Meditation Chip Brogden

December 14
Being A Blessing

“[Jesus] went a little farther, and fell on the ground, and prayed… ‘Father, all things are possible for You. Take this cup away from Me; nevertheless, not what I will, but what You will.”
MARK 14:35,36

True prayer affords us the greatest opportunity for self-denial. When was the last time we offered up prayer, not for our agenda or plan, but for God’s Kingdom to come and for God’s Will to be done? When was the last time we came before the Lord, not to get our needs met, but to meet His Need? When was the last time we subjugated our own desires and wishes and gave ourselves wholly to praying for God’s Purpose to be accomplished? When was the last time we separated ourselves from family, friends, and business and sought the Lord; not to receive a blessing FROM Him, but to be a blessing TO Him?
Source: The Irresistible Kingdom by Chip Brogden

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December 15

Revolutinary Prayer

“[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

This is a revolutionary act. It is praying for the establishment of a Kingdom and a Will in which Christ has the preeminence as All in All. In this Kingdom there is no room for any earthly government, ruler, or king. In this Will there is no room for any human agenda. We know Jesus is Lord, yet we do not see all things submitted to Him (Hebrews 2:8).
So what do we do in the meantime? Overcomers do not just passively wait for Jesus to come back. They pray for His Kingdom to be established and for His Will to be performed. In this way they exercise power over the nations by preparing the way of the Lord. So this prayer is destructive in a natural sense, but constructive in a spiritual sense, for as the nations are decreased, Christ is increased (John 3:30).
Source: The Irresistible Kingdom by Chip Brogden

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Why I'm Not Always Positive and Encouraging

by Chip Brogden

At first blush there would appear to be nothing wrong with something labeled “positive and encouraging.” Three Christian radio stations service my area, and all three of them make the same claim: that they offer positive and encouraging programming for the whole family. The appeal is obvious: no one wants to spend a lot of time dwelling on things that are negative and discouraging.
But I have discovered a flaw in this positive and encouraging, family-friendly environment that should be addressed. This desire to provide people with a positive and encouraging experience (whether it is by radio or by television or by church service or by website) creates an unrealistic expectation in the hearts and minds of the audience and congregation who have come to rely on “the ministry” to keep them properly fed. Content is judged not according to Truth, but according to how I feel about it. Do I feel good, positive, encouraged, uplifted, and happy afterwards? If so then all is well. Or is it?
We must seriously question things that pass themselves off as “ministry”. It is clear that the practice of “ministry” – whether it comes in the form of a sermon or a song – is becoming synonymous with “Christian Entertainment.” It is not so much what they say as what they fail to say. The most glaring omission in this positive and encouraging Christian sub-culture is meaningful reference and teaching along the lines of taking up the cross and denying self, and I would suggest this one thing sums up most of what is lacking in Churchianity today..."
Click here to read the rest of this article:
http://theschoolofchrist.org/articles/positive-and-encouraging.html
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December 13
Exchanging My Life for His Life

“He who finds his life will lose it, and
he who loses his life for My sake will find it.”
MATTHEW 10:39

Each time you lose a part of your life, you will find Christ’s Life is right there to fill the void. Every single time. This is a spiritual truth, and there are no exceptions to the rule. Think of what it means. The more I give to Him, the more He gives to me. I trade in my life in exchange for His Life.
Which would you rather have? Do you want your life, your failures, your mistakes, your frustrations, your sins? Or would you rather give that up in exchange for His Life? You can have either one you want, but you cannot have both.
Source: Lord of All by Chip Brogden

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December 12
The Valley of the Shadow of Death

“Though I walk through the valley of the shadow of death, I will fear no evil, for You are with me.”
PSALM 23:4

God ordains that He will walk with us through death. He does not take us around it, or over it, or under it. He does not send us to walk it alone. But He walks with us through the valley of the shadow of death.
This is more prophetic than you may realize, for this “valley of the shadow of death” is a reference to the Cross. We fear no evil because the One Who calls us to take up the Cross is right there with us, comforting us with His rod and staff. This death will be the end of something, but it will also be the beginning of something – for death in the Irresistible Kingdom is never the end of the story, it is only the beginning of a new chapter.
Source: The Irresistible Kingdom by Chip Brogden


