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The Locked Up Church

19 May

LockedIn my last post I talked about the picture of the church that the Lord gave me from Acts, chapter 16. In that passage, Paul and Silas are in prison, chained up, in the dark. Yet they were praying and singing as if nothing were unusual.

I said that much of the church is in that condition today. We go on praising God every Sunday, yet having no effect on the world the rest of the week. How did we get into this position?

I believe that it’s because we didn’t heed the warning that Christ gave us during His ministry.

“Be careful, or your hearts will be weighed down with dissipation, drunkenness and the anxieties of life, and that day will close on you unexpectedly like a trap.”
Luke 21:34

Here Jesus tells us of three weights that can hinder us from fulfilling our destiny. They are called dissipation, drunkenness, and anxieties. We will never reach our true potential in Christ if we try to run with these hindrances.

Therefore, since we are surrounded by such a great cloud of witnesses, let us throw off everything that hinders and the sin that so easily entangles, and let us run with perseverance the race marked out for us.
Hebrews 12:1

We are warned to throw off the things that hinder. Probably the worst is dissipation. We allow the best parts of our life to be dissipated.

The world has so many distractions these days. Classes we could take, recreational opportunities, athletic events, and entertainment. All of these things, in and of themselves, add to our enjoyment of life. They’re good things.

“Everything is permissible for me” – but not everything is beneficial. “Everything is permissible for me” – but I will not be mastered by anything.
1 Corinthians 6:12

Yes, they are all good things, permissible things, but they’ve become the masters of our lives. They dictate our schedules. They tell us what we can and can’t do for God.

We fill up our time with all these good things. Then, more often than not, God gets the leftovers. Our leftover time, strength, and resources.

What happens when God says, “I want you to take a week to meet together and experience my work of revival in you.”?

“Sorry, that won’t work for me. I have a class on Monday night. Tuesday is my bowling league. Thursday I have to get the kids to their Karate lessons. I just can’t make it out to weekday meetings.”

Where does all the time go? Dissipation. We have allowed the distractions of the world to dissipate the time that should belong to the Lord. Our schedules have become mastered by the good things of the world.

In this way the church has become a prisoner to our permissible things. We are in chains and in the dark. We need to be set free by the power of God.

Question: What will it take to shatter these chains from the church?

© Nick Zaccardi 2014

 
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Posted by on May 19, 2014 in Revival, The Church

 

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The American Church – In Our Prison Cell

16 May

JailA vast majority of American Christians seem to be ineffective at bringing change to our society. Why is that? Our legacy is that of a people who “turned the world upside-down” with the Gospel of Christ.

As I was meditating on Acts chapter 16, I was struck by a mental picture. Paul and Silas were bringing the Good News of Jesus to the town of Philippi. In the course of their time there, they were arrested.

After they had been severely flogged, they were thrown into prison, and the jailer was commanded to guard them carefully. Upon receiving such orders, he put them in the inner cell and fastened their feet in the stocks.
Acts 16:23-24

As they were put into their cell, there’s no sign of a struggle. They quietly submitted to their imprisonment. This surprised me.

The next day, they enforced their rights as Roman citizens.

But Paul said to the officers: “They beat us publicly without a trial, even though we are Roman citizens, and threw us into prison. And now do they want to get rid of us quietly? No! Let them come themselves and escort us out.”
Acts 16:37

Where was this boldness the day before? Maybe they were too exhausted from their beatings. Maybe they were waiting for things to calm down. Whatever the reason, they quietly allowed themselves to be placed in prison, and chained up.

About midnight Paul and Silas were praying and singing hymns to God, and the other prisoners were listening to them.
Acts 16:25

This is the picture I saw in my heart as I thought on this passage. I see the church, the jailer, and the prisoners. The jailer is totally unaware of anything out of the ordinary that’s going on.

The church – Paul and Silas – were in chains and in the dark. Yet they were having church, business as usual. They were praying, singing, and praising God.

All of the other prisoners were listening to them. That’s all. No one was being saved. No one convicted of their sin, or at least no visible evidence of it.

