Named Christian

Acts 11
26 … And the disciples were first called Christians in Antioch.

  • The disciples never claimed the title of Christian. To do such a thing would have been considered irreverent and arrogant and most unlike Christ! The label was placed upon those who truly lived like they were following Jesus example. It was not self claimed but self evident!
  • The church today has reduced the Gospel of Jesus Christ to a mere ticket, purchased at the price of an emotional decision, with no repentance and no commitment. The label of “Christian” is claimed when it should only be earned! We claim the title “Christian” without thought, conviction or cost. The word Christian has been twisted to mean so much that it means nothing! Fellowship has been replaced by community, praise neglected for performance whilst repentance and transformation have been scrapped with a lust for attendance and tithe. So much is labelled “Christian” but it is lifeless, empty, unsatisfying, man glorifying flesh! Call it “Christian” if you like but The Word of God does not call it Godly!

Revelation 3
1 … you have a name that you are alive, but you are dead.

  • God in His Word gives no promise or blessing to the “Christian”. Promises of blessing to God’s people are always made with specification or condition. 
  • The world’s culture of entitlement, pride and rebellion seem to have influenced the church. We claim a label then demand the blessing, treating Jesus like some ticket for heaven that we can stash in our back pocket. This is arrogance and blasphemy. It has the name of Christ but it is utterly dead! There is no life because there is no Christ!

John 3
3 … unless one is born again, he cannot see the kingdom of God.

2 Corinthians 5
17 … if anyone is in Christ, he is a new creation; old things have passed away; behold, all things have become new.

  • Only those who are Born Again of The Spirit of God can see and enter the Kingdom of God; Only those who have repented and called upon the name of The Lord; Only those who believe in their heart that Jesus Christ has been raised from the dead and that His Spirit has been sent into our hearts. His sheep are those who know Him and hear His voice, His disciples are those who continue in His word, His people are those who are circumcised of heart and separated from the world.
  • Beware of merely claiming a label and assuming a blessing. There will be many on the day of judgement to whom He will say  ‘I never knew you; depart from Me, you who practice lawlessness!’ (Matthew 7:22-23)
  • I am growing ever more careful about any label that man may use. I do not want to be known by the label of my theology, denomination or church building. Let me simply be known as a believer in and disciple/servant/follower of Jesus! I do not want His testimony to be associated with the nonsense and blasphemy that claims His name. Oh Lord may You blow away the chaff and separate your sheep. May You cause the trumpet sound to be clear, establish Your testimony in Your people and expose the flesh that claims Your name! Glorify Yourself once again and cause the nations and to fear and reverence the Almighty, Living, Creator God in His people.

Matthew 7
13 “Enter by the narrow gate; for wide is the gate and broad is the way that leads to destruction, and there are many who go in by it.
14 Because narrow is the gate and narrow is the way which leads to life, and there are few who find it.

  • The gate is narrow as a man must forsake everything to fit through it! Forsake all sin, all worldliness, all flesh…
  • The way is as narrow as a man’s shoulders as it is directly behind Christ, walking in HIS WAY, HIS footsteps!! THERE IS NO OTHER WAY!!

The Beauty of Holiness

Psalm 29
2 … worship the LORD in the beauty of holiness.

  • The beauty of Holiness is Jesus Christ! He is the fulfilment of The Law! He the Altogether Lovely One. HIS Life fulfils The Law, HIS Life abhors sin, HIS Life loves, serves, obeys, surrenders and trusts The Father! It is HIS Life within the believers who are clothed with HIS righteousness that worships The Lord in the beauty of holiness.

Psalm 93:5
“…Holiness adorns Your house, O LORD, forever.”

  • Holiness adorns those with whom He dwells, those who are His living temples. People altogether set apart unto Him, circumcised of heart, abhorring evil and loving His Word, allowing HIS Life and HIS Love to flow through them. Holiness is utterly dependant and completely yielded to The Father, filled with His Holy Spirit and so naturally produces HIS fruit!
  • Holiness is rooted in Christ’s humility. It is a life of faith naturally producing works/fruits of faith. It is Christ within, living through, who is demonstrated in the way that the believer lives. Holiness is the fruit of His life, it can be mimicked by legalism but the beauty of holiness is Christ only and always!

Revelation 4
8 …and they rest not day and night, saying, Holy, holy, holy, Lord God Almighty, which was, and is, and is to come.