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December 11
Upheld By His Power

“Who being the brightness of His glory, and the express image of His Person, and upholding all things by the word of His power, when He had by Himself purged our sins, sat down at the right hand of the Majesty on high.”
HEBREWS 1:3

Everything is upheld by His power, and all things are working together according to His Purpose. The Spirit searches all things and reveals them for what they are. Before Him everything is manifest, and there is nothing hidden from Him. There is no darkness that He does not penetrate, no deception that He cannot illuminate, no evil that He will not eradicate.
Source: Lord of All by Chip Brogden

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December 10

An Indescribable Christ

“That you, being rooted and grounded in love, may be able to comprehend with all the saints what is the width and length and depth and height—to know the love of Christ which passes knowledge; that you may be filled with all the fullness of God.”
EPHESIANS 3:17-19

We ought to meditate on this daily and ask the Lord to open our eyes to see the height, depth, width, length, and breadth of this JESUS Whom we say we serve. May God deliver us from our own idea, concept, perception, and illusion of a small Christ and give us revelation into the preeminence of His Son.
When we see Christ as All in All then it will be impossible for us to ever again be reduced to the small, the trivial, the petty things which occupy us and waste so much of our time. Our only hope is seeing a Christ that fills us, a Christ that is greater than us, a Christ that is larger than we can fathom, an indescribable Christ that overshadows, overwhelms, and consumes us through and through!
Source: Lord of All by Chip Brogden

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December 8
Strengthened By Testing

“Count it all joy when you fall into various trials, knowing that the testing of your faith produces patience.”
JAMES 1:2,3

The Lord does not test us with the intent of making us stumble. That is the way the adversary works. No, the Lord indeed tests us and proves us, but His Way is to strengthen us in the testing, whereas the devil wants to weaken us in the testing. It has been said that our circumstances will either leave us better or they will leave us bitter. Ultimately, the decision is ours. We should steadfastly resist the temptation of satan, but we should also learn to distinguish between the assault of the enemy and the proving of the Lord.
Jesus already knows what He is going to do. In His mind it is as good as done. But He waits, and He proves us. Not because He does not know us, but because we do not know ourselves.
Source: Lord of All by Chip Brogden


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December 9
Boasting in Infirmities

“Most gladly I will rather boast in my infirmities, that the power of Christ may rest upon me.”
2 CORINTHIANS 12:9

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.
Source: Letter to A Reluctant Prophet by Chip Brogden
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Death of the Harlot Church

by Chip Brogden

The Ekklesia in Ephesus underscores that Jesus is seeking a specific outcome from those who are gathered in His Name. He will be patient. He will encourage you. He will warn you. He will work with you. If you repent He will take you deeper and deeper into His Purpose. But sooner or later, if you do not provide light, He takes the candlestick away; if you do not produce fruit, then He just takes the life away. He cursed the fig tree and it withered and died.
When the judgment of God comes, the meetings will continue, and the preachers will continue to preach, and the programs will continue to function, and the money will continue to be collected and spent, but there is no Light, no Life. It isn’t that Jesus has left them; He says, “You have left Me, your first love. You seem to be getting along and having a good time without Me, so off you go. Keep playing church. But I have removed your candlestick...”
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December 6
The Meaning of the Cross

“I am the resurrection and the life. He who believes in Me, though he may die, he shall live.”
JOHN 11:25

The Cross does not represent Death – it represents Life out of Death. Jesus does not refer to Himself as the Crucifixion and the Death, but He calls Himself the Resurrection and the Life. Even so, this Resurrection and Life implies that there has been a very real, thorough death. You cannot resurrect someone who has not died.
God wills that all of us stand together with Christ on resurrection ground where death has no power over us. That is certainly a powerful ground to stand upon, but there is no direct route to get there. The path to resurrection takes us through the Cross, for there can be no Resurrection and Life apart from crucifixion and death.
Source: Embrace the Cross by Chip Brogden

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Hi Elaine,
We still have a few spots available for tonight's Relationship
Clinic.

Join us for this online webinar and learn what the Bible says about
building and/or repairing your relationship with God and with others.

