Share the Burden of the Church - Be a Wise Leader

The Burden of Leadership
Moses was a humble man that did not despise wise counsel. In the book of Exodus Chapter 18, Moses listens and obeys the wise counsel of his father in law, Jethro (Priest of Midian). After the children of Israel had been led out of Egypt by Moses, Jethro brought Moses' wife and sons to him in the wilderness. The children of Israel were wearing Moses down with their complaining and issues. Jethro saw that Moses' burden of being the leader of all these people and dealing with their issues from sun up to sun down every day was too much for one man to bear. So, he counseled Moses. He told Moses to take the people's issues to God, but also to teach them the laws and show them the way they must walk and the work that they must do. In addition, he advised Moses to select leaders that were men of truth that hate covetousness and place them over the people. This established the first system of government for the Israelites. Having wise leaders in place to share the responsibility of governing the people would ease Moses' burden of leadership. So, the leaders judged small matters, more difficult issues were taken to Moses and Moses communed with God

The need for government in the church
If you have direct access to your Pastor, consider his/her burdens. They have responsibilities to their family, sometimes a job(s) outside of the church, the church, the churches activities and all its members to consider. If you belong to a large church, then you know that you may have to go through a minister or make an appointment before you can talk to your Pastor directly. The reason for this is order. A system of order is not designed to keep you away from your Pastor, it is designed to better serve your needs. Without a system of order (government), the leader will eventually grow weary under the burden of carrying the entire load of all the people all the time.

Sacrifice
Sacrifice comes with the call of the Pastor, but it is also the call of every Christian in the church. We are ALL supposed to sacrifice for the cause of Christ, but sadly, some of us do not want to grow up and take responsibility. We want to continue to be coddled and catered to in our weakness more than we want to grow strong. I beseech you, brethren to try to grow to be leaders that help and support your Pastor instead of complaining children. Everyone has talents and skills to offer the kingdom of God. Whatever you have, offer it.

Humble yourself, pray and seek the face of God to grow strong in the Lord
Remember that you have something the children of Israel did not have - the ability to go boldly before the throne of grace and have a personal relationship with God. You do not have to go through a person to speak to or hear from God. Jesus Christ is your intercessor and the Holy Spirit is your guide. PRAY! If the members of the body strengthened themselves through the word of God and prayer, we could strengthen and encourage other believers in the church, being helpers to the Pastor and the body of Christ in general.

How you can help your Pastor
You can lighten the load of your Pastor by doing your part to be strong in the Lord and setting an example of how to be active participants in the church rather than dependents. We should learn to depend more on God than man for our strength so that we can help do the work of leading lost souls to Christ, discipling and learning how to give wise counsel to our brothers and sisters.

Recognition
Truthfully, most people want to be acknowledged for their good deeds and work, but Christians must remember that God sees your good works and he is the rewarder. Your gifts will make room for you and bring you before great men. Just do what you do with a pure heart and in excellence and give of yourself with unselfish motives and walk confidently through the doors that God opens for you.

How to give wise counsel
How can you be sure that you are giving wise counsel? Always ask yourself, what does the Bible say about this matter? Look for more than one example. Site the scriptures and the circumstances and allow God to minister to you about how it applies to the situation. Teach others how to do this for themselves and we will all be the ministers that God wants us to be.

God's gifts and their purpose for His church
11And His gifts were [varied; He Himself appointed and gave men to us] some to be apostles (special messengers), some prophets (inspired preachers and expounders), some evangelists (preachers of the Gospel, traveling missionaries), some pastors (shepherds of His flock) and teachers. 12His intention was the perfecting and the full equipping of the saints (His consecrated people), [that they should do] the work of ministering toward building up Christ's body (the church),13[That it might develop] until we all attain oneness in the faith and in the comprehension of the [[a]full and accurate] knowledge of the Son of God, that [we might arrive] at really mature manhood (the completeness of personality which is nothing less than the standard height of Christ's own perfection), the measure of the stature of the fullness of the Christ and the completeness found in Him. Ephesians 4:11-13 Amplified.

Growing in Christ,
The Prophetic Scribe

What part of the body are you?

A mentor once gave us an exercise to spiritually discern what part of the body we represent in the body of Christ. I cannot even remember what my response was, but today I was reminded of that exercise when my husband said, “I was thinking about you today. I was thinking about how you are like an artery. You need to constantly be filled in order to effectively pump blood to other parts of the body.” He described himself as a fingertip because of his diligence to work with his hands to complete his task. He’s a web master, designer and artist. I thought about how if you sever an artery, the blood loss is so rapid that the body dies quickly. Looking at myself in this way helped me to see how important I am to the Body of Christ. When I am fed through the Word of God, Worship and even fellowship with other God-fearing Christians like I was today in Sunday School and Worship Service, I have more to pour into that young sister that had never heard the story of Esther before I associated her gift for beautification with the process Esther went through before being brought before the King. I pray that I piqued her curiosity enough to make her want to read the story for herself. She had never heard of the Book of Esther, but there she was sitting in church. I pray she got what she came for and I thank God for extending me to her.

