Heb 12:5-6 My son, do not despise the chastening of the Lord, nor be discouraged when you are rebuked by him: For whom the Lord loves he chastens, and scourges every son whom he receives.
It is interesting that these scriptures come in the context of the race of faith. Discipline and obedience are part and parcel of what it means to be sons and how God treats us. How we react to such scourging seems to be the difference between those who are sons and those who are illegitimate. Gods sons and daughters see all things in the light of Calvary. We know we have not suffered like the Lord in the garden, we have not sweated great drops of blood under extreme pressure. Neither have we had to suffer for the sins of a guilty world. We have not been rejected like Jesus nor have we suffered as He did physically. In all these things Jesus was obedient to His Father’s voice.
The peaceable fruit of righteousness is produced in those who have been disciplined and chastened. When a piece of land is purchased, first the trees and the shrubs must be cut down. Then the back-breaking work of removing the stumps takes place. Stones are removed one by one and the clods of the ground are broken down into soil. Then the ground is ready to be tilled. We are the purchased ground. If we do not yield to the process then we produce no fruit and God only deals with potential fruitfulness. As we know, vines that do not produce fruit are cut down and burned in the fire. It is a similar concept here in chapter 12. There are two kinds of sons, one is good, the other is illegitimate. One honors is father no matter what, the other rebels against His discipline and disqualifies himself.
The son of God pursues peace, the other pursues war. The son of God lives in holiness, the other lives defiled by sin. The son lives in the grace of God, in the full knowledge that his favor is unmerited, the other believes himself to have position and has an entitled attitude. The son lives without bitterness, the other allows bitterness to take root in his unkempt field. The son stands upon an unshakable foundation that is Christ Himself, the other stands upon a foundation of his own making so that when the shaking comes everything that he has falls. The son knows and understands that His God is a consuming fire and that everything of this world shall be burned up, therefore he lives for the next world. They await their place in the city to come, the city of the living God. He knows that he is registered in heaven to God and that his company shall be that of innumerable angels and the general assembly of the Church. This is his reward.
Heb 12:1 Wherefore seeing we also are compassed about with so great a cloud of witnesses, let us lay aside every weight, and the sin which doth so easily beset us, and let us run with patience the race that is set before us,
Having heard all the magnificent stories of the faithful saints down through the ages, the author then turns to us and says, “what about you?” Are you not part of this precious group of faith? And if you are then shall you not lay aside “every weight.” What is this weight? Every burden, every hindrance, everything external that would keep you from your reasonable service to God and your reasonable service to God is everything. Your life is not your own, it was bought with a price. It is no longer you that live but rather it is Christ that lives in you. You are a special person, a called out one, a royal priest. You have a duty that is higher than any other duty, that is to serve the King. This you must pursue no matter the cost.
Internally you have the sin that so easily captures you. It might be your temperament, crucify it. It might be your politics, leave that to the world. It might be the personal bias that you grew up with, kill it by the cross upon your back.You would train night and day if you were an Olympic athlete. While others slept, you would be up before the sun. When others were eating anyway they pleased, you would be following a strict diet. You would not be smoking or drinking and in some cases just prior to your race you would refrain from lying with your spouse.The sacrifices we are willing to make in order to get a gold medal, to get fame and fortune in this world are without limit. Isn’t your calling to God so much higher than any athlete?
Are you not running the race of eternal life for a crown that will not perish? A crown that you will cast down before the Lord’s feet because He deserves all the glory!How can we do all of this brothers and sisters? How can we be sold out to God in our lives? “Looking unto Jesus the author and the finisher of our faith.” His testimony was that for the joy of serving His Father and fulfilling His will, He willingly endured the cross, despising the shame and then sat down at the right hand of the throne of God.
Are we willing to endure? Are we willing to accept the discipline of the Lord? Jesus shall be our strength, the Holy Spirit shall be our guide. He shall be the lifter of our heads. He shall convict us and He shall give us the strength to follow Him, if it is our heart to follow Him. If it is our heart to run the race. If it is our heart to endure. If it is our heart to overcome. If these are our desires, He shall give them to us.
Over many many years Absalom stole the hearts of the people of Israel. You see, Absalom wanted what his father had. He wanted the exalted place among the people. He would rise up early and stand beside the gate and those who came looking for the king, he intercepted them and spoke to them. They were not his people, they were his fathers people but Absalom, falling foul to that most ancient of sins that caused Lucifer to fall down from the heavens, desired to have what was not his to have. And so he wooed the hearts of the people away from their King.
Is that not the very essence of religion? There is one mediator between man and God and His name is Jesus. How many men and religious institutions have sought to replace Jesus over all the centuries? One pretender after another, rising early in the morning, slowly and deceptively seeking to displace God and stealing the hearts of the people away from their rightful King. And all the worse is the fact that so many of these men and institutions knew something of the mercy of God, had been blessed in many ways by His goodness and His forgiveness. They had been touched by His love and by His word which only serves to make their deception and their desire to have what He alone has all the more treacherous.
And so finally David hears of this rebellion against him. Oh what a dagger must have penetrated his heart, to know that his very own had turned on him. One that he loved and had forgiven and had showed mercy too, and he repaid all of that with hatred and animosity and a heart bent on taking what was not his. It is hard to imagine the anguish of David, now no longer a young man, having suffered so much in his life and so much of it undeserved, now as an older man, having to flee from everything that had been his. The city of David, the tabernacle, the ark of the covenant would all be left behind and he and a remnant few would flee the jealous forces that were arraigned against him. They would flee into the wilderness.
