This is another excerpt from my book soon to be available.
The Lord revealed to me the condition of the church in the area of communion with Him and with each other that He wants to see changed. It starts with our hearts toward Him and toward each other. When the Lord’s Supper is mentioned here, it doesn’t only refer to taking communion. It refers to our attitudes when many of us come to church to hear His Word (the bread) and the manifestation of the power of His Word (the wine). Some come ready to receive the word and get drunk in the Spirit, but they don’t prepare at home as properly as it is expected of them. They want the preacher to do all the work while they don’t spend enough time in the Word and prayer at home. In other words, they prefer to hear about the groom (Jesus) than to get to know Him for themselves. On the other hand, some of them do spend time with the Lord at home, but there are still areas in their hearts that need healing and their minds need to be renewed.
In addition, for some reason, walking with God for some is about their own selfish ambitions than about helping the needy in the body. These people become stumbling blocks that hinder others that are truly hungry for the things of God and the manifestation of the power of His Word that was delivered through God’s messenger.
23For I pass on to you what I received from the Lord Himself. On the night when He was betrayed, the Lord Jesus took some bread 24and gave thanks to God for it. Then he broke it in pieces and said, “This is my body, which is given for you. Do this to remember me.” 25In the same way, he took the cup of wine after supper, saying, “This cup is the new covenant between God and His people—an agreement confirmed with my blood. Do this to remember me as often as you drink it.” 26For every time you eat this bread and drink this cup, you are announcing the Lord’s death until he comes again NLT.
On the very night of the Passover meal and prior to going to the Cross to die for our sins, the Lord was betrayed by one of His disciples—Judas (Matthew 26:24-25). The Lord calls this action of not partaking of His body and His blood properly a betrayal. Also, the immaturity of some believers has them thinking still that going to God is a lot more about getting keys to make more money than to have a true relationship with Him. But in reality, we are to give of everything we have unconditionally as the His Spirit leads; because after all, as true citizens of heaven, everything we have been given is for us to steward and not to hoard. much less keep others from getting their fair share of the blessings. This is another way for those people to be used of the enemy as agents of division instead of unity.
Moreover, Judas was under the influence of Religion and Mammon when he betrayed Jesus—the same reason some betray others in His body. These two components of the Antichrist spirit—Religion and Mammon—didn’t just influence Judas to do this one betrayal. As we read in the New Testament, we will see that there were several examples of Judas’ true heart toward Jesus and the Kingdom of God. The Antichrist spirit was already operating through him even though he was a leader appointed by God to walk with and be a disciple of Jesus. Judas just didn’t want to let go of that influence even though he was given many chances to do it through all the miraculous things Jesus did before going to the Cross.
Manipulation to get what he wanted was more important to him than the ways of the Kingdom (Matthew 26:8), and although it was ordained by God the Father that His Son would suffer betrayal, Judas was used to become a stumbling block for Jesus. Fortunately, he repented, (Matthew 27:3-4), but instead of repenting and moving on to learn how to walk with God without the Antichrist influence, he chose to give up and die. He could have led others to recognize if that influence was in them and teach them how to discern it like he did and repent (turn from it and seek the renewal of his mind).
27So anyone who eats this bread or drinks this cup of the Lord unworthily is guilty of sinning against the body and the blood of the Lord. 28That is why you should examine yourself before eating the bread and drinking the cup. 29For if you eat the bread and drink the cup without honoring the body of Christ, you are eating and drinking God’s judgment upon yourself. 30That is why many of you are weak and sick and some have even died NLT.
Another manifestation of the spirit of the Antichrist through Religion is that it uses the wounds in our souls that have not been healed to turn some against others (Proverbs 6:16-19). Through fear that makes a way for deception to come in, not discerning the influence of this spirit causes people to give in to coming against others in the body because it is the first thing it would attempt to detour God’s people from receiving from God. The greater the influence of this spirit the greater the attacks against each other. This way we are sinning against the body of Christ when we come and don’t become agents of unity and love, but of division.
God wants honor in His house and it starts with each one of us doing our part. As mentioned in verse 30, this is one sure cause of so much sickness and weakness and even death in the body—not honoring others causes decay in the body of Christ that manifests also in our bodies as well as other areas if we don’t turn from it. Some may say that everything is alright in their lives because they appear to be successful on the outside, but it is just a matter of time before things turn wrong if they don’t repent from dishonoring others especially for greedy gain. That is why the Bible says that God is slow to anger and abounding in mercy (Psalm 103:8, 145:8). He is giving us time to repent because He prefers mercy over judgment. But even His Grace runs out after He has given enough time for repentance, but it was not heeded.
31But if we would examine ourselves, we would not be judged by God in this way. 32Yet when we are judged by the Lord, we are being disciplined so that we will not be condemned along with the world NLT.
Here is when we should come with a heart that reflects what 2 Chronicles 7:14 admonishes. It says that if God’s people who are called by His name shall humble themselves and pray, and seek His face, and turn from their wicked ways, then He will hear from heaven, and He will forgive their sins, and He will heal their land (this includes their bodies). When God condemns the things of the world, He does it to remove the influence of the Antichrist spirit that has risen against His people in the body and is influencing many through the wounds in their souls. That is why God does not want us to be caught up in this kind of betrayal because otherwise, we find ourselves doing things in the same way the world that does not know Him and even rejects Him does them. Let’s take heed of this admonition so that we can prove to the world that Jesus is alive and working powerfully in our lives because we honor Him and each other. He saves us when we call on Him (Joel 2:32). To Him alone be all the glory.∎
Here is when we should come with a heart that reflects what 2 Chronicles 7:14 admonishes. It says that if God’s people who are called by His name shall humble themselves and pray, and seek His face, and turn from their wicked ways, then He will hear from heaven, and He will forgive their sins, and He will heal their land (this includes their bodies). When God condemns the things of the world, He does it to remove the influence of the Antichrist spirit that has risen against His people in the body and is influencing many through the wounds in their souls. That is why God does not want us to be caught up in this kind of betrayal because otherwise, we find ourselves doing things in the same way the world that does not know Him and even rejects Him does them. Let’s take heed of this admonition so that we can prove to the world that Jesus is alive and working powerfully in our lives because we honor Him and each other. He saves us when we call on Him (Joel 2:32). To Him alone be all the glory.∎
No comments:
Post a Comment