Be accurate – “Let your yes be yes, and your no be no” (Matthew 5:37)
Be agile and flexible – “I have become all things to all people, that by all means I might save some” (1 Corinthians 9:22)
Be an ambassador – “We are therefore Christ’s ambassadors, as though God were making his appeal through us” (2 Corinthians 5:20)
Be audacious – “The righteous are as bold as a lion” (Proverbs 28:1)
Be authentic – “Love must be sincere. Hate what is evil; cling to what is good” (Romans 12:9)
Be bold – “The wicked flee when no one pursues, but the righteous are bold as a lion” (Proverbs 28:1)
Be compassionate – “Be kind and compassionate to one another, forgiving each other, just as in Christ God forgave you” (Ephesians 4:32)
Be consistent – “Let your light shine before others, that they may see your good deeds and glorify your Father in heaven” (Matthew 5:16)
Be courageous – “Be strong and courageous. Do not be afraid; do not be discouraged, for the Lord your God will be with you wherever you go” (Joshua 1:9)
Be creative – “He has filled them with skill to do all kinds of work as engravers, designers, embroiderers in blue, purple and scarlet yarn and fine linen, and weavers—all of them skilled workers and designers” (Exodus 35:35)
Be discerning – “Test everything; hold fast what is good” (1 Thessalonians 5:21)
Be an example – “Set an example for the believers in speech, in conduct, in love, in faith, and in purity” (1 Timothy 4:12)
Be excellent – “Whatever you do, work at it with all your heart, as working for the Lord, not for human masters” (Colossians 3:23)
Be fair – “Do not pervert justice; do not show partiality to the poor or favoritism to the great, but judge your neighbor fairly” (Leviticus 19:15)
Be faithful – “Well done, good and faithful servant! You have been faithful with a few things; I will put you in charge of many things. Come and share your master’s happiness!” (Matthew 25:23)
Be forgiving – “Bear with each other and forgive one another if any of you has a grievance against someone. Forgive as the Lord forgave you” (Colossians 3:13)
Be focussed “Let your eyes look directly forward, and your gaze be straight before you. Ponder the path of your feet; then all your ways will be sure.” (Proverbs 4:25-26)
Be generous – “Whoever is generous to the poor lends to the Lord, and he will repay him for his deed” (Proverbs 19:17)
Be glad – “This is the day that the Lord has made; let us rejoice and be glad in it” (Psalm 118:24)
Be holy – “But as he who called you is holy, you also be holy in all your conduct, since it is written, ‘You shall be holy, for I am holy.'” (1 Peter 1:15-16)
Be honest – “Therefore each of you must put off falsehood and speak truthfully to your neighbor, for we are all members of one body” (Ephesians 4:25)
Be humble – “Humble yourselves before the Lord, and he will exalt you” (James 4:10)
Be industrious – “Whatever your hand finds to do, do it with all your might” (Ecclesiastes 9:10)
Be intelligent – “The heart of the discerning acquires knowledge, for the ears of the wise seek it out” (Proverbs 18:15)
Be innocent – “be wise in what is good, and simple concerning evil.” (Rom 16:19)
Be impartial – “My brothers, show no partiality as you hold the faith in our Lord Jesus Christ, (James 2:1-4)
Be joyful – “Rejoice always” (1 Thessalonians 5:16)
Belong – “So in Christ, we, though many, form one body, and each member belongs to all the others.” (Romans 12:5)
Be kind – “Be kind and compassionate to one another” (Ephesians 4:32)
Be mindful – “Set your minds on things above, not on earthly things” (Colossians 3:2)
Be noble – “Finally, brothers and sisters, whatever is true, whatever is noble, whatever is right, whatever is pure, whatever is lovely, whatever is admirable—if anything is excellent or praiseworthy—think about such things” (Philippians 4:8)
Be obedient – “If you love me, keep my commands” (John 14:15)
Be patient – “Be completely humble and gentle; be patient, bearing with one another in love” (Ephesians 4:2)
Be a peacemaker – “Blessed are the peacemakers, for they will be called children of God” (Matthew 5:9)
Be persistent – “Let us not become weary in doing good, for at the proper time we will reap a harvest if we do not give up” (Galatians 6:9)
Be prayerful – “Pray without ceasing.” (1 Thessalonians 5:17)
Be present – “Therefore do not worry about tomorrow, for tomorrow will worry about itself. Each day has enough trouble of its own.” (Matthew 6:34)
Be responsible – “For we are each responsible for our own conduct” (Galatians 6:5)
Be self-controlled – “For the grace of God has appeared that offers salvation to all people. It teaches us to say ‘No’ to ungodliness and worldly passions, and to live self-controlled, upright and godly lives in this present age” (Titus 2:11-12)
Be a servant – “Whoever wants to become great among you must be your servant” (Matthew 20:26)
Be shrewd – “I am sending you out like sheep among wolves. Therefore be as shrewd as snakes and as innocent as doves” (Matthew 10:16)
Be sincere – “Love must be sincere. Hate what is evil; cling to what is good” (Romans 12:9)
Be skillful – “Do you see someone skilled in their work? They will serve before kings; they will not serve before officials of low rank” (Proverbs 22:29)
Be thankful – “Give thanks in all circumstances; for this is God’s will for you in Christ Jesus” (1 Thessalonians 5:18)
Be wise – “The fear of the LORD is the beginning of wisdom, and knowledge of the Holy One is understanding” (Proverbs 9:10)
The world has never been more in danger of grave self-destruction!
THE DISMAL LACK OF MORAL EXEMPLARY LEADERS!
Recently I was called by the Executive Mayor of the Cederberg Municipality to request all the Spiritual Leaders in our community to take up their God Given Mandate as Custodians of the Moral Standards and Values of Society. Dr Ruben Richards, in his own words: “For the past three decades (since 1994), South Africa has been transitioning from the apartheid past into a democratic dispensation. Unfortunately, that transition remains bedevilled by challenges of significant proportions, which, if not fixed, can see our country plunged into literal and figurative (spiritual) darkness. As a predominantly Christian country, we are emotionally, economically, and spiritually traumatized by ongoing revelations of moral decay at all levels of society. We need our Spiritual Leaders!”[1]
In a world that often seems plagued by greed, laziness, and selfishness, the need for leaders with a strong moral compass is more critical than ever. South Africa, a country rich in diversity and cultural heritage, is no exception. As we navigate the challenges of the modern era, with the emergence of large language models powered by AI, the threat of undetectable fake news and fake information is imminent. The dark storm clouds of the immanent anti-Biblical Woke Culture War regarding critical race theory, gender identity, humanism, and freedom of sexual expression are looming much closer to home than we realize!
We are like sheep without a shepherd! Like a ship in a storm in search of a lighthouse!
In this tumultuous landscape, the need for leaders with a Christ-centred moral compass becomes increasingly imperative.
History is repeating itself!
Since 1994 four successive presidents: Nelson Mandela, Thabo Mbeki, Jacob Zuma, and Cyril Ramaphosa made pleas for a Moral Regeneration Strategy. The SA Government initiated and funded the Moral Regeneration movement, the Ethical Institute,Special Investigating Unit, Hawks (Directorate for Priority Crime Investigation); the National Prosecuting Authority; Zondo Commission (Commission of Inquiry into State Capture). These efforts are praiseworthy and absolutely necessary to safeguard our constitutional democracy, but Kwazi Dlamini succinctly proves in his article how Political interference disbanded the original, highly effective Scorpions, where ALL corruption was investigated[2].
Now 29 years later, the nation is still grappling with issues such as state capture and the devastating revelations of the Zondo Commission, implicating former President Zuma and President Ramaphosa! The latest book by former Eskom CEO Andre De Ruiter[3], exposes similar structural sin and corruption in the same way as Beyers Naude’s prophetic resistance against the Apartheid Government. Already De Ruyter’s book is outselling two previous best sellers: Jacques Pauw’s The President’s Keepers and Kyle Cowan’s Sabotage: Eskom Under Siege. It seems that the silent Majority of the South African Collective is growing increasingly impatient with corruption!
The Church’s Imperfect Example and Silence:
As I am writing this article, there are currently three news articles running in the Volksblad and Burger about the church’ dismal silence against systemic structural sin and corruption. Archbishop Thabo Makgoba of the The Anglican Church gave the following message on the first day of the NG Church in the Western Cape’s synod session: “Do not be silent for fear of being called racist.” The “new struggle” according to him is the struggle to regain the moral compass and our equality of opportunity. (1 June 2023 – Prof Kobus Lazanby, Heidelberg – Volkblad.)
The collapse of the South African social landscape forces every citizen to do its thing, as much as they can. But even greater demands are placed on civil institutions. Gift of the Givers, AfriForum, Solidarity and others bring their side, but where are the churches? What is going on with the churches in South Africa? Where is the protest in the Reformed tradition of the word? Where is the church’s voice? Where is the prophetic voice of the church that is supposed to proclaim God’s name, kingdom and will? (3 June 2023 – Article by Koos Marais, Silver Lakes – Die Burger)
‘The church’s voice is getting quieter and quieter’ Church leaders played a significant role in establishing democracy in South Africa. So why do we still live in a divided country? And, asks Marlene le Roux, where are today’s leaders? A heated debate evolved with more than 70 comments in the Burger (1 June 2023 – Die Burger)
The Church, traditionally seen as an exemplar, has faced its share of moral challenges.[4] Dr. Wim Dreyer from the Department of Church History and Church Polity, Faculty of Theology, University of Pretoria, sites Kinneman regarding the growing perception that the church cannot be trusted, lacks integrity, and has lost its original purpose.
According to Dr. Dreyer recent published literature, including empirical research, reveals a growing disillusionment with ecclesial practices and a disturbing picture of how churches could lose their way and become engrossed in things that bear little semblance to the life and teaching of Christ. Recurring themes are summarised as follows by Dreyer:
Institutionalism:
More traditional churches are perceived to be obsessed with their own survival and the maintenance of the institutional aspects of the church[5].
Materialism:
This trend can be seen in the prominence of mega-churches with elaborate facilities and affluent leaders, as well as the marketing of Christian products and services that cater to material desires. Additionally, there is a growing consumerist mentality within Western Christian culture, where individuals seek to attain and display material possessions as a means of demonstrating their faith and status within the community.[6]
Jesus consistently emphasized the importance of disregarding materialism and outward impressiveness. He taught that true value lies in spiritual and moral qualities rather than in the accumulation of worldly possessions or the pursuit of external appearances. In Matthew 6:19-21, Jesus states, “Do not store up for yourselves treasures on earth, where moths and vermin destroy, and where thieves break in and steal. But store up for yourselves treasures in heaven, where moths and vermin do not destroy, and where thieves do not break in and steal. For where your treasure is, there your heart will be also.” In Mark 8:36, Jesus highlights the insignificance of worldly gains compared to spiritual matters, saying, “What good is it for someone to gain the whole world, yet forfeit their soul?”
Sexual abuse:
Evidence of individuals in positions of religious authority who have been involved in sexual misconduct, revealing a disturbing trend of exploitation and betrayal of trust within religious communities. [7]
Fraudulent ministries:
‘Healing ministries’ proven to be fraudulent is quite common, with news headlines about preachers carried on thrones by their members, inciting their members to spray Doom on themselves to irradicate evil spirits. A quick search on the Internet shows close to a million postings on fraudulent healings. In some cases where patients stopped medical treatment, it led to their death. [8]
People have lost their trust in leaders and institutions:
From the perspective of the wonderful outcomes of the speed of trust, cited by Covey and Merrill we, as a civil society, have come to a complete halt.[9] There seems to be little trust anywhere. The culmination of five hundred years of self-determination at the cost of others through monopolies, racial and class divisions made us the most unequal but also most unstable society ever in history. This is the dark side of capitalism: Self-interest.[10] According to Pareto’s efficiency theory, if we do not balance self-interest with mutuality, we inevitably become an unstable unequal society and collapse on ourselves.[11] The ethical counterbalance of mutuality heals this vested-economic-selfish interest and makes it sustainable in the long term as proposed in Dr. Arno Van Niekers’s new book – The Inclusive Economy: Criteria, Principles And Ubuntu.
An additional result of self-interest and consequent mistrust in civil society and its formal agencies is that we begin to work in silos, sometimes even against each other, with little impact and hopelessly ineffective.[12]There seems to be no common deep-rooted singular purpose national cohesive narrative that connects all these silos. This low-outcome poor service delivery inefficiency throughout most sectors is the most significant contributor to broken trust in a nation.
The Social Fiber of society is disconnected:
The recent reports of international Banks going bankrupt and Mega Church Scandals exasperate the aftermath of Covid 19,s social disconnect, evidenced in the low-attendance-rate of involvement in civil organization meetings like School Boards, Business Chambers, and Police forums and a continual downward lower and lower voter turnout in elections.
The Conscious Leadership and Ethics summit hosted by the Mail & Guardian[13] shed light on the significance of conscience over compliance. Paul Polman, a prominent speaker at the summit, emphasized the importance of doing what is right rather than simply fulfilling the minimum requirements. He referred to society’s crisis due to greed, apathy, and selfishness, highlighting the urgent need for moral and cooperative leadership. This crisis demands leaders who prioritize ethical values and are willing to make principled choices.
Imtiaz Sooliman, the founder of Gift of the Givers, a primary Muslim-financed NGO, emphasized that conscious leadership is a spiritual pursuit. It involves aligning one’s soul with correct behaviour, fostering social cohesion, practicing compassion, and relinquishing ego and greed. True leaders uplift and support others, creating a society built on shared values and empathy.
Embracing Universal Morals:
The universal principles of morality are not exclusive to any specific religious or cultural group. A survey of 60 cultures worldwide revealed that certain moral rules consistently emerged, including helping one’s family and group, returning favours, showing bravery, respecting authority, fair resource distribution, and respecting others’ property.[14] These principles align with the teachings of Christ and provide a framework for ethical leadership.
The root of corruption is illicit means of financial security:
During the Mediation Foundation for Peace and Justice[15] conference at the Cape Castle for the restoration of land and the dignity of the people under the leadership of Alan Nelson, the 18th August 2018 keynote speaker Chief Justice Mogoeng Mogoeng, reminded participants that corruption is not only a government practice, the private sector has also been inundated by corruption scandals.[16] Corporate corruption, including deliberate bankruptcy, thin capitalization, illicit financial flows, transfer (mis)pricing, trade mispricing, jurisdiction shopping, and tax evasion.[17] Curruption Scandals that rocked SA lately is: Steinhoff, EOH, Tongaat Hulett to name a few.
Illicit Financial Flows (IFF) have several sources and channels which generally fall within three major categories: business-related activities (e.g. trade mis-invoicing); criminal activities (e.g. drug trade, human trafficking, illegal arms dealing, smuggling of contraband and tax evasion); and corruption and money laundering.
