An Exalted View of God
Tony Cooke

In Psalm 50, God addressed those we might call pseudo-believers. He said they were reciting His decrees and pretending to obey His covenant (verse 16, NLT), but He addressed their compromise and worldliness, saying, “You thought that I was altogether like you; but I will rebuke you, and set them in order before your eyes” (verse 21, NKJV).

That phrase—You thought that I was altogether like you—has captured my attention over the years, and it raises some vital questions. How do we perceive God? Do we see God for who He really is, or do we fabricate a “god” that is compatible with the “comfort zone” of our flesh?       

We do ourselves a great disservice if we fail to see God’s greatness, majesty, and awesomeness. God, who wants to elevate our vision of Himself, said, “My thoughts are nothing like your thoughts, says the LORD. And my ways are far beyond anything you could imagine. For just as the heavens are higher than the earth, so my ways are higher than your ways and my thoughts higher than your thoughts” (Isaiah 55:8-9, NLT).

A.W. Tozer said, "So necessary to the Church is a lofty concept of God that when that concept in any measure declines, the Church with her worship and moral standards declines along with it. The first step down for any church is taken when it surrenders its high opinion of God."

I remember a popular song in the mid ‘70s called, “Jesus is Just Alright With Me.” One of the vocalists said that no one in the band was religious or anti-religious. He said, “We weren’t anything. We were just musicians out playing a gig. We didn’t think about that kind of stuff very often.” Believers need to know that Jesus is not “just alright,” He’s the Savior of the World, Redeemer, Healer, and Lord! Believers should shun any glib attitude that makes Jesus anything less than, “…holy, harmless, undefiled, separate from sinners, and… higher than the heaven” (Hebrews 7:26, NKJV).

I recently heard a country song about having a beer with Jesus. While the person was seemingly respectful, it made me think about how superficial and shallow perspectives can be when it comes to seeing a Holy and Majestic God. When Isaiah saw the Lord, he didn’t consider ordering up a couple of tall ones (as the song says). Instead, he was awestruck and overcome with the holy presence of God when he encountered His glory and awesomeness.

Isaiah 6:1-8 (NLT)
1 …I saw the Lord. He was sitting on a lofty throne, and the train of his robe filled the Temple. 2 Attending him were mighty seraphim, each having six wings. With two wings they covered their faces, with two they covered their feet, and with two they flew. 3 They were calling out to each other, “Holy, holy, holy is the LORD of Heaven’s Armies! The whole earth is filled with his glory!” 4 Their voices shook the Temple to its foundations, and the entire building was filled with smoke. 5 Then I said, “It’s all over! I am doomed, for I am a sinful man. I have filthy lips, and I live among a people with filthy lips. Yet I have seen the King, the LORD of Heaven’s Armies.” 6 Then one of the seraphim flew to me with a burning coal he had taken from the altar with a pair of tongs. 7 He touched my lips with it and said, “See, this coal has touched your lips. Now your guilt is removed, and your sins are forgiven.” 8 Then I heard the Lord asking, “Whom should I send as a messenger to this people? Who will go for us?” I said, “Here I am. Send me.”

Having been cleansed by the coal from the altar, Isaiah went on to convey messages from a God of holiness to the people of Israel. For example:

Isaiah 57:15 (NLT)
15 The high and lofty one who lives in eternity, the Holy One, says this: “I live in the high and holy place with those whose spirits are contrite and humble. I restore the crushed spirit of the humble and revive the courage of those with repentant hearts.

Consider John’s encounter with the majesty of Jesus on the Isle of Patmos.

Revelation 1:12-17 (NLT)
12 When I turned to see who was speaking to me, I saw seven gold lampstands. 13 And standing in the middle of the lampstands was someone like the Son of Man. He was wearing a long robe with a gold sash across his chest. 14 His head and his hair were white like wool, as white as snow. And his eyes were like flames of fire. 15 His feet were like polished bronze refined in a furnace, and his voice thundered like mighty ocean waves. 16 He held seven stars in his right hand, and a sharp two-edged sword came from his mouth. And his face was like the sun in all its brilliance. 17 When I saw him, I fell at his feet as if I were dead…

When Isaiah and John encountered the Lord, they were awestruck. There was no sense of flippant familiarity, no treating Him like a good ole’ boy. As John’s “revelation” continued, we have continuing glimpses of Jesus’ majesty.

Revelation 5:11-12 (NKJV)
11 Then I looked, and I heard the voice of many angels around the throne, the living creatures, and the elders; and the number of them was ten thousand times ten thousand, and thousands of thousands, 12 saying with a loud voice: “Worthy is the Lamb who was slain to receive power and riches and wisdom, and strength and honor and glory and blessing!”

Yet There Remains Great Approachability

Scripture leads us progressively toward an exalted view of Christ and of God, yet in the Incarnation, we encounter both the humility and the approachability of God. We could not access God in our fallen condition, so He came to us in the Person of Jesus Christ.

“[Jesus] …made Himself of no reputation, taking the form of a bondservant, and coming in the likeness of men” (Philippians 2:7). The Living Bible says that Jesus, “…laid aside his mighty power and glory, taking the disguise of a slave and becoming like men, and he humbled himself even further, going so far as actually to die a criminal’s death on a cross.”

“But we see Jesus, who was made a little lower than the angels, for the suffering of death crowned with glory and honor, that He, by the grace of God, might taste death for everyone” (Hebrews 2:9).

“Therefore, it was necessary for him to be made in every respect like us, his brothers and sisters, so that he could be our merciful and faithful High Priest before God” (Hebrews 2:17, NLT).

In the Incarnation, God accommodated us. In His humility, Jesus said (and says) to everyone, “Come to Me, all you who labor and are heavy laden, and I will give you rest. Take My yoke upon you and learn from Me, for I am gentle and lowly in heart, and you will find rest for your souls. For My yoke is easy and My burden is light” (Matthew 11:28-30). Jesus was so approachable that parents brought their children to Him to be blessed, and contrite sinners found freedom from shame and condemnation through His compassion.

Through the Incarnation (including His death, burial, and resurrection), Jesus became the Door and the Way. But before He left this earth, He prayed something very interesting. “And now, Father, glorify Me along with Yourself and restore Me to such majesty and honor in Your presence as I had with You before the world existed.” (John 17:5, AMP).

It is right and good when we see the humility and approachability that Jesus exhibited in His earthly life, but it’s even greater when we follow Him into His glorification and exaltation. Perhaps that is why Paul said, “At one time we thought of Christ merely from a human point of view. How differently we know him now!” (2 Corinthians 5:16, NLT).

Jesus met us where we were, so He could take us where He is. John 17:21,23 (NKJV) says, “And the glory which You gave Me I have given them… Father, I desire that they also whom You gave Me may be with Me where I am, that they may behold My glory which You have given Me…”

He came to redeem the sinner, not to condone the sin. Hebrews 2:10 (NLT) says, “God… chose to bring many children into glory. And it was only right that he should make Jesus, through his suffering, a perfect leader, fit to bring them into their salvation.” Did you notice that? God has chosen to bring us into glory!

If the God you serve allows you to rationalize carnality, make light of disobedience, and feel comfortable in sin, you are serving a god of your own making; not the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ. Don’t fabricate a god that your flesh is comfortable with. Let’s get—through the enablement of the Holy Spirit and through the Word—an exalted view of God. That simply means to see Him as He really is. Then, we’ll do what Psalm 34:3 has declared through the ages: “Oh, magnify the Lord with me, and let us exalt His name together.”

Why You Don’t Have to Confess Sins
(You Didn’t Commit)
Tony Cooke

Click here to watch the video intro to this article.

I am so thankful for 1 John 1:9 (and the rest of 1 John as well) which says, "If we confess our sins, He is faithful and just to forgive us our sins and to cleanse us from all unrighteousness." To me, this verse is wonderfully liberating and a source of joy. It’s hard to imagine that some Christians want to reassign this verse and make it apply to unbelievers. Let me address a thought that may provide insight as to why some may have wrestled with this passage and wish to relegate it to unbelievers.

Satan is called, "the accuser of our brothers and sisters… who accuses them before our God day and night" (Revelation 12:10, NLT). I believe that many Christians, especially young believers, have fallen prey to an insidious strategy of the enemy… the one who, "…walks about like a roaring lion, seeking whom he may devour" (1 Peter 5:8). We also know that he is a very crafty deceiver who wants to corrupt our minds from the simplicity that is in Christ (2 Corinthians 11:4). Here’s what I believe has sometimes happened:

1. A young, sincere Christian wants to do right and please God.
2. Various temptations come to him, and he feels guilty about the temptations he experiences. He may even think, "If you were really a Christian you would not have had that thought." The ironic thing is that the person may not have even actually sinned. A bad thought simply came to him. He didn’t necessarily receive the thought, entertain the thought, or act on the thought. But still, he feels condemned that the thought even came to his mind.
3. The young Christian has heard about 1 John 1:9, so he confesses his "sin" to God (even though he may not have actually sinned). The enemy repeats the attack, and the Christian enters into a vicious cycle of temptation-shame-confession, temptation- shame-confession, ad infinitum.
4. Some Christians at this point will become tormented and obsessive over their guilt. They are trying to repent when what they really need to do is resist (and knowing who we are and what we have in Christ is essential to this)! But some mistakenly label the devil’s temptation as "their own sin." They need to resist false guilt and stop agonizing over a sin they didn’t necessarily even commit. The problem here was never confession-related, but was deception-related.

Can you see how the enemy can take advantage of a young believer? A Christian can become overwhelmingly obsessed with guilt, and because of deception, completely overlook this clear fact of Scripture: Being tempted is not a sin!

