Welcome once
again to "Faith Chapel."
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I'm Gordon Arruda,
head elder of the Roseville
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Seventh-day Adventist Church
in Sacramento, California.
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Today we're going
to be studying a topic
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that recently has
become very dear to my heart.
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It has also become
very clear to my heart.
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It is a gift and
something that the Holy Spirit
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has been pressing upon me.
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Especially as I
see the church coming
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closer and closer to
our glorious rendezvous
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with the second
coming of Jesus Christ.
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The topic is called
"The Unity of Faith."
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Unity is an interesting word
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because there's two
perspectives about unity.
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There is a unity
as the world sees it,
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which really means uniformity.
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That means everybody complying
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and being and
thinking the same way.
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And if you don't,
there's adverse consequences.
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But that is not the
true meaning of unity
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from a biblical standpoint
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and certainly not
from God's standpoint.
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Unity is a beautiful thing,
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and it takes
diversity to make up the unity
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that truly
represents Jesus Christ.
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And so let's have a prayer
as we delve into the scripture
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and we explore the true essence
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and meaning and power of unity.
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Father in Heaven, again we ask
You for Your spirit to be here,
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for the personal
presence of our Lord Jesus
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to minister the
word to our hearts.
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Jesus, You are
gentle and You are faithful
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and we thank You for
the way You can teach us
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in a way that nobody else can.
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Use the words here,
use the scriptures here
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to bear witness in
our hearts of the truth.
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And let it be
accompanied with power.
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Bring conviction to us as
a people and the need, Lord,
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of You and our
need for one another.
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In Your precious and
holy name we pray, amen.
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I'd like to start with
1 Corinthians Chapter 12.
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1 Corinthians
12:13, Paul states,
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"For by one Spirit we
were all baptized into one body
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whether Jews or
Greeks, whether slaves or free
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and have all been made
to drink into one Spirit."
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Here Paul says
something that really took me
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a while to realize the
magnitude in what it says.
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Many times in witnessing
to individuals, non believers,
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people who have an interest
in the Bible but really have not
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made a definitive
commitment to Jesus Christ,
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have often told me,
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"I don't mind
being baptized into Jesus
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but I don't want to be
baptized into any church."
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In this scripture,
Paul clearly states that
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baptism
baptizes you into a body.
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Jesus Christ does not
recognize any baptism of one
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who does it with the
intent of standing aloof
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or separated from
the body of Jesus Christ.
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Baptism is always not
only a confession of Christ,
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but a confession that
now you are being entered
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into the body of Jesus Christ
and standing as a full saint
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and participant in
the Kingdom of God.
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This kind of individualism
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which permeates our
culture in the society,
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really does not really
come forth as scriptural.
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Many people think
that they can be baptized
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and be independent in
their walk with Jesus,
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that they can stand afar off
from any assembly of believers.
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That they do not
have to be accountable
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or even
responsible for living in unity
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and living in
commonality with others
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who have come to
know and believe in Jesus.
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This is something the
scriptures do not teach.
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Any baptism that
is done that separates
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or keeps the
individual separated
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from the body of believers
is not biblical baptism.
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The Holy Spirit will
not bear witness to it.
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The purpose of the
Holy Spirit is to baptize us
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not only into
Christ but into one body
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and fellowship of believers.
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I know this runs smack in
the face of what is treasured
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and valued in our society
today, namely, individuality.
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There's nothing
wrong with individuality,
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but when it's taken to extreme,
what it really means is,
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"I want to do what I
want to do under my own terms
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and under my conditions."
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This is not the
faith of Jesus Christ
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and this
certainly does not entail
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a genuine baptism
into Jesus Christ.
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That kind of individualism
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still holds self in high
esteem and as number one.
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But the baptism as
prescribed by scripture,
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baptizes you into a body
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and thereby we
learn how to grow,
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we learn how to worship,
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we actually learn how to
get along with one another.
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And perhaps that
is by God's design
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and part of the
reasons why we need to grow
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and to
experience sanctification.
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I'd like to go to the scripture
now in the Gospel of John.
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John 17:21.
