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
A FREE service, currently connecting with Christian leaders from 3,000 denominations and ministries, in 70 countries.
Issue No: 924 Published: 08 Jul 2019
A REVELATION OF……. THE THIRD AND FINAL DWELLING PLACE OF GOD’S GLORY PLUS THE RIVER OF LIFE. Part 5
THE RIVER OF LIFE (Continued)
POSITIONAL v EXPERIENTIAL SALVATION, RIGHTEOUSNESS LEADING TO HOLINESS (SANCTIFICATION)
I would like you to consider the following ‘river’ Scriptures and consider whether they are single events or continuous. Does the river stop flowing after we have sampled it or does it flow continuously?
Then the angel showed me the river of the water of life, as clear as crystal, flowing from the throne of God and of the Lamb 2 down the middle of the great street of the city. On each side of the river stood the tree of life, bearing twelve crops of fruit, yielding its fruit every month. (Revelation 22:1-2)
14 but whoever drinks the water I give them will never thirst. Indeed, the water I give them will become in them a spring of water welling up to eternal life.” (John 4:14)
17 The Spirit and the bride say, “Come!” And let the one who hears say, “Come!” Let the one who is thirsty come; and let the one who wishes take the free gift of the water of life. (Revelation 22:14)
As is obvious from the above Scriptures, the river flows continuously.
So it is with our lives Salvation is not a one-time experience, as is taught by the majority of churches. In order to share in the river of life, we must stay in it.
Therefore we have been saved, we are being saved, and we will be saved.
Similarly, we can receive the anointing of the Holy Spirit, but it is again, not a single experience. We are to grow in our life in the Spirit on a continuous basis.
Finally, obedience to the Father’s will for us is also an ever developing process, as our faith levels increase and we are prepared to trust Him more and more.
The relatively modern theology of ‘once saved, always saved’ is simply wrong, leading to at best ‘Father Christmas Christians’ who remain immature for a lifetime, always seeking God’s gifts without being prepared to make the sacrifices mature discipleship requires. At worst, there are many who having as they believe, earned their ‘ticket to heaven’ by saying the (unbiblical) sinners prayer, live life in the world, nothing having changed in their lives. They are in for a huge shock unless they change their ways.
All need to read these verses from Hebrews…..
4 It is impossible for those who have once been enlightened, who have tasted the heavenly gift, who have shared in the Holy Spirit, 5 who have tasted the goodness of the word of God and the powers of the coming age 6 and who have fallen[c] away, to be brought back to repentance. To their loss they are crucifying the Son of God all over again and subjecting him to public disgrace. (Hebrews 6:4-6)
Jesus required us to make disciples…..
18 Then Jesus came to them and said, “All authority in heaven and on earth has been given to me. 19 Therefore go and make disciples of all nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit, 20 and teaching them to obey everything I have commanded you. And surely I am with you always, to the very end of the age.” (Revelation 28:18-20)
Discipleship requires maturity in Christ…..
Therefore let us move beyond the elementary teachings about Christ and be taken forward to maturity, not laying again the foundation of repentance from acts that lead to death, and of faith in God,2 instruction about cleansing rites, the laying on of hands, the resurrection of the dead, and eternal judgment. 3 And God permitting, we will do so….. But solid food is for the mature, who by constant use have trained themselves to distinguish good from evil. (Hebrews 6:1-3,14)
This is reinforced in Ephesians…..
14 Then we will no longer be infants, tossed back and forth by the waves, and blown here and there by every wind of teaching and by the cunning and craftiness of people in their deceitful scheming. 15 Instead, speaking the truth in love, we will grow to become in every respect the mature body of him who is the head, that is, Christ. 16 From him the whole body, joined and held together by every supporting ligament, grows and builds itself up in love, as each part does its work. (Ephesians 4:14-16)
And again in Colossians…..
He is the one we proclaim, admonishing and teaching everyone with all wisdom, so that we may present everyone fully mature in Christ.(Colossians 1:28)
Holiness (sanctification) therefore, needs to be worked out in our lives. There is no magic bullet. While we are made ‘positionally’ righteous upon coming to a belief in Jesus (salvation), we are not to stop there as the above Scriptures show. Moving onto maturity in our walk.
We all need to read and constantly remind ourselves that…..
[ Warning and Encouragement ] Make every effort to live in peace with everyone and to be holy; without holiness no one will see the Lord. (Hebrews 12:14)
(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 Prays for Peter. (Luke 22:31-2)
“Simon, Simon—Satan has asked to have all of you to sift like wheat, but I have prayed for you that your trust in me may not fail. And when you have returned, encourage your brothers.”
Jesus Predicts Peter’s Denial (Matthew 26:33-5, Mark:14:29-31, Luke 22:33-4)
Against Peter’s protestations.
“This very night, before the cock crows, you’ll deny me three times.”
Jesus Warns the Disciples to be Prepared (Luke 22:35-8)
For His death.
“When I sent you out without money, without a bag, and without an extra pair of sandals, did you lack anything?”
But now, if you have money you should take it, as well as a bag, and if you don’t have a sword, sell your cloak and buy one. I tell you that this statement in Scripture about me must be fulfilled: ‘He was counted with the wicked.’ What was said about me is now being fulfilled.
(Continued next week)
Download the complete 'Words of Jesus' here.
OUR AFRICAN EXPERIENCE
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A BRILLIANT VISIT!
The first visit by one of our financial supporters from New Zealand.
