steve.c

In everything that the church does as a collective body of Christians, it can draw on the power of our Lord, Jesus Christ. It is easy to be timid about what the church seeks to achieve and to doubt its ability to succeed. In thinking in this way, Christians overlook or distrust the power of the leadership of Jesus in the church. It is a failure of faith. As the body of Christ, His power flows through His church to each of its members. We should not hesitate to use it to advance His ministry on earth. It is there to be used.

The statement tells us that God has placed us along side His Son and over all other spiritual powers. It tells us that, when we confront the devil and his demons, we do so from a position of strength, not weakness. We know that the final victory over the devil is assured. The resurrection of Jesus assured this. We should also know that with Jesus indwelling within us, with the power of the Holy Spirit, we can defeat the attacks of the devil. No temptation is so great that we cannot overcome it. We will be tested. The devil is cunning and will attack us in the most vulnerable part at the most vulnerable time but we can prevail. We have the power to do it. This should gives us confidence. It should strengthen our resolve.

Peter makes it clear that elders should be willing to act in this capacity, not because there is any gain in it, but because they should be eager to serve and the rewards come from serving the Lord. Clearly, if an elder has to be coerced into acting, any sense of joy in service is lost. The activity becames a chore. This cannot produce the enthusiasm and the care that the church should demand in it leaders. The sense of duty rather than giving is likely to permeate everything in their work. Having said that, I will put in a small word for the reluctant elder. Arm twisting can be the consquence of humility, rather than reluctance. For example, in the British Parliament, the Speaker of the House by tradition is dragged to his elevated seat in the House of Commons. The ritual of reluctance has not diminished the enthusiasm and dedication with which many speakers have approached their work having been selected by members of parliament. So there is 'arm twisting' (a feinted humility) and 'arm twisting' ( a real reluctance to give time and effort to the church). Clearly the latter is to be deplored.

The responsibilities are to minister, particularly young and newly born again Christians, so they grow to be mature Christians too; to tend those under their care as a shepherd tends his flock, making sure it is safe and nourished; and to act as a guardian and to take responsibility and to lead those under their care. What strikes me is that the role is less authoritarian and much more loving and supportive.

By Jesus being seated at God's right hand, He is over everything else in the creation, including any spirit beings. In fact these spirit beings are entirely subservient to Him and this is shown by their being under His feet, like a defeated enemy. They are below us too and we have power over them as we, being children of God, are with Jesus. We have mastery over them so they cannot control any aspect of our lives unless we permit it.

Like many of us the Ephesians fail to appreciate God's power through the church. Their belief in it is timid at best. The power operates through the members of the church - all of them. We have the power of God within us. The miraculous event which Paul mentions is the raising of Jesus from the dead. This power is available to us to. We should not doubt it and we should exercise to spread God's kingdom here.

Why is a willingness to die, if need be, essential to healthy Christianity during persecution. What happens when we aren't willing to die, when we are afraid to "take up our cross daily" (Luke 9:23) and follow Jesus? What does this have to do with "commiting ourselves to a faithful Creator"? "Then He said to them all:'If anyone would come after me, he must deny himself and take up his cross daily and follow me. For whoever wants to save his life will lose it, but whoever loses his life for me will save it. What good is it for a man to gain the whole world, and yet lose or forfeit his very self?'" [Luke 9:23-25] The willingness to give up everything for one's belief is essential during times of persecution because this is how Christianity survived and then prevailed in the Western world. Untimately it is the test of true belief, it is after all a requirement for being a disciple of Jesus, and of the promise of salvation, which is more important than life on earth. This is the commitment that Jesus asks of His disciples and you are not a true disciple without this degree of commitment. It is a very stern test. Jesus sets the bar very high.

If we are never persecuted, what does that say about how people view us? In what way should persecution make us happy? If we never find ourselves confrontational circumstances as a result of our Christian beliefs, it must imply that we have never sought to witness our faith to unbelievers, which is an essential part of being a disciple of Jesus. If we do not do this it must appear that whatever we believe in does not assume great importance. What can be more important than our salvation and justification with God? If you have witnessed and handed out tracts in places where there is little evidence of a Christian way of life, you will have been certainly been confronted in a hostile manner and possibly attacked. I have been punched in the face and had my glasses broken when witnessing on a council estate. No, I did not like it but I knew that I was doing the right thing. Luckily a friend came to my rescue. To any one who was looking it showed my determination and my belief (and my friend's). Spreading the Good News is a duty. It is a pleasure. It can be very rewarding. To be effective it must be spread everywhere, even the most unlikely places. That may present dangers but it is worth it.

