Bended Worship Ministry

John 3:3; John 13:35; Galatians 1:15-16

Maintaining proper vision is very important for every child of God. For us to see ahead and be always at the ready for the Lord’s movement it is imperative that we seek to have a clear vision and with sufficient grace live a life maintaining that vision.

But, what is vision?

Let us be direct here…it is seeing Christ. Vision is to behold Christ! The growth of a knowing and an experience in the child of God regarding Christ is the growth of vision. Yes, vision grows, properly maintained…vision grows.

Actually it is the inheritance of every believer, do you believed. Jesus said speaking to Nicodemus- “…“Most assuredly, I say to you, unless one is born again, he cannot see the kingdom of God.” That’s where every believer begins. In being born again God opens his eyes to see God’s kingdom or let’s say God opens his eyes that he may see Jesus. So you see, every child of God already has that, he has vision. He is one whose eyes had already been opened. It is a gift. It is an equipping that is of the utmost importance for everything that God will do.

God’s Spirit, Indwelling

This God has done, He has given us the Holy Spirit and this is a very, very misunderstood aspect of the Christian life. I wonder how many really realize this on a daily basis or more importantly on a moment by moment experience. Paul wrote: “…be filled with the Spirit.” Are we truly realizing this? Speaking to the disciples Jesus said-“But when the Holy Spirit comes, He will guide you into all truth.” This is where vision is maintained. The Spirit of God, indwelling and the believer giving himself in very conscious loving manner as someone to be led and someone actually being led. He sees himself being guided into all truth. There’s no let up here for he is assured to grow knowing Christ…He is the Truth. “As many as are led by the Spirit of God, they are the Children of God.” To see the Kingdom is to see Christ for He is the Kingdom. There’s no other more urgent for the Spirit of God to do. This is it. This is central to what He is doing, to know Christ, to grow in Him and experience Him. This is maintaining vision; Christ is the embodiment of that vision. O’ Lord that we may abide in you, that we many have our eyes faithfully and lovingly fixed on you!

Life in the Fellowship

This is where vision is profoundly maintained but in reality, there is no other place. It’s in the Church and her coming together in fellowship that we could truly find meaning to the vision of Christ for here is a place, a coming together of all that shared in the life of Christ. And there is one central teaching to the maintaining of vision here and that is- Love. First is an inward movement of God’s Spirit like what Paul said in Eph.4: “Instead, speaking the truth in love, we will in all things grow up into him who is the Head, that is, Christ.” Wonder why as if there is no vision of Christ in the world? Why? It is because we see loving one another as just coming together in events or just the gathering together and being good to each other. But God has something more wonderful in mind! And what is that? “A new command I give you: Love one another. As I have loved you, so you must love one another. “By this all men will know that you are my disciples, if you love one another.” The truth of the fellowship will always have its true realization in the world and not in the halls. “By this all men will know…” the Lord Jesus said. Loving one another is not for us just that we may feel good with each other; it is to give the world a witness of Christ!

Here is the vision in the hearts of those who love God. Here is the vision maintained. Vision actually has one purpose, so that there will a witness for Christ. Now if vision is clear is not that there will be more men and women witnessing for Christ?

“But when God, who set me apart from birth [Or from my mother’s womb] and called me by his grace, was pleased to reveal his Son in me so that I might preach him among the Gen-tiles….” Paul. Gal.1:15-16

This is vision.

Acts 2:42-47

Hebrews 10:23-25

What fills our fellowship? When we come together to worship God and to fellowship how is it going? Does it really fulfill what God desires? There’s only one reason really that a fellowship exist in such and such a place, that in that very place there will be an ever brightening witness of the Son He loves, that there the testimony of Christ will be faithfully proclaimed.

God’s word being preached. God’s word being preached is not to make you a better person for you are already in Christ. In his word being preached is an eternal desire centered on the finished work of His Christ. The word of God is not out just to change us but that in our being transformed we may see His longing, His desire to bring many sons to glory…”When I am lifted up I will draw all men to myself” , the Lord Jesus told his disciples. Is this not what should fill our fellowship, our talk? “When the Holy Spirit comes” , The Lord said…”you will receive power” , and for what, is it not for this-“you shall be my witnesses!”

So the question within our fellowship is this- Are we becoming the witnesses that God has called us to be? Does our fellowship produce such kind of men and women?

But God’s desire goes on and is looking for men and women that are ready to stand in the gap, men and women caught in to the vision of that grand temple being built. For sure we are not all the temple, not just yet. There are still many out there that God will bring. Where are now the vessels for such a grandiose work?

What fills our fellowship?