As I thought about it, I realized that this is the condition of much of the church these days. We’re going along as we always do. We have our services on Sundays. We sing, we pray, and we praise God. But where is our effectiveness in the world?

The Lord started speaking to me through this picture of the church. We need to wake up to our condition. Until we see and understand that we’re chained in the darkness, we’ll never break out into the freedom that has already been made available to us.

I want to take the next few posts to share what the Lord spoke to me concerning this issue. I want to explain how we got into this position as well as what’s needed for us to break free.

Remember, that it wasn’t until the chains fell off of the church – Paul and Silas – that the jailer fell on his face and cried out, “What must I do to be saved?”

Question: What do you see as the greatest factor in “locking up” the American church?

© Nick Zaccardi 2014

 
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Posted by on May 16, 2014 in Revival, The Church

 

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Is Your Faith Visible?

14 May

BeamAre people around you aware of your beliefs? Actually, they know more about what you believe than you do sometimes. What do I mean by that?

What good is it, my brothers, if a man claims to have faith but has no deeds? Can such faith save him?
James 2:14

The truth about faith – your beliefs – is that it’s not so much what you talk about, but what defines your actions. It’s why you do what you do. It’s the choices you make and the path you pursue.

When I heard the truth about Jesus Christ, faith was birthed in my heart. Because it was a real faith, it prompted me to do something. I made the choice to publically accept Him as my Lord and Savior.

True faith is made visible in your actions.

In the same way, faith by itself, if it is not accompanied by action, is dead.
James 2:17

People can only see what you do and how you respond to circumstances. They only see your living faith. You may tell yourself that you believe certain truths, but if you don’t live them out, you’re only deceiving yourself.

But someone will say, “You have faith; I have deeds.”
Show me your faith without deeds, and I will show you my faith by what I do. You believe that there is one God. Good! Even the demons believe that — and shudder.
James 2:18-19

Even in the case of demons, what they believe affects what they do. They may hate the truth, but it still causes them to tremble when they think about it.

You see that a person is justified by what he does and not by faith alone.
James 2:24

It’s only when what you believe and what you do line up that you can truly say this is your faith. That’s why Christianity is a counter-culture to our modern society. We live in an age where the lie is much more preferable to the truth.

The American way of life teaches us that it’s normal to believe one thing and then live a totally different lifestyle.

“I’m a Christian – but I can’t let that affect my politics.”

I’ve heard that on many occasions. According to Scripture, what do you truly believe? What you do shows your living faith.

The world system is based upon a foundation of self-deceit.

“I’ll trust you to do what you say – as long as I get it all in writing.”

“I’ll love you forever, but we need a pre-nuptial agreement, just in case.”

All of these, and more, are examples of how our present generation has left the truth and is in pursuit of a lie.

As the church of Jesus Christ – we are different! We must not be like the world. Our beliefs should affect our behavior. If they don’t, then what do we truly believe?

It’s time for us to stand up and live out what we believe.

Question: What are your beliefs in Christ that you find most difficult to live out?

© Nick Zaccardi 2014

 
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Posted by on May 14, 2014 in Faith, The Church

 

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Our Culture of Darkness

12 May

SunriseA little over a year ago I posted a series about Christianity as a counter-culture. I want to pick up that theme again for a few more posts. Too many believers want to keep their feet in both the church and the world. That’s going to become increasingly difficult as we approach the Lord’s return.

The world hates Christ and His people. Please understand what I mean by this. I’m talking about the world system and not the individual people themselves. It’s the system – the way our culture has established itself – that’s against the knowledge of Christ.

The Lord spoke about it.

This is the verdict: Light has come into the world, but men loved darkness instead of light because their deeds were evil.
John 3:19

We live in a society that hates the light – the knowledge of truth. This is because truth is an agent of change. When I begin to know and understand the truth, I’m responsible to do something with it.

Because of this, the default response of the world is, “I don’t want to know the truth.” They have found that ignorance is bliss – at least in the short term.

