MIDWEEK CONNECTION
Greetings Urban Life Family,
In the months and weeks to come, we will be sharing some of the nuggets of wisdom in the Apostle Paul’s letters to Timothy and Titus. He gave them very specific things to address and teach so that the Believers in those days, would stay on target with the will of God.
Titus 3: 8 reads, “…these things I want you to affirm constantly, that those who have believed in God should be careful to maintain good works. These things are good and profitable to men.”
When we go through this series of teachings, we will discover that the things many church leaders should be teaching have nothing to do with most of the doctrine that is being offered today.
That’s the reason so many American Christian Believers are frustrated and never experiencing the breakthroughs that are promised by many TV preachers and the false teachers who are declaring these empty and vain promises from their pulpits.
THE BIBLE says in Proverbs 28:9, “One who turns away his ear from hearing the law, Even his prayer is an abomination.”
In other words: We cannot turn away from the law of God (His Word, His priorities, His principles, His practices and His purpose) and expect God to answer our selfishly motivated request that often have nothing to do with winning souls, making disciples, confessing and repenting from sin, or seeking the purpose and will of God for our lives.
That’s the reason we are returning to the fundamentals in this ministry.
And these are the fundamentals:
* Fulfill the purposes of the church: Go and make Disciples of All Nations
* Preach and teach about the Kingdom of God
* Preach and teach about the righteousness of God
* Help the poor, orphaned and widowed
* Mentor and prepare the next generation to continue with the mission of the church
Since, in our opinion, many Christian Believers do not actually know the true purpose and mission of the church and its leadership, they come to our church gatherings with expectations for some things we simply cannot give them.
In Acts 3 we read this account: Now Peter and John went up together to the temple at the hour of prayer, the ninth hour. And a certain man lame from his mother’s womb was carried, whom they laid daily at the gate of the temple which is called Beautiful, to ask alms from those who entered the temple; who, seeing Peter and John about to go into the temple, asked for alms.
And fixing his eyes on him, with John, Peter said, “Look at us.” So he gave them his attention, expecting to receive something from them. Then Peter said, “Silver and gold I do not have, but what I do have I give you: In the name of Jesus Christ of Nazareth, rise up and walk.”
And he took him by the right hand and lifted him up, and immediately his feet and ankle bones received strength. So he, leaping up, stood and walked and entered the temple with them—walking, leaping, and praising God. And all the people saw him walking and praising God. Then they knew that it was he who sat begging alms at the Beautiful Gate of the temple; and they were filled with wonder and amazement at what had happened to him.
What do we see in this story?
We see a man begging for charitable donations. He had to beg for money since he was crippled and could not earn a living.
We also see two men of God telling him that they didn’t have any money, but they were completely willing to give him what they had.
So the big question is: What did they have?
They had the authority and ability of God to bring healing into this man’s life. They were not willing to merely give him what he requested. His request would only supply a temporary solution. If they had given him money the man would have been able to purchase food or pay some bills for perhaps a day or two. But soon he would be right back in the same position, begging for more money.
So what do we see as the role of the church and its leaders in people's lives?
Our role is to bring deliverance. Our role is to bring the healing. Our role is to provide a permanent solution and not just temporary relief.
Please make a mental note that the man could have rejected what they had to offer. As soon as they declared that they didn’t have any money, the man could have just told them to “keep on stepping.”
Do you realize that’s exactly what many people do when they approach genuine Christian churches and leaders?
The false preachers and prophets have so deceived people that they have convinced the crippled beggars to make a contribution first. They promise the crippled beggars that if they give money to God, then God will heal them.
When people come upon the real apostolic anointing, they are told that money isn’t coming their way. In fact they are told, “We don’t have what you’re asking for!” They are told HEALING is coming their way instead of money.
Many people walk away disappointed with ministries like Urban Life because we don’t give them what they are demanding. Instead we offer healing. We offer healing for the various areas where they are crippled.
In a few weeks, we’re going to launch a series that will uncover what church leaders were actually instructed to do. You will be surprised. Our expectations of a church are often very far away from the actual responsibilities of the church and its leaders.
To be honest, the Church in America is partly to blame for those errant expectations because various ministries have become so involved in power-seeking politics, glory seeking schemes, financial prosperity scams, and people-pleasing entertainment that we have only a shadow of the former glory that once rested upon us by the power of God.
So that’s why we’re getting back to the fundamentals. We’re getting back to declaring, “Silver and gold I do not have, but what I do have I give you: In the name of Jesus Christ of Nazareth, rise up and walk.”
