God is calling His church to a higher level in Christ. The return of the Lord is very close, yet sometimes the church seems to act like we have all the time in the world. Are you complacent about where you are spiritually? Or do you want to see a greater move of God through your life?
At one point in his life, Moses had a similar choice to make.
Now the LORD had said to Moses in Midian, “Go back to Egypt, for all the men who wanted to kill you are dead.” So Moses took his wife and sons, put them on a donkey and started back to Egypt. And he took the staff of God in his hand.
Exodus 4:19-20
Moses had been away from Egypt for a long time. But in this time of his life, God was calling him to return to his former home. The difference was that this time he had a mission from God – to set his people free. Even so, it still required a long wilderness journey.
Sometimes the hardest thing to do is to start. The planning and organizing are usually pretty easy.
I enjoy hiking. There are times that I have spent a few days on the trail.
When morning comes and it’s time to move on, thats when the truth of this is made real. It’s not that tough to break camp and put things away into your pack. But when you finally put your pack on, and stand there with your trekking poles in your hand – a subtle transformation occurs.
Suddenly, without warning, the campsite that you’ve called home for the past twelve hours is no longer yours. Now you’re a part of the trail and looking for a new destination.
We may be very satisfied where our life is right now. But this isn’t our destiny – the Lord has a greater work He wants to do in us. When God calls us to a higher level, we can never be satisfied this way again.
Remember that we need to be a people who are packed and ready to go. This world is not our home and the things of this world will never truly fulfill us.
Sometimes we just need to go before the Lord and reiterate to Him our total commitment to following His path for our lives – no matter where it leads. We need to thank Him for the destiny that He has prepared for us. Then, we need to be open and listening for any course changes He may speak to us.
It all depends on our attitude. Am I satisfied where I’m at, or do I hunger to see what God wants to do in these last days?
Question: Do you desire to move up to a new level in Christ?
© Nick Zaccardi 2013
Tags: attitude, Christ, complacent, course changes, destiny, greater move of God, higher level, hunger for more, Jesus, Lord, Moses, move on attitude, moving on in Christ, return of Christ, satisfied, spiritual, spiritual level, the world
Paul, a servant of Christ Jesus, called to be an apostle and set apart for the gospel of God…
Romans 1:1
Paul uses some interesting language in this verse. He calls himself a servant of Jesus Christ – literally a slave. It’s interesting, because on various occasions Paul made a point of proving his freedom.
Once he was arrested and he asked the guard why he was being denied his right to a trial as a Roman citizen. The guard explained that he, personally, had to buy his freedom. Paul, on the other hand, said that he was born a free Roman citizen.
At that time, if you were born a slave, you were expected to be a slave forever – there was no escaping it. Under Roman law, a slave could find out his “sale price” from his master. Then, if he saved enough money, he could pay the buying price to and have the ownership transferred to one of the many Roman gods. Then, as a slave to that god, could serve as a free man.
I believe this was in the back of Paul’s mind as he penned these words. We are all born under slavery to sin. That was our unfortunate lot for the rest of our lives.
Jesus Christ paid the “slave price” for us. Now, just as Paul did, we need to transfer the ownership of our lives over to God. As God’s slaves we can now serve as free citizens of the kingdom of Heaven.
We have to live under this knowledge if we are to have a fulfilling life in Christ. We don’t own our lives.
Your attitude should be the same as that of Christ Jesus: Who, being in very nature God, did not consider equality with God something to be grasped, but made himself nothing, taking the very nature of a servant, being made in human likeness. And being found in appearance as a man, he humbled himself and became obedient to death– even death on a cross!
Philippians 2:5-8
Christ, Himself, set the standard of living that we need to follow. He said that He came to live a life of service. That should be our attitude as well.
The Apostle Peter understood this truth.
Live as free men, but do not use your freedom as a cover-up for evil; live as servants of God.
1 Peter 2:16
In the first verse above, Paul said that as a slave, he was called to be sent forth as an apostle. Once we’ve transferred the ownership of our lives to God, our callings will open up to us. We are now free to serve Him to the best of our ability.
