Authority is in the Spirit
For a man to own his sin—not pass the blame on to others, and agree with God about his sin—is supernatural.
But mark this: There will be terrible times in the last days. People will be lovers of themselves, lovers of money, boastful, proud, abusive, disobedient to their parents, ungrateful, unholy, without love, unforgiving, slanderous, without self-control, brutal, not lovers of the good, treacherous, rash, conceited, lovers of pleasure rather than lovers of God— having a form of godliness but denying its power. Have nothing to do with such people. 2 Timothy 3:1-5 (NIV)
Kingdom culture is that of the nature of God who was revealed in the person of Jesus Christ. A nature of favoring others over oneself, serving not being served, humility, meekness, and mercy. God is love and full of grace; but God is also a God of justice. His judgments are always just and fair. He is also a God of wrath, but the Bible says that he is patient and slow to anger. God’s greatness is unequaled, but so is his goodness and that fact alone reveals a great deal about his character.
Human nature on the other hand is completely different. Although we are created in the likeness and image of God, due to the fall of mankind there is not a part of us that is not tainted and corrupted by sin. We are not utterly sinful. That would mean that we’re incapable of any good; because of the fall of man, there not a part of us that hasn’t been touched or corrupted by sin. Humans don’t chase status and wealth to be humble and meek, we chase status and wealth because we are hungry for power and control. Even though some do it with a false humility, the corruption of it is all the same.
God doesn’t seek or chase power or greatness. He is all powerful and above all things. It is not a pursuit or a position he seeks. Because he is good, he has chosen to manifest in meekness and humility in the teachings and person of Jesus Christ. But make no mistake, God is sovereign, all powerful, and above all things. God is good, not in the way we mean good, but with a goodness unparalleled and untainted by corruption. His goodness is not in response to our goodness, just like his love isn’t increased by our love for him, or diminished by our lack of love for Him. The Triune God is fully loving and utterly selfless.
One of the great distinctions between the person of Jesus and his teachings, and fallen and sinful human beings, is that Jesus’ nature is selfless. Jesus speaks in Matthew 5, 6 and 7 about what the life of a disciple should look like and what character attributes a Christian should have. He said things like “the meek shall inherit the earth,” and “the first shall be last.”
Under inspiration of the Holy Spirit, Paul outlines what a person outside of Christ’s life will look like, or as he calls it “life in the flesh.” Then he outlines what a person in Christ should look like, which he calls “walking in the Spirit.”
In Galatians 5, Paul lists what fruit the life of a believer should be producing and what the life of someone outside Christ naturally produces.
So I say, walk by the Spirit, and you will not gratify the desires of the flesh. For the flesh desires what is contrary to the Spirit, and the Spirit what is contrary to the flesh. They are in conflict with each other, so that you are not to do whatever you want. But if you are led by the Spirit, you are not under the law. The acts of the flesh are obvious: sexual immorality, impurity and debauchery; idolatry and witchcraft; hatred, discord, jealousy, fits of rage, selfish ambition, dissensions, factions and envy; drunkenness, orgies, and the like. I warn you, as I did before, that those who live like this will not inherit the kingdom of God. But the fruit of the Spirit is love, joy, peace, forbearance, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness and self-control. Against such things there is no law. Those who belong to Christ Jesus have crucified the flesh with its passions and desires. Since we live by the Spirit, let us keep in step with the Spirit. Let us not become conceited, provoking and envying each other. Galatians 5:16-26 (NIV)
In 2 Timothy 3 it says that in the last days there will be terrible times. Are we in the last days? Biblically, the last days started after Jesus died, rose again, and ascended to heaven. But as we get closer to Christ’s return, certain things will indicate we are drawing near to the end. The terrible times that the Apostle Paul writes about in 2 Timothy 3:1-5 are nothing new, but I believe as we get closer to the end these sinful attributes of man will be much more blatant and out in the open.
This is definitely the case in America. We are living in a culture of self—self-empowerment, self-esteem, selfish ambition and self-love. The idea that people would be self-centered outside the church is one thing, but this culture of self is creeping into the church and is being embraced with open arms. It hasn’t happened overnight, but elements of this new age self-prompting philosophy are being widely accepted within the American church.
