corn. If you had to, you could live on only corn and water.

This "boring" buffet - with corn as its only course - is too often what man has created in today’s church. The pastor or assistant pastor or teacher speaks almost every week in most churches and, anointed and “nutritious” as it may be, it is only corn.

Many in the Western, and especially American Church, have tried to integrate big sound systems and multimedia screens and church outreaches for every concievable "group" of believer, all with the purpose of "making church interesting" and "drawing people to God." There is nothing in God's Word that says that big productions are inherently wrong. The book of Acts tells us of three thousand people becoming disciples of Christ in one day. That's a big production.

There is a vibrant and growing number of house churches and para-church ministries throughout the world. The popularity of their focus upon "simplicity and intimacy" has been chronicled by the media. There is nothing in God's Word that says that smaller groups are inherently wrong. The book of Acts tells us that the Church began in this fashion.

But if we, whether in larger church settings or smaller, whether in institutional church or house church or para-church settings, are still serving up "just corn," we have missed something vitally important about God's way of doing things. We have forgotten that God's Word is clearly trying to tell us that "what's interesting" and "what will draw people to God" is God's people jointly sharing a manifestation of Him and His Son and His Holy Spirit.

True Biblical community as evidenced in the book of Acts and 1 Corinthians 14:26 and lived out in whatever church size or form, lifts up Christ. As such, it presents people with something that - if they have eyes to see - they can't take their eyes off of.....Christ Himself.

And when He is lifted up, He tells us, He will draw all men unto Himself.

Would you go back to a buffet that only offered corn to eat? No. It is for this same reason that people - in droves - are switching churches or leaving the church altogether.

Don’t get me wrong. Perhaps some of us in the church meant well. Perhaps some of us looked at building the church on a practical level, and that’s where we got into trouble. The church is not a practical organism, it is a spiritual organism.

Perhaps some of us looked at building the church on a professional level, like a successful company, and that’s where we got into trouble. The church is not a professional organism, it is a spiritual organism.

And sadly, perhaps still others of us looked at building the church on a personal level, seeking to build our own Kingdom to give to God, and that’s where we got into trouble. The church is not a personal organism, it is a spiritual organism, and God created it to give to Himself.

We are not called to build the Church. Jesus said that He would build His church. He told us to make disciples of all men. And the best way to disciple is that way that Christ Himself did; by sharing His daily life with those whom He was seeking to disciple.

That is why every member bringing when they come together is such a powerful thing. What is experienced there and is shared there is a spiritual product of God's work in and through His Church, an ordained response to what He is doing in the hearts and lives of each member and amidst the community of believers as a whole. When this happens, there is nothing more worshipful, more praising unto God, more laden with glory for our Creator and Father.

God has created us in oneness to provide a buffet that is representative of our Heavenly Father, a feast of the Holy Spirit beyond human measure, a banquet that is fit for the King.

Every Member Brings: Part 4

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This is Part 4 of a multi-part series of posts entitled Every Member Brings.



Part 4: The Five Courses

Next, we reach God’s explanation of the 5 courses of this spiritual meal that He desires to bring to His people through His people.

When you come together, everyone has a hymn, or a word of instruction, a revelation, a tongue or an interpretation.
1 Corinthians 14:26

A Hymn

A hymn, as defined here in its original Greek meaning, refers to a Hebrew psalm. The significance of this meaning, as opposed to a meaning like “a song,” etc., is this:

~ The Psalms of the Bible are almost always praise directed toward God.
~ Psalms do not necessarily rhyme.
~ Psalms do not necessarily have musical accompaniment.
~ Psalms are simple songs, sung as a person might pray it in a prayer of thanksgiving.

This shows us that the term hymn is not referring to the “shows” that we sometimes see during "worship" in many churches today. Remember, God’s Word in this verse says “every member brings,” not “those who have been called to the ‘worship team’ bring” or “those who have signed up to sing a guest song bring.” God says that every member brings.

Is it scary for people to sing a hymn this way? By all means, YES! :-D One must first practice this scriptural principle at home, as we are instructed to do in God’s Word.

In Ephesians 5:19, God Word tells us that we should first be Speaking to yourselves in psalms and hymns and spiritual songs, singing and making melody in your heart to the Lord... Then, later, God’s Word tells us in Colossians 3:16 that we are to Let the word of Christ dwell in you richly in all wisdom; teaching and admonishing one another in psalms and hymns and spiritual songs, singing with grace in your hearts to the Lord.

By practicing the singing of hymns at home in this manner, we become comfortable with this profound expression of thanks and ministry to God. Then, mixed with faith, we can step forward to minister to the church in "public" at gatherings (church services) in the same way.

A Word of Instruction

A word of instruction is, for the most part, a revelation of Scriptural Truth. Whether in the form of sharing one or two scriptures and sharing what God has revealed to you through His Spirit regarding those verse(s), or sharing word of testimony based upon the application of a revealed Truth in your own life, words of instruction are “meat and potatoes” to the church.

A Revelation

A revelation is best understood by looking at the original meaning of the Greek word. The term revelation means to take the lid off of something so that it can be seen. There are a number of ministries amongst the church which are revelation ministries, with prophecy, words of wisdom and words of knowledge, and Spirit-birthed testimony among them.

A Tongue

A tongue simply refers to speaking in tongues, be it in the tongue of man or of angels.

An Interpretation

A interpretation is the revelation, in the common language of the listeners, of a tongue.

Every Member Brings: Part 3

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This is Part 3 of a multi-part series of posts entitled Every Member Brings.



Part 3: Everyone Brings

Note that in 1 Corinthians 14:26, God’s says When you come together, everyone has.... If you use your concordance, you will find that the term “everyone” means “everyone.” This simple Truth is of enormous impact upon the Body of Christ.

When God says “everyone has,” He means “everyone has.” Now, it is true that when we review 2 of the major reasons, previously stated in Part 2, that this scripture is not being accurately practiced in the church today:

~ Many people are afraid to, are too lazy to, or don’t believe that they’re able to effectively speak in front of the Church.
~ Some selfish elders lustfully and pridefully fear giving up “control” of church services - even temporarily - to the "common man."

