Do Not Give Up

A number of times I have been considering to give up some of the believers that I am caring for, for the sole reason that they do not turn out to be according to my expectation. I often wondered, if its really worth laboring on all these, spending time, money and energy? Don't I have any better thing to do? On examining some of the ones I am shepherding, directly or indirectly, they seems to be tough cases, either too extreme in some of their concepts or either too much into religiosity or even too less of God. 

However, as I come before the Lord and pray concerning these ones, the Lord reminded me again and again, "Do not give up." But how long until they reach the maturity expected from them of? Only the Lord knows. Sometimes, I am depressed by not seeing fruitful results. But when I prayed for them one by one, the Lord confirmed deep within my being that they all are on the process of being fully recovered. Some of these ones are real "hard case." There has even been a feeling among believers in the church that these ones are no good; even to the extent that they are hopeless. Perhaps, that may be the fact, but once the Lord burdens me with these ones, it may not be wise to naively collude with the un-burdened ones to give them up. Person to person, burden differs; and person to person, God's way of dealing also differs.

Amidst the hopelessness sometimes, I won't give in as a desperado. The Lord within me is alive, as long as He leads me, by His grace, I would ever embrace these ones on my heart and shepherd them as much as I am being graced. 

This morning as I prayed to the Lord specifically, I was encouraged by the Lord to even count them one by one, naming them. Its over a score! Once these turns out to be solid remaining fruits, even pillars and pillar builders for the church, its worth all the labor. May the Lord gain all these ones for His purpose. And this will the sure result be, only if "I do not give up." And as long as the Lord grace me, I will not give up.

Spiritual Superstition

This morning in my time with the Lord, certain spiritual habit distracted me from touching the Lord as the Spirit; and I would not have my "Holy Word for Morning Revival" without revival or being revived and renewed inwardly. I went against old habits and exercised my spirit and later enjoyed the supply of the divine life. This experience enlightened me to see the vanity and deadness of superstition in the cloak of spirituality.

Superstition among the heathen is condemn-able, superstition among the religious is very often justified because of the blindness in religion, and superstition in spirituality is mostly justified because it is superstition of the highest order. But the fact is, every superstition is superstition, whichever garment it wears. And Christians must be delivered from its bondage. Among all, spiritual superstition is the most subtle one and the most hidden one that though they being noticed they are justified as it has the name tag of spirituality.

A truly spiritual person is never superstitious. He lives and walks by the Spirit and lives Christ and magnifies Christ for the building up of the Body of Christ. Sometimes many Christian habits and practices even among ardent lovers of the Lord are superstitious in nature and yet they are often overlook. Throughout the ages, many of them have been normalised as part of Christian living and practices. A good example is of prayer and how it is being prayed. Petitioning the Father God of all human needs and wants and asking all these "in the precious name of our Lord and Saviour Jesus Christ." This definitely is not what the Lord taught us to pray nor is it the way He taught us to pray. To pray in the Name of the Lord is to pray in the Person of the Lord Jesus Christ; that is to pray by being one with the Lord in Spirit. All such prayers issues from the Lord Himself and flows through the believers and back to the Lord. This definitely is the Lord's prayer, not my nor your prayer, but the Lord's and such prayers will always be fulfilled. This kind of prayer is just to be echo chamber, echoing the will of the Father to be done on the earth. This kind of prayer is in line with what brother Andrew Murray had defined a prayer, " The Christ in you praying to the Christ in heaven."

Lord, make me a person in Spirit, one with You; and deliver me from any superstition--religious or spiritual. May I simply live a life in You, with You and for You; and enjoying You, experiencing You, gaining You, growing in You and maturing in You.

Spiritual Side Effect

A precious fellowship with a brother enlightened my spiritual sight to see beyond the visible. It's not just a matter of being used by the Lord or even being ministers of the Lord Jesus Christ, but much more, what result does being "useful" or being "minister" ultimately yield? Is there any side-effect by such usefulness?

I was so much helped to see, that my service in the Lord should not have side-effects in any way. The Bible has a couple of examples with apostles being used yet having side-effects!

