From the Life-Study of 1 & 2 Chronicles - How Did Watchman Nee & Witness Lee Take a Stand For the Truth?

     It’s not easy to take a stand.  Especially when you’re being mowed down by people’s ridicule. In chapter seven of the Life-Study of 1 & 2 Chronicles, Ezra, and Nehemiah Witness Lee shares about a time when his coworker Watchman Nee took a stand for the truth concerning the assurance of salvation. 

Out on a trail with our grandkids

     He relates that when the missionaries first came to China, they did an excellent job translating the Bible, preaching the gospel, and teaching the Chinese people.  But they didn’t make the matter of the assurance of salvation very clear. 

     That might be surprising to you because about a hundred years have passed, and today this truth is very clear, largely in part because this truth was published in the booklet The Assurance, Security, & Joy of Salvation. 

     But I read that back in the early 1900s the missionaries laughed at Watchman Nee when he shared that believers can have the assurance of salvation.  They thought he was proud to say that people could have this certainty. Because of Watchman Nee’s speaking though, thousands of Chinese people believed this truth.  And today millions of Christians all over the world have been blessed by the stand he took. Witness Lee states that since that time several other truths have been recovered, like the truth concerning the New Jerusalem.  I learned on pages 46-47 of chapter 7 of the Life-Study of 1 & 2 Chronicles that Witness Lee's speaking on this matter was influenced by other men of God:

Very few Bible teachers have written anything about the spiritual significance of the New Jerusalem. Among these few are a German teacher from long ago named Tersteegen and our dear friend T. Austin-Sparks, whom I regard as the last of the inner-life teachers.  Like Tersteegen, T. Austin-Sparks saw that the New Jerusalem is not a physical city but a sign with a spiritual significance. Brother Sparks pointed out that the spiritual things concerning God, Christ, and the church are mysterious and that God uses signs to reveal the truth regarding such spiritual things. We took his word and still hold to it (Lee, Witness. Life-Study of 1& 2 Chronicles, Ezra, Nehemiah & Esther. Anaheim: Living Stream Ministry, 1995, Print).

     The first verse of Revelation even states that God made  things known to the Apostle John by signs.  And a lot of the meaning of the signs were even given to John by the Angel.  For instance, the seven lampstands refer to seven churches in Asia, and the Lamb signifies Christ as the Redeemer. Because of this, surely the last sign in this book which is the New Jerusalem  must also have spiritual significance. 

     So what does the New Jerusalem portray?  In chapter 13 he gives this awesome statement about the New Jerusalem: The consummation of the Bible is the New Jerusalem—divinity mingled with humanity. Divinity becomes the dwelling place of humanity and humanity becomes the home of divinity.  In this city the glory of God is manifested in man, brightly and splendidly (page 89).  In both the Life-Study of Revelation and  chapters 29-44 of God's New Testament Economy he speaks extensively on the spiritual meanings found in the New Jerusalem.  These writings have opened my husband's and my heart to understand a little bit more what the Apostle John was saying here. I'm really thankful that both of these men of God were faithful to stand for the truths that God made real to them! 

 You can listen to excerpts of Witness Lee's speaking the Life-Study of 1 & 2 Chronicles, Ezra, Nehemiah, & Esther on Life Study of the Bible with Witness Lee.   You can also read the online Life-Studies of these books and check out other resources available to enhance your study of the Bible on Living Stream Ministry's website.

Other Posts from the Life-Study of 1 & 2 Chronicles, Ezra, Nehemiah, & Esther:

From the Life-Study of 1 & 2 Chronicles - How did Watchman Nee & Witness Lee Take a Stand For the Truth?
From the Life-Study of 1 & 2 Chronicles - Why Did God Make Man in His Image?
From the Life-Study of Ezra - How God Used a Gentile King to Fulfill His Purpose
From the Life-Study of Ezra - Why Did Ezra Return to Jerusalem?
How Did God Use Nehemiah's Aggressiveness in Nehemiah 2:20?
Why Did Nehemiah Charge Ezra to Read the Bible to the People in Nehemiah 8:1-8?
What's Really Happening in the Story of Esther?

