Reblogged from Christ In Us...:

Reblogged from Christ In Us...:

Reblogged from Christ In Us...:

Reblogged from Christ In Us...:

  *Derek Prince outlines four vital facts that are of vital importance for everyone who claims to be an authentic Believer/Disciple of the Lord Jesus Christ from verse 23.  They are:

1) Keeping God’s Word is the supreme feature which distinguishes the disciple of Christ from the rest of the world.

2) Keeping God’s Word is the supreme test of the disciple’s love for the Lord Jesus Christ and the supreme cause of the God’s favor toward the disciple.

3) Christ manifests Himself to the disciple through God’s Word, as it is kept and obeyed.

4) The Father and the Son come into the life of the disciple and establish their enduring home with him through God’s Word.

 I might add from verse 24 a 5th one:

5) The professing Believer/Disciple of Christ who does keep (obeys) Christ’s Word, does not genuinely love the Lord Jesus Christ nor are they genuinely His disciple.

* “The Spirit Filled Believer’s Handbook” by Derek Prince, pg 34-35

So, what if one was born a homosexual, shouldn’t we be more tolerant of this sin, this product of the fall? Well, the truth be known, No.

Everyone is born in sin and therefore is a sinner. As a result of this reality we are all born with a very real propensity to sin or as people like to say today, an orientation toward sin and sinful behaviors. Because humanity is born in sin, with a sin nature, that is a nature that is given over to sin and therefore sinful lifestyles, we are all in the same kind of boat as it were. Apart from the work of God’s grace as revealed in and through the Lord Jesus Christ, there are no exceptions here. While there are many different kinds of sin, there is only one sin nature and each of us is born with it. This sin nature is reflected in a wide variety of evidences, forms, heart conditions, attitudes, and behaviors, but regardless, they are all rooted in the same base. This base is called the sin nature, the fallen state of humanity. It is in man’s nature to sin and thus to it is in man’s nature to rebel against the will, word and ways of the Lord God Almighty and therefore to do and be what the Lord God has called for us to not do and be.

Nature of mankind: the natural and original condition of humankind, as distinguished from a state of grace. It is a basic state of existence, untouched and uninfluenced in its original essence, by civilization, its norms, circumstances, education, training or conditioning.

Thus, it is the very nature of man, his sin nature that separates mankind from God and without a transformation, the product of a new creation, by the mercy, grace and faith of God, as revealed only in and through the Lord Jesus Christ and the empowering work and presence of God the Holy Spirit and the revealed Word of God, there is no hope for mankind, for anyone of us.

Therefore, if one is actually born a homosexual, adulterer, fornicator, murderer, slanderer, thief, liar, pride, self-righteousness and boastfulness or is prone to any of these and so, so many other dimensions or evidences of our sin nature, it is not an excuse. This would simply reveal the truth and power of our sin nature as it resides within the hearts and souls of all of mankind.

It is sin and its very nature that is the issue, the problem, not the specific orientation. Mankind cannot help itself but be those who sin. While it is true that not all sin to the same degree or in the same extremes or with all of the same behaviors, it is in man’s nature to sin and therein lays the issue or concern and therefore our desperate need of a savior and thus the salvation of God.

We need a new nature, a new orientation, a new predisposition, a new propensity or more accurately what the Scriptures call, a new creation. This new creation is the product of our experiencing in and through the Lord Jesus Christ, his work of Mercy, Grace, and Saving Faith that is revealed in our becoming genuinely born again (regenerated), thus transformed from having one nature, that of sin, to a whole other kind of nature, that which is of the Lord God’s.

Having, in and through the Lord Jesus Christ, received this gift of grace through his faith, a new creation, a new nature, we thus have been granted a new orientation, predisposition, propensity toward the things of the Lord God Almighty. This fruit and evidence of Salvation is the single most powerful miracle in all of creation. Nothing else can touch this in terms of its power, nor essential need for all mankind. The very nature of man, at his very core essence of being, is actually changed from that of a predisposition to sin, to that of a predisposition to the righteousness of God, in and through Saving Faith in the Lord Jesus Christ!

As a result we thus need to have our minds renewed in the Lord Jesus Christ, so that we can say good-bye to who were, apart from the Lord Jesus Christ and hello, to who we now are, in and through the Lord Jesus Christ, as His new Creations. While this is a process, it is a process that can only be experienced in and through the Lord Jesus Christ himself, by the power of the Holy Spirit and the illumination of God’s Word.

