Uncategorized – Page 8 – A Recovering Legalist

Is it really for God to Use in Your Life?

\”All Scripture is inspired by God and profitable for teaching, for reproof, for correction, for training in righteousness” (2 Timothy 3:16)

What does this mean? It means that there is value and meaning in the genealogies and significance in what appears to be the insignificant and mundane. Scripture is not the issue, rather the limited, fragile and biased vessels we are is the issue.

Nevertheless, there exists among some, a doctrine within Biblical hermeneutics which states that \’some scripture is written \”for you\” but not \”to you.\”\’ This is best understood by considering an epistle of Paul: he clearly wrote the Epistle to the Philippians \”to\” the Body of Christ at Philipi, though he might have presumed it would have a wider audience than just the Church at Philipi. By this we understand that Paul wrote the letter \”to\” the Philippians and possibly \”for\” others who might read it.

But today this interpretive instruction is better described as method used to foist traditions of men onto unsuspecting minds and at worst, deliberately used for the corruption of the work of the Holy Spirit (1 John 2:27).

Consider then, this hypothetical scenario:

You write a personal and intimate letter to a third party, but include some things that are applicable to both your spouse and to the other person. You then deliver the letter to both people, with some additional instructions to your spouse that define which portions may be interpreted as \”to your spouse.\” But all of the letter is to be considered \”to\” the third party, and is intended to be read and understood by the third party in that context.

What have you done? From the perspective of your spouse, you have invalidated portions of the letter by making some sections and statements inapplicable to your spouse\’s intimate relationship with you. The other parts are just \”for your spouse to read.\” She or He might gain some insight into your thinking or psyche, but any such information would be incidental and subject to his or her interpretation and application, since clearly your instructions were \”that is not \’to you\’, it\’s just for you to read.\” In simpler terms, the \’for you text\’ is not reflective of your relationship with your spouse. But the entire letter is purely reflective of your intimate relationship with that third party.

The same is true with the doctrine of which I speak. The exception is that instead of getting a word from God Himself, we allow a third party (a Pastor or teacher) to define which portions of scripture are not valid for Jesus to use in our life and walk with Him. Thus we understand that the purpose of this doctrine is to define which things may be used to formulate or support various teachings and reproofs, and which ones are not suitable for such things.

In other words they\’re effectively teaching us that not all Scripture is inspired by God and profitable for teaching, for reproof, for correction, for training in righteousness. Thus, there are some parts of the Bible, according to them, that are not and never shall be considered as reflective of your relationship with God the Father, God the Son and God the Holy Spirit.

When you hear such a thing, you can be certain it is a tool being used to promote one\’s agenda. I vividly remember hearing the Pastor of a Good Bible Teaching Church (in the early 1980\’s) admonish his congregation that a particular book was helpful for understanding and comprehending what happened in the early Church, but that it was not ever to be used to formulate or support doctrine or teaching of any kind. In other words, it wasn\’t profitable for teaching, reproof, correction or training in righteousness. It made me wonder why he was teaching from it in the first place? But like the good little Baptist I was, I swallowed it hook, line and sinker.

What they\’re doing (whether they know it or not) is implementing a well known and often used debate tactic which states the following: \”one may conduct a debate while attempting to exclude those things which damage one\’s position.\” Any good debater knows that when such a thing happens, the path to victory is found in the opponent\’s excluded material. This happens in court cases all of the time. It starts with the evidence and continues into the selection of the Jury.

The problem with it in Christianity is that most church members trust their Pastors implicitly – possibly through a form of worship I might add – and therefore blindly follow wherever they shall lead, never considering the validity of the precepts and statements leveled in their direction from the pulpit week after week, after week.

Nevertheless, to provide some practical examples, I have noticed that some Calvinists prefer to exclude the Old Testament when debating the merits of Calvinism, and Cessationists will undoubtedly exclude The Book of Acts (and sometimes portions of 1st Corinthians). In the least, they\’ll construct some other interpretive rule that appears to allow adherence to 2 Timothy 3:16, while shunning and excluding what they consider to be the less desirable parts.

So the next time some one admonishes you to not use this or that scripture as a source for doctrine, teaching, reproof and correction, do yourself a favor and ignore them – they\’re either just trying to win the debate, or they\’re just ignorantly repeating what they\’ve heard from someone else.

Why do you go to church?

Why do you go to church? It\’s a reasonable question, but do you have a reasonable answer?

Do you go because you learned to go from peers or family? Do you go to be accepted by God? Do you go to be accepted by others? Do you go to look good in the community? Do you go to honor someone or some group with your time, effort, and money? Do you go to honor or worship God? Do you go to contribute to society through tithes and offerings? Do you go because you want to learn something new?

James 1:27
Pure and undefiled religion in the sight of our God and Father is this: to visit orphans and widows in their distress, and to keep oneself unstained by the world.

Going to church is not the prescribed way to keep oneself unstained by the world. Neither is it a substitution for visiting orphans and widows in their distress.

Religion – even pure and undefiled religion – can only be defined as the act of doing something repeatedly. Keeping oneself unstained from the world is not a one-time effort: it is a continual struggle. Neither is there any end of widows and orphans in distress. Therefore, one visit will never be enough to be considered a \”religious activity.\” It is only through repetition that we begin to define these things as belonging in the realm of Religion.

Man defines religion as follows:

A set of beliefs concerning the cause, nature, and purpose of the universe, especially when considered as the creation of a superhuman agency or agencies, usually involving devotional and ritual observances and often containing a moral code governing the conduct of human affairs.
A specific fundamental set of beliefs and practices generally agreed upon by many persons or sects: the Christian religion; the Buddhist religion.
The body of persons adhering to a particular set of beliefs and practices: a world council of religions

Only in the vaguest of terms can we find a semblance between the world\’s definition and God\’s definition. There is an intersection between doing and believing, but that\’s where it ends.

Maybe you go to church because you\’re obeying the command to not \”forsake the assembling together\” (Hebrews 10:23-26), but in no way can that scripture be likened to the behavior of showing up, sitting down, shutting up, paying up, getting up and leaving – like most people do on an average Sunday morning. So if that\’s your reason (to not forsake the assembly), then I\’m afraid you\’ve only listened to the propaganda, and you\’re no closer to practicing \”undefiled religion\” than you were before.

If we\’re to take James 1:27 seriously, then there\’s only one type of Religion you can practice that is acceptable. This means your religious activity of \”going to church\” is just that: your Religion, not God\’s prescription.

The Pharisees actually taught some truth, but they completely missed the point on its implementation. And that\’s still a problem today because we, as Jesus suggested, learn behaviors through the observation of our modern-day Scribes and Pharisees. Unfortunately, that which we have observed is not pure and undefiled religion – rather, it\’s just plain old religious activity.

The issue is that we have acted upon a misconception that God wants Religion from us when, in fact, what He wants is a relationship. It is only through a relationship that one can be truly changed. Oh, we can learn new things and thereby augment and change our behaviors – that is true. But one does not simply choose to change their behaviors because they\’re married. Rather, they learn what is important to their spouse, and because of love, because of caring, they become new creatures in marriage because of edification. Not because someone sat them down and said, \”these are the rules for marriage, do these things, and you will be acceptable to your spouse.\”

This is exactly why some of us go to church: we\’ve been taught, \”do these things, and you will be acceptable to God.\” In the metaphor of being the Bride of Christ, does that make any sense? Of course not.

Systematic Theology has quantified God, it has quantified relationship, and it has quantified the narration, the song, and the music of God. And in doing so, it has stripped it of its spirit. If anything, the Song of Solomon teaches us that there\’s more to the so-called doctrine that we are spoon-fed week after week. But please don\’t misunderstand – there\’s nothing wrong with doctrine, per se. Rather, it\’s how we define and implement doctrine; it\’s how we use it that exposes our wrong actions. Our pastors have taught us to not forsake the assembling together, although they may not really tell us why. But when they do, it\’s always couched in the activity of us showing up on Sunday for \”worship.\” Therefore, what we learn from said admonishment is that the Pastor (and/or the Sunday school teacher) has something to say, and should we miss those things (because we\’re not there), then we\’ve missed out on what God has to say to us.