A praying Church. Obviously, if we say a praying Church, we could confidently say that is filled with believers that pray. That’s the word there in Acts, they gathered first to hear God’s word…they pray. Sometimes I have this thought that our fellowship has become nothing more than just a social event instead for it the very venue whereby God does His work mightily. And that’s where this utmost need for a praying Church. In fellowship we hear God’s word and what does it says, is it not about Christ who died on the Cross and him risen. That God is out to save sinners for so Christ came and laid down his life. That God is at work that we may realize ourselves the witnesses of this- His salvation.

We will hear words about love, about faith, about hope, and forgiving, that we are to trust God and more and all of this has one purpose and that is for us to be able to stand as the witnesses God has called. And here we pray…here we pray. Oh how God desires longingly to see a praying Church! A Church made ready for His every bidding. There is a great absence of a praying Church. We may say we are praying but for the most let us admit and repent, our prayers are just filled with trivial things, things that mostly concern our own personal needs.

Where is that Church that prays so that God may do His work?I ask again, what fills our fellowship?

Encouraging one another. A bringing in to be refreshed and I can’t think of a more fitting reason for this word that in fellowship we are to encourage one another. Hebrews 10:24 put this…”to stir up love and good deeds.” Yes love here is about us loving one another as Christ commanded but there is more to this for there is a place that said…”For God so love the world…” Our love for one another should have the realization of its outward purpose wherein God will show His love for the world. Love and good deeds we don’t need this anymore because we already have it. Instead we are to be its realization to those that are outside. That’s where we are to be encouraged. That’s where we are to be spurred upon so that after coming together we will come out refreshed and even all the more ready to bear the testimony of Christ to a darkened world.

This is God’s intentions for His fellowship; this is the fellowship that God desires.

1Peter 2:21

Matthew 16:24

Few realize what it means to follow Jesus. For some it would mean at the cost of everything we may hold dear in this world but for others, it just mean the profession of him as Savior and Lord. And this is right! Let us profess Christ as Savior and Lord for so he is, but there so much more in him being Savior and Lord especially as the Lord himself taught that a Christian does not just stop believing and knowing this but that he should become a disciple and a witness.

And this is where the true issues lie – That of a Christian becoming and realizing himself a disciple and then a witness. So what does it mean to follow Christ, to be a disciple and a witness? The word of God makes this clear.

To be like Jesus

“A student is not above his teacher, but everyone who is fully trained will be like his teacher.” This is God’s work, this is where His power exerts so mightily if a believer will just be willing and see! “And we, who with unveiled faces all reflect the Lord’s glory, are being transformed into his likeness with ever-increasing glory, which comes from the Lord, who is the Spirit.” Again, we cannot be lost here, for the Lord is clear in what he is doing in the believer, in the Church! They must become! We must see them becoming! For it is God who is at work! When the Lord said in prayer in John 17…”Sanctify them by the truth, your word is truth.” What does it mean? To sanctify is to make holy and who is Holy. Sanctification is by the truth and who is the truth. Everything that the word of God will teach will always have one desire and one purpose and that is after one have professed faith and received Christ as savior and Lord…and that is for him to grow to become more and more like Christ. And if this is God’s work in me how can I not imitate Christ!

The test of the Cross

It starts there, as a test then it becomes a way of life. Why? It is because everything will start with a decision and it will be a matter of the heart, of where it is placed. “If anyone desires to come after me…” the Lord asks. Is it not a matter of the heart? The problem with us is that we look at tests on the vantage point of the negative, of us being sinners. But God does not do so. A test comes to us on the vantage point of who God is, of everything that he has done and accomplished in Christ, of who you are as a child of God and everything he’s made available for you in the heavenly realms. Oh how victorious they are! …They who believe that Jesus is the Son of God. Remember Abraham? How God commanded him to offer his son which is a type of Christ. And what did the Lord said after? “Now I know that you fear God, because you have not withheld from me your son, your only son…”Gen.24:12c. Does God not know? He knows for sure but there is one thing that he desires- a witness! This is where many of us falters little realizing that it is through the Cross that God produces the witness. It’s the Cross that makes witnesses. Read on…”Then Jesus said to his disciples, “If anyone would come after me, he must deny himself and take up his cross and follow me.” We must all pass through the cross, it must become a way of life for only then life has a witness, for only then salvation is made vivid to those that are still in this darkened world. Like Isaac he passed through the Cross, and like Abraham he must also like have died offering up his only son but what do we have after…is it not life. “For we who are alive are always being given over to death for Jesus sake, so that his life may be revealed in our mortal bodies.” 2Cor.4:11.

The testimony of Jesus

This is testimony of a man who died on the Cross and a testimony of a man who first rose again to life. In this and this alone are salvation made possible for the many more who will believe. Now what does it mean to follow Christ?! What will we see if someone is walking in the footsteps of Jesus?!