Playing Church

Eph 5:14 Wherefore he saith, Awake thou that sleepest, and arise from the dead, and Christ shall give thee light.

Eph 5:15 See then that ye walk circumspectly, not as fools, but as wise,

Eph 5:16 Redeeming the time, because the days are evil.

Eph 5:17 Wherefore be ye not unwise, but understanding what the will of the Lord is.

Eph 5:18 And be not drunk with wine, wherein is excess; but be filled with the Spirit;

I can not play church and expect to stand when the shaking gets so bad everything that can be shaken will be. The Bible says God is angry with sin and the wicked every day. God loves His Son, our Lord Jesus Christ. But you only have to look as far as Calvary to see a public display that reveals the depth of God's hatred for sin. Christ was the only One who could bear such wrath. How can people look at the cross and see the suffering of our Savior there and willfully continue in sin? We have no excuse. He showed us his hatred for sin in what His Son bore. Do not believe the doctrine of devils that you cannot live above sin. You do not have to sin everyday. The Bible says Sin shall NOT have dominion over you (Rom 6:14). Why? Because He destroyed the works of the devil at the cross (1 John 3:8). The only way a devil can work in your life if is if you choose not to believe and accept the Lord and His Truth. He said you shall know the truth and the truth shall make you free. (John 8:32) Jesus Christ is the Truth, the Way and the Life. I pray you will be blessed, but more I pray you will be convicted and provoked to draw closer to Jesus Christ, Who Alone is our Hope of Glory. I ask you, those who are the church and I ask myself: when the Lord turns His fiery eyes toward me, and you, does He see compassion and mercy in our heart for the lost He died for ? Does He see us on our face asking for that which we lack so we can better serve Him? Or does He see us wasting time, with idle chit chat, in front of the TV, or on the phone, or computer, doing meaningless things to pass the time? Has He heard the words "I'm bored" out of our mouth or heart, when there is so much to be done in His kingdom? Has He heard that come out of our mouths and then looked around at the suffering of this world, and the lost and hurting who need to know about Him and looked with a grieved heart at the selfishness of one who thinks they belong to Him but don't? All all around us are lost and dying world who desperately need to see a manifestation of HIM in those who say we belong to Him. When He comes, and I must stand before the most powerful presence and the most pure holiness in existence, past or present, and give account, what can I possibly say? Did I not show reverence in His house and cause others, by my example not to fear Him? Did I go my own way and try to do it my own way at the expense of the cross and its demands? Church, what say you? I would rather face this now than then, while there is still time to change things, wouldn't you?

Confessing Jesus Christ

Mat 10:32 Whosoever therefore shall confess me before men, him will I confess also before myFather which is in heaven.

Most people think to deny the Lord is to do as Peter did, deny you know Him. The Lord stirred this Scripture up in my Spirit and showed me that it's much more. If I confess Him with my mouth, but deny Him the right to be Lord-i.e., director, instructor, and controller of my life, which He alone holds in His hand, then I deny Him. If I refuse His Lordship, and refuse to deny my flesh it's carnal ways and wants in favor of the rightful and reasonable demands of the Lord Jesus Christ through the power of His Holy Spirit, then I deny Him. I am not to deny Him at any time. I am not to deny Him quality time. I am not to deny Him the use of my vessel. I am not to deny Him when He stirs me up to pray. I am not to deny Him when He deals with me about something. I am not to deny Him anything. I am not to contradict Him or His Word by the way I live my life. It is to be HIM that lives in me in control, not me, myself and I.

Whatever He deals with us about, we need to be willing to deny ourselves but never Him. He has requirements of the vessel He dwells in, and uses. We must yield to the Holy Spirit and let Him make us what the Lord wants us to be. We must be willing to lay our lives down a living sacrifice for the use of the Master. IF we refuse, we deny Him.

Mat 10:33 But whosoever shall deny me before men, him will I also deny before my Father which isin heaven.

Biblical Circumcision

The Bible mentions circumcision many times in both the Old and New Testaments. One of my favorite Bible Verses mentions this word, and I've prayed this verse back to God for years now, and I have never really understood what I was praying-nor thought until now to search it out.

Deu 30:6 And the LORD thy God will circumcise thine heart, and the heart of thy seed, to love the LORD thy God with all thine heart, and with all thy soul, that thou mayest live.


God established this as a symbol of consecration to Himself. It was the cutting off of excess flesh. (Rom_13:14) God commanded Abraham at 99 to do this, and all the males in his camp, including 13 year old Ishmael was circumcised. This had to hurt badly at their mature ages. To purposely inflict that kind of pain on one's self to obey God speaks of great love and devotion. It also speaks volumes about Abraham's confidence in God as opposed to confidence in himself when he did this. The extra flesh was cut off as a sign of consecration and dependence on God. The Bible also mentions uncircumcised ears, lips, and hearts. It was a sign of purity, of cleanness. (Isa_52:1)

We have to undergo a spiritual circumcision, and it is a very painful process. I am learning this in my walk with the Lord. This is a process where our hearts are circumcised. It's called sanctification. It's where we are separated from the unclean, and truly consecrated to God, where spiritual impurities are removed, and corrupt desires rooted in our human natures become extinct as we die to self and deny their expression. We need the Holy Ghost to take us through this process, to work this out in us. He will show us how any confidence in our own selves will lead to failure. He will show us things hidden in our hearts that will horrify us for we do not know they are there on a conscious level. Because we truly love and desire to serve God, because we long for holiness and purity, to be like the Lord, when we see these things and come to the full realization that there truly is nothing good in us except Him, it is a painful thing to face. He shows us this progressively-not all at once. We could not bear it. If we are not careful it will cause us to despair. We must keep looking to Jesus for HE alone is the Author and Finisher of our faith.

For Paul to say "He is a Jew which is one inwardly and circumcision of the heart, in the spirit not in the letter" (Rom_2:29) meant someone who was not depending on their own merit or righteousness, but Jesus Christ, who has been made our righteousness, and who has had their heart purified, a spiritual, not carnal Christian. This is a work of the Spirit-not flesh. When God ordained the Passover, on the eve of the exodus from Egypt, He told Moses that when a stranger traveled with the people, and would keep the passover to the Lord, he had to be circumcised and all his males. No uncircumcised person shall eat the passover. (Exo_12:48) What does that mean to the New Testament church? Our Passover is the Lamb of God, Jesus Christ. He was the Word of God made flesh. "Except you eat My flesh (My Word) and drink My blood, (My Holy Spirit) you have no life in you." Joh_6:53.

He is the Light of God and has no fellowship with darkness. And no person who is trusting in their own righteousness, confident in their own ability, and not separating themselves from the unclean can eat this Word of God, which is the Word of Life. The natural man receiveth not the things of God-to him it is foolishness. They cannot accept or absorb the truths of God. They cannot be partakers at the Lord's table of fellowship lest they be born again and determine to allow the Word and Spirit of God to separate them from that which is unclean and rooted in self-dependency. I'm learning Biblical circumcision then is refusing to be confident in our ability, but rather seeking and trusting God's ability-which is His Holy Spirit, and being wary of ourselves knowing that no flesh can glory in His presence or accomplish His will. It also means purifying or perfecting something-such as our hearts, our vision, our hearing, our speech. The fear of the Lord keeps wise men from doing evil. Love for Him restrains us from doing evil. But His power and His life in us is what makes us holy. To have His life we must reject all this born of self, and natural human strength. I have failed myself, but He never has. Glory to God!