....we see that one of the causes may be the people themselves. If someone is too afraid, too lazy, or too insecure, no one - including elders - can bring them out of their shell. By the same token, if an elder is too lustful, prideful or afraid to give up "control" of the church to God, then no person is likely to change their minds.

In the interest of Truth, however, it must be stated that the lion’s share of the responsibility for the accurate practice of 1 Corinthians 14:26 first rests with elders. If they have not served the Church by humbly helping them to live their lives, including corporate worship, in the manner that God commands within this verse, then they bear great responsibility when the church is not being effectually edified.

So, elders are first responsible to serve the Church by humbly helping them to live this scriptural model for the operation of the Body of Christ, and then to humbly train up God’s people within that to minister and edify.

Once these 2 things have taken place, now it is the responsibility of each believer to come to every gathering with the hymn, word of instruction, revelation, tongue or interpretation that has been given to them by God.

Note that I have not written that every believer is responsible to bring A hymn, word of instruction, revelation, tongue or interpretation that has been given to them by God. Rather, THE hymn, word of instruction, revelation, tongue or interpretation that has been given to them by God.

We must be careful not to get the cart in front of the horse when discussing and living out this scripture. 1 Corinthians 14:26 is not a laundry list to believers, to be used as a reference to “come up with something” to share at every gathering. It is a statement about what God will be causing to happen within us and then out through us when we, as individual believers and the Body of Christ as a whole, are walking in accordance with His will for our lives.

When we are in oneness with God, with our spouse, with our brethren and with God’s Word, a hymn, word of instruction, revelation, tongue or interpretation that has been given by God will already be upon our lips, from out of the bounty that He has placed within our hearts.

The result of these two scriptures (1 Corinthians 14:26 & Ephesians 4:11-12 ) practiced obediently and working in tandem, will be believers growing up to become like Christ Himself, and the church being strengthened through every member in oneness. And this is what every faithful believer so desires to see.

Every Member Brings: Part 2

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This is Part 2 of a multi-part series of posts entitled Every Member Brings.



Part 2: In Tandem and As One

What then shall we say, brothers? When you come together, everyone has a hymn, or a word of instruction, a revelation, a tongue or an interpretation. All of these must be done for the strengthening of the church.
1 Corinthians 14:26 (NIV)

11 And he gave some, apostles; and some, prophets; and some, evangelists; and some, pastors and teachers;
12 For the perfecting of the saints, for the work of the ministry, for the edifying of the body of Christ:
Ephesians 4:11-12

One of the most influential scriptures in the entire New Testament regarding the effective day-to-day operation of the Body of Christ is 1 Corinthians 14:26.

It is often overlooked or under-applied for a number of reasons, 2 major ones being:

~ Many people are afraid to, are too lazy to, or don’t believe that they’re able to effectively speak in front of the Church (and virtually everything detailed in 1 Corinthians 14:26 is in spoken or sung form).
~ Some selfish elders lustfully and pridefully fear giving up what they perceive to be “control” of church services - even temporarily - to the "common man."

1 Corinthians 14:26, is to be practiced in tandem with Ephesians 4:11-12, and thus does a mighty work of God amongst His church:

11 And he gave some, apostles; and some, prophets; and some, evangelists; and some, pastors and teachers;
12 For the perfecting of the saints, for the work of the ministry, for the edifying of the body of Christ:

Ephesians 4:11-12 tells us that one of the elders’ primary purposes is for the perfecting (equipping / training) of the saints for 2 purposes; to equip / train them for the work of the ministry (evangelism, etc.) and to equip / train them to edify. Verses 13 - 15 tells us that the result of this equipping / training will be very positive and productive, namely that the believers will grow up to become like Christ Himself.

It is clear that we have each been given a special role in God's plan. Our special role, however, is one with the special plans that He has for the rest of His children. In some way, they dove-tail with one another. They fit. We, who are created by God for an individual purpose which is yet one with a greater plan, are not able to fulfill the the individual purposes of others as effectively as God intends.

God has not done this to create "classes" amongst a people whom He has called to be one. Rather, He has done this to create a myriad of ways in which He manifests Himself in this world, through Christ Jesus and in the midst of His people.

As such, those who are created by God to function as elders while being one with God's people and plan cannot fulfill the call of those who are not, and those who have not been called to function as elders while being one with God's people and plan cannot fulfill the call of those who are. No class distinctions. No lording over God's heritage instead of selflessly and sacrificially serving God and His people. No lazily leaning upon "people in charge" when we should be faithfully depending upon God and doing what He created each of us to do.

It takes everyone doing their part to accomplish the fullness of God within and through the Body of Christ, and it simply will not happen unless this scripture (1 Corinthians 14:26) is taught and practiced without fail.

This is the purpose of this series of writings....to take a close, loving look at what we will allow God to do in our midst when we obediently practice 1 Corinthians 14:26.

Every Member Brings: Part 1

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This is Part 1 of a multi-part series of posts entitled Every Member Brings.



Part 1: God's Desire For Oneness

God desires oneness. He desires oneness with us (Ezekiel 36:28), He desires that we have oneness with His Son (1 John 1:3), and He desires that His Son’s Body, the church be one with one another (1 Corinthians 12:12 - 26).

In Ephesians 4, God’s Word tells us that Christ Jesus sent elders to the Body of Christ - apostles, prophets, evangelists, pastors and teachers - and then speaks of the result of their work for Christ amongst the church.

In Ephesians 4:15(c)-16, God’s Word says:

15 .....which is the head, even Christ:
16 From whom the whole body fitly joined together and compacted by that which every joint supplieth, according to the effectual working in the measure of every part, maketh increase of the body unto the edifying of itself in love.
In these verses, we clearly see God’s great plan for His people, that they - in oneness with Him and His Son and one another - would edify / strengthen themselves in love.

In Verse 16, God says that the whole Body of Christ is fitly joined together and compacted by that which every joint supplieth, according to the effectual working in the measure of every part. What a wonderful vision of oneness!

In this passage, the term fitly means to lay [like “laying a foundation”] joints together in union, with the example being given of a chariot that is well fit together (the word together implying a profound level of union). Wow.