But what does the scripture say?

Take care, brethren, that there not be in any one of you an evil, unbelieving heart that falls away from the living God. But encourage one another day after day, as long as it is still called “Today,” so that none of you will be hardened by the deceitfulness of sin. For we have become partakers of Christ, if we hold fast the beginning of our assurance firm until the end, while it is said, “ Today if you hear His voice, Do not harden your hearts, as when they provoked Me.” (Hebrews 3:12-15)

Let us hold fast the confession of our hope without wavering, for He who promised is faithful; and let us consider how to stimulate one another to love and good deeds, not forsaking our own assembling together, as is the habit of some, but encouraging one another; and all the more as you see the day drawing near. ((Hebrews 10:23-26)

but speaking the truth in love, we are to grow up in all aspects into Him who is the head, even Christ, from whom the whole body, being fitted and held together by what every joint supplies, according to the proper working of each individual part, causes the growth of the body for the building up of itself in love. (Ephesians 4:15-16)

It is an unfortunate fact that in our current day model of church participation (the \”worship service\”), there\’s no way for you to stimulate one another to love and good deeds in what has been defined as the \”assembly\” by our pastors. Why? Because you\’ve sat down and shut up. And if you\’re not talking and interacting, then you\’re not stimulating one another to love and good deeds.

What we\’re left with a model that prescribes (through dictation and observation) that one person has the best answers (or stimulations) and the rest of the people are to yield to that person\’s opinions and doctrines.

Jesus\’ words were never more true: \”therefore all that they tell you, do and observe, but do not do according to their deeds; for they say things and do not do them\”

Of course, there is a time and place for preaching, teaching, and evangelism – that I do not deny. But as a member of the Body of Christ, we have a calling. Or do we suppose that Romans 8:28 applies only to a select few? The religious caste system has been obviated, done away with. We are all priests, and we all have the right and duty to participate in the edification of the body of Christ. Therefore, I admonish you:

Find your calling and edify the Body of Christ.

And while you\’re at it, find a way to practice pure and undefiled religion in the sight of God, your Father.

Christianity – The Machine

Within the past couple of years, I was a member of a nearby Sunday school class. It was a good place too be: nice people, thoughtful subjects and I had the opportunity to participate. Probably too much participation for some people\’s taste. My wife and I were invited to their functions and treated nicely, cordially and with respect. But honestly, that\’s about as far as it went. Trying to otherwise \’break in\’ to their clique proved impossible.

Eventually, we just stopped attending. It seemed to us, that while we were welcomed to attend their functions, parties and services, we were not too welcome in their hearts or lives. Once we stopped showing up, the Sunday school teacher began sending us messages in the mail. We were being missed, so it seemed, and it would really be nice if we came back.

So we did. Once or twice. For we could cut the tension in the air with a knife. It was as if we had offended them by actually coming back after such an absence. Even the single person that my wife had connected with was a bit upset that she had gone missing for such a period of time – \”oh, so you decided to come back?\” is a close paraphrase to the first thing she said to her.

It also turned out that we showed up at the \’shift change:\’ There was a new teacher taking the reins of the class. And once he took over, the old teacher stopped contacting us, stopped inviting us to their functions, stopped sending the thoughtful and appreciated messages in the mail. And the new teacher? He certainly didn\’t care to pick up where the previous one left off.

You see, it seems to me that the previous teacher was interested in us as long as a couple things where true: first, that we were there to support her Ministry and to be involved in her class and the church functions, and secondly, as long as it was her job to be involved in our lives. Once it was no longer her job to coerce us into participating, we were off her Ministry radar.

So what happened? Did we make errors in our participation? Probably, but only inasmuch as every relationship has two parties that are mutually responsible for how things turn out. But please understand that I\’m not trying to assign blame here or point fingers at who did what right or wrong. I\’m well aware that it\’s difficult to find a Church body that actually fits, it\’s difficult to make friends, and that it\’s difficult to get involved in \”The Ministry\” at a local church – since those things are reserved for the vetted elite.

What I\’m really interested in however, is the bigger picture. Why does it have to be this way?

For you see, what my wife and I experienced was normal – at least for Christianity in the United States. That\’s just how it works. Historically, Christianity in the USA has held that The Church is equivalent to The Ministry. And if you\’re in anyway involved in ministering to others (which is defined as teaching or organizing) then you\’re in a different, more special class – the Ministry Class. And everyone else is in the lower, people who have needs to be met, working for The Ministers, class. And people in the Ministry Class have certain expectations placed upon them – such as keeping in touch with those for whom they are deemed responsible, and attempting to keep those people involved.

So I\’m not at all surprised that our Sunday school teacher(s) stopped contacting us – for we never really were their friends, we were no longer in their sphere of responsibility and we no longer had anything to offer them – or possibly never really did at all.

What\’s the Problem?
The fundamental problem (for a lack of a better phrase) is that we\’re doing Church wrong. Because Church is not something you \”do\” – it\’s something you are. Consider that Jesus never called us to \”do\” witnessing, rather He commanded us to make disciples, and that we would be witnesses. There\’s a big difference between the two (being and doing) – and the Religious Intelligentsia doesn\’t understand that (or refuses to acknowledge it). Probably because it\’s all part of being the machine we have made Christianity and Ministry into.

Somewhere along the way, Man messed it up. He determined that there should be a people (the Ministers) who\’s job it is to make your life right with God, and wherein it is your job to feed and clothe said Ministers. So, that\’s what we do today. We live our lives, throughout any given week, piling guilt upon our souls for all of the mistakes we make so that we can go to Church in order to be Ministered to for the purpose of being made to feel better about ourselves for the next week. And while we\’re there, we pay our dues to keep them fed and clothed so they can in turn, organize and recruit \”lay\” (volunteer) Ministers – so that we can participate in Their Ministry and hopefully along the way, somehow feel better about our relationship with God and others.

It\’s time to wake up folks. Its time to rouse ourselves from our placid dreams, our apathy and our abdication of personal responsibilities. The machine we have made Christianity into is not the Church – although the Church does participate therein.

Inviting someone to church is not inviting someone to meet Jesus, as I was once instructed to teach my Sunday school.

A Good, Bible Teaching Church

The Bible is not a compendium of facts, laws, precepts and moral standards that are to be taught, learned and practiced for the purpose of being or becoming a Christian nor for demonstrating to yourself or others that you are a good person or a good Christian. Neither do we implement them for the purpose of demonstrating to ourselves and others that our behaviors are improving and becoming more acceptable, or at least, should be more acceptable to God and to others.

Graham Cooke said, \”All knowledge in the Bible is linked to experience. God doesn\’t want you memorizing scripture. He wants you to become the living embodiment of it!\”

Hence, one of the most critical problems we have with the so called \”good bible teaching church\” is that they have a greater capacity to churn out fruit inspectors than they have to churn out fruit cultivators.

Disillusionment and Hooks
Consider the not-so-far-fetched story of a church member named John. He was a man who, for one reason or another, left his church to find another. Upon arriving at that new church, it was the opinion of some that the visitor had not \”learned a thing\” at his previous church. Nevertheless, John was excited about a few of the new things he was learning about the bible. Regular Sunday school attendance, various service projects and knocking on doors for evangelism were part of his new life and activities. But after a while, when John\’s mind was once again full of doctrines and precepts, when the regiments of the law were consumed to overflowing and when the glancing judgments did not wane, the excitement wore off and he disappeared to find another good, bible teaching church.

Church staff members are painfully aware of how many tithing units they need to keep running through the doors in order to make payroll and bills. They also know that they can\’t keep everyone enrolled so they augment their services with in-depth bible studies, popular personalities and various blends of music and entertainment – the hooks, as I call them. They\’re a best effort of keeping those who do show up, returning as tithe-paying members. Although these churches may have knowledgeable pastors and staff members who want to do the right thing, their version of the right thing is usually not enough for some people – something is missing and members come and go, looking for that elusive fit.