According to the Report of the High-Level Panel (HLP) on IFFs from Africa commissioned by the African Union (AU) and the United Nations Economic Commission for Africa (UNECA) Conference of Ministers of Finance, Planning and Economic Development (2015),[18] over the last 50 years, Africa has lost in excess of USD 1 trillion in IFFs. A recent report by the AU Commission[19] indicates that “estimates of these amounts hover between USD 50 and 80 billion annually and seem to be on an upward trajectory.[20]
Economics and ethics are inseparable:
Over and above the economic reality of the cost of wages Henry Hazlitt reveals that economics and ethics are, in fact, intimately related. Both are concerned with human action, human conduct, human decision, and human choice. There is hardly an ethical problem, without its economic aspect. Our daily ethical decisions are the main economic decisions, and nearly all our daily economic decisions have, in turn, an ethical aspect.[21]
Thus, there is a need for a Biblical Consensus on the tenets of redemptive entrepreneurship. This is what “ethical trade”[22] and the “International Christian Chamber of Commerce” institutions try to achieve, Christians do business ethically. Moreover, Christians should see their vocation as a redemptive cause! See https://trigaventures.org.
Dale Partridge explains in his book People Over Profit that short-term profit gain, at the cost of the people, eventually leads to long-term decline. History has proven that all lasting commerce is born from a dedication to high moral character, the highest quality, and high customer loyalty.[23]
Roche & Mayer started a collaborative research program between Oxford University and Mars to study the current capitalist system of increasing worldwide inequality, presenting a new model of ‘an economics of mutuality.’ We may soon need a new, more mutually beneficial, and complete form of capitalism that holistically optimizes value for all three inputs—the people, the planet, and financial capital—to reform the current system of financial capitalism that may one day collapse.[24]
Helmut Gollwitzer, a concerned pastor, theologian, and thinker known as a democratic socialist, debated that regardless of our Christian political biases, we need to strive toward a social togetherness – “perfect togetherness without any conflict.”[25] This local community togetherness and economic justice cannot be achieved politically, culturally, economically, or legislatively! This task lays at the Church community’s feet. To disciple the “ethos” where we reside and beyond. (Mat 28:19).
This means in practise: Every Church begins to focus on the own influence sphere and awaken people to the person of Jesus Christ!
What is God’s Heart for His Church – Book by Jan Oosthuizen
The Bible is implicit regarding its warnings about how not to earn a living:
Purposeless Toil (Prov. 23:4); lies (Prov. 21:6); charging interest to family members (Exo 22:25; Deut. 23:19); dishonest gain (Eze 22:13); ponzi & pyramid marketing schemes[26]; fraud, over-promise-under-deliver; slavery & oppression of the poor (Prov. 22:16); unjust scales (Prov. 11:1); quick-profit (Prov. 13:11); default on payments (Ps 37:21; Rom 13:7); passive income (2 Thes. 3:10); extortion & bribes (Luk. 3:14); violence (Prov. 1:19).
In the face of South Africa’s deepening moral crisis, there have been select voices such as Unashamedly Ethical Movement and Crown Financial Ministries who have emerged as beacons of hope. Unashamedly Ethical, a global movement, strives to transform society by taking a stand for ethics, values, and clean living.
The Foundation of our Christian Moral Code:
Jesus established the cornerstone of the Christian moral code. Love for God with all one’s heart, soul, and mind, and loving one’s neighbor as oneself are the foundational principles that promote empathy, compassion, and a sense of responsibility toward others.
Here are some specific examples of how Christ-centred leaders can make a difference in South Africa:
Human Rights vs. Human Wrongs:
We have chosen human rights at the cost of mutual, reciprocal responsibility.
We have chosen economic gains and profits at the cost of the people working for those profits.
We try to correct wrongs by laws and policies but ignore the intricate network of relationships involved.
We tried to silence the poor with grants and houses, but in the process, they were crying for friendship and inclusion.
We try to give more people work but regard them as objects and figures on growth charts, dehumanizing them.
Unions won CCMA cases but lost relationships, vital inherent provisions to the worker’s future.
Politicians win votes from a minority electorate, but did they build a nation?
Leaders lobby for votes where they should have built bridges.
Conclusion:
Alfred Tomatis, born into a musical family in France, initially aspired to be a performer like his opera-singer father. However, due to certain assessments, it was determined that he was not suitable for the stage. Consequently, Tomatis pursued a medical career, specializing in Ear, Nose, and Throat (ENT) practices.
During his medical practice, Tomatis’s father referred opera colleagues to him, seeking help for their vocal issues. Through his experience, Tomatis realized that traditional treatments were insufficient, and he also noticed a lack of research on the voice itself. This realization led him to develop a ground-breaking theory that connected vocal problems to hearing problems.
Tomatis’s core theory, “the voice does not produce what the ear does not hear,” became the foundation of his research and his unique methodology.
He found that opera singers had damaged the muscles in their middle ears, resulting in compromised hearing. Consequently, they would exert excessive effort to produce sounds in registers they could no longer perceive.
Could it thus be that one of the primary reasons why the CHURCH and a predominant number of South Africa’s citizenry have lost their moral compass is the result of not hearing and discerning the “small voice of the Holy Spirit” within themselves? Have we become deaf to the voice of God, because of the overwhelming noise of our times? Too many voices, opinions, information, social pressure, anxiety, fear, and personal ego have rendered us deaf to the gentle promptings of the Holy Spirit of God.
May we all be revived and awakened to the person and spirit of Jesus Christ, our spiritual true North!
Thankfully, as listed throughout this article, there is also evidence that some leaders and churches do hear, and are tuned into what the Spirit is saying!!
A follow-up article is thus also needed! The Listing of what the ones are doing who do HEAR and OBEY his call! Amen!
[1] Speech to implore Spiritual Leaders to take up the role of the Moral Custodians of the Community 30 May 2023. Dr Ruben Richards, Executive Mayor of Cederberg Municipality, and Leader of the first Resident Association participating in Local Elections – Cederberg Eerste.
[4] Dreyer, W., 2016, ‘Church, mission and ethics: Being church with integrity’, HTS Teologiese Studies/ Theological Studies 72(1), Art. #3163, 8 pages. htp:// dx.doi.org/10.4102/hts. v72i1.3163 and Kinnaman, D., 2007, unChrisian. What a new generaion really thinks about Chriianity, Baker Books, Grand Rapids, MI.
[5] Viola, F. & Barna, G., 2008, Pagan Chrisianity? Exploring the roots of our church pracises, Tyndale House Publishers, Carol Stream, IL.
[6] Rah, S.-C., 2009, The next evangelicalism. Freeing the church from Western cultural capivity, InterVarsity Press, Downers Grove, IL.
[7] Küng, H., 1968, The Church, Search Press, London.
[9] Covey, S. and Merrill, R., n.d. The speed of trust.
[10] James, Harvey & Rassekh, Farha. (2000). Smith, Friedman, and Self-Interest in Ethical Society. Business Ethics Quarterly. 10. 659-674. 10.2307/3857897.
[11] As understood by the Pareto Efficiency Principle: Pareto efficiency, named after the Italian economist and political scientist Vilfredo Pareto (1848-1923), is a major pillar of welfare economics.
[17] Bracking A qualitative reframing of private sector corruption Considerations from the natural resource sectors in South., 2020. Anti- Corruption Resource Centre U4, [online] August 2013 No 7(U4 Issue), p.2. Available at: <https://www.u4.no/publications/a-qualitative-reframing-of-private-sector-corruption-considerations-from-the-natural-resource-sectors-in-south-africa.pdf> [Accessed 13 August 2020].
The Tri-Sabbatical Jubilee of restoration for Mankind and the Earth fulfilled in Christ’s resurrection.
I am so grateful that throughout scripture we always see God having a plan, a better plan for doing things and living, a plumbline and a measure of living by which all of mankind can thrive if we will only listen and obey. We do not have to anxiously run around trying to make our own plans. “as His divine power has given to us all things that pertain to life and godliness.” (2 Pet 1:3).
From all over the world, we hear about the positive effect that global lockdown is having on the ecology. From cleaner air to liberated wildlife, coronavirus lockdowns across the world appear to have had a number of positive effects on the environment.[1]
Seeing the impact that rest has on nature and the environment made me think of the biblical Jubilee. The tri-sabbatical rest: The seventh day, the seventh year, and after seven cycles, the 49th year Jubilee is a divine rhythm instituted by God for the benefit of man and nature. God knows humankind, how work and profit can consume us, how we do not know when to stop and rest. The end result is; work gets a bad name and what is intended to be a blessing becomes a curse. The truth is; however, work is good for us. All mankind should work and earn a living through their skill and contribution to each other.
God’s intention and the reason why He instituted the Jubilee, was to build and heal a nation who were trapped in inhumane slavery for 400 years. Never again may people who were created in the image of God be treated as slaves.
Since the abolition of slavery, human rights, labour unions, and strict workplace codes of conduct, we do not see this kind of slavery anymore. It has been reduced to secret sweatshops and sex trafficking. Today the biggest form of slavery is how unequal our world has become, in a South Africa, the GINI poverty-wealth index is 63. 100 is a most unequal, 0 is a perfectly equal society. In RSA, 36% of the population lives on R36 per day. But more concerning is our high levels of debt. Fortunately, our country has strict lending criteria and credit rating measures. But with employment in the late thirties’ percentile, the coronavirus could not have come at a worse time.
People’s greatest fear in SA is not our health, the virus, or death. The greatest question in people’s mind is; ‘how are we going to survive financially?!’ Many people’s income has been affected by the lockdown. However, it is in times like this, where people are willing to take drastic measures, not because they want to, but because they have to. If the virus is making us focus on the essentials, what are the Biblical essentials where God would have us focus on. What is God’s blueprint for getting us out of this mess? How has mankind lost its way?
According to the Bible, poverty is a systematic problem of the heart. Poverty comes to those who are lazy or greedy. Poverty is man-made.
“Like slavery and apartheid, poverty is not natural. It is man-made, and it can be overcome and eradicated by the action of human beings.”
Nelson Mandela
When a part of the population has opulent wealth, but the other part knows abject poverty, then there is an error in the financial model. Over the last decade, many writers and economists have started speaking out regarding the growing inequality of the economy. For the first time in history, a University book written from Harvard Press became a best seller. Thomas Piketty, an economist and mathematician, revealed how the current profit-driven capitalist economy is no longer sustainable. Roche and Jakub try to heal capitalism with their more Biblical-based proposed economy of mutuality: Their hypothesis is going to become a reality sooner than they could ever have estimated because of the virus. Most sustainable businesses are the ones who integrate their investment in economic, human, social and environmental capital. [2]
The ultimate test of any religion, ideology or worldview is the benefits it ultimately brings to the poor, the marginalised and oppressed. If we say we are Christians, we have to take poverty seriously.
But long before modern economists came up with some clever solutions, for the great wealth-poverty gap, God had a solution. This solution may seem impossible to implement, yet it reveals the heart of God for mankind.
Jubilee was the Jewish declaration of war to never duplicate the inhumane system of the Egyptian pharaoh. It describes their battle of social justice for their people to keep them liberated, where each citizen remains the brother of the other, ensuring the future of the common whole. Remember, the poor person I ignore today can become tomorrow’s thief. When I purchase property that is returned after 49 years and I write off debtors after 7 years, I continue to remain in contact with my debtors to ensure they can make good on their promise in the given time. In so doing, society will not fall victim to accumulative debt. (Deut 15:1-5) The Jubilee created a society of givers, where greed-based capitalism created a society of debtors. Our biggest concern at this time is, how are we going to pay our debt?
Sabbath is a form of emancipation, release, quitting, letting go. I give and liberate my body with which I perform work, to rest. In so doing, I also give the ground and animals who produce for me, a time of rest. I do this in humble faith in God that ultimately He is my provider, not my body, nor the land that I farm.
For one day in the week, master and servant are equal. The servant does not serve his master, and he does not get served. Both are works of God’s creation created in His image who enjoy His grace with thankfulness. Therefore, Sabbath is a celebratory meal. The poor person saves during the week in order to at least enjoy fresh bread with butter, honey and salt; a king’s meal at Shabbat! The master is no longer in control of his servant’s body. During Jubilee, the master also surrenders his property. The principle of reviving the soil is to handle the ground in the same way as we would the human body; the crust of the earth is like the skin of the body, that must not be disturbed. Today, fresh produce has lost its nutritional value—I wonder if we could rest the soil for a year if the earth will not repair and restore the flavour and nutritional value of the fruit? Dr James Blignaut heads up the “restory” initiative to curb further land-people-degradation. [3] His restorative land movement publicise no-tillage, mulching, composting and rotation farming best practise.[4]
The biggest consequence of modern western capitalism is, its total disrespect for anything sacred. In modern capitalism nothing is considered holy, sacred, or spiritual. Pharaoh did not want to release the people to go and worship for three days. (Ex. 5:1-2). Pharaoh typifies the inhumane industrialist who needs to make profit at all costs. The pharaoh constructed bigger storehouses, to profit the gains when harvests are poor, and prices fluctuate. He turned Joseph’s divine storage solution during the 7th year drought into a system to gain people’s land who cannot pay and eventually making them his slaves. Owning land is dignity; it is God’s provision for every man to remain free. This is why the word Adam, and Adama stems from the same root word – earth. The pharaoh’s greed is how the wealthy Jewish families, who started off as recipients through Joseph of the best land (Gen 47:5) became landless slaves. Joseph instituted that one 5th of the produce be given to Pharoah (Gen 47:20-25), but eventually the pharaoh who did not know Joseph wanted it all. (Exo 1:8-11)
When God delivered His people, He wanted them to not think of themselves as slaves anymore. Through the Jubilee, each person become a type of Moses deliverer and kingly father that emancipates his people from slavery. One day a week, and each seventh-year people are freed from pyramid type hierarchies of positional imperialism and domination. Everybody gets delivered from systemic Egypt, the place of slavery. In the following verses, you can clearly see, God’s heart towards slaves.
And if one of your brethren who dwells by you becomes poor, and sells himself to you, you shall not compel him to serve as a slave. (Lev. 25:39)
For they are My servants, whom I brought out of the land of Egypt; they shall not be sold as slaves. You shall not rule over him with rigor, but you shall fear your God. (Lev. 25:42-43).
And you may take them as an inheritance for your children after you, to inherit them as a possession; they shall be your permanent slaves. But regarding your brethren, the children of Israel, you shall not rule over one another with rigor. (Lev 25:46)
He shall be with him as a yearly hired servant, and he shall not rule with rigor over him in your sight. (Lev. 25:53)
For years there has been criticism of the two monotheistic religions Jews and Christians, that we have ruled the earth and animals, at the expense of the earth and the ecology. Obviously, with the Jubilee, both the ground and the human being comes to rest. Both are important before God, and a provision for the other.
“You shall not pervert the judgment of your poor in his dispute. 7 Keep yourself far from a false matter; do not kill the innocent and righteous. For I will not justify the wicked. 8 And you shall take no bribe, for a bribe blinds the discerning and perverts the words of the righteous. 9 “Also you shall not oppress a stranger, for you know the heart of a stranger, because you were strangers in the land of Egypt. 10 “Six years you shall sow your land and gather in its produce, 11 but the seventh year you shall let it rest and lie fallow, that the poor of your people may eat; and what they leave, the beasts of the field may eat. In like manner you shall do with your vineyard and your olive grove. 12 Six days you shall do your work, and on the seventh day you shall rest, that your ox and your donkey may rest, and the son of your female servant and the stranger may be refreshed. Exodus 23:6–12.
