Living Word Christian Fellowship
“That I may publish with the voice of thanksgiving...” Psalm 26:7
Vol. 14, No. 9 September 2005
Dear Family of God:
The parable of sin and judgment:
There was once a man who built a new house. When spring came he planted grass in the yard. The rains came and the grass grew and was very green and beautiful. He kept his yard manicured with precision, making sure every weed was cleared away with the proper yard treatments. Summer came and the weather was extremely hot; the rains ceased. As the season progressed, the green grass began to wither and turn brown. The man watered the grass often but he just could not keep the grass green. It remained hot for a long time, and soon crab grass began to grow. Despite the heat and dryness, the crab grass greened and thrived. With no effective treatment for keeping the crab grass from growing, the man had only two choices: If he let the crab grass keep growing, he knew when the weather turned cold it would go into hibernation and become dormant. The only other option was to pull it up by the roots. It seemed like the yard was infiltrated with crab grass, but he did not give up. He kept pulling it up because it was easy to identify during the hot dry season. And little by little he got rid of all the crab grass so it would not grow again.
He who has ears to hear let him hear.
In Christ,
Pr. Steve
Finisher of The Furlong
I don’t want to be known as,
“Blaze of Glory”
or..
“Out in Front Early”
That’s easy.
How about,
“Come From Behind Late”
or..
“Reached His Second Wind”
or..
Better still….
“Finisher of The Furlong”
-Henry Wright
Reconciliation of Fire
Mat 3:10-12 “And now also the axe is laid unto the root of the trees: therefore every tree which bringeth not forth good fruit is hewn down, and cast into the fire. (11) I indeed baptize you with water unto repentance: but he that cometh after me is mightier than I, whose shoes I am not worthy to bear: he shall baptize you with the Holy Ghost, and [with] fire: (12) Whose fan [is] in his hand, and he will throughly purge his floor, and gather his wheat into the garner; but he will burn up the chaff with unquenchable fire.”
There are two types of fire that come from the Lord. One is a fire of cleansing unto righteousness, through the sufferings of our Lord in this day and hour. The other is a fire of torment which will come to all who refuse the first. The second fire shall last for eternity.
This baptism with fire is a cutting down of every tree that does not bring forth the good fruit and casting it into the fires of divine judgment. It is a fanning of God’s threshing floor in order to separate the wheat from the chaff, after which the chaff is burned with fire that cannot be quenched.
It is in this fire of God that the earth now stands. From it shall bring the true Saints of God.
To most believers there are two works of grace. The first, known as the born-again experience, includes water baptism. The second work of grace, known as Pentecost, is referred to as the infilling of the Holy Spirit for sanctification.
But the Bible clearly indicates a third work of grace, a baptism of fire so the Father and the Son can come with all the fullness of the Godhead. Jesus says in John 14:23 “If a man love me and keep my words, then will we come and make our abode with him.” Paul says in Eph.3:19 “That we might know the love of God which passes knowledge so that we might be filled with all the fullness of God.”
The believer is instructed to be saved and baptized and then to press into the spiritual fulfillment of resurrection life. It is a wake-up call to live life in the Spirit of God, and not the flesh. This call must take place with the coming of the Lord. His coming, announced by the blowing of trumpets, has begun. It is the beginning of spiritual warfare for our souls and lives. We fight so that we might provide a place for God to rest in us.
The goal of all the works of redemption is God in Christ settling down in rest in us so that we become the eternal Temple of God. Christ is being formed in us and will abide in us in His fullness for all eternity. This makes us an integral part of the invisible God in bodily form, for our bodies are the temple of the Holy Spirit.
The goal of redemption is the construction of the temple in which the Father becomes All in all, first in Christ, then in us and then in the entire universe.
