The Nearness of Our God

The Nearness of Our God

By Francis Frangipane

In the 73rd Psalm, the psalmist Asaph expressed a struggle we all might feel at times. He questioned why the wicked seem to prosper while the righteous are chastened. The whole idea was troublesome until he entered the sanctuary of God. Once in the presence of God, Asaph realized his error. As he compared himself to the unbeliever, he saw that, apart from the influence of God, he had nothing in which to boast. He said, "When my heart was embittered and I was pierced within, then I was senseless and ignorant; I was like a beast before You" (vv. 21-22).

Finally, his soul brightened as he considered that God alone was his salvation, and his relationship with God was his strength. He wrote, "Nevertheless I am continually with You . You will guide me, and afterward receive me to glory. Whom have I in heaven but You? And besides You, I desire nothing on earth . God is the strength of my heart and my portion forever" (vv. 23-26).

The summary thought of Asaph's revelation, and the point of this chapter, is in verse 28. He wrote, "But as for me, the nearness of God is my good."

The Nearness of God

Let's settle this truth once and for all: It is the nearness of God that produces our good. Christianity was never designed by God to be sustained by nice people trying to appear good. We're not that good. We're not that clever. And we're not that nice. The only thing that can sustain true Christianity is true union with Jesus Christ. It is nearness to Him in all things that produces our spiritual fruit.

If we are honest, we will admit that, apart from the influence and work of God, there is nothing morally superior or remarkably virtuous about our lives. Our flesh has the same carnal passions as do people in the world; our soul carries within it the same insecurities and fears. Thus, apart from the influence of Christ in us, there's no difference between Christians and non-Christians (except that Christians, when living separate from God's presence, can be more obnoxious). It's only our relationship with the Lord that keeps us from fulfilling the lusts and desires of the flesh, for apart from Him we can do nothing (John 15:5).

Therefore, the strength of our walk does not originate from within ourselves; rather it comes from our relationship with Christ. Our virtue, if it can be defined as such, is that we have learned to prioritize seeking God; our character is the offspring of our oneness with Jesus. By this I mean, Jesus is not only first on our list of priorities; His influence rules over all our priorities. He inspires love in our relationships; His voice becomes the conviction in our integrity. God has made "Christ Jesus" to be to us "wisdom . and righteousness and sanctification, and redemption" (1 Cor. 1:30).

The Lord's Pleasure

Thus, the God-seeker desires to find the Lord's pleasure drawn to every aspect of his soul. He also knows that, should an area of his heart exist in isolation from God, he will remain vulnerable to manipulation by the enemy in that area. So let me underscore the psalmist's truth, and let us say with our own voice of conviction: it is the nearness of our God that is our good.

Oh God, You are the lover of my soul. Faithfully, have You extended Your hands toward me. Yet, I have been, at times, a drifter and distant. Master, this day I acknowledge my most wonderful times are those spent close to You. When my heart is near to You, I am partaking of the nectar of life.
By Francis Frangipane

The Dominion of Opinion

The Dominion of Opinion

Make it your aim to be one in the Spirit, and you will be bound together in peace. There is one Body and one Spirit, just as it was to one hope you were called. There is one Lord, one faith, one baptism, one God and Father of all, who is the one over all, the one working through all and the one living in all. (Eph. 4:2-6 Phillips)

There is an interesting event that has been going on in my life recently. I have been reading a book by G.H. Lang about the life of Anthony Norris Groves. This book is both a biography on Groves and a history of the early Brethren movement in Ireland and England in the 1800's. I definitely recommend this book to anyone wanting to learn the history of Christians who walked outside of organized Christianity.

The interesting thing about the Brethren (sometimes called the Plymouth Brethren) is that they set out to meet outside the religious system in a biblical way and one of their strongest founding principles was that of unity and acceptance of all true believers. However, later on in the movement, the Brethren became the most divided movement among all the groups outside the system. How could this happen? I have become determined to find out. I believe it is very important to learn from their mistakes.

The other interesting thing that is going on in my life to coincide with the book is that there have been several believers who have come to me recently who have either left or considered leaving their groups because of doctrinal differences. Hmmm . . . very interesting! Historical lessons being learned in the fires of current dilemmas. So, for me, this has brought up the question (again and again) of when and/or if Christians should ever separate from one another. So I will be quoting from the above mentioned book and the scriptures to share some of my thoughts with you.

What is the Source of Our Unity?

In the very beginning of the Brethren movement, unity was of the utmost importance. Later on in the movement, when John Darby was separating from certain brothers, Anthony Groves wrote him a letter. In 1845 Groves wrote:

One point only is fixed on my mind; to receive all, as Christ receives them, to the glory of God the Father. More than twenty years this point has been deepening in my mind; and all I hear and see makes it more precious: indeed amidst so much weakness and infirmity, with such partial and imperfect views of truth, I see no other way but committing all judgment to the Son, to whom the Father hath committed it.

One common slogan among the Brethren at the time was "life not light is the basis of union." This makes perfect sense to me. If I make light (or revelation) the basis of union then I would need to separate from all Christians who do not have the same revelation of truth as I have. That would be a lot of separating! But if life is the basis of union then I would receive all those who have the life of Christ within them. But how will I know who has this life and who doesn't? Usually we can sense these things. However, I really don't know, so if someone professes to have His life then I must receive him because I am leaving all judgment to the Son. He who has the Son has the life. So, if life is our basis, then it's all about the Son.

A Difference of Opinion

In 1848 problems arose within the Brethren assemblies in Plymouth and Bristol. Some leaders in Plymouth were accused of erroneous teachings and others rose up to stop them. This problem was not dealt with scripturally and some others traveled to Bristol and spread the controversies to that assembly. This "virus" continued to spread and divided the assemblies into two camps; the Exclusive Brethren and the Open Brethren. The Exclusive groups would only fellowship with those who agreed with their doctrines, and Open groups would receive all believers. These two "camps" still exist to this day. Ironically, many divisions have since occurred within Brethren groups over the issue of light or life. Do we receive believers based upon the light they have or the life they have?

In 1932 eight believers from Exclusive Brethren groups in England, Australia, and the U.S. went to visit the assembly in Shanghai, China and other places. These were some of the churches that Watchman Nee and his associates had raised up. The Brethren invited Nee to come and visit them overseas the next year which Nee did. However, on his trip, he also visited several other groups of Christians not of the Exclusive Brethren circle. This action by brother Nee was deemed by these Exclusive Brethren as having compromised his fellowship with them. The brothers in China wrote them a long letter about their position on this matter. Basically, it was a plea for open fellowship among all the saints everywhere. This, however, was unacceptable to these Exclusive Brethren and later that year it was decided that they would break off all fellowship with the saints in China.

To me, it is unbelievable and inconceivable that believers would treat one another like this. Here is an excerpt from the letter that the Chinese brothers sent to the Exclusive Brethren:

The Scriptures plainly show us that the basis of our receiving one another is "even as Christ also received you" (Rom. 15:7). The reason why we receive anyone is because "God hath received him" (Rom. 14:3). Hence the command of God to us is: "him that is weak in faith receive ye" (Rom. 14:1). This command is explicit, distinctive and irrevocable. It is a sin to refuse acceptance of him whom God has received, however weak or lacking in light he may be.