First I think of the great suffering Jesus endured for me. I hope obviously that I do not have to suffer in such a way. But suffering of some kind is an essential to being a disciple. We have to deny ourselves. Self-control means forgoing physical pleasures and excesses. It maens the discipline to study, fast and pray regularly. Self-denial and self-discipline bring us closer to Jesus because whatever privations we may experience, we are experiencing them for Him. We know by this we are being obedient to Him, following His teachings. This also strengthens our commitment, and by doing so, makes us more prepared to endure persecution if we are confronted by it. Paul found joy in this suffering. It is a measure of his belief and commitment. This is what I should aim at.

The danger of avoiding persecution (or more accurately confrontation in the present age) is that we compromise our beliefs. We make accommodations to unbelievers and we are drawn towards their values or lack of them. Peter of all people should know this as he denied Jesus three times in circumstances when it would have been dangerous or compromising to have stood up for Him. Yes, I have been distracted by the prospect of confrontation in what I should be doing. When born again Christians are the subject of criticism and insult I have sometimes tried to blend into the background, rather than standing up for what I believe. My cowardice has often resulted in my missing an excellent opportunity to witness. Jesus never missed such an opportunity. From the Gospels He was so often hounded by the Pharisees. Yet He confronted them and used their hatred and fear of Him to great effect. This should be an object lesson to us. I should stand up and exclaim my belief in Jesus and salvation through Himparticularly in confrontational circumstances. I think many Christians are like me try to avoid this kind of exposure. Instead they blend into the materialistic landscape in which we live. It is the easier option. Thankfully through the great courage of earlier Christians we are no longer persecuted and Christian values of love and through it tolerance have become the norm in the Western world. However, freedom from danger should not make us complacent. We should put ourselves out for Christ and endure hardships as a result.

If you promote yourself and take personal credit for your gifts and talents, you are failing to acknowledge their source which is from God to give glory to Him. God does not use our gifts. He does not need them. In thankfulness we should use them for Him. Someone who promotes himself or herself and not God shows an inflated idea of their worth which is completely misplaced. It means they have not taken to heart the teachings of Jesus and the ways of the kingdom of heaven which encourages meekness, humility, service and putting onesself last. God has given me so many gifts, including gifts of speaking and service. I try to witness as effectively as I can and at every opportunity but I know I could be more effective. This requires further mediation, prayer and study so that I can be prepared for every eventuality and, as a consequence, more effective. I volunteer my time to church fund raisings and other events but I know I could do much more. When I slack at whatever I am doing at work or at home (and I am afraid I do) I know that I am falling below the standards God has set me. In everything I do I must do it for the Lord; that is to my utmost.

I think that unbelievers do not like the idea of giving an account of their actions because it forces them to focus on how they are living their lives and the consequences of their decision not to turn to Jesus. Out of mind is out of sight. There is also a belief in the present age that there are rights without obligations; a kind of socialisation of every activity so that we do not take responsibility for the results of our actions. We like the idea of a loving and forgiving God but not that He will also judge our actions. It is absolutely fundamental to the Christian message that everyone will be judged on the judgement day and we will have to account for our actions: every single one of them. Nothing will be hidden or overlooked as nothing can be hidden from God. What does that imply? We must act in accordance with the teachings of Jesus and His apostles in everything we do. Our lives should be an act of worship. We know the teachings and we must not depart from them. We will be judged by how we adhere to those standards. Our eternity with Jesus depends on the outcome. Nothing could be more important. It may be unfashionable to think in terms of hell and damnation but that does not mean that the prospect of them does not exist. They do. On that we can be certain because Jesus told us. Judgement and the promise of eternal salvation should inspire us to great diligence and obedience. Jesus wants us to be saved. He wants us to be with Him when He returns. He also wants us to be in no doubt as to the dangers of not heeding His gospel and its vital importance to how we behave and think.

I think having made the decision to be born again in Jesus, there is a very clear divide between those who live in sin and the kingdom of the world and those who follow the way of Jesus and the kingdom of heaven. This makes unbelievers uncomfortable and easy when they are in the company of practicing Christians. They want us to do the same things as they do. The devil works in them to turn us away from God and back to a life of sin. The temptation to sin is made so easy and palitable: everyone does this so no harm can come of it. It is actively promoted everywhere. Any road everyone is a sinner and Jesus will forgive us. I find that the way to resist this temptation is to be very circumspect in any relationship with unbelievers. Paul was quite clear on the point: bad company corrupts and we should not yoke ourselves to unbelievers. My close friends are all born again Christians and we try together to live Christians lives following the Word of God. We try to support each other in this. I also try to avoid books, films and TV which espouses the values of the world rather than Christian values. Scriptural study and communial worship and prayer is also essential in reinforcing the life style of a disciple.

