Quote from Forum Archives on July 9, 2000, 7:34 pm

Posted by: lifeunlimited <lifeunlimited@...>

Standing Shoulder To Shoulder With You In The Trenches
As We fight The Good Fight

(A letter of Encouragement to People in
Vocational and Lay Ministry)

SHOULDER TO SHOULDER #130 ---- 7/10/00

TITLE: "Two Trees in The Garden" (Part One) ---- Intimate Fellowship or
Independent Self-Sufficiency?

My Dear Partner in Ministry:

Just as this letter, "Shoulder to Shoulder" implies, I count it a real
joy to know that you and I are standing, face to face in transparent
honesty over our joys and challenges, shoulder to shoulder in carrying
each others' loads, and back to back in the Kingdom's cause helping
protect each other from attacks from the rear and the flanks.

I trust you've had a good week. I have. Though it's been busy and the
weariness from our recent Balkans trip lingered on through much of the
week, Jo Ann and I finally had a chance to relax a bit and give our minds
a little rest and our bodies some much needed exercise through yard work
and other projects. The Lord reminds me often of how important it is for
God's servants to have some time to just do nothing. If Jesus needed to
rest, my friend, so do you and I.

"LINE IN THE SAND" CLEARLY SEEN:

My letter two weeks ago on "A Line In The Sand" must have hit home with
lots of people. I'm still getting responses, such as this one:

-------------------

"[In] . . . .your last two Shoulder to Shoulder writings. Both spoke to
me loud and clear. . . .

"We have become or are becoming what I call a business oriented church.
We brought in a church administrator . . . . . He immediately began
moving the church policies toward the latest business guru's techniques.
He even quotes management 'experts' . . . . in some of his presentations.

"He formulated a plan for 'restructuring the church'. . . . no one seems
to notice that most of this is counter to the teachings of the Bible. . .
. Our Pastor teaches that God equips the called He does not call the
equipped. But we are living the opposite . . . .

"It is my impression from the people I talk to . . . . that this is not
at all uncommon in the churches in this area. Our church is generally
social in nature rather than Spiritual in nature. Bob is this a trend in
the . . . . churches here in the State?????

"Thank you for Shoulder to Shoulder it often speaks to my heart. Could
you tell me are these Business oriented churches wide spread? Do you have
any suggestions??"

-----------------------

Because of this type of continued response, I'd like to address, over the
next two or three letters, the matter we are struggling with in today's
churches ---- namely the increasing movement toward treating the church
like a business, and developing it structurally to where most of its
resources are spent in maintenance, and there is little to show for it
apart from superflous frills and misleading statistics.

This has all coincided with a short series of messages I am preaching at
the church where I continue serving as interim pastor. Frankly, it has
been a very long time since I have experienced the attacks of confusion,
dullness, and intimidation that I have in the past two weeks ---- both in
my writing and in my preaching.

It is obvious that the subject is of significance to what God is doing in
our lives.

Why are some churches being operated more and more like a "business" than
a ministry? More like a complex organization than a living organism?
More like a corporation than the Body of Christ?

And ---- is it all that important in the first place? Does it really
make any difference?

I know of a church right now in my state that has been following a
general trend over the past two years of becoming more and more like the
church this brother described above, thinking that this is the solution
to their ineffectiveness in reaching people and retaining members.

They are trying to control their staff through intimidating restrictions
and narrow inflexible descriptions of their "jobs". They are turning
legitimate acts of ministry into standards of performance by which to
compare one another's spiritual levels. They are trying to increase
income by using and depending on manmade schemes, mechanisms, and
resources.

Where, my friend, did this trend begin? Where has the life and vitality
gone? Mere activity does not assume vitality. Monstrous structures and
systems do not guarantee effectiveness.

THE FUNDAMENTAL QUESTION:

A most troubling question right now to many people is that of how the
Church of the Lord Jesus Christ, born in the heart of God and established
by His Resurrected Son, arrived at the diluted and impotent state it
seems to be in, and what its ultimate end will be.

Great moves of God around the world not withstanding, the Church is far
away from the intended state Paul described in Ephesians 5 when he
characterized it as that bride of Christ Who "gave Himself up for her, so
that He might sanctify her, having cleansed her by the washing of water
with the word, that He might present to Himself the Church in all her
glory, having no spot or wrinkle or any such thing; but that she would be
holy and blameless." (Eph 5:25-27)

How has the Church of God's great affection become so immobile, inept,
and ineffective. What happened that changed her so? What does her
future hold?

