Hi all,
I had a new CT of my heart a couple weeks ago which they will compare with the November CT to see how much the heart blood clot has shrunk over the last 2 months. I’ll meet with the cardiologist March 7 to learn the results. I’m not traveling much until we get it figured out. I’ll be in Osawatomie, Kansas March 10-11, and the Dutch conference in May, but that’s it until I learn more about this clot – thanks for prayers.
Dutch conference reminder – May 10-13. This is about the relationships found with those who do church in the house – we spend time together, eat meals together, worship and pray together. It is an investment in relationships with those on that ‘spiritual page’, not an expense – it is for those who hold these relationships to be important – if you are part of the CWOWI family either doing house church or interested in it, we encourage you to come. If house church isn’t on your heart then it isn’t for you.
Thoughts…I’ve been thinking about how worldly much of what is called Christian is today. In my day when we got saved we brought our whole selves to Jesus and said ‘Take all of me’, with no strings attached, no fine print – just take me Lord I’m so grateful to have you! We’ve lived that way since.
Today I see many who are just trying to add Jesus to whatever is their routine of life and calling it Christian. He is welcome along for the ride as long as He doesn’t try to get too close or change them to make them too ‘religious’. If He can help them in life then all is well and good. They would rather simply include Him in their current life to help them through rough times or to answer a spiritual void within them.
That’s why I see such a richness in family based churches that meet in homes. You see real faith in action when you meet in homes with people you get to know. You walk through life’s challenges together; you pray for one another. It is a living faith that makes a visible difference in everyone’s lives day to day. It is healthy to see that in each other, so know Jesus is woven in the fabric of our lives, not merely an ornament to adorn one’s busy life. He isn’t just included in our life, He IS our life.
What ‘believe’ means
In Oriental thought, and remember the Bible is an oriental book, there is no separation between the idea of something and the doing of it.
The Greek way of thinking is that the idea stands alone and should be examined, rolled around in one’s mind, thought about, and then a choice may be made to adhere and follow such a thought, or to dismiss it.
That was the situation on Mars Hill in Athens for Paul, as seen in Acts 17. The men listened to Paul’s ideas until he got to Jesus being resurrected from the dead, and then some laughed, some said to come back later – they had separated the idea from the adhering to the idea.
In Bible times to believe in Jesus meant you were a disciple of Jesus, one who followed Him and practiced what He taught. To believe in the pages of the New Testament means you mental agree with the claims of Jesus, and then live them.
Not so today in the west. Today someone may say they believe in Jesus, and what they mean is they mentally agree that Jesus is Lord, but in their heart they have no intention of being His disciple. They have no intention of moving their lives in a process to be like Him.
Gnosticism
The spirit the writers of the New Testament dealt with was Gnosticism, which comes from the Greek ‘to (mentally) know’. They believed things of the earth were evil, and things of the spirit and Spirit were good. Therefore, because the flesh was evil a Christian could live however they wanted to in life because in their spirit they had Christ.
So they believed there was no sin, nothing to repent of, no accountability to God or anyone on this earth because their body was evil and Christ in them was good, so as long as you ‘believed’ in Jesus you were headed to heaven. Today that spirit is called ‘hyper-grace’, but it is really just people who separate the word ‘believe’ to mean a concept or idea in their mind, from the doing of the belief in Jesus.
There are many scriptures that make sure we understand Paul and the New Testament do not separate out the mental agreement that Jesus is Lord from the obedience to Jesus’ teachings.
“Who has saved us and called us with a holy calling, not according to our works, but according to His own purpose and grace, which was given us in Christ Jesus before times eternal.” II Timothy 1:9
“Grace and peace be multiplied to you through the knowledge of God, and of Jesus our Lord. According as His divine power has given to us all things that pertain to life and godliness, through the knowledge of Him who called us to glory and virtue, through which are given to us exceeding great and precious promises, that by these you might be partakers of the divine nature…” II Peter 1:3-4
These and many other scriptures tell us to believe in Jesus is not a case of us inviting Him into our life to make our life better, but of us giving 100% of ourselves to Him, that we move our lives continually in the direction of being like Him, and growing as human beings in Him.
I encourage you to seek out even 1 person who may be on that same spiritual page of looking for the genuine – meet for coffee or tea, or invite them to dinner – invest in those who are ‘real’ around you!
Thank you for your continued friendship, support, and prayers. With my weekly Facebook and YouTube videos, and increased numbers of people starting house churches, we are very busy; much by computer, Skype, and so on – thank you and blessings!
John & Barb
