Walking by faith or sight?

For we walk by faith, not by sight. (2 Corinthians 5:7)

Here, God’s way and man’s way is juxtaposed: God’s way is we walk by faith, and man’s way is to walk by sight: by the five physical senses. Walking or living by faith is God’s way. The natural man resists God’s way and prefers his own way, and then, in religion, man walking by sight means man always has to have something to see: a temple, statues, pictures, crosses, bells and smells, guys dressed up in costumes, a large congregation, a band, etc. …. this is all a manifestation of man’s natural inclination and desire to walk by sight and not by faith, and he mistakes it for faith when it’s not faith at all.

De-mythologizing the church, and empowering the body of Christ

I’m sure every member of the church, the body of Christ, cannot be fully empowered to serve the body unless the truth sets them free from a man-made mythology concerning what the church is and how it should function: before construction there must be deconstruction, to build on the right foundation.

Now, the key is simplicity: God’s objectives for His people gathering together (church) are very simple. Always know what God’s objectives are for the gathering, the assembly, and do them. Make a distinction between God’s objectives and man’s selfish objectives or agenda, and reject the latter.

The objective of any church gathering is encapsulated in these two verses:

“But speaking the truth in love, may grow up into him in all things, which is the head, even Christ: From whom the whole body fitly joined together and compacted by that which every joint supplieth [every person] according to the effectual working in the measure of every part, maketh increase of the body unto the edifying of itself in love.”
(Ephesians 4:15-16)

Access granted

In Christ Jesus you’re never, ever without access to all the resources of Heaven.

Believing and doing

In Scripture there’s never a distinction made between believing and doing. Baptism is a prime example of this. When God sees a person who refuses baptism, the only possible explanation for this is they don’t believe, no matter what they profess with their mouth. The hypocrite always demands his “faith” be separated from what he does, but the honest person never makes a distinction between what they believe and what they do. If I don’t pray it’s because I don’t believe and don’t love God, but the hypocrite always self-justifies and rationalizes his position: “Yeah, I don’t pray, but I still have my faith!” so, in trying to separate his “faith” from his actions he has deceived himself.

Plurality

And we beseech you, brethren, to know them which labour among you, and are over you in the Lord, and admonish you; And to esteem them very highly in love for their work’s sake. And be at peace among yourselves.
(I Thessalonians 5:12-13)

Look at the plurals here: “…WE beseech you…” : Who’s “we”? The apostles. The apostles are united as one voice.

And, “…to know THEM which labor among you…” “…esteem THEM very highly…” : In other words, there will never be a hierarchy: never one man over you in the Lord, you will never be answerable to one pastor/elder, but to several of them, jointly.

An interesting church

Get Charles Spurgeon, John Wesley, George Whitefield, Aiden Tozer and Billy Graham together for church in someone’s living room, what would the meeting be like, how may it unfold? Who’s going to be their “pastor”? Who’s going to lead the worship? Who will decide the “program”? They probably would dispense with all that stuff and just be REAL together, as brothers. And that’s how church was always supposed to be.

Neutral on Christmas

On Christmas, i’ve decided i’m neither for it or against it, decided to be neutral about it, so i’m glad for the Christmas wishes i receive from lovely folk, but also don’t feel any obligation to celebrate the day.

Repost from 2 years ago

The kindest thing we could say about modern Christianity is to simply say that the first century church showed us a higher way than the way we inherited from Christendom. It’s up to us to choose.

When He closes a door

When the Lord closes a door it’s equally a cause for rejoicing as when He opens one. He closed the door because He loves you too much to see you go the wrong way.

Origin of the Catholic Church

Was doing a little research into the origins of the Catholic Church. There is little reliable historical information as to the exact beginnings of it. Some say Constantine (AD 272–337) was the first Pope and therefore the Catholic Church began with him, but this is only partly true. As the first “Christian” (using the term rather loosely) emperor he signaled the change which gave birth to the monolithic religious organization known as the Catholic Church. While Constantine was never a Pope, never the Bishop of Rome (and by the way, the office of a regional “Bishop” is an invention of man, not Biblical) he increased the power and prestige of the office of the Bishop of Rome, developing the mythology of the preeminence and primacy of the Bishop of Rome over all other Bishops and churches. The concept of primacy, a seat of power, is pure fantasizing, not a shred of Biblical support to such a notion. Even during the reign of Constantine, Christmas had not yet been invented, the Romans still observed Saturnalia around December 25. So, we can’t credit Constantine for creating Christmas or the Papacy or the Catholic Church however he was the turning point which paved the way for these things to evolve. The evolving concept of the primacy of the Bishop of Rome during the third century heralds the origin of the Catholic Church during that period. Christianity had been flourishing across Europe and other parts of the world for three centuries before there was a Catholic Church.

Worldliness

Worldliness is more about not taking time to pray and wait on God than it is about your style of clothes.

Instant Forgiveness

Instantly forgiving others is the constant and perpetual fruit of a Christian. There’s never a justification for not instantly forgiving.

Extending grace will never hurt us or cause us to lose anything, and how funny of us to think it ever could.

The Book of Job

Though it’s authorship has been lost to antiquity, its divine authorship is revealed in its inspired nature, and it has spoken powerfully to every generation since it was written. God finds no fault with Job at all. God allows the devil to test Job’s patience, to prove he follows God for who He is and not just for the benefits. Job’s friends assume God must be punishing Job for self-righteousness, as Job protests he is not suffering for any wrong he has done. At the end God still justifies Job, saying he did not sin during his time of testing, he passed the test, however God explains to Job (and to us) that He is to be trusted no matter how much we suffer, and it’s God’s prerogative to be God. God was the author of Job’s suffering, not Job and not the devil, but God cannot be blamed or accused for allowing suffering, as if He did something wrong by allowing it, so God is Sovereign over all but He is not to be blamed or accused of doing wrong in the hard things He allows to happen, for if He allows His beloved ones to suffer for righteousness it is for a good reason. God finally gives Job twice as much as before. Look at it from the perspective that the time of Job’s trial was only a short period of his long and blessed life. Perhaps Job would say, it was worth it.

Wait

If you go to meet with God and no prayer comes forth, just wait, patiently wait on God, and soon enough prayer and worship will rise from your spirit.

Something of what God is like

When you pray for others you are experiencing something of what God is like.

God gives us friends, then calls us to be faithful in interceding for them.

One Man

There is only one Man who can change men’s lives.

Why we don’t quote heretics

“Even when a heretic speaks truth it still remains the truth” True, BUT it is unethical to quote any true statements a heretic may make because it endorses the heretic, thus causing others to stumble, and dishonors God. How does it dishonor God? Well, when satan makes a true statement will you quote him just because that particular statement is true? No? Why not? …it’s still true, isn’t it? The reason you wouldn’t do that is out of respect for God.

Priests

We are priests (1 Peter 2:9). Priests approach God not just for themselves, but on behalf of others.

Diagnosis

Diagnosis is good if we are healers, otherwise it’s strife.

Help from God

Help from God is better than the whole world helping you, the friendship of God better than the friendship of the whole world.