self driven revelations

This was shared with Matt McGaw and inspired him to come to Canberra, Australia.

"The church in Canberra is in need of genuine fellowship"

However, his report is that after speaking with two or three local churches he gave up and decided to develop his own congregation.

Why?  Because those he spoke with did not want to take up the revelation

What happened when others who did support him approached him?  He told them he was not interested in working with them.

Unfortunately this is sometimes the way when God speaks to those willing to hear him, not all are willing or capable of pursuing things his way.  They come with agendas and therefore filter the world and the people in it.  

It is difficult to understand in situations such as this how people can claim to desire genuine authentic fellowship but feel rejected by those who do not want it and reject those who do.

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God agrees with ME (friendship)

introduction

When you read the bible, how do you discover and understand what God means?  Do we simply read the words and go apply it?  Do we listen to a church sermon from or the advice of a Christian and simply do as suggested?

Why did Jesus say to the religious leaders and scholars of his day that knowing the words is not enough (e.g. John 5:39-40)?  What did he say we need instead?

Can understanding what God means occur by interpreting the bible through the lens of your society’s culture or your personal life experiences, preferences, desires, biases? (Isa 55:8).  Or should we be evaluating our culture and personal expectations through God's meaning?

Other things to consider:

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• Context ... How much of the message are you being told?  A few words, a sentence or two, maybe a paragraph.  The sentences before and after a passage or quote often bring what is being said into focus.

• Topic ... What is the real focus of what you are being told?  Is the passage or quote the focus of what is being explained or is it used to justify a predetermined theme or topic?  This is seen when a speaker starts with a quote but the rest of the time is used referring to personal and cultural concepts, ideas, presumptions, etc.
  [/dropdown_box]xample

example: friendship (top of page)

To explore this further, read John 15:12-15, a quote sometimes used to speak of friendship.

My command is this: Love each other as I have loved you. Greater love has no one than this: to lay down one’s life for one’s friends. You are my friends if you do what I command. I no longer call you servants, because a servant does not know his master’s business. Instead, I have called you friends, for everything that I learned from my Father I have made known to you.
(John 15:12-15)

In a recent church service, the speaker chose this to open a message about friendship (audio).

Was the surrounding text (context) spoken of (John 15:1-27)?  No, these were the only sentences used.  In addition, they were used to open the message, a message among a series about relationships (topic), and explored by a list of cultural types of friendship and concepts (e.g. purpose, value, time needed, number of people involved) about friendship.

Does this passage clearly state that Jesus is teaching about friendship?  Yes.

Does this passage give an explanation for how Jesus defines friendship?

No. It only reveals that he was talking about friendship.

Was the text explored before or after to discover whether Jesus gave any further.  No.

So, what is the context of what Jesus was saying?

What did he say both before and afterward?befo

re

the text before (top of page)

Jesus gives an analogy where He is a vine, God the Father is the viticulturist (grape farmer), and people are a branch.

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mmandments
what does Jesus ask? (top of page)

What are Jesus’ commandments?

• That we love one another, just as Jesus loved us (and the Father loved him)
• This means to lay down (sacrifice) your life for your friends
• As a result, a friend is anyone who does this

The benefit of this is that Jesus will share everything he has heard from God the Father.after

the text after (top of page)

Jesus continues his comments about friendship by stating that "the reason why the world hates you is because it hated him first."  Why?  Because when Jesus calls you out of the world you stop being part of it, and the world hates anything and anyone who is not part of it.  Consequently, since Jesus was persecuted, because God the Father is not known, so will you be persecuted. 

summary

summary (top of page)

To be a friend is to sacrificially love people.  This is how God the Father loves Jesus and Jesus loves us.  If you do:

• You will be glorifying God the Father by proving yourself a disciple of Jesus
• Jesus will share with you everything he has heard from God the Father
• God will prune you in such a way that anything you ask of him will be done
• You will be persecuted by anyone who doesn't know God

action plan: what to do next?

From the teachings of Jesus in John 15, is it possible to list the various types of friendship, or relationships we find in our society?  Is it possible to analyse their value or how to achieve them? Indeed does the teaching justify or prove our culture and personal expectations of friendship or other relationships?

