The guiding rule in the center of the narrow way is the sound doctrine of both/and

Denominations say (like Kierkegaard) Either/Or

There ought be no denominations among you

There is no division in the Kingdom
There is only division between darkness & light

God says both/and on all matters of life and evangel

—–

“Woe to you, teachers of the law and Pharisees, you hypocrites! You give a tenth of your spices—mint, dill and cumin. But you have neglected the more important matters of the law—justice, mercy and faithfulness. You should have practiced the latter, without neglecting the former. You blind guides! You strain out a gnat but swallow a camel.” Matthew 23:23‭-‬24

“Watch your life and doctrine closely. Persevere in them, because if you do, you will save both yourself and your hearers.” 1 Timothy 4:16

“In this meaningless life of mine I have seen both of these: the righteous perishing in their righteousness, and the wicked living long in their wickedness. Do not be overrighteous, neither be overwise— why destroy yourself? Do not be overwicked, and do not be a fool—why die before your time? It is good to grasp the one and not let go of the other. Whoever fears God will avoid all extremes.” Ecclesiastes 7:15‭-‬18

“Do not answer a fool according to his folly, or you yourself will be just like him. Answer a fool according to his folly, or he will be wise in his own eyes.” Proverbs 26:4‭-‬5

“For we maintain that a man is justified by faith apart from works of the Law.” Romans 3:28
“You see that a man is justified by works and not by faith alone.” James 2:24

“I appeal to you, brothers and sisters, in the name of our Lord Jesus Christ, that all of you agree with one another in what you say and that there be no divisions among you, but that you be perfectly united in mind and thought.” 1 Corinthians 1:10

“The very fact that you have lawsuits among you means you have been completely defeated already. Why not rather be wronged? Why not rather be cheated?” 1 Corinthians 6:7

“In the first place, I hear that when you come together in ekklesia, there are schisms among you, and to some extent I believe it. No doubt there have to be heresies among you to show which of you have God’s approval.” 1 Corinthians 11:18‭-‬19

“Let perseverance finish its work so that you may be mature and complete, not lacking anything. If any of you lacks wisdom, you should ask God, who gives generously to all without finding fault, and it will be given to you. But when you ask, you must believe and not doubt, because the one who doubts is like a wave of the sea, blown and tossed by the wind. That person should not expect to receive anything from the Lord. Such a person is double-minded and unstable in all they do. Believers in humble circumstances ought to take pride in their high position. But the rich should take pride in their humiliation—since they will pass away like a wild flower.” James 1:4‭-‬10

“What causes fights and quarrels among you? Don’t they come from your desires that battle within you? You desire but do not have, so you kill. You covet but you cannot get what you want, so you quarrel and fight. You do not have because you do not ask God.” James 4:1‭-‬2

Names & encounters flit across the scene. Individuals otherwise forgotten. Encounters overlooked and episodes obscured from brighter pages.

Aristarchus, Silvanus
Persis, Ampliatus
The 2 unnamed in 2C8
Perhaps Epaenetus & Edokimas Or Polysipas
As well as Epaphras, Eutychus, Erastus
Eubulus, Pudens, Linus
Trophimus & again Aristarchus

Episodes when eyes locked briefly in dire moments from a distance

Encounters in the night

And reflections on that other dark name once counted, hand on the scene, then replaced

Wisdom seeks to engage these and others daily throughout time

To stay daily not only near the hearth, rather ever near the heart which draws through penetrating eyes

This is amazing.

There is something more amazing here than anyone realizes.

Have you seen this?

Apparently, a lot of people have NOT seen this yet.

Anyone who has not seen this yet is going to be blown away. They have no idea what they’re missing. Anyone who is not amazed at this cannot have actually understood what this means. Anyone who hasn’t told everyone they know clearly has not seen this.

You’re not going to believe this.

Take a look.

Jesus preached to the lost sheep of Israel. Then in receiving all authority, he gave the Great Commission. Paul began preaching among Jews and then became the missionary to the Greeks and across the Roman world.

There is something significant to finding good soil. Going to a new area, an unreached people group or finding new soil in an established area.

Oh to find good soil, untainted. Uncontaminated and lead free.

Oh to find souls unvaccinated with a dead form which can more easily damper their senses to the life giving good news of Jesus.

There is good soil left right where I am, right where you are. Let us seek it out. Do all speak English? No. Do they speak Aramaic, Greek, Hebrew, Spanish, Arabic, Chinese? Perhaps. Yet all authority has been given to go, and the lingua franca allows access to all the ethnicities and people groups right where you are.

