No one in church that evening was prepared for how the guest minister opened up his talk.

“I want to first of all apologize to you folks and to your denomination on behalf of our church.”

All of us, including me, waited with bated breath to hear what the apology was all about. To my knowledge, they had done nothing that required an apology.

If anyone should be apologizing, it should be us, I was thinking, as I re-hashed some of the derisive comments that had been levelled against their church by some people in our denomination.

He went on to say: “When your denomination made a controversial decision around homosexuality, we totally disagreed with it…and still do. But in voicing our disagreement, we had allowed judgment to enter our heart. Later on, when our church experienced a move of the Holy Spirit that aroused controversy, we were on the receiving end of judgment from many churches. Therefore I sensed a nudge from the Holy Spirit to ask for your forgiveness, so that we do not continue to reap more judgment from others.”

The respect I already had for this man of God went up exponentially that night. In case you are wondering, the minister in question was none other than my spiritual father, Steve Long, Senior Pastor of Catch the Fire Toronto (formerly Toronto Airport Christian Fellowship, Toronto Airport Vineyard or simply the Airport Church).

We began this week by reminding ourselves of Jesus’ desire that His Body be one as He is one with the Father, so that “the world may believe”that Jesus is who He really is, namely, the only Son sent by His Father. (John 17:21)

When members of the Body voice their disagreements with one another in public (as we sadly see and hear often in the broadcast media) or slander one another in private, should we even wonder why the world does not want to believe who Jesus really is?

That is the #1 reason why we need to think twice about using the 4 C’s against another branch of the Vine. (The 4 C’s—criticism, condemnation, complaining and comparing).

The apostle James gives us another reason: “Do not speak evil of one another, brethren. He who speaks evil of a brother and judges his brother, speaks evil of the law and judges the law. But if you judge the law, you are not a doer of the law but a judge. There is one Lawgiver, who is able to save and to destroy. Who are you to judge another?” (James 4:11-12)

The apostle Paul stresses the same point in Romans 14:10: “So why do you condemn another believer? Why do you look down on another believer? Remember, we will all stand before the judgment seat of God.”

Jesus puts it quite sternly as well: “And I tell you this, you must give an account on judgment day for every idle word you speak. The words you say will either acquit you or condemn you.” (Matthew 12:36-37)

Have you ever wondered what would happen if all we did was simply stop talking ill of another member of the Body of Christ—be it someone within our own congregation, another denomination, a leader, etc.?

The world would surely come to see who Jesus really is, fall in love with Him and ask us as did the Philippian jailer: “Sirs, what must I do to be saved?”(Acts 16:30)

If that were not good enough reason, we get a bonus too! As we stop sowing seeds of judgment, we stop reaping harvests of judgment as did Catch the Fire Toronto. A double win!

So, dear friend, would you once again ask Holy Spirit to show where you might be still thinking and speaking ill of others in the Church? When He shows you names, faces, pictures, would you be humble enough to admit your sin, seek forgiveness and repent?

I pray that your repentance will also include a rock-solid commitment to never ever speak ill of another who is also attached to the same True Vine as you are.

On Day 19 of the Fast, we tackle the rather sensitive subject of traditions within the Body of Christ that could potentially stand in the way of us experiencing at.one.ment with our Lord.

Let me start with a word of caution…just because traditions were instituted by human beings is not enough reason to disregard or dismiss them altogether as being obstacles to experiencing at.one.ment.

We need to grasp the distinction that is in Scripture to ensure that we do not fall into this error.

On the one hand, we see the apostle Paul encouraging the Church to honour certain traditions and not ignore or discard them.

“Therefore, brethren, stand fast and hold the traditions which you were taught, whether by word or our epistle.” (2 Thessalonians 2:15)

“Now I praise you, brethren, that you remember me in all things and keep the traditions just as I delivered them to you.”(I Corinthians 11:2)

Addressing the young church as a father, he reminds them that what they learned from him, either in person or on papyrus, was worthy of keeping.

However, Paul also points out the danger inherent in upholding other traditions in Colossians 2:8: “See to it that no one takes you captive through hollow and deceptive philosophy, which depends on human tradition and the elemental spiritual forces of this world rather than on Christ.”(Colossians 2:8)

In this instance, Paul makes it clear that any tradition that is not based on the solid foundation of Jesus Christ is to be avoided.

