Are you discouraged?

Over half of pastors are discouraged right now. It’s similar for all kinds of ministry leaders.   I doubt that the numbers are much different for us as Chi Alpha leaders ...

When I was discouraged as a local leader,  it was sometimes  hard to preach, lead, and care for others.

To be discouraged is to lose confidence. It’s to be downcast and depleted in your spirit. It’s to have the wind taken out of your sails so that you’re drifting with the currents and can’t go where you need to.

Everyone has moments of feeling discouraged. To become discouraged means that an emotional distress has taken over your personality and you can’t rise above it. You’ve lost heart for what’s important to you. You’re debilitated by your lack of achievement, what other people think about you, or your lost opportunities.

What discourages us as leaders?

Why do pastors and other leaders and caregivers who are serving Christ get discouraged? What is it about ministering to other people that makes us vulnerable to discouragement? Here are a few of the underlying reasons that you may be a discouraged pastor or ministry leader:

1) Expectations

We may have grown up in our family under the pressure of unrealistic expectations or felt like we needed to do well in life in order to be loved. Then we become pastors and find that so much is expected of us! We always have to be “on,” ready to lead a meeting or to bless others with our wisdom, friendliness, or prayers.

Grow the XA group… Reach a campus, be evangelistic, disciple young leaders, grow a healthy XA culture . . .Be available whenever called upon… Gather people on our main meetings so they want to come back… Make people feel good… And be really close to God all the time!  (I think the attractional model... is prone to great discouragement)

But it’s not just the expectations of others that distress us, it’s also our self-expectations. We push ourselves to do more and to it better. We pressure ourselves to serve people and make them happy. Then we compare ourselves to other pastors and leaders. If you expect more of yourself and other people expect more of you that is when you’ll become discouraged, even debilitated.

Living under conditions of worth will cause you to miss out on experiencing the grace of God. 

2) Criticism

Criticism and expectation go together. You may feel criticized jut because you haven’t excelled.

As with expectations, our problem with criticism is not just with other people but within our own selves. If you don’t have strong confidence and security in your worth as a person before God and others, if you feel you have to “measure up” to be acceptable, or if you’re trying to please people to feel good about yourself then criticism from others will have a place to land in you and it will be most discouraging.

3) Loneliness

It can be lonely to be a leader.  Discouragement and loneliness often go together.

Many leaders operate as Lone Rangers or put up walls. . . we often lack support and family connection at a leadership level. Many XA leaders don’t have a safe community outside their ministry (no matter how safe a group inside your XA seems you will always have to be careful). Many do not have a spiritual mentor or soul friend who listens to them with compassion and encourages them.  (Are we willing to share our disappointments with one another?)

4) No Solitude

As much as we who pastor and lead care for others, so also we need to be cared for personally. So solitude might seem like the last thing you need if you’re lonely and discouraged. But we also need to learn how to unhook from our relationships and responsibilities to be alone with Jesus in a quiet place for extended hours.

Who am I without my roles, my work, making people happy? In solitude and silence we find out, we begin to get in touch with our naked self. Insecurities rise to the surface. We feel antsy to accomplish something or get busy. If we stay quiet and not busy (even in quiet solitude set aside for God it’s easy to get busy!) we may find that we feel empty inside. So probably we avoid this.

But apart from solitude with the Good Shepherd in his green pastures and beside his still waters we won’t experience the Ahhhhhh! that David described: “He restores my soul!” (Psalm 23:3). Without learning how to be at rest under God in solitude and silence we never learn how to pull our plow in Jesus’ “easy yoke,” doing the work of ministry in his relaxed “rhythms of grace” (Matthew 11:28: NIV84 and MSG).

Do Not Be Discouraged!

If you’re discouraged about your ministry hear Jesus’ invitation to those who are experiencing troubles: “Take heart!” (John 16:33) He’s saying the same thing that the Lord said to Joshua through Moses and to Solomon through David: “Do not be discouraged, for the Lord your God will be with you wherever you go” (Joshua 1:9 and other places; 1 Chronicles 28:20 is similar).

The Lord is with us. He understands how we feel. He cares. He wants to lead us in the path of life. The Lord knows that as we minister to others we’re prone to neglect the care of our own souls. Even though we may be around people all the time we may isolate our true self. It’s in isolation that we’re most prone to discouragement. This is why his way of leading us out of discouragement is to help us trust that he is with us.

The first and most basic way that we learn that God is indeed with us is when a brother or sister listens to us in Jesus’ name. Each of us need a “God with skin on,” one of Christ’s ambassadors (2 Corinthians 5:20), who offers empathy and compassion, without judgment, advice or reassurance. Having someone be with you to hear how discouraged you feel and why is huge.

One way that the divine encouragement of having a compassionate friend can be powerfully ministered to us when we’re disheartened is in the context of a smaller group of supporting friends.  In XA, we must create a culture in which we do not isolate ourselves from one another because of comparison, insecurities or busyness.   We need to pray for one another and to look out for those who may be discouraged . . . pulling one another up and being the greater body of Christ.   

But What do we Really Want?

Jesus often asked people, “What do you want me to do for you?” He asked this of James and John in Mark 10:36. They told Jesus that they wanted him to give them positions of honor. Then Jesus asked blind Bartimaeus the same question in Mark 10:51. He said that he wanted to see. James and John saw only their egos. Bartimaeus saw the Son of God.

Is it enough for me to see that the Lord is with me? Is it enough for you? Do we really mean it when we say, “The Lord is my shepherd I shall not want”? (Psalm 23:1) Maybe we think that we need to feel that we are successful in order to be encouraged? Maybe we want to feel that people are happy with us so that we can be content?