Click here to register (free
http://theschoolofchrist.org/webinar
https://convertegy.leadpages.net/soc-webinar-relationship-clinic-1/

I am your brother,
Chip Brogden
http://TheSchoolOfChrist.Org
©1997-2013 TheSchoolOfChrist.Org. Permission is granted
for non-commercial (free) distribution provided this notice appears.
Share this message with your friends!


December 5
To Be With Him

“Father, I desire that they also whom You gave Me may be with Me.”
JOHN 17:24

You are called to be with Jesus. That is your calling. That is the primary thing, the highest ministry. Going forth to preach or do anything else is of secondary importance. We should be with Jesus; after that, He might send us forth to preach. But before Jesus said, “Go into all the world” He said, “Be with Me.”
The call of the Lord is not more important than the Lord of the call. The work of the Lord must not replace the Lord of the work. No amount of ministering FOR the Lord will make up for a lack of ministering TO the Lord. And knowing the Word of God does not necessarily mean that we know the God of the Word.
Source: The Church in the Wilderness by Chip Brogden

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December 4
Spiritual Armor

“Put on the armor of light… put on the Lord Jesus Christ, and make no provision for the flesh… put on the whole armor of God.”
ROMANS 13:12,14; EPHESIANS 6:11

May I frankly say that anyone trusting in “spiritual armor” as a thing in and of itself is going to fail miserably. Anyone relying upon a faith-formula or a spiritual warfare method is going to see both the formula and the method eventually meet with defeat. Why? Because God has not given us a formula or a method: He has given us His Son.
He does not give us a ritual or ceremony to follow, He says, “Put on the Lord Jesus.” Having the Lord Jesus, I have the Whole Armor of God. It is not necessary to ask for each piece of armor, or to confess anything, or to do anything. It is only necessary, having put on the Whole Armor of God, to “stand therefore.” It is only necessary, having put on the Lord Jesus, to abide in Him.
Source: Lord of All by Chip Brogden

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Why Does Fellowship Elude Us?

by Chip Brogden

If everyone is looking for fellowship, why is fellowship so hard to find? And once we have found it, why is it so hard to maintain it?
When God begins to bring you out of church and into a deeper relationship with Himself, there is a lot of unlearning that has to take place – particularly in the area of fellowship.
It has been said that every lost person has a Christ-shaped void in their heart that only Christ can fill. A similar thing can be said of believers who come out of the religious system. When God calls us to be with Him “outside the camp,” there is a church-shaped void in our heart where church used to be. This void makes us feel restless and insecure and empty. We remember the fellowship we used to enjoy, and we begin to long for it. Pretty soon, we begin to look for things to fill the church-shaped void in our heart...

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A Free Live Webinar with Chip Brogden
Thursday, December 5, 2013
7:00 p.m. EST (New York Time Zone
Hello Elaine!
In my last blog post I talked a lot about RELATIONSHIPS.
The Two Greatest Commandments - love God, and love your neighbor - all rely on RELATIONSHIPS.
Just think about how many RELATIONSHIPS you have right now…
- Your relationship with God
- Your family relationships
- Your work and business relationships
- Your friends and neighbors
- Your brothers and sisters in Christ
I believe there are some basic things you can learn and put into practice that will go a long ways toward improving ALL these relationships and making them better.
That's why I'm inviting you to join us for what I call the "Relationship Clinic."
This is an online series of webinars, so you can join from anywhere.
The idea is to give you some practical skills for building better relationships, fixing what's broken, and getting more out of your existing relationships, dealing with difficult people, and much more.
We'll cover these topics over several sessions...
But the first step is to join us for Session 1 this Thursday: 
http://theschoolofchrist.org/webinar
The webinar is free, but your gift (of any amount) helps pay our webinar bill.
Space is very limited... so register now and login early.
Hope to "see" you Thursday!