We believe this “spirit of burning” also called the “baptism of fire,” will produce a greater measure of Christ in us than we have thus far experienced. For you see, we must have a greater formation of Christ in us in order for the fullness of the Spirit to operate. We know that the full dwelling of God does not occur until we receive our glorified bodies. But in order for the work of the kingdom to be accomplished now, we must be made ready. And until the self-will and the sin attitudes of our present life are dealt with entirely, we cannot have the final step of our being filled “with all the fullness of God.”
We are in the “Day of Reconciliation,” the day of fire. It is God’s divine judgment upon the church. It is the “slaying” of the old nature that Christ paid the price for so we can walk with God. It is the wounding, and tearing down so the Lord can heal us and construct that which He desires in us. It is the baptism of fire that will eventually reconcile us to the all Consuming Fire which is God.
There is no other way to the rest of God. It is either an eternal fire that will draw us to the Father or a fire that will burn upon us in eternity because we neglected so great a salvation.
Every true believer must experience the chastening hand of God. The one who rejects it becomes a bastard child and God is not his Father. (1 Peter 4:12)
What is this fire? How do you know if you are in it? This fire is a judgment on all that we think, all that we imagine, and all that we speak. It is operating all around us. (Think about it!) the process is painful now, but the result is a pruning of all that is useless and dead – A true day of reconciliation.
How does Paul explain it? (2 Thess. 1:5-8) This suffering is to produce a struggle, like Jacob’s (21 years), to see what life we truly want to be a part of.
Most spirit filled believers think they know all about God until He sends the baptism of fire. Then they get offended at God because He is not nice to them anymore. {If you had a cancerous growth in you, would you want the doctor to pamper you or cut that ugly thing out? It would be painful and sometimes not too nice.} With this baptism it is the same, but the result will be “the peaceable fruit of righteousness.”
(2 Cor. 5:11) “Knowing the terror of the Lord we are made manifest unto God.”
But woe to the ones who make merry in Zion in this hour of reconciling. When God turns His attention toward their present condition, it will be a terrible surprise to those who do not know repentance.
When the Lord shows up in all His splendid glory, coming as a man of war, He will cast out the money-changers. The cleansing always takes place when Jesus comes to His Father’s house.
Malachi 3:1-2 tells us we will forever live in the all-consuming fire of God or we will live in the fires of hell.
Please understand this: the sinner is justified by the blood of the cross, but the purpose of that blood is to bring us before the throne of God so we may find mercy in time of need. The mercy is the sanctifying power of the Spirit to enable us to walk with God in holiness and obedience to the cross so we will continue to be cleansed from all unrighteousness. But if we don’t continue to seek the Lord and obey Him, we come under the fiery separation of judgment.
“Come out from among them and be ye separate saith the Lord and touch not the unclean thing and I will receive you.” (2 Cor. 6:17)
Making a confession of Christ does not mean we are fully reconciled to God. It is only coming out and being separate from the world that makes us eligible to be received by the Lord.
For sinning Christians, the day of Christ will be a terror. The eyes of the Lord are a fire that penetrates our every motive. The question is “Who shall be able to stand in this day?” The answer: “He who walks righteously and speaks uprightly and despises the gain of oppressions, that shakes his hands from holding of bribes, that stops his ears from hearing of blood and shuts his eyes from seeing evil.” (Isa..33:15) This is a requirement.
The prophecy has gone forth. It shall come to pass. The Lord of Hosts is setting apart for Himself a glorious church. The unblemished church will be selected from all groups of Christians. Whoever has ears to hear, let him hear what the Spirit is saying to the churches today!
The glorified church shall be the body of Christ, the eternal Temple of God. It will be filled with all the fullness of the Father and all the Fullness of the Son, and anointed with the Fullness of the Spirit of God.
God will reconcile you to Himself with fire. And when your “warfare has been accomplished” (Isa. 40:2), He will settle you down as a resting-place for eternity.
-Pr. Steve
. . . My calling as a pastor
Pastor’s Journal 2004
Sept. 4: The treasures of heaven are what we put in it. It is not that I was once saved, it is that I am storing up daily my salvation.