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This is a very
powerful scripture and one
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that is worthy of
intense study and contemplation.
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John says, "That they
all may be one, as You,
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Father, are in Me, and I in You,
that they also may be one in Us,
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that the world may
believe that You sent Me.
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And the glory which You
gave Me, I have given to them,
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that they may be one
just as We are one, I in them,
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and You in Me, that they
may be made perfect in one,
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and that the world may
know that You have sent Me,
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and have loved them
as You have loved Me."
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Here we see Jesus giving
a very profound statement
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on the issue of unity
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and to really
get an appreciation
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for the comprehensiveness of it,
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I'd like to go back to
the issue of the trinity,
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the Father, Son
and the Holy Spirit.
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And what defines the
relationship between them
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as they function as
a Trinitarian deity?
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In scripture, it says
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that the Father
has glorified the son.
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The Son when he
came to the earth
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was committed to bringing
glory and glorifying the Father.
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When the Holy Spirit
comes, He is commissioned
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with giving
glory to Jesus Christ
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and not speaking of himself.
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Notice the dynamic that goes on
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between the Father,
Son and the Holy Spirit.
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The thing that
defines their oneness
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is that they exist to
serve and glorify each other.
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This is the
dynamic that the Spirit
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and the Son and the Father,
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the trinity have
going on between themselves.
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This has such a profound impact
on how we should view unity.
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What helps the
unity, what binds the unity
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into being a beautiful thing,
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is the principle
of giving of oneself
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for the sake of the other,
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of living to uplift
and glorify the other.
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Now in this prayer
we just read in John,
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John is talking about the unity
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that is experienced
between the Father and Himself,
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may also be experienced
between us, one another.
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There is no other way,
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there is no other principle
that Christ will impress
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or impart to a
worshiper or believer.
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And this is why
the idea of separatism
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is not found under the
auspices of the Holy Spirit
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and it is not recommended,
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it is deplored
in the word of God.
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He further says in John 17,
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that in this unity that
exists among the believers,
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it is in that
condition in that environment
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that they are to be perfected.
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Now isn't that interesting?
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We often seek perfection
or we think from others
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have told us that
we find perfection
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by somehow separating ourselves
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and going off to
some desolate location
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where we're
going to find holiness.
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This whole religious
thoughts that actually
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developed this kind of theology
in the early Christian Church,
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there was an
individual that lived
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in one of the
ancient cities of Asia Minor
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where they had a
big, long, tall pillar
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and he sat upon it
for the rest of his life
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because he didn't want to
experience any temptation.
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This in his mind was the way
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he could achieve the
ultimate perfection and holiness
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that he thought
God required of him.
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What is really sad is
that the church espoused
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this kind of
demonstration as the ideal of
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what constituted perfection
or what constituted holiness.
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It was very sad because
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this is nothing of
what God has in mind.
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This is not something
that is found in Scripture.
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This is something that
comes from the mind of man
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and the way he
chooses to practice religion.
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We find these disciplines
maybe in monastic living.
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We find some of these principles
in some of the eastern religions
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where those who would
truly find enlightenment
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are separated from
any body of believers,
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it's an
individual trek and journey.
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And so there's many religious
thoughts and disciplines
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that espouse this individualism
in obtaining perfection.
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But the prayer of
our Lord Jesus Christ,
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as He said it here in John 17,
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is that we may all be one as
the Father and Jesus are one.
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And that, in that
oneness with one another
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and our oneness with Him,
we may be perfected in unity.
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Unity is absolutely
essential in God's plan,
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our spiritual growth and
development for us individually
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and for the church corporately.
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To get further
inside into this principle,
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let's now turn to the
Book of Ephesians Chapter 4.
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Ephesians Chapter 4.
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We'll be reading
verse11 through 13 at this time.
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"And he himself gave some
to be apostles, some prophets,
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some evangelists, and
some pastors and teachers,
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for the equipping of the
saints for the work of ministry,
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for the edifying
of the body of Christ
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till we all come to
the unity of the faith
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and of the
knowledge of the Son of God,
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to a perfect man,
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to the measure of the stature
of the fullness of Christ."
