BUILDERS

 

"Since you are eager to have spiritual gifts, strive to excel in gifts that build up the church... When you may come together, each has a psalm, has a teaching, has a revelation, has a tongue, has an interpretation. Let all things be done for edification."

1 Corinthians 14:12;26

The Pharisees of Jesus' day were phenomenal builders. They erected hundreds of oral traditions, essentially religious rules, regulations, customs, and traditions, which they attributed to Moses. They built an unrivaled system of rabbinic legalism still in effect today. They built the Sanhedrin and synagogues, which were never instructed by God. And they built a dividing wall that prevented non-Jews from ever getting too close to the temple.

Contrastingly, the biblical concept of edification, rightly understood, is beautiful. Ephesians 2 paints a picture of God's masterful construction of Christ's Body & Bride. First, Paul exposes the reality of universal human depravity in 2:1, "And you were dead in your trespasses and sins," which is then contrasted with God's unrelenting covenantal love in 2:4-5, "But God, who is rich in covenant loyalty, because of His great love for us, made us alive with Christ even though we were dead in trespasses. You are saved by grace!"

Sadly, personal salvation is where many churches and Christians screech to an abrupt halt, and, like the fools of Psalm 107, they willfully return to sit in darkness and gloom—prisoners of self-imposed chains because they rebelled against God's Word and despised the counsel of the Most High. Personal salvation is never heralded as the goal or message of The Gospel. Instead, as Ephesians 2:10 reveals, our being made alive with Christ as His workmanship is for the good works God prepared beforehand in community as our collective, collaborative, synergistic, and united act of worship. The Gospel invites us into identification and collaboration with Christ.

Ephesians 2 goes on to reveal that we are now "no longer foreigners and strangers, but fellow citizens with the saints and members of God's household, built on the foundation of the Apostles and Prophets, with Christ Jesus Himself as the cornerstone. In Him the whole building, being masterfully built, is growing into a temple set apart in the LORD."

Ephesians 4 articulates the tangible process of building up Christ's Body & Bride:

• v.1 "Live worthy of the calling you have received..." Being a Christian isn't all about our personal needs, opinions, and preferences... it's a divine calling to be seized or squandered.

• v.2 We are to live up to that calling "with all humility and gentleness, with patience, bearing with one another in love..."

• v.3 We live worthy of the calling with all humility and gentleness by "making every effort to keep the unity of the Spirit through the bond of peace." We should never confuse silence with peace. Avoiding necessary conversations regarding hindrances to edification exacerbates conflict and division. Conflict deferred is conflict multiplied.

• v.11 "And He Himself gave some to be apostles, some prophets, some evangelists, some pastor-teachers," Leadership is essential because accountability is essential. Churches choosing to operate without biblical leadership are clubs, not churches.

• v.12 "equipping the saints for the work of ministry, to build up the Body of Christ," The primary role of church leadership is not to appease, entertain, enable, cater to, or seek the approval of the congregation, but to equip and mobilize the saints for the work of ministry.

• v.13-16 The litmus test of a legitimate "Body of Christ" includes:

  • v.13 UNITY: in the faith and in the knowledge of God's Son, growing into maturity with a stature measured by the fullness of Christ. There can be no unity in Christ where there is no authoritative biblical revelation of Christ.

  • v.14 STEADY: no longer little children tossed about by the waves and blown around by every wind of teaching by human cunning with cleverness in the teachings of deceit.

  • v.15 HONESTY: speaking the truth (sound doctrine, correction, rebuke, etc.) in love rather than ignoring difficult conversations or accepting the patterns of the world, i.e. we must continually grow in every way into Him who is the HEAD — Christ.

  • v.16 INTEGRITY: through this process, "the whole body is fitted and knit together by every supporting ligament, promoting the growth of the body for building itself up in love..." to achieve...

  • v.16 FUNCTIONALITY: "by the proper working of each individual part." Where there is no functionally missional community advancing against the Gates of Hades there is no church. Passive and sporadic attendance, while perfectly acceptable for season ticket holders, is revealed as unacceptable for members of Christ's Body & Bride.

The Greek word in the New Testament for building up is οἰκοδομή (oy-kod-om-ay'). The word depicts the concept of masterfully skilled artisans or craftsmen at work. It's very much like the Old Testament Hebrew word חָכְמָה (khok-maw'), which transcends philosophical wisdom and translates to living life skillfully.

