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Keep Fire Burning in Your Heart - Chasing Truth This morning as got up the words recorded in 1 Thessalonians 5:19-20 were on my mind, I knew this was the Holy Spirit nudging me to share on this. Do not quench the Spirit. Do not despise prophecies. 1 Thessalonians 5:19-20 What’s your plan to keep the fire of the Spirit burning within your heart?...

Over the past five years of my life, the Spirit has led me to follow Jesus in being a seed planted in John 12:24-26.
To remember I lived crucified in Christ as in Galatians 2:20 - not setting aside his grace by following myself.

The leading was clear, everything was back in the ground, on the cross and in the grave: specifically my ministry and leadership stuff. And only what Spirit raised up was to be in my future. And I wouldn't know its expressions until he brought them forth.
This left me with 'one thing' - Clinging to Jesus, to the 'one and only' and to the obedience of remaining - abiding in Him, in his saving blood, love, faith, peace and joy as everything and enough.

This is still his word - I was willing and eager in my spirit, but my flesh has found this impossible. But what is impossible for man is possible for God.
This being like a seed - lying down in (not with) Jesus as my green pasture and still waters is what Holy Spirit is working into my soul, deeper and deeper.
And he won't let me go, and I am willing.
And it's about everything, first me and then me and my life in the world and then my ministry.
As I'm in a role to lead (not a leader, there's only one Lord/leader for every believer, Jesus by Holy Spirit. I have an assignment in his body to help believers grow into this.)
In this role I'm like a seed, all is in the ground, and only as Spirit leads according to scripture can I offer anything.

I have been shocked at how similar to the Pharisee's I had become as a church leader, following my vision of Jesus and his church with zeal, fooling myself it was Spirit leading when it was my zeal and vision. I don't think I was alone.
I now don't need any more or other vision than Jesus and his vision for his church. Truly having a different vision has become a sin even an idol. I only want to serve one master, not two; and often our visions are offering people a second vision and master.

I've been convinced since mid 2019 the wineskin 'church' has been running with is 'old', and reflects first covenant, law, and flesh more than Jesus.

The new wineskin is not a form - it could have various forms- it's our being the fulfillment of Jesus commands and prayers for his believers by Holy Spirit and their willing joyful obedience.
It's consecration, laying our passions in the grave with Jesus, not pursuing them.
It's loving one another, it's unity of the Spirit, with each doing their part - it's not how we organise but how we trust God and treat people - it's led by how we love those the Spirit has put us amongst.
I could say much more from scripture, from Genesis to Revelation. Our following our traditions has dulled our hearing of God's word. When we are as a seed - with everything in the ground, in my case 38 years of being a church leader of the old wineskin, preceded by three years in theological college.

This consecration enables God to circumcise our hearts, we then hear Jesus and scripture by the Holy Spirit not our traditions. Note - God won't circumcise/sanctify the hearts of the unwilling. He will for the willing.

Blessings to you who have read to here. I'm wondering why I've said so much. It's for you - remember as you see more clearly it's only by Holy Spirit, don't turn to judging what Spirit is leading you to come out of. And let him work in you how to be in but not of an organisation called a 'church'. To give honour but not worship those in overseeing roles.

Love you all.

Read John 12:24-26, 13:34-35, and John 17: is what Jesus says here the consuming desire of most of our 'churches'?
Not a distant hope but that which we look into, talk about, and practice at, day after day.

The whisper of Jesus to my spirit.

Rest in me and my peace will fill you and keep you.
Your assignment does not take you out of our rest.
We are preparing your tomorrow, irregardless of what it looks like to you today.
Tomorrow is a day we have prepared for you to rest in us, to enjoy our presence, our salvation, and to do what we have prepared for you to do with us.

Message three on sanctification from John 17 :17-26.
So much more in this word sanctification, but this is it for now.
Remember, without sanctification no one see's God (Hebrews 12:14) And Jesus doesn't want this so he's praying to Father in heaven, sanctify those who believe in me so they will be with me in eternity. Remember, sanctification is the will and work of God for everyone; he sanctifies those willing to be sanctified.