“Speak to the children of Israel and say to them: ‘When you come into the land which I give you, then the land shall keep a sabbath to the Lord. 3 Six years you shall sow your field, and six years you shall prune your vineyard, and gather its fruit; 4 but in the seventh year there shall be a sabbath of solemn rest for the land, a sabbath to the Lord. You shall neither sow your field nor prune your vineyard. 5 What grows of its own accord of your harvest you shall not reap, nor gather the grapes of your untended vine, for it is a year of rest for the land. 6 And the sabbath produce of the land shall be food for you: for you, your male and female servants, your hired man, and the stranger who dwells with you.” (Leviticus 25:2–6)
He shall wave the sheaf before the Lord, to be accepted on your behalf; on the day after the Sabbath the priest shall wave it. (Leviticus 23:11)
The Sabbath rest literally means giving up control, releasing your grip, giving up your control.
The rhythm of rest is the rhythm of giving. We work hard and create tension; the tension then gets released like breathing through the tri-sabbatical Jubilee. God’s system is natural and mutually beneficial.
The highlight of the Jubilee is after 49 years, the ownership of the land is restored to the original owner (Lev 25: 23-28, 54). This giveaway prevents owners from becoming magnates and super moguls who gain more than they need. Through this act, we are all reminded that everyone is stewards of God’s land.
In Lev. 26:35 ground that did not rest due to disobedience will rest indeed in the time of punishment. 2 Chron. 36:21 explicitly connect Jeremiah’s figure of 70 to Lev. 26:34.35. “Those who survived the sword, God exiled to Babylon … in fulfilment of the word of Adonai spoken by Jeremiah’ until the land has repaid its Sabbaths, as long as it lay desolate it kept its Sabbath until seventy years were complete.” Then, in the Book of Daniel the 70 years became “seventy ‘weeks'” = 70 x 7 = 490 years. Only with the passage of that period would the sin that caused the exile to be fully expiated (Daniel 9:24). [5]
What is the connection between Jubilee and Good Friday, Easter and Jesus?
Jesus is Lord of the Sabbath. He is our tri-sabbatical rest.
“At that time Jesus went through the grainfields on the Sabbath. And His disciples were hungry, and began to pluck heads of grain and to eat. 2 And when the Pharisees saw it, they said to Him, “Look, Your disciples are doing what is not lawful to do on the Sabbath!” 3 But He said to them, “Have you not read what David did when he was hungry, he and those who were with him: 4 how he entered the house of God and ate the showbread which was not lawful for him to eat, nor for those who were with him, but only for the priests? 5 Or have you not read in the law that on the Sabbath the priests in the temple profane the Sabbath, and are blameless? 6 Yet I say to you that in this place there is One greater than the temple. 7 But if you had known what this means, ‘I desire mercy and not sacrifice,’ you would not have condemned the guiltless. 8 For the Son of Man is Lord [b]even of the Sabbath.” – Matthew 12:1-8
Christ Jesus’ death on the cross, His guidance, His sacrifice of obedience was the eternal, and greatest “reset” of all time! In Christ, everything and everyone in harmony with God and each other is reconciled.
For as in Adam all die, even so in Christ all shall be made alive. (I Cor. 15:22)
Now all things are of God, who has reconciled us to Himself through Jesus Christ, and has given us the ministry of reconciliation. (2 Cor. 5:18)
When Jesus stood up in his home-town and declared these words, He announced the rest, reset, restoration, liberty, healing that will manifest through believing in Him.
“The Spirit of the Lord is upon Me, because He has anointed Me to preach the gospel to the poor; He has sent Me to heal the brokenhearted, to proclaim liberty to the captives and recovery of sight to the blind, To set at liberty those who are oppressed; To proclaim the acceptable year of the Lord.” (Luke 4:18-29) On the great day of Pentecost, when the new covenant was sanctioned, a Spiritual Jubilee took place. Now all who believed were together, and had all things in common, and sold their possessions and goods, and divided them among all, as anyone had need. (Acts 2:44) It is our testimony that when people truly turn to God and become full of the Holy Spirit, they relinquish ownership of their own bodies and possessions.
The Advantages of Christ-centred Jubilee
§ Jubilee is a form of “reset” for your body, the soil, and society. Like a computer or mobile phone that “hangs” needs a hard reset at times. All of humanity needs to return to Jesus’ value system and guidelines, the measure of the best life to live. Being born again, and receiving His righteousness is supernatural “reset” of our being. (2 Cor 5:17)
§ In the Jubilee, both the working class and the master are equated, to give, and to place themselves under God’s rule. Jesus also gave His body to die on the cross to remove the middle wall of separation between slave and owner, and between race-superiority. (Eph 2:14-18)
§ Everyone should work, and everyone should rest. In the current Western capitalist model, people want to make enough money, have so-called passive income and stop working. Retirement is not a biblical concept. He who is loose and slack in his work is brother to him who is a destroyer and he who does not use his endeavors to heal himself is brother to him who commits suicide. (Proverbs 18:9 AMP) Let him who stole steal no longer, but rather let him labor, working with his hands what is good, that he may have something to give him who has need. (Eph 4:28)
A consumer-driven society becomes a creative, working, goodwill, benevolent driven society. Through the death and resurrection of Jesus Christ, God created a new social eco-system, called His body, bride and church where we take care of another. (Col 2:19; 3:15; Eph 1:22; 4:4; 5:30; Rom 12:5)
§ Both the soil and the human body can produce more optimally if we follow strict rest measures. We can only work harder, if we also maintain good rest! True rest is found in the rest of faith. (Rom 15:13)
§ The gap between rich and poor is drastically reduced, as we all take our responsibility of fraternity to one another seriously, to say, “I want to be my brother’s keeper.” The biggest systemic challenge of poverty is disconnection, exclusion, stigmatisation, distance in relationships. (1 John 3:17)
A government as a Welfare State is replaced by a social system of decentralised localised interdependence, co-accountability which morph-develop from the ground up. These Jubilee changes will not be implemented from the top-down by the State. It will be implemented at ground-zero, the most local level, where authentic existing Farther-type leaders are gathering a Christ-centred value-based, new order of Social Covenant and mutual trust.[6]
Our Agricultural Think Tank predicts that we will see Post-Covid19 a new form of financial collateral emerging: Currently, banks are only financing land value, and tradable shares. In the future, we will need to set up Development Banks, in order to see production as a collateral. Community banks, and community lending such as Stokvel will become mainstream. Communities will move closer with “social compacts” and “collaboratives”. We will see a new emphasis on localisation.[7]
What is the Heart of Jubilee? GIVE, GIVE, GIVE!
God gave His only begotten son (John 3:16).
As we give, we become free from fear!
As we open our hands, God is busy resetting us towards His purpose!
As we receive Christ individually and collectively, we will see a new social order, and subsequent new economy develops God’s way.
The biblical way to break through the uncertainty is to give up the fear of the future. Tobias and Dr Ruben Richards are currently leading an initiative whereby each Citrus producer in the OlifantsRiverValley will give a 10th of their local market earmarked oranges for the Western Cape Government to be part of the distribution of 50,000 food parcels a day for the winter season.
Beginning Tuesday, Wena Botha will be training the poor in Work4aLiving; to the community-led provision to 28 homeless people with a roof over their heads, daily meals. As a church, we are monitoring our people in the congregation’s situation, providing help through our apostolic fund so that everyone has food eat and is cared for.
In the weeks to come, we will give, even more, help and support, work for reconciliation, make peace, build bridges, the complete healing of the whole person. Because the Great Jubilee is abiding within us!
[1] Piketty, T. and Goldhammer, A., n.d. Capital In The Twenty-First Century.
Roche, B. and Jakub, J., n.d. Completing Capitalism.
[2] Piketty, T. and Goldhammer, A., n.d. Capital In The Twenty-First Century.
Roche, B. and Jakub, J., n.d. Completing Capitalism.
[5] The Triple Shabbat and its Implications for Poverty, Accumulation of Wealth, and Human Freedom. Noam Zion, Hartman Institute, No*******@gm***.com – excerpted from: Jewish Giving in Comparative Perspectives: History and Story, Law and Theology, Anthropology and Psychology. Book One: From Each According to One’s Ability: Duties to Poor People from the Bible to the Welfare State and Tikkun Olam.
Wat is die grondliggende motief wat ons dryf om te doen wat ons doen?
Ek wil voorstel dit is GENESING!
Michael Jr, die bekende komediant vertel hoe daar gesê word: “Gee ‘n man ‘n vis en jy het hom vir ‘n dag gevoed, leer ‘n man hoe om vis te vang en jy voed hom vir ‘n leeftyd” Volgens Michael is dit maar bra ingewikkeld, want dan moet jy ‘n visstok, lisensie, boot en plek met visse soek, om die man te leer. Wat daarvan as jy hom leer, waarom hy moet visvang, en hy maak dit sy werk om self te leer? Michael Jr se ‘waarom’ is om mense deur middel van humor te inspireer om hulle skeppingsdoel te leef. Vandat hy sy ‘waarom’ ontdek het, is dit ‘wat’ hy doen nie meer so belangrik nie, want dit vloei alles uit sy ‘waarom’ uit.[1]
Simon Sinek verduidelik ‘n eenvoudige, maar kragtige model vir hoe leiers optrede inspireer, aan die hand van ‘n goue sirkel en die vraag “waarom?” as die kernpunt. Sy voorbeelde sluit in Apple, Martin Luther King en die Wright-broers – en as ‘n kontrapunt Tivo, wat sukkel. Die goue sirkel se kern is, Waarom? Hoe? en dan Wat? Die bogenoemde 3 voorbeelde van sake ondernemings is individue wat hulleself bemark en dryf vanuit die kern “waarom”. Apple bemark hulleself altyd eerstens as innoveerders wat onder andere rekenaars vervaardig. Volgens Simon is die “waarom” ons dinge doen, die mees basiese bestanddeel wat ons na mekaar toe aantrek. Ons groepeer natuurlik rondom mense met die selfde “waarom”.[2]
Dit bring my by die kern vraag rakende ons gemeente: Waarom bestaan ons? Die antwoord het onverwags een dag in my gees op gekom, en skielik het alles in hulle plek geval. As aangenome valerige identiteitsoekende 13 jarige seun, was my soeke na aanvaarding. Met my ontmoeting met Jesus 35 jaar gelede, het Hy my op reis geneem om Sy identiteit te ontdek. Hoe meer ek Hom leer ken, en doen soos Hy lei, hoe meer ontdek ek my identiteit. Sedertdien het ek, genesing as persoon op soveel vlakke beleef, en myself begin beywer om die wêreld om my gesond te maak. Gesonde mense, verhoudings, gemeenskappe, werksplekke, en ekonomie.
In 1989 het ek Dr Andre Pelser gesien die “Miracle Man” een-man verhoogstuk opvoer van John G Lake se lewe. Ek was diep ontroer en geïnspireer om genesing vir die totale mens te soek. Bykans 10 Jaar later in 1998 het ek deel geword van Harvester, en al hoe meer begin sien hoe God mense volkome na gees, siel en liggaam genees. Jesus genees en herstel eerstens ons gebroke verhouding met God. Dan neem Hy ons op ‘n reis van self-verloëning, om ons gedagtes te vernuwe deur Sy Woord. Gevolglik hanteer ons mense anders, en leer Hy ons om met vrede met alle mense te lewe, sonder om te kompromeer. Deur onsself verantwoordbaar aan Sy familie-liggaam-gemeente te maak, word ons gedrag, en gewoontes hervorm. Uiteindelik vind ons elkeen ons funksie in die liggaam, en word ons Sy instrumente van genesing, terwyl hy nog steeds genesing in ons bly bewerk.
Vir ‘n paar jaar, het die Heilige Gees ons gelei om Jesus Christus ons visie en missie te maak. In 2019 het ons gefokus op ‘n ontwaking tot Sy geregtigheid. Stelselmatig het die Here ons dieper en dieper gelei om Sy groot “waarom” te ontdek. Jesus is ons fokus, maar waarom Jesus? Waarom het Jesus mens geword, vir ons sonde gesterf, opgestaan uit die dood en vir ons redding bewerk? Die antwoord is nou voor die hand-liggend.
Jesus wil ons genees, versoen, herstel, restoureer, hervorm en bevry om weer Sy skeppingsdoel voluit te kan leef.
‘n Boom is gemaak om smaakvolle vrugte te dra. So het God die mens geskape in Sy beeld om goddelike goeie vrug te dra. Sonde het ons misvorm, om verwoesting te saai. As gevolg van die mens se ongehoorsaamheid en misrekende identiteit het ons wêreld al hoe meer stukkend en gebroke geraak. Siekte, krankheid, ongesteldheid, onvolkomenheid, pyn, ongemak, en beperkings verhoed ons om Sy skeppingsdoel te kan uitleef. Ons uitroep is dus vir genesing! Ons is almal op soek na volhoubare, werklike, diepgaande, volkome genesing!
Siekte is ‘n obstruksie, inhibisie of beperking van ons natuurlike vermoëns. ‘n Gesonde baba het ‘n bepaalde funksionaliteit m.b.t. beweging, vermoëns, en intellek. Siekte of krankheid plaas ‘n beperking op hierdie funksionaliteit. Dis dalk hoekom, Jesus verklaar dat ons moet soos kinders word om die Koninkryk te beërwe. (Mark 10:15) ‘n Kind is onskuldig, reken geen wraak toe nie, is nie selfbewus nie, het nie vooraf opgestelde beoordeling van mense nie, het onvoorwaardelik lief, is ongekunsteld, het ‘n onversadigbare begeerte om nuwe dinge te leer en te ontdek. Hierdie is alles eienskappe wat ons met geestelike volwassenheid vergelyk. Ons kyk na ‘n nuutgebore baba, en noem hom of haar perfek!
Hoekom is ons siek? Wat maak ons siek?
Daar is al biblioteke vol geskryf oor die oorsake van siekte, ek noem net ‘n paar: Sommige siektes toestande is geneties of viriel oordraagbaar, en dus as gevolg van eksterne oorsake. Sielkundiges suggereer dat 85% van alle siektes ‘n emosionele, psigosomatiese oorsaak het. Lewenstyl keuses, in terme van dieet en oefening speel ook ‘n groot rol ten opsigte van ons algehele gesondheid. ‘n Misrekende identiteit, en gevolglike geloofsoortuigings, wat ons wêreldbeskouing vorm kan lei tot dramatiese beperkings. Dr Paul Carlin het na 20 jr se werk in die Texas gevangenis die “belief therapy” program ontwikkel, want volgens hom: “Mense doen wat hulle doen omdat hulle glo wat hulle glo”. Uiteindelik raak hierdie oortuigings ‘n godsdiens-tradisie, en ‘n kultuur wat mense vasgevang hou en inperk om nie hulle natuurlike potensiaal te bereik nie. Dink maar aan godsdienste, wat die rol van die vrou en die kind inperk en marginaliseer. Uiteindelik is sonde direkte ongehoorsaamheid aan die Woord en wil van God. God se Woord is soos ouerlike beskerming, leiding en rigting om ons te weerhou van seerkry, ongeluk en verdriet, maar die mens wil sy of haar eie koers inslaan, en self besluit wat reg of verkeerd is.
