Articles

Christ 

7 Kingdom Misconceptions

For most Christians today, the Kingdom of God is a vague, mystical non-reality. Heaven is a celestial rest home for dearly departed saints. The Kingdom is mentioned twice in the ceremonial recitation of the Lord’s Prayer but has virtually no impact on the spiritual consciousness of the average church-goer.

All Things in Christ

In my written and spoken messages I make frequent reference to the preeminence of Christ. Just what do we mean by Christ having the preeminence? What do we mean by giving Christ the preeminence in all things?

The Abundant Life

“The Good Shepherd gives His Life for the sheep.” In one sense of course, in the most commonly interpreted sense, Jesus is speaking of his death on the Cross. He lays down His life for the sheep so they can be saved. Well, that is the natural side of it, I suppose. I’m not saying that’s incorrect. But is there a deeper meaning that can apply?

Beat the Press

“Press” is the root word of “pressure.” When people feel under pressure they use another word to describe it: “stressed.” Stress and pressure. Too many things going on. Spiritual things, being invisible and intangible, become less and less thought of, as the things, concerns, and cares of the world press in upon us.

The Danger of Familiarity

It is said that familiarity breeds contempt. In the beginning we coveted the presence of the Lord, but today perhaps we take it for granted. In the beginning we were awed by Him, but today perhaps we are not so amazed. His visits become more routine, more ordinary, more commonplace. The Lord is taken for granted.

Desiring Christ

We must allow our Husband to rule, and our desire must only be for Him. Some people want a “Prenuptial Agreement” with their Husband. That is, they are willing to come to Jesus, but they are not willing to bring all they have to Him, to have everything put in His Name, to forsake all others until death do they part. They are foolish virgins.

Do We Look For Another?

When everything is stripped away you are soon left with little but your own thoughts. In prison, John had a lot of time to think. And the essence of his thoughts were along these lines: Did I make a mistake? Did I really see the Spirit and hear the Voice, or was that just my imagination? And if He isn’t the One, do we need to start looking for another?

Eat My Flesh

How can this man give us His flesh to eat? So wondered the crowd, and so we wonder, even when we know that Christ is referring to Himself in a spiritual sense. So what is meant by this strange command? How may we apply it to our Christian life?

Entering His Rest

There is more to the Christian life than just getting saved. That is the first step into a larger world. Jesus is continually calling out to you, saying, “Come to Me, and I will give you rest.” That is a progressive thing. It is a daily thing. Every day we come to Jesus, everyday we hand over something else, every day we learn to rest in Him, and trust in His life.

Feet of Brass

At His feet we discover there is a difference between the Holy and the Human; the One Who comes from Above, and the ones who come from Below; the One Who is Spirit and Truth, and those of us who are merely flesh and blood. His feet are burning brass. This is His majesty, and His righteousness.

The Gift of Christ

Having the Son, possessing the Son, being one with the Son, we have and possess everything God is. It never has been a question of seeking ten, one hundred, or one thousand different things from God. If we do not know from our experience, we should at least know from the Scriptures, that Christ is the Gift of God.

The Glory of the Lord

Clearly, the knowledge of the glory of God completely fills heaven. But here on earth there is a gap between what God has declared and what currently exists. As with many prophetic declarations, this declaration brings the future into focus and describes something that has not yet occurred.

God’s Entire Plan: in 5 Simple Verses

Pretend for a moment that you know nothing about Jesus Christ, and have heard nothing, and have read nothing from any Christian church or ministry. You overhear me talking about Jesus, and you ask, “Who is Jesus?” Without saying a word, I hand you a piece of paper containing five verses of Scripture…

Head of All Principality and Power

Demonstrating a victory that is already won is quite different from wrestling to achieve an uncertain outcome. There is an elegance and simplicity connected to preeminence. This is something God wants us to experience for ourselves.

He Could Not Be Hidden

When He tried to hide Himself, He could not be hidden. I want you to think about that. When God was ready to reveal Him then He could not be hidden. He could not even hide Himself. I tell you, this idea of Christ increasing is the most powerful reality in this universe! Nothing can stand before it, nothing can resist it, nothing can stop it.

He Must Increase

God is not moving backward, but in the Son and through the Son, He moves steadily forward. Christ MUST increase. Just as we cannot have gravity without having the law of gravity, so it is impossible to have the Life of the Lord but not have the Law of that Life. And the Law of Life is that Christ must increase.

The Hidden Christ

Christ is revealed or hidden from men as He so desires. So many professed disciples of the Lord Jesus fail to recognize Him. The Lord tells them to go to Galilee, but they go to Emmaus. Many people sitting in church would not discern the Lord Jesus if He walked up the aisle and sat down on the altar.

Identification With Christ

It should be obvious that Paul is talking about something other than a physical crucifixion and a physical death, burial, and resurrection. Although he says, “I was crucified with Christ” he does not mean that he was present with Christ in the flesh at the moment of crucifixion; instead, he intends to show us something much more profound.

I Know Whom I Have Believed

As we grow out of infancy and begin to wrestle with the deeper questions and issues of the Christian faith we will learn to say, I know WHY I believe. The ultimate experience, however, is to be brought to a place where we can say with confidence, I know WHOM I believe. Knowing WHAT is a beginning. Knowing WHY is progress. Knowing WHO is maturity.

It’s A Wonderful Life!

Some Christians think they have to have the right book or the right man of God or the right formula or the right church or the right this or that before they can be victorious. My friend, you already have all the resources you need to live a victorious Christian life. Trust in His Life, yield to it, rest in it, revel in it, rejoice in it!

The Key to Every Spiritual Blessing

Christ is a deep well in which every spiritual blessing and treasure can be found, but we need something with which to draw upon those depths and bring them up to the surface so we can partake of them. How can we draw upon those depths?

The Law of Life

The branch who abides in the Vine does not have to know how it abides. So long as it abides, it shares in the Life of the Vine. It does not have to ask how it works, and it does not have to be concerned with producing the fruit. It does nothing but abide, and the Life of the Vine keeps it.

