Study of the Word: One Accord

Today, as we participated in the training for the elders and responsible ones, we were blessed with the Lord’s up-to-date speaking on the one accord. This matter is so deep and profound. Though we may not claim that we have been perfected into oneness, by the Lord’s mercy, we have been graced  and blessed in the church life to see this vision of one accord and practice it. By and large, we have been practicing this one accord and are being perfected in this matter gradually. The Lord’s speak was so rich and for the sake of remembrance and reminder, the crucial points have been recorded here. These are what we are learning and the vitally needed for the church life to accomplish God’s eternal purpose.

These all continued steadfastly with one accord in prayer, together with the women and Mary the mother of Jesus, and with His brothers. (Acts 1:14, RecVer)

And day by day, continuing steadfastly with one accord in the temple and breaking bread from house to house, they partook of their food with exultation and simplicity of heart, (Acts 2:46, RecVer)

And when they heard this, they lifted up their voice with one accord to God and said, Sovereign Master, You are the One who has made heaven and earth and the sea and all things in them, (Acts 4:24, RecVer)

And through the hands of the apostles many signs and wonders took place among the people; and they were all with one accord in the portico of Solomon. (Acts 5:12, RecVer)

Negative Satanic One Accord 

But they cried out with a loud voice and covered their ears and rushed upon him with one accord. (Acts 7:57, RecVer)

But while Gallio was proconsul of Achaia, the Jews rose up against Paul with one accord and brought him to the judgment seat, (Acts 18:12, RecVer)

And the city was filled with confusion; and they rushed with one accord into the theater, seizing Gaius and Aristarchus of Macedonia, Paul’s traveling companions. (Acts 19:29, RecVer)

If we practice the principle of the Body, we will have the one accord, for the one accord is the Body. The practice of the genuine one accord is the application of the oneness. The practice of the church life must be in one accord. The blessing of God can come only upon a situation of one accord, the practice of the one accord. Blessing and one accord are interchanged, meaning, in one accord we are blessed and if we are blessed we will be in one accord. 

These all continued steadfastly with one accord in prayer, together with the women and Mary the mother of Jesus, and with His brothers. (Acts 1:14, RecVer)

One accord refers to the harmony in our inner being. The Greek word homothumadon, homo (same) and thumos (mind, will, purpose), denotes a harmony of inward feeling in one's entire being. This is a crucial and deep experience.

And I say to you that every idle word which men shall speak, they will render an account concerning it in the day of judgment. (Matthew 12:36, RecVer)

May the Lord deal with every idle word now than before the judgment seat. Our words have been recorded. 

Again, truly I say to you that if two of you are in harmony on earth concerning any matter for which they ask, it will be done for them from My Father who is in the heavens. (Matthew 18:19, RecVer)

When we have the one accord, we become a pleasing melody to God. Peace, blessing, and pleasing melody to God are the results of being in one accord. God enjoys this melody. 

And they continued steadfastly in the teaching and the fellowship of the apostles, in the breaking of bread and the prayers. (Acts 2:42, RecVer)

And day by day, continuing steadfastly with one accord in the temple and breaking bread from house to house, they partook of their food with exultation and simplicity of heart, (Acts 2:46, RecVer)

The practice of the oneness is according to the apostles' teaching. The apostles' taught the same thing in all the places and continuing in this one teaching will keep the saints in one accord. 

In the practice of the one accord, the following crucial points must be prayed for and practiced.

One Spirit With One Soul

Only, conduct yourselves in a manner worthy of the gospel of Christ, that whether coming and seeing you or being absent, I may hear of the things concerning you, that you stand firm in one spirit, with one soul striving together along with the faith of the gospel, (Philippians 1:27, RecVer)

Make my joy full, that you think the same thing, having the same love, joined in soul, thinking the one thing, (Philippians 2:2, RecVer)

Let this mind be in you, which was also in Christ Jesus, (Philippians 2:5, RecVer)

I exhort Euodias, and I exhort Syntyche, to think the same thing in the Lord. (Philippians 4:2, RecVer)

We should think with the mind of Christ and speak with the mouth of Christ, the Head. In this way, we will think the same thing and speak the same thing. The only way to do this is by allowing Christ to make His home in our hearts. For this, we need to have a personal relationship with the Lord. Our heart has a lot of things in it. It must be dealt with and allow Christ to make His home. Christ must have an acces to our heart.