John, the Baptist was a forerunner of the Lord Jesus Christ and his ministry was to usher in the Lord, and he was useful in that aspect, truly and spiritually useful, yet his service had side-effect. Later, his follower had a problem with the Lord and His follower. Likewise, Apollos in Acts 18:25, was a brother instructed in the way of the Lord, and being fervent in spirit, he spoke and taught the things accurately concerning Jesus, but he knew only the baptism of John. Acts 19 records of his deficiency. 

There are many good medicines for treatment of variety of diseases, yet many of them while being effective to the illness in turn have side-effects. Often the "side-effects" are more dangerous than the illness that was cured.

I was warned and adjusted, that I may not offer up a strange fire out of my natural zeal or talent or gifts, even  spiritually, and cause side-effects to the Body of Christ. I must wait upon the Lord, and be very exercised to be fully one with the Lord and His Body in my spiritual service, wherever I serve or in whichever way I serve. May the Lord grace me not to err in my service, and that He may prohibit me in His mercy, not to take a step ahead if that would cause any side-effect. 

The Lord's covering and the Lord's blessing is all that I need. "Lord grace me and keep me in you. If in Your mercy, I am counted worthy of Your use, please do so, within the limit of what You have apportioned, not beyond and not behind; and all these for Your building work."

The Anointing

The anointing of the Lord is in the Body; as much as the Head Christ was anointed, so much more, the Body. If we are one with the Body corporately by being one with the Lord personally, we are in the right position to enjoy the anointing God, the Father, has bestowed upon Christ, the Son, who is the Head of the Body, of which, all the believers are members. Such was my experience recently.

Through fellowship in the Body I went with a brother and enjoyed the Lord's economical Spirit out poured upon us for the fellowship, blending and training. Right from the start, every messages were anointed and the speaking were truly of the Lord. Inward feelings of life and peace confirmed it and the saints' responses to the speaking testified it. There were no musical attractions nor vocalists to stir up people's emotion, and no charismatic preachers to charm the crowed; what we had was the WORD, the SPIRIT and PRAYER. Word by word, utterance by utterance, the Lord ministered Himself richly. I was fed, so too were the saints. And the messages chosen were timely and released at the right time. The Lord was sovereign. Hallelujah!

Every morning, we brothers, prayed together in one accord on our knees, often with tears. Whenever we stood to minister the Word, rivers of living water came forth, supplying the saints; nourishing and cherishing them. O what a blessing!

The outward inconvenient circumstances only helped in the exercise of our spirit to draw out more waters from the inward wells of living waters.  Revivals of the glorious past are no more history, but now they are inward realities when we are joined and fitly framed in the Body. For there is the anointing oil poured forth.

Lord preserve us in the Body; in the oneness of the Body and in the fellowship of the Body, and to enjoy Your anointing.

The Lord's Faithfulness

Beginning of this year, in my time with the Lord, the Lord had promised the recovery of my family,as a part of household salvation, in the organic aspect. Though we all have been saved judicially, there still need to be a deep and subjective experience of being saved day by day. From my side, it was my personal family burden and I never knew when it would be fulfilled. But the Lord in His time, opened the door for me to visit, by the way, of going for training in the NE, Imphal. The Lord marvelously made me witness with my own eyes what He has been doing; my dad and my sister were deeply enjoying the ministry of the Word.

The burdens and promises the Lord gave me were being fulfilled one by one. What could I say but, praise the Lord! And truly the Lord is marvelous and I can joyfully echo Hymn 17:

Then all my being sings in praise to Thee,

How marvellous! How great Thou art!

And this I’ll sing through all eternity,

How marvellous! How great Thou art!

http://www.witness-lee-hymns.org/hymns/H0017.html

Besides, the saints in NE have gone through a lot of fiery trials and have deeper, richer and higher experiences of Christ. The testimonies were quite touching, wherein many saints have been through God's surgerical lab; being diagnosed by the Lord Physician of their psychological hearts and removing foreign substances incompatible with God's divine nature and life. The Spirit's transforming works were intensified and I could personally see a bright future of the Lord's recovery among the believers there.