Today there is a remnant few who have fled into the wilderness. They have left the city behind with all of its religious trappings. No walls, no tabernacle, no ark of the covenant. Stripped of all the religious trappings, they have something that David had. He had the presence of God with Him. Not that which represents the presence, but the actual presence of God. While religious men hung onto the trappings and rituals and icons, for that is all they have, David goes into the wilderness, the remnant go into the wilderness with God Himself. And as he ascended Gods holy hill he wept, he and the people with him wept. With tears the seed is sown brothers and sisters, tears of sorrow for what has become of something that should have been so beautiful and brought glory to God, but has been so thoroughly corrupted by men who desire to steal the glory of God and steal the hearts of the people.
Do not despair in the wilderness brothers and sisters. In God we have peace no matter what men think about us. In God we can rejoice despite the fact that the forces of Absalom are arrayed against the remnant few. Listen to some of the things that David says in this time and be comforted…… Because thou hast been my help, therefore in the shadow of thy wings will I rejoice…… because thy lovingkindness is better than life, my lips shall praise thee……….I remember thee upon my bed, and meditate on thee in the night watches……….From the end of the earth will I cry unto thee, when my heart is overwhelmed: lead me to the rock that is higher than I……………………. For thou hast been a shelter for me, and a strong tower from the enemy.
There is an inevitable end to the forces of Absalom, those who would attempt steal the glory of God and from His King. David speaks to this very thing and to those very forces in psalm 63……But those that seek my soul, to destroy it, shall go into the lower parts of the earth. They shall fall by the sword: they shall be a portion for foxes. But the king shall rejoice in God; every one that sweareth by him shall glory: but the mouth of them that speak lies shall be stopped. Glory to God saints! Is the end we shall come out of the wilderness by the power of God. The soul that weeps, the soul that thirsts after God in the wilderness shall find joy and inexhaustible waters of life even in the driest deserts and when He comes again into His rightful place then all of God saints will rise up and cry Holy.
Heb 11:3 Through faith we understand that the worlds were framed by the word of God, so that things which are seen were not made by things which are visible.
The world was made, this visible world, by that which cannot be seen! Now this drives men mad. They demand an explanation. They must know. They have to be able to explain their situation. It strikes at the very roots of science and all things natural, explaining our surroundings and how we came to be and what will become of us. And the Lord laughs. The wisest man who ever walked the earth is as a fool to God. Even that which they had was given to them. Yet before we as Christians smugly scorn the men of science who by their desire to understand and explain their natural surroundings and throw off God in the process, how do we operate? Do we trust in the invisible God for our lives? In verse 27 of this chapter we see that Moses endured, not fearing the wrath of the King , by having faith in “Him who is invisible.”
Can we walk as the great men of the Bible walked? Noah built a boat when there never had been a boat nor any rain had fallen from the sky. What he was doing was ludicrous and he was mocked constantly by the world. Could you do that? Abraham, the father of faith, got up and left everything to go …….where? He did not know. Could you do that? Moses, when he became a man, refused to enjoy the passing pleasures of sin and all the world could offer him,. Rather he chose “the reproach of Christ,” as opposed to all the treasures of Egypt. Shall we do that brothers and sisters. In the end faith is about following the invisible God and not knowing what is around the next corner. Faith is about choosing God over the riches of this world. Faith is about praising God whether we live or whether we die, in sickness or in health, in riches or in poverty. The one constant thing in the seeming madness of this world is the invisible God in whom we trust.
The word of faith folk need to be healed. They need to see their healing. They need to be wealthy, they need to be able to see their wealth and count their wealth. They need favorable circumstances, they need to be assured by them. And when they see all these things or desire all these things for themselves they call it faith but of course it is the exact opposite of faith. Faith is the evidence of things not seen. Trusting in God is the evidence of our invisible God. And it enrages the enemy of our soul. For two thousand years he has sought out saints and in the tearing away of all the things that can be seen, he hoped to tear away the thing that could not be seen. The cry of faith and the heavenly song from amidst the flames of the martyr being burned at the stake is the trumpet call of victory and the death knell in the ears of the enemy of our soul. The final victory will come when all the saints are gathered to a place where God, by His own hand has built. It lies at the end of the narrow path that cannot be seen. Where the invisible cross upon our backs are removed and we see the invisible God in all His manifest glory and we know as we are known.
Heb 1:8 But unto the Son he saith, Thy throne, O God, is for ever and ever: a sceptre of righteousness is the sceptre of thy kingdom.
There is a name which is above every other name, that name is Jesus. He is the brightness of God the Father and His express image. He upholds all things and He purged our sins and sat down at the right hand of the Majesty. His name is exalted above all others. Its at the name and in the power of Jesus that the worlds came into being. The stars shine in the heavens above and the sun burns with such intensity by the hand of the Lord Jesus. He is so high and lifted up that even a single tear from the Masters eye causes the oceans to blush. The sun is a mere flickering candle in the brightness of His glory. He holds the whole universe in the palm of His hand and by His power alone it is all held together. He is begotten of the Father and the Son of the most High. The angels all bow down and cry Holy, Holy, Holy is the Lord God almighty.
