The Jesus Manifesto

The new book "Jesus Manifesto" by Leonard Sweet and Frank Viola (Thomas Nelson) will be on discount at Amazon.com, Tuesday, June 1st. here is the link to order:


http://www.amazon.com/dp/0849946018?tag=stellardesign-20&camp=14573&creative=327641&linkCode=as1&creativeA

Secrecy

SECRECY-By Richard Foster in 'A Year With God.' This is part of our new study at The Passionate Particpation in God Project at http://www.facebook.com/group.php?gid=237088564302 Sign Up Today

SECRECY: Consciously refraining from having our good deeds and qualities generally known, which in turn rightly disciplines our longing for recognition.

We often long to talk about the good deeds that we do, wanting others to think well of us. The danger of this inclination is that approval will become our motivation. When we fast or pray or give in secret, as Jesus advises us in Matthew 6, we can know we are doing so for the right reasons, looking to God for approval rather than to our fellow humans. God knows all that we are and all that we do; His heavenly reward for any good that we do will far outweigh any earthly approbation (Matt 6:1). Deliberately avoiding earthly recognition, fame, and attention helps to cultivate within us humility and true love for others. It also gives us the opportunity to meditate on the nature of our God, who the Bible tells us is also “hidden” (Isa 45:15) and “in secret” (Matt 6).

That is not to say that our good qualities will never be recognized by others, just that we leave it to God to point them out, We see Jesus avoiding crowds and performing miracles in private, but the crowds invariably find Him and spread the word about Him. Jesus told us that a city set on a hill cannot be hid, and that we are to be the light of the world, not hidden under a bushel (Matt 5:14-16). Practicing the discipline of secrecy simply relinquishes to God the power to reveal our light. This submission is only appropriate, because everything in us that is good comes from God.

Whenever you pray, go into your room and shut the door and pray to your Father who is in secret; and your Father who sees in secret will reward you. —Matthew 6:6

Day 126 Spiritual Practice: Keeping Our Works Private
Day 127 Not Seen by Others
Day 128 The Appearance of Righteousness
Day 129 In My Secret Heart
Day 130 He Could Not Escape Notice
Day 131 The Light of the World
Day 132 God Will Judge Our Secret Thoughts
Day 133 Riches Hidden in Secret Places
Day 134 Hidden with God
Day 135 The Shelter of the Most High
Day 136 Spiritual Practice: Praying for Others’ Success
Day 137 The One Who is More Powerful Than I
Day 138 Jesus Humbled Himself
Day 139 God’s Splendor
Day 140 Let No One Boast
Day 141 Let Those Who Boast Boast in This
Day 142 Boasting in Christ Jesus
Day 143 We Boast in Our Hope of Sharing the Glory of God
Day 144 God Notices Us
Day 145 A God Who Hides

20 Days of Practicing Secrecy With God

20 Days of Practicing Secrecy in Your Walk With God starts today on facebook.
This daily devotional study group can be found at The Passioante Particiapation in God Project http://www.facebook.com/group.php?gid=237088564302

Learn to Discipline Your Spiritual Life with this Discipline of Secrecy. Jesus taught us to do our good deeds and works in private and so that we would please God not people.
Learn more by revieving this daily devotional based out of 'A Year With God', by Richard Foster

This Study is divided up into these 10 day sections.
1. Keeping Our Works Private 10 days
2. Praying for Others' Success 10 days

The passioante Participation in God project is sponsored by Abba's Glory Int @www.abbasglory.com. We are a part of the CrossFire International Alliance.

A Servant of the Gospel?

Are You A Servant of the Gospel, Colossians 1:15-29

When reading this passage today I began to think and wonder if all of God's people, from the fivefold ministry leadership to the occasional visitor who says they are a Christian (Christian, a believer in Jesus Christ as the Son of God and the Messiah, and acceptance of his teachings, contained in the Gospels and other New Testament writings) were to live with a passion in line with these passages, if the people of God (followers of Jesus the Messiah) might not see the Kingdom of God Established through His people 'the church' in the earth today to such a degree that the World (those outside the church) would turn away from their ideas, thoughts and perceptions and embrace Jesus of Nazareth as their Messiah as well.

Christ Is Supreme (greater than or superior to any other, especially above all others in power, authority, rank, status, or skill.)

15 Christ is the visible image of the invisible God. He existed before God made anything at all and is supreme over all creation. 16 Christ is the one through whom God created everything in heaven and earth. He made the things we can see and the things we can't see — kings, kingdoms, rulers, and authorities. Everything has been created through him and for him. 17 He existed before everything else began, and he holds all creation together.

18 Christ is the head of the church, which is his body. He is the first of all who will rise from the dead, so he is first in everything. 19 For God in all his fullness was pleased to live in Christ, 20 and by him God reconciled everything to himself. He made peace with everything in heaven and on earth by means of his blood on the cross. 21 This includes you who were once so far away from God. You were his enemies, separated from him by your evil thoughts and actions, 22 yet now he has brought you back as his friends. He has done this through his death on the cross in his own human body. As a result, he has brought you into the very presence of God, and you are holy and blameless as you stand before him without a single fault. 23 But you must continue to believe this truth and stand in it firmly. Don't drift away from the assurance you received when you heard the Good News. The Good News has been preached all over the world, and I, Paul, have been appointed by God to proclaim it.


Paul's Work for the Church ( because of God’s grace toward him)
24 I am glad when I suffer for you in my body, for I am completing what remains of Christ's sufferings for his body, the church. 25 God has given me the responsibility of serving his church by proclaiming his message in all its fullness to you Gentiles. 26 This message was kept secret for centuries and generations past, but now it has been revealed to his own holy people. 27 For it has pleased God to tell his people that the riches and glory of Christ are for you Gentiles, too. For this is the secret: Christ lives in you, and this is your assurance that you will share in his glory.

28 So everywhere we go, we tell everyone about Christ. We warn them and teach them with all the wisdom God has given us, for we want to present them to God, perfect in their relationship to Christ. 29 I work very hard at this, as I depend on Christ's mighty power that works within me. NLT

Insight

The Apostle Paul moved by the Holy Spirit here proclaims to us the Supremacy of Jesus the Messiah and how God’s grace has been extended to them. This is the message, that Paul who sees himself as a servant of the Gospel, proclaims and encourages all who will listen to serve as well. Paul by God’s grace has moved from legalistic prosecutor of the law and persecutor of the believers to lover of God’s grace and God’s people.

Are you a servant of the Gospel because of God’s grace toward you?
Is that servant lifestyle seen in your serving God’s people?
Is it seen in your service to the unsaved?
Do they know why you are serving them?

IF YOU ANSWERED YES, THAN YOU ARE ESTABLISHING THE KINGDOM OF GOD!