Sanctification forms covenant // Paul Burton Jesus asks our Father in heaven to sanctify, to holy, his disciples. Is this the way he expects each disciple's faith to grow? And, for his 'church' to grow,...

Being Sanctified
John 17:13-19, Galatians 6:14, 1 Thessalonians 6:14

Is being sanctified in truth living not of this world?
How can you be sent somewhere until you are not of it?
Have we prayed asking out Father to sanctify us as Jesus prayed for us to be sanctified?
Is there a distinct separation between Jesus and the world?
How does this speak to the beginning points of believing and doing?

Being sanctified in truth is: living not of this world // Paul Burton Jesus asks our Father in heaven to sanctify, to holy, his disciples. Is this the way he expects each disciple's faith to grow? And, for his 'church' to grow,...

Sanctification thoughts:

Jesus is praying for all who believe in him to have complete unity with one another.
He says by this they will witness of him. He prays this in John 17.
What if the power of the Holy Spirit experienced on the Day of Pentecost is given so we who believe in and receive the Spirit of Jesus WILL experience and evidence the unity Jesus is praying for us to have.
What if this the testimony Jesus was referring to in Acts 1:8.
What if we aren't testimonies of Him and his new covenant in his blood apart from this unity.
What if this unity is what the Holy Spirit is working to achieve.
And, what if as we enter the unity of Jesus with Our Father and experience this unity between ourselves as fellow believers in Jesus - we might discover the Spirit flows out from us with a powerful effective fruitfulness beyond what we've previously known.
Maybe Jesus meant what he prayed in John 17.

https://youtube.com/live/lmBo435QlNI

Jesus and his prayer.
Father: Sanctify them by the truth; your word is truth. John 17:17

Maybe this is Jesus growth strategy for his followers individually and for his followers together as his church. Over past decade or three in many conferences and meetings whose stated purpose was extending Jesus work, I realised I've never heard a straight forward message on this verse or one of the many scriptures that say the same thing.

Because of this, in my ministry and others, many ways and traditions are practiced as if they were special and sacred, when they aren't - and potentially these practices are choking the word of God in many believers. We know this is true, because it's what Jesus says happens when we are not sanctified by our Father as he was.

With a lot of trepidation I am preaching a few messages on John 17:17. Maybe something in them will help you embrace what Jesus is praying for each of us in John 17:17. I'm not definitively telling you what sanctification means, or presenting a doctrine for you to understand, but speaking about is as I see it in scripture with hope the Holy Spirit will work it in the hearts of those who seek it.

Our sanctification in truth by our Father is the work of the blood of Jesus and the Holy Spirit. It will lead to our hearts speaking in ways by which Holy Spirit can bring others to faith (John 17:20). And it will produce the unity Jesus is praying for all who believe in him to enjoy.

Here is the first talk from awaken's gathering last Sunday.

The way of Jesus is sanctification // Paul Burton

New Covenant

Why God has formed a new covenant for us to enter?
A covenant in which his word is written in our hearts by the Holy Spirut. A covenant replacing the first covenant mediated by Moses in which word of God was written externally on stones and paper. Words we tried to keep by effort of our flesh.

Isaiah 40:6-8
"A voice says, “Cry!” And I said, “What shall I cry?” All flesh is grass, and all its beauty is like the flower of the field. The grass withers, the flower fades when the breath of the LORD blows on it; surely the people are grass. The grass withers, the flower fades, but the word of our God will stand forever."

Listen: When breath of God comes on flesh as it did in Acts 2 - it will wither and fade all our flesh works to be righteous worthy followers of Jesus: but it will cause the word of God Jesus Christ to stand forever, and to be fruitful.
If that word is what our hearts are holding. We can't cause the word to grow but we must receive and hold, or cling to Christ Jesus.

It seems it's time to post this again.

Something I wrote in October 2019. Paul B.

Who owns our church?

