Thoughts
on Michael Wells’ teachings in My Weakness for His Strength - # 110
Michael’s book is
available through:
Abiding Life
Ministries International
Littleton, Colorado
Notice: this email is part of a
BLOG, called Living Life With a Capital “C”. Why a blog? So that many can receive the weekly thoughts
I express on Michael’s writings in an easy manner.
Everyone
in Christianity should know about and understand the connection God makes in
His Word about how He designed and built our physical body and its individual
parts functioning to make our body “work,” AND how God designed and builds His
Church to take the “parts” He places together to “work” as He sees fit. Michael points out today that EVERY part is
important, and often the ones we think are the “least” are ones He deems most
important. And he show us the sad end of
the Church family not recognizing how important “unity in Spirit” of the Church
family is.
DAY 259
The
Body
So we, who are many, are one body in Christ, and
individually members one of another. --Romans 12:5
One man said that
the proof of God was the wondrous working of the thumb. Look at where it is and
how it operates. God put us together physically. The more we understand the
body, the more revelation we can have into THE
Body.
There is the
unseemly member, thus named because of the prevailing attitude from our
awareness after the fall of man, though God ordained its function. We cannot
talk about this unpresentable member in the physical body, but we know which
one it is. Did God do right in locking up and assigning to this member the
perpetuation of His ongoing creation? Are we right when we decide what is
seemly and unseemly? God puts more abundant honor on the members that lacked
it. One day I discover that I am the less honorable member of the Body, when I
had judged that it was you!
When a young man
falls in love and produces a photo, what does he show? The face, of course, not
an x-ray of the kidneys. “These are the lovely kidneys of my girlfriend.”
However, if the kidneys are not working, the young lady will not be
presentable. What is the point? More and more I view what I do as an end result of the Lord's work
through the organs, the unseen others. Many things have to come together
for me to speak at any one church or meeting. Somewhere along the line I had to
meet the host, or he at least needed to hear of me. He had to love the message.
He had to know the people who could help him organize and set up the seminar,
and all of them had some particular gift and other acquaintances that helped
facilitate it all. All had to have jobs and finances that allowed us to be
together at the exact time, all of us excited about our God. Someone invented
the airplane, cars, e-mail, and more to get us here. I must stop for I am going
mad! Do you see why I believe I am the less honorable member? The Scripture says to “grieve
not the Holy Spirit.” Falling out with those on whom I am so dependent is just
wrong. When we fall out with another member of the Body, for whom Jesus shed
his blood, it grieves the Spirit. There is no forgiveness for unforgiveness, and every time
we judge a person, we are guilty of unforgiveness. When judgment begins,
where will God start? May
the Church not go blindly on its way of not recognizing the Body.
Yellow – VIP, Very Important Point Green
– IT, Incredible Truth
Red – GP, Greatest Promises
Turquoise – UR, Unfathomable Riches Pink
– PV, Priceless Victory
Michael makes a beautiful observation that what He accomplished was the
end result of the Lord’s work through so many.
And of course, the many were often unknown and unseen by so many
others. And then Michael makes notes of
one of the most tragic mistakes made in the body of Christ…falling out with
those on whom we are so dependent.
But it is Michael’s last 4 sentences that make such a huge impression:
“When we fall out with another member of the Body, for whom Jesus shed
his blood, IT GRIEVES THE SPIRIT.” (my caps).
The grieving of the Spirit is
one of the most unrecognized and less dealt with issues in way too many
Christians’ lives. And so often, it is because
of pride in thinking one is more honorable than another member.
“There is no forgiveness for unforgiveness, and every time we judge a
person, we are guilty of unforgiveness.”
This is a shock, isn’t
it?!?
“When judgment begins, where will God start?”
I think of this as “putting
the handcuffs on God.” In whom and when
and where can God work when we have moved into unforgiveness? We don’t see that, do we?
“May the Church not go blindly on its way of not recognizing the Body.”
Is it because the Church does
not know or understand the connection God has made between our physical body
and the Body of Christ? Is it because
the Church does not care about the “unity of the Spirit” in the Body? Whatever it is, leadership needs to embrace
this, teach this, and lead the Church to be the Body God intends for it to be.
To access ALL past weekly
blogs, go to Living
Life With a Capital “C” by logging onto www.leemccm.blogspot.com
Lee McDowell Christian Ministries
leemccm@gmail.com
P. O. Box 633244 Nacogdoches, Tx 75963 936-559-5696
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