2016-12-02
Good Morning Dear Ones,
I’m charged with discussing the relationship between Paul’s prayers in COL 1: 3-14 (which we’ve been examining in the last couple of weeks), and what He prays for in EPH 1: 17-20. EPH 1: 17-20 asks the Lord for God to give us “the Spirit of wisdom and revelation, so that we can know Him better”, that “the eyes of your heart may be enlightened in order that you may know the hope to which He (the Father) has called you, the riches of His glorious inheritance in the saints, and His incomparably great power for us who believe, that this power is like the working of His mighty strength, which He exerted when He raised Christ from death to eternal life at His side in heaven.” Both the Colossians and the Ephesians showed enormous faith and love. Both the Colossian heresy and Gnosticism (which was an outgrowth of it) interfere with this love and faith in Jesus Christ. An outgrowth of true faith and the love of Christ shown is fruit, those acts of service to God, which build His Kingdom. Producing this fruit is stopped by the aforementioned heresies, when they are practiced.
Salvation in Christ is planted in one who has yet to accept Christ, when there is confession with one’s mouth and belief from what is heard. RO 10: 9-10, “That if you confess with your mouth, ‘Christ is Lord,’ and believe in your heart that God raised Him from the dead, you will be saved. For it is with your heart that you believe and are justified, and it is with your mouth that you confess and are saved.” Paul wanted his message about the need for belief in Christ to be heard and received. These heresies mentioned interfere with this. Paul’s greatest hope is that fruit, in the form of people accepting Christ and living worthy lives in the Father’s sight, would be produced. Worthy lives are a combination of being concerned with the welfare of self and others. The lives of Gnostics were self-centered, based on human-crafted philosophy and not God-centered.
The gifts of the Holy Spirit [GA 5: 22-23], which will be the theme of my next series of devotions in the near future, were not exhibited by the Gnostics. There was no redemption from sin’s negative outcomes in that heresy. Gnosticism separated people, as those who are enlightened and those who were not (with their secrets). Christianity builds us as adopted members of God’s family into oneness with Him in leadership [RO 8: 14-16, 26-27]. Gnosticism didn’t offer any way to receive eternal forgiveness for one’s sins. Our faith in Christ is that when we were saved, we were also justified and eternally forgiven [JN 3: 16; RO 4: 3; 1 JN 1: 9].
As a Messianic Jewish person, one who has accepted Christ as my personal Savior, I carry with me a deep appreciation for the life of ministry I’ve been given. My conversion from Conservative Traditional Judaism to Christianity came after joining the LDS church for 12 years. Its beliefs are very different than what is expressed in Paul’s teaching or that of Christ found in the NT. I now believe the Holy Spirit has been in control of my life and decisions the whole time. How can I not appreciate Martin Luther’s bold change of beliefs in the course of the Reformation!? The full-time ministry I have today was built piece by piece, as God felt I was ready for each step. Leadership of our congregation’s prayer chain, which later became the prayer wall, was assigned to me. A friend in CA was dying of an awful brain tumor and asked me to write every day to her. Writing about myself grew tiresome, so I began writing about God. Others caught wind of this and asked to receive these devotions. That grew into the world-wide readership that I have today on my website. I was privileged to teach many adult, in-depth Bible studies at church and to become a Stephen minister (trained crisis/family counselor). Our Lord has given me direction, purposes for my life, peace of mind, and the feeling of being loved and encouraged. I belong to a group of women who knit and crochet prayer shawls, hats, and scarves for people in crises. A myriad of satisfying and lasting friendships have come into my life. All my life, I have wanted to respond to the urgency I feel to spread the Gospel of Jesus Christ. Since Oct.’13, I have worked for “In Search of Shalom,” a Toronto-based organization that supplies seekers, for whom we volunteers answer questions about the Lord Jesus and other spiritual matters. This is done in secured computer and text chats in real time. That takes up six hours of my week and brings me in contact with people from all walks of life, all religious backgrounds. This long paragraph about my ministry work is my way of showing each of you what the Holy Spirit can do and did for me. Praise and thanks be to Him!
PRAYER: O Lord, we come before Your mighty throne to acknowledge the extreme importance of the work You entrusted to Your Son, Jesus Christ, to the apostle Paul, and to each of the human writers in the Bible. You directed the prophets of the OT to set the foundation upon which these NT teachers could stand. Yes Lord, there were changes that went on from the rules and regulations of Judaism to the teachings of Christ and the writers of the NT. Those changes made it possible for the practice of our Christian faith as it can be today—totally God-centered and directed. This is a short prayer, but one that comes from our innermost hearts of faith in You and Your Son. We thank and praise You for the salvation, justification, and eternal forgiveness and many blessings that You give us through Him. Our lives are made better by serving You and getting to know You better through prayer and study of Your word. In Christ’s holy name, we offer our thanks, praise, loyalty, honor, and our lives in service to You. Amen.
NEXT WEEK: We will look more closely at the various ways people serve God. We have been given different gifts according to the grace God has given us. RO 12: 4-5, “Just as each of us has one body with many members, and these members do not all have the same function, so in Christ we who are many form one body, and each member belongs to all the others.” In the meanwhile, I’m in prayer that each of you is feeling encouraged in your faith in Christ and uplifted in any task the Holy Spirit assigns you to do in Kingdom-building. It is my hope that your lives will be as blessed as mine us.
Praise and thanks forever to the Lord!
Grace Be With You Always,
Lynn
JS 24: 15
© Lynn Johnson 2016. All Rights Reserved.
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