I am your brother,
Chip Brogden
http://TheSchoolOfChrist.Org

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December 2
Power Disguised in Weakness

“The sacrifices of God are a broken spirit, a broken and a contrite heart - these, O God, You will not despise.”
PSALM 51:17

We must never seek the power of Pentecost without first tasting the suffering of the Cross. The Cross is Power disguised in Weakness. There is a saying, “Absolute power corrupts absolutely.” We can just as well say that spiritual power obtained apart from the weakness of the Cross will corrupt also.
This is why the Lord leads us first to Calvary, then on to Pentecost. We dare not bypass Calvary in our haste to experience Pentecost.
Source: Embrace the Cross by Chip Brogden

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December 1

The Ultimate Paradox

“We preach Christ crucified, to the Jews a stumbling block and to the Greeks foolishness, but to those who are called, both Jews and Greeks, Christ is the power of God and the wisdom of God, because the foolishness of God is wiser than men.” 
1 CORINTHIANS 1:23-25

There is tremendous power released in this Cross. Of course, this heavenly power is disguised in earthly weakness, and so it appears to be foolishness to those without understanding. Even Christians often underestimate the comprehensiveness of its work, and mostly think of the Cross in terms of their personal salvation. Certainly that is part of the work of the Cross, but there is far more.
In the Cross we see all the “Kingdom Conundrums” gathered together into one dramatic act. The Cross embodies the ultimate paradox of spiritual life: that wisdom is revealed through foolishness; that giving up is necessary in order to gain; that true strength is found in the midst of weakness; that one must die before they can truly live.
Source: Embrace the Cross by Chip Brogden

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November 30

The Purpose of Ministry

“He Himself gave some to be apostles, some prophets, some evangelists, and some pastors and teachers, for the equipping of the saints for the work of ministry, for the edifying of the body of Christ, till we all come to the unity of the faith and of the knowledge of the Son of God, to a perfect man, to the measure of the stature of the fullness of Christ.” 
EPHESIANS 4:11-13

Each of these ministry functions fulfill different roles, but their purpose is the same, and that is, to bring ALL of us into that same fullness, that same spiritual maturity, that same experiential knowing, which the elders themselves enjoy. Thus, He gives SOME, till we ALL… SOME, till we ALL… SOME, till we ALL. Do you see this? And He will continue to give SOME till we ALL. Once He has ALL then the work is complete and these ministries will no longer be needed. Until then they ARE needed, and they are critical to God’s Purpose.
Source: The Church in the Wilderness by Chip Brogden

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November 28

Blessed With Every Spiritual Blessing

“Blessed be the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, Who has blessed us with every spiritual blessing in heavenly places in Christ.”
EPHESIANS 1:3

Most Christians are taught to approach God and seek these things when they are conscious of some lack. Eventually we must learn that we have everything in Christ already. That thing called “patience” that we are so diligently seeking is not a thing at all, it is Christ. “Victory” is no longer a “thing,” it is a Man.
And so it is with everything else we need. What a difference it makes to realize that He HAS (past tense) blessed us already – not with three or five or twenty blessings – but with EVERY spiritual blessing. However many there may be, we have them all. Where and how has He done this? Thank God, it was done the moment we received Christ and entered into Him as our All in All. God would have us seek Him first, and not His things. To Him there is no “thing,” for they are all summed up into Christ.
Source: Lord of All by Chip Brogden
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November 29
In Due Season

“In due season we shall reap...”
GALATIANS 6:9

The good news is that even if the Ekklesia has been underground, it is still growing and developing. When the season is right it will burst forth and once again those who have eyes to see will indeed discern the blade, the head, and the full grain in the head. In fact the blades have already broken ground in several places and we are even beginning to see some grain taking shape. If you have traced the recovery of the Heavenly Order so far then you know there have been many obstacles and hindrances to God’s Will over the last six thousand years or so of the history of mankind.
So far God has defeated everything that rose up to challenge His Purpose in Christ. Not only has He defeated it, but He has actually used evil to bring about good and further increase His Son. The Scriptures provide us with every expectation and assurance that God will continue to do the same with our generation. He is very much an active part of world affairs, whether they be secular or sacred.
Source: The Irresistible Kingdom by Chip Brogde
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November 26
His Word is Truth

“Sanctify them by Your truth. Your word is truth.”
JOHN 17:17

I am frequently asked how do we partake of this fullness? How do we walk in it? What practical application exists for living according to this Truth? We see what God says, but we also see our situation. We see Jesus, but we also see ourselves. God says we are complete in Him, but we say we are incomplete. God says we are blessed with every spiritual blessing in Christ, but we say we still need this or that. What is the problem here? Is it not a glaring discrepancy between what God says and what we say? Whose word is more reliable?
Source: Lord of All by Chip Brogden
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November 27

