The Man of God

The Man of God

I

There are many believers who have the most confusing misconceptions concerning God’s salvation. In these last days many demonic doctrines have been propagated. 1 Tim. 4:1. Doctrines that cover up and corrupt God’s salvation buzz around our ears so that it is difficult to recognize many believers in the light of the Scriptures.

Here we want to speak about one of the most common of these doctrines, which is the teaching of an impersonal salvation.

Peter (together with John) said to the lame man in the temple: “Look at us! Silver and gold I do not have, but what I do have I give to you. In the name of Jesus Christ of Nazareth, rise up and walk.’ And he took him by the right hand and lifted him up.” Acts 3:1-7.

This is how the apostles conducted themselves, and we can learn from that.

In our days, when an “impersonal” person is supposed to be highly spiritual, the sick man would presumably have been treated in the following fashion: “You must definitely not look at us; you must not look at man; you must only look at God. I have nothing to give you, but God does. It would be useless for me to take your hand and raise you up—only God can do that.”

This last way of doing things appears to be much nicer and more humble than the way the apostles did it. The apostles put their own person forward, but the latter put themselves aside and let God come to the fore. Doesn’t that appear to be nice; doesn’t that look holy? Isn’t there a great salvation in being nothing, in vanishing altogether?

The apostles did not feign to be so humble that they put themselves aside, but they stepped forward as men who were saved; and since they knew what they were, and what they possessed by faith in Christ, they could—without boasting—stand up and say, “Look at us!”

When a person is being saved, he is born again. He is being saved from sin and the power of Satan. As a born-again person he has entered the kingdom of light in order to become a distinctive individual.

The apostles were ambassadors for Christ as though God Himself spoke and acted through them. 2 Cor. 5:20. Therefore they could say, “Look at us!”

They did not—by appearing to be humble—reduce God’s salvation to the point that there was almost nothing left of them.

Look at Peter and John. They were powerful figures who spoke and acted in such a way that people could both see it and take note of it.

They did not reduce themselves to zeroes. The modern preaching speaks of a salvation that makes people appear to be almost nothing more than thin air.

God does not reduce us to a mindless machine, or to a “channel,” or to whatever else people love to call themselves. He makes us into

The Man of God

so that we can be complete and thoroughly equipped for every good work. 2 Tim. 3:17.

Satan corrupts just as much by adding as he does by taking away. He likes to improve on the truth, but it ends up as a lie. He makes salvation so far-reaching that one is supposed to be saved from both abilities and gifts which God has given us. To be saved from sin is not sufficient. He offers a far greater salvation! And so it all ends up in deception.

Peter and John said: “Look at us!” They recognized that the Word could be revealed in them, in the flesh. The Word became flesh in Christ; now the Word is to be flesh in us, His members.

John writes about the things which we have heard, which we have seen with our eyes, which we have looked upon, and our hands have handled, concerning the word of life. 1 John 1:2. The Word was manifested in the flesh; God’s power, God’s wisdom and love, etc., in Christ manifested in the flesh—in human beings!

The result will be people with authority from God.

The alternative is that one simply denies the Word manifested in the flesh. Every spirit that confesses Jesus Christ come in the flesh comes from God. 1 John 4:2.

Whenever someone is led astray by false doctrine, he is more or less led astray because he has departed from this one point: Christ manifested in the flesh.

What we hear is this: We are supposed to be nothing; we are supposed to be dust. Nevertheless, we should know one thing: that in me, that is, in my flesh, dwells nothing good. Therefore we must die to it to an increasing degree. But we should also know that we are also called to be the man of God who is equipped for every good work.

“We must simply be only channels,” they cry out.

