Christian Fellowship
“That I may publish with the voice of thanksgiving...” Psalm 26:7
Vol. 22, No. 6 June 2013
We must have a fresh infilling of the Holy Spirit in our lives on a daily basis. We must ask Him for this and then expect Him to fall upon us like fresh oil. This is an anointing to carry us through the struggle and difficulties of life. I cannot imagine what my life would be without the anointing of the Holy Spirit. And I don’t want to find out.
This is not something we wait for when we come to church. Yes, coming to church enhances it. But we should desire this every day. The Lord wants us to be anointed so our words and our actions can offer the life of Jesus to the outside world. We can’t touch people with our carnal nature. That doesn’t offer anything except more of the same thing they already have.
People need the anointing of Christ for their lives. We have it. We have the Holy Spirit. So let us give that which we have. The more you give, the more that will be given to you. You will never run out as long as you keep seeking the Lord above everything else in your life.
How much longer will people be satisfied with that which is temporary? People are agitated enough today. We must come to live in the peace and rest of God. That only comes through the anointing of the Holy Spirit.
I don’t believe people are going to be content any longer with the superficial. It is time for God to pour out His Spirit upon all flesh. People are going to be blessed with the Presence of God among us once again.
Let us turn away from the things of this world and call out for this anointing upon our lives.
Act 3:19 Repent ye therefore, and be converted, that your sins may be blotted out, when the times of refreshing shall come from the presence of the Lord;
In Christ,
Pr. Steve
ROAD TO LIFE
Mat 7:13-14 (KJV) “Enter ye in at the strait gate: for wide is the gate, and broad is the way, that leadeth to destruction, and many there be which go in thereat: (14) Because strait is the gate, and narrow is the way, which leadeth unto life, and few there be that find it.”
There is a gate that opens to the road that leads to eternal life. The gate is small. The road is narrow. Only a few people find that gate and walk on that road. We often speak about making a decision for Christ and being baptized with the Holy Spirit as "getting saved." The truth is these compose the "small gate." That gate is Christ and you have to look carefully to find it.
There is a door and that door is Christ and that door is a continual consistent door of repentance that finally leads to eternal life. Receiving the blood atonement gives us the authority to enter into that door of life. Receiving the Spirit of God gives us the wisdom and power to find the door. It is the way that leads to life. That way is a road of life. Our salvation in Christ depends on going through the door, the gate, but also on traveling the road.
The seven churches of Asia are the most important revelations to the churches. They show us how to travel the road that leads to life.
The rewards to the overcomer are gained by us through Christ as we overcome the problems of each day. The rewards are additions to our personality as we overcome. They are steps to the Throne of God and to the attaining of the first resurrection from among the dead.
Rev 2:8 (KJV) “And unto the angel of the church in Smyrna write; These things saith the first and the last, which was dead, and is alive;”
This road is one of discipleship. The Lord Jesus appears to the angel of the church of Smyrna as "the first and the last, which was dead and is alive." This is because the challenge facing the believers in Smyrna was one of continuing in the faith of discipleship.
He who began a good work in them would finish the work. Christ is the First and the Last. He died but came back to life again. YOU MAY BE GOING THROUGH A TERRIFIC CHALLENGE. Your future may seem bleak. But Christ will finish to perfection what He began in your life if you remain faithful to God's call. DON'T FORGET THAT!
Christ understood their afflictions. He didn't tell them they could escape their afflictions if they had enough faith. Christ told them something more valuable: "I know your afflictions, your tribulations and your poverty." Do not think for one minute that He has forgotten you.
To listen to some preaching today, you would think it was a sin to be poor. It is not! The Gospel is to the poor. God gives His Kingdom to the poor. This is why America has floundered in her relationship with the Lord. Her wealth has replaced the gospel message.
We do all we can to make a living. But if you have it and you are not sharing it, then you can be cursed by the god of this world that keeps you from experiencing God. If we have enough to eat and enough clothes to wear, we are blessed indeed. The Bible says those who would be rich pierce themselves through with many sorrows.
But Jesus said to the church of Smyrna that they were rich. They were rich in faith, rich in the Presence of God, rich in the peace of God, and rich in the favor of God. These, not money, and materialism, are the true riches.. The approval of God and the love and affection of our family and friends are the true riches.
Rev 2:9 (KJV) “I know thy works, and tribulation, and poverty, (but thou art rich) and I know the blasphemy of them which say they are Jews, and are not, but are the synagogue of Satan.”
