BUILDING SPIRITUAL MUSCLE

BUILDING MUSCLE
 
It is FASCINATING to watch a wise man work out.
He never… I repeat, NEVER… babies himself.

LOVING the Things The LORD LOVES

Loving the things The LORD Loves

What "things" could Our LORD possibly love ? 

HE+ loves those things which bring us closer to HIM+. 

HE+ loves those things which make us more like HIMSELF+.  

This is a repost from a Lenten Meditation . . .  

DISCIPLESHIP: The Forgotten Discipline

 A Timely Word from Bro. Brendon Patrick....

IN MY FATHER'S HOUSE

  +  +  + 

The organized church as a whole has walked away from discipleship.

 +   +   +

The plain words of CHRIST are ignored and people are taught that if they attempt to actually do what JESUS taught,...  to actually live the way HE+ taught ... they are legalistic and are in "bondage".

On the other hand, the organized "church" will teach that you are under"grace" and can ignore the teachings of JESUS as relating to real life! 

That's right. 

You can ignore the plain teachings and commandments of the ONE+ Who+ saved you by Grace with HIS+ own Body and Blood!

Untrue of course.

JESUS our LORD did all of HIS+ part. HE+ will not do our part for us. 

HE+ will not be HIS+ own Disciple for us. 

HE+ will, however, give us Divine help in every way in the Power of the Holy Spirit to really follow HIM+ and be Disciples in the Way HE+ has taught us.

JESUS plainly said, "If anyone will follow ME+, he MUST deny himself, take up his cross and follow ME+." 

This is NOT taught in the modern churches ... and that is an understatement, at best.

     The Power of the Eternal SPIRIT of GOD was evident in the ancient Church in all Followers of JESUS, both in their daily lifestyle and in the Supernatural Gifts and working of that same Holy SPIRIT. 

The things that JESUS did, they did. 

This was SO evident to those around them that the pagans were the first ones who referred to them as "Christians" ... because they were so much like CHRIST.

HIS+ SPIRIT was in them reproducing CHRIST.

The necessity of discipleship for EVERY follower of CHRIST has been removed from the modern church and has left it floundering, focusing mainly on theological systems that were formulated 1,500 years or more after The SON+ of GOD delivered the Gospel of Life to the world.

This modern church, this religious system, does not even resemble the original church, of course. We have the same Gospels, the same Apostles’ writings, and the same Prophetic writings that the ancient Pre-Nicene church had, but our "battery" is dead, so to speak. 

 It has been drained with the cares of this life and the deceitfulness of riches.

We must HAVE OUR BATTERY

CHARGED and RECONNECTED

TO THE POWER SOURCE

THROUGH OBEDIENCE

and  SANCTIFICATION of LIFE.

We must learn to YIELD to CHRIST so that the Strength and Power of the HOLY SPIRIT can flow through us as it did through the ancient Christians.

Yes! Unclean spiritual forces do manifest themselves in religious systems and in their adherents’ lives. They have given themselves over to those spirits and agreed that satan’s lies are “truth” ! 

These same unclean spirits came at JESUS, accusing HIM+, threatening, challenging. These unclean spirits have not gone anywhere. They watch for gullible humans to control and inhabit.

As we can see, whole "churches" can be built on the foundation  of demonic teaching and control.

QUESTION:  Are we ready to do as JESUS taught and deny ourselves, pick up our Cross, and yield ourselves TOTALLY to HIM+ so that we will be equipped and prepared to stand against the reality of unclean spirits confronting and challenging The Body of CHRIST on this earth?

Believe me, it is going to get worse,

much worse, than what we now see.

Scripture teaches that JESUS will Baptize us --- immerse us ---  into the HOLY SPIRIT and FIRE.

 I can tell you that we ARE GOING TO NEED THAT!

 +    +    + 

Heavenly FATHER, please help us to walk before you as your Beloved SON+ has taught us to walk and to forsake the false teachings of men.

