Friends Reunion

Last weekend in Hyderabad I was happily surprised to see a brother, who is also my ex-classmate, attending the same brothers' fellowship. Though we have been friends for over one and half decade it is very rare to see my own friend enjoying the same truth and practice the same church life as I do. Because of this joy, and perhaps, because of friendship too, literally, we were all the time together during the breaks as friends and as brothers. 

The Lord graced us sweet time of quality fellowship especially in a way of shepherding pertaining to his personal and family life. As we fellowshipped, I also felt the Lord's leading and anointing. One striking matter of fellowship was related to spending set and specific time with the Lord in prayer, steadfast in pursuing the ministry of the word, reading the Bible, and meeting with the saints in his locality. I also fellowshipped on how his fellowship with his in-laws can sweetly be restored by taking care of their feeling and concern. And that through this all of them, his in-laws and his own family be recovered for the church-life. After this fellowship, we both felt very peaceful and prayed together. I believe he took the fellowship seriously and the Lord would grace and bless his families too. 

Besides, on the Lord's day another ex-classmate joined us. I was especially glad that the two of them are preserved by the Lord for His testimony. They both loved the Lord, and our relationship as friends and brothers have been very sweet. 

The latter friend who joined us, is from Hyderabad. I felt the inner peace to immediately introduced him to the brothers in the church in Hyderabad. And to my surprise, he was so open that he readily agreed to join the brothers' fellowship of the church on Saturdays. The brothers in Hyderabad were also very glad that a new brother was being introduced. We also visited him in his house for a time of fellowship. We recollected our student days, shared testimonies, and praised the Lord for His sovereignty in leading us all these years. I also shared my recent enjoyment of the word in how the Lord cared for his disciples and the needy saints more than the old laws and rituals, and our need to care for the reality of the enjoyment of Christ rather than observing religious duties imposed by some Christians today. He opened up further more and expressed his willingness to fully blend with the saints in the church was confirmed. May the Lord fully gain and recover him for His testimony. 

Out of the thirty students in my master's degree in Computer Science, the Lord has recovered three of us into the fellowship and oneness of the Body of Christ. This may be a mere 10%, but my prayer and burden is that, all of us could be fully recovered. Perhaps, the Lord will do so one day. Lord, hasten that day!

What a wonderful friends reunion indeed! A reunion not as the world would wonder, but a reunion in Christ for the church! Praise the Lord! 

Balance in Bearing Burdens

Bear one another’s burdens, and in this way you will fulfill the law of Christ completely. Galatians 6:2

There must be a striking balance between bearing one another's burden and bearing our own burden. On the one hand we all have to bear our own burden, yet at the same time we must bear the burden of one another. The two must be balanced. Extremity in any is a grave danger.

First, we must bear our own burden even in a sacrificial way and then fellowship with the saints in the Body to bear and share the same burden. We must not pass on the burden to others loosely and easily. And we must never take the Body for granted nor expect everything to come from others. This must be the lesson learned from our side in bearing our own burden. 

Besides, bearing our own burden we also must learn to give. The first principle in God’s financial management is "to give": Give with a pure motive. The law of giving is directly related to the law of sowing. Sowing is a law: You reap only what you sow. If you sow wheat, you will reap wheat, not barley. 

A simple example of specifically giving is to give 10% for the church and 5% for the work. And every year revise the percentage upward. In this way, we will be balanced in bearing the financial burden of the church and also of our own. 

This is a healthy way of bearing our own burden in a way of giving. 

At the same time, we must also be balanced in the Body and by the Body for the Body. We are in the Body, at the same time we are in a locality. Before we share our burden to others we must be sure before the Lord that we have the Lord’s presence in all that we do. We must abide by the law of giving and the law of sowing. 