So, does it make it less of a sin or sinful lifestyle, or less immoral just because one may have been born with a basic orientation to homosexuality as a lifestyle? Absolutely not! Should we be merciful and compassionate toward those are locked into a homosexual orientation and lifestyle, absolutely. Should we be accepting of this orientation and lifestyle as alright, acceptable, or as even righteous and holy? Absolutely not!

In the end, we all are responsible for our lives, how we live them out, and we will stand before Almighty God and have to give an account for them. Apart from the Lord Jesus Christ, we have no hope of a favorable outcome of this encounter with Almighty God, none! In the end, for every one of us, our only hope, and that of the whole world, is found in and through the Lord Jesus Christ, for there is salvation (rescue and deliverance from our sin nature) in no other, save the Lord Jesus Christ and Him alone. He is our only hope of a new nature, a new orientation, a new predisposition, and a new propensity to be and do something other than sin, such as the righteousness and holiness of Almighty God.

How one is born is no excuse, nor is how one is raised. It is simply a reality of our need to genuinely be born yet again, as new creations in and through Saving Faith in the Lord Jesus Christ! There lays our hope, no matter who we are, how were born, or even how we were raised. This is the Good News of the Gospel of the Lord Jesus Christ!

What the world needs now is Jesus, Christ Jesus. They do not need Jesus the man, while He was a man who lived in our midst for an all too brief of a season, yet just long enough. They do not need Jesus the historical figure, yet he was a very real historical figure who indeed changed the world forever. Nope! They and we all, need Christ Jesus, God the Son, who is both Savior and Lord.

Acts 4:12 (ESV) And there is salvation in no one else, for there is no other name under heaven given among men by which we must be saved.”

Maybe it is at this very point that we have lost our way. Maybe what we have come to settle for is the form of faith that is called Christianity and not He who is our faith Christ Jesus. Maybe it is this form of faith that has become all too complex and opposing to sustain itself effectively much longer. Maybe this is the form of faith that has and is becoming powerless and inadequate. Maybe this is the form of faith that has become too religious to be relational any longer in and with Christ Jesus let alone His people. Maybe what we have settled for is that which is simply “about Jesus” and instead “of Jesus” (of: having its source and origin in). Maybe as a result of this form called Christianity, we have lost sight of the genuine Good News, the Good News of God the Only Son, who He is and what He has done, is doing and yet shall do.

The name of our Lord and Savior is Christ Jesus! There is no other name under heaven given among men that can or will genuinely and authentically bring us to the point of True Salvation, the restoration of right relationship with God the Father. No one can come to the Father but by the Son, the Only Son of God, Christ Jesus. Yet this reality of Jesus, God the Son, is our only hope, not the man, not the historical figure and not the religion that has grown up around him. Our only Hope is in God the Son, alone.

Had Jesus lived and died as any other man, there would have been no salvation. If Jesus had lived a life that simply impacted a world, there still would not have been salvation. No, Jesus, fully God and fully man, the Only Begotten Son of the Most High God, lived in History as a Man born of a woman, obedient unto the Father God to the point of death at the hands of those he was sent to bring salvation to. He lived a sinless life, fulfilling the law to the max and then offering himself upon the cross as our redeeming sacrifice, paying our debt to the Father God for our sin; as proof of His sacrifice and its all Sufficiency in paying the full price of our sin, the Father raised him from the dead unto life, not simply to live again, but to life eternal, living as God the Son, Savior and Lord forevermore.

It is this reality which Christ Jesus has become for us, wherein lies our True Hope. It is in this realty of Christ Jesus and what He has done, is doing and will yet do, to fulfill all righteousness in bringing forth the fullness of our redemption, our transformation, our new creation, unto life for evermore that is our Hope. Our Hope is in Christ Jesus, alone. Our Hope cannot be in an institution, no matter how Christianized it has or promises to become. Our eyes most assuredly must be set upon our Only Hope, Jesus, the only Christ of the Living God.

Galatians 1:15-16 (ESV) But when he who had set me apart before I was born , and who called me by his grace, ¹⁶ was pleased to reveal his Son to me, in order that I might preach him among the Gentiles, I did not immediately consult with anyone;

Yes! It was in order that Paul might Preach Him, Christ Jesus that the Lord Jesus was revealed to Paul by the Father through God the Holy Spirit. It wasn’t to begin and maintain an institution. Paul wasn’t called to Begin Christianity, organize Christianity, etc. He was called to Preach Christ Jesus and the Good News concerning Him. Did what we call Christianity begin, Yes. Was this His and the other Apostles purpose, No. Their purpose was and is to be the same as ours, that Jesus might be preached, the simple and yet Oh so powerful truth of the Good News of Christ Jesus!

