Top Tweets #1

Some of the top Tweets that have found there way onto my Twitter account this week:

"When you forgive people they no longer control your happiness" - @rickwarren

"Preaching tells us why. Teaching tells us how. We need both" - @pastorbrady

"CHURCH: Where Spirits are lifted. minds are renewed, faith is increased and priorities are challenged, by God's Word!" - @brianchouston

"That awkward moment when you karate kick a board during a sermon ... and break your foot" - @celebritypastor

"We're not home yet, but if grace doesn't make you dance a little on the way, we must not have heard the same gospel" - @louiegiglio

"Your Google search history is the real you" - @prodigalism

"Just do it! (But don't get caught). Nike." - @trevornoah

"'Joint heirs with Jesus' apparently means something different in Colorado" - @chrchcurmudgeon

"That awkward moment when the pastor randomly starts singing an old hymn ... and expects the band to accompany him ... " - @worshipsoundguy

Follow me on Twitter @istartliving

Emotions: A catalyst for worship?

“Because Your loving-kindness is better than life, My lips will praise You” – Psalm 63:3

The question: What role do emotions play when we sing praises to God?

    We know that we are supposed to worship God in Spirit and in truth (John 4:23-24). One of the best and most outwardly expressed forms of worship is singing songs together as believers, songs that edify the body of Christ and bring glory to Jesus. Worship is by no means confined to thirty minutes in a church service; we are supposed to have a lifestyle of worship. That is, everything that we do, should be from our hearts responding to the goodness of God and what He has done for us; not just singing and playing instruments. Spheres such as giving, helping, working, socializing and every other conceivable aspect of life, should be done with an attitude of worship.

    However, since the birth of the charismatic movement a good forty years ago, there has been a shift in the importance of music within a church context; music has become a major part of any form of charismatic ministry. It is not uncommon for churches to spend millions on sound equipment, instruments, training and professional consultants in order to have their music sounding good, or up to ‘standard’. Does this grossly disproportionate allocation of resources have any substance? Or is it just something that has taken on a life of its own and like many other aspects of modern Christianity, has no real biblical basis?

    The main reason for this focus on music and singing is the undeniable link between the emotions that music evokes and our ability to worship God in spirit and truth. Now, this has been abused in many spheres, where the focus has been all about getting as much emotional reaction out of the congregation as possible and when a big response is received it is seen as ‘successful worship’ (if there is such a thing). On the other hand, there are sections of the more traditional churches, who stay away from contemporary music as much as they can, because of what the conjuring up of emotions, through music, could produce in there congregants. They maintain it takes the focus of the congregant off God and onto music. Both views have their merits, but what does the word say?

    The bible is full of examples of people singing hymns unto God, where they are shouting, dancing and playing instruments unto the Lord. (Ps 66:1-2, 92:3, 100, 149:3 Acts 16:25) Thus, it can’t be wrong to sing, dance and make a joyful noise to God; the question must rather lie in our motives behind this. It is impossible to worship God in this manner and not get emotional about it. If we look at worship, specifically music and singing, from a perspective of spirit, soul and body (1 Thes 5:23) things become a little bit more clear.

    Humans are made up of three parts, spirit, soul and body. When we get born-again we have the spirit of Jesus inside of us, our spirit and Jesus’ spirit are one, the individual characteristics of either have vanished and a new creation is formed (2 Cor 5:17) However our soul (mind, will and emotions) and our body (five senses) still remain the same, they still need to be sanctified or changed according to the perfect will of God. Our soul is the easier of the remaining two aspects, that make-up a person, to change. This can be done by renewing your mind to the truths contained in God’s word (Romans 12:2).

    A focused time of praise and worship is thus a unique opportunity for our entire being; spirit, soul and body to come into line and worship God. It’s not a struggle for your born-again spirit to worship God; it’s getting your soul and your body to agree with your spirit. When we encounter God-focused music and singing, our emotions, or 'soulish' realm, start having positive responses towards God and His goodness. We get reminded about what He has done for us and how good it is to be in His presence where there is liberty (2 Cor 3:17) and fullness of joy (Ps 16:11).

    It is in this state where our spirits are worshiping, our soul is touched on all levels and all of a sudden we find our body reacting accordingly. We find ourselves lifting our hands, closing our eyes, kneeling down, bowing, clapping or dancing; all as a response in worship to our King. This my friends, is when we are worshiping Him with all that we have; spirit, soul and body; this is worshiping the Father in truth.

