WATCH WITHIN WATCH WITHOUT (4W) PRAYERFULLY – 5 Complacent Anti – Gospel Churches to Watch and Pray for as labourers in the harvest field of life: Jesus’s Closing Messages to Apply
Day 40 of 40 – Prayer and Fasting for Church and Leadership – …Pray the LORD of the Harvest to Thrust out Labourers into the Harvest field Matthew 9:35-38
Friday, 26th of April 2024
Podcast link: Listen to the most recent episode of my podcast: WATCH WITHIN WATCH WITHOUT (4W) PRAYERFULLY – 5 Complacent Anti – Gospel Churches to Watch and Pray https://podcasters.spotify.com/pod/show/otakada/episodes/WATCH-WITHIN-WATCH-WITHOUT-4W-PRAYERFULLY–5-Complacent-Anti–Gospel-Churches-to-Watch-and-Pray-e2itr4q
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WHAT, WHO, WHEN, WHERE, WHY, HOW to WATCH WITHIN WATCH WITHOUT (4W) PRAYERFULLY – 5 Complacent Anti – Gospel Churches to Watch and Pray for as labourers in the harvest field of life: Jesus’s Closing Messages to Apply
Today’s 12 ( Twelve) scriptural references for reading, meditating and Contemplating:
1)
8 Also I heard the voice of the Lord, saying, Whom shall I send? And who will go for Us? Then said I, Here am I; send me.
9 And He said, Go and tell this people, Hear and hear continually, but understand not; and see and see continually, but do not apprehend with your mind.
2)
28 And her prophets have daubed them over with whitewash, seeing false visions and divining lies to them, saying, Thus says the Lord God—when the Lord has not spoken.
29 The people of the land have used oppression and extortion and have committed robbery; yes, they have wronged and vexed the poor and needy; yes, they have oppressed the stranger and temporary resident wrongfully.
30 And I sought a man among them who should build up the wall and stand in the gap before Me for the land, that I should not destroy it, but I found none.
31 Therefore have I poured out My indignation upon them; I have consumed them with the fire of My wrath; their own way have I repaid [by bringing it] upon their own heads, says the Lord God.
14 Now after John was arrested and put in prison, Jesus came into Galilee, preaching the good news (the Gospel) of the kingdom of God,
15 And saying, The [appointed period of] time is fulfilled (completed), and the kingdom of God is at hand; repent (have a change of mind which issues in regret for past sins and in change of conduct for the better) and believe (trust in, rely on, and adhere to) the good news (the Gospel).
4)
15 And now let me remind you [since it seems to have escaped you], brethren, of the Gospel (the glad tidings of salvation) which I proclaimed to you, which you welcomed and accepted and upon which your faith rests,
2 And by which you are saved, if you hold fast and keep firmly what I preached to you, unless you believed at first without effect and all for nothing.
3 For I passed on to you first of all what I also had received, that Christ (the Messiah, the Anointed One) died for our sins in accordance with [what] the Scriptures [foretold],
4 That He was buried, that He arose on the third day as the Scriptures foretold,
5)
3 [That] Jesus, knowing (fully aware) that the Father had put everything into His hands, and that He had come from God and was [now] returning to God,
4 Got up from supper, took off His garments, and taking a [servant’s] towel, He fastened it around His waist.
5 Then He poured water into the washbasin and began to wash the disciples’ feet and to wipe them with the [servant’s] towel with which He was girded.
12 So when He had finished washing their feet and had put on His garments and had sat down again, He said to them, Do you understand what I have done to you?
13 You call Me the Teacher (Master) and the Lord, and you are right in doing so, for that is what I am.
14 If I then, your Lord and Teacher (Master), have washed your feet, you ought [it is your duty, you are under obligation, you owe it] to wash one another’s feet.
15 For I have given you this as an example, so that you should do [in your turn] what I have done to you.
16 I assure you, most solemnly I tell you, A servant is not greater than his master, and no one who is sent is superior to the one who sent him.
17 If you know these things, blessed and happy and to be envied are you if you practice them [if you act accordingly and really do them].
18 I am not speaking of and I do not mean all of you. I know whom I have chosen; but it is that the Scripture may be fulfilled, He who eats [b]My bread with Me has raised up his heel against Me.
