Misled by the Leaders

Pastor Michael Joseph Gowon

 ^16. For the leaders of this people, caused them to err and they that are led of them are destroyed. -- Isa. 9

           How can a blind man lead a blind man, they will both fall into a ditch and be destroyed. The situation in the Church of the Living God today is very pathetic. Many of those we call our leaders have never surrendered themselves to the leadership of the Holy Spirit. They operate in the flesh, following human traditions and customs; they rely on their knowledge and understanding thereby misleading their followers. The Bible says, the leaders of this people are the cause of their going astray. Sure enough there were those kinds of religious leaders in Jerusalem when Jesus was on earth. One day when, He saw the multitudes and was moved with compassion for them He said, the people "Fainted and were scattered abroad as sheep having no shepherd" (Mat. 9:36)

          The leaders have led their followers unto eternal destruction and not to salvation. No wonder, I can hear a bitter cry in hell saying,

 ^20. The harvest is past, the summer is ended, and we are not saved. -- Jer. 8

           No one told them the need to be born again. Their modern Pastors only preached his popular prosperity messages and touched nothing about sin and forgiveness, or heaven and hell. Each time they gathered in Church, they only long for a good time, they crave for messages that will satisfy their selfish desires; in short they want their tasty, smooth, smart and simple sermons and not the truth. God will require their blood from such leaders.

        I read the testimony of Dr. Ray Charles Jarman long ago. Though he was considered a very successful minister by many people, he had no real joy, peace of mind or even assurance for the future. His success was only statistically speaking. In his own words he said, "I was neither a Christian, nor was I saved. Moreover, in all the 52 years that I preached, I did not bring one single person into salvation experience. Oh yes, hundreds-even-thousands joined the Church under my ministry. But, if they were saved, it was by the grace of God apart from me. You cannot give to another what you do not have yourself."

         Dr. Ray questioned the infallibility of the Bible, the creation story, the virgin birth, the bodily resurrection, the second coming and so on. Being a teacher of Meta-physics his messages were mainly methods of thinking constructively with a Christian flavour. There was no real spiritual conviction in his messages and nothing of the Gospel at all, though he was an ordained minister of the Gospel of Jesus Christ.

          Those who sat under his ministration were so happy to have such a minister because he preached what they wanted to hear. His Church was humming with bazaars, dinners, board meetings, Church promotions, parties and congregational activities. The people were comfortable, complacent and at ease. He never disturbed them with words like "sin", "repentance", "salvation", "hell", "judgement" "wrath", or "punishment." In his own style, he was modern and up-to-date, but never preached "the old-time religion" or even gave an altar call. Dr, Ray freely spoke about the cross, but avoided mentioning the blood. The Bible was used to take his texts, but he had no real hunger for the Word of God. He thought all along with his whole congregation that they were perfectly alright in the sight of God, and much better than all other groups. That was why the people came to hear him year after year without any concrete change. They were nothing but good Church people, living only for their possessions and the pleasure of this world as did the people who never went to Church-completely self-centered.

         

There are thousands of so- called ministers like Dr. Ray, but when Ray finally met Jesus, the story changed. He became a messenger with a definite message, the word of reconciliation. God wants His ministers to blow the trumpet in Zion, He don't want them to make an uncertain sound. There is a portion of meat in the Kingdom for every of God's people all over the world. God's Word to us is for a definite time and for definite individuals. God's desires for us to receive that portion of meat in due seasons and that will certainly be a word fitly spoken.

   Speak Unto Us Smooth Things

           In the days of Isaiah the prophet, there were those who were saying to the seers, "see not" and to the prophets they would exclaim "Prophecy not unto us right things, speak unto us smooth things, prophecy deceit." (Isa. 30:10)

        Today, like it was then, people are no longer interested in hearing the truth because it is more than they can bear. They don't want to have their consciences disturbed by the sincere truth of God's Word. Like sponges they are saturated with modernism. They substitute temporalities for eternal verities, the profit of the life that now is for that which is to come. Their concern is to cause the Holy one of Israel to cease from before them. The end result in such a religious culture is a costly waste. Such a people are marked by aimless activities, ignorant of the Scriptures, unbelieving and disobedient. They are simply uninstructed, though they may have information, their hearts’ longing is not for the true Gospel of Christ but for smooth things. This desire in the hearts of the Church people for smooth, soft messages is on the increase today and that is why men can no longer endure sound doctrines, but rather heap for themselves teachers after their own tastes.

           People with itching ears are turning away from the truth into fables and something ought to be done. (see 2 Tim. 4:3)  Much of what is being taught today from our pulpits can be best described as "smooth things" beautifully dressed and articulated to tickle the fancy of men but never to reach their hearts for Jesus.

           The doctrine of a lost eternity has been laid aside and in its place has come a doctrine of purgatory-a place where those who are unfit for heaven go until they are prepared for heaven. The tragedy I must still say is that there is nothing better that men like to hear than that they are on the road to heaven, when in reality they are on the broad way that leads to everlasting destruction. The leaders have led the people of God astray because they have not taken away the vile from the precious. The Word of God says, "If thou take forth the precious from the vile, thou shall be as my mouth." (Jer. 15:19b)

     God would surely desire a difference between the righteous and the wicked, but why must we continue to turn the truths of God's Word upside down at the whims of men and succumb to their request and go as low as possible to prophecy lies. (Jer. 23:25-26

        It doesn't matter what the people say as long as you have heard a word from heaven declare it, prophecy it and never hold back. Do not be afraid of the faces of men, whatsoever the Lord commands thee to do that must you do. This is not a time for keeping back, but rather a time to declare ALL the counsel of God. People may be offended by the truths you teach, but do not apologize, for of a necessity the Word of God must divide. We see a lot of mixed teaching and mixed services because we have not been told to come out from among...and be separate (2 Cor. 6:14-17).