How easily we get focused on the wrong things! We focus on our performance or what people think of us rather than the greatness of God and our relationship with him. We’re missing what is most important.

Reminding Ourselves of What’s Most Important

Personally, I have found over the years that when I feel discouraged about my ministry what helps is to remind myself that Jesus’ Greatest Commandment is what’s most important: “Love the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your mind and with all your strength… Love your neighbor as yourself” (Mark 12:30-31). So I ask myself, Am I devoted to Jesus Christ, loving the Lord God who loves me? Am I sharing God’s love with the people around me?

To be faithful to love God and others as God loves me is a life of great significance! I have found that when I am finding my soul satisfaction in Jesus and sharing him with the people in my circle of influence that God expands that circle. Caught up in a love relationship with Jesus feelings of discouragement don’t weigh me down and sidetrack me. Unconcerned about ministry success God seems to bring me more success.

Leading a XA ministry . . . we have great aspirations… to see a campus brought back to Jesus, to raise up a movement of radical disciples. . . it is a counter cultural, innately difficult and prone to disappointment . . . yet it is worth it.  Do not be discouraged. . . God is with you and you are not alone.  

Serving Christ together,

Jeff

(Thoughts taken from Soul Shepherding for you and your ministry)

http://www.soulshepherding.org

Don't Presume!

^{Joshua 9}

⁹ They answered: “Your servants have come from a very distant country because of the fame of the Lord your God. For we have heard reports of him: all that he did in Egypt, ¹⁰ and all that he did to the two kings of the Amorites east of the Jordan—Sihon king of Heshbon, and Og king of Bashan, who reigned in Ashtaroth. ¹¹ And our elders and all those living in our country said to us, ‘Take provisions for your journey; go and meet them and say to them, “We are your servants; make a treaty with us.”’ ¹² This bread of ours was warm when we packed it at home on the day we left to come to you. But now see how dry and moldy it is. ¹³ And these wineskins that we filled were new, but see how cracked they are. And our clothes and sandals are worn out by the very long journey.”

¹⁴ The Israelites sampled their provisions but did not inquire of the Lord. ¹⁵ Then Joshua made a treaty of peace with them to let them live, and the leaders of the assembly ratified it by oath.

John 15

⁵ “I am the vine; you are the branches. If you remain in me and I in you, you will bear much fruit; apart from me you can do nothing.

Don't stop inquiring of the Lord.

This morning I had the privilege of having breakfast with my Dad.  He told me a story from his life...

When he was around my age, he was working in Columbus, OH and actively serving in a local church.  He got a call from a headhunter one afternoon, the job offer was in Wisconsin and it seemed to be the big break for his career.  He remembers the phone call well... after the offer was made, my Father accepted the job that would move us to Wisconsin.  The headhunter asked, "Do you need to talk this over with your wife?"  The offer was so appealing that he said no.   He made a decision to leave the church that we helped plant and to move to Wisconsin without talking to my Mom, nor did he inquire of the Lord.   He presumed and relied on his own understanding.  

Two days later, he received a call from another job offer that would have kept us in Columbus and which would have been the perfect job for my Dad... he was bound by his commitment to Wisconsin and was unable to even consider the offer.  

Let us not think that we have the wisdom or understanding to make the right decisions on our own for our ministries or for our own lives.  Do not forget to inquire of the Lord.  Without Him we can do nothing.

Privileged to serve,

Jeff

Ministry in Post Christendom

How do we start a Christian ministry in a culture that is increasingly resistance or numb towards Christianity?

Recent conversations from across our state...

"I am inviting students to come to Chi Alpha and to experience Jesus..."  I am not getting anybody who wants to come.

'Even the "Christians" don't seem very interested in actually following Jesus"

I am disappointed... "We only had one person come to our prayer gathering"

"I feel like I failed... I had 5 to 6 students last semester coming to our small groups... now they are all gone and I am starting over."

The traditional approach to launching a campus ministry or a church is to gather a core of Christians together who are excited about the vision of planting a ministry in this location/campus.

Questions:

What if I cannot find enough/any Christians who want to do this with me?  What if the Christians are disinterested or already busy doing other things?  (Can they be reignited or is that like raising the dead)

Do I change the agenda/mission of the group to attract the Christians interests?  (Is it about what they want to do or what we need to do? Selfish interests?)

How do you start a ministry in a mission field that does not have enough interested Christians in it to get it going?  (what would it be like starting a ministry in an area that has no Christians besides yourself)

Initial Thoughts:

As Christianity loses more and more influence in our rapidly increasingly moving culture... moving toward post-christendom... we need to examine what it means to be missional.

- We cannot simply offer programs or events.  (even good programs and events)  Ministry will require structure, but structure does not reach people... we can have tons of structure and very few people.

- We need to reengage relationally with students in their everyday life.  If you were throwing a dinner party... how many people would come to your party?  Jesus ate and interacted with "sinners".  They knew him... he took the kingdom message and the love of God and brought it to them.  He did not expect them to come find it.

- If you are doing ministry in post-christendom... start building relationships with people.  Lots of lunches together, grabbing a coffee, processing life, and sharing the gospel with them.  It is a journey and it is work.   However, if you interact with people like Jesus did... they will want to be at your dinner table.. and to process their spiritual journey with you.

We reach and love people, one person at a time.