I must stand with these brothers from China and say a hearty "Amen!" We cannot reject or separate from our fellow believers because of doctrinal, structural, or theological differences. I like the way that Augustine put it:

In the essentials - unity
In the non-essentials - freedom
In all things - love

I would say that the "essentials" are the Person and work of the Lord Jesus Christ. The Apostles Creed is a good basic guideline. However, someone could mentally agree on the basic tenets of the Apostles Creed and still not possess the life of Christ. Here again, it comes down to a matter of life. The early Brethren had it right! However, when they began to divide it was over matters of light. They didn't all agree on their eschatology (study of end times). And this is definitely one of those non-essentials!

The Dilemma of Disagreement

I personally know of Christians who have separated from other believers because of their views on tongues, gifts, prophecy, end times, baptism, spiritual warfare, evangelism, leadership, hell and heaven, social action, tithing, ad infinitum. Yet all of these things are merely our own opinions of what the Bible teaches. And yet we are willing to take a knife and chop up the living Body of Jesus Christ for these opinions.

You see, herein lies the problem: We don't believe they are opinions, we think they are facts! Our line of reasoning goes something like this: My view is fact; your view is opinion. My view is correct, you view is incorrect. And since your view is incorrect, that makes it erroneous. Therefore, I cannot fellowship with someone who is in such obvious error.

This was the line of reasoning used by some in the Brethren movement in the 19th century and that is why it became the most divided group of believers outside of institutional Christianity.

Life or Knowledge

Do you see this for what it really is? There were two trees in the middle of the Garden. One contained the knowledge of good and evil, right and wrong, truth and error. And the other contained God's very own life. We chose to become judges over good and evil and it has brought us death ever since. Yet the Lord is calling to us and beckoning us to come to Him and partake of His abundant life.

I work with many groups of believers who want to experience organic church life. They want to live and function as the Body of Christ as did the early church. Most of them have been in the institutional church for many years. Some have been in various kinds of house churches. But they all have many opinions! More than once I have found myself sitting in a living room with half fundamentalists and half charismatics. How will this ever work? How can these people ever live as a community under the headship of Christ? There is really only one way.

They must lay down all of their opinions at the foot of the cross. They must present their bodies as a living sacrifice to God. They must be transformed by the renewal of their minds (See Rom. 12:1, 2).

Notice with me that Paul only recommended the separation of believers in two instances. One case was the brother in Corinth involved in extreme unrepentant immorality (I Cor. 5: 9-13). The reason for the separation was to bring the brother to repentance and restoration with the church. Paul also told the believers not to associate with those who cause divisions (Rom. 16:17). But nowhere does he tell anyone to separate from other believers because they have different opinions!

Dear reader, how will you ever find a group of people who agree one hundred percent with everything you believe? That will never happen. You see our oneness is based upon a Person. You and I are one with all of those who possess His life. We have not been made one in our opinions. We have been made one in Christ! He is our oneness. He is our unity. He is our life.

The believers in churches that Paul worked with all had many opinions. And then there were the opinions of those brought into these churches from the outside. In Galatia it was the opinions of the Judaizers bringing in rules and regulations. In Corinth it was the idolatry of the city and differing opinions of Christian workers. All of these opinions brought confusion and division into the churches. But what was Paul's answer to all of this attention to opinion?

In the same way, my brothers, when I came to proclaim to you God's secret purpose, I did not come equipped with any brilliance of speech or intellect. You may as well know now that it was my secret determination to concentrate entirely on Jesus Christ himself and the fact of his death upon the cross. (I Cor. 2:1, 2 Phillips)

Finishing the Assignment

Finishing the Assignment
by Dudley Hall www.sclm.org

"I have glorified you on earth, having accomplished the work that you gave me to do. And now, Father, glorify me in our own presence with the glory that I had with you before the world existed." John 17:4-5 (ESV)

Nothing makes life simpler or more satisfying than knowing exactly what you are assigned to do and getting it done. Jesus lived for ONE purpose. He only wanted to glorify the Father. But he did not confuse flattery with glory. He didn't just go around saying or singing nice things about the Father. He glorified him by doing what he was assigned. He goes on in the text to explain what that looked like.

He made the Father's name known to the ones for whom he was given responsibility. That means he made the nature and character of God the Father knowable to the disciples. Jesus made sure they knew that he was sent from the Father. He was not in competition with him. There is no pantheon of gods in reality. There is one God who is three persons and it takes a Son to reveal that. When the disciples "got it" they would recognize that they had the same relationship with the Father that Jesus has.

It is very interesting that Jesus had spent his time on earth primarily with these disciples. He had preached to many others and interacted with some, but his focus was the small group who watched him every day. He was content to have done this. In contrast, we seem unwilling to have such small success. We want our résumé to reflect our influence over thousands or millions. We touch many and transform few. He trained a few who would one day transform the world. Maybe we could learn.

Too many times we complicate our lives collecting symbols of success. Orphans do that because they are trying to fill the vacuum of affirmation from the Father. We never have enough to guarantee our security or significance, so we continue to seek more. We juggle our appointments and boast of our busy schedules while medicating our stress. What if we recognized those the Father has placed around us and concentrated on making the Father known to them? What if we found a way to use our specific gifts to glorify the Father and just did that? What if we had only ONE passion instead of trying to add God to our already full agendas? What if making the Father known to our circle of influence was more important than the amount of money we hold or what others thought of us?

If Jesus is our model, maybe we should try following him. He demonstrated that life on earth can be about glorifying the Father, without withdrawing from the world. He faced the same interpersonal conflicts that we do. He had the same needs for shelter and food that we do. He was able to navigate the journey on earth by trusting the Father explicitly. Now he has transferred that relationship to the next level of sons. We are sons of God and heirs according to his promise.