Lord Jesus, you laid the foundations of the earth and the heavens are the work of your hand. Hide your face and the whole world is troubled, hold your breath and we crumble and die, look away and the world falls to pieces, we exalt you oh Lord on high. Everything that exists shall be rolled up and burned up in that day, but You Oh Lord remain forever. You are eternal, Your Word is eternal and you have invited us into the eternal Kingdom of our God. Tears of joy and wholeness rise in me, water from the saints that are deeper than the deepest sea. Only in this place of eternity do I truly belong, where the saints all gather around the throne and sing a glorious song. As far as the eye can see, like wheat gently blowing as one in the wind, you are surrounded by millions upon millions of those who had formerly sinned. Redeemed by Your glory and Majesty, redeemed by the Blood that you shed, we should have dwelt forever in the depths of darkness, but here we are before You instead. We shall sing of Your glory forever, and forever and forever and a day. And here where Your glory fills the temple, is the place we shall eternally stay.
1Ti 1:5 Now the purpose of the commandment is love out of a pure heart, and of a good conscience, and of sincere faith.
Love is the fulfilling of the law (Rom 13:8-10) The whole purpose and fulfillment of the law was found in Christ! So why then was there so much trouble at Ephesus? Why would young Timothy be under pressure and from whom? The same old suspects, the Judaizers and those who desired to be teachers. Teaching their own ideas of what the Law was and what it meant and what its purpose was. A myriad of teachings that were from their own vain imaginations, causing disputes rather than causing unity in Christ. Desiring to be a class of teachers, priests, rabbis. A clergy class. Desiring to be supported because of their “knowledge.” And yet this desire to be teachers of the law, when they had no real understanding of the fulfillment of the law (if they did they would desire to be servants, as Paul was, working with his own hands)
We know from Scripture that those who knew Jesus, the fulfillment of the law, walked in love from a pure heart, from a good conscience and from a sincere faith. And those who did not know Jesus in this way, turned aside to idle talk, desiring to be teachers and lacking understanding. In America today, there are roughly 30,000 salaried “pastors.” That is 15,000 “pastors for every state. My brothers, let there not be many teachers, knowing that we shall receive the greater condemnation (Jas 3:1) The clergy/laity divide has only served to increase the desire to be teachers. There is not the same desire to be servants of all. Jesus washed the feet of servants, do clergy, for the main part wash feet? Ever notice in the sacramental systems of denominations, there is no feet washing? You will not find it in non-denominations either.
Timothy is exhorted by Paul to fight the good fight. Paul knew, from sore experience, just how difficult it was to deal with those who considered themselves teachers. This is why he prayed so fervently for Timothy. He likened it to waging warfare. The same warfare has been waged by the remnant saints down through the ages. The Hymenaeus’s and Alexanders have always been entrenched in religious activities much like Diotrephes. Men who love the preeminence. Men who know nothing of the fulfillment of the Law but rather became laws unto themselves, passing themselves of as teachers of the law and becoming the deadliest enemies of the twice born man. Brothers and sisters let us walk in love with a pure heart from a good conscience and from a sincere faith. Trusting in God and His Word and having discernment to identify those who simply desire to be teachers, who desire to be kept, who will not work with their own hands. We shall know men by their fruit. Do men serve or do men desire to be served?
I remember I was involved in some meetings in Scotland and Wales. The first one in Scotland was a large outreach to the community over several nights, the second one was a revival meeting in Wales. A dear brother, one of my dearest friends, a pastor from Oklahoma was going with me. He got a call from one of the moderators telling him in no uncertain terms not to have anything to do with me and that if he did, things would not go well for him. The problem? Apparently I was a Pentecostal. This man caused all kinds of problems and in his self righteousness did great damage to the meetings in Wales. Many , many years before that he had been involved in a “revival,’ therefore he “qualified,” to be in the revival industry. And believe me brothers and sisters, so much of it is an industry with books and conferences and so on. Revival in and of itself was worshiped. Where was Jesus? Why was His name not high and lifted up? Rather than pursuing Jesus, so many were simply pursuing ghosts of a bygone age, seeking to replicate it and any deviation from what they understood about it caused major problems.
There is a lot of talk about revival right now. I’ll tell you why I do not like that word. It competes with Jesus. If a move of God supposedly happens there are two broad groups of people who immediately respond. Group 1 says “It is definitely a revival.” Group 2 says “It is definitely not a revival.” And in these two groups are all manner of bias and that bias comes immediately to the fore. Somewhere in the middle is a group of people who would love to see God move, yet, because of the horrendous history of so called revivals in the past or churches who claim to have a revival every Sunday, they wait. They wait hopefully. They do not attack anyone. They do not make assumptions. They do however long to see a mostly religious Christendom actually encounter the Living God in ways that mean they can never return to the world from which they came.
If all you are talking about is revival, then you are talking about the wrong thing. If you are running with the crowd then you are most likely running in the wrong direction. It is Jesus first and last. It is His Word and the Baptism of the Holy Spirit that we rely upon. Without either, we can do nothing. If you are a cessationist then you have much greater problems than whether some meeting somewhere is of God or is not. This frenetic activity from the two broad groups of folk underlies a fundamental lack of Godly wisdom. In the days ahead, with the world coming to its end, and with gross darkness falling all around us, we will desperately need discernment and patience and wisdom from God above. Delusions, lying signs and wonders, angels of darkness appearing as angels of light, they are all going to increase with an alarming speed. Drawing close to God and His Word will be a vital aspect of our walk, and should always be, but all the more so as darkness descends. Draw close to Jesus brothers and sisters. Only by His name being lifted up will men and women be drawn to God. All other names, all other words, have no power.