Israel's Roller Coaster History in 1 & 2 Kings

   The history of the children of Israel is a lot like a roller coaster. Every time they plummeted, the Bible shows us it was because of their idolatry. I was thinking about this, and I wondered if it's because so many churches today are full of statues and pictures that this doesn't shock us so much anymore.  But it should because it's a big deal to God.  In fact, the first two commandments are concerned with idolatry:

     I am Jehovah your God, who brought you out of the land of Egypt, out of the slave house;
      You shall have no other gods before Me.
      You shall not make for yourself an idol, nor the form of anything that is in heaven above or on the earth beneath or in the water beneath the earth.
     You shall not bow down to them, and you shall not serve them; for I, Jehovah your God, am a jealous God,...     Exodus 20:2-5A

Family walk

     We know from the account in Exodus 32--which is the meanwhile back at the ranch account of what happened back in the camp when Moses was up on Mt. Sinai so long.  Aaron made a golden calf because  the children of Israel supposedly made him do it (See Exodus 32:23-24).  In one fell swoop the Israelites had broken God's law before they had even received it.  The footnote from my Recovery Version on verse   of this chapter is very enlightening. Aaron made this calf in the name of Jehovah, and he even offered offerings to it in the way God had ordained. 

    But I learned from my reading that this was a mixed up worship. We can see it in Exodus and then again in 1 Kings 12:25-33 when Jeroboam set up two calves in Bethel and Dan so the Israelites in the north wouldn't go back to Solomon's son King Rehoboam and worship in Jerusalem like God commanded.  He did all of this  because he didn't want to lose his kingdom.  And it says in verse 30 that those Israelites worshipped these calves. What were they thinking?!

     I learned from reading the Life-Study of Joshua, Judges & Ruth that the Israelites got ensnared by the nations that surrounded them in Canaan, and many of them fell into pagan idolatry. And it's not like God didn't warn them.  When Moses was speaking to the Israelites on the plains of Moab right before they entered Canaan, he told them:

     Beware that there is not among you any man or woman or family or tribe whose heart turns away, even today, from Jehovah our God, to go and serve the gods of those nations,...
     Indeed all the nations will say, 'Why has Jehovah done this to this land? Why the burning of this great  anger?
     And they will say, It is because they forsook the covenant of Jehovah, the God of their fathers, which He made with them, when He brought them out from the land of Egypt.
    ...And they went and served other gods and bowed down to them,...
     ...And Jehovah plucked them off their land in anger and in burning wrath and in great indignation, and sent them to another land, as they are this day.'   
                                             Deuteronomy 29: 18, 24-25A, 26A, 28

     So as I was reading the chapters in the Life-Study of 1 & 2 Kings It seemed like it was one roller coaster drop after another.  Some of those kings were so vile that God sent His enemies in to judge them.  And I learned that He also gave them prophets like Elijah, Elisha, Jeremiah, and Isaiah to warn them.  But just like us they didn't always listen to God.  And it seems even God had run out of ultimatums, and that's when God sent the Assyrians to capture the Northern Kingdom of Israel and later the Babylonians to take Southern Kingdom of Judah into captivity. 

    In chapter 23 of the Life-Study of 1 & 2 Kings Witness Lee says that of the 41 kings of Israel 30 were evil, and on page 157 Witness Lee points out that in the book of Jeremiah God tells His people that the root cause of their idolatry is that they forsook Him as the fountain of living waters (Jer. 2:13).  What I get from all of this is if I ever start to  feel dizzy by the world and other things claiming my heart's attention, it's time to get off! Because God doesn't want us to be on a roller coaster in our relationship with Him.

List of Other Posts on 1 & 2 Kings:

Taking a Look at Solomon's Prayer in 1 Kings 8:48
Elijah & the Showdown on Mt. Carmel in 1 Kings 17
How Does Elisha's Ministry Parallel the Lord's in the Gospels?

What Does 1 Peter 4:1-2 Say About Sufferings?

     Why is this happening to me?  Many times I've asked God questions like this.  And I've gotten a lot of answers to this and similar kinds of questions as I've read through the Life- Studies of Witness Lee.  In chapter 19 of the Life-Study of 1 Peter Witness Lee points out that some believers were undergoing persecution from their masters, and this was probably stumbling them.  Perhaps their natural thought was I believe in God, so why are bad things happening to me now?  I think this is an age old problem. Here's what Peter says about suffering:

I took this last week while walking at a nearby lake.

Since Christ therefore has suffered in the flesh, you also arm yourselves with the same mind (because he who has suffered in the flesh has ceased from sin), No longer to live the rest of the time in the flesh in the lusts of men, but ""in the will of God.  1 Peter 4:1-2

     I was listening to the radio program #20 on this chapter last week, and they talked about how a lot of Christians have the mistaken thought that believers should only receive blessings, kind of like the name it and claim it gospel you hear sometimes on the radio.  