A Place for the Lord

A Place for the Lord
Posted on 11. Apr, 2009 by Chip Brogden in Articles & Essays
“Foxes have their dens, and birds have their nests; but the Son of Man has no where to lay His head (Matthew 8:20).”
How may we prepare a place for the Lord Jesus? What is He searching for? Where is the place of His rest? Many of us have traveled “outside the camp” in search of something more in tune with God’s own heart. I believe the most important calling we have is to prepare a place for the Lord Jesus, to give Him somewhere to lay His head. We will find that the purest, simplest expression of the Church is that which satisfies the Lord’s heart and gives Him a place.
A LONELY JESUS WITHDRAWS
“News about Jesus spread fast, and crowds of people were coming to hear Him teach and to be healed of their sicknesses: but Jesus often withdrew to lonely places and prayed (Luke 5:15,16).”
Many of us share a remarkable testimony. I have spoken with several who can confirm my own experience. It is this: while sitting or standing within the church service many of us have had the sense that Jesus is quite lonely, in spite of all the praise, worship, and things which are done in His Name. I recently found a book published nearly twenty years ago in which the author claims to have experienced the same feeling. It is as if Jesus is on the outside looking in. After much prayer we have come to understand that most of what is done in the name of “church” is not for the Lord at all, but it is for us.
Perhaps this explains why Jesus often withdrew Himself to a lonely place, and why perhaps He is withdrawing Himself from much of what is being done “in His Name”. If someone asks why we do not participate more often in meetings or in gatherings, all we can say is that, most of the time, the Lord’s Need is not being met in those places.
Jesus often withdrew to a lonely place. More and more, we are finding Christians in these “lonely places” who are praying, waiting, and wondering. I believe this is the first step towards finding a place for the Lord – sensing the Lord’s Need for such a place.
“The time is coming – in fact, the time is now – when true worshippers will worship the Father in spirit and in truth. They are the kind of worshippers the Father is looking for (John 4:23).”
If there are true worshippers, then there are false worshippers. If there is spirit and truth worship, then there is a kind of worship which is unspiritual and false.
We will not dwell on what is false, for we are already too familiar with it.
The question before us is: how may we prepare a place for the Lord Jesus? What is He searching for? Here we have some insight into what the Father is looking for, and since the Son is the express image of the Father, we know they are both looking for the same thing. Are we that kind of place? Is the Lord at home with us? Has the Lord found what He is looking for in us?
(Not in a legal sense because we are His children and He loves us no matter what we do, but in a relational sense, in a fellowship and communion sense.)
These questions are irrelevant to those who are only concerned with their own needs. Church, God, the Universe, everything revolves around them and their needs. All decisions are made respective to their own needs, wants, desires (real or imagined). No thought is ever made to meeting the Lord’s Need, seeing that His desire is met, making sure He has found spirit-and-truth satisfaction in us. That is why I say most meetings and gatherings do not meet the Lord’s Need. How can they? They are seeking to meet man’s need.
The object of this message is to provoke and challenge us towards a higher end, that the Lord may find a Place in us where His Need is met, and our needs are forgotten.
IN SEARCH OF A PLACE TO REST
“He was in the world, but even though He made the world, the world did not know Him. He came to His own people, and they would not receive Him. But the ones who did receive Him also received the power to become sons of God, yes, everyone who believed on His Name (John 1:10-12).”
The world did not know Him, and His own people would not receive Him. This, in spite of that fact that He is the Heir of All Things, and apart from Him no one and no thing was made. We see it in the synagogue, when one moment they are wondering at the gracious things that He said and marveling at His teaching – but by the end of the message they are trying to throw Him over a cliff. There are many such examples.
It is important for us to understand that, for the most part, the Lord Jesus is shut out and rejected from His own creation (in many ways, He is shut out from His own Church). It is not an issue of Lordship or Deity, for He remains King of Kings. The issue is always fellowship and communion. For the most part, according to the Scriptures, Jesus Christ lacks the intimate relationship He desires with His people.
Yet, there is a remnant of people who DID receive Him, and they received power! What about them? This is what we want to know: how may we prepare a place for the Lord, where He finds satisfaction and heart-rest, in the midst of a crooked and perverted generation, in the middle of so much darkness?
IN SEARCH OF SPIRIT AND TRUTH
The Lord is seeking spirit-and-truth-worshippers to commune with. In your group, in your meeting, in your heart of hearts – has He found what He seeks?
“Look! I am standing at the door, knocking! If anyone can hear Me, open the door! I will come in to you, and we will have fellowship with one another (Revelation 3:20).”
We have often quoted this verse in the context of salvation, but it should be noted that Jesus spoke these words, not to lost sinners, but to the Church of Laodicea. Even with His own people He does not force the door open, but He patiently knocks, and waits.
Before we can prepare a place for the Lord as a Body of believers, He must have ready and frequent access to us as individual disciples. In Laodicea the situation is so bad that the Lord makes His appeal to the individual heart to take Him in. We are in much the same condition today. The issue is not salvation, but fellowship and communion.
Indeed, the corporate Life of God’s people will only rise as high as the individuals represented. That is to say, if there is no spirit-and-truth worship in our prayer closet at home, we cannot expect spirit-and-truth worship when we gather together. So often we come to a gathering expecting to “enter in” to a place in God. Instead, the gathering of believers should be the celebration and continuation of Who we have already entered into.
The worship, the adoration, the laying down of self, the ministry to the Lord, must be on the basis of the individual “Marys” who sit at His feet every day to hear Him, and the individual “Annas” who never leave the Temple, but minister to the Lord with fasting and prayers day and night. As we continue to ponder these things, may the Lord find an open door to our hearts.
“O Jerusalem, Jerusalem! You kill the prophets and stone those who are sent to you. How often I have longed to gather your children together under my wing, as a hen gathers her chicks, but you would not allow it. Now your house will be empty. You will not see Me again until you say, “Blessed is He Who comes in the Name of the Lord (Matthew 23:37-39).”
Some ask how the Lord Jesus can feel any sense of loneliness or loss when He has so many children already. The answer is quite apparent. If you have three, or five, or even ten children, would you not grieve over the loss of one? How much more does the Heavenly Father long for all of His children! The Shepherd leaves the ninety-nine in search of the one. Such is the heart of Christ.
Now Jerusalem represents that which initially gave the Lord satisfaction, but no longer. It continues in the tradition and ceremony, in the outward things, yet it does not recognize Who the Lord Jesus is. The place of His rest used to be the Temple, but even it has become a “den of thieves”.
He longs to have them, to gather them under the shadow of His wing: but they would not allow it.
There is a place where the Lord is received: but it is outside of Jerusalem, away from the religious establishment, away from the scribes and teachers of Law, away from the Pharisees, Sadducees, theologians, Bible scholars and hypocrites, even away from the Temple in all its splendor.
Just east of Jerusalem, in a little village, in a single house, He finally finds what He has longed for.
BETHANY TYPICAL OF A PLACE FOR THE LORD
“Jesus and His disciples entered into a village, and a woman named Martha opened her home to Him (Luke 10:38).”
We know from the context of other Scriptures that this village is Bethany, which means “House of Figs”. Bethany is the place where Mary, Martha, and Lazarus reside.
You’ll remember that Jesus visited the Temple in Jerusalem, drove out the money-changers, and spent the night in Bethany. At some point He became hungry, and went to a fig tree expecting to find figs, but found nothing but leaves. So He cursed the fig tree, and it withered.
The fig tree represents “Jerusalem”. Again, the Lord’s Need is not satisfied, and this situation with the fig tree is meant to convey a spiritual truth. The Lord is “hungry” if you will, searching for something that resembles fruit, something pertaining to Life, but finding nothing but leaves – an outward show of greenery, but nothing of any substance or sustenance. But in Bethany, the House of Figs, He will find fruit.
In discussing how we may prepare a place for the Lord, we will take Bethany to be symbolic of that which satisfies the Lord’s heart and meets His Need. We are not making a case for “house churches” or making a case against “institutional churches”. We are hoping to impress upon you that what satisfies the Lord and meets His Need has very little to do with the outward appearance or geographical location. What makes a “Bethany” is not how they “do” church or how they meet (leaves) but Life (fruit).
There are seven characteristics of “Bethany”, and we will look at each of them accordingly.
1 – The Lord is welcomed and received.
“Jesus and His disciples entered into a village, and a woman named Martha opened her home to Him (Luke 10:38).”
The Scriptures mention or indirectly reference Bethany seven times. We are still in Luke 10:38 because everything we have discussed so far leads us to the first characteristic of a “Bethany”, a fruitful house, a place for the Lord. First and foremost, Bethany is the place where the Lord is received.
We have seen how the Lord is largely shut out and rejected by most of the world, even standing at the door and knocking to gain entrance into the Laodicean church. Not so with Bethany. Here the Lord gains the entrance that He has been long searching for. As such, He gains a Testimony in the earth, a golden lampstand from which His Light may permeate darkness. That is why the Churches of Revelation are typified as lampstands.
I believe this “receiving the Lord” is a definite thing, an intentional thing (and I’m not talking about “receiving the Lord as your personal Savior”). We have heard people say they hope the Lord “shows up” at their meeting or service. What kind of an invitation is that? “Lord Jesus, we welcome You, we receive You: not as a spectator, but as the honored Guest.” Now that is an invitation to fellowship. Where two or three are gathered together in His Name, He is there. It is not so much trying to get Him to “show up” as it is acknowledging, welcoming, and receiving Him as in the midst already. But He must be recognized, and our “home” must be opened to receive Him. Is there not some preparation involved?
Some who seek “the Presence of God” often covet some feeling in their emotion. We are not after “the Presence” or some powerful encounter: we are after HIM, and if we are used to seeking some kind of feeling or experience then we must make the distinction between Christ and our feeling. That is not to say we should never feel anything; but whether we are emotionally or physically affected is beside the point. The true worship is spirit and truth, not flesh and blood. Hence, Bethany receives the Lord as His, for Who He is, to minister to Him and to meet His Need.
2 – The Lord’s Word is heard while we sit at His feet.
“Martha had a sister named Mary, who sat at His feet and kept on listening to His Word (Luke 10:39).”
As we consider what it means to prepare a place for the Lord, a “Bethany”, we come to the second characteristic of this place – it is where the Lord is able to speak, where hearts are open to hear and to perceive what He is saying and doing.
There are two elements here: she sat at His feet, and she heard His Word. We must sit at His feet and hear for ourselves. We can hear His Word through other vessels – the pastor, the teacher, the prophet, a devotional, a television program, a book. In spite of an abundance of vessels we are very dull in our hearing. We are well-versed in “the things of the Lord”; nevertheless we are quite shallow. Why? We have missed the Lord for ourselves. We have not sat down at His feet personally, we are consulting and conferring with flesh and blood, receiving second, third, or fourth-generational teaching. If this is our situation then we have no root in ourselves and we are apt to wither during the heat of the day.
