The Preeminence of the Godhead

Although any description and definition of God we know originates with scripture, the Bible reminds us to; “Take a long hard look.  See how great He is – infinite, greater than anything you could ever imagine or figure out![1] (Job 36:26).  Sidlow Baxter argues that in light of God’s infinite nature, theologians are forced to rethink their finite comprehension of God and to speak of God with intellectual obeisance and “godly fear.” He writes: God is the greatest of all mysteries and the greatest of all realities.  He is the infinite mystery behind all reality, and the absolute reality behind all mystery, unimaginable exceeding the profoundest grasp of human comprehension, and beyond all verbal definition.  (Job 11:7; 21:14; Psalms 77:19; Romans 11:33)  Neither the phenomenal universe nor the invisible universe of thought has any satisfactory explanation apart from God, but the being of God Himself is utterly beyond explanation.”[2]

It’s also important to note that any ‘concept of God is foundational in any world view.  The entire superstructure of theology will fall if the foundation is destroyed,’ therefore we ‘have a divine responsibility to maintain that faith once for all delivered to the saints (Jude3).’[3] Every major doctrine of the faith, Geisler suggests, is based on the doctrine of God.  He concludes that every view and definition of God must be clearly revealed in scripture.  A denial at this point has serious effect on doctrine and practice.[4] Any attempt to define God in finite terms is incomparable to who He really is.  How can I reduce Him to my view or any other world view that would minimize Him to my limited understanding.  Is to do so an attempt to make ourselves greater and more significant than we really are?

Reflecting on the immutable GREATNESS of God over our ever increasing societal pressure to push for my being the center of the universe.   Too much secular thought in the church today in both teaching and practice.   It seems that our existential christian thought has so permeated our mindset that we have bloated ourselves to a capacity that is delusional and dangerous.  Our existential experience of God cannot be void of scripture, it’s what anchors me into the reality of my own finiteness and dependency  yet I am still significantly importance to God.  We are truly small and yet significant only because of God Himself.  How awesome is that?

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[1]The Message: The Bible in Contemporary Language, by Eugene H. Peterson, 2002

[2] J. Sidlow Baxter, Majesty, The God You Should Know (Here’s Life Publishers: San Bernardino, CA., 1984), 7

[3] Norman L. Geisler, H. Wayne House, Max Herrera, The Battle for God (Kergel Publications: Grand Rapids, Michigan, 2001), 18.

[4] Ibid, 15

Spiritual Connectivity

“The most critical tactic for avoiding becoming a statistic is to pay attention to the vital signs of spirituality.  When you’re not renewing yourself and observing the signs of spiritual growth, you’re heading for disaster – whether it is a crash or a slow fade into oblivion.  Imagine driving a pickup truck with dual tanks, a primary and a reserve.  The secondary one is much smaller, designed for short stint before refueling.  When the larger one goes dry, the vehicle automatically switches to the reserved.  This is similar to what happens when the spiritual leader runs low spiritually.  The inner switch from the primary spiritual power to the human ability reserve is often invisible to the outside observer.  Sometimes the leader doesn’t even know what’s happened because he or she is focused on driving the organization forward.  The demands and expectations are present, regardless of the leader’s spiritual condition.  So, out of necessity and with natural desire to lead, the leader performs leadership duties out of sheer human ability;”[1] without making a spiritual connection, lacking spiritual power.  The reality of leading under human power and wisdom will eventually become evident, as the results will be less desirable and productive than under God’s power and wisdom.  In spite of an appearance of accomplishment and forward progress, the leader has failed to lead spiritually and has made the shift away from spiritual leadership.  If adjustments are not made quickly, the leader will continue leading in the flesh. The results while impressive, will eventually take their toll on the leader and the ministry. 

Is this ever an issue for you?  I know it is a stuggle for me!

Human effort, skill and giftedness will never produce maximum sustaining results.  Spiritual connectivity must be maintained so the leader can continually refuel which will enable him to lead spiritually.  “Obviously, just because you have energy in your spiritual tank doesn’t mean your using it.  You can manually override the system and rely on the spare tank.  But when the spiritual tank is empty, no amount of override or earnest trying can manufacture genuine spiritual energy.  Synthetic fuels are a dime a dozen, but nothing has been found to come close to replacing the stigma, wisdom, and effectiveness of authentic leading from a spiritual power source.”[2] 

In the Judges 7, “the Midianites under Zebah and Zalmunna, their two greatest chiefs, accompanied by other wild tribes of the eastern desert, had gradually encroached on the territory of Israel in Central Palestine They came first as marauders and pillagers at the time of the harvests, but later they forcibly took possession of lands, and thus inflicted permanent injury and loss, especially upon Manasseh and Ephraim. The conflicts became so numerous, the appropriation of land so flagrant, that the matter of sustenance became a serious problem (6:4). The multitude of these desert hordes and the cruelty of their depredation rendered defense difficult, and, lacking in the split of national unity, the Israelites were driven to dens, caves and rocky strongholds for safety (6:2). After seven years of such invasion and suffering Gideon comes upon the scene.”[3]  Gideon goes out and look sat his army.  He had thirty-two thousand men, and the thought in Gideon’s mind is that this is not enough.  The Midianites were like grasshoppers on the hills.  They were disorganized, but by sheer numbers they would have overcome the Israelites.  Therefore, his men were too few and I think that Gideon was ready to blow the trumpet again[4] when God spoke to him and said He could not give Gideon the victory with the thirty-two thousand men he was counting on for fear that they would boast and claim that they had won the battle in their won strength, power and might.  After God had whittled the number down to three-hundred men, he informed Gideon that he was finally ready for battle.  God gave Gideon the victory and the Glory was all God’s.  (Read: Judges 7:1-25)  To fight the battle in his own strength and not God’s would have robbed God of the glory, exhausted human energy and possibly cost Gideon the victory. 

 

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[1]Alan E. Nelson, Spirituality & Leadership (Colorado Springs, Colorado: NavPress, 2002), 95, 96.

