Pray without ceasing!

"Ransomed men need no longer pause in fear to enter the Holy of Holies. God wills that we should push on into His Presence and live our whole life there. This is to be known to us in conscious experience. It is more than a doctrine to be held, it is a life to be enjoyed every moment of every day." A.W.Tozer

Prayer is life in Christ. 1 John 5:12
Prayer is being God-conscious - a life lived in the reality of God's presence. Heb. 11:1,6
Prayer is remaining - a life that abides in the enveloping experience of Jesus. John 15:4
Prayer is participating - a life that feeds on the Bread of heaven and is filled with Him. John 6:57
Prayer is communing - a life entwined in dialogue with God. Matthew 17:5
Prayer is reflecting - a life unveiled in the face of God and echoing His glory. 2 Cor. 3:18

Through our faith in Christ, we are reconciled to God. We, therefore, not only have access to God, but are called to live our lives in God's presence all the time. To pray continually is to live in Christ, to be aware of Him, to remain in Him, to draw from Him, to interact with Him and to reflect His very being as we are filled with Him. Prayer is not an occasional spiritual discipline but a continuing spiritual necessity for life. Let us live our lives in Christ. Let us pray!

Pray without ceasing! 1 Thess. 5:17

Who are you following?

Image courtesy of Africa at FreeDigitalPhotos.net

Jesus says, "I am the way and the truth and the life." John 14:6

The Way

Jesus is the Way or the Gate through which we can enter to have fullness of life as God intended us to have. Through faith in Jesus, we have access to His life and become part of His fold.

"I am the gate; whoever enters through me will be saved. He will come in and go out, and find pasture. The thief comes only to steal and kill and destroy; I have come that they may have life, and have it to the full." John 10:9,10 (emphasis mine)

The Truth

Jesus is the Truth, the Shepherd whom we follow and look to as our example. The apostle Paul writes,

"Follow my example, as I follow the example of Christ." 1 Corinthians 11:1

Paul modelled a life that was lived according to the example of Christ. The apostle always pointed to his Shepherd as the Truth and the example of fullness of life. Fully aware of his own weaknesses and failings, Paul exhorts the Corinthian believers to examine themselves to see whether they are in the faith and not to make his apparent failings an excuse for not doing what is in line with the truth (see 2 Cor 13:5-9)!

Many Christians look for a spiritual leader that they can follow. Once they find someone they admire, they begin to trust and follow that person. As they do so, they begin to follow his or her example and find security in having someone lead them who apparently has it all together. All is well until the image of a perfect spiritual leader is destroyed by the realisation and the fact that the leader has weaknesses and failings like every other human being. Sadly the pattern is often repeated and the "follower" looks for someone else they admire to lead them until they are let down again.

However, Jesus is the leader we are to follow because He is our Great Shepherd and the Truth by which we model our lives.

Imperfect leaders are not an excuse for believers to lower Christ's example of righteousness for their own lives!

The Life

Jesus is the Life. Jesus is the way to fullness of life. Jesus is the example of fullness of life and Jesus is the provider of fullness of life. The believer must go to Jesus to have life. He is the Source of living water. Jesus says,

"These are the Scriptures that testify about me, yet you refuse to come to me to have life." John 5:39,40

Jesus invites us to have fellowship with Him and to participate in Eternal Life. The words eternal life don't only refer to the duration of life but more importantly they refer to a quality of life, the substance of life that originates from God Himself in Christ. We are invited to drink deeply from the river of delights (Ps 36:8) and to be filled with life to the full! Our Shepherd enables us to come in and go out and find pasture. It is Christ Himself who empowers us to live the life He modelled. Hallelujah!

How about you?

So let me ask you:

• Do you trust in Jesus as the Way to life? 
• Do you look to Him as the Truth of how you should live? 
• Do you depend on Him for fullness of life?