19 I tell you this now before it occurs, so that when it does take place you may be persuaded and believe that I am He [Who I say I am—the Christ, the Anointed One, the Messiah].
20 I assure you, most solemnly I tell you, he who receives and welcomes and takes into his heart any messenger of Mine receives Me [in just that way]; and he who receives and welcomes and takes Me into his heart receives Him Who sent Me [in that same way].
21 After Jesus had said these things, He was troubled (disturbed, agitated) in spirit and said, I assure you, most solemnly I tell you, one of you will deliver Me up [one of you will be false to Me and betray Me]!
6)
31 Simon, Simon (Peter), listen! Satan [a]has asked excessively that [all of] you be given up to him [out of the power and keeping of God], that he might sift [all of] you like grain,
32 But I have prayed especially for you [Peter], that your [own] faith may not fail; and when you yourself have turned again, strengthen and establish your brethren.
33 And [Simon Peter] said to Him, Lord, I am ready to go with You both to prison and to death.
34 But Jesus said, I tell you, Peter, before a [single] cock shall crow this day, you will three times [utterly] deny that you know Me.
7)
6 Brethren, if any person is overtaken in misconduct or sin of any sort, you who are spiritual [who are responsive to and controlled by the Spirit] should set him right and restore and reinstate him, without any sense of superiority and with all gentleness, keeping an attentive eye on yourself, lest you should be tempted also.
2 Bear (endure, carry) one another’s burdens and [a]troublesome moral faults, and in this way fulfill and observe perfectly the law of Christ (the Messiah) and complete [b]what is lacking [in your obedience to it].
8)
12 I assure you, most solemnly I tell you, if anyone steadfastly believes in Me, he will himself be able to do the things that I do; and he will do even greater things than these, because I go to the Father.
13 And I will do [I Myself will grant] whatever you ask in My Name [as [a]presenting all that I Am], so that the Father may be glorified and extolled in (through) the Son.
14 [Yes] I will grant [I Myself will do for you] whatever you shall ask in My Name [as [b]presenting all that I Am].
15 If you [really] love Me, you will keep (obey) My commands.
16 And I will ask the Father, and He will give you another Comforter (Counselor, Helper, Intercessor, Advocate, Strengthener, and Standby), that He may remain with you forever—
17 The Spirit of Truth, Whom the world cannot receive (welcome, take to its heart), because it does not see Him or know and recognize Him. But you know and recognize Him, for He lives with you [constantly] and will be in you.
18 I will not leave you as orphans [comfortless, desolate, bereaved, forlorn, helpless]; I will come [back] to you.
20 At that time [when that day comes] you will know [for yourselves] that I am in My Father, and you [are] in Me, and I [am] in you.
21 The person who has My commands and keeps them is the one who [really] loves Me; and whoever [really] loves Me will be loved by My Father, and I [too] will love him and will show (reveal, manifest) Myself to him. [I will let Myself be clearly seen by him and make Myself real to him.]
23 Jesus answered, If a person [really] loves Me, he will keep My word [obey My teaching]; and My Father will love him, and We will come to him and make Our home (abode, special dwelling place) with him.
24 Anyone who does not [really] love Me does not observe and obey My teaching. And the teaching which you hear and heed is not Mine, but [comes] from the Father Who sent Me.
9)
15 I am the True Vine, and My Father is the Vinedresser.
2 Any branch in Me that does not bear fruit [that stops bearing] He cuts away (trims off, takes away); and He cleanses and repeatedly prunes every branch that continues to bear fruit, to make it bear more and richer and more excellent fruit.
3 You are cleansed and pruned already, because of the word which I have given you [the teachings I have discussed with you].
4 Dwell in Me, and I will dwell in you. [Live in Me, and I will live in you.] Just as no branch can bear fruit of itself without abiding in (being vitally united to) the vine, neither can you bear fruit unless you abide in Me.
5 I am the Vine; you are the branches. Whoever lives in Me and I in him bears much (abundant) fruit. However, apart from Me [cut off from vital union with Me] you can do nothing.
6 If a person does not dwell in Me, he is thrown out like a [broken-off] branch, and withers; such branches are gathered up and thrown into the fire, and they are burned.
7 If you live in Me [abide vitally united to Me] and My words remain in you and continue to live in your hearts, ask whatever you will, and it shall be done for you.
