Tag Archives: inspiration for Christian leaders

Who Will Lead the End-Time Church #15

Posted on 11/13/2023 | Comments Off on Who Will Lead the End-Time Church #15

Restoring Order to Christ’s Body

          As Christians, we are called to community. In every community, everyone has a different role to play, a specific function, and a unique contribution that is needed for that community to thrive. If individuals are not fully functioning in their roles and in proper relationships with those around them, the entire community suffers.

Some of the most important relationships we have are with the five-fold ministry gifts. Every ministry gift teaches but has a different expression, function, and assignment. Still, they all have the same purpose: Equipping the saints for the work of ministry. When we do not have healthy relationships with the ministry gifts of Christ, we are hindered from being adequately equipped for God’s work.

As stated before, all believers have within them a measure of the five-fold ministry gifts. Our relationship with other believers allows us to benefit from those giftings and is one source for equipping us. However, there are those among us whom God has ordained to stand in the “office” of the five-fold ministry. These leaders in the body of Christ are uniquely anointed to equip us in ways that others cannot. These leaders are the gifts that Christ has given to the Church to prepare us, strengthen us, and equip us for spiritual warfare and the work of the ministry. We need some level of relationship with all five of these anointed gifts.

One of the reasons we don’t see the level of signs and wonders we see in the early Church is that we have moved away from God’s ordained community structure. When God’s community is out of order, and we don’t have much-needed exposure to apostles, prophets, and evangelists, we become well-equipped to teach and pastor but ill-equipped to function in kingdom authority. Without a relationship with all these five gifts, we will likely not be well equipped to represent the kingdom of God with demonstration and power.

Ephesians 4:11-16 And He Himself gave some to be apostles, some prophets, some evangelists, and some pastors and teachers, 12 for the equipping of the saints for the work of ministry, for the edifying of the body of Christ, 13 till we all come to the unity of the faith and of the knowledge of the Son of God, to a perfect man, to the measure of the stature of the fullness of Christ; 14 that we should no longer be children, tossed to and fro and carried about with every wind of doctrine, by the trickery of men, in the cunning craftiness of deceitful plotting, 15 but, speaking the truth in love, may grow up in all things into Him who is the head—Christ— 16 from whom the whole body, joined and knit together by what every joint supplies, according to the effective working by which every part does its share, causes growth of the body for the edifying of itself in love.

          Notice in verse 14 that one of the reasons we need exposure to all five gifts is to keep us from being tricked and deceived children tossed about by every doctrine that blows through the congregation. We need exposure to all five gifts to grow up into the full measure of Christ’s body.

If you are hungry for God, you know in your heart there is so much more power available to us than we are experiencing. The Church has been ill-equipped and powerless for centuries. Could this be from not understanding the function and importance of our relationships? Could this result from not understanding God’s plans for community and not holding to His original design? We must be exposed to all five ministry gifts because they equip us differently. 

It is no accident that many denominations no longer recognize the ministry of the apostle and prophet. Apostles and prophets help equip the church with power and prepare her for what is coming. The last thing the enemy wants is for his plans to be exposed in advance and for the Church to be equipped to foresee those plans and empowered to destroy his works.

Satan deceives the Church with denominational preferences, racial divisions, political differences, and doctrinal disagreements to keep us weak, ill-equipped, and ineffective. He attacks the body of Christ to damage the joints, straining and breaking relationships to cut off our supply of the Spirit. The unity of the faith is what the devil is trying to prevent. (Ephesians 4:13)

All relationships are meaningful, even the ones that challenge us. Every relationship is a gift, a garden, and an opportunity to sow into and reap from.

Question: What will it take to restore God’s ideal community?

Question: What is your role in the community?

Question: Can you identify some roles that are not filled in your community?

Question: What can we do as leaders to build and maintain a healthy community?

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Who Will Lead the End-Time Church #13

Posted on 11/11/2023 | Comments Off on Who Will Lead the End-Time Church #13

Be Mindful of What You Reproduce

All Christians should eventually be making disciples. Disciples are made when people willingly follow us and our living example. We must always be mindful of what kind of example we are setting.  

As leaders, we should often ask ourselves: What kind of disciples am I making? What am I reproducing? Do we really need two or more like me?

Our priority should be a growing relationship with the Father. We should be cautious of having followers if there are other priorities above that. What can we reproduce if we make disciples apart from intimacy with God?

A leader can easily get distracted from spending intimate time with the Lord. A common trap is to replace being alone with God and pursuing intimacy with Him with the busyness of religious activity. Another pitfall is to allow our devotion time” with the Lord to become lifeless, where we go through the motions and never connect with God on an intimate level. We can read a daily chapter or two in our Bible, run through our laundry list of prayer requests, and never be quiet and listen to the one we are talking to. I have been guilty of this myself. It is tragic to become religious in our devotion to God and call it a relationship.

