What is the servant of the Lord?

1. The Servant is pure before God.

(Psa 24:3 NASB) Who may ascend into the hill of the LORD? And who may stand in His holy place?

(Psa 24:4 NASB) He who has clean hands and a pure heart, Who has not lifted up his soul to falsehood, And has not sworn deceitfully.

Psa 24:5 NASB) He shall receive a blessing from the LORD And righteousness from the God of his salvation.

What do we pour into our souls? What do we handle with our hands? I see many Christians today who will pay seven dollars or more to watch the latest violence and smut for 90 minutes yet they cannot worship the Holy One for over 30 minutes. Have we sullied our selves and in the process forgotten what utter joy purity brings? Is our entertainment getting the most important billing in our lives? I was in a house recently where we had a Christian meeting and the youth were in the family room watching some horror movie. When I went to the room to see if my children were in there (thank the Lord they were not) I met an adult in the room who confided in me how awful the show was and continued to watch! We are not trapped against our will with our eyes pinned open! TURN IT OFF! The recent movie Titanic was a disaster for the young impressionable girls of our Churches. It romanticized adultery and rebellion. Millions of young women saw this travesty several times. What are parents thinking! They probably saw it them selves and were seduced as well. I know believers who hunger for more of God but spend more hours reading the latest romance, murder mystery or political thriller with more gusto than the Word of God. Does that mean we shouldn't read those things? No, but when they take time away from the Word and prayer then something is rotten. We have to spend time with our Lord to receive from him. He waits, yearning to spend time with us to cleanse us from the sins of the flesh and the world. Who may ascend into the hill of the Lord? Who may stand in His holy place? This is not in heaven or some place other worldly, this is for the servant now.

  

2. The Servant is Humble before God.

 

(Psa 10:17 NASB) O LORD, Thou hast heard the desire of the humble; Thou wilt strengthen their heart, Thou wilt incline Thine ear

(Psa 25:8 NASB) Good and upright is the LORD; Therefore He instructs sinners in the way.

(Psa 25:9 NASB) He leads the humble in justice, And He teaches the humble His way.

(Psa 25:10 NASB) All the paths of the LORD are lovingkindness and truth To those who keep His covenant and His testimonies.

(Prov 29:23 NASB) A man's pride will bring him low, But a humble spirit will obtain honor.

(Isa 66:2 NASB) "For My hand made all these things, Thus all these things came into being," declares the LORD. "But to this one I will look, To him who is humble and contrite of spirit, and who trembles at My word.

Humility is an absolute requirement for the fire of God to fall. Frank Bartleman in chronicling the Azuza street revival tells how the Spirit and actually fallen in another church in Los Angeles but how pride and human control drove Him out. The Spirit finally found His home in a humble little set of believers on Bonnie Brae Street. They were a group of black believers led by William Seymour who had been kicked out of another church. The Fire of God fell on this most unlikely (as the world may say) group of believers. Soon the world was filled with the fire that started there. Oh! How God loves the humble! We seem to think God is pleased with our great efforts we do on his behalf. God is interested in the humble heart for that is his chosen field. It is the humble and contrite heart in which he will set his Spirit to accomplish his will. God cannot manifest His glory through the proud heart for the proud heart will attempt to steal his glory, for God will not share his glory with anyone. Jesus was lowly and humble. Can we be any less? Oh God! Break every proud heart and humble your people so that we might show forth your glory to the nations!!

 

3. The Servant is a person of the WORD.

(Jer 23:29 NASB) "Is not My word like fire?" declares the LORD, "and like a hammer which shatters a rock?

Oh! Consume us o Holy Fire, shatter our pride like a hammer shatters rock! Write your living Word on the tablets of our hearts. Teach us your ways and show us your paths. To do God's will is a sweet duty for the servant of the Lord. To know God's will, the servant must spend time in the Word. Isaiah 66:2 above says that the Almighty looks toward those who tremble at His Word, those who realize the true meaning, who do not take the Word lightly. We in North America are surfeited with Bibles, books about the Bible, Bible commentaries, Bible translations and supposed Bible scholars. Many have several Bibles in their homes. Our pastor recently came from a conference in the Philippines. Many of the Philippine pastors are extremely poor, yet serving with all diligence in very dangerous places. (Oh! How beautiful are the feet of them that bear Good News!) The conference leaders had tried to get a container load of Bibles to these wonderful men but only one suitcase was able to get through. They drew names of those who would get the Bibles. When a name was called the man would run to the front to claim his prize. Oh my heart stirred when I heard that and I said "Oh that we should love God's word so!"