You must sit at His feet and hear Him for yourself. Entering into the Lord’s thought, becoming acquainted with His Ways as well as His Word, takes the sort of love-devotion Mary demonstrates. The Greek here is continuous action: she “kept on listening”. Martha listened too, but when she arose to prepare dinner, Mary remained. As we progress we will see that Mary has discovered spirit and truth, and from henceforth she is always at the feet of the Lord in one way or the other.
That is where it begins: the disciple sitting at the feet of the Teacher, lingering there well beyond what is usual and customary, hanging on His every word. So Bethany satisfies the Lord because that is where He is able to directly deposit Himself into listening hearts.
3 – Christ has the preeminence as the One Thing among many things.
“Martha, Martha. You are worried and troubled over many things: but only one thing is needed. Mary has discovered it, and it will not be taken away from her (Luke 10:41,42).”
Now we come to the third characteristic of Bethany. The place we are preparing for the Lord’s satisfaction will be a place where He has the preeminence, where everything else takes its place beneath Him. So Bethany stands for Christ having the preeminence.
We have written elsewhere concerning the One Thing which is needed. We will not repeat ourselves again, except to say that this One Thing relates to Christ filling all things as the Preeminent One. If we see that God is working all things together according to this Purpose of summing up everything into Christ, towards the One Thing, then we will naturally seek those things which are conducive to this, and we will naturally shun those things which are not.
Later we see Martha continues serving, but everything is all right – there is no complaining about Mary, and everything seems to go on as it should. It is not that service, fellowship, or preparing meals is a bad thing: it simply has to be in the right order. It is not that we cannot perform many good works and spiritual duties: but the work of the Lord must never have preeminence over the Lord of the work. In our experience, most strife and discord between Christians is the result of becoming embroiled in the “many things” and forgetting that “only one thing is needed.”
The solution? Paul said, “This one thing I do.” We must be single-minded. As we seek first the Kingdom of God then all the other things will find their proper place beneath Him. Bethany continually speaks of the One Thing, and in the midst of much distraction and turmoil, it reminds us to take our place at the Lord’s feet and keep first things first.
4 – The exceeding preciousness and worth of the Lord Jesus is recognized.
“As Jesus was reclining at the table, a woman came to Him with a jar of expensive perfume and poured it on His head (Matthew 26:7).”
We come to the fourth characteristic of Bethany, that is, the place where the Lord’s Need is met, where His heart-satisfaction lies. Now we see that Bethany represents the recognition of the preciousness and the worth of the Lord Jesus.
This sounds like a very simple thing, but it gets right to the heart of the matter. The complaint from the disciples was that this perfume, worth more than a year’s wages, could have been sold and the money given to the poor. Those who witnessed this event and protested were in essence saying, “He’s not worth it.” They viewed such pouring out as a waste.
“Unto you who believe He is precious (I Peter 2:7).” To those who appreciate the exceeding preciousness of the Lord nothing is too much for Him. Nothing poured out upon Him is a waste. Whether He is anointed with tears, or with perfume – He is worthy of all. Now when Christ is revealed to us and we begin to grow up into Him, our hearts are illuminated and we begin to grasp something of the preciousness of the Lord. The natural response is spirit-and-truth worship. This cannot be achieved with better music or dynamic worship leaders. Apart from revelation, apart from seeing, we cannot value Him in any deep sense. Worship is our response to revelation.
We want to appear to be busy doing for God, busy at our “ministry”. But there is a place where we simply “waste” ourselves on Him, and outwardly we appear to be doing nothing. Would that more believers would “waste” themselves more often, ministering to the Lord, sitting at His feet, hearing His word, ministering to Him in secret prayer and fasting! Then when they do rise up to work, how much more fruitful they will b!
5 – Resurrection Life is manifest as we are decreased and He is increased.
The fifth characteristic of Bethany is its manifestation of Resurrection Life. Most Christians want the Life of the Lord in abundance like Lazarus, but they are not willing to lie dead in the grave until they stink. In other words, they are not willing to accept the death of self that they may have the Lord’s Life. They do not mind if the Lord is increased, but they themselves do not want to be decreased. Notwithstanding, Resurrection Life is not the avoidance of death, it is passing through death in order to overcome it. The one who loses his life will find his True Life, and the one who grasps his life will lose it. Lazarus cannot experience resurrection until he experiences death.
When the Lord finds a place for Himself, a “Bethany” of believers gathered together, His own Life will be there as well. Just as we cannot have the Life without having the Law of that Life, so we cannot have the Lord without having the Life of the Lord. And, just as surely as we experience His Life working in us through the Spirit, we will experience His Death working in us through the Cross.
It is not too difficult to find a meeting or a service in which you get a sense of death, not of Life. The music, preaching, and fellowship may be well and good: but you come away hungry and deflated because the Lord’s Need is not met. The measure of the presence of the Lord or the blessing of the Lord upon a meeting, a work, or a people is always the Life. Let us not judge by outward appearances. Remember that it is not the leaves of the fig tree, but the figs, which contain the Life. The fruit of the Spirit is the outward manifestation of the inward Life.
Resurrection Life is that which has died, but now lives. It has the mark of the Cross upon it. It has passed through death once, and death can no more touch it. If we have not already passed through death then we are constantly fearful of dying, but the one who has already died and lives again has nothing more to fear from death. As we are decreased through the daily carrying of our cross, Christ in us is increased, and the strength of His Life is matured through our weakness. Bethany comprises all these things.
6 – The Lord Himself is celebrated as we “waste” ourselves upon Him.
“A dinner was given in Bethany to honor Jesus (John 12:2a).”
In John chapter 12 all the people we have discussed thus far come together into one setting. Martha is still serving, but there is no friction as before, and we surmise that she has found the proper balance between being and doing. Lazarus reclines at the table with Jesus, and this speaks of the fellowship of resurrection. His very presence at the table with Jesus is a testimony of overcoming, is it not? And of course, Mary worships at the feet of the Lord.
The dinner is given to honor the Lord, to fellowship with Him, to meet His Need, to give Him the glory due His Name. It is a celebration of HIM. So the sixth characteristic of Bethany is it celebrates the Lord Himself. Whereas praise celebrates what the Lord has done, worship celebrates Who He is. Praise can sometimes become “me” and “I” oriented (the Lord saved ME, healed ME, set ME free, gave ME power, etc.) but worship can never be centered on anything but the Lord.
Keep in mind, of course, that in the midst of this outpouring of affection upon the Lord Jesus, satan is right there to cause a distraction. Whenever someone decides to prepare a place for the Lord then you can be sure that it will not be an easy piece of ground to maintain. The flesh will try to intrude. Those who do not know any better will present a problem. They will enter the assembly of saints with their own expectation of how things ought to be, and will endeavor to make their opinion known. They have not seen the Lord, they have yet to appreciate the worth of the Lord Jesus, and will view such pouring out of ourselves as “waste”.
We note that Jesus always defended His worshippers, they never had to defend themselves. But if we must suffer for something, I can think of few things better than being accused of “wasting” ourselves on the Lord. Bethany is hallowed ground because it represents one of the last places of real estate on the earth where all activity centers around Christ as All in All. This alone makes Bethany priceless.
7 – An ascendant spirit and a heavenly testimony is evident.
“Jesus led them out towards Bethany, lifted up His hands, and blessed them as He ascended up into heaven. The disciples worshipped Him, and returned to Jerusalem full of joy (Luke 24:50-52).”
The seventh and final characteristic we note from the Scriptures concerning Bethany is that it represents an ascendancy between earth and heaven, between the kingdoms of this world and the Kingdom of God. Bethany is where “Thy kingdom come, Thy will be done, on earth as it is in heaven” is fulfilled as a precursor to its ultimate fulfillment in all the earth.
The Church is primarily heavenly. “He has raised us up together and made us sit together with Him in the heavenly places (Ephesians 2:6).” We are not suggesting that the Church does not exist at all on the earth; but we maintain that the Church is heavenly, not earthly. Though it is on the earth, it is not of the earth. Though it is in the world, it is not of the world. Much is made of us going to heaven when we die, but the goal is not so much to get the earthly into the heavenly as it is to get the heavenly into the earthly, and by extension, to maintain the Testimony of Jesus as something over and against this present darkness. Bethany provides the ground upon which the heavenly is made to bear upon the earthly.
Bethany has a heavenly savor. There is an ascendant spirit there which lifts us up to the heavenlies. If there is a failure in the Church today it is this: we live as natural, earth-bound, flesh-and-blood people who speak great things but do not live what we speak. There is no heavenly distinctiveness about us, little reality about us which suggests this other-worldliness of which we claim. We live as “mere men”, religious men, even spiritual men, but not as citizens of heaven.
Nevertheless, I believe that as we prepare a place for the Lord this ascendant spirit will break forth upon us spontaneously. It is one thing for us to try to act heavenly, and it is quite another thing for us to enter into such communion and fellowship with the Heavenly Man that we simply begin to exude His heavenliness, as the priest in the Holy Place exuded the fragrance of the sweet incense. The Kingdom of Heaven is where Christ has the preeminence and fills all things: and if this is the case with us individually, or corporately, then it can be said of us that the Kingdom of Heaven has arrived.
PREPARE A PLACE FOR THE LORD
“Wherever two or three are gathered together in My Name, there I am in the midst of them (Matthew 18:20).”
When we take everything the Scriptures say relating to Bethany we have an idea of what it means to prepare a place for the Lord. To summarize, Bethany is the place where:
- The Lord is welcomed and received;
- The Word of the Lord is heard while we sit at His feet;
- Christ has the preeminence as the One Thing among many things;
- The exceeding preciousness and worth of the Lord Jesus is recognized;
- Resurrection Life is manifest as we are decreased and He is increased;
- The Lord Himself is celebrated as we “waste” ourselves upon Him;
- An ascendant spirit and a heavenly testimony is evident.
Perhaps you are saying, “Oh, that I could find a place where believers gather together towards this end! How I wish I could find such fellowship! I am out here in the desert with no place to go.” Brother or sister, my challenge to you is this: stop looking for such a place, and be such a place.
Perhaps you are in a lonely place because the Lord desires to use you to establish a place in the wilderness for Him. If the Lord has impressed His Need for such a place on your heart, then declare your heart a “Bethany” place and take this up between yourself and the Lord. Give the Lord some ground to build upon. Give Him His place. Do not look for multitudes of people. It is better to have one, two, or three gathered together as the Lord’s Bethany than to have hundreds or thousands of people gathered together as something other than Bethany.
Is there anyone in all the world who can truly meet for the purpose of ministering to the Lord and “waste” themselves in worship, giving no thought to their own need, but laying down their lives wholly for the Lord’s satisfaction? I pray something is stirring within someone to seriously consider this before the Lord. Many are called, but few are chosen. May He quicken this word to our hearts, and whosoever will, let them hear.

