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Sacred Service 11/9/06 |
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I now rejoice in my sufferings for you, and fill up in my flesh what is lacking in the afflictions of Christ . . . —Colossians 1:24 |
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Christian worker has to be a sacred "go-between." He must be so closely
identified with his Lord and the reality of His redemption that Christ can
continually bring His creating life through him. I am not referring to the
strength of one individual’s personality being superimposed on another, but
the real presence of Christ coming through every aspect of the worker’s
life. When we preach the historical facts of the life and death of our Lord
as they are conveyed in the New Testament, our words are made sacred. God
uses these words, on the basis of His redemption, to create something in
those who listen which otherwise could never have been created. If we simply
preach the effects of redemption in the human life instead of the revealed,
divine truth regarding Jesus Himself, the result is not new birth in those
who listen. The result is a refined religious lifestyle, and the Spirit of
God cannot witness to it because such preaching is in a realm other than
His. We must make sure that we are living in such harmony with God that as
we proclaim His truth He can create in others those things which He alone
can do. When we say, "What a wonderful personality, what a fascinating person, and what wonderful insight!" then what opportunity does the gospel of God have through all of that? It cannot get through, because the attraction is to the messenger and not the message. If a person attracts through his personality, that becomes his appeal. If, however, he is identified with the Lord Himself, then the appeal becomes what Jesus Christ can do. The danger is to glory in men, yet Jesus says we are to lift up only Him (see John 12:32 ). |