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In the giving of
the different roles
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and offices by the
Holy Spirit to the church,
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mentioned here as apostles,
prophets, teachers, pastors,
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these gifts are given
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not based on spiritual
superiority held by individuals,
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but by enabling
them to accentuate
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the characteristics
of our Lord Jesus Christ
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as they fulfill
their spiritual gift
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under the
guidance of the Holy Spirit
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and that is the
giving of themselves
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to the body of Christ.
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Leadership in Christ's
church, in Jesus' church
00:13:08.09\00:13:13.49
is not based on
the same principles
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that it is in the world.
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Leadership in the
church of Jesus Christ
00:13:18.64\00:13:22.04
is based on what the individual
is willing to sacrifice
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and give for the nurturing
and the building up of the body.
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Some do it because they've
been appointed to be apostles,
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others do it
because they've been
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appointed to be pastors,
still others as teachers.
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But notice, none
of these officers
00:13:41.31\00:13:43.85
is to speak anything
of a spiritual superiority
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upon the one on whom
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the spiritual gift
has been conferred.
00:13:49.36\00:13:53.98
We need to understand
00:13:54.01\00:13:55.66
that the Holy Spirit anoints
us for ministry and service.
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And these roles and officers
00:14:00.91\00:14:02.91
were never meant to
place one above another.
00:14:02.94\00:14:07.31
In fact, in
following the example of Jesus,
00:14:07.34\00:14:11.32
it is a greater
responsibility to humble oneself
00:14:11.35\00:14:16.02
for the nurturing to the church.
00:14:16.05\00:14:19.06
Isn't this exactly the principle
00:14:19.09\00:14:20.67
that exists in the Holy Trinity?
00:14:20.70\00:14:23.75
Isn't this exactly what existed
between the Father and the Son?
00:14:23.78\00:14:28.29
And so the conferring of
spiritual gifts in the church
00:14:28.32\00:14:32.12
is no way intended to
elevate another person as though
00:14:32.15\00:14:36.83
they are endowed with some
sort of super spirituality,
00:14:36.86\00:14:40.94
but rather, it takes
on the responsibility
00:14:40.97\00:14:44.65
of how much they
are willing to sacrifice
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and give for the
nurturing of the church.
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Leadership in the
church of Jesus Christ
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is based on service.
00:14:53.22\00:14:55.03
Jesus demonstrated this
00:14:55.06\00:14:57.13
so much when He was
with His own disciples.
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Did not He even say
that the greatest among you
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will be the least and the least
among you will be the greatest?
00:15:03.45\00:15:06.99
When He washed their feet in
that scene in the last supper
00:15:07.02\00:15:10.94
and didn't He not say that,
00:15:10.97\00:15:13.71
if I wash your feet so you ought
to wash one another's feet.
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This is done only by a servant
00:15:19.12\00:15:21.38
and yet Jesus says, this is what
the master does in my church,
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he washes the
feet of the others.
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Secondly, in the Scripture,
00:15:29.77\00:15:32.12
it talks about the
purpose of this arrangement,
00:15:32.15\00:15:34.82
the reason why
the gifts are given
00:15:34.85\00:15:36.81
is for the
building up of the church
00:15:36.84\00:15:40.22
into the full measure of Christ,
into a complete and mature man.
00:15:40.25\00:15:46.66
It strikes me that individuals
00:15:46.69\00:15:50.15
who do not take on the
responsibility of relationships,
00:15:50.18\00:15:56.13
who prefer to stay aloof of
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their responsibilities
and relationships,
00:15:59.31\00:16:01.36
whether it's a husband and wife,
00:16:01.39\00:16:02.76
a father and a
mother to the children,
00:16:02.79\00:16:05.00
whether it's our,
you know, to an elder,
00:16:05.03\00:16:08.92
a mother or a
father, they never grow up.
00:16:08.95\00:16:13.36
They stay children because
what is happening is that
00:16:13.39\00:16:17.55
they are not learning
what it means to sacrifice
00:16:17.58\00:16:20.64
and give of oneself for the
sake of their relationships.
