A Weekly World Wide Word of Encouragement to those in the Ministry
PRAISE GOD IT’S MONDAY!
A WEEKLY ‘WWW (world-wide word) OF ENCOURAGEMENT’
TO THOSE IN MINISTRY
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Issue No: 884 Published: 01 Oct 2018
WHOSE CHURCH IS IT ANYWAY? Part 57
THE CHALLENGE OF..... LIVING THE KINGDOM LIFESTYLE
THE PHARISEE AND THE TAX COLLECTOR
9 To some who were confident of their own righteousness and looked down on everybody else, Jesus told this parable: 10 “Two men went up to the temple to pray, one a Pharisee and the other a tax collector. 11 The Pharisee stood up and prayed about himself: ‘God, I thank you that I am not like other men—robbers, evildoers, adulterers—or even like this tax collector. 12 I fast twice a week and give a tenth of all I get.’ 13 “But the tax collector stood at a distance. He would not even look up to heaven, but beat his breast and said, ‘God, have mercy on me, a sinner.’ 14 “I tell you that this man, rather than the other, went home justified before God. For everyone who exalts himself will be humbled, and he who humbles himself will be exalted.” (Luke 18:9-14)
Jesus told the parable, and unusually, also gave the interpretation of it, so much did He want to make sure that we all got the point!
Jesus came 'to save' the sinner rather than the (self) righteous.
7 I tell you that in the same way there will be more rejoicing in heaven over one sinner who repents than over ninety-nine righteous persons who do not need to repent.
(Luke 15:7)
Unfortunately, both then and now, many of us humans believe that we are better than we really are! None of us are righteous, save through faith in Jesus.
10 As it is written: “There is no one righteous, not even one; 11 there is no one who understands, no one who seeks God. 12 All have turned away, they have together become worthless; there is no one who does good, not even one.”(Romans 3:10:12)
And confirmed…..
21 But now a righteousness from God, apart from law, has been made known, to which the Law and the Prophets testify. 22 This righteousness from God comes through faith in Jesus Christ to all who believe. There is no difference, 23 for all have sinned and fall short of the glory of God, 24 and are justified freely by his grace through the redemption that came by Christ Jesus. (Romans 3:21-3)
We are all very critical of the Pharisees, 'tut-tut' hare and 'tut-tut' there, but when we honestly look at ourselves, we find we are no better than they were.
One Friday night I was at the meeting of a noted evangelist and teacher, Al Furie, who has experienced remarkable favour in being allowed to preach and teach multitudes in Cuba. At one time, he was to preach at the Toronto Airport Church for a week, and continued on for 6 weeks. At the end of this time he attended a meeting at the church where the Lord got hold of him and showed him that he was worse inside than many of those he had preached to! Unforgiveness and many other things were uncovered in his life, which he had to repent of.
Wow! How could it be! You see, Al was a highly respected Christian leader who had devoted his life to the Lord's work. Surely he didn't need to repent! But he did! And there is stuff in me - and in you - which is ungodly, no matter how righteous we appear on the surface. For we all sin and fall short of God's righteousness.
Yet it is so easy to 'become religious', as the Pharisees did, and believe that we are right in God's sight, through our own efforts. I have found this to be a particular problem in the highly dedicated, hugely well intentioned, Holiness movement. So many, in their dedication, have replaced the work of the Holy Spirit, upon which the movement was founded, with manmade rules and regulations concerning dress and behaviour. The life has gone. Judgment and self-righteousness have flourished in the Spirit's stead.
But, do not think that is just 'them'! For such problems exist in every church, in every Christian.
Right now, I have flicked over to read an email that has just come in. It reinforces the point! I quote from Gretchen…..
.....Being an American, and having grown up in the church here (becoming a Christian at age 5), I can testify that bitterness within the church is an epidemic! Yes! Moreso, I can tell you much about it because I grew up among the thorns of it within my extended family and circle of influence. And as I saw the widespread effects of it, I knew that the Bible is right: bitterness is a poison, its roots go deep, and it affects many, many people. Bitterness is a toxic state of the heart. It includes unforgiveness, envy, jealousy, hatred, resentment, selfishness, anger, self-pity, etc. Its symptoms include sarcasm, a sardonic wit (very edgy), negativity, criticism, passive-aggressive behavior (taking out anger towards someone behind their back), gossip, anger, fear, and depression (anger turned inwards)......
Many of these things we cannot see in ourselves. We need to humble ourselves, to be prepared to fully open up our life, to allow the Holy Spirit to show us where we truly are at in our walk with Jesus.
That is my prayer both for me, and for you, today.