Sept. 9: “Come up higher. The mountain of the Lord is expanding and growing. You now live on the mountain of My Temple. You serve Me from the mountain. What once was is now past. You will dwell with Me in My Holy Mountain. Bring the people to the place of worship and service. Allow My holiness to cover you at all times. For nothing that defiles will come near to Me. Intercede for the people that they may come up higher and higher.”
Sept. 10: I repent for responding and taking things personally when people react to what is happening around them. Take the pride, Lord.
Sept. 11: My prayer: For the wisdom of God. For the character of Christ. For the guidance of the Holy Spirit.
Sept. 16: I want to know Christ: The fellowship of His suffering. The power of His resurrection. The presence of His Glory.
Sept. 17: Why does it hurt so much? “I am dealing with your ‘self’. I am right here to see you through this process. Rejoice in the fellowship of My sufferings.”
Sept. 19: Form me in your hand, O God, so that my life can be poured out as an offering for You.
Sept. 21: You shall lift up my head.
Sept. 28: “Do not be distracted by the people who doubt Me. You focus on what is ahead not what is behind. You are climbing higher and higher into My freedom. You will surpass this darkness and come into a clear reckoning of My splendor. It is just ahead of you. I am guiding and directing your steps. You will not fall nor will you fail at My destiny in you. Be strong and take courage. I am in thee.”
Sept. 30: “I have brought you to truth and because you have spoken truth to the people I will come. When I come you will be dumb founded. It will not be what you have thought but far greater. I have made you small in your eyes so you never take Me for granted. It has been and will be about Me. You have presented Me to the people so they will recognize Me when I come.”
Distractions
Luke 21:25-28 (KJV) “And there shall be signs in the sun, and in the moon, and in the stars; and upon the earth distress of nations, with perplexity; the sea and the waves roaring; (26) Men's hearts failing them for fear, and for looking after those things which are coming on the earth: for the powers of heaven shall be shaken. (27) And then shall they see the Son of man coming in a cloud with power and great glory. (28) And when these things begin to come to pass, then look up, and lift up your heads; for your redemption draweth nigh."
In these last days, Christ tells us in verse 26 that there will be many signs of His return. During these times great distractions will come upon mankind. A distraction is great mental distress, diversion, and perplexity. Man will find himself in a daze, meaning confusion, fog, hypnotic state, stupor, or trance.
These distractions come from various avenues: employment, finances, property, relationships and family. In all of these areas, there are five ways we are distracted:
1. Dealing with motives
2. Being a caretaker vs. one who gives the Word of TRUTH - Heb 4:12
3. Reasoning - Mark 2:1-12
4. Dealing with actions and not the root problem
5. Running from problems rather than learning to face them - Heb. 12:1-14
The distractions of this world greatly increase the chances that an individual will have memory loss. “Memory is the process of storing and retrieving information in the brain. The process is central to learning and thinking. Four different types of remembering are ordinarily distinguished by psychologists: recollection, recall, recognition, and relearning. Recollection involves the reconstruction of events or facts on the basis of partial cues, which serve as reminders. Recall is the active and unaided remembering of something from the past. Recognition refers to the ability to correctly identify previously encountered stimuli as familiar. Relearning may show evidence of the effects of memory; material that is familiar is often easier to learn a second time than it would be if it were unfamiliar.” "Memory," Microsoft (R) Encarta. Copyright (c) 1994 Microsoft Corporation. Copyright (c) 1994 Funk & Wagnall's Corporation.
The distractions of this world also greatly increase the chances that an individual will have confusion. Confusion occurs when cognition crosses with the instruction of the Lord through the WORD. Cognition is the process of knowing by way of attention, perception, reasoning, judgment, imagining, thinking, or speech.
