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A Ministry of Comfort and Joy
For the kingdom of God is not a matter of eating and drinking but of righteousness and peace and joy in the Holy Spirit (Romans 14:17)
Whose ministry has touched your life most deeply?
A wonderful friend, now more alive in the Lord’s presence, was a man of great peace and joy. Some of my warmest memories are of travelling together, sharing in ministry. We prayed often, talked endlessly, and laughed constantly. I often wondered how he found so much joy in living. No doubt his emotional “thermostat” tended toward a “high” setting, but the real secret was his close walk with Christ in the Holy Spirit.
There is confusion today about the Holy Spirit and much unhealthy fascination with dramatic manifestations. To be sure, he can work powerfully. “The Holy Spirit will come upon you, and the power of the Most High will overshadow you,” said the angel to Mary. The birth of Jesus soon followed. Sometimes the Spirit changes the course of events and even entire lives.
(more…)God, Evil and Judgment
A friend asked an interesting question recently. He referenced Habakkuk 1.13.
“But you are of purer eyes than to behold evil, and cannot stand to look on iniquity.”
And then he asked this question:
“If God cannot look on evil, how can he be present in a world
where evil is everywhere and even in us since sin is still part of our life?”
Nothing Is Hidden From God
All evil is committed in God’s unencumbered sight (Ps 51.4). His ominpresence, as His other attributes, is immutable. Also, there is nothing in His character that prevents Him from having evil in His presence. Remember, even Satan Himself can stand in the presence of God (Job 1.6-7) and not be destroyed. He is present by God’s permission, but He is present nonetheless.
Habakkuk 1.13 is not a declarative sentence about the nature of God but rather a question that Habakkuk brings before the Lord as a complaint. It would be a mistake to convert Habakkuk’s complaining question into a specific teaching about what God can and cannot see. The question itself shows that Habakkuk knows very clearly that God sees evil.
If God Sees Evil, Why Doesn’t He Stop It?
(more…)Leading by the Spirit through Community
Leadership models matter because they influence how we think, and how we think determines how we act. Are there distinctive principles that should mark we lead in God’s work? If so what are they?
To focus the question more, let’s ask, “What is that makes leadership in a Great Commission movement unique and different from leadership in other areas of activity?” The only way to answer this question is to dig into the same book that gives us the Great Commission: the Bible. What can the Scriptures teach us about what makes leadership in God’s work unique?
The Bible’s Leadership Story
Rather than looking at specific texts, I’d like to “open the lens” and consider the grand sweep of the Bible’s “leadership story” across the whole span of our creation’s history. The diagram below attempts to capture the main principles.Staring from the top we have:
(Click to View Larger)
Guy Saffold