For the sake of students,

Jeff

In Essentials Unity, In Non-Essentials Liberty, In All Things Charity

by Mark Ross

 Philip Schaff, the distinguished nineteenth-century church historian, calls the saying in our title “the watchword of Christian peacemakers” (History of the Christian Church, vol. 7, p. 650). Often attributed to great theologians such as Augustine, it comes from an otherwise undistinguished German Lutheran theologian of the early seventeenth century, Rupertus Meldenius. The phrase occurs in a tract on Christian unity written (circa 1627) during the Thirty Years War (1618–1648), a bloody time in European history in which religious tensions played a significant role. The saying has found great favor among subsequent writers such as Richard Baxter, and has since been adopted as a motto by the Moravian Church of North America and the Evangelical Presbyterian Church. Might it serve us well as a motto for every church and for every denomination today?

Unity

Those who are united by faith in Christ are thereby united to one another in the church, the body of Christ. We call this union the communion of saints. It is a mysterious thing, and to understand it properly we will need to see it both in its “now” and “not yet” aspects. Because it is a union created by Christ in baptizing us all by one Spirit into His body, the church (1 Cor. 12:12–13), it is true of all Christians now, a fait accompli. But the manifestation of that unity is not always apparent. Christians can display ugly divisions between one another, as at the church of Corinth (1:10–17). Their disunity could be seen in the public square as members sued one another before the ungodly in civic courts (6:1–8). Even the Lord’s Supper was not sufficient to bring them together in love and unity (11:17–34). Manifesting fully the unity in Christ that already is given to us belongs to the “not yet” perfection of the faith that will come at our glorification. With deep longing our Lord prayed for our unity, knowing that on it rests our own blessing and the credibility of the church’s witness for Christ (John 17:20–23).

Liberty

Tensions arising from diversity of belief and practice among Christians are already apparent in the pages of the New Testament and remain with us today. There was apparently a thriving vegetarian faction within the church at Rome (Rom. 14). “One person believes he may eat anything, while the weak person eats only vegetables” (v. 2). There was also a difference among them about whether certain days were to be honored (v. 5). How do we live with such differences among us? Paul says, “As for the one who is weak in faith, welcome him, but not to quarrel over opinions” (v. 1). Such a person is to be welcomed, says Paul, and not just welcomed for the purpose of quarreling with him over his views. Love for such a person, weak in faith though he is, must continue.

In that love, we must extend liberty to each person to hold fast to his own conscience on what Christ has commanded (Rom. 14:5); but how far can that liberty be extended? Apparently, it would extend far enough to include vegetarians and those who maintained that Christians should continue to honor the Jewish feast days. But would it also include baptists receiving into church membership people with paedobaptist convictions, or paedobaptists receiving members with baptist convictions? Should believers who hold to a corporeal presence of Christ in the Lord’s Supper admit to the table those who believe the real presence of Christ in the Supper is spiritual and not corporeal? After two thousand years of church history, Christians are still divided on many key doctrinal issues, even on the very signs of our unity in Christ — baptism and the Lord’s Supper. How, then, can we be one in Christ and demonstrate the communion of saints? It would seem that either we must ignore our doctrinal differences and treat them as inconsequential, or we must remain permanently divided and in opposition to one another until Christ returns. Is there not a more excellent way? (1 Cor. 12:31).

Charity

Love for Christ must include a love for His truth, and so we can never treat as inconsequential anything that Christ has commanded. Only those who abide in Jesus’ word are truly His disciples (John 8:31), and disciples are to be taught to obey all that He has commanded (Matt. 28:19–20). So the route that we might call doctrinal minimalism is not open to us. We cannot simply reduce the number of doctrines to be taught and believed to what we can all accept as important and ignore the rest. Movement in that direction always seems to lose its brakes and eventually nothing distinctive of Christianity remains.

But neither can we lock ourselves up in very small groups with maximal agreement on doctrine and morals, and then separate from others and refuse to acknowledge as Christians those who do not embrace all our distinctives. The multiplication of small groups who pride themselves on purity but who denounce and despise those who fall short of that standard does nothing to express the truth of “the one, holy, catholic, and apostolic church” for which Christ died. The love we must have for all of Christ’s disciples has no expression in this path. Where, then, is the more excellent way?

As we have observed above, the unity that we have is by the Spirit of Christ baptizing us into Christ and into His body, the church (1 Cor. 12:12–13). Our expression of that unity must therefore be a unity of the truth “as the truth is in Jesus” (Eph. 4:21). Ultimately, that will be all the truth that is in Jesus, but our unity with Jesus does not wait until that perfection is achieved. Salvation comes to us by faith in Christ, so there must be a defining core of truth that is ours in faith, sufficient to unite us to Christ even if not yet complete in all its detail. Defining this core precisely might prove to be as difficult as living out the whole truth faithfully, but it will surely include that God, the creator of heaven and earth against whom we have all sinned, was in Christ, reconciling to Himself all who believe in Him, not counting their sins against them, but forgiving them through the redemption that is found in the sinless life and atoning death of Christ and received by faith alone, calling for obedience to Christ as Lord under the authority of His Word in the Holy Scriptures. Where Christ is truly preached, there is the gospel; and where the gospel is truly believed, there is the church.

Yet as we have seen, the church that is in Jesus is a diverse church. This diversity among Christians is due to our lack of conformity to Christ. He has chosen to sanctify us gradually in this world. As the progress we make in sanctification varies both in doctrine and in practice, there will always be a need in this world for those who are united in Christ to live in love with one another while dealing with differences. Sometimes these differences result in the formation of different churches and denominations in order to maintain a good conscience toward God. But such divisions need not be a defeat of unity among us, so long as we do not permit them to destroy our love and welcome for one another in Christ. Some divisions are of practical necessity anyway, for not all Christians in the world can meet together at the same time in the same place.