00:16:20.67\00:16:24.56
Relationships can only work
when the parties are willing
00:16:24.59\00:16:28.90
to humble
themselves one to another.
00:16:28.93\00:16:31.69
And this is why Christ creates
the fellowship of all believers.
00:16:31.72\00:16:35.79
This is why He creates the
priesthood of all believers.
00:16:35.82\00:16:38.94
So we can be ministers
even as He's minister to us.
00:16:38.97\00:16:44.36
When we have an atmosphere
00:16:44.39\00:16:47.14
where this is what's
happening in the church,
00:16:47.17\00:16:50.04
where the pulse or
the culture of the church
00:16:50.07\00:16:52.77
is to build one another up.
00:16:52.80\00:16:55.88
What it does, it takes
away the wrong mentality
00:16:55.91\00:16:59.89
and mindset of going
to church and thinking,
00:16:59.92\00:17:02.73
what can I get out of church?
00:17:02.76\00:17:05.89
Many of us do that.
00:17:05.92\00:17:07.67
The issue is not what
we can get out of church,
00:17:07.70\00:17:10.32
it's what church
can get out of us,
00:17:10.35\00:17:13.49
that was the
intent of Jesus Christ.
00:17:13.52\00:17:16.46
And to the degree
that the humility of Jesus
00:17:16.49\00:17:18.88
is worked into the
heart of an individual,
00:17:18.91\00:17:22.06
to that degree He is
qualified to carry on
00:17:22.09\00:17:24.75
a leadership role in the church.
00:17:24.78\00:17:27.21
He mentors and models
00:17:27.24\00:17:28.77
what it means to
walk in the Spirit
00:17:28.80\00:17:31.30
and to truly live
a life of humility.
00:17:31.33\00:17:34.31
He demonstrates
a life of service,
00:17:34.34\00:17:36.24
of giving with no thought
00:17:36.27\00:17:38.41
or account of receiving
any glory of recognition.
00:17:38.44\00:17:42.33
Oftentimes leaders are targets,
they're blamed for many things.
00:17:42.36\00:17:46.43
But this is part of the
way in which we grow up.
00:17:46.46\00:17:50.73
When we become the
target of objections
00:17:50.76\00:17:53.32
and even insults and injury,
00:17:53.35\00:17:56.39
there is where the purification
of our Lord comes in even deeper
00:17:56.42\00:18:00.25
there is where we learn
to love from a pure place,
00:18:00.28\00:18:04.31
from a pure
motive, as Jesus loved us
00:18:04.34\00:18:07.06
even though we rejected
Him and spit in His face.
00:18:07.09\00:18:10.62
To learn to love
like Jesus Christ
00:18:10.65\00:18:13.08
is to learn to live life
in the community of believers.
00:18:13.11\00:18:17.95
This is why unity in the church
00:18:17.98\00:18:20.79
grows us and builds us up
00:18:20.82\00:18:24.00
and has a specific purpose
and plan in the Kingdom of God.
00:18:24.03\00:18:30.05
Next, we need to turn further
00:18:30.08\00:18:32.06
into the Book of
Ephesians in Chapter 4,
00:18:32.09\00:18:34.80
but this time we're going to
be reading verses 14 through 15.
00:18:34.83\00:18:41.57
Paul continues with his dialogue
on the unity of the church.
00:18:41.60\00:18:46.37
"That we should no
longer be children,
00:18:46.40\00:18:49.32
tossed to and
fro and carried about
00:18:49.35\00:18:51.96
with every wind of doctrine,
by the trickery of men,
00:18:51.99\00:18:56.14
in the cunning craftiness
of deceitful plotting,
00:18:56.17\00:18:59.31
but, speaking the truth in love
00:19:03.48\00:19:06.79
may grow up in
all things into Him
00:19:06.82\00:19:10.13
who is the head, Christ."
00:19:10.16\00:19:14.67
Isn't it amazing,
that so many people
00:19:14.70\00:19:17.47
have developed strategies on
how to become more spiritual.