8 When you bear (produce) much fruit, My Father is honored and glorified, and you show and prove yourselves to be true followers of Mine.
9 I have loved you, [just] as the Father has loved Me; abide in My love [[a]continue in His love with Me].
10 If you keep My commandments [if you continue to obey My instructions], you will abide in My love and live on in it, just as I have obeyed My Father’s commandments and live on in His love.
11 I have told you these things, that My joy and delight may be in you, and that your joy and gladness may be of full measure and complete and overflowing.
12 This is My commandment: that you love one another [just] as I have loved you.
13 No one has greater love [no one has shown stronger affection] than to lay down (give up) his own life for his friends.
14 You are My friends if you keep on doing the things which I command you to do.
15 I do not call you servants (slaves) any longer, for the servant does not know what his master is doing (working out). But I have called you My friends, because I have made known to you everything that I have heard from My Father. [I have revealed to you everything that I have learned from Him.]
16 You have not chosen Me, but I have chosen you and I have appointed you [I have planted you], that you might go and bear fruit and keep on bearing, and that your fruit may be lasting [that it may remain, abide], so that whatever you ask the Father in My Name [as [b]presenting all that I Am], He may give it to you.
17 This is what I command you: that you love one another.
10)
11 And [now] I am no more in the world, but these are [still] in the world, and I am coming to You. Holy Father, keep in Your Name [[a]in the knowledge of Yourself] those whom You have given Me, that they may be one as We [are one].
20 Neither for these alone do I pray [it is not for their sake only that I make this request], but also for all those who will ever come to believe in (trust in, cling to, rely on) Me through their word and teaching,
21 That they all may be one, [just] as You, Father, are in Me and I in You, that they also may be one in Us, so that the world may believe and be convinced that You have sent Me.
22 I have given to them the glory and honor which You have given Me, that they may be one [even] as We are one:
23 I in them and You in Me, in order that they may become one and perfectly united, that the world may know and [definitely] recognize that You sent Me and that You have loved them [even] as You have loved Me
11)
3 But understand this, that in the last days will come (set in) perilous times of great stress and trouble [hard to deal with and hard to bear].
2 For people will be lovers of self and [utterly] self-centered, lovers of money and aroused by an inordinate [greedy] desire for wealth, proud and arrogant and contemptuous boasters. They will be abusive (blasphemous, scoffing), disobedient to parents, ungrateful, unholy and profane.
3 [They will be] without natural [human] affection (callous and inhuman), relentless (admitting of no truce or appeasement); [they will be] slanderers (false accusers, troublemakers), intemperate and loose in morals and conduct, uncontrolled and fierce, haters of good.
4 [They will be] treacherous [betrayers], rash, [and] inflated with self-conceit. [They will be] lovers of sensual pleasures and vain amusements more than and rather than lovers of God.
12)
10 Now after this the Lord chose and appointed seventy others and sent them out ahead of Him, two by two, into every town and place where He Himself was about to come (visit).
2 And He said to them, The harvest indeed is abundant [[a]there is much ripe grain], but the farmhands are few. Pray therefore the Lord of the harvest to send out laborers into His harvest.
Friends, as we complete the 18th annual 40 day fast for church and leadership, we bring this messages to a climax today by exploring this title WATCH WITHIN WATCH WITHOUT (4W) PRAYERFULLY – 5 Complacent Anti – Gospel Churches to Watch and Pray for as labourers in the harvest field of life: Jesus’s Closing Messages to Apply
Jesus, our Lord and Savior in His closing messages to His disciples kept hammering on the need to watch and pray. As we look at that word, we want to state that the Christian walk, in as much as it is INDIVIDUALISED, it is also corporate in nature. It is an All for one, one for all work. We cannot do Christianity in isolation. We are all connected to one another because we are , as Paul wrote in Ephesians we are one.
4 I therefore, the prisoner for the Lord, appeal to and beg you to walk (lead a life) worthy of the [divine] calling to which you have been called [with behavior that is a credit to the summons to God’s service,
2 Living as becomes you] with complete lowliness of mind (humility) and meekness (unselfishness, gentleness, mildness), with patience, bearing with one another and making allowances because you love one another.
3 Be eager and strive earnestly to guard and keep the harmony and oneness of [and produced by] the Spirit in the binding power of peace.
