Faithfulness To Christ And His Word
Dear friends, Jesus Christ is the most important, best and most wonderful of everyhting, He is God your Creator, our Savior and Lord. The Bible in 1 Cor.1:9 says what "The Meaning of Life” is; it says that you and I are "Called to have a Relationship with Jesus Christ"! God has proved his love to you when Jesus suffered and died on the cross for your sins. He calls you and me to a close love-relationship with Him as His children. I long intensely to know Jesus more, come closer to Him, to see and hear Him. and experience the living God. However, our heart's Goal is not really what we can get from God, but the goal, focus is God himself, which is Jesus Christ. The Word of God says that "all things were created through Him and to Him". I met Jesus radically and powerfully when I got saved; Dear friends, I met him, and it changed my life completely. Since that day, I have only Jesus Christ in front of my eyes, my heart is on fire for Him. Everything else in life on this earth and all the worldly things is Nothing compared to Jesus Christ. Paul says in Fil.3:8 that he lost everything, but this all is "garbage" in comparison with Jesus. "Garbage" means actually garbage. Many people are in earthly and worldly things without ever raising their eyes to the Creator, instead of satisfying themselves with the heavenly things that is far better than anything else.
I believe that we today will be satisfied with the living God, of Jesus' glorious presence and of God's Word which is life and healing, Amen. Jesus said about Himself that He is the Way, the Truth and the Life. And that statement sums much of what Jesus is and what He stands for. Jesus is the way to God the Father and eternal life in Heaven. Jesus opened for us the Way through his redemptive work on the cross and his Resurrection from the dead. Jesus is the Life because He is the source of all life; The Bible explains, as we said, that all things were created through Him and to Him. The Bible says that Jesus is the Prince of life, the Bread of life that saturates our innermost. When you take part of this spiritual Jesuslife you will be filled with God's love, of peace beyond all circumstances, of God´s joy that nothing can steal. We are as the Word of God says called to be in a relationship with Jesus Christ and to this wonderful life in Him, filled with love, joy and peace and God's glory and holiness. However, Jesus said that He is also the Truth, and it is extremely important that we understand that Jesus is the Truth. We cannot separate Jesus as the Way and the Life from the fact that he is also the Truth. The fact is that Jesus can not be the Way and the Life for you unless you also let Him be the Truth in your life.
The Gospel of John, the first chapter explains that Jesus is the Word, He is One with the Word of God, and the Word of God is for all true believers the Truth. We read Joh 1:1, 14: ”In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God, and the Word was God”. And vers 14: ”The Word became flesh and made his dwelling among us. We have seen his glory, the glory of the one and only Son, who came from the Father, full of grace and truth”. Let us also read John 17:17-19: ”Sanctify them by the truth; your word is truth. As you sent me into the world, I have sent them into the world. For them I sanctify myself, that they too may be truly sanctified”. The Word of God is Powerful, and do good for us; So we read also John 8:31-32: ”To the Jews who had believed him, Jesus said, “If you hold to my teaching, you are really my disciples. Then you will know the truth, and the truth will set you free.” There is a lot of things in peoples life that binds, problems and hardships; But the Word of God sets free! BUT; You need to Read the Word, All Word, the Full Word so you can be Fully Free! – A little bit of Jesus/the Word is not enough; It’s All or nothing!
We are now living in what the Bible prophesied "End time fall away in the Christianity"; when many will turn away from the pure loyalty to Christ and His Word. The Word of God, the Christian basics and the teaching of Christ has always at all times been distorted and falsified. The Bible warns that we shall not allow ourselves to be deceived and to be led astray. We read 2 Cor. 11:2-4: ”I am jealous for you with a godly jealousy. I promised you to one husband, to Christ, so that I might present you as a pure virgin to him.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. For if someone comes to you and preaches a Jesus other than the Jesus we preached, or if you receive a different spiritfrom the Spirit you received, or a different gospel from the one you accepted, you put up with it easily enough”. So, it is possible to preach a foreign gospel and another Jesus; Which according to the Word we have just read has the consequence of a "different spirit", a "deceiving spirit".
The Spirit of God, the Holy Spirit is also called "the Spirit of Truth". Which means that "spiritual manifestations, prophecy, preaching" which is contradict to God's Word does not have the Spirit of God. At the best, it can be human fantasies and inventions, at worst it can be a strange evil spirit in operation. God stands only behind and confirms His own Word and not what is outside, contradicting and opposing His Word. We read about this in Mark.16:20: “Then the disciples went out and preached everywhere, and the Lord worked with them and confirmed his word by the signs that accompanied it”.
In the mission field in India, Pakistan, Ethiopia and Kenya, we have constantly seen how Jesus has confirmed the preaching of the Word through miracles, blind received sight, the lame walking and so on. I remember very well in Pakistan when I received a spiritual vision in a meeting. Thousands of Muslims gathered, the Word of Healing went out. Myself and other preached during these meetings. We were no "superstars" as preachers. It was a simple preaching of the Gospel and the Word of God, which any believer could preach; And Jesus appeared to me in a spiritual vision and show me how he went about healing among the people; And it was Only because the gospel and the Word of Gods was preached.
There are no "lazy or retired people" in the Kingdom of God. Jesus says: “No man, having put his hand to the plough, and looking back, is fit for the Kingdom of God”. So, we are All called to give out the Word and the Gospel. Everyone should take out the Promises of God in the Word and walk in Victory. Offcourse there are different ministry gifts, but it is another thing, another sermon.