“The fruit of the light consists in all goodness, righteousness and truth…everything exposed by the light becomes visible—and everything that is illuminated becomes a light.” Ephesians 5:9‭,13

“In him was life, and that life was the light of all mankind. The light shines in the darkness, and the darkness has not overcome it.” John 1:4‭-‬5

“Through Jesus, therefore, let us continually offer to God a sacrifice of praise—the fruit of lips that openly profess his name.” Hebrews 13:15

The witness of worship
Declaring the wonders of God each in his own tongue, each from his own lips.

Remember Life Before the Lamb
“I will come to your temple with burnt offerings and fulfill my vows to you— vows my lips promised and my mouth spoke when I was in trouble. I cried out to him with my mouth; his praise was on my tongue.” Psalms 66:13‭-‬14‭, 17

“Honor the Lord with your wealth, with the firstfruits of all your crops; then your barns will be filled to overflowing, and your vats will brim over with new wine.” Proverbs 3:9‭-‬10

Yet another enriching time together yesterday in the WORD via WTW zoom.
So many significant points of prayer and discussion.

Reflecting on many of these. So thankful for those who recorded, preserved, transcribed and copied so many of those events, interactions, encounters, conversations, teachings and experiences of those earlier days, incidents like that of Eutychus and writings of Luke, incidents of Baruch and writings of Moses.

Imagining the actual conversations and events, all of which clearly surpass by leaps and bounds even the best records of those incidents.

Any of those present yesterday could set out to record some account of the wondrous moments in prayer and discussion as well as the finer points of our interactions. All would instantly recognize without any dispute, the richness of the time in koinonia and the far surpassing nature of the living experience than the recounting.

And yet the reflections and recountings themselves now also have their own profound and glorious depths brought to life once again by that same Spirit.

Who can say what it is that makes one so enriching, one so profound and another so insightful; one so reminiscent of Chrysostom and another so compelling. Each by that same Spirit.

1/1/21 WTW Zoom

New Year – Firstfruits

Prayer

WTW Mission 2021 – (2 min intro)

– Daily WORD (Jan = John 1-21 + taste D&I )

– spiritual gifts & calling
– local ministry
– E & D

WTW Zoom format
1 Cor 14:23 etc

Launch Passage
James 3

Launch Topic
The Tongue
– sharp, harsh, silver, smooth, deceptive
– words, deeds
– the WORD, truth, grace, power, healing
– Pr 10:20; 15:1; 25:11; 26:23; Ps 55:21

Elephants
– no fellowship with false or immoral brothers (1 Cor 5:11; 2 Jn 1:10)
– no divorce & remarriage permitted
– marriage – proactive focus

Discussion & Prayer

Mission 2021

*****

NOTES

Meeting Conversation Topics
– 
– 
– 
– 
– 

In him was life; and the life was the light of men. John 1:4

Life.

There was a 5 year season when that was a recurring phrase on my heart, on my lips, in my thoughts and in my spirit. I found no better summary of the overflow of my soul than that single word “Life.”

That continues to be the refrain of my heart. We are called to life. Do you feel that? Do you hear it? He is calling.

There are a million voices, a million blogs, a million topics.

And still there are millions without hope and without God in the world.

Listen, you followers of JESUS. Look and see the sheep without a shepherd. Look and see those needing a healer, a Savior. Let us feed His sheep, care for His lambs.

In him was life; and the life was the light of men. John 1:4

Reflecting on significant life topics missed in the absence of journaling

Rekindle the initiation of discussions on important topics

Eliminate the domination of people who reject discussion in preference for shallow or meaningless banter.

WTW December 29
Micah 5

*****
Prophetic writings like Micah might be hard to read and it can be tough to spot personal applications;
“What does this have to do with me?”
~RJ
*****

*****
Micah 5:1-2
“The cross then the birth back to back in prophecy”
~BT
*****

Can you hear God’s voice speaking to you through His WORD today?
What are you hearing; how are you applying that; who are you sharing God’s WORD with today?
Is WTW challenging and encouraging you in helpful ways to be hungry and thirsty for more of JESUS daily in all your circles and encounters?

Others will be blessed when you engage together in God’s WORD. We are all blessed when we read, engage and apply God’s WORD together daily. We challenge you to join us daily, to connect daily, to reach out to others daily.

You will also encourage others in this by sharing insights with us here and with each other, in groups and with others, thoughts and insights which God gives you as you spend time reading, praying, applying and sharing with each other in his WORD today.
We also encourage you to share your experiences with others by posting a reply or comment below.

Mission 2021
M21