This message entitled “Discerning the Body of Christ” is part two of a two part series. It was given at a conference in Schuyler, Nebraska in November 2003 by Brother Cecil duCille.
For more video messages please visit Butter and Honey.
This message entitled “Discerning the Body of Christ” is part two of a two part series. It was given at a conference in Schuyler, Nebraska in November 2003 by Brother Cecil duCille.
For more video messages please visit Butter and Honey.
Posted in Video Devotionals | Leave a Comment »
Scripture reading: Genesis 22:2
Wherever men of faith dwell, and wherever men live by faith, the name Abraham becomes a beacon and a sign post to them.
Genesis 22:2, “And he said, Take now thy son, thine only son Isaac, whom thou lovest, and get thee into the land of Moriah; And offer him there for a burnt offering upon one of the mountains which I will tell thee of.” Verse 4, “Then on the THIRD DAY Abraham lifted up his eyes, and saw the place afar off.” Verse 6, “And Abraham took the wood of the burnt offering, and laid it upon Isaac his son; and he took the fire in his hand, and a knife; and they went both of them together.” Verse 10, “And Abraham stretched forth his hand, and took the knife to slay his son.” Verse 11, “And the Angel of the Lord called unto him out of heaven, and said, ABRAHAM, ABRAHAM: and he said, Here am I.”
The angel had spared Isaac by his intervention, BUT had slain the self life of Abraham. How significant it is that all this took place on a mountain which was afterwards the site of the temple built by Solomon (2nd Chronicles 3:1). The site is Zion City, the stronghold of the people of God, and a SYMBOL of God’s elect in the end of this age. This was also the same spot where the threshing floor of Ornan stood, where David offered the sacrifice to God and saved Israel from a terrible plague. Today, the spot is covered by the Dome of the Rock and the El Aksa Mosque, a Moslem house of worship.
God, the same today as He was yesterday and shall be forever, required from Abraham the same sacrifice of self which He requires of us today. With the greater knowledge and more ABUNDANT LIFE which we have received, we will automatically give more when we give all. “For unto whomsoever much is given, of him shall be much required.” Luke 12:48. All of a bucket is different from all of a well, and yet the sacrifice is the same.
(Excerpt from The Pattern, 2nd Edition, 1995, pg. 139-140)
Thought for today: God, the same today as He was yesterday and shall be forever, required from Abraham the same sacrifice of self which He requires of us today.
Posted in Sacrifice | Tagged Abraham and Isaac, Abundant Life, Father of Faith, Sacrifice, Zion City | Leave a Comment »
Scripture reading: Proverbs 23:7
The horns of the Altar of Incense in the Tabernacle of Moses signify the absolute necessity of the work which they depict – the necessity of the soul being offered. The offering must be “without spot or blemish, a male of the first year.” God’s perfect offering is prime, not second grade. Many of us give God what is left of a life half lived for Him, but He wants the FIRST FRUITS of our lives. The term WITHOUT SPOT OR BLEMISH carries much meaning here. Hebrews 5:9 speaks of Jesus Christ on this wise,
“And being made perfect, he became the author of eternal salvation.”
To the casual reader, this would suggest that Jesus was not perfect but was made perfect, BUT when we see the thing in the Spirit, then we understand that Jesus Christ could only be made the perfect sacrifice through BEING SACRIFICED. Thus, it was through His suffering that He became the perfect sacrifice. To be this, He had to suffer in the flesh. Here again, we have another scripture which has sometimes been misinterpreted by us.
1st Peter 4:1 says, “For as much then as Christ hath suffered for us in the flesh, arm yourselves likewise with the same mind: for he that hath suffered in the flesh hath ceased from sin.”
It is a fact that many have suffered in the flesh and have not ceased from sin, therefore, the word “suffered” here must carry a specific spiritual meaning. The suffering in the flesh which God requires is not a type of penance as some think, but the RESISTING OF THE FLESH AND ALL its desires. Thus, suffering in the flesh destroys the power of the flesh life and immobilizes the force of its enticements. The mind of Christ leads us into this type of suffering.
When we look at the term “without spot or blemish,” we can see, therefore, that it speaks of a soul as the lamb of old without any scar or tarnish of sin, which has been thoroughly cleansed of God, and emptied of self, and offered to its Maker for His use. It is possible that a person can reach the stage right HERE AND NOW, where he or she does not sin with his Mind, neither with his or her Emotions, neither with the Will, nor with the Desire. When you are in this condition, then you only need to make sure that your motive for all this was not SELF. Self PRESERVATION could easily make a man get so smart with His God that he would submit and do all he needs to do. If self-anything is our motive, then self is still alive. All our motive must be GOD AND GOD ALONE. God’s people, God’s plan, God’s will. Lost, utterly lost in God, and absolutely rejecting that which we knew to be the thing called self. When Adam fell, his thought pattern fell. Now we rise and our thought pattern must rise.
“For as he thinketh in his heart, SO IS HE” Proverbs 23:7.
(Excerpt from The Pattern, 2nd Edition, 1995, pg. 139)
Thought for today: If self-anything is our motive, then self is still alive. All our motive must be GOD AND GOD ALONE.
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Scripture reading: John 14:23
We receive the Holy Ghost by obedience to the blood. Some groups teach that by obedience to the ministry we receive the Spirit and other attributes of God, but this is error. This is the same error which the Catholic Church and all the other denominations preach, when they say they are the only true church, and unless you belong to their ranks you cannot make heaven.
God’s order of things is that one obeys the Word of God to receive the blood of Christ, which is the life of God. The next step is to obey that which you have received, to receive that which you desire. We obey the blood, and we receive the Holy Ghost. When we obey the Holy Ghost, we receive the fullness. This is clearly defined by Jesus Himself in John 14:23,
“Jesus answered and said unto him, If a man love me, he will keep my words: and my Father will love him, and we will come unto him, and make our abode with him.”
The Holy Ghost causes people to speak in tongues, but not everyone who speaks in tongues is filled with the Holy Ghost. In some places, devil worshippers speak in tongues. There are unclean churches who believe in abominable living, preaching and teaching abomination for doctrines, yet speak in tongues. People can speak in tongues psychologically. There are three types of tongues:
(a) Tongues from God
(b) Tongues from the devil
(c) Tongues from the mind of the individual.
God knows that we need the Holy Ghost so that Christ would be formed in us. Therefore, if you obey the blood, you will receive the Holy Ghost.
(Excerpt from The Pattern, 2nd Edition, 1995, pg. 126)
Thought for today: We receive the Holy Ghost by obedience to the blood.
Posted in Christian Walk | Tagged Blood of Jesus, John 14, Life of God, Obedience to God, Speaking in Tongues | Leave a Comment »