Ron Bailey - Part 4 — Ron Bailey

A Specific Word of Grace for Each Local Church

I do not believe that any kind of broadband antibiotic will deal with every situation in every church in America, and in England, and in Scotland, and wherever else they are. What we will need from God is a specific word of his grace to the church in Ephesus, or to the church in Sardis, or to the church in Pennsylvania, or the church in this place.

From Personal Reminder to Local Church Responsibility

This kind of generalisation, I think it produces a kind of a bully thing, and we begin to think well what are the problems of the church in this and this. I'll tell you what I'm saying. When I spoke at Canton last year at this conference, I took up my topic Psalm 51 and I talked about personal reminder.

You never know what Psalm 51 is, you can look it up and find out. Now I want to talk about the church, the local church, it's an alien for a moment, I want to talk about the local church being responsible, and I'll tell you why.

Accountability Before God

It has to do with accountability. You see, no one is accountable for this thing that we call the church in America, or the church in Scotland, no one is accountable. No one is going to on one day stand before God and be required to give an account of the way that they care for the church in Scotland.

The church in Granite, or the church in Reading where I come from, or the church in wherever it is, there are going to be people who are going to have to give an account. The letter to Hebrews says, trust your heathens, for they are watching you as soldiers, as though it is you have to give an account.

Responsibility for What God Entrusts

I'm thinking about accountability. What I'm really doing is this, I want to say, whose responsibility is it to do something about the church? Is it your responsibility? I know when we are very young Christians, we sometimes get some wonderful ideas, you know, we're going to take over all on our own, we're going to raise the dead, and we're going to do all sorts of things, where you've got youngsters, and many of them, they'll make teeth like this, and they're really fervent for death.

They're coming against the spirit of Islam. And I think, it's not likely that this 17 year old is going to be given the authority to come against the spirit of Islam. But God knows their heart, and I'm not criticising, I'm not disparaging them, I'm just simply saying that in the Bible, you'll understand that God, when he gives responsibility, he expects accountability.

He expects people to say what they've done and what they've entrusted you with. You are not responsible for what you've not got. Isn't that what Paul says to the Christians? He says it's required of a man, not that a man gives according to what he doesn't have, but that he gives according to what he does have.

In other words, what God has put into your hands, he will hold you responsible for. You will have to give him account for it. But you will not have to give him account for what God has not put into your hands.

The Church as Local Congregations

The New Testament looks at the Church of God, it's not in some great kind of band, but actually church by church by church by church. There was a whole area called Galatia that had been sucked into what Paul calls a bewitching.

He says, you've been bewitched. They had taken into their understanding a fake gospel. I'm not, you know what the lessons in Galatians are all about. But the interesting thing is that when Paul writes to, he writes to the churches in Galatia, he doesn't write to the church in Galatia.

Because biblically there's no such thing as the church in Galatia. There's only the church in Galatia. When Paul says, when he was first converted and he began, he went to Jerusalem, and he said, people have seen him, but the churches in Judea have heard what had happened to him.

He didn't say, mm-hmm, he said, mm-hmm.

Are you getting it?

Our responsibility, our work, is the work of the church. That is, that is, that is, that is an amazing responsibility. ...responsible for the things of God, such as your life and the way that you use them.

The Limits of Territorial Authority

But there's another level, there's nothing beyond that. This is why originally, why were they even allowed such things, as monarchical territorial bishops over vast areas? It couldn't function. Because the only, the ultimate level of authority and responsibility...

The Lampstands and the Supply of Oil

...seven separate lands then, your Lord. Israel of old, Israel of old had a set of branched lands. Candles were created by congealed flesh. And they are very finite in their burning ability. The lamps were divided into wood candles.

They were lamps. And the reservoirs could be refreshed so that they could burn forever. There's nothing limited in the way that God does things. So these were kind of lampstands. And on the set, there were seven little shelves, effectively, in the holy place, in Israel's tabernacle.

And on each one of those little shelves, there was oil. And although it was the responsibility of the people of Israel to bring every day fresh pressed olives, and the oil from them that was beaten out that day, it had to be the best, it had to be pure.

The High Priest Tends the Light

When they brought it, if you read the scriptures carefully, you'll discover that they put it into the hands of Aaron. Because Aaron was charged with the unique responsibility of tending to that lamp. Aaron, not even his sons.

Aaron. It was Aaron's responsibility to trim the wick and to make sure that clear testimony shone. It was Aaron's responsibility to make sure that the little reservoir would fill with oil. That lamp was intended to burn forever.