Jesus once related a parable about the kingdom of God in which one man received five talents, another received two, and a third, one talent. The one who had received five talents went immediately and traded with them, gaining another five talents. Consider that man: he behaved like a responsible person who was a steward of God’s gifts. Does anyone believe that God gives several talents to a “channel” so this “channel” can be a steward over them? Perhaps the person who received the one talent wanted to be a channel: maybe he wanted to say to God, “You used the channel (me) so poorly, so here is Your talent.” God gets the blame. Another expression that people use is: “We cannot do anything; we must simply be a channel for God so He can use us.” The result is a piece of machinery that is decorated with Scripture verses. Love must compel us. God must work in us to will and to do, etc. However, after Paul had told the Philippians that God must work in them to will and to do, he said further: “Do all things without murmuring and doubting.” Was it God who was to do all things without murmuring and doubting through them? Not at all! The Philippians were to do all things without murmuring and doubting through Christ Jesus.

No one wants to take responsibility.

The usual teaching you hear is that God must do it through us. But the Bible teaches us that we must do it through Christ.

“We are more than conquerors through Him . . . .” Rom. 8:37. We are to put to death the deeds of the body by the Spirit. Rom. 8:13. See Hebrews 1:1.

The Bible places responsibility on people, but the modern teaching gives the responsibility back to God. Read Luke 12:47.

People also want to be a channel when they speak and when they pray. Jesus says, “The words that I speak to you I do not speak on My own authority; but the Father who dwells in Me does the works.” John 14:10.

The Father, who dwelt in Jesus, did His works in Him. He witnessed the Father’s work, which He both saw and heard and about which He spoke.

That is also the case when it pertains to us. Christ in us does the works within us. We witness it, and we testify to what we see of His great work in us.

God’s works stop in us. The Word becomes flesh in us. Then we can proclaim words of life.

A woman who was a believer wanted to be such a channel when she prayed. First, she put her understanding aside; then her will, and then her memory; but she did not put her feelings aside. Perhaps they were supposed to be the channel? But the whole thing ended up in some incoherent expressions that came to her on the spur of the moment. How can a channel thank God for all His deeds on its behalf? In that case God would have to stand on one end of the channel and thank Himself. Remember, remember! That is a biblical expression!

Paul wrote to Timothy: “You have followed my doctrine, manner of life, purpose . . . .” 2 Tim. 3:10. Can a channel follow a teaching, manner of life, a purpose? Not at all! But Timothy, “the man of God,” could. Having a purpose with something is a characteristic of God, and we are to partake of His nature. Therefore it must also become a characteristic in our life.

When “the man of God” performs good works, it is usually called “bondage” by those who shout, “We cannot do anything; God must do it!” These doctrines can result in desperate expressions, such as this very common one: “Dear God, may You be allowed to use me.”

II

Just as people make themselves out to be nothing, so the same false teachings affect others—they affect the church of God—and are the cause of the most desperate conditions. They tear down love, reverence, and respect. The person himself is supposedly completely put out of action, and from now on, it is supposed to be only God. Again, this all sounds so very nice; but again one denies the Word manifested in the flesh.

“We must not look at people; we must not listen to people; we must go beyond people; we must be finished with people!”

“I have the Spirit and the Word” was the haughty reply of one sister. However, God has given to the church some shepherds, teachers, etc., so that the saints may be fully equipped for the work of ministry. Eph. 4:11. She did not want them. They were people. Or as someone said, “If a person has ever so many glorious experiences in God we must, nevertheless, go beyond people. We must receive directly from God; then it is certain; then there is nothing human about it.”

What shall we do with God’s witnesses? What shall we do with Peter, James, and John? The point is: They want to have the Word manifested directly in the Spirit, but they deny the Word manifested in the flesh.

Jesus puts it very aptly when He lets Abraham answer the rich man in hell: “If they do not hear Moses and the prophets, neither will they be persuaded though one rise from the dead.” Luke 16:31.

If they do not listen to what the members of the body of Christ are saying, then they will not listen to what the Spirit and the Word are saying either.

Why do they stand up and preach if we are not supposed to listen to people? Jesus says, “If they kept My word, they will keep yours also.” John 15:20.

Paul said to the Thessalonians: “When you received the word of God which you heard from us, you welcomed it not as the word of men, but as it is in truth, the word of God, which also effectively works in you who believe.” 1 Thess. 2:13.