And here we thought us "regular folk" were only supposed to give “praise reports” or “announcements” or such at church, right? Who knew that the Holy Spirit desires to see every member - through what Spirit-inspired sharing they bring to each gathering - lay the joints of the church together in union like a chariot is fit together? The church - a chariot of God? It is an eye-opening revelation, isn’t it?

The term compacted means, in essence, to drive together into unity. This driving together, much like Noah hammering the first Ark together, brings the joints (members of the church) together in a way that there can be no space between them - no leaks, no separation, no division. How wonderful that we can, through simply sharing what God has placed upon our hearts to share, be part of building the Ark of the last days - the Body of Christ awaiting His return.

The term supplieth means to contribute, with its root meaning to furnish while beside. Here again, this oneness, this being “beside” one another shows God’s loving plan for oneness in the church.

And finally, according to the effectual working in the measure of every part shows us that each member of the church (each “part”), in their own measure (their role and contribution as assigned by God through the Holy Spirit), does this work and must do this work.

The result? What God has always wanted. Oneness. Oneness. Oneness.

A Sam's Club Kind of Faith Community

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I was shaving this morning and thanking God for a little thing. I was thanking Him that I had discovered that, while I would have to pay upwards of $8.00 for 4 razor blades for my shaver, I could buy 20 blades at Sam's Club for about $30.00. That's 25% less! I get more, and it costs me less.

Different Kinds of Stuff, And Lots Of It
People love Sam's Club because you can find almost anything you'd want to buy at their giant, sprawling stores. You can get a lot of different kinds of stuff there, and whatever kind of stuff you'd like to get, you can get a lot of it.

When you've been shopping in a regular grocery, Sam's Club overwhelms you. From floor to ceiling, from side to side as far as you can see, there's beautiful stuff everywhere. You know the way you feel the first time you walk into a Catholic cathedral? That's how people in the world feel when they walk into a Sam's Club for the first time. Complete, speechless awe.

You see, satan binds people by offering them temporary escape from their problems with a false form of comfort that’s always running out. That false form of comfort might be alcohol or drugs or sex or soap operas or football games or biting their nails. The effects are always temporary, and the supply always runs out. People who trust in a false form of comfort are always wanting and needing.

As believers, though, we should walk out of every encounter with Christ saying what people who are shopping at Sam’s Club sometimes do. "How in the world am I going to use all this stuff?"

And that's the point. We can't use all of what He's given us for ourselves. It's too much. It's too big. From the floor to the ceiling of our hearts, from side to side of our lives as far as you can see, there's beautiful stuff everywhere.

"How in the world are we going to use all this stuff?" By giving it away to a needy world.

.....At A Lower Cost
People also love Sam's Club because you pay less there. Since Sam's Club is so big, they can buy everything at a lower cost, and pass on the savings to the customers they serve.

In Revelation 3:18, Jesus tells the Laodicean church, I counsel thee to buy of me gold tried in the fire, that thou mayest be rich; and white raiment, that thou mayest be clothed, and that the shame of thy nakedness do not appear; and anoint thine eyes with eyesalve, that thou mayest see.

Jesus is our storehouse. We can buy wondrous things from Him - big things - at a much lower price than weight and sin will extract from us. And it's not just so we'll be blessed. It's so that we may pass these blessings on to others.

Blessed be God, even the Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, the Father of mercies, and the God of all comfort; Who comforteth us in all our tribulation, that we may be able to comfort them which are in any trouble, by the comfort wherewith we ourselves are comforted of God.
2 Corinthians 1:3-4

On a physical level, consumers at Sam's Club and - on a spiritual level - the lost in this world are concerned with the "cost of living."

On a physical level, Sam's Club and - on a spiritual level - much of the church today is sometimes concerned with the "cost of giving."

This is an important understanding for believers, because our attitude about giving reflects what we perceive to be "the cost of giving." If we are consumed with what we perceive to be an endless struggle through life, in spite of our Christianity, we will eventually become bitter and resentful toward those in need. What's more, we'll not be able to spiritually recognize just how much God has given and is giving to us. We won't be able to see that daily He has loaded us with blessings.

You sympathized with those in prison and joyfully accepted the confiscation of your property, because you knew that you yourselves had better and lasting possessions. So do not throw away your confidence; it will be richly rewarded.
Hebrews 10:34-35

And here is my advice about what is best for you in this matter: Last year you were the first not only to give but also to have the desire to do so.
Now finish the work, so that your eager willingness to do it may be matched by your completion of it, according to your means. For if the willingness is there, the gift is acceptable according to what one has, not according to what he does not have. Our desire is not that others might be relieved while you are hard pressed, but that there might be equality. At the present time your plenty will supply what they need, so that in turn their plenty will supply what you need. Then there will be equality, as it is written: ‘He who gathered much did not have too much, and he who gathered little did not have too little‘;
2 Corinthians 8:10-15

The bottom line is that when we daily comprehend and joy in the great blessings we have received from God at a price to us that is so low, we will be able to "pass on the savings" to others.

Free Gifts
Another reason that people love Sam's Club is because there are people standing around all over the place giving you free samples of stuff. Not expensive stuff, but neat stuff or tasty stuff. And it's cool because it's all free.

He that spared not his own Son, but delivered him up for us all, how shall he not with him also freely give us all things?
Romans 8:32

For by grace are ye saved through faith; and that not of yourselves: it is the gift of God:
Ephesians 2:8

Then Peter said, Silver and gold have I none; but such as I have give I thee: In the name of Jesus Christ of Nazareth rise up and walk.
Acts 3:6

And as ye go, preach, saying, The kingdom of heaven is at hand. Heal the sick, cleanse the lepers, raise the dead, cast out devils: freely ye have received, freely give.
Matthew 10:7-8

We in the church may not have silver and gold, but that's not what people are really looking for, either. We do have what people are really looking for; peace with God through salvation in Christ Jesus. We have comfort. We have joy. We have hope.

When people come to church, wouldn't it be wonderful if they saw people standing around all over the place giving you free samples of that kind of stuff? Neat stuff or tasty stuff. And it would be really cool, because it was all free.

