When they therefore were come together,
they asked of Him, saying, Lord, wilt Thou
at this time restore again the kingdom to Israel?
And He said unto them, It is not for you to know
the times or the seasons, which the Father hath
put in His own power. But ye shall receive power,
after that the Holy Ghost is come upon you:
and ye shall shall be witnesses unto Me both
in Jerusalem, and in all Judea, and in Samaria,
and unto the uttermost part of the earth.
Acts 1:6-8
Yesterday's blog was all about the word "love" and how it is misused and misunderstood leading to cultural Christianity. I spoke to several students at the School of the Supernatural of Bethel Church in Redding, at the Sundial Bridge and all they could say when asked what does all this learning mean and they all to a person said: "to love upon others." I asked about what a Christian was required in the future and the answer was always the same: they did not have a clue, other than to do good and bring love to the world. These students are being taught another gospel which is not the Gospel of Scripture. In fact, to purchase the supernatural, and this is what they are doing by going to a school that teaches that they can receive the supernatural, is nothing more than what occurred when Simon Magus asked people if he could pay to receive the supernatural that he saw that Peter had: Peter rejected him and later Simon Magus became known as a heretic. These students and those who are cultural Christians have not only a wrong view of Agape love, they have a wrong view and understanding of the Holy Spirit.
Cultural Christians have no real understanding of the work of the Holy Spirit in the life of a believer. Two things become a problem: 1. this believer believes that they can have a certain form of power as did Jesus, a supernatural power, and feel "giddy" at the chance to go about praying for others, teaching them some gospel of power, even prosperity. 2. Cultural Christians are those who will not strive for effectiveness in their own spiritual lives with a character as an Authentic Christians in Jesus Christ. Some cultural Christians seek experience, and a euphoric experience, others just do not seek the Holy Spirit to aid them in their own inability to achieve a life in the context of what God has commanded. When a person becomes a true believer, truly has repented of their sins the Holy Spirit comes to indwell in that person (the opening verse). The Holy Spirit gives to an Authentic Christian a power that no other person can have, whether they say they are a believer or not and that power is to become a witness of Jesus Christ. The witness of Jesus Christ is the simple Gospel, Jesus came from heaven, God in man, to pay a debt owed to Himself by Himself for no man could ever pay that debt, and that Jesus lived a sinless life on this earth, died an innocent man, for you, and I, and rose again on the third day, presented Himself upward of some 500 plus people, and rose into heaven bodily to sit at the right hand of God making intercession for all who will put Authentic Christian Faith in Him. That simple Gospel is all that we have to do to follow the command of Jesus. Yes, from that love, that agape love of God, Jesus, you then go into your world doing good for others without leaving aside the Gospel.
There are those who will complain about a person who is following in the steps of Jesus Christ and is manifesting a true spiritual passion, as they condemn that they are hypocrites, and are deluded. It may seem that way, especially will it be seen that way if the passion is not of Scripture, that it resided in some sort of anecdotal story, or some vision, or some revelation in a person's mind without any verification by Scripture that it is authentic. It is true that emotions are subjective, and some will say unreliable. That may be true, but will not be true if a person' emotions are founded on Scripture. A person with true emotions is a person who has denied himself/herself and picked up their cross, that cross which is that that person is an Authentic Christian, and is following Jesus Christ. This will seem ridiculous to a worldly person, and might even be seen that way be a cultural Christian.
A person who is struggling with the fact that they must become an Authentic Christian will give all sorts of excuses as to how wrong an Authentic Christian is by saying that those Authentic Christians put to much emphasis on the Holy Spirit and leads them by removing personal responsibility and leading to laziness. If a person, and this is the focus of such schools as the Bethel School of the Supernatural preaches that a person should be cultivating a focus on a moral character and this becomes the focus of their religion, this instead of focusing and being committed to Jesus Christ. Yes, if you are following the commands of
God you will be living a moral life but your focus is not on being moral, it is being in harmony with the commands of God, to live in the image of Jesus Christ. Morality will never have to be thought of, you become a moral person without thought for your thoughts are on Jesus Christ. Where are you putting your thoughts: on a denominations doctrine, or on being a good person, or following some liturgy, or anything that is not of Scripture. Salvation comes by your belief in Jesus Christ: PERIOD! Now, if you have truly repented, and honestly and authentically believed in Jesus as your Savior, then you will deny yourself this world with all its sin, you will live, you will grow in sanctification, and you will have an impact on others, and yourself.
Wherefore gird up the loins of our mind,
be sober, and hope to the end for the
grace that is to be brought unto you at
the revelation of Jesus Christ; as obedient
children, not fashioning yourselves according
to the former lusts in your ignorance:
but as He which hath called you is holy,
so be ye holy in all manner of conversation;
because it is written, be ye holy; for I am holy.
1Peter 1:13-16
There is work to be done: in yourself first
Richard L. Crumb
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