There is a great indication from the text that a self-centered theology will infiltrate the church and scores of people will adapt to a form of Christianity that is self-focused instead of Christ focused. Let’s be reasonable. God transforms our hearts when we surrender to him, but he wants us to renew our minds through the Scripture. This is part of conforming to the image of Christ. We live in a culture today that makes decisions based on how we feel rather what is right or what is true. Always doing what feels right can lead us far away from living a life that pleases God. We must use our minds, but since our minds are stained by sin and are depraved according to God, how can we know what is right?
Therefore, I urge you, brothers and sisters, in view of God’s mercy, to offer your bodies as a living sacrifice, holy and pleasing to God—this is your true and proper worship. Do not conform to the pattern of this world, but be transformed by the renewing of your mind. Then you will be able to test and approve what God’s will is—his good, pleasing and perfect will. Romans 12:1-2 (NIV)
Throughout Paul’s epistles there is a recurring theme. First, he lays out sound doctrine and then he applies the practical application. Sound doctrine is truth according to the Scripture, so any practical application must be in light of that truth. When we make ourselves the focus, or try to be practical outside the fenced-in safety of sound doctrine, we are out of bounds.
Renewing our minds through study of the Scripture helps us live lives that are pleasing to God. When we try to be practical without renewing our minds through the Scripture what we end up with is something selfish and self-centered, something based more on how we feel rather than Godly reason. We should never base decisions on our feelings and emotions. We need something that is sure and unchanging to guide us no matter how we feel.
We must, as Christians, determine what is practical for our lives based on the sound doctrine found in the Scripture. We do not determine what is sound doctrine based on what we feel is practical. As Christians we should live lives that are God-pleasing not self-pleasing. This is what it means to be in Christ; to be a Christian. If you think that you can reject living a life that pleases God without rejecting Christ himself, you are deceived. But this is the message that many within the modern American church wish to convey.
Christian doctrine has been infiltrated by self-help authors, motivational speakers, and life coaches who call themselves pastors. But by calling themselves pastors and teachers, they subject themselves to a stricter judgement. It would be better for them if they did not do this, because God will judge the preacher, pastor, and teacher more strictly. But without those titles, no one would buy their books and products. Some of these people are outright charlatans, and some are as deceived as the people who buy their books. In either case we will all give an account of whether or not we were faithful in our preaching and teaching of God’s precious and sacred word.
Not many of you should become teachers, my fellow believers, because you know that we who teach will be judged more strictly. James 3:1 (NIV)
As a pastor myself, these words weigh heavily on me. It is a huge responsibility to be a minister of the gospel, but much of the burden can be displaced if we are doing what we should be doing as pastors: proclaiming the Word of God, preaching the gospel, living above reproach, correcting, rebuking encouraging, and praying. This is the true call and life of a pastor.
It’s interesting that in 2 Timothy 3, Paul names horrific characteristics that we would expect find outside the church, but gives an indication that it will be a problem inside the church. Lovers of money, lovers of themselves, proud, and lovers of pleasure. I am not a prophet, but it appears that in the American Evangelical church, those times are already here. Christian bookstores, so-called Christian television, and Christian popular culture, is overrun with prosperity-centered books, Christian inspirational books, and teachings that teach a self-centered gospel which is far from sound doctrine. They promote a theology that is self-centered, self-focused and self-empowering. Completely void of suffering, service, and sacrifice.
The message of self-esteem, self-love and self-empowerment are not compatible with the gospel of Jesus Christ. The Scripture doesn’t tell us to empower ourselves; the Scripture calls us to deny ourselves. The seduction of a theology focused on self-improvement doesn’t seem that bad at first glance, but if the true solution could be found in you then we wouldn’t need God.
God is not another element we add to the portfolio of our life to give us a little more depth, or to help us be more successful. God is the sovereign creator of the universe and we are his creation. God owes us nothing, so we should be in awe that he gave so much to have fellowship with us. This fellowship is available for those who realize that they stand guilty before God due to their sin, repent of their sin, and truly surrender their lives to Christ and follow him.
In Christ,
Pastor Joshua
Joshua West is a pastor, evangelist, and author. He is also director of the World Challenge Pastors Network.
