As Believers in the LORD we are we are dead to sin and alive to God. Celebrate the LORD's Supper.
Grace Bible Church Pastor Teacher Robert R. McLaughlin 010921 As Believers in the LORD we are we are dead to sin and alive to God. Celebrate the LORD's Supper.
We have been noting the relationship that exists between the cross and the spiritual gifts that the Lord gave us.
There are so many principles that we need to note concerning the relationship of the cross and why we must learn to die daily to exercise our free will in the plan of God.
For example, in MAT 10:34-38, "Do not think that I came to bring peace on the earth; I did not come to bring peace, but a sword. For I came to set a man against his father, and a daughter against her mother, and a daughter‑in‑law against her mother‑in‑law; and a man's enemies will be the members of his household. He who loves father or mother more than Me is not worthy of Me; and he who loves son or daughter more than Me is not worthy of Me. And he who does not take his cross and follow after Me is not worthy of Me."
Please notice that he who does not take his cross and follow after the Lord is not worthy of Him.
Our Lord said this because to bear His cross means that we are willing to die daily because we accept that when the OSN was crucified and dead to sin, we are able to be free from its bondage.
This means that we are alive to God in Christ Jesus and dead to the sin nature; Rom 6:11.
Once we realize that we are truly dead to sin and alive to God, this is when we begin to enjoy the freedom that the cross gives to operate in our spiritual gift.
This also frees us to be available to serve and honor God and use our spiritual gift to serve the local assembly which the spiritual gifts that the Lord gave us to serve one another in the body of Christ.
And so, as we continue learning about the importance of serving one another with our spiritual gift, it’s important to accept the fact that we should prepare our selves for a life that can handle pressure.
This is why we are told in JAM 1:2 Consider it all joy, my brethren, when you encounter various trials,
JAM 1:3-4, knowing that the testing of your faith produces endurance. And let endurance have {its} perfect result, that you may be perfect and complete, lacking in nothing.
It is a privilege to experience the life of God in the soul of man as the principle of Theandric Action which is the life of God serving man with his spiritual gifts.
No matter what we face God’s provisions for our problems are given in a two-fold way --- through the cross and through other believers.
This is what is meant by denying ourselves.
You will recall that one day our Lord said in MAT 16:21 From that time Jesus Christ began to show His disciples that He must go to Jerusalem, and suffer many things from the elders and chief priests and scribes, and be killed, and be raised up on the third day.
MAT 16:22-28, And Peter took Him aside and began to rebuke Him, saying, "God forbid {it,} Lord! This shall never happen to You." But He turned and said to Peter, "Get behind Me, Satan! You are a stumbling block to Me; for you are not setting your mind on God's interests, but man's." Then Jesus said to His disciples, "If anyone wishes to come after Me, let him deny himself, and take up his cross, and follow Me. For whoever wishes to save his life shall lose it; but whoever loses his life for My sake shall find it. For what will a man be profited, if he gains the whole world, and forfeits his soul? Or what will a man give in exchange for his soul? For the Son of Man is going to come in the glory of His Father with His angels; and will then recompense every man according to his deeds. Truly I say to you, there are some of those who are standing here who shall not taste death until they see the Son of Man coming in His kingdom."
Notice that there are some very important principles of doctrine that are mentioned in this section of the word of God that apply to the spiritual gifts and picking up your cross.
Mat 16:25 - loses his life for My sake shall find it.
MAT 16:26 - gains the whole world, and forfeits his soul MAT 16:26 - what will a man give in exchange for his soul?
All of these principles apply to living the spiritual life and operating in your spiritual gift.
There is also the principle of learning how to bear your cross by adjusting your life to the Will of God.
Most believers reject their spiritual gift because of ignorance and not willing to submit and honor the will of God.
This all goes along with the principle of what the apostle Paul said when in 1Th 4:4, he said everyone must know how to possess his vessel in sanctification and honor.
Look at 1TH 4:2 For you know what commandments we gave you by {the authority of} the Lord Jesus.
1TH 4:3-4, For this is the will of God, your sanctification; {that is,} that you abstain from sexual immorality; that each of you know how to possess his own vessel in sanctification and honor,
As we operate in our spiritual gift we will keep ourselves in sanctification or being set apart for our Lord.
This is revealed by submitting to God’s will even though our emotions and volition may rebel at times.
This is really when we consider ourselves to do absolutely nothing to preserve ourselves or our rights and consider it an honor and privilege to serve each other in the body of Christ.
In fact, we love to do so for the other members of the body of Christ and we consider it a privilege to serve.
When a believer operates in this way, his spiritual gift functions just as it should, caring and loving those who we are serving.
This is the grace of God in operation.
This is when other believers see the spiritual gifts not only serving one another but loving to do so.
On the other hand, many believers take on responsibility in the church and yet they have no ability to do so because they lack the spiritual gift that is needed.
There is nothing worse than someone who is a novice and is not qualified to function in the body of Christ with a spiritual gift that they think that they have.
The best way for them to function is to learn the doctrine and learn how the docrine and the Cross are to function together as the Lord said to do by obedience to the Fathers will.
Remember in Heb 5:8 Although He was a Son, He learned obedience from the things which He suffered.
That was one of the ways our Lord learned how to prepare Himself to function with His spiritual gifts in the beginning in the distribution of the spiritual gifts in Eph 4:11-13.
Be sure that you all understand that the spiritual gifts are given as your provision to use your gifts to build up and edify others with you talents and your spiritual gifts.
The key word here is edification.
To edify means to build a house which is what the spiritual gifts are given for.
Now, there is no way we can really see the purpose of the spiritual gifts given to the body of Christ unless we understand the edification complex of the soul and the reason why the gifts are given.
So, we begin with JOH 14:21 "He who has My commands and keeps them, He it is who loves Me; and He who loves Me shall be loved by My Father, and I will love him, and will disclose Myself to him."
JOH 14:22-23, Judas (not Iscariot) said to Him, "Lord, what then has happened that You are going to disclose Yourself to us, and not to the world?" Jesus answered and said to him, "If anyone loves Me, he will keep My word; and My Father will love him, "My Father will love him" is the fut-act-ind of agapao which refers to God the Father being pleased toward us and totally relaxed with us.
God the Father loves the entire world but this love is in the future tense because it refers to a God the Father revealing His approval of the system of thinking in our soul as the gifts in the body of Christ work together to build an edification complex in the body of Christ.
