What do you think the biggest hinderance is to people living in the fullness of God’s life?


In my estimation it is the overestimation of our own estimated capabilities.

It is generally accepted that diligent effort applied to the right process can accomplish just about anything. But over the years the failure of my best efforts and that of others had finally convinced me that my best efforts at building my life as a fit house for the Lord's dwelling place is useless, for scripture tells us that unless the Lord builds the house, its builders labor in vain (Ps. 127:1). Building His Church is is business not our business. The joy of this life is found in trusting Him and following His leading out of a daily relationship of growing trust.

Is it not a fact that overestimating our own capabilities complicates our relational relationship because of our doing instead of freeing us in our relational relationship for Him to work is work through us thus, He is the One who is building. It leads to feeling trapped in our failures and prideful in our successes. It is a breeding ground for us to manipulate others to do what we think is best and encourages everyone to get their eyes on people who expect the expectations rather than on Jesus. It leads to misplaced effort and wasted energy, because we will do our work without an understanding how God works His works through us. 

People who trust their own capabilities will never discover the reality of relational life in God in the reality of being a disciple nor the joy of sharing that relational life with others.

The life of God had turned Paul’s whole world upside-down...from a committed religionist who boasted in his law keeping abilities and prided himself in his accomplishments to one who put absolutely no confidence in the flesh. (Phil. 3:1-11). How would you like to have been in fellowship with Paul before God got a hold of his life, if you were a Christ-one rather than a law-man? It would have been insufferable for you. He thought himself always right, closer to God than anyone else and he had the right to kill you if you didn’t see it his way. Of course today people use accusation and gossip far more often than actual stones, but its aim is to bring about the same result by killing purpose of God for mankind.

Recall how different it was after Jesus had captured Paul with his penetrating grace and love. He drew Paul to Himself and changed him from one who was confident in his own abilities, into one who knew that only Jesus could accomplish anything that would endure. He’s the one that draws people to the truth. He’s the one that changes lives. He’s the one that connects his body in ways that further the purpose of His kingdom.

Paul could then see that his own best efforts were nothing but crap, worthless in the unfolding of God’s glory in himself or in others. He found the righteousness that human effort produces to be repulsive and simply delighted himself in the righteousness that his growing trust in God produced.

Since he had no confidence in his own flesh, he didn’t put pressure on others to perform with theirs. He knew that everything in this kingdom had to flow from God’s working, and we can only respond to Him, not produce His life on our own. This includes body life. If we are going to learn to share His life in meaningful relationships with other believers our dependency has to be in Him, not in a religious system. 

Man cannot accomplish God's work even by following what we deem to be based on our scriptural understanding of the written word as rules to be followed.

Man-made systems "cannot" build His Church. Only the Head of the Church can build His Church. Systems can only construct illusions of it.

Don't be conned into the illusion of what Church is by buying into the con-artist's concept of establishing what they deem to be Church life by their contextual misunderstanding of the scriptures contextual setting.

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