Public Service at Surabaya - Sunday, June 17, 2007

CHURCH OF THE FLESH

Jude 1:11
11 Woe to them! For they have gone in the way of Cain, have run greedily in the error of Balaam for profit, and perished in the rebellion of Korah.

The three error people – Balaam, Korah, and Cain – portray the appearance of the fleshly church.

1. Balaam was a reward lover who served God with the purpose of getting material things. Such a man lives without faith.
2. Korah was a rebellious man who complained against the Lord. Such a man lives without holiness / hope.
3. Cain was the killer of Abel his brother. Such a man lives without love.

A man without faith, hope, and love will never see God face to face.

1 Corinthians 13:12-13
12 For now we see in a mirror, dimly, but then face to face. Now I know in part, but then I shall know just as I also am known.
13 And now abide faith, hope, love, these three; but the greatest of these is love.

Only those with permanent/perfect faith, hope, and love will be lifted up to heavens to see Jesus Christ face to face, while the fleshly church, who lives without faith (like Balaam), without hope (like Korah), and without love (like Cain), will be left and destroyed with the world.

Back to Jude 1:11, about the fleshly church in the appearance of Cain; sacrificing offering but without love.

Genesis 4:5-8
5 but He did not respect Cain and his offering. And Cain was very angry, and his countenance fell.
6 So the LORD said to Cain, "Why are you angry? And why has your countenance fallen?
7 "If you do well, will you not be accepted? And if you do not do well, sin lies at the door. And its desire is for you, but you should rule over it."
8 Now Cain talked with Abel his brother; and it came to pass, when they were in the field, that Cain rose up against Abel his brother and killed him.

Cain sacrificed offerings to the Lord, but his offerings were rejected. He therefore became very angry and his countenance fell. Cain represents the fleshly church serving the Lord with a dirty heart (such as anger, envy, and idolatry). For the heart, which is the source of life, is dirty, the countenance falls and not shine.

The term “fall” is not a common expression. Jesus as the heavenly Groom and the King has a shining face (remember His shining face when He was with Peter, John, and James on the mountain). Flowing from that, one whose countenance falls (not shining) cannot become God’s Bride. It is because his dirty heart, which makes his countenance fall and he cannot become same as Jesus.

The heart is angry and the hand kills.

Genesis 4:8
8 Now Cain talked with Abel his brother; and it came to pass, when they were in the field, that Cain rose up against Abel his brother and killed him.

Who is the murderer? Satan! He is the father of murderers.
Anyone who does not become like Christ will be like Satan.
The countenance which falls shows the fleshly church and murderer like Cain.

1John 3:11-12, 15
11 For this is the message that you heard from the beginning, that we should love one another,
12 not as Cain who was of the wicked one and murdered his brother. And why did he murder him? Because his works were evil and his brother’s righteous.
15 Whoever hates his brother is a murderer, and you know that no murderer has eternal life abiding in him.

Murder means for us hatred. One who does not love his brother does not love God either because both the love to God and brother are not separated.

1 John 4:20-21
20 If someone says, "I love God," and hates his brother, he is a liar; for he who does not love his brother whom he has seen, how can he love God whom he has not seen?
21 And this commandment we have from Him: that he who loves God must love his brother also.

Anyone who serves the Lord without love will be accursed. A pastor may not preach the word of God to offend another pastor, for it shows that he hates his brother and serves the Lord without love. As a consequence, he will be accursed although his preaching is amazing.

1 Corinthians 16:22
22 If anyone does not love the Lord Jesus Christ, let him be accursed. O Lord, come!

Anyone who does not love his brother will be accursed as well.

Matthew 25:40-41
40 "And the King will answer and say to them, ‘Assuredly, I say to you, inasmuch as you did it to one of the least of these My brethren, you did it to Me.
41 "Then He will also say to those on the left hand, ‘Depart from Me, you cursed, into the everlasting fire prepared for the devil and his angels:

A young man was in doubt about following God. He said, “If God is good and gracious, why did He create the hell?” And I answered him: God created the hell for Satan and his angels. Lest you thus be foolish by following Satan to the hell! He then understood. The hell was created for Satan and his angels, not for men. If men serve the Lord without love, however, they will be cast into the hell for they are equal to murderers going in the way of Satan; the fleshly church serving God but without love.