The answer to all of this is RENEWING THE MIND. (emphasis added)
Eph 4:20-28 (KJV) “But ye have not so learned Christ; (21) If so be that ye have heard him, and have been taught by him, as the truth is in Jesus: (22) That ye put off concerning the former conversation the old man, which is corrupt according to the deceitful lusts; (23) And be renewed in the spirit of your mind; (24) And that ye put on the new man, which after God is created in righteousness and true holiness. (25) Wherefore putting away lying, speak every man truth with his neighbour: for we are members one of another. (26) Be ye angry, and sin not: let not the sun go down upon your wrath: (27) Neither give place to the devil. (28) Let him that stole steal no more: but rather let him labour, working with his hands the thing which is good, that he may have to give to him that needeth."
2 Cor 10:3-6 (KJV) "For though we walk in the flesh, we do not war after the flesh: (4 )(For the weapons of our warfare are not carnal, but mighty through God to the pulling down of strong holds;) (5) Casting down imaginations, and every high thing that exalteth itself against the knowledge of God, and bringing into captivity every thought to the obedience of Christ; (6) And having in a readiness to revenge all disobedience, when your obedience is fulfilled."
By placing our mind and heart on trusting God, our mind will be at peace.
Isa 26:3 (KJV) “Thou wilt keep him in perfect peace, whose mind is stayed on thee: because he trusteth in thee."
2 Cor 4:8-10 (KJV) "We are troubled on every side, yet not distressed; we are perplexed, but not in despair; (9) Persecuted, but not forsaken; cast down, but not destroyed; (10) Always bearing about in the body the dying of the Lord Jesus, that the life also of Jesus might be made manifest in our body."
His promise for us is that we are not distressed, not in despair, not forsaken and not destroyed in the midst of all of the distractions. Our prayer: Please renew our minds. Come to us today, Lord Jesus. Come.
- Pr. S. Chad Ross
Holiness is for Now
In the modern age, morals alone cannot accurately gauge what it means to be holy, nor is the law of the land an accurate tool to judge what sin is. Although sin is the transgressing of the law, sin is more accurately defined as the opposite of holiness. God hates the sin, but He loves the people, so by His goodness He sends His Holy Word to lead us to repentance. Our acts of properly responding to God’s goodness are all that can make us holy.
Psa 51:2-3 (KJV) “Wash me throughly from mine iniquity, and cleanse me from my sin. (3) For I acknowledge my transgressions: and my sin [is] ever before me.”
An example of the word of God bringing a man to repentance was noted when Nathan the prophet brought the word of the Lord to King David, concerning his behavior with Bathsheba, and the murder of her husband. Although King David repented there were still lasting consequences that resulted because of the sinful acts that he had committed. The Lord does not wish that His people always have to learn by the road of hard knocks, but rather that we would come to Him and allow Him to change us daily so that we may walk in the beauty of holiness.
Jer 17:9-10 (KJV) “The heart [is] deceitful above all [things], and desperately wicked: who can know it? (10) I the LORD search the heart, [I] try the reins, even to give every man according to his ways, [and] according to the fruit of his doings.”
Many people say, “Just follow your heart, it won’t let you down”. That is one of the great lies from the abyss. We cannot follow our hearts and expect to walk in holiness. Rather, we need to follow Jesus Christ by the leading of His Holy Spirit. That can only happen when we face the fact that we are not automatically holy. Every day brings new opportunities to find the holiness of the Lord for every part of our lives. If that were not so, then we would not need a Savior.
1Ch 16:29 (KJV) “Give unto the LORD the glory [due] unto his name: bring an offering, and come before him: worship the LORD in the beauty of holiness.”
God knows that the true beauty is not only found in the eye of the beholder, but is beheld by all when His saints offer their lives unto Him by doing that which is pleasing in His sight. Doing so lifts the Lord up. It sounds the standards of God in the earth and causes others to come unto Him.
Rom 8:4-8 (KJV) “That the righteousness of the law might be fulfilled in us, who walk not after the flesh, but after the Spirit. (5) For they that are after the flesh do mind the things of the flesh; but they that are after the Spirit the things of the Spirit. (6) For to be carnally minded [is] death; but to be spiritually minded [is] life and peace. (7) Because the carnal mind [is] enmity against God: for it is not subject to the law of God, neither indeed can be. (8) So then they that are in the flesh cannot please God.”