  • I cannot try to convey or explain the Holiness of God but it is amazing to meditate on. The word holy, at its root, means set apart. Truly our God is altogether set apart from creation! He is altogether above and beyond anything man can grasp or imagine! He is altogether Sovereign over all things, He is Light, He is Truth, He is without spot or blemish, He is The One True Living God! 
  • This is holiness and we are to worship The Lord in the beauty of that holiness. Jesus only is the beauty of holiness! How absurd it is to think that we could produce any kind of beauty through self effort in the flesh! However, “through faith”, through faithful obedience God’s Word and faithfully abiding in Him, The Spirit of God through our flesh produces the fruit, the beauty of Christ’s Holiness, HIS Life, His Heart, His Testimony! Hallelujah!
  • Legalism tries to mimic holiness but is rooted in pride and the elevation of flesh. It works hard to maintain standards addressing the appearance of the outward man. It focuses on the letter and on the keeping of laws in self and corporately in others. It is strife, contention, prejudice and pride. There is a great temptation to teach the law, it often produces quick results, but it does not produce Life. It is flesh breeding flesh and will only produce death!
  • Legalism is pride in the flesh and pride, like bad body odour, can sometimes be hard to detect in ourselves but surely stinks to others! Here are some considerations to help identify/discern our hearts.
  • May our lives be marked by HIS holiness, by HIS love that fulfils the law, not the flesh which strives to keep it. May we be vessels for the outflowing of HIS LIFE and the fruit of HIS SPIRIT! May we tend to our own root and trust The Holy Spirit to produce HIS Fruit in us and others. It is HIS LIFE so serve The Lord in the beauty of submission to HIS Life! 

Galatians 2
18 For if I build again those things which I destroyed, I make myself a transgressor.
19 For I through the law died to the law that I might live to God.
20 I have been crucified with Christ; it is no longer I who live, but Christ lives in me; and the life which I now live in the flesh I live by faith in the Son of God, who loved me and gave Himself for me.
21 I do not set aside the grace of God; for if righteousness comes through the law, then Christ died in vain.”

Asking For Trouble!

Song of Solomon 4
16 Awake, O north wind, And come, O south! Blow upon my garden, That its spices may flow out. Let my beloved come to his garden And eat its pleasant fruits.

  • Look at this request of the Shulamite bride. Why would she ask for the cold north wind to come with risk of frost, snow and death to plant life? Or why ask for the hot, dry wind from the south bring barrenness and thirst? Why would she ask for these? She is asking for discomfort, she is asking for lack of nutrients and hardship, she is asking to be disturbed, she is asking for the unpleasant…
  • What she is longing for is opportunity to share the fragrance of her garden for her beloved. It is the harsh and difficult conditions that stir up the fragrances. Just as love is not love until it is proved so the fragrance won’t flow until the winds blow.

2 Corinthians 2
14 Now thanks be to God who always leads us in triumph in Christ, and through us diffuses the fragrance of His knowledge in every place.
15 For we are to God the fragrance of Christ among those who are being saved and among those who are perishing.
16 To the one we are the aroma of death leading to death, and to the other the aroma of life leading to life….

  • Do we consider this when trials come, when our Lord brings us into those ordained hard seasons? Do we consider the testimony of Jesus and take comfort and joy in His fragrance being experienced? Is it our primary focus to consider how the Gospel might be better proclaimed? Is it evident to the world that our chains are in Christ? (Philippians 1:12-13)
  • Oh how I long to be a sweet fragrance of Jesus to Our Father! Oh Lord may You be seen in Your people! May we be an aroma of Christ! Lord blow upon our lives with your north and south winds and cause your fragrance to flow out. No matter the storm, I WILL YET PRAISE YOU! HALLELUJAH! I will praise The name of The Lord my God and cast myself upon Your goodness and mercy!

1 Peter 4
12 Beloved, do not be surprised at the fiery ordeal which is taking place to test you [that is, to test the quality of your faith], as though something strange or unusual were happening to you.
13 But insofar as you are sharing Christ’s sufferings, keep on rejoicing, so that when His glory is revealed, you may rejoice with great joy.
14 If you are insulted and reviled for [bearing] the name of Christ, you are blessed [happy, with life-joy and comfort in God’s salvation regardless of your circumstances], because the Spirit of glory and of God is resting on you [and indwelling you].