Even before the Church was established, Jesus had some harsh words to say about human traditions. Take this snippet, for example: “Isaiah was right when he prophesied about you hypocrites; as it is written: ‘These people honor me with their lips, but their hearts are far from me. They worship me in vain; their teachings are merely human rules.’ You have let go of the commands of God and are holding on to human traditions.” (Mark 7:6-8)

Although Jesus is specifically addressing the traditions of the Jewish faith (eating without ritually washing hands clean first, in this instance), his words should be a warning to all of us who are part of the Body of Christ.

Because, the truth of the matter is that nowhere do we find traditions so much a part and parcel of life than in the Church. No matter what your denominational label may be, no matter what tribe you belong to, no matter what community of faith you associate with, chances are very good that you have certain traditions that you follow faithfully.

It could be the way you dress when you go to church, the way you worship, the kind of music that is considered acceptable, the form(s) of baptism that are considered normative, the mode(s) of serving the Lord’s Supper, the version of the Bible that is approved for public reading, ……………………………………….., etc. (please fill in the blanks. Use additional hard drives if necessary!)

When traditions become a substitute for the commandments of God, or worse, when traditions ignore or even supersede the Word of God, that is when they can stand in the way of attaining at.one.ment with Jesus Christ, and certainly within His Body.

A simple litmus test might be to see if the tradition is being upheld simply to please people while displeasing God or does it bring a smile to our Father’s face, even if it leaves people with a frown.

As Peter and John told the Sanhedrin in Acts 5:29: “We must obey God rather than any human authority.”

A good exercise today might be to jot down all the traditions that are inherent in the way you follow Jesus in your pod of the Bod. Ask Holy Spirit to show you which (if any) of them are stumbling blocks to at.one.ment.

Repent (if necessary), remove the obstacle and receive the blessing of greater at.one.ment with Jesus and within His body. Please.

You should not be surprised to hear that in over three decades of ordained ministry, I have seen my fair share of divisions within the Body—in the congregations I have served and elsewhere.

Neither should you be shocked to learn that I must shoulder or at least share the burden of responsibility for some of these divisions.

While it is true that some divisions were theological in origin, sadly, many of them came about because of personal preferences, prejudices, positions and opinions—even when they could be justified by an appeal to Scripture, conscience, personal communication from God, church history, …………(please fill in the blanks), etc.

You may be startled to learn that, almost without exception, the Bible comes down very hard on those responsible for causing division.

The list of seven things that are an abomination to the Lord in Proverbs 6 includes “one who sows discord among brethren” (v. 19).

The apostle Paul issues this warning: I urge you, brothers and sisters, to watch out for those who cause divisions and put obstacles in your way that are contrary to the teaching you have learned. Keep away from them. For such people are not serving our Lord Christ, but their own appetites (Romans 16:17-18).

That is pretty harsh, isn’t it? “Not serving our Lord, but our own appetites.”I don’t know about you, but I have to admit that satisfying my appetites for a certain kind of doctrine, practice, music, style, form, etc. has at times taken precedence and caused division.

Scripture is also unequivocal in attributing the origin of divisions to the flesh (carne).

For where there are envy, strife, and divisions among you, are you not carnal and behaving like mere men? For when one says, “I am of Paul,” and another, “I am of Apollos,” are you not carnal? (I Corinthians 3:3-4)

Let me be the first to admit that whenever I was responsible for causing division, I was too caught up in myself—my pain, my predisposition, my pet belief to even consider whether or not it would be divisive.

Since I was able to justify it in my mind, usually with an appeal to a Scripture passage, I saw no problem in ploughing right through like a bulldozer. It was only when I saw the carnage that resulted from my carnal behaviour that I realized what I had done.

Here comes the most serious indictment of them all: These are the people who divide you, who follow mere natural instincts and DO NOT HAVE THE SPIRIT (Jude 19).

Where Holy Spirit is present and allowed full reign, unity should be the order of the day, not division. I shudder to consider the possibility that when I sowed seeds of division, I was not totally yielded to the Holy Spirit, but had inadvertently allowed an evil spirit to wield its influence through me.

If nothing else sways you, that scary thought should give cause to pause before you say or do something that could be potentially divisive, amen?

