A Gentle Spirit
.
Pastor Jeanne Stewart, Oklahoma
.
http://simplyspokenword.blogspot.com/
Toxic
Destruction
One bright day a
tender-hearted shepherd named Humble was tending his sheep high in the
mountains near his ranch. Looking across to a rocky ledge, he saw three cousins
walking on the overhang near the ridge. Humble warned them of the danger ahead
but all three ignored his calls of alarm.
The leader of the
cousins was called Pride. Confident in himself and his own talents, Pride took
control of the bumbling threesome. “Follow me and I will show you which way we
need to go for I have never seen my way fail.”
Following close
behind Pride was Envy who was whining the entire time. “We cannot do it this
way, Pride. Why do you never ask me about my ideas? They are just the thing we
need to do. You never listen to my brilliance anyway.”
Bringing up the rear,
shaking in distress and afraid of both Pride and Envy, was the cousin known as
Fear. As they all move closer to the edge before them, Fear was talking as he
walked in conflict, “I think we need to use our ropes to bind us together so we
will not fall into the crater for it looks like a deep chasm.”
“Pride goes before
destruction and a haughty spirit before a fall. Better to be of a humble spirit
with the lowly, than to divide the plunder with the proud.” Proverbs 16:18-19
My tale is like a
painting containing images of our foolish ways which occasionally amuse the
world around us. Scripture has much to say of those who have gone before us
within God’s word, giving us great wisdom learned from their failures. There is
a thread that weaves throughout the pages of the Bible, tying stories and
principles together. The sequence of events joins each generation, and
illustrates great victories and, sad to say, occurrences of defeat.
As children of God,
we have our own designated time designed by His purpose for fruitfulness. In
the fullness of His will all the anointing and gifting come together in the
right place and in the right sequence as we become more and more obedient to
walk His perfect way and not the ways of destruction.
Catching the Gaze of
Jesus
After several years
of servant-hood inside the Church setting, I am still learning first-hand God’s
grace and mercies through difficult times of spiritual growth among believers.
Within the Church
today is a pollutant that slowly kills and prevents ministry from coming to its
fullness of fruitfulness. Hidden within spirits of envy, pride and fear of
others’ callings and gifting, is dangerous slow-moving venom. It assaults the
bloodstream of the Bride with its toxic effects.
In this portion of
scripture in Luke 22:54-62, Peter experiences the toxin of pride mixed with
fear as the Lord stood in the high priest’s house after being arrested in
Gethsemane. Peter, warming himself by a fire in the midst of the courtyard,
caught the intensity of discernment from Jesus’ gaze. The rooster has just
crowed. Peter had three times denied knowing Christ. Suddenly recalling the
words of Jesus just a few hours earlier, Peter rushed out into the darkness,
weeping bitterly as he realized pride and fear truly had control of him as
Jesus had spoken. At that moment I am sure Peter felt he had fallen into the
depths of destruction.
Coming to grips with
himself, Peter in time did just as Jesus had spoken of in verse 32 of Luke 22.
“But I have prayed for you; that your faith should not fail; and when you have
returned to Me, strengthen your brethren.”
Peter came back into
leadership stronger than before his fall. In the mercies of God we awaken to a
new day unto Him every morning. Recognizing the toxic destruction satan has
designed for God’s Church is a major step up onto the highway of holiness and
our Lord’s walk of grace.
Every Tree Has a
Different Season to Bear Fruit
Have you ever had
someone in spiritual leadership be jealous of you and the call of God on your
life? Have you in spiritual leadership ever been jealous of someone else and
the anointing and gifting that God had designed for them?
When we seek a
position in order to look good in someone else’s eyes, we are in danger of
allowing sin to enter in. The age-old sin of pride, hiding in envy, comes from
the one who sifts as wheat those he hates.
In Psalm chapter 1 we
read about the way of the righteous and the end of the ungodly. Trees planted
by rivers of fresh-running water will produce and bring forth fruit in their
season. God’s children are symbols of fruit produced and whatever we do for
Him, we flow in the prosperity of His life-giving course.
There can be a toxic
jealousy among leaders, causing them fear of being displaced from their
positions in the Body of Christ. We must remember we are not our own, we were
bought with a price, the price of Jesus’ death. The work that we do among the
church and among believers should be done in pure humility, not false modesty.
With the confidence of God’s Holy Spirit flowing from a heart given totally
unto His purpose, encouraging one another in love should always be our first
and greatest purpose.
Do We Deny His Power?
“For men will be
lovers of themselves, lovers of money, boasters, proud, blasphemers,
disobedient to parents, unthankful, unholy, unloving, unforgiving, slanderers,
without self-control, brutal, despisers of good, traitors, headstrong, haughty,
lovers of pleasure rather than lovers of God, having a form of godliness but
denying its power. And from such people turn away!” 2 Timothy 3:2-5
How many true
believers in Christ Jesus read this passage and think it refers to unbelievers,
reasoning that no true believer could do any of these things listed? But this
verse is addressing the Church and those who name the one true God as Lord. We
can look within the walls of our western churches today and see many of these
strongholds on believers because they have allowed toxins within their
spiritual bloodstreams. They have accepted the lie from the father of lies and
their actions have diminished their walk of grace. They have fallen off the
highway of holiness into a deep ditch of pride.
“Tell us, by what
authority are You doing these things? Or who is he who gave You this
authority?” (Luke 20:2) If Jesus’ authority was questioned, then so will the
authority of the one who seeks that deeper place in Jesus. The pride of doing
things our own way can be judged on how we accept someone questioning our
authority. For the one who is totally surrendered and has humbled himself,
there should be no argument or question. Within their own heart they know that
they have been given authority by the Holy Spirit of God’s calling and gifting
in their life.
What would have
happened if the three traveling on the rocky ledge-trail were Humility,
Contentment and Encouragement? Humility would have said, “Follow me as I follow
the Holy Spirit.” Contentment would have replied, “We can do all things through
Christ who strengthens us.” Then we would see Fear diminish, allowing his true
person to come forth by seeing God’s trusting love in action through the lives
of his friends.
The Church of Jesus
Christ today should be a body of true believers oiled in unity by the Holy
Spirit and functioning properly in God’s grace and mercy. If you have allowed
pride, envy or fear to attach strongholds in your life, you are bound for
destruction and not the peace that passes all understanding.
Ending Prayer ~
Most Holy Father God
… help us to allow You to come forth in our lives and cleanse us from all the
schemes of our enemies, deliver us from evil so that we may walk the level path
of Your purpose for our generation. We ask for victories as we pull down
strongholds that would keep us weak and trembling. We ask believing that all
the promises in Your Word are true and ours to reach and accomplish by Your
loving mercies that are new every morning. In Jesus we ask these things. Amen ~
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