Paul finished off the verse by saying that he was set apart to the Good News. That literally means that we are set off by a boundary. The Good News is our field of service.
This is the attitude that will push you to great things in the body of Christ.
Question: Have you transferred the ownership rights of your life to the Lord?
© Nick Zaccardi 2013
Tags: calling, Christ, citizens of heaven, freedom, God, Jesus, life of service, ownership, ownership of our lives, servant, servant of Jesus Christ, service, set apart, slave, slavery to sin, tranferred ownership
I’ve been posting about how Christ has fulfilled the requirements of the promises for us. Now, by faith, we’re free to walk in the blessings as adopted sons of God.
But there’s more that we need to grasp about this truth. Unfortunately, the response of most Christians in the USA to this teaching is, “Great! I don’t need to do anything to receive God’s blessing. I don’t need to tithe or go to church or anything.”
Please understand that I didn’t say that. What I said was that Christ fulfilled the requirements of the promises. The blessing side of the promise shows what God wants to do for us as sons.
However, there’s also a reason for studying the requirement side of the promise. The question at this point is, as a Christian, why do I need to know the requirements?
It’s the requirements of the promises that show us what pleases God. Remember:
If you remain in me and my words remain in you, ask whatever you wish, and it will be given you. This is to my Father’s glory, that you bear much fruit, showing yourselves to be my disciples.
John 15:7-8
We fulfill the requirements of the promises simply because we love God. I know the truth about Christ fulfilling the promise, but I continue to tithe because I love God and He deserves ALL my money. I read the Word of God because I want to know Him better. I go to church because He meets with me and the body of believers there.
If anyone does not remain in me, he is like a branch that is thrown away and withers; such branches are picked up, thrown into the fire and burned.
John 15:6
If you’re not remaining in Christ in this love relationship, then you have no access to the power of Christ. You may not like this, but it’s the truth. Christians ask dumb questions that show their lack of maturity all the time.
“Do I really have to pray every day?”
“Do believers have to tithe?”
Let me explain to you the nature of these questions. Most believers have no idea about the implications of what they’re saying.
What kind of person would ask the question, “If I get married, do I really have to kiss my wife?” It’s simple – a five-year-old would ask that question. Only someone who is not mature enough to understand the beauty and intimacy of the marriage relationship would think that kissing a wife would be “yucky.”
The very fact that you’re asking those questions show that you’re an immature Christian who doesn’t yet understand the intimacy of our love relationship with the Lord. A mature believer wants to serve and please God no matter if there is a blessing promised or not.
Question: Are there ways that you’re serving God regardless of any promise?
© Nick Zaccardi 2013
Tags: blessing, Christ, immature believer, Jesus, love God, loving God, mature believer, maturity, power, power of Christ, power of God, promises, promises fulfilled, promises of God, requirement, the rest of the story, tithing, word of God
In my last post I talked about how Christ has fulfilled the requirements for the promises. This teaching is carried on throughout the New Testament. It’s not just a verse pulled out of context, but a scriptural theme that has been all but ignored by the church.
For if those who live by law are heirs, faith has no value and the promise is worthless, because law brings wrath. And where there is no law there is no transgression.
Therefore, the promise comes by faith, so that it may be by grace and may be guaranteed to all Abraham’s offspring – not only to those who are of the law but also to those who are of the faith of Abraham. He is the father of us all.
Romans 4:14-16
This is a foundational passage in our knowledge of how the promises are obtained in Christ. The blessing is received, not by my working to do the requirements, but by faith in the One who has already fulfilled them.
This truth is not only given to us by Paul, but also by Peter as well.
His divine power has given us everything we need for life and godliness through our knowledge of him who called us by his own glory and goodness. Through these he has given us his very great and precious promises, so that through them you may participate in the divine nature and escape the corruption in the world caused by evil desires.
2 Peter 1:3-4
The phrase through these obviously refers to the glory and goodness of God, not our works of righteousness. As a matter of fact the implications of this go deeper than we have yet discussed. According to this verse, the reason God blesses us is so that we might actually be participants, sharers, in His divine nature. You will not find the call for us to fulfill the requirements of the promises anywhere in the New Covenant.
