Pilgrimage

I am currently reading Apostolic Foundations by Art Katz. My brother-in-law shared this article also by Katz with me today. I have placed it here by permission from the European Prophetic College. It is pretty long (18 pages MSWord), but well worth the read if you have the time. Katz has some keep insight with which I think we must wrestle. This is in two parts.

A Man in Whom the Spirit of God Is

By Art Katz

Part 01 (of 2)

I cannot imagine a more appropriate night for this message. This is probably as grand of a religion as can be experienced in our world. It cannot reach a greater pitch or peak than this –

the glory of this music, the worship and the spirit of cordiality that prevails in this sanctuary tonight. This is it. This is the pinnacle, the ultimate in religion. How would you like to let it fall into the ground and die?

Tonight, I am going to paint you a picture that so contrasts the glory you have just experienced that you are going to suffer cultural disorientation. In fact, you are going to have to make a rugged choice. Which of these two cultures will you choose? You will have to choose either religion, in all of its glory, or apostolic splendor, fresh out of the book of Acts, in all of its magnitude, grisly sweat, suffering, blood, vexation, distress, and calamity. I have purposely worn my jacket so that I might take it off before you, not just because I am warm, but because it contradicts the very tenor of all that God is giving me to speak tonight. If I could take this auditorium off as I take this jacket off, I would do it. Even this building is inconsistent with what is on my heart to speak tonight. Yet, in the same breath, can I say that I have never enjoyed such lovely hospitality? I have enjoyed tremendous, precious folk and gourmet meals; you are seeing to every need. This is religion at its ultimate, but there is an apostolic glory that far exceeds it. We shall never attain that glory except that we truly become men and women of the Spirit.

I heard a man make a remark not long ago. I was stunned by his remark and my spirit said, “That’s true!” His statement was, “Little of what is known to be the work or the activity of the Spirit of God is truly the Spirit of God.” Is that not a stunning statement? Suppose you could see as God sees. Imagine all the things that have excited and titillated your religious sensibilities: the glory of singing, music, instruments, the number of attendees, crowds, inspiring messages, etc. What would you say if I suggested that all of those things could be conducted in the realm of the soul? You would have a ball, enjoy it, and think yourself spiritual! Yet, it has neither a wit nor a grain to do with things of the Spirit! What would you say if I suggested that as a possibility? What would you say if I declared that that is the condition that prevails largely in Christendom today, especially in the charismatic world?

If I could speak French, I would say, “J’accuse!” I accuse the charismatic world for being a fraud, except that it is not conscious, willful, or knowing. We have all been seduced. We have all drifted into that nether world between the realm of soul and spirit, and we did not even know it. Some of us have never truly experienced or walked in the Spirit of God. No one has ever faulted you for it. No one ever detected it in you. You may go on being backslapped, bear-hugged, and applauded all the way to the grave and never know the realm of the Spirit. I want to give you a slab, a taste, a hunk of apostolic reality. I want to push it right into your maw so that you shall be utterly spoiled from this night forth – spoiled is not expressive enough – ruined for anything less than the pure presence of the Spirit of God. Do you want that? You may have to sell your building and hock your instruments. I would, if I could, pull the plug from the collective amplifiers of Christendom!

I think we all need to heed a book that is rarely read. I was probably not ready for it when I picked it up a few years ago. It said nothing to me at that time. It is saying much more to me now. The book is called, The Latent Power of the Soul by Watchman Nee. How prophetic this book is! Before the advent of the first electronic amplifier, Nee suggested that one of the greatest menaces for the children of God at the end of the age would be that soulish realm of activity that emulates, imitates, counterfeits, and gives every appearance of being the realm of the Spirit. He mentions that there is something about music itself that has inherent possibilities for danger. Of all people and of all generations, we need the sharpest kind of sensitivity and discernment to be able to distinguish between that which is soulish and that which is spiritual. That kind of discernment and knowledge is not born in a day, and every lesson in the practice thereof is costly and painful.

I am going to be speaking out of the Book of Acts, chapters 17 and 16. I will begin with 17 and work backward. Last night I spoke on the passage that says, “Can we find such a one as this, a man in whom the Spirit of God is?” (Gen 41:38). The two words that leap out to my heart are man and spirit. Is that not a glory? Is that not incomprehensible? Does that not beggar your mind? A man, not some papier-mâché disciple, not some cardboard, grotesque snap off the assembly line, not some pert little character who has learned to quote Scripture! A man, full-orbed, flesh and blood, tempered, matured, seasoned, not some pipsqueak, not some graduate of some rush school of discipleship, but a man in whom the Spirit of God is! God is waiting for such a man. His end-time intention will not be fulfilled without him. The summary of it is that if it were only a single individual, I would have waved you “goodbye” long ago, but we are in this together. The man that God is awaiting is a corporate man. Therefore, I am bound by your immaturity, limited by your fleshliness, and affected by your soulish substitutes for the things that are truly spiritual! “Till we all come into the fullness and stature of Jesus Christ unto a perfect man” (Eph 4:13). I want to recite to you something of the episodes of such a man.