Think about this for a minute, because it’s tripped up many, many people. Hebrews 4:15 tells us that Jesus, "…was in all points tempted as we are, yet without sin." Jesus was presented with temptation, but Jesus never participated in the temptation. Let me repeat, simply being tempted is not a sin, and according to 1 Corinthians 10:13, temptation is "…common to man."

What is Jesus’ attitude toward us when we are tempted? Does He condemn us? Is He disappointed and disgusted with us? Does He want us to wallow in guilt, shame, and condemnation? No! Hebrews 2:18 says, "…in that He Himself has suffered, being tempted, He is able to aid those who are tempted." When you are tempted, Jesus is there to aid you, not condemn you. Do not let temptation define you; let Christ define you!

Consider what Jesus told His disciples. "Watch and pray, lest you enter into temptation…" (Matthew 26:41). Notice that Jesus did not say, "Watch and pray lest you be tempted." Being spiritually alert and maintaining vibrant fellowship with God doesn’t mean you won’t be tempted, but it will keep you from entering into temptation. It’s one thing to face a temptation. It’s something entirely different to yield to, cooperate with, and participate in temptation. The former is not sin, but the latter is.

Do you recall hearing this phrase? "You can’t keep a bird from flying over your head, but you can keep it from building a nest in your hair." There’s great truth in that statement.

If you face temptation, resist it! If a thought or imagination comes to your mind, cast it down, and turn your attention to Jesus, following Paul’s admonition in Philippians 4:8. "…Whatever things are true, whatever things are noble, whatever things are just, whatever things are pure, whatever things are lovely, whatever things are of good report, if there is any virtue and if there is anything praiseworthy—meditate on these things."

However, even if we have actively entertained the thoughts or participated in sin, God still has good news for us. First John 2:1, which reflects continuous thought from what he’s written previously (remember, the Bible wasn’t written in chapters and verses), says, "My little children, these things I write to you, so that you may not sin. And if anyone sins, we have an Advocate with the Father, Jesus Christ the righteous." What was John referring to when he said, "These things I write to you"? He was referring to everything he’d already said (including 1 John 1:9) and all that he was going to say.

First John was not written to different audiences, but to believers as a whole. John recognizes believers at different levels of growth (he identifies spiritual children, young men, and fathers), but when he refers to those outside the faith (including false teachers and those holding false beliefs) he clearly refers to them in the third person (they). John refers to his "little children" (believers) over and over and over again, but he never refers to an outside group as being a recipient of his letter. It is terribly ill-advised to presumptuously insert a supposed audience (Gnostics or others) into John’s epistle that he never identified as recipients.

So we come back to the question, why would some people want to keep 1 John 1:9 from applying to Christians? One explanation is based on what we discussed earlier. Having been deceived, some obsessively and compulsively confessed "sin" (even though it may have only been a temptation). They got on a vicious and tormenting cycle of confessing and re-confessing "sins" over and over again and eventually decided that their "confessing sins" was not bringing them victory. As a result, they decided confession of sins must be part of the problem, and so, BASED ON THEIR NEGATIVE EXPERIENCE, they decided it must not apply to them. In short, they reject the truth of confession because they had experienced a deceptive counterfeit.

This would be like a person who heard that aspirin could help them with a headache, but instead of following the instructions and using the aspirin properly, they beat themselves on the head with the bottle. After a while, they decide that aspirin doesn’t work and actually makes things worse. Let me encourage you to never subordinate the plain meaning of Scripture to your personal experience or your so-called personal revelation. Our experience does not judge the Word. Instead, Scripture should judge our experience. And we must never distort the Scripture to accommodate our experience.

First John 1:9 is a glorious invitation to us, when we have missed it, to "…come boldly to the throne of grace, that we may obtain mercy and find grace to help in time of need" (Hebrews 4:16). Option 1 is that we had not sinned to begin with, but Option 2 is that Jesus remains our Advocate! He is for us, not against us! We can come to Him, be honest with Him, and in faith acknowledge—not simply our failure—but also his great mercy and kindness. We act on 1 John 1:9 the same way we act on any Scripture – in faith!

When we confess a sin, we are not groveling before God or wallowing in our sin. We are not trying to "earn" forgiveness, and we are not questioning whether He still loves us or will give us a second chance. No! We come in faith to the One Who promised us cleansing, and we receive a fresh application in our lives of the wonderful forgiveness that He procured for us 2,000 years ago when He shed His precious blood for us.

So why "confess" sin we’ve committed? That word means to acknowledge, to concede, to admit, or "to say the same thing." It makes perfect sense, biblically and otherwise, when we’ve missed it, to be honest with God, acknowledge our mis-step, and to agree with God about the issue.

Max Lucado wrote "Confession is not telling God what he doesn’t know. That’s impossible. Confession is not complaining. If I merely recite my problems and rehash my woes, I’m whining. Confession is not blaming. Pointing fingers at others without pointing any at me feels good, but it doesn’t promote healing. Confession is so much more. Confession is a radical reliance on grace. A proclamation of our trust in God’s goodness. ‘What I did was bad,’ we acknowledge, ‘but your grace is greater than my sin, so I confess it.’ If our understanding of grace is small, our confession will be small: reluctant, hesitant, hedged with excuses and qualifications, full of fear of punishment. But great grace creates an honest confession."


When believers in Ephesus experienced the beauty of God’s grace, they confessed (acknowledged and admitted) that their behavior had been wrong and they made a clean break from those practices. Acts 19:18-19 (NLT) says, "Many who became believers confessed their sinful practices. A number of them who had been practicing sorcery brought their incantation books and burned them at a public bonfire." To these believers, confession and repentance went hand in hand.

There was a time when the Corinthians weren’t simply tempted to sin, but they had plunged headlong into the practice of sin. Paul said, "I am afraid that when I come I won’t like what I find, and you won’t like my response. I am afraid that I will find quarreling, jealousy, anger, selfishness, slander, gossip, arrogance, and disorderly behavior. Yes, I am afraid that when I come again, God will humble me in your presence. And I will be grieved because many of you have not given up your old sins. You have not repented of your impurity, sexual immorality, and eagerness for lustful pleasure" (2 Corinthians 12:20-21, NLT).

Had they merely been tempted in some areas, Paul’s counsel would have been totally different. But because of their active involvement in sin, he made it clear that they needed to repent from their behavior, and repentance begins with an acknowledgment (that’s what confession is) that they needed to get back on-track with God and obey His word. Remember, we never have to confess a sin we didn’t commit, but if we do miss it, we should be very thankful for 1 John 1:9.

Which Parts of the Bible Does Your Doctrine Make Invisible?
Tony Cooke

I was recently pondering all of the conflicting views that Christians have about a wide variety of doctrinal issues. While I believe that unity regarding the essentials of faith is…well, essential, it never ceases to amaze me how many become hyper-rigid over doctrinal positions that the Bible doesn’t really seem to be all that rigid about.

Since the first time I heard Blaise Pascal quoted, I have appreciated his statement, “In essentials, unity. In non-essentials, liberty. And in all things, charity.” Of course, such wisdom is quite different than the attitude I had following a wonderful encounter with the Lord back in 1977. Possessing more zeal than wisdom, I was eager to not only defend my new-found beliefs, but also to correct anyone who disagreed with me and to convince them just how right I was. I now wonder how much of my motivation was based on love for others, as opposed to my insecurity. I think sometimes, if we are insecure about our own beliefs, we want to strike down the beliefs of others and get as many people to agree with us as we can; somehow, we must think that convincing others reinforces or validates the right-ness of our position.

When we are secure in our beliefs, we can have a godly desire to help others see and benefit from the truth, but we are not as likely get all out of sorts when others have different perspectives, especially on non-essential issues. For example, there is nowhere in the Bible that says you have to believe in unconditional eternal security (or not) in order to be saved. The Bible simply says, “Believe on the Lord Jesus Christ, and you will be saved…” (Acts 16:31). There are countless people around the globe who have never heard of the Calvinistic-Arminian dispute who are going to be in heaven simply because they believed, with simple faith, in the Lord Jesus Christ. There are good, well-meaning Christians who believe in what has been termed “once saved always saved” while other good people believe it is possible, under certain circumstances, to renounce and revoke what had been a saving relationship with God. While that has been one of the hotly debated and contested issues in theological circles for many years, there are countless other areas of friction that are less prominent.

Are Facts Getting in the Way of Our Conclusions?
As a matter of discipline, we should avoid jumping to a theological conclusion, and then trying to find all of the Scriptures to back up the position we have embraced. If we “do our theology” that way, we have a real tendency to read the Bible with an intense bias. After all (if this were our approach), we wouldn’t want to let the facts mess up our pre-determined conclusion. The tendency then, is to read Scripture very selectively. At that point, people are typically not reading Scripture with an open heart and open mind. Instead, they already have a filter firmly in place which accentuates the verses that “prove” their point, and that makes invisible the verses that seem to challenge their pre-determined position.

For example, if we are staunch believers in unconditional eternal security, we might have a tendency to strongly gravitate toward those Scriptures which support (or seem to support) our position (e.g., John 6:37; 10:27-29; Romans 8:38-39, etc.) and ignore, minimize or “explain away” those verses which seem problematic to our beliefs (e.g., Hebrews 10:26-31; James 5:19-20; 1 John 5:16, etc.). If we are strong Arminians, we might have a tendency to follow the same process in the opposite direction.