                   We have not known who we are, the fact that we are a chosen generation, a royal priesthood, an holy nation, a peculiar people, that we should shew forth the praises of Him who hath called us out of darkness into His marvellous light. (1 Pet. 2:9) Friends may I repeat it here again, the Church needs a word from God, we need a word fitly spoken. 

 Dumb and Greedy Dogs

  ^10. His watchmen are blind; they are all ignorant they are all dumb dogs, they cannot bark: sleeping, lying down, loving to slumber.

^11. Yea, they are greedy dogs which can never have enough, and they are shepherds that cannot understand, they all look to their own way, every one for his gain, from his quarter.

^12. Come ye, say they I will fetch wine, and we will fill ourselves with strong drink, and tomorrow shall be as this day, and much more abundant. -- Isa. 56

           The leaders of the Church ought to know what their duty is and to do it faithfully. To Ezekiel the Lord said, "Son of man, I have made thee a watchman unto the house of the Israel, therefore hear the word at my mouth and give them warning from me." (Eze. 3:17).

                   But as long as the watchman does not have ears that hear from heaven, he will fabricate some psychology and daze the people with fables and fantasies. We have many hirelings who have no vision for the lost souls and because they have no vision they have no message (1 Sam. 3:1) and thus drift into escapism, self-pleasing, extremism and blither optimism. The Word of God describes such a people as blind and greedy dogs who cannot bark, but are just in love with excessive sleeping. They are only concerned with making gains and filling themselves with food and strong drink. I tell you the truth you are what you hear. The kinds of things you hear on the television or over the radio or from the pulpit or even in the buses or on the highway affects you psychologically, socially as well as spiritually.

         Except our ministers learn to hear a word, I and give men warnings "from Me" as the Lord declares, we can never receive a word fitly spoken from our pulpit ministry. It is time for our ministers to give due regard to what one old brother called "Pegs on which people can hang their thoughts." Those who wander in their preachings "from Dan to Beersheba" or from "Cape town to Cairo" to the boredom of even the most longsuffering of their hearers causes great harm to the kingdom of God. It is time to speak like the oracles of God, preaching "that which stirs and that which secures."

         The people of God needs edification, exhortation and comfort, and when we tarry long in His presence we shall surely bring forth a word for the hour, a message that settles our needs and questions. Sound words, plus sound doctrine makes a sound believer and a sound preacher . . . and leaves the audience sound in the faith. It is no longer time for negative preaching.

         When our preachers take their stand against sin, denouncing evil in the congregation and lifting up Jesus, there will surely be a positive change. When our messages build in the people and inspire them to victory we will see greater harvest than ever. When our messages are centered on the fault of the people without showing them the way out we are going down a dead-end street.

          Our preachers must be men with a positive message, creating faith in their hearers and lifting them up into new dimensions of Spiritual experiences. They should point their congregation to the mark of the high calling in Christ Jesus, and teach the people to be doers and not to be mere hearers alone deceiving themselves.

          When by their messages, they have brought the people of God to a point of rest in the Lord setting them free from the dominion and authority of Satan, there is surely going to be increased fruitfulness and usefulness to God and to fellow human beings.

  Paul, reminded Timothy to "Do the work of an evangelist." (2 Tim. 4:5). Timothy was a Pastor (1:3) but now the Apostle Paul was declaring a command to him to do the work of an Evangelist; to preach the Word, be instant in season, out of season, reprove, rebuke, exhort with all longsuffering and doctrine.

          There are those who have been deceived into thinking Pastors are so caring that they must not rebuke, so loving that they would not want to grieve or displease their people. And as such the soul winner is the Evangelist alone. But every man of God is meant to be a fisher of men. (Mat. 4:19, Jer. 16:16), and a soul-winner. There are ministers who have refused to pay the price that it takes to be a real soul-winner and have simply settled down to become a noise maker in the name of being a Teacher-Pastor. It takes diligence, willingness to pay the price to get to heaven. "It takes blood, sweat, tears, separation, consecration, purging and day by day denial of the self-life (Lk. 9:23), going outside the narrow gate, bearing the reproach of Christ to be a real soul winner. It doesn't matter your office or duty, whether you are a Pastor or Teacher what God desires is for all to be fishers of men.

 ^16.Behold ,I will send for many fishers, saith the Lord, and they shall fish them and after I will send for many hunters, and they shall hunt them from every mountain, and from every hill, and out of the holes of the rock. -- Jer. 16

           Every preacher is a fisher and a hunter. He must preach against sin if he must save souls.  We need to condemn sin, preach against sin and hate sin. We must not fear the faces of men but declare the Word of God in our mouth to the nations. John the Baptist, by the river of Jordan, preached repentance and that is the same message we ought to declare today. We have a responsibility to remind sinners and Christians that "the axe is laid unto the root of the trees and the tree that beareth not fruit shall be cut off and destroyed." (see Lk. 3:9)

            Peter stood boldly on the day of Pentecost and said to the soldiers that crucified the saviour and put the spear in His side, the priests, the Pharisees and leaders of Israel who had mocked Jesus,  “You killed the prince of life and desired a murderer to be granted unto you. You have crucified and slain the Lord of glory, but God has raised up, whom we are his witnesses."(Acts 3:14-15)

        Peter preached boldly, and that ought to be how every preacher should do. When the people later said, "You have filled Jerusalem with your doctrine." Peter answered them, "we ought to obey God rather than men." (Acts 5:28:19)

          Others in the Bible who preached without fear includes Jeremiah and Stephen. Our preachers today ought to preach on the dangers and sinfulness of alcoholism, the folly of discos and movies, the destruction of the occult and the falsehood of evolution. When they preach on "God's love" as recorded in (John 3:16), they have got to remind the people about "God's wrath" also from (Heb. 12:29; 10:31; Rom. 6:23 Num. 32:23; Gal. 6:7).

