I Don't Agree with the Prayer of Agreement (Radio / Podcast)

Again I say to you, if two of you agree on earth about anything they ask, it will be done for them by my Father in heaven.
(Matthew 18:19 – ESV)

I love praying, and I have taught on prayer and preached on prayer many times and for many years. It is one of my favorite subjects and one of my favorite things to do. Whether it is by myself or with others, it is something I am wholeheartedly committed to, without reserve. I firmly believe in the power of prayer, but of course that power needs to be defined biblically.

Many who want to make more of the power of prayer than they ought will claim that this verse teaches something it does not. They will say that if two or more Christians agree in prayer about any specific issue, God will accomplish the prayer. Is that what this verse teaches?

It is good to agree with other believers in prayer for God’s will, certainly this is true. But if this idea about the “prayer of agreement” was true, why then doesn’t God answer all our corporate prayers in accordance with our desires? It is obvious then that there are qualifications to this idea, at best, and it might not even be biblical, so we need to think about it while looking to the actual text.

It isn’t as if there are three votes to be cast, and if you and your prayer partner agree that you want things done one way, then God, His will notwithstanding, has to observe the majority rule. Now you may balk and try and explain the position away as not actually being like that, but it really does boil down to that, doesn’t it? Does your agreement automatically make God to be in agreement? Of course not, we would all say, so let’s look a little closer at this idea, shall we? Let’s not just agree to disagree, but let’s take a look at the text, and see if we can clear up our disagreement by clearly seeing what the text does or does not teach. Agreed?

There can be a real problem with certain ideas drawn from “proof texts”. While they might sound good, and be based on scripture, and in many instances the single verse provided appears to confirm the teaching, on closer examination we see that the verse has been pulled out of the context in which it was given and is claimed to say what it does not. Oh, this particular verse does “say” what it “says” but it does not clearly teach what it simply says.

We cannot simply use “verses in a vacuum”, in other words, we cannot pull them out of their context, and make them say what we want them to mean, thereby becoming “verse ventriloquists”. This is what the kingdom of the cults do all the time; they pour their own meaning into the words. Although we have all had our difficulties with misinterpreting texts and teachings, when we can by God’s grace find our way to the truth, we need to take it as it is.

When looking at texts, we can understand them to apply to Christians universally, such as Matthew 28:19-20 (go therefore and teach all nations), or to someone or something specifically, such as Matthew 10:5-6 (do not go to anyone but the Jews, a command for the disciples only and for that particular time period only, overruled by the Great Commission), or principally, such as Philippians 2:3-4 (Paul was speaking to a particular church but the principle of Christlike behavior applies to us) or not at all, as with 2 Timothy 4:13 (Paul tells Timothy to bring his papers, which we are obviously not to do). Texts meant specifically may also apply principally, so sometimes texts that aren’t teaching on a particular subject may still give us a principle to follow and apply to other matters.

Matthew 18:19 is part of a group of 6 verses, beginning with Matthew 18:15 and ending with Matthew 18:20. This section of scripture is about church discipline, and not specifically about prayer at all. The asking part is about the offended parties going to the leadership as part of the process of that discipline. Church members are asking church leaders to do something, in accordance with standard protocol. So this verse, in the asking part, is not about people asking God, but people asking people.

However, does the verse apply in principle? What about the binding and loosing aspect from verse 18? What about the Father doing something from heaven?

This verse does apply in principle, but not with respect to prayer. This was Christ telling the disciples that the Heavenly Father would ratify the decision of the church leaders. This wasn’t about giving church leaders or “prayer agree-ers” unlimited authority, it was Jesus telling us, in principle, that when proper disciplinary procedures are followed in the church, the leaders have the right to deny fellowship to the person who won’t repent of their sin that they committed against another believer. The binding and loosing has to do with the disciplinary decisions being made; God vests a certain authority to the church.

This is why other passages dealing with the handling of disputes and handing out discipline in a Christian manner, such as 1 Corinthians 6:1-8 are so important, and why church membership, once again, is seen to be an essential for the New Testament believer, not an optional ideal. In 1 Corinthians 6, Paul is applying what Jesus was teaching here. If you are not part of a local assembly, you are undermining part of the foundation for your Christian life. You need to be a vital part of a local fellowship of believers. This is not just about attending this or that church once in a while, or moving from church to church, that would escape this scenario and all like it, and now YOU KNOW IT.

However, most people don’t want to submit themselves to God’s people. They don't have to worry about failing a test they don't have to take. Many will never submit to discipline, either from the church, or in some degree to the scriptures themselves. They never give up the right to be the final arbiter, and this is the glaring problem in many so-called Christians. The gospel truth is that submitting to God means that we also have to submit to one another.

Now realize that this passage isn’t about handing out punishment without any procedure; this is a very specific plan of action for grieved parties. It is not a decision in relation to the salvation of the sinning Christian, but only in relation to their association with the fellowship. The agreement part is in relation to the process employed in verses 15 through 17 that results in the decision to expel the sinning person from the fellowship.

As a matter of prayer this text does not apply at all. It isn’t about a universal prayer power, it does not specifically deal with prayer, and it does not apply in principle either. It is a good and wonderful thing for believers to dwell in unity, and to pray together in God’s will with faith. However, with regards to how it is taught and understood in some circles, I do not agree with the prayer of agreement, because the bible does not teach it, especially from this verse.

“Living For Today With An Eye For Tomorrow”©

God’s Greenhouse

For we are God's fellow workers. You are God's field, God's building.
(1 Corinthians 3:9 – ESV)

Many talk of the struggle between our old man and our new man, which is on a more or less individual level. Now we want to focus on another facet of what Paul calls the new man, the corporate nature of the new man, the Body of Christ. This universal, invisible body is manifested visibly as the local church body. It is in this new man that we are to experience the growth we need to fight our old man and live from our individual new man. Christians are all a part of the body, the seed of Christ being planted in all Christians, but that seed grows best within God’s greenhouse the local church. God had not only ordained a body but a community for that body to grow in, all of us growing as individuals, and as a unit.

People want God to change their situation, and a major, unavoidable, inescapable, irreplaceable part of that is becoming a part of and becoming a vital participant in a local church setting. This is God’s vehicle for growth. Yes bible reading and prayer and such are your vehicles for growth, but this is not to be done on an individual basis alone, but also within the context of a covenant community. Communion is for and with the saints in Christ. This is the God ordained way. Jesus is the Way the Truth and the Life, and He is the head of His body the Church, which He died for. That universal body of all believers is manifested in local assemblies throughout the world.

Just as there are no perfect believers out there, there are no perfect churches out there, and just as we are predestined to be conformed to the image of Christ as individuals, we are predestined to grow up into the full measure as the bride of Christ, as a universal church with local expressions of like precious faith. The church is the way; it is the pillar and ground of the truth and the life of Christ, the new man in manifestation, which is revealed within that context. It is one Jesus but many faces, one Jesus many places.

None of these commands to love and serve one another have any meaning apart from the primacy of a local body. You cannot exhort one another if there is no other. Of course it is also about others we meet who are believers from other places, and people outside who aren’t Christians. But the word must dwell in us, as a unit towards one another, before it may dwell in us outside that structure, at least as far as growth is concerned.