Living the Christ-Life

So many times I do something thinking it is Good, thinking it is really Spiritual and Holy and Pure, but it results in Death. It is Death because it is “me” doing it. For many years that was the way I pursued the ministry. I was very busy doing things for God, and of course I thought I was a good, spiritual person. But I am in the flesh whenever “I” am doing anything apart from Jesus.

One Thing Is Needed

There is something more significant to be seen in Mary who sits at the feet of Jesus versus Martha who is “much serving.” Jesus is not contrasting service and worship and saying that worship is better. No, Jesus is contrasting “many things” with “one thing.”

Overcoming Death: The Last Enemy

In the resurrection of Jesus from the dead, God demonstrates His desire to overcome and eliminate death once and for all. Death, to God, is unacceptable. Death is an enemy that must be resisted, must be overcome, and ultimately must be destroyed altogether.

Pauline Expressions of “En Christo”

Why do scholars find the essential foundation and pillar of Pauline thought, and the vocabulary he consistently uses to communicate that thesis, so difficult to understand?

The Persistent Purpose of God

In due course, God’s Purpose will be fulfilled, and we will see all things put under Him – even though we do not “yet” see it. So here is the question: once God has determined to do something, is there anything, or anyone, that can resist Him?

Prevalence, Prominence, and Preeminence

Compared to the rest of the world, most Christians make Jesus prominent in their lives. They give Him a place. They invite Him into their life and He takes His place among the many other things they have going on. They call Him Lord, they go to church, they sing worship songs to Him, and He is an important part of their life – but only to a point.

Put Ye On the Lord Jesus

If we are abiding in Him then we will be as He is. If we have put on the Lord Jesus then we are being changed into His likeness, we are being made into His image, and we are in the process of being transfigured. The Light and the Life will respond spontaneously and effortlessly to any demand placed upon it.

The Secret Place of the Most High

Let me ask, how can you make the Lord your habitation, your dwelling place? How is that possible? This can only be interpreted spiritually, it is absolutely impossible, and hardly conceivable, if we think of it naturally. How can I live in the Lord? Well, it’s like Nicodemus saying, “How can a man enter into his mother’s womb and be born again?”

Revelation Is Sufficient

There is an ocean of difference between repeating what you have heard and speaking of what you have experienced! Is it any wonder that there is much learning, but no experiential knowledge of Truth? If we speak of ourselves then we can only impart knowledge. But, if we resolve to only speak by revelation, we can impart Life. Only revelation can change a person.

Touching the Living Christ

How do we touch the living Christ? The answer to this question depends entirely upon our relationship to Jesus. If we are part of the multitude then we must try and touch Him; but if we are one of His little children then we may simply abide in Him.

Trust In My Life

Trusting His Life effectively positions the fulcrum in such a way that you exert very little force, while the Lever (Christ) does all the work . Of course we eventually arrive to the place of total rest and exert no self-effort at all. Simply “ask, and it shall be given unto you.”

Victory Is A Man

The one in Christ is seated with Him in the heavenly places. If we see ourselves in Him then we cannot help but understand that since the battle is already won, and Victory is ours, then we do not need a method or a technique designed to “get” a victory which we already possess.

What Light Teaches Us About Christ

Light is one of the most profound things God has ever created to teach us about Himself. The Law of Increase will be more easily understood when we consider it in the context of light.

Discipleship 

7 Progressions of Truth

There are seven stages of awareness through which we must pass through in order to bring ourselves out of bondage towards the fullness of Truth and into the life of an Overcomer. The following seven stages describe the spiritual growth of the Christian from sinner, to...

Adjustment to the Government of the Holy Spirit

Repentance, in its truest sense, is an adjustment of the heart, an adjustment of the mind, the thoughts, and the attitudes of the soul; and this leads (or should lead), to an adjustment in terms of things we used to do that we no longer do, or things we have not been doing that we begin to do.

Always Pray

Sometimes when we pray, we do not get the answer we want, or we do not get it in the timing that we want. It is easy in those situations to become frustrated, to become disappointed. This is why Jesus is giving the parable: to teach them that they ought always to...

Back to the Cross

In calling us to come back to the Cross, God is asking us lay down our lives and embrace the Wisdom of death, burial, resurrection, and ascension in order to live as sons and daughters within the Kingdom of God.

Be of Good Cheer!

The Bible does not promise anyone a world free from difficulties, challenges, trials, and tribulations. At the same time, Jesus does not want His followers to be overwhelmed or stressed-out. 

Being Thankful in a World of Entitlement

When we stop to reflect upon all that we have in Christ, it is natural and normal to respond with praise and thanks to God. The ones who live in Christ ought to be the most thankful, appreciative, and grateful people in the world – for In Him, and through Him, and because of Him, we have been blessed with every spiritual blessing.

The Blessing and the Breaking

The blessing of the Lord is in being reduced to Christ. Who is blessed? Not the one who is rich in spirit, but the one who is poor in spirit. The poor in spirit possess the Kingdom. Those who are broken are blessed, and those who are blessed are broken.

The Bird Clock: A Lesson in Grace

"My grace is sufficient for you, for My strength is made perfect in weakness." - 2 Cor. 12:9 When my older daughter was just a little girl (maybe 7 or 8 years old) she saved her money and bought a clock for her bedroom. This clock was very unique! Around the face of...

The Call of the Cross

It is unfortunate that after many years of service the Lord still has to call us back to the Cross, yet this is precisely where we should have begun. Although we ought to encourage people to come as they are and trust the Lord for salvation, we must also teach them that they must count the cost and take up the Cross: else they are not worthy of Jesus.

Can You Hear What the Spirit is Saying?

Children are led by God in a childish way, but as a mature believer the Lord will lead them in a mature way. Over time we are expected to know God’s WAYS as well as His WILL. When we know the ways of the Lord we will speak and move in harmony with His Spirit without having to consciously stop and ask for guidance.

The Classroom of the Cross

Jesus said that “in the world you will have tribulation” (Jn. 16:33). And since this is the case, we might as well make the best possible use of every difficulty and circumstance we find ourselves in. These difficulties will either makes us better, or make us bitter. Ultimately, the outcome depends upon how we choose to respond.

