Meg Logan’s Blog

Matthew 13:33 “And then Jesus told them another parable, ‘ The Kingdom of heaven is like leaven, which a woman took and hid in three pecks of flour until they were all leavened.’”

Leaven is the Holy Spirit, the Gospel, the Kingdom of Heaven. It gets into things, and causes them to rise. When leaven gets put into flour it doesn’t become the flour, it causes a change in the flour. The three pecks are Individuals, The Church, and The World, each is being affected and changed by the leavening power of the Kingdom of Heaven.

There are three needed connections:
1. People connect to God (Salvation)
2. People connect to the local Chruch (Equipping the saints)
3. Church connects to the World (The Great Commission)

It has long been held that Christians should set themselves apart from the world, and have nothing to do with it. That if we spent time with unregenerate men we would somehow be contaminated. But I say, “greater is He that is in me than he that is in the world.” The church needs to begin to relate to the world, to influence the planet. This influence comes from a point of connection, and very personal point of connection, it is people meeting and connecting with other people; relationship.

However, if we are relatable people, likeable, knowable, relational, we can still lack what is needed to influence the world. We must be filled with the Holy Spirt, so that when we meet with others we are passing on “spiritual DNA” . The church must begin to walk in the power of the Living God, the Holy Spirit is able to inflitrate our whole being. To give us supernatural power, so that we carry it forth into the world. The kingdom of heaven is one of power, not powerlessness.

If we as the church are not walking daily with the Spirit, if we are not filled to overflowing, we become impotent in the world. We are not able in ourselves to meet people’s needs, or to show them Christ, or to draw them in. We all need that supernatural power that comes only from a true and abiding walk with the Christ. To abide in Him, to rest in Him, to have deep fellowship with Him is to be filled and owned by Him. So that we are like little Christs (Christians) walking in the same power as He walked in, drawing people to ourselves and through us to HIM and eternal life.

But this is exactly where the modern day church gets snagged. The church sees itself as the world sees the chruch. Some things that come to mind are “weak, powerless, elitist, snobby, self righteous, condemning, unconcerned, ineffective…” and I am sure you can list many many more things that the world thinks of the church. ANd herein lies one of our deepest problems. The church believes them! God’s word says something quite different abotu His glorious bride. We need to choose to believe Him,
and not just in our minds, but really and trully in our hearts. We need to be fully convinced that God’s perception of us is the truth, and that the world’s perception is not. When we own the truth, when we know that we are strong in Christ, that we are glorious, powerful, infact we are all heirs to the kingdom of heaven and sit with Christ in heaven. Nothing in this earth is above our great standing. We are a people set apart, a race possessed by God. We are holy, and righteous and made pure in Him.

I believe (as does my pastor) that God wants us to have a shift in perspective. That God wants His children to know who HE says we are. Romans 12:3

says that we should “think of [ourselves] with sound judgment as God has allotted to each a measure of faith.” Not that we should think more highly than we are, but also that we should not think of ourselves as lowly. The old man was lowly and wretched, a sinner… but
in Christ we are made saints (Eph 1:1, Col 1:1), we are born anew (Eph 2:10), we are righteous and holy (Eph 4:24), we are more than conquerors, and the fullness of Christ dwells within us. “Behold the old things have passed away, all things are become new”. And we would do well to believe that we are fully acceptable in God’s sight.

God has called each of us to fully engage, not to simply sit by and watch.It is a day of equipping saints. It is time for the church to be activated by the Holy Spirt, and to carry that annointing into society. This means that while we go to church, we cannot build our lives around the Pastors revelation. We must know who Christ is ourselves. We must engage, we must worship Him independently, and come to know Him deeply, each and every one of us. You cannot build your life on another man’s perception of God, you can only build on your own perception. Therefore it is important that we all come to a clear perception of Christ. Who do we say that He is? Who we believe He is will affect our whole life. God is peeling back that mask. He is
getting to your heart, seeking to make clear who He really is.

I recommend reading [u]Victory Over Darkness[/u] by Neil T. Anderson, it is about who God says you are, and how we can all live the victorious Christian life. Another good book is [u]Living Above the Level of Mediocrity[/u] (I cant recall the authorright now.)

It is time for the whole church to wake up. To stand up and set a high standard. It is time that we became unified, and powerful in the world, that we might be an example of the Kingdom of Heaven and draw others to salvation. I urge you to get right with God. To develop a personal, deep, and abiding relationship with the one you call Savior. May our Lord bless and keep you.

Meg

A ROadBlock Called COndemnation by Debra [url]http://debrasotherthoughts.blog
spot.com/[/url]

Tom and I drive down summer roads and come across many roadblocks. Summer time is
road repair time and we’ve taken many a detour or just sat in the hot car waiting for
orange-vested crews to wave us through.

On the dusty road of my own journey, I have been halted by the Condemnation Roadblock
and have camped out there most often, not just for hours, but for weeks and years. I
have pitched my black tent there in the road and crawled inside the stuffy darkness
so that I could meditate upon my failures.