A healthy approach is to read the Bible with an open mind and an open heart, avoiding as many preconceived ideas and pre-determined doctrines as possible. In other words, we should read Scripture to glean all the truth we possibly can, not simply to find “proof texts” to support our already-determined position. If we have thoroughly studied out a topic, we hopefully will appreciate all of what the Bible says, not putting certain Scriptures on a pedestal while sweeping others under the rug. There is a reason why Jesus said that man was to live, “…by every word that proceeds from the mouth of God” (Matthew 4:4). Paul was determined to proclaim, “…the whole counsel of God” (Acts 20:27). Jesus and Paul both greatly valued the comprehensive word of God. They did not advocate living by isolated or selected words, but by everything that God had said.

Such an approach allows us to respectfully study and honor the entire word of God, and while there is always a necessity of “rightly dividing the word of truth” (2 Timothy 2:15), we are still prayerfully and respectfully endeavoring to honor the Bible in its entirety as opposed to proof-texting our way through Scripture. This also liberates us from feeling like we have to be absolutely dogmatic about things that are not taught rigidly in the Bible. Going back to our earlier illustration, I see many Scriptures that bring tremendous comfort and assurance about our security in Christ, but I also see some verses that are quite sobering about the consequences of sin. My heart is at peace knowing that I can rest in all the promises of God regarding my security in Christ, and at the same time, I feel amply warned about the dangers of sin and disobedience.

God could certainly have inspired Paul or any of the other New Testament writers to make a statement such as, “Once you believe in Christ, you can never, under any circumstance, lose your salvation.” He could have also inspired them to write an equally concrete phrase promoting the opposite view, but I don’t personally see any such iron-clad statements in Scripture. Would we be overly simplistic if we adopted the psalmist’s attitude about some of the theological issues we may not completely understand? David said, “LORD, my heart is not haughty, Nor my eyes lofty. Neither do I concern myself with great matters, Nor with things too profound for me. Surely I have calmed and quieted my soul, Like a weaned child with his mother; Like a weaned child is my soul within me” (Psalm 131:1-2). As for me, I am OK doing now what I did when I first accepted the Lord: Trusting Christ.

Attacking Straw Men
Another way ministers or believers can deal with their own insecurities is to use the old debate principle of “building a straw man and knocking it down.” This involves taking the view opposing ours, pushing it to a ridiculous extreme, and then attacking, not the doctrine itself, but our exaggerated mischaracterization of that doctrine. For example, an insecure (or arrogant) Calvinist, I might say, “Those folks who believe you can lose your salvation never have any security, peace, or assurance. They think they lose their salvation every time they commit a sin.” Or an insecure (or arrogant) Arminian might say, “Those people who believe in once-saved-always-saved believe that so they can live in sin without experiencing any consequences.” Such stereotypical, broad-brushed characterizations fail to accurately reflect the views of either party. Many Arminians have a great sense of security in Christ, and many Calvinists live very godly lives.

My prayer is that God’s ministers and God’s people will have the maturity to be confident and secure in what Scripture clearly teaches and strongly implies, and be gracious in granting others the latitude to have different beliefs and perspectives of Scripture in areas that may not be quite as clearly articulated. I pray that we won’t be blind to certain Scriptures just because they don’t seem to support our views, and that we will refrain from mischaracterizing and broad-brushing other groups unfairly. This doesn’t mean that we can’t have healthy dialogue and disagreements, but we can remain civil and respectful in the process. May the Lord help us not to waste precious energy bickering needlessly, when we could be using our time and energy more productively, especially in reaching the lost.

The Grinches – Dealing with Difficult People
Rev. Tony Cooke

You are probably aware of “The Grinch That Stole Christmas.” He was a mean-spirited creature who was determined to ruin Christmas and rob the joy of the people in Who-ville. Even though the Grinch was able to steal their toys and gifts, he found that the people of Who-ville had a great sense of resiliency, and were able to celebrate the holiday in spite of his activity against them.

There are Grinches that all of us have to deal with—people who will steal our joy if we let them. Some outstanding believers have shared some rich insights on how to keep a right attitude when dealing with such Grinches:

The great Bible commentator, Matthew Henry, was once robbed. The thieves took everything of value that he had. Later that evening he wrote in his diary these words, “I am thankful that during these years I have never been robbed before. Also, even though they took my money, they did not take my life. Although they took all I had, it was not much. Finally, I am grateful that it was I who was robbed, not I who robbed.”

Oswald Chambers said, “To see that my adversary gives me my rights is natural; but…from our Lord’s standpoint it does not matter if I am defrauded or not; what does matter is that I do not defraud.”

Jonathon Edwards, a leader in the Great Awakening in the early days of this country said, “Resolved: that all men should live to the glory of God. Resolved second: that whether others do or not, I will.”

The attitude these men presented in these statements is what enabled them to remain open vessels, both in receiving and transmitting God’s love and power to others. One of the most important decisions you will ever make, and one of the great keys to living a successful Christian life, is to live out of love of God on the inside of you. If we don’t develop this as a skill and a discipline, we will most likely end up merely reacting to others based on their behavior. When we do this, we are no longer in control of our actions; we are truly allowing someone else to control us.

Don’t let someone else’s problem become your problem! Don’t let their sin get you into sin! Don’t let their carnality cause you to act carnally. Don’t live your life reacting to the problems of someone else’s flesh. Live your life responding to the power of God’s love on the inside of you!

Zebras, Ostriches, and Corporate Grace
Tony Cooke

When believers think of God’s grace, they often think in terms of how it affects them personally. God certainly has grace for each of us individually, and He desires that His grace fully impact every area of our personal lives. But God’s grace is not just for me; God’s grace is for we. God intends that His grace flow freely amongst His children, and He wants all of His children to be conduits or distributors of His grace. This is why God distributed various and diverse gifts to different members of the Body of Christ (see Romans 12:4-8; 1 Peter 4:10-11).

God designed nature to illustrate the idea of mutual benefit in what we call “symbiotic relationships.” Symbiotic comes from two Greek words meaning “together living.” In biology, symbiotic relationships are those where two entities are interdependent upon one another and each benefits from the other.

For example, zebras and ostriches are often together in the wild. Ostriches have a very poor sense of smell and hearing, while zebras are proficient in those senses. Zebras, though, have poor eyesight, but ostriches have excellent vision. As a result, ostriches and zebras often move together, each benefiting from the other’s strength. Each is able to use its “strong” sense to help alert the other to danger. Another “mutualistic” relationship involves rhinos and a bird known as an oxpecker. This small feathered friend of the rhino rides around on its back, eating ticks and other parasites off of its hide. The oxpecker gets the benefit of food, while the rhino gets pest control. These may be rudimentary examples, but they remind us that God wants our relationships to be mutually beneficial.

Consider what Paul said to the church at Rome: “For I long to visit you so I can bring you some spiritual gift that will help you grow strong in the Lord. When we get together, I want to encourage you in your faith, but I also want to be encouraged by yours” (Romans 1:11-12, NLT). The NKJV renders verse 12, “…that I may be encouraged together with you by the mutual faith both of you and me.”

The testimony of the early church was not simply about individuals enjoying an abundant life as everyone did their own thing and pursued their own interests. Rather, we read in Acts 4:33 that, “…great grace was upon them all.”If you read that verse in its entirety, this is what you see: “And with great power the apostles gave witness to the resurrection of the Lord Jesus. And great grace was upon them all.”  The verse before this says, “Now the multitude of those who believed were of one heart and one soul… (4:32).”

Are you catching the themes that are being highlighted here?  Power, grace, unity. There is something dynamic about being vitally joined to others in a corporate atmosphere of grace and faith. The more we study Scripture, the more we see that God’s purpose and plan is that His grace permeate our churches and our relationships, not merely our individual lives.

When the church in Jerusalem began hearing of Gentiles being converted, they wisely sent Barnabas to find out what was happening. A man of lesser character might have observed these people and gotten stuck on their non-Jewish cultural practices, but Acts 11:23 says, “When he came and had seen the grace of God, he was glad, and encouraged them all that with purpose of heart they should continue with the Lord.”  Barnabas didn’t just see the grace of God on individuals; he saw the grace of God on congregations.

These newly formed congregations were vibrant and thriving. Barnabas didn’t see strife, confusion, or apathy. He saw the grace of God upon these believers corporately as they fellowshipped, worshipped, received the Word of God, and served together. Barnabas was glad because of what he saw!  There was life flowing in and amongst them. God’s grace bound these believers together and energized their relationships.

Grace in Marriage

Peter described the roles and responsibilities of husbands and wives, and admonished couples to treat each other with respect and love (1 Peter 3:1-7). He concluded his statements by admonishing the husbands to, “…dwell with them with understanding, giving honor to the wife, as to the weaker vessel, and as being heirs together of the grace of life, that your prayers may not be hindered.”

“Relational grace” can make marriages rich with the Presence and the blessings of God. When couples are not functioning as “heirs together of the grace of life,” Peter indicates that the spiritual life of the couple can be hindered, even to the point of their prayers being hindered.

Grace is Contagious Through Relationships

One of the truths we see in the New Testament is that grace can be shared and transmitted from one person to another. Paul said to one group of believers, “…you all are partakers with me of grace” (Philippians 1:7). He told others, “Let no corrupt word proceed out of your mouth, but what is good for necessary edification, that it may impart grace to the hearers” (Ephesians 4:29).

What an amazing thought!  Grace is transmittable!  It is accurate for us to think of receiving grace directly from God through His Word and His Spirit, but He also has made provision for us to be conduits and distributors of His grace toward others. In short, graced people speak gracious words and do gracious things. W.H. Griffith Thomas expressed this well when he said, “Grace is first a quality of graciousness in the Giver, and then a quality of gratitude in the recipient, which in turn makes him gracious to those around.”

