Meditation Chip Brogden

Today's meditation is taken from:

Good For Us
by Chip Brogden

http://www.theschoolofchrist.org/read/articles/good-for-us.html
"...Peter said unto Jesus, Master, it is good for us to be here: and let us make three tabernacles..." (Luke 9:33ff).

Christians seek many spiritual things: anointing, power, gifts, blessing, fruit, wisdom, prosperity. I pray the Lord will make us thoroughly and completely dissatisfied with THINGS, even the things He gives us, and make us hungry and thirsty for Himself.

May we judge things not by whether they are "good for us", but whether they are good for the Lord, whether His Will is done in them, whether His Need is met by them, whether His Purpose is fulfilled in them, whether His Son is seen through them. He is the Only One, the Beloved Son of God. May the Lord be transfigured before us!
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Today's meditation is taken from:
He Could Not be Hidden
by Chip Brogden

http://www.theschoolofchrist.org/read/articles/he-could-not-be-hidden.html
"And [Jesus] entered a house and wanted no one to know it, but He could not be hidden" (Mark 7:24b).

When we look at the earthly ministry of Jesus we see that He did not seek to increase Himself. He actually humbled Himself and tried to be inconspicuous. Even so, when He tried to hide Himself, He could not be hidden. I want you to think about that. When God was ready to reveal Him then He could not be hidden. He could not even hide Himself.

I tell you, this idea of Christ increasing is the most powerful reality in this universe! Nothing can stand before it, nothing can resist it, nothing can stop it.

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Good morning!
Today's meditation is taken from:
He Could Not be Hidden
by Chip Brogden

http://www.theschoolofchrist.org/read/articles/he-could-not-be-hidden.html
"Christ in you, the hope of glory" (Colossians 1:27b).

Here is an amazing fact: the Bible says that we carry this Treasure (Jesus) within earthen vessels. In other words, the Living Christ indwells us now. We are His House, His Temple, His Dwelling Place, His Body. I doubt if we really comprehend that. Do we really know that we are in Him, and He is in us?

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Today's meditation is taken from:
Letter to a Reluctant Prophet
by Chip Brogden

http://www.theschoolofchrist.org/read/articles/letter-to-a-reluctant-prophet.html
"Blessed are you when they revile and persecute you, and say all kinds of evil against you falsely for My sake" (Matthew 5:11).

Expect misunderstanding. Expect persecution. Expect ridicule. Expect mistreatment. Expect suffering. Expect rejection. Then, you won't be surprised when it comes. And when it comes, shut your mouth, go to the cross, and die so you can live. Learn to kiss the hands that nail you to the cross, for as you are decreased, He is increased.

It is not a better living we need, but a better dying. We cannot reach Pentecost but by way of Passover. There can be no resurrection without a crucifixion. There is no crown without a cross. To live, is Christ: to die is gain.

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Today's meditation is taken from:
"Come to Me... and Learn of Me
by Chip Brogden

http://www.theschoolofchrist.org/read/articles/come-to-me-and-learn-of-me.html
"He selected Twelve that they should be with Him and that He might send them forth to preach" (Mark 3:14).

Your primary calling as a disciple is to BE with Jesus, because that is how you LEARN OF HIM. It is not learning about the Christian faith - that is a thing. It is not learning about Bible doctrine - that is a thing. We're not talking about things, we're talking about a Person. It is not learning about Christian things or religious things or spiritual things. It is not learning about the Bible. It's not even learning ABOUT Jesus, it is learning OF Jesus FROM Jesus.

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Today's meditation is taken from:
Letter to a Reluctant Prophet
by Chip Brogden

http://www.theschoolofchrist.org/read/articles/letter-to-a-reluctant-prophet.html
"My grace is sufficient for you: for My strength is made perfect in weakness" (II Corinthians 12:9a).

If you want to boast, take pride in the things that make you weak, for when you are weak, you are strong - in Him. Be afraid of the praise and acceptance of others, for they are the fertilizer for the self-important and grandiose thoughts that are yours by nature anyway, which spring up in the shallow ground of your carnal mind. Carry about the Death of the Lord so you may have the Life of the Lord. Be ready to suffer with Him, that you may reign with Him.