Many distinct gatherings of Christians spread throughout the world can actually serve the purposes of God, by sprinkling us among the lost to shine the light of Christ. Our multiple groupings can also serve us well, encouraging us to be faithful to what we believe Christ has taught us, bringing us together with those with whom we can cooperate most fully. But if we allow our divisions to become breaches of love and occasions for pride and rivalry, then we will have failed in our calling, and our witness for Christ will be marred.

The saying of Rupertus Meldenius strikes the right balance. It calls for unity on the essential things, the core of truth in our union with Christ. In non-essentials (not the unimportant, but those things that if lacking do not prevent our union with Christ), it calls for liberty so that all might follow their consciences under the Word and Spirit. In all things, however, there must be love (“charity” from the Latin caritas, or “love”), “which binds everything together in perfect harmony” (Col. 3:14).

May the God who gives endurance and encouragement give you a spirit of unity among yourselves as you follow Christ Jesus, so that with one heart and mouth you may glorify the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ. Accept one another, then, just as Christ accepted you, in order to bring praise to God (Rom. 15:5–7).

Is it Possible to Balance Family and Ministry?

Is it Possible to Balance Family and Ministry? by Steve Murrell

Many are confused about how to balance family and ministry.

Whether you are called to a grass hut or to a glass tower, the call of God always involves sacrifice. But, we are not called to sacrifice family for ministry. Consider Noah.

"The Lord then said to Noah, "Go into the ark, you AND YOUR WHOLE FAMILY." Genesis 7:1

"By faith Noah, when warned about things not yet seen, in holy fear built an ark TO SAVE HIS FAMILY." Hebrews 11:7

Noah fully obeyed God's call. His sacrificial obedience saved his family, and the world. Too many leaders today lose their family in the process of saving the world. It should not be that way.

You want to save the world? Saving your family is step one. 

The Call to Missions

The Global Thread Through Scripture

Aspects of Christ's global cause can be found in every book of the Bible. Read straight through the passages listed here in one sitting. Watch how this grand theme weaves its way from Genesis to Revelation. Watch how the theme comes through, however, in a way that is compatible with each book and with that books' place in the unfolding of Gods' revelation on the cause.

GENESIS - Through you all the families of the earth shall be blessed. (12:3)

EXODUS - For all the earth is mine and you shall be to me a Kingdom of Priests. (19:5-6)

LEVITICUS - The stranger who sojourns with you shall be to you as the native among you, and you shall love him as yourself. (19:34)

NUMBERS - A star shall come forth out of Jacob, and a scepter shall rise out of Israel. It shall crush the forehead of Moab and shall break down all the sons of Sheth. Edom shall be dispossessed, Seir also, his enemies, shall be dispossessed while Israel does valiantly. (24:17-18)

DEUTERONOMY - The Lord will establish you as a people holy to himself, as He has sworn to you, if you keep the commandments.... and all the peoples of the earth shall see that you are called by the name of the Lord; and they shall be afraid of you. (28:9-10)

JOSHUA - For the Lord your God dried up the waters of the Jordan for you until you passed over.... so that all the peoples of the earth may know that the hand of the Lord is mighty. (4:23-24)

JUDGES - I will not drive out before them any of the nations that Joshua left when he died that by them I may test Israel, whether they will take care to walk in the way of the Lord (2:21-22)

RUTH - Entreat me not to leave you or to return from following you; for where you go I will go, and where you lodge I will lodge; your people will be my people, and your God my God. (1:16)

I SAMUEL- This day the Lord will deliver you into my hand.... that all the earth may know that there is a God in Israel. (17:46)

II SAMUEL - For this I will extol thee, 0 Lord, among the nations and sing praises to thy name. Great triumphs He gives to His king. (22:50-51)

I KINGS - Thus King Solomon excelled all the kings of the earth in riches and wisdom. And the whole earth sought the presence of Solomon to hear his wisdom, which God had put into his mind. (10:23-24)

II KINGS - So now, 0 Lord our God, save us, I beseech thee, from his hand, so that all kingdoms of the earth may know that thou, O Lord, art God alone. (19:19)

I CHRONICLES - Sing to the Lord, all the earth! Tell of His salvation - day to day. Declare His glory among the nations. (16:23-24)

II CHRONICLES - Likewise when a foreigner; who is not of thy people Israel, comes from a far country for the sake of thy great name, and thy mighty hand.... hear thou from heaven thy dwelling place, and do according to all for which the foreigner calls to thee; in order that all peoples of the earth may know thy name and fear thee. (6:32-33)

EZRA - Thus says Cyrus king of Persia: The Lord, the God of heaven, has given me all the kingdoms of the earth, and he has charged me to build him a house at Jerusalem. (1:2)

NEHEMIAH - Thou art the Lord, Thou alone; Thou hast made heaven, the heaven of heavens, with all their host, the earth and all that is on it, the seas and all that is in them.... Thou art the Lord, the God who didst choose Abram and bring him forth (9:6-7)

ESTHER - And who knows whether you have not come to the kingdom (of Persia) for such a time as this? (4:14)

JOB - The Lord said to Satan, 'Whence have you come?' Satan answered, 'From going to and fro on the earth.' And the Lord said to Satan, 'Have you considered my servant Job, that there is none like him on the earth?' (1:7-8)