"Spiritual manifestations or prophecies" can have much of variety. Off course, everything is not in the Bible what is prophesied or preached, such as my parable about the football team, However, it should not be contrary to the Word of God and Christ's teaching. You prophesy false if you say: "So says the Lord you shall rob the bank so you can build a church "or" if you claim to be led by the Spirit of God to intoxicate yourself with liquor just to blend in in the pub or restaurant so you can be a witness "... We read 2 John 1:9-11: “Anyone who runs ahead and does not continue in the teaching of Christdoes not have God; whoever continues in the teaching has both the Father and the Son. If anyone comes to you and does not bring this teaching, do not take them into your house or welcome them. Anyone who welcomes them shares in their wicked work”. It is as we read extremely important to adhere to the Doctrine of Christ.
The Classical Evangelical Christian faith has been proven through centuries of Revivals as the Scripture says in Jud. 1:3:”faith that was once for all entrusted to God’s holy people." These Revivals, such as Baptists, Methodists and Pentecostals produced millions of spiritually born again disciples of Jesus, a fairly "good fruit" ... Revival pioneers paid a high price for the early Christian belief. The first hundreds of years of believers were thrown to the lions and used as burning torches by Emperor Nero; Million of Christians were martyred in the first centuries. During the Reformation in the 1500s, Thousands of Christians were tortured and burned at the stake because they only wanted "Scripture alone and justification by faith alone" as the basis for their Christian faith. In the 1800s Baptists was put in jail on bread and water. Pentecostals were persecuted and outcasts. Today dies about 100 000 Christians every year around the world for their Christian faith; Christians are by far the most persecuted group in the world. It also says in the Bible, in Jud.1:3 that we must "Fight" for our belief; Because the 2000 year old Christian faith is constantly under Attack. The reason is that if the Enemy, the evil One separates the people from the Truth he also can separate the people from Jesus as the Way and the Life. If he can take them away from the Word of God and the Truth then Jesus' saving grace cannot reach them; Because Jesus is both grace and truth as Joh.1:14 says. The Bible says very sharp Words to keep us on the so-called "narrow way" without turning to the right or to the left.
We can read Rev.22:18-19: ”I warn everyone who hears the words of the prophecy of this scroll: If anyone adds anything to them, God will add to that person the plagues described in this scroll. And if anyone takes words away from this scroll of prophecy, God will take away from that person any share in the tree of life and in the Holy City, which are described in this scroll”. So, the Will of God is clear; He don´t want His word to be Manipulated. The Evil One likes to argue about and give doubt in what God is saying. It was like this in the Fall; man was deceived by the old serpent when he said and questioned God's Word with "Has God really said?". And Jesus, the Son of God was tempted and tried by the devil when Jesus walked 40 days in the desert. The evil One twisted with Him with the Word of God and took the Scriptures out of context.
It's very much like todays preaching in our churches where God's Word is taking out of context. Preachers keeps it sweet and reject everything else, they reject 90% of God's Word, the Truth ... But, the word of God is as the Scripture says, "Life and Health". The Word of God is the true Medicine for us. And it is about God's entire Word; All that the Lord says to us through His Word. A Medicine will only work if All the ingredients are in place. If you take away something or add something to the medicine it becomes ineffective, and may even be dangerous and do damage. It is the same with the Word of God. So, Do not try to change the Word of God and make it say things it does Not say. Let us read the Bible page by page, sentence by sentence, and partake of the Word as it is.
We read John 12:46-48: ”I have come into the world as a light, so that no one who believes in me should stay in darkness. If anyone hears my words but does not keep them, I do not judge that person. For I did not come to judge the world, but to save the world. There is a judge for the one who rejects me and does not accept my Words; the very Words I have spoken will condemn them at the last day.” However, we should not be nervous of failing. Jesus is both Grace and Truth. If we fail and sin we Confess the sin, we Repent and Jesus forgives, cleanses and heals us, just as the Word of God teaches. God's wonderful Grace is that we are brought up to say No to ungodliness, as the Bible says. And it is through the Word and the Spirit we are Preserved in Christ. The Spiritlife in us is also crucial; Through the Holy Spirit's life and power we are able to follow and obey Jesus. Let us then every day be Filled with the Spirit of God and not of wordly things; Let us open our Hearts to Jesus and be filled with the Holy Spirit, which is our relationship with God, it is Jesus' wonderful presence. Then we get the power and ability to live the Christian life.
Ef.5:18 says: "Do not get drunk with wine, such leads to a life of vices. Let yourselves instead be filled with the Spirit ". I hardly dare to say "Good morning" to my wife before I first opened my heart to Jesus and let myself be filled with the Holy Spirit. We say first, "Good morning Holy Spirit," and then we are ready for the day. So Ef.5:18 says "be filled with the Spirit". If we try to function in our own power and ability, we are legalistic. But if we, as Romans 8:13 says: “For if you live according to the flesh, you will die; but if by the Spirit you put to death the misdeeds of the body, you will live”. We need the Word of God and the Spirit of life in us dear friends. Now you have got the Word; And it is almost time for prayertime, for intercession, so that you can get Help to be Filled with the Holy Spirit. However, Jesus is the Way, the Truth and the Life dear friends. Believe in Him and His Word, the Teaching of Christ and the Gospel, the Christian foundations and the Evangelical Christian faith.
This preaching today has been about being Faithful to Christ and His Word. Jesus says in Rev. 3:11: ”I am coming soon. Hold on to what you have, so that no one will take your crown”. And Jesus says in Rev.2:10: "Be thou faithful unto death, and I will give you the crown of life". Amen.