We grow best within the context of community, we grow as a group of individuals and we grow together as a unit, each individual is growing deeper and higher and together we also grow deeper and higher. The well ordered church, one that truly has a right view of God, as all in all, this is the place of blessing. The Vinedresser is tending His fruit and pruning His crop in His greenhouse, and if you are not there, you are not planted in the right soil.

“Living For Today With An Eye For Tomorrow”©

Holy Temples

Of how much worse punishment, do you suppose, will he be thought worthy who has trampled the Son of God underfoot, counted the blood of the covenant by which he was sanctified a common thing, and insulted the Spirit of grace?
(Hebrews 10:29 – NKJV)

When God declares something holy He is declaring that His presence is there and that a work is being done. Too often we say we want to see God work in our lives but we fail to realize God is still doing His redemptive work in the earth. The ground where God works is holy and we dare not treat it as common. If we repent of that He can restore what we have wasted. The biblical stories about holy ground are about what we call redemptive history but you and I also have a personal redemptive history. God is buying back time, setting more of you free in practical ways, leading more of you to conquer the sin in your life and lead others to the Lord. It is time to repent of commonplace Christianity. It is time to stand on holy ground.

To treat as common means to treat as unholy, to profane something holy as if it were not that big of a deal. This is someone who hasn’t “taken off his shoes”; he treats the blood, the things of God as common. Where God is working to change your life we had best not treat this as a common thing. God is trying to set us apart to be more than a common, or we could say carnal, Christian, as if they actually exist, which is debatable. Indeed Christians shouldn’t be common but be portraits of grace, testimonies of changed lives and changing lives that give God glory. The things of God are not profane; they are graced in the supernatural.

Ephesians 4 speaks about telling the truth in love, and believing lies. When we see these things we start to immediately think of our own personal holiness. But if you keep that exhortation firmly planted in the context of Ephesians 3, it’s clear that Paul has more than one person in mind here. He’s talking to a group of people, not just individuals. Cultivating a holy unity based on truth is our responsibility as church members.

Some people may make individual witness to Christ but they are not contributing to the corporate witness of Christ. God calls out a people, not just individuals, but individuals to reflect a group witness. Church is one way we magnify God’s name in this world.

It is the entire church that has been gifted by the Spirit, and so Paul calls the entire church to keep the unity of the Spirit through the bond of peace (Ephesians 4:3). Individuals are holy temples (1 Corinthians 6:17-20), but the church is also holy ground, and those whom treat it as common, those who destroy God’s temple God will destroy (1 Corinthians 3:16-17).

“Living For Today With An Eye For Tomorrow”©

All Washed Up

If I then, your Lord and Teacher, have washed your feet, you also ought to wash one another's feet. For I have given you an example, that you also should do just as I have done to you.
(John 13:14-15 – ESV)

When Christ was presenting and performing the idea of washing one another’s feet, He was not saying we are to do this to everyone, everywhere, all the time. Obviously that is impossible and is evasive of His point. It is not about the physical washing of people’s feet, but about humility and service to one another.

However, this foot washing idea goes further than that. It is more than general humility and service, it is to surrender to a group of people whom you give yourself to in extraordinary service, beyond normal Christian charity. This is not simply to everyone at all times, although we are to be a humble servant to all. Again that would be evasive of the point by making this only a general principle when Jesus really means this for a specific group.

The action of Christ here is indicative of a humble serving spirit, but it is more specific than just that. This is Jesus telling us that we are to be about the giving of ourselves to a specific set of individuals. You give yourself to all of Christ’s body, but you wash the feet of those whom you are in intimate fellowship with. Of course this means that to be able to do that you have to have intimate fellowship with a group of believers.

This was not only about submission and service, but also about surrender. You can humbly serve the whole body and specially as you encounter them, but washing feet as seen by Jesus here is about getting dirty, and removing the dirt from the worn and weary feet of those you are in the trenches with. That isn’t everybody; that is about your local set of people whom you get muddy with on a regular basis, as Jesus did with His disciples. You give yourself to a group of people and those people are whose feet you wash.

A proof of this is found in Paul’s first letter to Timothy. This was what Paul was instructing Timothy about in 1 Timothy 5:9-10. The true widow, who Paul described in detail, and who had humbled herself and served the local congregation of saints, was to be considered for being on the church’s benevolence list or given a paying job of some kind to help support her as she supported those in the church. If she had shown care for others they were to take care of her. This shows us the application of the “washing of feet” means to a local fellowship, not just a general principle only. Although we are to be humble to all and serve all, this is not just about humility and service in general, but in specific terms to specific people sets.

To truly wash the saints feet, you must be a part of a local body of believers to whom you give yourself. If you don’t have a set of saints you are submitted to you are upsetting the biblical balance in your life. Church is God’s idea: giving yourself to a group of others is what Jesus is commanding us to do here in this text. The disciples had been arguing for some time about who among them was greatest, and Jesus here shows them that if they will not serve the group but want to stand out, or think that they can, that they are sorely mistaken. If you think that you are some super saint and that you don’t have to be a vital part of a local church, if you haven’t surrendered your role as the final arbiter in your life, your discipleship is all dried up. You’ve thrown in the towel against the church instead of girding yourself with it.

“Living For Today With An Eye For Tomorrow”©

An Uncommon Honor

So the honor is for you who believe…
(1 Peter 2:7 – ESV)

What makes something holy ground? When God declares it, when He is working in that place. God has declared believers as holy ground (Romans 8:29 / 1 Corinthians 6:17-20). 1 Peter 1:18-19 – We had better consider ourselves as holy ground or we treat the blood of Christ as less than precious. 1 Thessalonians 4:7-8 – if we disregard holiness we disregard God. We need to become holy ground in our lives as individuals, in our families, and in our churches, and also see to it that our communities know where they can go to be set apart.

Where God is acting we cannot treat as common. Common grace is different from saving and sanctifying grace. Going to church, studying the Bible, praying, fellowshipping with other true believers, fasting, worshipping through song, hearing the Word preached, and living the Christian life with increasing submission and sanctification, these things might appear to be common things. However, they only seem like common things to unbelievers, to believers they are valuable and precious, they are special, they are not common. Only saved or about to be saved people can get any true benefit from them, they are holy things.

1 Peter 2:4-10 – This is special not common, but our common heritage as Christians. Look at the words Peter uses to describe the things of God. We dare not treat these things God calls chosen, precious, holy, acceptable, honor, royal, his own possession, excellent, and marvelous, we dare not treat these things as common. If God Himself thinks they are special, we commit a horrible sin to call them common by treating them as routine and not special. Our salvation, our spiritual sacrifices, and our being built together as living stones that proclaim the name of our Lord Jesus Christ, these things are valuable and precious to God.

Every Sunday is a special time. Just because we get to do it every Sunday doesn’t mean we should treat it as run of the mill. It is God in His abundant grace that gives us the opportunity to meet with Him in the context of meeting with other believers to worship Him. It is a glorious, wondrous, marvelous, precious thing, not some take it or leave it thing. That would be profaning it. That would be treating it as common. Perhaps that is all it is to you, common, but if you are truly growing as a Christian you will have a growing appreciation for just how special this all truly is. Worshipping and working together is an opportunity you don’t get when you are by yourself. It isn’t common and if you think it is that is why you don’t get much out of it because you denigrate its importance. Don’t dishonor God when He has so honored you. Don’t treat as common what God has made clean (Acts 10:15).