In John 21, God tested Peter if he loved Him. In fact, Peter known as a great apostle was empty from love. Seeing that, we must be careful with our hearts because God is looking into our ministries.

Besides being murderers, those who serve the Lord without love will become tithe-and-offering robbers.

Malachi 3:8-9
8 "Will a man rob God? Yet you have robbed Me! But you say, ‘In what way have we robbed You??In tithes and offerings.
9 You are cursed with a curse, For you have robbed Me, Even this whole nation.

Anyone who serves the Lord without returning tithes and giving special offerings will be accursed.
Tithes are returned to the Lord to confess that:

• we have received God’s blessings
• we love God and not live by money

Special offerings are offered for the forming of the Body of Christ as well as for the sake of the needy brothers (Matthew 25).
In conclusion, no tithe means not loving God and no special offering means not loving the others. Such a robber will walk in curse. If he is a pastor, he himself will live in curse and lead the church to curse, and he must give account for this at the end.
A tithe and special offering is a matter of love, not money. If a man thinks that he gets a huge salary because of his hard efforts, it is better that he does not return a tithe. God does not need his money, but his confession. There is no point returning a tithe without confessing that we receive the blessing from God and that we love God. It is indeed useless, no matter how much the tithe is returned.

The story of Cain’s killing Abel is written in the book of Genesis. It shows the beginning of the age which was already harmed by the faded love. It will continue to Malachi that there is a robbery in ministry to the Lord. A pastor preaching about tithe but he himself does not return it to God is a liar as well as if he does not feed his sheep while he is receiving the tithe from them. We can see that the tithe is related to the food of the word in Church.

This love crisis continues until the end of this age; love is growing colder.

Matthew 24:12-13
12 "And because lawlessness will abound, the love of many will grow cold.
13 "But he who endures to the end shall be saved.

“the love of many” means the quantity of those who does not have love is bigger than the quantity of those who has love. It shows the greatest crisis, which will hit the world and the church in the last days until the love grows cold and is frozen. Love is like cool living water. If it grows colder day after day, it will be frozen sometime and the judgment of the Lord will come upon the world.

In the Old Testament it is written that the Lord had struck the land of Egypt with hail, the seventh plague. The hail came down from heaven as the people of Israel would go out from the land of Egypt.

Exodus 9:23-24
23 And Moses stretched out his rod toward heaven; and the LORD sent thunder and hail, and fire darted to the ground. And the LORD rained hail on the land of Egypt.
24 So there was hail, and fire mingled with the hail, so very heavy that there was none like it in all the land of Egypt since it became a nation.

While in the New Testament it is written in the book of Revelation that the hail will come down once again as the Church of God will go out of the earth to meet the Lord Jesus Christ in heavens.

Revelation 16:21
21 And great hail from heaven fell upon men, each hailstone about the weight of a talent. Men blasphemed God because of the plague of the hail, since that plague was exceedingly great.

See, love is very important and it has become cold in Genesis, Malachi, until Revelation (the last days). If we do not have love, we will not escape from the hail. Now the question is: Have you served the Lord in the priest’s office?
o “No, I haven’t” ? You should pray to get the office.
o “Yes, I have” ? You should look into yourselves, whether you serve the Lord with love or not.
Let the love that we have endure and grow abundantly till the end (till the second coming of Jesus Christ), so that we will be saved and glorified with Christ.

Matthew 24:13
13 "But he who endures to the end shall be saved.

Where does the love endure and grow?