We can learn a lot about God from reading and studying the Bible, but to honestly know Him, we must spend time with Him, commune with Him, and listen to Him.

Jesus set a remarkable example. He only did what He saw the Father do. This mindset demands a lifestyle of watching and praying. It’s not always convenient or comfortable, but it is necessary to be a disciple of Christ.

If you read a person’s biography, you can learn much about them, but you can’t honestly say you know them. You may “feel like you know them,” but to honestly know someone, you must meet with them, ask them questions, listen to their responses, and spend time with them. It is the same with God. Apart from intimacy, we will never reproduce the fruit of who He is.

Reading the Bible takes on new dimensions when intimacy becomes a lifestyle. The word of God bears much more fruit in our lives. We begin to view His written word through the lens of His divine nature; we see it with an unveiled face and a heart of love that makes us more sensitive to His spoken word.

As leaders, we must understand that spiritual gifts are free, but maturity is expensive.

If we are to reproduce mature leaders, we must first make sure that we are maturing. Most disciples will never rise above the level of those mentoring them.

Exposing the Deception of Itchy Ears

Matthew 23:9-10 Do not call anyone on earth your father; for One is your Father, He who is in heaven. 10 And do not be called teachers; for One is your Teacher, the Christ. 

That may seem contradictory since the Lord Jesus gave us teachers through the “five-fold ministry gifts” mentioned in Ephesians 4, but it is not. All the five-fold ministry gifts have one purpose: to equip the saints for the work of ministry. All five gifts teach differently, but their purpose is primarily to equip the saints for the work of ministry. We must filter those teachings through the anointing and our relationship with God and His written word.

1 John 2:26-27 These things I have written to you concerning those who try to deceive you. 27 But the anointing which you have received from Him abides in you, and you do not need that anyone teach you; but as the same anointing teaches you concerning all things, and is true, and is not a lie, and just as it has taught you, you will abide in Him.

Suppose we abide by false doctrine out of ignorance. Regardless of our intention or our ignorance, we partner with the adversary, building strongholds of wrong thinking and wrong believing in our hearts and minds. We assist Satan in his deceptions by helping him make the strongholds that bind us. Unfortunately, it’s an evil deception that most of us fall for at one time or another.

These strongholds are not only reinforced belief systems but encampments in our minds that the enemy hides behind to ensure we stay trapped in wrong thinking and believing. 

One of the ways he does this is to keep us running in the same circle of believers, hearing the same false doctrines taught repeatedly and despising believers in other denominations. Denominational divisions were never God’s plan, and now they are an effective tool the enemy uses against us.

To be truly free, we must be very selective about what we are hearing and beholding, who we are listening to, and how much we are doing it. Without the filter of a robust relationship with God and His Word, we cannot skillfully discern wrong doctrine. Truth becomes obscured with the leaven of religious doctrine that appeases the carnal mind and satisfies our selfish desires. Self is the very thing we need to be set free from. Freedom from self will not come until we renew our minds to the truth of God’s word.

Again, are we abiding in His word or just reading the latest books and listening to the latest sermons? Do we desire the sincere milk of the word, or do we lust for the leaven of a self-serving gospel that doesn’t challenge or strengthen us for trials and testing?

Our tendency to have itchy ears and the lust for leavened bread binds us and closes our eyes to the truth. There is a reason the apostle James wrote, “My brethren, let not many of you become teachers, knowing that we shall receive a stricter judgment.” (James 3:1)

If we are bound by false doctrines and doctrines of devils, that is what we will reproduce in others. When discipling others, we should do it in the fear of the Lord—encouraging them to seek God for themselves and acknowledging that we don’t know it all.

If we abide in His word, seek Him diligently when no one is looking, and cultivate a hunger for the sincere milk of God’s word, we will become everything the blood of Christ has paid for us to be. Others will follow our example, and they will be true disciples of Christ.

Be Mindful of What You Teach Others

2 Timothy 3:16-17 All Scripture is given by inspiration of God, and is profitable for doctrine, for reproof, for correction, for instruction in righteousness, 17 that the man of God may be complete, thoroughly equipped for every good work.

All scripture is profitable for reproof, correction, and instruction in righteousness, but not necessarily our interpretation or delivery of it. Handling the word of life without humility and the fear of the Lord will not only result in teaching false doctrine, but the effects of those teachings can result in people being cut, hurt, offended, and deceived. It brings a reproach on Christ, discrediting His name, harming the Church, and devaluing His Word.

