|
For Those Seeking The Truth
& Dynamic Living Christ is Victor |
September/October 2011
Volume 24, Number 5
“From Bondage to Sonship”
“For ye have not received the spirit of bondage again to fear; but ye have received the Spirit of adoption, whereby we cry, Abba, Father.” (Romans 8:15)
What is the Spirit that we have received? Is it the Spirit of adoption or the spirit of bondage? The Spirit of bondage is trying to recapture people. Paul is fighting to release these people from their bondage. Somehow, we like some bondage. Somewhere some bondage takes hold of us. Bondage of fear is a very common thing and our fertile imaginations multiply our fears. So we keep on imagining things — things which do not exist. That is the spirit of bondage. The Spirit of adoption makes us to focus on the throne. We are told that we are ‘joint-heirs’ with Christ. The Spirit bears witness that we are joint-heirs with Christ. This Spirit of adoption makes us cry, “Abba, Father”.
“And he
went forward a little, and fell on the ground, and prayed that, if it were
possible, the hour might pass from him. And he said, Abba, Father, all things
are possible unto thee; take away this from me: nevertheless not what I will,
but what thou wilt.” (Mark: 14:35, 36) This was in the
We are very busy with our own work and have no real burden for the world around us. Our Lord Jesus could have been very busy with His service. Organizational work has this great danger. It depends upon your work, so you have to work harder and it is not God at work. This is human regeneration; it has no “Abba, Father” in it. It has no cross, and no blood drops as great sweat drops. No, it is a physical exertion and zeal. Is that what we see? Are those the steps what Jesus teaches us? The burden for souls, the burden for the sins of others is what you should have. If that cry “Abba, Father” goes away, I can tell you that there is a big vacuum, and anything can come into that vacuum. Your thoughts, fears, evil inclinations and lusts, those old habits of speaking lies and half-truths will flood your heart.
But what is the
spirit which Jesus gives His children? He says, “I have brought you out
of bondage. So your spirit of bondage is gone. Now you have the spirit of
adoption. Is there not the cry, “Abba, Father” in our hearts? What
kind of spirit has taken hold of us? The spirit of the world is at enmity with
God. It makes you think, “How can I get rich quickly?” Where is
The spirit of
truth is the spirit of God and the spirit of adoption is the package of the
spirit of truth. It is terrible if you do not want to face the truth. Truth
does not spare anybody. But is truth good for you? To know the truth, you
should undergo some tests and the truth is not palatable to anybody. I have
always proclaimed in
Charles Finney spoke of a businessman. He would come from his business and immediately he would enter into the Spirit of prayer of the prayer meeting. Mr. Finney said, “This man is such a busy man and has got such responsibility. But how does he maintain the Spirit of prayer?” He happened to be the guest in his house and so one night, when Finney’s child needed milk or something, he came down from his bedroom at about three in the morning and he found this man lost in prayer and waiting on God. He said, “Now I know the secret, how this man has this Spirit of prayer.” The man said, “The only way in which I can keep in close communion with God is to rise in the middle of the night, to spend time with God.” You know the discipline that it takes.
You can understand that such people have the cry Abba Father. They may be in the world but not of the world; the world never seems to get into them. The Lord Jesus said this twice that, “They are not of the world, even as I am not of the world.” That gives me a knockout blow. We have been talking about perfection; there is no use talking in the air: “Be ye perfect even as your father in heaven is perfect.”
We are really like immature little children when it comes to any crunch or crisis. We just speak what we like, give vent to our fears and we just say, “I want my will”. That is not the Spirit of adoption, that is not the Spirit of truth. The Spirit of adoption makes you cry, “Thy will and not my will.” It may be hard and it may be wearisome; it may even kill you. But the Spirit of adoption gives you a firm entrenchment in the will of God, an unbending commitment to the will of God.
God has got a fixed deposit for us. What is that? Heirs to God! Are we running to get it? Have we got the Spirit of adoption? The Spirit of Christ, the Spirit of His Son is sent into us crying Abba, Father. Is that cry coming out of us? When you have that cry, all other cries and compulsions are excluded, because you are a son and your place is with Jesus. Your cry becomes the cry of the heart of Jesus. After so many years of Christian living, where is our maturity? After receiving so much light, we ought to be walking in the heavenlies, walking with God. May God help us!
-Joshua Daniel
“Reality Check”
“I will lift up mine eyes unto the hills, from whence cometh my help. My help cometh from the LORD, which made heaven and earth.”