“Living For Today With An Eye For Tomorrow”©

Losing the Case

To have lawsuits at all with one another is already a defeat for you. Why not rather suffer wrong? Why not rather be defrauded? But you yourselves wrong and defraud--even your own brothers!
(1 Corinthians 6:7-8 – ESV)

So now you see where we need good strong churches in order to keep in step with the gospel when we are in disagreement and have disputes with other believers. However you might now say, “well okay, we should settle these things in church not in court, but there aren’t any good churches around, that is why we don’t belong to one, and we couldn’t possibly let it go then”. Well, actually yes, that IS what Paul is saying, to let it go. You see, if you don’t have a church, you are losing out on your opportunity to get this thing solved in a Christian manner, because Paul says if you cannot work it out there, you should just let it go.

Paul is saying that the believer who demands their legal rights in the face of this apostolic counsel always loses the case in God's sight. What becomes visible in that individual is their own selfishness, and also the fact that by demanding their rights in a court of law, they are basically saying that they don't believe God with his power and wisdom can work in the circumstances to accomplish his will. They trust the court system more than God himself. Paul says, “Not only do you not bear it, you return fire, looking to inflict wrong”.

Paul's point is that it's better to lose financially than to lose spiritually. Even when we're clearly in the right legally, we don't always have the spiritual or moral right to insist on it in public court. If we've been wronged or defrauded, we're called to forgiveness, not bitterness. If our fellow believers can't convince the brother to make things right, we're better off to suffer loss and injustice than to bring a lawsuit. Paul is only expanding the word Jesus from the Sermon on the Mount (Matthew 5:38-40). These hard words are absolutely contrary to the standards of the world that we live in today. When we're deprived wrongfully, we're to cast ourselves on the care of God, who will work for our good and for his glory. We can pray to the Lord who can change hearts and deal with injustice. We must not trust the legal system to do that, because it won't. When we aren’t willing to lose something for the sake of Christ we have already lost.

Have you ever been tested in the area of losing something for Christ’s sake? Sometimes we need to just let it go, to show mercy and so receive mercy from Christ (Matthew 5:7). All who are godly in Christ will suffer persecution (2 Timothy 3:12), but most just try and find every way out of it they can. They don't have to worry about failing a test they don't have to take. Many will never submit to discipline, either from the church, or in some degree to the scriptures themselves. They never give up the right to be the final arbiter, and this is the glaring problem in many so-called Christians. They say one thing, but they actually believe another, and it will eventually show itself as true that they were false. The gospel truth is that submitting to God means that we also have to submit to one another.

However, most people don’t want to submit themselves to God’s people. They want the gospel to get them out of hell, but they are willing to put others through hell for their own self-interest. They haven’t enjoyed the Christian life because they won’t die to themselves. They want everything easy; at every point they want support and praise. Then, when some trouble comes, as it inevitably will, and an ungodly but attractive alternative presents itself, they have no moral center on which to depend. They had never, for the sake of Christ, made a decision that cost them something; and they aren’t about to start now. However, real professions of faith manifest themselves in a principal death to self-interest, in a principal commitment to the cause of Christ and His gospel. What is normal for a true Christian is taking up one's cross and following Jesus; we lose our lives but we gain all the more (John 12:24). Let us consider one another as we consider what Christ means to us (Philippians 2:1-11).

“Living For Today With An Eye For Tomorrow”©

Don’t go to Court, go to Church

Or do you not know that the saints will judge the world? And if the world is to be judged by you, are you incompetent to try trivial cases? Do you not know that we are to judge angels? How much more, then, matters pertaining to this life!
(1 Corinthians 6:2-3 – ESV)

We have in the body of believers all the resources necessary to settle disputes-truth, wisdom, equity, justice, kindness, generosity, and the mind of Christ, according to the scriptures. If we have this tremendous privilege of spiritual judgment in the future, and that ministry we're going to have will be based on principles of understanding, wisdom, and justice that we have available now in the Scriptures, then we can certainly trust them for handling disputes among ourselves right in this life. In the ordinary cases of life, the point is that if two Christian parties can't agree between themselves, they ought to ask fellow Christians to help settle the matter for them, and then be willing to abide by their decision.

Paul is not saying that the secular court system is entirely bad, or that being a lawyer is somehow ungodly. No, far from it, because Paul appealed to and benefited from Roman justice in Acts 18. Paul’s concern here is more specific. His concern is the arrogance that Christians show when they make the dirty laundry of their internal struggles public. These Christians don't care what other people think. Justice was dispensed in Corinth in the public square or the marketplace. So when someone hauled a brother or sister into court there, they weren't just settling a dispute. They were holding the church itself up to public scrutiny and ridicule.

Paul is not saying this is only an individual matter. There will come times when true believers have to have some mediation. Paul is not saying it is strictly up to the grieving parties to settle the issues all alone, no, he is saying that the church instead of the secular courts become the place of mediation. The decision by these Christians to go to court reveals how little respect they have for the church's authority and ability to settle its own disputes.

Of course, in today’s climate of people who think they are Christians but do not actively, vitally belong to any church, this becomes extremely problematic. With no church discipline in place, or marginal “professing” Christians as one or both of the “combatants”, it is therefore difficult to avoid some scenarios. Especially when someone is a professor and wants to use this as some sort of shield. It doesn’t mean that the two parties must work it out without the oversight of the church. Paul is saying that Christians should settle their disputes in the light and oversight of the church; in other words, the elders and congregation are the church court, as it were.

This is another reason why the idea of “you don’t have to go to church” is such a demonic, yes I said demonic, lie. God has given and structured the church so that it can take care of these things, but when people don’t believe in the authority of the church, they destroy part of the foundation for their lives. The truth is that mavericks have authority and responsibility and accountability issues. You cannot expect to have authority with God’s people (by using God’s Word) if you will not accept the authority of the local church. That is simply nonsense, and the whole New Testament testifies to the fact that vital membership in a local church is a non negotiable as a way of life for the Christian.

“Living For Today With An Eye For Tomorrow”©

Truth and Love

Rather, speaking the truth in love, we are to grow up in every way into him who is the head, into Christ, from whom the whole body, joined and held together by every joint with which it is equipped, when each part is working properly, makes the body grow so that it builds itself up in love.
(Ephesians 4:15-16 – ESV)

Truth in love – this is not so much a balance here as it is a package. We must have both. Of course, the “truth” part can be easier than the “in love” part to ascertain. Too often people want to define the “in love” part so as to mean non-offensive or non-confrontational but if that were the case this “speaking”, for correction, wouldn’t need to happen (cf. Galatians 2:11-14 / 2 Timothy 2:2, 25-26 / Titus 1:9-16, Titus 2). Of course some people will tell you that you are being hurtful even when you are doing it right (Galatians 4:16). In love doesn’t mean weakly it means real concern for real connection, for true spiritual growth. To speak the truth in love you must be in love with the truth.