PSALMS - Let everything that breathes praise the Lord! (150:6)

PROVERBS - By me (Wisdom) kings reign, and rulers decree what is just; by me princes rule and nobles govern the earth. (8:15-16)

ECCLESIASTES - I know that whatever God does endures forever; nothing can be added to it, nor anything taken from it; God has made it so, in order that men should fear before him. (3:14)

SONG OF SOLOMON - The maidens saw her and called her happy; the queens and concubines also (note: from Solomon's international alliances), and they praised her.(6:9)

ISAIAH - It is too light a thing that you should be my servant to raise up the tribes of Jacob.... I will give you as a Light to the nations, that my salvation may reach to the end of the earth. (49:6)

JEREMIAH - And this city shall be to me a name of joy, a praise and a glory before all the nations of the earth who shall hear of all the good that I do for them and shall fear and tremble. (33:9)

LAMENTATIONS - Who has commanded and it came to pass, unless the Lord has ordained it? Is it not from the mouth of the Most High that good and evil come? Why should a living man complain, a man, about the punishment of his sins? (3:37-39)

EZEKIEL - And I will vindicate the holiness of my great name, which has been profaned among the nations, and which you have profaned among them; and the nations will know that I am the Lord when through you I vindicate my holiness. (36:23)

DANIEL - And he came to the Ancient of Days and was presented before him. And to him was given dominion and glory and kingdom, that all peoples, nations and languages should serve him. (7:13-14)

HOSEA - Yet the number of the people of Israel shall be like the sand of the sea' which can neither be measured nor numbered; and in the place where it was said to them, 'You are not my people,' it shall be said to them, 'Sons of the living God' (1:10)

JOEL - Multitudes, multitudes in the valley of decision! For the day of the Lord is near in the valley of decision. (3:14)

AMOS - In that day I will raise up the booth of David that is fallen and repair its breaches, and raise up its ruins.... that they may possess the remnant of Edom and all the nations who are called by my name. (9:11-12)

OBADIAH - Thus says the Lord God concerning Edom: We have heard tidings from the Lord and a messenger has been sent among the nations: 'Rise up! Let us rise against her for battle!' (vs 1)

JONAH - And should not I pity Nineveh, that great city, in which there are more than a hundred and twenty thousand persons who do not know their right hand from their left, and also much cattle? (4:11)

MICAH - He shall judge between many peoples, and shall decide for strong nations afar off; and they shall beat their swords into plowshares. (4:3)

NAHUM - The mountains shall quake before Him, the hills melt; the earth is laid waste before Him, the world and all that dwell therein. (1:5)

HABAKKUK - For the earth shall be filled with the knowledge of the glory of the Lord as the waters cover the sea. (2:14)

ZEPHANIAH - For my decision is to gather nations, to assemble kingdoms, to pour out upon them my indignation, all the heat of my anger; for in the fire of my jealous wrath all the earth shall be consumed. (3:8)

HAGGAI - And I will shake all nations, so that the treasures of all nations shall come in, and I will fill this House with splendor. (2:7)

ZECHARIAH - And the Lord will become king over all the earth; on that day the Lord will be one and His name one. (14:9)

MALACHI - For from the rising of the sun to its setting my name shall be great among the nations, and in every place incense shall be offered to my name. (1:11)




MATTHEW - Go, and make disciples of all the nations. (28:1)

MARK - This gospel must be proclaimed to all the nations. (13:10)

LUKE - Repentance and forgiveness of sins must be proclaimed in My name to all nations. (24:47)

JOHN - There are other sheep which are not of this fold. I must go and bring them. Then there will be one Shepherd and one fold. (10:16)

ACTS - You shall be my witnesses to the ends of the earth. (1:8)

ROMANS - We have received grace and apostleship to bring about the obedience of faith for the sake of His name among all the nations. (1:5)

I CORINTHIANS - Then comes the end, when Christ delivers the kingdom to God the Father after destroying every rule and every authority and power. (15:24)

II CORINTHIANS - For God was in Christ reconciling the World back to Himself, not counting their trespasses against them. (5:19)

GALATIANS - In Christ Jesus the blessing of Abraham has come upon the nations, that we might receive the promise of the Spirit through faith. (3:14)

EPHESIANS - His Plan for the fullness of times is to sum up all things in Christ, things in heaven and things on earth. (1:10)

PHILIPPIANS - That every knee should bow and every tongue confess that Jesus Christ is Lord. (2:10)

COLOSSIANS - The Gospel has come to you, as indeed in the whole world it is bearing fruit and growing. (1:6)

I THESSALONIANS - Your faith in God has gone forth everywhere. (1:8)

II THESSALONIANS - The Lord will be revealed from heaven with his mighty angels in flaming fire, inflicting vengeance upon those who do not know God and upon those who do not obey the gospel. (1:7-8)

I TIMOTHY - Christ was manifested in the flesh, vindicated in the Spirit, seen by angels, preached among the nations, believed on in the world, taken up in glory. (3:16)

II TIMOTHY - I charge you in the presence of God and of Christ Jesus who is to judge the living and the dead, and by his appearing and his kingdom; preach the Word. (4:1)

TITUS - The grace that brings salvation to all men has appeared. (2:14)

PHILEMON - I, Paul, an ambassador and now a prisoner also for Christ Jesus, appeal to you for my child, Onesimus, whose father I have become in my imprisonment. (vs. 9)

HEBREWS - But when Christ had offered for all time a single sacrifice for sins, He sat down at the right hand of God. (10:12)

