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Being Confident of this very thing [message #5848] Tue, 02 June 2009 02:35 Go to next message
sparkles  is currently offline sparkles
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Philippians 1:6 "Being confident of this very thing, that he which hath begun a good work in you will perform it until the day of Jesus Christ:"
We have quoted that verse hundreds of times, if not thousands by now, but I would like to also quote the verses before this.

Phil 1:1-5 "Paul, and Timotheus the servants of Jesus Christ, to all the saints in Christ Jesus which are at Philippi, with the bishops and deacons: Grace be unto you, and peace, from God our Father, and from the Lord Jesus Christ. I thank my God upon every remembrance of you, Always in every prayer of mine for you all making request with joy, For your fellowship in the gospel from the first day until now;"

Paul had a great love for the brethren and a confidence that if God had promised something, He was able to fulfil the promise. That is why Paul could write and tell the people he fellowshipped in the gospel with that God would complete that which He had started.

Think about what a tremendous promise God gave us that He will finish the work He started! Obviously we have our responsibilities in all this, such as to walk in the light we have, walk in obedience to the word, pray, study and have wonderful fellowship with our Lord.

Later in the chapter Paul talks about how the things that have happened to him(prison and persecution) was for a purpose, the furtherance of the gospel, so people would hear of Jesus Christ. Some of the brethren became more confident by Pauls imprisonment and faith and they became more bold to speak the word of God without fear.

So for us today, that whatever the Lord allows us to go through it is for a purpose. Only the Lord knows what is ahead for each of us, and only the Lord knows what we need to go through so we'll be ready for the next trial, and the next, and to be prepared for what is in store for the christian. We have many great and precious promises and one is: Heb. 13:5-6 "Let your conversation be without covetousness; and be content with such things as ye have: for he hath said, I will never leave thee, nor forsake thee. So that we may boldly say, The Lord is my helper, and I will not fear what man shall do unto me."
And another: John 14:27 "Peace I leave with you, my peace I give unto you: not as the world giveth, give I unto you. Let not your heart be troubled, neither let it be afraid."

Fear is being talked about by the unbelieving world like I haven't heard in my lifetime, and there are things happening at such a fast pace, but rest assured God knows when a grain of sand moves, and calls the stars by name, so He is able to keep us and guide us in the days ahead.

Sure would enjoy having some who read these posting share with us what God has done and is doing in your lives. I personally would be blessed and encouraged if others would jump in and share and glorify God.
Re: Being Confident of this very thing [message #5849 is a reply to message #5848] Tue, 02 June 2009 14:07 Go to previous messageGo to next message
william  is currently offline william
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Great stuff Sue!

I'm in a busy groove right now and haven't had time to do anything but
read the messages the last few days... hopefully later this week I'll have
more time.

Just wanted to let you know that a lack of response doesn't mean that we
aren't listening and digesting the messages!

Blessings,
William


_______________________________________________

Re: Being Confident of this very thing [message #5859 is a reply to message #5849] Sat, 06 June 2009 06:25 Go to previous messageGo to next message
Mark L  is currently offline Mark L
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Location: Canada
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I agree with moulder here. I haven't even had time to read!


Fires will be kindled to testify that two and two make four. Swords will be drawn to prove that leaves are green in summer.”

G.K. Chesterton
Re: Being Confident of this very thing [message #5861 is a reply to message #5848] Sun, 07 June 2009 16:42 Go to previous messageGo to next message
sparkles  is currently offline sparkles
Messages: 246
Registered: March 2008
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There is great comfort in knowing the promises of God are written to all believers who are in Christ Jesus, of this I am confident. Otherwise when Jesus spoke to specific churches someone could take it to the logical conclusion that the letter Paul wrote was to a specific church, ie the church at Philippi, and it would not apply to us today. But when one takes all of scripture we can see that the words of our Lord are for us today as much as it was for them back in the times of the apostles and Jesus.
Another example:
2 Corinthians 1:3-4 "Blessed be God, even the Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, the Father of mercies, and the God of all comfort; Who comforteth us in all our tribulation, that we may be able to comfort them which are in any trouble, by the comfort wherewith we ourselves are comforted of God."
Now this was written to the church at Corinth, with all the saints which are in all Achaia. Does this mean the promise is only for those specific people who were a part of the church of Corinth and the saints in Achaia? NO, of course not, because the promises of God are written to all believers, not just the church at that time. 2Cor. 1:20 "For all the promises of God in him are yea, and in him Amen, unto the glory of God by us."