[2] Alan E. Nelson, Spirituality & Leadership, 97

[3]International Standard Bible Encyclopaedia, Electronic Database, 1996, 2003 by Biblesoft, Inc.

[4] J. Vernon McGee, Joshua, Judges (La Verde, California: El Camino Press, 1976), 155.

Spirituality: The Conscience at Work

The fourth term that describes man’s non material nature is his conscience. “God has placed within man a conscience as a witness. The conscience was affected by the Fall and may be seared and unreliable (1 Tim. 4:2); nonetheless, it can convict the unbeliever (Rom. 2:15). In the believer it may be weak and overly scrupulous (1 Cor. 8:7, 10, 12).”  ”Closely linked to the mind is the concept of ‘conscience’. No specific word for this existed in the Hebrew thought, where the word ‘heart’ (leb) included the general function of what the Greeks came to know as syneidesis. C. A. Pierce concludes that the concept of conscience was taken over from Greek not Hebrew sources. He also demonstrates how in the Greek world almost always used the term to describe someone’s sense of a guilty conscience. The word comes from ordinary Greek speech with its own connotation, “basically, the pain suffered by man, as man, and therefore as a creature involved in the order of things, when, by his acts completed or initiated, he transgresses the moral limits of his own nature.”
“Conscience is an inherent awareness of the difference between what is right and what is wrong, an inborn ability to ‘discern both good and evil.’ (Heb. 5:14). It is a human characteristic as fallible as other human traits. It seems clear that it is neither an acquired attitude of mind nor the voice of God in the soul of man. The word appears only in the New Testament. Conscience is found in the unsaved. It justified Paul’s actions (Acts 23:1), and it convicted the scribes (John 8:9). It is said to bear witness (Rom. 2:15). It may be defiled (Titus 1:15); or seared (1 Tim. 4:2), implying insensitivity. In saved persons it testifies (2 Cor. 1:12), bears witness in the Holy Spirit (Rom. 9:1), and leads to submission (1 Peter 2:19). It should be both good (1 Tim. 1:5), and pure (1 Tim. 3:9). Its purity results from its having been purged by the blood of Christ. (Heb. 9:14)”
In 2 Chronicles 7:14, Gods people had been guilty of getting so busy working for God in building and dedicating the building that they forgot to concentrate on the relationship with God. God is reminding them as He reminds us, that we need to revive and renew our relationship with Him so that our conscience can be clean and clear from any sin that exists between us and Him. (Heb 10:19-23).

To know what God wants is the first step in making that a reality in our lives. Too often we speak in secret codes or through innuendos that are designed to be deciphered by the listener testing to see if they are really listening or if they understand what you need. God does not operate like that. God is always very direct and very clear in what He is saying and what he wants from us. If there is a failure to communicate, the problem is always on our end of the receiving end. It isn’t that God is not communication what He wants, it may be that we are not listening or that we are not interested in what He has to say.

When God states that He wants us to “turn from our wicked way” we should be able to hear and clearly understand what He wants from us and what we are suppose to do. The word in the original language is one word; “turn from” is a verb that implies that an action is required in order to meet the expectations or desire. It also means to turn from direction you are going or to turn from something or someone to something or someone else. It does not necessarily mean that we are to turn back to where we just came from but simply that we are stop and turn away from something or someone.

The conscious is a tricky aspect for those who seek to become and to lead spiritually.  If we are not careful we can allow our conscious to become callous, confused or complacent to God’s perfect truth.  I can redefine, reshape and resist any attempt from God’s Spirit to convince and convict me of sin in my own life that would prevent move me and those under my leadership outside God’s best for our lives.  How easy it is to move in the flesh and lead without looking and yielding to the Holy Spirit of God that would speak truth to my conscience.  I remember a cartoon character named Pinocchio who had a conscience named Jiminy Cricket that tried to guide Pinocchio down the right path – when he failed to yield to the leadership of his faithful companion that had his best interest at heart – you know the story.  Our culture and our nation has become filled with leaders both outside and inside the church, who have ignored their conscience.  Look where that has taken us!

Let’s not ignore one of the best companions we could possibly have that has our best interest at heart and those we lead – our conscience.  Let’s be sensitive to its communication, convincing and convicting voice.  We will not only become better leaders, we will lead better!  Our God and our followers deserve nothing less than our best effort.

Spirituality: Will

The third term that describes man’s non material nature is his will.  In the New Testament “will” is chiefly the translation of “thelo” and “boulomai,” the difference between the two being that “thelo” expresses an active choice or purpose, “boulomai,” “passive inclination or willingness, or the inward predisposition from which the active choice proceeds” (compare Mark 15:9,12 with verse 15). “Will,” noun, is “thelema.” With the exception of a few passages, it is used of the will of God (over all, Matt 18:14; in all things to be done, Matt 6:10; 26:42 parallel, etc.; ordering all things, Eph 1:11, etc.); human will, however, may oppose itself to the will of God (Luke 23:25; John 1:13; Rom 7:18; here the capacity to will is distinguished from the power to do, etc.). “Boulema” is properly counsel or purpose. While it is possible to oppose the will of God, His counsel or purpose cannot be frustrated (Acts 2:23; 4:28; Rom 9:19; Eph 1:11; Heb 6:17); it may, however, be resisted for a time (Luke 7:30).

There are many people who have made a decision to accept Jesus Christ as Savior, but they have never really made a commitment to the person of Jesus Christ.  Many who fill the roles of our churches today have made this decision: (1) They have walked down the isle of a church after they have were genuinely convicted and called to repentance by God’s Spirit to make a decision to invite Jesus into their heart as Savior.  However, because they weren’t committed to the person of Jesus Christ they never moved beyond that aspect in their decision.  They never grew spiritually into being a disciple; they never bore spiritual fruit; there were no visible signs of a real life in Christ.  Eventually they either abandoned the Christian life all together, or they settled for a life of compromise after compromise, using convincing excuses to justify a lifestyle that’s violating God’s perfect will for their lives.  They settle for a life of emptiness, loneliness, and complacency in their commitment to Christ, while claiming to be someone else.