For God did not send his Son into the world to condemn the world, but to save the world through him. Whoever believes in him is not condemned, but whoever does not believe stands condemned already because he has not believed in the name of God’s one and only Son.
John 3:17-18

Here’s what many people don’t understand. Christ didn’t come to condemn the world. And it’s definitely not our job either. We are not here to rebuke sinners for doing what is natural to them.

The problem arises when the light of truth becomes evident. Even though we may not directly condemn anyone, by rejecting the truth they stand condemned. In effect, they’ve condemned themselves.

When you know that there’s a right path, yet you knowingly chose the wrong way, you become self-condemned. At that point the only solution is to cram your life with so many distractions that you never think about this truth.

That’s where our society finds itself today. We have more opportunities to amuse ourselves than ever before. I chose that word on purpose. A-muse – it literally means to not-think.

On the other side of the coin, we as believers should be the ones who don’t fear the truth. We should delight in the presence of the Lord and His Word. We should be welcoming the gentle voice of the Holy Spirit in our lives.

We can’t afford to pick up the attitude of the world. Don’t fall victim to the distractions of this age which will short-circuit your destiny in Christ. Spend time in the light of Christ and His truth.

Question: How does walking in the light differ from walking in the darkness?

© Nick Zaccardi 2014

 
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Posted by on May 12, 2014 in Revival, The Church

 

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4 Traits of a Godly Woman

09 May

Pray1This coming Sunday is Mother’s Day. As it approaches, I’m thankful for the godly women in my life. I’m thankful for my wife who stands beside me, and works with me in ministry.

Then there’s my grandmother – the first in her family to come to Christ and my mother, who faithfully made us attend church whenever the doors were open. Lastly, my daughters, who have now picked up the torch of Christ and continue our legacy of faith.

What is it that qualifies a woman as “godly?”

Likewise, teach the older women to be reverent in the way they live, not to be slanderers or addicted to much wine, but to teach what is good.
Titus 2:3

I believe that by using the word older here, Paul is talking about older in the faith. It’s someone who has experience in serving God.

1. Godly women seek maturity.

This should come naturally in our walk with the Lord. It should always be our goal to grow up in Christ. It’s normal for a child to want adulthood.

The word reverent is interesting in the above verse. In the Greek it’s a compound word. The first part of it means to be outwardly consecrated to God, sacred. In a way, it’s one step down from holiness. The word emphasizes the outward look.

2. Godly women live for Christ outwardly.

There’s an outward display of godliness. Can people tell that you’re dedicated to God by your actions, your words, or the way you work? Is there an outward show of Christ? The faith of a godly woman should be obvious to those around her.

The second part of the compound word means to tower up.

It’s one thing to be dedicated to God. It’s another to “tower up” for God. A tower assumes that you’re higher than the surrounding landscape. A tower is conspicuous.

3. Godly women live for Christ unhidden.

Jesus talked about us living for Him like a city on a hill.

“If I live like that I’ll be noticed.”

That’s how we are to live. This requires us to be careful in what we say and do. You have to count the cost of this type of lifestyle. I’m talking about living radically for Christ.

The last thing I see in the above verse is the phrase, in the way they live. It literally says the position or condition of their life. The grace you receive from God is always based on position. You need to be in the position of building up a tower of outward consecration to God.

4. Godly women are positioned to build.

She is building a life sold out to the Lord. But she is also building up the faith of those around her. The foundation is Christ. The rest of the materials come from her obedience to the call of God that’s upon her.

Praise the Lord for the example and faithfulness of godly women in the body of Christ.

Questions: Who are the godly women in your life? How will you honor them this Mother’s Day?

© Nick Zaccardi 2014

 
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Posted by on May 9, 2014 in Encouragement, The Church

 

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Quartermaster Ministries May Newsletter

08 May

Dedicated to walking in revival!

April was a busy month

Last month I had a great time in the back woods of New York. I was a part of the leadership team running a convention for Christian high school students. It’s always refreshing to see the passion and enthusiasm that young people have for the things of God. My desire is to see that same zeal for Christ spill over into the lives of adults.