My greatest disillusionment and heartbreak when I was saved many years ago was taking my place in the neighborhood Pentecostal church and finding the enormous divergence between the Book of Acts and what I had to experience every Sunday. I was naïve when the floodgates of credulity opened, and I could believe anything after my lifelong history of cynicism and unbelief, but what a disappointment! It was a mock and a travesty for one who expected that we would be completing and continuing the Book of Acts. I have a Jewish heart for apostolic glory and for the grandeur of God, not for my sake, but for God’s sake. I have a heart for the men that will shake cities again. These are the men who “turn the world upside down” (Acts 17:6), not deafen our ears with their amplifiers.

Acts 17:16 says, “Now while Paul waited for them at Athens, his spirit was stirred in him as he saw the city wholly given to idolatry.” Do you know how he got there? Other men brought him there. He was in between stops. It was not on his schedule. That sounds like a very innocuous verse. Innocuous means “not especially conspicuous.” “Big deal!” we might say. “So?” While Paul waited, the Spirit within him stirred “as he saw the city wholly given to idolatry.” I want to make a flat statement: “Every good and perfect gift cometh down from above, from the Father of lights” (Jas 1:17). Every pure and holy work comes down from above. As for me and my house, we say “pass” on every so-called Christian work that does not have its origin in heaven! I don’t even care if it is ostensibly for the Jews. I don’t give a rap how groovy it is, how laden with Stars of David, how full of matzoh and reeling with yiddishkeit. It does not matter how cultural, groovy, pert, smart, or clever it is. I care only for this: that it has its origin from God, by His Spirit. “His spirit was stirred in him as he saw the city wholly given to idolatry.” What a statement that touches the grandeur of what we are trying to express! “A man in whom the Spirit of God is.” He saw, and God stirred. The amplified version is even a little stronger: “Now while Paul was awaiting them at Athens, his spirit was grieved and roused to anger as he saw that the whole city was full of idols.” He saw; his spirit was stirred. That is the origin of every pure and holy work in the earth.

I want to ask you, children, are you are willing to wait till God shall stir your spirit? When you are a full-orbed man like this, even when you are in between assignments, brought by other men to a place that you did not expect to be, God will begin something that shall culminate on Mars Hill and challenge the intellectuals of this generation. God is simply awaiting a man whose spirit He can stir. From that point on, what a progression unto glory! “Therefore disputed he in the synagogue with the Jews and with the devout persons and in the market daily with them that met with him” (v 17). “Therefore.” Can you see how you are in for a ride? Something begins with the ignition of God in the spirit of a man. Then there is a “therefore.” “He was roused to anger and grieved at a city given to idolatry, therefore he disputed in the synagogue with the Jews.” Now, are you students of the Word? What does the one thing have to do with the other?

If a man is vexed over idolatry, then what is he doing in the synagogue? That is exactly where he ought to be! That is the exact “therefore.” That is where idolatry is most flagrantly practiced. Are you thinking that idolatry is only bowing down before some pagan idol or doing some kind of icky, foul, orgiastic thing? Do you not know what idolatry is, children? Idolatry is bending to any lesser altar than that of the Most High God. The idolatrous religions are those of convenience that give men a copout opportunity to experience a modicum of religious, psychic, or emotional satisfaction and yet allow them to retain the lordship of their own lives. It is practiced everywhere: in synagogues, Presbyterian churches, Methodist churches, and Pentecostal assemblies. It is idolatry! Why, then, is your spirit not grieved? Far more often are we merely disturbed, bent out of shape, or emotionally affected, and we take that to be a signal from God. In fact, it may only be indigestion or some personal, idiosyncratic, subjective response. There is a difference between that which emanates from our flesh and that which has its origin in His Spirit.

There is a “therefore” that follows with the logical continuation that “he disputed with the Jews and the devout persons in the synagogue and in the market daily with them that met with him.” I will tell you what kind of a naïve man I am. I believe that every man who met with Paul in the marketplace was on a divine collision course. God intended for them to have that meeting. Don’t you love divine encounter? Don’t you like it when God sets it up? Are you preparing yourself to be a sensitive instrument in whom His Spirit can grieve? How foolish would you think me if I reprimanded a woman, a precious saint whom I have known for years, because she picked up the check at the table in the café where eight of us had breakfast together? “What do you mean you reprimanded her? You should have applauded her. She did a ‘good thing.’” “Good things” are exactly what kill us. Where, I implore you, is your divine discontent? Haven’t you had a gut-full of “good things”? Do you not hunger for that which is perfect? If you are not preparing yourself to see it in things that are mundane and everyday, then how will you know it when it comes and you are caught between cities, having been brought there by other men? You just keep taking the check off the table, keep doing “good things” that have their origin in your skull, and you will be completely incapacitated for the Spirit of God when He would have you to be moved.

