The New Covenant of Grace: A Holy Spirit Covenant

The New Covenant of Grace: A Holy Spirit Covenant

I will give you a new heart and put a new spirit within you; I will take the heart of stone out of your flesh and give you a heart of flesh. I will put My Spirit within you and cause you to walk in My statutes, and you will keep My judgement's and do them.  (Eze_36:26-27)
As noted earlier, the new covenant is about grace, as contrasted with the old covenant, which is about law. "For the law was given through Moses, but grace and truth came through Jesus Christ" (John_1:17). The connection between grace and the Holy Spirit can be seen in various scripture passages on the new covenant, including this glorious prophecy. "I will give you a new heart and put a new spirit within you; I will take the heart of stone out of your flesh and give you a heart of flesh." 

The first verse in this prophetic promise concerns regeneration, spiritual new birth. Through faith in the Lord, our original, hard, lifeless heart is removed, and a new, pliable, living spirit is given to us. 
The second verse pertains to transformation, the ongoing development of this new life. "I will put My Spirit within you and cause you to walk in My statutes." The developing of a life that increasingly complies with the will of God depends upon the work of the Holy Spirit within us. We know that un-redeemed humanity has no hope of living a life that is pleasing to God. Yet, many Christians could be unaware that even the new creature in Christ cannot please God on his own resources. The Spirit of God must be the heavenly cause that produces a heavenly lifestyle in believers. 
What is promised here is not an automatic experience. The life of many Christians does not consistently match what is described here in Eze_36:27. The reason is that they are not relating properly to the Lord in humble dependence. Yes, these two relational realities (humility and faith) also determine whether or not the Spirit of God is our resource, just as they were determinative concerning grace. 
Two statements by Jesus expound upon this fact. "You have no life in you . . . It is the Spirit who gives life; the flesh profits nothing". We do not innately possess life as God intends it to be lived. Natural human resources are of no benefit in developing a godly life. Such revelation is very humbling. If we embrace Jesus' evaluation of our personal inadequacy, then we are willing to relate to God in humility. Further, there is truth in which we are to place our trust. "It is the Spirit who gives life."  As we count on this truth, we are relating to the Lord in faith. The result of such humble reliance is God's Spirit becomes our vitality for living godly.

O Lord, the source of true life, thank You for establishing such a gracious arrangement as the new covenant. I praise You that Your Holy Spirit is my heavenly dynamic for godliness. I confess that my fleshly attempts to please You are so inadequate. I humbly ask You to cause me to walk in Your good will, by the power of the Holy Spirit, Amen.

The Promise of Another Helper!

John 14:17  This Friend is the Spirit of Truth. The godless world can't take him in because it doesn't have eyes to see him, doesn't know what to look for. But you know him already because he has been staying with you, and will even be in you! 
John 14:18  "I will not leave you orphaned. I'm coming back. 
John 14:19  In just a little while the world will no longer see me, but you're going to see me because I am alive and you're about to come alive. 
John 14:20  At that moment you will know absolutely that I'm in my Father, and you're in me, and I'm in you. 
John 14:21  "The person who knows my commandments and keeps them, that's who loves me. And the person who loves me will be loved by my Father, and I will love him and make myself plain to him." 

John 14:15-26

The Promise of Another Helper (14:15-26)

14:15   The Lord Jesus was about to leave His disciples, and they would be filled with sorrow. How would they be able to express their love to Him? The answer was by keeping His commandments. Not by tears, but by obedience. The commandments of the Lord are the instructions which He has given us in the Gospels, as well as the rest of the NT.

14:16   The word translated pray that is used here of our Lord is not the same word used to describe an inferior praying to a superior, but of one making request of his equal. The Lord would pray the Father to send another Helper. The word Helper (Paraclete) means one called to the side of another to help. It is also translated Advocate (1Jo_2:1). The Lord Jesus is our Advocate or Helper, and the Holy Spirit is another Helper—not another of a different kind, but another of similar nature. The Holy Spirit would abide with believers forever. In the OT, the Holy Spirit came upon men at various times, but often left them. Now He would come to remain forever.