If that’s true, then what are the promises for? We can look at it this way; each promise has two halves. There are the requirements and the blessing. According to the New Testament, Jesus came to fulfill the requirements of the promises. Because of His finished work on the cross, we receive the blessing of the promise because we’re in Him.
But when the time had fully come, God sent his Son, born of a woman, born under law, to redeem those under law, that we might receive the full rights of sons.
Galatians 4:4-5
What really began to set me free was when I realized that the promises are the rights of sons. For instance, this means that the promise associated with tithing has been fulfilled. God rebukes the devourer because I’m a son. We need the revelation that we now receive the promises based upon sonship.
As I’ve said before, you need the whole truth to be effective. In my next post I will deal with the most important part of this series.
Question: Why is it so hard for us to accept that Christ has finished this work on the cross?
© Nick Zaccardi 2013
Tags: all you need is Christ, blessing, Christ, divine nature, faith, faith in Christ, fulfilled in Christ, glory of God, goodness of God, in Christ, Jesus, requirements for the promises, sharers, sonship
In my last post I shared that when I decided to tithe in order for God to rebuke the devourer, I was appealing to the law for my financial blessing. Through the gentle leading of the Spirit, I came to the realization that I had placed myself under the commandment. I now understand that trying to fulfill the requirements of the promises is a form of legalism.
What I forgot was this:
For whoever keeps the whole law and yet stumbles at just one point is guilty of breaking all of it.
James 2:10
By placing my hope in keeping the tithe law, I was missing the rest of the puzzle. Here’s what I had neglected. The passage in Malachi showed me the conditions to rebuke the devourer. But there are 20 other verses that deal with things I can do that allows the devourer to get my stuff.
They talk about everything from hiring prostitutes to neglecting the needs of the church. So in effect, when I tithed, God rebuked the devourer. Then, if I neglected the church, I was calling the devourer back so he could continue his work.
Now, don’t get ahead of me. This is a dangerous point to only have half of the truth. You need the whole truth, if you’re going to walk in the power of God. At this point I’m still dealing with the first half. You must read all the blogs in this series to get the whole picture.
I became more and more aware of the fact that trying to fulfill the requirements of the promises actually puts me under the law. So I did a study of promises in the New Testament to see how they’re used under the New Covenant.
For no matter how many promises God has made, they are “Yes” in Christ. And so through him the “Amen” is spoken by us to the glory of God.
2 Corinthians 1:20
I was surprised at what the Scripture had to say. Nowhere did I find it taught that we have to fulfill the requirements. As a matter, of fact it was just the opposite. The reason for this is the finished work of Christ on the cross. He even told us that was why He came to the earth.
“Do not think that I have come to abolish the Law or the Prophets; I have not come to abolish them but to fulfill them.”
Matthew 5:17
In this statement, Jesus tells us the whole foundation for walking in the blessings of the Word. Part of His work was to fulfill everything written in the Old Covenant.
The word, fulfill means to cram full, to fill in the holes. All of the open-ended requirements needed to “claim” the promises have been filled in by Christ.
This means that we are exempt from the requirements, unless we voluntarily place ourselves under the law. In that case, the kingdom of the enemy has the right to use its power against us on the same level.
Question: What promises have you turned into laws in your life?
© Nick Zaccardi 2013
Tags: appealing to the law, Christ, cross, devourer, finished work of Christ, God, Holy Spirit, Jesus, legalism, legalism and the promises, legalistic, promises, promises of God, rebuke the devourer, requirements, spirit, standing on the promises, tithe law, tithing
In my last post, I looked at Paul’s question – How does God give His Spirit and work power in the church? This question is the difference between all other religions and Christianity.
Think about it. In the book of Acts, the early church had no phones, radio, New Testament Scripture, or anything like the resources and knowledge we have today. Yet they walked in the power of God that’s unrivaled in our modern generation.
As I thought about it, I also realized that my grandparents couldn’t read and had no formal education to speak of. Yet there was an incredible manifestation of the power of God in their lives – what happened?
