Christian Fellowship
“That I may publish with the voice of thanksgiving...” Psalm 26:7
Vol. 22, No. 4 April 2013
Prayer is our communion and fellowship with the Father. Each day we must spend time in prayer for our faith to be increased, for our protection in times of trouble, and for our health and well-being. I believe the Lord will take care of us and meet all our needs as we give ourselves whole-heartedly to Him. We must maintain a level of strength that sustains us through the darkness until God brings us through.
There is such a low tolerance for evil we just get used to it and expect it to affect us like it is no big deal. But it is a big deal. We cannot allow evil to have any affect over our walk or our decision making. Our lives are in Christ Jesus. He is the great deliverer. He wants us to live in freedom and joy and peace no matter what happens in the world.
None of this will happen unless we are giving ourselves over to prayer with the Lord. Look at this verse with me: 2Ch 14:7 (KJV) Therefore he said unto Judah, …because we have sought the LORD our God, we have sought him, and he hath given us rest on every side. So they built and prospered.
Do you see the outcome of seeking the Lord in prayer? Every time Israel sought the Lord, God blessed them. Oh, that we might seek the Lord continually and we will have deliverance and strength to carry on. And we will have rest from our enemies and from the evil that is growing.
2Ch 15:2 The LORD is with you, while ye be with him; and if ye seek him, he will be found of you; but if ye forsake him, he will forsake you.
Spend time in PRAYER!
In Christ,
Pr. Steve
Overcoming Personality
Rev 19:1 (KJV) “And after these things I heard a great voice of much people in heaven, saying, Alleluia; Salvation, and glory, and honour, and power, unto the Lord our God:”
Just before the Lord’s return, His Glory will come upon His elect – Jews & Gentiles alike. When it does, great fear will fall upon the people because they will know the end is upon them. Then will this verse be fulfilled. So what do we do in the meantime? We prepare, prepare, prepare.
Do you know that Jesus Christ has enough power that with one word He could remove our sinful nature and our sicknesses? If He chose to do so, every person would be affected. One false concept is that God is not a good God because if He were good He would not allow the suffering in this world. Why do we want to blame God instead of sin and the devil? We have to believe that God is not only good, but that He wants to bless mankind. If we don’t keep our eyes on the goodness of the Lord, we are of no use to anyone else. If we don’t deal with our murmuring and complaining about even the little things, we cannot be a lasting encouragement to anyone else.
Some people want to be miserable today. If they didn’t, they would stay where God is and escape the chaos all around.
The Bible says to “exhort one another daily” (Heb.3:13). Why? So you won’t be deceived. Satan is trying to get our eyes off the Lord and onto his ways of operating through deceit and animosity.
I firmly believe that all things are working together for my good because I am in the will and purpose of God. I am lifted up with Christ Jesus while the world remains in the valley of the shadow of death. Christ could remove all the evil in the world with one word of His power. But He has a reason for not doing so: TO CREATE OTHERS IN HIS IMAGE.
There are two operations going on in our personality that He has to perform over a period of time. In order to accomplish these, Christ uses three elements:
- His Divine Nature
- Our cooperation
- Evil in our flesh and in the world
When Christ has no more need of the evil in the world, He will remove it by the exercise of His Word. Two things must take place: Destruction of the self-will and the creation of His Divine nature in us which includes an unshakable determination to do God’s will.
Both sickness and the sinful nature that dwells in our flesh can be cast out; but the destruction of our self-will and the impartation of the Divine Nature in us can be accomplished only as we experience obedience, pressure, suffering and the passing of time.
The first part of the destruction of our self-will is accomplished through suffering. For this reason the Lord commands us to take up our cross, deny ourselves and follow Him each day. Each of us has a cross. If we are faithful throughout our lifetime, that cross will destroy the self-will.
The cross is operating when we don’t get what we want immediately and have to remain in some prison of denial or aggravation. The cross is extremely difficult for Americans because we want everything and we want it now. We think happiness is next to godliness. Many believe it is our right to be happy and that is what we live for. But until we submit to unpleasant circumstances, we will never give up our self-will. We will not be ready for the first resurrection, and we will not be a part of the royal priesthood. It is more important to determine to overcome every obstacle of this life than to seek to be happy in this present world.