14:17   The Holy Spirit is called the Spirit of truth because His teaching is true and He glorifies Christ who is the truth. The world cannot receive the Holy Spirit because it cannot see Him. Unbelievers want to see before they will believe—although they believe in wind and electricity, and yet they cannot see them. The unsaved do not know or understand the Holy Spirit. He may convict them of sin, and yet they do not know that it is He. The disciples knew the Holy Spirit. They had known Him to work in their own lives and had seen Him working through the Lord Jesus.

“He dwells with you, and will be in you.” Before Pentecost, the Holy Spirit came upon men and dwelt with them. But since Pentecost, when a man believes on the Lord Jesus, the Holy Spirit takes up His abode in that man's life forever. The prayer of David, “Do not take Your Holy Spirit from me,” would not be suitable today. The Holy Spirit is never taken from a believer, although He may be grieved, or quenched, or hindered.

14:18   The Lord would not leave His disciples as orphans, or desolate. He would come to them again. In one sense, He came to them after His resurrection, but it is doubtful if that is what is meant. In another sense, He came to them in the Person of the Holy Spirit on the day of Pentecost. This spiritual coming is the true meaning here. “There was something about Pentecost which made it a coming of Jesus.” In a third sense, He will literally come to them again at the end of this age, when He will take His chosen ones home to heaven.

14:19   No unbeliever saw the Lord Jesus after His burial. After He was raised, He was seen only by those who loved Him. But even after His Ascension, His disciples continued to see Him by faith. This is doubtless meant by the words “but you will see Me.” After the world could no longer see Him, His disciples would continue to see Him. “Because I live, you will live also.” Here He was looking forward to His resurrection life. It would be the pledge of life for all who trusted Him. Even if they should die, they would be raised again to die no more.

14:20   “At that day” probably refers again to the descent of the Holy Spirit. He would instruct believers in the truth that just as there was a vital link between the Son and the Father, so there would be a marvelous union of life and interests between Christ and His saints. It is difficult to explain how Christ is in the believer, and the believer is in Christ at the same time. The usual illustration is of a poker in the fire. Not only is the poker in the fire, but the fire is in the poker. But this does not tell the full story. Christ is in the believer in the sense that His life is communicated to him. He actually dwells in the believer through the Holy Spirit. The believer is in Christ in the sense that he stands before God in all the merit of the Person and work of Christ.

14:21   The real proof of one's love to the Lord is obedience to His commandments. It is useless to talk about loving Him if we do not want to obey Him. In one sense, the Father loves all the world. But He has a special love for those who love His Son. Those are also loved by Christ, and He makes Himself known to them in a special way. The more we love the Savior, the better we shall know Him.

14:22   The Judas mentioned here had the misfortune to have the same name as the traitor. But the Spirit of God kindly distinguished him from Iscariot. He could not understand how the Lord could appear to the disciples without also being seen by the world. Doubtless He thought of the Savior's coming as that of a conquering King or popular Hero. He did not understand that the Lord would manifest Himself to His own in a spiritual manner. They would see Him by faith through the Word of God.

By the Spirit of God, we can actually know Christ better today than the disciples knew Him when He was on earth. When He was here, those in the front of the crowd were closer to Him than those in the rear. But today, by faith, each of us can enjoy the closest of fellowship with Him. Christ's answer to Judas' question shows that the promised manifestations to His individual followers is connected with the Word of God. Obedience to the Word will result in the coming and abiding of the Father and the Son.

14:23   If a person truly loves the Lord, he will want to keep all of His teachings, not just isolated commandments. The Father loves those who are willing to obey His Son without questions or reservations. Both Father and Son are especially near to such loving and obedient hearts.

