The Call To Communion With God
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1 John 1:3
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God's Shaking Of Heaven And Earth
There are times when God moves in mysterious ways, "His wonders to perform," and this in the quiet, and the unseen. There are other times when He raises up kings and brings kings down. When Jesus died on Calvary, and victoriously conquered all the power of the enemy, it was a shaking, a breaking up of the hold that the enemy had on the souls of men. God moves to loose the authoritative power of men, in order to establish His kingdom. Even so, through His church, He puts the enemy to flight by the power of Jesus' name. The believer is called to trust Him for the manifestation of His victory.
God's Faithful Calling And Provision
When God calls someone to Himself, to follow Christ, and know life eternal, He provides IN Christ, by the Spirit, for every need. The believer is called upon to seek Him, trust Him for all things. This aspect of the call is the means by which God brings the believer into fellowship with Himself. To seek God is to find Him, for the believer is already in His hands.
Undistracted Devotion To Christ
To believe in Christ is to be devoted to Him. Why? In the knowledge that He is the Creator, and sole Redeemer of men, comes the conviction that man owes the eternal God everything, in response to His goodness. The greatness of that goodness was supremely revealed on the terrible cross of Calvary, where the Prince of Glory died. Eternal Goodness paid for man' sins that he might live forever.
To Know The Power Of Christ
It is one thing to know about Christ, His life, death, and resurrection. It is quite another to know the power of His indestructible life in the heart. Christ died on Calvary, not only to deal with men's sins forever, but to provide a knowledge of His ways whereby He would dwell in the hearts of all who would truly believe in Him. To know Christ is to know something of His power, His indwelling life, His peace.
The Loving Words Of Christ
What is it that Christ offers to sinful, lost men, that no philosophy, religion, or social system can provide? It is first of all the perfect, and complete provision for man's sins, sins which will result in him perishing for time and eternity. In Christ's shed blood there is the power for sins to be not only forgiven but washed away. Then there is the offering of a new life by the very Spirit of Christ, eternal life. All this was accomplished by the eternal love of God.
The Expectation of Fulness
It is an affront to God not to believe Him for all that He declares that He will do. Why? It is a denial of Who He truly is. Men are called by God to trust Him fully, and this because of His absolute faithfulness according to His word. All through Scripture we see that what He declares is what He will do in order that men might see and know that He is the God of history, but more so, the God of salvation in Christ.
The Eternal God And Talking Clay
The Word of God is very clear about the greatness and goodness of men when it declares that all flesh is as the grass of the fields, and its loveliness is like the flower which fades. Contrast this with the word of God, which is eternal, standing unchanged throughout the rising and falling of nations. God our Maker is worthy to be worshipped, and we the clay are called to be cleansed, and filled with His goodness and Life by the Spirit.
Before The Foundation Of The World
The call of God to men began before the foundation of the world. The fact that it goes back so far, from a human standpoint, should convince men of the worth that God has placed upon them. However, the greatest convincing evidence of the worth of man in the sight of God came when the Lord Jesus, on the cross of Calvary, finished a perfect work to save men from their sins. The immeasurable pain and suffering He knew by taking upon Himself the sins of the entire world, was the greatest demonstration of the love of God that man would ever know.
The Truth Becoming Me
It is one thing to profess Christ by word of mouth. It is quite another to profess Him, and live by the Spirit, so that the life corresponds to the words. The objective truth of Christ's life, and the subjective experience of knowing Him, the blessed quickening of His Spirit daily, is essential if the believer is to walk in communion with Him, Christ working in and through the life to reach others.
The Purpose Of Christ's Church In A Fallen World
The church, the living body of Christ on earth, is a unique creation of God designed for a specific purpose. It is called a mystery by the Apostle Paul, as is every believer in Christ, because Christ dwells in the church, as well as in the heart. Because of its union with Christ, its power and purpose is to be the instrument of God to reveal the person and work of Christ in a fallen world.