Help us to OVERCOME all things,

in JESUS' Name we ask.

Passover DISCIPLINE !

Photo by stsylvesters.org.uk

Dear Readers... I  STRONGLY advise you to develop and practice a DAILY DISCIPLINE of worship.... private, individual worship. 

You do NOT NEED a "group" to gather about you to do this discipline, nor do you need anything more than your Bible and a quiet, hidden nook where you will not be disturbed.... be it woods or barn, basement or attic. 

Don some sanctified garment that you have prayed over and sanctified for this use, asking The LORD to bless it. Head-coverings or hoods,  capelets or simple chasubles,  long dresses or skirts for the sisters; vests or tunics or a simple blanket-type chasuble or robe for the brothers. 

Change your position to standing, kneeling, bowing and even sitting, as you worship. Do the sign of the Cross in the air, on your forehead, across your heart, or from head to chin, or even over your mouth! Otherwise, do the "normal" sign of the cross at appropriate places as you are moved to do so when you pray. 

REMEMBER: The sign of the cross is ANCIENT and is not a sign of "group" membership in the high churches or low. The sign of the cross BELONGS TO EVERY CHRISTIAN. 

Obtain or make a simple wall cross and make a simple strand of Christian prayer beads to help you keep your place and memorize Scriptures as you go. Instructions are plentiful on the Internet. 

One person has made Christian prayer beads out of black and brown wooden beads from an old beaded car seat ! This involves 4 sets of 7 beads ( called "weeks' beads"), with 4 Cruciform beads to separate them.  

A string of smaller wooden beads, this time red beads and some green ones obtained for a dollar from a thrift store item, made the "opening and closing" beads and the Cruciform beads... where is said, 

• " Worthy is The LAMB+ !"  ... said at  the 4 Cruciform beads 

and at the 3 opening and closing beads: 

• "Blessed be The HOLY FATHER Who created us, 

• and His HOLY SON+ JESUS CHRIST our LORD Who+ saves us, 

• and The Blessed HOLY SPIRIT Who sanctifies us."

Follow some pattern of worship, like the OGS Guided Meditations: 

• Open with Worthy is the LAMB+! and some set but short Scriptures of praise. [ The idea is for these opening words to be repeated reverently every day, not simply impromptu praises. ] 

• Invitatory Bead... Come Unto ME+, all ye who labor and are heavy laden, and I+ will give you rest. 

• 3 verses of Supplications... asking The LORD to bless your worship, such as "Let the words of my mouth and the meditation of my heart be acceptable in Thy sight, O LORD, my strength and my Redeemer+. "

• 3 verses of Repentances ... perhaps from Psalm 51 or the entire Psalm, or other verses that bring you into a spirit of repentance. The prayer beads are useful when doing an entire Psalm.

• 3 verses of Affirmations of Faith ... such as "Neither is there Salvation in any other; for there is no other name under Heaven given among men, whereby we must be saved" and "At the Name of JESUS every knee shall bow..."

• 3 verses of Exhorations ... such as "Be still and know that I AM the LORD."

• 3 verses of Exaltations ... such as "My soul doth magnify The LORD and my spirit doth rejoice in GOD my SAVIOR+." 

These verses need to be PERSONAL to you, verses that have "spoken" to you in times of need, verses that you can easily commit to memory as you worship through the Guided Meditation every day.  I list these verses as an example of what we do at the OGS daily, to give you some idea of the KIND of verses you might include. 

Then move on to pray through out-loud 3 Psalms. OGS does Psalm 27, Psalm 116, and Psalm 23... but these are able to be changed, as per your leading of The LORD. 

After these items are finished, continue on in worship by using the 

• Agnes Dei, 
• St. Patrick's Breastplate, or the 
• Te Deum.  

These are all very ancient hymns of the Christian church. The words are found on the Internet or on this blog in earlier posts. 

RENUNCIATIONS follow the ancient hymns.
Starting this section of worship with : 

"O earth, earth, earth ! 