2Th 2:3 Let no man deceive you by any means: for that day shall not come, except there come a falling away first, and that man of sin be revealed, the son of perdition;
Deception is never very far away. In all ages, unscrupulous men, men who typically do not work by their own hand but rather are “supported,” by others, have spread falsehoods and deceptions, selling themselves as ones who “know.” Paul addresses this very thing. Certain men had told them Thessalonians that Christ had already come back, that somehow they had “missed the boat,” so to speak. Paul gently reminds them of what he actually taught them. He reminds them that first there must be a great falling away from the faith. He reminds them that “He who now restrains,” will do so until He is taken out of the way. The lawless one must be revealed. There will be lying signs and wonders that will fool those who are not saved. This strong delusion will be sent by God Himself but it will not affect those who have “received the love of the truth.” The lawless one will be consumed by the breath of His mouth and the brightness of His coming, His second coming. Brothers and sisters, do not be deceived by preterists, so called or partial preterists and others who tell you that Jesus already came back, that all of this was fulfilled in 70ad. It is amazing to me that the same men, of the same character, who lied to the Thessalonians are still with us today and still deceiving foolish people who have not “received the love of the truth.”
It is one thing to hear the truth. It is even another thing to accept and agree with the truth, it is entirely another thing altogether to love the truth, to such an extent that one would suffer the loss of all things for it. Jesus is the truth. To be a lover of Jesus is to be a lover of the truth. It is like a mighty shield wall that stands immovable against all lies and lying signs and wonders. Receiving the love of the truth is to be marked eternally. It is to have rivers of molten lava flowing through our veins. It burns at the heart of who we are.It burned in the heart of every single martyr down through the ages, and there were millions of them, who could not and would not deny the truth that was revealed to them. Those who receive the love of the truth are dismantled piece by piece and rebuilt in the image of the Lord Jesus Christ. They are strong in the Lord and the power of His might. They speak in a way that is beyond their capacity for they speak by the power of the Holy Spirit who leads them and guides them into all truth. Paul says, in the starkest terms, that term being “we command you,” (he rarely commanded anything) “withdraw from every brother who walks disorderly,” according to the things Paul has just said. Have you received the love of the truth?
2Th 1:5 Which is a manifest token of the righteous judgment of God, that ye may be counted worthy of the kingdom of God, for which ye also suffer:
Paul is thanking God for the Thessalonians. And he is thanking God for the evidence that they are indeed saints. What is the qualifications that Paul is speaking of? 1. They have growing faith. 2. That growing faith leads to an abundance of love for their fellow saints. 3. They had patience and faith and love and endurance even as they suffered greatly through tribulations and persecution. And then Paul says this, he says that all of this was “manifest evidence,” of the righteous judgement of God that these Thessalonians were counted worthy of the Kingdom of God. Manifest evidence is translated “indication.” There was every indication to God that these saints by their faith and by love and endurance in the midst of great trials , stood strong.
Is there every indication in my life and your life brothers and sisters that you and I will be counted worthy of the Kingdom of God? Do we love in abundance, especially those of the faith? Are we patient in persecution and trial? Does our trust in God hold firm? Does it compel us deeper into the heart of God? Matthew Henry says that if our faith is worth anything it is worth everything! Everything we have, every part of our hearts, every part of our lives in service and devotion to the One that we love. And the proof of it of course does not lie on the mountaintop, but rather in the depths of the valley in the midst of trials and sufferings. This is where the “evidence,” comes to light. Under heat, under duress, in the crucible of life. Let us aspire to be counted worthy of the Kingdom of God and let this be evident to all who observe our lives.
1Th 5:5 Ye are all sons of light, and sons of the day: we are not of the night, nor of darkness.
Praise the Lord we are children of the light, not of the darkness and not of the night. While the world sleeps in darkness, the sons and daughters of the Lord are vigilant. Even now the world is being swamped with darkness and yet it is entirely unaware. Place a frog in tepid waters and it will be quite comfortable, then slowly turn up the heat and it will allow itself to be boiled to death. The world is at ease in Babylon yet quite suddenly, destruction will begin to rain down upon it and increase dramatically like “labor pains upon a pregnant woman.” It is pregnant with sin and its time is at hand. Yet we are told in the Scriptures that by virtue of the light that we walk in that none of these things shall overtake the children of God. We shall not be surprised when we see the destruction unfold because we can “see,” these things by the power of the Holy Spirit.
We know that whether we live or whether we die that we shall eternally be with our Lord. This is the comfort that Paul speaks of to the Thessalonians. No matter what kind of persecution we face, no matter how hard the trials or how great the suffering and tribulation, we walk in the light as He is in the light and we have fellowship one with another. This is our strength, this is our peace, this is our comfort when all hell breaks loose. Hell may break loose but praise the Lord we have been delivered from hell. Let us test all things and hold fast to what is good. And may the God of peace Himself sanctify us completely and may our whole spirit, soul and body be preserved blameless at the coming of our Lord Jesus Christ for He alone is faithful. (1Thess 5:23-24) Let us pray without ceasing.
1Th 4:16 For the Lord himself shall descend from heaven with a shout, with the voice of the archangel, and with the trump of God: and the dead in Christ shall rise first:
One wonders how such a simple verse could have ever taken on such controversy. To me, it is simply a devotional verse rather than some kind of eschatological controversy. Paul was comforting this newly founded gathering. He loved them so much and he knew they were suffering persecution, therefore he did not want any needless suffering to add to their afflictions. Paul states to them that he does not want them to be ignorant on the issues of death. He did not want them to suffer as the world sufferes when it came to the death of a loved one. Rather the opposite because of the great blessed hope that lay within them. The unsaved around them did not have such hope, therefore there should be a sharp distinction between them in this matter.