    Can this be achieved without music and singing? Yes, of course, you don’t need a keyboard player to help you experience God in His fullness. It is just one of the many vehicles available to us to help us experience a real and living God. Should we therefore try and avoid emotion when we worship God? Emotions are unavoidable; if we are going to worship Him with everything then emotions are included. However, we don’t focus on getting emotional, we focus on Jesus, we rest in His presence and everything flows from that. Keep the main thing, the main thing.

Pic by: Bohemianme

Eureka!

   Have you ever found out something about God, that you've never seen before? It may have been while you were reading the Word or in a time of worship or prayer and, suddenly, the Holy Spirit shows you something about God and His kingdom, in a fresh way. "Eureka, this changes everything!" This happens often to me, and it just keeps getting better. The more I find out about God, His character and His goodness, the more there is to find out; it's a snowball effect.

   With new-found knowledge, though, there comes a responsibility. Firstly, there is an onus on you to allow the new truth to work in your life, to become reality to you, to start walking it out and experiencing the freedom it brings. If truth doesn't lead to freedom, then it's not truth at all (John 8:32). Secondly, once we have made it a reality in our lives and see it's benefits, we need to extend the life to other people. It is only once you have broken through, that you can help others break through. We have a responsibility to help others share in the freedom we are experiencing ( Matt 28:18).

   However, herein lies the problem, not so much in the idea, but rather in the execution. We tend often to use new-found revelation knowledge to win arguments. We see it as our right to use something that God has shown us in order to show someone else that they are wrong in what they believe. This is the wrong attitude. Sometimes God shows us things, just so that we can benefit from it. But, more often than not, He shows us things so that the body can benefit, even if it is just one other person.

   When He does this we must realize that it wasn't us who came up with the idea, it was the Holy Spirit.Therefore if you feel God pressing it upon your heart to share the revelation with someone else, it is not up to you to convince them; it is only up to you to be obedient and present the truth that has been revealed to you. It is the job of the Holy Spirit to quicken the truth to them; helping it become a lasting revelation and not just the flavour of the week. (Rom 10:14)

   Taking this stance will cause a lot of conflict to be avoided, within the body of Christ. God knows how much you love that person and how much you want to make them see things your way; but do you think you love them more than God? No.  Our mandate is to help transition other people into the same freedom and fruitful life that we are experiencing, but at the end of the day every person is responsible for there own spiritual growth.

   What are you doing with your revelation, that which God is showing you? Are you using it to become spiritually proud and beat other Christians over the head with it? Or are you using it, in love, to try and help facilitate others to break through into what the Holy Spirit has shown you? (1 Cor 13:1)

"And you shall know the truth, and the truth shall make you free"

How Should Christians Deal with Social Issues?

    We are surrounded by social issues every day. All around us there are people abusing substances, teenagers falling pregnant and crimes being committed, these are basic examples of negative social issues. The first question I want to pose is this: Are Christians responsible for solving social issues? The answer is an overwhelming, YES. We should be at the forefront of trying to put an end to upward suicide trends and increased gang-related violence, it is part of our mandate. The problem, however, does not lie in the if, it lies in the how.

    For decades now Christians have been trying to alleviate poverty by having fundraisers, buying food and clothes with the money raised and then handing it out to the needy, hoping it will solve the problem of having poor people on the streets. Albeit noble, this scenario and the many thousands like it are in vane, temporary at best. We constantly make the same mistake: WE ADDRESSS THE FRUIT AND NOT THE ROOT! The fruit of the issue is poverty, but the root is greed. The fruit of the issue is rape, but the root is evil lust. The fruit of the issue is gay marriage, but the root is deception. The fruit of the issue is wife abuse, but it is rooted in insecurity.

   There is an obvious trend to be found concerning the social issues we encounter everyday: They are all issues of the heart.  We are told that it is out of the heart that the issues of life flow (Prov 4:23). The apostle Paul does an interesting thing in Ephesians 6, when he addresses the issue of slavery, a major social issue at the time. He does not give his opinion on the merits of slavery, nor does he discredit the practice, instead, he immediatley addresses the heart issue, in the slave-master relationship. In verse 5 he says, "... in sincerity of heart as to Christ" , verse 6 "... doing the will of God from the heart" and verse 9 " ... your own Master is in heaven and there is no partiality with Him"

    What Paul has done here, is to successfully break down a highly controversial social issue of the day and make it simple. He didn't start a campaign against slavery, he didn't send out petitions and he didn't mobilize a prayer movement. He addressed the heart of the slave and the heart of the master, because from the heart flows all of life's issues.