Where\’s the Beef or, Where\’s the Focus?
When we look closer at these churches, do we find that the members are living by the spirit, or are they living by the letter of the law? Do they hold themselves accountable to the law of liberty, or something else? Are they active members of the Body of Christ, each joint supplying that which the other needs, or are they simply laying their minds bare at the alter of the pastor, only to go home and forget about the \”God thing\” until their next regularly scheduled attendance function, such as bible studies, evangelism, concerts or the next christian comedy troop?

Give us a King!
The problem is that We the People generally desire a leader. Israel had the same problem – give us a king – they said. But since our good, bible teaching churches haven\’t taught us how to be lead by and seek the Holy Spirit, haven\’t taught us to how seek first the kingdom of God for ourselves, haven\’t taught us how listen to the Holy Spirit, and frankly since the churches leaders would rather set themselves up as our authority, we\’ve come to accept and expect that learning doctrine, principles and moral precepts are the only things necessary to being a Christian.

The problem is that\’s Christian Religion not relationship with the Creator. I\’ve come to believe that in the minds of some, that\’s all God expects. Because to them, God is a dispensationalist – He did everything in various stages in order to do two things: to save man and give him the Bible, and now that Jesus has been to the cross and we have the Bible, He doesn\’t \”do that any more\” (what ever \”that\” may be). So, all we have is the Bible and it\’s rules and precepts to learn, memorize and follow.

Please understand that I\’m not suggesting that we don\’t live by every word of God, or that we don\’t study the bible for the purpose of strengthening our relationship with God or to understand Godly principles. Rather, that we discern the difference between learning to do for the sake of doing, and just being. For example, scripture is clear regarding those in need:

What use is it, my brethren, if someone says he has faith but he has no works? Can that faith save him? If a brother or sister is without clothing and in need of daily food, and one of you says to them, “Go in peace, be warmed and be filled,” and yet you do not give them what is necessary for their body, what use is that? Even so faith, if it has no works, is dead, being by itself. (James 2:14-17)

Clearly, we\’re suppose to help those in need. But what happens when you simply practice the doctrine, but don\’t mix it with a relationship with God? In some cases, you\’ll loose all of your money to people who are more interested in stealing it from you than they are holding down a job.

It\’s About Being – Not Doing
In terms of being rather than doing, consider that Jesus never commanded us to do evangelism. If you disagree, then lets look at some of the core scriptures regarding evangelism:

{Jesus said} \”All authority has been given to Me in heaven and on earth. Go therefore and make disciples of all the nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father and the Son and the Holy Spirit, teaching them to observe all that I commanded you; and lo, I am with you always, even to the end of the age.\” (Matthew 20:18-20)

To these He also presented Himself alive after His suffering, by many convincing proofs, appearing to them over a period of forty days and speaking of the things concerning the kingdom of God. Gathering them together, He commanded them not to leave Jerusalem, but to wait for what the Father had promised, “Which,” He said, “you heard of from Me; for John baptized with water, but you will be baptized with the Holy Spirit not many days from now.” (Acts 1:3-5)

{Jesus said} \”but you will receive power when the Holy Spirit has come upon you; and you shall be My witnesses both in Jerusalem, and in all Judea and Samaria, and even to the remotest part of the earth.\” (Acts 1:8)

While it is abundantly clear that Jesus commanded His disciples to go, the follow on to that commandment wasn\’t to \”do witnessing\” or \”do evangelism\”, rather that they would simply \”be His witnesses.\” There is a vast difference between being a witness and doing a thing called witnessing. Anyone can perjure themselves and do witnessing in a court of law. But it\’s only those who are witnesses that don\’t get into trouble for their testimony. Furthermore, any number of people can learn the tenets of Evangelism Explosion, but have they learned to do witnessing or how to be a witness? We can go to college and learn to do medicine, engineering, and basket weaving, but we\’re not taught to be scalpels, re-enforced concrete or a basket. Rather we\’re taught how to learn and utilize specific skills so that we may be a doctor, be an engineer or be a basket case. And unfortunately some of our good, bible teaching churches instruct their members in only enough Bible knowledge to insure that they can some day be a participant in this frightening scene:

“Not everyone who says to Me, ‘Lord, Lord,’ will enter the kingdom of heaven, but he who does the will of My Father who is in heaven will enter. Many will say to Me on that day, ‘Lord, Lord, did we not prophesy in Your name, and in Your name cast out demons, and in Your name perform many miracles?’ And then I will declare to them, ‘I never knew you; depart from Me, you who practice lawlessness.\”

“Therefore everyone who hears these words of Mine and acts on them, may be compared to a wise man who built his house on the rock. And the rain fell, and the floods came, and the winds blew and slammed against that house; and yet it did not fall, for it had been founded on the rock. Everyone who hears these words of Mine and does not act on them, will be like a foolish man who built his house on the sand. The rain fell, and the floods came, and the winds blew and slammed against that house; and it fell — and great was its fall.” (Matthew 7:21-27)

Acting upon the word of God, through faith, results in God creating a new creature, created by God for good works. A new creature is a new being, not a new doer: we can teach a dog to walk on its hind legs, that doesn\’t make the dog a human.

Faith and Works and Keeping the Law
But then, what do we do with the book of James? Aren\’t we supposed to do works to demonstrate our faith?

But one who looks intently at the perfect law, the law of liberty, and abides by it, not having become a forgetful hearer but an effectual doer, this man will be blessed in what he does. (James 1:25)

There are here a couple important things to consider.

First, we have to consider scripture as a whole. If we are dead to the Law, then why are we to look at the Law and be doers of it? Secondly, if the Law of Moses is the law of liberty, then why does scripture tell us the following:

Now we know that whatever the Law says, it speaks to those who are under the Law, so that every mouth may be closed and all the world may become accountable to God; because by the works of the Law no flesh will be justified in His sight; for through the Law comes the knowledge of sin. (Romans 3:19-20)

nevertheless knowing that a man is not justified by the works of the Law but through faith in Christ Jesus, even we have believed in Christ Jesus, so that we may be justified by faith in Christ and not by the works of the Law; since by the works of the Law no flesh will be justified. (Galatians 2:16)

Wasn\’t keeping the Law for the purpose of being right with God, to be blessed in what man does, the entire problem at Galatia? Of course it was.

So then, what James refers to as the perfect law, is actually the law of liberty, not the law of Moses which we find being discussed in Romans and Galatians.

Therefore, my brethren, you also were made to die to the Law through the body of Christ, so that you might be joined to another, to Him who was raised from the dead, in order that we might bear fruit for God. For while we were in the flesh, the sinful passions, which were aroused by the Law, were at work in the members of our body to bear fruit for death. But now we have been released from the Law, having died to that by which we were bound, so that we serve in newness of the Spirit and not in oldness of the letter. (Romans 7:4-6)

Therefore, I submit to you that the perfect law of liberty is Jesus Christ, or in the least, Love. And that being the case, then the perfect law of liberty transforms us into a new creation. Therefore, in abiding by this perfect law, we are in essence submitting and yielding to that which can renew our minds. And through the regenerative power of God (love edifies – 1 Cor 8:1), we become effectual doers of Jesus Christ, through the perfect law of liberty. So then, it is through the perfect law of liberty that we may say:

For through the Law {of Moses} I died to the Law {of Moses}, so that I might live to God. I have been crucified with Christ; and 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 up for me. I do not nullify the grace of God, for if righteousness comes through the Law {of Moses}, then Christ died needlessly. (Galatians 2:19-21)

See to it that no one takes you captive through philosophy and empty deception, according to the tradition of men, according to the elementary principles of the world, rather than according to Christ {the Perfect Law of Liberty}. For in Him all the fullness of Deity dwells in bodily form, and in Him you have been made complete, {not by the Law of Moses} and He is the head over all rule and authority; and in Him you were also circumcised with a circumcision made without hands, in the removal of the body of the flesh by the circumcision of Christ; having been buried with Him in baptism, in which you were also raised up with Him through faith in the working of God, who raised Him from the dead. When you were dead in your transgressions and the uncircumcision of your flesh, He made you alive together with Him, having forgiven us all our transgressions, having canceled out the certificate of debt consisting of decrees against us, {the Law of Moses} which was hostile to us; and He has taken it out of the way, having nailed it to the cross. (Colossians 2:8-14)

So then, be careful of that which you learn to do at church: those things which you are taught to practice only to be acceptable to some external standard. Even in the day of Christ, Jesus said \”but in vain do they worship me, teaching as their doctrines the precepts of men\” (Mark 7:7). Scripture teaches us to live by the spirit, walk by the spirit and pray in the spirit. Not live by the law, walk by the law and pray by the law.

