by Suellen | The Church Awakening
In I Corinthians 12: 12-27, Paul explains a significant aspect of our Christian walk. He compares our natural body to the body of Christ.
“For even as the body is one yet has many members, and all the members of the body, though they are many, are one body, so also is Christ.
For by one Spirit we were baptized into one body, whether Jews or Greeks, whether slaves or free, and we were all made to drink of one Spirit.
For the body is not one member, but many.”
Then he goes on to remind us that the foot, hand, eye, and ear are all important to our functioning in much the same way that the many parts of Christ’s body are important. Each part is different, but each part is essential. All of the parts need each other to be healthy.
In Ephesians 4:16, he gives even more insight. He says that the whole body is “fitly joined together and compacted by that which every joint supplies, according to the effectual working in the measure of every part, makes increase of the body unto the edifying of itself in love.” That’s a mouthful, for sure, but an important one.
If we look at the whole scripture, we see 1) each part effectually working 2) fitly joined together and compacted 3) by that which every joint supplies, and 4) making increase of the body, building up itself in love.
The joint represents the joining of the parts. The major substance comes, not from the parts, but from the joints. In Christ’s body, the substance comes, not just from us as individuals, but from the relationships when the parts come together. If we will allow ourselves to be “fitly joined together” with others of different gifts, the substance, the anointing, will begin to flow to a greater extent than we have ever seen it.
We know that this is true with our natural bodies. We also recognize this in the local church, as we appreciate the many gifts necessary to run a church. Now it’s time to take it to the next level. God is calling for us to join with other believers, of many walks and many doctrines, not compromising, but finding the common ground in Jesus Christ.
We come together in our camp and worship God in our special way. Then we find the time to join with others who worship in a different way, so that we might be fitly joined together to appropriate God’s plan for our communities. As we pray together, we will shake the heavens.
We are the body of Christ. One body; not many. Remember, the stones that you use to build the bridges that unite, will come from the walls that divide. As we humble ourselves and allow God to fitly join us together, we will see a great awakening in our nation.
by Suellen | The Church Awakening
There is a common phrase which is often used to rally troops to a project. “United we stand; divided we fall.” This is true in natural war, and it’s true in spiritual war.
The Word is full of this truth.
In Matthew 12:25 Jesus said, “Every kingdom divided against itself is brought to desolation; and every city or house divided against itself shall not stand.”
He also prayed in John 17:21 “That they all may be one; as Thou, Father, art in me, and I in Thee, that they also may be one in us; that the world may believe that Thou hast sent me.”
John 17:22, “That they may be one, even as we are one.”
John17:23 “That they may be perfect in one.”
Ephesians 2:14 Paul wrote, “For He (Jesus) is our peace, who hath made both one, hath broken down the middle wall between us.”
In Ephesians 4:3 “Endeavoring to keep the unity of the spirit in the bond of peace.”
Ephesians 4:13 “Til we all come into the unity of the faith.”
The resounding theme is united we stand and divided we fall.
Sometimes people feel that if they seek too much unity, they will have to compromise, but that’s not the case. A perfect example of the church in unity would be the 12 tribes of Israel. The tribes had different land, different leaders, different banners, and different customs. Some were more spiritual than others. But when it was time to go to war, no longer did they just go as their tribe. They went as children of Israel to defeat the common enemy. They went as one man.
Today we have many different tribes in the church. When we are wanting to be on the cutting edge of God’s plan, it’s easy to see ourselves as the “latest and greatest,” and not to appreciate the attributes of others. But God is calling for us to humble ourselves and seek for the common ground with others. Only then will we be able to destroy the enemy in our territories.
Unity doesn’t mean we deny any of our doctrines. It means that if someone believes that Jesus Christ is Lord and that He was crucified and rose again from the dead, then they are our brother and we will honor their contribution. They may be honoring God in a different way, but we still honor them and stand with them.
The Lord spoke to me and said, “The stones that you use to build the bridges which unite will come from the walls which divide.” So who will go first? Who is willing to remove the first stone from the wall that divides and cross denominational lines to develop relationships that unite?
The way you add fractions is to find a common denominator. That denominator is Jesus Christ. It’s His church and His body. I encourage spiritual leaders to form prayer groups with other leaders from different churches. We as leaders must set the example. If we will do this we will change our communities and usher in the great awakening we all have been talking about.
by Suellen | The Church Awakening
Recently, the Lord has been speaking to me concerning the body of Christ. There are so many divisions; so many walls. There are denominational walls, racial walls, gender walls, and cultural walls. It’s as if His body is divided into many pieces with no connections, and it grieves Him.
Why is this so? Why have we allowed satan to divide us? God has some answers for us. We are all believing for a great awakening, and there are some keys to our preparation for it. One of those keys is humility. (more…)
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by Suellen | The Church Awakening, Young Intellectuals
I once read about a highly successful fitness expert, Bill Phillips, whose training helped many people improve their health and their stamina. Yet he was always amazed at the numbers of out-of-shape people who would approach him and thank him for his books. It’s as if they didn’t realize that he could tell at a glance that they were not implementing his ideas. He began to challenge people to “face the abyss,” that infinite chasm between knowing and doing.
Our western society has become a “spectator society.” We watch our teams win, and we think we have accomplished something. We watch news and our favorite TV series, and we trick ourselves into thinking we are in on the action. (more…)
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by Suellen | The Church Awakening, Young Intellectuals
When we look at David in the Bible, we see a man who knew many facets of life. He started out as an insignificant shepherd boy and wound up as a great king. He spent time living in caves, hiding from King Saul, who was trying to kill him. Then he spent many years in the palace ruling over the great nation of Israel.
He had many people who hated him (even his own son, Absalom, tried to steal his throne), and many who loved him dearly. He sinned horrifically, as he committed adultery with Bathsheba and had her husband killed. He also showed powerful character as he repented and forgave so quickly.
Through it all, God called David a “man after God’s own heart.” How did he manage to be God’s man through all of that? There were two things which stood out all the way through David’s life. (more…)