Let me say something now, for shock value, that I’ll explain more fully in a later post. It was when the church started teaching about the promises we began to lose the power.
Once I was alive apart from law; but when the commandment came, sin sprang to life and I died. I found that the very commandment that was intended to bring life actually brought death.
Romans 7:9-10
This verse is very clear. God saved me apart from the law when I trusted the death, burial, and resurrection of Jesus Christ. Through this finished work I was made alive apart from the law. Then the commandment came, which the Scripture says is the power of sin (I Corinthians 15:56). When this happens, death begins its work in me.
Let me explain how God used this truth to minister to me. One day, as I was driving, praying, and meditating upon the Word, the Holy Spirit started to speak to me. I had been going through a rough time financially.
I had done everything that I knew to do. I had stood on all I’d been taught about prayers and confessions. I’ve always been a tither. I always remind the Lord what His Word says and that I’m standing on His promises.
At this point in my life I clearly heard God speak to my heart and ask me, “What are you basing your expectation on?” Immediately my thoughts turned to the Scripture. I’m basing my hope in the Word that tells me to tithe. If I’ll tithe, then You will rebuke the devourer and open the windows of Heaven. I give special offerings when You lead me to, so that I’ll receive the blessings of the seed of faith.
The Lord then asked me a question that floored me. He said, “So you’re basing your expectation upon the law?” I was speechless. I had no response to this. On the inside I felt like defending and justifying my actions. But deep down I knew that the Lord had hit upon the very root of the problem, even though at that point I had no clue how to get out of it.
I came to the realization that I had placed myself under the commandment. Trying to fulfill the requirements of the promises is a form of legalism.
Question: Are there Scriptural promises that you find yourself legalistic about?
© Nick Zaccardi 2013
Tags: Bible, Christ, church, commandment, finished work of Christ, God, God exposed my legalism, Holy Spirit, Jesus, law, legalism, legalistic, manifestation, miracles, power, promises, promises of God, Scripture, Spirit of God, standing on the promises, the law
How far into the realm of the excellent are you venturing? In my last post I looked at a sobering statement that Jesus made to His disciples.
“So you also, when you have done everything you were told to do, should say, ‘We are unworthy servants; we have only done our duty.”
Luke 17:10
If all you’re doing in your life and ministry are the things you’re supposed to do, then you’re unprofitable in the kingdom of God, according to the Lord. There are always things that we must do or that we’re expected to do.
The word unworthy is derived from a Greek word that means, not ought. The thought is that you are not what you ought to be. To break into the realm of the excellent you must break through the “musts” and enter into the “oughts.”
Those who are not only doing what they have to do, but have found a way to do what they ought to do, are considered to be walking in the excellent. When a person goes beyond the expected in his or her walk with the Lord we marvel at their spirit of excellence.
What does that mean to me? I must stop saying, “I ought to have…”, “I ought to do…”, or “I ought to be…” then with the next breath say, “But I have so much I need to do; I can’t.” When you develop the spirit of excellence, the Holy Spirit is now free to work in you to accomplish what wasn’t expected.
As excellence starts its work in you, you can tap into God’s “excellent power,” His “excellent grace,” and His “excellent love.” You’ll find out that God has all the resources you need to fulfill the call to excellence that He’s placed inside of you.
In II Corinthians 12:7, Paul talks about being the recipient of excellent revelations. He would not have received these had he not been walking in excellence. Galatians 1:13 says that before he was saved, Paul excelled at persecuting the church.
Everyone else was persecuting Christians in the normal way. Paul, however, went above and beyond the call of duty. He dragged people out of their homes, and if they tried to move away, he even tracked them to other towns. Once saved, He carried over this same spirit of excellence into his work for Christ. That’s why the Holy Spirit entrusted him with all the revelation that he received from the Lord.
But we have this treasure in jars of clay to show that this all-surpassing power is from God and not from us.
II Corinthians 4:7
The word all-surpassing is the Greek word hyperballo – excellent. This excellent power does not come from our own strength. Don’t ever take the credit for the excellence in your ministry. The glory belongs to God.
