The Miracle of Belief

July 17th.
MY UTMOST FOR HIS HIGHEST

"My speech and my preaching was not with enticing words." 1 Corinthians 2:1-5

Paul was a scholar and an orator of the first rank; he is not speaking out of abject humility; but saying that he would veil the power of God if, when he preached the gospel, he impressed people with his "excellency of speech." Belief in Jesus is a miracle produced only by the efficacy of Redemption, not by impressiveness of speech, not by wooing and winning, but by the sheer unaided power of God. The creative power of the Redemption comes through the preaching of the Gospel, but never because of the personality of the preacher. The real fasting of the preacher is not from food, but rather from eloquence, from impressiveness and exquisite diction, from everything that might hinder the gospel of God being presented. The preacher is there as the representative of God - "as though God did beseech you by us." He is there to present the Gospel of God. If it is only because of my preaching that people desire to be better, they will never get anywhere near Jesus Christ. Anything that flatters me in my preaching of the Gospel will end in making me a traitor to Jesus; I prevent the creative power of His Redemption from doing its work.

"I, if I be lifted up . . . , will draw all men unto Me."

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I wonder what His church would LOOK like to the world if we truly grasped this reality. It seems to me that everyone wants to be heard ad nauseum, that everywhere WE look including internet-land, the 'excellency of speech' is well & thriving. Imagine how Oswald describes this attitude: as a traitor to Jesus Christ!!

The Kingdom of God ... is not a phsyical kingdom, it's not a church building, it's not a ministry, not a preacher, in fact it's nothing we are looking at - instead the Kingdom of God is within. (Luke 17:20.21)

"And when he was demanded of the Pharisees, when the kingdom of God should come, he answered them and said, The kingdom of God cometh not with observation Neither shall they say, Lo here! or, lo there! for, behold, the kingdom of God is within you. "

Leaving Ourselves in God's Hands

Jesse Penn-Lewis “...From that hour I understood, and knew, intelligently, that it was dying, not doing, that produced spiritual fruit. The secret of a fruitful life – in brief – to pour out to others and want nothing for yourself: to leave yourself utterly in the hands of God and not care what happens to you.”

How do we get to the place where we are consistently allowing this to take place in us ?

No Sweeter Name

Stick-to-it-ive-ness

Could a subtle definition of 'being religious' simply involve being overly concerned or preoccupied with getting others to 'see' what we 'see', or 'hear' what we 'hear'? I wonder about that.

Eventually given enough energy and stick-to-it-ive-ness, we will succeed in what we are doing, we will convince some, meaning we will get another denomination, another way of thinking, a following, mutual like mindedness.

However, isn't the root of this preoccupation really pride? Since I am right, therefore I must convince others.

Or does the root go deeper? Perhaps the really ugliness involves insecurity. Meaning that through the act of convincing of others, again and again, what we hope to receive back, is that we are the ones receiving the payback. We are reminding ourselves over and over how right we are. ( Addictive, eh. Doesn't it feel good to be right ? )

Unfortunately not only is that cycle often unbroken, but we are failing in the very basic & simple art of communication. Which is above all, to listen. How can we truly listen and consider another if we have an agenda, which is above all, that we insist on being heard?

Listening is really simply being content on the inside and secure, it just shows up so beautifully - on the outside! It's thinking of someone else and not yourself. It's love, it's caring, it's kindness, but somehow, through God's grace, all these things start showing up on the outside. God's way always seems to be so -- beautiful.

If think, if we are truly convinced within ourselves of who we are, that we are loved, and valuable and worthy in the eyes of our Father. We don't go down that road of being high minded without coming to the realization that we have gotten way off track. WE are truly secure and confident within: meaning that we trust Father and trust He is Lord. He will do the convincing in each and all of us, of course, beginning within ourselves. It will work itself truly from the inside out.

Off Track

When we are sidetracked or deceived, ie off track, we can be turned back to Christ. How many times do u and do I need to come back to Christ! Thank God for His grace and mercy and thank God for His burden for us to come back to Him when we are way off track. So often we do not even know where it is that we truly have ended up.

Paul expected that Christ would be formed in the Galatians even though they had gotten off track.

"My little children, of whom I travail in birth again until Christ be formed in you"

Christ needs to be our focus and it is possible once you receive Christ to get off track, off relationship of our merging and focus with Him - One with Him. Thank God our Spirit does cry Abba Father and does cry and intercede with the Father on our behalf.

Have you been off track ? Are you off track today perhaps? I have definitely been off track that's why I find the book of Galatians so encouraging. Paul's certainty as he tells us it is no longer I who live, but Christ that lives in us. That cuts through to the very heart and truth of our being in Christ. Paul also tells us to reckon ourselves dead to sin and to be living unto God in Christ. He died for us and Paul is just telling us to call upon Christ , Christ lives in us. Coming back on track is to focus in on the certainty of Christ being alive and living in us.

Christ Followers (Another Perspective)

A Moving Body

These video's are well worth watching.

Located here

Quote:

1 Cor. 12 describes a body that is moving, every part moving "But the manifestation of the Spirit is given to every man to profit withal." 1 Cor 12:7

There was no such thing as a church service in the New Testament, it doesn't exist. If a believer from the 1st century went to a church service (as of today) they would wonder what on earth was happening! The thing they didn't want was 'services' because they were looking for a freedom described in 1 Cor 10-14 that is intimate and informal, where ALL are free to share; because all have a gift to share, & the body must be free to move!

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(Beresford Job )