Bearing the burden of others, especially, financial, the Bible has something to say:

1 Corinthians 16:1-3Now concerning the collection for the saints, just as I directed the churches of Galatia, so you also do. On the first day of the week each one of you should lay aside in store to himself whatever he may have been prospered, that no collections be made when I come. And when I arrive, whomever you approve, I will send them with letters to carry your gift to Jerusalem; 

Collecting offering for the needy saints requires us not to love the world, nor mammon. 

Luke 16:13No household servant can serve two masters; for either he will hate the one and love the other, or he will hold to one and despise the other. You cannot serve God and mammon. 

To serve the Lord requires us to love Him. By resurrection life and resurrection power we will overcome money and material possession. Giving money and material things in resurrection is a strong indication that we are under God's administration in resurrection and have overcome the possession of material riches. We are not governed by need, but by the leading of the Lord. The best way to be blessed by God in material riches is to give, not to receive, just as the Lord Jesus did. 

Acts 20:35In all things I have shown you by example that toiling in this way we ought to support the weak and to remember the words of the Lord Jesus, that He Himself said, It is more blessed to give than to receive. 

By this way of giving and bearing Rhema burden of other we will command blessing from God. 

Malachi 3:10Bring the whole tithe to the storehouse that there may be food in My house; and prove Me, if you will, by this, says Jehovah of hosts, whether I will open to you the windows of heaven and pour out blessing for you until there is no room for it. 

If we fully offer to God what belongs to Him that the church may be richly supplied, God will open the windows of heaven for us and pour out a blessing to us, and which there will not be enough room to contain. 

In this way, we bear our own burden, and at the same time we bear the burden of others. We will thus be blessed as a member in the Body and be blessed in the Body of which we are aso members. We must be balance in bearing burdens, of our own and also of others. 

Experiencing and Enjoying Christ

As we were gathered together to receive the Lord’s speaking through our brother Ron Kangas, I was so enlightened by this particular point of experiencing and enjoying Christ. Though I have been using this phrase many many times, this time the matter became very clear to me. 

Experiencing Christ is in the spirit, and absolutely of the Spirit as the Lord Spirit,  it is the exercise of our spirit. Enjoying Christ is in the soul, an organ of enjoyment, and it happens by the Lord shepherding of our soul. 

Our Christian life must be full of experiencing and enjoying Christ. It is very possible to experience Christ without enjoying Christ. All our experiences of Christ must lead us into the enjoyment of Christ. 

As brother ministered on 1 Corinthians 1:9, God is faithful, through whom you were called into the fellowship of His Son, Jesus Christ our Lord, I was further enlightened to see a deeper and finer point on this verse. 

"God has called us," implies we were in a realm out of which we were called. What is that realm? It basically is the realm of the world into which we were born, a world that is usurped by Satan. So the need for the calling out: Called out of something demonic, idolatrous, dark, violent,  deadly, inhuman, destructive.. 

If indeed we were called out of a realm, we must be called into another realm. For "into" implies, to enter into, to be one with it, to be baptised into it, and immersed into it... 

We are all called into the enjoyment of the all inclusive Christ! The fellowship in this verse implies communion, sharing something in common. The fellowship into which the Lord called us is the all-inclusive Christ, who is the rock, the bread, the water, the Head, the Body, the second man, life giving Spirit, and so many items. And He has called us into the enjoyment of the all-inclusive Christ, as fellowship means that we have become one with Christ. 

Above all, God is faithful to do this: Calling us out of the kingdom of Satan into the kingdom of God, into Christ, into the Spirit. But the enemy always try to bring us out of the Spirit and he is busy roaming like a roaring lion seeking whom he may devour. Nevertheless,  the Lord calls us inwardly, preserving us in the spirit to be one with Him.  

An encouraging verse in the book of Revelation of John is in chapter 22, and verse 14. Blessed are those who wash their robes that they may have right to the tree of life and may enter by the gates into the city. This verse implies that it is likely possible to be soiled in our garment, but that that we be washed by the blood of the Lamb. Washing would not have been needed had we not been soiled ever. The fact is, as still human being, we may be soiled now and then, but we must always come back again and again to the Lord, to Him who is faithful and who has called us into the fellowship of His Son. As such, we are those who wash our robes, and therefore, have the right to the tree of life. Blessed are those who wash their robes, not those who are not soiled in their robes!