So, dear friend, on Day 18 of the Fast, would you examine your heart? Ask Holy Spirit to show you where you may have allowed your carnal appetites and behaviour to cause division within the Body of Christ. Repent and make at.one.ment with the Lord.

Where you have been adversely affected by the carnal appetites and behaviour of others within the Church, would you simply forgive them and move on?

Finally, would you pray in unity with all of us who are on this Fast that the Church of Jesus Christ would be vigilant about the origin of divisions and nip them in the bud before they lead to disaster?

Let’s do our part to honour Jesus’ desire for At.One.Ment within the Body, shall we?  

My brothers and sisters, some from Chloe’s household have informed me that there are quarrels among you. What I mean is this: One of you says, “I follow Paul”; another, “I follow Apollos”; another, “I follow Cephas”; still another, “I follow Christ.” Is Christ divided? Was Paul crucified for you? Were you baptized in the name of Paul? For Christ did not send me to baptize, but to preach the gospel—not with wisdom and eloquence, lest the cross of Christ be emptied of its power. (I Corinthians 1:11-13, 17)

There is no getting around the stark reality that leaders cause division within the Church. If it is any consolation, this is not a new problem that started to happen in the past few decades or even centuries. It goes back all the way to the early days of the early Church.

The church in Corinth is a perfect (?) example, as you can tell from the blunt words used by the apostle Paul in this passage and again in I Corinthians 3:3-15.

One of our churches went through a split a few decades back when the incumbent pastor took a good number of families with him and started up a new congregation at a location no more than 5 minutes from where we are right now. Some of our readers may have experienced something similar as well.

Of course, not all divisions lead to splits. Sometimes the schisms are present within a congregation itself. Trust me, I’ve been there.

In certain cases, there are factions within the congregation who still hold allegiance to former pastors or choose the theological leaning of a televangelist over that of their own leader. Today, there are church members who would rather listen to someone on the internet whom they do not know than the leader who is right in their midst L

Virtually everywhere I go, I am (mis)treated to sad stories of how a former leader in the Church was responsible for causing division. Sometimes it was a doctrinal position or a worship style or a policy change. Sometimes it was because of their moral failure, with sex and money being the top two culprits. Sometimes it was a clear abuse of pastoral authority.

In any event, leaders cause division. Members take offense. At times leaders take offense as well. It’s a big mess. Unforgiveness is in the air, bringing great joy to “the prince of the power of the air” (Ephesians 2:2). Holy Spirit is grieved when “bitterness, rage and anger, brawling and slander, along with every form of malice” are released into the atmosphere as manifestations of a divisive spirit. (Ephesians 4:30-31)

Needless to say at.one.ment within the Body is severely compromised.

Have you witnessed division within the Body of Christ that was brought about by a leader in the Church, dear friend?

Perhaps it happened in your own church. Or in another branch of the Vine.

On Day 17 of the Fast, shall we make a concerted effort to bring about at.one.ment within the Body where it has been breached by leaders?

If you have allowed a leader’s words or actions to generate offense in your heart, would you please forgive from the heart and remove it before it turns into a bitter root?

Also, would you pray for others, including leaders who have caused divisions, that they would repent and/or forgive as necessary? This way, we will accelerate the fulfilment of Jesus’ desire that we all may be as one as He and the Father are one.

Thank You for honouring this fasting directive.

Yesterday, we moved to Week 3 of the 21 Days of At.One.Ment Fast by focusing on Jesus’ desire for the Body, summed up in these words from his prayer: “that all of them may be one, Father, just as you are in me and I am in you. May they also be in us so that the world may believe that you have sent me.” (John 17:21)

Today, we remind ourselves of the design Jesus had in mind for the church and revealed to us through the apostle Paul.

The first part of the design is captured in these words found in I Corinthians 12:27: “Now you are the body of Christ, and each one of you is a part of it.”

Please note that according to the apostle Paul, the body is not an analogy for the church, but the reality of the Church. The Church IS the Body of Christ.

Every part needs to contribute to the well-being of the Body. In practical terms, this means that every one of us needs to use our spiritual gifts in order that the Body may function as it was designed.

When the body parts are not doing what they are supposed to do, then at best the Body is dysfunctional, at worst diseased.

Dear friend, would you take a moment now and ask Holy Spirit if you are using your spiritual gift appropriately in the Body?