There should be no flickering in there. No stuttering, no guttering candles. This was to be a constant, steady flame. And it was Aaron's responsibility. Let me give you a kind of code, and you'll see where I'm going.

Christ Walking Among the Churches

Let's say it was the responsibility of the high priest. It was the high priest's responsibility to keep the light clean. It was still the responsibility of the high priest to keep the light clean. What John sees is he sees a high priest, not Israel's high priest.

Israel's high priest had the names of Israel written across their chest and on their shoulders. This high priest has a golden banner around his chest. But this isn't like Israel's high priest. But he's still functioning as a high priest.

And the amazing thing is that when John sees him, he sees him in the midst of what is said to the church of Ephesus. We'll see that a little description of Jesus is given to the church of Ephesus that they need to focus in on to hear what God is saying to them specifically as He guaranteed to God's people.

And the way to interpret it like this is to read where you've been in this, verse 2. To the messenger, chapter 2, verse 1. To the messenger of the church of Ephesus write these things, says he who holds the seven stars in his right hand and who walks in the midst of the seven golden mountains.

Can you see the sort of new information here that we didn't get in chapter 1? In chapter 1 you were just in the midst of the lampstands. Now in chapter 2 we've got some extra information. He's actually walking in the midst of the lampstand.

The Overseer Who Knows Every Church

Patio is some sort of courtyard, you know, like your appropriate patio outside your house. And perimeter is around and peripatio is to walk around. What John sees is he sees a great overseer, a great bishop.

He sees the one who is scrutinizing the lamps. He's watching. He's walking in the midst of the seven lampstands. He's looking in each one. And if you know how this follows on in the next few chapters you know that to every single one of those churches he begins it fundamentally in the same way.

The first thing he says to them, I know. That's his first step every single time. I know. And he knows because he's walking in the midst of the lampstands. He is not an absentee. The churches which you are part of, the high priest takes responsibility for the testimony.

The light of his character is to shine in that place. He takes personal responsibility. He will come and he will trim your lamp. And he will supply your lamp below. It's his responsibility. It's not yours.

It's your responsibility as individuals to respond to him and to bring your offerings to him, to have your quiet time with him, to beat hands as you wait upon him. The oil will serve as oil when you present it.

You put it into the hands of the high priest and you say, there it is, Lord, but it's not my job to replenish these recipes. And it's not my job to trim these lamps. It's the job of the high priest's jewels.

The Elijah Syndrome and Dependence on God

Many people begin to think, if only I could get to Ephesus, if only I could get to Sardis, and I've got a woman who loves that one. It's just, sometimes when people are given places of responsibility and honour in the Church of God, it can happen to a man that he begins to think that he is indispensable.

It speaks to that kind of syndrome. It's the Elijah syndrome. And I only I have left. ...when Elijah actually calls upon God to take his life away. I mean, Elijah says this, he's got a curious sense of humour, no doubt, he kind of sees this.

But Elijah says to God, take away my life, and no matter what responsibility to the person's life, it's very easy to move to this level where you think, nobody's seen it quite the way I've seen it. No one's got the power, no one's got the responsibility.

So I only I have left. When I'm gone, this little church is going to die a death. Well, I guess it would do, it's a dependent upon you. But praise God, it isn't. It's a high priest who's responsible. And I don't need to put me together in his name, for there'll be a little church in that place.

Personal, daily visits from the high priest to see what's needed, to see if it's begun to suck, and it is contrived, to take away things that have burned and had their days. And this is a peculiar way, because the light can be absolutely clear and not flickering.

The Continuing Supply of the Holy Spirit

It's his responsibility to continue to supply the oil. When Paul wrote to the Philippians, and when Paul wrote to the Philippians, he begged for their prayers, and he said, I know that this shall turn to my salvation through your prayer and the continuing supply of the Holy Spirit.

Messengers Bringing Grace to the Church

Not just one baptism, it's a continuing supply. Praise God for one baptism, but the high priest helps to make the supply continue. Let me go to some of these parts. He talks about these seven men, seven messengers, who are in the right hand.

They're his messengers. As to say, he will charge these people with words of grace to bring them to the churches. And it's not necessarily big, one hour long sermons. It may just be a simple word of prophecy, a revelation.

It may be some truth. It may come from someone that's never brought a word like that before. It might be one of the youngsters who says, can we sing this hymn? And there's some truth in that hymn that somehow catches the heart in a sense.

And what's happening is that Jesus is in the messengers. He's bringing his word into his church. He's bound to do it. He is committed to do it. He is not bound to continue to care for the little lapses.