Recently I’ve been looking in on what God’s doing in Iran. He’s saving a nation and building his church. I’ve had to rely on the internet to see, so faith in those who reporting is part of this journey.
My heart is to see a move of God like this in New Zealand. I’ve been pursuing Jesus and his kingdom for over 40 years, and cannot ease off, put my feet up and take it easy while people in New Zealand miss out on Jesus. I also cannot keep doing the same old things for the same old results.
There’s been some good results, but for me the human effort compared to the results is too much. Much of the human effort is maintaining the institutions we call church with its systems, structures and buildings. I know we need this stuff, but my heart is to streamline, or minimise our stuff and maximise God’s stuff so we’re not worn out running institutions. You can do what you want. But I want more fruit for eternity than I’ve seen to this point. And I can’t do more of the same expecting to get a different result.
My question to God is: Can we have a disciple making movement in New Zealand similar to the one in Iran? Which is similar to China’s underground church. Which is similar to God’s movement through the people of New Zealand in 1830’s.
Do we need more persecution? For the existing 'seen church' in New Zealand to be more marginalised? Have we woken to the truth that lethargy and indifference are a greater threat than persecution and political marginalisation?
So I’m praying and asking God, can a dynamic disciple making movement flow through our existing church institutions in New Zealand? The answer is Yes; when we realise the Sunday meeting is not the measure of the church, because it’s not effective at making disciples. At least not anywhere I’ve seen.
A year ago I couldn’t imagine making some of these comments. God is putting his plough through my heart with his pruning and discipline. It’s been more thorough, harder and gone on for longer than I anticipated; and it’s all good.
As I ask the Holy Spirit about a dynamic disciple making movement within our existing church institutions, He said to me:

“A big block in the current wineskin of church is ownership. Who owns the people? You always want to attach my people, my living stones, to your institutions. To count them, control them, and own them and their gifts. They belong to one church, my body, not to you or your churches.
This must change, this must not be in the heart of my church. This frustrates my making disciples, and confuses who is leading, who is arranging the body, and who is to be obeyed.
Don’t take my place. Don’t arrange. Don’t lead people, you lead them to me. If I’m leading you and people are following, I’m leading them to follow. They are my followers not yours. Don’t teach obedience to yourself or your church institution. People are confused and torn apart from trying to obey two masters; me and my leaders. I lead people to gather and work with a leader, not to follow and obey a leader; know the difference.
The lost human spirit looks for flesh to obey, don’t give in to it; always lead people to follow and obey me. This is discipling.
My word creates the faith to obey. Your word does not. That’s why people get worn down in your churches, they’re obeying you not me, your word doesn’t ignite their Spirit and faith. My word does that creating the inner faith, love and power to obey.”

So, there we are. If we want to make disciples, we’ve got to be relentless about leading people to follow and obey Jesus. There is nothing on earth more important than this.
If we want to see a Holy Spirit fuelled dynamic disciple making movement, we need to give the church back to Jesus. It was never ours. We were never meant to be fascinated with our creativity. It seems to me that sometimes we’re more invested in our expression of church than in being disciples and bringing his kingdom. I mean to really give it back to Jesus, every person, tradition, our precious brand and culture, and every dollar. He may have different plans and priorities than us. He may scatter where we want to gather. He may raise into leadership the one we missed. He may give our money to a part of his church we don’t usually associate with. It’s his church. Remember, no institution we call church inherits his kingdom.
I’m quitting before I get into more trouble. I’m pray you will hear what the Spirit is saying not what I say. Know you are beloved of God and that’s enough!

Can we hear him in our stories?

John 15:26-27 "But when the Helper comes, whom I shall send to you from the Father, the Spirit of truth who proceeds from the Father, He will testify of Me. And you also will bear witness, because you have been with Me from the beginning."

What testifies of Jesus is a heart with a testimony of Jesus written in it by the Holy Spirit.

What we can build with our hands and money cannot testify of Jesus. It always testifies of us.

It seems that the world is looking at what we have built with our hands and gold and called 'The Church of Jesus', and is saying: Where is your God? We don't see God. Therefore, there must not be a God.
Our programs don't speak to hearts, our buildings and constitutions don't speak to hearts, only the testimony of our hearts speaks to other hearts. If we can build or produce it with our hands and money it cannot speak to hearts of people. And if we have trusted in what we can produce to extend God's grace to others we are in trouble, not only with people but with God.
Are we troubled by state of what we call 'the church'; are we troubled by the lostness of people.
God has one plan, worked through Jesus Christ. He testifies to our hearts, and then we testify. Our testimony is our life story. God invites us into his story, and writes it into our hearts, so our story becomes his story, and our testimony his testimony.