Try It For Free!
At Sam's Club, anyone can get a free membership for a day. That means they treat you like a real member for the day that you're visiting. It doesn't matter how you're dressed or how you talk or what side of town you're from; anyone can be treated like a full-fledged member on the day they're visiting. The employees are really nice to you, too, and you walk around the place in wonder, thinking, "Wow, I would love to be able to be a member and come here all the time. There's so much neat and tasty stuff here, it's stacked up so wide and so tall, it's everywhere! And everyone is so nice and helpful."

So that servant came, and [told] his lord [that all whom He had at first invited to His supper had refused]. Then the master of the house being angry said to his servant, Go out quickly into the streets and lanes of the city, and bring in hither the poor, and the maimed, and the halt, and the blind.

And the servant said, Lord, it is done as thou hast commanded, and yet there is room. And the lord said unto the servant, Go out into the highways and hedges, and compel them to come in, that my house may be filled.

Luke 14:21-23

A new commandment I give unto you, That ye love one another; as I have loved you, that ye also love one another. By this shall all men know that ye are my disciples, if ye have love one to another.
John 13:34-35

But I, when I am lifted up from the earth, will draw all men to myself.
John 12:32

When people come to church, wouldn't it be wonderful if they felt as though they were loved like a full-fledged member and not just as a visitor? Imagine those people visiting church and receiving all that neat stuff and tasty stuff from people that really seemed to love them and each other.

The Best of Both Kinds.....
Our churches are not meant to be a bunch of isolated, independent Mom and Pop corner stores. Mom and Pop corner stores are nice because you know the people that work and shop there. It's comfortable and familiar.

But there's a lot of stuff that you can't get at a Mom and Pop corner store that you can get at Sam’s Club.

I think that Jesus would like us to understand that instead of our churches being isolated, independent Mom and Pop corner stores in our town, we are actually like different departments in a Godly Sam's Club.

Each department offers something different, and lots of it, at a great price. Some people will tend to shop more in certain departments, but at some point we all will venture into every department in this Godly Sam's Club and be able to experience the loving wonder of His blessings and the loving touch of His people who work there.

If the leadership and management of Sam's Club could ever their stores to feel like a Mom and Pop corner store, no one would ever shop anywhere else again.

When people come to church, wouldn't it be wonderful if they experienced the intimacy of our welcoming love, coupled with the wonder of God's storehouse of blessings? That would give our Godly Sam's Club the intimate, friendly feel of a Mom and Pop corner store. And if that were the case, it's hard to imagine people in the world ever wanting to "shop" anywhere else again.

It's A Good Thing To Be Unpopular With satan
Now, when a Sam's Club moves into a community, there is sometimes a great outcry against it. It comes from Mom and Pop corner stores who claim (and rightfully so) that Sam's Club will eventually draw everyone away from their own stores. They claim that, because of Sam's Club's ability to provide more to people at a lower cost, people will eventually completely abandon Mom and Pop corner stores and they will forced to close.

While this might be bad news in the business world, it is great news in the spiritual world. The writing is on the wall for Mom and Pop churches that have chosen to be isolated and independent from the rest of God‘s people and the world of the lost. }

God is bringing together His people to manifest the oneness that He gave them through His Holy Spirit through whatever means necessary; gently as possible, firmly as needed.

God is building a Sam's Club that feels like a Mom and Pop store.

You also, like living stones, are being built into a spiritual house to be a holy priesthood, offering spiritual sacrifices acceptable to God through Jesus Christ.
1 Peter 2:5

Now therefore ye are no more strangers and foreigners, but fellowcitizens with the saints, and of the household of God; And are built upon the foundation of the apostles and prophets, Jesus Christ himself being the chief corner stone;

In whom all the building fitly framed together groweth unto an holy temple in the Lord: In whom ye also are builded together for an habitation of God through the Spirit.
Ephesians 2:19-22

satan is scared of this. satan doesn't want a Godly Sam's Club that feels like a Mom and Pop store. He doesn't want that kind of a manifestation and demonstration of God's great blessings or our great love. It was the same way with satan and his followers in the days of Acts.

And Paul, as his manner was, went in unto them, and three sabbath days reasoned with them out of the scriptures,
Opening and alleging, that Christ must needs have suffered, and risen again from the dead; and that this Jesus, whom I preach unto you, is Christ.
And some of them believed, and consorted with Paul and Silas; and of the devout Greeks a great multitude, and of the chief women not a few.
But the Jews which believed not, moved with envy, took unto
them certain lewd fellows of the baser sort, and gathered a company, and set all the city on an uproar, and assaulted the house of Jason, and sought to bring them out to the people.
And when they found them not, they drew Jason and certain brethren unto the rulers of the city, crying, These that have turned the world upside down are come hither also;
Acts 17:2-6

When Paul preached Christ, it turned the world upside down. When Paul preached Christ, Jews, Greeks and many important women believed on Him. As we learn Christ, live Christ and preach Christ it will be the same. Through God's Holy Spirit, many different peoples will be transformed into one Body by one Christ.

In Closing
So, yes, there will be opposition, but it spite of that opposition God will bring many souls to Himself and transform them. What's the right way to handle opposition?

Now, Lord, consider their threats and enable your servants to speak your word with great boldness. Stretch out your hand to heal and perform miraculous signs and wonders through the name of your holy servant Jesus.
Acts 4:29-30

Notice how it was okay for the disciples in this passage to ask God to be aware of the great opposition that was facing them. But, having done that, they then turned their attention to where it should be; upon God and upon those in need.

Now, Lord, consider their threats and enable Your servants to speak Your word with great boldness. Stretch out Your hand to heal and perform miraculous signs and wonders through the name of Your holy servant Jesus.

Focusing too much on opposition makes everything about "us." And it's not about us anymore. It's about God, and it's about those who are still without Christ, broken and hurting and without hope. It's about them. So we must acknowledge that opposition is imminent and ask for God's help, but then turn to God for His unmerited favor that we might stretch forth His hand to the world.

In turning my own eyes away from myself and toward the lost, I am asking myself a question and answering it with the only answer I can give:

Do I think the world is ready to receive big blessings from God at a low price ("For my yoke is easy, and My burden is light"), in an awe-inspiring storehouse of God that feels like a Mom and Pop store, surrounded by welcoming people that pour out their sincere love for them and each other?