Psalm 121:1,2
“With Fear and Trembling”
“Serve the Lord with fear, and rejoice with trembling.” (Psalm 2:11)
Why trembling? We are serving a heavenly majesty. Let no presumption enter into your faith. Do not feel you can do as you like because God is love. Serve the Lord with fear because His purposes are very great. With fear and trembling you must be fitted into His service. How is He going to use you? “Ask of me and I shall give thee the heathen for thine inheritance, and the uttermost parts of the earth for thy possession. Thou shalt break them with a rod of iron: thou shalt dash them in pieces like a potter’s vessel” (Psalm 2: 8-9). What power God is going to give you if you serve Him with fear and trembling!
If you have to dine with the Queen of England you cannot be free to do as you please. In your own home you laugh and chat and are at ease. But in the presence of the Queen you have to be very careful. In the presence of the King of kings you should be even more careful. You must be very holy. He reads your thoughts and innermost motives. He watches what kind of affections you have, and what kind of thoughts are dominating your mind.
“Speak
unto all the congregation of the children of
God says you are His battle-axe. If we are holy, what a power He will give us! Do we tremble before the majesty of the holy Saviour? Do we kiss the Son who is to be loved? He gave that power to Moses. He will give that power to you. Meekness is a part of holiness. When you have this kind of holiness you will be a power.
“Thou shalt not hate thy brother in thine heart: thou shalt in any wise rebuke thy neighbour, and not suffer sin upon him” (Leviticus 19:17). You cannot allow your neighbour to perish. You must do things to bring him to repentance. “And because you are sons, God hath sent forth the spirit of his Son into your hearts, crying
Abba, Father” (Galatians 4:6). He hath sent His Spirit into you, that you may claim His sonship.
When the Holy Spirit comes into you, you will cry for your inheritance. Claim His promises. Do not let
them lapse. God’s promises are laid up for you. If you do not claim them you are a loser. Why do you allow such great promises to slip through your fingers? Will you forget your promissory notes and your title deeds? You are losing far greater things. You do not know in which part of the world God will use you as a battle-axe. God wants you. Tremble in His presence. Claim His promises. As Moses did, you have to do. In our country we have to do it. God has His own weapons and methods and He will reveal them to you. Be one with your Saviour.
I always fear that if there is a careless man or woman who has lost the fear of God, he will bring darkness and one day he will bring shame upon the name of God. “For brethren, ye have been called unto liberty: only use not liberty for an occasion to the flesh, but by love serve one another” (Galatians 5:13). The Spirit of God keeps you on a plane where evil thoughts will not occur to you.
God teaches you to love others. Such love will come naturally to you. Holy love! What a wonderful thing it is to get the adoption of a son. With faith which worketh by love you are going to serve God. Leave all the thoughts about your future to God. He knows the best for you. Serve the Lord with trembling. He is a great God.
- N. Daniel
“William Hunter”
On March 26, 1555, William Hunter, a godly young man only nineteen years old was martyred. His story should be an example to all Christian parents who find their emotions at odds with their convictions, for William’s parents allowed their son to follow his beliefs, even though it led to his death.
William was
apprenticed to a silk weaver in
Five or six
weeks later, William picked up a Bible he found in the chapel at
Father Atwell commented, “It hasn’t been a happy world since the Bible was published in English.”
“Oh, don’t say that! It’s God’s book, from which we learn to know what pleases and displeases God.”
“Didn’t we know that before?”
“Not as well as we do now with the Bible available”. William replied. “I pray we always have it with us.”
Father Atwell
fumed. “I know you! You’re one of those who dislike the
queen’s laws. That’s why you left
William stayed in the chapel and continued to read until Atwell returned with the vicar of Southwell. “Who gave you permission to read and expound on the Bible?” the vicar demanded. “I don’t expound on it, sir,” William answered. I only read it for comfort.”
“Why do you need to read it at all?”
“I’ll read it as long as I live. You shouldn’t discourage people from doing so. You should encourage them.”
“Oh, so you want to tell me what I should do?” the vicar muttered “You’re a heretic!”
“I’m not a heretic just because I speak the truth.”
More words passed between them concerning the sacrament of communication, on which William explained his point of view. Accused of being a heretic, he replied, “I wish you and I were both tied to the stake to prove which of us would defend his faith the longest. I think you’d recant first.”
