“Now the Spirit expressly says that in later times some will depart from the faith by devoting themselves to deceitful spirits and teachings of demons, through the insincerity of liars whose consciences are seared” (1 Timothy 4:1–2).
Many ask, ‘are we in the last days?’ Paul thought that the last days were very close, if not already present. We must remember that Satan’s tactics never change, they just use current culture to manifest themselves and deception is always his way of alluring people away from the truth into accepting his lie. His deceptions usually begin with small amounts of ‘truth-twisting’ to make persons think that what is said or done is the truth. Deception starts with small distortions to gain acceptance and then when Satan has gained a foothold in peoples thinking, he will expand the deception until there is a whole series of teaching based on a lie. Satan has “set” his hook. How do we avoid such traps? In the context of the verse above, things become clear when we apply “the Word of God and prayer” (4:5) to everything we hear! Silly myths are debunked by “training ourselves for godliness” (4:7) which “is of value in every way” (4:8). This is not hard; it is just difficult to set our minds and hearts to be godly with and through the power of the Spirit.
0 Comments
As we sat together with a cup of coffee, the discussion quickly turned to deep concerns we both have over the current “State of the Church,” particularly in America. The central question is ‘why are most churches more concerned about their “forms and traditions” rather than wanting the Holy Spirit to help them return to a biblical model that was demonstrated in the Early Church?
The answer is not simple and there is not one answer that will fit all situations. Even Paul faced a variety of spiritual conditions in those first churches that had to be addressed separately. He always points to principles that are still present today. As Paul writes his final letter to Timothy and warns him that in “the last days there will come times of difficulty. For people will…have the appearance of godliness but deny its power. Avoid such people” (2 Timothy 3:1-5). Those are challenging words that I would rather not hear or apply to my spiritual walk. But for anyone who really wants to follow God’s will in our day, we cannot dismiss their application. Does this mean we abandon our love, concern, or responsibility to help any in whom God is working and who want to follow a biblical model? Indeed not! As Paul was faithful in every letter he wrote, so we must be faithful to “speak the truth in love, we are to grow up in every way into Him who is the head, into Christ” (Ephesians 4:15). My prayer is that you and I will do this in humility for His glory! I’d rather see a sermon than hear one any day,
I’d rather one should walk with me than merely show the way. The eye’s a better pupil and more willing than the ear; Fine counsel is confusing, but example’s always clear; And the best of all the preachers are the men who live their creeds, For to see the good in action is what everybody needs. I can soon learn how to do it if you’ll let me see it done. I can watch your hands in action, but your tongue too fast may run. And the lectures you deliver may be very wise and true; But I’d rather get my lessons by observing what you do. For I may misunderstand you and the high advice you give, But there’s no misunderstanding how you act and how you live. Edgar A. Guest What are we to do if we feel a strong conviction from the Lord that He is calling us to pursue a certain work and many others do not think it is a good idea? Paul faced the same situation after he left the elder from Ephesus in Miletus. He sailed from there to Cos, Rhodes, Patara, Syria, and then to Tyre. Jerusalem was on his heart because the Jews had not submitted to the gospel.
Along this journey to Jerusalem, many urged Paul not to go any further fearing that his life was in danger. A prophet named Agabus from Judea came to Caesarea just to warn Paul of what would happen to him. Notice his response; “Then Paul answered, “What are you doing, weeping, and breaking my heart? For I am ready not only to be imprisoned but even to die in Jerusalem for the name of the Lord Jesus”” (Acts 21:13). How can anyone argue against that? The bent of his heart was “the name of the Lord Jesus.” In his first letter to Corinth he says, “For if I preach the gospel, that gives me no ground for boasting. For necessity is laid upon me. Woe to me if I do not preach the gospel!” (1 Corinthians 9:16). His conviction was rooted in the transformation that changed his life on the Damascus road. When we hear the convictions of others, we must take into consideration the context of their lives. How much more could be accomplished for the Lord is more of us had convictions this deep? “Be doers of the word, and not hearers only, deceiving yourselves. For if anyone is a hearer of the word and not a doer, he is like a man who looks intently at his natural face in a mirror. For he looks at himself and goes away and at once forgets what he was like” (James 1:22-24).