The anarchy of the soul

 Image courtesy of Stuart Miles at FreeDigitalPhotos.net

The oxford dictionary defines the word anarchy as:

1. a state of disorder due to absence or non-recognition of authority or other controlling systems
2. absence of government and absolute freedom of the individual, regarded as a political ideal.

Origin: mid 16th cent: via medieval Latin from Greek anarkhia, from anarkhos, from an - 'without' + arkhos 'chief,ruler'.

The Bible makes it clear that society is moving towards a state of lawlessness -

"For the secret power of lawlessness is already at work" (2 Thess 2:7).

The power of lawlessness that is driven by the man of lawlessness (2 Thess. 2:3) opposes God and the truth so that people are deceived and "refuse to love the truth and so be saved" (2 Thess 2:10).

"God is not a God of disorder," Paul writes but is the God who is the highest authority and in whom true freedom is found.

James writes, "the man who looks intently into the perfect law that gives freedom, and continues to do this, not forgetting what he has heard, but doing it - he will be blessed in what he does" (James 1:25).

The deception is in the idea that true freedom is the absence of a governing authority and any controlling system. In the name of tolerance and enlightened thinking, we are developing a society that is turning its back on God's authority and will and we wonder why our young generation is confused, abandoned, dislocated, hopeless and angry. The truth is that when man is left to himself, he moves toward the anarchy of the soul.

Without the governing presence of the Spirit of God within man, sinful man, who is seperated from God, is given over to the desires of the flesh (see Romans 1:18-32)! His mind, his emotions and his will are influenced by every sinful desire and every influence of the world. Left to himself, man experiences the anarchy of the soul that ultimately leads to self-destruction. The prodigal son left the place of authority and order (his father and home) to live a life of freedom. What that led to was the anarchy of the soul that led him to the pigs.

God wants His creation to live in fullness of life. Creation will only experience freedom when it submits itself to the authority and will of God. Creation is waiting to be liberated from its bondage to decay and brought into the glorious freedom of the children of God (Rom 8:21)! Those who are governed by the Spirit of God are the sons of God who live in the glorious freedom of God's order (Rom 8:14). Hallelujah!

I believe God is calling His people to renew their trust in His absolute authority and His good, pleasing and perfect will. Only a people who rely on the authority and wisdom of God will experience true freedom and live life as God purposed it for man.

"Trust in the Lord will all your heart and lean not on your own understanding; in all your ways acknowledge him, and he will make your paths straight." Proverbs 3:5

Breakthrough!

"Repent, then, and turn to God, so that your sins may be wiped out, that times of refreshing may come from the Lord, and that he may send the Christ, who has been appointed for you - even Jesus. He must remain in heaven until the time comes for God to restore everything, as he promised long ago through his holy prophets." Acts 3:19-21

Kingdom invasion

Jesus came to bring God's Kingdom on earth as it is in heaven. The Kingdom of light broke into the kingdom of darkness as the Word became flesh and made His dwelling among us. John writes,

"The true light that gives light to every man was coming into the world." John 1:9

Jesus broke into the kingdom of darkness to penetrate it and overcome the work of the devil. John writes,

"The reason the Son of God appeared was to destroy the devil's work." 1 John 3:8

The devil's purpose is to steal, kill and destroy mankind but Jesus came to bring fullness of life (John 10:10)!

Christ's death and resurrection fulfilled everything that was needed to overcome the kingdom of darkness. Sin and death had no power over Jesus so that through dependence on Christ and on His victory over the kingdom of darkness, the believer is able to overcome the world and dwell in fullness of life. John writes,

"Everyone born of God overcomes the world. This is the victory that has overcome the world, even our faith. Who is it that overcomes the world? Only he who believes that Jesus is the Son of God." 1 John 5:4,5

Those who trust in Jesus and His finished work are rescued from the kingdom of darkness and brought into "the kingdom of the Son he loves" (Col 1:13).