What we need in a church is a spirit filled congregation interested in the individual, interested in edifying each other in the Body of Christ, as each member of the body of Christ is commanded (Ephesians 4:11-32). What we don\’t need is a bunch of people interested worshiping the pastor, who think they are there to make sure you tow the line, learn their doctrines and don\’t bring embarrassment to their establishment.

Although I said it before, it bears repeating:

One of the most critical problems with our churches today, is that they have a greater capacity to churn out fruit inspectors than they have to churn out fruit cultivators.

Depression – A spirit of Evil

Of all the things that depression is, that which is most often forgotten by those of us who find themselves smack-dab in the middle of it, is that depression flows from a spirit of evil. If you\’re not so sure about that, then lets look at it this way: God is Spirit, God is Love and Love edifies.

God is spirit, and those who worship Him must worship in spirit and truth. (John 4:24)

We have come to know and have believed the love which God has for us. God is love, and the one who abides in love abides in God, and God abides in him. (John 4:16)

Now concerning things sacrificed to idols, we know that we all have knowledge. Knowledge makes arrogant, but love edifies. (1 Corinthians 8:1)

A quick rhetorical question: does depression edify, does it build you up? I think we would all say that the emphatic answer is no. Rather, depression tears one down, it destroys a person.

Therefore, what is the opposite of edification? Destruction. That which doesn\’t build you up, tears you down. Scripture says,

Be of sober spirit, be on the alert. Your adversary, the devil, prowls around like a roaring lion, seeking someone to devour.\” (1 Peter 5:8)

For our struggle is not against flesh and blood, but against the rulers, against the powers, against the world forces of this darkness, against the spiritual forces of wickedness in the heavenly places. Therefore, take up the full armor of God, so that you will be able to resist in the evil day, and having done everything, to stand firm. (Ephesians 6:12-13)

Love and hate: they\’re opposites for a reason. Love builds you up, evil tears you down. I think this is why scripture says

Rejoice in the Lord always; again I will say, rejoice! Let your gentle spirit be known to all men. The Lord is near. Be anxious for nothing, but in everything by prayer and supplication with thanksgiving let your requests be made known to God. And the peace of God, which surpasses all comprehension, will guard your hearts and your minds in Christ Jesus.

Finally, brethren, whatever is true, whatever is honorable, whatever is right, whatever is pure, whatever is lovely, whatever is of good repute, if there is any excellence and if anything worthy of praise, dwell on these things. The things you have learned and received and heard and seen in me, practice these things, and the God of peace will be with you. (James 4:4-9)

I dislike the academia that has become the corner stone many of our churches today. They\’ve become institutions of learning Denominational Thought rather than places of rejoicing, places where we can discard our anxiety. Instead they\’re full of condemnation of you for not following the rules and precepts of God, where they pull down the Law that Jesus nailed to the cross and reapply it to your soul with guilt, duty and servitude.

Nevertheless, I suppose at the risk of being academic, there are some things that need to be discussed in lieu of helping us be active in God grace towards us in the process of defeating depression.

Rejoice. That\’s pretty much plain and simple. In rejoicing, specifically in this context, is praise. When I was a much younger man, Russ Taft sang a song \’Praise the Lord\’.

The established religious intelligentsia of the day hated the song (at least those I was associated with), because it seemed to suggest that simply giving God credit, thanking Him and rejoicing in Him could some how be a stepping stone to making your problems less of what they were. No, instead what you needed was a good Bible teaching church, some self flagellating 12-Step doctrines and a good preacher you could submit to.

I on the other hand, I believe we should just skip all of that rot and just stick to the spirit of scripture:

But about midnight Paul and Silas were praying and singing hymns of praise to God, and the prisoners were listening to them; and suddenly there came a great earthquake, so that the foundations of the prison house were shaken; and immediately all the doors were opened and everyone’s chains were unfastened. (Acts 16:25-26)

Let your spirit be known to all men. That\’s not possible to do, in the spirit of the context of this scripture, unless you\’ve moved out of depression, into rejoicing and from there into something better. And fortunately for us, the only pre-requisite is our choice to rejoice.

Don\’t be anxious, pray. Hopefully part of your depression isn\’t a self-condemnation for your apparent lack of all things \”spiritual,\” including prayer. But even if it is, it doesn\’t really matter: \”you shall know the truth and the truth will make you free.\” (John 8:32) The only thing left for you to do, is act upon the truth.

And finally, Change Your Thinking:

Finally, brethren, whatever is true, whatever is honorable, whatever is right, whatever is pure, whatever is lovely, whatever is of good repute, if there is any excellence and if anything worthy of praise, dwell on these things. The things you have learned and received and heard and seen in me, practice these things, and the God of peace will be with you.

That\’s a pretty big promise.

In the midst of depression, you\’re thinking about rotten, awful things. Your belief system is tied up in death and evil, and things which which do not edify. But changing your thinking is not the king-pin: you\’ve got to first rejoice, then pray and then you\’ll be in a position to change your thinking.

Praying for Snakes

Ask, and it will be given to you; seek, and you will find; knock, and it will be opened to you. For everyone who asks receives, and he who seeks finds, and to him who knocks it will be opened. Or what man is there among you who, when his son asks for a loaf, will give him a stone? Or if he asks for a fish, he will not give him a snake, will he? If you then, being evil, know how to give good gifts to your children, how much more will your Father who is in heaven give what is good to those who ask Him! In everything, therefore, treat people the same way you want them to treat you, for this is the Law and the Prophets. (Matthew 7:7-12)

Praying for snakes is what happens we\’re so wrapped up in our own emotions and perceived well-being that we cannot see any other possibility or palatable outcome other than that which we desire. So we ask and ask and ask hoping that we\’ll be like the widow who bugged the judge until he relented and gave her want she wanted (Luke 18:1-8). And that some how, because of our persistent nagging, God will throw up His hands and say \”here, have what you want but just leave me alone.\” If that is your view of your relationship with God, then I\’m sorry – because that\’s not His relationship with you, and that\’s not the point of the story.

We must remember that God only gives good gifts (Matthew 7:7-12). Bad gifts destroy, good gifts edify. So, if you\’re not seeing what you\’re praying for then there are at least a couple reasons why:

There is something better for you.
You didn\’t hear Him say \”I\’ve got this taken care of – you don\’t need to pray anymore.\”

In other words, you\’re praying for snakes. You\’re asking God to give you something that He knows is not good for you. But because of your emotional investment, you either can\’t (or will not) hear Him respond with a better alternative or you can\’t (or will not) hear Him respond in the affirmative that the issue is taken care of.

When life \”happens,\” our first response shouldn\’t be an emotional prayer of \”God, please fix this!\” Rather, it should be \”God, what are you doing? What do you want me to learn? How do I pray through this?\” The first, emotional response puts you in the position of making God into a vending machine: prayers in, goodies out. The second response puts you in the position of cooperating with God towards receiving a double blessing.

Maybe you need to back off just a bit and reflect. Are you praying for snakes when you should be asking for something else?

Grace, Faith and Yielding

I\’ve said before that grace is that thing which makes us into something we cannot become on our own. But I think people just don\’t get it. There\’s more to it than just sitting back on our laurels and soaking it up, and that\’s where I believe people generally error.

I have been misunderstood to be making grace into something it\’s not. And I can\’t say that I blame them, since I seemingly suggest that we think about it in non-traditional ways. But a traditionalist I am not, so if you\’re looking for run of the mill traditional thought on this subject, then you might as well move along now, because you\’re not getting it from me.