Temptation

There hath no temptation taken you but such as is common to man: but God is faithful, who will not suffer you to be tempted above that ye are able; but will with the temptation also make a way to escape, that ye may be able to bear it. 1 Corinthians 10:13

We are all tempted to do things we shouldn’t do, say things we shouldn’t say and think things we shouldn’t think. Jesus Christ was no exception. He was also tempted by the same tempter that tempted Eve in the garden and continues to tempt us today. In Matthew 4 the bible tells the story of how Jesus was led by the Spirit into the wilderness, and AFTER he had fasted 40 days and 40 nights and was hungry….satan came to tempt him. Have you ever noticed how temptation is harder to resist when you are weak, hungry or desperate?

1 John, Chapter 2, verse 16 reads: For all that is in the world, the lust of the flesh, and the lust of the eyes, and the pride of life, is not of the Father, but is of the world.

Let’s examine how the devil tempts through these three consistent methods:

First, the tempter challenged the identity and authority of Jesus by saying, If thou be the Son of God, command that these stones be made bread. (Here he’s appealing to the lust of the flesh and pride of life). Jesus responded with the Word of God – WHY? Because HE IS the word of God, and his response confirmed his identity and authority….What if someone said to you; “If you are really a child of God, the bible says that you can do what Jesus did, so show me a miracle?” What would you say? Like Jesus, you should respond with the Word of God. You can say, I AM the miracle ….because first I was lost and now I’m found. I have been redeemed by the blood of Jesus. My sins have been forgiven. I am a new creature. I am an heir of Christ. I have eternal life. I would have been dead if not for the power of salvation and the gift of God’s grace. Jesus changed my life, and he will do the same for you if you accept him as your savior. When Jesus responded with “It is written”, He was quoting his own book. In Hebrews 9, it says, And being made perfect, he became the author of eternal salvation unto all them that obey him; In Hebrews 12, he is the author and finisher of our faith.

Next, the tempter took him up to the holy city and set him on the pinnacle of the temple and told him, If thou be the Son of God, cast thyself down: for it is written, He shall give his angels charge concerning thee: and in their hands they shall bear thee up, lest at any time thou dash thy foot against a stone. (Here he’s appealing to the Pride of Life) Again, Jesus quoted the book, It is written, Thou shalt not tempt the Lord thy God. It is the fear of God that prevents us from tempting him. A wise man would not allow his pride to foolishly challenge God. After all, he is not at OUR beck and call, but we should be at his. It doesn’t mean that God will not hear us or respond to us when we call, but he is sovereign. He does as He wills.

Next, the tempter took him to a high mountain and showed him the kingdoms of the world and the kingdom’s in them……and this is where many of us fall. The devil said, All these things will I give thee, if thou wilt fall down and worship me. Jesus responded, Thou shalt worship the Lord thy God, and him only shalt thou serve. (Unfortunately, the Lust of the Eye and the Pride of Life are a very effective combination because our enemy knows how much we love ourselves and our stuff): The fact is, we have idols. An idol is something that if the Lord asked you to give it up, you could not or would not. It could be a person, a desire or a thing. Think about Abraham’s test. He was asked to sacrifice his beloved son Isaac, the son he waited a lifetime to have, and then he was asked to give him back to God. This would be hard for any parent, but His faithfulness revealed God’s faithfulness….He didn’t even ask Abraham to do anything he wasn’t willing to do. 16For God so loved the world, that he gave his only begotten Son, that whosoever believeth in him should not perish, but have everlasting life. John 3:16

Contrary to popular belief, we CAN resist temptation. James 4:7 tells us how, Submit yourselves therefore to God. Resist the devil, and he will flee from you.

What is the reward for resisting temptation? It is also written in the book of James Chapter 1, verse 12. Blessed is the man that endureth temptation: for when he is tried, he shall receive the crown of life, which the Lord hath promised to them that love him. Do you love Jesus? Jesus said, if you love me, keep my commandments.

I encourage you to Submit yourself to Christ today, and resist the temptation of sin so that you may obtain the reward of the Crown of Life. It’s priceless.

This has been a message from The Prophetic Scribe. God bless you.