Fullness of Life

Fullness of life is what Jesus provides through His death and resurrection. Christ's death on the cross dealt with all of man's problems. Through Jesus' sacrifice, man is saved/healed spiritually, emotionally and physically (Isaiah 53:4-6). Therefore, as man looks to Jesus for salvation, man is completely saved and healed and walks in fullness of life (John 3,14,15). Jesus is Eternal life and those who trust in Him are made one with fullness of life. John writes,

"God has given us eternal life, and this life is in his Son. He who has the Son has life." 1 John 5:11,12

The believer, therefore, is restored to the Kingdom of Light and lives from the reality of fullness in Christ.

Times of refreshing

As man repents of his rebellion and sin and turns to God, times of refreshing come from the Lord. These times of refreshing are what the believer experiences as he is saturated with God, having been immersed in fullness of life as part of the Kingdom of Light.

Breakthrough is therefore not about trying to penetrate the kingdom of darkness or even trying to overcome it. Christ has already done that! Breakthrough is about appropriating or reckoning fullness in Christ. When Christ returns, all things will be restored and aligned to God's Kingdom. Until then, the believer must live from the spiritual reality of the Kingdom so that it breaks into the natural realm.

Times of refreshing are the manifestation of fullness in Christ!

Prayer for breakthrough

My prayer is for breakthrough - the realisation of fullness in Christ in my own life, the lives of those around me, the Church, Israel and the Jewish people and the nations so that times of refreshing may come until Jesus comes again! I believe it is time for the Church to arise and appropriate fullness of life in Christ by faith! The Church must intercede for the nations from a place of fullness and victory in Christ. We are seated with Christ in heavenly places and our lives are hidden with Christ in God (Eph 2:6; Col 3:3)! We must pray from our heavenly position and see heaven break through onto earth so that God's Kingdom will come on earth as it is in heaven! Hallelujah!

"Repent, then, and turn to God, so that your sins may be wiped out, that times of refreshing may come from the Lord, and that he may send the Christ, who has been appointed for you - even Jesus. He must remain in heaven until the time comes for God to restore everything, as he promised long ago through his holy prophets." Acts 3:19-21

I live because I am loved

I live because I am loved.
The Father has lavished His love upon me.
I am unconditionally loved and accepted in Christ.
Nothing can separate me from the Father's love.
I rely on the Father's love for me.

Darkness cannot hide His love.
I cannot escape His love.
I don't have to earn His love.
I don't have to perform for Him.
My efforts cannot change His love toward me.

He loved me before.
He loves me now.
He will always love me.
He is love.
I am free to be who He loves.
I live because I am loved.

I can love without fear.
I can love without cost.
I can love without pain.
I can love fully because I am fully loved.
I live because I am loved.

Thank you Father for lavishing your love upon me and filling me to overflow with love divine.
Is there anything greater than being accepted?
Is there anything more precious than knowing I matter.
Is there anything greater than being intended.
I live because I am loved.

Do you have Eternal Life?

"I write these things to you who believe in the name of the Son of God so that you may know that you have eternal life." 1 John 5:13

Introduction

The purpose of the apostle John's letter is to help believers know whether they have eternal life or not. John looks at the evidence or fruit of the life of one who is truly saved to help us know what the life of a believer should look like. Before we look at some of the fruit of a born again believer we need to understand what it means to be saved.

Salvation

Many Christians think that salvation is about believing in Jesus Christ so that when they die they will not go to hell but will be given eternal life in heaven. Although that is true, it is only a limited understanding of what salvation is all about! What many people don't understand is that through faith or trusting in Jesus Christ, the believer is "born again, not of perishable seed, but of imperishable" (1 Peter 1:23). That means that the believer receives life that is imperishable - eternal life. This eternal life is not an impersonal force but the very presence of the One who lives forever because He has conquered sin and death - Jesus Christ. The believer therefore receives the indwelling presence of Eternal Life. John writes,

"God has given us eternal life, and this life is in his Son. He who has the Son has life; he who does not have the Son of God does not have life." 1 John 5:11,12

Eternal Life

So we see that eternal life is not just something believers receive after they die, but it is Jesus living in them, the moment they believe in Him and confess Him as Lord of their lives (Rom. 10:9,10; 1 John 4:15). Those who don't believe in Christ Jesus are separated from Eternal Life, the life of God, but anyone who does believe, "God lives in him and he in God" (Eph. 4:18; 1 John 4:15).