14:24   On the other hand, those who do not love Him do not keep His sayings. And they are not only refusing the words of Christ, but those of the Father as well.

14:25   While He was with them, our Lord taught His disciples up to a certain point. He could not reveal more truth to them because they could not have taken it in.

14:26   But the Holy Spirit would reveal more. He was sent by the Father in the name of Christ on the day of Pentecost. The Spirit came in Christ's name in the sense that He came to represent Christ's interests on earth. He did not come to glorify Himself but to draw men and women to the Savior. “He will teach you all things,” said the Lord. He did this first of all through the spoken ministry of the apostles; then through the written Word of God which we have today. The Holy Spirit brings to remembrance all the things which the Savior had taught. Actually, the Lord Jesus seems to have presented in germ form all the teaching which is developed by the Holy Spirit in the rest of the New Testament.

The Wise Men and the Star

The Wise Men and the Star

There came wise men from the east to Jerusalem, saying, Where is he that is born King of the Jews? for we have seen his star in the east, and are come to worship him— Mat_2:1-2

God Speaks Our Language
One of the first lessons of this passage is that God speaks to men in ways they can understand. These Chaldeans had been stargazers from childhood; the study of the nightly heavens was their passion. They had watched the stars with a patience and an accuracy such as are never suffered to go unrewarded. And now by the aid of the stars they loved so well and on which they had meditated with such unwearied devotion, they are brought to the feet of the Infant in the manger. The shepherds were not Chaldeans, they were Jews. They had been trained in the doctrines of the angels. I dare say they never went out to the pasture at night without hoping to see some shimmer of angel's wings. So it was by the long expected voice of angels that the shepherds received the tidings of the Christ. But the Chaldeans had not learned the lore of angels; it was the lore of stars they were familiar with; God spake to the separate companies in separate voices, but the voices were those that each could understand. That is always true. His voice is as the sound of many waters. He is a Father, and you never heard of a father who took his children on his knee and answered their questions in Latin or in Greek. We shall never understand the Bible truly, nor shall we ever value aright all that we learned in childhood, until we have grasped this simple yet profound truth, that God speaks to men in ways they can understand.
People Led to Christ in Unlikely Ways
Another lesson of this passage is the unlikely ways in which men may be led to Jesus. We know that the prophets pointed to Jesus; so did the law—Christ was the end of the law. So did the sacrifices on the Jewish altars, and the stern summons to repentance of the Baptist. All these things were intended and adapted to guide men into the presence of Messiah, and multitudes journeyed to His presence so. But a star—do you think that was a likely leader? Is that the duty and the function of a star? Yet by a star, as surely as by the angels, were men conducted to Bethlehem. Let us be taught, then, that by unlooked-for ways men may be led to light and love and liberty. Let us never limit the power of the Almighty in opening up avenues to Jesus' feet. There are men who have heard a thousand sermons, and been deaf to the whole range of evangelical appeal, who have yet been won for Christ by a stray word in passing, or by some act of self-sacrificing kindness. There are women whom all the praise of the sanctuary has not moved, but who have been turned to God by the ceasing of childish laughter. The star is a type of the strange and unlooked-for ways in which men are led to the feet of Jesus Christ.
The Intense Curiosity of the Wise Men
A third lesson of this passage is the intense curiosity of these men about the King. Nothing would satisfy them but that they must leave home and kindred, and set out on a long and toilsome journey, and brave a hundred dangers on the road, all for the sake of worshiping Christ. Had it been a king of the whole East who had been promised them, I could have better understood their curiosity. For there is a strong desire in the heart of a loyal subject to get a glimpse of his own future sovereign. But it was not a king of Chaldea they were seeking—"Where is He that is called King of the Jews?" And when I think of that passionate inquiry for the unknown monarch of an alien race, and how they traveled hundreds of miles to see Him—and how they troubled Jerusalem about Him, and would not be baffled nor beaten in the search, I am amazed at the mysterious interest excited by the new-born Savior. The strange thing is that from that hour to this, that curiosity has never died away. In the whole of history Jesus is the supremely fascinating figure. More thoughts are directed to Jesus in one day than to Caesar or Napoleon in ten years. More books are written about Jesus now than about any hundred of earth's greatest men. There is an inexplicable mystery and charm about that simple Galilean figure; and the world is still as curious about Him as were the wise men when they saw His star.
Anxious Inquiries by Those Far Away
Again, the most anxious inquirers about Jesus were men who were very far away from Him. I wish you to compare these pilgrims from the East with the men gathered in the inn at Bethlehem. The Chaldeans were many a long mile away, and the company in the inn were at the manger. Yet it was not the latter band, it was the former, who were eager about the newborn Savior.
There were ninety-and-nine that safely lay
In the shelter of the fold,
But some were out on the hills away,
Far off from the gates of gold.
Away on the mountains wild and bare,
Away from the tender shepherd's care—
yet who were the nearest to Jesus Christ that night—was it not those who were so far away? That is a parable of what often happens. At home, in the bosom of a Christian country, we are always in danger of careless unconcern. We are exposed to that worst indifference that springs from the dying of the sense of wonder. Meantime, from distant countries like Chaldea, come tidings of the kingdom being taken by violence. Once again the most anxious seekers are men whom we should say were far away.
The Apparent Insignificance of What They Found
Lastly, let us not fail to observe the apparent insignificance of what they found. When the Queen of Sheba set out from Arabia, and entered with her fine retinue into Jerusalem, she saw such lavish glory there that her heart sank under the wonder of it. But when the wise men from the East came to the inn, expecting perhaps some sight of royal majesty, they found in happy innocence—a Child. I wonder if they felt a touch of disappointment? Was it worthwhile to make that tedious journey, and this—this little Babe—the end of it? We know now that it was well worthwhile; that Infant of days was the eternal Lord. So there come times to everyone of us when we are tempted to ask, "Is all our effort worthwhile?" We pray and serve and struggle through the darkness, and the end of it all seems (as it were) a manger. But for us, too, the eternal dawn is coming when the King in His beauty shall meet us with a welcome; and I think we shall find then, like the wise men from the East, that the journey to Bethlehem was well worthwhile. morrison