People think that the love here means humility. Yes, real, biblical humility is an integral part of holiness, which is true love. As we become more holy, practically speaking, we should be becoming more humble and loving (Philippians 2:1-15). However, humility doesn’t make something more or less true, it only tends to makes the connection better, but a false humility can lead to serious danger (Colossians 2:18-19). If we are centered on and around Christ and learning the truth we will be growing up and each part will be equipped for its role, knowing its role and the whole body functioning properly.

The context of all this is spiritually gifted people helping us to become of one mind towards Christ and so therefore growing up together as a unit in Him. All of our gifts should help protect us from being swept away by every wind of doctrine. This happens when we are forgiving one another yet holding each other accountable, not to punish but to grow, and we need everyone on board for that to happen to its full capacity. This is also why it is so clearly evident in the New Testament that there are no such things as maverick Christians who aren’t a vital part of a local body or those who think they can just jump around, because they have no real accountability and they have no real growth, not in the way Paul is describing it here. It doesn’t work that way; that would be you believing a lie about your spiritual growth. When you are away from this truth you are stunting your growth and the growth of others. It isn’t just “oh yeah, I can grow all by myself”, what about the others you are supposed to be connected with? We are to grow up into Christ, He is the head, and in the revelation of Him, the bible, that is where the truth is. The bible teaches that committed, connected fellowship is vital for the believer.

“Living For Today With An Eye For Tomorrow”©

Service Station

I beseech you therefore, brethren, by the mercies of God, that ye present your bodies a living sacrifice, holy, acceptable unto God, which is your reasonable service.
(Romans 12:1)

Immediately following verses 1 and 2 of Romans 12, Paul begins to describe the fruits of the gospel, the indicatives and imperatives of Christian service. If you will not even regularly attend a church service how can you say you are truly serving the Lord? How can you with one breath say He is the most important thing in your life, and then with the next breath yearn to do other, lesser things than to go to or stay in church even one day of the week? How can you say you serve God if you won’t even serve in the church? The truth about church here is really a simple thing to see: if you don’t even want to go, it is indicative of your spiritual condition.

We go to the gas station to get our tanks filled up, and church is the spiritual filling station. Now being filled up in the context of community is how we are filled with the Spirit, this is what Paul is pointing out in Colossians 3 and Ephesians 5. Individuals indeed fill the church but together as a filled up unity they are fit for battle, not as toy soldiers fit for failure.

Where are you going to trim your wick and get your oil, always on your own terms? Not so: we must let our light shine, and we shine together through the local church as a beacon. Sure enough we do that individually out in the world, but come on now, do you really think you can fool anyone else but yourself into believing that you are letting your light shine when you stay in your cave on Sunday mornings?

Even if you venture out, are you really doing that so as to let your light shine out to those who aren’t in church, or are you just joining them in their misery? Perhaps you don’t see it as misery; you like it better than being in an old stuffy building or home with a bunch of other people. That is a selfish service, a one stop one man service station, but let me tell you that kind gets no customers and will soon run out of gas.

You may think you are full of God, but you are reading the gauges wrong.

“Living For Today With An Eye For Tomorrow”©

Playing House

…together with the church in their house…
(1 Corinthians 16:19 – ESV)

Let’s get this out of the way right upfront: Not all house churches are bad. House churches can be found throughout the New Testament. House churches, done right, are biblical and fruitful. However, that being said, many, many, many are all bad.

Now we are absolutely not talking about a church plant that meets in a house, or all house churches in general, necessarily. If you by necessity must have house church, then well. But the idea of house church being the ideal is many times a front for the concept of “no one does it like us, or like they should”, a mentality of rebels, and a gathering of the ungrateful. Necessity isn’t because of rebellion, because of weirdness or because of a lack of accountability, or because of a church split. Necessity means there are no other good churches around. I didn’t say churches you liked, but biblical ones. Not how you define it, but how the Bible does. Do you know how the Bible defines a good church? If not, or if that seems too difficult for you, what makes you think you should be doing church at home?

What we are talking about are those that would start a house church because they just don’t like church, and they want to make it like they like it. They want to play at church without the real life responsibilities that go along with a real church. You know a little girl with a dollhouse is not a real responsibility. So too, many house churches are just plastic models made by people who cannot stand not being able to walk away when they are done playing with it.

You wouldn’t give your little girl a real baby to take care of would you? God does not want to give a bunch of little babies their own child. They can get a toy that cries and sucks a bottle and wets itself but it still won’t be the real thing, it won’t have a heart. Oh yes they could make a baby with a beating heart, but there would be no real blood flowing in its veins, and no brains in that head, and even if there were, it takes God Himself to breath Life into a soul, and into the soul of a church. When you are just playing house church you have a baby doll with an empty Head, no Lifeblood, and no soul.

Phil Johnson has this to say. (It is) “For those who want to play "church" but despise authority. The house church movement embraces an unbiblical egalitarianism that subverts the role Scripture assigns to elders and overseers of the flock of God (cf. Hebrews 13:7, 17). Quoting a Web site: "One of the main distinctions of house church vs. institutional church is the use of dialogue rather than lecture and sermon." Now there's an unbiblical recipe for shepherding the flock. But biblical shepherding is inherently out of sync with house-church populism. Predictably, this site is hostile to formal training and full-time pastors. The result is a theological home-brew that is both inconsistent and confusing.”

Most want to belong to a group while being apart from the “system” because of their belief that everything about it is corrupt or elitist. Ironically they often become as elitist as the group they left supposedly was. You can’t escape the human condition by retreating to a house church. Some have found that out and turned their house church into a closet church with only enough room for themselves. Head back to church and stop playing house.

“Living For Today With An Eye For Tomorrow”©

You Need the Negativity

Indeed, all who desire to live a godly life in Christ Jesus will be persecuted,
(2 Timothy 3:12 – ESV)

Recent polls tell us what we already know: many people that want to draw near to God also want to stay away from church. The reason often given is that there is so much negativity they have found there. Of course, they haven’t been to every church, but this cry is heard so often that it truly might seem as if there are no churches where there isn’t any negativity.

Actually the truth is that they are right, there aren’t any non-negative churches.

There aren’t supposed to be.

You see we all need some negativity, and yes, especially from people inside the church.

Jesus told us that in the world we would have tribulation, but that He has overcome the world (John 16:33). He presented the truth that He would be with the disciples by the Holy Spirit, to allow the negative circumstance to be an opportunity for increased faith. Even though they were to be scattered and killed, they would have faith (1 John 5:4). We can certainly apply these verses to us today.

Yet many take these truths and then, instead of being a call for faith, as Jesus intended, they see it as an instrument of fear. They either isolate from the world in the church, or practice the relatively new phenomena of isolating from the church in the world. Neither is effective at insulating us from trouble, rather, they actually decrease our ability to adapt and overcome in faith when the promised trouble comes. We cannot simply practice isolation in order to avoid it. We deny Christ and the Great Commission in doing so.

You have probably heard it said, or thought or even said it yourself: “I have never had a negative experience studying the Bible or in prayer, but have had many negative experiences in church or from people that I thought (at the time) were Christians.” My answer to that is: if you have never had a negative experience with God, what Bible have you been reading? Did it not convict you? Was there no tension? Did you read the pages and still miss all the adversity found there, even among those who were on the same side?