Those are fundamental questions.

THE REAL ISSUE:

Even as I write at this moment, my heart is heavy over what I see
happening. I find no simple explanation. There remains, after all these
years, an ongoing tension between what I was taught in graduate training
in administration and management on the one hand, and what my heart tells
me. I see the value and importance of good training and well organized
structures and systems. I understand the need for standards and
guidelines.

Yet, something inside me keeps saying there is a major problem in the
life of the Church today.

And, it's important to remember there are ditches on both sides of the
road. One one side you have the highly structured performance based
approach that measures everything by numbers, and on the other you have
the totally spontaneous emotionally frenzied approach that has no
direction or sense of accountability other than doing what "feels good"
or was carried out "in the Spirit".

(Wallace Henley, former aide to President Reagan and editorial writer for
a large daily newspaper, deals with that contrast eloquently in his book,
"Form Or Frenzy".)

On the one hand you have a church being operated by and large without any
measure of grace, and on the other hand you have one functioning without
self discipline and responsibility.

So ---- what are we to do? With increasingly more pastors no longer
finding a ministry "slot" that clearly fits their calling and their
giftings, more and more church leaders taking their churches deeper into
the lifeless complexity of performance-based religion, and fewer and
fewer churches seeing any significant results, what is to be done?

Do you just join the crowd and follow along? Do you try harder? Do you
give up and simply play the game? Do you quit altogether and become a
church dropout?

Or ---- do you cry out to God for a fresh touch?

Maybe it's time to let Jesus be Lord of His Church again.

The real root of the issue, in my opinion, is the same as it was in the
Garden of Eden where this process all began.

The real issue is Independence. You can call it self rule, rebellion, or
any number of other words. But, the bottom line is that when man was
faced with a choice, he chose the wrong tree ---- and we've been
suffering the consequences of that fateful decision throughout human
history.

The biggest tragedy is that this great fall of humanity has carried
itself over into the one entity that holds the answer ---- The Church.

THE CHARACTER OF THE TWO TREES:

Because you know the story well, I won't belabor the point. I do,
however, want to paint the scene with some broad panoramic strokes that
will hopefully aid us to first understand the issue, second see what
God's ultimate intention is, and third learn how you and I need to
respond.

The truth of the matter is that, because of man's choice to be
independent from God, you and I were born with and have been driven by
that drive for control and self rule.

In Genesis 1:26 we find that God created man In His Image to be an
Expression of His Presence, In His Likeness to be an Extension of His
Purpose, and He gave him Dominion to be an Exhibition of His Power.

As part of the extraordinary setting in which man was then placed,
uniquely designed with the capacity of choice, God gave him only three
basic responsibilities ---- live in Fellowship with Him as an instrument
of praise and worship, carry out Divinely supervised stewardship of all
of God's creation, and draw his sustenance from the Tree of Life.

There was only one restriction ---- don't eat of the Tree of the
Knowledge of Good and Evil.

That was it ---- everything else was free, available, and accessible to
man. It was an ideal setting, perfect in every detail.

And so was man. No human being ever had such freedom, freshness, and
innocence as did the first human couple.

At the very center of their lives in the presence of God were the two
trees ---- always reminding them of their purpose for being, and always
providing them with the opportunity of choice. That opportunity was to
choose either Life in Abundance and Innocence, or Knowledge ---- with all
the repercussions found therein. Not just knowledge in general, but
knowledge of good and evil ---- Both good and evil. What a tempting
thought!

One tree was characterized by life lived revelationally in the presence
of God; the other was characterized by knowledge of both good and evil,
which would require of man continued learning, understanding, and even
wisdom ---- but void of divine revelation.

Drawing divine truth and revelation from the Tree of Life would mean
gaining understanding from within, uncontaminated by the outside world.
Choosing to feed from the Tree of the Knowledge of Good and Evil would
result in knowledge from outside, contaminated by a world system already
influenced by the Prince of this World and void of the teaching,
clarifying and revelatory influence of the Holy Spirit.