Hear the Word of The LORD ! " 

 I John 2:15-17, Matthew 4:10, Matthew 16:23 are the verses which contain the very words of Our LORD when HE+ stood against the adversary. 

The last section involve 2 sets of ONLY the very WORDS of Our LORD ( as in a Red Letter edition of the New Testament ) .  The Beatitudes and John 14, using only His+ Words, are good places to start this section. They can be changed from season to season. 

We end this section with The prayer Our LORD taught His+ disciples, when the disciples said, "LORD, teach us to pray."

CLOSING:  A spontaneous prayer of Thanksgiving , by this time, will be pouring from  your heart and lips ! 

This worship through Guided Meditation is not long nor hard. It can be adjusted as per schedule needs, and can be done in parts at different times of the day.  It can be done morning, noon, or evening; late at night, or in the wee hours of the morning. 

It is IMPORTANT, however, that it be done meaningfully and individually. Groups or families can do it, but ...

 INDIVIDUAL, PRIVATE worship 

can never, ever be replaced 

by group worship. 

This is the cost of discipleship and friends, if you do NOT WANT to pay it you will not be ready for what is about to take place on the face of the earth. 

Terrible, un-thinkable tribulation is about to be legislated by the "civil" countries that will make being a Christian one of the most dangerous identities to have. 

Unless, of course, you take the mark of the beast in order to keep _____ : 
( anything you might name ... keep your possessions, houses, lands, bank accounts, credit cards, social security, disability, cell phones, internet, education, health care, car license, insurance,  children.... )

Then, you will indeed avoid the persecution and grief that The LORD has promised is coming for Christians... the last Great Persecution of the Christian Church.   

Yes, you may avoid it until you die... but then, you will stand before the Judgment Seat of CHRIST.  

Eternity lasts a long, long time. 

Advent Meditation #21

Behold, The LAMB+ of GOD!

The soldiers... plaited a crown of thorns
and put it about HIS+ Head...

And the mercy of HIM is

unto generations of generations,

to the ones having feared HIM.

Luke 1:50 ( literal Gk)

Fear is the assurance that GOD is bigger than I am. Fear is the assurance that I cannot hide my thoughts or motives from HIM.

Fear is the absolute assurance that HE is not going to excuse my disobediences just because HE loves me !

My parents loved me, but they exacted disciplinary measures when I needed to be corrected and WORDS were not bringing forth the desired obediences. 

HIS WORD does not always change us,

does it ?

His WORD will not change us if we refuse to be corrected by it. 

• If we refuse to line up our lives according to HIS WORD...
•  
• if we set at naught the instructions HE has written in His inspired Word...
•  
• if we think HE will set aside His written Word and not hold us to obeying it...
•  
• if we think HE will excuse us from following the words of The Living WORD+ made flesh...

... then we are headed for disciplinary measures.

Those measures will not be comfortable nor will they stop until the corrections are thoroughly in-grained in us and we have developed the proper fear of GOD. 

As a matter of fact, every facet, every group, in the entire Christian church system will not be excused for teaching as doctrines ANY THINGS that go against HIS WORD or HIS SON+ 'S Words. 

And, there are many. 

JESUS said, " .... Be not afraid of them that kill the body, and after that have no more that they can do. 

" But I+ will forewarn you WHOM ye shall fear:  Fear HIM Who, after HE hath killed, hath power to cast into hell: yea, I+ say unto you, fear HIM."

Luke 12: 4, 5 and Mt. 10:28 

MEDITATION

Gracious and Most Merciful GOD, Our FATHER, extend Thy mercy unto me.

I acknowledge my transgressions and my sin is ever before me.

I have ignored Thy Word and refused to apply it to myself. I have refused to be changed by Thy Word and lightly tossed it aside.

I have done the things I ought not to have done and did not do the things I should have done, and there is no righteousness in me.