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May 7, 2009 Good morning
Today's meditation is taken from:
The Gift of Christ
by Chip Brogden

http://www.theschoolofchrist.org/read/articles/the-crisis-of-a-christless-christianity.html
"It is the truth concerning JESUS that inspires all prophecy" (Revelation 19:10b, Knox).

The prophetic word is given to point us to Jesus. Everything the Holy Spirit would speak, reveal, teach, and show us is towards this same end, which is CHRIST. We do not need to mull over every dream, vision, word, or prophecy, trying to exegete its hidden meaning, struggling to extract some spiritual significance where none exists. If what we see and hear does not point us to Jesus then it is not prophetic and should be discarded. This simple test will keep us from distraction.

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Today's meditation is taken from:
The Gift of Christ
by Chip Brogden

http://www.theschoolofchrist.org/read/articles/the-crisis-of-a-christless-christianity.html
"It is the truth concerning JESUS that inspires all prophecy" (Revelation 19:10b, Knox).

Those inspired to speak or proclaim something by the Holy Spirit should be helping to direct our attention onto Christ and away from everything that distracts us. The prophetic voice should rise up like a trumpet and bring clarity and direction out of confusion and misunderstanding. It is not just truth stated in an inspirational way, it is the truth concerning JESUS spoken by those who know Him and can lead others to Him. But of all things, the prophetic ministry today does more to distract us from Jesus than to tell us the truth concerning Jesus. In fact, it is difficult to find Jesus at all in most of what is touted today as "prophetic".

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May 4,
Today's meditation is taken from:
"Come to Me... and Learn of Me"
by Chip Brogden

http://www.theschoolofchrist.org/read/articles/come-to-me-and-learn-of-me.html
"Come to Me... Learn of Me" (Matthew 11:28,29ff).

Can you see the difference between coming TO Jesus and learning OF Him, versus coming to someone else and learning ABOUT Him? The difference is night and day, and for the majority of Christians, they don't know a thing in the world directly FROM Jesus, they only know what they have heard the church say, what brother so-and-so said, what sister so-and-so said, some book, some article, some tape they got off of the Internet or off the television set. They don't have a personal, intimate, experiential, knowledge and knowing of who the Lord is for themselves because they have never come to HIM to learn of HIM. They go everywhere else but Jesus to learn ABOUT Him, but they never come to Jesus to learn from Jesus. And that's what being a disciple of Jesus is all about. If you go anywhere else you are their disciple, you are not the disciple of Jesus.

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Today's meditation is taken from:
The Gift of Christ
by Chip Brogden

http://www.theschoolofchrist.org/read/articles/the-gift-of-christ.html
"But of Him are ye in Christ Jesus, who of God is made unto us wisdom, and righteousness, and sanctification, and redemption" (I Corinthians 1:30).

We must be clear: these things are not the "reward" for years of faithful service, or the fruit of walking with Jesus after a long period of time. If I have Him now, then I have all that pertains to Him now. My Wisdom, my Righteousness, my Sanctification, and my Redemption has a personality, for He is all those things in me. It is not a question of my behavior, or my conduct, or my feelings one way or the other - those things will come into line soon enough - but it is all based upon this accomplished fact. Christ is God's Gift. I repeat, we have much to praise God about!

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Today's meditation is taken from:
The Gift of Christ
by Chip Brogden

http://www.theschoolofchrist.org/read/articles/the-gift-of-christ.html

"It is of God that you are in Christ Jesus, Whom God has made to us wisdom, and righteousness, and sanctification, and redemption" (I Corinthians 1:30).

Have you ever seen a brother or a sister try to act sanctified? They wear themselves and everyone else out. It is a burden to be around such a person. That is not Christianity. Christianity is this: not that I am trying to be wise, but that I receive the Lord Jesus as my Wisdom; not that I am trying to be righteous, but that I receive the Lord Jesus as my Righteousness; not that I am trying to be sanctified, but that I receive the Lord Jesus as my Sanctification; not that I am trying to be redeemed, but that I accept the Lord Jesus as my Redemption. Henceforth I cease trying to be anything, and I allow Him to be Who He is through me.

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Today's meditation is taken from:
The Kingdom, the Power, and the Glory
by Chip Brogden

http://www.theschoolofchrist.org/read/articles/the-kingdom-the-power-and-the-glory.html
"For Thine is the Kingdom, and the Power, and the Glory forever. Amen" (Matthew 6:13b).