As Jesus died and rose again, so to we! This is our blessed hope. While there is certainly sorrow at the loss of a loved one, and we mourn our own loss of their company and fellowship, we also rejoice in the fact that their eternal life has only truly begun. And when Jesus comes again, they come with Him and those of us that are still alive here on earth shall be changed in the twinkling of the eye and be raised up to join them. We are changed so quickly because we were still alive and did not go through the typical death process. We still have to be raised in in-corruption, therefore something very mysterious takes place in us, a process without explanation or words and then we join them in the sky. And the most important verse in this whole chapter follows “and thus we shall always be with the Lord, comfort one another with these words.” And just as it comforted the Thessalonians, let us also be comforted.
1Th 3:3 That no man should be moved by these afflictions: for yourselves know that we are appointed to this.
We are indeed appointed to afflictions. Just like Paul, just like the Thessalonians and all the saints down through the last 2000 years. All of us who desire to live Godly in Christ Jesus will walk the narrow path that the saints walked before us. When Paul realized what was happening to the Thessalonians, that they were suffering for Jesus, he could not endure it any longer and sent Timothy to see how they were doing. God will always send you something or someone in the midst of your trials and tribulations. You will not be left as orphans. The Holy Spirit will see to that. You will be encouraged. You will be strengthened and lifted up. Even reading this may be an encouragement to you. The Lord cares for all of His sons and daughters, we are the sons and daughters of His love. Sometimes we can lose sight of that at the height or in the depths of the battle, especially when it rages all around. Yet even in the terrible fiery furnace that the Hebrew children endured, Jesus was with them in the midst of it all. He is in the midst of it with you.
What thanks Paul gave to God when he heard how the Thessalonians stood. He thanked the Lord that He was establishing their hearts to be “blameless in holiness.” He thanked God that despite their persecutions they abounded in love. Glory to God. Holiness, thankfulness, abiding in love and to be found blameless in the sight of God just like Job. There are riches to be found in the depths of tribulations saints. Treasures that are found in the darkness of our situations. The light that never shines brighter, the love that never feels stronger, the glory that is never so surely seen, as when we suffer for the sake of Jesus. The comfort we receive from the hand of God, broken like the loaves and the fishes, many shall be fed by it. Glory to God. Standing fast in the Lord and in the power of His might, whether in the heat of the day or the blackness of the night, there shall never be a more glorious sight, than His glory that fills the temple and that fills you and I.
1Th 2:4 But as we were allowed of God to be put in trust with the gospel, even so we speak; not as pleasing men, but God, which tests our hearts.
We have been entrusted with the Gospel. We must speak the truth and in no way desire to please men. We are not called to flatter anyone. Flatterers do so to gain something. It is a tool, a weapon of the enemy to gain access into the hearts and minds and oftentimes beds and pockets of foolish and vulnerable people. Men who use the Gospel are seeking glory for themselves. They desire to be lifted up, to be sought after, to gain the preeminence. The man of God makes no such demands upon people, he does not seek after his own. Rather He is strong and gentle among the saints. He has deep affection and love for his brothers and his sisters. He will impart not only the gospel to the hearers but also his whole life shall be laid down. Rather than take, Paul and those with him worked and toiled night and day so that he would not be a burden to anyone. How this flies in the face of self named “clergy.”
Paul suffered so much, therefore when he comes upon a people who would suffer similarly for the cause of Christ he pours out his heart in love and thanksgiving for such a people as the Thessalonians.He loves them as a father loves his own children. He desires to be with them and it is interesting that “Satan hindered,” him from coming to them. These people, and all people who suffer for the cause of Christ cause real damage to the kingdom of darkness. They have pierced the darkness with their light and the enemy tries to snuff out such light. Perhaps you suffer for the Lord today? All those who desire to live Godly in the Lord Jesus shall be persecuted and that persecution comes in a thousand different ways. You are just as much a threat to the enemies kingdom as the Thessalonians were. Yet as much as Paul loved these saints, your heavenly Father loves you more. He sees you suffer. He sees your pain. Yet you are His glory and joy. You are His very own. And in the day of the coming of the Lord you shall be, as Paul puts it, His joy and His crown of rejoicing. Soon the night shall pass brothers and sisters and in the morning of His coming, great joy shall fill the universe, and your work on earth shall be done.
(1Th 1:6-7) And ye became followers of us, and of the Lord, having received the word in much affliction, with joy of the Holy Ghost: So that ye were examples to all that believe in Macedonia and Achaia.
The Thessalonians suffered much. They received the Word of God in the midst of much hostility. You might say that they were born again in the midst of the fire. And yet what do we see? Joy. The supernatural joy of the Lord has nothing to do with circumstances. I have no doubt that joy filled the hearts of Paul and Silas in the dungeon, as they laid there beaten and broken in body for the sake of Christ. They rejoiced, they worshiped and down came the power of God. The Apostles rejoiced after being scourged as they could not believe how privileged they were to be counted worthy to suffer for the sake of Christ. Joy in the midst of the fire. Holy Spirit enabled joy. It is the mark of the saint who is full of the Holy Spirit no doubt. Stephen, a man full of the Holy Spirit had a remarkable vision in the very midst of the cruelest and most vicious of deaths. Even as that was unfolding, there was one standing by, witnessing the martyr and how he died, Saul, who would become Paul. He saw the power of God in the death of Stephen.