One Heart and One Way

And I will give them one heart and one way, to fear Me all the days, for their own good and for the good of their children after them. (Jeremiah 32:39, RecVer)

One heart to love God, to seek God, to live God, and to be constituted with God for one expression, and one way, the inner law of life, are required for the one accord.

One Scale in the Church Life 

You shall not have in your bag differing weights, one heavy and one light. You shall not have in your house differing measures, one large and one small. A full and righteous weight you shall have, and a full and righteous measure you shall have, in order that your days may be extended upon the land which Jehovah your God is giving you. (Deuteronomy 25:13-15, RecVer)

There should just be one scale to measure myself and others. What I condemn in me must also be condemned in others, maintaining the one scale. Better not to have any scale, neither for myself nor for others. Only God can judge righteously. Leave every measurement to God. 

One All-inclusive Vision

Where there is no vision, the people cast off restraint; / But happy is he who keeps the law. (Proverbs 29:18, RecVer)

Therefore, King Agrippa, I was not disobedient to the heavenly vision, (Acts 26:19, RecVer)

We all must be governed by the same one vision thoroughly, the vision of the age. Even a different vision in minor point can destroy the one accord. 

Therefore, we should all voice the same thing, trumpet the same thing, teach the same thing, and be in the same practice.

O what a speaking of the Lord! How blessed we are even to have heard such a speaking. Based on this, the Lord will also grace us to practice the one accord. 

Lord, preserve us in the one accord.

Family Gospel Trip

Since persecution against the gospel of Jesus Christ has become rampant in North India where anti-conversion bill has been passed and misused by some fringe groups, we have been cautious in the way we carry out the great commission. Despite this restriction, we have been praying fervently and continue the sheperding of the warm doors who have known us and whom we have been shepherding. Alongside, we still carry on the gospel responsibility in areas we deem safe. Despite the quieting of the outward gospel move in my locality for the time being, I still have the burden to preach the gospel wherever the Lord opens the door. Thanks to the five weeks of gospel move in six select cities in India, one of which is my neighbor, Delhi.

Last Saturday, my whole family along with a teenage brother, we went to Dwarka More to participate in the gospel move. Initially, it was a challenge to bring my whole family for the whole day as my children have school homeworks to complete. Yet I told them, the priority for the day is the gospel and school works can be done later. Finally, they all agreed. And we spent the whole day with the trainees and the saints in West Delhi, pursuing, praying, fellowshipping, going out for the gospel, and my wife and daughters helping in cooking for the saints. And in the evening we had a gospel meeting where we all participated with the trainees and new ones. 

I personally enjoyed going out with the trainees as we met a married couple from Nigeria who came to serve the Lord in India. Through the fellowship, some key points of truth were brought out. The brother we met, though he claimed himself to be an "apostle", I addressed him as a "brother" and later clarified to him that we are all brothers in Christ, and that there is no ranking among believers. In our meeting he brought out three points which gave me the ground to minister the truth. 

First, God’s desire to save men, and I added on the need for growth, to bring the saved believers to the full knowledge of the truth and explained in detail what spiritual growth is in realtion to the full knowledgeof the truth..

This is good and acceptable in the sight of our Savior God, Who desires all men to be saved and to come to the full knowledge of the truth. (1 Timothy 2:3-4, RecVer)

Second, the kingdom of God based on righteousness and holiness. Here, I used the verses in Genesis when God began to exercise His righteousness in driving the fallen man out of the garden of Eden and guarded the way to the tree of life with God's righteousness, holiness, and glory. And expounded in detail God’s righteousness, holiness, and glory being Jesus Christ Himself and only in Him we can be righteous, holy, and be in glory.