Any one of us could have picked up the check, but she picked it up. I turned to her without thinking, which is when I am at my best, and said, “Did God have you to do that?” “Oh, yes,” she said. She thought I was going to turn and resume my conversation with the person on my right. Instead I turned to her again and repeated a second time, “Did God have you to do that?” She giggled a little bit more nervously and said, “Yes,” but it was not quite as convincing this time. Again she thought, “Well, I finally got Katz off my back. He’ll go back to his conversation.” I turned a third time and said, “Did God have you to do that?” “Well,” she said, “I thought it would be a good thing.” Children, are you only doing what God would have you to do? Are you refraining from good things in order that you might be reserved unto Him for that which is perfect? Are you willing to suffer the reproach of isolation in Minnesota, thousands of miles removed from your Jewish kinsmen? We receive mail from our Jewish brothers who are in ministry, who are doing “great things” for God with their campaigns, rallies, street activity, slogans, and broadsides. The easy tendency is to press on in doing what we think are “great things” for God, but are you willing to sit and wait for the Spirit of God to stir you? I am waiting for the apostolic glory of God. I am waiting for His campaign and His rally. I am waiting for His cry to be sounded again in the earth, “Repent! For the Kingdom of God is at hand!” I know that it cannot be sounded until there is a Kingdom that is tangible, demonstrable, that can be seen, felt, looked at and examined, so get with it already, will you?

As impressive as this service was tonight, it is not enough to persuade my Jewish people to cleave to the “Foolish” One. It is not enough to persuade them to embrace a way that has been polluted and corrupted for them by two thousand years of satanic perversion, distortion, and persecution, in the Name of Him who is salvation. No little glib entreaty is going to convince a Jew to walk away from the way of this world or to take upon himself the way of faith. No slick appeal will convince him to contradict all that he has esteemed, all that his life has been predicated upon, and to cast that upon the dung heap in order to walk in the way of foolishness. If he were to do so, a Jew would suffer unspeakable reproach from his own kinsmen, family, and community. Groovy religion will never induce him to do it! I am waiting to show my kinsmen proof of the life of God in a people that is fearful in its magnitude, a glorious Kingdom of people with such absolute honesty and unfeigned love that you would think they were another race of men!

“Repent for the Kingdom of God is at hand.” That is going to take more than “successful” services. I am willing to wait for the building of this Kingdom and the stirring of my spirit by His Spirit when it shall please Him in His perfect moment, and it shall come! May God find us ready to respond as men and women of the Spirit who can “dispute in the synagogues with the Jews and the devout persons and in the marketplace daily” with those whom He would have us to encounter! “Well, let’s see…uh, God has a plan for your life…uh, rule two…” Phew! Do you think that is going to do it? Oh, if I had time, I could tell you stories. I could tell you of the unconventional speaking of God that would blow your mind. I could tell you of the insults of God, the goading of God, the teasing and the provocations of God. You would say it was not God! “It’s not nice. He would never do that! You didn’t learn that in evangelical discipleship school.” You’re right; I didn’t. He gave it to me in the moments of heated confrontation in the Jewish fraternity house, where they were hanging off the chandeliers and glued to the walls, waiting to see the demise and the destruction of this Jewish freak. The place was jam-packed. They were waiting to see my head handed to me by the professor of comparative religion. He was a notorious atheist who spoke Greek, Aramaic, and Hebrew. He was a Gentile who spoke all three languages. I am a Jew and I do not speak any of them.

They only made one mistake that night: they let me speak first. The moment I opened my mouth, a holy hush came over that jammed fraternity house. I went on and on. Finally, about a half-hour into my presentation, these kids were nudging this professor and asking, “Aren’t you going to answer this man?” At last, the professor came up, made one or two lame, apologetic, intellectual remarks and left with his tail between his legs. No contest. That meeting went on for six hours. It was not a meeting; it was a war! I saw Jews so vexed that their eyeballs were popping out of their skulls. The spittle was forming at the corners of their mouths. They got up in disgust, left the room, but came back two minutes later to take another seat. They hated it, but they loved it. They were too Jewish to walk away from it. Around ten o’clock that night, a kid came out of his seat with his fists clenched and his knuckles white. I thought, “Here it comes!” Everyone’s breathing stopped, including mine. This kid was trembling like a leaf with a rage that was indescribable. “Katz,” he said, “if your God can save me as you’ve been saying, I defy Him to do it right now! Put up or shut up!” Where were my four spiritual laws? If Bill Bright ever gets me, then I have had it! You may franchise McDonald’s hamburgers, but you are not going to franchise the Book of Acts, folks. The Book of Acts is original, spontaneous, and powerful. It is a glory. It is utterly unique in every situation, given by God at that moment. We need to be restored to that high and holy standard, even if it costs us everything: our buildings, our programs, our choirs, our amplifiers, and our guitars – all of it!

What would you say to a kid like that? I was shot after eight days of meetings. I was wiped out. I just opened my mouth, and there was God, dipping a great Turkish towel in icy water and knotting it. It was saturated and knotted; it was a clout; it was a lethal weapon out of my mouth. I opened my mouth and the Lord let him have it right in the kisser. Whap! “You need not think you can receive anything from God; your spirit stinks!” “Is that the way you talk to your Jewish people, Art?” No, that is the way He talks to my Jewish people, when He will have a mouth that will not hesitate to be open to speak the foolish and ungainly things of God that contradict one’s own sensibility, taste, and intention. You will never be such an instrument if you keep picking up the check because it is a “good thing.” A “pass” on so-called “good things!” That kid just fluttered his eyelids and sank into his seat like a lamb. Fifteen minutes later, he was the first one to be saved. Fourteen other Jews followed him into the Kingdom trembling, shaking and weeping.