On the broadcast Witness Lee shares this portion that is on page 233 of chapter 26 of the Life-Study of 1 Peter: 

"It is not easy to to stay away from lusts and do God's will when we are rich in material things.  This is the reason God assigns a certain portion of suffering to us.  These sufferings restrict our lusts and preserve us in the will of God.  In this sense we all should worship God for our sufferings….We should not be afraid that our sufferings will be too great.  The Lord knows how to assign sufferings to us….He will not assign either too little or too much.  His assignment will be in the right proportion: it will be exactly what we need" (Lee, Witness. Life-Study of 1 Peter. Anaheim: Living Stream Ministry, 1982  Print).

   This fellowship helped clear up this funny thought I pick up from certain books that when we follow the Lord, there should only be prosperity and blessing.  And if something terrible happens, that means something is wrong with us. This chapter helped give me a divine view about sufferings.  And what touches me is that each of our sufferings has been personally assigned to us by God. 

Blog Update 1-19-15:  Here's a beautiful song called He's My God that I found today on Youtube that's about God being with us in our sorrows.

I like to listen to the Life-Study of the Bible with Witness Lee while I'm cooking or typing. You can listen to live excerpts of these messages that were given in 1982 along with some outstanding commentary. 

What is the Sanctification of the Spirit in 1 Peter 1:2?
What is Obedience to the Truth in 1 Peter 1:22?
How Do Believers Grow According to 1 Peter 2:2?
How Does God Get the Living Stones in 1 Peter 2:5?
What Does 1 Peter 4:1-2 Say About Sufferings?
Why Does 1 Peter 4:17 Talk About God's Judgment?
What Does Partaking of the Divine Nature Mean in 2 Peter 1:4?
How Does the Prophetic Word in 2 Peter 1:19 Prepare Us For the Lord's Coming?

Other Life-Study Posts on Sufferings

From the Life-Study of 2 Corinthians:
What are Sufferings for in 2 Corinthians 4:7-15?
From the Life-Studies of 2 Corinthians - Did You Know That Pressures Cause Renewing in 2 Corinthians 4:16?
Why Didn't the Lord Remove Paul's Thorn in 2 Corinthians 12:7-9?

From the Life-Study of Philippians:
What's the Connection Between Forbearance & Anxiety in Philippians 4:5-6?

From the Life-Study of James:
Why Does the Epistle of James Open Up With Trials?
What's the Way to Resist Temptation in James 1:21?

Why Unbelief in Hebrews 3:12 is the Biggest Offense to God

  Doubt, lack of faith. not trusting. It's all really the same thing--unbelief. I've been there before, but in the past years I've been pressed on my own spiritual journey to really BELIEVE God's promises.  

For over ten years my husband and I have prayed specific promises in the face of several contradicting circumstances.  And yes there have been times that I felt like I was hanging onto God's word by a thread, but that thread has never let me go.  

This week I read chapter 25 in the Life-Study of Hebrews, and it was on the evil heart of unbelief in Hebrews 3:12:  Beware, brothers, lest there be in any one of you an evil heart of unbelief in withdrawing from the living God.  

These sentences on page 265 spoke to me strongly why it's so important for us to believe God's word and stand on His promises: 

"No heart is more evil than a heart of unbelief. Nothing offends God as much as our unbelief….Every sin breaks God's righteous law, but some sins do not insult God Himself, as does the sin of unbelief. Our God is the living God. Unbelief is so evil because it insults the living, faithful, and Almighty God. If we do not believe in God, in His work, and in His ways, we insult Him.  This is why we must beware of unbelief" (Lee, Witness. Life-Study of Hebrews. Anaheim: Living Stream Ministry, 1975, Print).

 Witness Lee points out in this chapter that Hebrews 3:8 shows that the heart becomes evil through being hardened by reasonings.  And to understand that he shares the classic example of Joshua and Caleb going with ten others to spy out the land of Canaan.  They all saw the same things--the fortified cities, the giants, and the rich produce, but only Joshua and Caleb spoke by faith that God would be with them.  "Only do not rebel against Jehovah, nor should you fear the people of the land, for they are our bread. Their protection has been removed from them, and Jehovah is with us; do not fear them." (Numbers 14:9)  

   It's not like God hadn't said He wouldn't do this.  Way back in Exodus 3:16-17 God told Moses "…I will bring you up out of the affliction of Egypt into the land of the Canaanites…unto a land flowing with milk and honey." Surely after seeing all the plagues, and the Red Sea opened, and Pharaoh and his army completely destroyed, they should have all believed that God was able to do this. What was wrong with them? 

 Sometimes I find myself in the same place as the Israelites. In fact, that's where I am right now And the question before me is what am I going to speak?  Will I speak what I see or will I speak what God has spoken in His word?  