00:19:17.50\00:19:21.89
Some of them are thought
provoking and beneficial even,
00:19:21.92\00:19:25.72
but the one strategy
that is often overlooked
00:19:25.75\00:19:29.17
is fellowship with one another.
00:19:29.20\00:19:32.05
Many of the Epistles of Paul,
half the epistles are taken up
00:19:32.08\00:19:36.53
just counseling the
saints in various cities
00:19:36.56\00:19:40.13
on how to get
along with one another.
00:19:40.16\00:19:42.81
This is a large part of
our spiritual development.
00:19:42.84\00:19:46.37
We learn what it is
to live in community.
00:19:46.40\00:19:48.95
We learn what it is
to be in relationship.
00:19:48.98\00:19:52.05
We learn to give up our
own agendas, our own ways
00:19:52.08\00:19:55.60
and what we think is
right and what we need to do
00:19:55.63\00:19:58.23
for the sake of the body.
00:19:58.26\00:20:00.26
We learn to come into church
and enter into its activities
00:20:00.29\00:20:04.35
with the mindset
and the attitude,
00:20:04.38\00:20:07.18
"I come here to bless,
00:20:07.21\00:20:09.59
I come here to
exalt or lift up another,
00:20:09.62\00:20:14.14
I come here to fulfill
00:20:14.17\00:20:16.29
what Jesus has put
in my heart to do."
00:20:16.32\00:20:19.88
Can you imagine a
community of believers
00:20:19.91\00:20:22.52
where everybody has
this mindset coming in,
00:20:22.55\00:20:26.00
what that would look like?
00:20:26.03\00:20:28.70
Much of the strife, divisions
and bickerings in the church
00:20:28.73\00:20:32.79
are present because we practice
00:20:32.82\00:20:35.37
much of our
religion in our flesh nature,
00:20:35.40\00:20:37.73
in our fallen nature.
00:20:37.76\00:20:39.61
Paul even
counsels the Corinthians
00:20:39.64\00:20:41.55
that the reasons why
there are divisions and disputes
00:20:41.58\00:20:43.99
among them is because
they are still carnal,
00:20:44.02\00:20:47.30
they are like babes,
they haven't grown up.
00:20:47.33\00:20:50.93
The freshly nature is
always trying to intrude
00:20:50.96\00:20:53.83
on the work of the Holy Spirit
00:20:53.86\00:20:55.83
and coming up with its
ideas on how to best suit
00:20:55.86\00:20:59.02
the role of doing church.
00:20:59.05\00:21:03.09
But, you know, until we
learn to crucify the flesh
00:21:03.12\00:21:07.32
through the power of the Spirit,
00:21:07.35\00:21:09.15
until we learn to find
our rest and abiding in Christ
00:21:09.18\00:21:12.16
and let the flesh go
with all its desires,
00:21:12.19\00:21:15.13
with all its agendas, with
all its arrogance and pride
00:21:15.16\00:21:19.54
and what we think
is best for the church.
00:21:19.57\00:21:22.54
Until we do that,
00:21:22.57\00:21:24.31
we will always be being
00:21:24.34\00:21:25.71
practicing
religion in the flesh.
00:21:25.74\00:21:28.10
This is what Paul talks about,
00:21:28.13\00:21:30.48
that as we experience
the unity of the faith,
00:21:30.51\00:21:34.22
of being brought together,
00:21:34.25\00:21:36.14
we learn many times
and hopefully, all the time
00:21:36.17\00:21:40.45
what it means to give up self.
00:21:40.48\00:21:42.97
We come into
conflict with individuals
00:21:43.00\00:21:45.90
and our first response
is to look at the individual
00:21:45.93\00:21:48.78
and to look at all their faults.
00:21:48.81\00:21:51.81
Oh, if they can only
be a little more patient,
00:21:51.84\00:21:54.30
if they could only
learn a little more
00:21:54.33\00:21:57.23
on what it means
to run a program.
00:21:57.26\00:21:59.26
If they could only be
a little more loving or,
00:21:59.29\00:22:03.00
you know, listen
most of the time.