 

(Isa 8:20 NASB) To the law and to the testimony! If they do not speak according to this word, it is because there is no light in them.

"No light in them" could be the epitaph etched in the gravestone of this era. There are many out there speaking - empty, talking heads all, but few speak with the unction only deep study of the Word will produce. Recently I watched a preacher on television. He was a big, handsome man with an impressive voice and bearing. He was preaching in a big Black Church and was attempting to emulate that gender of preaching. He went on for a while until I realized he wasn't really saying anything! He was shouting and sweating and saying something about the devil and really saying very little. I was astounded. Maybe he was having a bad day. But the fire that was there was only a little heat generated by the flesh. Even the black brothers were getting perplexed looks on their faces at his sad rambling. We need true fire and passion that is only created in the crucible of God's Word. For when we speak forth the true and living work our words become fire and the peoples hearts dry chaff. Oh God of fire, ignite our hearts to speak forth your Holy words!

(Heb 4:12 NASB) For the word of God is living and active and sharper than any two-edged sword, and piercing as far as the division of soul and spirit, of both joints and marrow, and able to judge the thoughts and intentions of the heart.

(Heb 4:13 NASB) And there is no creature hidden from His sight, but all things are open and laid bare to the eyes of Him with whom we have to do.

One important function the word performs is to slice and dice us to the core, to show us just how vile our sins are and to expose them to us. We seldom see ourselves as the rotten sinners we really are. I often say that as the terrible light of heaven is shown on our lives the cockroaches scatter. When we see this it is time to go to the cross! The Word shows us the cross in all its glory and we can avail ourselves of its power because the Word says so! Let the Word penetrate you and show you what needs to come out to be swept away by the Blood of the Lamb. God's Word will do so.

We must remember too that nothing, absolutely nothing is hidden from our Lord. Our deepest secrets that no one else knows are known to Him. We so often play games with our loving Lord and grieve His heart. The true servant knows his state and lets the blood flood it away every day.

(Col. 3:16 NASB) Let the word of Christ richly dwell within you, with all wisdom teaching and admonishing one another with psalms and hymns and spiritual songs, singing with thankfulness in your hearts to God.

God's promises are all yes and amen, but how can we know to receive them unless we know them. God's faithfulness, mercy, glory, truth, judgments etc. are all contained in His Word. God's character and nature are revealed in the Word. God's past acts are recorded in the Word. God's future acts are prophesied in His Word. The Word is truth for our souls and solace for our spirits. We must dwell in the Word to let it dwell richly within us.

 

4. The Servant is radically obedient.

(1 Pet 1:14 NASB) As obedient children, do not be conformed to the former lusts, which were yours in your ignorance,

(1 Pet 1:15 NASB) but like the Holy One who called you, be holy yourselves also in all your behavior;

(1 Pet 1:16 NASB) because it is written, "YOU SHALL BE HOLY, FOR I AM HOLY."

Be radically obedient in our dealings in the world. Change it, do not be conformed by it. It is not the Christian in the world that is the problem but the world in the Christian. I have seen many Christians who look so much like the world that you cannot tell the difference. We are a peculiar people, a holy nation, a royal priesthood, ambassadors for Christ and living stones. WE ARE TO BE DIFFERENT!

(1 Cor 4:10 NASB) We are fools for Christ's sake, but you are prudent in Christ; we are weak, but you are strong; you are distinguished, but we are without honor.

(1 Cor 4:11 NASB) To this present hour we are both hungry and thirsty, and are poorly clothed, and are roughly treated, and are homeless;

(1 Cor 4:12 NASB) and we toil, working with our own hands; when we are reviled, we bless; when we are persecuted, we endure;

(1 Cor 4:13 NASB) when we are slandered, we try to conciliate; we have become as the scum of the world, the dregs of all things, even until now.