I had not met Niall the Optometrist, before this visit, and am so grateful for his support in spite of not knowing us.
Niall fitted in with us as a well fitting glove on a hand.
He has formed a relationship with our optician adviser, Andrew, both being trained to a high level in Pediatric Optometry, which is CBM's and our own, primary field of interest.
So we look to a long and mutually beneficial relationship.
Here we have Niall with with 3 of the 4 people Niall has sponsored for further optometry training, Leah and Pauline as Ophthalmologists and Jacqui as Ophthalmic Clinical Officer.
Thank you so much Niall for all your help. We look forward to seeing you again soon.
***NOW***NINE BOOKS ARE AVAILABLE ON AMAZON!!!
9 BOOKS are now available on Amazon (Kindle)!
All are available worldwide for electronic download on Amazon (Kindle) for $US0.99c . Unfortunately there has to be a charge in order to list.
Your support would be appreciated and they could well change your life!
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http://www.amazon.com/s/ref=nb_sb_noss?url=search-alias%3Daps&field-keywords=david+tait+books/
***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
... life is to be our investment in eternity.
... ultimately, I am the one responsible for me.
... salvation is a process, not an event.
... life's limitations are man driven, not God given.
... when my wants line up with His desires, things happen.
... I need to place godliness even above wisdom.
... to be effective for Him, the light within, must shine without.
... happiness comes and happiness goes, but joy stands firm.
... we have second chances in life but not in death.
... we only get to live life once.
CARTOONS FROM TOON FEVER
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TUESDAY TEACHINGS
THIS WEEK: 'NEARER MY GOD TO THEE, NEARER TO THEE' concludes
*** ANOTHER DAILY EZINE FROM WWJ!*** 'LAUGHING AT OURSELVES' Subscribe Today
As Christians, if we can't laugh at ourselves, others will! A fun way to start your day. To register today, go down to the bottom of the page link below, click on the subscribe link lao--on@wwj.org.nz (or paste the address in an email yourself and send) Then it's done!
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: “If you are willing to admit you are wrong when you are wrong, you are all right.”
283. Pastoral Candidates
The following is a confidential report on several candidates being considered for a pastorate.
ADAM: Good man but problems with his wife. Also one reference told of how his wife and he enjoy walking nude in the woods.
NOAH: Former pastorate of 120 years with not even one convert. Prone to unrealistic building projects.
ABRAHAM: Though the references reported wife-swapping, the facts seem to show he never slept with another man's wife, but did offer to share his own wife with another man.
JOSEPH: A big thinker, but a braggart, believes in dream interpreting and has a prison record.
MOSES: A modest and meek man, but poor communicator, even stuttering at times. Sometimes blows his stack and acts rashly. Some say he left an earlier church over a murder charge.
DAVID: The most promising leader of all until we discovered the affair he had with his neighbour's wife.
SOLOMON: Great preacher but our parsonage would never hold all those wives.
ELIJAH: Prone to depression. Collapses under pressure.
ELISHA: Reported to have lived with a single widow while at his former church.
HOSEA: A tender and loving pastor but our people could never handle his wife's occupation.
DEBORAH: Strong leader and seems to be anointed, but she is female.
JEREMIAH: Emotionally unstable, alarmist, negative, always lamenting things, reported to have taken a long trip to bury his underwear on the bank of a foreign river.
JONAH: Refused God's call into ministry until he was forced to obey by getting swallowed up by a great fish. He told us the fish later spit him out on the shore near here. We hung up.
AMOS: Too backward and unpolished. With some seminary training he might have promise, but has a hang-up against wealthy people--might fit in better in a poor congregation.
QWIK QWIP: “Better to understand a little than to misunderstand a lot.”
284. Jericho Walls
The new pastor of a rural church dropped into a Sunday-school class and began quizzing the students to test the effectiveness of the teacher.
"Who knocked down the walls of Jericho?" he demanded of one boy.
"It sure weren't me, Reverend," the boy said.
Turning to the embarrassed teacher, the pastor exclaimed, "I suppose that's a sample of the kind of class you maintain!"
"Now, Reverend, Timmy's a good boy and doesn't tell lies. If he said he didn't to it, I believe him."
Thoroughly upset, the pastor took the matter to the church's board of deacons. After due consideration, the board sent the following message to the minister: "We see no point in making an issue of this incident. The board will pay for the damages to the wall and charge it off to vandalism."
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
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A DAVID MUSING
The page of another year has turned itself over in my book of life, making 72 in all.
Of course, the USA celebrated my birthday with fireworks displays all over the country! Yes, you have guessed it, my birthday was on July 4! Independence Day. I am told this was an appropriate day for me to be born, for I have always done things others don't dare to do.
I have taken many risks in business, some successful, others not.
Through the failures I came to firstly know Jesus and then to get more deeply into Him. And now to serve Him in Kenya, 15,000km away from the comforts of life in New Zealand.
In many ways it is satisfying, in others frustrating, as we learn to adapt to a new culture and way of doing things.
But being in the will of God, overrides all. It is not necessarily easy, nor pleasant, but as you need to get deeper into trust and reliance upon Him, so you grow spiritually.
There is no doubt that we are different people than when we came to Kenya 2 years ago.
In God we have choices, as He gave us freewill to obey or not obey His leading and direction for our life.
What choice will you make today?
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!
For comments upon and contributions to this service, please contact
david@wwj.org.nz