You can  also listen to live excerpts from these messages on Hebrews on The Life-Study of the Bible with Witness Lee.  You will enjoy listening to both  the excerpts  from these spoken messages and the helpful and enlightening commentary of the radio hosts.

Other Posts on the Life-Study of Hebrews You Can Check Out:

Why is the Background of the Book of Hebrews Important?
What Does God's Speaking Shows us In Hebrews 1:1-2?
What Does Hebrews 2:10 Say About Christ?
How Does the Lord Sanctify Us In Hebrews 2:11?
The High Priest in Hebrews 2:17 Makes Me Think of the Poem Footprints
Why is the Sabbath Rest Mentioned in Hebrews 4:9?
Why Unbelief in Hebrews 3:12 is the Biggest Offense to God
How Do We Come Forward in Hebrews 4:16?
What Hebrews 6:1 Says About Christian Maturity
What Does Hebrews 8 Tell Us About the Differences Between the Old & New Testaments?
What Does It Mean to Gain our Soul in Hebrews 10:39?
Have You Seen God's Silence in Hebrews 11?
How Do You Run the Christian Race in Hebrews 12?
What is the Birthright About in Hebrews 12:16?
From the Life-Study of Hebrews - What is the Central Concept of the Bible?
What's the Focus of the Book of Hebrews?

How Does the Lord Sanctify Us In Hebrews 2:11?

     Sanctification may sound like a lofty term that makes you mentally screech to a stop.  And I surely would have done that if it weren’t for the Life-Studies that I've read on sanctification.  The chapter I read last week covered Hebrews 2:11 which says:

 For both He who sanctifies and those who are being sanctified are all of One for which cause He is not ashamed to call them brothers.

     Witness Lee points out that even though positionally we’re sanctified through our regeneration, there’s also a dispositional side to sanctification.   He said that our Captain of salvation knows how to sanctify each one of us.  

In chapter 14 of the Life-Study of Hebrews and on page 158 brother Lee uses his classic illustration of tea to show how the Lord accomplishes  this:

 As the Sanctifier, Christ is now sanctifying us dispositionally by imparting God’s holy nature into our being.  I have often used the illustration of teaification.  A glass of plain water is teaified by putting tea into it until the water is completely teaified.  The way to teaify the water is to add the element of tea to the water until the water is saturated and permeated.  Then all the water will be teaified and will have the appearance, color, taste, and flavor of tea.  This is teaification.  We are the glass of plain water, and Christ is the very essence of the divine holiness, the divine nature. Christ has put Himself into us, the glass of plain water, to permeate and saturate us until we are fully sanctified with His holy nature. This is sanctification (Lee, Witness. Life-Study of Hebrews. Anaheim: Living Stream Ministry, 1975, Print).

 I have heard this example of tea  many times, and I like it because it makes this huge, spiritual truth so easy to understand.  And I particularly liked the connection he makes with Hebrews 2:10 and 11--the Captain of our salvation is leading us into glory through this process of sanctification. And you know something else that's hidden in verse 11 is the fact that the reason He's not ashamed to call us brothers is because through regeneration we now have the same life and nature as He does.  

 

Other Posts from the Life-Study of the Bible on Sanctification:

From the Life-Study of Romans:
What is Sanctification in the Book of Romans?

From the Life-Study of Ephesians:
How Does God Get a Glorious Church in Ephesians 5:27?

From the Life-Study of 1 & 2 Thessalonians:
How Does God Preserve Us Complete in 1 Thessalonians 5:23?
What Does Salvation in Sanctification of the Spirit Mean in 2 Thessalonians 2:13?

From the Life-Study of Hebrews:
How Does the Lord Sanctify us in Hebrews 2:11?

From the Life-Study of 1 Peter:What is the Santification of the Spirit in 1 Peter 1:2?



You can  also listen to live excerpts from these messages on Hebrews on The Life-Study of the Bible with Witness Lee.  You will enjoy listening to both  the excerpts  from these spoken messages and the helpful and enlightening commentary of the radio hosts.