The second part of Jesus’ design for the Church is found in Ephesians 4:11-13: “So Christ himself gave the apostles, the prophets, the evangelists, the pastors and teachers, to equip his people for works of service, so that the body of Christ may be built up until we all reach unity in the faith and in the knowledge of the Son of God and become mature, attaining to the whole measure of the fullness of Christ.”   

This is often referred to as the fivefold model. When you look at the book of Acts and read through the epistles, it is easy to see that all five offices were active and functioning.

Sadly, over the centuries, pastors have played a leading role with teachers and evangelists relegated to the supporting cast. Prophets are granted guest appearances on occasion. Apostles seem to play “the heavy” if they ever show up at all.

The passage from Ephesians 4 seems to suggest that all five offices are needed for the Body to be built up, for us all to retain unity and attain maturity. Elsewhere, Paul stresses the significance of the first two offices when he says that the Church is “built on the foundation of the apostles and prophets, with Christ Jesus himself as the chief cornerstone.”(Ephesians 2:20).

Jesus’ design for the Church is key to realizing His desire for the Church.

Would you say that this design is part of the Church where you are situated right now?

So, friends, on this Day 16 of the Fast, shall we pray that the Body of Christ around the world will implement both critical components of Jesus’ design?

Let us pray that every follower of Jesus will discover and deploy his/her spiritual gift(s) for the building up of the Body.

Let us also pray that the leaders of the Church will recognize the need for the fivefold ministry to be in place first of all. Then, may they have the courage to make the necessary changes to ensure that Jesus’ design is honoured and His desire fulfilled.

Congratulations to those of you who have been journeying along with us on the 21 Days of At.One.Ment Fast since Sept. 22! We have completed 14 full days and are now entering the home stretch. I trust it has been a blessing to you so far.

For the first seven days, we focused on experiencing more At.One.Ment with God, as we addressed several factors that stand in the way. For the past week, we have been getting rid of any offense we may have allowed to enter into our spirit, so that we could be more at one with one another than ever before.

This week, we single out at.one.ment within the Body of Christ, even though it would fit under the broader category of at.one.ment with one another.

Why? Because Jesus was so concerned about it that he made it a major focus of his longest recorded prayer in John 17. It was also one of the very last prayers he offered while he walked this earth as one of us. Listen to these words:

“I pray also for those who will believe in me through their message, that all of them may be one, Father, just as you are in me and I am in you. May they also be in us so that the world may believe that you have sent me. I have given them the glory that you gave me, that they may be one as we are one— I in them and you in me—so that they may be brought to complete unity. Then the world will know that you sent me.” (vs. 20-23)

Notice how much Jesus stresses unity within the Body! It is Jesus’ desire that His body reflect the unity that exists between Him and His Father.

Please pay attention also to why Jesus deems this a necessity for the Church. “So that the world may believe…then the world will know…that you have sent me.” (v. 21, 23)

In other words, unity within the Body is essential for the world to know that Jesus is who we say that He really is! Wow!

Sad to say, when we stay divided and fail to mirror the unity between Jesus and the Father, then we become a stumbling block for the world. Our disunity can actually prevent the world from believing in Jesus by diminishing our witness. Ouch!

You do not need me to point out that this is indeed the case. Every time there is a church split, every time there is a quarrel within a church, every time leaders within the Body take pot shots at each other, every time there is competition among congregations, every time………………………………………………(fill in the blanks with what you have experienced), we could be standing in the way of the world coming to know Christ.

That is why we are taking seven full days to pray for At.One.Ment within the Body. Is it fair to say that His heart is saddened by the sight of a dysfunctional, diseased body whose members are at war with one another?

Wouldn’t you love to be part of a concerted effort to fulfil Jesus’ desire for At.One.Ment within the Church?

So, dear friend, I invite you to begin today by asking Jesus to reveal His heart for His Church to you. Would you please share any revelations you receive with the rest of us? Thanks in advance.

Over the past few years, Sulojana and I have been taking healing of the heart quite seriously.

We have gone through an entire “Healing Week” through Restoring The Foundations.

We have gone through several sessions of Sozo ministry each. As a matter of fact, along with a number of people from our congregations, we have taken the required training to be released as Sozo ministers ourselves.