The final word is: "Amen - may it be so, henceforth and forever." We proclaim it, not to bring it forth (as if it depended upon our confession), but to acknowledge it as a present reality which is breaking forth upon all that stands in opposition to it, and to establish once and for all that we have chosen - individually and corporately - to align ourselves with God's Ultimate Purpose and Will, making us co-workers together with Him towards the Goal of CHRIST FILLING ALL THINGS.

He MUST increase, and all else MUST decrease (John 3:30). We can observe this decrease taking place in the world around us, but we should also be able to see that WE, the Self, is being decreased in order to prepare us for Kingdom in which it is no longer "I" that live as a thing outside of Christ, but it is Christ Who lives in me, conforming me to His image, and reproducing His character and nature within me (Galatians 2:20).

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Today's meditation is taken from:
The Kingdom, the Power, and the Glory
by Chip Brogden

http://www.theschoolofchrist.org/read/articles/the-kingdom-the-power-and-the-glory.html
"For Thine is the Kingdom, and the Power, and the Glory forever. Amen" (Matthew 6:13b).

There is a Remnant of called-out ones who have seen the Glory of the Son and WILL seek the interests of God's Only Begotten One. In a time when men solicit the glory and honor and power from one another, there is a Holy Nation of priests and kings who will give the Son the glory He deserves, declaring, "THINE IS THE GLORY, we will render to You, and to You alone, the glory due Your Name."
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Today's meditation is taken from:
I Know Whom I Have Believed
by Chip Brogden

http://www.theschoolofchrist.org/read/articles/i-know-whom-i-have-believed.html
"Jesus answered and said to them, 'You are mistaken, not knowing the scriptures nor the power of God'" (Matthew 22:29, NKJV).

One way the God-Man reveals Himself to us, of all ways, is not in a glorious vision or supernatural event, but in the pages of this thing we call the Bible. Imagine that. How odd. A book. Why not just appear to the one who seeks Him and speak face to face. No! Why? It would kill us. It would absolutely blow us away to be confronted with the Real Jesus, because the Jesus we have come to believe in is a fairy tale, a jolly elf, a fantasy character. The Bible prepares us for Him, does it not? Using types, shadows, stories, just to whet your appetite and get you accustomed to Him and His dealings so you are not totally shocked when you do meet Him.

How flippantly we just pick up the Word and skim through our favorite verses and say "ho hum". We haven't met the Lord. We haven't touched the God of the Word. How can we do that? Because the Bible is, outwardly speaking, so ordinary. Nothing high-tech about it. It seems so innocuous, so innocent. But it is the primary introduction we have to meeting the Man, the God-Man. Absolutely brilliant, this plan of God.



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April 28, 2009 Good morning!
Today's meditation is taken from:
Eat My Flesh
by Chip Brogden

http://www.theschoolofchrist.org/read/articles/eat-my-flesh.html
"Except a man eat my flesh and drink my blood, he has no life in him" (John 6:53).

We need more than a touch from God; we must have God Himself. There is an ocean of difference between receiving the blessing and receiving the One Who blesses; between getting a touch and receiving the One Who touches; between healing and the Healer; between redemption and Redeemer; between salvation and Savior. The former deals with what God has or can do, while the latter deals with God Himself.

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Today's meditation is taken from:
The Remnant Principle
by Chip Brogden

http://www.theschoolofchrist.org/read/articles/the-remnant-principle-part-5.html
"I sought for a man among them, that should make up the hedge, and stand in the gap before me for the land, that I should not destroy it: but I found none" (Ezekiel 22:30).

The Lord searches the whole Earth, and when He has found a person who sees that Purpose, and daily orders their life according to that Purpose, and (here is the key!) consistently rises up to pray for the fulfillment of that Purpose, then God will move Heaven and Earth on behalf of that person; for He has found, at last, some ground to build upon. That person is numbered with the Remnant because, I promise you, men and women like that are few and far between.




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Good morning!
Today's meditation is taken from:
The Gift of Christ
by Chip Brogden

http://www.theschoolofchrist.org/read/articles/the-gift-of-christ.html
"The kingdom of heaven is like unto treasure hid in a field; the which when a man hath found, he hideth, and for joy thereof goeth and selleth all that he hath, and buyeth that field" (Matthew 13:44).