The idea of “Vox Populi Vox Deus”, or “The voice of the people is the voice of God”, is the problem with conducting polls. Just because some majority of professing (real or not) Christians feels a certain way about a subject does not mean it is the same thing God thinks. The answer to this is: What do the scriptures teach!

Yes, non- “church building” worship is fully biblical, and we do not need a survey to tell us that it is aligned with the Bible. People all over the world want Christ in their heart but there are circumstances where they cannot get together inside a building and worship together. However, that doesn’t excuse those who can congregate but won’t. Some are isolated from being in church because of persecution against the church. God will insulate them in their hearts. Others are just isolating themselves from church because they insulate their own hearts from God by playing isolation games from God’s people.

If you cannot handle adversity with those of like precious faith, and those closest to you, how do you expect to handle it out in the world? Or do you just not have to because you avoid it? Is that what you do with members of your own flesh and blood family, just avoid them or play nice, and avoid the negativity? God’s people should not be that way. Adversity should not breed avoidance it should breed faith. It is not that we should love adversity but that we should learn from it...

“Living For Today With An Eye For Tomorrow”©

Incorporated

Now you are Christ's body, and each of you is a member of it.
(1 Corinthians 12:27 – NET)

I don't know why some people change churches; what difference does it make which one you stay home from? Now, let us take this further than that, because some people are in church nearly every week, but they aren’t a part of any church in reality. Now, it is a good thing to at least be in a church every week. However, if you never settle on having a local assembly as your primary, home church, then you might be worshipping congregationally every week, you might be fellowshipping with people of like precious faith every week, and you might be hearing the word of God preached to your edification every week, but you are still missing out. And you are robbing a local body of your ongoing support, witness, and their knowing you and growing with you, beyond the superficial. You are not being knit together with a group, working together, growing together, not just individuals growing, but growing tighter as a unit, and that unit growing up.

Are you a vital part of a church,

or do you just go to church?

Some speak harshly about the church as an “institution” as if the excesses of some local bodies exempt them from being a part of any local body. However, God is the one who instituted the institution of the local church. When rebels refuse to be integrated into a local church, but only serve as they see fit, without being submitted to what others might ask or impose upon them, this shows that they still want to be the masters of their own way, and not incorporated into God’s way. We must be incorporated into the corpus, the Body of Christ, by being incorporated into a local assembly. We must be willingly submitted to a group, and intently looking to be submitted to authorities established by God. We must stop thinking we can serve as attaches or ambassadors to the Body at large at our own will without having to serve the body local at its command.

Those that do this are acting as spiritual tourists, and they are deceived. Without being incorporated in to the local body they are dead. They might be of real service to the Body of Christ, because God can animate dry bones, but they are only fooling themselves into thinking that their service renders them exempt from incorporation into a local body. Church matters to God; not just that you go to church, but that you are a part of a church. Not just a part of The Church, but also part of a church. The Bible gives no assurance to those who claim to be a part of The Body without being part of a body.

“Living For Today With An Eye For Tomorrow”©

Where Are You?

But the LORD God called to the man and said to him, "Where are you?"
(Genesis 3:9 – ESV)

So where are you on Sunday mornings? If you aren’t in church you are in the wrong place. Like Adam and Eve you may be in the garden but when God comes looking you are hiding away. When you aren’t in church you aren’t where you are supposed to be, you are hiding out with some tree in front of you. You have gathered some leaves together to cover the fact that you are exposed, wandering and naked before God.

You cannot say that you are growing in God if you aren’t growing with a church. It is a simple observable fact that when someone is moving on with God they will be plugged in to a local body of believers. Those that are growing to love God will be growing to love God’s people. How can you say you are drawing closer to God when you are not drawing closer to those other people He has redeemed? If you are advancing in your walk with God you will find the steps to the cross lead right to your local church door.

When a man is free to choose and more often than not chooses to play instead of pray, he is exposed for the man he really is. When a man chooses to pray but never in company, when he more often than not would keep himself from the congregation instead of being a part of it, then his prayer is a reflection of his desire to have a private faith alone.

Alone, without God’s people with him. Alone, without having to deal with others and their struggles together. Alone, outside of the place where God established, the church, where we meet with God and with one another to serve each other and God. Alone. Their prayer is to be alone, and God will grant it. They will be alone.

When God comes calling in the place where He is moving, the church, He will have to ask, “Where are you?” when we all know where you ought to be. All the while thinking that you are hiding God in your heart when you are just hiding out, instead of letting the Light shine. If this is you, then the answer to the question is, “In the dark”.

“Living For Today With An Eye For Tomorrow”©

Power Source

...according to the working of his great might that he worked in Christ when he raised him from the dead and seated him at his right hand in the heavenly places,
(Ephesians 1:19b-20 – ESV)

Paul now describes the power the he prays we are able to know. The power is of the same essence as that which raised Jesus from the dead, and this is the kind of power God is working in us that believe. Do you believe it? Pray that you can see it! God energized this, showed its power; He demonstrated it by raising Christ from the dead. This same power is available now, to raise the drunkard from his drink, to raise the thief from their thievery, to raise the Pharisee from his self-righteousness, to raise the head of those who are held captive, to raise the spirits of those who are downtrodden and lonely, to raise you from that pit of sin and self, and to raise the dead in sin to be born again.

The power that created the universe and raised Jesus from the dead can create a new life for you, giving you true safety, satisfaction, and rest, the promises of Ephesians 1:3-14. It is a life that glorifies God by raising you from the spiritually dead. Be made alive today. If you are born again but you are so down you feel dead, be energized to see God’s power today.

Continuing on into verse 21-23, we see that Christ was filled with all authority and power, and He fills His church. Jesus is pouring Himself into His church, and we are growing into His fullness. This is where the enlightening happens, this is where Paul was praying for it, to the church at Ephesus, as a group, not simply to the individuals but to them, so that they all might see some of the beauty and together share that beauty.

This letter was a circular letter; it was to travel to all the local churches. You see, in this life we cannot as individuals behold all the beauty that is Christ, but together we can see Him reflected in a multifaceted way, understanding more of Him than we would be able to do otherwise. You would have a hard time convincing the Apostle Paul that you are plugged into the power source if you aren't plugged into a local church.

The church is His Body which He fills as He see fit, in many varied ways and means and we are stewards of that (1 Peter 4:10) and when we see that we will see what Paul was praying for and what God wants for us in Christ, it will all finally click, because we will see all the pieces finally come together. His body, the church, is what He fills. This is perhaps the strongest motivator as to why you HAVE to go to church, because if you don’t you won’t, see it that is. It CAN happen, it can all finally come together for you, as you help it come together for others. We can spread grace instead of trying to hoard it.

Pray that you might be able to see something of the light of Christ in other believers today, and every day. Pray for those that won’t come to church, that think the people there are the furthest thing from Christ, when Paul is making it clear that it is they who are far away, as Christ is filling His church with His light. You say “but, but, but, but, but, what about this or that situation, or person, or that church who hurt me” or whatever? Well let me tell you that is the devil that is doing that to us. Think about it; Satan has us all separating and now is not the time for that! We need to be a unified witness to our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ. The ones outside are in the darkroom but they aren’t being developed, pray that the eyes of their hearts would be enlightened.

