RELATIONSHIP WITH FATHER, SON, AND HOLY SPIRIT (PART TWO)

RELATIONSHIP WITH FATHER, SON, 

AND HOLY SPIRIT

(PART TWO)

By Dwight Cunkle

"What good does it do to speak learnedly 

about the Trinity if, lacking humility, 

you displease the Trinity?" 

T.A. Kempis

I in them and you in me. Then they'll be mature in this oneness, And give the godless world evidence [to believe] That you've sent me and loved them the same way you've loved me. I have made your very being known to them-Who you are and what you do-And continue to make it known, So that your love for me be in them Exactly as I am in them. (Jn 17:23, 26)

... Jesus resumed talking to the people, but now tenderly. "The Father has given me all these things to do and say. This is a unique Father-Son operation, coming out of Father and Son intimacies and knowledge. No one knows the Son the way the Father does, nor the Father the way the Son does. But I'm not keeping it to myself; I'm ready to go over it line by line with anyone willing to listen. (Matthew 11:27 MSG)

Personalize these verses by speaking directly to the three Persons of the Holy Trinity:
[Holy Spirit, You…] will honor  and  glorify Jesus, because [You] will take of (receive, draw upon) what is (in Jesus) and will reveal (declare, disclose, transmit) it to (us). (Jn 16:14)

Jesus, It is You who show us the Father.
Holy Spirit and Jesus, help us to know Father God with You.

Father God... (that the God of our Lord Jesus Christ, the Father of glory, may give (us) a spirit of wisdom and of revelation in the knowledge of him, having the eyes of (our) hearts enlightened, that (we) may know what is the hope to which he has called (us), what are the riches of his glorious inheritance in the saints, and what is the immeasurable greatness of his power toward (us) who believe, according to the working of his great might (Ephesians 1:17-19 ESV)

Father, Son and Holy Spirit, fullness of God that fills us in love, unifies us in love and through the church will fill the whole earth with your glory and goodness in love, we abide in holy fellowship and oneness with You. We enter into conversation with You. Open our ears to hear and respond.

HOLY, HOLY, HOLY, LORD, GOD, ALMIGHTY How is my relationship with Father, Son, and Holy Spirit (listening and responding)? (PART ONE)

HOLY, HOLY, HOLY, LORD, GOD, ALMIGHTY

How is my relationship with Father, Son, and Holy Spirit 

(listening and responding)?

(PART ONE)

By Dwight Cunkle

Last Sunday I asked how well we relate to all three persons of the Trinity. Is anything hindering our fellowship and intimacy and prayer with them? Is anything hindering us from asking for the gifts God gives us to minister to  one another in love as members of one another in the church, his body, and to people in the world as witness to God’s love and power to save them?

Try placing your hand on your heart or opening them to the Lord as you pray: 
Holy Spirit, Comforter, Teacher, Spirit of the Father, You who have brought Jesus and the Father to dwell in me...
I gently turn inward (he who is joined to the Lord is one spirit with Him.... We have received the Spirit...I am filled with Holy Spirit....
I ask Holy Spirit that You help me come to Jesus - open the eyes of my heart to go deeper with you into this union with Christ... Cause the glory of God to shine in my heart in the face of Jesus...

Jesus You are the only mediator between man and God. Whoever sees you sees the Father. Show me the Father. My Lord, My Savior. I was born in sin and lived full of sin and only by your grace am I saved because You are the Friend of sinners. You are my friend so I ask You, with Holy Spirit, to help me experience intimacies with the Father with You.

We have access to the Father through the Son by the Spirit, so, God You are my Father, and in your Son I am also your son/daughter, because I am joined in the same Spirit.

Father, Son the Living Word, Holy Spirit my Counselor, what hinders me, what offends You...

How are You pleased with me?

How do you think of me and what would you say to me?

Glory be to the Father, the Son and to the Holy Spirit; as it was in the beginning, is now and ever shall be,
world without end. Amen

ANGER IN THE CHURCH - THE BIGGEST DETERRENT TO GROWTH

ANGER IN THE CHURCH - 

THE BIGGEST DETERRENT TO GROWTH

By Dwight Cunkle

Mishandled anger hinders Holy Spirit in the Church

By this shall all men know my disciples - OR NOT

    A recent survey reported that the biggest reason people do not attend a particular church is the presence of anger among members. On the other hand, goodwill and mutual care and trust are among the largest attractors for those choosing a church family. I believe God doesn't even want to come to church where people choose themselves, their opinions, their pride, their feelings, their programs, etc… over the love of God.

     I can be pretty good at throwing a pity party for one -ME! God interrupted my self-made misery once by speaking something like the following to me:
Do you really believe, “Love never fails”? If so, believe that your and other people’s failures opportune love.
     I had to make a choice—nurse my pride or tend His love. I could get trapped in the mental re-runs of offense or turn this into God’s moment to transform me and possibly others in love and truth. What is God up to???

     “love is not self-seeking, not easily angered, keeps no record of wrongs. is not self-seeking, not easily angered, keeps no record of wrongs...love bears all things.”
 
   Whether I am repeatedly dwelling on my own failure or keeping record of someone else’s, both are failures to love. If I know how to handle my anger constructively I can receive and give love in practical and helpful ways. How will we settle disputes among one another, win the world to Christ, confront evil around us and judge angels  if we can’t constructively resolve anger toward one another???????  

