Bible Study steadfast, immovable

[ezra]

Therefore, my beloved brothers, be steadfast, immovable, always abounding in the work of the Lord, knowing that in the Lord your labor is not in vain.

what does it mean to you to be steadfast, immovable ?

 

[Eugene]

.
Dear Brother ezra, I suppose without direct scripture I would think of faith and love.
Rev 14:12 Here is the patience of the saints: here are they that keep the commandments of God, and the faith of Jesus.
Rom 13:8 . . love one another: for he that loveth another hath fulfilled the law.
1 Jn 3:11 For this is the message that ye heard from the beginning, that we should love one another.

 

[ezra]

.
Dear Brother ezra, I suppose without direct scripture I would think of faith and love.
Rev 14:12 Here is the patience of the saints: here are they that keep the commandments of God, and the faith of Jesus.
Rom 13:8 . . love one another: for he that loveth another hath fulfilled the law.
1 Jn 3:11 For this is the message that ye heard from the beginning, that we should love one another.

that is a good point actually i am not looking for the right answer just thoughts on what it means to be steadfast, immovable , may be how we can accomplish this... i may be ministering on this wed p.m i like to hear others thoughts i can build off that

 

[th1b.taylor]

Therefore, my beloved brothers, be steadfast, immovable, always abounding in the work of the Lord, knowing that in the Lord your labor is not in vain.

what does it mean to you to be steadfast, immovable ?

I relate this to my life experiences from my service in the Army. People in my MOS died suddenly and often because a helicopter is slow moving and easily brought down. However I had the honor of working with men, all younger than me that like myself, believed in the work we were doing to give the little people the right to choose what form their government took.

Today I am a member of Gods because our LORD called me out and having flown in 'Nam, where hope was so small, back then, I cannot turn from the mission the LORD has put me on even if I die doing it. If as a lost man, I could remember my mission and like my 18 and 19 year old men, perform it under conditions so poor we never admitted anyone's death because it was so common, how can I ever give God any less? I know that one way or another ths body will return to te dirt it was formed from but I also know, because of God's promises to me that the real me will never die and now that I know what I know, how could I ever turn back.

I have began down this course and this passage means thaat we should never reverse course.

 

[ezra]

i can use that i read a definition of steadfast as loyal faithful . i can see your military experience as a description .once not looking for the perfect answer .just what it means to you.

 

[GodsGrace]

Steadfast.
Not wavering to the left or to the right.
Walking straight on, on the road that leads to God.
Falling. Getting back up and continuing steadfastly.
Continuing to believe and to follow no matter what comes our way.
Being steadfast. Holding on tight.

Wondering

 

[Chopper]

that is a good point actually i am not looking for the right answer just thoughts on what it means to be steadfast, immovable , may be how we can accomplish this... i may be ministering on this wed p.m i like to hear others thoughts i can build off that

Good morning Ezra. I have learned, I must be "steadfast and immovable".... In the third Baptist Church that my Master Jesus called me too, I knew, at the start, that He wanted me to pastor that Church, and second, there were serious leadership problems that I would have to face.

About a month into being the Pastor, I faced Elders who had run rough-shod over the people and prior pastors for years. When the Elders demanded that I stop preaching on the Book of 1 Corinthians, I took a bold stand against them. Jesus had me become "steadfast and immovable" in obeying what Jesus would have me to preach/teach, not what the Elders wanted me to preach. I knew, in my spirit, that the Elders were being convicted of their sins.

Within a year, Jesus and I removed all the Elders from the Church, and revival broke out. Praise our Lord Jesus Christ for the passion of serving Him in troubled situations and the power He gives to face tremendous opposition from the evil one and evil people.

I hope this helps. May God bless you and your dear Wife.

 

[ezra]

Good morning Ezra. I have learned, I must be "steadfast and immovable".... In the third Baptist Church that my Master Jesus called me too, I knew, at the start, that He wanted me to pastor that Church, and second, there were serious leadership problems that I would have to face.