For too long we have contented ourselves with what God can do for us and what He can give us. We come the Lord with a need in mind, and the next day we approach with another need, and the following day we return with yet another request. This pattern repeats itself continually. We return again and again to withdraw a little more from the heavenly bank.

Surely we should let our requests be made known unto God, and we must also ask, that we may receive. But think: if a man owns a field, does he not also possess the buried treasure in the field? Does it not stand to reason then, that if we receive HIM, we possess all He has? How shall He not, with His Son, freely give us all things?

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Today's meditation is taken from:
From Revelation to Revolution
by Chip Brogden

http://www.theschoolofchrist.org/read/articles/from-revelation-to-revolution.html
"And hath raised us up together, and made us sit together in heavenly places in Christ Jesus" (Ephesians 2:6).

The difference between those who overcome and those who do not overcome is a difference in their own PERCEIVED position. We all ought to perceive that in Christ we are seated in the heavenly places. We cannot overcome without this perception, this seeing, this revelation. If our perception is earthly, we will remain earthly. If our perception is heavenly, we will overcome.

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April 24, 2009 Good morning!
Today's meditation is taken from:
The Remnant Principle
by Chip Brogden

http://www.theschoolofchrist.org/read/articles/the-remnant-principle-part-5.html
"Don't be afraid. From the very first day that you humbled yourself before God and began to pray for understanding, your words were heard" (Daniel 10:12ff).

If God will do whatever He wishes, regardless of whether we pray or not, then we do not need to pray at all, and the Lord's instructions on praying for the Kingdom and the Will are superfluous. But the truth is that God waits for a Remnant to rise up and to pray in agreement with His Purpose before He does anything - He will do nothing apart from the Church. Apart from HIM, we CAN do nothing; apart from US, He WILL do nothing.

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Today's meditation is taken from:
From Revelation to Revolution
by Chip Brogden

http://www.theschoolofchrist.org/read/articles/from-revelation-to-revolution.html
"He that overcometh shall inherit all things; and I will be his God, and he shall be my son" (Revelation 21:7).

As we look at the promises made to those who overcome we should see that God is not establishing some new order or special group which enjoys rights and privileges not accessible to the rest of the saints. This is not the establishing of new promises, but a bringing us back to the same exceeding great and precious promises which are potentially true of everyone who is in Christ. It is not establishing a new foundation, it is calling us back to the foundation which is already laid.
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Today's meditation is taken from:
To Whom Am I Sent?
by Chip Brogden

http://www.theschoolofchrist.org/read/articles/to-whom-am-i-sent.html
"Now hath God set the members every one of them in the body, as it hath pleased Him" (I Corinthians 12:18).

A Christian should realize that he or she is a unique member of the Body of Christ and not the entire Body all at once. We are many parts that together make up the whole. Each individual member has its own unique purpose, function, and role. The responsibility for God's work is divided among many members. We are not called to be all things to all people. We are not called to meet every need. God sets each person in the Body of Christ as it pleases Him, and He is the One Who sends us. We do not send ourselves. We do not determine what we would like to do. We do not analyze the situation with our limited understanding and come up with a solution. The Head determines what needs to be done, and the members simply perform it.

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Today's meditation is taken from:
Christ: The Object of Our Desire
by Chip Brogden

http://www.theschoolofchrist.org/read/articles/christ-the-object-of-our-desire.html
"And [Jesus] said to them all, 'If any man will come after Me, let him deny himself, and take up his cross daily, and follow Me'" (Luke 9:23).

Thank God for the cross of Jesus Christ! For it is there that my sins are forgiven; it is there that the "old man" died. Yet it is also true that there is something as wicked, if not more wicked, than sin, and that is Self.

It is true that every sin is rooted in Self. As we must initially accept His death for sin, so we must daily accept our death to Self. As we are once crucified with Him for the remission of sins, so we must daily take up the cross, deny our Self, and follow Him. We walk in the narrow Way just as we entered the narrow Gate - by way of the cross.

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Today's meditation is taken from:
To Whom Am I Sent?
by Chip Brogden

http://www.theschoolofchrist.org/read/articles/to-whom-am-i-sent.html
"As they ministered to the Lord and fasted, the Holy Spirit said, 'Now separate to Me Barnabas and Saul for the work to which I have called them'" (Acts 13:2).