The book of Proverbs delineates the only two possible paths in life: the first is that of the fool, (which King Jesus identified in Matthew 7 as the broad path many take leading to destruction), and the second is that of khok-maw', which the LORD said is straight and narrow leading to everlasting life.

Ephesians 5 commands, "Pay careful attention then to how you live—not as unwise people but as wise (skilled)—redeeming the time, because the days are evil. So don't be foolish, but understand what the LORD's will is. And don't get drunk with wine, which exposes unsavedness, but be filled with the Spirit."

If you've been a Christian for longer than a couple of weeks but aren't an official member of a local church with an official role (music, greeter, custodian, bookkeeper, deacon, elder, teacher, etc.), you're either in the wrong place or have the wrong idea. The only thing Consumerism and Christianity have in common is they both begin with the letter c.

Praying for America is as (in)effective as wishing on a star if Christians aren't willing to live accountable and surrendered lives set apart for the edification of the Body of Christ. At the close of Ephesians, Paul asked the church to pray, not for his release from prison, but "to make known with boldness the mystery of the Gospel... that I might be bold enough to speak about it as I should."

Contrary to popular teaching and preaching today, being a Christian isn't about, "Letting all things be done for your personal satisfaction and salvation." Instead, Scripture joyfully exclaims, "Let all things be done for edification." Are you building up Christ's Body & Bride? If not, what are you waiting for?

Blessings,

Kevin M. Kelley

unstoppablekidsbooks.com

amostunlikelydisciple.blogspot.com

IDENTITY

 

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“Therefore if anyone is in Christ, he is a new creation. The old has passed away. Behold, the new has come!”

-2 Corinthians 5:17

King Jesus' message wasn't "Ask Me into your heart" when He walked the earth. Instead, the Eternal Son of God, humanity's exclusive Savior, preached, “Repent, for the kingdom of heaven is at hand.”

Biblical repentance isn't a feeling of sadness or sorrow. We know this because the Bible reveals, "Godly sorrow brings repentance that leads to salvation without regret, but worldly sorrow brings death." Therefore, King Jesus wasn't compelling people to feel bad about their situations, family histories, addictions, poor choices, missed opportunities, and life circumstances. Heaven's Glorious Star (Rev 22:16) came in the flesh to shine the light of truth and salvation upon every man, but humanity neither recognized nor received Him. King Jesus wasn't telling us to feel bad; He was revealing that we all desperately need to turn to Him.

Throughout Scripture, from Genesis to Revelation, we see humanity's ongoing rejection of God again and again. God exposes our chronic addiction to autonomy and egregious proclivity for rebellion. Despite God's Presence, miracles, signs, deliverance, power, care, compassion, wonders, and supernatural provision, as a dog returns to its vomit, we eagerly dive right back into death's familiar arms until we have a supernatural encounter—not with religion—with Jesus Christ. The Bible exposes that religious people are most often the furthest from God. Their misguided confidence is in the customs and traditions of men rather than in a redeemed identity in Christ.

Nicodemus was a big shot in the religious community of Jesus' day. He was something on par with a seminary president of today. Despite all his knowledge, accolades, accomplishments, status, and recognition, Nicodemus couldn't shake the nagging feeling of dissonance, i.e. a profound disconnect between how things were and ought to be. He went to Jesus under the cover of darkness, and King Jesus answered the question Nicodemus didn't know how to ask by saying, “Truly, truly, I tell you, no one can see the kingdom of God unless he is born again.”

The LORD didn't tell Nicodemus to pray a prayer, recite a creed, go to church, read Scripture, make a pilgrimage, or feel bad about his sin. Messiah told him that a transcendent supernatural transformation was needed in order to be born again as a wholly new creation. We don't know the details of Nicodemus' transformation, but the biblical testimony suggests it happened. The religious guru too embarrassed to be seen talking to Jesus at the start of His ministry was eventually bold enough to request His body after His public crucifixion (John 19:38-40).

Nicodemus was supernaturally transported to a place where his new identity was no longer defined by his status in the Jewish religious community. While he and Joseph of Arimathea still feared the Jewish leaders, their new identity was defined by their love for the Lamb of God who came to take away the sins of the world.

