Building a Local Church

Today morning as we fellowshiped, the Lord’s speaking was so intense and clear on the person of the one who build a local church. It has all to do with the person. No improper person can build up a church irrespective of whatever methods or ways he uses.  The church is a living organism and the building up has to do with the persons who constitute the church and the builders themselves. 

The manifestations of a builded local church are:

1. The saints love the Lord more than before
2. The saints love the word of God more than before
3. The saints love one another and be one with one another more than before 
4. The saints functions for the building of the church 
5. The church meetings will be rich, high, and full of life
6. The church will be filled with men like a flock

If the church I serve do not manifest the above points, the church is not being builded up as it should be. These check points are enlightening to see where I stand in my service. If I lack in any of these, I must go before the Lord and seek for His mercy to deal with all frustrations so that I must be a proper person. The person is more important than the way or the method used as evident from Bezalel, who was a builder, and it has all to do with his person.

Exodus 31:2

See, I have called by name Bezalel the son of Uri, the son of Hur, of the tribe of Judah. 

Footnote from The Holy Bible, Recovery Version

Bezalel was a master builder, a leader in God’s building. His name means in the shadow of God, indicating that as a master builder, Bezalel was a man under the shadow of God’s grace (cf. 1 Cor. 3:10a; 2 Cor. 12:9). Uri, the name of Bezalel’s father, means light of Jehovah, and Hur, the name of Bezalel’s grandfather, means free, noble, white (signifying clean and pure). These three names indicate what kind of persons the builders of God’s dwelling place should be.

To be a builder of a local church we must have a pure and clean spiritual source. No one is born pure and clean. We all have, by default, been impure and unclean. We need to be thoroughly dealt with by the Lord. And God is able to deal with us and cleanse us. Otherwise, we will become a problem in the church. In fact, all problems in a local church is due to brothers who did not learn their lessons well in the matter of being dealt with by the Lord. For the dealing we need the word, the living and operative word. We must open to the Lord’s dealing by amening the word of God. Trust in the heart of God, trust in the word of God, to become clean, pure, white, noble, and free from within from our own evil heart. Hidden love for the world make our hearts impure. The Lord can deliver us from such impure heart. The Lord’s shining light can deliver us from such impurity. 

Hebrews 4:12

For the word of God is living and operative and sharper than any two-edged sword, and piercing even to the dividing of soul and spirit and of joints and marrow, and able to discern the thoughts and intentions of the heart. 

Son of Uri, is to be son of light. The Lord can enlighten us and shine on us as we open to the Lord and the Bible and indeed become the son of light and live under the shadow of His grace.

The way the Lord deals with us today is through His speaking. Therefore, we must come to the word, read and pray-read the word until it becomes our living constitution that transforms our lives.

Lord, deal with my heart and make be today's Bezalel to build up Your church. 

Spread the Truths for the Lord’s Move

Those therefore who were scattered went throughout the land announcing the word as the gospel. Acts 8:4

Migration is for the spread of the divine truths. Abraham was a river-crosser; he migrated from Chaldea to Canaan; we should not be permanently settled; we all should learn to migrate. The more man moves, the more blessing he receives; God blesses the move of people on this earth. If we remain in one place, we will lose the blessing, but if we move, we will receive it. 

As we move along with the Lord’s move, spread the truths; the word of Christ, the word of the Kingdom of God without any mixture. Even limit the use of illustrations and stories so as not to dilute the holy Word while spreading the truths and avoid human knowledge and wisdom. Rather expound the Old Testament prophecies properly in their right significance as in Acts 1:16-20. The Lord’s resurrection must always be the focal point of the apostles' teachings; be a witness of the Lord’s resurrection. We need to learn the word in the New Testament and be saturated with it; thus, when we open our mouths to speak the word will come forth spontaneously.

Acts 6:7

And the word of God grew, and the number of the disciples in Jerusalem multiplied greatly; and a large number of the priests obeyed the faith. 

Acts 12:24

But the word of God grew and multiplied. 

Acts 19:20

Thus, the word of the Lord grew mightily and prevailed. 