The Tree of the Knowledge of Good and Evil would give man "gnosis" ----
knowledge, though unclear and uncertain at best because it would be void
of understanding and wisdom. The Tree of Life, however, would give man
"eipgnosis" ---- full knowledge emanating from revelation and completed
with understanding and wisdom.

This is why, my friend, the world never understands the things of God
---- and neither do many believers. The carnal mind cannot understand
the things of the Spirit because they are spiritually discerned.

So, man was headed for a catastrophic turn of events ---- he was soon to
be doomed to the withdrawal of God's Spirit from his own, now dead, and
would be relegated to the life long drudgery of having to make decisions
based on both fact and fiction but usually absent of complete truth.

For the rest of his life he was going to now be responsible for his
actions and his attitudes. He could no longer focus only on Fellowship
with his Creator, but now he has to give burdensome attention to finding
ways to either get back in God's graces at most, or at least survive.

Life was soon to become just "daily" instead of a delight. He was headed
for a life of survival rather than a life of meaningful potential.

Even today you and I are faced with choices ---- choose Life and Liberty
in Christ, or choose the toilsome pathway of "ever learning but never
coming to the knowledge of the truth", trying to figure everything out,
and complicating our existence by constantly facing the challenge of
discerning what is good and what is evil, as relative and abstract as
they often seem to be. The Tree of the Knowledge of Good and Evil speaks
to specifics in generalities, usually peppered with innuendos,
preferences and opinions, while the Tree of Life speaks directly and
specifically in non debatable terms.

THE CONTENT OF THE TWO TREES:

Picture in your mind the two trees. They are made up of three simple
things ---- Root, Substance, and Fruit.

1. The Fruit. What is seen most easily, of course, is the Fruit. And,
since like begets like, you can expect the fruit of the Tree of Life to
be evidences of life at its best ---- love, joy, peace, long suffering,
gentleness, etc.

Likewise, you can expect the fruit of the Tree of the Knowledge of Good
and Evil to be an ongoing manifestation of standards, rules, and
regulations trying to interpret what is good and what is evil. Whether
it is government, the Church, or the personal life, we all live
influenced by the consequence of man's fateful bite into the fruit of
that tree.

If you want to know the truth of your personal life, check the fruit. If
you want to determine the veracity of your ministry, check the fruit. If
you want to know the true character of your church, check the fruit.
For, it is true that "by their fruit you shall know them". The bulk of
the fruit usually seen in churches today was clearly picked from the
wrong tree.

2. The Substance. Then, of course, there is the Substance. The
substance of any tree is its trunk, its branches, its leaves, its nature.
Both trees have substance ---- structure, health, diversity, adaptation
to seasons and circumstances, ability to endure weather changes, and so
forth.

And, of course, they have the driving energy that produces more fruit.
If the energy is the Spirit of God, then it gets eternal results that can
be measured only at the Throne of Grace. If not, then it gets temporal
results that will be measured in this life only, and will soon fade. And
those who do the measuring will never give it a fair assessment.

3. The Root. The thing that makes the difference, of course, is the
root ---- both for what is in it, and what it is in. Since the Tree of
Life has the very nature of God as its root, you can obviously expect
Divine life and fruit to be produced. Conversely, you can assume that
the Tree of the Knowledge of Good and Evil will ultimately produce only
that which condemns, brings a false sense of hope, and is destined to
die. It's part of its very nature. Death is part of its life.

4. The Soil. Sometimes we forget that the site in which the trees are
planted have a significant effect on the growth and fruitfulness of the
trees.

Though God obviously created them both, while the Tree of Life remained
planted in the soil of God's heart and nature, the Tree of the Knowledge
of Good and Evil was apparently transplanted into the kingdom of
darkness, nurtured and fostered by the Prince of this World himself.
Therefore the fruit was and will always be earthy at least and demonic at
most.

Take a look at the tree from which you are being nourished. What kind of
fruit do you see? What is the substance like? What is at the root?
Where have you planted it? From which tree does your ministry draw its
strength? From which tree does your church feed? What fruit do you see?

THE CONTRAST OF THE TWO TREES:

What would you think to be the contrast in between these trees? In other
words, why were they here and what did they represent?

I believe the answer can be summed up in two words ---- Intimacy and
Independence.

The Tree of Life, by its very nature and purpose, perpetrates Intimacy
with God. That's what is so unique about man as God's most prized of all
His creation ---- man was intended for intimate fellowship and worship.
Just as a diver cannot survive without oxygen, man cannot exist without
intimacy with God.