Through all of these prayer ministry sessions, we have learned how to deal with offense swiftly and not give it any room to grow. After all, the last thing we need is a bitter root “to cause trouble and defile many.” (Hebrews 12:15)

Yet, the fact of the matter is that we still take offense…perhaps not as much as we used to at one time, but offense is still not absolutely absent from our system.

I made a statement in church last Sunday that I can honestly say that I do not hold an offense against anyone at all. (You can listen to/download the entire message here.)

The reason I can say this is because I have learned to deal with offense quickly and get it out of my spirit as soon as possible before it has a chance to turn into a bitter root.

However, I still get offended, and that too, sometimes quite swiftly. In other words, I am still quite sensitive to what is being said about me.  

Is this par for the course? Should you just accept the fact that you can never completely be free from receiving/taking offense?

I used to think so, until I was challenged by one of the founders of Sozo, Dawna DaSilva, to realize that we can actually be unoffendable.

Unoffendable? That was quite a stretch to even contemplate.

Yet, when we look at the life of Jesus, we see that even though he had so many opportunities to take offense and respond with hurt, he never did. He was able to respond with love. He freely forgave with no difficulty.

It was as though Jesus was wearing an offense-repellant. When the offense came flying toward him, it simply bounced off him. The offense didn’t even have a chance to enter him and affect his spirit.

But, you protest, that was Jesus. Is it possible for you and me?

Do you recall this promise from Scripture? God says: “I will give you a new heart and put a new spirit within you; and I will remove the heart of stone from your flesh and give you a heart of flesh” (Ezek. 36:26).

As a citizen of the Kingdom, as a recipient of the New Covenant, we realize that God has given us a new heart already. And He has given us Holy Spirit.

Holy Spirit in a new heart helps us to become unoffendable. And stay that way.

Now you know why David prayed these words in Psalm 51: “Create in me a pure heart, O God, and renew a steadfast spirit within me. Do not cast me from your presence or take your Holy Spirit from me.”

As we conclude this week’s focus on experiencing At.One.Ment with one another, let this be your prayer as well.

True Confession time…I used to take offense quite readily, usually when someone levelled any kind of criticism at me or tried to offer correction, even gently.

Not only would I take offense, but I would also let the offense percolate within my spirit until it brewed into a dark substance that was not good for me or anyone else. (and I’m not talking coffee, catch my drift?)

All of that began to change when I heard my spiritual father Steve Long make this declaration at a Pastors’ gathering one day:

“Whenever I get angry at what someone says or does, I ask: ‘Holy Spirit, what is in me that made me react the way I did?’”

Frankly, I was taken aback by Steve’s admission. After all, I would always ask another question: “Father, what is inside of them that made them say/do what they did?”

Then I would plead for prophetic insight into their generational iniquity, their emotional disability or lack of spiritual sensitivity.

To put it bluntly, I would play the blame game.

Steve’s response turned the tables on me. It was a practical working out of obedience to Jesus’ words in Matthew 7:3-5: “Why do you look at the speck of sawdust in your brother’s eye and pay no attention to the plank in your own eye? How can you say to your brother, ‘Let me take the speck out of your eye,’ when all the time there is a plank in your own eye? You hypocrite, first take the plank out of your own eye, and then you will see clearly to remove the speck from your brother’s eye.”

Suffice it to say that I am not quite there where Steve has disciplined himself to be. I often fire a volley back (sometimes a backhand shot) before asking the crucial question of myself.

But, I must also admit that whenever I have asked Holy Spirit to take me to the root of what is producing the fruit of offense, He has always delivered and, in the process, delivered me from allowing that offense to grow into a bitter root…praise God!

Case in point. I got very upset at a group of people in a church business meeting over an issue. I was embarrassed by the charge levelled against me and felt helpless, as no one would come to my defense. My upset led to an angry outburst.

Before the meeting ended, I knew that there was something not right within me. When I asked Holy Spirit to take me to the root, He took me to an incident that happened in Grade 7 (40+ years back).

Our assignment in Science class was to draw a picture of the renal system and identify the various parts, etc. My teacher looked at my rendition, showed it to the whole class and said something like: “See, this Jeeva here. He is a very smart student, but he can’t draw worth a darn. Look at these kidneys. They look more like buttocks.”

Of course, the entire class erupted in derisive laughter. The entire class minus one.

