I Thessalonians 5:15-24 "See that none render evil for evil unto any man; but ever follow that which is good, both among yourselves, and to all men. Rejoice evermore. Pray without ceasing. In every thing give thanks: for this is the will of God in Christ Jesus concerning you. Quench not the Spirit. Despise not prophesyings. Prove all things; hold fast that which is good. Abstain from all appearances of evil. And the very God of peace sanctify you wholly; and I pray God your whole spirit and soul and body be preserved blameless unto the coming of our Lord Jesus Christ. faithful is he that calleth you, who also will do it."
All,
We are entering a new stage in the life of our Covenant Group. It has been relatively easy thus far. We are beginning to discuss doctrines that have divided many bodies of believers in Church History. Sometimes division is needed to preserve Holiness or Vital Doctrine, other times division has been because of pride or ambition. I have been praying that God will preserve this group if it be his will, from without and from within. I would ask everyone to search themselves and test their motives for being in this group. I know we are aware, but sometimes it is helpful to repeat it, we are all from different backgrounds and have different experiences. Some people may say things that we disagree with and some people may say things in a tone we do not like. Yet it is important to keep in mind the exhortation of numerous scripture. We are to prefer one another and are to be patient with one another in love, helping the weaker brothers and sisters. Yet I believe that we are also to bear with those brethren that may be bolder and more outspoken. The body consist of John Wesleys and George Whitefields. We all have different gifts and different "orchestrated" weaknesses. Something much higher than our belief, reputation or pride is at stake! We are being conformed to the image of Christ and there are people whom we do not know that are looking in at us to see if this work is of God. Let us all give one another the benefit of the doubt as we proceed. If we are offended, let us prove all things and hold to that which is good. God cares for his Children and will not look kindly on those who mistreat them. If this is not your heart then it may be best for you to leave now. If it is your heart, and I trust it is, then let us proceed in fear, being jealous for one an other's holiness and sanctification as we are our own. If we see sin or immaturity in another, let us approach them in love for their benefit and the strengthening of the body. Faithful is he that called us! Oh, let that be close to our hearts! If we are his children and act toward one another as the world does, he is faithful to chastise us to preserve us and Glorify his Holy Name.
I am not saying that anything is wrong but I see the danger of it and we should be extremely cautious as we proceed. This is not directed at anyone as much as it is directed at myself. I tend to speak before I think and if I were to offend you, I would hope that you would be gracious towards me and not speak ill of me or sneer behind my back. I have made mistakes and the Lord has been faithful to correct me. If you will not call me on my sins, then pray to God that he will correct me. I would consider this the loving and faithful act of a brother, sister and friend. I will do my best to be faithful in this respect to you as well. I Love, more than you can know, each member of our group and it is my deepest desire that God would move among us and send us out for from here for his Glory.
May God richly bless each one of you and may He cause His face to shine upon you.
Wednesday, February 25, 2009
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David,
ReplyDeletei could not agree with you more...we do have to be so careful as to not let any division seep into our group. How wonderful is it to be fellowshipping with other believers who, likewise, are seeking the truths of the Bible and God's indescribable love! With that said, don't you know there is an enemy that is waiting for any chance to divide up what God is doing. I will pray and carefully weigh my thoughts and speech as to not bring any offense to the group and if I bring any offense, I would hope that anyone of our group would please bring that to my attention because this is so very precious to me and Pam both. Praise God for His goodness!
Thank you for the timely admonition David. You are always so balanced and humble when you take us to the woodshed! Seriously, we do need to keep these principles always in the forefront. It's not about us,but God. Mom said to tell you thanks too.
ReplyDeleteThanks David, and sorry it took so long to respond here. I think one of the reasons this group has had such an affect on my walk is simply because I know very little, and with God's help my lack of knowledge was evident to me. Because of that I come to learn, even on the weeks you have to endure my teaching. These truths, as elementary they may be to some of us, have brought me to my knees and I think God is using this work to change the lives of those around me. Truly I hope we all see ourselves as sitting at His feet, learning from Him. As we have seen through this book, He is so infinitely greater than we can ever hope to comprehend and to think we understand all there is to know about Him and His work is probably silly, but conversely what we do know MUST be guarded. I spent some time this week in John 17, and I would encouarge all of us to read this before Monday, and I pray that God would give each one of us a fierce humilty.
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