4 [There is] one body and one Spirit—just as there is also one hope [that belongs] to the calling you received—
5 [There is] one Lord, one faith, one baptism,
6 One God and Father of [us] all, Who is above all [Sovereign over all], pervading all and [living] in [us] all.
Jesus prayed His heart out in the closing chapters that we should be one.
We also know that the degree of our watchfulness is directly proportional to the watchfulness and prayerfulness of the association we keep. If you are hot and the association are cold, in no time, if you don’t step up your watchfulness, you become cold as well. That informs the need to for us to what not just within ourselves to see we are standing but also watch and pray without so that those God has brought around our lives are also watchful to the very end.
These are not times to look out excited to the last man or woman and child of God that has fallen but that those information over media and other channels should prompt us to intensify our prayers not just for ourselves and our needs but also for those we now know are falling and failing. As the Lord grants opportunities, we engage with them and see how we can help them stand again if they are open to such feeds. We are all linked you see. If the love Jesus talked about should manifest in fruits, then what happens to one should cause us all sleepless night and send us into the closet of intercession. We don’t know how far reaching out prayers could impact outcomes. God is looking for a man or a woman that can be faithful to bring about a Deliverance for a family, for a church for a community for a country, a nation and continent. God is looking for faithful men and women, mothers and fathers, boys and girls who He can drop the burden of intercession on as we watch within and watch without. May God find us so doing in Jesus name. Amen.
As we watch within watch without, we want to look at 5 types of complacent, anti gospel Churches or associations to sensitize our discernment antennas. As you look at this five type of churches, it is possible you are already part of that type of gathering and the onus now lies on you to do something in the spirit of love and fruitfulness.
Before we do that we want to look at the core of the matter. The message of the gospel. The requirements for entry into the kingdom. The requirement for repentance. The condition precedent to entering the kingdom. The requirement for sensitivity to the spirit leading, not ten years ago or last Sunday but what the Spirit is saying right now to the Churches. On a moment by moment basis and how obedient we are to such instructions.
For instance many church gatherings have their own “gospels,” and they announce good things. However, they lack supernatural power to deal with people’s sin and rebelliousness and to transform their lives which is the key function of the Holy Spirit. They lack the power to heal a sickness or to deliver someone from mental or emotional oppressions. They are substitutes for the true gospel.
Even in much of the church, parts of the gospel message have been diluted or abridged into various human versions that lack power.
In some cases, these human versions are even anti-power, anti-gospel. The message of the gospel of the kingdom is not being presented as it was by Jesus and the early church. These significant elements have been left out: A call to wholehearted repentance and manifestation of God’s presence by healing, signs, wonders, the casting out of demons, and the raising of the dead. As a result, the church has become accustomed to hearing an incomplete gospel..
Paul said in Galatians 1:9 – If anyone preaches any gospel to you than what was you have received, let him be accursed. As we call believers to unity, it is imperative that we all work from the same biblical perspective. God wants to restore the true gospel in the church, so that the good news can be preached to the world as it ought to be. Let us look closely at what we have out there.
1 – The Historical Gospel
Many Christians of various denominations are fixed in a historical, traditional gospel that lacks the presence and power of God They believe in a God of history but not in a God who is with us today – a God whose name is in the present tense: “I am who I am”. IF we can’t bring Jesus to the here and now, then His death, resurrection, and ascension to the throne at the Father’s right hand in heaven have no meaning or purpose for our present circumstances.
2- The “Future” Gospel
The mentality of much of the modern church is to present a gospel that simply proclaims forgiveness of sin so that a person can go to heaven when he or she dies. Although that is certainly part of the good news, it is not the whole gospel of the kingdom. It says nothing of reigning with Christ on earth now with dominion authority and power.