JAMES - Of his own will he brought us forth by the word of truth that we should be a kind of first fruits of his creation. (1:18)

I PETER - Resist the devil, firm in your faith; know that the same experience of suffering is required of your brotherhood throughout the world. (5:9)

II PETER - But according to his promise we wait for new heavens and a new earth in which righteousness dwell. (3:13)

I JOHN - And we have seen and testify that the Father has sent His Son as the Savior of the world. (4:14)

II JOHN - For many deceivers have gone out into the world, men who will not acknowledge the coming of Jesus Christ in the flesh. (vs. 7)

III JOHN - You will do well to send them on their journey as befits God's service. For they have set out for His sake and have accepted nothing from the nations. (vs. 6-7)

JUDE - To the only God, our Savior through Jesus Christ our Lord be glory, majesty, dominion, and authority, before all time and now and forever. Amen. (vs. 25)

REVELATION - Worthy art thou to take the scroll and to open its seals, for thou hast slain and by thy blood didst ransom men for God from every tribe and tongue and people and nation, and hast made them a kingdom and priests to our God. And they shall reign on the earth. (5:9-10)

courtesy of the traveling team

Guest Blog- David Wilkerson

A Christless Pentecost

Is Christ Becoming A Stranger Among Us?

David Wilkerson

The following is a prophetic warning from Azusa Street 75 years ago, concerning the dangers of a Christless Pentecost!

Frank Bartleman was an eyewitness to the out-pouring of the Holy Spirit in 1907 at Azusa Street, Los Angeles. He has been characterized as the Reporter of the Azusa Street Revival. Nearly 75 years ago, during the outpouring, he wrote a tract warning of a Christless Pentecost

He warned: "We may not hold a doctrine, or seek an experience, except in Christ. Many are willing to seek power in order to perform miracles, draw attention and adoration of the people to themselves, thus robbing Christ of His glory, and making a fair showing in the flesh. The greatest need would seem to be for true followers of the meek and lowly Jesus. Religious enthusiasm easily goes to seed. The human spirit so predominates the show-off, religious spirit. But we must stick to our text-Christ.

"Any work that exalts the Holy Ghost or 'gifts' above Jesus will finally end up in fanaticism. Whatever causes us to exalt and love Jesus is well and safe. The reverse will ruin all. The Holy Ghost is a great light, but focused on Jesus always for His revealing.

"Where the Holy Ghost is actually in control, Jesus is proclaimed the Head-the Holy Ghost, His executive."

In another place, Brother Bartleman warned:

"The temptation seems to be toward empty manifestations. This does not require any particular cross, or death to the self-life. Hence it is always popular.

"We may not put power, gifts, the Holy Ghost, or in fact anything ahead of Jesus. Any mission that exalts even the Holy Ghost above the Lord Jesus Christ is bound for the rocks of error and fanaticism.

"There seems to be a great danger of losing sight of the fact that Jesus was 'all in all' The work of Calvary, the atonement, must be the center for our consideration. The Holy Ghost will never draw our attention from Christ to Himself, but rather reveal Christ in a fuller way. We are in danger of slighting Jesus - getting Him 'lost in the temple,' by the exaltation of the Holy Ghost and of the gifts of the Spirit. Jesus must be the center of everything."

I do not take Brother Bartleman's warning lightly. The danger of a Christless Pentecost is very real today. I say to you it is possible to gather Spirit-filled people in one place, praising and lifting up their hands - and still have Christ walking among them as a stranger!

It's true He said, "Where two or three have gathered together in My name, there I am in their midst." (Matt. 18:20 NASB) But He can be in our midst as a stranger! Ignored, unrecognized - even by those who meet in His name! The Jews gathered every Sabbath in the synagogue to speak of His name, and to prophesy of His coming. They praised the name of the Father who promised to send Him. They spoke the Messiah's name with awe and reverence. Then, when He came and walked among them - He was not recognized! He was a stranger to them!

Christ, a stranger in the midst of a Spirit-filled congregation? A stranger in the midst of those who speak His name - who worship the Father who sent Him? A stranger to those who sing His hosannas, who call Him "Lord, Lord"?

Yes! Absolutely yes! It is not only possible - it is happening among God's chosen people today!

Let me show you three ways in which we are making Christ a stranger In our midst! May the Holy Spirit take away our spiritual blindness so we can once again see Him as He really is - LORD OF ALL!

I. We Make Christ A Stranger - By Giving The Holy Spirit Pre-Eminence Over Him!

Christ, and Christ alone, must be the center of life and worship!

"And He is the head of the body, the Church: who Is the beginning, the firstborn from the dead; that in all things He might have the pre-eminence. For it pleased the Father that in Him should all fullness dwell..." (Col. 1:18-19 KJV)

"That in all things He might have the pre-eminence..." That is - distinguished and spoken of above all others. Having first place in all things. Not even the Holy Spirit is to be exalted above that name! The upper room must never overshadow the Cross! We dare not think of Christ as simply the one who sent the Holy Spirit. In other words, "Thank You, Jesus, for sending someone better." Christ sent the Holy Spirit to reveal His own fullness within us.

When the Holy Spirit becomes the center of our attention, the church gets out of focus! The Holy Spirit descended upon Christ as He came out of baptismal waters, and the Father said of Him: "This is My beloved Son - In whom I am well pleased..." The Spirit descended bodily like a dove, but the focus was on the Lamb of God - who taketh away the sins of the world. Not the dove, but the Lamb!