Seven Steps to Societal Transformation

Seven Steps to Societal Transformation
By Joseph Mattera www.josephmattera.org

For the church to obey the Cultural Commission of influencing every realm of culture as salt and light (Genesis 1:28 and Matthew 5:13-16) it is essential that believers learn how to think biblically and articulate biblical principles in the language of contemporary hearers.

All the biblical covenants point to believers taking the lead in secular society and redeeming cultures for the kingdom and glory of God.

From Genesis 1:28, 3:15, 12:1-3, 17:1-5, 22:17; Deuteronomy 28:10-13; Psalm 2 and 110, and consummating in Revelation 21:1-3 and Isaiah 65:17-25 we see the word of God pointing us to actual engagement, penetration, and transformation of society for Christ.

Jesus called Himself the King of Kings (Rev. 19:16), and called His followers the “ecclesia” which is the equivalent of assembling together to rule in Greco/Roman culture (Matthew 16:18-19). Jesus also told us to disciple whole nations (Matthew 28:19).

The following are steps we must take to accomplish this for the purpose of societal transformation:

I. We need to have a biblical worldview for every realm of contemporary life

Because we are made in the image and likeness of God (Genesis 1:27) we need to learn how to think God’s thoughts after him. In other words, our thoughts should be derivative of Father God’s word and not merely our own subjective autonomous opinions.

When we fully explore what the Bible says and agree with its general principles regarding history, law, psychology, education, religion, politics, economics, family, and science then we can have a biblical worldview that serves as our lens to interpret all the data we inhale.

Unfortunately, most Christians don’t have a biblical worldview but only a cursory knowledge of pet Bible verses they recite for physical and emotional health. This limited, fragmented knowledge of Scripture has resulted in believers acquiescing to secular humanistic views in all practical matters dealing with the stewardship of the earth. This leaves the church relegated to dealing only with matters of religion and spirituality. Consequently, although we have an abundance of Christians serving in secular society and record numbers of people attending Sunday church services our culture continues to reflect a humanistic worldview which brings us to the next step.