• home
  Exodus 9:18-19
  18 "Behold, tomorrow about this time I will cause very heavy hail to rain down, such as has not been in Egypt since its founding until now.
  19 "Therefore send now and gather your livestock and all that you have in the field, for the hail shall come down on every man and every animal which is found in the field and is not brought home; and they shall die."?
  There is no love outside home. If you think that you could find pleasures outside, you are completely wrong. They are deceptive satisfaction entangling you in many kinds of sin and bringing you to the hail (the judgment of the Lord). No matter what happens, we must go home.
  How will the love endure at home? It is possible only if we restore ourselves to our own states and duties:
  • Husbands must love their own wives as they love themselves and must not be bitter toward them (Ephesians 5 and Colossians 3). A man who loves to beat and slap his wife is not a husband, but a boxer or a security guard.
  • Wives must submit to their own husbands in everything. Although a woman is good at cooking, washing, and doing other housework, but she does not submit to her husband, she is not a wife but merely a housemaid.
  • Children must obey their parents.
    The true joy and warmth of love is only found at home. When we feel uncomfortable to stay at home, we must come back to our own states and duties; don’t go outside instead.
• shepherding
  Exodus 9:26
  26 Only in the land of Goshen, where the children of Israel were, there was no hail.
  The land of Goshen describes the shepherding.
  We must notice the two important matters of the shepherding as mentioned below:
  1. sheepfold, which is symbolized with the Holy Place of Tabernacle with the three objects therein:
     1. Golden Candlestick (http://gptkk.org/pelita-en.php) = patience in Public Service
     2. Table of Showbread (http://gptkk.org/mrs-en.php) = patience in Bible Study Service and Holy Communion
     3. Golden Altar of Incense (http://gptkk.org/dupa-en.php) = patience in Worship Service
        Being in the sheepfold, we may keep and increase in the love of God and there is no hail.
        Holy Place and the Most Holy Place were covered with four layers of covering; the forth one is the covering of judgment (described in the epistle of Jude). It means we are in shepherding kept secure by God’s protection.
  2. the voice of the shepherd = the shepherding word
     No sheep in the fold will live without food. Thus, both fold and food cannot be separated. By the shepherding word, our spirituality (faith, hope, and love) will grow up and love will not grow cold. As long as we cannot eat the shepherding word, we are not shepherded yet. Pray for us, the pastors, that we may provide the shepherding word well. Both the sheepfold and shepherding word are the absolute things we must take heed.

Here is the process to maintain and grow our love:

1. Proverbs 17:9
   9 He who covers a transgression seeks love, But he who repeats a matter separates friends.
   covering transgressions or sins by the Blood of Jesus = confessing sins and forgiving one another = having peace with one another. Covering sins through lies cannot finish the sins even adding sins to sins and such person will lose the love. For example, A phones a woman to ask whether her husband is at home or not because A wants him to pay his debt to A. Then the wife lies through saying that his husband is not at home. Such is covering sins but not by Jesus’ blood. We have to cover sins by Jesus’ blood through confessing sins and forgiving one another. In such a manner, the love of God will care and guard us. No disaster or temptation will be able to touch us, not even the judgment of God; we are completely secure.
   The more we confess and forgive one another, the more our love grows, but he who repeats a matter separates friends. Repeating a matter means judging one another and making the love frozen (frozen means being minus, being empty from love).
2. John 14:15
   15 "If you love Me, keep My commandments.
   obeying the word of God through this process:
   • listening carefully to the word
   • understanding the word
   • believing in and being sure of the word
   • practicing the word
     The way we hear the word determines whether we have love or not. Many Christians claim that they love God. We may see the proof through the way they hear the word.
     If we obey the word of God, we will be sanctified and able to love the others with sincere love of the brethren.
     1 Peter 1:22
     22 Since you have purified your souls in obeying the truth through the Spirit in sincere love of the brethren, love one another fervently with a pure heart,
     It is vey obvious that we have the sanctification through our obedience to the word and it results in the sincere love. I often says to youth about the true love coming from sanctification. A relationship between a man and a woman with the demand of unclean matters is obviously not in the true love but in the passion of lust only.
   What must be sanctified?
   1 Corinthians 5:11
   11 But now I have written to you not to keep company with anyone named a brother, who is sexually immoral, or covetous, or an idolater, or a reviler, or a drunkard, or an extortioner––not even to eat with such a person.
   Sexual immorality shows a hypocrisy and there will be neither sanctification nor sincere love.
   By obeying the word of God, we will be sanctified from the above six sins so that we will be able to love one another sincerely and the love itself grows up.
3. worshiping God
   Remember how Jesus’ face suddenly transfigured and shined as the sun when He was on Mount Tabor with Peter, James, and John.
   Worship is the process of tearing or crucifying the flesh to receive the perfect love of God, which is like the sun shining in its strength. When we receive the shining love of God, we will directly be able to reflect the light to the others by loving enemies.
   Matthew 5:43-45
   43 "You have heard that it was said, ‘You shall love your neighbor and hate your enemy.
   44 "But I say to you, love your enemies, bless those who curse you, do good to those who hate you, and pray for those who spitefully use you and persecute you,
   45 "that you may be sons of your Father in heaven; for He makes His sun rise on the evil and on the good, and sends rain on the just and on the unjust.