I pray you become enlightened today, and may it ever be so and ever be increasing. Paul wanted them to see something because he wanted them to be something. You need to see more light to be more of a light. From the simplicity of childhood to growing deeper as we grow older, as we mature in the love of Christ, we have much to look forward to as Christ becomes more and more beautiful to us even as the things of the world become less and less satisfying. We can go from knowing it in the general sense to where you are realizing it in every sense, every situation, every circumstance, every facet of life, you increasingly see and you’ll increasingly be. That was Paul’s prayer, and that is my prayer, for me, for you, for us, for God’s glory.

“Living For Today With An Eye For Tomorrow”©

Rags to Riches

…being knit together in love, to reach all the riches…
(Colossians 2:2 – ESV)

What we allow to be woven into the fabric of our lives determines what our spiritual wardrobe will be like. Whose “designer label” are you wearing these days? I mean this spiritually, of course. Is Christ sewing you with His thread? Are we being knit together with one another, bound and stitched together into Him, and with each other, and therefore strengthened in our walk with Christ, and strengthening others in their walk? Or are we allowing foreign fabric to be stitched into our clothes? If so then the pattern of our lives make our garments look as though we do not belong to Christ, but we look more and more like the world.

What does your covering look like, are your clothes representing Christ, or are you just claiming the name but wearing another brand? Are you cheering for one team all the while wearing the uniform of another? When we insist on wearing a certain type or brand of clothing then we show what we value and where our treasure is. Spiritually Christ demands that we find our value, our wisdom, our treasure and our worth and wealth in Him.

For the Christian this is the only way to come to full assurance, and a more full understanding of God’s will and God’s ways. Because of the surpassing worth of Christ (Philippians 3:9) we have been woven into spiritual wisdom and wealth. We dare not try by ourselves and by means outside of God to patch ourselves up, but instead we must be wearing the garments of grace, adorning the gospel of God. We are all but filthy rags (Isaiah 64:6) but when Christ sews us together in His love we become a beautiful garment of grace, we go from rags to riches.

We have said this before regarding marriage, but it applies to church life and all relationships as well; you can’t be knit together without having to be twisted and turned and united. You have to get all bent out of shape to be conformed to the image of Christ. The scarlet thread is the blood of our Lord Jesus. That is what is binding us together with Him, and with it we must be bound together with each other. You could have an individual life that is like a beautiful quilt, but if you are not being woven together into the larger tapestry then you will just be different cloth, and eventually one cloth will be jealous of the other, and the split will happen because their was no common fabric in the first place. It will be about individuals and not about Christ, and that fabric will wear thin on others and wear out all by itself.

Part of this life is about the struggle itself, not just the victory or the supposed defeats we have, but the times when we feel the tensions of this life, the twists and turns and tests and things that weave us into Christ and with one another, or they separate us; like a loose thread, ready to be cut off. We should praise God that we are even able to struggle, as we can see Him with us in the midst of the storms of life. It was about Him being there and struggling with us, to show us He is there, not always about getting through to the other side.

All who are woven into the fabric of Christ will make it though eventually, and even if you fall down He will still bring you through, but we must always remember it isn’t where we are but where we are headed. We may not get healed today, but we will be tomorrow. We may not survive today, but we will be in glory tomorrow. We may not like our brothers and sisters in Christ too much today, but we will rejoice with them as we see Christ tomorrow. Yes we want things to work out sooner than later, but if they don’t remember that Jesus was with us all the while, and He will deliver us safely home, home to heaven, where we have an inheritance incorruptible, undefiled and reserved for us who have been woven into the fabric of faith.

Jesus is where it’s at, and if you stay stitched you stay enriched. Apart we are tattered and torn, but together in Christ we can understand that we have gone from rags to riches.

“Living For Today With An Eye For Tomorrow”©

No Church No Disciple

By this all people will know that you are my disciples, if you have love for one another."
(John 13:35 – ESV)

The world cannot get along, but we in the church are called to get along, even in difficulty, and especially in difficulty. We cannot just run away or practice avoidance or do those things those in the world do. We have to show ourselves as truly changed by Christ because now we can get along and cooperate when situations and people make it difficult. That is one main way we show the power of Christ. Being a Christian means being involved with His Body, and it is expressed locally as church assemblies. We must show that we are different, not just as individuals but also as local units. Where other people cannot get along, we must show that Christ has given us the power where we can. This is how we show the world we are true disciples of Jesus Christ, by loving one another even when some of us are unlovable at times.

You cannot avoid this Word from Christ, to avoid it is to avoid Him and His power in your life, and to deny His Lordship, and to prove that you are not a true disciple. You cannot be some part time lover of Jesus; you know that don’t you? Well, you cannot be some part time lover of His people, and that is what you are trying to do if you won’t commit to a local church. You just want to play nice when you see someone out, or keep a few friends who you talk about God with. That isn’t what Jesus was talking about. He doesn’t think part time lovers are true disciples.

If you aren’t involved in a local community of believers then you cannot be having the love for one another that Jesus was talking about. You would just be having friends with a common interest, but no covenant bond that requires sacrifice, sweat, and sanctification, as you had to deal with the ups and downs of relationships. If you are not doing that you are doing no better than the world, those who just take up and leave whenever it gets uncomfortable.

You must be willing and intentional in your devotion to Christ by becoming involved with an imperfect church made up of imperfect people like yourself. You must be learning to live the redeemed life in community, showing the love of Christ, the love that loves despite what has happened to us, the love that loves the unlovable, the love we must show the world we have for one another or we deny Christ.

If the world cannot see us getting along in situations that they wouldn’t be able to, then why would they want to join a local church, even if they wanted Jesus? Oh I see; you agree with them, you don’t want to be at a local church either. I guess you just don’t really want to be a disciple either. If you are not learning to love people more you are not learning to love God more. That is what Jesus would say to you.

“Living For Today With An Eye For Tomorrow”©

See To It

And say to Archippus, "See that you fulfill the ministry that you have received in the Lord."

(Colossians 4:17 – ESV)

Your understanding of the supposed size and scope of your role doesn’t determine the level of involvement by God in your life, work, and ministry. It matters to Him. It is all one and the same to Him, and He can be fully engaged with you as well as everyone else on the planet for every single second you and they are alive, all at the same time. He is God after all, that’s what He does. He is fully involved in your personal situation. He will see to it that He holds up His end; He exhorts all of us to see to it that we fulfill our assignments.

Paul showed that God has concern for your individual assignment. See to it means it never really ends; it is an ongoing commitment and process. Our lives are to be a living fulfillment of the gospel of Jesus Christ. To fulfill it means you are to keep making it full (2 Timothy 4:5). He is fully involved with you; He wants you to be fully involved with Him. Whatever it is, God will see you through it, and you will see God through it.

We see here that the people in the church at Colossae were to help Archippus. The church is to help each of its people fulfill their ministry in the Lord. Ministry isn’t simply full time preaching or teaching, or missionary work. The scriptures are not just for the so-called clergy but for the laymen as well. We are all ministers and missionaries of the gospel, full time, with our lives; whatever you do, do all to the glory of God (1 Corinthians 10:31).