II. We need Christian thinking not just more Christians in societal leadership

Everywhere I go in society I meet an abundance of Christians serving in public schools, universities, hospitals, politics, businesses, and so on. With so many Christians already placed in influential positions in this nation, we need to recognize that the major challenge we face in regards to experiencing a biblical reformation is not a lack of Christians but a lack of Christian thinking in all these prominent realms.

We have to realize that the Bible is not just a book of promises, pithy sayings and moral commandments but a blueprint for how to manage and disciple whole nations (Matthew 28:19)! God has something to say regarding economics, how to aid the poor, health care, immigration, politics, science, history, etc.

Even when our nation experienced revival in certain places there was never long lasting effects regarding law and politics because Christians without a biblical worldview are only ready to go to heaven but do not know how to fulfill the Lord’s prayer of God’s will being done on earth as it is in heaven (Luke 11:2).

III. The church needs to speak the language of Babylon

After gaining a biblical worldview, believers need to speak the language of the culture they are in. Every discipline in life has its own subculture with its own nomenclature (vocabulary describing nuances in each discipline).

For example, in the same way football utilizes words associated with their game like “touchdown” the disciplines of political science, economics, sociology, education, and non-profit charities all have terminologies we must master if we want to speak prophetically and connect with each disciplines’ mind molders. A methodology that involves quoting Bible passages and preaching at high-end influencers doesn’t usually work unless someone is in a personal crisis and is open to the gospel.

Consequently, believers already successfully immersed in a particular discipline then need to think through the biblical concepts that apply to their field of work and articulate them in secular terms that unchurched people can connect with. Since the Bible has the best ideas because it reflects God’s thinking mature believers who do this skillfully can expect to be elevated to the highest places of prominence in their respective fields.

Furthermore, pastors and leaders who want to reach the unchurched in their communities not only need to continually study their changing community demographic and provide social services people need to be healthy, but they also need to adequately represent themselves when making announcements from the pulpit. Pastors need to lose some of the unnecessary religious jargon that the average attendee cannot understand or connect with.

(When speaking in public or preaching sometimes every other word out of the mouth of some pastors is “amen” or “praise the Lord” or “Hallelujah”. This turns off the unchurched because they think that part of the salvation package is adopting a weird religious nomenclature that doesn’t mesh with their present lifestyle. This is an unnecessary stumbling block which can be removed if church leaders can learn how to streamline religious lingo and talk as normal as they do when in the workplace environment.)

IV. Christian parents need to prepare their children for leadership not followership

This step in the process needs to be done concurrently throughout all of these steps. Thus I don’t really know where to place it in this article. Having a multi-generational plan of training our children to be Christian thinkers and practitioners is the most important calling a parent and church has! Unfortunately, most Christian parents rarely take time to pray and teach their children the Bible. Even when they do, it is not enough to nurture them to be world-class leaders. To nurture world-changers, as a general rule, young children between 3-10 years old should be immersed in scripture memorization. Once children are in middle school and preparing for high school parents and churches need to begin to teach their children how to understand and apply their scripture knowledge in regards to evolution, history, education, government, and business. They should also encourage them to excel in school and to attend the best universities and colleges available. In this way, we are not just teaching our children how not to backslide but how to take the lead in culture and society.

The Bible teaches that we need to have an intergenerational approach in which we catechize our biological and spiritual children with the slogan to think biblically and speak secularly so they will always be trained to apply the Bible to everyday life. By doing this we will nurture the greatest leaders the world has ever seen, just as the church of old did with the greatest artists, scientists, writers, politicians, and educators that transformed Europe and North America! Up until the mid 1800’s the church not only cared for the down and out but also nurtured the “up and in” cultural elites that became the mind molders that influenced culture. Nowadays, instead of starting world class universities like Harvard or Yale the church shuns higher education and encourages emerging leaders merely to attend their little Bible institutes! As long as we are afraid of higher education we will never ascend to the head of culture. It is time for believers to become the cultural elites of society so that we can lead our communities with wisdom and justice!

V. When we welcome unbelievers into our church communities even before they accept Christ as Lord and Savior

Churches that think biblically but speak secularly are in the habit of embracing their community even before they accept Jesus Christ as Lord! Instead of getting the community to come into the church we need to send church members out to our communities as servant leaders. The church can become a hotbed of community activity in which those outside the church believe that the church building is now their community center for a wealth of information, resources, and even community board meetings. In this way, the people on the outside of the church will feel comfortable with the people in the church and will be more inclined to step inside the sanctuary for a Sunday service.

VI. When we produce problem solvers for the greatest global challenges

I believe the time has arrived when the world will come to pastors and believers for advice and answers on how to deal with the pressing problems they are facing in their communities. The church should not only produce the greatest prayer warriors and worshippers the world has ever seen but it should also produce the greatest thinkers, entrepreneurs, and strategists the world has ever seen. Presently the world is waiting for a person to articulate answers regarding our failing economy, global tensions between Iran and the rest of the free world, a cure for cancer, a cure for AIDS, environmental issues, and disaster relief strategies. Why can’t it be people representing the Kingdom of God who come up with these solutions?

VII. When we increase the quality of life by bringing community transformation

Talk is cheap. The world doesn’t need another book about the dire problems we have in our cities. We need people to produce lasting change that will greatly benefit the quality of life who will then write books and teach us. I am sick of hearing people prophesying and preaching about reformation. God is looking for churches and people to at least create a community model others can look to for replication in their own cities.

Our Relevant Biblical Model and Application

Following are twelve immersion principles to transform a secular society. (These principles are based on the life of Daniel. Note that we have no record of Daniel ever preaching against a king or preaching against witchcraft.)

1. God allowed the Jews with the highest leadership potential to be chosen and set apart (Daniel 1:4).

Notice their qualifications: Good appearance, showing intelligence in every branch of wisdom (biblical worldview, not just fragmentary knowledge), endowed with wisdom and understanding, and the ability to serve in the king’s court as his advisors, the highest political positions.

2. Daniel and his friends were trained in higher education to be placed as the heads of societal positions (Daniel 1:5).

3. Daniel and his friends were trained in all the literature and language of the Chaldeans (Daniel 1:4).

Effective biblical worldview thinking means knowing and understanding popular and contemporary literature so the Bible can be applied skillfully to it. Daniel and his friends were trained to speak the language of Babylon.

4. Daniel allowed himself to be renamed (Daniel 1:7).

Effective Christians don’t walk around looking like Christians; they fully identify and acclimate themselves to their surrounding culture.

Paul said that his method of soul winning included becoming all things to all people that he may win some (1 Corinthians 9).

We are called to be sheep in wolves clothing in certain aspects of our calling. We don’t have look or talk religiously to act godly in regards to fulfilling the Cultural Mandate and Great Commission of Matthew 28:19-20.

5. Daniel didn’t compromise his faith or his internal identity (Daniel 1:8).

When Jesus became a human He limited Himself to our humanly attributes without ever compromising His divinity and holiness.

6. Daniel and his friends trusted God to grant favor and lift them up every step of the way in their journey into prominent positions of influence (Daniel 1:9, 20; 2:48).

7. Daniel seized every opportunity presented him to personally minister to those in influence (Daniel 2:16, 47; 4:4-8).

8. Daniel and his friends lived as exiles in a foreign world (Daniel 1:1).

Daniel and his friends lived in the place God called them to influence. God loved the Babylonians so much he allowed His people to be taken captive and live in their land so that His word could transform the empire.