Sovereignty

So, lets start with sovereignty. What is it and what is the opposite of sovereignty? Lets start with the converse, the opposite of sovereignty: what is that? If you\’re thinking \”man\’s free will\” is the opposite of sovereignty, then you get the Gong (remember the Gong Show?) – in other words, \”no: man\’s free will is not the opposite of sovereignty.\” Not convinced? Well, then lets take a look at Meriam-Webster:

Obsolete : supreme excellence or an example of it
Supreme power especially over a body politic

freedom from external control : autonomy
controlling influence

One that is sovereign; especially : an autonomous state

The take-away from this definition is two fold: the first thing we notice is the concept of autonomy and freedom from external control. The second thing is it\’s controlling influence. In other words, you being sovereign, get to make your own autonomous, controlling and influential decisions free from external control and external considerations (that\’s free will, by the way). See? Man\’s free will is not the opposite of sovereignty, free will is sovereignty defined. So, what is the opposite of sovereignty?

Grace

I submit to you, that grace is the opposite of sovereignty. Whoa, hold on a minute: didn\’t God in His sovereignty fore ordain that we should be saved by grace? How then is grace not sovereign? Well, for starters, you\’re confusing God\’s autonomy in choosing the mechanism through which salvation is effected with the mechanism itself. Did God choose to use grace? Yes. Was that decision sovereign? Yes, of course it was. But is grace sovereignty defined? No, it\’s not. Consider the scripture

… {while} in our transgressions, {He} made us alive together with Christ (by grace you have been saved), and raised us up with Him, and seated us with Him in the heavenly places in Christ Jesus, so that in the ages to come He might show the surpassing riches of His grace in kindness toward us in Christ Jesus. For by grace you have been saved through faith; and that {salvation} not of yourselves, it is the gift of God; not as a result of works, so that no one may boast. For we are His workmanship, created in Christ Jesus for good works, which God prepared beforehand so that we would walk in them.. (Ephesians 2:5-10)

Wow, that sounds like a lot of sovereignty to me, doesn\’t it to you? And you\’d be right – there is a lot of that being expressed there. But lets take take a look at something else:

He who believes in Him is not judged; he who does not believe has been judged already, because he has not believed in the name of the only begotten Son of God. This is the judgment, that the Light has come into the world, and men loved the darkness rather than the Light, for their deeds were evil. For everyone who does evil hates the Light, and does not come to the Light for fear that his deeds will be exposed. But he who practices the truth comes to the Light, so that his deeds may be manifested as having been wrought in God. (John 3:18-21)

Now the parable is this: the seed is the word of God. Those beside the road are those who have heard; then the devil comes and takes away the word from their heart, so that they will not believe and be saved. … But the seed in the good soil, these are the ones who have heard the word in an honest and good heart, and hold it fast, and bear fruit with perseverance. (Luke 8:11-15)

So, what\’s the point? The point is faith: belief and trust is faith: \”for by grace you have been saved through faith\” and \”He who believes in Him is not judged.\”

Thus, the necessary rhetorical question is: can a person be saved who lacks faith? Obviously, the answer is no. Thus, salvation (which comes by grace) only happens in the presence of, or as scripture puts it \”through faith.\” Therefore, salvation is not an act of sovereignty on Gods part, but an act of God in conjunction with the faith of the sinner. Thus, sovereignty says \”I will do this thing outside of any consideration of you\”, whereas grace says \”I will do this thing only in conjunction with you.\” Which is why repentance and reconciliation are required for salvation: repentance (my turning towards God) is the turning away from that which causes offence and reconciliation means to change mutually. Both only occur through trust and belief (faith).

Now all these things are from God, who reconciled us to Himself through Christ and gave us the ministry of reconciliation, namely, that God was in Christ reconciling the world to Himself, not counting their trespasses against them, and He has committed to us the word of reconciliation. (2 Corinthians 5:18)

.. solemnly testifying to both Jews and Greeks of repentance toward God and faith in our Lord Jesus Christ. (Acts 20:21)

In the two verses above, we see our requirements of entering into that ministry of reconciliation through faith.

I understand that for some, this is a hard thing to grasp. But we must separate what God does from how He chooses to do it:

So then, does He who provides you with the Spirit and works miracles among you, do it by the works of the Law, or by hearing with faith? (Galatians 3:5)

And the rhetorical answer is \”by hearing with faith.\” And so it is with spiritual gifts: while they are freely given (charisma – grace gift), they are not exercised without our cooperation. Which means we are not puppets of God. We can choose to exercise our gifts and follow God, or we can choose to run away like Jonah.

Cooperation

In one sense, the only valid work we can do with God is cooperation. In many cases our cooperation is just as simple as faith. In other cases, it\’s yielding ourselves to Him. In other instances, it\’s resisting the devil and drawing near to God. All of these actions are examples of our cooperating with God. Finding someone willing to cooperate with God is of paramount importance to Him:

I searched for a man among them who would build up the wall and stand in the gap before Me for the land, so that I would not destroy it; but I found no one. (Ezekiel 22:30)

The passage above is a clear example of the results of sovereignty and grace. One one hand, God was ready to destroy the land (sovereignty), but on the other hand, He wanted to show mercy and save the land. But what was lacking: \”a man among them who would … stand in the gap.\” What was He looking for? Fortitude, intercession, faith and cooperation: a space to express grace.

Consider also the seven years of plenty followed by the seven years of famine:

It is as I have spoken to Pharaoh: God has shown to Pharaoh what He is about to do. Behold, seven years of great abundance are coming in all the land of Egypt; and after them seven years of famine will come, and all the abundance will be forgotten in the land of Egypt, and the famine will ravage the land. So the abundance will be unknown in the land because of that subsequent famine; for it will be very severe. Now as for the repeating of the dream to Pharaoh twice, it means that the matter is determined by God, and God will quickly bring it about. Now let Pharaoh look for a man discerning and wise, and set him over the land of Egypt. Let Pharaoh take action to appoint overseers in charge of the land, and let him exact a fifth of the produce of the land of Egypt in the seven years of abundance. (Genesis 41:28-34)

God was acting in sovereignty, with providence and in grace in this example. Through sovereignty and providence He provided the dream, the plenty and the famine. Through grace he provided the interpretation, the produce and the ability to harvest the land.

Living by the Spirit

Which brings me to yielding. I\’ve often wondered how to reconcile being filled with the spirit (Ephesians 5:18), and walking in the spirit (Galatians 5:16) and dying to self (Matthew 16:24), and last but not least, being transformed by God (Philippians 1:6). At times, they seem incompatible, and most certainly if you spend any time in the average church, you will get seemingly conflicting and incompatible ideas regarding all of them. So I spent a lot of time considering spirit – what is it? Well, God is spirit. Jesus has given us the comforter, His Holy Spirit. Jesus described spirit as wind. I even determined that the effects of His Holy Spirit demonstrate the affections of God (that\’s a play on words, but it works out correctly). I\’ve understood that the spirit behind the 10 Commandments is one of protection, concern and love – not of \”I\’m a Holy God and I get to make the rules, so do or die.\”

Unfortunately, I\’ve not come to any grand conclusions. I\’ve had to be taken back a step, back to yielding. It turns out that in the moment by moment decisions that we are presented with, yielding to one thing or the other is what it all boils down to: do I perform this thing, or that thing? Do this or that?

In the end, we\’ve got to make a choice. We will yield to the flesh, or we will yield to His Holy Spirit. Is it that simple? Apparently so, for God did say, \”Submit therefore to God. Resist the devil and he will flee from you. Draw near to God and He will draw near to you.\” (James 4:7-8) In order to submit, resist and draw, you must yield to His Holy Spirit and die to self: you must cooperate with God and in doing so, you receive grace to overcome.

Sometimes, yielding is not an easy choice. But it is fundamental to living in the Spirit, dying to self, being filled with the Spirit and being transformed by God. And it puts us in a position of living in Grace, as opposed to being fallen from grace. For when we are fallen from grace, we are living in our own strength, making our own way and working to build ourselves up with our own hands.

Yielding to His Holy Spirit and living in grace is a much better option, don\’t you think?