Well, we know what happened to Paul: “Then certain philosophers of the Epicureans and the Stoics encountered him and some said ‘What will the babbler say?’” (v 18). I cannot tell you how embarrassed I have been by this gospel. Doesn’t the Lord know that I have something of an intellectual reputation? Couldn’t He have given me something a little more advantageous to talk about, something that would have shown my own gifts to a greater advantage? The utter foolishness of the gospel! The utter, unspeakable foolishness! God helped me to see that foolishness at 8 o’clock in the morning in Wheeling, West Virginia, opposite the desk of a Jewish business leader who owned the local radio station and other business interests. I called him and six other Jews, asking if they would come to that night’s meeting. They all told me the same thing: “Too busy, too busy, too busy.” The day will come when God will be too busy for you, buddy! This last man said, “Too busy.” I was just about to hang up when I heard myself saying, “But, sir, are you available tomorrow morning?” I thought to myself that if anybody deserves to sleep in, it is “Kid” Katz!

Then, to my utter amazement, the man said, “Yes, if you’ll be here by 8 o’clock.” I was there at 8 o’clock, even though we had been up until 3 o’clock that morning at the meeting. It had been a night of unparalleled glory. What a presence of God! We melted. After the meeting, they took me to the home of one of the elders and we had Communion together. I showed them how Holy Communion came from the Jewish Passover table, and we were delighted. I don’t know what time I got to bed. I was wiped out from weeks on the road. At 8 o’clock the next morning, I was in the man’s office. What a man! Mama Mia! What a picture of worldly success! He had a $300 suit and diamond pinky ring. Why, he looked like a charismatic preacher! He was bright and alert. He had his diplomas on the wall with his honorary certificates from the B’nei Brith. He was a mensch (man). He had arrived. You should have seen me! Ah, what a sack of potatoes, what a crumpled specimen I was! I was pathetic: eyes like slits with my mouth full of sawdust. I was drooped and wilted on the other side of that desk that was like a football field. He looked at me with the vigor of a Jewish businessman and said, “What do you want? I’ll give you fifteen minutes,” and for the first time, I thought to myself, “Katz, what do you want?”

I never felt so foolish, vain, naked, and absurd in all my life. I was going to tell this paragon of virtue, this man applauded by the Jewish community, this man who had been told by Gentiles that he was a better Christian than any Christian they knew, that the God of his fathers lay aside His glory and His deity and condescended to come to earth in the form of an infant that made doo-doo in its diapers, utterly helpless, trusting in the hands of those to whom He was given, and living a life of total obscurity? I was going to tell him that Christ had a brief tenure of ministry, where He experienced the rejection and reproach of His own people and concluded His life by being spat upon, beaten, pummeled, having His beard ripped out and His back filleted; then, finally, He was suspended on nails between heaven and earth, and if you believe that, by some kind of magical faith, you appropriate that blood and somehow you are forgiven, covered, and restored? Ah, come on!

“What do you want, Katz?” Under my breath, I said, “Lord, You got me into this. You answer the man.” You know, whether He got us into it or not, He will always answer the man! May we always be kept from giving our own answers. I opened my mouth and said, “Sir, I am a servant of the Most High God who has come to show unto you the way of salvation.” When I heard those words, I thought, “OOH! Talk about icky! Here it comes, a hand on the scruff of my neck and the other on the seat of my pants and I’ll be cast right down a flight of steps.” I thought that he must have been thinking that I was some kind of Jewish eccentric – but he did not throw me out.

The same man who said, “I’ll only give you fifteen minutes,” forty-five minutes later said, with trembling and white lips, “What time does your plane leave?” I said, “About noon.” He said, “Could you come back a little later? I’ve got to think about this.” Hallelujah for a Jew who will “think about this.” I walked the streets of Wheeling, West Virginia praising God in the Spirit under my breath. I came back at the appointed time. Fifteen minutes after my return, his last question was, “But, Art, if I do as you say and call on the name of the Lord, will I be forsaking my Jewishness?” I said, “Dear brother, this is the establishing of your Jewishness.” He said, “But I don’t know how to pray.”

With his university degrees and awards on the paneled wall, he did not know how to pray. I said, “Just bow your head and follow me word for word.” So he did, just like a child. As the glory of God filled the office, my scalp was tingling under the presence of God. I led him through a simple sinner’s prayer, and as we came to the last line of the prayer, he gasped and quickly clasped his hands to his chest. As the prayer ended, he had his hands still on his chest with that stupefied expression on his face and said, “Art, what’s that strange feeling in my chest?” I said, “You’ve just been born again by the Holy Spirit of God.”

I can give you illustration after illustration of such ungainly things that God has performed. For example, He challenged a German Pentecostal audience not with a message, but with the utter foolishness of a man like me. I am quiet and reserved by nature, but that night I was leaping, clicking my heels and carrying on like a clown. I could not stop. I never did speak that night. I never even made it to the platform! What a pathetic condition they were in: proud Pharisees, stiff, unyielding. I heard their prayer and understood just enough German to know how wooden it was. As I was about to go up to the platform, I turned, looked at them and said, “Would to God that I could frolic with you on the grass!” You try that out the next time you speak to German Pentecostals!

Frolic I did. I leaped, danced, sang, cavorted, and carried on. My brother who was with me from the community did exactly the same thing, by the same Spirit. I could sense the bristling indignation welling up in that congregation. I stood up while he was performing, turned to them and said, “You Pharisees, indignant that you’re not hearing the Word of God. You wanted a message. God has given you more than you’ve asked; He’s made the word flesh. He is demonstrating what is missing from your congregation and from your lives: reality, truth, spontaneity, freedom, liberty, unfeigned joy.” They repented that night. Oh, children, “a man in whom the spirit of God is.”

