In a famous passage in John 13, Jesus took a towel and a basin and washed the feet of His disciples. He told them:
"If I then, your Lord and Master, have washed your feet; ye also ought to wash one another's feet" (John 13:14).
Some devout Christians take this verse literally. They have made it their custom to have "foot washing" services. This is commendable — yet, if it remains only a ritual, the true meaning of foot washing has been lost.
God intends for every believer to be in full control of his or her life — through the power and might of the Holy Ghost! The Bible makes it clear that our walk is to be ordered by the Lord. David testified, "Those who trust in the Lord will not be confounded" (see Psalm 22:5).
Your life is not under control, however, if you are being victimized by a spirit of fear, lust, despondency or depression. If you are constantly bombarded with feelings of worthlessness or thoughts of giving up — your life is not under control!
Some time ago a minister called our office, very disturbed. He said he preaches holiness and the crucified life in his church, and he did seem to have a true shepherd's heart. Then he said that some of his church members had attended some kind of special seminar — and they had come home ready to leave his congregation.
They told him, "God has brought us into a new revelation that has changed our lives. We heard things we've never heard before. We thought we were saved before, but now we know we weren't. Everything we believed about the end times was wrong. We have seen new truth.
The children of Israel were in a hopeless predicament!
The Red Sea was before them; the mountains were to the left and right; and Pharaoh and his iron chariots were closing in from the rear. God's people seemed helplessly trapped — like sitting ducks, just waiting to be cut down. Yet believe it or not, God purposely had led them into this precarious spot!
A precious sister came to the microphone to pray at one of our recent meetings at Times Square Church. Tearfully, she prayed, "O God, your people are hurting! Lord, all your children are hurting — real bad! Help us — please!" All over the auditorium you could feel the response from the people, as if to say, "Yes! That's me. I'm hurting — badly!" All the way home that night I wept inside. I prayed, "Lord, it's not just your precious sheep out there in the congregation who are hurting. I'm one of your shepherds and at times I hurt too."
Many Christians avoid the book of Revelation because it seems so mysterious. Yet John wrote, "Blessed is he who reads and those who hear the words of the prophecy, and heed the things which are written in it; for the time is near..." (Revelation 1:3 NAS).
Though written by John, it is the Revelation of Jesus Christ (Revelation 1:1). It is the heart of God revealed to Christ and shared by John.
John was one the three pillars in the church at Jerusalem. Much of what we know about him was recorded by Iraneus, who got it first hand from Polycarp, a student of John.
"Let not your heart be troubled: ye believe in God, believe also in me. In my Father's house are many mansions: if it were not so, I would have told you. I go to prepare a placed for you. And if I go to prepare a place for you, I will come again, and receive you unto myself; that where I am, there ye may be also. And whither I go ye know, and the way ye know. Thomas saith unto him, Lord, we know not whither thou goest; and how can we know the way? Jesus saith unto him, I am the way, the truth, and the life: no man cometh unto the Father but by me.
In a recent survey, young people were asked the question, "Where do you get bored the most?" The #1 answer was, "In Church."
I agree! The majority of churches today have nothing at all to offer young people. Most teen-agers go to church only because their parents make them go. And many of their parents go only because it's the "religious thing" to do.
It's not because young people have become godless or irreligious. In fact, another recent survey showed that 84% of American young people believe in God and that He is personally involved in their lives.
The mission of Jesus Christ was not only to redeem and baptize believers with the Holy Ghost, but to also separate, purge, and winnow the wheat from the chaff. What a terrible aspect of His mission — to separate and destroy the corrupt seed and prepare it for burning.
The church has experienced a mighty outpouring of the Holy Spirit. There has been a great ingathering of people from all religions and walks of life. God's holy floor is full and overflowing with a copious harvest. In fact, those whitened fields have been yielding a record harvest.
When Paul wrote his epistle to Titus, he left behind powerful instructions for us regarding Christ’s Great Commission to preach the gospel. He had just left the island of Crete, where he and Titus ministered together. Paul encountered persecution on Crete, and when he departed to evangelize in other cities, he left behind Titus and some other leaders. Now those young men also wanted to leave. Like Paul, they found Crete a hard place to minister.