Seeing to it means being involved in a local church setting. Archippus would not have heard this exhortation read out loud to him had he not been there to hear it! Perhaps Archippus had a visible public ministry, and had not been fulfilling his duties, and so needed to be reminded of his obligations. However, we must also realize that while it may have seemed embarrassing to him or heavy handed by Paul to single him out in front of the church, it might also have been for Paul to make sure the Colossians recognized the calling and ministry Archippus was given from the Lord. In any event, the truth that is clear is that Paul wanted to make sure Archippus got the encouragement and support he needed from the church body.

God wants to make sure we all get that, we all have a ministry in the Lord, whether a visible or vocal public service or an unseen but just as vital role in God’s kingdom. Whatever the case may be, we all need one another in order to continue to fulfill it to the fullest extent. In this seemingly insignificant verse we see that God doesn’t hold anyone or anyone’s ministry as insignificant. God wants all of us to help each other be fully committed to continually fulfilling our ministry, and expects all of us to be equipping one another with the ammunition of encouragement. The supposed lone ranger Christians out there will eventually run out of bullets.

Christ is worth knowing to the fullest extent possible, and may we always be striving to learn and love Him more, even as we come to understand His love for us all the more. Wherever you are and whatever God has called you to, see to it.

“Living For Today With An Eye For Tomorrow”©

Saturday Sermon: Solving the Identity Crisis

Ephesians 1:1-9

Friends, do you know what the great epidemic in the world is today? It’s not global warming, terrorism, or even aids. Let me give you a clue. It is the same problem that has been around for centuries. People have been asking the same questions and trying to fill the same voids, and will continue to do so, through history. Give up? Well, the great epidemic in today’s and every day’s society is the great identity crisis.

The problem of identity crisis is much larger than the church. In the history of mankind, a running theme is to be found among all tribes, nations, and tongues. This stretches to all times, all genders, and all people groups. It cuts across all social, religious, and political strata. This theme is best stated in the questions, “Who am I?”, and “What am I here for?” The great yearning for identity is the warp and woof of religious studies, cultural research, philosophical and theological inquiry, as well as consuming the thoughts of the rank and file of society.

This manifests itself in any number of ways. You hear of it in an almost constant drumbeat of desperation: so and so is “trying to find themselves”. The mid-life crisis seems to have crept into the teenage and every other “age” as well. Popular culture feeds us with movies and books that promise to help us find our purpose. Religious minded works speak of finding out God’s will or finding one’s calling. Most assuredly, the desire of everyone is to find out who they are, why there were created, and what to do about it. Everyone wants to know where and how they “fit in”.

Because of this all-encompassing desire, there are myriad “solutions” offered. The advertisers and marketers have picked up on this, and tell us if we just have this or that item, that we will find true fulfillment. “It will change your life”, if you go to this place, see this person, do this thing, etc. If you watch television, notice the movies that are released, read the paper, and look at the banner ads on your computer, you will see that there is no end to the search for significance, the desire for sufficiency, and the need to feel secure.

To put it another way, every person who was and who will ever be born is really looking for only three things: safety, satisfaction, and rest. Think about it and you will agree that any desire can fall into one or more of these categories. This is why it is so critical that Christians understand that it isn’t who we are, but whose we are. Jesus said that if we seek to find our life we would lose it, but that if we lost it for his sake we would find it (Matthew 16:25). Instead of needing a certain social or political status, religious, professional or community standing, we need to identify with who we are in Christ. The truth is that in these days of increasing tension, compromise, and apostasy, unless we find ourselves in Christ, we will find ourselves in hell.

When the pressure is on and life becomes hard or boring, the temptation is to let the world begin pressing us into its mold. Christians are in danger of falling away if their faith hasn’t matured to the point of Jesus living his life through them (Galatians 2:20). The great need of this or any hour is for Christians to know and experience who they are in Christ. Indeed this seems to be the thrust of the Pauline revelation (cf. Colossians 1:27).

Unfortunately, most in the Church today have no perception of who and what they really are in Christ. It would seem that there are four chief reasons for this: the lack of belief, the lack of understanding, the lack of knowledge, and the lack of application. Some believe that they are living only for the sweet by and by, and that this life is only to be endured, and never to be enjoyed. They fail to realize that “godliness is profitable unto all things, having promise of the life that now is, and of that which is to come (1 Timothy 4:8).” The hope of glory is only for the future, they reason, and don’t have the revelation that this hope should vitally affect life for the Christian in the here and now (1 John 3:2-3).

Others are trying to live out the Christian life in their own strength. They are trying to work to please God. However, the thing about working to please God is that you never know when you have done enough or performed well enough. The devil will tell you, “You could have prayed longer. You could have gone to one more church service. God is not pleased with you.” But when you understand God’s grace, when you understand God has already done all the work, then all you need to do is receive His gifts of grace. All the pressure is off, and peace is the result.

Thirdly, there are Christians who don’t have any knowledge of this, they have never been taught who they are in Christ, or haven’t grown in their knowledge of God. 2 Peter 1:2 points out that grace and peace can be multiplied to us through the knowledge of Jesus Christ. Understanding of God’s Word always increases our capacity to handle more of His blessings. As we increase our capacity, God increases the amount He gives.

The lack of belief, the lack of understanding, and the lack of knowledge have led us to where we are today, where Christians, who are supposed to be enjoying “life more abundantly (John 10:10)” are languishing in a sea of despair. When such a weak life is presented, no wonder the world is not turning to this Christ. No wonder self-empowered (instead of Spirit-empowered) Christians are becoming like the world. We haven’t applied the identification truths of Christ to our lives.

Christians need to ask themselves some important questions: Do you really know who you are in Christ? How do you see yourself as a Christian? Do you see yourself as powerful? Or do you see yourself as impotent? Do you understand the true extent of what it means to have the Son of God living inside of you? Do you hold your head up high because of your relationship to Christ, or are you sometimes embarrassed? Do see yourself in rags or in riches?

Jesus said, "You shall know the truth, and the truth shall make you free (John 8:32). Sometimes we emphasize the fact that the truth has the power to make us free. Truth is truth whether you believe it or not. Facts change, but truth does not. And truth is truth whether you know it or not.

Let us approach this from a different perspective. There are times when we can never be free unless we "know" the truth. If you do not know the truth, you may be acting on a lie. If you act on the basis of an untruth, then the untruth becomes the reality for you. We often shortchange ourselves by believing we are less than God says we are. What a shame it would be to believe you are a pauper when you are really a prince.

I have got good news for you as Christians. The book of Isaiah, in its prophecies about the coming Messiah, tells us that safety, satisfaction, and rest are to be found in Christ. Isaiah 32:2 – And a man shall be as an hiding place from the wind, and a covert from the tempest; (this is safety) as rivers of water in a dry place (this is satisfaction), as the shadow of a great rock in a weary land (this is rest). This was a prophecy looking forward to the coming of Christ, and to what he would do for us.

Now we look back and see what Christ has done for us. The first chapter in the book of Ephesians tells us of what God has done in Christ for us to be significant, so that we can rest from all our striving to be somebody. It tells us that we are sufficient in Christ, and that we have all we need and can find satisfaction in Him. It tells us that we are secure, that we have safety in Jesus. Today, I want to assure you of who you are in Christ, and call you to act in faith upon these truths. If you do, you will indeed have safety, satisfaction, and rest. Amen.