The ardent and diligent pursuit of the saints for the truth constitution by Life-study group meetings every night was a real recovery of the enjoyment of the truth; the joyful coming together every night, house to house, after the day's hard labor was a real recovery of the church life and the burden of the saints in one accord for the need of the saints, serving ones and the church was a real recovery of the corporate one new man. May the Lord continue to bless them with the heavenly and spiritual blessings for the bright shining golden lampstands there in the North East India.

Listen

David, a great warrior, fled from the conspiracy of his own son, not that he knew not how to combat against it, but as a part of God's chastening for his sin, he had to flee. Yes, he fled indeed, but he also had to fight back. As a great warrior, he formed armies skillfully into three bands and he himself decided to join one of them. At that juncture the people prohibited him from going to battle and suggested otherwise, "You shall not go forth..." 2 Samuel 18:3. Then  David replied, "What seems best in your sight I will do" v.4. He did so and things turned out well, except that his beloved son Absalom was killed, this still under God's sovereignty.

The speaking of God comes in manifold ways, only if we have ears to listen and hear what He has to say. God speaks in the way we understand that He speaks. He will use anyone He wishes to, at any time, for His own purpose. As in kind David's life, I believe, the speaking of the people was God's speaking. Prior to this, he always had to ask God if he should go to battle or not. But this time, the people spoke to him and he listened; to me that's God's speaking.

God spoke through prophets, priests and kings; and today He still speaks, the medium and channel may be varied, we only have to discern the Lord's speaking through whatever or whichever way, and we must listen and obey.

Even in our Christian lives today, the Lord keeps speaking..... Through the Word, through the indwelling Spirit, through circumstances, through the saints, the members of the Body of Christ, and sometimes even through gentiles! Only if we have ear to listen, we will hear the Lord's speaking. Having said this, better be reminded, Satan also speaks. But we only have to discern who is behind the channel of speaking. If we exercise our spirit, live and walk in the Spirit, we will easily discern the source--God or someone else. And accordingly listen and obey all that of God, and blessed shall we be.

Lord, open my ears that I may hear,

Open my mind that I may understand,

Sharpen my spirit that I may discern,

Subdue my will that I may obey,

Strengthen my body that I may execute;

All of Thy will, yea, all of Thy will,

According to Thy way and in Thy time.

Give No Ground

Nevertheless, because you have given the enemies of Jehovah much occasion to blaspheme Him because of this thing, the son who is born to you shall also surely die.

2 Samuel 12:14

After David enjoyed a great victory over his enemy, he indulged in sins, then repented and God also forgave him. But, because he had given the enemies of Jehovah much occasion to blaspheme God, God gave him a fitting judging punishment; the child born of the woman he committed adultery with, must die.

Yes, God is merciful, full of grace and forgiving, yet He is also a God of righteousness, the base and foundation of His throne, therefore, He cannot bypass righteousness by grace.Otherwise, it will be a "giving of ground to the His enemy to attack Him." This being the case, for the very cause of giving ground to the enemy, God does give judging punishment to His beloved children; out of righteousness and also for disciplining.

This portion of the word, was so enlightening as I read this a week ago. In my own personal lives and the lives of many other saints, seeing the unseen, I understand why so many "situations" are or were allowed by God when He sure can save them from it. Somewhere, sometime, somehow,  a ground to the enemy was given, willingly or unconsciously.Cases of accidents, sicknesses and even death were allowed by God, sometimes, for our own good; because He loves us, and wants to gain us for His purpose. This is what Paul echoed in Romans 8:28.

And much more, since the fall of His archangel, there has been a spiritual warfare waging. Who wins the victory based on whom is determined by the whom giving ground or no ground to the battling duo--God and Satan. Therefore, this matter of giving the enemies of Jehovah much occasion for blasphemy is a serious matter to God, and He does not tolerate.

In Jesus Christ, the enemy Satan has no ground. So be it in our Christian lives too. 

Lord, may I be found in You ever, not to give ground to the enemy.