Then Jehovah God sent him forth from the garden of Eden, to work the ground from which he was taken. So He drove the man out, and at the east of the garden of Eden He placed the cherubim and a flaming sword which turned in every direction to guard the way to the tree of life. (Genesis 3:23-24, RecVer)

Third, the brother we met, according to his religious concept spoke about "heaven at last" as his theme for his Christian service. Without contradicting him, yet wisely using the topic to minister the truth, I ministerd on our need to be brought into the experience and enjoyment of heaven by being brought into the reality of the kingdom in Christ in our spirit day by day, today, and in the coming millennium kingdom, and then in the New Jerusalem. 

We began our fellowship in prayer and ended also in prayer. It was a wonderful time of fellowship on the truth for the couple from Nigeria and also for the three sisters and one brother who are under training. It was altogether a new experience of propagating the truth especially among Christian leaders and workers.

After the entire day schedule, a brother invited us to pay a visit to their home nearby and then we came back home after 10 PM. We left our home after 10 AM and came back after 10 PM, a twelve hour, one whole day well spent as a family for the gospel in Delhi.

O what a blessing to be able to participate in the Lord’s move! I have attended many such, but as a family this was one wonderful memorable experience! 

Lord, bless Your move in India, especially, North India, and strengthen Your testimony!

Couple Fellowship on Love

On the 1st of April, a few days ago, two young married couples were invited for a time of fellowship over lunch lovefeast. In fact, the plan was originally for a couple who just got married last Saturday. However, a brother texted us of accommodating another couple who visited India from South Korea for a day of fellowship. The Lord sovereignly arranged the day for a particular time of fellowship.

The couple from Korea came in the morning and joined the daily morning pursuing. Though I had official works to attend to, I realised that I need to spend time with them. I believe it was the Lord who brought them for a special fellowship, all the way from South Korea to India, at the ministry literature office in Gurugram.

As I fellowshiped with them, they opened their personal and marital issues one by one. The Lord gave me the discernment to understand what they have been going through. They have been married for two years but have experienced an extreme hardship in their marriage life and in their business to the point that they even contemplated divorce and suicide. Yet, the Lord preserved them and brought them to India, perhaps for fellowship, to recover their marruage life for the church life. 

The anointing of the Spirit was so rich that as we fellowshipped, rivers of living water flowed forth among us all. The Lord supplied them with the timely word for them to have a new beginning in their Christian life and marriage life for the church life. Some practical points for fellowship were, spending time together as husband and wife in prayer everyday in addition to their personal prayer time, reading the word of God daily to be renewed in their mind and ward off the attacks of the enemy with evil thoughts, pursuing the ministry even with the Holy Word for Morning Revival, and to be in fellowship with the church wherever they are. These basic daily practices fellowshipped to them gave them the way to go on.

Sanctify them in the truth; Your word is truth. (John 17:17, RecVer)

Besides, as usual, I shared how the Lord also blessed my marriage life by taking care of these basic Christian daily practices. I also addressed their business crisis by letting them know that all things worked together for good for their transformation and conformation to the image of the Son of God.

And we know that all things work together for good to those who love God, to those who are called according to His purpose. Because those whom He foreknew, He also predestinated to be conformed to the image of His Son, that He might be the Firstborn among many brothers; (Romans 8:28-29, RecVer)

As they also opened up about their marital issues, my fellowship was to help them know they human love is weak, the only love that is genuine is God’s divine and eternal love. I fellowshipped with them to love the Lord Jesus first and that the divine love would fill them to enable them to love one another with the divine love. There is no real love without the divine love. The world is full of broken and bitter love that ended up in divorce and separation among married couples, despite being outwardly rich, famous, and beautiful. 

This fellowship opened their eyes to see things in a new perspective. They were so filled with joy and happiness. They even confessed that though they did not plan to meet me, nor did they plan to come to India, the Lord brought them for this fellowship. Then, we all offered thanksgiving and prayed together.