(Continued next week)
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FROM THE WORD
THE WORDS OF JESUS
May we hear what the Lord is saying to us.....
Jesus - The Bread of Life(John 6:22-59)
When the boat reached the other side the crowd asked how He got there. Jesus replied
“I tell you the truth,” “you’re looking because you ate as much bread as you wanted, not because you understood the miracles. Don’t be preoccupied about food that doesn’t last, but concentrate on the lasting food of eternal life which the Son of man will give you, for God the Father has placed his seal of approval on him.”
“What God wants you to do is to trust in the one he sent.”
“I tell you the truth, it wasn’t Moses who gave you bread from heaven,” “It’s my Father who gives you the true bread of heaven. For the bread of God is the one who comes from heaven and gives life to the world.”
“I am the bread of life,” “Anyone who comes to me will never be hungry again, and anyone who trusts in me will never be thirsty again. But as I explained to you before, you have seen me, but you still don’t trust me. All those the Father gives me will come to me, and I won’t reject any of them. For I came down from heaven not to do what I want, but to do what the One who sent me wants. What he wants is for me not to lose anyone he has given to me, but for me to raise them up at the last day. What my Father wants is for everyone who sees the Son and trusts in him to have eternal life, and for me to raise them up at the last day.”
Then they disagreed with Him. “I tell you the truth, unless you eat the flesh of the Son of man and drink his blood, you cannot truly live. Those who eat my flesh and drink my blood have eternal life, and I will raise them up at the last day. For my flesh is true food, and my blood is true drink. Those who eat my flesh and drink my blood remain in me, and I remain in them. Just as the life-giving Father sent me and I live because of the Father, so anyone who feeds on me will live because of me. Now this is the bread that came down from heaven, not the kind your forefathers ate and still died. Anyone who eats this bread will live forever.”
Many Desert Jesus (John 6:60-71)
Deciding the teaching was too difficult to accept.
“Are you offended by this? Then what if you were to see the Son ascend to where he was before? The Spirit gives life; the physical body doesn’t do anything. The words I’ve told you are spirit and life! Yet there are some of you who don’t trust me.”
“This is why I told you that no one can come to me unless it is made possible by the Father.”
Now speaking to the disciples.
“Didn’t I choose you, the twelve disciples? Yet one of you is a devil,”
(Continued next week)
You can download the complete 'Words of Jesus' here.
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MORE BIG NEWS - AN OPERATING MICROSCOPE IS COMING!
Donor/s in New Zealand are donating us a brand new operating microscope which will enable us to commence doing cataract operations, even before our dedicated eye hospital is built next year!
This is a huge breakthrough for us as it is a very expensive piece of equipment.
With other eye equipment that has come, and more is coming, from the UK, we will soon be the best equipped eye unit for a large area round.
If you are the Wellington area and requiring an Ophthalmologist we we recommend at THE TERRACE EYE CENTRE for great service and all their support for us.
An operating microscope looks like this.
Our Minor Theatre - before microscope!
Assessing a client in our Optical Centre.
Choosing a frame.
Choice of nearly 100 frames.
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***DAILY EZINE!*** 'DAVID'S DAILY DOODLINGS' Subscribe Today
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'THE WORDS OF JESUS' REMAIN AVAILABLE FOR PDF DOWNLOAD
Join the many who have downloaded the 'The Words of Jesus'. I am sure you will be blessed by it, as I have been.
One key element here is the setting out in chronological order (as far as it is possible to do so) our Lord's words drawn from all the Gospels, and the elimination of repetition between Gospels.
You may be surprised by the different perspective this presentation gives you both in understanding of His life and ministry, and in achieving a closer relationship with Him.
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DAVID'S DOODLINGS
211. Learning humility in defeat trains us to remain humble in success.
212. Boasting is of the human heart, but humility is God's heart for us.
396. True humility cannot be generated in the mind, for it comes from our spirit.
397. True humility arises when confidence in God overcomes confidence in ones self.
398. Humility is a positive attribute, not a weakness.
399. False humility reflects weakness, but true humility exudes godly strength.
400. The truest expression of a godly character is reflected in humility.
1306. True humility is 'putting Jesus first' in our life.
CARTOONS FROM TOON FEVER
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TUESDAY TEACHINGS
NEXT WEEK: A REVELATION OF... THE TABERNACLE OF DAVID
Over the years since the Lord has given me much revelation on the ‘tent in the desert’ and none on the ‘town tent’.
However, I noticed greater interest being shown by others, in more recent years, in the Tabernacle of David, particularly in relation to worship. But still nothing for this David!