Saul was a Jewish religious zealot, a Pharisee of Pharisees. We know that Saul was a key player in the execution of early Christians based on biblical testimony (Acts 8:1). It wasn't enough that Christians fled Jerusalem out of fear for their lives; Saul sought to track down every last follower of Jesus and put them to death. On his journey to Damascus (about a two-week trek on foot) Saul had a supernatural encounter with the Risen LORD.

Acts 9 reveals that as Saul drew near to Damascus on his journey, suddenly a light from heaven flashed around him. He fell to the ground and heard a voice say to him, “Saul, Saul, why do you persecute Me?” “Who are You, Lord?” Saul asked. “I am Jesus, whom you are persecuting,” He replied. “Now get up and go into the city, and you will be told what you must do...” After Saul went into the city, God commanded Ananias to go and lay hands upon him. So Ananias went to the house, and when he arrived, he placed his hands on Saul. “Brother Saul,” he said, “the Lord Jesus, who appeared to you on the road as you were coming here, has sent me so that you may see again and be filled with the Holy Spirit.” At that instant, something like scales fell from Saul’s eyes, and his sight was restored.

Neither Nicodemus nor Saul (now the Apostle Paul) continued to identify as Pharisees. They didn't go to Pharisee recovery groups. They weren't part of a Pharisee Twelve Step Program. They didn't meet with other Pharisees and talk about how many days it had been since the last time they did Pharisee things. They became new creations in Christ Jesus. They had new identities defined exclusively by their love for and relationship with Jesus.

Church programs today seem to encourage people to continue being defined by their old selves. Where in Scripture does it tell us to "Celebrate Recovery" rather than to worship Christ? If we're going through life counting the days since we had our last drink, hit, fix, high, or relapse, what we're doing is hanging on to the old self King Jesus died to nail to His cross. We're allowing a hurt, habit, or hangup to be elevated to the status of an identity-idol rather than allowing it to be torn down once and for all.

If we've been born again by grace through faith in Christ Jesus, then God's Word states emphatically that we are new creations in Christ Jesus. It reveals that our old selves are crucified with Christ and that we no longer live. Does that mean we suddenly become impervious to the allure of old temptations? Absolutely not! The appeal of old habits often fades slowly into obscurity or oblivion, but not always. Hebrews 12:2 doesn't tell us to keep our eyes fixed on Satan or our sins. Watching what you want to avoid is the best way to ensure you'll have a head-on collision with it. Instead, Hebrews 12:2 states, "Let us fix our eyes on Jesus, the author and perfecter of our faith, who for the joy set before Him endured the cross, scorning its shame, and sat down at the right hand of the throne of God."

Instead of making it about you and celebrating your recovery... instead of getting together with a bunch of others who want to allow their old problems, hurts, hang-ups, and habits to linger on life-support... instead of keeping a running tally of how long it's been since your last trainwreck... celebrate Christ. Celebrate the fact that He's made you a new creation and that the old you is dead and buried. Celebrate His invitation for you to do the work He's prepared in advance as your new way of life (Eph 2:10). Celebrate that being born again means you can stop looking in the rearview mirror—and start looking forward to how soon it'll be when He returns in glory!

The Lamb of God died to give you the new identity of REDEEMED SAINT. You are a holy one set apart by God Almighty for the ministry of the Gospel. The Cross of Calvary wasn't to celebrate your recovery (how can we recover something we never had before Christ?), it was to give new life and to give it abundantly.

“No one sews a patch of unshrunk cloth on an old garment, for the patch will pull away from the garment, making the tear worse. Neither do people pour new wine into old wineskins. If they do, the skins will burst; the wine will run out and the wineskins will be ruined. No, they pour new wine into new wineskins, and both are preserved.”

-Matthew 9:16-17

Blessings and love,

Kevin M. Kelley

PS: If you've been part of a church ministry that has helped you find your identity in Christ and move beyond the hurts, hang-ups, and habits of the past—praise the LORD! But if you're part of a religious program that's not helping you leave all that behind and move into the abundant life Christ has for you, please reach out to me at LVNFIT68@icloud.com or 214.735.1551 and I'll help get you connected with folks who will.

unstoppablekidsbooks.com