"Welcome to Sam's Club. How may I help you today?

Empty Nesting

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

The brethren over at Living Hope Thoughts speak very expressively and accurately about the actual experience of being a disciple of Christ while He builds His Church.

A quiet smile and appreciative nod to LHT for telling it like it is. Enjoy, all.

http://livinghopethoughts.blogspot.com/2007/04/empty-nesting.html

Love Song To The Church

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Is it getting better
Or do you feel the same
Will it make it easier on you
Now you got someone to blame

You say
One love, One life
When it's one need in the night

It's one love
We get to share it
It leaves you baby
If you don't care for it

Did I disappoint you?
Or leave a bad taste in your mouth?
You act like you never had love
And you want me to go without

Well it's too late
Tonight
To drag the past out
Into the light
We're one
But we're not the same
We get to carry each other
Carry each other
One

Have you come here for forgiveness
Have you come to raise the dead
Have you come here to play Jesus
To the lepers in your head
Did I ask too much
More than a lot
You gave me nothing
Now it's all I got
We're one
But we're not the same
We hurt each other
Then we do it again

You say
Love is a temple
Love a higher law
Love is a temple
Love the higher law
You ask me to enter
But then you make me crawl
And I can't be holding on
To what you got
When all you got is hurt

One love
One blood
One life
You got to do what you should

One life
With each other
Sisters
Brothers

One life
But we're not the same
We get to carry each other
Carry each other

One

One.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Bono's love song to the Church is a message that I should consider. A message from a man who refuses to call himself a "Christian" because he doesn't feel he deserves that title, yet is an avid follower of Christ with a demonstrated life that many times surpasses my own.

I don't perceive Bono to be ashamed of the Cross. Far from it. And I don't believe that he is so unaware of the cleansing blood of Christ that he would elevate his own sinfulness. Far from that, too, I believe. In fact, I believe that he is so vividly aware of both our own humanity and the overwhelming magnitude of God's grace and the blood of Christ that covers that humanity in us all.

I'm not saying that I have disavowed calling myself "Christian" as they were at Antioch. But I am moved by the example of someone who realizes just how big God is all on His own, and just how small we are without Him.

And I think that his humility and the example of his life give him the right to pen such a Truthful, loving song to the Church as the words above. I know it talks about tough stuff, but it's shared with such love, and.......

Hey, we're all trying to find our way, we really are. We have the best intentions. But sometimes things get messed up in the process. And sometimes, we experience God revealing to us that there's still some baggage and preconceived notions that we're carrying that aren't actually born of Him. That's why a love song from God every now and then is a good thing.

Jesus knows exactly what is right and wrong, what's righteous and unholy, what is a blessing and an abomination unto God. And yet He has this unfathomable quality to look beyond all that and completely love those who fall into either category (and don't we all fall into both categories in some way or another?) and love them with Pure Love.

I am finding as I walk with Him and I am allowing His Light to shine into the corners of my heart that my mind is way too small to comprehend all of Who He is or what He means. I am finding God leading me to do things that "do not seem to exactly match up with my past interpretation of Scripture" but match up perfectly with how Jesus is.

Sometimes I wrestle for an answer, becoming able to only seek to receive a confirmed "Yes" or "No" from Him because I realize that there's not enough time for Him to explain it all to me right now. Perhaps later. That happens sometimes. Or perhaps when we know as we are known.

When I read the lyrics of this song as the recipient, as a member of the Church to whom Bono is singing, it strikes a chord with me. Listen, if you would.......




Is it getting better
Or do you feel the same
Will it make it easier on you
Now you got someone to blame

Has becoming a disciple of Christ actually changed me? Have I converted spiritually or have I simply transmuted into a person who perceives that "I" have now "made it" and need to point out others sin to them so that they'll realize their own need for Christ?

You say
One love
One life
When it's one need
In the night
It's one love
We get to share it
It leaves you baby
If you don't care for it

I keep talking about oneness. I keep talking about Jesus. But if I neglect to acknowledge that I still have mountains that need to be cast into the sea, and that in this need I am exactly the same as those who are still without Christ, I will "lose" the sense of His great love for me. I will lose that sense of the spiritual oneness that He so desires to birth within me toward the Body. I will lose the love for those who are sheep without a Shepherd. I will become hard and cold and hurtful.

Did I disappoint you?
Or leave a bad taste in your mouth?
You act like you never had love
And you want me to go without

Have you found that God is leading you into direct and extended contact with people that "rub you the wrong way?" Is He making sure that you are being pressed by people who you know need Jesus just like you do, but secretly in your heart wish that He'd send someone else other than you to reach out to them? Are you realizing that God is bringing people into your life that you'd rather not be around, but absolutely must be around if you are to be a sincere, genuine disciple of Christ?

Well it's too late
Tonight
To drag the past out
Into the light
We're one
But we're not the same
We get to carry each other
Carry each other
One

The night is far spent. The day is at hand. I don't have time to harp or criticize. We are one, but we're not the same. God may be giving us different parts of His Big Picture, but I'm not realizing that. I need to seek His wisdom for my soul so that I may understand, or have His confirming peace and direction to obey in spite of not understanding. We get to carry each other. It's a gift from God, if I'll see it that way.

Have you come here for forgiveness
Have you come to raise the dead
Have you come here to play Jesus
To the lepers in your head
Did I ask too much
More than a lot
You gave me nothing
Now it's all I got
We're one
But we're not the same
We hurt each other
Then we do it again

Why have I come to Christ? Have I come because I was first and am now aware of my profound need for forgiveness? Have I come to Christ to "get power" like Simon in Acts and become a noted "minister?" Have I come to Him only to depart on a self-styled mission to those toward whom I secretly harbor bitterness and resentment and critical judgment? Have the lost, just as imperfect and annoying at times as I, so imposed upon the Camelot which I perceive Christianity to be that I cannot even toss them crumbs from the Master's table, much less invite them to take my own seat as I ought? In the loneliness and selfishness that sometimes creep into my Christian existence, have I repeatedly chosen the easy way out and hurt others, or have I sacrificed with helpless tears to share my life and sustenance with them?