Walking in the spirit of excellence is one of the earmarks of the power of God in your life, showing that you hear from God and are obeying His voice.
Question: What are some of the marks of God’s excellence in your life and ministry?
© Nick Zaccardi 2013
Tags: beyond the expected, Christ, disciple, excellence, excellence from musts to oughts, excellent, expected, glory of God, God, Jesus, life and ministry, Lord, ministry, must, ought, power of God, profitable, spirit of excellence, unprofitable, unworthy, walking in excellence
Many Christians want to hear Christ say, “Well done, good and faithful servant.” But do we really know what Jesus looks for in a servant? Listen to what He tells His disciples.
“Suppose one of you had a servant plowing or looking after the sheep. Would he say to the servant when he comes in from the field, ‘Come along now and sit down to eat’? Would he not rather say, ‘Prepare my supper, get yourself ready and wait on me while I eat and drink; after that you may eat and drink’? Would he thank the servant because he did what he was told to do? So you also, when you have done everything you were told to do, should say, ‘We are unworthy servants; we have only done our duty.”
Luke 17:7-10
Christ shows us a servant, working in the fields. He comes home tired and hungry. Just as he sits down to eat with his family, he hears the master arrive.
Does he have the luxury of finishing his meal first? Of course not. He must immediately get up and tend to the needs of his master. That’s the life of a servant.
After he has served, he can go back to his meal. After all he did, does he now expect a bonus? No, he’s only done what’s normally expected of a person in his position.
God expects more from us than we expect from ourselves. In the verse above, the Lord asks a very fearful question. As a minister of the Gospel of Jesus Christ, I tremble at the implications.
Should you, as a servant, do as you’re told and then expect to be thanked? The word thanked means to be blessed, tipped or given a special reward. Actually, a servant is supposed to do what he or she is told.
If all we do in your ministry is what’s expected or normal for our kind of ministry, then we’re not operating in the excellent. As a matter of fact, Jesus calls us unworthy servants, meaning unprofitable.
In a business, profit is that which goes beyond the “break even” mark. Therefore, by definition, profit is in the realm of the excellent.
Many believers are content to sit in a pew. They feel secure that they’re just like everyone else. They’re comfortable in their mediocrity. I find that even in ministry, many pastors and evangelists are content to plug along doing what’s expected of someone with their title.
They do all the necessary things – preaching, praying for the sick, visiting, etc. Then they pray and expect God to increase their level of anointing based upon the principle that they’re breaking even. They never realize that their work doesn’t impress God. More than that, He considers it unprofitable and unworthy of His excellent Name.
Christ is looking for excellence in His servants. We need to raise our vision of what we’re doing for the Lord.
Question: How should we be “profiting” the kingdom of God?
© Nick Zaccardi 2013
Tags: Christ, Christians, excellence, excellent, faithful, faithful servant, God, Jesus, master, mediocre, mediocrity, profit, profitable, profitable in the kingdom, unprofitable, unworthy, well done, well done good and faithful servant
In my last post I talked about how we are called to live a life of excellence. Did you know that your eternal rewards are based upon how well you live up to this?
The Bible does speak over and over again about the different levels of rewards based upon the work we perform throughout our lives.
But the one who does not know and does things deserving punishment will be beaten with few blows. From everyone who has been given much, much will be demanded; and from the one who has been entrusted with much, much more will be asked.
Luke 12:48
The fact is that we are responsible for what we’ve received. A young Christian is not responsible for the truths that have not yet been made real to him. Someone who’s been walking with the Lord for years, and ignoring His call, will receive less in the kingdom.
It’s clear from Scripture that we’re going to be responsible for the grace that we’ve been given. With a greater anointing and calling comes greater responsibility.
I’ve found that many believers, ministers especially, want the miracles and the big churches without the character it takes to walk uprightly before God in that kind of work. The Lord wants us to grow from the inside out. An increase in power, without a corresponding increase in character, will destroy our spiritual walk.