“They brought Paul up to Mars Hill.” He did not send a letter, weeks in advance, to the full gospel director and say, “Listen, I think I’m going to be through Athens. Do you think you can fix me up with a little meeting or two?” It all began with the Spirit of God wincing in the spirit of a man. “Then they brought him.” When he had his glorious opportunity, how he defied every evangelical rule! Verse 22 says, “Then Paul stood in the midst of Mars Hill and said, ‘You men of Athens, I perceive that in all things that you are too superstitious.’” Whap! Do you want to insult intellectuals? Tell them that they are too superstitious. How would we have begun? “Unaccustomed to public speaking as I am, I want to take this occasion to say that I represent the gospel….” Paul did not begin by any conventional means; he began by the wisdom of God, appropriate for that moment, expressed by God’s Spirit through one who counted all things as dung, including his own intellect, mentality, cleverness, and devices.

“I perceive that in all things you are too superstitious, for as I passed by and beheld your devotions I found an altar with the inscription ‘To the Unknown God’ whom therefore you ignorantly worship. Him declare I unto you.” How do you like them apples? Bold by the Spirit of God! Original by the Spirit of God! Cutting and compelling by the Spirit of God! I encourage you to review this later on.

You will find that his actual statement was not at all religious; it was utterly philosophical. He spoke about the purpose of existence. He told them that God has established bounds and nations and has given all men one blood for this one purpose: that they might seek after God and find Him. He spoke to philosophers philosophically. It was entirely appropriate, because God is always appropriate, if we would get out of the way and let Him be appropriate!

Do you know what happened when they heard of the resurrection of the dead? “Some mocked: others said, ‘We will hear thee again on this matter.’” It is likely that they never did. “So Paul departed from among them.” Do you depart when men are no longer listening? I think I have started more Jews on the path to the gospel by turning on my heel and walking away from them than by demonstrating my cleverness to them and manipulating the Scriptures. I am not in the business of vain disputation! When men are no longer hearing, I am no longer speaking.

I once went to a southern city, and some people arranged a luncheon for me with a Jewish business magnet. No one could reach him. He was tough. “But maybe Katz will bring him down.” He was willing for a little contest, so he invited us to lunch. I remember munching on that lunch, and because I did not say, “Boo!” this man became a bit irritated. He said, “How are you enjoying your free lunch?” I said, “I want you to know that, for me, this lunch is very costly.” I had already discerned his spirit and it stunk. He said, “Aren’t you going to say anything to me?” I said, “No.” “How come?” he asked. I said, “If God is not speaking, then I have no intention of speaking either.” I have seen a lot of stunned Jewish faces that have discerned for the first time that this gospel is precious, because I would not share it with them if they only had a mind to dispute.

“So Paul departed from among them, howbeit certain men clave unto him and believed, among them which was Dionysius the Areopagite and a woman named Damaris and others with them.” This is just a little episode from the life of Paul, caught between assignments, being taken by other men, fleeing from persecution, brought to Mars Hill, etc. It was an utterly consequential confrontation with the intellectuals of his generation. Some scoffed and mocked, while others said, “We want to hear of it again.” One or two believed. Dionysius means “follower of Baccus,” the god, the pagan deity of revelry and sensual gratification. Dionysius believed!

Have any of you ever been to Paris? Have you ever been up in the Latin Quarter, there on the left bank? Have you ever been up to Mont Martre, where they have the art exhibitions out in the open? I only recently found out what “Mont Martre” means. It means “the mount of the martyr.” Do you know whose blood was spilled there when he went, by the Spirit, to persuade men of the terror of God? The same Dionysius, whom Paul brought to the Lord in Athens, poured out his blood for some Gaelic pagans on a mount that is now called “Mont Martre.” It is in the red light district, near Paegall, and it is still a great pagan land. Where are the Dionysiuses of our generation who will go up to the mount, even if it means they will not come down again? I want to tell you, folks, that it could have been the same for Paul. He may have never come back from Mars Hill, but I think he had already resolved the issue of whether he was coming back or not. If God had brought him to a mount of martyrdom, then he was well prepared to end there.

Courtesy of:

The European Prophetic College
EPC@Comhem.se

Please, allow these articles to be circulated among your friends.

To become partaker of the regular flow of mailings from the College, mail us a request.

Lars Widerberg
The European Prophetic College
Storskiftesgatan 87
S-58334 Linkoping, Sweden

Phone + Fax: +46 13 213630

The book of Jude is often on the bottom on the list for books preachers choose to preach from. …Just 25 verses that encourage believers to fight for God’s truth. In my devotions for today, verse 5 was poignant.

Now I desire to remind you, though you know all things once for all, that the Lord, after saving a people out of the land of Egypt, subsequently destroyed those who did not believe.

When God speaks to us, He does so outside of the confines of time. For us, if Uncle Jed says he is going to come visit in a while, we would expect to see Him in a few weeks or a few months at the most. If Uncle Jed doesn’t come within the span of a year, we probably think he was just making small talk…and he is not going to come visit. We often seek to apply the same logic to God. We seek His voice, hear Him speak and then anticipate His word to come to pass in our timing. Not so. God is not bound by our timetables and unfortunately often the relationship between God speaking and our belief arcs downward as time moves forward.

