Complacency vs. God's Teachings

One of the most dangerous places that we can come to in the body of Christ is the place when we believe that we have a full grasp of the Word of God. All of our lives we can spend listening to the teachers of scripture and accept their lessons and then God can send one in the midst of us to shift the whole paradigm of what we have always been taught. If we are complacent with what we know and think that all the knowledge we have, is all the knowledge we will ever need on the matter, we will surely miss God in the midst. The children of Israel experienced this when they were so caught up on the scriptures of Moses and the law that the very Son of God their Sheppard and King came to teach them and they rejected and tried to use their wisdom of scripture to prove Him to be a blasphemer. Jesus repeatedly told them “you don’t know my Father because if you did you would know me”!!! There were many times in the scriptures that the Jews would say that “this man doesn’t teach as one of the teachers of the law but as one who has authority”. Jesus said Himself that He never said anything that was of himself but only spoke what the Father gave Him to say. So He taught with the Authority of God because it was God that was teaching through Him. We have heard man’s teaching for so long that when God decides to show up in a place and teach we reject it because it is not what seems right to us. Be slow to speak and quick to listen, we have 2 ears and one mouth, which should prove that it is twice as important to listen as to speak. Always seek the Father and the Holy Spirit to bring revelation of scripture. Never be complacent when it comes to the Word of God and His teaching!!! Have a wonderful life of enjoying the pursuit of why you were created on purpose!!!!!

Matthew 7

Judging Others
1"Do not judge, or you too will be judged. 2For in the same way you judge others, you will be judged, and with the measure you use, it will be measured to you.
3"Why do you look at the speck of sawdust in your brother's eye and pay no attention to the plank in your own eye? 4How can you say to your brother, 'Let me take the speck out of your eye,' when all the time there is a plank in your own eye? 5You hypocrite, first take the plank out of your own eye, and then you will see clearly to remove the speck from your brother's eye.
6"Do not give dogs what is sacred; do not throw your pearls to pigs. If you do, they may trample them under their feet, and then turn and tear you to pieces.

Ask, Seek, Knock
7"Ask and it will be given to you; seek and you will find; knock and the door will be opened to you. 8For everyone who asks receives; he who seeks finds; and to him who knocks, the door will be opened.
9"Which of you, if his son asks for bread, will give him a stone? 10Or if he asks for a fish, will give him a snake? 11If you, then, though you are evil, know how to give good gifts to your children, how much more will your Father in heaven give good gifts to those who ask him! 12So in everything, do to others what you would have them do to you, for this sums up the Law and the Prophets.

The Narrow and Wide Gates
13"Enter through the narrow gate. For wide is the gate and broad is the road that leads to destruction, and many enter through it. 14But small is the gate and narrow the road that leads to life, and only a few find it.

A Tree and Its Fruit
15"Watch out for false prophets. They come to you in sheep's clothing, but inwardly they are ferocious wolves. 16By their fruit you will recognize them. Do people pick grapes from thornbushes, or figs from thistles? 17Likewise every good tree bears good fruit, but a bad tree bears bad fruit. 18A good tree cannot bear bad fruit, and a bad tree cannot bear good fruit. 19Every tree that does not bear good fruit is cut down and thrown into the fire. 20Thus, by their fruit you will recognize them.
21"Not everyone who says to me, 'Lord, Lord,' will enter the kingdom of heaven, but only he who does the will of my Father who is in heaven. 22Many will say to me on that day, 'Lord, Lord, did we not prophesy in your name, and in your name drive out demons and perform many miracles?' 23Then I will tell them plainly, 'I never knew you. Away from me, you evildoers!'

The Wise and Foolish Builders
24"Therefore everyone who hears these words of mine and puts them into practice is like a wise man who built his house on the rock. 25The rain came down, the streams rose, and the winds blew and beat against that house; yet it did not fall, because it had its foundation on the rock. 26But everyone who hears these words of mine and does not put them into practice is like a foolish man who built his house on sand. 27The rain came down, the streams rose, and the winds blew and beat against that house, and it fell with a great crash."