The Thessalonians were “examples,” to all who believed in Macedonia and Achaia. In this case they were witnesses to other brothers and sisters throughout the region and these other saints would no doubt have been convicted and encouraged by the joy the Thessalonians had when there should be no joy. The word “examples,” from the Scripture above is from the Greek word ‘Tupos,” which means to be struck, to be stamped or to be scarred. It comes from the primary verb “Tupto,” which means to be cudgeled or pummeled or to suffer repeated blows. When we suffer repeated blows for the cause of Christ and respond with supernatural joy, it deals a blow to principalities and powers. Their kingdoms are shaken to their foundations. It is like a spiritual earthquake because this defies the natural realities of this world. It is supernatural. It is extraordinary. The greatest example of all being Calvary. The whole world and the unseen kingdoms would be turned upside down by Jesus on the cross. “Forgive them Father,’ Jesus cries out. And the last words of Stephen? “Lord Jesus receive my spirit, Lord do not hold this sin against them.”
The power of God. The power of the Holy Spirit. The example of Jesus. The examples of the Thessalonians. The examples of the Apostles. The example of the martyrs down through the ages. How about us brothers and sisters? Are we not filled with the same Holy Spirit? Have we not been endued with the same power from on High? Shall we not rejoice in the Lord and again I say rejoice? Shall we not rejoice in all things and give thanks in all things? For in these continual blows, when we are pummeled for the sake of Christ shall we not bear the scars with great pride? Shall we not stand in the midst of the fire with love and with joy and with thanksgiving? This is our calling brothers and sisters. It is a royal calling. It is a calling to a royal priesthood, a chosen people, a holy nation. We are Gods special possession and He has called us out of darkness into His marvelous light that we may declare the praises of Him who called us out. Praises on the mountaintop are good. Praises and joy and thanksgiving in the depths of the valley, though you be lower, are so much higher. All of heaven resounds to hear the praises of God on the lips of those who are in the midst of the fire.
Col 3:16 Let the word of Christ dwell in you richly in all wisdom; teaching and admonishing one another in psalms and hymns and spiritual songs, singing with grace in your hearts to the Lord.
Let the word of Christ Himself dwell in you richly, in all abundance, let it become the treasure of your heart. Men horde money, let the saints gather up, with every effort, the word of God and hide it away in the depths of you. And so the peace of God shall rule in our hearts as we put on the new man and the old man dies. The old mans treasure will ruin our ability to gather the new mans treasure. Only by moving in the riches of Christ can the riches of Christ rule and reign in our hearts. Christ Jesus Himself, the preeminent one. If He holds the highest place in your heart then you shall walk in an abundance of wisdom and knowledge and you shall be like a fruitful branch to Him, producing much fruit.
And those who so walk shall “teach and admonish one another in psalms and hymns and spiritual songs.” You will sing with grace in your hearts and with love towards God. And in the singing of the psalms and the writing of the hymns and poems we shall convey truth to one another and admonish one another and in doing all that we do it within the confines of the Word of God. And the works of God and His fruit shall be manifested in the life of the genuine believer. A word of wisdom, a word of knowledge, a prophecy, a psalm a spiritual song. Paul wonders why, when they all gather, each has a teaching, a psalm, a tongue, a revelations and so forth. How far we have fallen. Now we rarely see, if ever, any of the aforementioned gifts in the gathering, rather it is stifled by the one man system that is in direct contradiction of the commands of God “Let two or three prophets speak,” Imagine, two or three exhortations whether to reveal or admonish. Two or three spiritual songs or psalms or hymns. Imagine what God could do if we banished the clergy/laity divide and the one man system that stifles and silences the saints in direct violation of Gods word. Imagine.
(Col 3:1-3) If then you were raised with Christ, seek those things which are above, where Christ is sitting at the right hand of God. Set your mind on things above, not on things on the earth. For you died, and your life is hidden with Christ in God.
This verse starts out with the word “if.” This is just to clarify that the magnificent truths of the Gospel can only ever apply to those who are genuinely born again. And if we are genuinely born again then we are called to have this mind-set, the mindset of Heaven and of God. Our eyes are to be drawn upwards as we seek the manifest glory of God and to be conformed to His image. The seat of all our affections are entirely up to us. What do we seek? Where do we look? What captures our attention? What do you fill your mind with? There are only two paths that lie before us. We can either set our minds on things above, or we can set our minds on the things of earth. The things of earth and the things of heaven should be entirely apparent and are laid out in the following verses in this chapter in the form of the things we “put on,” and the things we “put off.” Note well that we are the ones who are putting on or putting off.
We are to put off, or put to death, fornication. Most notably this would be adultery. Uncleanness, which would be all forms of immorality. Inordinate affections or passions which would be lusts. This could be sexual in nature or it could be a lust for money or power or promotion. It is all idolatry because it “unseats,” the Lord Jesus from His rightful place on the throne of your heart. We have also to put off anger and hateful thoughts and of course any kind of blasphemy should never be heard on our lips. Now, we are not left alone in the putting off of these things. The genuine saint has died and we are hidden in Christ. Therefore we love Him with a love that knows no bounds. In the end this will be your greatest weapon, your very love for Jesus and His love for you and the Holy Spirit will magnify this love in your hearts towards Him. It is our greatest weapon because in genuine love, the very last thing we would ever desire to do would be to displease our heavenly Father.