““Why do you call me ‘Lord, Lord,’ and not do what I tell you?” (Luke 6:46). These verses are so convicting. The truth is that we so often convince ourselves that we are being obedient to Scripture, God’s Word, when in fact our practice shouts otherwise. For those of us who are truly born again and have the Holy Spirit dwelling in us, we must remind ourselves that every act of disobedience to God’s Word grieves the Holy Spirit (Ephesians 4:30). As Jesus points out in Luke 6:46-49, there will be a day when our actions will be revealed whether we have built our lives on Christ or suffered “loss” because of disobedience (see also 1 Corinthians 3:11-15). Now is the time to carefully examine whether we are doers or just hearers. Job 31 is his final words, and he stops trying to justify himself. It is a good thing when we come to the point that we have nothing more to say and are willing to listen and humble ourselves before God and others. This point becomes the place of real hope as we turn away from ourselves and have an ear of the instructed.
May we become as the one described by Isaiah, “The Lord God has given me the tongue of those who are taught, that I may know how to sustain with a word him who is weary. Morning by morning He awakens; He awakens my ear to hear as those who are taught” (Isaiah 50:4). God wants us to listen to His voice with our hearts, not just our heads. Our partner in Nepal continues to introduce and train using God’s Plan for His Disciples in churches across this mountainous country. The most exciting part of his work is through two weekly Zoom session with Nepali speaking believers in North India (see screen shot picture). These Nepali believers are so thankful that technology allows them to meet, study, and learn the New Testament principles together even though hundreds of miles and mountainous terrain separates them. There are also ten churches in Nepal that have asked Simon to lead a two and a half day introduction and training. This is so encouraging for us as it fulfills our goal to train indigenous leaders so they can train their own people. Please pray for Simon as he serves the Lord and builds up the Church. Paul always had his ears tuned to what God was doing in churches and individuals who became disciples. Here is a wonderful expression of this; “I thank my God always when I remember you in my prayers, because I hear of your love and of the faith that you have toward the Lord Jesus and for all the saints, and I pray that the sharing of your faith may become effective for the full knowledge of every good thing that is in us for the sake of Christ” (Philemon 4–6). In another place Paul writes about Timothy, “I have no one like him, who will be genuinely concerned for your welfare” (Philippians 2:20). Those Paul mentored, he wanted to follow his example of being directly involved and following closely the spiritual growth of believers in every church (see 2 Corinthians 12:28). I challenge myself and you to follow this model so others are strengthened in their faith and become more effective in their witness. Even though there are many aspects of ministry and missions that cause us to lean heavily on the Lord for wisdom and protection, there are other features of this work that bring us great joy and evoke resounding praise for what God is doing.
We see this same set of circumstances taking place with the Early Church. Peter and John healed that man at the temple “in the name of Jesus Christ” (Acts 3:6) and this is followed by Peter and John proclaiming salvation through repentance (3:19). The gospel of deliverance by faith in Jesus did not sit well with the ruling Jews, especially when they preached the resurrection of the dead (4:2). “They arrested them and put them in custody until the next day” (4:3). Here is the key point of this scenario; “Many of those who heard the word believed and the number of the men came to about five thousand” (4:4). IT WAS THE “WORD”, NOT GIMMICKS! One of the disturbing trends of our day is the thinking of many that we must add something to the preaching of the gospel to make it appealing so people come to our churches and fill our seats. This not only dishonors the gospel of grace, but it also grieves the Holy Spirit, God’s divine Messenger of the gospel of grace in us. We sin against Him! Let us be even more careful not to grieve Him (Ephesians 4:30). We have a wonderful report about USA Youth Outreach who have been using God’s Plan for His Disciples(GPHD) to disciple young athletes. They are in the process of setting up a link to GPHD on their USAYO app for any to use. The link to the app will be made available to view and download when production is finished.
In addition to this, one of our team is holding a GPHD Bible study in a local prison. They currently have 20 or so inmates beginning a study through GPHD. Going over the plan of salvation in the past few weeks has been wonderful. He is encouraging them to share what they are learning with others. Praying for a great awakening and revival at this prison! Just yesterday my wife and I attended a funeral a in local Kenyan church and discovered the pastor is eager to have material that will establish believers and children in the basic New Testament principles. Pray that details for training through GPHD will be worked out that accommodates their need and feeds the hunger of their hearts. The last few weeks have been very full as I struggle to complete the formatting of several of our books in six languages. At the same time, I am very excited with these opportunities and have given you a brief summary below of those books and languages that are in this process.
Your prayers for this work are deeply appreciated. If you know of anyone with good computer skills who would like to learn what we do and donate their time, please have them send me an email to: nfi@newfoundationsinternational.org. |
Archives
December 2023
Link To Our Old Blog:
|