When God Wants To Drill A Man

When God wants to drill a man,

And thrill a man,

And skill a man

When God wants to mold a man

To play the noblest part;

When He yearns with all His heart

To create so great and bold a man

That all the world shall be amazed,

Watch His methods, watch His ways!

How He ruthlessly perfects

Whom He royally elects!

How He hammers him and hurts him,

And with mighty blows converts him

Into trial shapes of clay which

Only God understands;

While his tortured heart is crying

And he lifts beseeching hands!

How He bends but never breaks

When his good He undertakes;

How He uses whom He chooses,

And which every purpose fuses him;

By every act induces him

To try His splendor out-

God knows what He’s about.

– Anonymous

Is God Sitting On Our Throne?

Jesus has to be truly the Lord of our lives.

This can only happen until we fully renounce our lives, carry the Cross and relinquish the desire to direct our own paths in this world.

If we refused, then we will never be able to understand what it meant to be a real Christian or a true Disciple of Christ.

A true follower of Jesus is a person who has died to the soulish self, been born again of the Spirit, and who is now walking by faith in a precious relationship with the Lord. 

Only then, we can say that God is sitting on the throne of our hearts and that we are the real subjects of His Kingdom.

Albert Kang

Finding FAT People

As a young Youth Pastor, some over thirty years ago, I was mentored by my Senior Pastors, with the goal in mind that one day I would mentor others. They had taught me to look for FAT people. This little acrostic F.A.T. stands for (Faithful, Available and Teachable).

This is a great simple guideline because as a leader in Faithline, you will never have time to mentor everybody. Wisdom dictates that you devote your time and effort only to those who are faithful to the Lord, available for the work at hand and have a teachable spirit. These are the people who have the best potential to bear spiritual fruits and produce results for the Kingdom of God. Subsequently, these would become spiritual mentors to others.

As I looked back at the people whom I have mentored, the FAT guideline has been of tremendous help. The teachable spirit is of vital importance because, without that, they would become proud and self-styled in their attitude. Only those who are opened to learn will ultimately be discipled one-on-one or engaged in personal leadership development.

My initial observation has always been how each protégé handles small responsibility. For example, once I instructed a young protégé to buy a lock for a cupboard in our Youth Room. After a full month of waiting, he had yet to fulfil the task. I waited patiently and then instructed him again. This time, he apologised and did it immediately. Later, he became one of my students in Bible College and graduated with distinction. He became a pastor and went on to be the national leader of his denomination.

Even though, in mentoring, I have to fight against the personal desire to mentor only the people whom I like and prefer. However, after years of working with protégés, I have learned to allow the Lord to bring the potential protégés to me and let them prove themselves by demonstrating their faithfulness and commitment. 

I appreciate all the Pastors, ministers and Bible School’s professors who poured themselves into my life back then when I was in Bible College and later as a young minister. It has been a great privilege for me to be able to continue to take what others have so graciously invested in me and pour them out to a new generation of pastors, ministers and lay leaders. I pray that all of you will continue this divine chain reaction of mentoring by finding and investing your life in another generation of Christ’s disciples.

Dear Lord, thank You for the privilege of serving the Kingdom of God. Grant me the grace to give my very best to the people whom You have asked me to mentor. May they all become the persons whom You want them to be. In Your mighty name, Lord Jesus, I pray. Amen.

Rev Albert Kang

Moving Away From The Cross

The idea of Christians moving away from the Cross of Jesus Christ may sound preposterous at first but on closer examination, you will discover that it is perfectly logical and biblical. However, before you light the bonfire over my body, let me emphasize that we are NOT MOVING AWAY FROM THE MESSAGE OF THE CROSS but as believers, we, ourselves, have to move away from the milk and move forward to discipleship and spiritual growth. 

Paul the Apostle said, "I gave you milk, not solid food, for you were not yet ready for it. Indeed, you are still not ready." Yes, some are not ready for the meats and they still need to learn the basic elements of salvation.

After we have been justified and saved by our Lord, we should move on and not remain lingering at the Cross. We only stay there when we are still under the Law and need justification. When we say that we are not under the Law then why are we behaving like we are still under its yoke.
 