Some consciously and some unconsciously say something like this:  “Yes Jesus, I want to accept you as my Savior.  Please forgive me of my sin.  Thank you Lord for my salvation!  Now let me live my life just the way I want to.  I can take care of things down here while your busy preparing a place for me up in Heaven.  Just let me do my own thing.  That is, unless I get in a jam and I need a miracle, then must do what I ask and what I want you!”

The question is: Am I honestly seeking to determine the will of God for my life?  To answer this question, you may have to strip away the mask of pretence, the games of deceit, and become vulnerable in the presence of God.  Are you willing to do that?  If you are, here is the question:  Have you presented yourself to God as a living, holy, and acceptable sacrifice by offering Him your will and you are willing for His Spirit through His Word conform your will to His Will?  There are three steps I can take to insure that I am walking in the fullness of the will of God for my life.  What are those steps?

Step 1) I must find the will of God at any cost: In Romans 12:2, Paul states that when am completely consecrated to God, I “will be able to test and approve what God’s will is, His good, pleasing and acceptable will.”  The construction of the sentence implies that it will prove a purpose.  That is to say, when a believer’s mind is transformed, his thinking ability, moral reasoning, and spiritual understanding are able to properly assess everything, and accept only what conforms to the Will of God.  It also means to test, to know, to understand, or to accept God’s Will.  In order to accept the will of God, I must first discover the will of God.

“How do I determine God’s will for my life?” There are two very important things I must understand when dealing with any issue surrounding the will of God for my life.

(1^t) I must have a Biblical understanding of God’s will! The will of God is never in contradiction to the Word of God.

(2) I must have a Practical understanding of God’s will! Life’s greatest discovery is not found in knowing the will of God, but life’s greatest achievement is found in doing the will of God.

There are three questions that must be asked and addressed about God’s will if I am going to discover and live according to God’s will for my life. These Three questions are:

(1) Is there a Sovereign Will of God? To understand the sovereign will of God I must understand that everything that happens in the universe, good or bad, works effectively into God’s plan.  The Sovereign Will of God states that God has absolute right to do all things according to his own good pleasure.  God has the ability and the right to do whatever He wants to do, whenever He wants to do it, to whomever he chooses.  God is in control of everything and everybody. He is completely in charge at all times and His will always prevails in the end.  If you want to know the sovereign will of God, just look at what happened yesterday. The Bible states; “We know that in all things God works for the good of those who love him, who have been called according to his purpose.” (Rom. 8:28)

(2) Is there a Moral Will of God? The moral will of God is found in the Word of God.  They are the commands in the Bible that teach us how to live our lives.

(3) Is there a Personal Will of God? This is where the discussion about the will of God becomes cloudy for many.  The personal will of God means that God has a unique life-plan for you that operates by principles from God’s Word.  The four ways to discover God’s will are: 1) Word of God: Learn from reading and applying the Bible; 2) Witness of God: leadership of the Holy Spirit; 3) Window of God: Look for opportunities / circumstances; 4) From those walking with God:  I ask, listen and take the advise of someone you know and respect to gain new insight or meaning

Step 2) I must be willing to follow God’s will at any cost. Then I will be able to test and approve what God’s will is; “His good, pleasing and perfect will.”   The word “good” means that it is for my eternal good and that it is in my best interest.  It may cut across my opinions, my ambitions, and my tastes, but it is the best that a loving God has for me.  Satan would try to convince me that it isn’t in my best interest and that I really can’t trust God.  I must accept that God would never lead me down a path or take me in a direction that is not in my best interest.  God also states that His will is “pleasing” or acceptable.”  That simply means that it may not always be the easiest way, or it could even be the longest way.  But in the long run I will realize that as I follow God’s direction for my life, it will cause me to look back and believe in the long run that is was and always will be the best way to go.  As the result of allowing the Sprit and the Word of God to change my heart, my mind, my attitudes, my character, and my conduct; I will discover that the will of God is always good, acceptable, and perfect.  I will testify to the fact that God’s Will and God’s Ways are the best way to joy, peace and happiness.

Step 3) I must fulfill God’s will at any cost: The word “perfect” in Romans 12:2 carries the idea of being complete, of something being everything that it should be.  My will should desire only what God desires and lead me to do what He wants me to do in the way that He wants me to do it, according to His will and power.  My imperfect will must always be subject to His perfect will.  If my faith is to be authentic, so that my relationship to Christ is more than just a casual commitment, then I am going to have to learn to submit my will to His every time.  If my faith is to be authentic then I am going to have to allow His Holy Spirit through His Holy Word to conform my will to His will each and every day.  I am going to have to be open and obedient to the Witness, the Word and the Will of God in every aspect of my life.

“In the gospels, primarily in John, Jesus is said to be acting not according to His own will, but according to the will of the heavenly Father (John 5:30; 6:38). Indeed, doing the will of the Father is Jesus’ nourishment (John 4:34), and Jesus does nothing apart from the Father’s will (John 5:19). Luke confirms this when he quotes Jesus’ statement in the Garden of Gethsemane: “Father, if it is Your will, remove this cup from Me, nevertheless not my will, but yours, be done” (Luke 22:42).

A spiritually minded leader is one whose will is set on God as well as his intellect and affections. In every fiber of his moral being, and in all the activities of his soul, he is under the guidance and dominion of the Holy Spirit. The affections present motives, the intellect estimates their worthiness, the will decides upon the course of action. When this trinity of mental operation-necessary to normal manhood-is under the sway of the Divine Spirit, man possesses spirituality, a state in which all the faculties of the soul are voluntarily and joyfully under the dominion and guidance of Christ’s indwelling Spirit. When intellect, heart and will focus their energies reverently and affectionately upon Him, love-a passionate, ever-present, ever dominant love-is the result. This is the triune sphere of the Holy Spirit’s indwelling and activity, and the character of such a God-centered and Spirit-filled life is described by the exalted word “spirituality.

