THE BRIDE OF CHRIST
Greetings in the name of Jesus:
The Bride of Christ is not who we think it is
The term Bride of Christ is not used much today in our churches basically because we have forgotten who the term refers to. The one thing that we need to get straight in our minds is that it does not refer to the many different churches who are each declaring to be holding the key to salvation through their various and different doctrines and traditions. There are a small number of people within each of those churches who are following Christ with a pure heart and intent on building a relationship who will be seen as a part of the true Bride of Christ, and we need to recognize that it is those whom God is returning for. As for the majority of others in our modern churches, I fear that most are being misled. What we call the church today is made up of an organization of people who are doing a work of their own will in the name of God. What God established the church to be is His family on Earth who supports and provides a safe place for new Christians to learn and grow in. The problem is that for many who are new in Christ and desire to grow and learn there seems to be nowhere to go.
This has been a problem that has bothered me for a long time and yet many of my ministry friends are tied to organizations who dictate a brand of Gospel which may not be completely truthful even in the hearts of those who are preaching it, but the ministers' hands are pretty much tied by the contractual obligations to a certain philosophy or point of view about the Gospel. The church today has become a perilous place to find truth without first being indoctrinated to the traditions of men.
Matthew 7:21-23 " Not everyone who says to me, Lord Lord will enter into the Kingdom of Heaven, but the ones who do the will of My Father in Heaven. Many will say to me on that day, Lord, Lord did we not prophecy in your name, and in your name cast out demons, and in your name do many works of power? And then I will declare to them I never knew you, depart from me those working lawlessness".
These are among the most frightening words in the Bible to me because they are directly from Jesus and yet we rarely hear any message on them at all. The message that Jesus was conveying is that we must allow the Holy Spirit the control over the church, and not men.
In many ways, we have allowed much of the same things as what happened with the Scribes and Pharisees during Jesus's ministry in that we are allowing men to lead us into traditions men have created in creeds or doctrines rather than having a personal relationship with Christ. This automatically sets us up to do things in His name, but never to allow Him to do things through us. Unless we call upon the Holy Spirit to lead us into a strong heartfelt love of God and a loving concern for one another as much as we love self. The church was established as a family for a reason. The Father is the head of the family, He is the provider, and the source of truth is given to us through His Spirit and Wisdom. We don't need to have great knowledge, but a child-like faith and trust in God, and a willingness to do His will. We still forget that the greatest commandment of all, and the one that encompasses all others is: "To love God with all of our heart, mind, and strength" and then to love one another as we love ourselves.
The hidden element that remains in each of our brothers and sisters who concentrate on this commandment can be found in each one of the denominations, but it is only a small element of people who are making it personal. We cannot allow ourselves to ignore the instructions that Jesus has already given us to use in maintaining a healthy body of Christ. I pray that you will stand with me as we continue to push toward that goal of giving Jesus and His Spirit total and complete control of who we are and what we do. May you richly bless God through your life in Him.
THE UNWORTHY SERVANT
The Bride of Christ is not who we think it is
The term Bride of Christ is not used much today in our churches basically because we have forgotten who the term refers to. The one thing that we need to get straight in our minds is that it does not refer to the many different churches who are each declaring to be holding the key to salvation through their various and different doctrines and traditions. There are a small number of people within each of those churches who are following Christ with a pure heart and intent on building a relationship who will be seen as a part of the true Bride of Christ, and we need to recognize that it is those whom God is returning for. As for the majority of others in our modern churches, I fear that most are being misled. What we call the church today is made up of an organization of people who are doing a work of their own will in the name of God. What God established the church to be is His family on Earth who supports and provides a safe place for new Christians to learn and grow in. The problem is that for many who are new in Christ and desire to grow and learn there seems to be nowhere to go.
This has been a problem that has bothered me for a long time and yet many of my ministry friends are tied to organizations who dictate a brand of Gospel which may not be completely truthful even in the hearts of those who are preaching it, but the ministers' hands are pretty much tied by the contractual obligations to a certain philosophy or point of view about the Gospel. The church today has become a perilous place to find truth without first being indoctrinated to the traditions of men.
Matthew 7:21-23 " Not everyone who says to me, Lord Lord will enter into the Kingdom of Heaven, but the ones who do the will of My Father in Heaven. Many will say to me on that day, Lord, Lord did we not prophecy in your name, and in your name cast out demons, and in your name do many works of power? And then I will declare to them I never knew you, depart from me those working lawlessness".
These are among the most frightening words in the Bible to me because they are directly from Jesus and yet we rarely hear any message on them at all. The message that Jesus was conveying is that we must allow the Holy Spirit the control over the church, and not men.
In many ways, we have allowed much of the same things as what happened with the Scribes and Pharisees during Jesus's ministry in that we are allowing men to lead us into traditions men have created in creeds or doctrines rather than having a personal relationship with Christ. This automatically sets us up to do things in His name, but never to allow Him to do things through us. Unless we call upon the Holy Spirit to lead us into a strong heartfelt love of God and a loving concern for one another as much as we love self. The church was established as a family for a reason. The Father is the head of the family, He is the provider, and the source of truth is given to us through His Spirit and Wisdom. We don't need to have great knowledge, but a child-like faith and trust in God, and a willingness to do His will. We still forget that the greatest commandment of all, and the one that encompasses all others is: "To love God with all of our heart, mind, and strength" and then to love one another as we love ourselves.
The hidden element that remains in each of our brothers and sisters who concentrate on this commandment can be found in each one of the denominations, but it is only a small element of people who are making it personal. We cannot allow ourselves to ignore the instructions that Jesus has already given us to use in maintaining a healthy body of Christ. I pray that you will stand with me as we continue to push toward that goal of giving Jesus and His Spirit total and complete control of who we are and what we do. May you richly bless God through your life in Him.
THE UNWORTHY SERVANT
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