Isaiah 32:8 says, “But a generous man devises generous things, and by generosity he shall stand.”  If we adapt that principle and apply it to grace, it would seem true to say, “But a graced person devises gracious things, and by graciousness he shall stand.”

What would happen in homes if husbands and wives (as well as the kids) deeply partook of the grace of God and then released graciousness toward one another?  What would that look like?  This may sound idealistic, but you would see kindness, love, honor, and respect in great abundance, and I believe you would hear words of care, edification, and encouragement. Likewise, what would happen in churches if all the people received grace (and recognized the grace they’d already received), and then released that grace and graciousness toward others?  I think it would be absolutely amazing!

Pastors are always mindful of their need to impart life to their church members. They recognize that God has called them to stand in a particular office and has graced and them to impart the Word of God to those under their care. It is important, though, to remember that church is not just about one “professional” minister blessing others. Churches (and marriages) both work best when everyone is receiving and sharing God’s grace.

The Bible teaches that relationships, when they are functioning well, are mutually beneficial. This is why we are told to:

1. Love one another (John 13:34)
2. Prefer one another (Romans 12:10)
3. Receive one another (Romans 15:7)
4. Admonish one another (Romans 15:14)
5. Serve one another (Galatians 5:13)
6. Bear one another’s burdens (Galatians 6:2)
7. Be kind and tenderhearted to one another (Ephesians 4:32)
8. Forgive one another even as God for Christ’s sake has forgiven you (Ephesians 4:32)
9. Teach and admonish one another (Colossians 3:16)
10. Increase and abound in love toward one another (1 Thessalonians 3:12)
11. Comfort one another (1 Thessalonians 4:18)
12. Edify one another (1 Thessalonians 5:11)
13. Exhort one another (Hebrews 3:13)
14. Confess your faults one to another and pray one for another, that ye may be healed (James 5:16)
15. Be hospitable to one another (1 Peter 4:9)
16. Love one another (1 & 2 John, multiple references)

As each of us receives grace from God, He desires that we release that grace for the benefit of others. God has not called us to be grace hoarders. Interestingly, the very last verse of the entire Bible reads, “The grace of our Lord Jesus Christ be with you all. Amen” (Revelation 22:21). Grace is for us all, individually and corporately. Let’s enjoy it in our hearts and express it in our relationships.

Christocentric
By Tony Cooke

I like that term. It simply means that the Lord Jesus Christ is at the center. If Scripture teaches anything, it teaches that Jesus is supreme, pre-eminent, and central in all things.

Colossians 1:16 and 19 in the Message version refers to Jesus and says that “…everything got started in him and finds its purpose in him,” and “…everything of God finds its proper place in him.” When you look at those verses in their broader context you see how strongly Paul emphasizes the centrality of the Lord Jesus Christ.

Colossians 1:15-18 (NLT)
15 Christ is the visible image of the invisible God. He existed before anything was created and is supreme over all creation, 16 for through him God created everything in the heavenly realms and on earth. He made the things we can see and the things we can’t see—such as thrones, kingdoms, rulers, and authorities in the unseen world. Everything was created through him and for him. 17 He existed before anything else, and he holds all creation together. 18 Christ is also the head of the church, which is his body. He is the beginning, supreme over all who rise from the dead. So he is first in everything. 19 For God in all his fullness was pleased to live in Christ…

Each major section of the Bible presents a different aspect regarding Jesus’ character, person, and work.

1. The Old Testament is preparation for Jesus.
2. The Gospels are the manifestation of Jesus.
3. The Book of Acts is the propagation of Jesus‘ message.
4. The Epistles are the explanation of Jesus’ work.
5. The Revelation is the consummation of Jesus’ kingdom.

There seems to be a tendency among some, though, to make just about anything central except the Lord Jesus. People often get excited about a teaching, a movement, a doctrine, or a cause, and then place greater emphasis on that one issue than they do upon Jesus Himself. Whatever we teach, it must be grounded and centered in the Person of the Lord Jesus Christ. Further, it must lead to His glory and honor.

“People Just Get Bored with Jesus”
Many of my minister-friends remember Pastor Sam Smith. Sam and his wife Donna established Faith Christian Center in Seekonk, Massachusetts and pastored there for many years before his retirement and departure to heaven. Sam was an outspoken, no-nonsense kind of guy who loved seeing people get saved. He would often comment how unfortunate it was that ministers seemed to chase every new wind of doctrine and became obsessed with fads, jumping from one extreme to another. He would remark, “People just get bored with Jesus.” What a sad (but true) commentary.

A Christocentric perspective does not mean we will not teach other biblical truths, but it means that we will keep Jesus central and supreme in what we teach. For example:

1. It is great to teach faith, but we need to remember that He is the Author and the Finisher of our faith (Hebrews 12:2).
2. It is important to teach grace, but we must remember that the grace we proclaim is nothing less than the grace of the Lord Jesus Christ (Acts 15:11 and thirteen similar references).
3. It is outstanding to teach eschatology, but it is His coming that we anticipate.
4. Worship is wonderful, but we don’t worship the act of worship; we worship Him.
5. Leadership is great, but only if we are leading people into a closer relationship with Jesus and more effective service for Him.
6. It is tremendous to teach holiness, but we must remember that He is the basis and source of our holiness.
7. We want to proclaim and see the gifts of the Spirit in operation, but they are to glorify Him.

Church history, for example, has witnessed some groups becoming focused on water baptism (and specific beliefs and practices about baptism) almost to the exclusion of other important New Testament emphases. Instead of keeping baptism in its proper context, an “altar” is built around water baptism, and more emphasis is seemingly placed upon it than upon the Lord Jesus Christ Himself. Baptism is important; I am not disputing that. What I am saying is that baptism, in and of itself (without faith in and focus on Jesus), is a mere ritual. Its significance does not exist apart from the very Person of the Lord Jesus and its portrayal of our identification with His death, burial, and resurrection. He is what makes baptism important.

Likewise, we have heard teaching on spiritual warfare and demonology that magnifies demons and demonic power more than it does the Lord Jesus Christ. Any legitimate teaching should make us more aware of, conscious of, and impressed with Jesus, not with the enemies He has dethroned and defeated.

Holding Fast to the Head
Paul gave an indication of how we would recognize false teachers (Colossians 2:19). He said that such individuals are, “…not holding fast to the Head,” and that is a direct reference to the Lord Jesus. The NLT renders it, “… and they are not connected to Christ, the head of the body.” Before we teach or receive teaching, perhaps we should stop and ask certain questions:

1. How does this relate to Jesus, the Head?
2. How is connected, and how does it connect us, to Him?
3. How does it glorify, honor, and exalt Him?
4. Does this teaching accurately reflect and represent His words, His work, and His nature?

Jesus certainly was not shy or backward about declaring His own centrality, but there was not an ounce of arrogance or pride within Him. Jesus simply knew who He was and what He had come to do. Consider the following:

John 5:39 (NLT)
39 “You search the Scriptures because you think they give you eternal life. But the Scriptures point to me!

John 14:6 (NKJV)
“I am the way, the truth, and the life. No one comes to the Father except through Me.”

Luke 24:27 (NKJV)
27 And beginning at Moses and all the Prophets, He expounded to them in all the Scriptures the things concerning Himself.

Revelation 22:13 (NKJV)
13 “ I am the Alpha and the Omega, the Beginning and the End, the First and the Last.”

If anyone else made such statements, we would be aghast at their delusional grandiosity and their off-the-charts narcissism, but Jesus was merely speaking the truth.

Being Christocentric in one’s theology does not exclude or diminish the importance of the Father or the Holy Spirit. Not only did the Holy Spirit empower Jesus for ministry (Acts 10:38), but Jesus said, “…when the Helper comes… the Spirit of truth… He will testify of Me” (John 15:26). John 16:14 says that the Holy Spirit will bring glory to Jesus by revealing to us whatever He (the Holy Spirit) receives from Jesus.

The Father also drew attention to Jesus when He said, “This is my beloved Son, with whom I am well pleased; listen to him” (Matthew 17:5, ESV). Then, in Hebrews 1:6 and 9 we read more of God the Father’s testimony of Jesus:

1. But when He again brings the firstborn into the world, He says: “Let all the angels of God worship Him.”
2. to the Son He says: “Your throne, O God, is forever and ever; A scepter of righteousness is the scepter of Your kingdom.

Paul’s description of the way God the Father honored Jesus is outstanding:

Philippians 2:9-11 (NLT)
9 …God elevated him to the place of highest honor and gave him the name above all other names, 10 that at the name of Jesus every knee should bow, in heaven and on earth and under the earth, 11 and every tongue confess that Jesus Christ is Lord, to the glory of God the Father.

We can rest assured that there is no tension, friction, jealousy, or competition amongst the members of the Trinity; they work in absolute perfect harmony, and whenever you exalt Jesus, you are also honoring the Father and the Spirit.  Scripture reveals just how flawless their sense of teamwork is when we learn that the day is coming, “…when he [Jesus] will turn the Kingdom over to God the Father, having destroyed every ruler and authority and power” (1 Corinthians 15:24, NLT).

It would do us well to seriously consider if what we teach is truly drawing people to Jesus and exalting Him as He deserves, or are we guilty of disseminating doctrinal distractions and diversions?  Are we bringing clarity or clutter when it comes to His glory, centrality, and preeminence. Jesus is not someone we “use” to get something else. In other words, He is not merely a “means to an end.” Jesus is our means and our end!  He is both “the way” and He is our destination!