Spirituality: Mind

The second term that describes man’s non material nature is his mind. “In the believer it may be weak and overly scrupulous (1 Cor. 8:7, 10, 12). The unbeliever’s mind is depraved (Rom. 1:28), blinded by Satan (2 Cor. 4:4), and darkened and futile (Eph. 4:17-18). In the believer there is a renewed mind (Rom. 12:2) that enables him to love God (Matt. 22:37).” To make transformation reality, the spiritual man must give his all to God. He must first offer his soul, his body and finally his mind up to God (Rom. 12:1-2). God through Paul’s penmanship describes “our supreme calling to serve God with all our being, first and foremost in worship. Our supreme act of worship is to offer ourselves wholly and continually to the Lord as living sacrifices.
To “offer” means to yield, to present, to make oneself available or to make an offering or presentation to God. After offering his soul and his body he must offer his mind as a “living sacrifice” unto God. When a sacrifice was presented to God in the Old Covenant it was presented alive but in the act of worship it was killed. Because the Lamb of God was sacrificed in our place on the altar of Calvary two thousand years ago, we are now to offer ourselves as living sacrifices on the altar of worship. We are to present ourselves to God as living sacrifices committing, offering, and presenting ourselves to God in every single aspect of our lives. We accomplish that by relinquishing any and all claims we ever had upon our lives and we give ourselves totally and completely to God. With that commitment we inherit a new nature, a new heart and a new mind.
“It is the mind that our new nature and our old humanness are intermixed. It is the mind that we make choices as to whether we will express our new nature in holiness or allow our fleshly humanness to act in unholiness.” Paul adds that we are “not to be conformed to any longer to the pattern of this world.” The passive mood of Paul’s’ tone indicates that we are not to allow the unredeemed world around us to squeeze us into its mold or pattern, and that we are take an active participation to do all that we possibly can to prevent our corruption. To conform would mean I am putting on the appearance of, fashioning myself after by mimicking or copying a pattern that is anti-God and destructive to my new identity. The spiritual man is make the definitive choice to be transformed by the renewing of his mind. The word “transformed” connotes change in the outward appearance and is the term from which we get the English word metamorphosis. Matthew used the word in describing Jesus transfiguration (Matt. 17:2). Christ’s inner divine nature and glory were, for a brief time and to a limited degree, manifested outwardly. Our inner redeemed nature also is to be manifested outwardly, but as completely and continually as possible, in our daily living. Like the preceding verb, this is a passive imperative. Positively we are commanded to allow ourselves to be changed outwardly into conformity to our redeemed inner natures. Although we are to aspire to this outward change, it can be accomplished only by the Holy Spirit working in us, by our being “Filled with the Spirit.” (Ephesians 5:18)
By receiving Christ as our Savior and Lord, we have “put on the new self who is being renewed to a true knowledge according to the image of the One who created him.” (Col. 3:10) Consequently, we are to “let the word of Christ dwell richly within us, with all wisdom teaching and admonishing one another with psalms and hymns and spiritual songs, singing with thankfulness in our hearts to God.” (3:16) The transformation of the renewed “mind” is the mind saturated and controlled by the Word of God. It is the mind that spends as little time as possible with the necessary things of earthly living and as much time as possible with the things of God. It is the mind that is set “on the things above, not on the things that are on earth.” (Col. 3:2) Whether good of bad, when anything happens in our lives, our immediate, almost reflexive response should be Biblical. During His incarnation, Jesus responded to Satan’s temptations by quoting and invoking the power of the Word of God back into the face of the enemy. (Matt. 4:4-10) Only the mind that is constantly being renewed by God’s Spirit working through God’s Word is pleasing to God. Only such a mind is able to make our lives “a living and holy sacrifice, acceptable to God, which is our spiritual service of worship.”
The Holy Spirit achieves this miraculous transformation by renewing. Our outward transformation is affected by our inner change in the mind, and the Spirit’s means for transforming our minds in the Word of God. David testified to this transformation when he wrote, “Your word have I hid in my heart, so that I might not sin against thee!” (Psalms 119:11). God’s own word is the very instrument His own Holy Spirit uses to renew our minds, which, in turn, He uses to transform our living.
“The intellectual can be divorced from the spiritual, but the spiritual can never be divorced from the intellectual. If a man is spiritual, his intellect is touched with the divine life and comes under the power of the divine baptism. One word describes this mental quickening and illumination – “vision.” “The pure in heart shall see God.” Paul affirms (1 Cor 2:12-13) that the Spirit of God operates directly on the mental faculties, adjusting reason and intellect to the divine reason, and enabling man to think God’s thoughts and discern His purposes, nature and will. The common use of the word “spirituality” limits it mistakenly to religious experience, narrowly interpreted, but as spirituality brings the intellect into harmony with the divine reason in every realm of mental action, it may be as manifest in science, art, philosophy, commerce and law as in religion.

Spiritual Exercise: “Through Paul God commanded His people to ‘Let this mind be in you, which was also in Christ Jesus’ (Phil. 2:5). The mind of Christ! We are not told to have a good mind, not a mind purified by discipline, not a sharpened intellect, not even the highest of human attainment in godliness and virtue – but the very mind of Christ Himself! We are not merely to resemble Jesus. We are to think His very thoughts. This is not a wish but a command. We are to have the mind of the only perfect human being who ever walked our earth – the mind of the God-man, Jesus Christ.”
T. W. Hunt points out that there are six references to the mind of Christ, and that these six characteristics describe God’s ideal for developing our thought life. In this exercise we will identify all six of these characteristics briefly, as we seek to define and glean from these characteristics for spiritual leadership.

1. Alive: Romans 8:6 (NIV) | The mind of sinful man is death, but the mind controlled by the Spirit is life and peace….

When I set my mind on the Spirit, I will experience life, it’s alive and active. There are times when I may think about God, I may pray, I may meditate on the scriptures or gaze at the marvelous creation that glorifies God. The mind of Christ will avoid thoughts that are carnal, worldly and of the flesh, it will make the deliberate choice to dwell on the spiritual things of God.