I am confident that God has promised to lead us and guide us in these days of a famine of hearing the word of the Lord.
I am confident that God will give us discernment to hear the voice of the Shepherd(Jesus Christ) and a hireling we will not follow.
I am confident that I will have life and that more abundantly. Why? Because it is promised to me in Gods unchanging word.
John 10:10 "The thief cometh not, but to steal, and to kill, and to destroy: I am come that they might have life, and that they might have it more abundantly."

One thing I appreciate about Pastor Freeman was he always pointed me to the Word of God and told me that all the promises were for me, if I would only believe, all things were possible.
He also said it must be according to Gods word, and the only way I would know would be to spend time in prayer and communion with the Lord, study the Word and get faith in my heart for myself. I thank God for Pastor Freeman and the example he was to me. And I thank God for many of the saints who also showed me the way to hear the voice of God for myself and have discernment in these last days, to hear the voice of the Shepherd, not the voice of the hireling.

[Updated on: Tue, 09 June 2009 02:36]

Re: Being Confident of this very thing [message #5862 is a reply to message #5861] Sun, 07 June 2009 21:00 Go to previous messageGo to next message
james  is currently offline james
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A BIG AMEN to that, sister...


"I know that, whatsoever God doeth, it shall be for ever: nothing can be put to it, nor any thing taken from it:

and God doeth it, that men should fear before Him." ~ Ecclesiastes 3:14


“But God commendeth His love toward us, in that, while we were yet sinners, Christ died for us,”
Re: Being Confident of this very thing [message #5863 is a reply to message #5862] Tue, 09 June 2009 03:18 Go to previous messageGo to next message
james  is currently offline james
Messages: 2137
Registered: April 2008
Location: Birmingham, AL
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Sue,

This is something we should be encouraged by, having confidence in God, thanks for reminding us.
I have been reflecting on what I've learned over the past year through interaction with the folks I've met here at OO. I've said before how I was isolated from anyone who still held to the faith message and had about decided that no one did. But after finding (or should I say, being lead here by The Lord) this site and coming to see and believe that there were others who were holding fast to the faith that had been delivered unto us by Bro. Freeman; I was overjoyed......at first. But the more I read and saw displayed by others writtings, I'm very concerned that some are not..."confident of this very thing".

Confidence in God's promises, is what faith is; when His Word is settled in our hearts as true, then we have faith to believe or have confidence. I first will confess that I have wavered in my faith over the last 20+ years( I'd like to think I didn't, but even though at the time I couldn't see it, I had.) But God in His mercy opened my eyes to my sin of unbelief and once I repented He restored unto me all that the cankerworm had eaten.
Since then I have been seeking to walk in the old paths and embracing the Word with a hunger like never before. I have come to understand how we are all at different places spiritually( I speak of spiritual growth ) and not to judge others because I too have been at different spiritual places at different times.

But I don't go back and question God on what He showed me 30 years ago, as if He might have changed His mind. And I don't think it takes a 'lifetime' to get faith into your heart. Jesus said, 'this is the way, walk ye in it'...not wrestle around with my Words for the next 30 years, trying to get up the 'faith' to start obeying me. If we are still questioning weather or not divine healing is really God's plan for us; or if there might be some loophole in Jesus' instructions on how to live as set forth in the Sermon on the Mount, whereby we could be involved with this worlds affairs and still be obedient to what He commanded, then maybe we should examine ourselves in light of The Word. Jesus said in Luke 9 verse 62, "...No man, having put his hand to the plough, and looking back, is fit for the kingdom of God."