Come to Me… and Learn of Me

It is not learning about Christian things or religious things or spiritual things. It is not learning about the Bible. It’s not even learning ABOUT Jesus, it is learning OF Jesus FROM Jesus. Can you see that? Can you see the difference between coming TO Jesus and learning OF Him, versus coming to someone else and learning ABOUT Him?

Dealing With Difficulty

Since we cannot avoid having tribulation in this world, we might as well make the best possible use of every circumstance we find ourselves in. Begin to see all your temptations, tests, and trials as opportunities for growing, maturing, and learning how to live as an Overcomer.

The Disciple’s Goal

This is the goal of the disciple of Jesus. But how is that goal obtained? Where does one learn this single-hearted, single-minded devotion? This is what the Holy Spirit intends to teach us through the principles of Increase and Decrease.

The Discipleship Test

Calling Jesus “Lord” does not necessarily mean you have submitted to His Lordship. The proof of His Lordship over you is not in what you call Him; it is in the obedience to what He says…

Drowning in the Sea of Self

Just as a drowning man cannot be saved until he stops struggling, so must all who would be saved by Christ. Until you come to the end of yourself Jesus will not intervene. How hard it is for you to stop struggling and give yourself completely into the hand of God.

Enter the Kingdom

We cannot make the narrow Way more narrow than it is already, but we can certainly mislead people into believing it is wider than it really is. We dare not make it too difficult; but we should tremble at making it too easy.

Faith vs. Feelings

Many Christians wonder why their circumstances are so difficult. They wonder why things never seem to go their way. They wonder why everything seems to rise up and challenge them…

Freedom From Fear!

Most of our fears are a consequence of not knowing God well enough. Fear comes from uncertainty. If we are confident, secure, and certain about who we are in Christ, and who Christ is in us, then we won’t be worried about what the devil might do, and we won’t be worried about what other people might do.

The Foolishness of the Cross

What’s wrong with the Church is that Christ is not preached, the Cross is not taken up, and the Self has not died. So if I am to suffer, let me suffer for preaching the foolishness of the Cross.

The Goal of This Age

The answer to overcoming and obtaining the victory, reaching spiritual maturity in this age and spiritual perfection in the ages to come, is entirely dependent upon our relationship with this Person.  Will we, do we, abide in Him? Is He our dwelling place?

Hating for Jesus

Until and unless we have a holy hatred for evil then we will never overcome it with good. In your life you will always love something and hate something else. The question is whether or not you will love what God loves and hate what God hates, or whether you will love what God hates and hate what God loves.

The Hidden Wisdom

What does it mean when Paul says this wisdom is hidden? It means this wisdom is not obvious. It is not readily seen. It is camouflaged in such a way that you can be looking right at it and not know it. That is why everyone looks and listens but so few people “get it”. We CAN see it, and we CAN know it, but we must seek it out, because it hides from us.

How the Word Becomes Flesh

On December 25 each year many people celebrate Christmas, and while there are differences of opinion among Christians as to how or if this holiday should be observed, I take the same view as Paul…

How to Yield to God

In our daily life we come up against situations that we cannot overcome in our own strength, or with our own wisdom. We need a strength and a wisdom that comes from Above, that comes from Beyond, that comes from Another outside of us and yet rises up from within us....

The Infinite Supply of the Lord

It is never a question of how to get the Life to flow, or how to get the Lord to move. To tap into the Infinite Supply it is only a matter of being yielded to the Lord and emptied of ourselves. When this happens then the Life will flow of its own accord.

The Joy of Unconditional Surrender

This is a process at work within every man, woman, boy and girl: to bring each of them to the end of themselves so they will embrace Christ and be willing to lay down the tattered, filthy garments of self-centered living in exchange for the righteous robes of the Christ-centered life.

A Kingdom Manifesto

The Sermon on the Mount, as it is commonly known, begins with what some people refer to as The Beatitudes: “Blessed are…”. What follows is a kind of Kingdom Manifesto, some foundational truths that will help us to better understand what life is like in this Kingdom of God.

The Law of Decrease

Just like the Law of Increase, the Law of Decrease does not depend upon your understanding, agreement, or acceptance. It must be so, therefore it is so. Just as surely as Christ must increase, so you must decrease.

The Law of Increase

Once God has determined to do something, is there anything, or anyone, that can resist Him? Is man more powerful than God, or does it only seem that way sometimes?

Learning Contentment

“Not that I speak in regard to need, for I have learned in whatever state I am, to be content: I know how to be abased, and I know how to abound. Everywhere and in all things I have learned both to be full and to be hungry, both to abound and to suffer need. I can do...

Make A Fresh Start With God

Occasionally people write in to ask me for advice because they are worried that they are not really saved. I do not try to convince them that something they did in the past was sufficient; I simply have them make a fresh surrender, and then the question of being saved is settled once and for all.

The Most Basic Lesson

“I know that in me (that is, in my flesh,) dwells no good thing” (Romans 7:18a). It is a great day for the Lord when a disciple of Jesus learns this most basic lesson: that in “me”, in myself, in my flesh, dwells no good thing. This is a very difficult thing for...

The Most Urgent Need of Our Time

That we are living in the “perilous times” of the last days is seldom questioned – and yet, it seems too many Christians carry on with “business as usual,” taking for granted the unique dangers of living in the last days and being more concerned with personal needs than with the most urgent need of our time, a crisis that threatens the moral and spiritual fabric of our society and of the Kingdom of God.

The Need For Brokenness

"The LORD is nigh unto them that are of a broken heart; and saveth such as be of a contrite spirit. Many are the afflictions of the righteous: but the LORD delivereth him out of them all (Psalms 34:18,19)." "The sacrifices of God are a broken spirit: a broken and a...

A New Way to Pray: 4 Benefits

I think we all start out with a kindergarten-level understanding of prayer. I know I did. I suppose that is natural; unfortunately, too many people remain at that level and never advance beyond it. At first, prayer is all about “me.” My needs, wants, wishes, desires,...