There are many many people in this world who have excellent and righteous early fathers and mothers. Speak to them and they will tell you that the very last thing in this world would they would ever want to do would be to disappoint them. They say they would rather die than to see the look of disappointment on their faces. Now brothers and sisters, is not our relationship with our heavenly Father so much higher than any earthly relationship? The very notion of disappointing our Heavenly Father should form the greater boundary of the narrow path. And therefore we rather put on all the attributes of the new man, the one who arose with Christ. Tender mercies and kindness should be the order of the day. Humility and meekness should pave the narrow road on which we walk. Long-suffering while continuing in kindness and mercy to others should be one of the many ways that we are marked. Love and forgiveness above all else should be as natural to as it is to breathe for we ourselves are lavish recipients of such. Today, brothers and sisters, put on and put off. Take up your cross daily and you shall do both, to the glory of our Lord and Savior Jesus.
Col 2:9 For in him dwells all the fullness of the Godhead bodily.
And this Scripture goes on to say that ” you are complete in Him, who is the head of all principality and power.” The scripture here quoted. comes from a chapter that is warning us about the dangers of religion. There is fullness in Christ alone. Only in Christ alone can we walk this narrow path. Only in Christ alone can we ever live to serve Him. It is He who is above all things and it is in Him that we find our place in the Body. It has nothing to do with “your church.” It is quite apart from the traditions of your fathers and the commandments and doctrines of men which appear to be wise and humble, but which have no affect whatsoever in your ongoing walk and battle that you have been called to.
We have been called into this fullness, into the depths of the Fathers heart wherein lie the treasures of wisdom and knowledge. The treasures of a burning heart that is set on fire by the all consuming love of the Lord Jesus Christ which is manifested by the Holy Spirit. We are called to live an abundant life in Christ, which comes from a life rooted and built up in Him where the fruit of our lips is the praise of God and where thanksgiving is the seat of all our affections. We were buried with the Lord Jesus Christ in baptism and we were raised with Him by grace, through faith in the living God. We are now dead to the world and the life we used to live and alive together with Him because He wiped out all our previous debts, having nailed them to the cross. We are, quite simply, debt free. Praise Jesus. Those principalities and powers that laid claim to us through sin, the Lord Jesus Christ triumphed over them. He disarmed them and humiliated them by His very own willing sacrifice.
(Col 1:19-20) For it pleased the Father that in Him all the fullness should dwell; and by Him to reconcile all things to Himself, whether things on earth or things in heaven having made peace through the Blood of the Cross.
And it pleased the Father that we should be reconciled to Him by the Blood of the Lord Jesus Christ. We who were once enemies of the cross and alienated from God have been reconciled, praise the Living God! We have been presented to the Father, holy and blameless and above reproach by the Lord Jesus Christ Himself. This is where we stand. This is how we stand. This is how the Father sees us. This is indeed, our position and will remains so. Now, I could stop right there and most preachers do. Most teachers do. You will get a thousand amens when you preach this and leave out the word that immediately follows. IF!!!! We all know what the word means. It means “unless,” or “if indeed.” And so we see that Paul tells the sainst’s that this position is conditional.
What are the conditions he states……..1. If indeed you continue in the faith. Meaning? If you continue to trust God and walk with Him. 2. If you continue to be grounded and steadfast. Meaning? Grounded means to consolidate. Consolidate as a verb means to bring together into a single or unified whole and as an adjective it means to solidify, form or coherent. So, to be one in Christ and go in the faith, becoming sons and daughters as opposed to babes in Christ. To continue on to maturity 3. Not moved away from the hope of the Gospel. Meaning? To be heavenly minded, to find joy not only on the mountaintops but also in the depths of the valleys. To be able to rejoice in the midst of your sufferings and trials. To be drawn ever closer to the Lord by your tribulations.
This is pleasing to the Lord. He takes no pleasure in those who draw back. To continue in the faith is oftentimes to endure. To continue in the faith is oftentimes overcoming. To continue in the faith is get down on our knees, with Job, after great loss, and worship the Lord still and cry out “The Lord gives and the Lord takes away, blessed be the name of the Lord.” Will you continue in the faith? Have you continued in the faith? Paul says ” Him we preach, warning every man and teaching every man in all wisdom that we may present every man perfect in Christ Jesus.” Warning and teaching brothers and sisters, they go hand in glove.And Paul has of course done both in this very chapter. For we are handling riches. The pearl of great price. We direct the souls of men towards the heart of God which is Christ in you, the hope of glory. It is priceless, and we must treat it as such.
Col 1:18 And he is the head of the body, the church: who is the beginning, the firstborn from the dead; that in all things he might have the preeminence.
In all things Jesus might have the preeminence. In all things brothers and sisters. And for this purpose we read in the earlier verses of this chapter that ” you may be filled with the knowledge of His will in all wisdom and spiritual understanding, that you may walk worthy of the Lord, fully pleasing Him, being fruitful in every good work and increasing in the knowledge of God.” Increasing in the knowledge of God and the knowledge of His will is the work of the Holy Spirit in you. And as this occurs then Jesus is elevated, Jesus is lifted up, Jesus becomes first and last in all things, He indeed becomes your grand obsession and in this God is glorified. It was Christ who delivered us from the powers of darkness. It was God who transferred us, we were translated into the Kingdom of “The Son of His love.” How beautiful is that phrase ” The Son of His Love.” We, by the power of the Lord Jesus Christ become the sons and the daughters of His love!