May you be richly blessed as you hold fast to Christ, the Head, and as you keep the Lord Jesus central in all that you do and say.

BONES IN THE BODY By Rev. Tony Cooke

Various Scriptures remind us that the Church is the Body of Christ in the earth.  For example, 1 Corinthians 12:27 says, “Now you are the body of Christ, and members individually.”  Ephesians 5:30 tells us, “For we are members of His body, of His flesh and of His bones.”

Realizing this, have you every stopped to think about what kind of “bones” are in the church today?  I believe that not all of the bones in the church are bones that are supposed to be there.  Let me mention a few…

1.  There are WISHBONES in the Church.

A wishbone is the individual who, no matter how good things are, is always wishing for something better. The wishbone can be identified by his unrealistic expectations, constant disappointment and discontentment, and always looking at the greener grass on the other side of the fence.  Instead of being thankful and being a part of the solution, he is always focusing on imperfections in the church.

2.  There are JAWBONES in the Church.

As you can probably guess, jawbones are those bones in the body that are talking when they ought not to be, and saying things they ought not to say.  I am convinced that the devil cannot destroy churches without the help and cooperation of people, and that the most powerful weapon in his arsenal is the undisciplined tongue of a believer.  Ephesians 4:29 says, “Let no corrupt communication proceed out of your mouth, but that which is good to the use of edifying, that it may minister grace unto the hearers.”

3.  There are FUNNY BONES in the Church.

Although you may talk about bumping your "funny bone" there’s really no such bone in your body.  The bone of the upper arm is called the humerus, behind which is a nerve called the ulnar nerve.  When you hit your elbow a certain way, an uncomfortable tingling sensation goes up and down your entire arm, making it feel numb for a time.  In the church, the funny bone is that person who is touchy, who wears their feelings on their sleeve, and gets offended easily.  To be effective in life, we’ve got to have some toughness about us.  We can’t be moved by other people, even when they’re wrong.  Psalm 119:165 says, “Great peace have they which love thy law: and nothing shall offend them.”

4.  There are DRY BONES in the Church.

Dry bones speak of church members who are bored, listless, and lifeless.  Dry bones are folks who have lost the joy of their salvation.  God showed the prophet Ezekiel a vision involving dry bones (you can read about this in Ezekiel 37).

5.  There are TRICK KNEES in the Church.

Naturally speaking, people sometimes have legitimate injuries to a certain joint in their body (shoulder, elbow, ankle, knee, etc.).  There are others, though, who have feigned difficulty with a certain joint—often the knee—as a convenient excuse to get out of certain responsibilities.

For example, one man’s wife asked him to mow the yard, to clean out the gutters, to fix the fence, and to clean the garage, but he couldn’t because his trick knee had just acted.  However, when his friend called and wanted to play golf, it was remarkable how quickly it felt better!  When he was asked about how his knee could go bad when chores needed to be done but recovered when he had a chance to play golf, his response was, "That’s the trick!"  The Trick-Knee Christian is the one who makes excuses instead of embracing responsibility.

In the New Testament, there are two basins, and each of them tells a very powerful story.  The first basin is the one from which Jesus washed the feet of the disciples.  This was the basin of accepted responsibility.  The second basin is the one in which Pilate washed his hands.  This was the basin of abandoned responsibility.  God needs us to embrace Kingdom responsibilities!

6.  There are BACKBONES in the Church.

Anatomically speaking, the backbone is the column of bones that supports and sustains man’s entire frame.  We use the term figuratively to describe fortitude, firmness, determination, and dependability.  In the Body of Christ, the backbones are those members who serve God with fervor and without reservation.  Those who are the backbone of the body are those upon whom God knows He can depend. 

Churches will never be strong if they’re full of wishbones, jawbones, funny bones, dry bones, and trick knees.  May God help all of us be part of the backbone in the Body of Christ!

Benefits and Benefactors
Rev. Tony Cooke

Everyone likes benefits! One of the great insights students of the Bible receive is that God offers benefits to His children. A prime example is found in Psalm 103.

Psalm 103:2-5
2 Bless the LORD, O my soul, and forget not all His benefits:
3 Who forgives all your iniquities, Who heals all your diseases,
4 Who redeems your life from destruction, Who crowns you with lovingkindness and tender mercies,
5 Who satisfies your mouth with good things, So that your youth is renewed like the eagle’s.

As important as it is to not forget His benefits, it is paramount that we give praise to the Benefactor. Keep in mind, these are not just benefits, but they are His benefits. If there is no benefactor there are no benefits. A benefactor is one whose actions benefit another, one who makes a gift, or bestows a favor. The word is derived from two Latin words, bene (good) and facio (to make or do).

Philanthropists often make news when they make large financial donations to charity. For example, Bill Gates and Warren Buffett have drawn considerable attention in recent years as they have given billions of dollars to charitable causes. In addition, they challenged other wealthy people to give at least half of their fortunes to the charities of their choice. Warren Buffett made this pledge: “More than 99% of my wealth will go to philanthropy during my lifetime or at death.”

There is no greater benefactor, though, than God Himself! 

1. Psalm 84:11 tells us that, “…No good thing will He withhold from those who walk uprightly.”
2. Psalm 115:16 says, “…the earth He has given to the children of men.” 
3. John 3:16 declares that “God so loved the world that He gave His only begotten Son…”  
4. In Luke 12:32 Jesus told the disciples, “…it is the Father’s good pleasure to give you the kingdom.”
5. Paul spoke of God’s benevolence toward us in Romans 8:32: “He who did not spare His own Son, but delivered Him up for us all, how shall He not with Him also freely give us all things?”
6. Peter also magnified God as the greatest benefactor of all when he said (2 Peter 1:3), “His divine power has given to us all things that pertain to life and godliness…”

Jesus Had Benefactors
When Jesus was on this earth, God raised up certain benefactors to enable Him to carry out His assignment. Let’s look at three of these:

When the wise men from the east arrived, Matthew 2:11 (NLT) tells us, “…they bowed down and worshiped him. Then they opened their treasure chests and gave him gifts of gold, frankincense, and myrrh.”

Jesus was worshipped, and those worshipping Him (Gentiles) brought valuable gifts from their treasures. No doubt these gifts were the resources which enabled Joseph to take his young family to Egypt and to be sustained there until Herod died.

Jesus and His team had ministry “partners” who provided regular financial support. Luke 8:2-3 (Wuest) mentions many women, “…who were of such a nature that they kept on supplying them with food and the other necessities of life out of their possessions.”

The Williams Translation of this verse also brings out the regular and consistent nature of their benevolence: “…and many other women, who continued to contribute to their needs out of their personal means.”  

Even in his death, Jesus had benefactors: Joseph of Arimathea and Nicodemus. Matthew 27:57-60 tells us that Joseph was a rich man who requested the body of Jesus from Pilate, prepared it for burial, and “placed it in his own new tomb, which had been carved out of rock.”  John 19:39 informs us Nicodemus joined Joseph in helping prepare Jesus’ body for burial, and that he, “…brought seventy-five pounds of perfumed ointment made from myrrh and aloes. “  William Barclay says, “Nicodemus brought enough spices for the burial of a king.”  The New American Commentary says, "It was truly an immense amount of spice. Indeed, it was enough spice to bury a king royally."

Benefactors Were Important in the Early Church
Many made significant contributions to the church in Jerusalem, but one is singled out. Acts 4:36-37 says, “And Joses, who was also named Barnabas by the apostles (which is translated Son of Encouragement)… having land, sold it, and brought the money and laid it at the apostles’ feet.”  The Apostle Paul certainly valued the church in Philippi as benefactors of his ministry (Philippians 4:15-16).

Though not necessarily a person of great financial means, Dorcas, a New Testament believer in Joppa, possessed the heart of a benefactor. Acts 9:36 says, “She was always doing kind things for others and helping the poor.”  When she died, Peter came, and verse 39 says, “The room was filled with widows who were weeping and showing him the coats and other clothes Dorcas had made for them.”  Of course, it was a great miracle that she was raised from the dead, but we shouldn’t overlook the tremendous blessing she was to others.

Our Prayer?
When we think about benefactors and benefits, it’s natural to want to pray, “God send me a benefactor!  Send someone like Bill Gates or Warren Buffet across my path!” 

But let me suggest a better prayer. Why not make it our prayer, “Lord, make me a benefactor!”  We’ve probably all heard the phrase: “If God can get it through you, God will get it to you.”

Paul envisioned the Corinthian believers receiving grace from God to become benefactors (2 Corinthians 9:8-9, Amplified): “And God is able to make all grace (every favor and earthly blessing) come to you in abundance, so that you may always and under all circumstances and whatever the need be self-sufficient [possessing enough to require no aid or support and furnished in abundance for every good work and charitable donation]. As it is written, He [the benevolent person] scatters abroad; He gives to the poor; His deeds of justice and goodness and kindness and benevolence will go on and endure forever!”

May we all seek to be benefactors – may it be said of us that we were those whose actions benefitted humanity, that we were great gift-givers and favor-bestowers. May we be those who were known for doing good and blessing others. And let’s not limit this to financial areas… let’s be benefactors in every area of our lives. May our deeds of justice and goodness and kindness and benevolence go on and endure forever!

Beautiful Giving
by Tony Cooke

During the Christmas season, much is said about giving, and rightly so. “For God so loved the world that He gave…” is perhaps the most profound and sublime statement in all of Scripture. Jesus gave totally and completely of Himself, and thank God that He did. We have life today—eternal life and abundant life—because of how He gave. We know that we have infinite value because of Jesus giving Himself for us and to us.