The Tree of the Knowledge of Good and Evil, on the other hand, exudes
Independence ---- just the opposite of intimacy. And that's what such
knowledge does. Take a look at the scientific world, and you'll find
that the vast majority of men and women in that field have little or no
regard for spiritual things. Why? Is it because of science?

No ---- it's because that's what knowledge does. Unless that knowledge
is sustained by the Word of God and energized by the revelation of the
Holy Spirit, it produces nothing more than statistics and facts ---- but
no life.

Now, to be certain, knowledge is very important to us. The Bible is
filled with references to its value. However, when that knowledge is man
centered, coming from external sources, and void of divine revelation, it
is "gnosis" at its best ---- just ordinary knowledge, brilliant though it
may appear.

But, when knowledge comes through divine revelation of the Holy Spirit to
man's spirit, it is "epignosis" ---- full and complete knowledge
accompanied by understanding and often capped off with wisdom. That's
why James told us to ask of God if we lacked wisdom with our knowledge.

So, the contrast between the two trees is as stark as night and day ----
Intimacy versus Independence. Worship versus Performance.

FINALLY:

This is a terrible place to quit, but I must do so. I will continue in
the next letter, when I share the Continuum of the Two Trees (how they
germinated and produced in succeeding generations up to our day), the
Characteristics of the Two Trees (how we can discern from which our
ministry and/or church may be drawing its energy), the Consequences of
the Two Trees (the fallout affecting us today), and the Conclusion for
the Two Trees (what will happen to them in the future).

Right now, friend, the important thing is for you and me to seek the face
of God and ask Him to show us clearly where our hearts truly are, and
where our churches are going as the source for their existence.

So, hard as it is, I must close.

If you are interested in information about America's history of
Independence, read on below my little "Hang In There" man. I've included
a couple very interesting articles since we just celebrated our
Independence Day last week.

In His Bond,

Bob Tolliver ---- (Rom 1:11-12)
Copyright July, 2000. All rights reserved.

We would love to hear from you ---- prayer requests, insights, etc. Feel
free to drop us a note at <[email protected]>.

If this letter has blessed you and you know of someone else who needs to
be encouraged, feel free to forward it in its entirety to all such people
you know.

If you would like a list of past issues which you could receive upon
request, just let us know. Write <[email protected]>.

__
/ |
(_/____)
/ ^ ^
{ (O) (O) }
------oOOO---------U--------OOOo------

Hang in there! I'm with you!

-------.ooooO--------------- Ooooo--------
( ) /
| | /
(_) (_)

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---------------------------

A FEW QUOTES FROM AMERICA'S BEGINNINGS

Because so many in other countries receive this letter, I try to avoid
too much emphasis on the United States per se. However, since last
Tuesday was the 224th birthday of our nation's Declaration of
Independence, I thought the following information, received from Ted Burr
and Christian Awake Ministries, was appropriate. Some of the quote were
new to me, and I'm most grateful to have them. I hope you find them and
the websites informative.

Following that list is also an article I received from numerous sources
regarding the fate of those 56 men who signed the Declaration of
Independence.

"It cannot be emphasized too strongly or too often that this great nation
was founded, not by religionists, but by Christians; not on religions,
but on the gospel of Jesus Christ."
Patrick Henry

"We have staked the whole future of America's civilization, not upon the
power of government, far from it. We have staked the future of all our
political institutions ...upon the capacity of each and all of us to
govern ourselves according to the Ten Commandments of God."
James Madison

"And can the liberties of a nation be thought secure when we have removed
their only firm basis - a conviction in the minds of people that these
liberties are the gift of God? That they are not to be violated but with
his wrath? Indeed I tremble for my country when I reflect that God is
just: that his justice cannot sleep forever."
Thomas Jefferson

"He who shall introduce into the public affairs the principles of
primitive Christianity will change the face of the world."
Benjamin Franklin

MORE QUOTES FROM AMERICA'S BEGINNINGS
www.chuckbaldwinlive.com/founding.html

LINKS TO OUR HISTORY

Go on a pilgrimage to INDEPENDENCE HALL HISTORIC PARK
www.nps.gov/inde/exindex.htm