  • We really can rejoice in suffering if we are in love with Jesus. He is forming us to be more like Him and causing His fragrance to be produced in us. From all that time spent in the secret place, reading His word, seeking Him in prayer… All that He has poured into these lives will start to flow out. HIS GLORY will be revealed in US!!
  • May we always be rejoicing in our beloved. No matter our circumstance, no matter the storm. May we seek to be as ravished with His love as He is with us! May we be joyful for opportunities to demonstrate and manifest His love in us to the world around us! May we have hearts that seek for the winds to come in order that His fragrance may flow out of our lives!

A Freewill Offering

Exodus 35
4 And Moses spoke to all the congregation of the children of Israel, saying, “This is the thing which the LORD commanded, saying:
5 ‘Take from among you an offering to the LORD. Whoever is of a willing heart, let him bring it as an offering to the LORD: gold, silver, and bronze;’
…
29 The children of Israel brought a freewill offering to the LORD, all the men and women whose hearts were willing to bring material for all kinds of work which the LORD, by the hand of Moses, had commanded to be done.

1 Chronicles 29
9 Then the people rejoiced, for they had offered willingly, because with a loyal heart they had offered willingly to the LORD; and King David also rejoiced greatly.
…
17 I know also, my God, that You test the heart and have pleasure in uprightness. As for me, in the uprightness of my heart I have willingly offered all these things; and now with joy I have seen Your people, who are present here to offer willingly to You.

  • God’s Old Covenant dwelling places were built ONLY with the free will offerings of His people. The command was specifically for a free will offering! Only those whose hearts that were willing and stirred to give brought the building materials or the ability to serve. God’s house would not be built by anything forced or manipulated! This is a mighty, foundational truth! It is a wonderful, liberating truth! It is such precious source of unity, intimacy and fellowship and communal rejoicing.
  • More important to The Lord than the size of the offering or quality of the materials is the submitted heart of His people. His desire is for free hearts that will willingly and joyfully offer themselves to Him and His service. God does not need our materials, He does not need our efforts, but He longs for a people who willingly choose to believe on Him, love Him and walk with Him. He cannot and will not take our hearts by force or design.

Matthew 22
35 And one of their number, a lawyer, asked Him a question to test Him.
36 “Teacher, which is the great commandment in the law?”
37 And He replied to him, You shall love the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your mind (intellect).
38 This is the first and great commandment.
39 And a second is like it: You shall love your neighbour as you do yourself.
40 These two commandments sum up and upon them depend all the Law and the Prophets.

John 14
21 He who has My commandments and keeps them, it is he who loves Me. And he who loves Me will be loved by My Father, and I will love him and manifest Myself to him.”
…
23 Jesus answered and said to him, “If anyone loves Me, he will keep My word; and My Father will love him, and We will come to him and make Our home with him.

  • Love is a freewill offering, a considered response, just as obedience is a decision and faith is a choice, we love because He first Loved us and that love is the building material for God’s dwelling place. If man does not have the capacity to choose freely then he cannot love and God’s glory is greatly diminished!
  • It is the depravity, selfishness and rebellion of the free will of man that makes The Gospel so wondrously beautiful! That Almighty God would give Himself so fully and faithfully to redeem, woo and shepherd man’s free will is truly an eternal testament of His Great Grace and Glory! The demonstration of His love is all the greater for He truly can transform sinful man from children of their father, the devil, to joint heirs with Christ! Hallelujah! It is love for The Lord that will produce obedience to His Word and Glorify Him with wonderful fruits of faith and The Spirit!
  • Today, by the Grace of God, we have the opportunity and privilege to bring The Lord an offering, a freewill offering, whoever is of a willing heart to give may bring it as an offering to The Lord. There is no command to pay, you will not be forced, cajoled, manipulated or begged. God does not need your offering! What The Father longs for is a heart stirred to give, that will freely make the choice to present itself a living sacrifice, holy acceptable unto Him. The gift of Salvation is to be freely received, the invitation is freely rejected or accepted, Love is freely returned and faithful service is a chosen response.
  • What will we offer to The Lord today? A sacrifice of praise? Songs of thanksgiving? A burnt offering of Godly sorrow for sin and penitent repentance? The confession of weakness? A wholly surrendered life available to serve? Two small loaves and five fishes? A giving up of your desires and disappointments in order to magnify Him?
  • Let us freely bring our gifts to The Lord today as materials for Him to build His church and establish His dwelling place in our hearts. “Freely you have recieved, freely give” Matthew 10:8 Truly there is great joy when we take our eyes off the desires and disappointments of this flesh life and reject them all to gain Jesus. Bring your whole, broken, dissatisfied life as a yielded offering to Jesus and you will find that you are filled with His! Hallelujah!