It’s all for the harvest,
Chris and Carol Green
In the months and weeks to come, we will be sharing some of the nuggets of wisdom in the Apostle Paul’s letters to Timothy and Titus. He gave them very specific things to address and teach so that the Believers in those days, would stay on target with the will of God.
Titus 3: 8 reads, “…these things I want you to affirm constantly, that those who have believed in God should be careful to maintain good works. These things are good and profitable to men.”
When we go through this series of teachings, we will discover that the things many church leaders should be teaching have nothing to do with most of the doctrine that is being offered today.
That’s the reason so many American Christian Believers are frustrated and never experiencing the breakthroughs that are promised by many TV preachers and the false teachers who are declaring these empty and vain promises from their pulpits.
THE BIBLE says in Proverbs 28:9, “One who turns away his ear from hearing the law, Even his prayer is an abomination.”
In other words: We cannot turn away from the law of God (His Word, His priorities, His principles, His practices and His purpose) and expect God to answer our selfishly motivated request that often have nothing to do with winning souls, making disciples, confessing and repenting from sin, or seeking the purpose and will of God for our lives.
That’s the reason we are returning to the fundamentals in this ministry.
And these are the fundamentals:
* Fulfill the purposes of the church: Go and make Disciples of All Nations
* Preach and teach about the Kingdom of God
* Preach and teach about the righteousness of God
* Help the poor, orphaned and widowed
* Mentor and prepare the next generation to continue with the mission of the church
Since, in our opinion, many Christian Believers do not actually know the true purpose and mission of the church and its leadership, they come to our church gatherings with expectations for some things we simply cannot give them.
In Acts 3 we read this account: Now Peter and John went up together to the temple at the hour of prayer, the ninth hour. And a certain man lame from his mother’s womb was carried, whom they laid daily at the gate of the temple which is called Beautiful, to ask alms from those who entered the temple; who, seeing Peter and John about to go into the temple, asked for alms.
And fixing his eyes on him, with John, Peter said, “Look at us.” So he gave them his attention, expecting to receive something from them. Then Peter said, “Silver and gold I do not have, but what I do have I give you: In the name of Jesus Christ of Nazareth, rise up and walk.”
And he took him by the right hand and lifted him up, and immediately his feet and ankle bones received strength. So he, leaping up, stood and walked and entered the temple with them—walking, leaping, and praising God. And all the people saw him walking and praising God. Then they knew that it was he who sat begging alms at the Beautiful Gate of the temple; and they were filled with wonder and amazement at what had happened to him.
What do we see in this story?
We see a man begging for charitable donations. He had to beg for money since he was crippled and could not earn a living.
We also see two men of God telling him that they didn’t have any money, but they were completely willing to give him what they had.
So the big question is: What did they have?
They had the authority and ability of God to bring healing into this man’s life. They were not willing to merely give him what he requested. His request would only supply a temporary solution. If they had given him money the man would have been able to purchase food or pay some bills for perhaps a day or two. But soon he would be right back in the same position, begging for more money.
So what do we see as the role of the church and its leaders in people's lives?
Our role is to bring deliverance. Our role is to bring the healing. Our role is to provide a permanent solution and not just temporary relief.
Please make a mental note that the man could have rejected what they had to offer. As soon as they declared that they didn’t have any money, the man could have just told them to “keep on stepping.”
Do you realize that’s exactly what many people do when they approach genuine Christian churches and leaders?
The false preachers and prophets have so deceived people that they have convinced the crippled beggars to make a contribution first. They promise the crippled beggars that if they give money to God, then God will heal them.
When people come upon the real apostolic anointing, they are told that money isn’t coming their way. In fact they are told, “We don’t have what you’re asking for!” They are told HEALING is coming their way instead of money.
Many people walk away disappointed with ministries like Urban Life because we don’t give them what they are demanding. Instead we offer healing. We offer healing for the various areas where they are crippled.
In a few weeks, we’re going to launch a series that will uncover what church leaders were actually instructed to do. You will be surprised. Our expectations of a church are often very far away from the actual responsibilities of the church and its leaders.
To be honest, the Church in America is partly to blame for those errant expectations because various ministries have become so involved in power-seeking politics, glory seeking schemes, financial prosperity scams, and people-pleasing entertainment that we have only a shadow of the former glory that once rested upon us by the power of God.
So that’s why we’re getting back to the fundamentals. We’re getting back to declaring, “Silver and gold I do not have, but what I do have I give you: In the name of Jesus Christ of Nazareth, rise up and walk.”
It’s all for the harvest,
Chris and Carol Green