Giving from the heart (not from compulsion, guilt, pressure, manipulation, etc.) energizes both givers and recipients, and expresses the beauty of grace.

Gerda Weissmann Klein remarked, “Most people think the Holocaust camps were like snake pits – that people stepped on each other for survival. It wasn’t like that at all. There was kindness, support, understanding. A childhood friend of mine, Ilse, once found a raspberry in the camp and carried it in her pocket all day to present to me that night on a leaf. Those are the moments I want to remember. People behaved nobly under unspeakable circumstances.” 

That’s grace!  That’s beautiful giving!  While Jesus was the greatest giver of all, He was also a recipient of the generosity of others. I want us to look at some of the gifts Jesus received while here on earth.

1. The Gifts of the Wise Men

Matthew 2:11

11 And when they had come into the house, they saw the young Child with Mary His mother, and fell down and worshiped Him. And when they had opened their treasures, they presented gifts to Him: gold, frankincense, and myrrh.

Have you ever stopped to think of the significance of these gifts? 

• Gold was a gift for a king – a precious metal suitable for royalty. 
• Frankincense was a gift suited for a priest – in the Old Testament, frankincense was one of the ingredients in the perfume of the sanctuary and was used in accompaniment with certain offerings.
• Myrrh was a gift for one who would die – among other things, myrrh was used in the embalming process. In this case, it spoke of and foreshadowed the fact that Jesus had come to die to take away the sin of the world.

2. The Gifts of Friends

Luke 8:1-3 describes Jesus traveling and ministering with the twelve, and also mentions certain women by name (such as Mary Magdalene and Joanna, the wife of Herod’s business manager) and other unnamed women, “…who were of such a nature that they kept on supplying them with food and the other necessities of life out of their possessions” (Luke 8:3, Wuest). Jesus lived a life of giving, but He also received from others.

3. The Extravagant Gift of Devotion

Shortly before His death, a woman came to Jesus with a very costly flask of perfume and poured it on His head. Judas and others were angry at the seeming waste, because the value of this perfume was equivalent to a year’s wages. Instead of sharing in their indignation, Jesus said: “Let her alone. Why do you trouble her? She has done a good work for Me. For you have the poor with you always, and whenever you wish you may do them good; but Me you do not have always. She has done what she could. She has come beforehand to anoint My body for burial. Assuredly, I say to you, wherever this gospel is preached in the whole world, what this woman has done will also be told as a memorial to her” (Mark 14:6-9).

In this passage, one can see Jesus’ appreciation for the gift that was bestowed upon Him. I especially like His recognition that, “She has done what she could.” There was something about this that truly touched Jesus’ heart. In the Greek, that literally reads, “What she had she did.” This woman’s giving was not mechanical or obligatory; it came from her heart, and it impressed Jesus.

Ministers often promote giving, but we see that Jesus also received. We pray that this will be a season of receiving and giving for you. We pray that your heart will be open to realize that when it comes to God, “What He had, He did.” He’s done so much and continues to do so much for all of us. And as you partake of His blessings and strength, may you then be a conduit of His grace to others.

Celebrating a Giver

We want to honor someone who’s been a great giver. Carolyn Zumwalt and her husband, Claude, were Sunday School teachers at the church where Lisa and I served as janitors during our first year of Bible school (we later served on the pastoral staff there). We were newly married “kids” and they took us under their wing and showed us many kindnesses. Claude went home to be with the Lord a couple of years ago, and Carolyn found great help and comfort from our book, “Life After Death – Rediscovering Life After the Loss of a Loved One.” Since that time, she’s given away 360 copies of the book to others to help them deal with their losses. Carolyn recently shared the following with us:

“The reason I’ve given so many copies of ‘Life After Death’ away is because of how much the book helped me following the death of my husband, Claude. I’ve read the book three times, and it helped me to know that I was not going crazy and that I was not alone. Through your book, the Lord helped me through the whole process, as bad as it was. In a manner of speaking, it really was my salvation.

It’s been amazing how the Lord has directed my path to people in need of your book. Then they come back and tell what a blessing it has been to them. Many have said the book was ‘exactly what they needed.’ I met a lady today in Wal-Mart who had just lost her daughter. I reached in my purse and handed her your book. I led a grief recovery group twice at my church and I gave each person one of your books. They all agreed it was such a blessing to their lives. Thank you so much for writing this book.”

One of the things we appreciate about Carolyn is that this isn’t something she just does during the holidays. It’s a lifestyle for her. It’s still true, though, that the holidays can be an especially difficult time for those who have lost loved ones. If you know someone who could benefit from “Life After Death,” you can order a copy by clicking here.

Multiple Expressions of Giving

Many thoughts of giving this year revolve around material things, but let me encourage you to be mindful of the other types of giving that are so important. Someone compiled a list of eight things we can all give (and receive):

• Give the Gift of Listening – Really listen. No interrupting, no daydreaming, no planning your response. Just listening.
• Give the Gift of Affection – Be generous with appropriate hugs, kisses, pats on the back and handholds. Let these small actions demonstrate the love you have for family and friends.
• Give the Gift of Laughter – Clip cartoons, share articles, funny stories, and a good joke. Your gift will say, “I love to laugh with you.”
• Give the Gift of a Written Note – It can be a simple “Thanks for the help” note or an “I appreciate you” note. A brief, handwritten note may be remembered for a lifetime, and may even change a life.
• Give the Gift of a Compliment – Everyone needs encouragement. Mark Twain said, “One compliment can keep me going for a whole month.”
• Give the Gift of a Favor – Go out of your way to do something kind for someone.
• Give the Gift of Solitude – There are times when we want nothing more than to have some peace and quiet. Be sensitive to those times, and give the gift of solitude to others.
• Give the Gift of a Cheerful Disposition – The easiest way to feel good is to extend a kind word to someone. It’s not hard to be polite and courteous, to say “hello” or “thank you.”

May this be a month of beautiful giving and beautiful receiving for you!

Beautiful Balance
Tony Cooke

Do you remember trying to learn to ride your bicycle without training wheels? In a word, you were trying to achieve balance. You wanted to stay upright and make forward progress, and you didn’t want to fall to one side or the other.

Balance is a beautiful thing. It’s troubling if someone we love begins having problems with their equilibrium. We never want to hear that a loved one has lost their balance and been injured in a fall. We often hear of the importance of a balanced diet, as well as living a balanced life. We know that a good life involves a proper ratio of work, rest, worship, recreation, time with family, etc.

Spiritually speaking, balance is also a good thing. In Deuteronomy 28:14, Moses said to the people, “…you shall not turn aside from any of the words which I command you this day, to the right or the left, to go after other gods to serve them.” In a word, he wanted them to avoid erroneous tangents.

Doctrinally speaking, It’s good to avoid extremes and ditches. Richard Cecil remarked, “All extremes are error. The reverse of error is not truth, but error still. Truth lies between extremes.” A.W. Pink once said, “The truth of God may well be likened to a narrow path skirted on either side by a dangerous and destructive precipice: in other words, it lies between two gulfs of error.” Similarly, A.A. Hodge stated, “No …single truth is adequately comprehended till it is viewed in harmonious relations to all the other truths of the system of which Christ is the centre.”

We must be diligent in our study of God’s Word to make sure that we are allowing the Holy Spirit to guide us into a full, comprehensive picture of truth, and not become fixated on a singular idea that runs contrary to and is not supported by the whole counsel of God’s Word (see Acts 20:27). Richard Sibbes said, “God’s truth always agrees with itself.” As a teacher, I need to make sure the ideas I present are not just supported by an isolated (and perhaps out-of-context) “proof text,” but that they are supported by a consensus of New Testament teaching and thought.

A rose is beautiful in its own right, but a bouquet, properly arranged, is even more beautiful. A violin solo may be very inspiring, but a symphony can render a piece of music even more majestic and dynamic. So it is with truth; an individual truth is wonderful, and we should be most thankful for every truth that God reveals, but a single truth harmonized with the comprehensive teaching of Scripture leads to greater stability, depth, and wholeness in our lives.

Let’s say we are studying justification—how God worked through Christ to bring us into right relationship with Himself. We can read a single verse about this and be blessed. For example, we can read in Romans 3:24, “…being justified freely by His grace…” and have much to thank God for. We can be glad knowing that God’s gracious nature and His gracious action of having Jesus to die for us is the basis for our justification.

A person who desires balance doesn’t want to take anything away from the grace of God. However, a serious student of the Bible wants to know as much as he or she can about justification. Thank God for His grace, but is our justification the result of a single factor, God’s grace, or is more involved? A study of Romans reveals there is more. Consider:

Romans 4:25 (ESV) teaches us that Jesus was, “…raised for our justification.”

Romans 5:1 says, “…having been justified by faith, we have peace with God through our Lord Jesus Christ…”

Romans 5:9 tells us, “…having now been justified by His blood, we shall be saved from wrath through Him.”

We can look at any of these verses individually and be blessed. But when we see how these elements—grace, the resurrection, faith, the blood of Christ—were all part of our justification, we now have more of a bouquet, more of a symphony. This is what balance is all about! These four elements do not contradict each other; they complement each other. Each individual aspect of our justification is enhanced and reinforced by the others.

Jesus said that we shall live, “…by every word that proceeds from the mouth of God.” He didn’t say we would live by isolated words, disjointed words, selected words, or random words. Whatever we study, let’s pursue the whole counsel of God’s Word and allow the Holy Spirit to speak to us from all of His Word, not just from our favorite passages.

Some people have a misconception about balance, perceiving it as something negative. They think that balance is about watering down or compromising a message. For example, they think that balance is presenting 50% faith along with 50% unbelief. Or they think that it is presenting 50% grace and 50% legalism. Nothing could be further from the truth.