Spiritual Question: Do my thoughts race for the carnal over the spiritual? When do I have a difficult time focusing in the right direction? What should I do about it?

2. Single-mindedness: 2 Corinthians 11:3 (NIV) | But I am afraid that just as Eve was deceived by the serpent’s cunning, your minds may somehow be led astray from your sincere and pure devotion to Christ.

Eve was led astray by the tempter because she chose to focus, concentrate or think about the wrong thing. When Eve gazed on the forbidden, she developed wrong and destructive thoughts that lead caused her to be deceived. Distractions can lead us away from God’s best. It’s the single-minded devotion to God and the things of God that keep us on track and headed in the right direction. Our minds must be focused on what is pure and beneficial to our commitment and devotion to Christ.

Spiritual Question: Are my thoughts single-minded? What area of my thought life could use a little tweaking?

3. Lowly: Phil 2:3 (NASU) | Do nothing from selfishness or empty conceit, but with humility of mind regard one another as more important than yourselves…

The mind that is filled with pride and arrogance is a mind that is in direct contrast to the mind of Christ. Humility and lowliness go hand-in-hand, you cannot be one without the other and both are characteristic of Jesus Himself. Lowliness is an acknowledgement of the superiority of God, and my personal limitations in comprehension and knowledge. Lowliness is secure in knowing that God who is superior is in complete control through His great power and provisions.

Spiritual Question: Do I have God in proper perspective? If so, how do I define my limitations before the great and mighty God?

4. Pure: Titus 1:15 (NIV) | To the pure, all things are pure, but to those who are corrupted and do not believe, nothing is pure. In fact, both their minds and consciences are corrupted.

Impurity in my thought life becomes a reality when my mind and my conscience is corrupted. That corruption will rob me of a pure, clean and undefiled thought life. It will hinder my vision, decision making and force me to yield to the flesh and damage those I am responsible for leading. A loss of temper, a look of lust, a longing for something that belongs to someone else, and lure to the forbidden will ignite sin in my mind and life. My quest for purity of thought has to be a priority (Ps. 101:3) and I must make the decision to stay clear of anything that would corrupt my thoughts. AND I MUST MAKE THE DECISION TO

Spiritual Question: What am I presently doing to guard my thought life and keep it pure? When temptations come that flood my thoughts with jealousy, envy, anger, bitterness, lust, or greed, what are my defenses?

5. Responsive: Luke 24:45 (NIV) | Then he opened their minds so they could understand the Scriptures.

The reason the Lord chose the twelve disciples as He began His earthly ministry was because of their openness. They were quick to listen and respond to His directives. There were times they were slow to understand what Christ was saying, but once they understood His will, they received and obeyed His instruction. They wanted to learn and they were teachable. The Mind of Christ is open, teachable and responsive to the leadership and control of the Spirit and the voice of God. If I hope to make spiritual progress as a disciple of Christ and to lead in any capacity, I must be attentive, teachable, open and responsive to His instruction. Whenever I turn a deaf ear, fail to listen or to respond to His instruction I will cease being a spiritual leader.

Spiritual Question: How open am I to His instruction? How responsive have I been to His leadership? Why have I been so slow to respond? How can I spend time cultivating a openness to new insights and instruction?

6. Peaceful: Romans 8:6 (NIV) | The mind of sinful man is death, but the mind controlled by the Spirit is life and peace;

Peace of mind is described as one of the characteristics of the “fruit of the Spirit.” (Gal. 5:22) As I set my mind on the things of God, God will then set my mind at peace. My work is the concentration, His is to provide peace. As long as I have my mind focused on Him, I will enjoy and experience peace of mind. Christ knew a life of peace because His mind was set on the things of God. He promised that we would find rest by taking up His yoke (Matt. 11:28), and that rest is enjoyed when I set my mind is controlled by the Spirit of God.

Spiritual Question: Is my life more characteristic with stress of peace? How much of my thought life is centered on the things of God? What thoughts do I need to change in order to enjoy this peace Jesus gives?

Spirituality: Heart

The first term that describes man’s non material nature is his heart. There are various meaning for the term heart in the Old and New Testament. “It represents in the first place the bodily organ, and by easy transition those experiences which affect or are affected by the body. Fear, love, courage (Ps. 27:14), anger (Deut. 19:6), joy (Ps. 4:7), sorrow (Ps. 13:2), and hatred are always ascribed to the heart-especially in the Old Testament. Hence, naturally it came to stand for the man himself (Deut 7:17; “say in thine heart,” Isa 14:13). As representing the man himself, it was considered to be the seat of the emotions and passions and appetites (Gen 18:5; Lev 19:17; Ps 104:15), and embraced likewise the intellectual and moral faculties-though these are necessarily ascribed to the “soul” as well. This distinction is not always observed.”

“One of the main ideas that Paul uses to describe the aspects of man, is heart (Kardia). There is a strong indebtedness to Old Testament thought in cases where organs of the body are used to express emotions.” In 2 Corinthians 7:2, Paul uses this word to encourage the Corinthian church to open their hearts, and uses the term (Kardia) as the seat of human affection. Paul also uses the heart as the “exerciser of faith (Rom. 10:10), which shows commitment to the whole person to Christ. It is also the heart that God has shown ‘to give the light of the knowledge of the Glory of God in the face of Christ’ (2 Cor. 4:6; cf. also Eph. 1:18). A comparison of 2 Corinthians 1:22 with 2 Corinthians 5:5 shows that grantee of the Spirit in our hearts is the same as the guarantee in us, indicating that ‘heart’ stands for the whole person. Christ is said to dwell within the heart (Eph. 3:18), the Spirit is sent into the heart (Gal. 4:6), the peace of Christ, for the Christian, rules the heart (Col. 3:16).