In the first nine verses of Ephesians, we discover at least three characteristics of who you are in Christ. And these three comprise a revelation that is most needed by the church today. If these three were understood, it would solve the identity crisis in the church.

The first point I want to make is that in Christ we are significant. Looking at our text, Ephesians 1:1 says that we are saints. Think about that. Not just a sinner saved by grace, but much more. 2 Corinthians 5:21 says that we are the righteousness of God in Christ. If the clothes make the man, then we have it made, because Jeremiah 23:6 says the Lord Our Righteousness, it is His righteousness that we clothe ourselves with. Nothing can make us less or more holy than we are in God’s eyes right now.

We are significant, we matter to God. 1 Peter 2:9 says you are part of a royal priesthood. That sounds important to me. Revelation 1:5-6 says that Jesus has made us kings and priests in the kingdom. In the Kingdom of God we are players, we are significant.

We are significant, we matter to other believers. 1 Corinthians 12:14-24 says that we cannot function properly without one another. Ephesians 4:16 says the body of Christ, that’s us, must come together, using all of its parts. You are just as important to the body as me, and you are just as important as Billy Graham, or any body else for that matter. When a team wins the Super Bowl, every person on that team, even the backups, get a ring. Everyone counts in the Kingdom of God.

This is how we apply this knowledge of our significance in Christ. Hebrews 4:16 says that we are to come boldly to the throne of God. Ephesians 3:12 says that we are to have boldness and access with confidence because of Him. Amen. Our prayers are like prophecy, we just call on God to fulfill in our daily lives what He has already deposited in us; we make a withdrawal on our heavenly, and inexhaustible account. 1 Peter 4:10 says there are many graces in God, we all have been given grace, we all have something to give. We all are significant.

The second point I want to make is that in Christ we are sufficient. Ephesians 1:3 says that he has blessed us with all spiritual blessings. It’s not that he will bless us, but that he has blessed us. It’s a done deal. Colossians 2:10 says that we are complete in Him. Complete is even more than sufficient, isn’t it? Complete means lacking nothing, sufficient for anything. You have got what it takes, no matter what it takes.1 John 2:27 says you have an anointing, and no man has to teach you, God will teach you by the Holy Spirit himself. You are sufficient; you are anointed. Romans 5:2 says we have been given grace which gives us peace with God, enough grace to stand in any circumstance.

To apply this we need to look at 2 Peter 1:4-10. We partake of the divine nature through the great and precious promises. We need to take the Word as the Word about us and act on it.

The third point I want to make is that in Christ we are secure. Ephesians 1:4-9 says that we are chosen, holy, blameless, predestined, adopted, accepted, redeemed and forgiven. We know His wisdom, insight, and His will. It says that this was a pleasure to God; it makes God feel good that we are in Christ. It says this gives Him glory. I ask you, does this sound like we are secure? Would you throw someone out of your house who made you feel good, and who praised you and brought you nothing but glory? Would you give them all these things if they weren’t secure with you?

We are secure. Romans 8:35-39 says that nothing can separate us from the love of God which is in Christ. Somebody say “nothing.” We are secure no matter who is against us, what we do, and no matter what happens. 1 Thessalonians 4:13-18 says we have hope, that even when we die, we have a reception in glory, a resurrection of our body, and a reunion with the saints. These promises tell us that we are as secure as secure gets.

The application of this truth is found in 1 John 1:9. When we sin, we go to God and ask for forgiveness, and He does so not only because He is faithful to us, it says that He is just in doing so. It is the right thing to do, to restore our fellowship with Him. He longs to be in close communion with us. James 4:8 says that if we draw close to Him, He will draw close to us. In Christ we are secure in that we can never lose our salvation, our relationship cannot end because it is based on the Father’s own relationship with His perfect Son, and we are in Him. We have an eternal, legal forgiveness. Justice has been served, and we are justified, just as if we had never sinned.

Now we still make mistakes, we still sin, and we seem to lose fellowship. But take heart, because we can get right back into pure fellowship with God by coming to Him for daily cleansing, like washing our dirty spiritual feet. The holiness has been given, we are already made holy (Hebrews 10:10), we do not work for it; we work from it. We have legal, judicial forgiveness, what we need is parental forgiveness. Judicial forgiveness is what makes God our Father. Parental forgiveness is calling on God as Father. It is as if you have a child who tracks mud through your house and on your new carpet. They are still in relationship, but until they ask for forgiveness and the dirt is removed they are not in good fellowship. Judicial forgiveness deals with sin and eternal damnation, parental forgiveness deals with sin and temporal defilement (2 Corinthians 7:1). The daily cleansing is a matter of humility, repentance, and devotion. Allow God to wash your feet. And learn to wash the feet of others. This is what Jesus was teaching in John 13.

You see you are a minister in God’s kingdom. Sure we all have different roles, but we all have a part to play. We are instructed to be part of the process of one another’s forgiveness. Not in the judicial or parental sense, but as a part of the fellowship of the saints. We all minister to one another this way. James gives us clear instructions on how we can fulfill this command Jesus has given us (James 5:16) The context of James 5 is that Christians can get really defeated in their spiritual lives. Persecution, trials, and the sufferings of this life can weigh so heavy on a Christian, he sins, he backslides, his spiritual feet get muddy and filthy, and his fellowship with God is broken, he loses his peace and joy, he gets spiritually sick inside, spiritually depressed, he doesn’t feel like praying, he doesn’t feel like reading his Bible, he doesn’t feel like going to church. If this is you what should you do? You should confess your sins to a brother or sister in Christ. Let them pray for you. Let them wash your spiritual feet. Let them be significant. Let them fulfill their ministry.

We must realize that God loves us, and He has accepted us. There is nothing we can do for God to love us more. There is also nothing we can do for God to love us less. God doesn't change us so that He can love us; He loves us in order to change us. It is His love that changes us. If believers would surrender to that love, bask in it, and rest in their relationship in Christ, they would feel secure and understand that they are accepted. Then they could wash one another’s feet.

In Christ you are significant. In Christ you are sufficient. In Christ you are secure. You can say it another way. In Christ you are righteous. In Christ you are rich. In Christ you are received. You are a saint, so learn to realize your righteousness. You are blessed with every spiritual blessing, so learn to rely on your resources. You are accepted in the Beloved, so learn to rest in your relationship.

In closing, I want to stress how important this is to our everyday lives, and what it is that Christ has done for us in the here and now. If you live based on what others say about you, you may or may not be any better off. It depends on whom you talk to. If you live based upon who God says you are, then you can hold your head up high. You are somebody because Jesus lives in you. In Christ you have all you will ever need. And in Christ you are totally secure. There is no person, power or thing that can ever take that away from you.

We are significant, we are sufficient, and we are secure. We have found safety, satisfaction, and rest. We need to stop identifying with our hurts, our hindrances, and our harassments, and start identifying with Christ. He has already identified with all your troubles (Hebrews 2:14 / 4:15), and has taken them away if we will only allow them not to come back on us (1 Peter 5:7). When the world, the flesh, or the devil try and talk you out of your inheritance, you need to talk yourself right back into it. You need to help others identify also (Hebrews 12:12) – this is how we are filled with the Spirit (Ephesians 5:18-21 / Colossians 3:16-17). Understand what Christ has done, identify and be filled with all the fullness of God.