We don’t balance our faith with unbelief. Rather, faith is balanced by all of the other cooperating powers of God. To have a balanced message about faith, we incorporate the role of love, wisdom, joy, patience, etc. We study and celebrate the great Scriptures about faith, but in doing so, we don’t isolate faith as a stand-alone doctrine. Instead, we examine how faith works together with love, how faith works together with wisdom, etc.

We don’t balance out grace with legalism. Rather, we study and rejoice in all the wonderful Scriptures about grace, AND we consider how grace works with holiness, with obedience, with repentance, etc. We find that grace doesn’t operate as a stand-alone doctrine, and that grace doesn’t take the place of these other great truths. Rather, grace energizes us to participate in the entire “symphony” of Scripture. By this, we mean that grace doesn’t negate the significance of obedience or holiness, but rather, grace empowers us and enables us to obey God and to live holy lives. Grace doesn’t take the place of repentance, but rather, God’s grace is the very basis and catalyst for us turning from sin and turning to God.

Jesus ministered balance when He ministered to the woman at the well. He made the simple statement (John 8:11), “Neither do I condemn you; go and sin no more.” In pronouncing “no condemnation,” he was freeing her from her past. In admonishing her to “go and sin no more,” he was providing a wholesome directive for her future. Balance means incorporating the whole counsel of God. Jesus did not just free her from condemnation or give her a directive for future living; He did both.

Paul demonstrated great balance in his epistles. For example, the first three chapters of Ephesians are predominantly positional truth, what God has done. Consider:

• We are blessed with every spiritual blessing in heavenly places (1:3).
• He chose us in Him before the foundation of the world (1:4).
• He made us accepted in the Beloved (1:6).
• In Him, we have redemption through His blood (1:7).
• In Him, we have obtained an inheritance (1:11).
• We were sealed with the Holy Spirit of promise (1:13).
• We have been made to sit in heavenly places in Christ Jesus (2:6).

In the next three chapters (Ephesians 4-6) we read about our response, how we are to live in the light of our position, or practice or what we are to do:

• Walk worthy of our calling (4:1).
• Maintain unity amongst ourselves (4:3).
• Quit lying and speak truth (4:25).
• Quit stealing but labor (4:28).
• Be kind to each other, tenderhearted, forgiving one another (4:32).
• Walk in love (5:2).
• Let no fornication, uncleanness, or covetous be named among us (5:3).
• Be properly related to one another in our families and our work (5:21 – 6:9).

Notice the balance here. Paul not only teaches believers about their position in Christ, but he also instructs them regarding their practice—their lifestyle in the world. Believers must need all of this, because it’s what the Bible teaches, it’s what the Spirit inspired.

The need for balance has long been noted by insightful ministers. In 1975, Bob Buess wrote about the need for balance in his book, “The Pendulum Swings:”

“A few years ago I was interested in a certain teaching, so I began to pursue the Word of God to find more on this subject. I believe the Bible from cover to cover, but I allowed myself to disregard certain Scriptures. I blanked out certain truths. My mind became completely indifferent to certain verses in the Word. …I began to defend my new doctrine. It was, in a subtle way, becoming a god which I had to defend and protect. I was not an unusual case. It’s easy for Christians to pursue a thought which the Holy Spirit aroused in them as they studied the Scriptures. In their excitement, they set out to explore the Word of God to see what could be found. When they find a few Scriptures to support this new-found idea, they soon can be running madly through the Bible trying to prove their theory. Dogmatism begins to set in. Without fully realizing what they are doing, these people jump verses, throw out some, and ignore others to prove their point. People driven by this cause rush madly on in a pursuit of new arguments to promote their theory. As time passes they become harsh.”

Earlier yet, the great Pentecostal pioneer, Donald Gee wrote in “The Voice of Healing” in 1953:

“So many of us are [firmly established] extremists. If we see any ray of truth we push it to such an extreme that our constant pressing of it becomes offensive, vain, and at last erroneous. If we discover any successful line of ministry we run after it to such an extent that it becomes nauseating and exhausted. We are forever missing genuine usefulness by our constant failure to keep well-balanced. In the end men lose confidence in us, our intemperance grieves the Holy Spirit, and we are cast upon the scrap-heap of rejected and unprofitable servants.”

In the same article, Donald Gee spoke of a “legitimate extremism.” He said, “There HAS to be an extremism to move things… Miracles of healing occur when faith refuses to be logical, and blinds itself to arguments, based on plenty of contrary experience and more ‘balanced’ teaching. Indeed we may well inquire whether there is not something extreme in any genuine miracle.”

Gee continued, “…we need the extremist to start things moving, but we need the balanced teacher to keep them moving in the right direction. We need extremism for a miracle of healing, but we need balanced sanity for health. We need extreme fervor to launch a movement, but we need the repudiation of extremes to save it from self-destruction. Only a wisdom from above can reveal the perfect synthesis. It takes Pentecostal genius to know when and where an extreme doctrine or practice must be modified to a more balanced view; and where, on the other hand, the broad lines of truth must be temporarily narrowed into an extreme emphasis upon one point to ensure a dynamic powerful enough to move things for God.”

It is understood that some ministers in the Body of Christ are specialists. God has given them a special assignment to emphasize a certain truth or truths. There’s nothing wrong with this whatsoever, but care must be exercised by the teacher and the listeners alike not to put a single truth on a pedestal and leave the impression that all other truths are unnecessary or subservient to their special emphasis. Ultimately, we are to live by every word that proceeds from the mouth of God.

When we walk in balance, we’ll enjoy a rich diet of all that God has for us, we’ll be open to have Him influence all aspects of our lives, and we’ll experience growth across the full spectrum of who God has called us to become.

There’s an App for That
Tony Cooke

If you’re the least bit tech savvy, you’ve no doubt heard the phrase, “There’s an app for that.” In January 2011, the American Dialect Society named “app” the word of the year for 2010. An app is a software program that you use online or on mobile devices. App is short for “application.” If you have a computer or a smart phone, you’ve got the basic tool, but “apps” enable you to carry out specific functions.

I have apps on my smart phone that allow me to check the weather, read various news articles, read the Bible, listen to music, do mathematical calculations, etc. There are also many apps I’ve downloaded, but never use. For you to benefit from an app, there are two simple steps: (1) you’ve got to download the app, and (2) you’ve got to use the app. You can have a great smart phone, but if you don’t utilize some apps, you’re limiting its helpfulness and potential.

Steve Olsen, a long-time friend and volunteer for our ministry, has an extensive background in software engineering. He told me, "The device is the hardware. But without the software apps, there’s no way to expose all that the engineers had in mind when they designed all the power and potential into the hardware."

How does this relate to our lives spiritually? It’s great for us to have right beliefs, but we experience tremendous limitations and restrictions when we do not have apps—when we do not make “application” of those beliefs in our lives! Application occurs in our lives when we act upon what we believe.

It’s worth noting that “app” is short for application, not aptitude. We may inherently have certain aptitudes—capacities for learning or performing. However, genuine proficiency and effectiveness comes through much training and practice. Scripture notes the connection between being skilled and regularly practicing our beliefs.

Hebrews 5:12 (ESV)
12 For though by this time you ought to be teachers, you need someone to teach you again the basic principles of the oracles of God. You need milk, not solid food,  13 for everyone who lives on milk is unskilled in the word of righteousness, since he is a child. 14 But solid food is for the mature, for those who have their powers of discernment trained by constant practice to distinguish good from evil.

These believers had been around a good while. Their lack of development was not due to a lack exposure to the word, but rather, their lack of consistent practice of the word. I enjoy tennis, but if I only watch tennis without regular practice, my game will not be sharp. I can watch top professionals all day long, and I can even imagine playing like them (that would be what the Bible calls a ‘vain imagination’), but if I don’t practice, my game will never improve.

I believe this is why James said, “But be doers of the word, and not hearers only, deceiving yourselves” (James 1:22). Self-deception is something that occurs when we know something (having heard it) but have not practiced it. Knowing something is not the same as being skilled in that area. Reiterating what Hebrews 5:14 says, proficiency comes from constant practice.

George Macdonald said, "A man’s real belief is that which he lives by. What a man believes is the thing he does, not the thing he thinks." Consider the following Scriptures that deal with the app in our lives—our practice

Philippians 4:9 (NLT)
9 Keep putting into practice all you learned and received from me—everything you heard from me and saw me doing. Then the God of peace will be with you.

1 Timothy 4:15 (ESV)
15 Practice these things, immerse yourself in them, so that all may see your progress.

After listing a number of godly virtues, Peter said, “…if you practice these qualities you will never fall” (2 Peter 1:10, ESV).

The New Testament was not written only to establish right beliefs, but also to promote right behavior. This is revealed in the frequent use of the word “therefore” throughout the New Testament. Paul and others will often present doctrine—truths to be believed—and then follow-up with an app, an application of how to behave in the light of those truths.