View original DECLARATION OF INDEPENDENCE from National Archives
www.nara.gov/exhall/charters/declaration/decorig.jpg

Visit the INDEPENDENCE DAY EXHIBIT from the National Archives
www.nara.gov/exhall/charters/declaration/decmain.html

The article THE DECLARATION OF INDEPENDENCE: A HISTORY
www.nara.gov/exhall/charters/declaration/dechist.html

Visit THE CHARTERS OF FREEDOM at the National Archives
www.nara.gov/exhall/charters/charters.html

Visit BIOGRAPHICAL INDEX OF OUR FOUNDING FATHERS at National Archives
www.nara.gov/exhall/charters/constitution/confath.html

Take a Virtual Tour of BETSY ROSS'S HOUSE
www.ushistory.org/betsy/flaghome.html

Read our DOCUMENTS OF FREEDOM
www.ushistory.org/documents/index.html

Visit THE LIBERTY BELL Homepage
www.ushistory.org/libertybell/index.html

Visit the JOHN PHILLIP SOUSA Homepage
www.dws.org/sousa/

Promote America's CHRISTIAN HERITAGE WEEK
in your Church and Community
www.achw.org/

Reflect Upon Mary Kay Young's Poem - OLD GLORY
www.reasonfortheseason.com/patriotic/patriotic.html

Visit the AFA LEGISLATIVE ACTION CENTER
www.afa.net/Services/OGA/oga.html

Visit the Historical Documents From TownHall.com
www.townhall.com/documents/

News without the slanted (at times censored) dishonest liberal bias of
ABC, CBS, NBC, CNN, MSNBC, AP, UPI, Reuters, and liberal newspapers like:
The New York Times, The Washington Post, etc. Check out:
NewsMax ( www.newsmax.com/index.shtml ) ...
WorldNet Daily ( www.worldnetdaily.com/ ) ...

Don't think the news is slanted? Check out "Accuracy in Media" at:
www.aim.org/
"Coalition to End Media Bias" at:
www.egroups.com/group/cemb/fullinfo.html
"Media Research Center" at: www.mediaresearch.org/
or see links at www.aim.org/links/links.htm

PATRIOTS

Have you ever wondered what happened to the 56 men who signed the
Declaration of Independence?

Five signers were captured by the British as traitors, and tortured
before they died. Twelve had their homes ransacked and burned. Two
lost their sons serving in the Revolutionary Army; another had two sons
captured.

Nine of the 56 fought and died from wounds or hardships of the
Revolutionary War.

They signed and they pledged their lives, their fortunes, and their
sacred honor.

What kind of men were they?

Twenty-four were lawyers and jurists. Eleven were merchants, nine were
farmers and large plantation owners; men of means, well educated. But
they signed the Declaration of Independence knowing full well that the
penalty would be death if they were captured.

Carter Braxton of Virginia, a wealthy planter and trader, saw his ships
swept from the seas by the British Navy. He sold his home and properties
to pay his debts, and died in rags.

Thomas McKeam was so hounded by the British that he was forced to move
his family almost constantly. He served in the Congress without pay, and
his family was kept in hiding. His possessions were taken from him, and
poverty was his reward.

Vandals or soldiers looted the properties of Dillery, Hall, Clymer,
Walton, Gwinnett, Heyward, Ruttledge, and Middleton.

At the battle of Yorktown, Thomas Nelson Jr, noted that the British
General Cornwallis had taken over the Nelson home for his headquarters.
He quietly urged General George Washington to open fire. The home was
destroyed, and Nelson died bankrupt.

Francis Lewis had his home and properties destroyed. The enemy jailed
his wife, and she died within a few months.

John Hart was driven from his wife's bedside as she was dying. Their 13
children fled for their lives. His fields and his gristmill were laid to
waste. For more than a year he lived in forests and caves, returning
home to find his wife dead and his children vanished. A few weeks later
he died from exhaustion and a broken heart.

Norris and Livingston suffered similar fates.

Such were the stories and sacrifices of the American Revolution. These
were not wild-eyed, rabble rousing ruffians. They were soft-spoken men
of means and education. They had security, but they valued liberty more.
Standing tall, straight, and unwavering, they pledged: "For the support
of this declaration, with firm reliance on the protection of the divine
providence, we mutually pledge to each other, our lives, our fortunes,
and our sacred honor."