Tans beleef ons ‘n radikale inligting-revolusie. Daar vind 3.5 Biljoen Google soektogte per dag plaas. Omtrent 1,3 Biljoen mense is op YouTube geregistreer en word daar bykans 300 ure se videomateriaal per minuut gelaai. Die meeste van hierdie soektogte en inligting is gerig rondom gesondheid en self-verbetering. Daar is tans meer as 250000 toep applikasies beskikbaar om jou gesondheid te monitor. Nuwe slim horlosies meet allerhande aspekte van jou fisiese gesondheid: Slaap patrone, hartklop, bloeddruk, suikervlak, en hartritme inligting kan jou dokter help om ‘n baie meer akkurate diagnose te maak. Nuwe aanlyn webtuistes soos ‘Hello Dr” kan jou in ‘n oomblik in kontak bring met mediese professionele raad.[3]
Mense is dus gevolglik fisies gesonder. Mense leef in die algemeen langer! Maar is ons werklik gesond? Ons word van die een ding gesond gemaak, en oormore is ons weer siek van iets anders. Gesondheid is tog nie net bloot ‘n fisiese aspek nie. Ons word almal ouer, en dus funksioneer ons liggame nie meer optimaal nie. Wanneer jy met die versorgers in ouetehuise praat sal hulle jou gou sê: “Moeilike jongmense raak dramaties moeiliker ou-mense.” Gesondheid kan ook nie ‘n selfsugtige net-na-myself-kyk oorlewing wees nie. Gesonde mense, wil ook graag ander gesond maak.
Die totale mensewees bestaan uit:
Gees – Konneksie, bewussyn.
Emosies – Gevoelens.
Intellek – Denk Patrone, waardes, wêreldbeskouing.
Gedrag – Gewoontes.
Sosiale interaksie – Verhoudinge.
Liggaamlik – Fisiologies.
Identiteit – Eie-Ek.
In ons reis met Jesus het ons uitgevind, gesondheid is nie net die genesing van ‘n spesifieke fisiese siekte toestand nie, maar ‘n algehele omvattende gesonde lewenstyl van die totale mens.
Derduisende kure, diëte, aanvullings, wondermiddels, terapie en operasies mag dalk doeltreffend wees, maar dit deel almal net met een aspek van ons gesondheid. Jy kan fisies 100% gesond wees, maar sielsongelukkig as gevolg van stukkende verhoudings. Jy kan ‘n goeie mens wees, met talle prestasies en nog steeds voel daar kort iets in jou lewe, want jy het nog nie met God vrede gemaak nie. Jy kan fisies gesond wees, intellektueel briljant, maar as jy nog genees is van die eie-ek, die egoïstiese, self-gerigte selfsug en soeke na selfbeskikking nie, is jy bedremmeld en betreurenswaardig. Dink maar aan die eie-waan van ‘n Hitler, en yoga ghoeroes soos Bikram Choudhury wat sy volgelinge mislei het.
Jesus Is Ons Genesing
Totale genesing is net in Jesus Christus te vind. Jesus is genesing en gesondheid! Toe ons ontwaak tot die realiteit van Sy persoon, waardes, denke, gewoontes en manier van leef, het ons die sentripetale kernpunt van alle geneeskunde ontdek. Sonder Jesus is daar nie volhoubare gesondheid en welstand nie. Want, Hy maak nie net een aspek van ons menswees gesond nie. Hy steek Sy hand uit, en vra ons om Hom te volg. Terwyl ons Hom volg, en doen wat Hy sê, word ons tree vir tree meer gesond, op elke vlak, om ook ander te help om gesond te word. Daar is immers geen siekte in die hemel nie. Daarom is Jesus se hart, Sy waarom, om ons gesond te sien.
Om soos Jesus te word is die sleutel tot ʼn vervulde en gelukkig lewe. Jy sal dan die beste huweliksmaat wees, die beste sakeleier, en die beste werker wees vir enige sakeonderneming, ook die beste tipe vriend en die beste ouer. Die volwasse karakter, waardes, ingesteldheid, etiek, gewoontes, houding en lewenstyl van Christus is soos ’n standaard, ’n toonaangewer, ’n rigtinggewer om die volmaakte lewe te leef. Ons is die mooiste mense wanneer ons die meeste soos Christus leef. Met ander woorde, ons is die beste mense as ons die meeste soos Hy is, as ons soos Hy doen wat reg is, Sy etiese en morele voorbeeld volg, Sy onbevlekte karakter nastreef en ons lewens daaraan wy om die mensdom te dien. Om soos Jesus te leef is die beste manier van leef! Die Jesus-lewe is ’n universele waarheid, ’n uitgangspunt, ’n bloudruk en basis vir lewe. Christus is volmaak, blaamloos, die regte standaard en mediaan van moraliteit.
In ons reis saam met Jesus, ontdek ons Sy goddelike paradoksale waardes: Geregtigheid en billikheid, onpartydigheid en respek vir alle mense, nie-reaksionêre kreatiwiteit, revolusionêre pasifisme, diensbare leierskap, bonatuurlike mens-mens-wees, alleen-groep-mens, en nog soveel meer!
Die oomblik wat ons Sy lewe ontvang en daarvolgens begin leef, verander alles. Ons verhoudings, denkwyses, werk en leefstyl word gesond, en genesend tot ander.
Hoekom het Geloofsgenesing ‘n Slegte Naam?
Enige vorm van geneeskunde het ‘n sekere bepaalde sukses faktor presentasie. Waarom het geloofsgenesing so ‘n onreëlmatige sukses faktor? Waarom het net sommige individue redelike sukses? Hoe blywend is hierdie sukses? Iemand wat siek is, is desperaat vir ‘n oplossing enige redelike kans selfs 50/50, sal ‘n desperate lyer nuwe hoop gee. Maar ‘n vorm van geneeskunde met so ‘n swak sukses, sal en moet mos verwerp word. Selfs natuurlike medikasie het ‘n baie meer beduidende sukses faktor. Om vir mense te bid vir genesing en dit as God se liefde te beskryf is problematies, want hoekom word sommige gesond en ander nie?
Die vraag is nie óf God mense genees nie, maar eerder hoekom Hy nie almal genees nie.
In verskeie vraelyste is bepaal dat die meeste mense, sowel as doktors glo dat gebed voordelig is vir siek mense. Daar is talle opgetekende, lyste van mediese verifieerbare goddelike genesings. Die vraag was ook gevra vir ‘n paneel van geloof-geneeshere, die antwoord was: Om die integriteit en die hart van die Evangelie te bewaar word almal nie gesond nie, die wat gesond word gebeur nooit op dieselfde manier nie, en ook nie deur dieselfde persoon nie.[4] Die rede: Wanneer ‘n sekere persoon of metode 100% suksesvol is om elke moontlike siekte gesond te maak, is dit in die mens dat ons die persoon en die metode sal aanbid, dit sal kapitaliseer, sonder om die wonder en diepte van God te besef. Dit is baie makliker vir die mens om enige wonderkuur of middel te probeer, sonder die harde werk van gedragsverandering. Dikwels is dit ons gedrag wat die siekte veroorsaak het.
Om genesing toe te skryf aan ons geloof, of tekort daarvan is ook problematies, want alhoewel geloof ‘n rol gespeel het by die meeste genesings, het die Here sommige genees sonder enige geloof van hulle kant af. As geloof die redding bring, genees ons mos onsself? Moet ons onsself dan red ook? Ek verstaan dat redding ‘n geskenk is, en dat ons geloof in God uiteindelik redding meewerk. Tog is daar baie mense wat werklik glo, en werklik in geloof selfs tot ‘n aksie oorgegaan het, en nog steeds nie genesing ontvang het nie. Om te bid vanuit die wete dat God wil altyd genees is voorwaar moeilik as dit wel nie gebeur nie. Hoekom nie? Satan? Te min geloof? Nie aangehou nie? Dan is óns die probleem. Dit bring min troos, veral as jy al jou geloof, gebede, opgebruik het om genesing te bid vir iemand vir wie jy lief is. Alhoewel ons moet glo, het dit nie gewerk nie. Alhoewel ons deernis moet hê, was dit skynbaar nie genoeg nie. Alhoewel ons beloftes uit die woord en profesie ontvang het, is dit nie vervul nie. Waar laat dit ons?
Genesing is inherent wie God is, die aarde en die skepping het ‘n self-genesing vermoë. Dis juis die wonder van die skepping, die medisinale natuurlike middels wat in die natuur opgesluit lê. God het ons geskape om gesond te maak, en gesond te wees.
Siekte en krankheid is simptomaties nie net m.b.t. ons liggame nie. Ons ekonomie is siek. Die wêreld is moreel siek. Siekte is simptomaties van ‘n hele samelewing wat van God verwyder is. As die hele samelewing die Here waaragtig dien deur te doen wat Hy sê, en alles toeëien wat Hy vir ons beskikbaar gestel het, en dan soos Jesus goed doen aan die mense om ons. Sal daar nog siekte wees?
Siekte se oorsprong is:
Sonde
Verkeerde gewoontes en gedrag: Mirjam (Num 12:10), Gehasi (2 Kon 5:27), Ussia (2 Kron 26:16-23) en Elimas (Hand 13:11). “dien die Here en vermy wat sleg is: dit is die geneesmiddel vir jou, die verkwikking vir jou liggaam.” (Spr 3:8)
Jou woorde: “Die tong het mag oor dood en lewe” (Spr 18:21). “Aangename woorde is heuning, soet en geneeskragtig vir die mens.” (Spr 16:24)
Onvergifnis maak mens bitter en sieklik, soos iemand wat gefolter word. (1 Kor 11:28-30; Matt 18:21-35)
Jou denke: “’n Kalm gemoed hou die liggaam gesond; hartstog vreet ‘n mens op.” (Spr 14:30) “’n Vrolike mens is ‘n gesonde mens.” (Prov 17:22)
Nie alle siekte is a.g.v. sonde nie. (Job 42:7-8)
Die duiwel
Demone: Matt 17:18; Matt 9:25, 42; Matt 4:35; 4:39
Mag van die Duiwel: “Julle weet van Jesus van Nasaret, dat God Hom met die Heilige Gees gesalf en met krag toegerus het. Hy het rondgegaan, oral goeie werke gedoen en almal gesond gemaak wat in die mag van die duiwel was, want God was by Hom”. (Hand. 10:38)
Gees van krankheid (Luk 13:11, 16)
Die Here, God is soewerein: “Besef dit tog: Ek, Ek is die Here! Naas My is daar geen ander God nie. Ek maak dood en Ek gee lewe. Ek maak siek en Ek maak gesond. Uit my mag word niemand bevry nie.” (Deut 32:39) Gen 12:17, Exo 4:11, 15:25, 1 Sam 25;37-38; 2 Sam 12:15, Deut 28:15-68, 32:39, 2 Kon 15:5, 2 Kron 21:18, 19, 26:20-21 Hand 12:22, 23; 13:8-12 asook Job 5:18.
Indirek ander mense: Dit is duidelik dat ek kan deur iemand aangesteek word, bakteriese infeksies, ‘n bakleiery waar onskuldige mense slagoffers word. Iemand anders se sonde en oortreding kan dus ook soms die oorsaak wees van siekte en krankheid.
Die gebroke natuur: “Want die skepping is aan die nietigheid onderworpe — nie gewillig nie, maar ter wille van Hom wat dit onderwerp het…” (Rom 8:18-22) Hittegolwe, plae, droogte, tsunami’s, ens. Soms gebeur daar bloot dinge, ek struikel en val, en breek my arm.
Alhoewel dit belangrik is om die oorsaak van siekte weet, is die meer belangrike vraag hoe word ek gesond? Uiteindelik is dit God se hart dat ons gesond sal lewe: Deut 11:26.
God se Hart Agter Genesing
Al ooit gewonder hoekom het Jesus dikwels mens ferm vermaan om nie te gaan vertel wat met hulle gebeur het nie? Was dit dan nie die punt, dat almal in Hom sal glo nie?
Jesus het nooit enige genesing op dieselfde manier gedoen nie, maar vir Hom was genesing meer as bloot die gesondmaking van die simptome. HY wou altyd deel met die oorsaak. Daarom word die melaatse man gevra om na die priester toe te gaan, sodat die kwarantyn opgehef kon word, en hy weer toegelaat word om deel van die gemeenskap te wees. “Toe steek Jesus sy hand uit, raak hom aan en sê: “Ek wil. Word gesond!” En sy melaatsheid was onmiddellik weg. Jesus sê toe vir hom: “Jy moet dit vir niemand vertel nie, maar gaan wys jou vir die priester en bring die offer wat Moses voorgeskryf het.” (Matt 8:1-5)
“Baie mense het saam met Hom gegaan, en Hy het hulle almal gesond gemaak, maar hulle belet om in die openbaar oor Hom te praat.” (Matt 12:16) Hier het Jesus ‘n skare mense genees, tog kapitaliseer Hy nie op die bonatuurlike om nog meer mense te trek nie. Dit is duidelik soos vroeër verduidelik: Jesus is nie net ‘n wondermiddel of wonderpersoon wat alle siekes genees nie! Want dan sou ons hom gebruik om gesond te word, sonder om te deel met die oorsake van hoekom ons siek geword het in die eerste plek.
Jesus vra Sy dissipels, wie sê julle is ek? Nadat Petrus openlik verklaar en erken dat Hy die Messias is, word hulle beveel om dit nie oor te vertel nie. Is dit dan nie die doel dat mense sal weet dat Hy die Messias is nie? Dis tog waaroor redding gaan, dat elke mens sal glo dat hy die Christus is? Toe het Jesus sy dissipels beveel om vir niemand te sê dat Hy die Christus is nie. (Matt 16:20) Die raaisel verdiep nie waar nie? Die beginsel is: Jesus wil nie net hê ons moet Hom aanbid nie! Hy wil hê ons moet Hom volg. Dis ons gehoorsame navolging van die persoon Jesus Christus, wat genesing bring vir die totale mens.
Die verheerliking op die berg, is ‘n klinkklare bewys van Sy goddelikheid. Mense is natuurlike twyfelaars. Hoekom net ‘n paar dissipels toelaat om dit te beleef? Sou die Fariseërs, en al sy vyande nie dan tot inkeer kom, as hulle sou sien wat hier gebeur het nie? Terwyl hulle van die berg afkom, het Jesus hulle beveel: “Wat julle gesien het, moet julle vir niemand vertel voordat die Seun van die mens uit die dood opgewek is nie.” (Matt 17:9) Jesus kapitaliseer nie op die oomblik van Sy goddelike verheerliking en openbaarmaking nie. Dink aan mense wat al deur die eeue by plekke van goddelike verskynsels bymekaar kom, en die verskynsel soos robotte aanbid.
Een van die mees skouspelagtige wonderwerke wat Jesus gedoen het was die genesing van die doofstom man. Die man het nie net sy gehoor ontvang nie, maar God het sy spraak in een oomblik herstel. Al sou iemand se gehoor herstel, sou dit ‘n spraak terapeut maande neem om die persoon te help om korrek te praat. “Sy ore het dadelik oopgegaan, die belemmering van sy spraak het verdwyn, en hy het reg gepraat. Jesus het die mense belet om dit vir iemand anders te vertel, maar hoe meer Hy hulle belet het, hoe meer het hulle dit verkondig.” (Mark 7:36) Hier is een van die mees sprekende wonderwerke, wat as jy vandag se bemarking tegnieke van getuienis oorvertel gebruik, ‘n getroue navolging verseker. Jesus doen hierdie wonder in privaatheid.