I’ve also been continuing to renew my ministry and my focus in God’s presence. My desire remains to see God’s people move into revival.

God has placed His message in my heart. I am seeking to bring this Word of encouragement to any congregation or group who will invite me. It’s time for God to once again move upon His people through a series of special meetings. I know that this runs counter to our busy society, but the rewards in Christ are tremendous. I’m beginning to see the fruit of this calling.

I am also available for single meetings as well.  If you want more information about having me speak at your church or group, you view my Speaker Page or you can e-mail me at Revzacc@comcast.net .

Prayer for the Ministry

I ask that you stand with me in the place of prayer.

Pray for doors of ministry to open up for us to bring the message of revival to the church.

Pray for us to be effective in the field God has given us.

Pray for the resources and finances to come in so that we can bring God’s Word to places that can’t afford to pay our way to them. Specifically, I have been invited to minister in other countries, but at this time lack the money to get there.

My Books

These are some books that I’ve written. My prayer is that they would be a blessing to you.

Breaking Free Cover-001

 

 

 

 

Jesus Speaks Thumbnail

 

 

 

 

 

Now to him who is able to do immeasurably more than all we ask or imagine, according to his power that is at work within us, to him be glory in the church and in Christ Jesus throughout all generations, for ever and ever! Amen.
Ephesians 3:20-21

© Nick Zaccardi 2014

 
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Posted by on May 8, 2014 in Newsletters

 

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Have a Chat with God

07 May

AloneThere’s a story that’s told of a conversation that took place during the Welsh revival. A minister was approached by a member of his congregation. He asked the pastor a question.

“Can you guess what’s the happiest time I have in religion?”

The minister figured that it was a simple question.

“Why, we’re all as happy as we can be during these revival days, and at our prayer meetings night after night.”

“Well,” the man answered, “That’s true, but I wasn’t thinking about that. Try again.”

“Then, it must be when you’re at prayer.”

“You are getting near it now,” the man said, “but it’s not exactly when I pray. It’s when I’m done praying, and God and I are just chatting.” **

I thought it was interesting. He considered his chats with God to have taken place after the praying was done. I believe that it’s in those times of friendly conversation with the Lord, that the true power abides.

And the scripture was fulfilled that says, “Abraham believed God, and it was credited to him as righteousness,” and he was called God’s friend.
James 2:23

It’s all about friendship and intimacy with the Lord. Friendship assumes that you enjoy being with someone. You stick with them for no other reason than that you like being around them.

Too many of our prayers are these formal petitions as we go through our lists of requests. We need to “get real” with God. We should talk to Him as we would any other friend.

Of course, with that said, we must speak to Him in the respect He deserves. He is the King of kings, Lord of the universe.

Yet in spite of His grand position, Christ allows me the privilege of sitting down and chatting with Him whenever I desire. More than that, He looks forward to those times.

We need to cultivate our friendship with Christ. As with any other relationship, it’s not the times we’re together in public that bring closeness. It’s the private times when we can reveal to each other who we really are.

Continue to pray. Bring your petitions and requests before the throne of God. But don’t forget to have a chat with Him from time to time. I believe that this will be the most memorable of your times in His presence.

(** The above conversation is adapted from Illustrations of Bible Truths, Copyright © 1995, 1998 by AMG International, Inc. All rights reserved. Used by permission.)

Question: What are the different kinds of prayer times that you experience with the Lord?

© Nick Zaccardi 2014

 
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Posted by on May 7, 2014 in Prayer, Revival

 

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Scriptural Meditation – Unlocking Your Anointing

05 May

MoonThis is the final post on the three levels of godly meditation. It’s a missing ingredient in the church today.

My eyes stay open through the watches of the night, that I may meditate on your promises.
Psalm 119:148

The Hebrew word for meditate in this verse is Siyach, which means to speak to oneself. This is the highest and most anointed form of meditation. This is where you actually start preaching (out loud) to yourself.