Being confident is not something of ourselves, it's CONFIDENCE in He who began the work in us, and who has PROMISED to complete it, JESUS, will do just that! I encourage us all, to SETTLED God's Word in our hearts, quit trying to justify our actions and humanistic mindset, and with humble hearts submit unto God.

James 4:7-10 "Submit yourselves therefore unto God, resist the devil, and he will flee from you.

Draw nigh to God, and He will draw nigh to you. Cleanse your hands ye sinners; and purify your hearts, ye double minded.

Be afflicted, and mourn, and weep: let your laughter be turned to mourning, and your joy to heaviness.

Humble yourselves in the sight of The Lord, and He shall lift you up."

[Updated on: Tue, 09 June 2009 03:23]


“But God commendeth His love toward us, in that, while we were yet sinners, Christ died for us,”
Re: Being Confident of this very thing [message #5864 is a reply to message #5861] Tue, 09 June 2009 07:11 Go to previous messageGo to next message
william  is currently offline william
Messages: 1450
Registered: January 2006
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Sue wrote:
Quote:

One thing I appreciate about Pastor Freeman was he always pointed me to the Word of God and told me that all the promises were for me, if I would only believe, all things were possible. He also said it must be according to Gods word, and the only way I would know would be to spend time in prayer and communion with the Lord, study the Word and get faith in my heart for myself. I think God for Pastor Freeman and the example he was to me. And I thank God for many of the saints who also showed me the way to hear the voice of God for myself and have discernment in these last days, to hear the voice of the Shepherd, not the voice of the hireling.


Your notes in this thread prompted me to read the whole letter to the
Philippians. As I read the book it became apparent that the verse about
having confidence in the believers was a theme throughout. Not that it
was a mere confidence in the believers (it was that) but it was a
confidence in God's sovereignty in bringing about the completed work in
those believers!

Over the past few days I've been thinking about some of the things that
we (a group with a shared background) have experienced, and your
thoughts helped to put it all into focus. I know that we are overly
introspective at times but if you'll indulge me just a little bit, I'd
like to try it one more time.

My intentions were to analyze our common strengths, and faults, and
present them in a manner that might help us to overcome those areas
where we fall short.

Here are some of what I consider to be our strengths & weaknesses. Not
everything will apply to everyone, but as Grandom has said, "if the shoe
fits--wear it!"

* Our Strength

o The Message of the Hour
By this I mean that we were taught a message that has practical
implications for the time in which we live. It's one thing to be taught
the doctrines of the faith and have a good knowledge of Biblical truth,
and it is another thing to be able to see the practical relevance of
these truths in our everyday lives. The doctrine was immensely
practical for the times in which we live.

The teaching on the end-time message of faith was designed to give us
the tools that we needed to overcome the end-time deceptions that were
prophesied for the latter days. It was the overcoming message. Not
just to make "overcomers" (as a noun) but to make us "overcomers" (the
verb!). We were taught that as Christians it was possible to overcome
in all areas of our lives. We were made to understand that salvation
was much more than simply a future event! Victorious Christian living
became a practical reality that few of us had even imagined was possible.

The message of the restoration of all things at the culmination of this
age helped us to see a glimpse of God's plan and our role in that plan.

We came to understand that for God's will to be done on earth, it had to
first be done in our own lives.

We gladly accepted the fact that God expected more out of us than simply
attending Church a couple of days a week.

For the Gospel to be effective, every area of our lives would need to be
subjected to His Holy Spirit.

o Sound Theology
Theology was no longer only an academic pursuit. Our faith rested
firmly on our conception and understanding of God. We saw that our
faith had a direct relationship to our understanding of His revelation
to us. If we were limited in our understanding of His nature, our faith
would be limited. This proportional relationship between our
understanding of God and the exercise of our faith was clearly set forth
in our circles.