If I had endless money and skill and energy, I could not do more to bring God's grace to people than I can do with the testimony of the Holy Spirit. This was true for Jesus and is true for all people.

Let me show you what I can do! - Chasing Truth The premise behind this blog is that when we are doing what God has come to do we restrict his work. That this is indeed unbelief that needs pruning so faith can flourish with us.

My thought for this morning:

Disciples of Jesus who focus fully on loving and obeying Jesus:
Will gather and function as his 'church/body' in local areas, Why? Because Jesus is building his church and has sent the Holy Spirit and one of his roles or jobs is fitting us together as a portion of the functioning body of Christ on earth. They may give their gatherings a name, but they know they're following Jesus not making something of another name.

Disciples of Jesus who fully focus on loving and obeying him according to scripture by the working of the Holy Spirit will live on mission with him. As they mature in their love and obedience and working with the Holy Spirit within, they grow as testimonies of Jesus who prophesy or speak to 'others'. One of the first ways disciples testify of following Jesus is resting in his peace in their hearts in midst of trouble and trial.

Amen and Blessings
Add a comment if you affirm, have questions, or critique.

A prayer for those seeking more that what we currently see:

On your walls, O Jerusalem,
I have set watchmen;
all the day and all the night
they shall never be silent.
You who put the LORD in remembrance,
take no rest,
and give him no rest
until he establishes Jerusalem
and makes it a praise in the earth. Isaiah 62:6-7

Jesus is worthy! He loves and has redeemed by his blood and poured out his Spirit on all flesh.

This is what we are thinking about, and what we are praying.

I pray that the Holy Spirit who is here will be received into hearts and given freedom to work the redeeming blood in our hearts.
We are deeply concerned that for many the poured out Holy Spirit is at the edge of their consciousness waiting to enter their hearts and work the powerful saving delivering and healing that is in the blood of Jesus new covenant.

So, we speak to the Holy Spirit who is poured out on all flesh.
Lead us to Jesus, call us out of living unto ourselves, call us to come into the salvation that is now available for us in the blood of Jesus.
We ask you Holy Spirit to lead us and all people around us into profound relational encounter with Jesus. According to scripture, come upon us, reveal Jesus to our inner place, cause faith in God to come alive in our hearts, so we will believe in Jesus and follow him.
Holy Spirit as we believe in Jesus will you purify our hearts from all our unbelief. Sanctifying us with the word of God which is truth. Cleanse us from all our distraction and desire that clutters our hearts choking your life within us, leaving us barely alive as followers of Jesus, overwhelmed, weary and cautious of you whom we should trust the most.

Come again Holy Spirit to the many of us who have taken you for granted, claiming to have what we are not experiencing, while we quench you within our lives as we treat the word of our Father in heaven with contempt, by trusting our seen reality above his word.
Come Holy Spirit and convict us so you can cleanse us and comfort us and create us as newborn from heaven children of God in Christ Jesus. Hallelujah, Hallelujah, Amen!

Please Holy Spirit fulfil the word of God, pour the love of God into our hearts, freeing us from our enslavement to our flesh and the law, leading us into your place of peace and joy; and empowering us to love one another as Jesus loves us.
We have no rights, we deserve nothing from you, but we have the blood of Jesus which was shed for our redemption and invites us to come. So, we come, and we trust you to fulfil the word of God in our inner most heart and mind, creating in us the new heart and new spirit of Jesus Christ on Nazareth, according to your words in scripture.
Amen and Amine.

This message is on on John 13:34-35, it focuses on the new commandment within the new covenant.
Did you know that in the new covenant of Jesus Christ loving one another is light and easy. If you feel that loving one another is hard and heavy listening to this message may help you.

Following Jesus // John 13:34-38/Find the Love of Jesus and love him back // Paul Burton Jesus is the new covenant of God and he rings his disciples out of the shadow of Moses covenant of law into the light of the new covenant with this command, ...