This type of meditation causes the insight and wisdom of the Holy Spirit to flow through you in an incredible way. I’ve gotten some of the most beautiful revelations of Scripture as I meditated (preached to myself) before God.

How does this work? The first thing you must do is find a quiet, out of the way place, where you can be by yourself. Then, out loud, begin to preach to yourself concerning the Scripture you’re meditating on. Just let it flow from your inner man. Don’t forget to bring paper and pen to write down the revelation you’ll receive.

You may think, “This is weird! It’s crazy to preach to myself.”   Actually, just the opposite is true. Psychiatrists tell us that the most well-balanced people are the ones who speak to themselves – and know that they’re speaking to themselves!

Most of the anointing to preach or teach is dependent upon the expectation level of the listeners. There were times in Jesus, ministry when He hardly did any miracles because the expectation of the people was so low.

During this type of meditation, the Holy Spirit’s anointing to teach is as strong as when you are before a crowd of expecting believers. This is because, if you’re expecting to hear from God, you’re drawing upon your own anointing. It’s a very awesome place to be in.

The Lord will then start to open up the Word to you prophetically.   When I meditate in this fashion, I usually have to keep stopping to take notes. You’ll find more of the Word opening up to you, the longer you meditate in the Lord’s presence.

This is such an incredible source of revelation from the Word of God that I’m convinced, like David, that you too will spend many nights awake upon your bed receiving insight and revelation from the Spirit of God. I know this happens to me from time to time. Rather than it being a burden, the study of the Word becomes exciting, because you never know what to expect or when to expect it.

Oh, how I love your law! I meditate on it all day long. Your commands make me wiser than my enemies, for they are ever with me. I have more insight than all my teachers, for I meditate on your statutes.
Psalm 119:97-99

Once you enter into this level of meditation, you have a source of instruction that goes beyond what you learned from others. No longer do you need to rely on the next conference to get fresh revelation from the Lord. You’ll have a source of insight that you can tap into by yourself.

As for me, I’m not content just to repeat what everyone else is saying. I want a Word from the Lord. I want it fresh, vital, and relevant. I want it to speak to my situation and to the lives of those who are listening to me.

I need to draw on the supernatural revelation of God. This is what meditation on the Word is all about. My prayer for you is that you enter into the fullness of the Word that God has for you.

Question: What insights have you learned through the use of Scriptural meditation?

© Nick Zaccardi 2014

This series was adapted from my book, Breaking Free from the Pack – How to Develop a Spirit of Excellence.

 
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Posted by on May 5, 2014 in Anointing, Ministry, Spirit of Excellence, Word of God

 

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Is the Word of God Your Obsession?

02 May

Lion2I’ve been talking about the three levels of Scriptural meditation. It’s something that the body of Christ needs to once again focus on. In my last post I talked about the first level.

On my bed I remember you; I think of you through the watches of the night.
Psalm 63:6

The next step takes the thinking process deeper into your heart. In the above verse think of is the Hebrew word Hagah. This word is a strengthened form of the verb Hagag. It means to intensely think about.

Meditation at this level requires memorization of the Scripture. You have to become intimate with the Word of God.

At this level you begin to obsess on the Scripture. You dwell on it. You imagine the sights, the smells, and the textures. If it’s a teaching Scripture, then you imagine yourself obeying it. Get inside the Word. See it as written in you and about you. This starts to give you a deeper understanding of the application.

Do not let this Book of the Law depart from your mouth; meditate on it day and night, so that you may be careful to do everything written in it. Then you will be prosperous and successful.
Joshua 1:8

We all want prosperity and success. But are we willing to do what it takes to achieve the level of excellence necessary to lay hold of them? In order to develop a spirit of excellence, it will require you to use at least this level of meditation.

This is what the LORD says to me: “As a lion growls, a great lion over his prey – and though a whole band of shepherds is called together against him, he is not frightened by their shouts or disturbed by their clamor – so the LORD Almighty will come down to do battle on Mount Zion and on its heights.”
Isaiah 31:4

You may wonder what this verse has to do with meditating on the Word of God. Scripture describes it as a lion meditating on its prey. Hagah is the word growl in the above verse.