Let’s not be deceived by our own hearts, nor cause others to be deceived by our folly. Let us rather live unto the Lord as those who believe and demonstrate that holiness is for now.
-Kurt Thurston
Arise-Become-Build and Shine-part 3 of 3
(Amplified Bible)
As we mature toward the fullness of Christ’s image within and among us, we become increasingly bright reflectors of Him Who is the Light of the world. Within that light is life itself, for “In Him was Life, and the Life was the Light of men” {John 1:4}. To those who follow His Light, Jesus continues to speak: “You are the light of the world. A city set on a hill cannot be hidden. Nor do men light a lamp and put it under a peck measure, but on a lampstand, and it gives light to all in the house. Let your light so shine before men that they may see your moral excellence and your praiseworthy, noble, and good deeds and recognize and honor and praise and glorify your Father Who is in heaven” {Matt 5:14-16}. In other words, He urges us to let our lives so reflect the light of His life that others witness a righteousness that contradicts and puts to shame any life outside of His. Thus it is that He continues to shine through those who yield themselves to the fire of God, allowing the radiance of the Christ-life to replace that of the old self-life. Through us as bearers of the Gospel, not only in words, but also in power and demonstration, “…the Light shines on in the darkness” {John 1:5}.
Moses and Eli represent two Old Testament examples of the contrast between those whose spiritual eyes shine with clear vision and those whose spiritual eyes are dim. Of the former it is written: “Moses was 120 years old when he died; his eye was not dim nor his natural force abated” {Deu 34:7}. But of the latter we read: “Now Eli was 98 years old; his eyes were dim so that he could not see” {I Sam 4:15}. For one’s eyes to shine with spiritual vision indicates radiance, hope, understanding and revelation. But dimness of spiritual vision signifies lack of revelation because of perception that is indistinct, cloudy and shadowy. What sadness God must have endured as he beheld the compromising manner in which Eli demonstrated his priestly call. Even as Jeremiah grieved over the ruin of Jerusalem, so God must grieve over all the lost potential of those who fall short of their promise in Christ. For as with Jesus the Son, the Father desires that all his sons reflect the brightness of Christ’s glory. For those who do not, He continues to weep with Jeremiah: “How the gold has become dim! How the most pure gold has changed! The hallowed stones [of the temple] are poured out at the head of every street. The noble and precious sons of Zion, [once] worth their weight in fine gold—how they are esteemed [merely] as earthen pots or pitchers… “ {Lam 4:1-2}.
To the remnant, the Father continues to urge: “Arise [from the depression and prostration in which circumstances have kept you—rise to a new life]! Shine (be radiant with the glory of the Lord), for your light has come, and the glory of the Lord has risen upon you!” {Isa 60:1} As His glory progressively arises within us, we become more luminous, more shining, more glowing and more radiant. That we may increase in manifesting His radiance, the apostle Paul provides a brief list of some of the negative heart attitudes which expose themselves through our words and which prevent the light of Christ from shining forth through us: “Do all things without grumbling and faultfinding and complaining [against God] and questioning and doubting [among yourselves], That you may show yourselves to be blameless and guileless, innocent and uncontaminated, children of God without blemish (faultless, unrebukable) in the midst of a crooked and wicked generation [spiritually perverted and perverse], among whom you are seen as bright lights (stars or beacons shining out clearly] in the [dark] world” {Phil 2:14-15}.
Of himself, Paul writes that God “had chosen and set me apart [even] before I was born and had called me by His grace…To reveal (unveil, disclose) His Son within me so that I might proclaim Him…” {Gal 1:16). Desirous of demonstrating as well as heralding the Gospel, Paul doubtless identified and repented of any dark spots which the Holy Spirit revealed that his life might so follow Christ’s as to manifest the very character and nature of his Lord. May we so follow that we so shine.
-Ruth French
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