There is no "UN in Forgiveness

Have you ever wondered why the message of “forgiveness” never gets old in the church? I mean really – how many ways can you teach about the same thing?
We know scriptures like: For if ye forgive men their trespasses, your heavenly Father will also forgive you: written in Matthew 6:14
So why do preachers keep preaching it; teachers keep teaching it; and ministers keep ministering it? Because the body of Christ is still diseases. God’s servants can’t stop administering the medicine until the patient is well, and the body of Christ is not yet well. In fact, like a physical disease, the body keeps growing resistant to the medicine so new formulas are created and administered in an ongoing attempt to cure it. The body has even come up with a new word for this disease. It’s called “un-forgiveness”
Did you know that there is no such word as “unforgiveness” I mean literally. It is not a word. If you type it into a Word document a red line will appear underneath. That’s because it’s not in the dictionary. But people use this “incorrect” word all the time. I even stumbled upon a blog where others had come into the same knowledge as I. “Unforgiveness” is not a legitimate word in the English language.
So, I began to ponder this disease and this new word for it. I prayed for revelation about it, and this is what I received…..Unforgiveness is not a word because there is no “un” in forgiveness. There is only forgiveness or disobedience.
Some of us don’t forgive because we have judged someone in the court of our own mind, according to our own standards and expectations. For this reason, the Lord says, in Matthew 7 “Judge not, that ye be not judged. For with what judgment ye judge, ye shall be judged: and with what measure ye mete, it shall be measured to you again. And why beholdest thou the mote that is in thy brother’s eye, but considerest not the beam that is in thine own eye? Or how wilt thou say to thy brother, Let me pull out the mote out of thine eye; and, behold, a beam is in thine own eye? Thou hypocrite, first cast out the beam out of thine own eye; and then shalt thou see clearly to cast out the mote out of thy brother’s eye.”
Sometimes, the Lord will allow us to endure offenses to show us some aspect of our self that needs to be addressed. So, the next time you are offended, ask the Lord to show you if there is something he is trying to bring to your attention. Ask Him to search your heart, and renew a right spirit within you. In Romans 2, Paul says, “Therefore thou art inexcusable, O man, whosoever thou art that judgest: for wherein thou judgest another, thou condemnest thyself; for thou that judgest doest the same things.”
Also, the next time you withhold forgiveness because you have judged a person for their actions in the court of your own mind, remember ALL that God has forgiven you for. Psalm 32:5 reads “I acknowledge my sin unto thee, and mine iniquity have I not hid. I said, I will confess my transgressions unto the LORD; and thou forgavest the iniquity of my sin. Selah.” ….Yes, pause and think about His forgiveness for a moment…… Now, consider the instructions to the body of Christ documented in James 5:16. “Confess your faults one to another, and pray one for another, that ye may be healed. The effectual fervent prayer of a righteous man availeth much.”
If we pray for the person we are having difficulty forgiving and allow the forgiveness of Jesus to usher us into a place of humility, our heart WILL soften and we WILL discover compassion that we could not muster on our own. The forgiveness of Christ will have its perfect work in us, and we will be healed.
How much and how long are we expected to forgive? In Matthew 18:21-22 the bible recounts a time when Peter asked Jesus, “Lord, how oft shall my brother sin against me, and I forgive him? till seven times? 22Jesus saith unto him, I say not unto thee, Until seven times: but, Until seventy times seven”.…….In Luke 17 Jesus is quoted as saying… “And if he trespass against thee seven times in a day, and seven times in a day turn again to thee, saying, I repent; thou shalt forgive him……And the apostles said unto the Lord, Increase our faith. ”
Like the Apostles, we may need the Lord to increase our faith, but we can still strive to love like Jesus. In Psalm 86:5, David says, “For thou, Lord, art good, and ready to forgive; and plenteous in mercy unto all them that call upon thee.” Let us be GOOD and READY to forgive with mercy.
Now, let’s talk about the consequences for disobedience. Jesus used this parable in Matthew 18 to demonstrate what WILL happen to us when we do not forgive others as we have been forgiven. He begins by establishing the fact that this parable represents a kingdom principle.
“Therefore is the kingdom of heaven likened unto a certain king, which would take account of his servants. And when he had begun to reckon, one was brought unto him, which owed him ten thousand talents. But forasmuch as he had not to pay, his lord commanded him to be sold, and his wife, and children, and all that he had, and payment to be made. The servant therefore fell down, and worshipped him, saying, Lord, have patience with me, and I will pay thee all. Then the lord of that servant was moved with compassion, and loosed him, and forgave him the debt. But the same servant went out, and found one of his fellowservants, which owed him an hundred pence: and he laid hands on him, and took him by the throat, saying, Pay me that thou owest. And his fellowservant fell down at his feet, and besought him, saying, Have patience with me, and I will pay thee all. And he would not: but went and cast him into prison, till he should pay the debt. So when his fellowservants saw what was done, they were very sorry, and came and told unto their lord all that was done. Then his lord, after that he had called him, said unto him, O thou wicked servant, I forgave thee all that debt, because thou desiredst me: Shouldest not thou also have had compassion on thy fellowservant, even as I had pity on thee? And his lord was wroth, and delivered him to the tormentors, till he should pay all that was due unto him. So likewise shall my heavenly Father do also unto you, if ye from your hearts forgive not every one his brother their trespasses.”
