What matters to God most is what you are doing today, not what you may have done many years ago. You can’t just say, “I know the Lord” many years ago and then live in a way that opposes how God would have you to live. A true believer will live in a consistent, godly manner throughout his daily living and the desire to be obedient to His Word and less like the world at every moment.
God’s desire is for His Word to reach every person because of His love. He recognizes every person, including Job here, that loves Him. While Satan may have the ability to wreak havoc in our lives, he has his limits because God is always in control. Do you believe that God is in control in spite of everything that is going on? God wants the hearts of those who are always seeking him.
Knowing that God loves you, will you find yourself loving Him in return–even if everything was taken away from you? God knows your heart, and he knows where you are in your relationship with Him. To love God is a commitment to obey Him, serve Him and respond to Him in spite of what is happening in your life.
The role of the church is to ignite a godly zeal in the people of God. It is to set in action the army of God. It lays the foundation for a biblical world view of godly principles among God’s own people.
Why are we a people who presses forward with this zeal? There is much to be done, of course, as we minister to a sin-sick world. We are to not stop ministering to others. We are to continue to make an impact in the world. The church is to consist of people who love the Lord and minister for Him for the sake of others.
2 Timothy 3:1-5
1 But know this: Difficult times will come in the last days. 2 For people will be lovers of self, lovers of money, boastful, proud, blasphemers, disobedient to parents, ungrateful, unholy, 3 unloving, irreconcilable, slanderers, without self-control, brutal, without love for what is good, 4 traitors, reckless, conceited, lovers of pleasure rather than lovers of God, 5 holding to the form of godliness but denying its power. Avoid these people!
Matthew 28:18-20
18 Then Jesus came near and said to them, “All authority has been given to Me in heaven and on earth. 19 Go, therefore, and make disciples of all nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit, 20 teaching them to observe everything I have commanded you. And remember, I am with you always, to the end of the age.”
Acts 1:9-11
9 After He had said this, He was taken up as they were watching, and a cloud took Him out of their sight. 10 While He was going, they were gazing into heaven, and suddenly two men in white clothes stood by them. 11 They said, “Men of Galilee, why do you stand looking up into heaven? This Jesus, who has been taken from you into heaven, will come in the same way that you have seen Him going into heaven.”
God will always have a group of members who are willing to work and to serve Him. The numbers of those persons may not always be evident, but He will allow those with such zeal to make a mighty impact for His Kingdom. God loves those who has a heart to serve Him and worship Him.
Here is how some persons see the church:
1. God’s covenant for people down through the ages who have a heart for Him (This is not the church, for the church, as it is defined, did not come into existence until the days of Pentecost).
2. Others who exercised faith going back to Adam (Genesis 3:15) (Again, not the church as we know it today).
3. The church is a distinct New Testament work of God and there is considerable variation within the church group, yet the ultimate purpose is to worship and serve God.
The New Testament points clearly to the Pentecostal origin of the church. It is not found in the Old Testament. The similarities of today’s church between groups is that people of God are worshiping and remaining obedient to the God they love. Christ is the head of the church, and it is uniquely different. The church has similarity to the people of Israel. God’s covenant was with his people of Israel and has a New Covenant with the people of the church who love Him.
The promise of the Spirit for the church at Pentecost:
John 20:21-22
21 Jesus said to them again, “Peace to you! As the Father has sent Me, I also send you.” 22 After saying this, He breathed on them and said, “Receive the Holy Spirit.
The command is to wait:
Acts 1:4-5
4 While He was together with them, He commanded them not to leave Jerusalem, but to wait for the Father’s promise. “This,” He said, “is what you heard from Me; 5 for John baptized with water, but you will be baptized with the Holy Spirit not many days from now.”
At the appropriate time, all were filled with the Holy Spirit:
Acts 2:1-4
1 When the day of Pentecost had arrived, they were all together in one place. 2 Suddenly a sound like that of a violent rushing wind came from heaven, and it filled the whole house where they were staying. 3 And tongues, like flames of fire that were divided, appeared to them and rested on each one of them. 4 Then they were all filled with the Holy Spirit and began to speak in different languages, as the Spirit gave them ability for speech.
After the Holy Spirit comes, the work of the Spirit was evident in the numbers being added to the church and with people being saved.
Do you see yourself as a person who loves the Lord and lives accordingly? To be obedient to the Lord is to hear His voice and serve Him. There is a remnant of people that do love the Lord with passion and zeal. Pray for His guidance and surrender to Him completely, and see how He can work through you in winning over others for Jesus Christ.
Akron Alliance Fellowship 