Equip, Edify

(Message by Pastor Philip Joseph)

“And 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…” Eph 4: 11, 12

I think about meetings, seminars and conferences held over the last one month in the city (Mumbai / Navi Mumbai) and I can relate to these verses in Ephesians. I know for certain that they were sent for the purposes of (i) equipping the saints for work of ministry, and (ii) edifying the body of Christ. Pastor and teacher Joseph was here in Vashi, ministering to us from the ‘Parable of the Talents’ found in the word of God. ‘Your talents may be limited, but your capability is unlimited; therefore use your talents’. Evangelist Ram Babu was here in Mumbai saying, ‘God is confirming His word through signs and wonders’. Prophet Ezekiah Francis was here and spoke about the ‘Parable of the Good Samaritan’ and how God is pouring out His oil and wine to restore the church; and that one ought to edify one-self by speaking in tongues. And in the ‘sonship’ conference, we heard the preachers talk of enjoying the blessings of son-ship.

Prophets, teachers and evangelists may come and go; but as saints, each one of us are being (1) equipped for the work of ministry, and (2) edified as the body of Christ. In this 21^st century, we have the privilege of hearing wonderful expositions of the word of God and truth from pastors and teachers all over the world. But hearing is only the first and minor part. Doing the word is the second and major part.

Look up Revelation 3: 14-22, where the lukewarm church, (church of the Laodiceans) is portrayed. Here was a church blessed with material prosperity, with many ‘rich’ members; but they were living in a state of compromise – spiritually very much poor. It speaks of our times, when everyone turns his attention towards economy and towards prosperity. V17 “Because you say, I am rich, have become wealthy, and have need of nothing…” In contrast, Jesus compliments the church at Smyrna-materially poor, but spiritually rich. Rev. 2:9 “I know your works, tribulation, and poverty (but you are rich);…” The Laodicean church was living in deception of ‘riches’; and Jesus confronts them.

“Because you say, I am rich, have become wealthy, and have need of nothing-and do not know that you are wretched, miserable, poor, blind, and naked- I counsel you to buy from Me gold refined in the fire, that you may be rich; and white garments, that you may be clothed, that the shame of your nakedness may not be revealed; and anoint your eyes with eye salve, that you may see. As many as I love, I rebuke and chasten. Therefore be zealous and repent. Behold, I stand at the door and knock. If anyone hears My voice and opens the door, I will come in to him and dine with him, and he with Me. To him who overcomes I will grant to sit with Me on My throne, as I also overcame and sat down with My Father on His throne. He who has an ear, let him hear what the Spirit says to the churches.”

Are we living a lie? Are we in a despicable state in our church? Is it just a routine and has it become a tradition to just come and sit on familiar seats in the pews and look for some entertaining time in the church? We may have the name of Jesus and put up a form of worship; but is God really in our midst? In the Old Testament, we read about the time when the Philistines captured and took away The Ark of the Covenant. It was the end of Eli, two of his sons, and his daughter-in-law-who named Eli’s grandson, Ichabod saying “The glory has departed from Israel!” Are we in the same state where the glory of the Lord has departed? Jesus counsels us to buy from Him!

Are you poor, naked and blind and do not even know it! Buy from Him gold refined in the fire, that you may be rich; and white garments to clothe yourself; and eye ointment that you may clearly see!

Refined Gold
Precious metals are refined in fire to obtain them in pure form. Here is Jesus offering pure gold. It is time now to buy from Him. We cannot buy these things after our life is over! “For You, O God, have tested us; You have refined us as silver is refined.” (Psalm 66:10). “Therefore if you have not been faithful in the unrighteous mammon, who will commit to your trust the true riches?” (Luke 16:11) Your testing times and your faithfulness in your material wealth is the path to true riches. Declare God’s word in difficult times and buy from Him true riches!

White Garments
People tend to think that Christ’s righteousness is all that matters even in our own life. This is only a half-truth. No doubt that we have the imputed righteousness of Jesus Christ by the power of His blood (…washed their robes and made them white in the blood of the Lamb. Rev. 7:14). The full truth is that there is an imparted righteousness – a responsibility for us to walk in righteousness. For to the church of Sardis, Jesus says, “You have a few names even in Sardis who have not defiled their garments; and they shall walk with Me in white, for they are worthy” (Rev. 3:4). Also in Rev. 19:8, the righteous acts of the saints is the fine linen, clean and bright. A spot or wrinkle can be easily seen in a white garment; let your garments always be white, without a spot or wrinkle.

Eye Ointment
Laodicea was a place famous for an eye-ointment. But Jesus calls them blind. What a wonderful gift are our eyes! Whenever I see a blind person, I feel sad thinking, ‘How much they miss?’ and I realize I ought to be thankful for my eyes. But I have seen the blind working for the cause of Jesus and know that they do see- spiritually. We take care of our physical eyes; consult an ophthalmologist immediately in case of irritation or discomfort. We order the best of lens (and maybe frames too) to clearly see, in case we need vision correction! But, what about regarding our spiritual eyes? Are they open? Can they see spiritual ‘things’? Let me conduct a spiritual ‘eye-test’. See if you can see this?

“the eyes of your understanding being enlightened; that you may know what is the hope of His calling, what are the riches of the glory of His inheritance in the saints, and what is the exceeding greatness of His power toward us who believe, according to the working of His mighty power..” (Eph. 1: 18, 19)

If you can see these three things-the hope of His calling; the riches of the glory of His inheritance; and the greatness of His power when we believe, you can really see! Else, take the counsel of Jesus; buy from Him eye-ointment.