The proof of Eternal Life

The question then is, "How can I know that I am born again and have received Eternal Life?" The apostle John explains that believers can know that they have Eternal Life because,

• the Holy Spirit testifies with their spirit that they are children of God (1 John 3:24; 4:13; 5:10)
• they are walking in the Light and don't keep on sinning (1 John 1:6; 3:6,9; 5:18)
• they don't deny their disobedience when they have sinned (1 John 1:8)
• they obey God's will (1 John 2:3,4; 2:17; 5:2)
• they are like Jesus (1 John 2:6; 3:2)
• they love the children of God (1 John 2:9,10; 3:14; 4:7,11; 5:1)
• they overcome the evil one and the world (1 John 2:13; 4:4; 5:3)
• they don't give in to their sinful desires (1 John 2:15-17)
• they have an anointing from the Holy One (1 John 2:20)
• they know the truth (1 John 2:21)
• they are confident and unashamed (1 John 2:28; 3:21; 4:17; 5:14)
• they do what is right (1 John 2:29; 3:10)
• they have hope (1 John 3:3)
• they love with action and in truth (1 John 3:18)
• they have peace with God (1 John 3:19)
• they please God (1 John 3:22)
• they speak from God's viewpoint (1 John 4:5,6)
• they live in love (1 John 4:16)
• they don't fear punishment (1 John 4:18)
• they receive understanding (1 John 5:20)

The reasons for lack of fruit

The fruit of Eternal Life is simply the revelation of Christ in the believer. The problem, however, is that many believers are not seeing the fruit of Eternal Life in their lives. Does that mean that they are not saved? I believe the lack of evidence is due to three reasons. Clearly there might be the possibility that the person is just a nominal Christian who has not entirely surrendered his life to Jesus as Lord of His life and is therefore not born again. The second reason is that believers don't respond to the Eternal One in them. They simply continue doing their own will and ignore the presence of God in them and with them! The third reason believers don't see more evidence of Eternal Life in their lives, is simply the fact that they don't remain in fellowship with God. 

Fellowship with God

Fellowship with God means I live my daily life with an awareness of God's presence in me and with me all the time. This awareness of God means I include God in every aspect of my life. As I do so I become sensitive to His presence and learn to respond to His leading. I get to know God and learn what grieves Him and what pleases Him. I spend time in the secret place to draw near to Him in worship, to meditate on His Word and to receive from Him. I learn to acknowledge His presence and become sensitive to His every movement as I go into the day. As I become increasingly sensitive to God, I have my mind on what the Spirit desires so that I avoid giving in to the desires of the flesh. Fellowship with God will cause me to produce the fruit of Eternal Life! Those who remain in Christ know that what John describes as the evidence of Eternal Life is possible! (Rom. 8:1-16; Gal. 5:16-25).

Fullness of joy!

Jesus came to give us fullness of life (John 10:10)! Those who truly believe in Jesus Christ as Lord and Saviour, receive Christ who is Eternal Life itself. Having received fullness in Christ, the believer has received everything he needs for life and godliness and can participate in the Divine nature as he remains in Jesus and continues to have fellowship with Him (Col. 2:10; 2 Peter 1:3,4; John 15:4,5).

I encourage you today, to spend time in God's presence and enjoy fellowship with Him. Practice the presence of God and you will produce the fruit of eternal life as you obey Him. I write these things so your joy will be complete (1 John 1:4).