 

Other Posts on the Life-Study of Hebrews:

Why is the Background of the Book of Hebrews Important?
What Does God's Speaking Show us In Hebrews 1:1-2?
What Does Hebrews 2:10 Say About Christ?
How Does the Lord Sanctify Us In Hebrews 2:11?
Why the High Priest in Hebrews 2:17 Makes Me Think of the Poem Footprints
Why is the Sabbath Rest Mentioned in Hebrews 4:9?
Why Unbelief in Hebrews 3:12 is the Biggest Offense to God
How Do We Come Forward in Hebrews 4:16?
What Hebrews 6:1 Says About Christian Maturity
What Does Hebrews 8 Tell Us About the Differences Between the Old & New Testaments?
What Does It Mean to Gain our Soul in Hebrews 10:39?
Have You Seen God's Silence in Hebrews 11?
How Do You Run the Christian Race in Hebrews 12?
What is the Birthright About in Hebrews 12:16?
From the Life-Study of Hebrews - What is the Central Concept of the Bible?
What's the Focus of the Book of Hebrews?

How Does God Get a Glorious Church in Ephesians 5:27?

 Did you know that glory is God expressed?  In the past the word glory made me think of dazzling sunshine.  So many times when I’ve read the Bible, I’ve thought I know that word, but after listening  to a message or reading a Life Study I realize my understanding was way too shallow. So glory is God  expressed but not just by God Himself. It may surprise you a bit (because it does me when I really think about it) that God  wants His glory to be expressed through man!  How can that happen?  In the introduction to Life Study of Ephesians Chapter 59 Witness Lee uses the context to tell us how:

 The only way God can have a glorious church is through Christ’s sanctifying, cleansing, nourishing, and cherishing. As we experience these things in a practical way the church becomes glorious (Lee, Witness. Life Study of Ephesians. Anaheim: Living Stream Ministry, 1978, Print ).

The context of this verse on the glorious church is God santifying the believers through His washing word, His nourishing and cherishing (Ephesians 5:26-29). Later he shares that as we come to the word, the Lord nourishes and cherishes us and bit by bit radiates His glory into us through our beholding His face (2 Cor. 4:6 and 2 Cor. 3:18.).  Somethings happening to us!  And this is a lot like what he shares in another message where he points out that this process of glorification is a lot like the metamorphosis of an ugly caterpillar into a beautiful butterfly (Page 481). Something within the caterpillar is consuming its old body and making a new one.  Wow, what a picture of what's happening to all of the believers of Christ!  So today our top priority is to come to the word of God and behold the Lord in His word!  

I really enjoyed listening to the radio broadcast of this message put on by Living Stream Ministry which is Program 52 - God's Desire for a Glorious Church. They really encouraged the listeners to read Watchman Nee's book The Glorious Church. I've read it years ago, but I'm planning  to read it again.  Did you know you can get this book as well as a free study Bible free of charge at Bibles for America?


Other blog posts on the Life Study of Ephesians:

What is the Subject of Paul's Epistle to the Ephesians?

What is the Mystery of God's Will Revealed in Ephesians 1:9?

How Does God Head Up All Things in Christ in Ephesians 1:10?

How Does the Spirit Seal us in Ephesians 1:13-14?

What is the Surpassing Greatness of His Power in Ephesians 1:19?

The Electricity Gospel - Showing God's Purpose to Reach Man

What is the One New Man in Ephesians 2:15?

What is the Stewardship of the Grace of God in Ephesians 3:2?

Do You Know What the Multifarious Wisdom of God is in Ephesians 3:10?

What's God's Calling for in Ephesians 4:1?

What Does It Mean to Learn Christ in Ephesians 4:20?

Seeing the Church as the Bride of Christ in Ephesians 5:32

How is a Ministry Formed According to 2 Corinthians 4?

    I like to paint.  Every year I try to make it to the pottery shop so I can work on something.  Yes, and as I'm working there's a lot of spiritual connections running through my mind.  Like I can make any kind of design I want on this bowl, and God's like I can draw any kind of design I want on your life.  

  And if I'm not satisfied, I can wash it off and start over.  God is the Potter, and we are the clay whether we like it or not! 

     Anyway a few weeks ago I was working in my kitchen listening to a message on Living Stream Ministry's Webcast Subscription Service (It's on the menu under Broadcasting).  The brother was speaking on how a ministry is formed according to 2 Corinthians 4, and he read a remarkable passage out of a book called Watchman Nee--A Seer of the Divine Revelation in the Present Age:

 Receiving a revelation is similar to having a picture painted upon us; but this painting must be burned into us to make the painting one with us. When the painting is burned into the vase, no one can erase it; neither can the vase be separated from the painting... It is the same with us. The only way for us to be burned is by suffering.  (Nee, Watchman. A Seer of the Divine Revelation in the Present Age.  Anaheim: Living Stream Ministry, Print).

I like the ending thought that comes out in this section--"The person is the message." 