About a month into being the Pastor, I faced Elders who had run rough-shod over the people and prior pastors for years. When the Elders demanded that I stop preaching on the Book of 1 Corinthians, I took a bold stand against them. Jesus had me become "steadfast and immovable" in obeying what Jesus would have me to preach/teach, not what the Elders wanted me to preach. I knew, in my spirit, that the Elders were being convicted of their sins.

Within a year, Jesus and I removed all the Elders from the Church, and revival broke out. Praise our Lord Jesus Christ for the passion of serving Him in troubled situations and the power He gives to face tremendous opposition from the evil one and evil people.

I hope this helps. May God bless you and your dear Wife.

i been down them roads of those who like to control the Church . they had me removed. taking stands comes with a price . in the baptist association i am with we use deacons and i doubt many understand the office of a deacon. which is not the boss of the Church .but a overseer and protector of the flock with the pastor

 

[Jethro Bodine]

Therefore, my beloved brothers, be steadfast, immovable, always abounding in the work of the Lord, knowing that in the Lord your labor is not in vain.

what does it mean to you to be steadfast, immovable ?

To not grow weary in well doing.

"Let us not lose heart in doing good, for in due time we will reap if we do not grow weary." (Galatians 6:9 NASB)

That's what I think of.

 

[Jethro Bodine]

Good morning Ezra. I have learned, I must be "steadfast and immovable".... In the third Baptist Church that my Master Jesus called me too, I knew, at the start, that He wanted me to pastor that Church, and second, there were serious leadership problems that I would have to face.

About a month into being the Pastor, I faced Elders who had run rough-shod over the people and prior pastors for years. When the Elders demanded that I stop preaching on the Book of 1 Corinthians, I took a bold stand against them. Jesus had me become "steadfast and immovable" in obeying what Jesus would have me to preach/teach, not what the Elders wanted me to preach. I knew, in my spirit, that the Elders were being convicted of their sins.

Within a year, Jesus and I removed all the Elders from the Church, and revival broke out. Praise our Lord Jesus Christ for the passion of serving Him in troubled situations and the power He gives to face tremendous opposition from the evil one and evil people.

I hope this helps. May God bless you and your dear Wife.

I have changed my thinking in recent years to the idea that the church is in fact all about the pastor. That idea is pretty much rejected by the church these days, but I'm seeing that it's okay for the pastor to be what makes the church. People reject this idea because they reject the idea that a church could, or should crumble just because the pastor is no longer running it for fear that it was based on him and he is the reason it exists. I definitely do not subscribe to that anymore.

The church we attend should indeed be the pastor's church, not the congregation's. It serves a kind of validating function in the body of Christ. A pastor is validated by his own success in leading and guiding and building the church. Sheep who don't go with the flow, for good reasons and bad, should leave. They are not to be allowed to take the church where they want it to go. They are to find the true shepherd(s) of God's people in their community and attend his church. If they choose wrong because they themselves are not true, then good, they are kept away from the true people of God. If they choose correctly, then good for that, too. They end up under the leadership of God's man where they belong. But this kind of self-validating system can't function where the congregation has the power of who will be their pastor, and who won't.

 

[ezra]

I have changed my thinking in recent years to the idea that the church is in fact all about the pastor. That idea is pretty much rejected by the church these days, but I'm seeing that it's okay for the pastor to be what makes the church. People reject this idea because they reject the idea that a church could, or should crumble just because the pastor is no longer running it for fear that it was based on him and he is the reason it exists. I definitely do not subscribe to that anymore.

The church you attend should indeed be the pastor's church, not the congregation's. It serves a kind of validating function in the body of Christ. A pastor is validated by his own success in leading and guiding and building the church. Sheep who don't go with the flow, for good reasons and bad, should leave. They are not to be allowed to take the church where they want it to go. They are to find the true shepherd(s) of God's people in their community and attend his church. If they choose wrong because they themselves are not true, then good, they are kept away from the true people of God. If they choose correctly, then good for that, too. They end up under the leadership of God's man where they belong. But this kind of self-validating system can't function where the congregation has the power of who will be their pastor, and who won't.

a church is only as good as the pastor is and the pastor can only be as good as teh church will let him be

 

[smaller]

that is a good point actually i am not looking for the right answer just thoughts on what it means to be steadfast, immovable , may be how we can accomplish this... i may be ministering on this wed p.m i like to hear others thoughts i can build off that

I sometimes would like to be able to draw diagrams for these boards, so I'll put some dashed lines above and below the package of "a believer."