The Nation of Israel was destined to be in the promised land. God’s goal was to move them out of Egypt, through the Red Sea, across the Jordan and right into Jericho. The only bottleneck was when they failed to believe. For them, the distance between their deliverance and eventual unbelief was only a few weeks at most. How often are we forced to remain in the wilderness of discontent because we have lost the hope of promise of God?

The Apostle Peter said that in the last days people would use the excuse that there had been too much time pass between Christ’s prophesied return and the actual fulfillment of God’s plan (2 Peter 3:4). Because of this, they would not believe. As those who follow The Way, we are commanded to see things differently. Our belief is not based upon the timing of God’s fulfillment rather upon the trustworthiness of His Word. May our belief in Him save us from destruction as well as save us for His glory.

Diotrephes is a man mentioned in 3rd John as having some issues with leadership. John points out that Diotrephes had four issues which plagued him. (1) He refused to have anything to do with other spiritual leaders, (2) he slandered other leaders, (3) he did not welcome other gospel teachers, and (4) he attempted to excommunicate those who did not follow his leadership (courtesy of the NASB Life Application Study Bible). Diotrephes’ name fittingly means “fed by Zeus.” He was prideful and showcased a dearth of spiritual leadership.

Sadly, in the Christian marketplace there seems to be an incubating epidemic of the diotrephes syndrome. While John points it out so starkly, when we are confronted with it in our own lives or the lives of others, it may be hard to distinguish. How often have we caught ourselves sneering at the television preacher or the pastor in the next town when we hear something that irks our theological nerves. “I can’t believe they said that!,” “I could never associate with them!”

Scripture indicates the pastor office should help to guard the flock from doctrinal error and apostasy. This does not mean that the pastor is the only one we can trust with regards to doctrine. In fact, a pastor worth his (or her) salt diligently trains and equips others to stand with him -not just in the physical labors of ministry, but also in the spiritual leadership as well. A wise professor of mine once shared that when he was pastoring he would always look for people to share from the pulpit who had different giftings from him. This way the congregation would have a better picture of ministry in the body of Christ.

Diotrephes seemed to see others as a threat. Their God-given giftedness was spurned because it was different from his own. The responsibility of faithful men and women of the cross is to appreciate, affirm and advance the giftedness of others. In this we are exemplifying the ministry of Jesus Christ. All evils in the church and society stem from self-pride which seeks to disparage others, their giftings and their place before the Lord.

Christ’s servant message still runs against the grain of world. Let us not cloak the leprosy of prideful ambition in the terminology of the cross. The antidote for diotrephes syndrome is the not-of-this-world aspect of the Christian life that is exemplified through willful, intentional, humble service.

What a wonderful day to celebrate God’s wonderful plan of salvation and Christ’s obedient pilgrimage to the cross, the tomb, and then back to the Father!

Nicole and I had a great treat this weekend visiting Messiah Bible Church in Tom’s River, NJ. Pastor Bobby and his wife Cecile were true servants of Christ. We stayed in their home and enjoyed some good filipino food at the church. Seth and Sophia had a blast with their children Steve, Brandon and Belle. Steve was the state spelling Bee champ this year and is now teaching himself Japanese in his free time…all at the ripe age of 14.

One of the things Messiah Bible Church does is stress Christian unity. Almost the entire church takes a spiritual retreat each year for three days. During the retreat they are able to build relationships, seek the Lord and cast vision.

Pastor Bobby truly has a heart for leadership development and from what I could tell does a fantastic job of empowerment and accountability -no small feat in the church world.

I am reminded of how Jesus empowered His disciples before the crucifixion and then during the time before His ascension. When you think about it, empowerment is really the only legacy you can leave. Those who seek to horde power take it with them, leaving nothing behind. They really have no legacy at all. It’s almost like the Emperor with no clothes –claiming leadership development but never empowering leaders. Jesus was the antithesis of this. He was incredibly secure in who He was and the mission He came to accomplish that He felt the freedom to proclaim “greater works than I have done shall you do.”

Thank you Lord Jesus for being the perfect model of godly servanthood!

Introduction

One of the hallmarks of great leadership is the ability to successfully replicate leadership skills in others. This is particularly true in training one’s future replacement. Sadly, those in ministry leadership often neglect actively seeking and training a successor for their role. For reasons that range from fear to low self-confidence to complacency, ministers oftentimes see planned ministry transition as negative and even unspiritual (Weese and Crabtree 2004, 14). The Scriptures are not silent on this issue. The characters and stories of the Bible model both positive and destructive leadership succession. There are numerous examples of strong men-of-faith training leaders to succeed them. In the Old Testament, Moses and Joshua as well as Elijah and Elisha are standard-bearers of successful leadership transitions. In the New Testament, Jesus provides us with an example of one to whom ministry is transitioned and then later of one who transitions ministry to others. A thoughtful, well-planned ministry succession plan can be both biblical and energizing to Christian organizations.