Other believers reflect a different aspect of the future gospel. They believe that God can bring healing and deliverance to the people on earth. Nonetheless, since their mind-set is always that God “will” do these things, they never receive or minister them. For example, they may say, “I believe that God will heal, deliver, prosper and bring revival at some point.” In other words, it will happen later, at an unspecified time in the future. Yet God is the God of the now. It is true that He acts according to His sovereignty. However, these believers keep waiting for something that God has already promised and that Jesus has already provided through His death and resurrection
3- The Social Gospel
While the “future” gospel focuses on heaven, the social gospel centers exclusively on the earth; its advocates seek to relieve societal problems, such as hunger, poverty, and injustice. Addressing people’s physical needs and concerns is central to kingdom living, because God wants us to love others as He loves us. However, they often downplay or ignore the spiritual element of a relationship with God the Father through Jesus His Son. They do not seek or rely on God’s supernatural power, through which people can be healed physically, emotionally, and mentally, and through which they have access to God’s abundant provision, power and strength. Therefore, they do not present the complete gospel.
4- The Gospel of Conformity
This human “gospel” leaves people in a spiritual stagnant condition, unable to move forward, retaining their sin and never regaining their authority in Christ. It neither deals with the rot of rebellion nor challenges people to change, so that they are left in sickness, scarcity, and oppression. A gospel that doesn’t produce change is contrary to the kingdom message of repentance that Jesus preached, and it fails to bring about the transformation that Paul urged believers to actively seek.
5- The Motivational and or Prosperity Gospel
This is a “self-help” gospel in which God’s Word is spoken without power; the cross and the resurrection of Jesus are not proclaimed, and the supernatural is absent. It is a gospel adapted to what people want to hear, and it fails to confront them with the destructiveness of their sin, in an effort to avoid offending them. Its main purpose is for people to walk away feeling satisfied with themselves and encouraged to reach their personal goals. While it is good to have goals and to accomplish them, Jesus came to announce much more than that. (Matthew 6:33)
The gospel of the kingdom lovingly confronts us with our iniquity and challenges us to live in holiness through the resurrection life of Jesus and the power of the Holy Spirit. Jesus message does not leave us comfortable in our sinful nature.
The other version of the motivational gospel is the prosperity gospel. Please understand that God promises prosperity, and He wants to give us His provision and abundance but if all we think about is money and material goods, forgetting holiness, prayer, and serving others, then we have put the cart in front of the us.
CONCLUSION:
In concluding, churches and ministries that don’t preach the gospel of the kingdom produce a complacent Christianity. You hang out long enough , you become like one of them per association. They make no room for the supernatural, and they do not believe that all things are possible with God. This is precisely why we do not see the manifestations of God’s power in the church which is the evidence that God is at work in our midst.
As we engage with our brothers and sisters in small groups, fellowships and churches, we need to discern the type of gospel at play. We need to lovingly point out these issues while praying for our brethren that the veil be removed from their eyes that they will walk in ALL that Christ came to give us all and proclaim aright to the world around us. But to abandon and not engage with other believers is folly and recipe for disaster waiting or already happening in our midst.
We travel the whole world to get a convert and make them sons and daughters if the devil. Jesus’s rebuke to the scribes and Pharisees apply nicely here.. Matthew 23:15– “Woe to you, scribes and Pharisees, hypocrites! For you travel land and sea to win one proselyte, and when he is won, you make him twice as much a son of hell as yourselves… Message says – “You’re hopeless, you religion scholars and Pharisees! Frauds! You go halfway around the world to make a convert, but once you get him, you make into a replica of yourselves, double-damned.
As we watch ourselves within, let’s us also endeavor to watch without prayerfully
Prayer: Our heavenly Father, based on your instructions to us in your parting messages to watch and pray not just concerning ourselves but also our brethren, in today’s end of 40 day fast titled, “WATCH WITHIN WATCH WITHOUT (4W) PRAYERFULLY – 5 Complacent Anti – Gospel Churches to Watch and Pray for as labourers in the harvest field of life: Jesus’s Closing Messages to Apply” help us to be faithful with this command whilst seeking the unity of the Spirit amongst the brethren, open our eyes to discern the wolves in sheep’s clothing amongst us as in Matthew 7:15 Luke 10:3. We ask that You expose them for who they really are. If they are unrepentant, we ask that You silence them for Your name and Your work sake. Grant unto us boldness and courage to confront and to pray for our misled brethren to amend their ways. As we humble ourselves and are willing to learn from you, help us to stay through to the authentic gospel message to the very end. As many that seek the manifestation of Your power and presence to heal and deliver, Lord visit them today, give them the revelation of You. Heal the sick, provide for those who lack and bring comfort to the brokenhearted in Jesus name we have prayed with thanksgiving. Amen
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