You say
Love is a temple
Love a higher law
Love is a temple
Love the higher law
You ask me to enter
But then you make me crawl
And I can't be holding on
To what you got
When all you got is hurt

I do. I say that Love is a Temple, and Love is the Higher Law. But have I created a religion, a form, a structure not born of Christ, a place institutional or house or on the street that is wood, hay and stubble? Have I established as that which I declare to be His own will that which shuts out by its very nature those to whom His very heart is drawn when His eyes search the world? Am I still so wounded, and discouraged, and baggage-laden that - in spite of the fact that I earnestly desire that it be different - all I have to offer to the lost is yet-damaged goods?

One love
One blood
One life
You got to do what you should

One life
With each other
Sisters
Brothers

One life
But we're not the same
We get to carry each other
Carry each other

Ah, the Truth. The precious Truth. The Truth that I have known since my spiritual birth. There is only One Love - the love of Christ. There is only one blood - the blood of Christ. There is only one life - the one Christ gave for me and that I must give back to Him. I know what I need to do, and I must ask for God's help to do it.

There is one life that He has given to us all and is to be shared among us all. I cannot take my part and go live it by myself. If I have, I must arise from the mud of the pig pen, and go to my Father who is even now waiting for me to return to Him and my brethren. To Him. To my Sisters. To my Brothers.

One life so large that it must live in so many little ones in order to manifest its countless facets. One life that can only be genuinely shared in myriad ways. One life characterized and given witness to when I carry my Brother and Sister without inward judgment for them or hidden shame for being their companion. One life characterized and given witness to when I humbly allow my Brother and my Sister to carry me when I am broken or hurting.

One.

One.

Parts of the Whole

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

It is nothing like we initially thought it would be, is it? It is not as we were taught, but it is exactly as God's Word tells us.

It is not something that we can grasp at once. He must use His Word to lead us as a lamp unto our feet so that we may take one step at a time.

It is not something that we were ready for. It is something that He has been and will continue to prepare us for as we continue to listen and obey in spite of the seeming "foolishness" of it all.

We have seen parts, and parts of the whole. Others have seen other parts, and other parts of the whole. We each have a piece, and if we humbly recognize that and come together to ask God to fit those pieces together as He sees them, we will become a living component of the heart of God for this day.

As we have seen what He has shown us, our hearts have come to begin beating with His. As we come together with parts of the whole that sometimes seem radically different from one another and ask Him to converge what He has given each of us, our hearts will all begin to beat as one.

A school of fish, a flock of birds. Moving as one. Not identical to one another, but formed in His image, and one with Him and each other like never before.

This thing of the seemingly different parts of the whole that exist is an important issue for us all to prayerfully consider in this season.

If we agreed to meet one another in Dallas, Texas, and one came from Louisiana and the other from New Mexico, we would come with different visions of our arrival and, thus, of the whole.

The one who came from the east might say, "Did you see the beautiful skyline of Dallas majestically jutting into the sky?"

The other would respond, "What do you mean? I saw no majestic skyline. I saw the endless corrals of plenty, filled with cattle to feed the world."

Differing parts of the whole, but accurately representative of the whole.

We can't see the whole. Now we see in part. But as we come together, respecting God and one another in understanding the spiritual principle behind the example above, we will see Him reveal "a whole" that individual eye has not seen, nor exclusive ear heard, nor single heart of man fully imagined.

Long Spoons Of Love

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

A holy man was having a conversation with the Lord one day and said, "Lord, I would like to know what Heaven and Hell are like."

The Lord led the holy man to two doors. He opened one of the doors and the holy man looked in. In the middle of the room was a large round table. In the middle of the table was a large pot of stew, which smelled delicious and made the holy man's mouth water. The people sitting around the table were thin and sickly. They appeared to be famished. They were holding spoons with very long handles that were strapped to their arms and each found it possible to reach into the pot of stew and take a spoonful, but because the handle was longer than their arms, they could
not get the spoons back into their mouths. The holy man shuddered at the sight of their misery and suffering. The Lord said, "You have seen Hell."

They went to the next room and opened the door. It was exactly the same as the first one. There was the large round table with the large pot of stew, which made the holy man's mouth water. The people were equipped with the same long-handled spoons, but here the people were well nourished and plump, laughing and talking. The holy man said, "I don't understand."

"It is simple" said the Lord, "it requires but one skill." You see, they have learned to feed each other, while the greedy think only of themselves."

When Jesus died on the cross he was thinking of you.

....when Thou [God] shalt make His soul an offering for sin, He shall see [the children that will come to You through His death upon the cross].....
Isaiah 53:10 (b)

The Eagle and Child / Living Hope

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

In that this blog is called Nameless, Faceless Love, it is logical that some might ask, "Why, then, do you make specific reference to 2 blogs by name in your "recommended edification section?"

Good question.

And so this post is meant to share a little about these two blogs and why we feel so strongly as to note them here.

The Eagle and Child

The Eagle and Child is the blog of a Cincinnati, Ohio pastor (you can find his name when you visit the site :-)....). The blog covers many subjects at various times that are of interest to most believers.

One post may speak about a House Concert held in a local loft featuring musicians that are Christians (as opposed to "Christian musicians", the post notes).

Another post may inform us of an outbreak of persecution against Christians in the nation of Burma, or enlighten us about little spoken of modern day slavery.

Still another post will review the recent film One Night With The King, or speak of high hopes for the upcoming film Amazing Grace.

And interspersed between, you'll find posts pertinent to the Church at large today; a post about a quarterly pastors' meeting aimed at prayerfully facilitating racial reconciliation and cross-denominational fellowship and support; a post about what the classic church can learn from house churches; and in yet another highlights concepts from the book "With One Voice" about the concept of suffering - Christ's and our own.

In one word I would describe The Eagle and Child as "transcendent." The reason I use this word is that - just as we're told that humans use so little of their brain's capacity - most Internet blogs, and specifically Christian ones rise to the task of encouraging, compelling, truly informing, and even provoking unto love and good works. The Eagle and Child does just that.

The best of what Christian blogs can be is to both edify and unsettle. That's what the Word of God does. That's what the Gospel does. And that's what The Eagle and Child does.

And we love it.