Jeremiah 17:9 “contains an emphatic denial of a popular belief that people are basically good (Isa. 64:6; Rom. 3:23). The human heart has an unlimited capacity for wickedness and deceit so that human resources are incapable of dealing with it (Mark 7:21-23; Gal. 5:19-21). Because the heart “in its natural state is not devoted to God, it is not surprising to find statements which speak of the corruption of the heart. Gentile lust was attributed to their hearts (Rom. 1:24). The heart can be hard and impertinent, in which case it stores up wrath against itself (Rom. 2:5). “The only remedy is a radical change, nothing less than rebirth” (John 3:7; 2 Cor. 5:17). Nevertheless the heart is not considered to be inherently bad. It can become obedient as well as disobedient (Rom. 6:17). Paul expresses his own strong longings for his own people as his heart’s desire (Rom. 10:1). The heart is, therefore, conceived as the seat of the of the emotions.

“The feelings and emotions are fertile soil for the spiritual life. Love is the beginning and end of true religion. Spirituality in the realm of the affections is that state of soul in which the heart with its holiest love is centered on God as revealed in Christ. The specific and supreme work of the Holy Spirit is to shed abroad God’s love in the heart (Rom 5:5). Spirituality sets the affections on things above and brings the entire emotional nature under the regulating and redeeming sway of the Holy Spirit.”

In Revelation 2:1-7, we discover a city by the name of Ephesus, which was once the chief port of Asia Minor. Its harbor was given to change because of its continual silting. What was water became land; what was land became water. This shifting character of the city is reflected in the Lord’s letter for the Ephesian assembly. Once so strong in its love for Him, Ephesus is seen by Him as shifting away. The problem of Ephesus that God is addressing is a problem we all have.  As you read the passage and follow the pattern of their decent and drift in their passion for God Himself it challenges us to evaluate our own personal passion for Christ and the things of God over the things of this world.

1) God reveals the faithful works of His followers: (Rev. 2:1-3)

This small band or renegades were faithful to maintain works that would rival any church today.  They were a:  a serving church; a sacrificial church and a steadfast church.  They developed early on theological foundation and fortitude to maintain a safe distance themselves from the false works and witnesses of their pagan culture and community.  They were theologically conservative and held themselves and their work to the highest biblical and ethical standards of any church of its day.  There was another church that would rival this church in activity and atmosphere.  This is the church that could possibly be the model church filled with model Christ-followers.  No one equal this church in service or in sacrifice to the Lord and to Kingdom work.

2) However, God reveals the fatal weakness of His followers: (Rev. 2:4-5)

a) The vitality of their passion was gone.  In spite of all the great things they were doing for God on the surface, they had somehow lost their spiritual passion for God.  It is possible to serve the Lord for a variety of motives: for the praise of men, for prestige and position, for the sake of reputation, because it simply is the thing to do, or out of a sense of duty.  If our service to God is not born out of a devoted passion for God, then all that we do is worthless.  Somehow these people in allot of their busy activity had lost the passion for God.  They were no longer in love with the Lord their God like they once were.  They were very busy carrying out the ministries of the church, but they had lost their passion.

b) The validity of the profession was gone. It’s as if with one stroke of the pen the Lord through the Apostle sums up their whole problem, they have fallen from the position they were once in.  They had backslidden.  They were guilty of hypocrisy, because they were professing one thing and living another.  You see, on the outside they were doing allot of things and they were talking a big talk and even backing up that talk with allot of hard work, but somewhere they had forgotten to cultivate the most important aspect about the Christian life, and that is an intimate and personal relationship with God.  They didn’t love Him like they use to.

Most of us have been taught for years that we are spiritually secure in Christ and that is no way we can loose our salvation, so we have comfortably taken a spiritual seat in the area of building a personal relationship with God and we have settled for a life of superficial; activity.  We pat ourselves on the back and congratulate others for doing the same thing we are doing to make ourselves feel good when down deep in our souls, if we were really honest with ourselves we know that we are falling short.  True spirituality begins with a heart that is completely transformed and that is passionately committed to the love of Christ.  Cultivating a passion for God the Father, Son and Holy Spirit should be our primary concern if our quest is for an authentic spirituality that is connected and committed to a life in Christ.  To love God with all my heat, required a moment by moment decision that is strengthened by intentional passion, infused by uncompromising priorities.  Spirituality that misses the value of the heart is spirituality void of the heartbeat of God.  This takes me back to a song I use to sing as a child in church entitled, “Oh, How I love Jesus” which becomes the commitment I must bring to my relationship to Jesus in my quest for authentic spirituality.

What is spiritual?

Honestly, I have struggled with the concept os spirituality for some time.  Until a few years ago when I was forced to define what it is all about did I come to terms with the concept of spirituality.  It was hard to find information on the subject that interjected thought and concepts in leadership.  Here is a short dialogue on the subject at had.  Hard to become a spiritual leader if the question of “spiritual” is left hanging.

“When God created man He created him in His own image (Gen. 1:26-27).  The question is: What is the image of God in man?  The image of God in man cannot be physical because God is Spirit (John 4:24) and does not have body.  The image, then, must be nonmaterial and would involve the following elements. (1) Personality.  Man has a self-conscious and a self determination that enable him to make choices, lifting him above the realm of animals (Gen. 1:28).  (2) Spiritual being. God is Spirit and the human soul is a Spirit.  The essential attributes of a spirit are reason, conscience, and will.  A spirit is a rational, moral, and therefore also, a free agent.  In making man after His own image, therefore, God endowed him with those attributes which belong to His own nature and a spirit.  (3) Moral Nature. Man is created in “original righteousness” also referred to as “knowledge, righteousness, and holiness.  This original righteousness and holiness was lost through the fall but is restored in Christ.  Ephesians 4:24 emphasizes that the new self of the believer is “in likeness of God (and) has been created in righteousness and holiness.”  Colossians 3:10 declares that the new self is “being renewed to true knowledge according to the image of the One who created him,” as reference to Genesis 1:26.”[1]