What is the perfect love of God for?

• Renewing our lives until being as glorious as Jesus Christ is.
  Matthew 13:43
  43 "Then the righteous will shine forth as the sun in the kingdom of their Father. He who has ears to hear, let him hear!
  The renewal of life begins with honesty. Whoever speaks truth is the righteous that shine forth like the sun.
  Ephesians 4:21-25
  21 if indeed you have heard Him and have been taught by Him, as the truth is in Jesus:
  22 that you put off, concerning your former conduct, the old man which grows corrupt according to the deceitful lusts,
  23 and be renewed in the spirit of your mind,
  24 and that you put on the new man which was created according to God, in true righteousness and holiness.
  25 Therefore, putting away lying, "Let each one of you speak truth with his neighbor," for we are members of one another.
  It is written in Matthew 13 the parable of wheat and tares. The wheat is the upright shining like the sun and going to be stored in the barn of the Lord, but the tares are liars who are going to be burned in the fire. Therefore, God wants honesty. As long as we are honest (speaking the truth and telling no lie), there are still a thousand ways for God to help us. On the contrary, as long as we lie, God has no more way to help and He can do nothing. We should be careful with our mouths, since they turn the whole body.
• Shining through the valley of the shadow of death
  In theory, the sun will never shine through the dark valley; implying a state of misery with no more hope left, even the power, wisdom, and riches of the world cannot resolve. Nonetheless, the goodness and mercy of the Lord is able to shine through everything. Maybe we are sick, we should come to His goodness and mercy and should not be distraught.
  Psalms 23:4-6
  4 Yea, though I walk through the valley of the shadow of death, I will fear no evil; For You are with me; Your rod and Your staff, they comfort me.
  5 You prepare a table before me in the presence of my enemies; You anoint my head with oil; My cup runs over.
  6 Surely goodness and mercy shall follow me All the days of my life; And I will dwell in the house of the LORD Forever.
  The goodness and mercy of the Lord is like the sun which is able to shine through the dark valley. This is what King David was firmly convinced. One day David fell into the valley of death, that is, he committed adultery with Bathsheba and should have been stoned to death thereby, but he came to the goodness and the mercy of the Lord.

David remembered the goodness and mercy of the Lord in his past days before being a king. Unlike himself, David’s brothers were attractive warriors at their appearance and the height of their stature. One of them (but David) was worthy of becoming a king, but David was chosen to be the king because of the goodness and the mercy of the Lord. Besides, David remembered when he stood before Goliath (describing something undefeated and unresolved). All the people of Israel, warriors, and the king were afraid of Goliath, but David prevailed also because of the goodness and the mercy of the Lord.

One day while all people were going to war, David was relaxing himself on the roof until he fell into adultery with Bathsheba. He should have been put to death for his sin. In spite of that, he could still remember the goodness and the mercy of the Lord.

Psalms 51:1-3
1 <<To the Chief Musician. A Psalm of David when Nathan the prophet went to him, after he had gone in to Bathsheba.>> Have mercy upon me, O God, According to Your lovingkindness; According to the multitude of Your tender mercies, Blot out my transgressions.
2 Wash me thoroughly from my iniquity, And cleanse me from my sin.
3 For I acknowledge my transgressions, And my sin is always before me.

David then confessed his sin, so that the goodness and the mercy of the Lord lifted him up, as it were the sun of the love of God was shining through the dark valley. While the world is being hit by the crisis of love, we pray for the goodness and the mercy of God shining and carrying us up from whatever dark valleys.
God bless you!