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Still looking for chocolate eggs?

I love Easter! As a young lad I always looked forward to my uncle Christoph's visit over Easter because he always brought the biggest chocolate egg -the kind you open and find all sorts of other chocolates inside. Yummy! I didn't have to search for the egg. Uncle Christoph came and I was ready to receive.

The Gift of life is not hidden away for man to look for and discover. We don't have to search behind every bush and under every cushion to find the egg. The Father offers everyone the Gift of life - a giant chocolate Easter egg full of wonderful things inside!

The Word of God tells us,

"He came to that which was his own, but his own did not receive him. Yet to all who received him, to those who believed in his name, he gave the right to become children of God - children born not of natural descent, nor of human decision or a husband's will, but born of God." John 1:11-13

We don't have to look for life. It is not hidden from us so that some find it and others don't (I wonder how many eggs remain unfound over Easter). The Father loves His creation so much that He wants people to simply receive His Gift of Life! He doesn't expect people to be good enough or to search enough before He will hand over the Gift. He simply wants people to trust in Him and His Gift of life so that everyone can discover what is in this wonderful Gift.

Many people try to find life in the created and the temporary but as the angels said to the women at theempty tomb,

"Why do you look for the living among the dead? He is not here; he is risen!" Luke 24:5,6

You won't find eternal life among the temporary. Don't look for life among the dead.

Those who receive the Father's Gift, are blessed in the heavenly realms with every spiritual blessing in Christ.  Receive God's free gift of life today and enjoy the goodies in the egg for eternity !

I think I'll have a chocolate egg now....

Have a blessed Easter as you enjoy fullness of life in Christ!

Reconciled to Culture or Christ?

"All this is from God, who reconciled us to himself through Christ and gave us the ministry of reconciliation; that God was reconciling the world to himself in Christ, not counting men's sin against them. And he has committed to us the message of reconciliation. We are therefore Christ's ambassadors, as though God were making his appeal through us. We implore you on Christ's behalf: be reconciled to God." 2 Cor. 5:18-20

Jesus modelled the ministry of reconciliation

Jesus came to seek and save the lost (Luke 19:10). He entered the world in the form of a human to reach those who were separated from God in order to reconcile them to God.

Jesus not only came to provide a way for man to be reconciled to God but also modelled God's method of reaching the lost that I believe the Church in general has moved away from. Just as Jesus came to seek and save the Lost, the Church is called to go and seek and save the lost.

God's method to reach the Lost

Jesus came to seek!

God took the initiative! Jesus entered humanity's darkness (John 1:1-18; Hebrews 2:14-18). He did not wait for broken humanity to find Him. As the Light of the world, Jesus made His dwelling amongst imperfect humanity to draw mankind back into fellowship with God.

Just as the Father sent His Son into the world to reconcile man to Himself, so He sends His Body, the Church into the world to reconcile man to God. Just as Jesus came as the Light of the world, He sends the Church into darkness to be light (see Matthew 5:14).

Sadly the Church, for the most part, expects broken humanity to find its way to her meetings instead of her entering into the darkness.

Jesus came to reconcile man to God and not to a culture!

Jesus sought the Lost to reconcile man to God. He did not seek out the Lost to convert them to a christian culture! Christ's priority was to bring man back into fellowship with the Father and with other believers. The believer's christian culture (the way he responds to God with his life) becomes a barrier for the Lost when it is inauthentic, inconsistent and only reserved for church meetings. Christian culture becomes attractive and influential when it is the fruit of sincerity and an authentic relationship with God and other believers.

The moment the Christian has to adopt a form to be acceptable in the church, a cultural wall is erected that becomes a barrier to the unchurched! 

The reason many Christians are uncomfortable with inviting the Lost to their church meetings is that there is often a discrepancy between the way they are in the world and the way they are in their church meetings.