Pleasing Man

Most Christians I know want to please God but they also want to please people or please themselves and Jesus said no one can serve two masters. I’m not saying be rude and abrasive and uncaring. Jesus certainly was not rude or mean. But He always pleased His Father. He didn’t try to please people.

The Prisoners of the Lord

"'Do you want to know the truth? The truth is that when you were young, you dressed yourself and went wherever you wanted to go. But when you are older, you will stretch out your arms and Someone Else will dress you and lead you where you do not want to go'. By this,...

Reckoning and Reality

Spiritual growth and maturity is the natural result of discovering something new in Christ, reckoning it to be so, living as if it is so (despite all evidence to the contrary), and then seeing our faith rewarded with tangible evidence, spiritual fruit, and practical results.

Reduced to Christ

The principle in John 3:30 is that I must decrease. As surely as Christ must increase, so I must decrease. It must be so; therefore it will be so.

Resurrected With Christ

If we share in His death then we will share in His life. How could it be otherwise? What is true of the Vine is true of the Branches that are part of the Vine.

The Sad Story of a Wise Old Fool

However well Solomon may have started out, and however well he may have lived for most of his life, Solomon did not finish well. He did not end his life on a good note. He ended poorly. He did not just make some mistakes towards the end of his life – he utterly, completely, and totally failed.

The Secret of Spiritual Power

Christians everywhere are keenly interested in how to be increased, how to be stronger, how to take authority, how to rise up, how to get more. They look for methods, formulas, and techniques for becoming bigger and better. The Lord has a different approach for us to take…

Should You ‘Fear’ God?

God does not lead us according to our fears. How easy it is to justify our fears under the pretext that, “This is how we feel led.” Are you really sure about that? Many times we aren’t led by God, we are led by our fears.

The Spirituality of Imperfection

Scripture is filled with paradox. If you want to save your life, Jesus says you have to lose your life. And that’s one of the of the great paradoxes of the spiritual life. I think we found another one here: “The Spirituality of Imperfection…”

The Two-Fold Work of the Cross

"Christ also suffered for us, leaving us an example, that you should follow His steps" (I Peter 2:21). If we were to ask a Christian, "Have you accepted the work of the Cross?" Many of them would say yes. If you ask them what the work of the Cross is, they would...

A Way in the Wilderness

"Behold, I will do a new thing; now it shall spring forth; shall you not know it? I will even make a way in the wilderness, and rivers in the desert" (Isaiah 43:19). "And Jesus being full of the Holy Ghost returned from Jordan, and was led by the Spirit into the...

The Way of the Cross

We talk about "one way", but there are really two ways: the broad way which many take, ending in death; and the narrow way which a few take, ending in life. There are two ways presented to us. One way is of man, seems right in man‘s opinion, and leads to death. The...

Who Then Can Be Saved?

Paul’s confession and the belief did not lead to this encounter with Jesus; it was the encounter with Jesus that lead to his confession and belief!  How quickly we forget – if we ever really understand it at all – that “you have not chosen Me, but I have chosen you” (Jn 15:16a). 

Why I’m Not Always Positive and Encouraging

This desire to provide people with a positive and encouraging experience creates an unrealistic expectation in the hearts and minds of the audience and congregation who have come to rely on “the ministry” to keep them properly fed.

Your Key to Personal Revival

The Ekklesia enjoys spiritual oneness with Jesus, and so it grows spiritually (and may I say it grows spontaneously) without effort, and is fruitful as it continues to abide in that spiritual oneness that already exists in Christ.

Ekklesia

4 Pillars of a Christ-Centered Faith

We must tear down the flimsy structures we have built and rebuild upon the firm foundation of Christ. I offer the following Four Pillars as a basis upon which the Ekklesia can re-establish itself in the current age and ensure the continuity of an authentic, Biblical, Christ-Centered Faith for this generation and for however many will follow.

5 Critical Needs for Christians “Outside the Camp”

just as the newly liberated Hebrews wandered the desert for forty years without entering the Promised Land, it is possible for newly liberated Christians to wander in the wilderness for years and never discover the purpose to which they are called.

5 Reasons Why Fellowship Eludes Us

If everyone is looking for fellowship, why is fellowship so hard to find?  And once we have found it, why is it so hard to maintain it? When God begins to bring you out of church and into a deeper relationship with Himself, there is a lot of unlearning that has to take place – particularly in the area of fellowship.

A Brief History of Called Out Peoples

Just as God called out a remnant of Jews to leave Babylon and journey to Jerusalem to rebuild the Temple, God has in these last days called out a remnant of Christians to leave “Churchianity” and take a journey through the wilderness. What is He bringing them to?

A Place for the Lord

Jesus often withdrew to a lonely place. More and more, we are finding Christians in these “lonely places” who are praying, waiting, and wondering. I believe this is the first step towards finding a place for the Lord – sensing the Lord’s Need for such a place.

Blessed Are The Disillusioned

We really ought to thank and praise God that people are sensing something of the Lord’s dissatisfaction with the way things are. Thank God for that disillusionment. People think disillusionment is a bad thing, but to be disillusioned means you have been stripped of your illusion so you can see what is real.

Bring Them to Christ

When we hear the phrase, “bring people to Christ” we are apt to think in terms of tent revivals, evangelistic meetings, and missionary campaigns. I’d like to expand your horizons a bit and get you to see that the whole aim and purpose of God is to bring us to Christ – not once, but continually, daily, hour by hour, minute by minute.

Churchianity Today

Those who ballyhoo the spiritual benefits of joining a church should be reminded that we are already joined to the Body of Christ, the Ekklesia, and are already realizing every spiritual benefit of membership in HIS Church. The only qualification for such membership is a New Birth.

The Crisis of a Christless Christianity

How easy it is for us to become distracted into something less than Christ! Are you centered on Christ? Is Jesus your obsession? Is He your focus? Or have you set your sights on something beneath Him? This speaks right to the heart of the crisis we find ourselves in today.