“While most will acknowledge that man has a nonmaterial constitution, what is the nature of the nonmaterial part of man?  Are the soul and the spirit distinct, or are they the same?”[2]  ”Spiritual” in the New Testament signifies moral, not physical antithesis: an essence springing from the Spirit of God and imparted to the spirit of man. Hence, spiritual in this sense always presupposes the infusion of the Holy Spirit to quicken, and inform. It is opposed (a) to sarkikos, “fleshly” (1 Cor 3:1), men of the flesh and not of the spirit; (b) to psuchikos, “natural,” man in whom the pneuma, “spirit,” is over-ridden, because of the Fall, by psuche, the principle of the animal life, “soul”; hence, the unrenewed man, unspiritual, alienated from the life of God (1 Cor 2:14; 2 Peter 2:12; Jude 10).  (c) To natural, meaning physical, “…. sown a natural body; …. raised a spiritual body” (1 Cor 15:44).  In the New Testament and general use “spiritual” thus indicates man regenerated, indwelt, enlightened, endued, empowered, guided by the Holy Spirit; conformed to the will of God, having the mind of Christ, living in and led by the Spirit. The spiritual man is a new creation born from above (Rom 8:6; 1 Cor 2:15; 3:1; 14:37; Col 1:9; 1 Peter 2:5).[3]

“Spirituality” is “the quality of being spiritual, as opposed to material. Thus theology predicates the spirituality of God. The spirituality of man refers to the immaterial part of his nature. The term is also used with reference to the disposition or internal condition of men when in such a state as prepares them to recognize and properly appreciate spiritual realities. True spirituality in the last sense is the result of the inworking of the Holy Spirit (1 Cor 2:14-15; 3:1; 16).”[4]  Spirituality is “the state of being spiritual in the higher use of the word. It is purely a religious term and signifies the state of a soul vitalized by the Divine Spirit and made alive unto God. It covers the entire range of man’s faculties: intellect, feeling, will”[5] and conscience.  Although soul and spirit are common terms used to describe the nonmaterial nature of man, there are a number of additional terms that describe man’s non-physical nature.  Hence, man’s nonmaterial nature can be understood as multifaceted.  

There are at least four terms that describe man’s nonmaterial nature. The heart describes the passion, the emotion the heartbeat for God (2 Cor. 7:2; Matt. 22:37) as well as the volitional part of man (Rom. 10:9-10; Heb. 4:7).  God has placed within man a conscience as a witness.  The conscience was affected by the Fall and may be seared and unreliable (1 Tim. 4:2); nonetheless, it can convict the unbeliever (Rom. 2:15).  In the believer it may be weak and overly scrupulous (1 Cor. 8:7, 10, 12).  The unbeliever’s mind is depraved (Rom. 1:28), blinded by Satan (2 Cor. 4:4), and darkened and futile (Eph. 4:17-18).  In the believer there is a renewed mind (Rom. 12:2) that enables him to love God (Matt. 22:37).  The unbeliever has a will that desires to follow the dictates of the flesh (Eph. 2:2-3), whereas the believer has the ability to do God’s will (Rom. 6:12-13.  At conversion the believer is given a new nature that enables him to love God with all his heart, mind, and will.”[6]

 Hope this all has helped.  Look to Romans 12:11 for additional help.  Scripture always clears things for me!  I will do better from now in keeping up with the blog thing – business tends to pull me away from a few of the personal things – it you know what I mean? 

Grace

Charles 

 

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[1] Paul Enns, The Moody Handbook of Theology (Moody Press: Chicago, Illinois, 1989), 305.

[2] Ibid, 306.

[3] International Standard Bible Encyclopaedia, Electronic Database, Biblesoft Inc., 1996, 2003.

[4]The New Unger’s Bible Dictionary. (Moody Press: Chicago, Illinois, 1988.)

[5] International Standard Bible Encyclopaedia, Electronic Database, Biblesoft Inc., 1996, 2003.

[6] Paul Enns, The Moody Handbook of Theology,  307.

What does ‘Spiritual’ mean?

“The issue of leadership holds a deeper dimension for Christians: Is Christian leadership the same thing as secular leadership?  The trend among many Christian leaders has been for an almost indiscriminate and uncritical acceptance of secular leadership theory without measuring it against the timeless precepts of Scripture.”[1] “Scripture is utterly unique in its nature as God-breathed revelation; it is unparalleled and absolute in its authority; and it is the sole infallible rule of faith for the church (read: 2 Tim. 3:16-17).”[2] “The scriptures must be the final ground for guidance in all areas of life.”[3] “Jesus constantly quoted scripture, explained it and treated it as a source of authoritative guidance (read: Luke 24:27).  He promised the Spirit’s guidance for the future leaders of the church, who would write the New Testament (read: John 14:25-26; 16:12-15).”[4]  “When He left them, they had very little idea how to proceed, except that they must do so in the power of the Holy Spirit.  All subsequent unveilings to the church of God as to methods of work and service have come from the growing interpretation of the Spirit.”[5]  “The challenge for today’s leaders is to discern the difference between the latest leadership fads and timeless truths established by God.”[6] 

 

“What does ‘Spiritual’ mean?  We use it to refer to somebody who is not in touch with life, to a person living in the clouds.  Actually, ‘spiritual’ has to do with God the Holy Spirit.  What is spiritual is what the Holy Spirit does”[7] (read: 1 Cor. 14:46).  According to the Scriptures, the ’spiritual’ state of soul is normal for the believer, but to this state all believers do not attain, nor when it is attained is it always maintained. Thus the apostle, in 1 Cor 3:1-3, suggests a contrast between this spiritual state and that of the babe in Christ, i. e., of the man who because of immaturity and inexperience has not yet reached spirituality, has lost it.