This changed however, last night, as I was reading the chapter in Chronicles where David's Tabernacle is mentioned, the Lord started to reveal new meanings for me, showing me that it truly is a picture, a representation of the end time church. I was so excited that I hardly slept! For I now know another 'missing link' in the teaching the Lord has given me! Of course, in God, there is always more revelation to come! And will continue to be until the day Jesus returns.
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LAUGHING AT OURSELVES
***Blessed are those who can laugh at themselves for they shall never cease to be amused*** *** Those who can't laugh at themselves leave the job to others. ***
QWIK QWIP: “Life is 10% of what happens to you, and 90% of how you respond to it.”
188. You Dirty Rat -- Er, Rodent..
A pastor was spending the Saturday afternoon at a house in the little country town where he preached. After lunch he was sitting out on the front porch with his host and his wife when their two children rushed up, one of them swinging a dead rat over his head by the tail. "Look, ma! Don't be afraid, it's dead," exulted the boy, oblivious to his mother's embarrassment. "Yeah, ma," shouted the girl. "We bashed him in the head with a stick, then we stoned him, then we took a rake to him, and we whacked him and hacked him until" - and then catching sight of the amused clergyman, she finished in a lowered, respectful voice - "until the good Lord called him home."
189. Pride Goeth Before a Fall:
Five Americans, including a famous brain surgeon, a prominent minister of a large church, a college student, and the president of the National Mensa Society were flying across the Rockies in the same aeroplane. Suddenly the pilot emerged from the cockpit with four parachutes. As he strapped one on, he said, "We've developed mechanical difficulties and we're losing altitude." He tossed the three remaining chute packs on the floor, opened the hatch and jumped out.
Immediately, the brain surgeon stood up and said that since he could save lives with all of his skill and knowledge, he should have the first chute. The others agreed and he jumped from the plane. The Mensa Society president declared, "Since I am the leader of America's most intelligent people, I can do much to better the world. I deserve a parachute." Before the others could say a word, he snatched a pack from the hands of the student, slipped into the straps and jumped.
The minister immediately spoke up: "My friend, you are young and have many years ahead of you. I, on the other hand, have enjoyed a long life and am ready to meet my Maker. I want you to..."
"Relax, pastor," interrupted the student. "We can both have a parachute. One of the most intelligent people in the world just jumped out of this aeroplane with my book-bag on his back."
FREE DOWNLOAD: You can now download the book 'Laughing At Ourselves' in PDF format at LAUGHING AT OURSELVES One of the most comprehensive sources of Christian Humour on the Net with 800 sermon fillers for your entertainment and use at ..... https://www.wwj.org.nz/content/wwj18p47.pdf
Or read them all online at.....
A DAVID MUSING
The rain is about to stop, so I will soon be able to walk the short distance to the house keeping dry.
When it rains here in Kenya, it rains. Thunder and lightning are regular happenings here. Nobody takes any notice.
They do remind me however, of the power of God, and His judgement day to come.
We all love the sunshine of life in this age of grace, which has lulled us into the thought that judgement will never come.
But the Bible promises it when the world as we know it ends!
Am I ready? Are you ready?
Until next week.....
MAY GOD BLESS YOU AND YOU BLESS GOD
His servant and yours
David Tait
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ABOUT US
WALKING WITH JESUS MINISTRIES is a non-profit, non-denominational, Bible based ministry located in Hastings, New Zealand. A ministry dedicated to developing discipleship, fostering unity amongst God's people to achieve the Great Commission, and in doing so, preparing for Christ's return. It is securely based upon the foundational principles of the Apostles Creed while recognising the wide and rich diversity of beliefs amongst Christians in other areas. In accordance with the Lord's direction, materials produced by the ministry are available, free of charge, to genuine enquirers upon request. The ministry is solely funded by donations, as the Lord provides. A list of materials available (plus some fun!) is obtainable and freely downloadable from our websitewwj.org.nz or by contacting us as follows.
Walking With Jesus Ministries
7 Bull Street
Ahuriri
Napier
New Zealand
Phone: (06) 835 0567 International (+64) 6 835 0567
Email: enquiries@wwj.org.nz
Web: wwj.org.nz
Our role is to bless and encourage those in ministry while promoting co-operation and unity of direction amongst the body of Christ, as emphasised 3 times by Jesus in His longest prayer, immediately prior to His arrest and crucifixion. "... so that they may be one as we are one." (John 17:12, 21, 23-4) Our website is currently being developed to encourage your participation one with another, to share resources, and to enable you to promote events and items of interest to the body as a whole - and have a smile while doing it!
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