    The fact is, that we don't put enough faith in the power of the gospel, the power of the good news of Jesus Christ, in order to let the gospel change people's lives. Instead we want to try and change people and their situations from the outside in, instead of from the inside out. The reality is that it is only the truth that will set people free (John 8:32) Only the good news of what Jesus has done for us has the power to break the cycle of poverty in our communities, it is the only force strong enough to forever bring people to their senses from a life-time of selfishness and greed. We must believe that the gospel is the answer, because it addresses the heart of the matter, the root, which will in turn bare good fruit.

    We must contend for the hearts of people, communities and nations. We must allow the Holy Spirit to give us wisdom and understanding on how best to minister the gospel to people, who believe God has failed them. The people who are worst affected by negative social issues, need to know that God loves them, that He wants the best for them and that no matter what they've done, He still died for them.

    Paul sums up what happens to us when our hearts transition from being under satan's control (old man), to a full and vibrant life, living in the freedom of Christ (new man). This is what we should want society to look like.

"17 This I say, therefore, and testify in the Lord, that you should no longer walk as the rest of the Gentiles walk, in the futility of their mind, 18 having their understanding darkened, being alienated from the life of God, because of the ignorance that is in them, because of the blindness of their heart; 19 who, being past feeling, have given themselves over to lewdness, to work all uncleanness with greediness. 20 But you have not so learned Christ, 21 if indeed you have heard Him and have been taught by Him, as the truth is in Jesus: 22 that you put off, concerning your former conduct, the old man which grows corrupt according to the deceitful lusts, 23 and be renewed in the spirit of your mind, 24 and that you put on the new man which was created according to God, in true righteousness and holiness" - Ephesians 5:17-24

"You think your truth is better than ours"

    "You think your truth is better than ours ..." the lyrics from a popular Indy-rock band. This line depicts an element of truth within the psyche of people who are sensitive and insecure around other people's beliefs. This got me thinking, in a previous post, Why is it important to hear from God?, I suggested that if we didn't hear from God regularly, we would be insecure believers. This is true and very important. But I want to put forth another view, how as believers, we can still be immature and insecure, even while having been a church for a long time and hearing from God ocassionaly.

    "How?", you may ask, let's take a look. Going to church does not make you a Christian anymore than going to watch the Olympics makes you an elite athlete. However, most Christians don't see it this way, they don't seek God for themselves nor take responsibility for their own spiritual maturity, they expect the pastor to do all the hearing-from-God and all the reading-from-the word for them and so never end up growing, maturing and becoming effective believers.

    Ephesians 4:14 - 15  " ... that we should no longer be children ... but, speaking the truth in love, may grow up in all things into Him who is the head—Christ ..."

    Paul, writing to the Ephesians, makes a point of how important it is to be mature, to not be swung by any wind of doctrine, by the deception, trickery and deceit of people trying to lead you astray. He says this after he instructs those with the gifts of teaching, prophecy and apostleship to equip the saints for the works of ministry (v12). Why does Paul place so much emphasise on the teaching of anointed people?

   

     For the simple fact that we all need great, insightful teaching; apostolic impartation and prophetic guidance. Sometimes we need people to explain the bible to us. However, even with all of this in place, we still may not here the truth. For whatever reason the vast number of churches and ministries today, don't always teach and preach what the word actually says. There is a lot of speculation as to why this happens, reasons ranging from 'keeping the people happy', 'not wanting to create waves' and 'doing what's expected', are all thrown about as excuses for not teaching the pure gospel of Jesus Christ. These people are regularly grouped into a category we like to call seeker sensitive. It's impossible to preach Jesus and not be controversial, because Jesus was and still is controversial.

    The point that I am trying to make is this: We are sitting with immature Christians in churches for years, because they don't hear the truth. We can't lay the blame purely at the feet of the clergy though, because YOU ARE RESPONSIBLE FOR YOUR OWN SPIRITUAL GROWTH. Speaking and seeking the truth in love, should be the responsibility of every believer, and every preacher. Holding back and pandering to expectation does more harm than good in the long-run, Christians will be (and have been) seen as the most gullible people on the face of the earth.