Baie mense het gewonder oor Jesus, maar die duiwels het presies geweet wie Hy was. Is daar nie ‘n groter bewys van Sy bediening en egtheid as dat die duiwels Hom herken nie? Maar Jesus het hom skerp aangespreek: “Bly stil en gaan uit hom uit.” (Mark 1:25). Tog laat Hy hulle nie toe om te spreek nie.
Jesus het die blinde man aan die hand gevat en hom uit die dorp uit gelei. Die genesing in die geheim verrig, en toe boonop vir hom “belet om dit vir iemand anders te vertel.”. (Mark 8:26, 30)
Die egtheid van die evangelie skrywers se getuienis, is die nuttelose inligting wat nie weggelaat is nie. Die feit dat Jesus vir hulle opdrag gee om vir die kind iets te ete te gee, het geen doel nie. Tog maak dit die stories, eg en geloofwaardig. Weereens ‘n perfekte geleentheid om mense te oortuig. Jesus maak nie gebruik om met grootheidswaan, mense te beïndruk nie. “Haar ouers was stom van verbasing, en Jesus het hulle verbied om vir iemand te vertel wat gebeur het.” (Luke 8:56)
Die klimaks van Jesus se populariteit is toe Hy die skare kos gee. “Toe die mense die wonderteken sien wat Jesus gedoen het, het hulle gesê: “Hy is werklik die Profeet, die Een wat na die wêreld toe moes kom.” Toe Jesus merk dat hulle Hom met geweld wil kom koning maak, het Hy verder die berg op gegaan, Hy alleen.” (Joh 6:14-15)
Weereens vlug Jesus van die aanstelling van mense, die aanbidding van mense. Hy wil ons bewus maak dat daar iets dieper is as genesing, wonderwerke, en voedselvoorsiening. Al hierdie dinge is tydelik, maar daar is meer wat God ons wil gee. Hierdie tekens en wonders is presies dit, tekens. Dit is soos padwysers, rigtingewers na ‘n groter realiteit. Wonderwerke is inderdaad belangrik. “Die boodskap wat ek verkondig, het julle oortuig, nie deur geleerdheid en welsprekendheid nie, maar deur die kragtige werking van die Gees. Dus is julle geloof nie op die wysheid van mense gegrond nie, maar op die krag van God.” (1 Kor 2:4-5)
Wat is die groter realiteit wat Jesus wou hê hulle moes raaksien? Jesus antwoord hulle: “Dít verseker Ek julle: Julle soek My, nie omdat julle die wondertekens gesien het nie, maar omdat julle van die brood geëet en versadig gewordhet. Julle moet nie werk vir die voedsel wat vergaan nie, maar vir die voedsel wat nie vergaan nie en wat ewige lewe gee. Dit sal die Seun van die mens vir julle gee, want God die Vader het Hom die mag daartoe verleen.” Hulle vra Hom toe: “Wat moet ons doen om te doen wat God van ons verlang?” En Jesus antwoord hulle: “Wat God van julle verlang, is dat julle moet glo in Hom wat Hy gestuur het.” (Joh 6:26-29) Jesus is die geskenk van genesing, nie die genesing op sig self nie. As ek dus Jesus ontvang is ek gesond, want ek het die Geneesheer ontvang! “…want dit is Ek, die Here, wat julle gesond hou.” (Exo 15:26).
Jesus wil ons herstel, genees, hervorm, restoureer, versoen met ons skeppingsdoel: Om soos God, goddelike, goeie, opbouende, positiewe, vrug te dra. Die aanbidders wat met waserige oë ‘n goddelike verskynsel aanbid, besef nog nie hulle eie goddelikke skeppingsdoel van godsvrugtigheid nie. Hulle wag en smeek vir ‘n wonderwerk van bo af. Hulle besef nie die wonderwerk Christus, wil in ons kom woon, en deur ons wonderdade en regdoen verrig nie.
Die genesing wat Christus in ons wil werk is ook meer as net die fisiese genesing. Hy wil ons hele menswees genees. Hy wil God se skeppingsdoel vir ons, in ons restoureer. “Dié wat Hy lank tevore verkies het, het Hy ook bestem om gelykvormig te wees aan die beeld van sy Seun” (Rom. 8:29) In al hierdie verhale waar Jesus mense vermaan het om nie oor te vertel nie, was die mense verbaas, verstom en beïndruk met Jesus. Hulle wou Hom dus aanbid, maar Hy het dit nie toegelaat nie, Hy soek meer as ons aanbidding, Hy soek ons geloofsgehoorsaamheid!
Daar is 2 verhale waar Jesus beïndruk was. Die een was die genesing van die offisier se slaaf (Matt. 8:5-13; Luk. 7:1-10; Joh. 4:43-54). Hierdie man het ook genesing kom soek by Jesus, maar hy het Jesus gesien. Hy noem Jesus Here. Hy sien Jesus is ‘n man van gesag soos hy. Daarom vra Jesus om net ‘n woord te spreek. Jesus se reaksie is: Jesus was verwonderd toe Hy dit hoor, en Hy sê vir die mense wat agter Hom aan gekom het: “Dit verseker Ek julle: Ek het nog by niemand in Israel so ‘n groot geloof teëgekom nie. Ek sê vir julle: Baie sal van die ooste en die weste af kom en saam met Abraham, Isak en Jakob aan tafel gaan in die koninkryk van die hemel. Maar mense vir wie die koninkryk bedoel is, sal in die diepste duisternis daarbuite gegooi word, waar hulle sal huil en op hulle tande sal kners.” (Matt 8:10-12). Lees hierdie vers deeglik deur. Jesus maak ‘n geskiedkundige, waterskeiding, omkeer verklaring! “Baie sal van die ooste en die weste af kom en saam met Abraham, Isak en Jakob aan tafel gaan in die koninkryk van die hemel” Van wie praat Jesus hier? Van diegene, wat Hom sien, waarlik sien! Mense van elke volk en nasie en taal wat Jesus sien vir wie Hy werklik is, nie hom nie net sien as ‘n ‘argetipe’ onpersoonlike masjien wat mense gesond maak nie. Die ander verhaal is van die Kanaänitiese vrou. Wie Jesus eers nie wou help nie. “Mevrou,” sê Jesus vir haar, “jou geloof is groot. Jou wens word vervul.” Van daardie oomblik af was die dogter gesond.” (Matt. 15:28). Sy het nie Jesus se weiering aanvaar nie, en aanhou glo.
Ons sien dat Jesus ook graag wou hê Sy dissipels moes Hom regtig sien, Hom verstaan. Is dit nie die soeke van enige leermeester, leier, of voorganger nie? Sommige is daar net vir die aansien, die geld, die roem, die posisie, die genesing, die wonderwerk. Jesus wou uiteindelik hê dat hulle moes doen wat Hy doen. Hulle moes net soos Hy in die geloof wonderwerke verrig. (Luk 10:19; Mat 10:8)
Drie wonderwerke waar Jesus Sy frustrasie met die dissipels wys, dat hulle nog nie sien nie:
Jesus maak die storm stil. “Waarom is julle bang? Het julle dan nie geloof nie?” (Mark 4:40)
Die vermeerdering van die brood. “Gee julle vir hulle iets om te eet.” (Mark 6:37)
Petrus is die eerste dissipel wat iets begin sien. Toe sê Petrus vir Hom: “Here, as dit regtig U is, beveel my om op die water na U toe te kom.” “Kom!” sê Hy. (Matt 14:28-29) Tog begin hy vinnig twyfel toe hy na die branders kyk. Dadelik het Jesus sy hand uitgesteek, hom gegryp en vir hom gesê: “Kleingelowige, waarom het jy begin twyfel?” (Matt 14:31)
“The purpose of Jesus is not only to save men from their sins, but by the grace of God to begin in the souls of men that marvelous development in the nature and mind and understanding of God our Father, until by the grace of God we are able to take our place and our part in the kingdom of Jesus Christ and bear our share of responsibility.” ― John G. Lake,
Die Mees Gesondste Mense Glo Reg
“…enigiets wat ‘n mens nie uit geloofsoortuiging doen nie, is sonde.” (Rom 14:23) “As ‘n mens nie glo nie, is dit onmoontlik om te doen wat God wil. Wie tot God nader, moet glo dat Hy bestaan en dat Hy dié wat Hom soek, beloon.” (Heb 11:6)
Hoeveel van ons besluite, keuses, gewoontes, is gegrondves in ‘n geloofsoortuiging? Hoe ons die wêreld sien, wat ons koop? Hoekom ons koop? Waar ons bly, en werk is alles gegrondves in wat ons glo oor onsself, God en die toekoms.
Jesus het mens geword, fisies gedemonstreer wat Hy gepreek het, en uiteindelik gesterwe vir ons sonde, om ons met God te versoen, opgestaan uit die dood, opgevaar en gaan sit aan die regterhand van God, en toe die Heilige Gees gestuur om in ons te regeer! Waarvoor wag ons? Wat op aarde moet God nog doen? Hy het alles volbring sodat ons deur Hom, dit is deur Sy bekragtiging Christus te leef in elke plek waar Hy ons roep!
As ons dus reg sien! Werklik sien! Sien wat Hy gedoen het! Wie Hy is! As ons dit daadwerklik, met oortuiging glo, sien ons die wêreld skielik in ‘n hele ander lig. Terwyl ons aanhou om presies te doen wat HY ons beveel om dit te doen, verander die lewe heeltemal vir ons. Ons sal ‘n heeltemal ander perspektief hê en ‘n nuwe houding teenoor die lewe, dinge en mense hê! Ons is gesond, na liggaam, siel en gees.
Jesus Genees die Hele Mens
John G. Lake het geglo dat Jesus se genesingswerk drieledig is: Hy bevry ons van boosheid, sodat ons geestelik gesond, en vol kan wees van die Heilige Gees. Ons kommunikeer en beleef verbondenheid met God deur ons gees. Tweedens, genees die Here ons siel, ons konneksie met mense. Omdat ons vrede met God gemaak het, genees die Here ons siel. Ons siel is hoe ons verbind is met die mensdom om ons. Sielsus en vrede met self en die mense om my, is genesing!
Jesus was altyd bekommerd oor die hele mens en nie net die simptome van siekte nie. Hy het dikwels eers die geestelike aspekte hanteer. Sy gesprek met die Samaritaanse vrou by die put het gefokus op die basiese konflikte in haar persoonlikheid. Vir Jesus is gesondheid meer as net die afwesigheid van fisiese en geestelike siektes – dit gaan oor die hele mens.
God wil ons genees, maar meer nog: Hy wil ons moet ander genees! “En by die stroom sal aan altwee kante allerhande bome groei om van te eet, waarvan die blare nie sal verdor en die vrugte nie sal opraak nie; elke maand sal hulle nuwe vrugte dra; want die waters waar hulle aan staan—uit die heiligdom stroom hulle; en hulle vrugte sal wees om te eet en hulle blare om te genees.” (Eze 47:12)
“Die Here sal hom bystaan in sy siekte. As hy siek is, sal U hom genees.” (Ps 41:4)
Jesus Genees op Verskillende Maniere
God nie net besorg oor die genesing van ons liggame nie. Hy wil ook hê dat ons ’n sekere regte gesonde lewenswyse aanleer. Jy self is verantwoordelik vir jou gesondheid. Van die 35 wondertekens wat Jesus gedoen het, was 26 genesings. In 6 gevalle is bose geeste uitgedryf.
Bely julle sonde: (James 5:16)
Ouderlinge salf met olie: (James 5:14-15)
Dokters: Geneeshere is vir die siekes (Mat 9:12; Mark 2:17; Luk 5:31) Daar word na Lukas verwys as die “geliefde geneesheer” (Col 4:14)
Mediese versorging: die barmhartige samaritaan verbind die man, en salf sy wonde. (Lukas 10:33–34)
Alternatiewe geneeskunde: Gebruik bietjie wyn vir die ontsteldheid met die maag. (1 Tim 5:23)
Ons teenwoordigheid bring genesing: Die blare van die boom is tot genesing van die nasies’ (Openbaring 22:2; Ps 1:2-3; Eze 47:12; Jer 17:8)
Die Woord van God genees. (Luk 4:4)
Toe Jesus hulle geloof sien: (Mar 2:5; Mat 9:29)
Vergifnis: (Mat 18:34-35)
Vereenselwig deur die Nagmaal met Sy lyding: (1 Kor 11:28–30)
Lofprysing: “Loof die Here, o my siel, en alles wat binne-in my is, sy heilige Naam! Loof die Here, o my siel, en vergeet geeneen van sy weldade nie! Wat al jou ongeregtigheid vergewe, wat al jou krankhede genees”. (Psalm 103:1–3)
Dien die Here en vermy wat sleg is: dit is die geneesmiddel vir jou, die verkwikking vir jou liggaam. (Spr 3:8)
Die slotsom is: Christus is gesondheid. Wanneer ons die meeste soos Jesus is, is ons die mees gesondste mense op die planeet!
Dit is ook moontlik om ‘n gesonde lewe te lei:
Wanneer al my verhoudings met God, self, mense en die natuur gesond en heilsaam is.
Ek gereeld oefen, slaap, en ‘n gebalanseerde gesonde dieet volg.
Werk kan genesend, en stimulerend van aard wees.
My denke is soos ‘n tuin, wat ek plant, bepaal hoe ek dink, en hoe ek lewe.
Om vir ander te gee, te help en te dien is genesend.
Om soos ‘n kind te wees, en sommer net lekker gesonde pret te hê is ‘n wonderkuur!
Deur gasvry te wees, en vir mense lekker kos te maak is genesend!
Deur ‘n vredemaker te wees, en versoening te bewerk tussen mense bring genesing.
God Se Geskenk Van Genesing Aan Die Wêreld Is Sy Gesonde Liggaam die Kerk
HARVESTER SAMEKOMSTE
Samekomste skep atmosfeer vir genesing:
Ons glo gemeente wees, het iets te doen met ‘n helende tuin, die herstel van Eden. Alles wat ons doen, in heilige diversiteit, komplekse eenvoud, interafhanklikheid, skep ‘n genesende habitat, waar mense kan gesond word op elke vlak. Die Bybel gee ons geen tyd aanduiding van presies wanneer gelowiges bymekaar gekom het nie. Ons lees gereeld van ‘daagliks’, ‘eerste dag van die week’, gemeenskaplike maaltye. Dit wil sê: Kerk-wees gebeur in die saamwees! Ons hou van saamwees! Ons geniet mekaar se geselskap, en om in ons verhoudinge diepgaande geesgenote te word! Ons hou dus verskeie byeenkomste, vir kinders, volwassenes, mans, vrouens, geskeides, vir Afrikaanse maar ook Engelse mense, vir ou mense en jong mense, vir sakemense en boere, vir geskeides maar ook getroudes! Die lys gaan net aan en aan!