28When Jesus had finished saying these things, the crowds were amazed at his teaching, 29because he taught as one who had authority, and not as their teachers of the law.

The Battle vs. Complacency

The Bible tells us to be sober and vigilant many times over. It even says in 1 Peter 5:8 to be vigilant and sober because the enemy is a roaring lion, walking about seeking whom he may devour. Too many times in our Christian journeys we get comfortable in a season of life were we enjoy blessings and believe that life is perfect. Then we get hit from the blind side with a terrible blow. We forget to raise our hands to the one who protects us daily and try to deal with the situation in our own power, because of our recent success. EVERYDAY is a battle and in a battle we are REQUIRED to wear the battle gear. We have to understand that the enemy knows that he has already lost the War and all that he can win are these individual battles. In our Father’s Love He has given us all that we need to have victory in all our daily battles. We must be sober to realize that we are more than conquers in our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ alone. If we continue to allow the enemy to win the daily battles we will continue to be so burden by the fighting that we will not have focus on spreading the Gospel and doing God’s will. Today and every day until your call to glory put on your Armor to stand!!! Have a wonderful life of enjoying the pursuit of why you were created on purpose!!!!!


“The Charge” at www.thecharge-dcoutourier.blogspot.com

Ephesians 6

Children and Parents
1Children, obey your parents in the Lord, for this is right. 2"Honor your father and mother"—which is the first commandment with a promise— 3"that it may go well with you and that you may enjoy long life on the earth."[a] 4Fathers, do not exasperate your children; instead, bring them up in the training and instruction of the Lord.

Slaves and Masters
5Slaves, obey your earthly masters with respect and fear, and with sincerity of heart, just as you would obey Christ. 6Obey them not only to win their favor when their eye is on you, but like slaves of Christ, doing the will of God from your heart. 7Serve wholeheartedly, as if you were serving the Lord, not men, 8because you know that the Lord will reward everyone for whatever good he does, whether he is slave or free.
9And masters, treat your slaves in the same way. Do not threaten them, since you know that he who is both their Master and yours is in heaven, and there is no favoritism with him.

The Armor of God
10Finally, be strong in the Lord and in his mighty power. 11Put on the full armor of God so that you can take your stand against the devil's schemes. 12For our struggle is not against flesh and blood, but against the rulers, against the authorities, against the powers of this dark world and against the spiritual forces of evil in the heavenly realms. 13Therefore put on the full armor of God, so that when the day of evil comes, you may be able to stand your ground, and after you have done everything, to stand. 14Stand firm then, with the belt of truth buckled around your waist, with the breastplate of righteousness in place, 15and with your feet fitted with the readiness that comes from the gospel of peace. 16In addition to all this, take up the shield of faith, with which you can extinguish all the flaming arrows of the evil one. 17Take the helmet of salvation and the sword of the Spirit, which is the word of God. 18And pray in the Spirit on all occasions with all kinds of prayers and requests. With this in mind, be alert and always keep on praying for all the saints.

Complacency for the Counterfeit!!!

The Accuser of the Saints continues to shoot fiery darts all around us to keep us from pressing forward into his gates to save the souls of so many that are still lost. Another reason why the body becomes complacent is because they give up their passion to press forward in God’s Will, for an established title or reputation. Imagine this, Jesus goes forth throughout Judea and Jerusalem healing the sick and casting out demons. The people are all speaking of His greatness and His impact in their area. He has the best teaching and preaching heard around Israel. Jesus Christ decides to set up a church and becomes the first Pastor of the first mega church known to man. While that might have been great, that would not have fulfilled God’s purpose for His life. We would still be separated from God because Jesus choose to take the affections of men and the cheer of the crowd over the call of His Father. In other words everything that is “good” is not sent from heaven!!! The enemy can send prosperity, fame, and gain just as our Father can. We cannot settle with just a title because men are pleased with our gifting and we have made a name for ourselves in the church or the community. We must continue to press towards the mark of our creation!!! If leaving that title behind and all those cheering folks are left with no answer but you are in the perfect Will of the Father, you will be in Great Company!!! Our Lord and Savior experienced the same life, He pressed toward the “God” thing and not the “Good” thing!!! Be Encouraged!!! Have a wonderful life of enjoying the pursuit of why you were created on purpose!!!!!