9. Daniel knew that the Kingdom of God and Lordship of Christ was his ultimate goal (Daniel 7:13-14).

Some believers and churches only do community development projects but never connect the folks they help to the gospel. While I believe in cultural presence I also believe we need to intentionally share the gospel at some point as God gives the opportunity.

10. Daniel never compromised his integrity by serving for earthly rewards (Daniel 5:17).

11. Daniel fasted and prayed for the Kingdom of God to be restored to his nation (9:2-3; 10:2-3).

12. In everything Daniel did he had a spirit of excellence (Daniel 5:10-12; 6:3).

THE CHURCH OF TOMORROW

THE CHURCH of TOMORROW
-by Andrew Strom.

A lot of people probably read some of our writings and wonder,
"Where is all this headed? What is the goal?" A glib answer might
be- "We want to get back to real 'New Testament' Christianity."
But what exactly does that look like?

This is an important topic - and something I have pondered a great
deal over the years. What exactly would the 'New Testament Church'
look like if it was translated into a modern western city?

To get started, I want you to forget about today's church just for a
moment - with all her obvious problems and contradictions, and
picture something quite different. I want you to imagine that you
are still living in the same city, in the same year, but you are right
in the middle of a 'Book of Acts'-type scenario. Somehow everything
has changed.

For some reason, all of the Spirit-filled Christians in your city have
left their Denominations and divisions behind. They have truly begun
to fulfill the prayer of Jesus - "That they all may be ONE". They now
hold huge gatherings all over the city - right out in the open. And as
well as these united gatherings, on most streets there is now a
house-meeting, where all the Spirit-filled believers from that street
gather together, eating and sharing and having communion, etc.
(ie. A "NEIGHBORHOOD CHURCH"). The power of God flowing in
these house-meetings is amazing. Many healings and miracles
are occurring. The 'gifts' flow freely every day.

It seems also that many of the church buildings and cathedrals have
simply been abandoned. No longer do Christians want to hide them-
selves away behind "four walls". They want to gather out where the
people are - presenting Jesus to the whole world. They want to be
truly "one body". There is no way that any of their old buildings
could contain the crowds, anyhow.

And the men whom God has raised up to lead this vast movement
do not seem much like the 'Reverends' or even the 'televangelists'
of old. In fact, quite a few of them have never even been to Bible
College, and they seem to be very plain, ordinary people from
humble backgrounds. But what an anointing! It is very clear to
everyone that these 'apostles and prophets' (as they are known)
have spent many years in prayer and brokenness before God -
drawing closer and closer to Him. When they speak, the very fear
of the Lord seems to come down, and many people repent deeply
of their sins. Demons are cast out and the blind and crippled are
made whole. -These kinds of things are happening all the time.
The whole city is just in awe of what is going on, and thousands
upon thousands are being saved. Even the newspapers and
television are full of it.

As soon as someone repents they are immediately baptized in
water and hands are laid on them for the infilling of the Holy Spirit.
-This is expected from day one! And it is also expected that every
Christian has a gift and calling from God - and that they should be
encouraged to move forward and fulfill their calling. No longer is
there a distinction made between those who are "ministers" and
those who are merely 'laity'. Now it is expected that EVERYONE
is a minister of the Lord! (However, there are 'elders' - ie. older
Christians to guide things).

Some of the bishops and pastors from several denominations have
actually denounced this great move of God very strongly. They say
it is "deception" and warn their people to stay away. (-Every Revival
in history has been accused of this - usually by religious leaders).
But to be honest, it is so obvious to most people that God is the
one behind it all, that very few take these men seriously. The Spirit
of God is sweeping all before Him. The glory of the Lord has come.

One of the reasons that these leaders are so upset is that a lot of
the Christians' GIVING now does not go to church buildings, but
rather to the POOR. In fact, God has spoken to many people to
start supporting widows and orphans overseas, etc. They also give
generously to anyone in their midst who is in need. Many even sell
their own possessions in order to do this.

The huge over-riding theme of this great movement is LOVE.
"Behold how they love one another" is the catch-cry of many who
watch this 'new church' in action. And everyone is given to MUCH PRAYER.

And so, gathering "as one" in the outdoors and breaking bread from
house to house, they eat together with glad and sincere hearts,
praising God and enjoying the favor of all the people. And the Lord
adds to their number daily those who are being saved.

CAN This REALLY HAPPEN?

The above description is taken straight out of the Book of Acts - as
applied to today. Everything in the above paragraphs is put there to
give you an idea of what it would be like to live in the Jerusalem
church at the start of Acts. -And it was like that for YEARS. Imagine
the impact of such a church on the world around it! God is wanting
to do this again. And He wants to use ordinary people like you and
me to help bring it to pass.

I am convinced that we are NOT supposed to treat the early church
as a "special case". It was given to us as an 'example'. It is what
the "normal" church should be like all the time! And yet we have
fallen so far below this standard. Only in times of Revival do we
approach it again for a time. But I believe it is supposed to be
"normal" for the church to be like this - day in and day out. This
is the way that Jesus always wanted us to be.

However, one thing is clear. It will take a great "SHAKING" for us
to get anywhere close to the above description today. You have to
be aware that in order to get there from here, a whole lot of
'hierarchies' and church boards and careers and titles and positions
would be on the line. And a lot of men simply don't want to lose
those things. It doesn't matter to them whether it is Truth or not. If
it affects their reputation, their position or their organization, they
will oppose it with everything they have.

Sadly it is very difficult to see a "smooth" transition to this kind of
Christianity. I believe we are in for a shaky ride. But I certainly
believe that it is on God's agenda. And like the Great Reformation
before it, I believe He will do WHATEVER IT TAKES in order to
get us there.

Here's to true 'NEW TESTAMENT' Christianity, my friends - the
kind that Jesus and the apostles actually invented in the beginning.

Let us settle for nothing less - WHATEVER IT TAKES.

Please send feedback to- prophetic@revivalschool.com

God bless you all.

Andrew Strom.

Lord Supper 2

LORD SUPPER 2

By John Fenn

Hi all,
After last week's "Thoughts" I received several emails asking me to go into more detail concerning "self-examination" and healing during the Lord's Supper, so that's what I'll share about today.

First things first
Paul said this in I Corinthians 11:26-28 (Amp): "For every time you eat this bread and drink this cup, you are representing and signifying and proclaiming the fact of the Lord's death until he comes (again). So then whoever eats the bread or drinks the cup of the Lord in a way that is unworthy (of Him) will be guilty (profaning and sinning against) the body and blood of the Lord. Let a man (thoroughly) examine himself, and (only) when he has done so should he eat of the bread and drink of the cup."

The 3 underlined words above help us understand the Greek word "katangello" meaning 'proclaim'. This same word is used of the girl in Acts 16:17 who had a spirit of divination who followed Paul and loudly cried out (proclaimed) that they were showing the way of salvation (in Philippi 'the way of salvation' to the locals meant following the goddess in the local temple, which of course is NOT what Paul was doing so he cast the spirit out).

Thus we examine ourselves, and by receiving the Lord's Supper we proclaim we are in the number who remember his sacrifice, that our hearts are (now) right in the matter, our choice clear, we PROCLAIM Christ's death, and BOLDLY look forward to his coming again!