That’s what you do at the Condemnation Road Block.

You unzip your sleeping bag and slither inside and hide so that you won’t make other
dreadful mistakes. You count your failures one by one. You compare yourself with
people who appear to have it all figured out. And when you peer into the future, you
see yourself making only more mistakes, so you vow to not even try again to help
anyone, at least, not until you act a whole lot better than you do now.

You twist godly conviction into tormenting, clinging condemnation.

And when God tries to unzip the door of your tent, you call from the darkness inside,
“No! Don’t look at me right now. I’m ugly. I’ve sinned. I’ve failed you. Come back
later when I get better. When I do some good things to make up for the bad things.”

So God stands outside of your tent waiting. And waiting. Waiting while you waste His
time and yours and the time of all the people you could be helping. Waiting to
continue the friendship He so enjoyed sharing with you.

There’s only so much God can do for people wallowing in Condemnation Tents. In fact,
He’s already done it. He sent His Son to die for us…to pay for our sins…to make
us holy through Him. We cannot pay. Either Jesus paid or He didn’t.

My stays in the Condemnation Tent are shorter now than they used to be. What brings
me out sooner? The banner on the blood-red paper God manages to slip inside the tent:
“There is therefore now no condemnation to them which are in Christ Jesus, who walk
not after the flesh, but after the Spirit.”

I can step out into the light now, not after weeks and months, but moments. In fact,
the tent is rarely used now at all because I’ve learned to repent…to ask
forgiveness…and receive forgiveness. I’ve realized the folly of trying to pay for
something which was already purchased.

I’ve realized it is not a holy thing to sit inside the Condemnation Tent and feel
horrid about myself. The holy thing is to meditate upon how good God is–not upon how
bad I am.

And now I move on down the dusty road. The journey continues…the road is long…but
the sun is shining and the trees are reaching their arms toward God.

Firstly, let me address some common misconceptions about submission. Most people believe that submission means that people in authority have a right to abuse those under their authority. I say NO. Those in authority have a [i]responsibility[/i] to those under their authority. This goes for any place there is authority, in the government, in the church, in the family. A Government who does not care for its people is abusing its power. A church that teaches falsity and blaspheme, is abusing its power. A man who beats his wife and children is abusing his power. Those in authority are held to a higher standard by God. A pastor, a teacher, a leader of a country, or a husband, (father or parent) will be held responsible in heaven (if they get there, and in hell if they don’t) for the persons under their authority. This is a heavy weight to bear, responsibility is something most people shirk. But enough on the abuse of power, let me tell you the role of those in submission.

Exactly who is in submission to whom?
The Bible teaches that all persons (Christians) are submitted to Jesus the Christ. After that a man has the least authority over him. He is submitted to the government, to his boss, to his pastor. He is subject (and this is different from submitted) to the people of the Church, and his wife. A women comes next in the hierarchy. She is submitted to Christ, to all the things a man is submitted to, and also to her father, or her husband (depending on age and married status). Next comes children, they are submitted to all of the above, and then to their parents, first their father then their mother. Sometimes children are submitted to their elder siblings. One thing I have not addressed, is the relationship of elder family members. Many people believe that we are to be submitted to our parents, but I believe that this is a misconception. The Bible says that �a man shall leave his mother and his father and cleave unto his wife�. I believe that means a man and his wife are no longer under the authority of their parents, but are now subjected to them.

Let me address the difference between submission and subjection. Subjection, being the lesser of the two, is a differing. We should all (Christians) be subject to one another, meaning we differ in the face of conflict. It is not right that we should fight amongst ourselves, and thusly we ought to differ to those we are acquaintances with. (The Bible also mentions a time for rebuking the brothers and sisters but that we will deal with later.) Subjection is a courtesy. Submission is differing too, but on a much greater scale. It is never right for a woman to rebuke her husband. And likewise it is never right for a woman to go against her husband. A woman may go against the people of the church if it violates her submission to Christ.

Well, Here are the answers to the interview questions asked of me by Bowden McElroy from [url]http://notes.mcelroycounseling.com/[/url] .

1. What’s your favorite book.
Uhmâ�¦ I don’t think I actually have a favorite. But If pressed I will say the Bible, not because I am any better at getting myself to read it than the next guy but because it is His Word, and I do LOVE Him and His Word, even if wading through the pages can be a bit daunting. I Love the Truth, and The Word is the authority on Truth, so I guess that is my favorite book.

2. Describe the kind of church you’ve always wanted.
I haven’t ever really thought about this, mainly because I am a firm believer in blooming where you are planted, and in not causing division in the House of God. I think if I could be in an â��idealâ�� church (I don’t think there is such a thing, since we are all imperfect humans) it would be one that has firm doctrine, strong leadership, a wide range of believer’s as in, some deep in the faith, and some new to the faith, so that the older wiser people would lead the younger newer people. A church of compassion, but also one that is unwilling to be lukewarm, and unwilling to sacrifice sound doctrine. To be honest I am in a really great church right now. I am not so sure I could find a better one.