A Convenient Cult

Jeroboam’s concern is not for the people. His concern is not for the Lord, or for what the Lord requires. Jeroboam’s concern is only for self-preservation: the safeguarding of his leadership, the continuance of his kingdom, the prolongation of his own life.

Death of the Harlot Church

What is significant about this mass exodus is the numbers of people who are leaving their churches and not going back. They are not looking for another church to attend.

Dismantling the Religious Machine

The problem with the Religion Machine was that it started out as a neat invention designed to help people, but it wound up hurting them. The Machine was made for man, but soon man lived for the Machine and became dependent upon it.

Ephesus: The Loveless Church

Jesus prioritizes relationship over religion. What is religion? When you’re going through the motions of doing things for God when you’ve forgotten Who you’re supposed to be in love with. It’s when you take the “work of the Lord” and make it more important than the Lord of the Work.

Escape From Churchianity

If God would grant you a moment by His side and allow you a fleeting glance at His Church you would at once understand what a pitiful substitute we have in Organized Religion. There is no vanity so deep as religious vanity, nothing more sickening and diametrically opposed to the heart and ultimate purpose of God.

Family, Fellowship, and Leadership

If you primarily see fellowship as a verb, then of course you are very interested in where to meet, when to meet, how to meet…  To me, those questions and concerns are all based on a viewpoint that sees fellowship as a verb – something to be done.

Father Knows Best

To be a brother or sister we have to humble ourselves and recognize that we are not the Parent in God’s Family and they are not our children. We have One Father, and He is responsible for the correction, protection, discipline, and direction of His children….

The Fellowship of His Body

Everything you do (or do not do) as a member of the Body of Christ affects all the other members. No one is an island. The Difficult Path may be lonely at times, but we are never truly alone.

The Fig Tree Has No Figs

A growing number of people have come to the conclusion that the social benefits of going to church can no longer compensate for the lack of spiritual life.

Gathering: But Not For the Better!

Can fellowship only occur in the context of a church meeting? Once we realize that our fellowship is supposed to be based on a relationship with Jesus, not a relationship with “church”, we will discover that there are more opportunities for fellowship OUTSIDE the local church building than there are INSIDE.

The Harlot Church System

Babylon “by its sorcery has deceived the people of this world” (Rev. 18:23) – and I would say it has deceived many of God’s people as well. By the mere fact that God has to call His people to “come out of her” proves that she has, through sorcery and seduction, deceived not only the world but deceived many of God’s people.

The Harvest is Coming

The good news is that even if the Ekklesia has been underground, it is still growing and developing. When the season is right it will burst forth and once again those who have eyes to see will indeed discern the blade, the ear, and the full corn in the ear.

How to Find Fellowship Anywhere

Is there a place for fellowship? Absolutely! In fact, I know of three really good fellowships you can join today! If you are looking for fellowship with people and having a hard time making the connection, or if you are fed up and burned out with “like-minded people” who turn out to be anything but, then consider joining one, two, or all three of these fellowships. You will not be disappointed!

How to Give Correction

Obtain a genuine love for someone before you ever say anything. You should be able to pray for them and ask the Lord to soften your heart towards them. Otherwise, if you do go to them, your words may be correct, but your attitude will be wrong…

How to Handle Hypocrites

Jesus did not tolerate hypocrites. And if you are truly one with Him then you will sense His dissatisfaction with those things that claim to represent Him, but do not.

How to Keep the Sabbath

The Sabbath (and every other thing in the Old Covenant) points to a spiritual fulfillment in Christ. Jesus is not bound by any rule, or regulation, or tradition, that says thou shalt, or thou shalt not. He is Lord over the Sabbath; the Sabbath is not lord over Him.

Him We Preach

Not a doctrine, or a religion, or a catechism, but a Person, an exceedingly great and precious Person, this Preeminent Christ. Paul was not occupied with Christianity per se, and he would have nothing in common with the Churchianity we are all so familiar with; he was forever and always occupied with CHRIST.

Is Christian Unity Possible?

Jesus prayed for a spiritual unity in Him first and foremost.  From there anything is possible, even deep relationships and fellowship with others. But that can only happen when your spiritual life is founded upon a deep, abiding belief in three core principles… 

Is Jesus Enough?

Many things compete for our time, attention, affection, energy, and money. But there is only one Lord Jesus. Just as some people cannot see the forest for the trees, I believe most sinners cannot see Jesus for the Christians. And I believe most Christians cannot see Jesus for the “church”.

Jesus Is Building His Church!

Jesus is not building a denomination or founding a movement. The Church is not a denomination, but neither is it a non-denomination. It is not a steeple-house or institutional church, but neither is it a house church. Stated simply, the Church is a spiritual house of living stones, invisible to the naked eye, but clearly seen and known in Spirit.

The Last Exodus

If you follow this revelation of Christ to its ultimate conclusion, and if you truly desire to give Him preeminence in all things, then you will eventually find that you have nothing in common with the religious system that man has created in His Name.

Let Us Build for You!

The glory is in Christ, and not in a method, a meeting, or a movement: and it is for Him, and not for us. How quickly “It is good for us…” turns into “Let us build for You…” How subtle our flesh is! How often in the name of “fellowship” have we have built something “for” the Lord Jesus that really serves our own agenda?

Lonely, But Never Alone

Let us not be too quick to seek out others until we have reaped the benefits of being alone with God. Let us remember that Christ’s Body is a spiritual Body. Being in the physical presence of other members does not make us more of a member, and being removed from the physical presence of other members does not make us any less a member.

The Lord of the Work

The Scripture does not say, “Seek first the ministry.” It says to seek first the Kingdom of God. How does this apply to ministry? It means simply this: I must be governed by the Lord of the Work, not the work of the Lord. The Lord of the Work governs the time, the place, the people, the provision, and the assignment. All these things may change as the Lord of the Work sees fit.

Meeting Together: What’s Missing?

Without a purpose – and without leadership to keep people aligned to that purpose – home fellowships are as spiritually unsatisfying as the institutional church services they aspire to break free from.