Consider the abundance of Scriptures that draw a conclusion from previous verses and instruct us how to act:

Therefore… present your bodies a living sacrifice… to God… (Romans 12:1)
Therefore let us cast off the works of darkness… (Romans 13:12)
Therefore let us not judge one another anymore… (Romans 14:13)
Therefore let us pursue the things which make for peace… (Romans 14:19)
Therefore receive one another… (Romans 15:7)
Therefore put away from yourselves the evil person… (1 Corinthians 5:13)
Therefore glorify God in your body and in your spirit… (1 Corinthians 6:20)
Therefore, my beloved, flee from idolatry… (1 Corinthians 10:14)
Therefore “Come out from among them and be separate…” (2 Corinthians 6:17)
Therefore… let us cleanse ourselves from all filthiness… (2 Corinthians 7:1)
Therefore, as we have opportunity, let us do good to all… (Galatians 6:10)
Therefore… do not lose heart… (Ephesians 3:13)
Therefore… walk worthy of the calling with which you were called… (Ephesians 4:1)
Therefore, putting away lying… speak truth… (Ephesians 4:25)
Therefore be imitators of God… (Ephesians 5:1)
Therefore… work out your own salvation with fear and trembling… (Philippians 2:12)
Therefore put to death your members which are on the earth… (Colossians 3:5)
Therefore comfort one another… (1 Thessalonians 4:18)
Therefore… stand fast… (2 Thessalonians 2:15)
Therefore do not be ashamed… (2 Timothy 1:8)
Therefore… be strong in the grace that is in Christ Jesus… (2 Timothy 2:1)
Therefore… endure hardship as a good soldier… (2 Timothy 2:3)
Therefore be diligent to enter that rest… (Hebrews 4:11)
Therefore come boldly to the throne of grace… (Hebrews 4:16)
Therefore do not cast away your confidence… (Hebrews 10:35)
Therefore submit to God. Resist the devil… (James 4:7)
Therefore humble yourselves under the mighty hand of God… (1 Peter 5:6)

When you see a “therefore,” it’s good to consider what it’s there for! The “therefore” is introducing us to an app—an application. It may summarize some of the previous thoughts, but it’s typically telling us how to apply those truths practically in our daily lives.

Some people seem to be concerned about telling believers what to do. After all, they reason, “we don’t want to get people into works.” I understand that we don’t want people focusing on the externals without realizing God’s love for them or who He’s made them to be through Christ, but real faith acts, and we shouldn’t be reluctant to recognize the lifestyle and the obedience that God has called us to embrace. That’s making application of what the Bible says!

The apps we make can and should be:

1. Christ-centered,
2. Word-based,
3. Grace-focused,
4. Faith-filled,
5. Spirit-led,
6. and Love-dominated.

Keep this in mind as you read Scripture: There’s an app for that! Be attentive to Scripture and sensitive to the Holy Spirit as to how you can apply the word of God in every area of your life!

Seven Unders That Will Put You Over
by Rev. Tony Cooke

Introduction

People are continually looking for that special something that will give them an edge in life. They are looking for an advantage, something that will raise them to a higher level of living. People don’t want to be “under the weather,” “under pressure,” or “under the circumstances.” People want to rise above the challenges and the pressures of life and enjoy God’s blessings and the victory he offers His children.

In Deuteronomy 28:1, Moses told God’s people that if they would diligently obey His voice, and observe carefully all of His commandments, that He would set them on high above all nations of the earth. In verse 13, Moses said, “And the Lord will make you the head and not the tail; you shall be above only, and not be beneath, if you heed the commandments of the Lord your God, which I command you today, and are careful to observe them.”

Following are seven principles from Scripture that all convey some concept of the term “under.” Each of these, when practiced by the believer, will result in that particular Christian “going over the top!”

1. Stay Under the Shadow of the Almighty.

Psalm 91:1-4
1 He who dwells in the secret place of the Most High shall abide under the shadow of the Almighty. 2 I will say of the LORD, “He is my refuge and my fortress; my God in him I will trust.” 3 Surely He shall deliver you from the snare of the fowler, and from the perilous pestilence. 4 He shall cover you with His feathers, and under His wings you shall take refuge; His truth shall be your shield and buckler.

Psalm 17:8 8 Keep me as the apple of Your eye; Hide me under the shadow of your wings…

Psalm 36:7 7 How precious is Your lovingkindness, O God! Therefore the children of men put their trust under the shadow of Your wings.

Thought: In times of trouble, there is no safer place to be than in the perfect will of God. When situations seem threatening, the believer can look to the protection and the comfort of the Holy Spirit. Remember that “the angel of the Lord encamps all around those who fear Him, and delivers them” (Psalm 34:7). Look to God! Remember His promises! Trust in Him at all times!

2. Stay Under Grace.
Romans 6:14-15 14 For sin shall not have dominion over you: for ye are not under the law, but under grace. 15 What then? shall we sin, because we are not under the law, but under grace? God forbid.

Thought: Grace is not Divine permission to do wrong. Rather, it is Divine empowerment to do what is right! The Christian was never intended to be a slave of sin. The law never game man power to overcome sin. It merely defined sin and revealed to man that he was already a sinner. When God’s grace came through Jesus, it not only liberated man from sins that had already been committed, but it empowered the believer to rise victoriously above not only the penalty, but also the power of sin.

3. Keep Satan Under Your Feet.

Romans 16:20
20 And the God of peace shall bruise Satan under your feet shortly. The grace of our Lord Jesus Christ be with you. Amen.

Ephesians 1:22-23 22 And hath put all things under his feet, and gave him to be the head over all things to the church, 23 Which is his body, the fulness of him that filleth all in all.

Thought: The believer should never see himself or herself as being under Satan’s power and dominion. The believer is “in Christ.” The believer is a part of the body of Christ. All things, all powers, all principalities have been conquered by Jesus. They are all under Him. Since we are in Christ, we have authority and dominion over all of Satan’s power through Jesus.

4. Keep Your Flesh Under.
1 Corinthians 9:27

27 But I keep under my body, and bring it into subjection: lest that by any means, when I have preached to others, I myself should be a castaway.

Thought: Your body is not evil. It is the temple of the Holy Spirit (1 Corinthians 6:19). We are to present our bodies “a living sacrifice, holy acceptable to God.” Paul calls this our “reasonable service” (Romans 12:1). However, your body was never meant to rule you. Your body is your servant, not your master. In Galatians 5, we see there are two routes we can take as a Christian… we can yield to fleshly dominance or we can yield to our spiritual nature. God has clearly called us to be spiritual, to be governed by the Word of God and the influence of the Holy Spirit. In doing this, we must often keep our body under and bring it into subjection.

5. Stay Under Authority.

Matthew 8:5-13

5 And when Jesus was entered into Capernaum, there came unto him a centurion, beseeching him, 6 And saying, Lord, my servant lieth at home sick of the palsy, grievously tormented. 7 And Jesus saith unto him, I will come and heal him. 8 The centurion answered and said, Lord, I am not worthy that thou shouldest come under my roof: but speak the word only, and my servant shall be healed. 9 For I am a man under authority, having soldiers under me: and I say to this man, Go, and he goeth; and to another, Come, and he cometh; and to my servant, Do this, and he doeth it. 10 When Jesus heard it, he marvelled, and said to them that followed, Verily I say unto you, I have not found so great faith, no, not in Israel. 11 And I say unto you, That many shall come from the east and west, and shall sit down with Abraham, and Isaac, and Jacob, in the kingdom of heaven. 12 But the children of the kingdom shall be cast out into outer darkness: there shall be weeping and gnashing of teeth. 13 And Jesus said unto the centurion, Go thy way; and as thou hast believed, so be it done unto thee. And his servant was healed in the selfsame hour.

Thought: Some people are very rebellious. They don’t want to be submitted to anyone. Even if they put on an appearance of submitting outwardly they continue to carry inward rebellion. Pride and rebellion cause people to be at odds against all types of authority. Being properly submitted to civic leaders, to employers, and to spiritual leaders does not bring bondage. Rather, it brings blessing into the life of a believer.

6. Stay Under the Blood.
Exodus 12:23

23 For the Lord will pass through to strike the Egyptians; and when He sees the blood on the lintel and on the two doorposts, the Lord will pass over the door and not allow the destroyer to come into your houses to strike you.

1 John 1:7

7 But if we walk in the light as He is in the light, we have fellowship with one another, and the blood of Jesus Christ His Son cleanses us from all sin.

Thought: We should never neglect to be thankful for the continual influence of the blood of Jesus Christ. The old song says, “There is a fountain filled with blood, drawn from Emmanuel’s veins. And sinners plunged beneath that flood lose all their guilty stains.” Another song reminds us that the blood shall never lose its power! While we should strive to live righteously before God, we should never fail to be thankful for the continual cleansing that is available to us through the power of Jesus’ blood.

7. Stay Under the Mighty Hand of God.
1 Peter 5:6

6 Humble yourselves therefore under the mighty hand of God, that he may exalt you in due time.

Thought: Augustine said, “There is something in humility which strangely exalts the heart.” In one sense, Christianity is a paradox. We go up by going down. We go over by going under. One who does not trust in God or acknowledge Him may strive relentlessly to reach the pinnacle of success. However, without God’s help, he will ultimately fall. The man who honors God and acknowledges Him in all things will have God’s help, aid, and assistance. Always remember that God is interested in lifting you up. Maintain a humble attitude in all things. Be sure to give God credit and glory for all of the good that comes into your life. Even though your efforts may have been involved in whatever blessings you experience, just remember whose air it was you were breathing while you were working, and remember who gave you the strength, the knowledge, and the gifts to make your success possible!

Conclusion

God wants to put you over in life! He wants you to be the head and not the tail. He wants you to be above and not beneath.

You have a part to play in your position in life. God has told you specific things that you can do in order to be raised up to the level of life He wants you to enjoy.

He instructed each of us to:

1. Stay Under the Shadow of the Almighty.
2. Stay Under Grace.
3. Keep Satan Under our Feet.
4. Keep our Flesh Under.
5. Stay Under Authority.
6. Stay Under the Blood.
7. Humble ourselves Under the Mighty Hand of God.

I know that when we do our part, that God will do His part.