We have been saved once and that's it! We are now under Grace. This means that we are totally free from the power of sins. For the first time, we can fight temptation with the power of His grace. We can obey God and do the right things because we have been empowered.

To claim that we have no need to obey God just because Christ is obeying God on our behalf is a belief known as Progressive Justification. This means that we have not been fully justified and that we need Christ's obedience from His death at the Cross till now so as to keep us continually justified. This can only be so if the Law still have power over us. Thus instead of fully enjoying a life of freedom under Grace, we are continuing a life under Law. 

The idea that the brimstones and fire of the Law are still pouring upon us and Christ is our umbrella or covering is an inaccurate one. There is no more onslaught of the Law upon us now. The Law has no more hold upon our lives. Absolutely zero. We have been justified. Period! Why do we still need the continual obedience of Christ to shield us? From what? 

Do we need to cling to the Cross as though we are still depraved and full of sins? We are no longer sinners but children of the Most High God. Should a drowning man still cling to the float after he is already safe onshore?

We have to move on to the process of sanctification. Sanctification has nothing to do with the Gospel but everything to do with the Living Savior and His Holy Spirit. The Gospel is meant for unbelievers but we are already believers. The Gospel shows Christ was crucified for our sins and whomsoever receives His sacrifice will be justified. We have already done that. Then why do we need to go back to the Cross again? 

We preach the Cross to sinners but we preach the living resurrected Savior to believers.We preach justification to those unsaved but sanctification to those who are disciples.
 
It time for us to move away from the empty Cross to the empty tomb. From the empty tomb to the Upper Room. From the Upper Room to the Public Square. From the Public Square to millions of streets around this world. What message do we carry then? The message of the Cross of course!

The Connoisseur of Churches

One extremely devious scheme of the devil is to get a Christian to attend different churches every Sunday. He causes the believer to become unhappy with all the churches that the latter attends. With this justified excuse of the lack of joy and satisfaction, the old serpent sends the believer all over the city, looking for an ideal church that will ‘suit’ him.

Years will pass by and still no ideal church. The immature Christian will spend his whole life tasting and trying out churches without having the joy of becoming a part of a local congregation and growing spiritually. 

As the man grows older, he may even imagine himself to be a connoisseur of churches. Since rolling stone gathers no moss, this potential disciple of Christ is not able to receive proper spiritual nourishment and grow properly. Neither can he contribute consistently to the kingdom of God.

The worst scenario is that after having been to almost every church in the city, the believer may consider himself to be an experienced disciple cum accomplished church critic. The truth is that he is anything else except a disciple. He is able to give anyone, who is willing to listen, a running commentary about each church but he is not able to tell whether his life has been transformed while attending all these churches.

If left uncorrected, this believer will live in absolute spiritual poverty without even realizing it. He goes to church every Sunday but he is thoroughly useless for the kingdom of God. And sadly, after having lived a fruitless and ineffective Christian life, one dreadful day, he will just roll over and die. As for the commendation of Christ, “good and faithful servant”, he will have to leave for other faithful disciples to claim. AK

What is Wrong with Being "Discipled"?

 

"Being" Discipled

 

It’s a common phrase in Christian circles.  We talk of “discipling” someone, “being” discipled, or going where there is a strong emphasis on discipleship.

 

What’s wrong with this picture?

 

More than might meet the eye.

 

If you notice, the language itself puts the entire emphasis on someone, or something, “doing” discipleship “to” someone else.  The one being discipled is seemingly passive.

 

In other words, discipleship is something “received.”

 

But that is not the idea of discipleship in the Bible.  The word “disciple” is from the Greek word “mathetes” and literally means “learner.”

 

Stop there.  Re-read.

 

“Learner.”

 

If I’m not mistaken, that puts the action firmly into the lap of the one doing the learning.  The point is that you, as a disciple, are to be actively learning.  It is your responsibility to take up the mantle of self-development.

 

And yes, this suggests a teacher is involved.

 

And yes, we talk about someone going to college to “receive” an education.

 

And yes, Jesus seemed to fill the teaching/equipping role by inviting twelve men (and more than a few women) to do life with him for three years.

 

And yes, they were called “disciples.”

 

But reflect on those early followers.  Theirs was an invitation to learn, not to enter into a passive process of being fed.  We certainly know that not all of the twelve went to school on Jesus.