The Ministry of One-Anothering

The ministry of One-Anothering doesn’t require a platform, a pulpit, a building, a budget, or a Board. You can start immediately, with no training and with no experience, and you don’t have to quit your job or do anything dramatic. The Life you possess qualifies you to be in the full-time ministry of One-Anothering.

The Missing Ingredient

Paul gave us an example to follow. Don’t just look at his calling and his gifting and his revelation. Look at his heart of love. He gave all – not just for the Lord, but for the Lord’s people. And they were a most carnal, unappreciative bunch of people. Even so, the heart of a father is demonstrated.

My Mother and My Brothers

Jesus is no ordinary person; He is the Son of the Most High God. What He demonstrates to them (in word and in deed) is that everyone who does the will of God is His brother, sister, and mother; that is to say, all the members of His family are on equal ground before Him. In this family He plays no favorites, He gives no preferential treatment.

No Fellowship? No Problem!

The purpose of solitude in the spiritual desert is to get you to see that Jesus is Enough. You’re not going to die from lack of fellowship, but if you don’t learn that Jesus is Enough then spiritually speaking you’re dead already. He’s the One you need to be focused on – not starting a fellowship, not finding a home group, not making something happen with other people.

Once Saved, Always Saved?

If there’s ever a case where you could say, “This really sheds some reasonable doubt on this idea of once saved, always saved,” – here’s this Scripture!

One Flock, One Shepherd

We hear a lot of talk about trying to unify the Church, but until we see that we are already One Flock we will just keep on talking about it and never experience it. We must see before God that He has already made us One Flock under One Shepherd. This is not some future event, but a spiritual reality, waiting for us to enter into.

Open Letter: Forsake Not the Assembling

I can appreciate your viewpoint because for many years I shared it, as a pastor and teacher in Organized Religion. But I no longer have that viewpoint, and so I disagree with your conclusions and your advice. Here’s why…

Ought Not This Woman Be Loosed?

Religion is on the side of bondage, tradition, conformity, uniformity, control, and manipulation. The Lord Jesus is on the side of liberty, freedom, deliverance, healing, setting free, releasing, and restoring that which is bound. And in ten seconds, Jesus did something that eighteen years of religion had been unable and unwilling to do.

The Purpose of All Ministry

“Perfection” here means “maturity”, and it would be good to simply remember that whenever we see the word “perfect” used in this context we should think “spiritually mature.” The perfecting of the saints means the maturing of the saints, the process of bringing the saints out of spiritual immaturity and into spiritual adulthood.

A Religion of Fear

My mission in life is to let people know that you don’t have to go to Church to find God. God’s favor doesn’t depend upon the Church’s favor. It just doesn’t. Religion is fear-based, and Relationship is love-based, and you can have that relationship right now. You know, that’s a revolutionary concept for most people.

Religion, or Spirit and Truth?

At first glance the Lord’s decision to accept Abel and reject Cain seems rather arbitrary. Both worshipped the Lord, and both brought the Lord a sacrifice. What makes one acceptable and the other unacceptable?

Revival, or Reformation?

There is a wonderful reformation happening right now – not within the religious system, but within the hearts and minds of people who are repudiating that system. There is a tremendous revival taking place right now, and it is a revival along spiritual lines, among those who have heeded the call to “come out of Babylon” and have been raised to new Life.

Say To Archippus

Archippus had received a ministry from the Lord, and he had not, as of yet, fulfilled it. Archippus knew it, and Paul knew it, and now everyone in Colossae knew it. He was called to something, and had received something from the Lord, but it was dormant, stagnant, inert, still waiting to be put to use.

Should Christians Celebrate Christmas?

Yes, I know that Jesus was not really born on December 25th. I’m not sure that anyone really thought He was born on December 25th. But way back in the fourth century, about the time that the Church became institutionalized and systematized, “the powers that be”...

To Whom Am I Sent?

Often we take the easy yoke and the light burden of the Lord and turn it into a difficult yoke and a heavy burden. This happens when we go beyond the place God has appointed us and take it upon ourselves to do things He has not called us to do, go to places He has not called us to go to, and speak with people to whom we have not been sent.

Till We All Come

Have we all attained to the full-knowledge of the Son of God? Have we all, as the Body of Christ (not just individually), grown into the fullness of Christ? Some may have, but it is clear that all have not. We still need the ministries of the apostle, prophet, evangelist, pastor and teacher “till we all come.”

A Warning to the Lukewarm

Stop defending and protecting what God has already judged and set apart for destruction. Don’t be destroyed with it. Build your house on a rock so you can withstand this flood that’s coming upon the whole earth; or, just keep frittering your life away on stuff that doesn’t matter, and see where that leaves you when all hell breaks loose.

Was Jesus Really a Rabbi?

I have generally assumed that Jesus was a Jewish rabbi. After all, He was born in Israel, He was Jewish, and people called Him, “Rabbi.” But that would make Him a professionally trained religious leader. Was He?

The Wisdom of the Pharisees

Come to Him and learn of Him. Repudiate the wisdom of the Pharisees and embrace this Man Who does not keep the Sabbath, because this Man is the Son of the Most High God, and there is therefore now NO condemnation to them which are in Christ Jesus!

The Work God Blesses

It took five hundred years of walking with God, but Noah found grace, and that made it all worthwhile. Let us learn to do nothing apart from this amazing grace. It is better to wait five hundred years for grace than to work for five minutes without it.

Worship: Person, Place or Thing?

Relationship views everything in terms of a "person." Religion views everything in terms of "place" or "thing." For example, people say, "I miss corporate worship." They are basically saying that they see worship as a "place," something to attend, a "thing" to be...

Why I Don’t Go to Church Anymore

The turning point in my life came in 1995. At that time I was a 24 year-old burned out pastor of a church that had just closed. I was a little angry, a little frustrated, and a little depressed. As I was half-reading and half-praying, I came across a passage that I had seen hundreds of times before…

Prophetic

7 Progressions of Truth

There are seven stages of awareness through which we must pass through in order to bring ourselves out of bondage towards the fullness of Truth and into the life of an Overcomer. The following seven stages describe the spiritual growth of the Christian from sinner, to...