It doesn’t matter that a band of shepherds are trying to distract this lion. His focus remains fixed and unbroken. He has one thing in mind – lamb chops!

We need to obsess over the Word of the Lord the way a lion does over his prey. Don’t let the devil or the world distract you from your objective.

The question isn’t whether or not you have to do this. You can get by in your Christian walk without meditating on the Word of God. Even if you’re in the full-time ministry, there are enough books and tapes around to keep you in sermons and Bible studies for the rest of your life.

We should always desire something fresh from the Word. A major portion of what you’re preaching and teaching must come from your walk with the Lord. You can’t build a ministry of excellence if all you do is rehash what everyone else is saying.

When you allow the Holy Spirit to meet with you in the place of meditation, you’re in communication with the Author, Himself. In this way, you will gain insight you never thought possible.

This is something you must desire and go after. The choice is yours. You can stand before the people with a nice teaching; or you can come to them with a Word from God.

In my next post I’ll move on to the highest level of godly meditation.

Question: How often do you purpose to memorize Scripture?

© Nick Zaccardi 2014

This series is adapted from my book, Breaking Free from the Pack – How to Develop a Spirit of Excellence.

 
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Posted by on May 2, 2014 in Ministry, Spirit of Excellence, Word of God

 

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Meditate on the Word of God

30 Apr

 

Journal 2Godly meditation upon the Word of God is one of the lost arts of the body of Christ. It’s one of the most powerful tools you could ever use in your study of God’s Word.

The Bible is a spiritual book. You can’t expect to use natural study methods to receive the supernatural revelation and knowledge God desires you to have.

There are always those Scriptures that, when read, seem to “jump out” at me. Through my meditation on the Word of God, I’ve gained insight into many of these portions of Scripture. I’ve found that I can use the tool of meditation to take me into the deep places of the Word of God. By meditating on the Word anyone can find the deeper truths of Scripture, and you’ll also come across some hidden gems that you never knew were there.

There are basically three levels to meditation. Each level revolves around an Old Testament Hebrew word. In this post I want to talk about the first.

May the words of my mouth and the meditation of my heart be pleasing in your sight, O LORD, my Rock and my Redeemer.
Psalm 19:14

Meditation starts in our mind. The Hebrew word for this is Hagag. This word is used throughout the Old Testament and means to think about. That has got to be our starting point. We need to first think about the Word we’re studying. What does it mean? What did it mean to those to whom it was written? What does it mean to me?

Give ear to my words, O LORD, consider my sighing.
Psalm 5:1

The word sighing, above, is the word Hagag. In both of the above verses David asks the Lord to consider his meditation. He wants the Lord to be pleased with what he thinks about. What a challenge!

One of the biggest battles we face is in our thought life. One of the side benefits to the discipline of meditation is that it starts to take our thoughts under control as we focus on God’s Word.

Do not conform any longer to the pattern of this world, but be transformed by the renewing of your mind. Then you will be able to test and approve what God’s will is – his good, pleasing and perfect will.
Romans 12:2

We’re told that we’re to renew our minds. It’s through godly meditation that this is done. By thinking God’s thoughts, we’re “reprogramming our internal computers.” I believe this is what Paul meant when he wrote that we’re made clean by the washing with water through the Word.

This, then, is the first step, the starting point in our trip to supernatural revelation from Scripture. Before we can go any deeper, we must train our thoughts to focus upon the Word of God. We must begin to think about the Word. Only then are we ready for the next, deeper stage of meditation.

My heart grew hot within me, and as I meditated, the fire burned; then I spoke with my tongue.     
Psalm 39:3

As I have just stated, this form of meditation just gets the ball rolling. It’s merely the starting place. It ignites the fire that will bring you further into the Word. Now you’re ready for the second level. I will talk about that in my next post.

Question: How often do you simply think about the Word of God?

© Nick Zaccardi 2014

 
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Posted by on April 30, 2014 in Ministry, Spirit of Excellence, Word of God

 

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