Unity of the Spirit in the bond of peace

I love the letter Paul wrote to the Ephesians. The more I study it, the more I realize I don't know about the ways of God. Paul had such an insight into God's heart and how He works. Last night we only covered Eph 4 verses 2 and 3. We almost got to verse 4, but I decided to end at about 7:55.

Paul wants us to walk with weight that is equal to our calling, in view of all that God, Christ and the Holy Spirit have done for us (mentioned in Eph 1-3). The starting block of this walk is built upon the foundation that we must embrace humility, gentleness, patience, and forbearing one another in agape love. Our goal and that which we strive with all our energy and determination is the Unity of the Holy Spirit in the bond of peace.

We are bound together in the most powerful force this world will ever know-peace with God. That is the gift of the cross, peace with God. And having peace with God, we can have peace with man. Our hearts can be one. When our hearts are one with God and with each other, there is the Unity of the Spirit. That is to be the purpose of our walk, that is to be the purpose of the church.

Most people say that is crazy talk, impossible to achieve, especially in a local church. Many a pastor has lost heart endeavoring to keep the unity of the Spirit. But perhaps we have been going about it in the flesh, in the way big business and marketing guru's suggest. How does Paul say we should do it?

1. Realize we are prisoners to our Lord-we submit to Him.
2. Realize (having the eyes of our understanding enlightened) all that we have as indwelt and sealed believers.
3. Focus on walking (not running or racing) one step at a time.
4. Listen with attentive ears to God's voice (His calling)
5. Embrace Christ's "low-mindedness", His attitude that there is nothing we are too good to do on behalf of others.
6. Learn to be gentle - bear injuries without anger or a desire for revenge.
7. Be forbearing-going the extra mile to cover up and even overlook the ugliness of those around you. (Seeing God in the face of all you encounter, even mean ones)
8. Allowing God to love others through you.
9. Never give in to disillusionment or apathy, but dedicate yourself to diligence on God's behalf.
   
10. Major on the Major things of God, the Seven Essentials of Eph 4:4-5.

These are the lessons of Ephesians 4:1-3. If these be the foundation of our church, Christ will be Lord indeed. Any rational man would look at those and say, they are not possible. That is why we must endeavor to walk in the Spirit and not in the flesh. The walk of Ephesians 4-6 is a walk of life in the Spirit, which means putting off the old man of stinking flesh.

May this be the goal of church elders and deacons and leaders across the world. The day is coming when God's throne will force the church to reveal whether we are walking in the Spirit or the flesh. Blessed are they that endure to the end.

Do We Have the Ear of a Disciple?

God got me up early this morning.

A verse that awaits me (over my toilet) every morning is:

"The Lord God has given Me the tongue of disciples, That I may know how to sustain the weary one with a word. He awakens Me morning by morning, He awakens My ear to listen as a disciple. Isaiah 50:4 (NASB77)

Something is stirring in my soul, something that God is wanting me to see and then to obey. In the closing days of 2007 He led me to teach on the Baptism of the Holy Spirit as presented by R. A. Torrey. His series of sermons had touched my life early on when I was in Bible College. Now God wants to touch me again with His teching on the Holy Spirit. He is wanting to see the desire of my heart-to see if He can use me further in ministry. God has been stirring my heart, impressing upon me the need to lift up His Word. To devote myself to proclaiming His truth. There are so many 'trends' that tear at a Pastor. Do we make the message 'simpler' or more 'practical' to reach the 'seekers' or this 'media generation'? The discouraging truth is that in this 21st century, people want an easy way to understand the Word of God. They want instant knowledge, instant Christianity. As I have thought back over what gave me my thirst for the Word, it had to be the Holy Spirit, not some slick promotion. It wasn't any one person, although I owe much to writings by Watchman Nee, T. Austin Sparks, and Bill Gothard. There were things I heard and read that opened up certain passages to me. But through the years there has always been a stirring, a hunger, a desire to get into God's Word that was in my gut, regardless of who or how it was presented. My discipline has not always been good, but that hunger has been there in feasting and in famine, in sin and in righteousness. Even as a young boy of 12 I remember having a desire to know the ways of God. I even carried my Bible to the secular High School I attended. I wasn't a great witness, but I wanted it by my side. God's Word was important to me. I have been told that today's generation doesn't buy in to the authority and even the power of God's Word. That really disturbs me. They say we have to present it in a "new, relevant" way. I understand the importance of being 'up-to-date' but I will never abandon my firm belief that it is not how it is packaged that is important, it is WHO is doing the presenting! Am I surrendered to the Holy Spirit? Am I depending upon Him or upon some pre-packaged trendy sermon series? Is the ache of my heart for His Presence and Power or for some great looking power point backgrounds? As for me, God is stirring my heart to seek His Heart and His Word and then to faithfully proclaim His Message. I must partner with the Holy Spirit that I might have "utterance" as Paul prayed, (and for me, that utterance may be given to me, that I may open my mouth boldly to make known the mystery of the gospel-Eph 6:19).

So shall My word be that goes forth from My mouth; It shall not return to Me void, But it shall accomplish what I please, And it shall prosper in the thing for which I sent it. Isaiah 55:11 (NKJV)

Pastors and Preachers must spend time before the Lord and in His Word. We must weep before the altar. We must cry out for our words to be empowered by the Holy Spirit! We must speak what is on God's heart, and not what we think will attract the most people. We must make it relevant and practical, but not at the expense of obscuring God's message. Samuel was such a beloved Priest unto God. He epitomized attentiveness, obedience and service before the Lord. If I am to be a Pastor and a Preacher profitable to God, I must be as Samuel. God called Samuel "A faithful priest that shall do according to that which is in my heart and in my mind" (I Sam 2:35) The next chapter begins with: "And the word of the Lord was rare in those days; there was no widespread revelation". God's Word was rare. But then, when He did speak, He spoke to a little boy. Why? Because Samuel was wholly committed to serving God, he was attentive to God's Word, and when he received God's Word, he obeyed. As a result, the Word records:

^3:19 And Samuel grew, and the Lord was with him and let none of his words fall to the ground. ²⁰ And all Israel from Dan to Beersheba knew that Samuel was established as a prophet of the Lord. ²¹ And the Lord appeared again at Shiloh, for the Lord revealed himself to Samuel at Shiloh by the word of the Lord. 1 Samuel 3:19-21 (ESV)

If we Preachers are to expect God to use our words to His profit, and to have God let 'none of our words fall to the ground', then we must have the same heart and attitude toward God's Word as Samuel. We must not let any of His Words fall to the ground in our life!