Only the word of God can grow and multiply, not the Spirit. Therefore, there is a need for our constitution with the word. The genuine, proper Christian life is a life that spends time in the word and enjoys the word of His grace. If we fellowship with the Lord every day, labor on His Word and are saturated with the Lord’s word, live before Him and genuinely live Christ, and take the gospel as our primary occupation, speaking the Lord Jesus to every person we meet, we should each be able to save one person every day. Then, we should be able to spread these divine truths.

Prayer, the Spirit, and the word are the ways we have to spread the truths as we migrate to different parts of the world. We must preach and teach the truths one by one at schools, offices, communities, and wherever the Lord leads us. While spreading the truths, we must do it in a way of repeat reading, emphasize reading, reading in a living way, and in the spirit of prayer with the new ones, not in a way of giving message, but in a way of mutual pursuing. All the saints, young or old, must take this way of spreading the truth. This is the secret of increase; by prayer, through the word, and the spirit. The Lord Jesus Christ is the perfect model of God-man who is constituted with the word and spoke the word and spread the truths.

My responsibility is to study the word, be constituted with the word, and spread the word for the Lord’s move. Lord, grace me to be such a responsible one.

Prayer for the Lord's Move

Prayer has been an important subject in a Christian life and church life. Today I am freshly supplied with the Lord’s timely speaking again with a view of the Lord’s move in the Body and the significance of prayer. I am convicted of my need to strengthen my prayer life.

The Lord's Move in the Body

These days I have been under the Lord’s speaking in the Full-timers' Training. Point by point, the Lord has been blessing me with His speaking.

A Joyful Baptism!

Last Tuesday I received a phone call from a sister that she would bring a new lady to the meeting hall and that I should be available to meet her. Though I had official works, I made myself available giving priority to what was more urgent. 

A young, smart, and intelligent lady came and I initially talked with her on the subject of her profession and interest. As I could see, she was so happy to discuss the matter that she really liked, her job, her education, and her family matters. After the friendly talk, I felt the need to change the topic and let her hear the gospel. So I preached the gospel in a very simple way using the mystery of human life.

Upon hearing the gospel, she started narrating her encounter with the name Jesus, and how she blindly believed into the Lord Jesus and prayed to Him regularly though she herself was from a Hindu Brahmain background. I was taken aback to hear her testify of her experiences of the Lord Jesus Christ. She made a bold statement, "Jesus is God!" She went on further to confess her faith in Jesus and the comfort and joy she received in praying to Jesus. In fact, she wore a crucifix on her left hand and testified that she have a strong faith in the Lord Jesus Christ and pray to him regularly.

Still to help her properly, I led her to pray the sinner's prayer and strengthened her faith in the Lord. Observing her real condition, I left that she needed to know the truth about baptism. To my surprise again, she proclaimed that she has been waiting for the day to be baptised. Well then, I told her that if she should desire or choose to, we could help her. She joyfully exclaimed that she wanted to be baptised. So we baptised her. O what a joy to lead people to baptism when they joyfully long for it! Praise the Lord!

This sister has indeed been prepared by the Lord. The Holy Spirit has already been operating in her. It was the ripe time that she came and that she was baptised. She has been joyful through out our fellowship. No wonder, she joyfully took baptism and even became more joyful!

May the Lord preserve her joy and that she be shepherded and grow continually. I gifted her the Shepherding Material and The New Testament, Recovery Version as I could perceive her capacity to receive the word of God. Amen.

An SOS Call

A brother called me up last week out of the blue. Though I was busy with my office work, I felt the need to receive his call. I obliged to the request he made for fellowship. So, he began to open up his personal matters and said that I was the one he felt free to open up to.

For the first half hour or so, he narrated his ordeals of his helplessness in many practical matters of his life. Despite being a medical doctor with Master's degree he could not find any job. In fact, he lost his job due to the pandemic. Since then, he has been jobless and became hopeless. He has been through verbal insult from his own father and opposition from his own wife in many aspects, just because he was jobless. He has been warned of the church life and the reading of the ministry books even by his own wife. On top of that, he also lost his mother during the pandemic. All these added to his woes and worries. So only he called me up for fellowship.