Jesus is the image of the invisible God. Jesus is the Word made flesh. Jesus in Immanuel. He walks among us and is in us by the power of the Holy Spirit. By Jesus all things were created that are in heaven and in earth. Thrones, dominions and principalities and powers, all things were created by Jesus for the glory of God the Father. He is before all things and by Him all things exist. He is the head of the Body, the Church, and He is the firstborn from the dead and in all these things He has the preeminence. It is the devils task to tear Jesus down in the minds of men in a futile effort to dethrone Him. He detests the fact that Jesus Christ is the Son of His love. He is insanely jealous of Jesus and wants to replace Him which is why he is anti-christ. By removing the preeminence of Jesus from our gatherings he has went a long way in an inevitably futile task. How tragic that Jesus Christ, our Lord and Savior has been sidelined and relegated in the hearts of millions of professing saints around the world in their hearts and in their gatherings.
Yet praise the Lord Jesus rules and reigns supreme in the hearts of His very own, no matter how much of the world has flooded into what we call churches. Jesus is and always will be higher than the highest heavens. One day the Lord will rend the heavens and His glory will flow down the mountains and fill every valley with His majesty. The seas will flee at His presence, the mountains will humbly bow and say ” Glory , glory to the risen King.” The sun will turn its face away in shame for it is outshone by the brilliance of His illumination. The moon and the stars will cry out ” Holy, Holy is He who was and is and forever shall be.” And every voice from every tongue will say “Jesus,” and acknowledge the King of Kings and the Lord of Lords. And the beasts of the earth will fall down and cover their faces and then the lion will rise up and approach the lamb and they will lay down together.
And every knee shall bow in every tribe and in every nation and even the hordes of hell will fall silent as He approaches. The earth itself will grow silent and shall be still and then a glorious noise will begin to rise and will fill the earth, it will fill the sea it will fill the night skies it will fill the whole universe and all that will be heard will be the choirs of angels, that heavenly choir and the glory of God will not only cover the earth but will fill up everything that there is or has ever been. God’s saints, the children of His love will rise on this glorious symphony, they will arise in the updrafts of His glory and majesty and it will carry them into the heart of God. And those who rejected this magnificent glory will fall and their cries will be heard as they fall into the depths of darkness, for what eyes can ever see light again that were not sanctified eyes. And He will reign forever.
I believe we need to bring the Holy Spirit of God back into the church, back by prayer, obedience, and confession, until He literally takes over. Then there will be life and light and power and victory and joy and fruit in our lives. We can live on a different level altogether, a level never before dreamed possible. Every church has an obligation to regularly examine itself to see if what it is doing is on the solid foundation of the Holy Spirit. The tendency is to drift, as the Scriptures often warn us. I need to be careful that my life is solid on the foundation. If I am not building my life and ministry on the foundation of the Holy Spirit, I will not be pleasing or glorifying to God. (A.W.Tozer)
What a tragic statement from so long ago, that “we need to bring the Holy Spirit of God back into the church.” What is a church without the Holy Spirit? What is a life without the Holy Spirit? Well it probably looks like our own best efforts. And what will our own best efforts amount to? The very best scenario, a counterfeit to the living God. Some counterfeits are much better than others. The deadness in a lot of churches is as apparent as the nose on your face. Some hide the deadness much better. A lot of noise, a lot of shouting, dimmed lights, lifestyle sermons and motivational speaking. Yet, without the Holy Spirit, just as dead as the other churches mentioned. Tozer said “until He literally takes over.” I believe that is a bridge too far for most modern churches. How would the programs fit in? How long would the service be? “Hey, i did not hear my favorite guy speak this morning.” Toes would be stepped on and the tares would howl in protest and walk.
If the tendency is to drift, and it is, assuming there was a good starting point, where does that leave us today? Ask the average pastor how “his church,” is doing and he will tell you wonderful stories. On the whole he will be well pleased. If anything is to change there must be a revival of holy dissatisfaction. There must be desperation. Desperate times demands desperate measures. There must be honest assessments of where we are. And what blueprint shall we use for that? Do you know of another besides the Scriptures? There is none. The old paths is the Scriptures. The old paths is the Holy Spirit. The old paths leads to a place where the Holy Spirit “literally takes over.” Are we so far down the “new,” paths that we cannot even visualize what it would look like to get back to the Word and its description on how we gather and how we edify one another. When was the last time there was a manifestation of the Spirit in your gathering? Our traditions and our programs are all too often the last dying breath of what once was. They act as ventilators that artificially keep us breathing. And just as 90% of people die who go on ventilators in the world, the spiritual ventilators of our programs and traditions are spiritually killing people.
It is time for the Jesus people to stand up. Stand up brothers and sisters and cry out that the Holy Spirit of God would come back into the church, back by prayer, obedience, and confession, until He literally takes over. We were not created and born again to sit lifeless and mute and to drown in mediocrity. We were born again to be extraordinary. To be used by God to feed and to edify one another in the assembly of the saints. To cry out “Holy , Holy, Holy is His name.” What would happen in your assembly if, at the leading of the Spirit, you stood up and cried this out? Florrie Evans stood up in her Calvinistic church and declared publicly that she “loved the Lord Jesus with all of her heart.” And with that, just that simple, bold public declaration that must have horrified the religionists, revival fell. Not a revival of preaching mind you. Not a revival of programs. Not a revival of institutions, but a revival where the “Holy Spirit literally took over.” And down flowed the glory and up went the prayers. Up went the confessions and up went the unashamed declarations of Jesus. The glory fell and the tears fell and the world was changed. We worship the same God today as we did in 1904. What then hinders us? Perhaps we simply don’t want it?
A Call To The Remnant 