The fellowship of God's son is carried out by the Spirit and is also the fellowship of the apostles. The fellowship of the cross deepends the fellowship of life, our experience of the divine fellowship. There are hindrances in our inner being that needed to be dealt with by the cross. Fellowship frees us from sinful self through the cross and brings us into the fellowship of the Body of Christ. 

Out relationship with the Head is that of obedience, and our relationship with the Body is that of fellowship. We must be brought to a point where we can do nothing without fellowship. 

These are some precious lessons the Lord has taught me as brother ministered the word. May the Lord grace me to learn all these lesson thoroughly well: To experience and enjoy Christ and be in the fellowship of the all-inclusive Christ! 

New Homes for the Church Life

The sister who came on the 1st of January for a get-together meeting and who also opened her home for fellowship, Bible study, and prayer has been enjoying the fellowship in her house. Since the very first week of this month, the meeting at her home goes on weekly. The home visit was sweet and the fellowship on the word of God grows stronger. Each time we meet, we pursued together a shepherding material and the Lord used each week's portion to meet the timely need of the family. More than being coincidental, it was the Lord's sovereignty. This family was the family introduce to me almost a year ago by another seeking sister. Our fellowship began simply by a home visit and ministering the word of God. The hunger and thirst they had for the word brought us all together. Though the family has not yet joined the church meeting on Lord's day, they have been already foretasting the church life. The Lord will shepherd them into His flock one day.

Another family who has been in contact for many years with many ups and downs in their family life and in their relationship with some brothers and sisters has also opend up their home for a regular Life-study pursuing meeting. This year, a new schedule has been added in the church schedule. Last week we had our first meeting, pursuing the Life-study of the gospel of John. Our burden is for the saints to have a corporate pursuing of the ministry as the church and also for the family to be shepherded into the normal church life. We believe in the work of the Holy Spirit and in the power of the word of God. What we cannot, the Lord will accomplish through the gradual shepherding and ministering of the word of God. This family too has not yet joined the church meeting on the Lord's day. The Lord will shepherd them into His flock one day.

Though our burden is that the Lord would gain many families for the church life, He is shepherding us to shepherd the new ones, family by family, week by week, month by month, year by year, and gain solid materials for the building up of the church. All these years, I have been learning the lesson of shepherding. If people have to be gained solidly for the church life, solid foundation on the word of God must be laid first. For anything precious, there is always a price to pay. For anything of life, there is a need for growth and time involved. Crowds may throng, and crowds may leave, but the ones established in the faith and in the truth can never. Multitude crowded the Lord Jesus when He fed them and did works of wonders and miracles, but only eleven followed Him till the end. Though we need numbers, numbers don't come by waving a magic wand; it needs prayer, labor, and genuine shepherding care. I believe that this is the best part of a learning process in serving the Lord and His church. I pray that I learn this lesson thoroughly well.

Through these new homes opened up for home meeting, the Lord's shepherding will perfect all of us for the normal church life in Gurugram.

Ministry of the Word to Gurugram

The Lord has strategically placed us in the city of Gurugram. All these years we have been focusing on other parts of India and used Gurguram as a base. But beginning this year the Lord burdened us to concentrate on NCR(National Capital Region) for the spread of the ministry of the word. Since the burden was received from the Lord, the main thing in following up and carrying out the burden is to pray and pray and pray. I didn't know where and how to begin but kept praying, and also collecting contacts.