This story is an example of how our disobedience and unwillingness to forgive can cancel out forgiveness that we have received or possibly would have received if we had just been obedient.
Mark 11:25 reads…”And when ye stand praying, forgive, if ye have ought against any: that your Father also which is in heaven may forgive you your trespasses.” So, in other words before we even ask for forgiveness from God, we had better forgive our brother or sister FIRST.
Now, you may say that you have forgiven……and you have turned your back and walked away from someone who has hurt you, and you think you have done your duty, but this is not the kind of forgiveness that Jesus speaks of. He said, “If you love me, keep my commandments.” Now, what did Jesus say was the greatest commandment after “Love the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your mind?” That’s right. It is to “love your neighbor AS YOURSELF”. Do you ignore yourself? Do you ignore your needs? 2 Corinthians 5:18 tells us that WE have the “ministry of reconciliation”. No matter what else we are doing, this is our FIRST ministry as believers. We cannot expect that our great works for the kingdom will excuse the rejection of one of “His little ones?” Therefore, it is not enough to just SAY that we have forgiven and walk away……but we must reconcile with actions in order to demonstrate our love for Jesus.
1 John 3:18 reads…..My little children, let us not love in word, neither in tongue; but in deed and in truth.
In closing, I will read a passage from the New King James version of the Holy Bible. The heading is “The Greatest Gift.” I recommend that you think of it as the greatest gift that you can give Jesus to demonstrate your love for Him….. and let it trickle down to man. Focus on Jesus, not man and you can do what seems impossible. This great gift was passed down to us through the revelation and obedience of the Apostle Paul.
“Though I speak with the tongues of men and of angels, but have not love, I have become sounding brass or a clanging cymbal. And though I have the gift of prophecy, and understand all mysteries and all knowledge, and though I have all faith, so that I could remove mountains, but have not love, I am nothing. And though I bestow all my goods to feed the poor, and though I give my body to be burned,[a] but have not love, it profits me nothing.
Love suffers long and is kind; love does not envy; love does not parade itself, is not puffed up; does not behave rudely, does not seek its own, is not provoked, thinks no evil; does not rejoice in iniquity, but rejoices in the truth; bears all things, believes all things, hopes all things, endures all things.
Love never fails. But whether there are prophecies, they will fail; whether there are tongues, they will cease; whether there is knowledge, it will vanish away. For we know in part and we prophesy in part. But when that which is perfect has come, then that which is in part will be done away.
When I was a child, I spoke as a child, I understood as a child, I thought as a child; but when I became a man, I put away childish things. For now we see in a mirror, dimly, but then face to face. Now I know in part, but then I shall know just as I also am known.And now abide faith, hope, love, these three; but the greatest of these is love.”
This is 1 Corinthians, Chapter 13 – in its entirety.
Today, I encourage you to forgive AND reconcile to show your love complete. Remember, there is no “un” in Forgiveness. There is only forgiveness and disobedience.
If this message has touched your heart as much as it has wrenched mine… I invite you to close your eyes and bow your head with me now as I pray a personal prayer of agreement with the Lord. You may receive it for yourself if it agrees with your spirit.:
Thank you, Father for your word of truth. Teach me how to love not only in word, but in deed. Lord, have mercy on me. For I have never had a love like yours before and sometimes I just don’t know how to act, but I thank you for your holy spirit that leads and guides me into all truth. Lord, transform me into a minister of righteousness. Teach me how to be a minister of reconciliation. Lord, Increase my faith. Teach me how to Love my enemies, bless them that curse me, do good to them that hate me, and pray for them who despitefully use and persecute me. I cannot accomplish this kind of love on my own, but I know that all things are possible with you. Lord, I release pride, rebellion and stubbornness and allow the fruit of the spirit (love, joy, peace, longsuffering, gentleness, goodness, faith, Meekness, and temperance to reign in my life. I submit to the mind of Christ right now and allow it to override my programming as I surrender my heart and mind to you. Lord, I submit to your wisdom; your will; and your way. Amen.
God bless you. This has been a message to and from The Prophetic Scribe.