Authentic Christianity

The solution is not to force a different church culture that will be less offensive and more palatable for the Lost but to ensure that the church is authentic in her relationship with God and others, both in the church meetings as well as in the world! God is more concerned with the heart than with our christian culture (the form we choose to express our relationship with God).

When the Church strips herself of her man-made form she will be able to enter the darkness of broken humanity and be able to reconcile man to God.

The church that seeks to impose her form on broken humanity seeks to convert man to culture rather than to Christ!

Floyd McClung, in his book entitled "You see bones, I see an army," states,

"The church that does not carry a passion to reach the world isolates people behind walls of cultural irrelevance."

I believe the Church is called to be uncompromising in essence but flexible in form. That way the Church can be light in the darkness and be "all things to all men" (form) without compromising the Truth (essence).

I agree with McClung when he writes,

"The Spirit of God calls each generation to re-imagine church for their own context and culture, and to a fresh encounter with God to live the Gospel."

The Church must get rid of old wine skins - old ways of doing church and adopted christian culture, if she is to make room for new wine - revival and awakening as real believers connect with a real world with the real love of God.

The role of the Church is to enter the darkness to seek and reconcile broken humanity to its loving Creator so that believers can enjoy fellowship with God and one another (1 John 1:3)!

It is time for the Church to be revived and for the "grave clothes" to be removed so that she will "come out" (John 11:43) in newness of life to reconcile man to God. This is the ministry of reconciliation that has been entrusted to Christ's Body!

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Are you being saved?

"And the Lord added to their number daily those who were being saved." Acts 2:47

Salvation is present continuous. Christians are in the process of being saved as long as they believe and remain in Christ.

"Though you have not seen him, you love him; and even though you do not see him now, you believe in him and are filled with an inexpressible and glorious joy, for you are receiving the goal of your faith, the salvation of your souls." 1 Peter 1:8,9

You are receiving the salvation of your soul. Salvation is present continuous.

"Once you were alienated from God and were enemies in your minds because of your evil behaviour. But now he has reconciled you by Christ's physical body through death to present you holy in his sight, without blemish and free from accusation - if you continue in your faith, established and firm, not moved from the hope held out in the gospel." Col. 1:21-23

As the believer continues to believe, he continues to receive salvation.

"And now, dear children, continue in him, so that when he appears we may be confident and unashamed before him at his coming." 1 John 2:28

The believer continues in Christ as he continues to trust in God's grace. By faith the believer enters into this grace and it is by faith that the believer must continue to live in this grace until Christ comes again!

"After beginning with the Spirit, are you now trying to attain your goal by human effort?" Gal. 3:3

"..if you confess with your mouth, 'Jesus is Lord,' and believe in your heart that God raised him from the dead, you will be saved. For it is with your heart that you believe and are justified, and it is with your mouth that you confess and are saved." Romans 10:9,10

As the believer continues to believe and continues to confess he is saved and will be saved.

Salvation is union with God that is realised (worked out - Phil. 2:12) by daily and abiding fellowship with Him.

"This is how we know we are in him: whoever claims to live in him must walk as Jesus did." 1 John 2:6

Your initial "prayer of faith" to be saved has gained you entrance into the grace in which you now stand. To stand firm, you need to continue to have faith by continuing to abide in Christ. Your abiding in Christ will bear fruit which will give you confidence on the day He returns.

"...as we live in God, our love grows more perfect. So we will not be afraid on the day of judgment, but we can face him with confidence because we live like Jesus here in this world." 1 John 4:17

"...those who obey God's word truly show how completely they love him. That is how we know we are living in him." 1 John 2:5

Are you being saved?

"For the message of the cross is foolishness to those who are perishing, but to us who are being saved it is the power of God." 1 Cor. 1:18

"Examine yourselves to see whether you are in the faith; test yourselves. Do you not realise that Christ Jesus is in you - unless, of course, you fail the test?" 2 Cor. 13:5