Christ told His disciples of a coming Pentecost, when the Spirit would be outpoured for a single purpose: It was to be a power given to lift up the name of Christ! "But ye shall receive power, after that the Holy Ghost Is come upon you: and ye shall be witnesses unto Me... unto the uttermost part of the earth..." (Acts 1:8 KJV)

Jesus made it clear that when the Spirit comes He will not draw attention to Himself, but will focus on Christ's words. He will exalt Christ.

"...when He, the Spirit of truth, is come... He shall not speak of Himself... He shall glorify Me: for He shall receive of Mine, and shall show it unto you. All things that the Father hath are Mine: therefore said I, that He shall take of Mine, and shall show It unto you." (John 16:13-15 KJV)

Jesus said, "He will show you My glory, My power, My Kingdom. He will remind you of all My words." The primary work of the Holy Spirit is not fellowship, although He does bring believers together as one in Christ. It is not ecstasy. It is not simply to teach us an unlearned tongue. The Spirit has come to exalt Christ! To guide all mankind to the truth that Christ is Lord! It is not enough to say the Spirit has brought us close to each other - He must bring us closer to Christ!

The fullness of the Spirit is the fullness of Christ If you do not have a consuming love for Christ, you do not have a Holy Ghost baptism! Christ, the baptizer, sent the Holy Spirit to fire our souls over lost humanity, to get us out into the highways and hedges to reach the unsaved. To shake up our lazy lifestyles and get us to doing His work. The blessed Holy Spirit will be grieved, and finally withdraw, the moment men try to exalt Him above the Son of God! He will not permit His power to be abused by those who want only the gift and not Christ, the Giver!

What is a true Holy Ghost meeting? Is it where people all speak with tongues? Or where people are healed? Where saints jump for joy? Where saints are prophesying? More - much more than that! It is where Christ is being exalted, where His holiness pierces the soul, where men and women fall before His holy throne, broken, humbled - crying, "Holy, Holy." The moving of the Holy Spirit is a moving closer to Christ, deeper in Christ, with a greater submission to His Lordship!

II. Christ Is Made A Stranger When People Praise Him, But Will Not Pray To Him!

We praise a Christ to whom we will not pray! We have become a praising people, but not a praying people. For many of God's people the prayer closet is a relic of the past. "Why ask God for what He has already promised? Just get hold of the promises and simply command deliverances!"We no longer want Christ as much as we want what He can do for us. We want an escape from pain and suffering. We want our troubles to vanish. And we are so caught up in our escape from pain, we lose the true meaning of the Cross. We refuse crosses and losses - no Gethsemane for us! No nights of agony! We don't even know this suffering, bleeding, resurrected Christ!

We want His healing power. We want His promises of prosperity. We want His protection. We want more of this earth's goods. We want His happiness. But we really don't want Him alone!

The Church once confessed its sins - now it confesses its rights

How many of us would serve Him if He offered nothing but Himself? No healing. No success. No prosperity. No worldly blessings. No miracles, signs, or wonders. What if - onceagain we had to take joyfully the spoiling of our goods? What if - instead of clear sailing and problem-free living, we faced shipwreck, fears within and fightings without? What if -instead of painless living, we suffered cruel mockings, stoning, bloodshed - being sawn asunder?What if - instead of our beautiful homes and cars, we had to wander about in deserts in sheepskins, hiding in dens and caves? What if - instead of prosperity, we were destitute, afflicted, and tormented? And the only better thing provided for us was Christ?

Very few of God's people pray anymore! They are too busy working for Jesus to talk to Him! Ministers especially have become so busy doing kingdom work, they have little or no time left to pray. There is time to visit, to build, to travel, time to vacation, to attend meetings, time for recreation, reading, counseling - but no time to pray!

Preachers who do not pray become promoters. They become frustrated building contractors. When they lose touch with God, they lose touch with their people and their needs. Preachers who don't pray have egos that spin out of control. They want their own way. They substitute sweat for unction (anointing).

Evangelists who do not pray become stars, storytellers. They lack humility, so they manipulate crowds through emotional gimmicks. The cry of many pastors is, "Oh, God, where can I find an evangelist who doesn't care about money, or who is not promoting something? One who can bring heaven down and make Christ real! Oh, God - give me a praying man to bring my congregation to its knees!" The shame of this generation is that we have too many talented men of God and only a few who have touched God in prayer.

There is even less praying in the congregation! I'm 100% for getting prayer back in our public schools! But that's not God's real problem! His problem is getting prayer back in our homes! His problem is to get His own chosen people to pray! And you are a phony if you fight for school prayer and neglect secret-closet praying yourself!

Do we pray? Oh, yes! When we need something. We have the formula down pat - "in the name of Jesus." All we need Him for is to counter sign our petition checks before the Father.

I am weary of hearing people say, "This is such a busy age - I have no time to pray. I'd like to, but I don't have time." No! It's not lack of time; it is a lack of desire. We make time for what we really want to do. Look at our Christian young people! Wasting hours of time playing Pac-Man, Galaxy War, goofing off, bored, restless, looking for some action! But no time to pray! No time for Jesus! Oh, God! Somehow! Some way! Get this generation on its knees. Not just the Lord's Prayer, but a daily communion with Christ .

Our Savior, who has the care and concern for multiplied universes, has the time to pray just for you! He takes the time to intercede for you before the throne of God (Heb. 7:25), and you say you do not have time to pray to Him!