3. How did you get from psychology/forensic science to painting?
Uhm, I didn’t really â��get thereâ�� from anywhere, I have always been a painter and pretty much always been interested in psychology and forensics. I have just always considered painting a hobby and psychology a career, although I no longer consider psychology MY career. My career and calling is to be the best wife I can be, to stay home and raise my children in the best way I can, according to God’s word.

4. You wrote, “I consider myself a “fundamentalist” but I think most people think I am a �liberal Christian”: why do people think that?
I think people think that because of the church I go to, it is Charismatic, and fairly â��liberalâ�� so I assume that they believe I am that way also. I suppose this requires some sort of qualifying, I think that a â��liberalâ�� Christian is one who has a strong emphasis on grace, and non confrontation, and I think a â��fundamentalistâ�� is one who is more along the lines of â��faith without works is deadâ�� and who really doesn’t avoid the hard things of the faith. The bitter pills so to speak. (I guess this sounds like I am condemning liberal Christians, but I think that they have their place in keeping us all free, because we know that â��there is now no condemnation for those who are in Christâ�� and â��We are saved by grace through faith so that no man can boast.â��) I think there is a place for both things, I consider myself one of those who abhors what God abhors, sins and such, and there are those who widely ignore the things that God abhors.

5. Why 4 kids?
The only reason I plan on four kids is because I choose to be submitted to my husband’s desires. I would like to have as many kids as the Lord would bestow upon us, but my husband firmly believes four is enough. Therefore, I have set my heart on four and no more, as is his will.

Here’s how you can play the interview game:

1. Leave me a comment saying �interview me.� The first five commentators will be the participants.
2. I will respond by asking you five questions.
3. You will update your blog/site with the answers to the questions.
4. You will include this explanation and an offer to interview someone else in the same post.
5. When others comment asking to be interviewed, you will ask them five questions. (Write your own questions or borrow some.)

Calvinism and Arminianism

This issue need not divide the Church.
It is a matter of perspective is it not? In our time it may seem as though there is predestination, but is it not possible that God simply knows the outcome of a person’s freewill, and thusly can accurately predict it? This does not remove free will, being all knowing for all eternity does not require being all controlling.

For example, I can rightly predict certain behaviors of my own child. I can KNOW that he is going to do a particular thing. But it is not I who caused him to do such thing. He chose that thing of his free will. I know for certain that he is going to sin, I know for certain that he is going to urinate, I can even know WHEN he is going to urinate, but I did not cause him to urinate, nor did I cause him to sin. I can know that my son is going to go to bed without a fight tonight, or on another night he may choose a fight and I will know it is coming in advance, he may not even know it yet, but I know, because I understand him better than he understands himself. Likewise is God not all powerful and all knowing and understanding of us more than we are understanding of ourselves? Is it not God who can know a man’s heart completely, yet not even the man himself may completely know HIS OWN HEART. It is therefore true that God knows who is coming to heaven, He knows who is choosing Him or against Him, He knows before we even think it that we are going to fail or pass a certain test, He knows all things infinitely, but KNOWING does not mean CONTROLLING, we are still personally responsible for our sin, and the wages of sin are death.

If we were not personally responsible for our behavior how could God justly hold us accountable? How could the wages of sin be death? What need would there be for a Savior? We are still personally responsible for choosing Christ’s redeeming love, and salvation, but God KNOWS before hand who will choose, who the elect are, and who will be affected by the promptings of the Holy Spirit. All are called, but only a few will choose to follow. We cannot take away personal responsibility, we cannot claim personal ability for salvation either. Only by grace not by works is one saved, but this is not to say that we should not have good works, Christ Himself tells us to bear good fruit, for all who do not bear good fruit will be cut off and thrown to the fire.

It is true that Christ also says that we are unable to do good works without Him, without the Holy Spirit. It is only Christ who can change the heart of man, but I believe we can choose to allow Him to change us. We can acknowledge our own sinful nature, and indeed He calls us to recognize and repent of sin. He sends a helper, the Holy Spirit, to convict us of this sin, but it is a choice we make to repent of it, then and only then can the Holy Spirit change us. Our hearts must be willing, even when our flesh is weak.

Of course for His purposes it is explained to us that God hardens the hearts of some men� one example is of Pharaoh in the Exodus, his heart was hardened so that the Glory of God might be seen�. And in the New Testament God hardens the hearts of those who have so deeply turned against Him that they are eternally lost, He turns them over to the depravity of their minds, after continual conviction, and with utter grief I am sure. The Holy Spirit, in mercy, turns them over to their unbelief and causes them to believe that which is false to spare them, it seems, the torment of unbelief. But these people are still held accountable for their sin, for their deeply held rebelliousness.

–Meg