The all too difficult truth is that Christianity has become its own end. The Institution has become too much about itself, maintaining, defending and advancing itself. The Institution of Christianity has seemingly lost its way. We have lost sight of our Head, Christ Jesus (Col 2:17-19)! Our view has been hampered by an all too powerful (in an old life sense) and demanding Institution called Christianity. Christianity has become too encumbering and what is held back by this encumbrance is the simple and yet powerful truth of Christ Jesus. I do not believe that this has been anyone’s intent or agenda aside from that of darkness. Regardless, it has become the reality.

Colossians 2:6-7 (ESV) Therefore, as you received Christ Jesus the Lord, so walk in him, ⁷ rooted and built up in him and established in the faith, just as you were taught, abounding in thanksgiving.

As you have Received Him, Walk in Him, Be Built up in Him, Established in the Faith (concerning Him), abounding in Thanksgiving regarding Him. Do you see and hear this? It is all about Jesus, Jesus, no one and nothing but Jesus! We receive Christ Jesus. We are to Walk in Christ Jesus. We are to be Built up in Christ Jesus! We are to be established in the Faith of Christ Jesus. We are to do all of this with abounding Thanksgiving concerning Christ Jesus. This thanksgiving is for him, who He is and what he has done, is doing and yet shall do. This Thanksgiving is for God the Only Son who is the Only Way to the Father God and our Only Hope for all eternity. Our Salvation is not nor will it ever be found in the institution of Christianity. It is and can only be found, in Christ Jesus, alone!

Nope, I do not need Christianity, but I desperately do need Christ Jesus.

No, it is an all too familiar affair; ministries crumbling for one reason or another. However, in the end the only one who gains, in and through this internal, yet all too public church conflicts, is the enemy and his all too dark world. I so grieve at this, Christians majoring on minors and minoring on majors. Fore when we are left to our own solutions, we become self-destructive. I have seen this through out church history, literally and throughout my many years in the ministry. I acknowledge that sometimes conflicts are of a sort that needs to be engaged in and worked through. However, in this day and age, there seems to be far too many that are rooted in something other than vital church growth, and the holy and righteous sanctifying process of the Holy Spirit through the Lord’s Holy Word at work within the Church .

Yes, even Church and Church Ministries need to go through the Sanctifying Process of the Holy Spirit and God’s Word. However, as is also true with people, this Sanctifying Process isn’t automatic. We need to be willing to die to ourselves, picking up our crosses daily in and throughout this process, in order for it to be righteously perfected, in and through us. Just as it is true then of people, it is also true of Churches and Ministries, not all of them will go through the process successfully. The primary reason is simply that Churches and Ministries are made of people, the same people who are needing to die through the process of sanctification, letting go of what was, and then rising up and becoming what the Lord Jesus is saying, doing and being today. You can’t truly change a Church or Ministry if the people within them are unwilling to change, die to themselves and thus picking up their crosses for the sake of the Lord Jesus Christ.

Far too many times, Church and Ministry conflicts end up being more about personality issues, ambition, personal agendas, power struggles, lies, deceit, hurt feelings, failed expectations, slander, distortions, unforgiveness, pride, arrogance, misplaced dependencies, etc. etc. In truth, it is about professing redeemed men and women of God, empowering and walking out their carnal (flesh) nature, instead of dying to their flesh natures and growing up in His Godly Nature. Although this process is always spiritualized, it is very rarely, if ever, a genuine Holy Spirit work. As result, all we have to show for all of this, is broken and dying churches, closed churches, closed and or broken ministries, leadership and far too many damaged lives and families overall, along with a convoluted witness to the world of the Kingdom of God and our Lord Jesus Christ.