John 6

Jesus Feeds the Five Thousand
1Some time after this, Jesus crossed to the far shore of the Sea of Galilee (that is, the Sea of Tiberias), 2and a great crowd of people followed him because they saw the miraculous signs he had performed on the sick. 3Then Jesus went up on a mountainside and sat down with his disciples. 4The Jewish Passover Feast was near.
5When Jesus looked up and saw a great crowd coming toward him, he said to Philip, "Where shall we buy bread for these people to eat?" 6He asked this only to test him, for he already had in mind what he was going to do.
7Philip answered him, "Eight months' wages[a] would not buy enough bread for each one to have a bite!"
8Another of his disciples, Andrew, Simon Peter's brother, spoke up, 9"Here is a boy with five small barley loaves and two small fish, but how far will they go among so many?"
10Jesus said, "Have the people sit down." There was plenty of grass in that place, and the men sat down, about five thousand of them. 11Jesus then took the loaves, gave thanks, and distributed to those who were seated as much as they wanted. He did the same with the fish.
12When they had all had enough to eat, he said to his disciples, "Gather the pieces that are left over. Let nothing be wasted." 13So they gathered them and filled twelve baskets with the pieces of the five barley loaves left over by those who had eaten.
14After the people saw the miraculous sign that Jesus did, they began to say, "Surely this is the Prophet who is to come into the world." 15Jesus, knowing that they intended to come and make him king by force, withdrew again to a mountain by himself.

Complacency of Fellowship vs Godly Fellowship

As we know from the many examples we have in the Bible, most of the saints that have truly made an impact for God associated themselves around other saints that were running for God or with more seasoned saints that could pour wisdom into them according to the Word of God. One of the places that spirit of complacency enters in, is in a group of saints who trade the standard of God for the social climate of the group. The group settles for fellowship rather than the calling of their creation. We see in this group that eventually all the saints are brought to the same maturity level and the need for drawing deeper into the Word of God is replaced with the belief that the group “is” the standard. Most saints don’t realize they have settled into this scene of “Social Christiandom”, but here are some of the signs; first, if your gatherings are more about fun and games than having a heart for the Lord to show up in the midst of the atmosphere and take over, your heart maybe be settling for less. Secondly, if the conversations amongst the group are not edifying, encouraging, and spurring one another onto righteousness, you might be settling for something less. Lastly, if conversations are always polite and admonishment doesn’t take place, in that people can be corrected in love and brought back to the path of Christ in the midst of the relationships and falsehood is the attitude of the day, then you might have settled for something less. Most saints might say that, “we do not have to talk about God and the Bible every time we gather”, which may be fine for most, but which saint wouldn’t want to??? If we are the temples of the Holy Spirit and we Love God our Father more than anyone else on Earth, why wouldn’t He be on our tongues every time we gather with other saints and have the freedom to discuss Him in the open??? Does the company you keep press towards the mark of the High Calling of our Lord and Savior or have they become complacent and settled for just common fellowship??? Have a wonderful life of enjoying the pursuit of why you were created on purpose!!!!!