Two believing sisters spoke with another sister for two hours, trying to help her. But when they left, she patted them on the shoulder, saying, “Of course you know that I do not allow myself to be convinced by people.”

The Scriptures say, “Behold, you despisers, marvel and perish.”

Jesus said, “Saul, Saul, why are you persecuting Me?” Paul said, “Who are You, Lord?” Jesus replied, “I am Jesus, whom you are persecuting . . . . Arise, and go into the city, and you will be told what you must do.” Acts 9:4, 6.

Saul met Jesus alone!

Now he could have had an excellent opportunity to say: “I shall look only to Jesus; I shall listen only to Him; I will not be convinced by man!”

However, Jesus referred him to Ananias, a servant of the Lord and a disciple: the Word manifested in the flesh. The man Ananias laid his hands on him so he received his sight and was filled with the Holy Spirit, and he also told him how much he would have to suffer for the sake of Christ’s name.

Was Paul dissatisfied with what he received from Ananias, or was it of a lesser quality than what Jesus had done on the way? Was Paul too holy to receive the Word manifested in the flesh? Did Paul say, “I will not be convinced by people?” Not at all!

Wanting to have everything directly from God has the appearance of being very cautious; but when caution is from Satan, it will soon grow wings and fly away into utter corruption.

In the first instance, one does not want to listen to a person, even though his experiences may have been ever so glorious, because he may be wrong. Then this caution goes one step further. As someone said, “Now I have come so far that when I read an exhortation in the Word, that exhortation is of no help to me. I have to go to Jesus, to the center.” Doesn’t that sound pretty? Yet that person separates Christ and the Word which effectively works in those who believe.

Finally, one can be so cautious, as someone said: “I could feel that something had gone wrong in my heart. The risk of having Jesus in my heart is far too great, so now I have Him only at the Father’s right hand.” The same thing all over again: denial of the Word manifested in the flesh.

The law in God’s kingdom is that after we have been freed from people according to all the ways of the flesh, we are once again bound to people as members of Christ’s body. These members are to serve one another according to the gifts each one of them has received in particular; they are to exhort one another and stir one another up to good works.

What happens to fellowship if we are not supposed to listen to people? What happens to love and reverence? One establishes an individual kind of spirituality in opposition to the Word manifested in the flesh. Therefore we have noticed that many assemblies are suffering from a tremendous amount of strife. They certainly say that they want to receive only from God, but at the same time they break the laws God has given for His church here on earth. “What is Brother Olsen, Hansen, or Nilsen? We may go beyond them!” is their cry. Not at all! We must absolutely not go beyond these brothers. We shall esteem, honor, and appreciate them—their body, soul, and spirit, their entire person. They are necessary members of Christ’s body, especially for you, who have been deceived by Satan.

This impersonal salvation that is being proclaimed is the root cause of contempt for the other members. A person related the following at a conference. He had gone to a preacher seeking counsel, and this is the boastful reply he received from the “good leader”: “Don’t go to people, go to God.”

This freedom from the members of the body of Christ is thoroughly ungodly. One becomes self-sufficient. This is independence outside of Christ. Instead of God’s Spirit of confidence, one receives a spirit of doubt toward the Word manifested in the flesh, a spirit of suspicion that covers the whole realm of mutual understanding and unity. Instead of testing everything and retaining what is good, one doubts everything and retains nothing because one doubts and therefore cannot believe.

We would like to recommend to everyone to examine these things closely and sever all bonds with every spirit that denies the Word manifested in the flesh. This spirit causes pure hell in those assemblies where it is allowed to rule.

These hopeless doctrines are particularly current among the “free assemblies” all over the land. And we can see the results. Much more could be said concerning this matter, but a wise man will understand these pointers.

It saddens us to see that these false doctrines are so wide-spread. However, since we have nothing to lose, we intend to continue, by God’s grace, to fight for Christ manifested in the flesh, and a personal salvation.