The Heavens Do Rule

“God does not live in temples made by man.”
ACTS 17:24 ESV

We are not zealous for the establishment of any earthly nation, but for a heavenly nation of kings and priests (Revelation 5:10). We are not praying for the building of a physical temple, but a spiritual temple, a house of living stones, of which Jesus Christ is the Cornerstone, Builder and Architect. We are not looking for the appearance of an earthly Messiah, but a Heavenly Messiah, Who is building His Ekklesia upon the earth; we are not of the earth. This is not our home, for we are from above. Though in the world, we are not of it. We will not eat its meat or drink its wine, and we will not bow down to its idols. Though we live in the shadow of Babylon, we are not afraid of its fiery furnace or its den of lions, for our God is able to deliver us.
The heavens do rule. We affirm it boldly and confidently, regardless of appearances to the contrary. The Kingdom, the Power, and the Glory belongs to God (Matthew 6:13) – not man, not the devil, not the nations of this world.
Source: The Irresistible Kingdom by Chip Brogden

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November 25
The Key to All Revelation

“In [Christ] are hidden all the treasures of wisdom and knowledge.”
COLOSSIANS 2:3

It is not that God desires to give us revelation into the many things, but for us to have the Revelation of Jesus Christ. By apprehending Him we will subsequently gain insight in those “things.”
To seek revelation into the “things” apart from the Revelation of Christ fails to give Christ the preeminence. We dare not circumvent the knowledge of Him in the pursuit of “things,” even spiritual things, for they are all summed up into Him.
Source: Lord of All by Chip Brogden
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Family, Fellowship and Leadership
by Chip Brogden

Q: “I’m curious of your view on this: Do you believe in meetings with leadership that has been recognized by the others (others have seen the gifting of the Spirit in lives and recognized them as such, not a seminary degree but the Life of Christ coming from them)? I ask because it seems like you are telling people to go and hear God without really having any form of leadership (again servants to help equip them for their life ministry). I don’t ever see Paul preaching and then sending them out to be alone and just hear God, he set up fellowships where elders were established... "
So the question concerns spiritual leadership, and of course I’m going to take this lengthy question and organize my answer as if I were doing a teaching on the subject, which means boiling it down to answering these basic questions: what is spiritual leadership, is it needed today, and if so, how does it function, or, how is it supposed to function – because we all know that the spiritual intent of something often breaks down once we try to implement it in real life...

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November 24

Accomplished Through the Cross

“We were buried with Him through baptism into death, that just as Christ was raised from the dead by the glory of the Father, even so we also should walk in newness of life.”
ROMANS 6:4

The Cross is the means by which God reduces us to Christ, that we may be raised to new Life. What cannot be accomplished in a lifetime of self-effort is easily accomplished in God through the Cross.
We may take many shortcuts along the way and attempt to escape the inevitable, but the day we cease striving and meekly accept the Cross we find everything is done for us.
Source: Embrace the Cross by Chip Brogden
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November 23
Power Through Weakness

“God chose what is weak in the world to shame the strong.”
1 CORINTHIANS 1:27 ESV

The Wisdom of God teaches us differently. This Wisdom tells us that the weak things are chosen to overcome the strong things, and power works concurrently with weakness.
God desires to give you power, but that power only comes through weakness. Any power not obtained through weakness is illegitimate, no matter how spiritual it appears. The only legitimate power is granted to those who have been made weak. Power is birthed in weakness. Many exude a certain “power,” but there is not the corresponding weakness. Hence, the power only gives them an occasion for boasting. To remedy this, God has ordained that all who would have His power must first be weakened and made empty – we refer to this as being “broken.” The purpose of weakness and suffering is to open the way for His Power. The instrument God uses to weaken us is the Cross. Therefore, the Cross is power through weakness.
Source: Embrace the Cross by Chip Brogden

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November 22

When Men Fail

“The anointing which you have received from Him abides in you, and you do not need that anyone teach you.”
1 JOHN 2:27