Being The Intercessor

I\’m on a different leg of the journey now, which isn\’t surprising. It seems that I\’m always discovering or learning something knew – I think it has something to do with Philippians 1:6. Actually, a couple of things have captured my attention recently, but intercession has really been at the forefront my thoughts.

I\’ve always understood (at least intellectually) the concept of standing in the gap. As a matter of fact, I\’ve been called to do that on several occasions, unbeknownst to those who were blessed in the end. But it was the process of standing in that gap on at least one occasion that the gravity of the situation was made clear to me. From that point on, being the intercessor or the one who stands in the gap had new meaning, a deeper and urgent unction that made the process, at least to me, a reverent burden with catastrophic consequences should one be flippant, ignore or fail in their responsibilities.

You would think that in and of itself would be enough for one person, that the lesson had been learned. But I\’m afraid that for me, it hasn\’t been. For on that one occasion (that is most memorable to me), I understood the problem at hand. I had lived it, I had made the same mistakes, said the same things, exercised the same misjudgements. But somewhere along the way, God revealed to me the sinfulness of my attitudes and that it had to go, that I must to die to self in that regard. So when I saw it in someone else, I understood it for I had lived it, and I was grieved because I knew it was something that the Lord despised.

I wrestled with it for about a day, and just at the point when I had determined that there was nothing I could do to change the situation (and there truly was not), and nothing I could do to change the person (and truly, there was not), I was ready to leave the whole mess alone and let God deal with it. And it was then that I remembered Moses (Exodus 32):

The LORD said to Moses, “I have seen this people, and behold, they are an obstinate people. Now then let Me alone, that My anger may burn against them and that I may destroy them; and I will make of you a great nation.”

Then Moses entreated the LORD his God, and said, “O LORD, why does Your anger burn against Your people whom You have brought out from the land of Egypt with great power and with a mighty hand? Why should the Egyptians speak, saying, ‘With evil intent He brought them out to kill them in the mountains and to destroy them from the face of the earth’? Turn from Your burning anger and change Your mind about doing harm to Your people. Remember Abraham, Isaac, and Israel, Your servants to whom You swore by Yourself, and said to them, ‘I will multiply your descendants as the stars of the heavens, and all this land of which I have spoken I will give to your descendants, and they shall inherit it forever.’” So the LORD changed His mind about the harm which He said He would do to His people.

And I remembered Ezekiel 22:30:

I searched for a man among them who would build up the wall and stand in the gap before Me for the land, so that I would not destroy it; but I found no one.

And it was then that the Lord said, \”so, you\’re just going to leave him be and not stand in the gap?\”

I have no idea what the Lord had in mind for him should I refuse – and it doesn\’t matter. I just know that I spent two or three days in constant communion and prayer until the burden was gone and I was released from my responsibilities as a gap stander.

But as I have circled back to this gap standing doctrine, I have learned that there is something else that I was unaware of before:

The Identification of the Intercessor

I really didn\’t get this the first times through, but it\’s becoming clearer to me now. There are examples of this identification of the intercessor all through out scripture. I alluded to it above, in the quote from Exodus 32. But there\’s more to the story. A little later on, we find that

On the next day Moses said to the people, “You yourselves have committed a great sin; and now I am going up to the LORD, perhaps I can make atonement for your sin.” Then Moses returned to the LORD, and said, “Alas, this people has committed a great sin, and they have made a god of gold for themselves. But now, if You will, forgive their sin—and if not, please blot me out from Your book which You have written!”

This is one example of standing in the gap, of being the intercessor: it is a \”take me instead of them\” attitude, a \”count me just as guilty as they are\” and \”account their guilt to me\” position. When you stand in the gap, or protect someone else, you identify your whole self with them. It is this identification that is integral to the act of interceding on the behalf of another.

The apostle Paul said that

I have made myself a slave to all, so that I may win more. To the Jews I became as a Jew, so that I might win Jews; to those who are under the Law, as under the Law though not being myself under the Law, so that I might win those who are under the Law; to those who are without law, as without law, though not being without the law of God but under the law of Christ, so that I might win those who are without law. To the weak I became weak, that I might win the weak; I have become all things to all men, so that I may by all means save some. I do all things for the sake of the gospel, so that I may become a fellow partaker of it. (1 Cor 9:19-32)

Paul is speaking to the point of identifying himself with those to whom he was a witness and on whose behalf he interceded. In his case, he was identifying with or becoming one of the people to whom he spoke and to whom he lived out his life. In other words, he knew that from the perspective the Jew, the Gentile and the weak, an acceptable sacrifice was to become one of them, to understand their life, their hurts, and their perceptions of reality from their point of view. This identification gave Paul an authority in their lives, not because he was an apostle, but because from their point of view, he was one of them.

Jesus also identified Himself with us:

Therefore, He had to be made like His brethren in all things, so that He might become a merciful and faithful high priest in things pertaining to God, to make propitiation for the sins of the people. For since He Himself was tempted in that which He has suffered, He is able to come to the aid of those who are tempted.

These actions of Jesus resulted in Him sitting down at the right hand of God and living to make intercession for us. (Mark 16:19, Hebrews 12: 2). But don\’t miss the other points of these truths: it was for the \”joy set before Him\” that he endured the cross, which in the end enabled Him to take His place of intercession.

And in seeing the joy set before Him, how does one thereby endure the cross? By dying to self. For we all are to take up our cross daily, resulting in the same thing: dying to self. Intercession is not just about praying: it\’s just as much about dying to self as it is about living your life in such a way that another is edified, which is love, for \”love edifies\” (1 Cor 1:8), and we all know that God so loved the world that He gave His only Son.

I knew someone once, I\’ll call him Crosby, who took on the task of mentoring a young man, which we\’ll call Nash. Nash was your typical young college student who had definitive ideas about life and how the world should work. Crosby on the other hand, had been there and done all of that and had thus far, lived a long, full life in the Lord. He had been to seminary and earned several degrees. Furthermore, as being in his early 60\’s, he viewed himself as an Elder in the church, and as one who had earned some respect. He clearly believed he had a lot to offer in a mentoring relationship, or any relationship for that matter. Nevertheless, the mentoring relationship eventually broke down and the meetings ceased. It was explained to Nash\’s parents that the young man simply didn\’t provide Crosby the proper respect and that as such, the relationship couldn\’t move forward.

As a mentor or accountability partner (as we like to call it these days), it is not our place to choose the death, or the dying to self of the other person. How God chooses to work in some ones life is His business, not ours. Our job is to facilitate the process (Eph 4:15-16). If we enter into an accountability or mentoring relationship and start nit-picking this thing or that thing, then what we\’re actually doing is judging the other person. And any one who judges another person usurps God\’s authority makes himself a judge of the Law (James 4:11).

What Crosby did was fail to identify himself with his younger protege. He found a particular spec in his brothers\’ eye and neglected to see the log in his own eye. And having not removed his log so that he could better identify with his younger brother and help Nash remove his spec, his completely missed the opportunity to be an intercessor for his brother. (Matt 7:1-5)

You see folks, if you want to stand in the gap, if you want to be an intercessor for this or that, then you must get serious with God. You really don\’t have a right to tell someone to not steal or cheat or refrain from drunkenness when you yourself are a cheat and a thief and drink too much. If you really want to be the George Mueller of your generation, then pick up your cross and get busy with God and die to your selfish desires. Revival comes through and after repentance. If you truly want revival, then first find out what God wants removed from your life, those hidden, unyielding areas; give them up and remove them. And once God has brought revival into your life, intercede on the behalf of another, then another, and so-on until God gives you (and/or others) the authority to intercede for your entire church or community. That\’s what Moses did. He started with a burden for his people as son of Pharaoh\’s daughter, then spent a number of years in isolation from his people in Egypt where his vision for their freedom died and God made him in to a different man (Acts 7, Exodus 3).

So don\’t assume that this is an easy, overnight process. Bible scholars tell us that Jesus lived on this earth 33 years and we know that He spent at least three years of concentrated devotion for one purpose: to identify with His people so that He could go to the cross, die to self, fix His eyes on the joy set before Him, and live to make intercession for us all.