Accountability
As noted in verse 28 above, we are to examine ourselves, which means "to prove, test, approve". We might think of a school math test in the same way, as an opportunity to prove what we know; it's not the teacher trying to prove what we don't know. (though it sure felt that way in my math classes)

Similarly this examination of ourselves is to prove and approve our hearts in Christ, not to discover or uncover some deep, dark sin, rather to approve what is right within us - Christ! It is similar to Genesis 22:1 where it says the Lord did 'test' Abraham by commanding him to offer Isaac in sacrifice. It isn't a test to the negative, but rather giving Abraham a chance to prove the covenant with God that was in his heart.

Paul goes on in verse 29-30 saying: "For he that eats and drinks unworthily, eats and drinks 'damnation' (KJV) to himself, not discerning the Lord's body. For this reason many are weak and sickly among you, and many have died early."

The word translated "damnation" in the King James Version is the word 'krima', which means "the sentence pronounced, a verdict." The word 'discern' means "to separate, to learn by, to decide."

Putting this together Paul is saying: "For he that eats and drinks unworthily eats and drinks a verdict against himself, not learning and deciding properly about the Lord's body. For this reason many are weak and sickly among you, and many have died early."

The very elements meant to be a bold proclamation of our right heart and faith can be a two edged sword: If taken with a wrong heart we become responsible for our lack of respect for the Lord and his sacrifice.

But if a person approaches the Lord's Supper properly, they can be healed while partaking!

In practice
What I do before the Lord's Supper is examine myself spiritually, confess any sin or even the slightest
burden to the Lord, which comes under the blood of Jesus side of it. It just takes a micro-second to forgive, give up stress and worry and fear - just a micro-second to make the heart right.

Then just as quickly I take stock of my body as I consider Jesus' body broken for me - am I tired, under the weather, headache, sore muscles - anything that might come under the heading of healing, weakness, frailty. I thank the Lord that by the stripes laid on his back I was healed, that my peace of mind was purchased for me by his sacrifice, and so on.

I've seen people healed of everything from headaches to muscle pains to sore joints and more during the Lord's Supper. Sometimes I'll have people lay hands on the part of their body that hurts while they eat, and instruct them to think on Jesus' body broken for them as they give thanks for what He did for them. Once in thanksgiving and praise, healing flows!

Judge ourselves
Paul goes on to say in verses 31-32: "For if we judge ourselves, we won't be judged. But when we are judged, we are chastened of the Lord,. that we should not be condemned with the world."

If we 'judge' ourselves. "Judge" is the same self examination with an eye toward approval spoken of in verse 28. If we do that we won't be judged of the Lord. This word 'chastened' is 'paideuo', meaning 'to train children', thus more broadly, education or instruction.

Let me explain it this way; every time you are convicted of a sin in your heart it is the Spirit of Truth telling you that you have sinned. When you confess that sin and ask for forgiveness, you have just judged yourself.

Because you judged yourself in that matter, when you stand before Jesus one day, that sin will not be brought up - you judged yourself and solved the issue here while on the earth.

However, if you were to die before you dealt with it, when you stand before the Lord he will bring it up - you'll have to deal with it here or there, either way. It's not a heaven or hell situation, but it is best to take care of it this side of heaven, don't you think? So Paul says to use the Lord's Supper as an opportunity to judge ourselves.

Just being honest
This isn't a 'deal with it now or watch out' situation. I don't know about you, but the Lord can deal with me on situations in my life for months - elements of my personality that need to be more Christ-like. Most recently (just being transparent) my lack of patience with certain Oklahoma drivers who love staying in the left hand emergency/passing lane while driving below the speed limit and causing a bottleneck.

Much of the road I drive is speed limit 75mph (120kph), which means my cruise control is set at 78mph (133kph). When I come upon a bottleneck caused by someone driving 70mph in the left lane, forcing people to pass on the right - well, throw in a semi-truck or two and you're down to 65 behind 10 cars and trucks for miles on end!

Yes that's a pet peeve. but I know myself; no matter how much the Lord deals with me about my impatience when coming up behind some guy hogging the road this way, as long as I have a driver's license it will always bug me. My job is to deal with my strong sense of right and wrong, impatience, anger, and how I need to take a big picture attitude and cool my jets.

Can you tell this is on going? But I haven't stopped taking the Lord's Supper - because I'm working on it, it's an active thing He and I are dealing with. So this process of judging myself is ongoing, and actually, I'm much better now than a year ago! :)

I remember when one of our sons first got his driver's license and the Lord was dealing with him about speeding. I wanted the Lord to deal with him on it because he wasn't dealing with it. First came my warnings and his acknowledgement the Lord was dealing with him. Then came a ticket in our little town, but still he didn't judge himself. Then he rear ended a truck on an icy patch of road - he judged himself after that. (It totaled his car, but no one was injured and the big truck he hit didn't have much damage)

The reason I added these examples is that some people will read what Paul said and stop receiving the Lord's Supper because they'll be afraid - which is not good, for its a perfect time to gauge how we are doing, progress made, and truly commune with our hearts and the Lord on the subject of our lives. Paul didn't say wait until you are perfect, he said just judge yourself so that you are partaking in the right heart - imperfect though our lives may be!

Back to weak and sickly
As it pertains to the subject of being weak, sickly, frail and dying early, Paul explained some of this earlier in his letter. In chapter 6:18 Paul said that there are sins outside of the body, but sexual sins (among others) are sins against the body, and as such are manifest in the body.

Because the body is of this earth, sins against the body are manifest here on this earth and in this body. Paul said sexual sins fall in this category of sinning against the body, and of course we know of all sorts of ramifications for such sin, including disease, emotional turmoil, etc.

But the category is broader: When a person knows something is bad for the body, but does it anyway, the ramifications stay in the body. Sins against the Lord can be wiped away with repentance, but things of this earth stay on the earth. The more we know, the more we are accountable for.

If I pig out continually and gain all sorts of weight, I can ask the Lord for forgiveness and he will, yet the effect of that sin, being made against this earthly body, will reveal itself in the body at some point - maybe heart disease, maybe diabetes, maybe something else. As such, the Lord may not extend divine healing to us, but be gracious with doctors and such rather than divine healing.

I can think of case after case of people who've requested healing that in fact are merely reaping the sins against the body they've practiced for years. In those cases, the grace is usually on medical help here on the earth, rather than outright healing from heaven. And that's just 1 small reason people don't receive divine healing, so don't wrap up everyone who isn't healed in this subject please.

Closing, and prayer request
The time before receiving the Lord's supper can be a wonderful time of reflection, taking stock of things, and receiving healing or peace of mind, if we judge ourselves and rightly discern the Lord's sacrifice for us.

Those are some thoughts on the Lord's Supper; new thoughts next week.
Prayer request for me:

Some of you will know of Sid Roth. I fly out Wednesday to tape 2 TV shows of his "It's Supernatural" show seen on all the Christian TV stations (taping Thursday). We've already taped 2 weeks of radio shows which will be aired later this fall (I don't know the dates yet on any of the 4 interviews).

At times like these I pray for the listeners who will hear the shows that the Spirit of wisdom and revelation will be given them, and for myself and Sid that the Father will have us share what He wants. Thanks.

Also - we've had some computer server problems this week, and about 15 people who signed up for these Weekly Thoughts never made it into the data base - their info is lost in cyber space. If you know of someone who said they signed up this past week, please have them do so again - they will know it didn't work as they aren't receiving this email - so if you have a friend you forwarded it to last week, check with them please.

Blessings,
John Fenn
www.iFaithhome.org