    We must hold our leaders responsible to teach the truth in love, to bring the people to a level of maturity. We must also take initiative and look for challenging and thought-provoking teaching for ourselves. Teaching that is based on the truth of the word, not post-modern philosophy. Teaching where the teacher has nothing to gain, financially or for fame, where they live what they preach. Teachers who are held accountable by others for what they preach.

    I know for me, that I had to make a deliberate attempt to find teaching that challenged me. I talk to many people who are frustrated with the teaching they receive and they repeatedly say the same thing, 'I am just not growing ... I'm getting over the milk I'm being fed' My answer to you is the same answer I give them, YOU NEED TO MAKE AN EFFORT. So, I am going to make the search a bit easier and give you links to the various teachings that have changed my life. People that have helped me transition to a gospel that has made me into a mature, world-changing believer. You may also like some of them, but there are others out there, you just need to make an effort because immaturity is not an option. The truth you find will be the the one that sets you free.

Andrew Wommack Ministries: http://www.awmi.net/

Bill Johnson (Bethel Church): http://www.ibethel.org/

Arthur Meintjes: http://www.kingdomlifeministries.com/

Rob Rufus (City Church International): http://www.ccihk.com/

#1: Discipleship Under Grace: An Outline

I have been working on an extended study regarding how the principle of discipleship changes, when taught through a revelation of God's grace. Having been exposed to discipleship for a long time, I thought it necessary to expound on some of the sound and not-so-sound teachings, and executions of a principle which is sorely missed in the body of Christ! I hope you find it informative. This is the first post in a series of six.

Introduction

It is part of the great commission of Jesus, that nearly every believer is aware of, in Matthew 28:29, where it says to “go and make disciples of all nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit” (NIV).

Many of us, sitting in an average church today, have heard this taught to a certain extent and have probably been part of different initiatives over the years, in order to achieve the goals as set out in the so called great commission. It may be that you have been on a mission with your church or it may be that you have attended or even facilitated discipleship programs in your church or in your mid-week groups, in an attempt fulfill this challenge.

Any local denominational or non-denominational church with any measure of gospel revelation will have, somewhere along the line, tried to implement strategies in order to achieve the goals as set out in the Great Commission. However, without the revelation of grace and applying its principles to making disciples, the efforts of any disciple-making program will fall flat over the hurdle of legalism and ensuing guilt.

Jesus lived the great commission and yet He said that we would do greater works, than He ever did, once He ascended up to heaven. If He didn’t go up to heaven, we would never have received the gift of the Holy Spirit in order to be able to carry out such an enormous task.

In 2 Timothy 2:3, Paul says to “commit these to faithful men who will be able to teach others also”. This is a New Testament, church age example of the great commission in action. As Paul was admonishing Timothy, his own disciple, to replicate what he had taught him, into the lives of other people. Adding to the admonishing of Jesus, Paul not only knew that making disciples was the only way of changing the world, but He also knew that discipling them into grace, would form a strong back-bone for church growth in the future. The books of Romans, Galatians and Hebrews, forming the foundation of his doctrines on grace and righteousness and therefore the same principles we should be implementing today.

The following is a broad outline of how making disciples of all nations (ethnic group), can be a reality in our present generation, without turning the gospel into a circus of legalistic hoops, that we force people to jump through, in order for them to pass the gauntlet of discipleship. With love as the ultimate motivator, fuelled by a deep revelation of grace, it will compel even the most introverted believer to spread the message that they have on their heart, because it really is nearly too good to be true.

The focus is not on results, under the guise of bearing fruit, but rather the focus is on a transformation of the heart of the individual. Once the heart is transformed and your mind is renewed (Romans 12:2), then the faith which it produces, will automatically turn into actions (James 2:17) and not the other way around!

Discipleship is ultimately the vessel into which, a more mature believer can help a lesser mature believer, attain a deeper revelation of the gospels and ultimately Jesus and His message of grace: “For the Law was given through Moses, but grace and truth came through Jesus Christ” (John 1:17 NKJV). Mentoring people unto yourself is not the goal, that’s pride, it is helping them overcome the obstacles you once faced in order that they might come into an intimate relationship with their Lord and Savior Jesus Christ!

Look out for the second post on "What is a Disciple?"