Ons hou allerhande tipe byeenkomste vir alle soorte mense, sodat elkeen Jesus kan ontdek en leer om hom te volg!
Ons fokus dat al ons byeenkomste die volgende elemente bevat:
Ons byeenkomste fokus op skrifgebaseerde, leerstellige gebalanseerde, akkurate Jesus-gesentreerde prediking.
Ons byeenkomste is spiritueel en maar ruimte vir geestelike en bonatuurlike gebeure, waar ons vir siekes bid en hulle die hande op lê, en duiwels uitdryf, en floreer in die toepassing van die gawes van die Heilige Gees.
Ons byeenkomste fokus op lofprysing en aanbidding wat God behaag.
Ons byeenkomste maak ruimte vir getuienisse, wedersydse opbouende insette.
Ons byeenkomste is deelnemend van aard.
Ons byeenkomste is verrassend, relevant, en kreatief.
Ons maak ruimte in ons byeenkomste vir gebed, meditasie en saam-luister wat God wil sê.
Ons herdenk die Here se nagmaal so gereeld as wat ons kan.
Ons bied gereeld vir mense die geleentheid om te gee soos die Here dit op hulle harte lê.
Genees ons verhoudinge
HARVESTER HUISKERKE
Ons glo in groot byeenkomste wat impak maak, maar verhoudinge groei dieper alleenlik in die kleingroep. Ons huiskerke moet naby genoeg wees, sodat daar werklike ondersteuning kan wees in tye van nood. Daarom wil ons huiskerke aanbied in elke dorp in die Olifantsvallei en Matsikama omgewing. Die huiskerk is jou geestelike familie, omgee groep. Dis hier waar ons leer om ons geestelike gawes te ontwikkel. Dissipelskap, verantwoordbaarheid, en dissipline gebeur in die liefdevolle intimiteit van die kleingroep familie.
Harvester Huiskerk Leiers:
Jan & Celna Genis (Clanwilliam/Graafwater)
Willie & Wena Botha (Clanwilliam)
Audrey & Dave Botes (Clanwilliam)
Dirkie & Lezel Mouton (Clanwilliam)
Francois & Bertina Engelbrecht (Lambertsbaai)
WP & Karien vd Merwe (Citrusdal)
Tom & Haneke Ferreira (Citrusdal)
Owen & Cherisse Burger (Citrusdal)
Neil & Olivia Hall (Citrusdal)
Van Rhynsdorp
Vredendal
Lutzville
Eendekuil
Graafwater
Genees ons denke
HARVESTER BYBELSKOOL
“Want soos hy in sy siel bereken, so is hy.” (Spreuke 23:7) Jesus het mense se manier van dink, gedurig gekonfronteer en uitgedaag. Die Woord van God is ‘n raamwerk, en platvorm, ‘n riglyn om te leer om reg en nugter te dink. In ‘n onlangse studie wat deur die “Bible Engagement Centre” gedoen is met 40000 mense, is bevind dat mense wat die Bybel aandagtig vier keer per week bestudeer en lees, merkwaardig meer gesond is.[5] Ons “Miracle Bible Training Centre” kurrikulum is dan gefokus om sistematies deur die Bybel te werk, en die Bybel in die lig van Christus reg te verstaan. Ons bied ook ‘n wye verskeidenheid praktiese vakke aan.
Die mees belangrike kursus wat elkeen in die gemeente deurgaan in die begin is die Fondasie kursus wat fokus op die ses fondasie leerstellinge in Hebreers 6 asook: Onderskei God se stem, Lofprysing & aanbidding, Gebed, Vyfvoudbediening, Dissipelskap, en Offergawes. Die Bybelskool is nie vir sommige mense nie. Dit is vir almal! Want dit is die primêre metode om genesing in mense se lewens te werk. Die doel is om jou Bybel/woord fiks te maak. Daarom is die bybelskool nie eenrigting kommunikasie nie, daar is deelname, vrae-vrae tyd, en huiswerk betrokke sodat elkeen die Woord vir hom of haarself kan verstaan.
Genees ons werk en gedrag
HARVESTER AKADEMIE
Ons bied spesifieke programme aan om mense wat hulle eie besighede besit, te help om hulle besigheid so te organiseer dat die mense wat daar werk deur hulle werk betrokkenheid ook gesond kan word! Tweedens help ons ook die spesifieke werker, om ‘n beter werker te word en sodoende ook genesing in die werksplek te werk. Die verwagting en persepsie van baie mense oor werk is dat dit vleeslik, aards, sekulêr, teenoor-geestelik, ‘n straf, en vloek is. Tog wanneer mense aftree en nie hoef te werk nie, dan werk hulle meer as ooit. Wanneer ons sterf dan sê ons “rus in vrede” asof die persoon nooit in die ewigheid gaan werk nie.
Soos ons Jesus volg, leer Hy ons Sy manier en beginsels om te leef. Hy skenk ons Sy genade, en werk die vrug van die Gees in ons karakter. Ons morele kompas verander rigting: getrouheid, eerlikheid, waarheid, hou by jou woord, betaal elkeen wat hy toekom, wees ’n goeie rentmeester ensovoorts word die nuwe werkswyse. Ons begin regeer! Rom 5:17 “reign in this life” Ons oorwin ons swakhede, slegte gewoontes, verkeerde humeur, verslawings. Ons interaksie met mekaar in die liggaam, saam besigheid doen, vir mekaar werk het skadukolle geopenbaar in almal van ons. Werkswyses wat nie die Here eer bring nie is aan die lig gebring. Mense het vir jare in die kerk hulle verkeerde leefstyl weggesteek, want ons kan in die kerk Sondag een mens wees, maar Maandae in die werk is ons iemand anders. Vir ons is werk deel van ons aanbidding.
Genees alle nasies/etos
HARVESTER SENDING
Die Jesus lewe is eintlik eenvoudig: Wag op die Here en spandeer tyd in gebed, mediteer met ‘n oop Bybel, kry ‘n openbaring en instruksie vir jou lewe, en gaan voer dit dan uit.
Communion- Commission-Commission
Relational-Missional-Encarnational
Love-Faith-Hope
Father-Son-Holy Spirit.
Dit beteken dat elkeen in die gemeente ‘n goddelike roeping het om te vervul. Dat elkeen weet wat om te doen, nie omdat hulle aangesê is deur ‘n organisasie om te doen nie, waar deur die Heilige Gees gemotiveer en bekragtig. Dit beteken ook prakties, ons maak dissipels. Ons vermenigvuldig. Ons gee en deel wat ons ontvang het. Die gemeente maak dus gesamentlik ‘n impak op die kultuur van die gemeenskap. Want elkeen funksioneer en bring genesing, herstel en versoening in die 5 primêre regering sektore: Regering, Ekonomie, Opvoeding, Gesondheid, en Wet & Orde. Maar ons maak ook ‘n verskil deur die saambindende katalisators soos: Sport, die Kunste, Rekreasie ens. Ons is sout en lig! Ons bring genesing en versoening na elke nasie, en etos in ons samelewing waar Hy ons na toe stuur.
Daar is genade stories, lekker lag stories, seerkry stories, liefhê stories en dan ook die lekkerste hartmense stories!
Ons almal se stories loop nie presies eenders nie, maar ons het almal stories, stories van hartseer, van swaarkry, alleen wees en weer probeer!
Aarde tyd, nou tyd is tydelik, en wanneer jy trauma beleef voel die nou baie meer werklik as die later, as die ewig!
Daar is altyd dinge wat ons seermaak, bangmaak en aan ons siel wil vasklou! Dinge wat ons wil terughou, vashou, ons geloof in ons lieflike Here wil steel.
Op sulke af-been terughou dae hou ons vas aan die beste storie ooit, ons redder storie. ‘n Redder is gebore, Jesus Christus wat vir ons verlossing gebring het, ook in die nou, met Sy oë gerig op die ewig!
Soms het ons gedagtes ‘n wil van hul eie, maar o wee, ons moet dit vasvat, kortvat, sommer vinnig ook, anders maak hul sommer stories van hul eie op, sulke wanhoop weghol stories, stories sonder geloof, stories sonder ‘n redder!
My lewe kan nou getuig van ‘n nuwe lewe vol stories van onmoontlikhede wat moontlikhede geword het. En het die pad en lewe van Jesus Christus gekies. Nou skryf Hy die beste stories ooit, stories op my hart, ware stories van geloof, hoop en liefde, en die grootste storie is die liefde storie!
Hy gee mooi mense-stories, ware stories! Daar is aardse stories … hemelse stories, en ook daaglikse stories van Sy goedheid, ook in ons swaarkry!
Daar is ‘n storie oor jou lewe! ‘n Storie wat Hy in ink geskryf het, ‘n liefhê en genade storie, ‘n storie wat ewig is! ‘n Mooi storie, ‘n harts-storie … Hy het ‘n plan … ‘n ewige plan, die beste liefhê storie!
Mag jy Sy liefde en genade in die storie van jou lewe ervaar, diep, en intens bewus wees van Hom, ook nou in die Christusfees, dis die fees van genade en dankbaarheid! Die beste storie ooit, ‘n Redder, ons Jesus Christus is gebore.
Understand how the Spirit of Individualism is weakening the Body of Christ
When people want to start a new ministry, I often hear the following statement: “It should not be linked to a certain church or in the name of an existing local church, so as not to cause offense”
To me the basis of this statement is fundamentally flawed. It is like someone is saying to their spouse: “let’s have children, but not name them, nor let them carry our surname, not to offend someone who may not like our family.” All churches are flawed, and has offended someone. Not even Jesus’ could please everyone, nor did all his disciples remain faithful. There is no local church or denomination that is getting everything right, yet we all need to be part of this family. God has one family of which He is the father. (Eph 4:2-6) So much focus has been given in the Charismatic era on the ministry of the individual, the gifts and authority of the believer, our identity in Christ. This emphasis is essential to get people to wake up to the fullness of their calling, inheritance and power in Christ. (Eph 1:17-21) Equally important is the truth that no man is an island, our growth is always connected with OUR growth in the body of Christ. (Eph 4:16) Essentially becoming a follower of Christ entails denying self and the taking up of our cross. (Mat 16:24) This refers to our obedience to Christ, even to the point of death. For a person to grow spiritually, they have to eventually be part of a local intimate family. The pattern we find in Acts was either small group meetings from house to house the household of faith, or big gatherings or meetings drawing a crowd. We need to find the balance between these two activities, and see how they actually compliment the other. Why do we wait so long to initiate house churches? Should the outflow of big gathering not be to get the seekers into a local church, family, house church immediately? This solves the demand for follow-up activities after the meeting?
The DNA of church, God’s sanctuary is made up of three entities: The individual 1 Cor 6:19; the church in the Locality 2 Cor 6:16; the universal church 1 Cor 3:16 based on the context of these scriptures declaring that we are the temple of the Holy Spirit. In the case for the individual Paul warns that man cannot have intercourse with a prostitute and not become one with her. (1 Cor 6:15-18) In the second instance Paul addresses the Corinthian Church not to be defiled with the witchcraft in the city. (2 Cor 6:11-16) Then he warns all believers in general to remain holy and sanctified, set apart for God. In is thus very clear that like an orange, a cell, within a cell, within a cell makes the orange the church is made op three parts. You cannot remove a part; A church where individuals are not born again that church becomes a lifeless institution like a social club. Individuals that do not partner and become part of the church in a location became rogue agents that do not submit to any authority. Local churches that separates them from the greater community of faith becomes Sects. We are all three at the same time, to become the habitation of the Holy Spirit in the Earth.
Traveling ministry is biblical and in essence apostolic. It was one of the primary roles of the apostles to visit the local church in a certain location and to align them to the truth. The goal was apostolic alignment to Christ, not to get a nice big offering. Surely we should not muzzle the ox where he has trotted, a minister is worthy of our honor and support. The premise and foundation is always family and relationship. When traveling ministries operate on their own, with out a given family, they tend to build and gather people around themselves. They inevitably build a family, yet without the nurturing and closeness that a true local family provides. Being a traveling minister can be glorified. You can preach your best 10 sermons from meeting to meeting, people treat you like some kind of celebrity and give you their best treatment. This is proper and right, but again not outside the context of family.
Kingdom & family is synonymous. Our King is our Father! The godhead is in essence a family. The purpose of traveling ministers is thus, to strengthen and build the local family. To come alongside the local leadership and assist, correct, admonish, rebuke and chasten the family to mature in Christ.
The mass gathering is a wonderful tool to strengthen the small group, making them feel they are part of a greater cause. Being faithful to the few is not easy. People begin to know another, nothing is hidden, accountability and correction can cause offense. The Large gathering does not produce this kind of inward growth. We need both the small group, household setting and the big large crusade setting.
At his point of time many people have become disillusioned with structured church, mostly because that Church has become alienated from the head which is Christ. But being a structured church is not wrong or intrinsically evil. It is when the structure migrate away from their original position in Christ. When this happens we need to question our loyalty to this church. Like most of the NT believers had to do the same, regarding their Jewish Faith upbringing. They had to decide to leave, and face persecution to become part of the new Jesus family. Today people are leaving church, but not connecting again with church. God has no plan B. Christ gave His life for His church. Some seek a new expression of church but they are not willing to pay the price of obedience to Christ to become and be that accurate Christ-like expression. It is easier to only criticize, point finger but not doing anything to help or better it.
God’s heart is always family. God is in essence family, Father, Son and Holy Spirit. Starting a ministry on your own, not linked to any family, not being send or under supervision of any existing family is dangerous and arrogant. You will start this family without you knowing it, and soon there will be children, and without you wanting to be a family become a family – a church. You are going to have to deal with the mess of raising and disciplining children, or you going to abandon them like many ministers do.
We as people find it hard to follow someone else. It is in our human individualistic nature to always seek a new path, find our own way, do our own thing. This pioneering spirit is wonderful and God has used it to start wonderful ministries to reform another human trait, the ability to get stuck in the familiar. Both these traits need to come under the supervision and control of the Holy Spirit. When we submit and obey the Spirit, we will never get stuck in tradition for our tradition is obedience to the Spirit. Obedience to pioneer comes under His control for it to be properly mandated, else it can become mere ambition. This brings us back to family. A Family where God is the Father, and the fathers in the house submits and point everyone to the One and only True Father there will be no ambition, selfish interests, striving, competition, suppression and bondage.
This family has matured in Christ, and will cover the world with His Glory. The current exodus out of formal religion is understandable in context of the church loosing its life and soul – Jesus Christ. Yet the power of an Christlike family over generations cannot be underestimated! The God of Abraham, Isaac & Jacob! There is a generational power in a large family that helps the next generation, making it easier for them to move forward. The enemy knows this and has released the spirit of divorce, betrayal, division and strive in the church trying to stop this Godly momentum. You cannot build or plant a new church/family based on division. You have to live and remain in honor, to also receive honor. There is wisdom and much benefit being linked to a greater extended family. There are more resources, help and support, and a greater doctrinal accuracy. It is evident that smaller separate groupings tend to enter into error more quickly. We need to learn to think WE and not ME. Jesus did not function on His own, he gathered friends (Disciples) around Him, he later called His family. (Mark 3:31-35) Paul always took an companion, and greets his Co-workers. (Acts 19:29; Phil 4:3; Philemon 1:24; Gal 2:9) We do not have it all together, but together we have it all. (Michael Wood)
Even more so, having more than one apostolic father and the input of all the five Ascension gifts gives balance and depth. (Eph 4:11-16) Some ministers speak out against the local church, then they should also not expect support from the local church.