Many Christians of today who once fought their way in the path of righteousness by seeking godliness have now settled back into the familiar place of relaxation. This regression opens the way for them to fall into deception that comes from God because they have let go of the love of the truth (2 Thss.2:10). In other words, they have become complacent with their walk and no longer fight against the attacks of Satan. No development or change in their personality is taking place. No image of Christ is being developed.
If we are going to be changed, we must patiently endure uncomfortable circumstances for the destruction of the self-will. If we try to avoid unpleasantness, we will sacrifice our integrity. Like Ananias and Sapphira in Acts 5:1-11, we will have held back part of the price of the land. People may not be able to discern the game we are playing, but spiritual blindness is the result.
Those who follow the Lamb wherever He goes have the lies and the guile (craftiness) removed from their personality by the imprisonments they endure while in this world.
So the first operation that must be performed if we are to be changed into the image of Christ is the destruction of our self-will. The second operation is the creation of the Divine Nature in us.
That is the nature of God that dwells in Jesus Christ. It must be formed in us if we are to be a brother of Christ.
God has given us His Word.
He has given us the body and blood of Christ.
We have the Holy Spirit and the born-again experience.
We have been given gifts and ministries of the Holy Spirit.
WHY? To form Christ in us! Not to live so we can escape hell.
If we are to have the Divine Nature, then patience is being formed in us along with courage and faithfulness. These are developed as we fight against the evil in the world and in our flesh. It would be so much easier if we were free from all forms of wickedness, i.e. if we had no more demonic forces attacking us from within and without.
- But muscle is formed by pushing against resistance.
- Patience is formed as we endure tribulation.
- Courage is developed as we keep on doing what we are supposed to do even though we do not feel comfortable.
- Faithfulness is perfected as we refuse to turn away from God no matter how painful, and confusing our circumstances.
There is a reason the Lord does not remove the works of Satan from us. He is using the spiritual darkness to force our self-wills from us and to create the Divine Nature in us – to build us up for SURVIVAL AND VICTORY. Remember, Jesus learned obedience to God by the things that He suffered in this present world.
Once this process is complete to the satisfaction of the Father, He will release His glory. If we want the glory, then we are going to have to accept His “ways” and follow them completely. While many are looking for the “acts” of God—thinking, for example, that “revival” is His glory, we must continue to seek His ways, and then the glory will be ours.
Never fret against the ways of God. Fretting is unprofitable. Embrace the way the Lord takes you. Fretting leads to rebellion against God. Simply acknowledge His goodness, His wisdom, and His power.
No matter what happens in our lifetime, Christ sits as King of the floods (Psm.29:10). He holds the keys of hell and death. He knows everything that is and is to come, including the smallest details of our life. No matter what happens to the world or even to America, the Lord Jesus Christ will take care of all who are willing to turn aside from following their own way. No harm comes to those who trust in the Lord.
Psa 37:3-4 (KJV) “Trust in the LORD, and do good; [so] shalt thou dwell in the land, and verily thou shalt be fed. (4) Delight thyself also in the LORD; and he shall give thee the desires of thine heart.”
-Pr. Steve
I am going to be sharing with you thoughts from my journal over the past few years. This is to show you how the Lord has brought about His Word in my life to minister to you and to show you how real this walk can be. Please read and understand by the Spirit about ...
. . . My calling as a pastor
Pastor’s Journal 2012
Apr 2: May my heart take courage as I wait upon God.
Apr 3: For the Lord will vindicate his people and have compassion on his servants. (Psm 135:14)
Apr 6: The Lord says, “Let us come together to judgment. I am the first, and I am the last. Encourage one another, and help everyone. Thou art my servant. I have chosen you and not passed you away. Fear not; for I am with you; be not dismayed; for I am your God; I will strengthen you and harden you to difficulties. I will uphold you with the right hand of my righteousness.”
Apr 7: Don’t be taken in by every word you hear. Don’t be offended when you don’t understand or agree. “A man’s wisdom gives him patience; it is to his glory to overlook an offense.” (Pro 19:11)
Apr 9: How priceless is your unfailing love. You give drink from your river of delights. For with you is the fountain of life. So drink from the fountain!
