Something Flesh and Blood Can’t Reveal

1991

In Mark 3, Jesus called those seated in the circle around Him, His family as opposed to his father, mother, brothers and sisters. He said, “This is my family. They are characterized by the fact that they are obedient. They want to obey God.” They want to be “doers” and not just “hearers” only, and so deceive themselves.

Well the nature of the church is that the house of God, the church, is the family of Jesus. It’s those seated in the circle around Him that want to obey Him and want to do the Father’s will. Those are His fathers, mothers, brothers and sisters. There’s no other definition of the church except fathers, mothers, brothers and sisters of Jesus. Therefore, we can’t call anything church that includes people that don’t really desire to do God’s will, i.e., they just want to believe some things and they want to sing, but they don’t really want to obey Him in their inner man. They choose not to obey Him. I’m not talking about weakness. They just choose not to make choices that honor Him and they continue in that and even defend that right. If that’s really their heart, they are not Jesus’ fathers, mothers, brothers, and sisters and, therefore, they are not ours either. They are not part of the church.

Consider also the parable of the ten virgins, which is also clear about the nature of the church. Jesus’ church is built on the rock of a revelation of Christ that flesh and blood can’t reveal and the gates of hell can’t withstand. The nature of the church requires a revelation of Jesus that flesh and blood can’t reveal. The devil can’t withstand the attack of those that have a revelation from heaven. This is very much in keeping with the parable of the ten virgins.

There are some people that want to do the right thing; they are virgins after all. They are in the right place. They are looking for the wedding feast. They want to be part of Jesus’ party. They are seeking Jesus. They have all those things about them that seem right and good totally acceptable. In fact, most churches would accept all of those ten virgins because they are in the right place, speaking the right thing. And, they are virgins after all. But Jesus said it isn’t like that. The only people that can come in are those that have the oil of life, the oil of the Holy Spirit.

We really have to trust the fact that the oil (revelation of Jesus) is what it is about, not just being in the right place at the right time, believing the right things and basically staying out of trouble (being a virgin). That is not what it is about. It’s the oil that is the issue. It’s the revelation that flesh and blood can’t reveal that is the issue. The same is true when we come up against a situation where a person does not want to obey God. They just find excuses and rationalize. They are not amongst the fathers, mothers, brothers and sisters of Jesus. If they don’t have the oil of the revelation of Jesus in their lives, it’s all natural; there’s nothing supernatural about it. (Behold all things are new, having tasted the powers of the coming age.) If it’s not that it’s not Christianity! It’s not the church and it’s not the church that the gates of hell cannot prevail against.

Can we share oil? Well Jesus said no. It seems so unkind to not share the oil. But the fact is that you either have it or you don’t. Jesus taught that some will be seeing but never perceiving. It’s tough. It’s difficult.

•  Ten Virgins