I searched for a man among them who would build up the wall and stand in the gap before Me for the land, so that I would not destroy it; but I found no one. (Ezekiel 22:30)

Then I heard the voice of the Lord, saying, “Whom shall I send, and who will go for Us?” Then I said, “Here am I. Send me!” (Isaiah 6:8)

Moving Towards Maturity

Love never fails; but if there are gifts of prophecy, they will be done away; if there are tongues, they will cease; if there is knowledge, it will be done away. For we know in part and we prophesy in part; but when the perfect comes, the partial will be done away. (1 Corinthians 13:8-10)

There has been no end of debate regarding what is exactly being referred to by \”when the perfect comes.\” Some have asserted that the perfect is Jesus Christ. This argument is used support the necessity of spiritual gifts to this day that others maintain have vanished. The reasoning is that Jesus has not returned and set every thing aright, therefore the gifts are still required.

But, as others maintain, there may be reasons to believe that the scripture is not referring to the Messiah. Textually, the argument is made that in all other cases, Christ is referred to in the masculine whereas perfect in this instance is in the neuter.

These other people believe that perfect refers to the Bible. This argument is used to support the notion that many of the spiritual gifts have vanished. The crux of the argument is that we have the Bible and that\’s all we need. But since the first century Christians didn\’t have the entire canon of scripture (which could be reasonable debated, given Paul\’s view), they needed miracles, visions, tongues and healings in order to authenticate what the apostles were teaching was the truth. Apparently these people would have us believe, according to their reasoning and logic, that the spoken word is not as effective as the written word. And even in a culture rich with the tradition of passing down stories from generation to generation with with nary a deviation, the spoken word needed additional proofs. Maybe that\’s why the Prophets of old were not effective in their preaching and Israel refused to repent?

But is there a third option? Of course there is. Someone once told me that scripture without context is pretext. I have to agree, and I call both parties on the carpet for committing a pretext, an eisegesis of scripture.

Let us therefore add some context.

Just prior to the dissertation on love, Paul said, \”But earnestly desire the greater gifts. And I show you a still more excellent way.\” And that greater, more excellent way is love. Which makes sense, given the context and content of the previous chapters wherein Paul rebukes the Corinthians self centered attitudes regarding their teachers (Paul and Apollos), idolatry, immorality, lawsuits, food and communion. In all of these things, Paul had something to say which generally revolved around selfishness – attending to their own desires rather than attending to the needs of others. What Paul encouraged them to do in all cases was move away from their sinful attitudes and actions and move into position where they could act in accordance with the grace of God. All of this instruction comes to a head in chapters 12, 13 and 14. These chapters contain the culmination of what it looks like to move away from the selfishness of man and into the expression and edification of love focused on others. And indeed, \”love edifies.\” (1 Corinthians 8:1).

What is Perfect?

So, what is this perfect we see in chapter 13? In the Greek, it is \’teleion\’. In it\’s most basic form, it means maturity. It comes from a word which means \”the point aimed at as a limit\” or by implication, \”the conclusion of an act or state.\” If you\’re one who thinks this mature thing is the Bible, then you\’re probably thinking I just confirmed your argument. Not so fast, because there is more.

What is Subjunctive?

In English, the definition of subjunctive is \”relating to or denoting a mood of verbs expressing what is imagined or wished or possible\”, and \”the mood of the verb that indicates possibility, conditionality or probability.\” According to New Testament Greek, the subjunctive is the same in Greek ans it is in English: it indicates probability or objective possibility. The indication of the verb is an action that will \”possibly happen, depending on certain objective factors or circumstances.\” What we find then in this scripture (\”when the perfect comes\”), is that the word \”comes\” is in the aorist subjunctive mood. Which means the perfect is seen as a possibility that has not started or is a continual process, as opposed to something being set in stone and finished.

So, what does this mean? More than some people are willing to consider or admit.

For if you maintain that \”when the the perfect comes\” refers the return of Christ, then you must also adhere to the possibility that He might not come back at all, rather it\’s just a possibility.

But on the other hand, if you maintain that \”the perfect\” refers to the Bible, then you must also admit that what you hold in your hands may not be the entirety of God\’s word, that it could in fact, be very incomplete.

In either case, that of the return of Christ or that of the Bible, you just don\’t know with any certainty that either is factually valid because of the \”certain objective factors or circumstances\” which are merely \”possible\” may not have occurred, seeing that they (the return of Christ, the authenticity of the Scripture) are out of your view and out of your control.

You may be thinking, \”well, they\’re not out of God\’s view, nor out of His control.\” And you would be correct. But you still must deal with the uncertainty factor – they may or may not be truths nor started, nor will come to pass – that\’s the mood of the text and there\’s just no getting around it.

Face Value

But what happens when we take scripture at face value, and let \”the perfect\” be \”the maturity?\” Then things begin to make a lot more sense, both in local context and with scripture as a whole.

Just prior to these words Paul says:

\”but if there are gifts of prophecy, they will be done away; if there are tongues, they will cease; if there is knowledge, it will be done away. For we know in part and we prophesy in part; but when the perfect comes, the partial will be done away.\” One of the keys to understanding this scripture is properly applying the phrases \”in part\” and \”partial.\” Notice that the \”in part\” and \”partial\” refers back to knowledge, tongues and prophecy. And don\’t fail to keep these concepts in context with the prior discussions of Paul, regarding the selfishness of the Corinthians.

Consider how the Corinthians were living out their faith. In some aspects, they were doing it quite poorly – like adults who were acting as children. But in other aspects, they were doing it quite well. You could say that they were living out their faith \”in part\” or \”partially.\” But isn\’t that true of everyone? Don\’t we all grow and mature throughout life? Could it not be said of us all that \”when I was a child, I used to speak like a child, think like a child, reason like a child; when I became a man, I did away with childish things. For now we see in a mirror dimly, but then face to face; now I know in part, but then I will know fully just as I also have been fully known.\”

When one considers that Paul generally views the Corinthians as children, then the phrase \”knowledge and prophecy in part\”, and the possibility of maturity coming, begins to make more sense. Previously, Paul told them they were immature:

brethren, could not speak to you as to spiritual men, but as to men of flesh, as to infants in Christ. I gave you milk to drink, not solid food; for you were not yet able to receive it. Indeed, even now you are not yet able, for you are still fleshly. For since there is jealousy and strife among you, are you not fleshly, and are you not walking like mere men? For when one says, “I am of Paul,” and another, “I am of Apollos,” are you not mere men?\”

But faith hope and love are the abiding actuaries, the abiding truths from which must flow all of our actions towards one another. They are the foundations of the fruit of the Spirit. Anything less is only occurring in part, or part-time, because of immaturity. In Ephesians (which just happens to also be in a context of spiritual gifts) we see Paul\’s similar encouragement:

And He gave some as apostles, and some as prophets, and some as evangelists, and some as pastors and teachers, for the equipping of the saints {unto} the work of service, {unto} the building up of the body of Christ; until we all attain to the unity of the faith, and of the knowledge of the Son of God, to a mature man, to the measure of the stature which belongs to the fullness of Christ. As a result, we are no longer to be children, tossed here and there by waves and carried about by every wind of doctrine, by the trickery of men, by craftiness in deceitful scheming; but speaking the truth in love, we are to grow up in all aspects into Him who is the head, even Christ, from whom the whole body, being fitted and held together by what every joint supplies, according to the proper working of each individual part, causes the growth of the body for the building up of itself in love.

Would you be surprised to know that mature (above in bold) is the same word use for perfect (teleion) in Corinthians? This specific tense of the word is used 17 other times in scripture, such as follows:

Yet we do speak wisdom among those who are mature; a wisdom, however, not of this age nor of the rulers of this age, who are passing away; but we speak God’s wisdom in a mystery, the hidden wisdom which God predestined before the ages to our glory; the wisdom which none of the rulers of this age has understood; for if they had understood it they would not have crucified the Lord of glory…

Jesus said to him, “If you wish to be complete {mature}, go and sell your possessions and give to the poor, and you will have treasure in heaven; and come, follow Me.”

Being the Brick Builder

Most of my family and my close friends are aware that I\’m not a big fan of church. More to the point, I\’m not a big fan of what we, as humans, have made church.