          The late John Rice said, "My God put men, not sissies, in the pulpit these days, I tell you the truth, the pulpit has lost the confidence and respect of the world these days. In these days we have nice, soft-spoken preachers who never hurt anybody's feelings, never offend anybody, never arouse anybody, and rarely save anybody!"

         We need messages that makes the people sleepless at night staring into the dark, afraid to go to sleep at night and forcing them into their prayer closets. These “peace-at-any-price preachers”, these "good-Lord and good-devil," milk-and cider preachers”, will never bring a revival. Many poor preachers preach with a certain fervour of heart that it will involve tears in preparation and tears in delivery that involves a straightforwardness, a commitment and an ear opened to the leading of the Holy Spirit. God is prepared to use the foolishness of preaching to save souls and thus we ought to preach about sin and death and judgement and the Second Coming of Christ and the coming wrath of God. We do not need to trick men around with fake emotionalism and fake sensational stunts, but with the boldness of God, the fire of the Spirit, and the kind of preaching that forces men to their knees with tears of repentance, trusting in Jesus Christ. By this we will take the world over for Jesus. Good preaching also causes some people to go out in hate, gnashing their teeth but that is what we will continue to give out until He returns.

 

SPORTS FANATIC

 

They rushed into the stadium with the zeal of Paul, but looking at them closely one would see a proud posture in the way they matched around and in the way they talk.  Some of them appeared decent, but others of them were ruffians, ruffians in the heart as well as in the way they fixed their dress.

 

They were hailing the name of a football team that has become very popular in town, they were dancing and singing inciting challenging and accusive songs.  When I asked my friend who they were he said, these are fans, supporters of the XY Club.  But what I saw were fanatics and not fans.  Football now is one of the most popular sports of the century.  The origin of football is remote, but it dates back to as early as 1000 BC. One of the most highly esteemed pastimes of the Chinese was the Tsu‑chu that is "a leather ball kicked with the foot."

 

In 500 B.C Tsu‑chu was included in the programmes for familiarity training of the Chinese armies.  From that time until today football has become an outstanding action packed event that is enjoyed everywhere around the world.  It is played by two teams of 11 people each, in which players by to get the ball into the other side's goal.  The games is guided by a host of rules and the referee is present to make sure these rules are respected and obey and normally, his decision is final.  The dictionary defines sports as that which diverts, and makes merry.  It means to play or to frolic.  Sport causes amusement, sports are pastimes stressing physical still and strength, Amateur sports are primarily intended for enjoyment of the participants, while professional sports are for the entertainment of the spectators.

 

The annual budget allocation for sports in different nations have been increasing in alarming proportion over the years.  The government seems to catalogue numerous advantages fort sports.  The say sports is a means for

(1) Entertainment

(2) Socialization

 (3) Development

(4) Unity

(5) Tourism  

 

A part from the benefits of good heath the players enjoy there is a financial gain and popularity attached to it. It is true that sports men have wonderful advantage but let me caution you also that this game has equally destroyed the faith of many believers.  The Late. J. Clarke said, "Never does man appear to greater disadvantage than when he is the sport of his own ungoverned passions." A lot of people are being tossed about because their excessive passions for sports.

Tragic events have occurred all over the world because of this game football, and yet the number of fans keeps increasing geometrically.  During one of the African cup of Nations' finals between Nigerian and Zambia, Zambia made the first goal and in a short while the Nigeria Green Eagles equalized.  A keen spectator and supporter watching on the TV was so overjoyed.  He jumped up hailing out victory and immediately dropped down, he passed out feces and urine and died later in the hospital.

 

A woman divorced her husband for neglect due to sports. Another man killed his wife for putting off the light accidentally while he was watching football on his TV. During the USA'94 games a player accidentally scored his team and immediately the encounter was over he got 12 bullets shots that blew his heart asunder to death. Some players even go ahead to seduce themselves with drugs to increase their efficiency so that they can operate beyond mere natural strength and to take away fear.

 

I also a heard of another woman in a certain country who shot herself to death because her country was defeated in a football match with another country.  There was a man who was a staunch supporter of a certain football club.  He was watching his members on a friendly encounter with another team on his recently purchased Television.  But because his team was defeated he got annoyed and used a heavy metal rod and blew off his TV into pieces. During the recent USA'94 world cup.  Two young brothers of the same mother were arguing and boasting to one another.  One was saying 'I am more current in watching the USA '94 encounter and I know the circumstances surrounding the score of certain goals more than you.' This assertion provoked his a dirty slap.  That ended his brothers' life immediately.