Living Hope

Living Hope is the blog of a former institutional pastor from California (you can find his name when you visit the site :-)....). The blog is both very personal and very universal at the same time.

This is because the writer prayerfully and Biblically gives illustration to the Word of God and our own humanity at work in our daily lives. The examples and stories that are shared hit home with so many readers as being relevant and sometimes even seemingly identical to their situation or state.

Having lived throughout the United States and on the continents of Africa and Asia, we can tell you this; in spite of the "wrapping paper," people are basically the same. There is one Jesus, there is one satan, and there is one kind of people - us.

That's what's so special about Living Hope. It gives witness to the universal nature of our humanity, our faith, and our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ.

And we love it.

The Evangelistic Bride

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Wives, in the same way be submissive to your husbands so that, if any of them do not believe the word, they may be won over without words by the behavior of their wives, when they see the purity and reverence of your lives.

Your beauty should not come from outward adornment, such as braided hair and the wearing of gold jewelry and fine clothes.
Instead, it should be that of your inner self, the unfading beauty of a gentle and quiet spirit, which is of great worth in God's sight.
1 Peter 3:1-4

God's Word makes it perfectly clear that there is another wife and another husband in His will; another Bride and another Bridegroom; a symbolic, spiritual marriage between the Body of Christ and the Saviour Himself:

Wherefore, my brethren, ye also are become dead to the law by the body of Christ; that ye should be married to another, even to Him who is raised from the dead, that we should bring forth fruit unto God.
Romans 7:4

Let us be glad and rejoice, and give honour to him: for the marriage of the Lamb is come, and His wife hath made herself ready.
And to her was granted that she should be arrayed in fine linen, clean and white: for the fine linen is the righteousness of saints.
Revelation 19:7-8

So many of us who profess to be disciples of Christ are praying for "revival." We note well-known revivals of the past as we pray for present ones - the Welsh Revival, Azuza Street, Toronto Airport, Brownsville. These revivals have all come, made a great impact, and have gone and, though many have tried to replicate their results by seeking to do exactly the same things as people involved with these revivals, they have never been replicated in such a manner.

This tells us that those events were an out-pouring from heaven sent by God, not something that was produced by man. Will God send down revival like this in the future? It seems reasonable to assume so. But, in that revivals of these types have not produced the great harvest of disciples for which so many are praying in these days, we must ask ourselves a frank question; What will produce the great latter day harvest of disciples for which so many are praying?

In that the Husband and Bridegroom has made it perfectly clear that He desires to pour out a blessing from above, might His bride, the Body of Christ, make note of 1 Peter 3:1-4 as direction on how we must change so that we can serve Him and His missing children as part of His great, latter day harvest?

In Noah's day, the earth was flooded because a 2 things; there was a great out-pouring from heaven, and the wells upon the earth opened up and began sending forth water, as well.

When we read 1 Peter 3:1-4 in light of the Bride, Christ's Body, submitting to our Husband, Christ Jesus, we see a revelation of how the "wells of the earth" can open up to produce a great flood of disciples in these latter days.

When Christ's Body begins to be truly submissive to Christ Jesus, those who do not believe will be won over without words through seeing the purity and reverence for Christ in our lives.

When we, Christ's Body, begin to turn away from the pretty things with which we have adorned the Church in the Western World (be it institutional, house church, or otherwise) in the past - the desire to organize and expand as though building an empire, the rush to be a visible part of the latest Christian "movement," the spiritual, intellectual and monetary arrogance toward our Brethren in the Third World, the slick presentations of His simple, Holy Gospel - and we begin to seek to manifest a gentle and quiet Spirit from within that God considers so valuable, the lost will see Christ Jesus lifted up and turn to Him in great numbers.

In the days of Acts, God's people met in both the temple (today's institutional churches) and in the homes. Because of the purity, reverence, and simplicity of believers in the days immediately after Christ's ascension to be with our Father, there was a place for both of these in the faith community. In much the same way, there is a place for both the vocal proclamation of the Gospel in the temple and from house to house and in the highways and the hedges, and also in the pure, reverent, simple living out of the Gospel in disciples' daily lives.

Always be prepared to give an answer to everyone who asks you to give the reason for the hope that you have (1 Peter 3:15)?
Without a doubt.

Go ye into all the world, and preach the gospel to every creature (Mark 16:15)?
Most assuredly, it is the commandment of Christ Himself.

But these "outward" and "public" ministries must be coupled with the daily, unfeigned, intimate work of the gentle, quiet Spirit of God in the hearts of disciples of Christ.

When all these things - the outward and the inward - begin to take place simultaneously, the lost will respond to evangelism and discipleship as they never have before. When the meek and quiet Spirit of the messengers rightly aligns with the purported promise of the big event, those who who have been desperately searching for a Saviour will be won over to Him without words in greater numbers than ever before.

And whether God accomplishes this by having us use words or not, the end result will be as it should be; He and He alone will receive all the glory.

Nameless, Faceless, and God Gets the Glory.

The Meeting

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Most companies have a weekly meeting. During these meetings, many things are discussed - past, present and future - and many decisions are made that impact both the company and the individuals that make up that company.

These meetings are very important, but no one in their right mind would say that the most important part of the business for IBM, or Microsoft, or McDonald’s was their weekly meetings. That’s ridiculous.

We all know that the most important part of the business for these and all businesses is the development and stewardship of a unique, impacting relationship with their customers.

And yet.......

The Church at large in the Western World today lives as though the weekly meeting is the center of what we do and who we are. The weekly meeting remains the focal point of many of our Western churches today, be they institutional, house church or para-church in nature.

One of the most important, life-changing revelations to the existing Church and new believers alike is the understanding that the most important part of being the Church is daily living out the development and stewardship of unique, impacting relationships with first, the lost, and then other believers. The weekly meetings are important, but they are not meant to be the centerpiece that many of us have made them out to be.

There are many of God’s children who are “missing.” Some are “unsaved,” some are “saved” and wandering, and some are “saved” and wondering. But none of them are truly searching high and low for a really good weekly meeting. None of them think that, if they could just find a really good weekly meeting, the mysterious longing within them for closeness with God would disappear.

