Do You Know of What You Are Made

DO YOU KNOW OF WHAT YOU ARE MADE? But he . . . said, Ye know not WHAT MANNER OF SPIRIT YE ARE OF. -- Luke 9:55 Fundamentalism and the Baptist world are presently perplexed and bewildered at the problems that exist among some of the most successful Baptist brethren. “Successful” church builders, soul winners, evangelists, pastors, and writers throughout the country are having serious problems. Why? They do not understand the human spirits that are involved nor do they even know their own spirits. The Success Spirit . . . he called his twelve disciples together and gave them POWER AND AUTHORITY . . . -- Luke 9:1 . . . whom say ye that I am? Peter ANSWERING said, The Christ of God . . . --Luke 9:20 The success syndrome is brother to the prosperity syndrome and gospel. If success is to be measured by which certain believers are judged, surely, the disciples were very “successful.” If power, authority, doctrine, and having the answers, which others do not possess to some degree or another, are how we should measure, the apostles had power, authority, doctrine, and answers above all Israel. If being used by God is the measure of success, the apostles were being used above all Israel. Luke, chapter nine, is a record of the Lord’s handpicked. God’s best! Yet, they had some glaring, serious, spiritual problems, and they did not know the reason for their problems. Such ignorance, combined with such success, was a danger to them, to others, and to the cause of Christ. The fact remains, believers can have power, authority, doctrine, standards, possess answers, and success but still lack spirituality. For “the gifts and calling of God are without repentance” (Rom. 11:29). Every good and perfect gift cometh from above. The Spirit of Self . . . And the apostles . . . told him all that THEY HAD DONE. -- Luke 9:10 The apostles’ problem was being too full of “SELF,” boasting of the great things, which “THEY” had done. The human spirit loves to boast and be concerned about self. The more popular that one is, the more imminent the danger of thinking that great spiritual accomplishments are a result of oneself. God did not (and does not) get the proper glory/credit for giving us the power, gifts, and the authority. The human spirit, also, loves to skate or ride on past accomplishments. But what were they doing . . . now? The Spirit of Apathy and Unconcern . . . the twelve, and said . . . SEND the multitude AWAY . . . -- Luke 9:12 It is a trait of the human spirit to perform acts of charity toward others in order to get something out of it. The disciples exhibited apathy, lack of concern, and compassion, because of what they were made. Because of their human spirits which had been lifted up by the attention and the crowds. But, now, they no longer needed the crowds, for they perceived that the crowd had needs. Send them away! Some hirelings work the crowds, use them for their own ends, and then send them away, after the “hirelings’” ends are met. The Spirit of Slumber . . . they . . . were heavy with SLEEP . . . --Luke 9:32 The human spirit is weak and faints easily and is hard to keep interested in spiritual things. It is prone to wander and grows weary of spiritual things and falls asleep. The apostles, to say something for them, had not yet received the Holy Spirit. But if they had received Him, they still would have been prone to spiritual wandering and slumber, depending on how much of themselves were given over to Him. The Spirit of Monuments and Tradition . . . Peter said unto Jesus, Master, it is good for us to be here: and LET US MAKE three tabernacles; one for thee, and one for Moses, and one for Elias. --Luke 9:33 Who is Paul? Who is Apollos? Who is Spurgeon? Who are our denominational founders and leaders? Who are those, who have been involved in great things in time past and are now skating on those accomplishments, and we will never know it? The human spirit seeks to build monuments to great men’s words and deeds. First a man, then a monument, then a movement, then a machine, then a man-made tradition, which does away with the word of God! This subtle form of idolatry has infiltrated the best and greatest of movements. The Spirit of Faithlessness And I besought thy disciples to cast him out; and THEY COULD NOT. And Jesus answering said, O faithless and perverse generation . . . -- Luke 9:40, 41 Despite their past accomplishments, the disciples betrayed their present faithlessness and perverseness by their ineffectiveness by what they were unable to do. We need to take a hard look—not at that which we are able to do—but to that which we are unable to do . . . and the reason for why we are unable. The Spirit of Ignorance But they UNDERSTOOD NOT this saying, and it was hid from them, that they PERCEIVED IT NOT . . . -- Luke 9:45 The human spirit is prone to spiritual ignorance, and the disciples were no exception. There was a time when Baptist laymen could handle the cults and Protestant and Catholic clergymen, bombarding them with scripture, line upon line, precept upon precept. That time has passed. Now, it is a task to get a minority to merely understand and perceive the scriptures. And to attempt to do that, you must spoon feed them, only to find them running to a bigger spoon-feeder. The Spirit of Ambition Then there arose a reasoning among them, which of them should be GREATEST. -- Luke 9:46 The brethren no longer REASON, who is the greatest. Just read their local advertisements, church bulletins, and denominational periodicals and listen to their tapes. There, you will find them declaring “how great THEY art.” Very near to them, you will also find the denominational bootlickers, who desire to get in on that greatness, catering to every whim of these prima donnas. The human spirit loves greatness. Whether the sermon on the mount belongs to our dispensation or not (and we favor that it is), the human spirit has no place for its unbelievable humility, self denial, and demands. Denominational and Ecclesiastical Spirits And John . . . said, Master, we saw one casting out devils in thy name; and WE FORBAD HIM, because he followeth NOT WITH US . . . -- Luke 9:49-50 The human spirit loves authority and loves to Lord over others and tell them what to do and not do. The Diotrephes are in our churches, associations, conventions, denominations, and fellowships, wherever they can get a hold on the political levers. They are the kind that demands that you run to Lexington, KY for baptism and authority. It is they, who try to dictate, who you will have or who you will not have for meetings, what missionaries you will support, what schools your young people will go, with what churches you will fellowship. It is also true that the human spirit is easily politically pressured, into submission, by anyone, who has or even appears to have some power or authority. The Spirit of Vindictiveness And when his disciples James and John saw this, they said, Lord, wilt thou that we COMMAND FIRE TO COME DOWN from heaven, and CONSUME THEM, even as Elias did? But he turned, and rebuked them, and said, Ye know not WHAT MANNER OF SPIRIT YE ARE OF. For the Son of man is not come to destroy men’s lives, but to save them. And they went to another village. --Luke 9:54-56 These two Baptist “Sons of Thunder” exhibited some Roman Catholic tendencies. They were willing to use their power and authority, to call down fire, from heaven, to destroy a whole village, simply because the village folks did not get excited over Jesus and the disciples. Their modern day counterparts are around today. Their human spirits cannot stand to be rejected, disagreed with, or disbelieved. That spirit would rather destroy men’s lives than save them, over the slightest insult or rebuff. All this in one chapter of scripture (Luke 9). So goes the manner of spirit, of which YOU are made. But Brother Evans, have you not had the same problems? Of course, more so, when I was younger, however. Nevertheless, the difference is that I know and realize now what I am made of; DO YOU?

-- by Herb Evans