Other blogs on books written by Watchman Nee or Witness Lee:


Watchman Nee
Why God Has to Forgive us   -  The Gospel of God  
Hearing God     Tell Him - The Collected Works of Watchman Nee, Volume 18
 Experiencing the Divine Potter at the Pottery Shop   Worshipping the Ways of God  
Adventures in Handing Out Gospel Tracts - Part 1     How to Distribute Tracts - The Collected Works of Watchman Nee

Witness Lee
Did You Know God Has a Biography?   The History of God in His Union with Man
  Seeing God's New Testament Economy in the Book of Acts Part 2 of 2      The Economy of God
What Causes the Seed to Grow in the Parable in Matthew 13? - The Collected Works Of Witness Lee, 1964, Vol. 4

How Does Galatians 4:5-6 Show the Intention of God's Creation of Man?

     God has an intention in His creation.  Whenever I'm walking at the beach or hiking a mountain trail with my family, I can tell that creation wasn't a random series of events.  God must have had a purpose behind it.  So what is it?  A few weeks ago when when I attended the Crystallization Study of Genesis, many of the messages were about God's intention in His creation. 

       I enjoyed hearing again how God created man in His image and likeness (Genesis 1:26) in order that man could contain God's life.  That's why God placed Adam in the garden where the tree of life was.  Because God gave man a free will, He didn't force Adam and Eve to eat just the tree of life. He wanted them to willingly choose Him. The serpent (Satan in disguise) might have thought that he had ruined God's intention in creating man, but actually he just gave God a way to destroy him (Go read Hebrews 2:14; I love this verse!). So this week I finished the Life-Study of Galatians, and the last message concluded with a section on God's intention.  It was an excellent recap of what I had heard at this conference. Here  it is from Chapter 46, page 416:

According to the revelation in the Bible, God's intention is to make us His sons.  In His creation of mankind, God created man in His image and after His likeness.  He designed and created man as a vessel to contain Him.  Because we became fallen, God sent His Son to redeem us.  When we believed in Christ, God sent the Spirit of His Son into us to regenerate us and make us sons of God.  Now the Spirit, the ultimate consummation of the Triune God, dwells in our spirit to work, move, act, and anoint us that we may be sons of God in a full way" (Lee, Witness, Life Study of Galatians. Anaheim: Living Stream Ministry, 1980, Print).

But when the fullness of the time came, God sent forth His Son, born of a woman, born under law;  That He might redeem those under law that we might receive the Sonship.  And because you are sons, God has sent forth the Spirit of His Son into our hearts crying, Abba, Father!     Galatians 4:4-6

Blog update 11/3/13:  If you'd like to listen to some sharing on Galatians you can listen to   the Life Study of the Bible with Witness Lee. 

Other Blogs on the Life Studies of Galatians:

Reading the Life Study of Galatians:  What is the Difference Between the Law & Christ?

Why Did Paul Emphasize the Hearing of Faith in Galatians 3?
Taking a Closer Look at Galatians 3:6-9 - How is Faith Like a Camera?
How is Christ Formed in the Believers in Galatians 4:19?
What is the Organic Union Seen in Galatians 5:25?
Have You Seen Regeneration in Galatians 4:5-6?
How Do We Practically Enjoy Grace in Galatians 5:18?
Can You See God's Intention for Creation in Galatians 4:5-6?

Why Prayer Matters

     Why do we pray?  Because prayer matters.  Sometimes praying can be the hardest thing for you to make time for, but if you make it a part of your day, it will happen.  And then you will see how much prayer matters.  Yesterday my husband and I joined  some other believers for prayer. I enjoyed the list of verses that we had on prayer.  A lot of these verses on  from the book of Isaiah, and when they're put together, you can see why prayer matters. 

Isaiah 45:11  Thus says Jehovah, the Holy One of Israel and the One who formed him, Ask Me about the things to come concerning My sons, and concerning the work of My hands, command Me.  

Isaiah 56:7b   My house will be called a house of prayer for all the peoples.  

Isaiah  59:16a  And He saw that there was no man, and He was appalled that there was no intercessor ....

Isaiah 62:6-7  Upon your walls, O Jerusalem, I have appointed watchmen; all day and all night they will never keep silent.  You who remind Jehovah, do not be dumb; and do not give Him quiet until He establishes and until He makes Jerusalem a praise in the earth.

These verses in Isaiah really point out why prayer matters to God. He needs His children to pray according to His will. 

Reading The Mystery of Human Life with College Students

    Sharing about the Lord with a friend can sometimes make people feel like they don’t know where to start, and that is one reason why we have really enjoyed using this small version of The Mystery of Human life.  I don’t even know who consolidated it into this 3 ½ x 4 ½  folded tract, but it is short and clear in the truths it presents.  

