The power for being equipped and matured into a lovingly authentic proclaimer is not in believers themselves, in their leaders, or in church structure. The power is found in Christ through the power of the Holy Spirit. The two present passive participles in Ephesians 4:16 are meant to express that the close, tight, compacted correlation of function in the Body as an organism is the result of Christ’s power. Who else could forge a bond in the 12 disciples? The proper working of each individual in the church recalls the importance of each believer’s gift. The growth of any church is not a result of clever methods but of every member of the Body fully using their spiritual gifts in close contact with other believers. The power in the church flows from the Lord through individual believers and relationships between believers. Where God’s people have close relationships of genuine spiritual ministry, God works. He does not look for creativity, ingenuity, or cleverness, but for willing and loving obedience. All of this is to be done in love, according to 1 Corinthians 13. When the church displays love to one another, the world will know that it is of the Lord, … READ MORE

Oneness in fellowship is impossible unless it is built on the foundation of a commonly believed truth. God’s truth is not believed and divided against itself, and when His people are fragmented and divided it simply means they are to the degree apart from His truth. Only a biblically equipped, faithfully serving, and spiritually maturing church can “attain to the unity of the faith” in accordance to Ephesians 4:13-15. We must understand that there can never be unity in the church apart from doctrinal integrity. Growing in the deeper “knowledge of the Son of God” is a life-long process that will not be complete until we see our Lord face-to-face. Therefore, the Christian is called to “walk in the same manner as [Jesus] walked” (1 John 2:6). To walk as our Lord walked flows from a life of prayer and obedience to God’s Word. This can only happen as we commit our minds to understanding the clear teaching from the Word of God. Despite our unprecedented education, sophistication, freedom, and access to God’s Word and sound Chrisitan teaching, it seems that every religious huckster can find a ready hearing and financial support from among God’s people. Authentic, mature believers whose … READ MORE

In the early 70’s Jim Croce wrote a song that said, “If I could save time in a bottle, the first thing that I’d like to do, is to save every day “till eternity passes away-just to spend them with you.” Those are interesting lyrics, and it may be nice if we could save time, but unfortunately, we can’t. In fact, a few months after he wrote that song, Jim Croce was tragically killed in a plane crash in Natchitoches, Louisiana at the age of 30. Where we invest our time reveals what is most important to us. Let me ask you a question, “How much of your discretionary time is devoted to the Lord?” We often talk about “quality time” but the reality is that all time has the same quality. Every moment is a gift from God that must be managed wisely. Paul speaks of “redeeming” the time in Ephesians 5:14-15. This means that we should be constantly looking around to make the most of every opportunity. Remember once opportunity passes, it cannot be reclaimed. Make time today for the things that are truly important. The way to do this is to create margin in your life. When … READ MORE