Prayer for Personal Revival (3) - Chasing Truth July 25, 2023 Prayer for Personal Revival (3) “Only by Prayer” He replied, “This kind can come out only by prayer.” Mark 9:29 The context for this verse is the distressed boy who the disciples could not help. And when they asked Jesus why, he gave two answers that maybe are the same thing. I...

A few years ago there was a man seeking God, he studied scripture and theology for years, he was ordained by his church, he went as a missionary to the edge of his people's world.
Then he met God and something came alive in him. He referred to his experience as Romans 8:16.
So he began to preach scripture through the light of his experience.
Subsequently every organised church building became closed to him - he was banned from preaching.
He did not complain about or attack those who banned him. He continued to preach wherever people would listen. And he gathered those who sought more of God into 'societies', about 50,000 of them. He never sought to establish another institution called a church. The man banned by the church was John Wesley.
The 'church' slammed every door in his face but could not keep back the tide of Holy Spirit revival amongst people.

http://chasingtruth.nz/2023/07/17/prayer-for-personal-revival-2/

Prayer for Personal Revival (2) - Chasing Truth Good morning Wairua Tapu {Te Reo for Holy Spirit) I come to you this morning joyful in your salvation. I am humble, blessed, privileged and honoured that I am in Jesus, in his blood covenant. Jesus, thank you for inviting me to come into your faith and work. I have no right or claim to you; but you....

I'm struck by 1 Chronicles 20:12:
"We do not know what to do, but our eyes are on you."

In my experience, when I've not known what to do I can look alot of places before I sit with my eyes on Jesus.

I wonder what difference it would make if believers listened to Jesus with a desire to practice, to obey, as their one thing that is necessary.

What if we fixed our eyes on Jesus, not ourself, our feelings and opinions, not others - even the most prophetic amongst us, just Him.
I know he will speak into our 'inner self' so we can believe, and he will give grace to us through other believers. I could be that to you right now. But our posture is 'looking to him'. We see th
is all through scripture. Hebrews 12:2 comes to mind.
Right now this verse speaks directly to me - in my current situation there is a gap between what is in my heart for his grace to reach people and what I see. And I don't know what to do. I find sitting, looking and listening to Jesus with patience and stillness difficult. Sometimes he just takes his time in giving me things to do, I'm learning it's OK to relax and not be fully busy doing most of the time.

What we sometimes forget is we're working within his plan and he's working it all, and our part in his plan is just that, a part. It's not the beginning or end of anything.
It's deeply freeing and encouraging to know I can trust Jesus to be and do all scripture says. I don't take responsibility to be Jesus. He is the head of the body he is forming. I'm only responsible to be the part he's made me to be. And as that part I rely fully on him. I don't know what to do, but my eyes are on him.
Lastly, often when I think I don't know what to do, I do have things from Jesus to do. But I don't see how they make the difference I'm hoping for, so I complain that I don't know what to do. The Spirit says to my Spirit, yes you do, just do what I've shown you. You don't need to understand everything to be part of everything.

I will regular offer a prayer for personal revival. I hope they help awaken people's faith in God. These are results of my prayer, and offered with prayer; and in obedience to the Holy Spirit. If they are helpful feel free to share.

Today's Prayer and Confession

Good morning Holy Spirit
I come again this morning, just as I am. I come into Jesus blood shed for me, his blood that speaks a better word into my heart and mind. I listen and hear his love, his hope, his faith, his joy, and I am full.
As he rejoices over my coming to sit with him, I rejoice with him.
He is my light and my life, because my life really did begin when I was born from above as I believed in him.

Father, thankyou that as I believe in Jesus, you make me come alive in Christ as you make Christ alive in me. This mystery is beyond my comprehension, but it is my experience and has been for many years; and is my experience again this morning. In this experience and truth, I rest my soul.

Holy Father, I come praying, not my will but your will be so for my life. I come as a living sacrifice freely offered on the altar of your cross. I am like Issac offered up by Abraham, fully surrendered to live by faith in you.

Holy Spirit fill me again this morning and continue to form Christ in me. Thankyou Holy breath of God that right now you are breathing the full life of the eternal one true God into my heart and soul.

Thank you that you are working to sanctify me according to scripture. This sanctification of my soul is so good. It is deeper than information. You take what I know in my mind and form it in me as my truth. And it is good all the time and everywhere.