The believers in Smyrna were being slandered by others. It is not unusual for those who profess to be Christians to spend their time criticizing what is true and holy. Why people feel the need to do this is beyond me. But one thing is for sure: The Lord knows everything that is being said about you. The slander is coming from Satan. He is looking for an excuse to stop you. But the Lord tells us not to fear any of these accusations, nor to be afraid what may happen (Vrs.10).
While the Lord can prevent the suffering and imprisonment, He often chooses not to because the Father has given Satan some rights over us as a way of sifting our personality.
Adam and Eve could have been warned about Satan -- to watch out for him – but they weren’t. Sometimes the Lord allows us to go through very painful circumstances that will do us good in the long run. We suffer persecution to test us. Christ's response is to pray for us. God, not Satan, is in control of our testing.
If we are to walk the road to eternal life, we must always resist the temptation to take matters into our own hands.
You say, “How long do I have to stay in this situation?" As long as is necessary in God's eyes! In order to get the full benefit, you must be faithful to the point of death. You must put your hopes beyond the grave. You must deposit your treasures in heaven.
If you don't, if you insist on your own way, you will never follow the road that leads to life; and you will stop going through the door of repentance which is Christ.
Listen to me! If you do not stay faithfully with God, trusting Him to bring you forth, you will never rule with Christ, for this testing by fire is how crowns are formed.
If we follow Christ to the extent that we pass from the ranks of the called to the ranks of the chosen, we then must be proven faithful. Those who are with Him are called, chosen, and faithful.
How do we walk this road of life? We find out what God is requiring of us. The answer may come through preaching, through reading the Word, or from experience.
But the important issue is one of repentance. The road to life is one of continual repentance. Not continual guilt or condemnation or depression or sorrow or gloominess, but continual repentance.
To repent is to make up your mind to do God's will, to turn away from your own way, and to go in God's direction. Repentance is not the same as feeling sorry you sinned. Repentance is an act of the will. "Choose you this day to serve the Lord."
The reason people do not get delivered today is that they don't repent forcefully enough. You have to repent with all your might, letting the devil and God know you have made up your mind to do God's will.
If you can't find in the depths of your soul that you really want to quit what you are doing, then ask for strength to repent. Ask for others to pray with you. Pray, pray, pray until you are desperate enough to let go.
Our attitudes keep us from the will of God. That is why we continually repent, turning from what we are doing. Christ gives us the strength to repent.
Perhaps we would rather take matters into our own hands. We are not content with our present situation. There is something we want or something we want to escape from: Isa 50:10-11 (KJV) “Who is among you that feareth the LORD, that obeyeth the voice of his servant, that walketh in darkness, and hath no light? let him trust in the name of the LORD, and stay upon his God. (11) Behold, all ye that kindle a fire, that compass yourselves about with sparks: walk in the light of your fire, and in the sparks that ye have kindled. This shall ye have of mine hand; ye shall lie down in sorrow.”
God is asking us to trust in Him and to rely upon Him. God is not happy when we light up our own fires and then walk in our own light. The end is torment.
All who are called to rulership are called to suffering. The cross and the crown go together. THIS IS HOW WE WALK THE ROAD TO ETERNAL LIFE:
(1) We are challenged by the Lord. (2)We repent, by turning to Him for direction. (3) We develop a crown of life. (4) We are prepared to rule with Him.
Are you trying to be happy in this present life or are you laying up treasures in Heaven? Every day that we are repenting we are adding rewards to our personality. This is the road to the Throne of Christ.
Have you found the gate? Have you gone through the door? Are you walking the road to life? If so, never, never quit. Do not light up your darkness with fires of your own making. Wait on God.
Will you take matters into your own hands so you can enjoy the fun of this world? Or will you patiently bear your cross on the road to eternal life until you hear, "Well done!" by Jesus?
Make the choice and pray, "GOD, HELP ME TO HOLD STEADY TO THE END." God is faithful and He will do it. He will walk with you hand in hand on the narrow road that leads to eternal life.
-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
Jun 1: You are a blessed man. I am not through with you yet. There are still many blessings to come forth. You will live and see the fullness of My Word to your heart. Do not fear what man may do. Your dignity will be lifted high in honor as you live a righteous life. Enjoy Me and live.
Jun 5: May the whole earth be filled with His glory (Psm 72:19)
Jun 11: Exercise your mind throughout the day on My Word and keep your thoughts on Me. The battle is on for the minds of My people. This is how the enemy defeats people. And it is getting more difficult and will increase if you don’t exercise it properly. Thou wilt keep him in perfect peace whose mind is stayed on thee. (Isa 26:3)
Jun 12: Kindness of the Lord.