     Some people need to get angry at sin but are passive. In this series I repeatedly have stated that anger has a purpose and can be used positively. God is angry at sin. He judges redemptively-meaning he disciplines us for our own good.  All us are saved by grace from his wrath. Do we show the same mercy to others and seek their good?  Jesus was especially angry at patterns of self-righteousness in religious people. Would he be angry at us?

      Let every man be quick to listen but slow to use his tongue, and slow to lose his temper. For man’s temper is never the means of achieving God’s true goodness. (James  1:19-20)

     Anger used against others is abusive, controlling, full of pride and self-protective. Paul wrote that it is better to be wronged and suffer than be a bad example of Christ to the world? How self-aware am I about my anger triggers? Do I tend to shoot first when I am hurt, feel threatened, disrespected or stressed? Do I listen to others who feel that I am angry or do I insist that I am not angry –boy that works really well, huh?

     Can we  see our body language, tone of voice and words through the eyes and feelings of others? When angry we are not good judges of how we are behaving. Few people have been taught how to make good choices when feeling hurt or wronged. It helps to receive counsel regarding how to speak the truth in love to one another and patiently help work through our blind spots.

     Otherwise we risk getting old alone. We expose ourselves and others to sickness. We are like bad breath to one another and hinder new potential members in the church. Since we will give account to God for our word, let’s expose our anger through confession and the transforming power of God’s love instead of being in denial or stuffing our feelings. It takes Godly love and spiritual authority to become an apostolic community of Holy Spirit.

This is #14 in the series on 

The Anger Trap: How to free ourselves from the frustrations that sabotage life and relationships, 

based on the book by Dr. Les Carter. 

To see the back entries go to Covenantlifechurch.com and click on our blog “Pastor’s Corner.”

"Blessed be The Lord who gives and who takes away." (Job)

"Blessed be The Lord who gives

and who takes away." (Job)

By Dwight Cunkle

What can we say about God in response to death, loss and hardship and suffering in the aftermath of these storms? Worship is always the best first
response. Can we say, “God is good.”

We need wisdom to represent God's mercy mixed with judgment; then bring comfort to people who are suffering. “‘If you remain hostile toward me and refuse to listen to me, I will multiply your afflictions seven times over, as your sins deserve. Lev 26:20-22
“What has happened to us is a result of our evil deeds and our great guilt, yet, our God, you have punished us less than our sins deserved and have given us a remnant like this.” Ezra 9:12-14

Jeremiah  lamented over the destruction and
judgment of Jerusalem: "It is of the Lords mercies that we are not consumed. His favors are never
exhausted. They are new every morning." (Lam 3:22-23)

Joseph's faithfulness overcame false accusation and captivity declaring that God used what was "intended for evil to bring about his good purpose."
Even when the devil works his worst God holds the
injury in his skillfull hand to bring good in the soul of those who will turn to Him. So, let us turn to HIM!

(Paraphrased from Self-Abandonment to Divine Providence by J P de Caussade.) Our God is so good that he is careful to fit all things to our position and character. We do out part and trust God to do what He alone can do in us and in all things. His design makes what is needed such as air and water
accessible to us (though we pollute the air and many suffer malnutrition and scarcity of clean water).

His grace also places within easy reach of all
people holiness, fidelity and loving action, though the world, the flesh and devil work together to
hinder these too. We have to exhale the bad air and breathe in the good. Likewise we exchange our sin for his goodness. “What has God required, but to do justice, love mercy and walk humbly with God.” Micah 6:8

First, we ask the grace to have faith and see God’s goodness and help us do our duty to God and neighbor in each present moment.

Second, we abandon ourselves to God's love in all things whatever we suffer. God is good and will bring good. Let us be his good hands and praise his goodness, while we accept affliction in the dark night and mystery of His Divine Providence.

PROPHETIC WORD ABOUT OUR NATION

PROPHETIC WORD ABOUT OUR NATION

 

About two Sundays ago, I felt the Lord wanted me to give an instructive to us.  It went like this:
"Pray that  darkness in high places be exposed and replaced with light / righteousness."  Within a few days the current scandals broke about the IRS, the Benghazi scandal and possible cover up and the AP scandal, the DOJ hacking into private phone numbers and emails of press members.   It took a few days of me watching the news before the Lord reminded me that this was that prophecy starting to work out in the natural.

Sunday morning, May 26, 2013, I believe the Lord spoke to me again a prayer/prophecy mix ( which I delivered to Covenant Life Church) saying:

Don't forget to continue to pray that God expose the wickedness in high places with His light.  The "scandals" we are hearing about on the news right now are God's light knocking on the doors of darkness.  Unlike a righteous heart which will invite the Lord to enter through the door into our inner living room, the dark heart will not let Him enter unless it repents.

Pray the Lord of the Breakthrough act on the pleas   of the righteous. Pray the Lord will expose darkness where it is, bring it to shame and to righteous judgment. Pray the Lord deliver our nation from the violence the enemy would do.

Though the kings of the world gather together against His Anointed One, pray the Lord rebuke them and remind them that God has installed His king in the heavens.  The nations are His inheritance.
Lord give us boldness to warn the kings of this world to serve the Lord with fear and trembling, to embrace Christ for His wrath can flare up in a moment.  But to those who embrace Me now, you will always have refuge in Me.

Soldiers!  Do your duty.  Obey the One you signed up to follow.  I am wanting my people to come into unity...one accord, mind and purpose, crying out to Me to heal your land.  At present, as I look at my own body on earth it is like a broken, shattered vessel.

But as you pray for my kingdom to rule in all of your high places, your unity will draw power from my Spirit because you will be agreeing with the Father of Lights whose very presence causes darkness to flee.