Behold, THOU desirest truth in the inward parts and in the hidden part THOU shalt make me know wisdom, which begins with the fear of THEE, O GOD.

O LORD, I call upon Thy mercy to wash me so that I shall be whiter than snow... then the bones which THOU hast broken may rejoice.

Cast me not away from Thy presence, and take not Thy Holy SPIRIT from me. Create in me a clean heart, O GOD, and renew a right spirit within me.

These things I pray in the Name of the Un-Blemished LAMB+ of GOD, Who+ taketh away the sins of the world.

Behold, The LAMB+ of GOD!

+  +  +

Passover Meditation #36 for the Lenten Season 2012

In this is glorified My+ FATHER, that much fruit you all will bear; 

and you all will become

My+ Disciples.

John 15:8 Green's Greek Interlinear

We meet that Plural "YOU" again ! We all are to develop into His+ Disciples.

YES... WE  ALL ARE DUTY-BOUND TO DEVELOP INTO HIS+ DISCIPLES. 

A disciple  is one who trains and disciplines himself to follow ONLY a certain path; all other paths he forsakes. 

In this case, our path, our Way is making JESUS CHRIST the LORD of our Life.  

When we submit to our training, then we practice discipleship. We train to be followers of Our LORD JESUS CHRIST; it doesn't "just happen" any more for us than lifting weights "just happens" for the body-builder.

No.

A body-builder must train his muscles, tendons, and ligaments to lift those weights in a certain prescribed manner or he will hurt himself badly.   

He must train his mind to focus on the task at hand; he will hurt himself if he gets distracted while bench-pressing 250 lbs.

When...

Yes, when 

we

practice...

yes, practice 

discipleship,

i.e., when we

submit unto our training... 

we

will bear

fruit

for JESUS. 

This fruit comes in no other way.

It is fruit that is noticeably peculiar to Christians: it doesn't show how "good" we are... rather, this fruit shows how "good" Our Heavenly FATHER is !

• NO OTHER human beings in this world can bear this kind of fruit except those who are willing to be trained, be discipled by Our LORD JESUS CHRIST.

• NO OTHER human beings in this world can glorify The HEAVENLY FATHER except those who do bear such fruit.

• NO OTHER human beings in this world can bear fruit that is accepted in Heavenly Places  except those whose fruit comes from their attachment to Our LORD JESUS CHRIST.

The husbandman

looketh for the FRUIT.

The Path of No Regrets....

There is no way around it: You MUST pick up daily discipline in order to grow. Otherwise, you will be vigorously tossed about by all the daily trials that beset you. Yes, trials DO come to every Christian every day. But, if you establish a daily discipline in your daily routine , your walk will become much smoother in spite of the trials.  

And he that taketh not his cross,

and followeth after ME+

is not worthy of ME+.

Matthew 10:38

How do we "pick up our cross" if we have no persecution?

We do it by applying DISCIPLINE to ourselves. 

Discipline does not mean that we beat ourselves with whips and cords. No, it is far more of an endurance trial than that.

Discipline entails self-denial of "softening" pleasures. It entails replacing time spent in worldly activities with GODLY pursuits. It means submitting our daily schedule to HIM+ to embrace prayer stops at 9 a.m, noon, and 3 p.m. It involves submitting our reading material to HIM+, replacing much of it with The Word of GOD.

Discipline involves stopping ourselves at the doors that say, "No Trespassing -- This Concern of Yours Will Be Handled by ME+. " 

This is the way the serious disciple of CHRIST JESUS learns to make HIM+ LORD... truly LORD...  of his life.

Let us learn to practice discipline.

It is the one path of

no regrets.

+  +  +

WORTHY IS THE LAMB...

...that was slain

to receive power and riches

and wisdom and strength and honor

and glory and blessing !