 

The spiritual state is reached by diligence in the Word of God and in prayer; it is maintained by obedience and self-judgment. Such as are led by the Spirit are spiritual, but, of course, spirituality is not a fixed or absolute condition, it admits of growth; indeed growth in ‘the grace and knowledge of our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ,’ 2 Peter 3:18, is evidence of true spirituality.[8]  “The point of focus is the most important.  If your core “main thing” is for the Holy Spirit to work through your life, you will see greater things than you even imagined.  The power of God can move through you to make you more effective as you become a magnifier of Jesus.”[9]  “Spiritual goals can be achieved only by spiritual people who use spiritual methods.”[10]  Therefore, “an effective and comprehensive biblical theology of leadership must draw the person and the work of Christ, the nature and the activity of the Trinity, and the way biblical figures were led by God to develop into effective coworkers with Him.”[11] “God equips His leaders when they are saved, and when they come to have the spiritual and moral qualifications that come from obedience to His Word, their leadership blossoms and becomes evident”[12](1 Corinthians 12:7). “The spiritual man is one who walks by the Spirit both in the sense of Galatians 5:16 and in that of Galatians 5:25, and who himself manifests the fruit of the Spirit in his own ways.”[13]

 

Striving for such excellence requires diligence, discipline, determination and denial.  I must honestly admit that maintaining such lofty objective has not easy to attain and I must humbly confess there have been times I have not been successful.  Aware of my own humanity and living in a fallen world that challenges and contradicts my hearts desire is often difficult to overcome.  There have been times in my development as a leader where it seems that I have taken more steps backward than forward, yet there have been those rare times when I seemed to effortlessly glide toward God’s best.  What I have learned is that becoming a “spiritual leadership” is a journey not a process that can only be attained over a lifetime of successes and failures. 

 

Recently we had a well known evangelist, Dr. Roy Fish in a revival meeting in our church.  He is in my opinion one of God’s treasured possessions and has more to offer today than at any other time in his life.  His humility, wisdom and spiritual depth, causes everyone he meets to take notice.  One of our staff members stated that he would like to be like Dr. Fish.  I said, “To become a spiritual leader and man of God like Dr. Fish, can only be known through a life journey with God that few will ever know.” 

 

Grace,

Charles

 

 

 

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[1]Henry Blackaby, Spiritual Leadership (Nashville, Tennessee: Broadman, 2001). 10

[2] James R. White, Scripture Alone (Minneapolis, Minnesota: Bethany House, 2004), 14.

[3] James T. Draper, Authority: The Critical Issue for Southern Baptist (Old Tappan: New Jersey, 1980), 10.

[4] David W. Gill, Doing Right (Downers Grove: Illinois, InterVarsity Press, 2004). 34.

[5] John Morgan, The Gospel According to John(Old Tappan, New Jersey: Fleming H. Revell Company), 262.

[6]Henry Blackaby, Spiritual Leadership, 12

[7]James Montgomery Boice, Acts (Grand Rapids, Michigan: Baker Books, 1997), 24

[8]John R. Kohlenberger III, James A. Swanson, The Expanded Vine’s Expository Dictionary of New Testament Words (Minneapolis, Minnesota: Bethany House Publishers, 1984), 1078.

[9] Dale Galloway, On-Purpose Leadership (Kansas City, Missouri: Beacon Hill Press), 33.

[10] J. Oswald Chamber, Spiritual Leadership, 32

[11]Roberts Banks and Bernice M. Ledbetter, Reviewing Leadership (Grand Rapids, Michigan: Baker Academic, 2004), 93.

[12] John MacArthur Commentary, 1 Corinthians 12

[13]John R. Kohlenberger III, James A. Swanson, The Expanded Vine’s Expository Dictionary of New Testament Words (Minneapolis, Minnesota: Bethany House Publishers, 1984), 1078.

 

Spiritual Leadership

There is an insatiable thirst for spiritual leadership in churches today probably more than at any other time in church history.  It appears that genuine Spirit-indwelt, Spirit-filled and Spirit-led leadership is in short supply but in great demand.  If the church desires to meet the challenges and demands for ministry, it desperately needs to develop and implement a spiritual formation process for developing spiritual leaders. A church must intentionally accept the challenge of engaging membership in this learning process.  It is vital that churches place an emphasis on helping today’s leaders understand that spiritual growth is important and considered a prerequisite for becoming a leader in the church. 

“We need a radical change in the typical twenty-first-century pastor’s church-leadership paradigm, especially if the pastor attended a classical seminary or is an older person. Pastoral ministry certainly includes the central responsibilities of teaching and preaching the Bible, but far too many pastors stop there. Malphurs explains that pastor’s who hope to lead their church “in today’s and tomorrow’s world involves training leaders who will develop other leaders to carry the ministry torch to the third and fourth generations.”   The danger is that some denominational executives and pastors will continue to implement this failing paradigm, resisting the need for change. While there are some churches who have risen to the challenge to develop spiritually prepared leadership and talk about it, many have failed to see an increase of leadership in the church. It is important to have a plan in place where potential leaders can become involved in service following their potential leadership training. Malphurs concludes that churches need; an aggressive strategy for identifying and developing effective leadership.  “It’s folly for Christians to assume (as these days many do) that the best way for a Christian to learn leadership is from worldly examples. There’s a crucial reason for this: Leadership for the Christian always has a spiritual dimension.” MacArthur explains that the “best kind of leadership derives its authority first from the source of righteous example, and not merely from the power of prestige, personality or position. Real leadership seeks to motivate people from the inside, by an appeal to the heart, not by external pressure or coercion.”

Oswald expands this principle by stating that:  ”Spiritual leadership transcends the power of personality and all other natural gifts. The personality of the spiritual leader influences others because it is irradiated, penetrated, and empowered by the Holy Spirit. As the leader gives control of his life to the Spirit; the Spirit’s power flows through him to others. Spiritual leadership requires superior spiritual power, which can never be generated by the self. There is no such thing as a self-made spiritual leader. A true leader influences others spiritually only because the Spirit works through him to a greater degree than in those he leads.”

I wonder how many other leaders are as committed as I am to becoming a spiritual leader for those God entrusted us to lead?  This is written to encourage, equip and engage other leaders to follow another pattern for leadership than what we have learned from our world and even our institutional peers.  Will you join me?

Charles