To be God's fool is to be obedient no matter what the request. I told my Lord one time I was willing to be His fool. Oh Man! I didn't know what I was praying. God took me up on that prayer and has put me through his boot camp of fools. I was in the Las Vegas airport recently reading a book about John G. Lake. I was using my granny type reading glasses. You know the type. I hated them and prayed that they would be taken away, but God, it seemed decided to let them stay for a while. I read a portion where an angel came to John and part of his message was that we were to pray, pray and always pray. The Holy Spirit stirred my heart and I said to God, "Oh! Teach me to pray like that!" He said back "Well why don't you just pray right here on your knees?" Now I was at gate A1, the airport was packed and I didn't really want to do that. I said "Right here in front of all these people?" God can absolutely cut right through our arguments like a hot knife through butter. He said "Do you care more about what these people think about you than what I think about you?" Oh! What could I do? I got down right there on my knees and prayed. I was sweating bullets. The people who were setting right next to me got up and left. They probably thought I was just giving thanks before I got up and axed them. I stayed put until He gave me release. It was probably only 5 minutes or so, though it seemed like much longer. When I got back up I took up the book to read and realized that God had healed by vision so I no longer needed the reading glasses. I haven't needed them to this day. Bless His glorious name!

(1 Pet 1:2 NASB) chosen according to the foreknowledge of God the Father, by the sanctifying work of the Spirit, that you may be obedient to Jesus Christ and be sprinkled with His blood:

Rebellion stalks the land. Our 1960's culture said "Don't trust anyone over 30!". We thought Church was boring so we say we'll let our kids grow up and let them decide for themselves later. We were being selfish and lazy with the heritage we were handing down. Those kids are now young adults angry for not having any training and rebellion is rampant in the youth culture today. We have sown to the wind and we now reap the whirlwind. To obey Jesus is to love the Lord our God with all our hearts, minds, souls and strength and to love our neighbor as our self. We will only win out over the rebellion with the love of Christ and His blood. We must be radical in our obedience to his commands. We have enlisted in an army and we have no choice in the battle. We fight for our lives against the enemy and he gives no quarter. To not obey is to fall.

I will tell you another thing the Spirit has been ringing in my heart. He is preparing a vast army of sold out people for this day and time. He is setting up the intercessors, teachers, evangelists, preachers, prophets and warriors who He can use to usher in the greatest revival

the world has ever seen. Do you want to be part of this army?

A.G. Gardiner said:

When a prophet is accepted and deified, his message is lost. The prophet is only

useful so long as he is stoned as a public nuisance, calling us to repentance,

disturbing our comfortable routines, breaking our respectable idols, shattering

our sacred conventions.

 

5. The Servant is Spirit dependent not flesh dependent.

(John 15:4 NASB) "Abide in Me, and I in you. As the branch cannot bear fruit of itself, unless it abides in the vine, so neither can you, unless you abide in Me.

(John 15:5 NASB) "I am the vine, you are the branches; he who abides in Me, and I in him, he bears much fruit; for apart from Me you can do nothing.

(John 15:6 NASB) "If anyone does not abide in Me, he is thrown away as a branch, and dries up; and they gather them, and cast them into the fire, and they are burned.

(John 15:7 NASB) "If you abide in Me, and My words abide in you, ask whatever you wish, and it shall be done for you.

May we be grafted so deeply into the vine that the life in that vine may fill us up so full of itself that there is no room for anything else. No sin and no sickness may blot our lives because the very life of Christ throbs in our veins. This is a great secret of power in the Christian walk. "APART FROM ME YOU CAN DO NOTHING." We so often forget this and try to accomplish something in our own zeal and strength. Our society applauds the self made man who pulled himself by his own strength and cunning, but Jesus says that is all self righteous filthy rags. We attempt to steal God's glory when we do that and our work, no matter how good the motive or even result, profits us nothing. We must abide, live, dwell in the vine. We have no other choice. We need to plug in daily, hourly to that source. Being filled with the Spirit is not a one-time event, but a daily sacrifice. We need to fall on God's mercies that are renewed every morning.

(Zec 4:6 NASB) Then he answered and said to me, "This is the word of the LORD to Zerubbabel saying, 'Not by might nor by power, but by My Spirit,' says the LORD of hosts.

(John 6:63 NASB) "It is the Spirit who gives life; the flesh profits nothing; the words that I have spoken to you are spirit and are life.

The might of man will fail. Large egos fill the land and proclaim how great they are. Professional sports, the corporate world and even the Church are full of the man of the mighty ego. Let us seek the lowest place of the servant, let God crush your pride, ego and rebellion. The prideful man sets himself up as his own God. He worships at the alter of pride and considers his thoughts as higher than the Most High. What foolishness! God will abase every proud man and exalt the lowly. The work of the flesh is based in rebellion and pride. Oh Lord, tear down our pride and make us wholly thine!