The believers in Antioch ministered to the Lord in prayer and fasting, and afterwards they ministered to one another. Let us recognize that our first ministry is to the Lord, not to people. Perhaps you have been in a situation where the people came first, and the work became so huge and the needs so great that you neglected to minister to the Lord. Before long you felt deflated and empty inside. This happens when we are reaching out, but not reaching up.

I like the way Jesus selected His disciples, and the explanation as to why they were selected: "That they should be with Him, and that they might go forth and preach" (Mark 3:14). Their being sent forth was contingent upon their having been with the Lord. Preaching was only optional, but being with Him was the primary objective. If they will only be with the Lord then they will have something to say when they do go forth.

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Today's meditation is taken from:
To Whom Am I Sent?
by Chip Brogden

http://www.theschoolofchrist.org/read/articles/to-whom-am-i-sent.html
"Early the next morning Jesus went out into the wilderness. The crowds searched everywhere for Him, and when they finally found Him, they begged Him not to leave them. But He replied, "I must preach the Good News of the Kingdom of God in other places, too, because that is why I was sent" (Luke 4:42,43, NLT).

If we are primarily motivated by what other people want, expect, and need then we will be tempted to stay longer than we should stay, or say more than we ought to say. When the crowd is begging for more, most Christian workers and preachers are only too eager to accommodate them. But Jesus had an acute sense of purpose because He knew to whom He had been sent. As a result, He did not bow down to the will of the people and go beyond the time and place appointed Him by His Father, even though they begged Him to stay. He was responding to what God needed, not what the people needed.

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Today's meditation is taken from:
A House of Prayer for All Nations
by Chip Brogden

http://www.theschoolofchrist.org/read/articles/a-house-of-prayer-for-all-nations.html
"[Jesus] said to them, 'When you pray, say: 'Our Father in heaven, Hallowed be Your name. Your kingdom come. Your will be done on earth as it is in heaven''" (Luke 11:2).

Someone might ask if God wants His Kingdom to come and His Will to be done, why does He not just do it? Why do we have to pray for it to be done in order for it to happen? We believe the answer to these questions is based upon the fact that God wishes to do nothing apart from the Church. This is in contrast to a kind of attitude that passively accepts whatever happens and just believes that everything will take care of itself. This sounds like faith, but it is really not. It is a subtle form of laziness. If this were the case then daily bread would automatically come to us, and doors would automatically open, and workers would automatically go forth into the harvest. And if these things happened of their own accord, regardless of whether we prayed or not, then everything Jesus taught us about prayer is superfluous. Jesus taught us to always pray, and not quit (Luke 18:1).

The truth is that God HAS revealed His Will to us, the Spirit WILL make His Mind known to us if we ask, and we are thus instructed to cooperate with God by praying specifically for His Will and for His Kingdom to be accomplished. The fact that God has promised to provide us with daily bread, open doors, and workers for the harvest is intended to inspire us to ask for these things to be done and to give us a basis upon which we may reasonably expect God to bring it to pass.

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Today's meditation is taken from:
A Place for the Lord
by Chip Brogden

http://www.theschoolofchrist.org/articles/place.html
"O Jerusalem, Jerusalem! You kill the prophets and stone those who are sent to you. How often I have longed to gather your children together under my wing, as a hen gathers her chicks, but you would not allow it. Now your house will be empty. You will not see Me again until you say, 'Blessed is He Who comes in the Name of the Lord'" (Matthew 23:37-39).

Jerusalem represents that which initially gave the Lord satisfaction, but no longer. It continues in the tradition and ceremony, in the outward things, yet it does not recognize Who the Lord Jesus is. The place of His rest used to be the Temple, but even it has become a "den of thieves".

He longs to have them, to gather them under the shadow of His wing: but THEY would not allow it. There is a place where the Lord is received: but it is outside of Jerusalem, away from the religious establishment, away from the scribes and teachers of Law, away from the Pharisees, Sadducees, theologians, Bible scholars and hypocrites, even away from the Temple in all its splendor. Just east of Jerusalem, in a little village, in a single house, He finally finds what He has longed for.

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