Adjustment to the Government of the Holy Spirit

Repentance, in its truest sense, is an adjustment of the heart, an adjustment of the mind, the thoughts, and the attitudes of the soul; and this leads (or should lead), to an adjustment in terms of things we used to do that we no longer do, or things we have not been doing that we begin to do.

Always Pray

Sometimes when we pray, we do not get the answer we want, or we do not get it in the timing that we want. It is easy in those situations to become frustrated, to become disappointed. This is why Jesus is giving the parable: to teach them that they ought always to...

Back to the Cross

In calling us to come back to the Cross, God is asking us lay down our lives and embrace the Wisdom of death, burial, resurrection, and ascension in order to live as sons and daughters within the Kingdom of God.

Be of Good Cheer!

The Bible does not promise anyone a world free from difficulties, challenges, trials, and tribulations. At the same time, Jesus does not want His followers to be overwhelmed or stressed-out. 

Being Thankful in a World of Entitlement

When we stop to reflect upon all that we have in Christ, it is natural and normal to respond with praise and thanks to God. The ones who live in Christ ought to be the most thankful, appreciative, and grateful people in the world – for In Him, and through Him, and because of Him, we have been blessed with every spiritual blessing.

The Blessing and the Breaking

The blessing of the Lord is in being reduced to Christ. Who is blessed? Not the one who is rich in spirit, but the one who is poor in spirit. The poor in spirit possess the Kingdom. Those who are broken are blessed, and those who are blessed are broken.

The Bird Clock: A Lesson in Grace

"My grace is sufficient for you, for My strength is made perfect in weakness." - 2 Cor. 12:9 When my older daughter was just a little girl (maybe 7 or 8 years old) she saved her money and bought a clock for her bedroom. This clock was very unique! Around the face of...

The Call of the Cross

It is unfortunate that after many years of service the Lord still has to call us back to the Cross, yet this is precisely where we should have begun. Although we ought to encourage people to come as they are and trust the Lord for salvation, we must also teach them that they must count the cost and take up the Cross: else they are not worthy of Jesus.

Can You Hear What the Spirit is Saying?

Children are led by God in a childish way, but as a mature believer the Lord will lead them in a mature way. Over time we are expected to know God’s WAYS as well as His WILL. When we know the ways of the Lord we will speak and move in harmony with His Spirit without having to consciously stop and ask for guidance.

The Classroom of the Cross

Jesus said that “in the world you will have tribulation” (Jn. 16:33). And since this is the case, we might as well make the best possible use of every difficulty and circumstance we find ourselves in. These difficulties will either makes us better, or make us bitter. Ultimately, the outcome depends upon how we choose to respond.

Come to Me… and Learn of Me

It is not learning about Christian things or religious things or spiritual things. It is not learning about the Bible. It’s not even learning ABOUT Jesus, it is learning OF Jesus FROM Jesus. Can you see that? Can you see the difference between coming TO Jesus and learning OF Him, versus coming to someone else and learning ABOUT Him?

Dealing With Difficulty

Since we cannot avoid having tribulation in this world, we might as well make the best possible use of every circumstance we find ourselves in. Begin to see all your temptations, tests, and trials as opportunities for growing, maturing, and learning how to live as an Overcomer.

The Disciple’s Goal

This is the goal of the disciple of Jesus. But how is that goal obtained? Where does one learn this single-hearted, single-minded devotion? This is what the Holy Spirit intends to teach us through the principles of Increase and Decrease.

The Discipleship Test

Calling Jesus “Lord” does not necessarily mean you have submitted to His Lordship. The proof of His Lordship over you is not in what you call Him; it is in the obedience to what He says…

Drowning in the Sea of Self

Just as a drowning man cannot be saved until he stops struggling, so must all who would be saved by Christ. Until you come to the end of yourself Jesus will not intervene. How hard it is for you to stop struggling and give yourself completely into the hand of God.

Enter the Kingdom

We cannot make the narrow Way more narrow than it is already, but we can certainly mislead people into believing it is wider than it really is. We dare not make it too difficult; but we should tremble at making it too easy.

Faith vs. Feelings

Many Christians wonder why their circumstances are so difficult. They wonder why things never seem to go their way. They wonder why everything seems to rise up and challenge them…

Freedom From Fear!

Most of our fears are a consequence of not knowing God well enough. Fear comes from uncertainty. If we are confident, secure, and certain about who we are in Christ, and who Christ is in us, then we won’t be worried about what the devil might do, and we won’t be worried about what other people might do.

The Foolishness of the Cross

What’s wrong with the Church is that Christ is not preached, the Cross is not taken up, and the Self has not died. So if I am to suffer, let me suffer for preaching the foolishness of the Cross.

The Goal of This Age

The answer to overcoming and obtaining the victory, reaching spiritual maturity in this age and spiritual perfection in the ages to come, is entirely dependent upon our relationship with this Person.  Will we, do we, abide in Him? Is He our dwelling place?

Hating for Jesus

Until and unless we have a holy hatred for evil then we will never overcome it with good. In your life you will always love something and hate something else. The question is whether or not you will love what God loves and hate what God hates, or whether you will love what God hates and hate what God loves.

The Hidden Wisdom

What does it mean when Paul says this wisdom is hidden? It means this wisdom is not obvious. It is not readily seen. It is camouflaged in such a way that you can be looking right at it and not know it. That is why everyone looks and listens but so few people “get it”. We CAN see it, and we CAN know it, but we must seek it out, because it hides from us.

How the Word Becomes Flesh

On December 25 each year many people celebrate Christmas, and while there are differences of opinion among Christians as to how or if this holiday should be observed, I take the same view as Paul…

How to Yield to God

In our daily life we come up against situations that we cannot overcome in our own strength, or with our own wisdom. We need a strength and a wisdom that comes from Above, that comes from Beyond, that comes from Another outside of us and yet rises up from within us....

The Infinite Supply of the Lord

It is never a question of how to get the Life to flow, or how to get the Lord to move. To tap into the Infinite Supply it is only a matter of being yielded to the Lord and emptied of ourselves. When this happens then the Life will flow of its own accord.