May God continue to reform the church, so that the church can reform the Land. (Andre Pelser)
We need to come out of old obsolete structures and systems who are keeping His body in bondage, but not at the cost of the true Church. I believe God has already preserved a remnant of true believers all over the World, that has kept true to His Word and the Spirit of Christ. Churches who seek to continue to obey and reform into His likeness in everything they do. The true church is build on a divine revelation of Christ. (Mat 16:18) This revelation installs an inward operating system that continually reforms and updates us to His present revealed truth.
The Church and Missions – Nations
We should never forget that the western church, black and white are by default gentiles. If the early church never crossed their borders and own cultural comfort we would never have received the gospel.
Studying the Luke-Acts perspective on missions provides us with a very important and biblical framework for missions that should be part of our objectives and value system as the church that He builds. Ultimately I do not believe that the local church should have a mission program separate or outside of its daily activities and focus as a church as a whole. Missions and being missionaries are the fundamental reason for being church. (Luk 4:16-21) For example: Reaching the youth/elderly/poor in our community is also a form of missions. Missions should not only be restricted to reaching foreign people groups afar. This is one of the primary principles taught in Luke and Acts; Moving from the core outward to the ends of the Earth.
When Jesus stood up among the people of His hometown in the synagogue and said: “today this scripture is fulfilled in your hearing” He was stating the course and mandate of His ministry. Luke is the only author of the gospels who is Greek, writing to a second generation church made of Jew and Gentile, shortly after the fall of Jerusalem. Matthew mainly writes his gospel for a Jewish audience; while Luke had a much broader audience in mind.
In the time of Luke the church was made up of a very large number of gentiles but also a great number of Jews. He thus had to appeal to both. Luke has an exceptional positive attitude towards the Jewish people, their religion and culture. Jesus does criticize the Pharisees but not as severely as what the Matthew’s account reveal. Luke omits words like “hypocrites and blind guides”. He omits the passage from Mark 7:1-20 which deals with the deception of the Pharisee’s focus on outward rituals without dealing with the defilement of the heart. Luke relates at least three instances where Jesus was invited by Pharisees for a meal. He does not apply the parable of the evil tenants directly to the chief priest and Pharisees as Matthew does although suggesting it. (Luk 20:9-19) In his Passion narrative he is the only gospel writer to include the words of Jesus: “Father forgive them, for they know not what they are doing”. He omits the words “his blood be on us and on our children”.
He writes his two volume work in the Hebriazed Greek of the Septuagint, also mainly used in synagogues of the Jewish diaspora. He is trying to reach both the Jewish and Gentile communities of his time. He also does not deny Israel its proper place as the womb of the Christian church, mentioning the early prophesies over Jesus the expectation of the salvation of Israel. (Luk 1:54; 68; 2:25, 30, 32, 38) The Church Luke envisages includes the restored/saved Israel and the redeemed Gentile. The Jew has to repent of rejecting and killing their Saviour, and the Gentile of serving worthless idols. There is no proof in Luke or Acts of the Christian church replacing Israel, yet both have to become converted; the one from dead religion and the other of its idols.
On the other hand he is trying very clearly to challenge the Jews to look beyond the salvation of ‘only’ Israel, to God’s desire to save the world. Luke’s account of Jesus’s reading from the Prophet Isaiah is unique in comparison with the other gospel writers who do not include the reason why the Pharisees and listeners became so suddenly offended at Jesus’s words; that after first admiring his gracious words, the next moment they try to kill Him. (Luke 4:28-30) This passage forms the bases of the whole Lukan paradigm of Mission and Salvation. He is the only writer to also include the verse from Isaiah 58:6 between Isaiah 61:1 and 2. “Let the oppressed go free” Because throughout his Gospel; he appeal to the rich to share with the poor. The rich and the poor both need salvation, the one from putting their trust in their riches (Luke 8:14) and the other of putting their trust in man. (Luke 9:59-61)
The reason why these people became so angry? Jesus started with the expectation that was in all of them; the salvation and redemption of Israel and the vengeance of God on their oppressors is to be fulfilled! But He stopped short of reading the complete passage from Isaiah. Instead of granting vengeance He rather made an appeal to notice God’s desire to save their enemies and have compassion on them by mentioning Elijah who was sent to a Gentile widow, and Elisha healing a pagan Ruler Naaman. (Luke 4:26-27) This became Jesus’s theme and number one rule of understanding and living in HIS kingdom; love your enemies! Bless those who curse you. (Luke 6:27-36)
This is why Luke makes an attempt to lay this emphasis throughout his gospel; God is seeking the salvation of the Samaritans and Gentiles too. When James and John wanted to call God’s fire of judgement on a Samaritan town who did not receive them Jesus rebuke them. “You do not know of what spirit you are of” (Luke 9:51-56) He addressed this point very clearly with telling Jesus’s story of the good Samaritan. The church of the day did not help the person in need, but the Samaritan did. He is therefore challenging their narrow idea of “who is my neighbour”. To the Jews, their neighbour was ONLY Jew, children of Abraham! Jesus taught that our neighbour is whoever comes our way, whether Jew or gentile, that needs help and assistance. This was a huge offence to the Jews who despised the way and faith of the Samaritans as false and opposite to their own. In many ways in the same way as what Christians view Moslems today. I include the following information of exactly who the Samaritans were, to proof this comparison. The origin of the Samaritans
Strictly speaking, a Samaritan would be an inhabitant of the city of Samaria; but the term was applied to all the people of the kingdom of Israel. After the captivity of Israel, B.C. 721, and in our Lord’s time, the name was applied to a peculiar people whose origin was in this wise: At the final captivity of Israel by Shalmaneser, we may conclude that the cities of Samaria were not merely partially but wholly depopulated of their inhabitants in B.C. 721, and that they remained in this desolated state until, in the words of 2 Kings 17:24, “the king of Assyria brought men from Babylon, and from Cuthah, and from Ava (Ivah, 2 Kings 18:34), and from Hamath, and from Sepharvaim, and placed them in the cities of Samaria instead of the children of Israel: and they possessed Samaria, and dwelt in the cities thereof.” Thus the new Samaritans were Assyrians by birth or subjugation. These strangers, whom we will now assume to have been placed in “the cities of Samaria” by Esar-haddon, were of course idolaters, and worshipped a strange medley of divinities. God’s displeasure was kindled, and they were annoyed by beasts of prey, which had probably increased to a great extent before their entrance upon the land. On their explaining their miserable condition to the king of Assyria, he despatched one of the captive priests to teach them “how they should fear the Lord.” The priest came accordingly, and henceforth, in the language of the sacred historian they “feared the Lord, and served their graven images, both their children and their children’s children: as did their fathers, so do they unto this day.” 2 Kings 17:41. A gap occurs in their history until Judah has returned from captivity. They then desire to be allowed to participate in the rebuilding of the temple at Jerusalem; but on being refused, the Samaritans throw off the mask, and become open enemies, frustrate the operations of the Jews through the reigns of two Persian kings, and are only effectually silenced in the reign of Darius Hystaspes, B.C. 519. The feud thus unhappily begun grew year by year more inveterate. Matters at length came to a climax. About B.C. 409, a certain Manasseh, a man of priestly lineage, on being expelled from Jerusalem by Nehemiah for an unlawful marriage, obtained permission from the Persian king of his day, Darius Nothus, to build a temple on Mount Gerizim for the Samaritans, with whom he had found refuge. The animosity of the Samaritans became more intense than ever. They are said to have done everything in their power to annoy the Jews. Their own temple on Gerizim they considered to be much superior to that at Jerusalem. There they sacrificed a passover. Toward the mountain, even after the temple on it had fallen, wherever they were they directed their worship. To their copy of the law they arrogated an antiquity and authority greater than attached to any copy in the possession of the Jews. The law (i.e., the five books of Moses) was their sole code; for they rejected every other book in the Jewish canon. The Jews, on the other hand, were not more conciliatory in their treatment of the Samaritans. Certain other Jewish renegades had from time to time taken refuge with the Samaritans; hence by degrees the Samaritans claimed to partake of Jewish blood, especially if doing so happened to suit their interest. Very far were the Jews from admitting this claim to consanguinity on the part of these people.
The parallels are obvious. The samaritans were a mixed breed and the jews looked down on them. We as a church should be aware that we do not fall in the same trap as the Pharisees did. The NT church is never exclusive, hod want to see all men be saved. (John 12:32; 1 Tim 2:4) The way to salvation is exclusively Jesus, and Jesus alone. The Spirit of God fell on all flesh, at the day of Penticost. (Acts 2:17)
Luke furthermore adds the story of the healing of the ten lepers again unique to Luke. The one who came back and thanked Jesus was off course a Samaritan. (Luke 17:11-19) In Acts Samaria is included in the list of those to receive salvation. (Acts 1:8; 8:1, 5; 9:31; 15:3) Thus making it very clear to the church of his day, and today, Jesus came for the religious outcasts too!
Salvation in Luke and Acts are thus seen to include the whole world. Jesus answered and said to them, “Those who are well have no need of a physician, but those who are sick. I have not come to call the righteous, but sinners, to repentance.” (Luke 5:31-32) Whether you are a heathen (Galilean) or born in Jerusalem, Everyone needs to repent and be saved. (Luke 13:1-5) Instead of announcing wrath on the perpetrators, he calls everyone to repentance.
Jesus started in Galilee (Luk 4:14-9:50), then on route to Jerusalem (Luk 9:51-19:40), and concluded with the final events in Jerusalem (Luk 19:41-24:53). The early church started in Jerusalem, Judea and Samaria, and then to the end of the Earth. This focus describes a certain methodology and balance between missions at home and missions abroad. The efforts of the one are not at the cost of the other, but rather to support the other. There is also a certain movement and growth starting at home, expanding naturally further and further to the ends of the earth. THE REAL PROBLEM WITH MISSIONS
We preach to them but not include them into our family. We have millions of people getting saved, but very view discipled. Crusade Evangelists lay this task before the local church’s door. The local church seems to fail miserably at this task, which can be thrown back at the Evangelist’s type of message and gospel preached. In terms of our biblical understanding thus far, it is very clear that God’s idea for making disciples is making families.
According to the most recent census in South Africa 81.7% of the people in South Africa are Christians. We are the fifth nation in the world to legalise homosexual marriages. We have legalised abortion and are in the process of legalizing prostitution. How is this possible in a country with so many Christians?
The most Christianized nations are in Africa. But often these nations are the poorest, with the highest numbers of HIV AIDS, human right abuses and corruption. Basic services like sanitation, clean water and sufficient food sources are desperately lacking. Nigeria has a population of 149 million people, of which 45.3% are Christian, 95.3% of this number of Christian visits a church at least once a month, 78.8% believes the church has the answer to their problems, 98.2% finds consolation and support in the local church. The church is thus seemingly very successful in this Nation, but Nigeria is 157th on the world ranking of most developed countries. We have been highly successful in making converts, but is failing to disciple the people in the principals and values of Kingdom living.
The fact that we go in, and out is the problems. We preach and leave, not willing to lay down our lives for a community, to become fathers and older brothers that will lead them out of darkness into his marvelous light. (1 Pet 2:9) The true heart of the apostolic is thus to be fathers to the churches. (Gal 4:19; 1 Cor 4:15; ). The context of the true church is also set, within the context of family. How can you take care of His church, when your own family is ruins? (1 Tim 3:5) Church history is full of stories where leaders forsake their own families, and it lead to all kinds of error and misconduct.
Jesus started His earthly ministry with these words; “repent for the Kingdom of God is at hand!” His family has come to earth, wanting us to become part. (Mat 4:17)
Oordeel word meestal in ʼn negatiewe lig gesien. Ons konnotasie met die woord bring ander woorde tot ons gedagtes soos: finaliteit, verwerping, afskryf, verwydering, straf en hel. Ons weet ook dat ons dit nie moet doen nie… maar tog doen ons almal dit selfs sonder dat ons weet. Skinder is ʼn vorm van oordeel, want ek het alreeds ʼn waarheid/oordeel oor iemand gevorm sonder dat die persoon ooit die geleentheid gekry het om hulleself te verdedig. Broeders, moenie van mekaar kwaad spreek nie. Die wat kwaad spreek van sy broeder en sy broeder oordeel, spreek kwaad van die wet en oordeel die wet; en as jy die wet oordeel, is jy nie ‘n dader van die wet nie, maar ‘n regter. (Jakobus 4:11)
Die wat daarvoor veg om nie te oordeel nie, oordeel die wat oordeel.
Die grootste rede hoekom die kerk sy stem verloor het om ʼn morele kompas vir die Wêreld te wees, is omdat ons nie eenstemmigheid het oor dissipline en oordeel nie. Ouers verloor ook op dieselfde wyse hulle gesag met hulle kinders wanneer die een sag is en die ander hard, en later met mekaar baklei oor die dissipline proses. Dit verwar die kind. Tog is die skrif duidelik oor die saak: Ons moet net eers ons eie voorbehoude en opinies uit die weg ruim. Soms is ons negatiewe perspektief oor dissipline ons eie subjektiewe seerkry ervarings waaroor ons nog nie genesing gekry het nie. Maar wat is oordeel nou eintlik?
Uiteindelik is ons aardse oordeel net ʼn beoordeling en nie ware oordeel nie. Uiteindelik is God die enigste een wat oor ons almal gaan oordeel. Maar ek kies om God se oordele in my lewe nie te verontagsaam nie. (Ps 119: 4, 15, 27, 40, 45, 56, 63, 69, 104, 128, 134, 173) Eerder nou geoordeel word terwyl ons almal nog ʼn kans het om reg te maak, as die ewige oordeel, en ewige straf. Geen straf is sonder ʼn mate van oordeel nie. Daarom voel die persoon veroordeel. Oordeel en straf is onlosmaaklik deel van mekaar. ʼn Ouer wat sy kind die heeltyd waarsku maar nooit sover kom om sy kind te straf nie, verloor gesag in daardie kind se lewe.
Die kerk se straf en oordeel is die van ʼn mens en tydelik. Wanneer God finaal straf is daar geen uitkomkans nie . Dan is daar nie meer kans vir bekering nie. Menslike straf is altyd met die hoop op herstel en bekering! Wanneer die hele Christenkerk in eenheid kan kom met God se prosesse in ons lewens, kan ons meewerk tot genesing en herstel.
Dink gou aan die volgende scenario: Jou beste vriend kom vertel jou in die geheim, en neem jou in sy vertroue dat hy op pad is om moord te pleeg. Hoe sal jy dit hanteer? Gaan jy hom paai, en met hom barmhartig wees? Gaan jy sy sonde toe maak? Of gaan jy bereid wees om ʼn vriend te verloor om ʼn lewe te red? Hoe ondersteun jy ʼn vermeende moordenaar sonder om ʼn medepligtige te word? Hoekom breek jy kontak; hoekom gee jy jou vriend oor aan die gereg? Want uiteindelik wil jy hom/haar red van doodstraf en ook die persoon wat hy/sy wil vermoor.