    Anyway a few years ago some of us printed off a few thousand of them so we could hand them out to students with a Bibles for America free study Bible reply card when we went to our university’s Info Fair. A lot of us have felt like our handing these out reminds us of the parable of the Sower in Mark 4--we're just sowing seed. We have to be faithful to do our part and leave the results up to God.  Since then we have always kept some handy so we can bring them out and read them with a student that we’re burdened to share the Lord with. 

    On Friday night  my husband had the sense we should ask the students what they would say if a friend ever asked them about God. After hearing a few comments, Mike pulled out this tract, and we read it around the table like we usually do.  It meant a little more to me personally because when our Thai student came in that night he told us he had invited his roommate.  It still amazes me whenever I  read about God’s intention of making man in His image so that man could contain Him. That statement became a springboard to share how man just tries so many things to satisfy himself, but he will not be satisfied until he finds God.  He’ll think well this car didn’t satisfy, maybe I’ll try that car, or perhaps I’ll get a bigger house, etc.!     

    But in order to contain God, fallen man needs redemption!  I love this part of the tract. I am so thankful that God didn’t leave us in sin, but He paid the highest price to redeem us.  He knew that when He died His divine life would be able to enter into us and regenerate us!  What a marvel this is!  Don’t you think?  I am putting this tract here in case you would like to copy it off and use it when you share with someone else.  Sorry, it wouldn't copy the diagrams.  

THE MYSTERY OF HUMAN LIFE

Have you ever wondered why you are living in this world and what the purpose of your life is? There are six keys that unlock this mystery.

1. God's Plan
God desires to express Himself through man (Rom. 8:29). For this purpose, He created man in His own image (Gen. 1:26). Just as a glove is made in the image of a hand to contain a hand, so also man is made in the image of God to contain God. By receiving God as his content, man can express God (2 Cor. 4:7).

2. Man
To fulfill His plan, God made man as a vessel (Rom. 9:21-24). This vessel has three parts: body, soul, and spirit (I Thess. 5:23). The body contacts and receives the things of the physical realm. The soul. the mental faculty, contacts and receives the things of the psychological realm. And the human spirit, the innermost part of man, was made to contact and receive God Himself (John 4:24). Man was created not merely to contain food in his stomach, or to contain knowledge in his mind, but to contain God in his spirit (Eph. 5:18).

3. Man’s Fall

But before man could receive God as life into his spirit, sin entered into him (Rom. 5:12). Sin deadened his spirit (Eph. 2:1), made him an enemy of God in his mind (Col. 1:21), and transmuted his body into sinful flesh (Gen. 6:3; Rom. 6:12). Thus, sin damaged all three parts of man, alienating him from God. In this condition, man could not receive God.

4. Christ's Redemption for God's Dispensing
Nevertheless, man's fall did not deter God from fulfilling His original plan. In order to accomplish His plan, God first became a man called Jesus Christ (John 1:1, 14). Then Christ died on the cross to redeem man (Eph. 1:7), thus taking away his sin (John 1:29) and bringing him back to God (Eph. 2:13). Finally, in resurrection, He became the life-giving Spirit (1 Cor. 15:45b) so that He could dispense His unsearchably rich life into man's spirit (John 20:22; 3:6).

5. Man's Regeneration

Since Christ has become the life giving Spirit, man can now receive God's life into his spirit. The Bible calls this regeneration (1 Pet. 1:3; John 3:3). To receive this life, man needs to repent to God and believe in the Lord Jesus Christ (Acts 20:21; 16:31).

 To be regenerated, simply come to the Lord with an open and honest heart and say to Him:

Lord Jesus, I am a sinner

I need You.

Thank You for dying for me.

Lord Jesus, forgive me.

Cleanse me from all my sins.

I believe You rose from the dead.

I receive You right now as my Savior and life.

Come into me! Fill me with Your life!

Lord Jesus, I give myself to You for Your purpose.

Blog Update 5-4-13:  I found a sharing on  the tract The Mystery of Human Life put out by Bibles for America on Youtube today.  There are 3 parts to this series.  
 The Mystery of Human Life - Part 1 of 3
 The Mystery of Human Life - Part 2 of 3
 The Mystery of Human Life  - Part 3 of 3

Blog update  5-15-3:  The  Mystery of Human Life - Excellent video clip of Pictures and text from parts of The Mystery of Human Life published by Living Stream Ministry.