It was God who gave apostles, prophets, evangelists, pastors and teachers to His Ekklesia, to encourage, edify, and establish all of us deeper into Christ. Can the Holy Spirit in John contradict the Holy Spirit in Paul? By no means.
What then? John was the sole survivor of the first twelve apostles, and now he is very old. Naturally he is concerned with the welfare of the Ekklesia after his death. So God comforts John, and then John comforts us, with this truth: even if we do not have access to the apostle, or prophet, or evangelist, or pastor and teacher, we are still instructed inwardly. The Ekklesia that Jesus is building is not dependent upon the great men or women of God. We are grateful to the ministry gifts when we have them, but we are not dependent upon them for our Life. The Life is greater than the ministers through which it may be ministered.
Source: The Church in the Wilderness by Chip Brogden
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November 21
Better Than "Willpower"

“I die daily.”
1 CORINTHIANS 15:31

Paul might have buckled under the pressure. He certainly grew weary. He certainly was misunderstood, rejected, and persecuted. He suffered so much. What kept him going? Verse 29 of Colossians 1 says, “To this end I labor, striving according to His working which works in me mightily.” He labors, and he strives. That’s the way Paul was. Laboring and striving, even when he was laboring and striving for the wrong things, he was absolutely dedicated to the mission. But there is something more extraordinary at work in Paul, something more than sheer willpower or determination.
I tell you willpower will only take you so far. Willpower is overrated. We need something else, something supernatural, something that does not rely upon my limited willpower. What was it? “I strive according to HIS WORKING which works in me mightily.” It was not the strength of Paul, but the strength of Christ in Paul, and through this Christ, Paul said, “I can do all things” (Philippians 4:13). All things!
Source: The Church in the Wilderness by Chip Brogden

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November 20
Times and Seasons

“It is not for you to know times or seasons that the Father has fixed by His own authority.
Acts 1:7 ESV

They had asked, “Lord, will You at this time restore the Kingdom to Israel?” The response from Jesus is anticlimactic to the impatient. The King will not be forced, or rushed, or pushed into action. Jesus said, “It is not for you to know the times and the seasons.”
The Kingdom of God is progressive – growing up from a single seed into an abundant tree with many branches and much fruit. Those seedlings were just freshly planted in eleven men and they would not come to maturity all at once but over the course of many seasons of increase and decrease. We cannot speculate as to when He will return in the power and glory of His Kingdom. We must “watch therefore, for you know neither the day nor the hour in which the Son of Man is coming.”
Source: The Irresistible Kingdom by Chip Brogden

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November 19
Grace is a Man

“All of you be submissive to one another, and be clothed with humility, for ‘God resists the proud, but gives grace to the humble.’”
1 PETER 5:5

The single requirement for grace is humility. But what is grace? Grace is more than just a theological term used to describe how we are saved. Grace is the power of God at work in my life to do what cannot be done in my own strength. Grace is energizing and proactive. When I have reached the end of myself then Grace Himself takes over and does what I am unable to do. In the first place, what I cannot do is save myself, and so I trust in the Grace of God, Jesus Christ, to save me.
But Grace will not only bring me through the Gate; He will bring me down the Path. Grace does not just get me started in the right direction, but goes along with me every step of the way. For Grace is a Man!
Source: Embrace the Cross by Chip Brogden

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A Free Live Webinar with Chip Brogden
Wednesday, November 20, 2013
7:00 p.m. EST (New York Time Zone)


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Hello Elaine!
The ability to control yourself...
SELF Control...
Most people don't have it and can't do it.
Isn't it interesting that the very last characteristic of spiritual fruit is "self control."
Doesn't sound real spiritual, does it?
Love, joy, peace and all the others sound kind of abstract.
But SELF Control deals directly with your flesh - and it's impossible to fake it. You either have CONTROL over YOUR SELF or you don't.
Now, if you don't have control over your SELF, how can you get it?
God's Word has the answers.
Join us this Wednesday night to learn more: 
http://theschoolofchrist.org/webinar
The webinar is free, but your gift (of any amount) helps pay our webinar bill.
Hope to "see" you Wednesday night (instead of Thursday)!

I am your brother,

Chip Brogden
http://TheSchoolOfChrist.Org

©1997-2013 TheSchoolOfChrist.Org. Permission is granted for non-commercial (free) distribution provided this notice appears. Share this message with your friends!