Die kwessie is nie óf ons moet oordeel nie, maar hoe ons moet oordeel. Daar is net twee tipes oordeel: Regte oordeel en verkeerde oordeel. Om iemand te oordeel sonder dat jy al die feite het, betrokke is in die saak, en eerstehands getuienis het is soos om jouself regter oor ʼn saak te maak en die saak het nooit voorgekom nie. Regte oordeel is wanneer ons ʼn saak
en persoon direk konfronteer en na ʼn proses tot ʼn beslissing kom. Verkeerde oordeel kom voor wanneer ons:
Iemand anders se gesag en hantering oordeel wat nie aan ons gegee is nie. Soos om ʼn pa wat sy kind straf te oordeel , bloot omdat ek nie van dissipline hou nie. Jy is nie betrokke in die verhouding en geskiedenis van ʼn saak nie. Paulus verduidelik dat ons nie iemand anders se hantering van sy dienskneg kan oordeel nie. (Rom 14:4) Kerke is soos gesinne en families, wanneer ʼn sekere kerk een van sy familie lede korrigeer en aanspreek, moet ander kerke die proses respekteer. Wanneer ons iemand wat onder dissipline is jammer kry, en simpatiseer misken ons die agent wat verandering en redding in daardie persoon se lewe moet bring. Dan begin die oortreder fokus op die sogenaamde verkeerde strafproses sonder om te deel met die oorsaak van die straf. Soos ʼn ma kan so ʼn persoon liefde wys, maar nie die straf in twyfel trek nie, eerder dit versterk en met sagtheid die persoon lei om hulle fout raak te sien. As almal saamwerk in die strafproses, is daar nie dubbelstandaarde en onsekerheid nie. Elkeen kan op verskillende wyses hulle onderskeie gawes gebruik om so ʼn persoon te help om tot hulle sinne te kom. Die Herder troos, maar is ferm om nie op die pak te fokus nie maar om die oorsprong van die sonde te vind. Die profeet vermaan van komende oordeel. Die apostel spreek saak direk aan, denkende aan die invloed wat sonde op die groter liggaam het. Die evangelis wys daarop dat so ʼn persoon hul invloed as getuie verloor. Die leraar wys op die skrifte en God se hart en hantering van die saak. Indien elkeen hulle rol in die restourasie proses verstaan, is die kans dat so ʼn persoon gered kan word mos soveel groter. (En aan sommige wat twyfel, moet julle barmhartigheid bewys; 23 maar ander moet julle met vrees red deur hulle uit die vuur te ruk; en ook die kleed moet julle haat wat deur sonde bevlek is.” (Jud 21-23)
Jy iemand vanuit ʼn toeskouer rol oordeel, veroordeel en straf toepas. Jy moet betrokke wees, en as te ware lisensie/gesag/aangestel/mandaat hê om te oordeel. Is die saak aan jou gegee? Almal het ʼn opinie oor ʼn saak, maar Bybelse oordeel soek altyd een uitkoms : Redding! Selfs toe Paulus die sonde van ʼn gemeentelid in Korinte oordeel was dit met dié doel in gedagte: “om so iemand aan die Satan oor te lewer tot verderf van die vlees, SODAT DIE GEES GERED KAN WORD IN DIE DAG VAN DIE HERE JESUS.” (1 Kor 5:5) Soos ʼn pa sy kind straf en ʼn pakslae gee om hom te red van onheil, so word oordeel gebruik as ʼn laaste uitweg om iemand tot sy/haar sinne te bring. Dit is vir die ouer geensins aangenaam om sy/haar kind te straf nie, inteendeel dis soms traumaties. Maar juis omdat ons, ons kinders lief het, en wil voorkom dat hulle in dwaasheid en in rebellie tot hul einde kom straf ons, ons kinders. (Heb 12:5-11) Dis tog algemene professionele praktyk, om nie mekaar se sake te bespreek en opinies daaroor te lewer alvorens ek nie aangestel is en al die feite voor my het nie.
Jy oordeel sonder dat jy die Bybelse pad met iemand gestap het. “EN as jou broeder teen jou sondig, gaan bestraf hom tussen jou en hom alleen. As hy na jou luister, dan het jy jou broeder gewin; 16 maar as hy nie luister nie, neem nog een of twee met jou saam, sodat in die mond van twee of drie getuies elke woord kan vasstaan. 17 En as hy na hulle nie luister nie, sê dit aan die gemeente; en as hy na die gemeente ook nie luister nie, laat hom vir jou wees soos die heiden en die tollenaar. (Mat 18:15-17) Vinnige oordeel is nooit goed nie, gee dit tyd en stap die pad van dissipline uit. Die uitsondering is wanneer mens regtig deur die Heilige Gees gelei word soos toe Paulus die Waarsêer Gees in ‘n vrou bestraf het. (Hand 16:18) Maar dit het tot haar vrymaking gelei. Jy beplan dit nie, en die saak wat jy oordeel het niks met jou as persoon te make nie. Dis die Heilige Gees wat deur jou werk om orde in die kerk te bring. (1 Tim 5:20; 4:2; Tit 1:13; 2:15) Wanneer jy iemand bestraf (rebuke) is dit ook korrek, omdat dit direkte konfrontasie is. Jesus se styl van bediening was direk, nooit met ompaadtjies, en mooi praatjies nie. Ek glo dat as ons self-verwoestende gedrag direk reguit konfronteer en sake reguit met mekaar uitpraat daar baie meer vrede in die huis van die Here wees. “Pas op vir julleself. En as jou broeder teen jou sondig, bestraf hom; en as hy berou kry, vergewe hom.” (Luk 17:3) Ons is soms so bang vir konflik en om iemand te na te kom, dat ons nie besef dat ons stilswye op die einde baie meer skade veroorsaak nie.
Jou oordeel nie waar en regverdig is nie. Lees Mat 23:1-31 Jesus spreek Hom uit teen die Fariseërs en Skrifgeleerdes. Hy maak baie kras en harde uitsprake: “Wee julle, skrifgeleerdes en Fariseërs, geveinsdes, blinde leiers, dwase, gewitte grafte, slange addergeslag!” Die feit is: Dit is die waarheid. Jesus voeg nie by, of oordryf nie. Hy sê dit presies soos dit is. Hy maak ook nie die oordeel as reaksie uit bitterheid of omdat hulle Hom nie ontvang nie. Enige kind ontvang sy pak wanneer Hy weet hy/sy was verkeerd. Wanneer hulle egter onregverdig of onskuldig gestraf word, maak dit hulle opstandig. Daarom is dit so belangrik om nie te vinnig ʼn oordeel te vel nie. Kry eers al die inligting ter sake, alvorens jy oordeel en konfronteer. Wanneer jy iemand konfronteer werk net met eerstehandse inligting en dit wat die Heilige Gees aan jou openbaar. Om nie regte oordeel toe te pas nie het konsekwensies:
Sou ons as kerk nie die sonde in ons midde oordeel en hanteer nie, word die hele gemeente uiteindelik besoedel met die sonde. “Julle roem is nie mooi nie. Weet julle nie dat ‘n bietjie suurdeeg die hele deeg suur maak nie?” (1 Kor 5:6) Die laaste uitweg wat niemand graag wil doen nie:
Om iemand vir wie jy eens lief was te vermy, en die verhouding te breek oor sonde is geen maklike taak nie. Hierdie hantering van verkeerd druis regstreeks in teen populêre opinie en die gees van die wêreld. Tog is dissiplinêre optrede alledaags in die werksplek. Wat laat ons dink dat dissipline nie ook in die kerk geld nie? Toe priesters hulle skuldig gemaak het aan seksuele misdrywe, wou ons nie graag hê dat daar opgetree word teen hierdie individue nie? Die oordeel hoef nie in gevangenisstraf te eindig nie, maar die verkeerd moet aangespreek en hanteer word.
Die Bybel is baie duidelik dat ons mense wat hulle skuldig maak aan die volgende oortredings uit ons gemeenskap moet verwyder; hulle soos heidene moet behandel, nie met hulle moet kuier of eet nie.
1 Kor 5:11-13: hoereerders, gierigaards of rowers of afgodedienaars.
Rom 16:17: tweedrag en aanstoot veroorsaak teen die leer wat julle geleer het,
Tit 3:10-11: ‘n man wat partyskap verwek,
2 Tes 3:6: wat onordelik wandel en nie volgens die oorlewering wat hy van ons ontvang het nie.
2 Tes 3:14-15: iemand aan ons woord in hierdie brief nie gehoorsaam is nie,
1 Tim 6:3-5: 3 AS iemand iets anders leer en nie instem met die gesonde woorde van onse Here Jesus Christus en met die leer wat volgens die godsaligheid is nie,
Tit 1:10-11: wat tugteloos is, wat onsin praat en verleiers is,
Soos met enige vorm van straf is daar bitter min mense wat hulle sonde onmiddellik erken en bereid is om dit reguit en eerlik in die oë te kyk en ʼn pad van restourasie te soek.
Tog is dit die enigste pad. Hoeveel huwelike het misluk en die partye het nog steeds nie ʼn benul oor wat verkeerd gegaan het nie. So stap ons met ons foute en tekortkominge van die een verhouding na die ander. Daar vind nie groei plaas nie, want ons regverdig ons verkeerd, ons verskuif die blaam, en ons is nie eerlik met onsself nie.
Wanneer die kerk iemand tugtig is daar vele uitroepe wat sê: Wie is julle om te oordeel, het julle nie ook sonde nie. Is alle sonde nie dieselfde nie? Daar is ʼn reuse verskil tussen mense wat deur die geloof en Sy genade deurentyd wegstap van sonde, en diegene wat doelbewus en vasberade hulle oorgee aan sonde. Al het ons die grootste moontlike sonde gedoen, ons kan met ons sonde na die troon van genade kom en vergifnis ontvang. (Heb 4:14-16) As ons sonde bely is Hy getrou… om ons te vergewe (1 Pet 1:9) Vir die vrou wat op heterdaad in haar sonde gevang was, was daar genade. Jesus se Woord: “Gaan en sondig nie meer nie” was haar uitkomskaart na ʼn nuwe lewe. Sou sy egter nie gehoor gee, en terugdraai na sonde, sal sy nie van oordeel ontkom nie. Wanneer ons as kerk sonde oordeel sê ons nie ons is sonder sonde nie. Inteendeel die lig van God skyn tydens oordeel op almal se harte, en buig ons almal ons harte na die Here om ons te ondersoek. Ons tree nie uit hoogmoed op en oordeel nie. Ons verneder onsself voor die Here en laat juis toe dat Hy ons was. Inderwaarheid staan ons almal onder die Here se oordeel. Die kerk is net die Here se stem.
Is dit dan nie die kerk se verantwoordelikheid om mense te vertel van God se genade EN oordeel nie. Ons sal mos nie die waarheid praat as ons net die een kant verkondig en swyg oor die ander nie?
Jesus waarsku die fariseër van komende oordeel oor hulle valsheid. (Mat 23:14) Laster teen die heilige Gees sal nie vergewe word nie. (Mar 3:29) Dit sal draagliker wees vir Tirus en Sidon as vir die wat Hom nie ontvang het nie in die oordeelsdag. (Luk 10:14) En dit is die oordeel: dat die lig in die wêreld gekom het, en die mense het die duisternis liewer gehad as die lig; want hulle werke was boos. 20 Want elkeen wat kwaad doen, haat die lig en kom nie na die lig nie, dat sy werke nie bestraf mag word nie. 21 Maar hy wat die waarheid doen, kom na die lig, sodat sy werke openbaar kan word, dat hulle in God gedoen is. Die wat glo en doen sal die oordeel vryspring wat kom oor die hele aarde (Joh 5:24) Die Voordele om Dissipline en korreksie te ontvang:
(Gal 6:1) Oordeel herstel in ʼn groot mate die vrees van die Here in ʼn huis. Net soos met enige familie: wanneer pa ʼn sekere kind straf, bring dit orde in die hele huis. Almal is sommer meer bewus van reg doen en reg leef. Paulus vertel dat hy sekere dinge gelei het ter wille van die liggaam. (Kol 1:24) Soms is een se korreksie ʼn geleentheid vir die wat nog wik en weeg om tot inkeer te kom. Daarom moet sekere sonde oop gemaak word, soos Dawid se owerspel, sodat ons vandag nog kan leer uit sy foute.
Wanneer mens korreksie ontvang bespoedig dit die prosesse van God in jou lewe. Ons kan nie onsself verander nie, een van God se agente van verandering is korreksie (Heb 12:8) deur dit te weier en aan te hou om jouself te regverdig kan die verandering wat in jou nodig is nie plaasvind nie. (Heb 12:8) Jou smaak bly dieselfde (Jer 48 :11) God het ons genesing en herstel, restourasie in gedagte, sodat ons uiteindelike volkome in Christus sal wees en Hy volkome in ons. (Kol 1:27)
Nog nooit was ons meer in gebed, meer voor die Here se lig en oë op ons lewens nie. Almal se harte word ontbloot by die straf van sonde. Mag die Here ons almal genadig wees en skenk dat ons goddelike berou sal ontvang en draai van dit wat sleg en verkeerd is. (2 Kor 7:7-10)
Vrede en Genade in Christus !
Jan Oosthuizen
Simon Sinek verduidelik ‘n eenvoudige, maar kragtige model vir hoe leiers optrede inspireer, aan die hand van ‘n goue sirkel en die vraag “waarom?” as die kernpunt. Sy voorbeelde sluit in Apple, Martin Luther King en die Wright-broers – en as ‘n kontrapunt Tivo, wat sukkel. Die goue sirkel se kern is, Waarom? Hoe? en dan Wat? Die bogenoemde 3 voorbeelde van sake ondernemings is individue wat hulleself bemark en dryf vanuit die kern “waarom”. Apple bemark hulleself altyd eerstens as innoveerders wat onder andere rekenaars vervaardig. Volgens Simon is die “waarom” ons dinge doen, die mees basiese bestanddeel wat ons na mekaar toe aantrek. Ons groepeer natuurlik rondom mense met die selfde “waarom”.
For a person to grow spiritually, they have to eventually be part of a local intimate family. The pattern we find in Acts was either small group meetings from house to house the household of faith, or big gatherings or meetings drawing a crowd. We need to find the balance between these two activities, and see how they actually compliment the other. Why do we wait so long to initiate house churches? Should the outflow of big gathering not be to get the seekers into a local church, family, house church immediately? This solves the demand for follow-up activities after the meeting?
There is wisdom and much benefit being linked to a greater extended family. There are more resources, help and support, and a greater doctrinal accuracy. It is evident that smaller separate groupings tend to enter into error more quickly. We need to learn to think WE and not ME. Jesus did not function on His own, he gathered friends (Disciples) around Him, he later called His family. (Mark 3:31-35) Paul always took an companion, and greets his Co-workers. (Acts 19:29; Phil 4:3; Philemon 1:24; Gal 2:9)
Die laaste uitweg wat niemand graag wil doen nie:
Die Voordele om Dissipline en korreksie te ontvang:
