Strategy
You are now engaged in a war, a spiritual war with a spiritual enemy. In order to survive the spiritual battles ahead of you, you must have a strategy, a spiritual strategy to fight the battle of the spiritual world just as there must be a plan, a strategy to fight the battles of the world. Without anything in place you will lose the fight.
Engaged in a Fight to the Death
We are engaged in a fight to the death. The enemy is Satan. If we have no knowledge of this fight, you probably will lose without knowing why. The scriptures , when describing these encounters with Satans, use military language. It is taken as a serious matter in the New Testament.
You may not realize it but we are closer to the final end of time than ever before. The battles are as fierce as ever. It is a deadly encounter. Emphasis in the New
Testament The New Testament
warns all believers, and that includes you, to prepare for these encounter and battles. You must take stock of what is in your possession as a believer and understand what you have and what you do not have. You must review your past failures and learn from them. This course reads like a real life battle manual and will be extremely helpful to you in your spirtual battles. If you are not fighting any battles, it could mean that you are tight in the grasp of the enemy and do not know it, Take this course and understand with is around you in the spiritual field of battle
There is power in the Word
When you undertake study of God’s Word, your aim should be to understand them as much as possible. This is done prayerfully and trustingly. After you begin to understand them you must seek to apply them. I used the word “begin” to understand them because their meaning never stop growing in your life. In that light after you begin to apply them , you will come to realize that there is no limit to their application.
The Truth
You will soon realize that the truth of God’s word, the scriptures, the Gospel becomes power in your life to accomplish God’s work for the Kingdom.
Power
When you complete this course you will find knowledgeable and prepared to be used by God with His power principle available for you work in the field for the unsaved. God then has become a reality in your steps to the path in the Kingdom. God has power waiting for you in your Christian life. He wants to give it to you. You have to accept it. You must understand how to use it. You must grasp the principles behind the power of God. This course will lead to that understanding
God’s Voice
God communicated with man. At first God tried to communicate with man through acts of history. God dealing with man in history produced the written scriptures. But even so, this was not enough. Something else need to be done. If you had the job of telling a hill of ants to move their their home some place else because you were going to use the land for something else, how would you get the word out to these bunches of ants? Would you stand there and bend your head down and shout in a loud voice what you wanted to say to the ants? Would you jump up and down and stake the earth to get their attention? How would you get your message across to these creatures? The best way would to become an ant yourself , live among the residents of the ant hill until they got to know you and then reveal to them who you were and what you want them to do.
God decided to do the same thing toward us. He acted in our history. He spoke to us trough prophets. Finally He became one of us, lived among us. After letting them get to know Him, He gave them His message.
God’s Speaking
God’s voice to us should be recognized by the people He loves. Literally everyone. This course will teach you to single out the voice of God from the many voices trying to get your attention
Christian must become good managers
Management Plans
Any undertaken by you and deemed to be valuable must be properly managed. You are a Christian. You know God’s will for your life. You have yielded to Him. Now you must undertake the tasks that are waiting for you to fulfil. This takes serious planning and forethought.
Serious Lack of Planning
There exist in the Christian world today a serious lack of effective planning. New born again Christians are not being informed of their responsibilities and duties now required from them in order to be an effective Christian worker. Your lack of planning seriously hinders the work of the Holy Spirit in your new commitment to the Kingdom. There are not and there will never be “enough” Christian workers for the job at hand. You have a plan of God given to you. Now you must plan an effective completion of the plan given you.
Needed Help
You have been called by God to complete a definite task. You have to learn how to manage the choices in the situations that you encounter. This course is designed to teach you principle of managment and how to apply them to your life.
Jesus Christ said, "I will build My church"
Obedience as a building block
The Church is being built on Church members dedicated to obedience. Jesus set out certain expecations for Church membership to adhere to. One sentence enbraces these expectations:
"Love the Lord your God with all your heart, mind, soul and strength. And love your neighbor as yourself".
What in the world is: Church?
It is instructive to note that the question is not:
- What in the world is a Church?
The question is trying to address the question of:
- What in the world is “Church?”
Society Has An Answer
Again, please note that the question is not: “What is a Church”
When this question is is put to the average member of modern society, the reply usually is : Church is a building that I go to on Sunday. This type of answer comes from the perception and the evaluation of the Christian presence in society, in local communities.
How Would A Christian Answer This Question?
Church may be defined as a community of people who have experienced being born again. Because of the experience of being born again, they have committed themselves to following the leadership of Christ. How this question is answered will reveal where one is in the life walk on earth.
The state Of Or Condition Of The Church In The 21th Century
Modern society, in the 21th century usually fronts an attitude toward the church that results in the church being:
- Ignored
- Criticized
- Shoved aside
- Belittled
The Church Is Not Taken Seriously In This Age
The general feeling among society that there is really no need for organized religion. Yes, it is a nice place to have a wedding, to have birthday parties, to keep retired people busy with busy work, to enjoy community activities, but really there is no need for something that has become obsolete and dated. One bright spot in their attitude is that it is a handy building to have around.
What About The Worship Of God?
The reasoning goes something like this:After all God can be worshiped without all that clutter. The worship of God is a private and internal thing. Not something to waste time and money on. It is between Me and God.
What This Attitude Illustrates
This attitude demonstrates Man’s independent, rebellious, unrepentant spirit. This spiritual attitude is evident at various times and stages in a lifetime. This attitude demonstrates what is important to man who has not repented and turned over control of life to God. This attitude indicates a belief that worship can be done on their own in isolation. This attitude fosters the belief that worship can be practiced apart from others. After all, the reasoning goes, worship is a private and personal act. This comes from wanting to make excuses for behavior that deep down inside, the person knows is wrong but is unwilling to make changes.
What Does Society Think It Takes To Become A Member Of The Church?
The concept of church membership has become simply: “Believing in Jesus.” This concept does not include turning over the control of one’s life to Jesus. “Believing in Jesus is simply the intellectual acceptance of the existence of Jesus. Nothing more. Even the devils have an intellectual acceptance of Jesus and shudder.
Christians hold that belief in Christ is more than just intellectual acceptance; Rather it is total commitment to Him and His message. I know a 82 year old man who has for an entire lifetime has led a life that illustrates a complete disregard for God’s control of his life. He is a “nice” man. He gets along with everyone. He is full of stories and interesting episodes that has happened to him. He does not beat his wife. His grandchildren love him. When asked about his relationship to God, he replies :” Oh yes I believe in Jesus”. “I know Jesus existed because of history books.” I even read prayers out loud when my wife hands me the prayer book.
Sources Of Trouble For Churches
Modern 21th century society has almost no regard for the traditional local church. Having no regard for the church means that the church can be taken or left. Take It or leave it, it makes no difference, especially in the governance of the nation. Strange as it may seem to an onlooker, the opposition to true Christianity almost always has come from “religious” people. If Billy Graham can be quoted here, he said once that “Religion is like the flu shot, it keeps you from getting the real thing.” In that context, because of the religious insiders actions, the church has been rendered impotent and harmless in the eyes of many.
Religious Insiders
There are people who are considered “Religious Insiders” These religious insiders are subject to many emotions that seem to be driving their existence. The emotions experienced by these religious figures are explained by a lack of genuine personal relationship with Jesus. A few of the trademark emotions are listed here:
- Envy
- No compassion
Critical
- sophisticated
- unbelief
- Assumptive
Indication Of Opposition To Leadership Of The Holy Spirit
When a individual is found to be in control by such attitudes, it indicates the degree of opposition to the leadership of the Holy Spirit they suffer from. The results of these attitudes can cumulate anarchy and lawlessness. These attitudes are sometimes seen by the outsider as "organized religion" instead of what it really is.
Causes Of These Attitudes
These attitudes are usually defensive and develop because the person feel that their needs are not being met by the local church. These persons are seeking spiritual care and comfort; of which, they felt they never received. They feel that there is no outreach from the church to them and their problems. In other words, these are the “hurting people” of the world. They are seeking something from the church can not provide. The care and comfort these individuals are seeking must come through a personal relationship with Christ. These hurting people are often being shoved aside by the society they live in. They are often left to their own resources and have nothing they can depend on. From this they have the perception that the local church as:
- Uncaring
- Unloving
- Unworthy
The Perception
They perceive the local church simply as an extension of society. They are seeking something that the church can not act as a substitute for. Instead, they should be seeking a personal relationship with Christ.
With this view of organized religion,the attitude develops to have nothing to do with Church. If they do get in a local church, they operate at cross purposes to it.
Accountability And Excuses
No one likes to be held accountable;That is, to have blame placed on themselves for wrongdoing . When a person has no room for accountability in their life, it indicate a balant self centeredness. The results in not wanting accountability. Not the type of accountability that comes from church membership.
The Role Of Education
As part of a church program, education is an indispensable part of spreading the Gospel. Education of the members of the church must include what is expected of them as members. The educational program should make it clear to them the nature and importance of their membership in and to the local church.
In the past, some churches have contributed to * this attitude* by teaching that the Bible does not endorse church membership. Of course this teaching gives some individual the excuse they need to stay away.
Not The Truth
This is not the truth that the Bible teaches. The Biblical teaching on the Church shows that Christ established the church. The Bible shows how Christ died for the church. The Bible shows that Christ loves the church. The Bible teaches that Christians should join themselves to local churches. The Christian should take part in the local church. The church is a picture of a gathered community devoted to spreading the good news.
Clear Points About The Church
The Bible is clear on the points it makes. The church is to have a local place to meet.These local places of worship are for communities of believers. A community is as association, center, neighborhood, a place of like minded people. The local church is all these.
Church Formation In The Book Of Acts
In Acts 2, 3000 people converted to faith in Christ.1
Churches were formed.
The church is meeting of a community of like-minded believers. These like-minded believers have a purpose. There is nothing casual about these meetings. They have focus. The focus is on the good news. The people in these meetings have a shared life in Christ and in His work here on earth. These meetings can be called Christian fellowshipping.
They are characterized by:
- Intimacy
- Togetherness
- Closeness
- Led By The Holy Spirit
The goal of the Church for it’s members is service to Christ. This goal embraces the leadership of the Holy Spirit. The Church is literally the Body of Christ. The church is an intimate fellowship that exists for the benefit of all members. 2
The Body Of Christ
From reading of 1 Corinthians 12 one can see that each and every committed Christian has/is given at least one spiritual gift. Many have more. These spiritual gifts were/are given for the mutual benefit and care of the whole church. Every member is gifted. These gifts from God are needed, wanted and valued. Every individual member is valued and needed.
The Members Of The Church Are The Body Of Christ
The members of the church are needy. They need nurture. They need growth in Christ. The Body of Christ is healthy if and only if each member is healthy. The Body of Christ is healthy when each and every member is in position to contribute spiritual gifts for goodness of all. A person cannot be a Christian in isolation.Going further than that, can it be said that there is no such thing as a Christian in isolation? Maybe yes. Keep in mind that the church is a community in the truest sense of the word. Is it not true that each member of the community is under a commitment to Christ?
Yes. Is it not true that each member is under a commitment to the Church? yes. Is it not true that each member is under a commitment to the needs of one another? yes. Mutual commitment must exist for all.
Requirement For Membership
The Church Is Comprised of Baptized Believers. There is no way you can get around this fact. A person cannot claim church membership and refuse baptism.3
Baptism is not a voluntary act, it is commanded of believers.
The Work Is Laid Out For The Church
The Church has its work laid out for it. The church must get going, now. There cannot be any fooling around. Time is short and souls are precious. The church must produce disciples, now. Those in discipleship must be baptised, now. Being a baptised disciple implies a component of education. This education must take place, now. Not tomorrow. Not next week or next year. Now is the time. These are immediate tasks. This are the core of the tasks before the church.
The church is to make disciples and baptize those disciples. Baptism symbolizes the death, burial and resurrection of Jesus. It is public confession of faith by the individual. By doing so, a person is formally committing to being one of and with Jesus. Baptism is the Christian's first act of obedience. Membership in a local church requires baptism.
Christians are the only members of the local church. You can't just "join" a church The church is a gathered community of those who have become disciples of Jesus. Membership requires obedience to Christ.In the great commission, He commanded baptism.4
The Special Required Sequence Of Events
This is the sequence. First, the word was heard. Then belief comes. Belief in this context is to have faith in, rely upon, turn control of one’s life completely to Christ. This is the Good News. Salvations comes from and through Christ. Followed by baptism. Then membership in the local church, made members. being added to the church. It follows that the church is made up of of baptized believers.
Next installment:
- Church leadership
- Job descriptions
- requirement for membership
- Marks of a church and more
Notes
- 1 Corinthians 12
- Acts 2
- Matt 28:16-20
- Acts 2:40-41
The Special Book
The whole Bible is special. The Book of Acts is extra special. In it we find that the work that Jesus started in the Gospels was continued in the book of Acts.This work was continued by the Holy Spirit. Jesus had departed but His leadership was continued through and by the Holy Spirit.
In solitude I seek your presence,
In the desert I meet your holy face,
You embrace me in the wilderness,
Holding me like a lamb in your arms
You call me precious one
You bestow lavish gifts on me
Who am I?
I was nothing but a speck of dust You molded me into a pot without rust
Who am I?
I was a useless piece of metallic crust You shaped me into a pure form without lust
The greatest Love
To lay down one’s life for another
It is incomprehensible
It is inconceivable in the minds of other
More...
The times between the Testaments.
From the time of Malachi to the time of New Testament, the faith of the Israelites radically changed. This change took a little more than 400 or so years. It was a drastic change in the faith of the leaders.The religious leaders of this time seemed to completely lose touch with their “Old Testament “ foundations .
Their faith became not much more than the observance of empty forms and ceremonies. The law was reinterpreted during this period. A majority of the requirements of the law were rendered meaningless. Traditions became the guide posts and road signs of their faith.
Jesus spoke to this issue in His Ministry. (1)(2)(3)(4)(5)(6)
Summary:What in the world is the Holy Spirit doing in Old Testament times?
Written byThe reading today is a summary of some of the actions and charasteristics the Holy Spirit revealed in Old Testament times.
The next section of reading will study the work of the Holy Spirit in the New Testament The Holy Spirit was the essential element in Old Testament prophecy. Defining words: The definition of the word “Prophet” is someone: Who God is using to speak for Him. The definition of the word "Prophecy" is the content of the message delivered to God’s people by God. The Holy Spirit is extremely active in being a conduit for prophecy to His people. Prophecy is not predicting the future. It is the communicating the Word of God to His people through one particular person.
The Holy Spirit is inparted by God
Numbers 11:29The Message (MSG)29
But Moses said, “Are you jealous for me? Would that all God’s people were prophets. Would that God would put his Spirit on all of them.”
Joel 2:28 The Message (MSG)
The Sun Turning Black and the Moon Blood-Red
28-32 “And that’s just the beginning: After that—“I will pour out my Spirit on every kind of people:Your sons will prophesy, also your daughters.Your old men will dream, your young men will see visions. I’ll even pour out my Spirit on the servants, men and women both. I’ll set wonders in the sky above and signs on the earth below:Blood and fire and billowing smoke, the sun turning black and the moon blood-red,Before the Judgment Day of God, the Day tremendous and awesome.Whoever calls, ‘Help, God!’ gets help.On Mount Zion and in Jerusalem there will be a great rescue—just as God said.Included in the survivors are those that God calls. The Holy Spirit is sent to make an appearance that is most effective to the person with which is being dealt with. Not all apprearances have the same outward appearance.Some appearances are dramic and others are a still small voice. A unique appearanceGod appeared to Moses in flames of a bush through the action of the Holy Spirit. This was unique to Moses. The Spirit appeared to other Old Testament individuals in other ways, depending upon the circustance and the personality of the person.
Deuteronomy 33:16
New Living Translation (NLT)
16 with the best gifts of the earth and its bounty,and the favor of the one who appeared in the burning bush.May these blessings rest on Joseph’s head,crowning the brow of the prince among his brothers.
The Holy Spirit delivered personal messages to men in the Old Testament times, before the arrival of Jesus.When Jesus arrived, The personal message from God was directed to all mankind through His work and word. There is no limitation. All mankind are included. The only requirement is repentance.It is not earned, worked for or deserved. God is love.God loves all mankind. God wants to bring blessing to all mankind.
John 3:16 Contemporary English Version (CEV)
16 God loved the people of this world so much that he gave his only Son, so that everyone who has faith in him will have eternal life and never really die.