00:22:03.03\00:22:05.19
It's always about them,
00:22:05.22\00:22:07.94
but the Holy Spirit is calling
us again to open our hearts
00:22:07.97\00:22:12.88
and to look at the
way we are reacting
00:22:12.91\00:22:15.16
to what we see in them.
00:22:15.19\00:22:17.20
This is the way we
grow, is in relationship.
00:22:17.23\00:22:21.16
Sanctification so often
has been spoken of as though
00:22:21.19\00:22:25.05
it's something that
happens apart from relationship.
00:22:25.08\00:22:29.05
Truly our personal walk
and our prayer life with Jesus
00:22:29.08\00:22:32.91
is foundational and critical.
00:22:32.94\00:22:35.92
But what is the purpose
00:22:35.95\00:22:37.32
of having this
foundation in Christ?
00:22:37.35\00:22:39.52
What is the purpose of
abiding in Jesus Christ
00:22:39.55\00:22:42.75
and being
filled with the Spirit?
00:22:42.78\00:22:44.79
Is it not to change our lives,
so now we become an instrument
00:22:44.82\00:22:48.01
and an arsenal of love
that declares His glory?
00:22:48.04\00:22:51.88
And what is this love?
00:22:51.91\00:22:53.71
Is it not to live
to lift up another?
00:22:53.74\00:22:57.09
Is it not to live to
make sure the other person
00:22:57.12\00:23:00.44
will be found complete in
their walk in Jesus Christ?
00:23:00.47\00:23:04.42
Can we not with our hearts,
understand that it is imperative
00:23:04.45\00:23:09.50
that we go to
church with that mindset?
00:23:09.53\00:23:13.73
Jesus has this by
design, this is the very essence
00:23:13.76\00:23:18.12
and how He views
the church ought to be.
00:23:18.15\00:23:21.04
This is what He
prays for in John 17.
00:23:21.07\00:23:24.83
And this is what the
church will look like
00:23:24.86\00:23:27.95
when it is truly complete.
00:23:27.98\00:23:30.30
I'd like to read on in
Ephesians Chapter 4:16.
00:23:30.33\00:23:36.47
"From whom the whole body,
00:23:36.50\00:23:38.29
joined and knit together
by what every joint supplies,
00:23:38.32\00:23:42.32
according to the
effective working
00:23:42.35\00:23:44.23
by which every
part does its share,
00:23:44.26\00:23:47.37
causes growth of the body for
the edifying of itself in love."
00:23:47.40\00:23:54.10
Notice what the environment
00:23:54.13\00:23:56.01
that is created
by this arrangement.
00:23:56.04\00:23:58.03
It's an environment
of love, whose love?
00:23:58.06\00:24:01.72
Not human love,
00:24:01.75\00:24:03.12
or the love that normally
comes from our humanity.
00:24:03.15\00:24:06.16
The love that
Christ puts in our heart,
00:24:06.19\00:24:08.75
it is from that
in which we function.
00:24:08.78\00:24:12.02
It says that we
were all knitted together
00:24:12.05\00:24:14.38
and joined together by
that which each joint supplies.
00:24:14.41\00:24:19.44
Notice that
every joint is involved
00:24:19.47\00:24:22.00
in supplying
something or giving something.
00:24:22.03\00:24:26.30
That is what brings
and fits things together
00:24:26.33\00:24:30.52
and creates a firm foundation
for the church to grow.
00:24:30.55\00:24:35.40
When the energies of
individuals and leaders
00:24:35.43\00:24:39.00
is for the nurturing of the body
00:24:39.03\00:24:41.15
and when that kind of a culture
and mindset is duplicated
00:24:41.18\00:24:46.31
and produced within
the church of Jesus Christ,
00:24:46.34\00:24:49.77
that is the evidence
00:24:49.80\00:24:51.17
that the Holy Spirit
is working with power.
00:24:51.20\00:24:53.93
Because that is
exactly what the Holy Spirit
00:24:53.96\00:24:56.43
wants to impart to individuals
00:24:56.46\00:24:58.79
and what he wants individuals
to bring to the church.
00:24:58.82\00:25:02.58
We do not grow,
apart from unity.