“We’ll see about that!” the vicar replied, leaving to report the boy.
The vicar went directly to Master Brown, who called in William’s father and the local policeman and demanded that Mr. Hunter go and find his son, since William had wisely left town after his argument with the vicar. Mr. Hunter rode for two or three days to satisfy Brown, intending to go back and say he couldn’t find the boy, when suddenly they met. Mr. Hunter told his son to hide; he would go back and say he couldn’t find him.
“No, father.” William said. “I’ll go
home with you, so you don’t get in trouble.” As soon as they
arrived in town, William was arrested and taken before Brown, who argued with
him about ‘transubstantiation.’ William was so firm in his beliefs
that he enraged Brown, who sent him to Bishop Bonner in
William was put
in the stocks at
“Nineteen.”
“Well, you’ll be burned before you are twenty if you don’t do better than you did today!”
William spent nine months in jail, appearing before the bishop six times, including the time he was condemned on February 9. That day the bishop made William the final offer: “If you recant, I’ll make you a free man and give you forty pounds to set up a business. Or, I’ll make you the steward of my house. I like you. You’re smart, and I’ll take care of you if you recant.”
William replied, “Thank you, but if you can’t change my mind through Scripture, I can’t turn from God for love of the world. I count all worldly things but loss and dung, compared the love of Christ.” “If you die believing this way,” the bishop continued, “you will be condemned forever.” “God judges righteously, justifying those whom man condemns unjustly.” William maintained.
William was sent
back to New Gate prison for a month, then taken home
to
At the stake, William asked the people to pray for him. Master Brown sneered, “Pray for you? I wouldn’t pray for you any more than I would for a dog!”
“I forgive you.”
“I’m not asking for your forgiveness!” yelled Brown.
Seeing a priest approaching with a Bible, William called out, “Get away, you false prophet! Beware of them people. Don’t take part in their plagues.” The priest replied, “As you burn here, so you will burn in hell.” “You liar, you false prophet!” William cried. “Get out of here!”
A man in the crowd spoke up, “I pray God will have mercy on his soul.” “Amen, amen,” answered the crowd.
As the fire was lit, William tossed his Psalter to his brother. “William.” his brother called, “think of the holy passion of Christ. Don’t be afraid of death.”
“I’m not.” William lifted his hands to heaven and said, “Lord, receive my spirit.” Dropping his head into the smoke, William Hunter gave up his life for the truth, sealing it with his blood to the praise of God.
-Selected
“They Who Sow in Tears Shall Reap in Joy”
David and Svea Flood
In 1921, a missionary couple named
David and Svea Flood went with their two-year-old son
David, from
This was a huge step of faith. At
the remote
They prayed for a spiritual breakthrough, but there was none. Their only contact with the villagers was a young boy, who was allowed to sell them chickens and eggs twice a week. Svea Flood — a tiny woman missionary only four feet, eight inches tall, decided that if this was the only African she could talk to, she would try to lead the boy to Jesus. And in fact, after many weeks of loving and witnessing to him, he trusted Christ as his Savior.
But there were no other encouragements. Meanwhile, malaria continued to strike one member of the little band after another. In time the Ericksons decided they had had enough suffering and left to return to the central mission station. David and Svea Flood remained near N’dolera to go on alone.
Then, of all things, Svea found herself pregnant in the middle of the primitive wilderness. When the time came for her to give birth (1923), the village chief softened enough to allow a midwife to help her. A little girl was born, whom they named Aina (A-ee-nah).
The delivery, however, was exhausting, and Svea Flood was already weak from bouts of malaria. The birth process was a heavy blow to her stamina. After seventeen desperate days of prayer and struggle, she died.
Inside David Flood, something
snapped in that moment. His heart full of bitterness, he dug a crude grave,
buried his twenty-seven-year-old wife and took his children back down the
mountain to the mission station. Giving his newborn daughter to the Ericksons, he said, “I’m going back to
Within eight months both the Ericksons were stricken with a mysterious illness (some
believe they were poisoned by a local chief who hated the missionaries) and
died within days of each other. The nine month old baby Aina
was given to an American missionary couple named Berg, who adjusted her Swedish
name to “Aggie” and eventually brought her back to the
The Bergs loved little Aggie but
were afraid that if they tried to return to
Years passed. The
One day around 1963, a Swedish
religious magazine appeared in her mailbox. She had no idea who sent it, and of
course she couldn’t read the words. But as she turned the pages, all of a
sudden a photo stopped her cold. There in a primitive setting in the heart of
Aggie jumped in her car and drove straight to a college faculty member who, she knew, could translate the article. “What does this say?” she asked.