As I recalled the incident, I began to re-live the pain. Once I forgave Mr. A for what he did that day, a peace came over me. I have noticed that I don’t react quite that vehemently anymore when criticized.

By the way, I have identified a quick way to diagnose whether you have offense in your system or not. Are you ready for it?

If you sense a need to offer a spirited defense of what you said/did, you may still be holding on to offense.

When that happens, would you follow the Long way to freedom? Just dare to ask why.

Right after Jesus talks about leaving your offering behind and being reconciled first with your brother/sister (Matthew 5:23-24), he says: “Settle matters QUICKLY with your adversary who is taking you to court.”

The Greek word “tachu” which is translated “quickly” carries a sense of urgency with it. Do it now. Without delay. Immediately.

One of the reasons why Jesus wants us to deal with offense right away is explained in Hebrews 12:14-15: “Make every effort to live in peace with everyone and to be holy; without holiness no one will see the Lord. See to it that no one falls short of the grace of God and that no bitter root grows up to cause trouble and defile many.”

He wants no bitter root to grow in us.

Has this ever happened in your garden? When you see a small weed sprouting up, if you remove it right away, it’s an easy task. Leave it in for any length of time, now you’re dealing with a deep root and it becomes quite a chore to pull it out.

When offense is left unattended in the soil of our hearts, it can turn into a bitter root that is not only difficult to remove, but it also ends up poisoning our spirit with bitterness.

Earlier this year, we released a DWOD which amplifies this truth. Would you kindly take 5 minutes to (re-) read it and follow the prescription given there to get rid of the bitter root?

It will go a long way toward helping you experience at.one.ment with one another.

At the recent Catch the Fire Conference in Toronto, my pastor friend Duncan Smith made the statement that is the title of this post.

Offense is seldom given and always taken.

It took me some time to digest…and when I did, it dawned on me how true it really was.

The Lord reminded me of a time when Sulojana and I were ministering prophetically to a roomful of people. After the meeting ended, one of the people who received ministry wanted to talk to me.

I was quite excited to talk to her, because the general consensus was that she got the “best” words that evening. They were incredibly uplifting, encouraging and edifying. At least that’s what I thought, until she started talking.

She said that even though the words were very good and resonated with her spirit, she felt that I had implied that she had not been progressing as much as she already had in her walk with the Lord. And that hurt her very, very much.

Sulojana, who had been watching the conversation between the two of us, came to me afterwards and wondered what it was all about. When I shared with her the feedback I had received, she was just as bewildered as I was.

Clearly, offense had been taken where no offense was meant.

Dear friend, this is a reality that you and I need to be aware of. Correction, we need to accept it as a fact of life.

Even when you do not intend to cause offense, there is always the very real possibility that someone will take offense and be hurt.

Even Jesus had to deal with it.

In John 6, we read that Jesus had just finished delivering these words: “Very truly I tell you, unless you eat the flesh of the Son of Man and drink his blood, you have no life in you. ⁵⁴ Whoever eats my flesh and drinks my blood has eternal life, and I will raise them up at the last day. ⁵⁵ For my flesh is real food and my blood is real drink. ⁵⁶ Whoever eats my flesh and drinks my blood remains in me, and I in them.”

Granted this is not the most easily understood teaching of Jesus. He goes on to say: “This is the bread that came down from heaven. Your ancestors ate manna and died, but whoever feeds on this bread will live forever.”

Upon hearing these words, we are told that some of his disciples (outside the circle of Twelve) took offense to them. They said: “This is a hard teaching. Who can accept it?” Aware that his disciples were grumbling about this, Jesus said to them, “Does this offend you?” (John 6:60-61)

Did Jesus intend to offend them? Obviously not! Yet, they took offense. Watch how he handles it.

He does not dwell on it. He does not retaliate. He does not defend Himself. He is saddened by it. Listen to these poignant words with which He addresses the chosen dozen: “You do not want to leave too, do you?”

Have you ever run into a similar situation? How did you handle it? If you got offended in return, perhaps now is the time to confess and ask forgiveness.

If you haven’t had to go through such an experience yet, I’ve got news for you. As long as you have family, as long as you have co-workers and neighbours, as long as you are part of a church…you will, sooner or later.

When it happens, don’t be shocked! Because, offense is seldom given and always taken.

Jesus would concur.