After listening patiently to all he had to say, I could sense his problem. Therefore, I fellowship with him of his need for a proper Christian living. He is a dear brother whom I have known for years. So, I told him to take my words seriously and as before the Lord. I told him, "You are the problem!" Initially, he was shocked to hear my frank statement. But then he realized the truth behind my statement. And I pointed out to him some basic points he neglected in his life. No wonder, he was in that helpless and hopeless state.

To start with, I charged him to first spend time with the Lord daily. Yes, even to set specific time to pray daily and count the length of time spent on prayer. Then, I also charged him to read the Bible every day without fail. And finally, I also charged him to pray with his wife daily. All these three practical points he agreed to do, and that he should report to me initially. In fact, he tried and reported to me the following days. 

My only intention was to shepherd him for his own good. And I did so in his own initiation to call me up for help. I was just being responsible to help a brother in need. In fact, he also started joining the online meetings of the church in Gurugram as there has been no meeting since pandemic started in his locality. At least, in this way, my brother can be restored of his spiritual function and be recovered into the fellowship of the Body of Christ which he lost for many years.

That was an SOS call from a dear brother and my sincere and simply fellowship. May the Lord fully restore and recover him for His testimony in Ludhiana where the testimony of Jesus seems to have waned due to the unfaithfulness of certain leading ones and their impure hearts. 

An Unexpected Baptism

A new one was brought to the meeting two weeks ago on the Lord’s day. She was on a friendly chat while I was busy with the young people meeting. Then, the young people gospel meeting followed, which she also joined. Then I felt the burden to preach the gospel to her. So we had a small group gospel meeting.

As I preached the gospel, I was led to narrate the pathetic situation of people today. How helpless man has been because of the sinful nature of Satan being infected into man. Despite being wealthy and famous, many high class people are living in a desperate condition. Some, not knowing the solution to their problems took the short cut of suicide. Some, taming their troubled mind by consulting a psychiatrist and living by pills to ease their anxious mind. While I discoursed on the practical problems, that new lady was so convicted. She immediately confessed that she was such a one and that she really needed help. My help was simple, the gospel of the Lord Jesus Christ. Only Jesus saves and only Jesus can save.

Then, I offered her the way to receive the Lord if she should choose to receive. I made it very clear that the choice was hers. I only showed her the way out of her present problem. She readily obliged to receive my help. So I led her to pray the sinner's prayer of repentance, confession, and believing into the Lord Jesus Christ. She willingly did according to her own will.

Then, I felt the further need to help her with the full gospel of believing and baptism based on Mark 16:16 and explained to her the importance of baptism. But I left the choice to her and never expected that she should choose to take baptism immediately.

After hearing me speak all this while, she asked a blunt question, "Do you trust people easily? Should people deceive you for their gain, shouldn't you be scared?" My reply was simple and plain. I relied, "Whoever the Lord brought to meet me in the meeting hall of the church or my home or office, I take it as from the Lord. There are thousands and millions of people outside, but only few, in fact, just a handful were brought to me. To such, I have full trust, no matter who they are and what their intentions may be." This reply took her by surprise and her trust in my words grew as I could read from her face. Later, as a sister asked her about what she had heard and about baptism, she decided to be baptised. And we baptised her! Praise the Lord!

This was a very unexpected salvation and baptism. God forgive me if I stated this wrongly. But I really meant it. It was very unexpected, at least to my feeling. Because she had been to many religious and superstitious beliefs and practices. I naturally thought that she would need more time to consider her baptism. But the Lord’s salvation is powerful. She was fully subdue and convinced to be baptised. It was the Lord’s work of salvation. Praise the Lord! I dare not hinder the Lord’s move in a person. So, the baptism was unexpected yet the Lord made it happen. It is indeed the Lord’s desire for all men to be saved! So it was.

1 Timothy 2:3-7

3. This is good and acceptable in the sight of our Savior God, 

4. Who desires all men to be saved and to come to the full knowledge of the truth. 

5. For there is one God and one Mediator of God and men, the man Christ Jesus, 

6. Who gave Himself as a ransom for all, the testimony to be borne in its own times. 

7. For which I was appointed a herald and an apostle (I speak the truth; I do not lie), a teacher of the Gentiles in faith and truth.