 

One in particular didn’t seem to learn much of anything.  If discipleship was simply something “done” to you, Jesus failed epically with Judas.  [I wonder if he ever said he needed to follow another rabbi where he could be better “fed.”]

 

No, growing in faith is something that can be served by others, but ultimately must be owned personally by ourselves.

 

This is decisive.  Too many followers of Christ view discipleship as something that is done to them and for them, akin to a personal enrichment program.  Yet the writer of Hebrews made it abundantly clear that people who keep getting “fed” in this way are in arrested development.  Once out of infancy, they should no longer need to be fed, but instead be feeding others (Hebrews 4:11-13).

 

But even more disquieting is how we have missed out on what it is we should focus on learning.  The back-half of the Great Commission exhorts us to teach new believers to obey what Christ has commanded.

 

And what has Christ commanded?

 

To live out our lives in mission to the least and the lost.

 

In other words, what we are to be “learning” is increased love toward others and increased faith for the task of serving them.  We are not to be in search for a feeding station that creates a culture of dependency and endless demand for head-knowledge, but a learning environment where an active life of faith is stretched and encouraged.

 

I know, knowledge is needed.  Doctrine matters.  We are transformed by the renewing of our minds.  But only when what is in the mind translates into obedience to the widow and orphan, the hell-bound and skeptic.

 

So what would that kind of discipleship entail?  In his book Deep and Wide, Andy Stanley states the practice of many seasoned spiritual leaders in detailing the five primary ways people experience growth in their faith:

 

*practical teaching

 

*private disciplines

 

*personal ministry

 

*providential relationships

 

*pivotal circumstances

 

In other words, faith is stretched by being in the game;

 

…where you are admonished by teachers/leaders, investing in connecting with God through prayer and the Scriptures, putting yourself on the front lines of the cause of Christ, mixing it up with other Christians who sharpen you as iron against iron, and being led by God into unique situations that challenge you at the deepest of spiritual levels.

 

That’s not passive, but active.

 

It’s something that can be served, but never delivered.

 

It takes a church, but only goes so far as the person is willing to be,

 

…a true learner.

 

James Emery White

 

 

Sources

 

Andy Stanley, Deep and Wide.

 

 

Editor’s Note

 

James Emery White is the founding and senior pastor of Mecklenburg Community Church in Charlotte, NC, and the ranked adjunctive professor of theology and culture at Gordon-Conwell Theological Seminary, which he also served as their fourth president.  His newly released book is The Church in an Age of Crisis: 25 New Realities Facing Christianity (Baker Press).  To enjoy a free subscription to the Church and Culture blog, log-on to www.churchandculture.org, where you can post your comments on this blog, view past blogs in our archive and read the latest church and culture news from around the world.  Follow Dr. White on twitter @JamesEmeryWhite.

Do Believers Need Christ To Obey On Their Behalf?

Do We Need Christ to Obey On Our Behalf?

By Albert Kang

Some people claim that once they are saved and justified, they are also simultaneously sanctified. They do not see the difference between Justification and Sanctification. In fact, in their belief, they can do away with Sanctification all together.

They believe that it is purely the one-sided work of God without the need for man to respond or be accountable. This is because of the misunderstanding that if man is made responsible then it means ‘work’is involved. "Work" is a bad word in spite of what James stated, "But someone will say, 'You have faith, and I have works.' Show me your faith without your works, and I will show you my faith by my works. (James 2:18).

There is confusion between the "works of the flesh" and the "works of faith". The first one depicts that we have to work for our salvation. The second means that because we have been saved by accepting Jesus as our Lord and Savior through faith, then the result of this redeemed life is receiving the empowerment to obey God and unto good works. These 'works' mentioned here have nothing to do with our salvation. In our justification, it was Jesus plus nothing. No amount of human efforts or works can bring forth our salvation. 

James was very clear when he said that 'HE' will show 'HIS' faith by HIS “works". He was declaring that he was fully responsible for how he serve God. So whatever works that James did, it was his own works and not that of Christ. Christ did not do for what James was supposed to do. Christ did His works so that we now can do our works. That was why Paul said that a workman needed not be ashamed. Of course, he was being empowered and helped by the Holy Spirit but those works were still his own.