 

At a doctor's request a particular patient on a wheel chair was brought to watch the football match between the Nigerian team and the Italian team.  This patient jumped up out of his sit and broke his leg because of excessive joy when Italy defeated Nigerian and later died in the hospital. A hypertensive man in a certain city in Nigeria cup, when Nigerian won one of the preliminary match for an over flow of joy fell down and died. Stories of this kind abound, but let us learn something from these sports fans.  Though they are spectators, personally present to behold the game, they commit not only their substance into it but even their lives.  Some football fanatics don't mind spending a match in a faraway country.

 

Some of these sports men are married to their games.  Some prefer to face the risks involved in than to pay the price of taking the baby for nine months and thus hindering their regular participation in sports. A lot of spectators normally have this "I can do better ‑‑if I were the one syndrome" They import that spirit from the football filed to the church.  They sit on their seats to count the mistakes of ministers and underrate their grammatical constructions, thus they come out without any blessing. But the fact still remains that Christian have a lot of lesson to learn from sports fanatic.  Christianity is a race, a game, a battle and a way of life.  It does not leave out any man no matter how rich or how poor to be a spectator but it demands all of us to be participators. The Bible tells us that we have a cloud of witnessed surrounding us:

 

1. Therefore, as we have so vast a cloud of spectators (witnesses) in the grandstands, let us throw off every impediment and the sin that easily entangle our feet, and run with endurance the race for which we are entered, ^2.Keeping our eyes on Jesus, the perfect leader and example of faith..."    --Heb. 12:1,2 Williams)    As long as we are involved in this holy way of living, there would be no room for finger pointing you are not a spectator, you are called to participate in the matters of  the kingdom.  The Christian life is more than just an imitation of Christ.  It is a participation with Christ. "For we are made partakers of Christ" (Heb. 3:14). They proceed on the basis of imitation in our Christian life will plunge us in the same a mess Paul found himself in (Romans 7).

 

They are committed to their team and are ready to do anything to support it.  Can this be true of your Christian faith? Or have you placed sports above Christ?  You can forego church service, Bible study or prayer meeting to go to the stadium to be a spectator.  Our Evangelist said one day, "If it is brother so and so I know he will not come for fellowship today because there is a football match in the stadium..." what a poor testimony to be said about a Christian.  Some people can be indoors just to watch football, basket ball or wrestling on TV but cannot afford to stay a full hours in Church.  That is a misplaced priority.  God wants us to have greater zeal for his work than we have for sports.  To commit ourselves to nothing but to kingdom issues, to be dedicated and extremely sold out to fulfilling the task before us. May God help us to pick this great lesson from sport fanatics to be Jesus radicals.  Never laggard about the issues of eternal life but constantly on the move, on our knees and reaching out.  We are not spectators, we are called to participate.                                                

 

Pastor Michael Joseph Gowon

 

 

SATISFIED CHRISTIANS

 "The Christian is always in the process of becoming" - Martin Luther 

 "No matter how full the river, it still wants to grow" - An African proverb

 "Be dissatisfied enough to improve, but satisfied enough to be happy."

-J. Harold Smith.

Show me a thoroughly satisfied man, and I will show you a failure

– Thomas A. Edison

 

The word' satisfied' is a simple one, but it has a lot of significance. It denotes the conclusion of a struggle or conflict. In its broadest definition, satisfied denotes the completion of a task, the achievement of a goal, the fulfillment of a hope, and the completion of an assignment. In a less honorable definition, however, it connotes a static state, a halt, or stagnation in human or spiritual matters. If you've had the good fortune to attend meetings where great speeches were given, excellent papers were presented, great responses were given, and many unique insights were shared, you've likely heard about the Church's weaknesses and strengths, as well as several good suggestions for improvement. You'll notice that these are primarily our thoughts, rather than what God says. We have progressed to the point where we no longer refer to the Bible. The world is hungry to hear and see new things, and I feel that they want to hear what the Bible has to offer.

 "I believe I slept too near to the area I got in," a tiny boy said when asked why he felt out of bed. That is the story of many Christians today; they did not mature as Christians after becoming Christians. Their lives are littered with "failures." But you'd better understand that it's time to put your childish tendencies aside and grow up. Why, despite all of today's preachings and teachings, do we see such minimal changes in people's lives? Amid so much spiritual effort, there is a spiritual dryness. The devil will allow us to accomplish many good things if we set aside a portion of ourselves for ourselves. So long as we do not completely surrender to Jesus Christ, the devil will allow us to preach, teach, give from our abundance of material blessings, witness, pray, read our Bible regularly, and be good and kind. Preaching that kills is more common than preaching that saves. It's no surprise that when we talk about becoming better Christians, it sounds strange to so many people.

 "To them Christians are alike, all have been justified and forgiven, and all are children of God," writes A. W. Tower (1960), "so to make the comparison between them is to suggest division and bigotry and several horrible things." Many people have been in a state of suspended growth from childhood to old age and have been completely unaware of it. To be a satisfied Christian, you must have reached a point where you no longer desire change. You become complacent, at ease, and uninterested in achieving the glory that God intended for you. A contented Christian is a self-assured individual. He has faith in himself, in his intelligence or wisdom, as well as his dexterity and comprehension. Such self-assured Christians are frequently arrogant and rebellious. Competition and comparison are a part of their lives.

 "For we are the circumcision, who worship God in spirit and exult in Christ Jesus, and have no confidence in the flesh," the Bible says (Phil. 3:3).