Proverbs 23
26 My son, give me your heart…

Poured In To Be Poured Out

John 2
7 Jesus said to them, “Fill the waterpots with water.” And they filled them up to the brim.
8 And He said to them, “Draw some out now, and take it to the master of the feast.” And they took it.

  • WATER: The pots were made for a purpose (water), but they were sitting unfilled and unused. Jesus commanded that the pots be filled. Looking at a spiritual lesson here we can submit that we are the pots and that we are required/commanded to be filled! Filled with the water that Jesus gives, filled with Jesus, filled with The Spirit, filled by faith, but too often, like these pots, we are sitting in the corner unfilled and unused. That is not Jesus’ desire or longing for us. He LONGS to see us filled and He LONGS to use us for His Glory! At Jesus command those pots were filled to the brim with pure, life-sustaining water. Within them was the single most valuable source of sustenance, refreshment and cleansing. This water represents Jesus Christ, His Holy Spirit, His eternal and abundant Life!
  • TWO COMMANDS: But they were not commanded to only be filled, there was a command to be poured out! We are not to hide that source of Life and Light under a cover! Water can stagnate, grow mould and become poisonous if not poured out and replenished. In the same way a selfish heart for academic knowledge and selfish gain will poison that precious water of The Lord in our hearts. If we only focus on being filled we risk missing entirely the purpose of the filling!
  • ⁠WINE: It truly is an incredible and wonderful miracle that as they poured out that water, as they poured out what had been poured in, it became something altogether more than water, it became a sweet, joyful drink of celebration and jubilation; something for ALL to delight in and rejoice about! It was something to celebrate! It is the work of God, it is the purpose of creation, time and Calvary! Oh praise The Lord it is THE GOSPEL! HALLELUJAH!
  • But most of all, more than any enjoyment of the guests, it became a precious testimony of Honour and Glory to the bridegroom! Oh how wonderful to consider this application! The Glory of God has been set on His people. His greatest work, His greatest testimony is His Salvation and Redemption of fallen man! But only when they pour out what He has poured in! That His life could be poured into and poured out of us is truly His GREATNESS! All of eternity will be spent singing WORTHY, WORTHY, WORTHY is The Lamb that was slain to take away the sin of THE WORLD! HALLELUJAH! So pour out His praises, Bless His name, pour out His living waters, pour out His Glory, honour, power and LIFE!!
     
    John 7
    37 On the last day, that great day of the feast, Jesus stood and cried out, saying, “If anyone thirsts, let him come to Me and drink.
    38 He who believes in Me as the Scripture has said, from his innermost being shall flow [continuously] springs and rivers of living water.
    39 But He was speaking here of the Spirit, Whom those who believed (trusted, had faith) in Him were afterward to receive. For the [Holy] Spirit had not yet been given, because Jesus was not yet glorified (raised to honour).
  • Are we thirsty for more of Him? Do we have faith to believe that He will quench that thirst? It is the thirsty that will go to Him to drink, not the self labelled “christian”. The drinking of Christ’s water is not something we receive by church attendance or religious traditions. Only those who thirst will humble themselves to come, to seek, to ask… to drink!
  • ⁠Out of HIS innermost being! Out of the believer! Within God’s Born Again believers there is the very source of life! The Holy Spirit! A source of life-giving, thirst-quenching spiritual water for pouring out to others! It is HIS life that is poured into them and it is HIS life that will flow out of them! This is only possible for those who are thirsty enough to go to Him and drink!
     
    Isaiah 44
    3 For I will pour water on him who is thirsty, And floods on the dry ground; I will pour My Spirit on your descendants, And My blessing on your offspring;
     
  • Notice the order set out here. First The Lord will pour water on the individual who is thirsty. The principle is repeated again with the specification of thirst! Not the church goer, not the one who says their prayers, not the good living individual… But upon him who is THIRSTY! Do you have a thirst to be filled with God?! Do you thirst to be filled with His Spirit so that you may pour out His life to those around you?
  • ⁠After the individuals have been poured into THEN, from the rivers and springs of living water poured out of the filled body of Christ, the floods will come to the dry grounds!
  • ⁠May we be those who are thirsty. May hunger and thirst after righteousness. May we ask and keep on asking, seek and keep on seeking, knock and keep on knocking! For we SHALL be filled! And oh how great the testimony unto The Lord as we pour out all that He has poured in! May we be channels for our Lord and Saviour!

Channels only, blessed Master,
But with all Thy wondrous power,
Flowing through us, Thou canst use us,
Every day and every hour.