Amen

NB. John 1:1-14 would be a useful reading to meditate on alongside this prayer, noting Jesus the word makes everything including our faith in Him.

Jesus
How do we follow Jesus continually looking at our own reflection?

http://chasingtruth.nz/2023/07/03/all-christians-are-made-by-god/

All Christians Are Made by God - Chasing Truth Many christians get stuck because they are trying to make themselves better. We can't make ourselves a better christian or grow faith, christian's are made by God. Faith is made by God.

A new post.

Lost. Where can we find truth? - Chasing Truth Lost in the bush A group of six friends plan a hike in the bush. They enjoy being together and head into the bush for a great adventure. After a while they get lost in the bush. The sun is shining, but they are in the dark, they don’t know where they are, how they got there, or the way out

Is the task of disciple making diametrically opposed to the task of keeping a crowd together?

Prayer is not asking God to fix everything for us.
Prayer is asking God to fix us to be his testimony in everything.

Morena
This morning a 'clarity' has grown in me.

Zechariah 2:1-5

First the 'measuring' of God's city. Is this the measuring of our abiding in Jesus love for us and our expressing that love to one another?
Note Ephesians 3:18-19 - which should be read in context of at least Ephesians 3:10-4:16.
I'll mention two out of many jewels in these verses. 1)Verse 14's 'for this reason' probably includes to make God's plan for his church to make known his wisdom to ALL rulers and authorities as stated on Verse 10.
2)Verse 16 speaks for itself. Is the growth God measures, our loving one another as he loves us, and this is a love that does works.

Then consider a city without walls because of the multitude who inhabit it. We see this happening in our cities. I suggest the implication here is, people cannot build a wall to contain what God is doing, to contain the people he is gathering together.
We cannot build institutions to contain what God desires to do.
We cannot build governance systems to govern as an entity what God desires to build.
We cannot control the 'church' that Jesus is building.

Do we need to consider ways of being church that aren't about controlled entities? Our leadership style may not be controlling, but our default institutional way of being church is about control.

This is happening in some places where governments make building 'seen and controlled' institutions impossible.

Please consider and comment. I know there's more to this.

If this feels a bit cryptic and partial, that's on purpose. I'm seeking to add my little bit to what the Spirit is saying to his Ekklesia's.

For all who are led by the Spirit of God are sons of God. Romans 8:14

Should believers have a better relationship with Holy Spirit than with each other, any other, and any institution called 'church' or anything else?

An important lesson.

Number 20:12 is speaking to the heart and essence of being a leader in the 'church' of Jesus.

There's a lesson in this verse and story that is true today. It reveals an aspect of God's expectations towards those who lead his people that cannot be avoided. There is a reason God would not permit Moses to lead his people into the life he had promised, and it's about obedience - and what that obedience testifies of.

Even Jesus learned obedience, Hebrews 5:8, this is vital, because Jesus could not lead us into obedience without first learning and living obedience that testified trust in Our Father alone.

From what I see of church leadership, we're mostly missing the lesson and truth in this verse, and in Jesus himself. That my personal walk in obedience in Christ, is the beginning and end of all my leadership in his church, as it was for Moses.

That tested obedience, trusting God without requiring him to explain himself to us, or answering our questions, or satisfying our souls demand to understand. No, an obedience that denies our soul has a right to understand and have a warm fuzzy feeling before we say yes to obeying God.

The faith that says yes to obedience before it knows the outcome is evidence of a pure heart, and that purity is simply a heart filled with a single trust and love for Jesus Christ of Nazareth. It's the one thing that is necessary.

What if the normal leadership expectation in the church, was the evidence of faith in God seen in tested obedience? Not for success or reward, not for the praise of men, not for any gain in this world; but just because we love him and are saved by him.

I'm hoping to not spell this out to clearly, but to leave room for you to pursue God in this for yourself.

I'm posting this to be obedient, to be a watchman.

Who are we fat with?

Fat with the Holy Spirit Strengthened in our inner-me by the Holy Spirit // Paul Burton Awaken City Church exists to see the Hutt Valley and beyond saturated in the love and hope of Jesus, one transformed life at a time.Website: www.awakencitych...