We have turned it into three songs and a sermon and have manufactured both venues and services that are designed solely around one person and two ministries: the music and the Preacher. We have so loved, honored and desired our earthly pastoral kings that we have even changed the scripture to suit our preferences. Case in point, Ephesians 4:12, regarding the purpose of the pastor/teacher:

… for the perfecting of the saints, for the work of the ministry, for the edifying of the body of Christ:

What\’s wrong with this translation, you ask? Plenty.

One quick look at a Greek interlinear (http://www.scripture4all.org/OnlineInterlinear/NTpdf/eph4.pdf)

will show the corruption. There are two different Greek words used to translate into the prepositions \’for\’ and \’unto\’: \’for\’ comes from the Greek word \’pros\’, and \’unto\’ from the Greek \’eis\’. Based upon this information you would assume that the Greek structure of the Ephesians 4:12 is \”pros … pros … pros\”, but you would be wrong, the prepositional structure is actually \”pros … eis … eis\”. How much of a difference does that make? It makes a huge difference.

Lets review the scripture again with some additional context, and with the prepositions properly applied:

And he gave some, apostles; and some, prophets; and some, evangelists; and some, pastors and teachers; for the perfecting of the saints, unto the work of the ministry, unto the edifying of the body of Christ: Till we all come in the unity of the faith, and of the knowledge of the Son of God, unto a perfect man, unto the measure of the stature of the fullness of Christ: That we henceforth be no more children, tossed to and fro, and carried about with every wind of doctrine, by the sleight of men, and cunning craftiness, whereby they lie in wait to deceive; But speaking the truth in love, may grow up into him in all things, which is the head, even Christ: From whom the whole body fitly joined together and compacted by that which every joint supplieth, according to the effectual working in the measure of every part, maketh increase of the body unto the edifying of itself in love.

Most pastors will tell you, based upon this scripture, that the pastor/teacher is the hub of all ministry in the church, the CEO of the local representation of the body of Christ, which helps explain how our churches are designed, both physically and organizationally. They get there through their traditions, as follows:

There are no more gifts of apostles (they\’re all dead), hence, apostles are no longer needed for the Church / Body of Christ.
Prophecy has ended (we have the Bible and that\’s all we need), hence prophecy is no longer needed for the Church.
Evangelists are not necessary for the Church since the Church/body of Christ is comprised of believers only, hence, the Church does not need Evangelists.
And lastly, since there\’s only one thing left, and due to the proximity of \”pastor and teacher\” to that which comes after, the pastor/teacher is the supreme fitter, joiner and effectual minster to the Church on earth.

It\’s disturbing to see how some change the Word of God to suit their needs, isn\’t it?

So, ignoring the fallacies of their arguments in their self-constructed doctrine lets simply observe how applying the proper translation of \”eis\” (twice) in the given scripture changes the meaning:

And he gave some, apostles; and some, prophets; and some, evangelists; and some, pastors and teachers; for the perfecting of the saints, unto the work of the ministry, unto the edifying of the body of Christ: Till we all come in the unity of the faith, and of the knowledge of the Son of God, unto a perfect man, unto the measure of the stature of the fulness of Christ:

Who\’s doing the majority of the work now? The \”we\” are, all of the saints are. Now consider again the rest of the thought and argument that Paul makes, based upon the entire body of Christ doing the majority of the work:

That we henceforth be no more children, tossed to and fro, and carried about with every wind of doctrine … but speaking the truth in love, {we} may grow up into him in all things, which is the head, even Christ: from whom the whole body fitly joined together and compacted by that which every joint supplies, according to the effectual working in the measure of every part, makes increase of the body unto the edifying of itself in love. (Ephesians 4:14-16)

But you, beloved, ought to remember the words that were spoken beforehand by the apostles of our Lord Jesus Christ, that they were saying to you, \’In the last time there will be mockers, following after their own ungodly lusts.\’ These are the ones who cause divisions, worldly-minded, devoid of the Spirit. But you, beloved, building yourselves up on your most holy faith, praying in the Holy Spirit, keep yourselves in the love of God, waiting anxiously for the mercy of our Lord Jesus Christ to eternal life. And have mercy on some, who are doubting; save others, snatching them out of the fire; and on some have mercy with fear, hating even the garment polluted by the flesh. Now to Him who is able to keep you from stumbling, and to make you stand in the presence of His glory blameless with great joy, 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. (Jude 1:15-25)

So then, based upon these scriptures (and others, such as 1 Corinthians 2-3, and 12-14), where is the emphasis on a single ministry, or as Paul would put it, a single \”body part?\” It is not there, it does not exist in a single person. Why then do we suppose that the edification of the entire body of Christ happens through the single ministry of one man and his deacons, the pastor and his professional staff?

There is simply no scriptural support for our traditional, organizational structure of the local church with one minister, and his band of deacons, supplying and fitting the needs of the many. The only reason there appears to be such support is because of two things: careful manipulation and obfuscation of truth by the teaching of such pastor/teachers, and secondly, the eisegesis of the translators, whereby they imputed their world view of the church into their translation of the KJV.

Building the Temple

So, what does all of this have to do with being a brick maker? Well, consider 1 Corinthians 3:

According to the grace of God which was given to me, like a wise master builder I laid a foundation, and another is building on it. But each man must be careful how he builds on it. For no man can lay a foundation other than the one which is laid, which is Jesus Christ. Now if any man builds on the foundation with gold, silver, precious stones, wood, hay, straw, each man’s work will become evident; for the day will show it because it is to be revealed with fire, and the fire itself will test the quality of each man’s work. If any man’s work which he has built on it remains, he will receive a reward. If any man’s work is burned up, he will suffer loss; but he himself will be saved, yet so as through fire.

While Paul is referring here to the work of him and Apollos, he is in the bigger picture, referring to work of the Corinthians – \”you are still fleshly. For since there is jealousy and strife among you, are you not fleshly, and are you not walking like mere men? For when one says, “I am of Paul,” and another, “I am of Apollos,” are you not mere men?\” What he is telling them is this: that as they walk through life – just as Paul and Apollos walked through their own lives, building into the Corinthians – they too (the Corinthians) are building to each other: \”if any man builds on the foundation … \” In other words Paul hasn’t discarded the previous thoughts: jealousy and strife are wood, hay and straw in this context. And as building materials into another persons’ life, they’re worthless – that is the point Paul is making. He further brings home the point of them thinking themselves something they aren’t when they say “I’m of Apollos” or “I’m of Paul”, when he says:

Let no man deceive himself. If any man among you thinks that he is wise in this age, he must become foolish, so that he may become wise … So then let no one boast in men. For all things belong to you, whether Paul or Apollos or Cephas or the world or life or death or things present or things to come; all things belong to you, and you belong to Christ; and Christ belongs to God.

And what makes this a tad bit scary is the relevance of “all things belong to you”, in the context of one of those things being us, a temple of God:

Do you not know that you are a temple of God and that the Spirit of God dwells in you? If any man destroys the temple of God, God will destroy him, for the temple of God is holy, and that is what you are.

Which is precisely what happened to Ananias and Sapphria. (Acts 4-5)

So, are jealousy and strife, lying and stealing holy? Then why do we build them into our lives by not dying to self and discarding them? Why do we build them into others by repeatedly exposing and encouraging such things? There is a warning for these things: they are called wood, hay, straw and such things will be destroyed by God, just as will a person who tries to destroy a temple of God with such things.

Making Bricks

A lot of times, we simply do not see the results of our work, but that does not mean our work has no value. Consider the brick maker. Day in and day out he makes bricks and trusts that they will be used to create wonderful and elegant buildings. Yet, he never constructs the buildings, nor does he see them. And yet again, what he does has value.

Just because you’re a brick maker doesn’t mean what you do does not have value. Just because you can’t see the results of your efforts and your work into the Kingdom of God, does not mean what you do doesn’t have value. Your only encouragement is to not build with wood, hay and straw. Die to self, trust God and build with gold, silver and precious stones. You are a member of the Body of Christ, of whom God has gifted. Find your purpose, exercise your gifts and love (build up) one another.