Teaching on the Godhead, His sovereignty, His providence, and the
definition of relationship between the old and new covenants helped us
to understand the difference between the letter and spirit of His Word
to us.

o The Prayer of Faith
With a sound theological foundation the prayer of faith became a reality
to us. His provision of healing, deliverance, and prosperity, was no
longer a futuristic idea, but a present reality. Heirs of God and
joint-heirs with Christ--WoW!

o Relationship with Jesus
As the Word of God became a living reality we were able to see that
God's intention from the beginning was relationship-oriented. After the
fall, the central theme of the Bible was the restoration of His creation
to Himself. He took the initiative and made a way so that we could
experience the wonderful communion that He had sovereignly ordained.

o Theory of the Crucified Life
I use the term "theory" here only because it seems that we didn't
practice it as often as we should have... I have only my own
observations and my own experience to go on here, perhaps others had the
theory down in practice, but personally I knew about the deeper life in
the Spirit but fell short in actual practice. I don't think I am alone
in this area but only wear the shoe if it fits! Most of the time I
didn't put the needs of others before my own and I still struggle when
I'm faced with a situation that requires a complete denial of self in
order that others might benefit. For instance, since we have been
talking about attending other meetings that may not have been exposed
to the kind of teaching that we've been exposed to, I find it much
easier to just stay home. I don't have to overcome any of the fluff
that we came to hate! It actually keeps me from yielding to a critical
attitude! But, at least in my own life, I have seen fruit from taking
the tougher route and dying to the selfish desire to stay away from
other believers. (Please don't take offence if you don't see this in
the same light... I'm only speaking of my own situation here.)

o Knowledge of the Occult
This is a neglected area in Christian circles. I'm so thankful for the
teaching we received. Being blind to the tactics of Satan in this area
can prove extremely detrimental to the Christian's walk with God. I
believe that God will use us to set free those who have been taken
captive by Satan's bondage.

o Confessing the Word
The message of confession went way beyond merely "saying" positive
things. Brother Freeman taught us that the biblical idea behind this
concept was one of "agreement". Agreement with God's Word. Aligning our
confession with the Word of God wasn't just an exercise in speaking the
right thing but actually letting our words match what we believed
concerning God's Word. Our words, if we believed God's Word, would or
should naturally agree with what He has said about the situation. For
instance, if we believed that we were healed, our words (which came from
our hearts) would agree with what God said about our situation--BY HIS
WOUNDS WE WERE HEALED. Some no doubt "said" the right things concerning
their healing but this was meaningless apart from the reality of truly
believing that He had provided healing for us. Once we grasped the fact
that God had provided healing for us through the same atoning work that
provided us salvation, our language could not help but reflect what we
believed... we confessed healing because we agreed with what He had said
concerning our healing. This was what was taught. It wasn't the fault
of the teaching that some mistakenly substituted "saying" the right
thing for actually confessing/agreeing with the right thing. Confession
should be a result of belief, not merely a means to an end (healing).

o Body Ministry
Who could have foreseen that the lack of teaching on body ministry would
become a major reason for the lack of satisfaction that we all have
experienced in the years since brother Freeman's passing? Much of our
complaints center on this one issue. The modern-day emphasis on the
acute distinction between "clergy" and "laity", has kept many from
participating with their gifts and has had a direct bearing on the
pathetic state of the Church. Even so, we have the responsibility to
not allow our lack of participation to further erode His Body. A
malformed Body, with only a hand that works is to be desired above a
completely paralyzed Body. We, after all, have both the message and to
some extent have experienced this wonderful concept!


* Our Faults

o Relationships with Others
We separate at the drop of the hat! (Sectarianism)

Most of the time we separate over shallow things without good reason.
(I'm well aware that there are times when holiness requires
separation... I'm not talking about those instances!)

# Form Differences
# Attitude Differences
# Offences
# Viewpoint Differences
# Conformity Differences
# Musical tastes
# Medical science
# Dress

The reasons for some of these things can stem from hearts that are
filled with:

- Bigotry
- Exclusivism
- Suspicion
- Fear
- Pride
- Judgmentalism

I didn't take the time to develop these faults or give examples because
this note is already way too long, but I think that the term
"phariseeism" pretty much sums up this list. All of these things are
matters of the heart and the cure can only be rectified by recognizing
these things as they appear in our lives, and godly repentance.