Ephesians 4

Unity in the Body of Christ
1As a prisoner for the Lord, then, I urge you to live a life worthy of the calling you have received. 2Be completely humble and gentle; be patient, bearing with one another in love. 3Make every effort to keep the unity of the Spirit through the bond of peace. 4There is one body and one Spirit—just as you were called to one hope when you were called— 5one Lord, one faith, one baptism; 6one God and Father of all, who is over all and through all and in all.
7But to each one of us grace has been given as Christ apportioned it. 8This is why it[a] says: "When he ascended on high,
he led captives in his train
and gave gifts to men."[b]
9(What does "he ascended" mean except that he also descended to the lower, earthly regions[c]? 10He who descended is the very one who ascended higher than all the heavens, in order to fill the whole universe.) 11It was he who gave some to be apostles, some to be prophets, some to be evangelists, and some to be pastors and teachers, 12to prepare God's people for works of service, so that the body of Christ may be built up 13until we all reach unity in the faith and in the knowledge of the Son of God and become mature, attaining to the whole measure of the fullness of Christ.
14Then we will no longer be infants, tossed back and forth by the waves, and blown here and there by every wind of teaching and by the cunning and craftiness of men in their deceitful scheming. 15Instead, speaking the truth in love, we will in all things grow up into him who is the Head, that is, Christ. 16From him the whole body, joined and held together by every supporting ligament, grows and builds itself up in love, as each part does its work.

Living as Children of Light
17So I tell you this, and insist on it in the Lord, that you must no longer live as the Gentiles do, in the futility of their thinking. 18They are darkened in their understanding and separated from the life of God because of the ignorance that is in them due to the hardening of their hearts. 19Having lost all sensitivity, they have given themselves over to sensuality so as to indulge in every kind of impurity, with a continual lust for more.
20You, however, did not come to know Christ that way. 21Surely you heard of him and were taught in him in accordance with the truth that is in Jesus. 22You were taught, with regard to your former way of life, to put off your old self, which is being corrupted by its deceitful desires; 23to be made new in the attitude of your minds; 24and to put on the new self, created to be like God in true righteousness and holiness.
25Therefore each of you must put off falsehood and speak truthfully to his neighbor, for we are all members of one body. 26"In your anger do not sin"[d]: Do not let the sun go down while you are still angry, 27and do not give the devil a foothold. 28He who has been stealing must steal no longer, but must work, doing something useful with his own hands, that he may have something to share with those in need.
29Do not let any unwholesome talk come out of your mouths, but only what is helpful for building others up according to their needs, that it may benefit those who listen. 30And do not grieve the Holy Spirit of God, with whom you were sealed for the day of redemption. 31Get rid of all bitterness, rage and anger, brawling and slander, along with every form of malice. 32Be kind and compassionate to one another, forgiving each other, just as in Christ God forgave you.

Pressing through Complacency!!!

As we are all connected in the Body of Christ, it is very dangerous for even one of us to become complacent in our walks. This unfortunately robes the body year after year of its impact on this secular world. We as children of the most High God, become satisfied with our state in life and our position of being counted as a saint. It is wonderful to appreciate the position we have been given in Christ and the fact that we glorify God for our salvation and our eternal hope in our home in the heavens. But we have a purpose here on earth and when we get to the place when we think we read enough or pray enough and that God is pleased were we are, that is the start of our fall. Our Christian journey’s can never come to a place when we feel as though we have made it or that we are ”good” where we are in our walks. Sadly, this is usually the time when Satan comes in and starts us on a slow slippery slide away from our purpose and our maturity in Christ. We simply stop running to meet the mark of our creation and we settle for a Christian social scene were more often than not an attitude of entitlement to the blessings of God is fostered and arrogance and hate for those still trapped in the world is formed. This religious spirit has crippled saint after saint and church after church. If we are not careful we will fall to the same trappings of the enemy and settle for something that is lower a than the standard of God!!! Today press forward in your race, have the mindset that the finish line is reaching glory!!! Have a wonderful life of enjoying the Word on purpose!!!!!