This couple, having enjoyed the fellowship so much, even requested if they could stay overnight. In fellowship with the brothersin Delhi, we welcomed them to stay overnight. I also led them to join the church group meeting, Life-study pursuing, and the saints in Gurugram prayed for them. Later, as I dropped them to the guest room, I prayed together with them showing the way they need to practice praying together daily.

During lunch time they also joined the fellowship with another newly married couple when the Lord led me to fellowship on loving the Lord after we sang hymn 171, Lord Jesus Christ our hearts feel sweet, based on Psalms.

Whom do I have in heaven but You? / And besides You there is nothing I desire on earth. (Psalms 73:25, RecVer)

When the world is fooling around with April Fool, we who love the Lord fellowship around with the Lord and His love as the center of our fellowship. 

Lord, bless these two couples and all the married ones in the church for Your testimony!

Hebrew Learning: Midway

This month was very productive as far as my Hebrew learning was concerned. In the past months, I was so busy with official work, family life and church life. I was so concerned that I lagged behind too much in my Hebrew learning as I was not able to cope with the tight schedule I was limited to. At one point, I even thought of quitting altogether. The learning seemed so tough, with much study and concentration required. Besides, I am not a translator anyway. I even used to wonder why on earth did I ever enroll in this Hebrew course. In fact, I even though of writing a letter to my instructors to forgive me for my slow progress and request them to give me more time to cope up with it. Thank God I did not do that. But anyhow, I am already a student, and I cannot quit now. I must keep sailing on.

This month, I had no travel plans. I only took care of the important official work by being stationed at the Gurugram office. In this way, I could focus more on my Hebrew learning. Despite the discouragement within for my inability to give sufficient time for learning, I looked to the Lord for grace and scheduled my time in such a way that I could complete at least one lesson a week. The Lord indeed graced me, and I was able to complete the learning of six Hebrew classes with revision, memorization, and quizzes in a month! What a miracle! The Lord truly grace me well. Except for one quiz, I did fairly well.

Every time I studied and wrote the exams, I prayed to the Lord that His perfect will be done in my Heberw learning. I truly believe He has a perfect plan for me in learning Hebrew, which will be revealed in time. Therefore, I put on my student mode and learned like a student. I did my best and took the exam when I was fully confident that I had learned it thoroughly well. I am not sure what the Lord has reserved for me. But I do believe that through this learning process, I have experienced the Lord a lot. Despite me becoming a father of three children already and running in my mid-forties, still the Lord gave me the grace, wisdom and knowledge to learn a completely different subject, Hebrew, nothing related to any subjects that I learned in the past. Now that I have come to the middle of the entire Hebrew course, I must look to the Lord for another half and sail on until completion. 

Life is a process of learning, growing, and gaining God through whatever circumstances the Lord has placed me in. It is great to take up challenges and face the reality of life. This is the lesson Hebrew learning has taught me.

Lord, grace me on and on that I may be able to read and understand Your word in the way it was written originally in Hebrew.

Services of Serving Ones

The Lord Jesus is the Master, and I have been graced and blessed to be one of the serving ones of the Lord Jesus Christ. Since I got saved in 1997, I have been bearing the burden to serve the Lord in the way I can. In time, the Lord Himself made the way I could serve Him clear to me. In 2003, I received a direct call from the Lord through the word of God to serve Him. 

And now, O Israel, what does Jehovah your God ask of you except that you fear Jehovah your God so that you would walk in all His ways and love Him and serve Jehovah your God with all your heart and with all your soul. Deuteronomy 10:12

Since then, I have been graced and blessed by the Lord to go through the full-time training. And He has been training and perfecting me to serve. Twenty years have elapsed since I finished my training and started serving the Lord in different areas and in different capacities. The Lord has been faithful in leading me through and through all these years. To me, it is the sure mercy of the Lord that he has qualified and graced me to serve. In my self, I cannot. It has always been His life in me that enables and empowers me to serve. I have nothing to claim for myself. Nothing to boast, no glory, nothing for myself. It is Him who serves in and through me, fia ny glory, it is god's glory and glory to Him only. 