Apr 13: To live in unbroken fellowship with God the Father and the Lamb is my daily prayer. I ask for restoration of all the enemy has stolen. I look for the fullness of our time to enjoy God of my salvation and never to be ashamed. For the glory of the Lord shall cover the earth. PTL!
Apr. 14: Therefore will the Lord wait, that he may be gracious unto you (Isa 30:18)
The Lord is good unto them that wait for Him (Lam 3:25)
Apr 16: Let your faith rise to a level of expecting and; as you wait on Me, your expectation will come to pass.
Apr 23: I will not die but live, and will proclaim what the Lord has done. The Lord has chastened me severely, but he has not given me over to death. I will give thanks to the Lord. (Psm 118: 17-18, 21)
Apr 26: Do not fear, for I am with you; do not be dismayed for I am your God. I will strengthen you and help you; I will uphold you with my righteous right hand. (Isa 41:16)
Apr 28: Gaze upon the Lord continually – let nothing interfere with your focus.
Humble Hearts
When we seek God with a reverent attitude and total honesty, something happens in both the natural and the spiritual realms because God always does things that are greater and deeper than we could ever ask for. We already know, because the Bible says so, that He is touched by our infirmities and that He is not so far away that He cannot hear and feel our needs. But do we yet know what it takes to reach God’s heart?
Jas 4:6-8 (KJV) “But he giveth more grace. Wherefore he saith, God resisteth the proud, but giveth grace unto the humble. (7) Submit yourselves therefore to God. Resist the devil, and he will flee from you. (8) Draw nigh to God, and he will draw nigh to you. Cleanse your hands, ye sinners; and purify your hearts, ye double minded.”
One might say, “I know that I am proud; but I want to change and be humble.” If that is true for you, it might help to know that just as dark is simply the absence of light, so pride is simply the absence of humility. A famous writer once said; “To be or not to be, that is the question.” And still there is the question of how to be humble. We have the answers if we want to believe God and take Him at His Word. For in His Word are all things that pertain to life and godliness, so we can start by reading, by living, and by becoming what His Word says.
Pro 16:17-19 (KJV) “The highway of the upright is to depart from evil: he that keepeth his way preserveth his soul. (18) Pride goeth before destruction, and an haughty spirit before a fall. (19) Better it is to be of an humble spirit with the lowly, than to divide the spoil with the proud.”
As Christians we know that God is with us; but unless we acknowledge Him in everything that we do, we will not be able to distinguish His constant interventions properly. The problem is not necessarily our ignoring Him, but rather our giving ourselves too much credit by leaning on our own understanding. How often we think we have arrived or succeeded without really needing Him, thereby failing to recognize that in reality we can do nothing correctly without Him. It is not that we don’t have to take responsibility for doing our part, but rather our forgetting that He is always there to guide and assist. For example, as we first learned to ride bicycles with the training wheels on them, when the bike would lean a bit to one side or the other, the off-riggers would keep it steady. We also quickly realized the consequences of being overly confident and undisciplined when we dared to break out past the known limitations as we ended up with the bike on its side, along with scrapes and bumps and bruises on our bodies. When you fail, fall, get back up, and do what is right next time. I’ve heard it said that, “A man can fail many times but he isn’t a failure until he blames somebody else.” So we must keep a humble heart that is willing to change instead of blame.
Rom 8:28 (KJV) “And we know that all things work together for good to them that love God, to them who are the called according to his purpose.”
The Lord does not object to our setting goals in life; in fact, He desires to give us the desires that drive those goals. If we humbly seek Him for guidance, our goals will always line up with His purposes and His plans for our lives, and our roads will be those leading us into life everlasting. Trust in the Lord with all of your heart, and lean not upon your own understanding, by humbling yourselves, therefore, under the mighty hand of God, that he may exalt you in due time.
-Dr. Kurt Thurston
Quotes
"Before God uses the man, God breaks the man."
-C.H. Spurgeon
"The highway of Christian living is strewn with has-beens."
-Leonard Ravenhill
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