November 18

His Fullness

“Till we all come to the unity of the faith and of the knowledge of the Son of God, to a perfect man, to the measure of the stature of the fullness of Christ.”
EPHESIANS 4:13

It is the FULLNESS of Christ that we are after, the revelation of Christ as He IN FACT IS. For too many Christians the Lord Jesus is “merely” their Savior. Thank God He is our Savior, but there is a depth and a richness bound up into the personage of Christ that goes far, far beyond “mere” salvation. Salvation is the narrow gate – coming into the fullness of Christ is the narrow path. The gate is only the entrance to something larger.
Source: Lord of All by Chip Brogden


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November 16
No Permission Needed

“When it pleased God… to reveal His Son in me…I did not immediately confer with flesh and blood, nor did I go up to Jerusalem to those who were apostles before me.”
GALATIANS 1:15-17

Paul did not seek credentials, ordination, or affiliation with a human organization. He did not wait for anyone to confirm the call on his life. He did not seek for hands to be laid on him. Preaching the gospel of Jesus Christ was renegade enough, but to preach the gospel to the Gentiles was a departure from the norm for the Christians at that time. It would later prove to be quite controversial and divisive. Prudence would dictate that it would be better to check with the other apostles and get their opinion and feedback before striking out in a new direction. Yet, Paul says once he obtained revelation he had no need to confer with flesh and blood.
Why? Because he was a maverick, an independent spirit, a rebel? No, it is only because the Revelation of Jesus is sufficient guidance. Flesh and blood cannot add to or take away from the Revelation.
Source: Lord of All by Chip Brogden
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November 17

Apart From the Cross

“I determined not to know anything among you except Jesus Christ and Him crucified.”
1 CORINTHIANS 2:2

We can quote these teachings of Jesus, seek to imitate Him as our Example, strive to walk the narrow Way, and even accomplish many good deeds in His Name. But apart from the Cross these activities are wood, hay and stubble.
In calling us to come back to the Cross, God is asking us to lay down our lives and embrace the Wisdom of death, burial, resurrection, and ascension in order to live as sons and daughters within the Kingdom of God. Apart from the Cross we can neither enter the Kingdom nor live in the Spirit, no matter how great the desire. For apart from the Cross, we do not know what it is to turn the other cheek, to go the extra mile, to love our enemies, to pray for those who persecute us. Apart from the Cross, we do not know what it is to submit to the will of God, accept suffering, and cast ourselves upon Him. Apart from the Cross, we do not know what Resurrection is.
Source: Embrace the Cross by Chip Brogden

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A Religion of Fear

by Chip Brogden

Q: “At times waves of fear wash over me… if I am still in the system, will I miss the Rapture? I am slowly going out of the system and I am praying that the system is taken out of me. I love Jesus with all my heart and only want to follow what He asks me to do.”
Wouldn’t it be nice if we could all follow the Lord and let Him lead us, without being hindered, or distracted, or held back, or intimidated, or fearful, because of something that the Church taught us, or something the preacher said?
So here’s the fear in the question: will I miss the Rapture? That’s another example of fear. Instead of love and hope and joyful expectation for the return of Christ, Religion has produced this fear in you. It’s like a black cloud hanging over your head, turning what should be a joyful thing into a fearful thing. I don’t blame you, I blame the religious system. Fear is the fruit of that religious system...
Click here to read the rest of this answer...
http://theschoolofchrist.org/articles/a-religion-of-fear.html

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November 15
Thw Spirit of the Law

“Teacher, this woman was caught in adultery, in the very act. Now Moses, in the law, commanded us that such should be stoned. But what do You say?”
JOHN 8:4,5

Legally they were on solid ground. But to her accusers, Jesus replied, “He who is without sin among you, let him throw a stone at her first.” And when they all left, being convicted by their own conscience, He said to the woman: “Neither do I condemn you. Go, and sin no more” (John 8:12). We must conclude that however good the Law was, it did not represent God’s highest, or God’s best.
Jesus represents the holiness and purity of the Law but emphasized the part that had been too long overlooked: grace and humility. He came to address the deeper issues of the heart, and in so doing, showed us what God really intended from the beginning. He did not destroy the Law, He superseded the Law! Thus He fulfilled the spirit of the Law – even if it sometimes appeared as if He did not follow the letter of the Law.
Source: The Irresistible Kingdom by Chip Brogden

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