The instructor translated the story:
It tells about missionaries who went to N’dolera in the heart of the Belgian Congo in 1921… the birth of a white baby girl… the death of the young missionary mother… the one little African boy who had been led to Christ… and how, after the all whites had left, the little African boy grew up and persuaded the chief to let him build a school in the village.
The article told how that gradually the now grown up boy won all his students to Christ… the children led their parents to Christ… even the chief had become a Christian. Today (1963) there were six hundred Christian believers in that one village.
Because of the willingness of David
and Svea Flood to answer God’s call to Africa,
because they endured so much but were still faithful to witness and lead one
little boy to trust Jesus, God had saved six hundred people. And the little
boy, as a grown man, became head of the
At the time Svea
Flood died, it appeared, to human reason, that God had led the young couple to
For Rev. Dewey and Aggie
Hurst’s twenty-fifth wedding anniversary, the college presented them with
the gift of a vacation to
After an emotional reunion with her half brothers and half sister, Aggie brought up the subject of seeing her father. The others hesitated. “You can talk to him,” they replied, “even though he’s very ill now. But you need to know that whenever he hears the name of God, he flies into a rage.”
Aggie could not be deterred. She walked into the squalid apartment, with liquor bottles everywhere, and approached the seventy-three-year-old man lying in a rumpled bed.
“Papa?” she said tentatively.
He turned and began to cry. “Aina,” he said, “I never meant to give you away.”
“It’s all right Papa,” she replied, taking him gently in her arms. “God took care of me.”
The man instantly stiffened. The tears stopped.
“God forgot all of us. Our lives have been like this because of Him.” He turned his face back to the wall.
Aggie stroked his face and then continued, undaunted.
“Papa, I’ve got a little story to tell you, and it’s a true one.
You didn’t go to
The little boy you both won to the Lord grew up to win that whole village to Jesus Christ. The one seed you planted just kept growing and growing. Today (about 1964) there are six hundred African people serving the Lord because you and Momma were faithful to the call of God on your life.”
“Papa, Jesus loves you. He has never hated you.”
The old man turned back to look into his daughter’s eyes. His body relaxed. He began to talk. And by the end of the afternoon, he had come back to the God he had resented for so many decades.
Over the next few days, father and
daughter enjoyed warm moments together. Aggie and her husband soon had to
return to
A few years later, the
The man began to weep. “Yes, madam,” the man replied in French, his words then being translated into English.
“It was Svea Flood who led me to Jesus Christ. I was the boy who brought food to your parents before you were born. In fact, to this day your mother’s grave and her memory are honored by all of us.”
He embraced her in a long, sobbing
hug. Then he continued, “You must come to
In time that is exactly what Aggie Hurst and her husband did. They were welcomed by cheering throngs of villagers. She even met the man who so many years before, when she was less than a month old, had been hired by her father to carry her down the mountain in a soft bark hammock.
The most dramatic moment, of
course, was when the pastor escorted Aggie to see her mother’s grave,
marked with a white cross, for herself. She knelt in
the soil of
He then followed with Psalm 126:5:
“They who sow in tears shall reap in joy.”
(An excerpt from Aggie Hurst, Aggie: The Inspiring Story of A
Girl Without A Country [Springfield, MO: Gospel Publishing House, 1986].)
This
newsletter is produced six times per year by the Laymen’s Evangelical
Fellowship International. It is printed and distributed in the
This Fellowship is an inter-denominational missionary and
prayer group working for revival in churches and amongst students in several
countries. We invite every layperson to become God’s ally in changing his
or her corner of the world. We train people in evangelistic work and to be
self-supporting missionaries.
r
r
r
r
MALAYSIA: P.O.Box 236, Jalan Kelang Lama, 58700 Kuala Lumpur West Malaysia, Phone
– 012-3416203
(James)
or No.3, Lorong
Beduk, Taman Sungai Bakap,
14200 Sungai Bakap, Seberang
Prai Selatan, Pulau Pinang. Phone
– 019-4493115 (Ong)
r
r
r
r
r INTERNET: http://lefi.org
r EMAIL: post@lefi.org
PLEASE PASS THIS ON TO A FRIEND