 Nathan, Abiram, and Dothan were confident in themselves and compared and compared themselves to Moses, God's servant. "The Lord will show who is His," Moses murmured, and the ground opened its jaws and swallowed them up. When Miriam looked down on Moses, God smote her with leprosy. To put us into action for Jesus, we need the Holy Spirit's unction. This is the sole force that will allow you to overthrow Satan's dominion and fulfill your master's expectations for your lives. This is not the time for complacency. While in this mortal body, we will never reach a point of total growth beyond which there is no further progress.

 "The Christian is continually in the process of becoming," says Martin Luther. What exactly are you transforming into? Every day, I strive to be a greater saint. Our entire lives should be devoted to becoming practical men of God. "Great minds have purposes; others have wishes," Washington Irving once stated. As a Christian, your daily ambition must be to fulfill God's tremendous purposes for your life; this is why we are always evolving, growing, and ascending to new spiritual heights of victory.

 Aim for the Moon

Less "Shoot for the moon; even if you miss it, you'll land among the stars," Brown advises. Some people set their sights so low in life that they never achieve anything. Because our calling is a high calling, we must reach for the moon and aim high. You are constantly being called from inside to reach greater heights in the heavenly realms. You are not intended to be earthbound if you have answered the holy calling. You are expected to soar to the high places, to that height of splendor never before experienced. Those who govern with Christ must lead from the throne in the skies, and if you are content with everyday life, you will become disabled in the kingdom. Your destiny is to soar high, not to dwell in this miserable realm. We must sing the praises of Him who has brought us out of the darkness and into His wonderful light. We should fix our gaze on things above rather than on things below, seeking first the kingdom of God and His righteousness. This mind that is in Him must be ours. God's desire is for us to become one with Himself. No wonder Jesus prayed and said, "that they all may be one as thou, Father art in Me, and I in thee, that they also may be one in us . . . I in them, and thou in Me, that they may be made perfect in one, and that the world may know that thou hast sent Me, and hast loved them, as thou hast loved Me.”

 It's what we were made for. The "travail of His soul" for us will not be satisfied until we have cognitively comprehended it and deliberately consented to embrace it, nor have our hearts found their destiny and absolute peace. We must get to a point in our lives when we no longer exist, but Christ crucified on the cross of Calvary lives in us. Then we are transformed into "Partakers of His divine nature," Christ-like and Christ-centered. The self-life has been entirely extinguished and obliterated.

 Is it your soul's desire to soar towards such a fantastic destiny? You were formed for such a wonderful place, and you have been instructed to enter it. Elisha, the prophet, pleaded for God to open his servant's eyes to see the unseen. We need to be "raptured" away from the low, worldly, groveling plane of life, where everything hurts since the world around us is full of God's horses and chariots waiting to bring us to places of beautiful victory. Everything is unhappy until we ascend into the heavenly realms in Christ Jesus, where we can triumph over everything below. When you are well above sea level, you can see far ahead, but not when you are 'below sea level.' It's now time to soar into the "hidden life with Christ in God."

 "Things look extremely different depending on the position from which we perceive them," Hannah W. Smith says. The caterpillar's vision of the world as it crawls along the ground must be vastly different from that of the identical caterpillar once its wings have evolved. It soars through the skies, soaring over the spots where it once crept." The Christian who is crawling sees things differently than the Christian who has mounted up with wings. When the valley below is enveloped in fog, the mountain top may blaze with sunlight, yet the birds whose wings can lift them high enough can mount at whim from the obscurity below into the joy of the sunlight above. We are born to conquer and control. We must "come over" rather than be "crushed under" if we are born to overcome. Your soul was created to "flee on horses" rather than "mount up with wings." Flying upwards, rather than east or west, is the only way to escape the bonds and miseries of life down below. It's perilous to be a contented Christian. To be a contented Christian is to slam on the brakes; you become dead and inactive. The Christian life is like a man riding a bicycle; he either cycles and keeps moving or stops and falls. As soon as you stop growing as a Christian, you begin to deteriorate. You die when you stop living. Is it necessary for us to mature into the "measure of Christ's stature?" How much longer will you be a baby in need of milk? It's past time for you to develop the kind of robust meat you'll need to be complete in the word of righteousness and differentiate good from evil. For far too long, the Church has been subjected to "spiritual kwashiorkor," but how much longer can this be tolerated? How much longer will we be helpless, disabled, and irresponsible? We require genuine and progressive progress into the Promised Land. Have you been spiritually growing since you were reborn? How much more unworldly and devoted to the Lord are you now than you were when you first became a Christian? Selah.

 Allow God to transform your mindset from one of failure to one of victory. Never be pleased with yourself. Always be on the lookout for new horizons, understand your destiny, and keep invading.

  Do Not Take us over the Jordan

 ^1. "When Israel arrived in the land of Jordan and Gilead, the tribes of Reuben and Gad (who had large flocks of sheep) noticed what a wonderful sheep country it was.

^2. So they came to Moses and Eleazar, the priest and the other tribal leaders, and said,

^{3 & 4”} The Lord has used Israel to destroy the population of this whole countryside- Ataroth, Dibon, Jazer, Nimrah, Heshbon, Elealeh, Sebam, Nebo, and Beon. And it is all wonderful sheep country, ideal for our flocks.

^5. Please Let Us Have This Land as our portion instead of the land on the other side of the Jordan River”

^6. "You mean you want to sit here while your brothers go across and do all the fighting?" Moses demanded.

 ^7. "Are you trying to discourage the rest of the people from going across to the land that the Lord has given them?” (Num. 32:1-7 TLB).