They may not know what they’re looking for, but it’s not a meeting. What God’s missing children need is a unique, impacting daily relationship with God and His people. Then and only then will the weekly meeting begin to serve its proper, God-intended purpose in their, and our lives.

Tonight, my family and I will have dinner and spend the evening with a family whom we have recently met. We did not meet them "at church." We met them where Jesus met people - as He lived out His faith in His life. On hillsides, on beaches, on roadsides, in marketplaces, in sinner's homes, Jesus simply lived out His life of faith, and God drew men unto Himself through that simple, transparent, faithful life of Christ.

Tonight, my family and I will have dinner and spend the evening with a family whom we have recently met. We love them. They are special to us. When tonight is done, we will have broken bread, fellowshipped, prayed and received teaching. When tonight is done, we will have invested precious time and will have even then begun to reap precious returns on the development and stewardship of a unique, impacting relationship between our families and our God.

And soon, our two families will come together in a weekly meeting with other families with whom we also are developing and stewarding unique, impacting relationships.

God, Christ, Christianity, evangelism, faith and life are not necessarily as we have been told. They are as God’s Word describes them, and are a stunningly beautiful thing to experience.

Weekly meetings have an importance, but the only place we will experience a life of wholeness is in a daily, growing relationship with God, the lost, and God's children.

“Some of My children are missing. Go and find them. I will lead you.”

More to come......

He Left Us His Example

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“Radical Christianity is just as threatening as radical Islam in a country like the United States.”

When Rosie O’Donnell made these recent comments, it provoked outrage among many Christians. George Barna even conducted a poll about the comments and its impact upon Americans of various faiths or no faith at all.

In his research, Barna identified that most Americans disagreed with Rosie’s view. He also identified that few Americans felt that her comments were appropriate for a national television broadcast.

Then, in summarizing his comments on the context of the opinions expressed in the survey, Barna concludes with this statement:

“Finally, the fact that so few adults who consider themselves to be Christian felt that they were even owed an apology speaks volumes about the self-image of Christians and the centrality of their faith in their life.”

Does Rosie owe Christians an apology?

It seems that we Christians spend a lot of time asking those who do not know Christ to act in the manner that we believe Christians should. Never mind the hypocrisy that those who do not share our Christian faith see in us at times. Rather, consider for a moment, if you will, Christians standing in their backyards, speaking to their family cat, and saying, “C’mon, kitty. Bark.”

Ridiculous, isn’t it? Just like us expecting people who do not have Christ to act, think and speak righteously. Hey, there’s days when we don’t even act, think or speak righteously. Why are we asking the unsaved kitties in our lives to bark?

Some may say that it’s different with Rosie because she holds such influence in our culture. Perhaps we need to do some of the same soul-searching of our own hearts that some are demanding that Rosie make. Are we more concerned with Rosie’s eternity, or with how she - acting, thinking and speaking in a genuine representation of who she currently is - might influence other people’s opinion of Jesus or “us Christians.” Jesus can take care of Himself. We need to check our egos at the door, and develop the same compassion that our Savior has for Rosie.

I appreciate and respect George Barna and his work. I am not writing about him. I am writing about us - Christians. Those who profess to be disciples of Christ. And so, if you profess to be a disciple of Christ and you disagree with what I have written to this point, I ask you to consider this:

Jesus did not ask anyone for an apology. Ever. Not once. Rather, He prayed that our Father would forgive them. Why? Because they didn’t know what they were doing.

It would be so easy to say that the professional killers who whipped and beat and nailed Jesus to the Cross knew exactly what they were doing. But Jesus didn’t consider their actions, thoughts, or speech. Jesus knew better. He didn’t ask those “unsaved kitties to bark,” even though they were killing Him in an unimaginably painful and humiliating manner.

He left us an example of how we’re to behave, especially when we’re wrongfully accused or mistreated. God’s Word clearly tells us how we’re to behave when things like Rosie’s comments occur in our lives. We’re to behave - just as so many of us who profess to be His disciples say that we aspire to - like Jesus did:

For it is commendable if a man bears up under the pain of unjust suffering because he is conscious of God.
But how is it to your credit if you receive a beating for doing wrong and endure it? But if you suffer for doing good and you endure it, this is commendable before God.
To this you were called, because Christ suffered for you, leaving you an example, that you should follow in his steps:
"He committed no sin, and no deceit was found in his mouth
When they hurled their insults at him, he did not retaliate; when he suffered, he made no threats. Instead, he entrusted himself to him who judges justly.
He himself bore our sins in his body on the tree, so that we might die to sins and live for righteousness; by his wounds you have been healed.
For you were like sheep going astray, but now you have returned to the Shepherd and Overseer of your souls.
1 Peter 2:19-25

So many times in my Christian life, I have not responded in the manner described above. The longer I allowed it to go on in my heart and life, the more He allowed it to break my heart. I still sometimes feel self-defensiveness and pride attempt to rise up within me when I feel that I have been wronged. That’s when I need to go to Jesus, ask Him to heal my heart, and help me to act, think and speak with the same measure of grace that has been given unto me. I am not perfect in this, but I am so humbled by what Christ has done for me that I very much want to be. I am thankful for God’s mercy for me when I am not.

Jesus spoke it so clearly to me, for me. “If you’re not free from the effects of persecution, how can you do what I'm asking you to do?”

Father, I ask You to let me see the potential lamb in front of me whenever I stand before one who is as yet unsaved. Help me to see past their actions, thoughts and speech, as I have needed to ask You to forgive some of my own actions, thoughts and speech. Help me to remember in every moment and every situation just how sweet Your salvation is, and just how precious it is to know You and be known by You. Help me - within the depths of my heart - to truly and deeply desire what You desire; that all would repent and be reconciled unto You.

As I have written this, you have placed a great love in my heart for Rosie. That love is born of You, not me, and I know this. From within that love, I ask You not that You would cause Rosie to stop acting, thinking and speaking as she is. Rather, I ask that You would find a way, if there is any way, to demonstrate Your love for Rosie to her so that she, too, would come to know Your love and walk with You all of her days.

She's just one of Your missing children, Father. Please let her be found, just as You found me.

That You might receive all the glory......

I ask all of this in Jesus’ name......Amen.