Jesus suffered great pain to conquer sin for all mankind through His death on the cross. Having overcome sin, He would have nothing to do with it. Having accepted Jesus and made Him the centre of our life we too should have nothing to do with sin. As He suffered for us, we should do as He has done and suffer to avoid sinning. By sinning we are making light of His atoning sacrifice.

Self-examination is not sufficient by itself. We must not simply examine our sinfulness and seriously and accurately particularise it; we must confess it and repent it. What does that meant to me? It means I must be truly sorry for our sins and to say so. We must take steps not t repeat the sins and to avoid sinning. Repentance must be a genuine sorrowfulness for our sins and a genuine effort not to repeat the sin. Confession and repentance are active responses to sin. They are a sincere acknowledgement of our sins and an attempt not to sin and certainly not to sin in the same way. Also, if we can make amends for a particular sin, then we should. This requires discipline and self-control. It requires effort and being always alert and vigilant. It means we attempt to model our actions on those of our Lord. Sincere repentance brings us closer to Jesus. His presence in us is more prominent. We have a deeper spiritual life as a consequence and our charcter is shaped by Him. This cannot but improve the way we interact with others and our lives as disciples.

Self-examination is not an end in itself; it is part of a process to be justified before the Lord. I think the motivation for self-examination is a guard against it fostering guilt and self-loathing. It is an essential preparatory step in receiving the Lord's Supper in proper condition. The Christian message after all is that we are all important in God's sight. His love is undiminished regardless of our views about ourselves. In examining our conduct we should always place it in the context that we do it so that we remove barriers between ourselves and Jesus.

God has brought judgement on some members of the Corinthian church because they have disobeyed His teaching and, as I have answered in the previous question, not in a trival respect but in a manner which goes to the heart of living a Christian life. Yes, the punishment may seem harsh but so is the gravity of the offence, which is a direct challenge to God and the teaching of His Son. In everything God is loving, even when we provoke His wrath and warrant His vengance. As a father disciplines his child, God disciplines us through hardship and suffering to mould us more into His image. A father disciplines out of love, because he wants the best of his child not because he obtains any satisfaction from seeing the discomfort of his child. In the same way, God wants the best for us, even if to achieve it we are to suffer to the extent of suffering ill health or dying prematurely. This certainly places the requirement for obedience to God into a proper prespective. It is something to be taken very seriously.

The Lord's Supper brings the church together. It is a celebration which we are to share as Jesus did with His disciples. Jesus always intended His church to be united: one body with many members, each playing their part. In this celebration we must have concern that everyone in the congregation is treated properly, respectfully and equally. For this most important celebration it is clearly gravely sinful if it is used to emphasise class or economic differences, when we know that each member of Christ's body is equal in His eyes as each is essential to its proper working. Of the two greatest commandments, Jesus tells us in the second to love one another and to treat others as we want to be treated. Anything which sows discord and disunity in His church through making distinctions between how members of His body are to be treated disobeys that commandment and weakens His church. It is also contrary to the teaching of Jesus which tells us to treat the lowilest in society as if we were treating Jesus himself. It is probably not helpful to make distinctions between the gravity of various sins but clearly "not dscerning the body", when taken to mean the church, is in complete opposition to the teaching of Jesus. Disobedience is by definition sinful. In the context of partaking of the Lord's supper this is doubly so as it is disrespectful both of Jesus and some of His disciples.

I suppose as I meditate on "seeing His face" on His return, I have a feeling of longing that His return will come soon. I think all Christians long for this and have hoped it would come in their life times so that they can experience rapture without death. Then I think of what a meeting would be like. I think that Jesus' face would radiate incredible, unfathomable love. Something of an order that is not conceivable here. It would simply sweep me up and envelope me. All the fruits of the Holy Spirit would be similarly experienced and magnified. His face would not take on His human form. It would be spirit but it would be unimaginably beautiful. We partake of the Lord's Supper as it commemorates the death of Jesus and His atoning sacrifice. It brings us closer to Him and sustains our faith and discipleship. But it is also a prelude to a greater feast: the one we will have with Him on His return. His ministry, His death and resurrection, leads to its final, glorious conclusion when we are all together with Him on His Second Coming. The purpose of His ministry is our salvation when we will see His face. In partaking we look forward to that promise and hope.