6. The Servant identifies with Jesus in his life and death.

(Phil 3:9 NASB) and may be found in Him, not having a righteousness of my own derived from the Law, but that which is through faith in Christ, the righteousness which comes from God on the basis of faith,

(Phil 3:10 NASB) that I may know Him, and the power of His resurrection and the fellowship of His sufferings, being conformed to His death;

"…the fellowship of His suffering, being conformed to His death." These are not popular words in Christendom today. We want to be blessed. We want it easy, instant, not too hard. We don't want our faith tested by fire. Be want to name it and claim it. We want to soar with the eagles and not be weary forgetting that that high road is HARD. Jesus said that if the world hated Him it would hate us too. He said that we would have tribulation, trouble, distress, persecution and grief in this world, but that He had overcome the world. Being conformed to His death is to crucify the flesh and its desires daily, to hammer a part of you screaming to the cross. I have had times of this being done even in public where my God showed me how wretched I was and I had to let Him rip a part of my pride and arrogance and nail it to the cross. Oh! How that hurt! How defeated I felt. I was numb with defeat and wounded at the hand of my God. But what glory he poured into me at that my point of greatest obedience and defeat of self. He never takes but what He restores many fold. He poured His liquid love and ecstasy through me for two hours that day until I couldn't take anymore of His glory.

Amy Carmichael life long missionary to India wrote:

Hast thou no scar?

No hidden scar on foot, or side, or hand?

I hear thee sung as mighty in the land,

I hear them hail thy bright ascendant star,

Hast thou no scar?

Hast thou no wound?

Yet I was wounded by the archers, spent,

Leaned me against the tree to die, and rent

By ravening beasts that

Compassed Me, I swooned;

Hast thou no wound?

No wound, no scar?

Yet, as the Master shall the Servant be,

And, pierced are the feet that follow me;

But thine are whole; can he have followed far

Who has no wound nor scar?

(Luke 9:23 NASB) And He was saying to them all, "If anyone wishes to come after Me, let him deny himself, and take up his cross daily, and follow Me.

(2 Cor 4:10 NASB) always carrying about in the body the dying of Jesus, that the life of Jesus also may be manifested in our body.

(2 Cor 4:11 NASB) For we who live are constantly being delivered over to death for Jesus' sake, that the life of Jesus also may be manifested in our mortal flesh.

(Rom 6:5 NASB) For if we have become united with Him in the likeness of His death, certainly we shall be also in the likeness of His resurrection,

(Rom 6:6 NASB) knowing this, that our old self was crucified with Him, that our body of sin might be done away with, that we should no longer be slaves to sin;

(Rom 6:7 NASB) for he who has died is freed from sin.

  Take up our cross and follow him? The cross is an instrument of death and pain. With it we crucify the flesh and all its desires. We have to take up the cross daily; it is not an option for only the very spiritual. It is absolutely imperative we use it, lest we fail in the walk. Our body must carry about His death so that our sinful nature is swallowed up in His death. This is the only way that He may manifest his compassion, love and power through us. What glory! Jesus is to manifest his very nature through the believer who has done away with the body of sin. The truth is WE HAVE POWER OVER SIN, IT DOES NOT HAVE POWER OVER US! I cannot emphasize that enough. The cyclical patter of sin – forgiveness – sin – forgiveness – sin has to be broken in our lives! Look to the cross!

When we line our lives up with the Living God, the things that break his heart will also break ours. Prayer becomes a living communication with a Living God and not some mechanical discussion with ourselves. It becomes a joy and not a duty.

J.H. Jowett said"

The ministers of Calvary must supplicate in bloody sweat, and their intercession must often touch to the point of agony. If we pray in cold blood we are no longer ministers of the Cross. True intercession is a sacrifice, a bleeding sacrifice, a perpetuation of Calvary, a "filling up" of the sufferings of Christ. My brethren, this is the ministry which the Master owns, the agonized yearnings which perfect the sufferings of His own intercession. Are we in the succession? Do our prayers bleed? Have we felt the painful fellowship of the pierced hand? I am so often ashamed of my prayers. The so frequently cost me nothing: they shed no blood. I am amazed at the grace and condescension of my Lord that the confers any fruitfulness upon my superficial pains.

As soon as we cease to bleed, we cease to bless.

7. The Servant of God is a flame of fire.