 Many Christians today can relate to these few verses. The Reuben and Gad tribes have completed their journey and are currently in the land of Jazer and Gilead. Their target is Canaan, but while they were here, they believed they had arrived and gave up their efforts to move to the location that God had planned for them to possess earlier. They settled beside the Jordan opposite Jericho after conquering the nations in the plain of Moab. Because Jordan stood between them and the promised inheritance, it was also to serve as a springboard for an invasion of Canaan. The offspring of Gad and Reuben, on the other hand, chose not to carry forward with God's plans for their lives. They were content in the land of Jazer and Gilead. All they wanted was a property that was ideal for animals. But I'm not going to give up my gloves half-heartedly like a half-hearted man in any other situation "I'm going to fight till I get into "Canaan-the land flowing with milk and honey" and refuse to go into "Jazer-the land of beasts." Many Christians today are content with replacements and are no longer on the lookout for the greatest and ultimate. As a Christian, though, this is a tragic and sad conclusion to arrive at. Others, on the other hand, might choose to "While their brothers go across and do all the fighting, they sit here." Gad and Reuben's children presented their requests humbly and sensitively.

 "Therefore, if we have found grace in thy sight, let this country be given to them for a possession, and do not carry us over Jordan," they begged (verse. 5).

 They exclaimed, "If we have gained grace in thine sight." Many people, including them, misunderstand and misinterpret grace. Grace is viewed by them as the ability to do whatever they choose. I read something about grace a few weeks ago that I will never forget. Though grace is our savior (Eph. 2:8), I discovered that grace not only saves but also teaches us. Grace, on the other hand, can only be your teacher if he has also been your savior. Before you may achieve your entire destiny, you must be a student who must pass through the school of grace.

  ^11. "For the grace of God that bringeth salvation hath appeared to all,

^12. Teaching us that, denying ungodliness and worldly lusts, we should live soberly, righteously, and godly, in this present world” (Tit. 2:11, 12).

 All men have access to God's grace, which leads to salvation. Grace begins to educate you to deny ungodliness and worldly lusts and to live soberly, righteously, and godly in this present world after it has saved you. Gad's and Reuben's children had no understanding of the teaching dimension of grace. They didn't live to please the Lord, but to satisfy their own desires.

 Despite Moses' description of the land, they should possess as "the land you are crossing the Jordan to own," they begged Moses not to take them across the Jordan. "Please give us this land instead of the land on the opposite side of the Jordan River as our portion." (TLB). This is really a dreadful request. Instead of the best the Lord has intended for them, they were content to receive some lowly good-looking replacement. God has the best plans for your life, but consider how many times you've requested strange things instead of the best God has in store for you. God never makes a mistake in His plans for your life, but we often insist on the opposite, which is to our detriment. Everything that has ever occurred to you and everything that will happen to you in the future is all part of His flawless plan. He lets them purify you into the vessel He intended for you to be. Do not be like Gad's children, who will choose the good over the best.

 The descendants of the Gad tribe, mentioned in Mark 5:1, expel Jesus from their land. They were residing on the wrong side of the Jordan River and had also gotten into the pig business, and when the demoniac of Gadarenes was healed, it saddened them so much that they expelled Jesus from their territory since they had lost all their pigs.

  "And they came over unto the other side of the sea, into the country of the Gadarenes... and they began to pray him to depart out of their coasts” (Mrk. 5:1-17).

 Any child of God who does not cross the Jordan into the land of promise generally becomes enslaved to some "pig business." He becomes a slave to some humdrum tasks, possibly even religious rituals, but without Jesus and the Holy Spirit. May we never be satiated, but rather be filled with new passion every day to be a distinct people who have broken free from our time's dead and dry religiosity to soar like eagles into His bosom.

 ^1. O Lord, you have examined my heart and known everything about me.

^2. You know when I sit or stand when far away you know my every thought.

^3. You chart the path ahead of me and tell me where to stop and rest. Every moment, you know where I am.

^4. You know what I am going to say before I ever say it.

^5. You both precede and follow me, and place your hand of blessing on my head.

^6. This is too glorious, too wonderful to believe.

^7. I can never be lost to your spirit! I can never get away from my God.

^8. If I go up to heaven, you are there; if I go down to the place of the dead, you are there.

^9. If I ride the morning winds to the farthest oceans

^10. even there, your hand will guide me; your strength will support me.

^11. If  I try to hide in the darkness, the night becomes light around me.

^12. For even darkness cannot hide from God; to you, the night shines as bright as day. Darkness and light are both alike to you.

^13. You made all the delicate inner parts of my body and knitted them together in my mother's womb.

^14. Thank you for making me so wonderfully complex! Marvelous-and how well I know it.

^15. You were there while I am being formed in utter seclusion!

^16. You saw me before I was born and scheduled each day of my life before I began to breathe. Everything was recorded in your book.

^{17, 18.} How precious it is, Lord, to realize that you are thinking about me constantly. I can't even count how many times a day your thoughts turn towards me. And when I awaken in the morning, you are still thinking of me!

^19. Surely you will slay the wicked, Lord! Away, bloodthirsty men! Begone!

^20. They blaspheme your name and stand in arrogance against you--how silly can they be

^21. O Lord, shouldn't I hate those who hate you? Shouldn't I be grieved with them?

^22. Yes, I hate them, for your enemies are my enemies too.

^23. Search me, O God, and know my heart, test my thoughts.

^24. put out anything you find in me that makes you, and lead me along the path of everlasting life” (Psa. 139:1-24 TLB).

