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Chapter 9 THE IGNORED CHRIST
(Rev 3:14-22 KJV) "And unto the angel of the church of the Laodiceans write; These things saith the Amen, the faithful and true witness, the beginning of the creation of God; {15} I know thy works, that thou art neither cold nor hot: I would thou wert cold or hot. {16} So then because thou art lukewarm, and neither cold nor hot, I will spue thee out of my mouth. {17} Because thou sayest, I am rich, and increased with goods, and have need of nothing; and knowest not that thou art wretched, and miserable, and poor, and blind, and naked: {18} I counsel thee to buy of me gold tried in the fire, that thou mayest be rich; and white raiment, that thou mayest be clothed, and that the shame of thy nakedness do not appear; and anoint thine eyes with eyesalve, that thou mayest see. {19} As many as I love, I rebuke and chasten: be zealous therefore, and repent. {20} Behold, I stand at the door, and knock: if any man hear my voice, and open the door, I will come in to him, and will sup with him, and he with me. {21} To him that overcometh will I grant to sit with me in my throne, even as I also overcame, and am set down with my Father in his throne. {22} He that hath an ear, let him hear what the Spirit saith unto the churches."
Laodicea = "the people's rights" Today people are more concerned about what they want instead of what God wants. This is the result of humanism -- wanting someone to teach us other than the Lord who is all knowledge and understanding. The reason we do not know how to raise our kids is because we look for the experts to tell us instead of going to the Word of truth and allowing the Spirit of holiness to direct us. I so trust the Word of God that I can find what I need today from Him. That doesn't mean we do not need others to help us find it. But all that we do and say and live by must be according to the Word. There is much liberty in the spirit. Life is more enhanced through Him. It is not enhanced from the world perspective.
As a believer is trained in the things of God, when we ignore the Word, we are literally saying, "I know more than God." That is the Laodicean Church.
What is the revelation that came to this lukewarm church? (verse 14) First, He is the AMEN! He, not you, gets the last Word. If you do not trust the Lord in the midst of your circumstances, you will doubt if He really will come through. But no matter how long it takes, the Word of God will prevail and God WILL get the last Word in your life. When it looks as if nothing is happening, GOD IS FAITHFUL. This is the second way He is revealed to the lukewarm. If you do not believe and trust in the faithfulness of God, if you cannot wait for Him, you are lukewarm. (1 Th 5:24 KJV) "Faithful is he that calleth you (who gives you divine salvation), who also will do it."
I hope the revelation I heard in this hour of lukewarmness will show you where you stand. (i.e. Are you lukewarm?). The third revelation is TRUTH. Are you walking in truth? Are you acknowledging truth daily? Do you adhere to the truth? Every born-again believer knows truth, for Jesus is truth. Only when there is question because you have never studied or heard do you not know, but the Spirit of conviction is always there to show you IF YOU ASK! Are you asking? [This has answered many questions that have come as a result of the Lord's telling us in the past that we were lukewarm. I couldn't understand it until this revelation came.] When the Lord says you are lukewarm, it is because you will not accept the truth.
(John 8:31-32 KJV) "Then said Jesus to those Jews which believed on him, If ye continue in my word, then are ye my disciples indeed; {32} And ye shall know the truth, and the truth shall make you free."
What is the condition for truth? Continuing on in God's Word. If you ignore His Word, you will miss truth and fall for deception. Where I begin to falter, I do not want to go on with Christ. When I get bored with His ways, truth has been missed and ignored. When a person falls into a sinful nature that is contrary to God's ways, TRUTH is lacking. The Word is not being heard or received.
The lack of truth, like malnutrition, is a slow death. Although not instant, it is spiritual suicide. The Laodicean spirit says, "I must have my way, and I do not care the cost. I will get it." Today there is so much frustration in the church, but I know God is allowing it to prove to us how on fire we are for Him. The Christian that is on fire will not jump out of the fire when he doesn't get his way. He will not resist the transformation process God is putting him through, BUT he will keep searching until the truth comes forth.
Every businessman wants to hire a hard working, aggressive, determined employee that will get in there and learn the job and move ahead for the sake of the company. Why do we not want to do that for the Kingdom? Through an analogy I will tell you why. If your employer tells you he's not going to pay you until some time in the future, but he cannot tell you when that is or how long that will be, you will walk out in the same hour. But if that same employer tells you, "I will not pay you until some date in the future, but I will take care of all your needs," you might consider staying on -- if the benefits are right. That is exactly what God offers us with His truth. Jesus, the Truth, is the benefits; the pay is yet to come some time in the future.
(John 14:6 KJV) "Jesus saith unto him, I am the way, the truth, and the life: no man cometh unto the Father, but by me."
The Holy Spirit is the Spirit of truth. Every believer has Him through Jesus Christ. Ask Him and He will tell you what you need to know and do. I must know the truth if I am going to be free.
John 16:13 KJV) "Howbeit when he, the Spirit of truth, is come, he will guide you into all truth: for he shall not speak of himself; but whatsoever he shall hear, that shall he speak: and he will show you things to come."
John 17 is the Lord's prayer (Matt. 6 is the disciples’ prayer. They had asked Him to teach them how to pray and He said, “When you pray”.) In His prayer in John 17:17 Jesus says, "Sanctify them through truth." When His Word, not just the written logos, but the rhema Word of God, is being received daily, then you are being made holy. [Some try so hard to be holy by what they do or how they act, and all we see is some really sick, perverted Christianity.] The Word teaches that we become holy by the Word of Truth. You do not have to be worried about being deceived in these last days. When the Spirit of truth is come, He will show you the difference between right and wrong. All this testing today is simply to allow the Spirit to come and divide soul and spirit and show us what is in us and how to choose. The day is coming that the Lord will say, "Enough! Now I am going to choose those who can be a part of my army, and together we will fulfill the last days."
(John 4:24 KJV) "God is a Spirit: and they that worship him must worship him in spirit and in truth."
Why do you have such a hard time worshipping God sometimes? Because truth is not operating. To receive truth, just ask Him so you can enter in. Isn't it more of a blessing to find Father than to go around in a lie? He will come when truth operates. It is not how wonderful you sound, but when truth is flowing in the temple there is a wonderful presence of the one and only Truth -- Jesus.
Eph.4:25 tells us to speak the truth in love. Eph.6:14 -- to gird your loins with truth. Why loins? That is where the Holy Spirit dwells. "Out of your innermost being (your belly) shall flow rivers of living water." What do you think that water is but TRUTH?
Our hearts are deceitful above all things, but out of the Spirit within us will flow truth, and the Words that we speak will reflect His life-giving flow. That same truth, according to Psa.91:4, will be your shield and buckler. It is in truth that you are protected from the terror by night or the fiery darts of the enemy or the pestilence that is coming or the destruction that will waste away. 1000 shall fall at your side and 10,000 at your right hand and NOTHING shall by any means hurt you -- but only if you get out of your lukewarm state of having to have your own way and choose instead to follow hard after the TRUTH.
(Rev 3:18-20 KJV) "I counsel thee to buy of me gold tried in the fire, that thou mayest be rich; and white raiment, that thou mayest be clothed, and that the shame of thy nakedness do not appear; and anoint thine eyes with eyesalve, that thou mayest see. {19} As many as I love, I rebuke and chasten: be zealous therefore, and repent. {20} Behold, I stand at the door, and knock: if any man hear my voice, and open the door, I will come in to him, and will sup with him, and he with me."
All of our experiences in this hour are right here in these verses today. It is God's way of bringing us out of lukewarmness. Every time truth is missing, He knocks. And repentance opens the door. |
Biblical Counseling for Leaders
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