Moses and Joshua

In the Old Testament, Moses is seen as the quintessential leader. He is revered by Jews and Christians alike for leading the people of God out of Egypt and preparing them to enter the Land of Promise. Moses’ calling, training, and leadership provided a prototype for the biblical leaders that would follow him. While his life and leadership skills were not without disappointment, his deep connection with God provided a sense of balance and direction as God fulfilled His promise to the patriarch Abraham through the nation of Israel. Moses’ leadership lasted a mere forty-year period and because of his disobedience to God, he was not chosen to lead the people into the land of promise. It is in fact Moses’ death, and the choosing of Joshua, his successor, that marks the beginning of the fulfillment of the Israelite destiny. “Now it came about after the death of Moses the servant of the LORD, that the LORD spoke to Joshua the son of Nun, Moses’ servant, saying, Moses My servant is dead; now therefore arise, cross this Jordan, you and all this people, to the land which I am giving to them, to the sons of Israel (Josh 1: 1-2, [NASB]).

While Moses began his leadership career with the nation of Israel lacking self-confidence and claiming the inability to speak God’s words of judgment to Pharaoh, he died with the affirmation of God. His leadership abilities are encapsulated in the final three verses of Deuteronomy:

Since that time no prophet has risen in Israel like Moses, whom the LORD knew face to face, for all the signs and wonders which the LORD sent him to perform in the land of Egypt against Pharaoh, all his servants, and all his land, and for all the mighty power and for all the great terror which Moses performed in the sight of all Israel (Deut 34: 10-12).

Even though Moses quite possibly was saddened by God’s refusal to allow him to enter the Promised Land, he was certainly affirmed by God’s words that there had never been another leader like Moses.

Before Moses’ death, God had a plan of leadership succession for the nation of Israel. The plan had its genesis in the Exodus account of the Israelites at Mount Sinai. They spoke to Moses “Speak to us yourself and we will listen; but let not God speak to us, or we will die” (20: 19). Moses recalls this statement in one of his final discourses to the Israelites…”The Lord your God will raise up from you a prophet like me…This is according to all you asked the Lord your God at Horeb [Sinai]” (Deut 18: 15-16). God chose Joshua, son of Nun to succeed Moses as the leader for the Israelites.

Joshua had been with Moses since the Israelites fled Egypt and entered the wilderness. He was one of two spies who entered the Promised Land and returned with a favorable report. He was with Moses throughout the forty-years of the desert wanderings. Joshua eventually led the people to the Promised Land achieving military, organizational and political success along the way. While Moses was one of the greatest leaders in historical Judaism, it was Joshua who God chose to lead His people into their promised destiny.

The succession of leadership from Moses to Joshua was planned and well organized. While the Scriptures are not explicit in exactly what these men of faith knew about their ultimate role, it is clear Moses felt the need to prepare Joshua for a future leadership role. The battle with Amalek in Exodus 17 begins the training of Joshua as a military leader. Moses commands him to choose his warriors and defeat the enemy. After the battle is won, God speaks to Moses “Write this in a book as a memorial and recite it to Joshua” (17:14). Later as Moses climbed to the top of Mount Sinai (24:12) and spoke to God at the tent of meeting (33: 8-11), Joshua was at his side. It is through these events that Joshua was being immersed in the spiritual tenets of leadership. As Moses passed the baton of leadership to Joshua, he did so before the entire congregation of Israel. Numbers 27: 18 states:

So the LORD said to Moses, “Take Joshua the son of Nun, a man in whom is the Spirit, and lay your hand on him; and have him stand before Eleazar the priest and before all the congregation, and commission him in their sight. You shall put some of your authority on him, in order that all the congregation of the sons of Israel may obey him.

This visible proclamation of Joshua as the new leader-in-waiting was essential to the eventual journey into the Promised Land.

Elijah and Elisha

A second example of leadership transition is found in the ministries of Elijah and Elisha. While Moses was chosen to proclaim the Law to the Children of Israel; Elijah, a prophet during a turbulent time of Israel’s history, was called to defend it. Elijah existed during the reign of the Kings of Israel and provided prophetic leadership at a time when many people were turning their hearts toward pagan rituals and gods. That Elijah was an important part of God’s plan is an understatement. He showed the people God’s power through miraculous signs and wonders, pronounced judgment upon unruly royalty, and anointed new kings in both Israel and Syria. Like Moses, Elijah was not without his share of short-comings. However, his life illustrates the hope of the faithful who persevere in their calling. As he was nearing the end of his ministry, the Bible indicates that he was “caught up” in a chariot to heaven and never died.

Elijah’s successor, Elisha, was chosen as he was out plowing with twelve yolk of oxen (1 Kings 19: 19). The biblical narrative of Elijah and Elisha makes it clear that God orchestrated this leadership succession. It is also clear that God wanted a time where Elisha would learn from Elijah and eventually continue the prophetic work. The Scriptures indicate that Elisha became the attendant or servant of Elisha during this time of transition (19: 21). The legacy of Elisha’s humble service to Elijah is communicated in II Kings 3: 11. King Jehoshaphat was seeking a word from the Lord and asked “‘Is there not a prophet of the LORD here, that we may inquire of the LORD by him?’ And one of the king of Israel’s servants answered and said, “Elisha the son of Shaphat is here, who used to pour water on the hands of Elijah.”