If we take the teaching at face value, we must ask:

• How do we love people sacrificially? How did Jesus?  How did God?
• How do we prepare for and persevere through persecution?  What does persecution look like?
• How does God prune us?
• Do we limit our sacrificial love (friendship) to certain people or open ourselves to anyone?  What does this mean for our current relationships?  What does it mean for the people we currently exclude or don't see at all?

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is buddhism a better option?

Having a chat with a colleague today who shared something very interesting.  She grew up within the Anglican church, then known as the Church of England, she attended every Sunday as was Sunday school teacher for many years.  However, over time she saw the hypocrisy and institutional nature of the church.  Not wanting to abandon God or Jesus who she still loves dearly, she discovered the Buddhist faith to which she now adheres.

This discussion is unfinished, but what stood out was NOT a rejection of God, but a deep desire to stay true while the church of man world around her failed.

Yes, it could be argued she should have persevered, or her faith was weak, etc.

But was it?  Is it?

I believe what she is sharing is a GREAT desire to be in God's kingdom.  However, the culture of the man's church demands or expects certain things of us we just cannot swallow.  And as there are few to no real, authentic alternatives, some people look further afield.

Jesus said when he was on earth that Gods flock was scattered and without a shepherd.  He also asks his people to share that work, both in the old and new testaments.

What would it be like to live in a world where people are like shepherd without a shepherd?  Would Jesus see this in the same light as he did the Pharisees and Sadducees?  Is this lady alone in her plight?

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winds of change

"I still hold out hope that one day the wind will change back."

adapted from an article written by Ron McGatlin 

"I still hold out hope that one day the wind will change back."

what is church ministry?

• Grow in numbers?
• Improve its activities and services?
• Perform benevolent acts?
• Have greater prosperity?
• Do more and better evangelism?
• To heal people physically, emotionally, and spiritually?

These are a few examples of the results of the ecclesia (church), but they are not the goal. The goal is Christ dwelling among his people, who as a result mature with his character and nature, in the world, producing God’s kingdom and righteousness.

• This is the work of his Spirit and not a work of our efforts (Romans 8:11; Galatians 5:22)
• The love of Christ flowing from a pure heart is the most powerful world changing force.  Fear, pride, lust, greed, envy, and every evil work can be overpowered by love from a pure hearted people touching and changing our household and those who abide within then spilling out to the world (1 Timothy 1:5).

embracing the original goals

The love and gifts flowing through relationship are becoming the primary structure replacing institutional structure (e.g. intimacy with God, Father's love, "Christ in you", transformation, reformation, church without walls, etc).

We are learning that we do not "go to church" nor "join a church", but we are "added to the church". We are the church. In a way christians are taught about the church being a 'priesthood of the believer'.  However, we have not fully acted upon this understanding. The gap between the officials (pastor, priest, elders, bishop, etc) and the ordinary person continues to prevent us from fully enabling the priesthood of all believers.

 

systems, not the church will end

In the confusion of transition some think anarchy and rebellion are coming against the church and attempting to throw off leadership (e.g pastors and elders). If there are, they are wrong. The new paradigm will bring forth many times more gifted men and women who have in the passing systems been relegated to pew sitting, or limited jobs.

leadership and headship differences

There is one human head of the ecclesia (church). No one man stands as head over the church, local, regionally, or universally. No priest, pastor, or pope.  Nor does anyone represent the head to the mature believers.  The head is Christ Jesus.

Leadership simply means those further down the road on which we all are walking. The mature lead the immature until they are matured, then they lead other immature people, in turn.  How? By helping people to clearly hear God and live as he asks.

The term the bible uses is elder.  An elder has nothing to do with an office or official role. Elders lead by example, training and assisting the immature.  Elders:

• shepherd and oversee
• allow people to observe them and their lives, then
  
• release the maturing disciples to do the work while they watch, then
• leave them to do the work, themself now considered mature, an elder

don't to be mislead

• by reactions of people who fear losing the systems that have served them for so long, or
• by those who attempt to repackage the passing system practices with new labels
• by worring about where people gather, for our man-made traditions work whatever the venue (e.g. traditional church, a house, at work).

The move is about Christ truly becoming the head in a practical real way and not just in word only.

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