The Bible says in James 3:1 My brethren, let not many of you become teachers, knowing that we shall receive a stricter judgment. And yet, the world is full of Bible teachers who do not rightly divide the Word of truth. We should all realize that teachers of the word of God are held to a high level of accountability—a stricter judgment. Teachers should teach from the overflow of their intimate relationship with the Lord, for these are the only things they truly know. Accumulating knowledge about the Word of God is not the same as knowing the Word. A true teacher is not only anointed to teach but also anointed to learn. We must all lean on the anointing to learn more than the need to be heard.

In the age of abundant information that we live in, it is easy to accumulate knowledge about God and reduce ourselves to just relaying information. Unless we put that knowledge into practice, we don’t know the truth we are trying to share. The common practice of merely sharing information results in teaching and preaching that lacks spiritual authority with demonstration and power. Many try to compensate for this lack of authority and power by being funny and entertaining or dramatic and forceful in their delivery. These are poor substitutes.

We should keep in mind that the Word is a person. When we share the Word with others, we are to share from our understanding of that person we have gained from the relationship, not the knowledge we have accumulated about God through academic efforts. If we are not practicing what we know, we cannot teach it with the authority and power it deserves.

Question: What does it mean to have itchy ears?

Question: What are some things that cause us to have itchy ears?

Question: On a scale of 1-10, How would you rate your fear of the Lord when teaching it to others?

Question: What are you reproducing?

Question: Who are you discipling?

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Who Will Lead the End-Time Church? #7

Posted on 11/07/2023 | Comments Off on Who Will Lead the End-Time Church? #7

Communicating with Grace

Once we have given our due diligence to skillful listening, we enter the arena of communicating grace.

Colossians 4:6 Let your speech always be with grace, seasoned with salt, that you may know how you ought to answer each one.

Grace is one of the most significant words in the Bible. To fully understand Grace as It pertains to leadership, we need to view it as God’s etching tool, His hammer and chisel, His skillful hands expertly applied to the clay that shapes and perfects a vessel of honor for His good pleasure. For this lesson, we will define grace in the following manner.

“Grace is God’s influence upon the heart of a believer and how it is ultimately reflected in their life.”

Ephesians 4:29 Let no corrupt word proceed out of your mouth, but what is good for necessary edification, that it may impart grace to the hearers.

The word corrupt in this passage means “worthless and of no value.” If our words are not ministering grace to the hearer, it shouldn’t be coming out of our mouths. We should constantly judge our words before we speak, asking ourselves, asking ourselves, “Is this going to edify, help, and bless? Am I truly speaking from the Lord’s perspective or just mine? Is my tone right? Are my motives pure?”

          Words are powerful. The Bible is full of scriptures that emphasize the power and significance of our words. As leaders, one of our most important responsibilities is to set the standard of good communication and the skillful stewardship of our words.

Proverbs 18:20-21 A man’s stomach shall be satisfied from the fruit of his mouth; From the produce of his lips he shall be filled. 21 Death and life are in the power of the tongue, and those who love it will eat its fruit.

This reinforces the importance of being a skilled listener, but even more so, the importance of our intimate relationship with God. Our spiritual condition has a profound effect on our ability to communicate the heart of God.

          Death and life are in the power of the tongue. As leaders, we can speak words that build, strengthen, and minister God’s grace, and we can also minister words that tear down, destroy, and bring death. It is a responsibility that must be taken seriously. It requires discipline and forethought. It takes strength, patience, and wisdom. One of the most important skills we can develop as leaders is learning how to bridle our tongues.

James 3:2-8 For we all stumble in many things. If anyone does not stumble in word, he is a perfect man, able also to bridle the whole body. 3Indeed, we put bits in horses’ mouths that they may obey us, and we turn their whole body. 4 Look also at ships: although they are so large and are driven by fierce winds, they are turned by a very small rudder wherever the pilot desires. 5 Even so the tongue is a little member and boasts great things.

See how great a forest a little fire kindles! 6 And the tongue is a fire, a world of iniquity. The tongue is so set among our members that it defiles the whole body and sets on fire the course ofnature; and it is set on fire by hell. 7 For every kind of beast and bird, of reptile and creature of the sea, is tamed and has been tamed by mankind. 8 But no man can tame the tongue. It is an unruly evil, full of deadly poison.

James 1:26 If anyone among you thinks he is religious, and does not bridle his tongue but deceives his own heart, this one’s religion is useless.

          We must understand that our tongues cannot be tamed; they must be bridled. If we don’t keep a rein on our tongue, we become self-deceived, and our work in the ministry becomes useless.

