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What are we willing to pay for the price of unity in the church? Are we willing to truly deny ourselves, pick up our cross and follow the Lord in dying out? What makes us think that it does not matter if we love one another or not? There are so many even in our own churches who walk past one another and act like we haven't even passed by a human being. If we are not careful, we can learn this same trait portrayed by those who are even in leadership. This should not be. How can the world know us by our love if we can't even be sensitive enough within our own congregations to greet one another? It does not have to be a hug or a holy kiss, but just an acknowledgment that there is someone that belongs to the same family right by us.
Imagine the night before Jesus' crucifixion. He has communion with His disciples and washes their feet. He reveals that Judas is the one who will betray Him. He tells the disciples that He is leaving, and they can't come. Then, He speaks these words: A new commandment I give unto you, that ye love one another; as I have loved you, that ye also love one another. By this shall all men know that ye are my disciples, if ye have love one to another. (John 13:34-35) By virtue of the fact that this would be, in part, His final words to the disciples, they had to be very important. And notice that what He said to them was in the form of a command, not a suggestion.
Have you ever been offended by someone and then overreacted emotionally? Has someone ever gotten on your very last nerve, and then you have let this incompetent person know about their thoughtless behavior with sharp words or with a cold attitude? How do you handle daily offenses? Now…I am not talking about abuse. I am not referring to ongoing selfish behavior or obvious cruelty. Those types of behavior are in a completely different category. I am just talking about people's honest oversights…or their minor inconsistencies…or the fact that you disagree with the way something was handled.
"For we live by faith, not by sight." 2 Corinthians 5:7 In 2 Corinthians 4:17-18, we are told how to wake up our faith. "For our light affliction, which is but for a moment, is working for us a far more exceeding and eternal weight of glory, while we do not look at the things which are seen, but at the things which are not seen. For the things which are seen are temporary, but the things which are not seen are eternal." To live by faith, don't focus your hope on things that are seen but on things that are not seen. You have to decide not to be dominated by circumstances. Instead, listen to the promises of God, which supersede anything you see with your natural eyes.
In prayer and reflection this morning, the Lord spoke to me out of Zephaniah 3:20 which says, "On that day I will gather you together and bring you home again. I will give you a good name, a name of distinction, among all the nations of the earth, as I restore your fortunes before their very eyes. I, the LORD, have spoken!" We are imperfect people in an imperfect world. As the days run their courses and the weeks turn to months and years, we compile our list of dings, dents, bruises, brokenness, and failure. If any of these phrases speak about you, then this is for you:
Have you ever heard someone say, "Something needs to change!" Or maybe you've said it yourself. It's easy to feel this way when life gets stressful, and we're overwhelmed — like when our schedules are too full and we're working too hard and have too many commitments. So, what do we do when life is out of order and we need a change? Much of the time we complain and say we want change, yet we don't do anything about it. We know something needs to change, but we get stuck in procrastination or a passive mode, waiting for someone else to do what we need to do. Some people get angry, some have a victim mentality and blame others for their mess, some get depressed, and others just sink into self-pity.
I have a timely message for many of you, and I feel that it's a word of urgency that I need to share. I had another word prepared, but the Holy Spirit is leading me in a totally different direction. There's an anticipation in the atmosphere, and everyone senses that something is about to happen. To some it's a sense of excitement, and to others it's a sense of fear. Only those who are spiritually discerning recognize that it's the birth pains that Jesus spoke about in the book of Matthew. I'm using the title "The Battle for Your Soul" as a metaphor of two conflicting forces in the spirit realm, and every one of us encounters each of them daily. They are the powers of darkness, and the power of light. It's the struggle between good and evil.
Each of us have moments in our lives when fear, loneliness, regret or sadness touch us. In those moments, it seems as though time stops, and it feels a bit more challenging to trust God. Jesus understands those moments. He is compassionate and remembers that we are formed from dust (Psalm 103:13-14). Rather than giving us a "toughen up" talk, Jesus offers reassurance. In John 14, knowing He would soon leave the disciples, understanding their confusion, and empathizing with their fear, Jesus offers them 3 tangible truths of reassurance. These truths are timeless and still can reassure our hearts today.
Several years ago, I came to a conclusion that's only been strengthened by what I've seen & experienced since: "If the truth isn't good enough, then a lie definitely will not work." It's essential to visit this today because of what we see around us, but I'm not going to go on & on about 'my truth' & 'your truth' & 'their truth.' Suffice it to say that the reality is there is only one "truth" (Jn.14:6- but see also Jn.1:14; 4:24; 14:17; 15:26; 16:13; 17:17, 19). Otherwise, you're left with a nothingness that provides nothing absolute to stand on, as well as nothing to really stand for, not to mention nothing to ultimately count on, or even honestly hope for.
Joshua's instructions to the people as they prepared to cross the Jordan river was to follow the Ark, the symbol of God's presence, because they had never been that way before. They were entering into new challenges that by God's leading would result in incredible blessings such as homes they hadn't built and fields they hadn't planted. Prophetically and practically, we are facing profound structural shifts that are altering our basic assumptions about prosperity, the economy and decision making. They require us to follow the Spirit closely since we haven't been this way before.
