The Word | Daily Bread - May 10, 2018 |
| Written by Pastor Mark Spitsbergen |
| Thursday, 10 May 2018 11:28 |
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1 Corinthians 12:13 - For by one Spirit are we all baptized into one body, whether we be Jews or Gentiles, whether we be bond or free; and have been all made to drink into one Spirit. Baptized into the Body of Christ - Part 2 Jesus told us we could do nothing without Him (John 15:5). He showed us how every dimension of His ministry was dependent on His submission to the Holy Spirit (Luke 4:1, 18; Acts 2:22, 10:38; John 5:30, 8:28). He desires that we pray in the Spirit, and then out of that expression pray with the understanding also. He desires that we sing in the Spirit, and then out of that overflow sing in the understanding also (1 Corinthians 14:15-16). Look at what we do instead! Yet, there is no Biblical instruction for the common everyday church service! We are to be continually filled with the Spirit, speaking to ourselves in psalms and hymns and spiritual songs, so how much more should those activities be the expression of what we have in the assembly that reveals God in all of His fulness and the Heavenly ministry of Jesus (Ephesians 5:18-19). Instead, we have turned Father's House into a place of showmanship and merchandizing. We pay little regard to any expressions of the Holy Spirit, and in many cases, forbid them outright! Pentecost is not our model, but a historical event that has little significance in our Sunday morning meetings. Our church meetings are geared towards attracting men to our powerless religious social clubs. We are supposed to be impressed by the entertainment and oratory of men; while all the time, it falls far short of the revelation of Jesus Christ and His Heavenly ministry (Matthew 3:11; Mark 1:8, 16:20; Luke 3:16, 24:49; John 1:33; Acts 2:1-4, 4:29-33). Church should be the very description of Who Jesus is, and also His heavenly ministry and power. It should be filled with all the splendor and power of Heaven. The awe of God presented should be more impacting than what was seen and felt at Mount Sinai when God spoke audibly to all the people of Israel (Hebrews 12:18-28). Our God is a consuming fire; and if His fire falls upon our meetings, then there will be nothing seen but Him (Hebrews 12:29). We say that we want Jesus to receive all the glory and be the only One seen, but only the Holy Spirit can reveal Jesus and make Him known (John 16:13-15). If we refuse everything the Holy Spirit is described to be and do in the Bible, how then is it possible for Jesus to be glorified and revealed? Those who have ears to hear, let them hear. (Matthew 13:43) |
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