 God knows everything there is to know about you. He drew up the map and planned to go ahead of you and tell you where to rest. He created all of your body's delicate inner workings and knitted them together in your mother's womb. You've been created in such a way that you're both complex and clear to Him. He has planned each day of your life since before you were born, and He has a record of each new day before Him. He is constantly thinking about you and will do everything in his power to slay the dragon that is attempting to take your life. What an amazing God we serve.

  Grow in Grace and Knowledge

 "It is a wretched taste to be gratified with mediocrity when the excellent lies before us” Isaac D. Israeli.

 "But grow in grace and the knowledge of our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ” The Apostle Peter in 2 Peter 3:18

 Many of you have felt lost in life's wilderness. You've learned that after so many years of wandering aimlessly and shamefully away from the center of life, you're no closer to the Promised Land than you were at the start.

 "Peter stated," "grow gracefully" Growing in grace is being more like the Lord Jesus while growing in knowledge means learning more about Him and His atonement. Life is never predictable. Even in its most basic form, every living thing in our cosmos is in a perpetual state of flux. According to Chuck Swindol, "Grace will teach you compassion, and knowledge will teach you discernment. Grace will help you smile; knowledge will help you think. Grace will result in vulnerability, and knowledge will result in instability.^[1]"

 We must strike a balance between grace and knowledge. Grace is the most fertile soil, and the plants that thrive there have enormous growth potential. They are nurtured by a divine husbandman and are warmed by the sun of righteousness and refreshed by divine dew. They will, indeed, bear fruit, some a hundredfold, sixtyfold, others thirtyfold. Choose between being a well-known Christian or a practical Christian, an 'A' level Christian or a contented moron. Growth is essential to life, and when it stops, degeneration sets in.

 Any Christian who is content with his experiences and craves no greater fullness of God, no higher purity, no greater love for souls, and no greater need for the pruning, purifying, watering, and caring of the great and skilled husbandman will soon show signs of spiritual decay. Christianity and greatness should go hand in hand, but it's a shame that today's churches are full of mediocre, lukewarm, half-hearted Christians. We are a failure and a defeat, which is why we have become unimportant in our society, yet God is calling you to radical Christianity. Even though many individuals hear the gospel, the majority have little willingness to follow it.

 "What good is it to speak learnedly on the Trinity if you lack humility and thereby offend the Trinity?" Thomas A. Kempis asked. High-sounding words do not make a man holy, but a decent life does. I'd rather feel contrition than be able to articulate it. How would knowing the entire Bible and all of the philosophers' teachings benefit you if you didn't have God's favor and love?^[2]"

 Keep constantly in mind the saying, "the eye is not satisfied with seeing nor the ear filled with hearing” (Ecc. 1:8). Strive to withdraw your heart from the love of visible things and direct your affections to things invisible.

 If we are to fulfill God's demands for our life, we need His grace now more than ever. This is the time to act our age and progress to greater heights. "Many present-day Christians appear to have experienced three stages of life, condemnation, salvation, and stagnation," writes Leonard Ravenhill, author of the classic book "Why Revival Tarries." That, I believe, is the case. We have condemned criminals before we came to know Jesus as Lord and Savior since we were born sinners; but, even after redemption, there has been no growth but stasis. Examine your life; if this is your Christian witness, you should continue on to the lovely abundant life in Christ Jesus. "Babyhood is a beautiful thing, but continuous babyhood is awful," Ravenhill added. Perpetual spiritual infancy is a source of shame for God." My buddy, don't be "casual" or "sold out" to anything; instead, be a strong fighter who is all in for God's glory and nothing else.

 Just "casual"—nothing is set in stone

 The Laodicean Church was accused of being at rest and satisfied, not of sin, wrong theology, or any other crookedness. God has given you a warrior spirit, and He wants you to be militant, dedicating yourself to prayer, evangelism, and other Christian tasks. "I am satisfied and increased with goods, and have no need of anything," the Laodicean Church declared. They had no idea that they were "wretched, unhappy, impoverished, blind, and naked" in God's eyes. "I'm interested in everything a little bit," a Hollywood actress once declared. That is to say, she isn't particularly invested in anything. She is uninterested in a wide range of topics. Are you like that, unconcerned about anything? This spirit manifests itself more clearly in the religious sphere, which is why we have so many casual Christians. Sunday-morning saints with only a rudimentary interest in the "Church"—along with clubs and lodges, football and development associations, and tribal gatherings—and they only manage to include some religion. They are just Christians who are chilly, meek, and unpretentious.

 Casual disciples have no place in our Lord's plan. When people saw Jesus' miracles, they believed him, but He didn't keep track of them. He had not expected them to show up. He didn't put his faith in them. It's time to either serve God with everything we have or never serve Him at all.

 ^24. "But Jesus did not commit himself unto them because he knew all men.

^25. And needed not that any should testify of man. For he knew what was in man” (Jn. 2:24-25).

 You are known to Jesus. Everything changes when you decide to let Him guide your life. Everything works for His greater glory and your good. A preacher or teacher who is content with the level of power and competence with which he preaches or teaches the gospel has achieved the pinnacle of his or her ministry. And such a person will not improve and will lose God's favor. We've remarked previously that following Jesus is like riding a bicycle: you have to keep going or you'll tumble. We must have a vision since we will perish if we do not have one. Vision is a desire to achieve something that is yet to be realized, such as an unrealized object or a goal that has yet to be accomplished. God has imbued everyone with a feeling of eternal destiny; everyone possesses an unlimited deposit, and he must be assisted in recognizing it. Vision offers direction, vision creates and prepares you, vision produces faith, vision keeps you going, and you need a vision of God for your life if you want to progress as a Christian.