The Joy of Unconditional Surrender

This is a process at work within every man, woman, boy and girl: to bring each of them to the end of themselves so they will embrace Christ and be willing to lay down the tattered, filthy garments of self-centered living in exchange for the righteous robes of the Christ-centered life.

A Kingdom Manifesto

The Sermon on the Mount, as it is commonly known, begins with what some people refer to as The Beatitudes: “Blessed are…”. What follows is a kind of Kingdom Manifesto, some foundational truths that will help us to better understand what life is like in this Kingdom of God.

The Law of Decrease

Just like the Law of Increase, the Law of Decrease does not depend upon your understanding, agreement, or acceptance. It must be so, therefore it is so. Just as surely as Christ must increase, so you must decrease.

The Law of Increase

Once God has determined to do something, is there anything, or anyone, that can resist Him? Is man more powerful than God, or does it only seem that way sometimes?

Learning Contentment

“Not that I speak in regard to need, for I have learned in whatever state I am, to be content: I know how to be abased, and I know how to abound. Everywhere and in all things I have learned both to be full and to be hungry, both to abound and to suffer need. I can do...

Make A Fresh Start With God

Occasionally people write in to ask me for advice because they are worried that they are not really saved. I do not try to convince them that something they did in the past was sufficient; I simply have them make a fresh surrender, and then the question of being saved is settled once and for all.

The Most Basic Lesson

“I know that in me (that is, in my flesh,) dwells no good thing” (Romans 7:18a). It is a great day for the Lord when a disciple of Jesus learns this most basic lesson: that in “me”, in myself, in my flesh, dwells no good thing. This is a very difficult thing for...

The Most Urgent Need of Our Time

That we are living in the “perilous times” of the last days is seldom questioned – and yet, it seems too many Christians carry on with “business as usual,” taking for granted the unique dangers of living in the last days and being more concerned with personal needs than with the most urgent need of our time, a crisis that threatens the moral and spiritual fabric of our society and of the Kingdom of God.

The Need For Brokenness

"The LORD is nigh unto them that are of a broken heart; and saveth such as be of a contrite spirit. Many are the afflictions of the righteous: but the LORD delivereth him out of them all (Psalms 34:18,19)." "The sacrifices of God are a broken spirit: a broken and a...

A New Way to Pray: 4 Benefits

I think we all start out with a kindergarten-level understanding of prayer. I know I did. I suppose that is natural; unfortunately, too many people remain at that level and never advance beyond it. At first, prayer is all about “me.” My needs, wants, wishes, desires,...

Pleasing Man

Most Christians I know want to please God but they also want to please people or please themselves and Jesus said no one can serve two masters. I’m not saying be rude and abrasive and uncaring. Jesus certainly was not rude or mean. But He always pleased His Father. He didn’t try to please people.

The Prisoners of the Lord

"'Do you want to know the truth? The truth is that when you were young, you dressed yourself and went wherever you wanted to go. But when you are older, you will stretch out your arms and Someone Else will dress you and lead you where you do not want to go'. By this,...

Reckoning and Reality

Spiritual growth and maturity is the natural result of discovering something new in Christ, reckoning it to be so, living as if it is so (despite all evidence to the contrary), and then seeing our faith rewarded with tangible evidence, spiritual fruit, and practical results.

Reduced to Christ

The principle in John 3:30 is that I must decrease. As surely as Christ must increase, so I must decrease. It must be so; therefore it will be so.

Resurrected With Christ

If we share in His death then we will share in His life. How could it be otherwise? What is true of the Vine is true of the Branches that are part of the Vine.

The Sad Story of a Wise Old Fool

However well Solomon may have started out, and however well he may have lived for most of his life, Solomon did not finish well. He did not end his life on a good note. He ended poorly. He did not just make some mistakes towards the end of his life – he utterly, completely, and totally failed.

The Secret of Spiritual Power

Christians everywhere are keenly interested in how to be increased, how to be stronger, how to take authority, how to rise up, how to get more. They look for methods, formulas, and techniques for becoming bigger and better. The Lord has a different approach for us to take…

Should You ‘Fear’ God?

God does not lead us according to our fears. How easy it is to justify our fears under the pretext that, “This is how we feel led.” Are you really sure about that? Many times we aren’t led by God, we are led by our fears.

The Spirituality of Imperfection

Scripture is filled with paradox. If you want to save your life, Jesus says you have to lose your life. And that’s one of the of the great paradoxes of the spiritual life. I think we found another one here: “The Spirituality of Imperfection…”

The Two-Fold Work of the Cross

"Christ also suffered for us, leaving us an example, that you should follow His steps" (I Peter 2:21). If we were to ask a Christian, "Have you accepted the work of the Cross?" Many of them would say yes. If you ask them what the work of the Cross is, they would...

A Way in the Wilderness

"Behold, I will do a new thing; now it shall spring forth; shall you not know it? I will even make a way in the wilderness, and rivers in the desert" (Isaiah 43:19). "And Jesus being full of the Holy Ghost returned from Jordan, and was led by the Spirit into the...

The Way of the Cross

We talk about "one way", but there are really two ways: the broad way which many take, ending in death; and the narrow way which a few take, ending in life. There are two ways presented to us. One way is of man, seems right in man‘s opinion, and leads to death. The...

Who Then Can Be Saved?

Paul’s confession and the belief did not lead to this encounter with Jesus; it was the encounter with Jesus that lead to his confession and belief!  How quickly we forget – if we ever really understand it at all – that “you have not chosen Me, but I have chosen you” (Jn 15:16a). 

Why I’m Not Always Positive and Encouraging

This desire to provide people with a positive and encouraging experience creates an unrealistic expectation in the hearts and minds of the audience and congregation who have come to rely on “the ministry” to keep them properly fed.

Your Key to Personal Revival

The Ekklesia enjoys spiritual oneness with Jesus, and so it grows spiritually (and may I say it grows spontaneously) without effort, and is fruitful as it continues to abide in that spiritual oneness that already exists in Christ.

ONLINE BIBLE STUDY

You have Successfully Subscribed!