With these lessons, I also have been trying to help the saints who have the burden to serve. To me, it is impossible for any human to serve the living God without the life of the living God in the lives of the serving ones. This month I had been through a series of fellowship with four brothers. They all have the burden to serve, but they also need help. Serving the Lord is not according to natural ability and strength. It is purely His mercy that one can serve Him. The person of the serving one and the service of the serving ones are one. Without the person being proper, there cannot be the service proper. 

Therefore, in all the fellowship with these four brothers, it was mostly to do with their person and character rather than their services itself. The conditions and regulations given to them in a way of brotherly fellowship were to help them turn to the Lord and depend on the Lord fully so that they can be useful vessels to the Lord. To some, a strict instruction and a tight schedule were given; to others the need for diligence and faithfulness was emphasised. Yet to some, the need for coordination and submission was made known, and to one in particular, the need to exercise his spirit more to deal with his temper was given in writing.  

Before all these fellowships, I spent a considerable amount of time in prayer, bringing these matters to the Lord to get the Lord's feeling so that I may not misrepresent God in any way. Though I may be placed in a position to "decide" things officially concerning the serving ones, as this is one of my official responsibilities, I fear God. I dare not misrepresent God by giving my thoughts and feelings to anyone. I commit all the matters to God in fear and trembling that the Lord's perfect will be done in all these brothers' lives and services. I, too, am just a serving one, just like all the others. It has also been a time of training and learning to deal with people, especially saints, as all these are also brothers in the church life. One particular lesson that all serving ones need to learn is submission.

We need to learn the lesson of submission. Not only do the sent ones need to learn submission, the sending ones also need to learn submission. Only in the spirit of submission will a person hear the voice of the Holy Spirit. We cannot consider that a consensus is the standard for any work; rather, submission must be the standard. We should not send out a brother because we agree with him. Many times, even though we do not agree with the proposal of a certain brother, we still have to give him the liberty to do it. The matter is not about agreeing or not agreeing but about submitting or not submitting. The Holy Spirit can have a way only among the submissive ones. Excerpt from The Present Testimony (4): The Third Overcomer Conference CWWN, vol.11

In this regard, I had a fellowship with a brother whom I felt needed help. In considering his continuation in the service, I prayed over and sent an email to him concerning his coordination and submission and the need to exercise his spirit to deal with his temper as conditions for him to continue. A week later, he accepted the conditions and confirmed that he would continue.

I was particularly thankful to the Lord that He led me through in all these fellowships. I pray that the Lord will preserve them and me, too, that we can faithfully serve Him in fruitful ways all the days of our lives on this earth. This has always been my prayer, too, for myself and for all the serving ones: to be faithful and fruitful and serve in the newness of spirit.

But now we have been discharged from the law, having died to that in which we were held, so that we serve in newness of spirit and not in oldness of letter. Romans 7:6

Joy of Giving

Two months ago, when the fellowship on material offerings for the need to meet the Chennai Blending Center construction was released, the Lord gave us the grace and the blessing to be able to participate in His move. The details were posted on the 29th of January. My Goodland: Material Offering: A Blessing

With the offering amount consecrated and transferred immediately after fellowshipping with my wife and having been provided by the lord, I thought my responsibility for the offering participation was over. Generally, I do not like to keep things pending, especially financial matters. Once a consecration was made, it had to be fulfilled. To me, a consecration is like a vow made to God. Once vowed, it must be fulfilled, Otherwise, it would be a serious matter before God. 

When you vow a vow to Jehovah your God, you shall not delay in paying it; for Jehovah your God would certainly require it of you, and it will become sin in you. 

But if you refrain from vowing, it will not become sin in you. 

What proceeds out of your lips you shall keep and do, as you have vowed to Jehovah your God voluntarily, which you have promised with your mouth. 