As a matter of fact, it’s probably too late for you now. You’ve read too much. If you’ve been reading my blogs regularly, then God is going to require excellence from you and your ministry. Now that you know He’s a God of excellence, and that He requires excellence in His followers, you must begin to walk in it. Read on!
Enter through the narrow gate. For wide is the gate and broad is the road that leads to destruction, and many enter through it. But small is the gate and narrow the road that leads to life, and only a few find it.
Matthew 7:13-14
The Lord talked to His disciples about the narrow road. We like to interpret this verse as if it’s merely talking about the road of salvation. Salvation is indeed the first step toward excellence. When we chose Christ, we chose a better path than that of the world.
I believe, however, that this Scripture has a broader meaning in application to the body of Christ. Very few find the walk of excellence to which we have been called. “The few;” that sounds like the definition of excellence to me – “that which goes beyond the expected or the normal.”
The Lord expects us to find the narrow gate of excellence. If it were easy, everyone would be doing it.
Question: Have you made the decision to live a life of excellence before God?
© Nick Zaccardi 2013
Tags: anointing, beyond, Bible, calling, Christ, eternal reward, excellence, excellence and rewards, expected, Jesus, life of excellence, narrow, narrow gate, narrow road, normal, responsible, rewards, Scripture, walk of excellence, wide road, work
We all know that it’s impolite to interrupt someone when they’re speaking. Have you ever thought about this in relation to Christ and His work in you? He speaks to us in various ways. Are we guilty of interrupting what He’s doing in us?
I want to look at an incident in the life of Jesus that illustrates this. It’s found in the Gospel of Luke, chapter 12. At this point in the Lord’s ministry, He’s publicly teaching somewhere when all of a sudden a loud voice interrupts Him.
Someone in the crowd said to him, “Teacher, tell my brother to divide the inheritance with me.”
Luke 12:13
Can you imagine that? Jesus is walking down the street giving words of instruction and perhaps ministering to the sick when somebody yells out, “Tell my brother to give me my share of the inheritance.”
It makes you wonder what type of individual would be so self-absorbed, that they would make a public statement like that. Well, that kind of presumption was enough to set Jesus off in a new direction of teaching.
Jesus replied, “Man, who appointed me a judge or an arbiter between you?” Then he said to them, “Watch out! Be on your guard against all kinds of greed; a man’s life does not consist in the abundance of his possessions.”
Luke 12:14-15
When Jesus got done, that person probably felt as though he should have kept his mouth shut. Jesus used this interruption to teach the crowd about the foolishness of greed.
He told them a parable about a rich man with no common sense. This man got a big harvest, built bigger barns, and stored it all up. Jesus explained that the man ended up dying before he could spend all of his wealth. That foolish man lost the eternal to gain the temporary.
The Lord’s message to those gathered around Him was that our life does not consist of what can be accumulated. You’re not to worry about what you’re going to wear or what you’re going to eat. God will provide for you.
Worry about serving God. Worry about doing the Father’s will. In that way you’re laying up treasure in Heaven. Christ said that where your treasure is, that’s where your heart is going to be.
This got me thinking. The Lord is attempting to do a particular work in my life. He communicates His plan to me through a series of events. He speaks to my heart, allows circumstances to come my way, and teaches me through the lives and words of others.
How often do I “interrupt” His plan with a totally unrelated request? I get my eyes off His plan and onto my desires. When it comes to the Lord, I need to think before I ask.
We must be sensitive to the Holy Spirit at work in us. Make sure that your requests are in line with His plan. Don’t be discourteous and interrupt the Lord.
Question: Have you ever found yourself guilty of interrupting God’s work in you?
© Nick Zaccardi 2013
Tags: Christ, Christ speaks, eternal, Holy Spirit, interrupt, interrupt the Lord, interrupting, Jesus, ministry, my heart, self-absorbed, sensitive, serve God, temporary, the Father's will, the Lord, treasure in Heaven
God is calling His church to a higher level in Christ. The return of the Lord is very close, yet sometimes the church seems to act like we have all the time in the world. Are you complacent about where you are spiritually? Or do you want to see a greater move of God through your life?
The Spirit and the Word 