2
Corinthians 5:17
Therefore if anyone is in Christ, he is
a new
creature; the old things passed away; behold, new
things have come.
This Newsletter is intended to be a two week study. We
frequently need to be reminded of how special we are in Christ
according to the precious truths set forth in God's Word, There
are eleven paragraphs in this Newsletter. I urge you to take
each paragraph one day at a
time and deeply reflect upon the wonderful verses set forth
in each paragraph, I encourage you then to take three
days to review what you have studied. Thus, in two weeks you
will have
marinated your mind in the precious realities
that God indicates are true of us now that we are Christians in
the body of Christ, You can do this individually, as a couple or
a family, turning this Newsletter into a two-week devotional
study.
1. You
are the temple of the living God:
2 Cor 6:14-7:1, The Lord dwells in you, God is
living within you and He is making
Himself known through you to the rest of us in
your Church family.
2. You
are gifted as members in the same
body:
1 Cor 12; 1Peter
4:10; Rom 12:4-8. Each of you has received a special gift
from God which makes your service in the body
indispensable. You have an unusual capacity to build up this
Church family so that
we might be a blessing to the Lord and highly useful to Him. As
diverse members within the
same body, we are to depend upon one another and the entire
church by doing what we are uniquely gifted
to do.
3. You
are brothers and sisters in the same spiritual family:
Rom 12:10; Eph 2:19. Your love and devotion
to the congregation sends a powerful message to each of us that
we are tightly knit as
one household of God. You have been recreated in Christ in such
a way that you have a God
given capacity to demonstrate loyal love
and affection
to one another as spiritual siblings.
4.
You are anointed:
1
John 2:20,27 [See also 1 Cor 2:6-16],
You have been given the Holy
Spirit who teaches you all things, even the very depths
of God. You have tremendous capacities
to build up
and guide each of us in the body.
5. You
are earthen vessels of greater glory:
2 Cor 4:7. Even though
each of us are weak, through our weaknesses the power
and glory of Christ is manifested through us. When our weaknesses
are discovered by others in the Church family, this only provides us
with greater opportunity to manifest
the grace of God which is perfected through our weaknesses. 2 Cor
12:
9-10, Let us develop genuine and transparent
relationships with one another. Let the treasure of Jesus Christ be
put on display in our relationships.
6. You
have been sovereignly fitted together within God's temple:
Eph 2:21-22. God has fit us together as stones making
up the walls of His
temple. He has placed us in the body where He wants
us. He has clamped
and mortared us together as stones. We are leaning
upon and supporting
one another. Let's depend on each other. Let's help
one another. [See
also 1 Peter 2:5]
7. You
supply the life of Christ to the other members of the body:
Eph 4:16. This verse tells us that the life of God
flows from the head of the body [Christ] to each member in the body.
This life then passes from one
member to another as a result of their close
spiritual interaction. The life of
Christ flows through us as "joints" in the body. Let
us meet together often.
Let us come with hearts that are Spirit filled. Let
us supply the love and
goodness of Christ to one another.
8. You are fellow soldiers:
Eph 6:10-19. We saw this in our past study
on armor. We are standing together on the battle lines, protecting
each other and standing firm together against an extremely
formidable foe. My, how
we need each other!
9 You are priests:
1 Peter 2:5; Heb 13:15-16. Each of us are spiritual
priests. We are professionals. God has placed within
us those things which
make us good at worship. Together as one temple we
offer up precious sacrifices.
Let us encourage one another each Sunday and during our prayer
times together with fervent adoration, praise and
exaltation. We have what
it takes! Let us with one voice glorify our great
God. Rom 15:6.
10. You
are future pillars of the church:
Gal 2:9. Our Church is blessed with a congregation which loves the
Lord and His Word. I am confident
that God is going to raise up many men and women from
amongst us who
will serve as pillars of the church. God is able to
do this work through us
and bring our Church to maturity. The parents in our
Church family are also training up a future generation which, Lord,
willing, will powerfully
bless the body of Christ for decades to come should the Lord tarry.
I am excited about what the Lord is going to do through our Church
family in the years to come.
11. You
are the tight of the world set on a hill:
Matt 5:14, Thank the
Lord for His commitment to shine His light through
us. Let us work
together to let this light shine brightly in our
community. |