We work feverishly for a Christ we ignore. We will go anywhere, do anything, in His name. But we will not pray. We will sing in a choir. We will visit the sick and the prisoners. But we will not pray. We will counsel the hurt and needy; we will stay up all night to comfort a friend, but we will not pray. We will fight corruption! We will crusade for morality! We will stand up against nuclear weapons! But we will not pray!

Most of all, we don't pray because we really don't believe it works. Prayer is a bloody battleground! It is where victories are won! A place to die to self! A place where a holy God exposes secret sin! No wonder Satan tries to hinder prayer! A praying man sends a shudder through hell. That man or woman is marked because Satan knows prayer is the power that crushes his kingdom. Satan is not afraid of power-hungry saints, but he trembles at the sound of a praying saint!

III. Christ Is Made a Stranger In Our Midst - When We Want His Power More Than His Purity!

Reader Harris, an Englishman and director of The Pentecostal League of Prayer, once challenged a congregation on this matter of power and purity. He said, "Those who want power, line up to my right. Those who want purity, line up to my left." The congregation lined up 10 to 1 - for POWER!

In the book of Acts, Pentecost was synonymous with purity more than power. Peter told the council at Jerusalem what God did at the house of Cornelius, "God...giving them the Holy Ghost, even as He did unto us...purifying their hearts by faith..." (Acts 15:8-9 KJV)

Who is the man or woman of God who has power? Is it the one who can heal the sick and raise the dead? Is it the one who can best talk in tongues and prophesy? Is it the one who draws the most people and builds the greatest church? No! The one with the power - is the one with the purity! "...the righteous are bold as a lion... (Proverbs 28:1 KJV)

The prophet Malachi prophesied of a supernatural purge coming to God's house.

"... the Lord, whom ye seek, shall suddenly come to His temple... but who may abide the day of His coming? And who shall stand when He appeareth? For He is like a refiner's fire, and like fuller's soap. And He shall sit as a refiner and purifier of silver: and He shall purify the sons of Levi, and purge them as gold and silver, that they may offer unto the Lord an offering in righteousness." (Malachi 3:1-3 KJV)

This is a dual prophecy. He speaks of Christ's first coming, and also of His second! He will come again suddenly, as a thief in the night. But first, He will purify His Church.

We are not ready for the coming of Christ! Is this the Church triumphant? Covetous, divorcing, depressed, worldly-minded, grasping for materialism and success, competitive, lukewarm, adulterous, rich and increased with goods, unaware of spiritual blindness and poverty, pleasure-loving, recreation-minded, consumed with sports, politics, and power - is this the Church Jesus is coming for?Simply coping, filled with fear and anxiety, satisfied only to have good health and happiness?

My Bible says He is coming back for an overcoming Church! A Church without spot or wrinkle! A people whose affections are on things above! A people with clean hands and pure hearts. A people who are looking for His coming! A people with a "new Jerusalem state of mind."

The question is no longer, "What can my faith get me? What miracle will He perform for me?" The question now is -"How shall I stand before Him? How shall I make it at the judgment?" "... who shall stand when He appeareth?" (Malachi 3:2 KJV)

The question is no longer, "How do! feel - how do! get happiness? How do I get the desire of my heart?"

The question Is-"Can I withstand that moment when I stand before the Judgment Seat of Christ?How can I withstand when I've lived so carelessly, so selfishly, so neglectful of His great salvation?" The central issue now has nothing to do with this world at all. At issue is-"HAVE I NEGLECTED CHRIST IN THIS MIDNIGHT HOUR?"

The purge is going to begin in the pulpit! "...He shall purify the sons of Levi..." (Malachi 3:3 KJV) God is going to accomplish that by "turning up the heat " God isgoing to make things so hot, so fiery, so intense, God's men will be driven to their knees! This isthe fire of the Holy Ghost! It isthe fire of persecution. It is the fire of tribulation. The fire of unbelievable hardships, ridicule, gossip, financial problems. He is going to shake everything that can be shaken! He is going to shake, and scrub, and burn, and purge - and purify!

No man or woman of God will escape the purging! God is determined to get all the dross and filth out of us. The purge will spread from the pulpit to the pew! Get ready, saints! God is getting ready to expose all sin, all adultery, all foolishness! The Holy Ghost is going to reprove us of sin. How can you play games when God puts you in His crucible and turns up the fire? Your Holy Ghost baptism is going to have some fire put to it now!

Malachi said-"...the day cometh, that shall burn as an oven: and all the proud, yea, and all that do wickedly, shall be stubble: and the day that cometh shall burn them up..." (Malachi 4:1 KJV)

God also promises to bring down the strongholds of the enemy! He is going to once and for all let the devil and the world know who has the power!

If God is about to do all that the prophets predicted He would - WHAT A GLORIOUS FUTURE JUST AHEAD!

• A purged, purified ministry!
  
• A Church that God is calling back to repentance and holiness.
  
• A people washed, cleansed - offering praises in true righteousness.
  
• A revival among our young people! Drug strongholds coming down! Alchohol and divorce no longer prevalent among God's people.
  
• The sound of prayer-intercession!
  
• A people of God who will discern between the holy and the unholy!
  
• Everywhere, God's people turning again to the Word.
  
• A tested, tried people, once again devoted to the Person of Jesus Christ!
  
• His Person being lifted up to draw all men to Him!
  
• Christ no longer the stranger in our midst, but CROWNED - PRE-EMINENT!
  
• A Pentecost that truly exalts the name and power of Jesus Christ, the Lord of all.
  

Scripture quotation(s) marked NASB are from the New American Standard Bible, ©The Lockman Foundation 1977.

Scripture quotation(s) marked KJV are from the King James Version.