I often think of Cain and Abel for this was truly the beginning of conflict within the people of God. Abel made an offering that pleased the Lord God Almighty simply because it was offered righteously. Cain’s offering wasn’t pleasing nor accepted by the Lord for it was offered unrighteously. When Cain was upset about it, the Lord warned him that if he would “do well”, he and his offering would be accepted. Doing well had to do with doing according to the will of God; doing what God wanted, God’s way. However, the Lord God also stated that if Cain wouldn’t do well, then it was a clear sign that sin was crouching at the door of his heart and life, seeking to have dominion over him. So the Lord told him that he would then need to rise up and rule over the sin, that was clearly at the door of his life, seeking to rule and destroy him. (cf James 1:13-15)

The result of this poignant teaching, to and for Cain, was simply and horribly, that Cain went out and killed his brother. It was far easier for Cain to kill off his brother, seeing him as the problem, than for him to face the truth about himself and change. So much of church conflict is rooted in this same spirit of Cain. It is easier to focus upon the issues of others, straining at a gnat yet swallowing a camel (Mt 23:24 ESV), that always has to do with ourselves and our own issues. Or as the Word also says “Why do see the speck that is in your brother’s eye, but do not notice the log that is in your own eye? (Mt 7:3 ESV) All the while we rationalize and or spiritualize our own hearts and intents so that we can feel good about what we are doing and remaining blind to the destruction that we ourselves are causing in the name of our Lord, His Word and His Kingdom. A House divided is never His House. No! It is Ours! Just saying!

^“Indeed, I count everything as loss because of the surpassing worth of knowing Christ Jesus my Lord. For his sake I have suffered the loss of all things and count them as rubbish, in order that I may gain Christ ⁹ and be found in him, not having a righteousness of my own that comes from the law, but that which comes through faith in Christ, the righteousness from God that depends on faith— ¹⁰ that I may know him and the power of his resurrection, and may share his sufferings, becoming like him in his death, ¹¹ that by any means possible I may attain the resurrection from the dead.” (Phil 3:8-11 ESV)

Lord Jesus, forgive us, your people, your church, for our stubborn and selfish hearts and lives.

I have had to learn this truth through life’s many trials and tribulations. Yes, sometimes these times of difficulties were simply because I thought that since I knew what the Lord was saying about some point of direction, ministry, plan, etc. That my knowing His What, was in itself a release for me to move forward in the manner and timing of my own choosing. My being so eager to go forth and do the work of the ministry often led me to simply leap ahead and not wait for anymore from the Lord regarding the matter of His Holy Will. I was simply too impatient to wait for any more of His understanding, His insight, His information, only to discover, to mine and others dismay, that I had gotten way ahead of the Lord. I had failed to discern His timing.

The other side of this issue is also found in our failing to discern even more of the picture. We may have come to know the what of the Lord’s will and the timing of the Lord’s will, but not the Process, the plan itself or what I simply call, the How of God’s will. The result of this is that we often will move out in the wrong process, or even in the wrong direction entirely. So, the important lesson here is simply that the Lord’s will always involve all three questions and not any one of them alone.

The reality of this, is that most often the Lord simply doesn’t give us all three insights at the same time or even in the same order. They seem to unfold in His timing and process, and not according to our perceived need, circumstances, expectations, pressures, anxieties, enthusiasm, etc. The result of this for me has been my having to submit to and grow in The Lord’s School of Waiting. It is a difficult and trying school to be sure, but more worth it than you may now know or can even appreciate right now.

The scriptures tell us that there is blessing in our waiting on the Lord Jesus Christ. I, for one, wholeheartedly agree! One of the blessings of my waiting upon the Lord Jesus Christ is my not falling on my face because I have simply moved out ahead of the Lord or my having moved out in the wrong direction, etc. Had I been willing to wait upon the Lord for the What, When and How, His increased clarity would have come along with the waiting and continued seeking of the Lord. I have found that the Will of the Lord becomes ever more clearly refined and clarified as I simply Wait upon the Lord Jesus Christ. When it all finally comes together, there is a lot more rest and peace in the doing of it, no matter how hard doing the Lord’s Will might ultimately be. I have also discovered that I can have a lot more confidence and staying power in the hard times and yes, the Spiritual Warfare that all to often comes when we are seeking to faithfully walk and live out the Lord’s Will, Word and Ways.

So, next time you going seeking the Lord for His Will in a situation, remember that there is more that needs to be discerned and understood than simply the “What” of His Will. Become willing to enter into His School of Waiting, learning how to wait upon Him, trusting His for His full picture; His What, When, and How. While I am painfully aware of how difficult this is and can be or become. I am also painfully aware of how much more painful it is or will be when we don’t. For in Truth, this is His Wisdom.

Blessings in the Lord Jesus Christ!