The Lord's Supper reminds us always of the Last Supper. The passover meal that Jesus had with His disciples before His death. It was His last meal on earth. The words we hear are those He spoke to His disciples. We attend the Lord's Supper because He instructed us to do so. It is an act, amongst other things, of obedience. The Lord's Supper gives us spiritual norishment. It brings us closer to Jesus. It brings to mind His ministry. It strengthens the salvation present which we have been given by God's grace. It renews our commitmentment to be His disciples. It also points to the future. The rapture of the Second Coming when we will be with Jesus for ever. The day of complete fulfillment.

We eat His body and drink His blood in remembrance of Him. On the last day when we are lifted up we will eat and drink with the Lord. Not in rembrance but with Him again. Everything will have then been fulfilled. Part of our thoughts during the Lord's Supper should be to the promise and hope of the future, when we will be with the Lord for always. We dwell on His incarnation and His sacrifice but we also think of the purpose of His ministry and its final culmination: when we will be in Paradise with Lord Jesus.

The message of Jesus is the message of salvation: salvation now and salvation for eternity. It is a message in which the promise and the hope is forward looking. We live in the kingdom of heaven now, we have a relationship with Jesus now but the complete fulfilment will come when he returns and lifts us up to Him. The associations I have with the Great Banquet are less with satisfying human appetite by eating and drinking but with the closeness of association, of celebration, deep friendship, pleasure, love, enjoyment, fulfilment, reward, permanence, thankfulness, completeness and unity.

The Lord's Supper directs us to consider the position of Jesus in our lives. We take the bread, His body; we drink the wine, His blood. The bread is the sustenance His teaching gives us, the nourishment to our faith and spitritual lives. The Lord's Supper brings us very close to Jesus and His presence, which is why it is such a vital part of Christian life. Not only His teaching and our discipleship which directs our lives but also His sacrifice to atone for the sins of mankind and to conquer death by His ressurrection. God's Spirit which was powerful enough to overcome death and the devil is within us too. It gives us power and reassurance. Jesus's discourse on the Bread of Life and the Words of Institution are both about what is central to our faith, even though the discourse on the Bread of Life does not necessarily anticipate the death of Christ on the cross. The way to salvation is through Jesus and only through Him; there is no other way. His teaching is that way. By following it, by being His disciple, we are promised salvation and an eternity with Him. The achievement of that promise was through the body and blood of our Saviour who died for us. That is what we recall at the Lord's Supper: the sacrifice. But the remembrance also strengthens our faith and nurtures our love of Jesus so that our discipleship is more resolute and committed. The Lord's Supper is such a powerful event, notwithstanding how many times one has received it. It is so profound and so essential. It is clear to me that this is a God-given institution. This is not the invention of a man. That is why I am so certain of the truth of the Scriptures and Jesus is who He says He is. That is why I am His disciple. Thank you, Lord Jesus.

Jesus emphasises the importance of belief because our belief in Him must be total and unconditional. By eating His flesh and drinking His blood, He lives in us and us in Him. There are no half measures. Jesus knew that being His disciple brought division. A commitment to Jesus may alienate family and friends. It is to be set above any worldly possession or any other relationship or any other ambition or goal. We must deny ourselves and carry our cross to follow Him. The apostles were prepared to make that life-long total commitment. They dropped everything they were doing and followed Jesus. A true disciple follows Jesus's teaching completely. His teaching is the model on which His life is based and directed. His teaching is the truth; the absolute truth that is God's Word. Through that teaching, through Jesus's body and blood, we are set free from sin and death and have life in abundance and eternally. The paradox is that total obedience yields complete liberation. He sets us free through His teaching. That is the wonderful thing.

Yes, I have pledged my faith in Jesus Christ and have promised to serve Him as a disciple. I agree that salvation does not come from baptism. Salvation comes from the acceptance of Jesus as Lord and repenting our sins. However, the next step must be baptism. The New Testament is quite clear on the point. Personally I think immersion is the proper form as it accords with the Bible descriptions of all water baptisms. For me my baptism was a very special event. It marked my rebirth in Jesus. I felt it strongly at the time and feel it strongly now. The symbolism seems to have a spiritual parallel. Rising out of the water seemed to invigorate me and convince me that I was truly a disciple of Jesus. Baptism marked the start of that discipleship and a new life of obedience to Jesus. Baptism marked me as one of His.