          As a child, my neighbors had several horses. One horse was an absolute terror, biting people at every opportunity, always fighting the other horses, tearing up his stalls, and attacking any animal that got near him.

I remember when they would go horseback riding, the owner’s son would always saddle up this mean horse. Everyone would gather around to see the show because they knew that there was going to be a fight. The owner’s son would mount this horse, and as soon as he hit the saddle, that horse would go berserk trying to buck him off. This would go on for 20 about minutes until the horse was frothing at the mouth, dripping with sweat, and shaking all over from the sheer hatred of the person on his back.

Finally, shaking his head and contorting his mouth from the presence of the bridle and bit, the horse would settle down and allow the owner’s son to guide him anywhere he wanted. This horse could never be tamed, but it could be bridled and made to obey against its will.

Our tongue is just like this mean horse. It will never be tamed entirely and does not want to be bridled. It will resist the restrictions we try to put on it and will always look for opportunities to lash out.

Leaders must remember that grace is God’s influence, not necessarily ours. Remember that God’s influence should be palpable in our speech, which will help us to bridle our tongues and remain humble, gentle, and conscious of what is being imparted in our conversations.

God uses leaders as a mouthpiece to speak to others. God does not take this lightly, and neither should we. What we say and how we say it can be ministering death or life to a person.

Love is the License to Speak the Truth.

2 Timothy 3:16 All Scripture is given by inspiration of God, and is profitable for doctrine, for reproof, for correction, for instruction in righteousness, that the man of God may be complete, thoroughly equipped for every good work.

Many times, this scripture is used to justify the Bible bashing, finger-pointing, and judgmental approach to correcting people in the name of God. Usually, it is a self-centered, self-righteous assault on people that comes from not understanding their identity in Christ and opens one up to the influence of religious spirits.

Notice that “all scripture is given by inspiration of God.” God IS love according to 1 John 4:8. So, we can conclude that if our delivery of truth isn’t inspired and motivated by Love, it may NOT profitable for doctrine, it may NOT reprove, it may NOT correct, it may NOT instruct, it may NOT complete, and it may NOT equip. It just cuts, and it cuts deep. Love is the license to speak the truth. If we don’t have genuine love and compassion in our hearts toward the ones we are talking to, we have lost our license to speak on God’s behalf.

An area in which I see emerging leaders often make mistakes is in their delivery of truth. Truth is received in the manner it is delivered. The Word of God is truth. It is also a double-edged sword. Truth should never be delivered with the intention of “straightening someone out” or “putting them in their place.” Let me explain:

Let’s say you love a perfectly cooked rib-eye steak. It may be your favorite food in the world, but if I serve it to you wrapped in a dirty diaper, you aren’t going to eat it. It’s the same with delivering the truth. The word of God is so powerful it can change a life, but it must be palatable, seasoned with salt, full of grace, and delivered in sincere love for it to be received.

If we are not imparting God’s grace, communicating God’s heart, and being a vessel of God’s love, we should remain silent. If we can’t correct that on the spot, we may need to stop and reschedule a time to finish the conversation, giving us time to pray or seek counsel from another leader. Don’t be pressured into speaking when you know your heart isn’t right.

Remember the simple rule from the last chapter: it will keep us from many problems if we apply it.

“When we speak, be sure it’s an improvement on silence.”

            Following this rule does a few things,

  • It slows the conversation and keeps us mindful of the power and purpose of our words.
  • It diffuses conflict that arises from elevated emotions.
  • It teaches us the value and power of silence.
  • It gives us greater control over ourselves and the entire situation.
  • It allows us time to hear from our heart what the Holy Spirit says about the situation.

I believe this is what was happening in John 8:1-11 when Jesus was writing in the sand with His finger while everyone pressed Him for an answer to judge the woman caught in adultery. I think Jesus gave His heart time to hear from the Father and tell Him what to say.

Not being willing to speak until He hears from the Father is a lesson every leader should take to heart. There are few worse feelings than knowing we have hurt one of God’s children with our words.

As leaders, we must think before we speak, selecting words that nurture and build up rather than tear down and destroy. When faced with hostility, we speak gently to diffuse anger and emotions rather than feed them. When faced with uncertainty, we are slow to speak, letting silence speak to the person and God talk to us.

“Godly communication isn’t merely a skill; it is a holy discipline.”

Question: What is the definition of grace as it pertains to communication?

Question: What defines a “corrupt” word in Ephesians 4:29?

Question: What are three things to keep in mind before we speak?

Question: Before we speak, what should our words be an improvement on?

Question: What license must you have before speaking on God’s behalf?

Thank you for visiting Truth Pressure Ministries. Please share and help reach more people with the truth.

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