00:25:02.61\00:25:06.02
We cannot be
perfected, apart from unity.
00:25:06.05\00:25:10.01
So often we're looking
at world events as evidences
00:25:10.04\00:25:13.13
of the soon
coming of Jesus Christ.
00:25:13.16\00:25:15.87
So often we look at
events and say ah, see it's near
00:25:15.90\00:25:19.71
and we look other
places at catastrophes
00:25:19.74\00:25:21.93
and wars and rumors of war.
00:25:21.96\00:25:23.82
We see what's happening in the
religious and spiritual world,
00:25:23.85\00:25:27.23
developments that we have
long been expecting to happen
00:25:27.26\00:25:30.46
and they are being fulfilled.
00:25:30.49\00:25:32.91
But Jesus will not come
00:25:32.94\00:25:35.38
until He comes to a
church that is unified.
00:25:35.41\00:25:39.90
He's not coming for
a bunch of individuals
00:25:39.93\00:25:42.79
separated from one another.
00:25:42.82\00:25:44.76
He comes when the
church comes together in unity
00:25:44.79\00:25:48.86
because it has borne
within the fellowship
00:25:48.89\00:25:51.68
the imprint, the mindset
00:25:51.71\00:25:54.02
and the
attitude of Jesus Christ.
00:25:54.05\00:25:56.33
That attitude of service,
00:25:56.36\00:25:58.32
that attitude of
always willing to give
00:25:58.35\00:26:01.07
and even sacrifice for the
sake of a brother and sister
00:26:01.10\00:26:05.24
to uphold an uplift all people
00:26:05.27\00:26:08.00
and to nurture
their walk with Christ
00:26:08.03\00:26:09.91
so that they can be complete.
00:26:09.94\00:26:12.41
I am learning to train
my mind coming to church
00:26:12.44\00:26:15.64
recognizing that
my Lord will not come
00:26:15.67\00:26:19.95
until my brother and my sister
are complete in Jesus Christ
00:26:19.98\00:26:25.03
and that Jesus has empowered
me to help them along the way
00:26:25.06\00:26:29.26
and to make that thing happen.
00:26:29.29\00:26:33.26
When we can look at
one another that way,
00:26:33.29\00:26:36.26
when we can look at
our brother and our sister
00:26:36.29\00:26:39.33
and recognize that
Jesus will not come
00:26:39.36\00:26:42.92
until those people, our brothers
and sisters can be completed
00:26:42.95\00:26:48.26
and matured in Jesus Christ.
00:26:48.29\00:26:51.29
Jesus then will see that
00:26:51.32\00:26:53.83
He has a church
He can come back to.
00:26:53.86\00:26:56.83
He has empowered
each and every one of us
00:26:56.86\00:26:59.66
to have this mind
that belongs to Him,
00:26:59.69\00:27:02.82
to have the heart
that he imparts to us
00:27:02.85\00:27:06.27
and to bring that
attitude of service,
00:27:06.30\00:27:09.51
of looking upon others as ones
we are to give ourselves to,
00:27:09.54\00:27:14.63
for their benefit and for
their spiritual well-being.
00:27:14.66\00:27:18.20
This is the kind of
church Christ is coming back to.
00:27:18.23\00:27:22.01
This is the kind of
church that he's looking for,
00:27:22.04\00:27:25.03
this is the kind of church
00:27:25.06\00:27:26.43
that gives the
powerful witness to the world
00:27:26.46\00:27:29.02
that Jesus has
risen from the dead
00:27:29.05\00:27:31.81
and now sits with power
at the right hand of God.
00:27:31.84\00:27:34.77
This is the church
that Jesus will find
00:27:34.80\00:27:37.48
when He comes again in glory
00:27:37.51\00:27:39.57
and in the power and
the glory of His father.
00:27:39.60\00:27:42.35
May this all
happen within our lifetime
00:27:42.38\00:27:45.36
and may we live to see the
glorious return of our Lord.
00:27:45.39\00:27:49.48
Thank you so much
and God bless you.
00:27:49.51\00:27:52.67