The first appointment the Lord released in this city was with a brother from a local Jat background. Our first fellowship was at a Cafe Coffee Day where we introduced the ministry books. The Lord's presence was so sweet as we fellowshipped and introduced the ministry to this brother. He was so impressed with the ministry and immediately shared few other Christian leaders' contact. Though this brother has started a ministry out of a burden, the Lord has been preserving him purely for His testimony. His appreciation of the truth was very encouraging. He also has a testimony of leaving the corporate world to serving the Lord in a full-time way. Though not a full fledge theologian like many other pastors, he's been training and equipping himself for the vision the Lord has shown him. Our first meeting happened two weeks ago, and then we met again yesterday.

This time the Lord has revealed through our fellowship that there are indeed many genuine seekers and lovers of the Lord Jesus Christ and His word. We were further introduced to a couple of dynamic Christian workers, and more light dawned on us on how to carry out the burden we received from the Lord. We believe that as we go on in this way, the Lord will fully open the door all over NCR and the surrounding cities for His glorious testimony.

Today, the Lord also brought another young Christian worker whose parent I met in Jabalpur. Though we met the first time, our fellowship was so sweet and he opened up his burden and need, especially to be equipped with the truth. For about three hours we were fellowshipping, sharing testimonies, and ministering the word. He was also so impressed with the ministry of the word that he wanted to pursue and study the books and teach to his Bible students as well. He also recommended a Hindi translator and two other Christian leaders in Delhi and Jaipur respectively.

This is just the beginning of what the Lord is going to do in Gurugram, NCR, and North India. I could sense the breakthrough in North India with the ministry of the word for the testimony of Jesus. 

Lord, gain Gurugram and entire North India!

Fourfold Fellowship

Beginning this year, the Lord has burdened me to bring more saints into fellowship and function in the church life here in Gurugram. My personal burden and zeal for the Lord as an individual will lead the church nowhere. Though I can still function as the Lord has been burdening me for gospel preaching, home meetings, group meeting, shepherding etc..I must breakthrough in helping the saints to also pick up the same burden of practicing the God-ordained way, together in the Body of Christ as the church. Therefore, the Lord led me in encouraging the saints to actively participate in the church life besides the regular meetings on the Lord's day. 

Every Saturday, the church has a schedule for prayer meeting and gospel preaching. Until this year we have not been able to breakthrough in bringing the saints to active participation. But from this year, I encouraged, at least, the family of two responsible brothers to actively participate. For this, I made further arrangement for the family to be able to participate in a very practical way. My proposal was simple and enjoyable. I invited the two families to stay back for dinner every Saturday after the gospel preaching so that they need not worry about the meal after the whole afternoon schedule for the church life. As they stayed back for the lovefeast, I also proposed a group meeting where we pursued shepherding materials, fellowship, and then prayed together. By this way, we could enjoy four-fold fellowship: prayer meeting, gospel preaching, small group meeting and blending lovefeast.

Now practicing the God-ordained way is so sweet and enjoyable. Even the children are looking forward to it every weekend as they also enjoyed a time of playing and get together as their parents are also together. My wife and I are very happy to host the saints weekly for such a lovely fellowship. The Lord has blessed us with a big house where such meeting can be hosted, and He also has been blessing us with all that we need, even to share with the saints our kitchen and all the food items therein. Opening our hearts, opening our home, opening our kitchen for the church life has become a reality. In fact, I was a skeptic when I heard such declaration in the past by some brothers in the church meeting; now I am being graced to experience it in reality.

To me, this is just the beginning. Such fourfold fellowship should continue as long as the Lord grace us. Not only my family but also all the saints' families should be able to carry out this enjoyable church life. Though we may be few now, if all these few saints exercised the practical church life, there will be much enjoyment of the Christ in the church, which will issue in our blending and building up, which will further issue in everyone functioning, and then ultimately to the increase in the number of saints. First the increase in quality of the enjoyment of the church life, then the increase in the quantity of the saints in the church life.

It is the Lord mercy that I can adapt and practice this fourfold fellowship. The Lord just led us to do this, and may He grace us to go in this way as long as He pleases, all for the building up of the church, the Body of Christ.