+ + +

During this season of the preparation for the GREAT PASSOVER of The LAMB+ of GOD, all serious-minded Christians clean house. We search our hearts for the leaven of the world that has crept in unawares. We search our hearts for the leaven of Self-will that has insidiously re-established itself in our lives. In doing this, we honor The LORD JESUS CHRIST, for HE+ was GOD of the Old Testament as well as GOD of the new, The LIVING WORD+ made flesh Who+ dwells among us.

+ + +

In the Old Testament, The LORD instructed the Israelites to carry a paddle with them in the wilderness. It was to bury their waste products, so that it would be "clean" when HE walked among them (Dt. 23:13-14). In addition, HE instructed them to rid their dwellings of leaven during the Passover season. They assiduously did this because... NOT TO DO IT MEANT THAT THEY WOULD BE CUT OFF FROM THE PROMISES GIVEN TO ISRAEL (Ex. 12:15).

+ + +

Likewise, we must do the same today.

We must make our camp during our earthly sojourn clean,

both from "waste" products ~ what comes out of us ~

and

from what is taken inside of us, what we "eat."

Some like to reinforce both the purging and the consumption

by a strict or restricted form of eating, disciplining the flesh.

It is quite fruitful and very Scriptural to bring the flesh

under submission to the HOLY SPIRIT in this manner.

SOME have found this to be so VERY fruitful

that they have made this a Way of Life.

It draws them closer to The LORD.

+ + +

So, where do we want to go ... closer or farther from The LORD?

If we want to come closer to HIM+ [and we are not currently being persecuted and tortured for knowing HIM+] , we must practice a disciplining of our flesh in order to accomplish the goal to draw closer to CHRIST JESUS Our LORD.

+ + +

During this season, we refrain from saying "glory" and "HalleluJAH" or "AlleluJAH." We substitute instead: "Worthy, Worthy is The LAMB+ that was slain! " We substitute, "Blessed be GOD: FATHER, SON+, and HOLY SPIRIT, and Blessed be HIS+ Kingdom, both now and forever, Amen" for the Gloria Patri. To replace the HalleluJAHs, we say instead: "Bless GOD!" These are little disciplines which serve to remind us of the great sacrifice of Our SAVIOR+ for the sins of the whole world... specifically, ours.

+ + +

Let us pray:

O LORD our GOD, we say we want to walk with THEE+... but we shy away from Self-denial. Help us to value TRUTH so much that we will embrace the discipline, the cross, in order to come closer to HIM+ Who+ is all Truth, Thy Beloved SON+ JESUS CHRIST, The ONE+ Who+ denied HIMSELF+ even HIS+ life's blood in order to give us Life Eternal. Help us to deny our Selves and show us the right way to do it. In the Holy name of Our LORD JESUS we pray. Amen.

+ + +

GO YE THEREFORE AND...

TEACH , didaskO , all nations... ?

.

NO,

.

The LORD JESUS

.

did not say that;

.

the translators said that.

.

Our LORD said to

go to all nations

.

and MATHATEUO them.

.

That word means "to disciple".

.

<(((><

.

So, there IS a distinction, a difference in these two words which JESUS HIMSELF+ made during His+ last earthly words of instructions to His+ students... ???

.

NO...

but rather,

.

to His+ DISCIPLES.

.

<(((><

.

In those two last verses of the book of Matthew, the Greek (from Jay P.Green Sr.) accurately reads:

.

Go ye therefore

and DISCIPLE (mathateusate) all nations,

baptizing them

in the name of The FATHER,

and of The SON+,

and of the HOLY SPIRIT,

.

TEACHING (didaskontes) them

.

to observe all things

.

whatsoever I+ have commanded you;

.

and behold, I + am with you all the days,

.

unto the completion of the age.

.

Amen.

.
So, dear friends, how does one make or become a disciple of The LORD JESUS CHRIST versus a student ?
.

What is the distinctive difference

.

between

.

a disciple and a student ?

.

<(((><

.

Which are we ?

.

Which should we be, after our baptism

.

into CHRIST JESUS our LORD ?

+ + +