Philippians 3

No Confidence in the Flesh
1Finally, my brothers, rejoice in the Lord! It is no trouble for me to write the same things to you again, and it is a safeguard for you.
2Watch out for those dogs, those men who do evil, those mutilators of the flesh. 3For it is we who are the circumcision, we who worship by the Spirit of God, who glory in Christ Jesus, and who put no confidence in the flesh— 4though I myself have reasons for such confidence. If anyone else thinks he has reasons to put confidence in the flesh, I have more: 5circumcised on the eighth day, of the people of Israel, of the tribe of Benjamin, a Hebrew of Hebrews; in regard to the law, a Pharisee; 6as for zeal, persecuting the church; as for legalistic righteousness, faultless.
7But whatever was to my profit I now consider loss for the sake of Christ. 8What is more, I consider everything a loss compared to the surpassing greatness of knowing Christ Jesus my Lord, for whose sake I have lost all things. I consider them rubbish, that I may gain Christ 9and be found in him, not having a righteousness of my own that comes from the law, but that which is through faith in Christ—the righteousness that comes from God and is by faith. 10I want to know Christ and the power of his resurrection and the fellowship of sharing in his sufferings, becoming like him in his death, 11and so, somehow, to attain to the resurrection from the dead.

Pressing on Toward the Goal
12Not that I have already obtained all this, or have already been made perfect, but I press on to take hold of that for which Christ Jesus took hold of me. 13Brothers, I do not consider myself yet to have taken hold of it. But one thing I do: Forgetting what is behind and straining toward what is ahead, 14I press on toward the goal to win the prize for which God has called me heavenward in Christ Jesus.
15All of us who are mature should take such a view of things. And if on some point you think differently, that too God will make clear to you. 16Only let us live up to what we have already attained.
17Join with others in following my example, brothers, and take note of those who live according to the pattern we gave you. 18For, as I have often told you before and now say again even with tears, many live as enemies of the cross of Christ. 19Their destiny is destruction, their god is their stomach, and their glory is in their shame. Their mind is on earthly things. 20But our citizenship is in heaven. And we eagerly await a Savior from there, the Lord Jesus Christ, 21who, by the power that enables him to bring everything under his control, will transform our lowly bodies so that they will be like his glorious body.

God's Word Our Refuge!!!

Reading the Word of God for us is like a child reading a letter from his father. The Bible to us is the greatest manual we could ever read and learn from. It details our journey and all the trappings we will face along the way. It continues to encourage and inspire us to die daily for others as our risen Christ died for us. It allows us to discern the false prophets and teachers, which allows us to stay on the path that only God created us for. We draw strength through the testimonies of the Saints of old. If our Father didn’t provide us with His inspired Word and we were left alone to take this journey in this cold world, we surely would go crazy. When friends and family started and continue to turn their backs due to the transformation our Father takes us through, if it wasn’t for His Word and His Grace the pain would be too much to bare and we would have given up a long time ago. There is nothing else that keeps us sane, but the Word of God and our blessed assurance of our hope in our eternal life. When we think that we are walking on the ceiling, His word confirms that we are actually walking on the ground and everyone else is walking on the ceiling. Here by His Grace lays a 66 book love letter that we have access to. In other countries we would be killed or thrown in jail just by opening this book. Think about the passion other Saints have in those countries to follow the ways and teachings of Christ and how they just want more Bibles to spread the Good News to others. Today, let us all take the opportunity we have in our freedom (which is being stripped away daily and one day in our near future in this country, we may suffer with our other brothers and sisters in the persecution of jail, torture, and death) and open the Word and read of our Father’s Love for Us!!! Have a wonderful life of enjoying the Word on purpose!!!!!

Romans 15

1We who are strong ought to bear with the failings of the weak and not to please ourselves. 2Each of us should please his neighbor for his good, to build him up. 3For even Christ did not please himself but, as it is written: "The insults of those who insult you have fallen on me."[a] 4For everything that was written in the past was written to teach us, so that through endurance and the encouragement of the Scriptures we might have hope.