Special Attendant

It was in a Christian leaders-and-pastors gathering at Ghaziabad on 15th January 2018 that as serving ones in the literature service, we introduced the ministry books with the burden that all Christians need to have a taste of the ministry as the ministry of the word is for all. Once we introduced the ministry books to the Christian leaders and exhibited them, a young brother who had undergone education in four master degrees came up to have a fellowship on the books and his feeling in general.

Among all the pastors and leaders gathered there, he probably must be the only one who was not, in reality, a pastor or leader, as the rest of them. But he seemed to be the most seeking among all. He expressed his joy at our announcing of the ministry literature and yet was dismayed by the response of the many so-called "leaders and pastors" who do not seem to appreciate the word of God. His case in point was that he had read Watchman Nee and was very blessed by it, and the pastors he saw were not very keen on Christian literature as he assumed that they should love the books much more than him. This is the hard fact: Not everyone loves the word of God, much less the writings of brother Watchman Nee or Witness Lee. Mostly according to my own personal experience, there are a just a handful of those who understood and tasted the depth and orthodoxy of the ministry of the word. By the Lord's mercy, I happened to be just one of them who have been blessed very much by the ministry of the word through the two brothers.

This brother visited us on the following weekend and we had a wonderful time of fellowship together. it so happened that our Bible reading portion that day was on Exodus 4 and 5 on the how God called Moses and the subjective signs of the experiences of the called ones. It was indeed a good time of fellowship and review on our service as God's called ones. I was freshly reminded of the God who called me and who would carry out the calling for which He called me for. 

And the Angel of Jehovah appeared to him in a flame of fire out of the midst of a thornbush. And when he looked, there was the thornbush, burning with fire; but the thornbush was not consumed.
And Moses said, I must turn aside now and see this great sight, why the thornbush does not burn up. Exodus 3:2-3 

Our fellowship on the subjective signs of being called and sent by God in Exodus 4 was amazing. A brother and I spoke extensively in one accord and in one mouth, the significances of those signs, and how those need to be experienced. We are happy to acknowledge the source from which we have learned all these. Our speaking was an elaboration of the footnote in the Recovery Version of the Holy Bible.

In chapter 3 God gave Moses the sign of the thornbush (3:2-3). In this chapter God gave Moses three additional signs as evidence that he had truly been called and sent by God. The meaning of the first sign, the sign of the staff becoming a serpent (vv. 2-4), is that anything we rely on apart from God—our education, our occupation, etc.—is actually the hiding place of Satan, the usurping serpent. However, when at God’s word we throw it down and then take it up again “by the tail,” i.e., in the way opposite to the practice of the worldly people, using it for God’s purpose and not for ourselves, it becomes a staff of authority (vv. 4, 17; Luke 10:19). In the second sign, the sign of the hand becoming leprous (vv. 6-7), the bosom signifies what is within us, and leprosy signifies sin. This sign shows that our flesh is the embodiment of leprosy; in it there is nothing good, nothing but sin, corruption, and uncleanness (Rom. 7:17-18; cf. Isa. 6:5). Nevertheless, when we obey the Lord by keeping His word, His cleansing power is able to make us clean. The meaning of the third sign, the sign of the water becoming blood (v. 9), is that in the eyes of God all the earthly supply and worldly enjoyment (the water of the Nile) are nothing but death (blood). When they are poured out on that which produces life (the ground), immediately the death is exposed.

It also turned out that this young brother was also burdened to bring the ministry of the word to his native people in Odisha by offering himself to translate the ministry books to Oriya. Time will tell if this brother is today's Moses to bring the word of God to his people and deliver them from the bondage of religion. We prayed together before we dropped off our brother with a new assignment for translation only if he could pass the trial round. May the Lord gain him for His interest on earth among the Oriya speaking believers. 

To me, this meeting with this brother amidst the crowd of leaders and pastors was significant; he indeed was a special attendant.