Other blogs on reading The Mystery of Human Life:

Sharing the Gospel With the Tract The Mystery of Human Life

How is Man Like a Glove?  - Talking with a student at a University,  February 2012

Reading the Mystery of Human Life with International Students - July 2012

Hearing God in His Word - Dinner Fellowship With College Students

     

God spoke to me three times this week, and He used three different ways.

• 1st Time - Bible Study with College Students

 Last Thursday after eating dinner with the students, we read two pages on the Bible. We read about the Bible being God’s breath (2 Tim. 3:16), that its words are Spirit and life (John 6:63), and that life is the focus of the Bible (John 10:10). Since the Bible is God’s very breath, then surely we must touch God when we read it, right?   When we read this part, I was very much touched with how much God wants us to touch HIM in His word.  All week these lines have been in my heart:

 “We should not contact the Bible without contacting the Lord. Whenever we open the Bible we have to say, ‘Lord Jesus, You have to be here.  This is not merely a book, this is Your revelation. I don’t like to read this book without contacting You.  I don’t like to hear something from this book without hearing You. I don’t like to read this book without seeing You. I like to see Your face.  I like to see what You are from the printed page.  O Lord Jesus, enlighten Your word and anoint every line that I may touch You.’”

     Sorry I don’t know which book my husband printed this off from.  So many times we may read the Bible like a textbook and not really realize this is the word of God we're reading!!  Sometimes I'm off in the ozone and not connecting, and this prayer just echoed in me, yes  I want to hear God and see Him in a fresh and real way every time I read my Bible! 

• 2nd Time - Working on a Project

Well on Monday I was doing a project, and I was pulling different volumes off my shelf by Watchman Nee, and then one book flipped open to a chapter I had read in May 2010 entitled  Tell Him I was like wow, here I’m seeing this matter of being real with God again! Here are some heart-warming excerpts that spoke to and helped me realize even more that God doesn't mind hearing the good, the bad, and the ugly. 

“The Lord Jesus is a person in whom men can most easily confide.  He allows others to tell Him anything…There is nothing that is too small for the Lord to listen to.  He is willing to listen to everything…We can tell the Lord our sorrow.  He will not rebuke us...He knows our emotion, and He sympathizes with our heart…We should bring our problems to the Lord and tell Him about them.  He can comfort us and help us...No matter what we tell Him, He will listen…He is sympathetic to everyone of our problems. He cares for the affairs of us all.  In His heart there seems to be no one else’s affairs but ours. He bears all our sorrows…Do not think that He will not listen…He is waiting for us to tell them to Him, and He is happy to listen to our speaking” (Collected Works of Watchman Nee, Volume 18, Page 327-329).

Did you count how many times Watchman Nee says in just this excerpt that God will listen to His children?  When I read this, I felt like God was talking directly to me, encouraging me to have a heart-to-heart.

• 3rd Time - Listening to LSM Radio

Then on Tuesday this week while I was working on researching about lavender and typing up that blog, I was listening to the radio broadcast on www.lsm.org, and Ed Marks made a comment about talking to the Lord. And I’m like Lord You really do want us to talk to You--within a week I've heard this three times!  It was so good, I started typing it up on my blog notes page:

“I just want to stress this with our listeners, always spend some personal time with the Lord every day where you can be in the word, and where you can pray to Him, where you can talk to Him.   And, Chris, throughout the day we should talk to the Lord, we should say, 'Lord Jesus I need You, Lord Jesus I love you, Lord Jesus I’m in this situation and I don’t know what do.'  Tell Him, talk to Him in everything and about everything. …You will enjoy the Lord, experience the Lord, and you will grow in life.”

Last night after cleaning up from the student dinner, I just felt like I wanted to put these three excerpts together to encourage you--God wants to heart it! He knows it all anyway! WE CAN TELL HIM EVERYTHING! !

Other  College Student Dinner Fellowships on This Blog:

Do You Have the Assurance of Your Salvation? 

Getting Spiritual Food From God's Word

What are the Securities of Your Salvation?

Hearing God - Dinner Fellowship with College Students

Why Should a Believer Get Baptized?

Why Should We Read the Bible?

Coming to the Lord in His Word

Did You Know God Made You With Three Parts?

What is the Key to Experiencing Christ? - A Fellowship with College Students

Calling on the Lord Makes a Difference! 

What's the Secret the Third Generation of Mankind Found?

Why Are Just 2 Trees Mentioned in Genesis 2?

Discussion with College Students--What is the Church?

Why are There Two Trees in Genesis 2 Anyway?  Part 1

Why are There Two Trees in Genesis 2 Anyway?  Part 2