Jun 13: Christ loved the church and gave himself up for her to make her holy, cleansing her by the washing with water through the Word. (Eph 5: 25-26)
Jun 14: The Spirit of God is the Spirit of God’s holiness. There cannot be healing and restoration except by the fresh filling of the Spirit of God. It is the Spirit of God that works the faith that releases the power to heal.
Jun 16: If I yield myself completely to God in prayer, prayer can overcome a life in the flesh and the practice of sin. Prayer is what keeps one constantly in fellowship with God. There is the power--prayer has to take possession of our whole life.
Jun 18: Unto You be all the GLORY!
Jun 19: The Lord is near all who call on Him, to all who call on Him in truth. (Psm 145:18)
Jun 21: Whoever finds Me finds life and receives favor from the Lord. (Pro 8:35)
Jun 23: Judgment punishes sin, while mercy saves the sinner. Judgment prepares the way for mercy. Wait on God’s mercy. Mercy triumphs over judgment.
Jun 25: The desires of the righteous end in good. (Pro 11:23)
Jun 28: The king’s heart is in the hand of the Lord; he directs it like a watercourse wherever he pleases. (Pro 21:1)
Jun 30: We have the sentence of death in ourselves that we should not trust in ourselves, but in God which raises the dead (so we will always rely upon the Lord). 2 Cor 1:9
Fear of Judgment
Jer 46:28 (KJV) “Fear thou not, O Jacob my servant, saith the LORD: for I am with thee…”
In the Holy Bible, “Fear not” is written sixty-two times, and “Thou shall not fear” is written fourteen times as well. In addition, many other references occur concerning the fact that God does not want His people to be fearful.
1Jn 4:17-19 (KJV) “Herein is our love made perfect, that we may have boldness in the day of judgment: because as he is, so are we in this world. (18) There is no fear in love; but perfect love casteth out fear: because fear hath torment. He that feareth is not made perfect in love. (19) We love him, because he first loved us.”
Adam and Eve had not experienced fear until they were disobedient to God in the Garden of Eden. As a result, their sins affected the relationship that they had with Him. Many Christians today live with habitual sinning as a part of their lifestyle; and even though they know it is wrong, they still profess that their relationship with God is good. At the very least they are deceived; but with deception and disobedience, there are always repercussions and consequences.
1Ti 5:20 (KJV) “Them that sin rebuke before all, that others also may fear.”
We must not cheapen the grace of God! Jesus Christ suffered and died so that we would not have to be slaves to sin! His sacrifice was not given to take away the commandments against sinning. It is the Christians’ relationship with God that is affected when we walk in the darkness of sin. God desires that we would seek Him, confess our weaknesses to Him, and walk with Him until our hearts are changed and we are living overcomers through Christ as He strengthens us.
Rom 8:12-16 (KJV) “Therefore, brethren, we are debtors, not to the flesh, to live after the flesh. (13) For if ye live after the flesh, ye shall die: but if ye through the Spirit do mortify the deeds of the body, ye shall live. (14) For as many as are led by the Spirit of God, they are the sons of God. (15) For ye have not received the spirit of bondage again to fear; but ye have received the Spirit of adoption, whereby we cry, Abba, Father. (16) The Spirit itself beareth witness with our spirit, that we are the children of God:”
Christians should always be growing towards and growing in relationship with our Heavenly Father through Jesus Christ our Lord. Still, many “Christians,” live a sinful lifestyle and are quick to say, “Don’t judge me!” But in reality, they should be judging themselves. Nobody likes to be judged; but while there is no escape from being judged, when we judge ourselves and then deal with the necessary changes, others will not be able to judge us.
1Co 11:31 (KJV) “For if we would judge ourselves, we should not be judged.”
-Kurt Thurston
QUOTES:
"The victorious Christian neither exalts nor downgrades himself. His interests have shifted from self to Christ. What he is or is not no longer concerns him. He believes that he has been crucified with Christ and he is not willing either to praise or deprecate such a man."
-A.W. Tozer
"Denying ourselves and taking up our cross isn't a little side issue
-- it is absolutely necessary to becoming or continuing to become a disciple of Jesus."
- John Wesley
"This life is a dressing room for eternity - THAT'S ALL IT IS!"
-Leonard Ravenhill
Next course from Christian Life Educators Network - Richmond Center:
Summer Break! Classes Resume in August
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