  "He has made everything beautiful in its' time. He has also set eternity in the hearts of men. . .” (Ecc. 3:11 NIV).

 The poorest guy on the planet is not one who lacks money, but one who lacks vision. It needs the Holy Spirit to reveal this profound truth that God has implanted in our hearts for all eternity. He brings us into His expectations when we surrender to Him.

  Paul Was not satisfied

  "That I may know Him and the power of His resurrection and the fellowship of His suffering being made conformable unto His death” (Phil. 3:10).

 Many Christians frequently declare, ""All I want to be like Paul is to be like him." They have made the apostle Paul their highest standard, using passages from the Bible midway through in which Paul says, ""Imitate me..." and stay at the same level. The Christian life is one of participation rather than mere imitation (Heb. 3:14). We are to walk in the footsteps of Jesus (1 John 2:6), love our adversaries (Matt 5:44), and forgive as Jesus did (Col. 3:13). Not apostle Paul, but Jesus must be our ALL in ALL. I'm not trying to diminish his efforts, but I do want you to be aware that there's a lot more to Paul's story than you may think. Paul is a wonderful role model for us. His transformation was extraordinary. The intimate revelation of Jesus revealed to him all the wonderful plans of God's salvation for a lost world. He reaped a higher number of souls than all of the apostles put together. He had experienced Jesus' sufferings in a way that no one else had. One would assume that the elderly Paul would be at peace and content, yet his hungry, burning soul was always pushing forward. He said, "I count not myself to have apprehended, but this one thing I do forgetting those things which are behind, I press towards the mark for the prize of the high calling of God in Christ Jesus.”

 "I am not satisfied; I forget my past successes and mistakes, my broken promises because today is a new day, and I still have a chance to do better for Jesus as long as I am alive," Paul was saying.

 Is It True That Our Salvation Is Satisfying?

 Yes, there is enormous joy in having sins forgiven and being regenerated. But there should be a divine discontent with our progress in the grace that keeps us yearning for more and pressing on for all of God's fullness.

 "The righteous shall flourish like the palm tree; he shall grow like a cedar in Lebanon. Those that be planted in the house of the Lord shall flourish in the courts of our God. They shall bring fruit in old age, they shall be fat and flourishing” (Psa. 92:12-14).

 Insatiate to the spring, I fly, I drink, and yet I am extremely dry, as Charles Wesley put it. Many Christians who are satisfied are folks who are stuck in their ways. "Woe unto them who are at rest in Zion," declares the Bible. Such Christians are spiritual burnouts, bystanders who have succumbed to exhaustion. They are no longer inspirational and enthused; they are living below their potential. Life appears to be insipid, colorless, and squandered; they require an infusion and a lively exchange.

 S. S. Scull, a man of God who has been in ministry for 67 years, was asked if he is content with what he has seen and experienced thus far on his pilgrimage. "The genuine report is quite dismal in terms of progress—too poor for me to be satisfied," he remarked. He claimed he was shocked while singing this song a few years back.

"I'm pressing, on the upward way,

 New heights I'm gaining every day

 Still praying as I'm onward bound

"Lord, plant my feet on higher ground.”

 "He recognized that he wasn't singing the truth; if he had been gaining ground every day for the preceding sixty-seven years, he would have been much higher in the heavenly than he was," Rev. Scull explained. He had to rewrite the song and perform it as follows:

"I am looking on the upward way

 I think I will climb it every day

Still praying as I crawl around

Lord, lead me on to  the higher ground.”

 "This is not so good--but this was the truth," he said. "But there is another hymn that somewhat encourages me," Scull continued:

“I can see far down the mountain

Where I wandered weary years

Often hindered in my journey by the ghosts of doubts and fears

Thickly sprinkled all the way, but the Spirit led unerring

 To the land I hold today.”

 Looking back, he said, "I can see that as the spirit has led me, I have made some progress, though most of it has been attained by crawling instead of bouncing on the way, to the land I hold today.”

 I see the light of that city so bright, My home, sweet Home.

 My cry is like that of David, "As for me, I will behold thy face in righteousness, I shall be satisfied when I awake, with thy likeness” (Psa. 17:15).

 Oh, what a struggle this is for my life, knowing that there is yet higher ground to be reached and that as long as I live, I must not let doubts and fear keep me from pursuing God's vision for my life. Every day, as long as I live, I shall look upward and climb higher. I will continue to pray until the Lord places my feet on higher ground in that celestial city, where I will see His face in righteousness and be satisfied when I awake in His likeness.

 A contented Christian is spiritually deficient and stagnant. We were created to grow and progress, therefore order the buckler and shield (Jer. 46:3) and march forward like arrows in a powerful man's hand.

^6."Let the high praises of God be in their mouth and a two-edged sword in their hand

 ^7. to execute vengeance upon the heathen and punishments upon the people.

^8. To build their kings with chains and their nobles with fetters of iron.

^9. To execute upon them the judgment, written; this honor has all his saints praise ye the Lord (Psa. 149:6-9).

  

 

 

 

 

 

 

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^[1]Charles R. Swindol, Conquering through conflict (Insight For Living, 1990), P. 82

^[2]Thomas  A. Kempis, The Imitation Of Christ, (Cox & Wyman, Ltd, London, 1952), Pp. 27