Righteous judgment is a godly trait and is not to be repented of, but so
often our lack of understanding, concerning the difference between
righteous judgment and ungodly judgment, keeps us from walking in the
path that Jesus has called us to walk.

I have no doubt that if we would take Paul's position and have
confidence in God to complete His work in our fellow believers, all of
these "faults" would easily wither and die and no longer be a wedge
between us. We would no longer be quick to condemn those who have not
been privileged to sit under a ministry that taught us such great truths.

The Pharisees spent most of their time trying to trap Jesus as He spoke
the truth. What a difference that truth could have made in their own
lives if they had not been so intent on judging others. Do we not do
the same sort of thing when we primarily seek to use that truth to
"trap" other believers instead of trusting that God is able to finish
the good work that He has started in their lives?

My confession is that I'm going to be a beam remover instead of a speck
remover... a speck in someone else's eye is easy to remove, sometimes it
comes out without any help at all, but removing a beam can come only
after it has been identified, and even then only the person afflicted can
remove it! Over the years I've accumulated enough to build a log cabin!

Blessings,
William

[Updated on: Tue, 09 June 2009 17:54]

Re: Being Confident of this very thing [message #5866 is a reply to message #5864] Tue, 09 June 2009 16:23 Go to previous messageGo to next message
grandom  is currently offline grandom
Messages: 404
Registered: October 2007
Senior Member

This is such a wonderful post I don't know where to start William. I find a lot of "shoes" that fit way to comfortably to my liking. So it would seem that I have a lot of work to do. Trust me brother you are not alone when it comes to specks and beams. Some where along the line we seem to have forgotten that Jesus is no respecter of persons. We have set our selves on a higher plateau then people who haven't been given the word that we know.

There are two trees mentioned in the Bible I would like to discuss.
One is the tree of knowledge. We have all eaten of the tree of knowledge for quite some time. Because of that we have become puffed up and have elevated ourselves above people who haven't been given this great gift of grace. We have arrived at the place that we cant assemble and worship with them. We look at them through the beams in our eyes seeing what we perceive are specks in there eyes and all because Jesus chose us to be enlightened and not them. How then can we justify not going in amidst them and sharing what we know. Brother Ron is right. We can preach a sermon in a testimony. We can participate in Bible studies with them and show them the truth. It wont be received by all but if we reach just one person it will be worth it all. Then we reach out for another and another. We may get asked to leave. Big deal. I guess some their ego wont let that happen. Jesus did sat to whom much is given much is required. I don't think setting at home like a monk in a monastery is what He had in mind.

We sure know all the promise that apply to us. Healing, deliverance, protection etc. Some how we seem to forget the commands. Go and do in a nutshell. Were content to reap the benefits but not so much in sharing with the churches we deem inferior even though Christ is the head of the church and died for it.

The devil knows the tree of knowledge. He knows scripture far better then any of us. He knew what to quote to Jesus (in his mind ) to try to tempt Him. In fact the demons tremble at the word. Something I dare say most Christians have never trembled. The point being, they know the word and it does them no good. It`s to late.

Tree number two. The tree of life.
Proverbs says wisdom is a tree of life.
Pro 3:18 She is a tree of life to them that lay hold upon her: and happy is every one that retaineth her.
Pro 11:30 The fruit of the righteous is a tree of life; and he that winneth souls is wise.
Rev 22:14 Blessed are they that do his commandments, that they may have right to the tree of life, and may enter in through the gates into the city.
I cant add anything to that.

We can convince our selves to stay in our "lone ranger" living rooms but I cant believe it pleases the Lord.
Remove my beams Lord.

Dick

[Updated on: Wed, 10 June 2009 00:51]

Re: Being Confident of this very thing [message #5867 is a reply to message #5866] Tue, 09 June 2009 20:00 Go to previous message
grandom  is currently offline grandom
Messages: 404
Registered: October 2007
Senior Member
Here is a url you might want to see.

http://www.postchronicle.com/cgi-bin/artman/exec/view.cgi?ar chive=138&num=231416

Maybe God still multiplies loaves and fishes (in a monetary way)


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