(Deuteronomy 23:21-23, RecVer)

Last Lord's Day, we had a time of combined meeting again for the release of the same burden on the Chennai Blending Center offering. Though I felt that I had already offered for this burden, the Lord further confirmed to me that I could offer again. Grace upon grace! While I was fellowshiping with my wife, she also felt the same thing. In fact, she was the one to initiate the additional offering. When the brothers released the burden again, even for an additional offering, immediately I had the burden and clarity from the Lord that I should offer again. The amount of the offering to be made was also very clear to me. In fact, this amount was also already available with us. Once I was clear inwardly, I did not wait and immediately transferred the next day before the month ended. 

This kind of offering, as the Lord provided us the grace, brought me immense joy. It was not an offering of pain. It was an offering with joy! After all, all that I could offer or have are actually all from the Lord. The source is the Lord, so means is also the Lord, and the goal is to the Lord!. There is no need for a struggle or even a so called prayer to consider before the Lord. The matter was very clear. It was also a prayer-answered matter. It just needed to be executed, and so it was offered immediately with joy! Hallelujah! In both cases, short emails were mailed to the concerned brothers. 

The mails written in joy reads...

Dear brothers,

To fulfill our consecration to the Lord, we have transferred Rs. ******. 

Thank you,

It is more blessed to give than to receive. Acts 20:35b

Dear brothers,

In oneness with the burden released for an additional offering, we have transferred Rs. *****

Thank you,

It is more blessed to give than to receive. Acts 20:35b

The joy of giving is the joy of the Lord proceeding from the Lord as the source through His channel unto Him. When the Lord flows, the channel enjoys the joy of the Lord!

Marriage of Serving One

Last Saturday, my family and a group of saints from the church in Gurugram attended the wedding and testimony meeting of a serving brother in the literature service. This marriage finally transpired after a couple of hiccups during the process, with the previous plan cancelled due to the imprisonment of the groom-to-be in a case of persecution based on the Christian faith. Since this brother is a full-time serving one in the literature service, I have had the opportunities to fellowship on multiple occasions concerning his education, service, marriage, financial and other personal matters. Similarly, I had the opportunity to fellowship with the bride-to-be a couple of years ago in Hyderabd, where I fellowshipped the principle concerning seeking and doing the will of the Lord in everything. I had no idea that the two could end up getting married. The Lord is the Lord, and He knows how to be the Lord.

I also had a time of fellowship with this brother one night in Bengaluru when he chanced to stay in the same room I was lodged in. As the Lord led me, I had a few hours of fellowship with him as a preparation for his marriage. I sensed some conflict of interest with his in-laws-to-be, so only I took the matter of his marriage and fellowshipped with him many practical details. Later, when he was imprisoned, I felt that it was the Lord's balancing act upon him. Though the ordeal was fiery and drew out a lot of tears from his family members, that to me was the Lord working in this brother, inwardly reconstituting him and perfecting him in his person, and outwardly, an invisible act of uplifting his image as a brother-in-chain. That complemented the lack he obviously seemed to have in comparison to the more qualified bride-to-be, his fiancee. The Lord had to cancel the first wedding plan as to me it was still immature as far as the persons and timings were concerned. That gave sufficient time for the Lord to work on the couple and their relatives. Much prayer and transformation transpired during the four months delay so that both can be brought to the same platform where the two sides can accept one another without any boasting of their own. The Lord is the Lord. This marriage is a testament to the sovereign act of God.

My portion in this marriage was more of fellowship to the couple. On the wedding day, along with five other brothers, I was asked by the brothers to bless the couple. To me, that was the best part I could do to a newly married couple- Bless them with the blessing of God! AS usual, for all the married couples, I prayed for them that they would love the Lord and love one another and that they would be one with the Lord and one with one another. And this time, I added more to the prayer, that they would also be one with the Lord's move wherever they are and also be one with the church, the Body of Christ, and become useful vessels to the Lord.

Meanwhile, I took the occasion to also meet and fellowship with the relatives of both the bride and groom. May the Lord grace the couple and their families and bless them with Himself and their portion day by day.