The general construct of a believer drawn out in/of the scriptures thusly:
----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
indwelling sin/evil present with us/the natural/flesh/spirit of disobedience. (Romans 7:17-21, 1 Cor. 2:14, Gal. 5:17, Romans 11:32 among many others) ALL of these workings are and remain in contention and against the Spirit of Christ in us.

THE SPIRIT OF CHRIST IN OUR MIDST

The spirit of the believer. Romans 1:9, 1 Cor. 5:4, 1 Cor. 14:14, 1 Cor. 16:18.
----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
I'd draw a BIG CIRCLE around the whole equation of what a believer is. And if you are a preacher and ever felt like you were trying to herd cats, just look at the first part of the equation and you'll see exactly what's going on with(in) the 'flock.'

IF we observe the equation accurately, there is much to be seen, obviously. But WHO in that equation is steadfast/immovable? Yeah.

What is more interesting is that He will move in TWO separate directions, simultaneously, predictably. Always steadfast and immovable for and in behalf of the spirit of the believer, and always just as steadfast and immovable against the workings in red.

If any preacher/teacher/positional member sees this construct, they'll know why we always need His Help, individually and collectively.

God help any preacher who doesn't see the reality of the construct. That would be the equivalent of the blind leading the blind.

And God Help any man who tries to tell the truth, exposing the RED part of the construct! The red portion of the equation will always act/react with predictable violence and intents of upheaval-disruptions:

Luke 12:51
Suppose ye that I am come to give peace on earth? I tell you, Nay; but rather division:

If I didn't have great HOPE, I'd call it a 3 ring circus.

 

[ezra]

I sometimes would like to be able to draw diagrams for these boards, so I'll put some dashed lines above and below the package of "a believer."

The general construct of a believer drawn out in/of the scriptures thusly:
----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
indwelling sin/evil present with us/the natural/flesh/spirit of disobedience. (Romans 7:17-21, 1 Cor. 2:14, Gal. 5:17, Romans 11:32 among many others) ALL of these workings are and remain in contention and against the Spirit of Christ in us.

THE SPIRIT OF CHRIST IN OUR MIDST

The spirit of the believer. Romans 1:9, 1 Cor. 5:4, 1 Cor. 14:14, 1 Cor. 16:18.
----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
I'd draw a BIG CIRCLE around the whole equation of what a believer is. And if you are a preacher and ever felt like you were trying to herd cats, just look at the first part of the equation and you'll see exactly what's going on with(in) the 'flock.'

IF we observe the equation accurately, there is much to be seen, obviously. But WHO in that equation is steadfast/immovable? Yeah.

What is more interesting is that He will move in TWO separate directions, simultaneously, predictably. Always steadfast and immovable for and in behalf of the spirit of the believer, and always just as steadfast and immovable against the workings in red.

If any preacher/teacher/positional member sees this construct, they'll know why we always need His Help, individually and collectively.

God help any preacher who doesn't see the reality of the construct. That would be the equivalent of the blind leading the blind.

And God Help any man who tries to tell the truth, exposing the RED part of the construct! The red portion of the equation will always act/react with predictable violence and intents of upheaval-disruptions:

Luke 12:51
Suppose ye that I am come to give peace on earth? I tell you, Nay; but rather division:

If I didn't have great HOPE, I'd call it a 3 ring circus.

i agree all these things are present in our every day battle /walk . i lke the song by Charles Johnson and the revivers .i can't even walk with out you holding my hand.. steadfast, immovable two very important words to the Church much like peter wrote be sober be vigilant . in this present unstable world we live in. it is most important we be what these words say. i will have to wait till wed to see how this goes.. i do not make pages of notes to read from..