There's That Word Again------LOVE!

Ephesians 4:15
But speaking the truth in love, may grow up into him in all things, which is the head even Christ.

A wise man once told me, "When your need to love someone outweighs your need to be right (in an argument) then you will know and understand how much you have grown in Jesus."
No matter what I am engaged in, the love of God has to cover it.
Does this mean that we excuse behavior of others who may be taking liberty with the things of God? No.
But we always come from a place of love so that our words are not tainted by our own flesh.

Matthew 5:9 reads Blessed are the peacemakers for they shall be called the children of God.
Yes, we are called to defend the word of God.
Yes, we are called to stand for those who cannot stand for themselves.
Yes, we are called to usher in the Kingdom of God here in this fallen world.
But I cannot carry out such a task operating from my flesh.

Why such a posting today? And then there is that one I posted here yesterday.
What's going on?
There is a lot self-centered and childishness going on in the body of Christ.
There seems to be a shifting of focus from Jesus and His Lordship to "It's All About Me!"
Feelings seem to play a big part in this mindset.
Feelings played a big part in the renewal back in the 90's.
Feelings was the catch word....excuse me, let me rephrase that.....Experience.
Come and let Jesus cover your senses.....sight, touch, smell, taste and hear the goodness of God.
One word that got lost in all of this was FAITH.
II Corinthians 5:7 kind of lays it out .....We walk by faith and not by sight.
The experience became more than central to the meetings. Like Wimber said, "You have to pull everything into context and find the radical middle ground in which to live." Maybe we had been dry and dead spiritually for such a long time that we needed this fresh rain from God. Never let it be said that the renewal was dull.
But I don't know that we handled it very well. Some came simply for the experience. The feeling superseded God. We came for the gift and not the giver. The experience became center stage for what was happening. The problem with relying solely on an experience with God is that it truly uncovers the lack of maturity that a person possesses. Any experience with God should propel the person forward to grow and mature as a believer. I'm not sure that I actually accomplished that during the 90's. I found myself measuring our worship by what it did for me. "Oh that was a great worship set...I could feel the presence of God." Subtly, I think a lot of us worship leaders planned our songs and music around the idea of getting God to come so we could experience His presence. To be truthful it was like I was trying to cajole or manipulate God into doing something that would benefit me. I learned.

Here is what I have learned.
You can't get any "Saveder" than you are. If you have been saved by the blood of Jesus, you cannot attain any greater salvation by works or even faith. A greater faith does not mean a greater salvation. There are some in teaching/ leadership positions who share that there are certain other things you can do that will separate you from the average-run-of-the-mill believer. If you do these things, or live in this way, then you will really get to be in the presence of God. I call this a JESUS "+" Salvation. You have the finished work of Jesus Christ, but ...........Oh yeah, you really need to do these things and they will propel you into a higher plane with Christ. 

You can't get any more in the presence of God than you currently can. Yes, there are times when we need to meditate on the Word of God........pull aside to be still and pray. The Spirit of God resides in each believer. To think that there are disciplines that pull you to a greater level of God's presence....I don't see it in Scripture. What could I do that cause that? God is the one who draws, not effort on my part.

You cannot receive any more favor from God than you currently have.  Jesus, before he had done anything, was identified by the Father as "This is my Son in whom I am well pleased." I believe that stands for all of God's children. We have His favor.

As you walk daily with God, you will seek to become less so that He can become more. All you share will point to Christ, not yourself. Not your accomplishments. Not your plans. Christ will be raised up through the live we live.

I think I better stop for now. It's time for me to go to Rapha.
Have a good day.
God on you.......
mb