There is a personal responsibility and personal obedience involved here. Our good works are the result of God's power working in and through us. We cannot blame God if we do not obey and do good works. “For we are his workmanship, created in Christ Jesus for good works, which God prepared beforehand, that we should walk in them.” (Ephesians 2:10). In Ephesians 6:8, Paul added, “… because you know that the Lord will reward everyone for whatever good he does, whether he is slave or free.” Here we learn that after our salvation, our good works are important and that God does reward those who are faithful in carrying out His instruction.

The new teaching states that whether we produce good works or not, it does not matter to God. There is no condemnation and there is no reward. Therefore, no matter what man does, God does not care or at least He is not concerned. Why? That, according to them, is because God only looks at the obedience and works of Christ and not that of the believers. This misconception totally absolves all believers of any need for personal obedience and holiness. 

One adherent of such belief told me that because of the 'obedience of Christ' - that is Christ obeying on his behalf, it subsequently resulted in this man being grateful to God and so now he does not live in sin.  That, I said, also happened to all us when we first encountered Christ and believed in Him. We have been 'Born-Again' and are also very grateful and do not live in sin too. A sense of gratitude is great but ultimately it is the Holy Spirit who helps and empowers us to overcome all temptations.

We should know that even though during our conversion, God accepted us as who and what we were, but He still wanted to change us by the Holy Spirit to become more and more like Christ. Paul wrote, “And we, who with unveiled faces all reflect the Lord's glory, are being transformed into his likeness with ever-increasing glory, which comes from the Lord, who is the Spirit.” (2 Corinthians 3:18).

Why are the adherents of this belief asked to go back to the cross again and again? Why do they need Christ to obey for them when they can now do so? This understanding has come about because such group teaches indirectly that all believers are totally depraved and have no ability or capacity to obey. Even if they were to obey, their obedience is tarnished and thus cannot be acceptable to God. Ultimately, the under-lying understanding is that since the believers have to be ‘justified by obeying the law’, and they are never able to do so, they then have to perpetually depend upon Christ to obey for them. 

This belief is absolutely against justification by faith which is ‘apart from the law’. Paul said, “Therefore we conclude that a man is justified by faith without the deeds of the law”. (Romans 3:28). Are we, the believers, still under the law so much so that Christ has to keep obeying for us? If not, then why is this group constantly referring back to the finished work of Christ whenever they sin? The finished work of Christ is ‘Gospel’ or ‘Good News’! If you have preach the Gospel to yourself every time you sin, then are you really free from the law?

We believe that by faith we are saved and law got nothing to do with our salvation. Once we are being set free we are ‘free indeed’ (John 8:36). Then after being set free, we are empowered by the Holy Spirit to produce good works – just like what is found in James 2:17-18 - it is not possible to have faith without producing good works. God has given us the Holy Spirit who in turn grant us the capacity to obey because He has made us new creatures in Christ, totally Born Again, free from the condemnation of the law, and empowered by the Holy Spirit. Our emphasis now as redeemed people of God is not to keep running back to the cross but move forward by the Holy Spirit promised by our Lord. Calvary cross is meant for justification but the Holy Spirit is given for the work of sanctification.

Paul emphasized in 2 Corinthians 3:18 – “And we, who with unveiled faces all reflect the Lord's glory, are being transformed into his likeness with ever-increasing glory, which comes from the Lord, who is the Spirit.” The Holy Spirit enables all believers to lead holy lives, dedicated to the service of God and conformed to the likeness of Christ.

We can now personally relate and talk to God because He is our Father in heaven. We can also please God as an individual. We can offer ourselves as ‘living sacrifice” ( Romans 12:1-2). We can love God as a true child of His. And God will reward our obedience and also our efforts to serve Him faithfully (Matthew 19:29). And daily, through the sanctifying process, we are being transformed into His likeness with ever-increasing glory. Yes, we have Jesus. It is His obedience that saved our souls and now He has given us the Holy Spirit so that we can be like Him, living in the obedience to God.

According to the foreknowledge of God the Father, in the sanctification of the Spirit, for obedience to Jesus Christ and for sprinkling with his blood: May grace and peace be multiplied to you. (1 Peter 1:2).