Here is a good question:Why did God chose Abraham? He was chosen because he responded to God's call. He was the first man who responded to the self relevation of God. No one knows how many men God approached with His message. But we know of one who responded. Abraham. Abraham was the first and only person that listened, responded, and accepted God and His message. People who do/did not respond to the call from God and the nudge from the Holy Spirit are cut off from God because of their sin. Because of the choice they made. Not because of the fickleness of God. By the choice of Abraham, a blood line was started that ended up with the Messiah.
God does not cut men off, rather men themselves have the responsibility to respond to God in repentances.If a person is found cut off from God, it is not because of lack of God trying to reach the man. Galatians 3:16Easy-to-Read Version (ERV)16 God made promises to Abraham and his Descendant. The Scripture does not say, “and to your descendants.” That would mean many people. But it says, “and to your Descendant.” That means only one, and that one is Christ.
Can man break God’s heart?Yes, man can break the heart of GodRead for yourself in Hosea 11Especially verse 8.Hosea 11:8
New Living Translation (NLT)
8 “Oh, how can I give you up, Israel?How can I let you go?How can I destroy you like Admahor demolish you like Zeboiim?My heart is torn within me,and my compassion overflows.
God's heart is broken if his call to salvation is rejected.
Micah 2:7 Living Bible (TLB)
7 Is that the right reply for you to make, O House of Jacob? Do you think the Spirit of the Lord likes to talk to you so roughly? No! His threats are for your good, to get you on the path again.
God uses the Holy Spirit to get our attention. We mean much to God for Him to go this far to communicate with us.The Holy Spirit was given, not to promote fleshly pleasure, but to deal with sin. The Holy Spirit sends individuals with His message.
Isaiah 48:16-17 Living Bible (TLB)
16 Come closer and listen. I have always told you plainly what would happen, so that you could clearly understand. And now the Lord God and his Spirit have sent me (with this message):
17 The Lord, your Redeemer, the Holy One of Israel, says: I am the Lord your God, who punishes you for your own good and leads you along the paths that you should follow. Sometimes the Holy Spirit is described as an extension of God’s Hand In Ezekiel, the hand of the Lord is often parallel to the Spirit of the Lord.
The verses that illustrate this is found in the following passages. Ezekiel is illustrating the power of the Spirit of God as a hand of God.
Ezekiel 1:3; 3:14, 22,24; 8:1; 11:1
Summary:
Before we look at the Holy Spirit in the New Testament
1. The Holy Spirit was active in the creation of the earth
2. The Holy Spirit was involved with and had direct contact with mankind
3. The Holy Spirit was a teacher and a guide to the Children of Israel
4. The Holy Spirit had a special relationship with the nation and Children of Israel
5. Because of the trinity, the Holy Spirit was actually God
6. God used the Holy Spirit to give guidance and power and love to those who trusted Him
7. The Prophets of the Old Testaments were speaking for God through the power and guidance of the Holy Spirit
8. It is impossible to speak for God with out the instruction and guidance of the Holy Spirit.
9. The names of the Holy Spirit in the Old Testament are:
a. The Spirit
b. The Spirit of the Lord
c. My Spirit
d. The Spirit of God. The Spirit of Judgment
f. The Spirit of Fire
g. The Spirit of Justice
The Holy Spirit is constantly around us. The Spirit does not come and go. The Holy Spirit is not a "sometime thing". Rather the Holy Spirit is always trying to establish relationships between man and God. He does not come and go any more than your own loving parents "come and go" in support of you.When the Holy Spirit is finally allowed to work in our lives or the lives of the Old Testament Children of Isreal, the result are awesome but not always evident to the outsider. Not everyone will see burning bushes or chariots of fire. But the inner experience is simply awesome.
The Holy Spirit will not force a person into acceptance. The individual must go through a process of recognizing the condition they are in and come to repentance.
The Holy Spirit is speaking for God. The Holy Spirit is God, one of the trinity.
What is the Holy Spirit doing today?
It would be wonderful to see and know what the Holy Spirit is doing in this world today, in the 21th century.
Before we attempt to identify the work of the Spirit in todays' world, it would be well to look at the Bible and see what the Holy Spirit was doing in the Old and New Testaments.
We can see from reading the Bible that the first century believers experienced and enjoyed a personal relationship with the Holy Spirit.