5May the God who gives endurance and encouragement give you a spirit of unity among yourselves as you follow Christ Jesus, 6so that with one heart and mouth you may glorify the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ.

7Accept one another, then, just as Christ accepted you, in order to bring praise to God. 8For I tell you that Christ has become a servant of the Jews[b]on behalf of God's truth, to confirm the promises made to the patriarchs 9so that the Gentiles may glorify God for his mercy, as it is written:
"Therefore I will praise you among the Gentiles;
I will sing hymns to your name."[c]
10Again, it says,
"Rejoice, O Gentiles, with his people."[d]
11And again,
"Praise the Lord, all you Gentiles,
and sing praises to him, all you peoples."[e]
12And again, Isaiah says,
"The Root of Jesse will spring up,
one who will arise to rule over the nations;
the Gentiles will hope in him."[f]

13May the God of hope fill you with all joy and peace as you trust in him, so that you may overflow with hope by the power of the Holy Spirit.

The Word, Our Spiritual Nourishment!!!

We all know as the children of the Most High God the benefits of being in His Word, but from time to time we need a reminder. Jesus Christ Himself stated that “Man does not live on bread alone, but from every word that comes from the mouth of God”. The Word of God to us is more precious than the bread we eat to stay alive. Well, if we care that much for our natural flesh which as Paul said “produces no good thing”, how much more should we feed our Spirit, which is the gift from a Loving Father and came from the obedience of a Loving Son. We once thought that our lives were our own and we wanted to preserve this life to do our own will. Then we learned that we really cannot live our own lives, we either live in obedience unto the law of death which is unto Satan or unto the law of life which is unto God. We choose to either eat from the tree of “Life” which produces eternal life through our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ (which was the eating of his flesh) or from the tree of “The Knowledge of Good and Evil”, which as God said to Adam “You will surely die”. We know now that our temples are not our own and it was bought at a price for righteousness. Our bread eating today is to only keep the natural temple strong and able for the Holy Spirit to do the work of God, in and through us. If it is recommended to eat three meals a day to keep the natural body strong, how much more should the Spiritual body eat a day??? We all have to see the importance of feeding our Spirit Man, the only nourishment that can sustain Him is the Word of God!!! Have a wonderful life of enjoying the Word on purpose!!!!!

Psalm 119


89 Your word, O LORD, is eternal;
it stands firm in the heavens.

90 Your faithfulness continues through all generations;
you established the earth, and it endures.

91 Your laws endure to this day,
for all things serve you.

92 If your law had not been my delight,
I would have perished in my affliction.

93 I will never forget your precepts,
for by them you have preserved my life.

94 Save me, for I am yours;
I have sought out your precepts.

95 The wicked are waiting to destroy me,
but I will ponder your statutes.

96 To all perfection I see a limit;
but your commands are boundless.

97 Oh, how I love your law!
I meditate on it all day long.

98 Your commands make me wiser than my enemies,
for they are ever with me.

99 I have more insight than all my teachers,
for I meditate on your statutes.

100 I have more understanding than the elders,
for I obey your precepts.

101 I have kept my feet from every evil path
so that I might obey your word.

102 I have not departed from your laws,
for you yourself have taught me.

103 How sweet are your words to my taste,
sweeter than honey to my mouth!

104 I gain understanding from your precepts;
therefore I hate every wrong path.

105 Your word is a lamp to my feet
and a light for my path.

106 I have taken an oath and confirmed it,
that I will follow your righteous laws.

107 I have suffered much;
preserve my life, O LORD, according to your word.

108 Accept, O LORD, the willing praise of my mouth,
and teach me your laws.

109 Though I constantly take my life in my hands,
I will not forget your law.

110 The wicked have set a snare for me,
but I have not strayed from your precepts.

111 Your statutes are my heritage forever;
they are the joy of my heart.

112 My heart is set on keeping your decrees
to the very end.