The transition of leadership from Elijah to Elisha is one of the most unique events in the Old Testament. The biblical account states:

And it came about when the LORD was about to take up Elijah by a whirlwind to heaven, that Elijah went with Elisha from Gilgal. Elijah said to Elisha, ‘Stay here please, for the LORD has sent me as far as Bethel’ But Elisha said, ‘As the LORD lives and as you yourself live, I will not leave you.’ So they went down to Bethel (II Kings 2: 1-2).

Later Elijah offers to commit some act of service for Elisha before he is taken up. When asked what he would like, Elisha replies “Please, let a double portion of your spirit be upon me” (2:9). This desire reflects a genuine servant relationship and is the ultimate expression of Elisha’s desire to follow and serve Elijah (Patterson 2005, 2). Elisha mourned in his traditional custom, tearing his clothes in grief, when the Lord finally took Elijah in the whirlwind.

John the Baptist, Jesus and The Disciples

In the New Testament, the proclamation of the gospel is transitioned to Jesus by John the Baptist. While John was initially unsure about who the Messiah actually was, it became very clear to him that Jesus would be taking his place in ministry. John boldly proclaimed to the hypocritical Pharisees and Sadducees his expectancy that he would be succeeded by one greater than himself: “He who is coming after me is mightier than I, and I am not fit to remove His sandals…” (Matt 3: 11). While the transition from John to Jesus was not as lengthy as that of Moses to Joshua or Elijah to Elisha there are some particularly salient features of this transition that are applicable to Christian leadership.

Jesus’ ministry took on a very different character than that of John the Baptist. In fact, his ministry was so different that John at one point was prompted to send messengers to Jesus to ask if He really was the Messiah. Jesus nonetheless was very affirming to John personally as well as to the work he had done: “Among those born of women, there has not arisen anyone greater than John…” (Matt 11:11); “For John came to show you the way of righteousness…” (Matt 21:32). In these statements, Jesus expressed His love and respect for the divine purpose John had played. When a ministry is working through a transition process it is very helpful to affirm the pervious leader (Weese and Crabtree 2004, 16).The death of John was difficult for Jesus. The Bible indicates that when He heard of John’s death, He withdrew away to be to Himself.

As the Son of God, Jesus began His ministry career fully knowledgeable about His time-frame for training His successors. While the twelve disciples He eventually chose would not have been considered prodigious leaders, they would eventually cause the world to be transformed by the message Jesus taught. Jesus used most every moment to teach His disciples and desired them to produce long term results (Weese and Crabtree 2004, 16). “You did not choose Me, but I chose you and appointed you to go bear fruit –fruit that will last” (John 15: 16 NIV). “Jesus understood John the Baptist’s role as preparatory to His work…Jesus [also] understood His own work as preparatory to that of His disciples” (Weese and Crabtree 2004, 20). Jesus was the transitioning link between the ministry of John the Baptist and the missionary efforts of His own disciples.

Conclusion

There is a pattern of God-ordained leadership transition in the Scriptures. Planned leadership succession is biblical and necessary to the health of the local church body and the body of Christ at-large. While many leaders see the necessity of training and developing new people for ministry leadership there has been a failure by many to train their eventual replacement. Career transitions, retirement and death are events that are often overlooked because of a lack of motivation to deal with issues that reflect human mortality. According to Weese and Crabtree, when strong pastoral leaders are faced with their eventual transition, many of them simply stop leading (Weese and Crabtree 2004, 20). Examining the context of many of the relationships in Scripture yields an abundance of information on succession, yet it is one of the least discussed topics in pastoral ministry. The biblical accounts of transition from Moses to Joshua, Elijah to Elisha, John to Jesus, and Jesus to His disciples provide a crucial model of leadership succession to those in ministry today.

Why is it so hard to finish? As part of my assignments for Seminary, I have to read about 13 books and write an abstract on each. I had completed 12 of the 13 last week…and left the last one lingering until today. If I had taken the time to complete it, the entire project would have been finished and off of my mind. Yet for some reason the motivation was not there. I procrastinated. I could have enjoyed the victory of completion much sooner.

The Scriptures are clear that the journey to our ultimate goal is important. However, if we do not finish, what have we gained? Think about Jesus. Jesus could have taken the twelve and discipled them…he could have fed the 5000…he could have even raised the dead and still not finished the work He was sent to do. Everything leading up to the cross was important, but it was the cross that was most important. It was to this that everything else led.

Jesus had focus. He had a plan and He knew how to work it. Often in ministry organizations, we never plan to finish. We spend months and years strategizing to get to the “next level” and we only change plans and never reach our goal. Certainly there should always be evaluation and collaboration. There should always be an escape hatch to change plans in mid-course…but if we never reach a lofty goal, we are selling ourselves out. Congregations need to see and celebrate accomplished goals. This breeds desire for the next big triumph.

Finishing takes a strong determination, almost a compulsion to refuse to see anything else but the goal ahead. The plan is just that…a plan. Blueprints are useless unless you are going to build a house. War plans are ineffective without a war. It is my conviction that God has called His people to finish. There is a world that still does not know that a Savior died for their sins. For centuries the goal has been to reach into every sector of the earth carrying the gospel message. When Christ returns the goal will have been reached and the celebration will begin…

I am focusing my heart to finish what Christ has set before me.

I am also focusing my mind to finish what my professor has set before me…