The Shout of Grace!

The Shout of Grace!

“The glory of the latter house shall be greater than that of the former.” (Hag_2:9).

Apollos had captured our imaginations as he described the Rubble of Zerubbabel in great eloquence. And he stirred our hearts with faith and hope when he then made application of his message to our lives.

“In the old days great stories were written about the lives and lore of an ancient people who were chosen by God to bear His presence and message to the whole world,” Apollos said. “We see and learn in them many great truths for ourselves.

“They were not chosen because they were worthy; neither are we. They had no merits that qualified them to serve and represent God to the world; neither do we. They were stubborn and stiff-necked, disobedient and slow to understand; and so are we.

“But God loved them; and He loves us. He blessed them, and redeemed them. At times He humbled them, and then heard their cries and turned again to save them.

“The one epic story that illustrates this perhaps better than any other is The Return From Captivity, and the Rebuilding of the Temple.

“Seventy long years had passed slowly as the children of the Lord languished in Babylonian Captivity. The last sight they had of the City of the Great King was a fading memory of horror and shame. The armies of Nebuchadnezzar had invaded, ravaged, desecrated, destroyed, and burned much of the Holy City. Billowing plumes of blacken smoke rose high into the hot sky as the oil-coated rocks burned until nothing was left but charred stones covered in greasy dirt.

“The Temple of the Lord had now become the habitation of jackals, snakes, and assorted desert wildlife. And when things looked the most hopeless, God stepped in and wrought a miracle of resurrection.

“The king of the pagan nation in which God’s people were held captive had a change of heart toward God and let His people go. Moreover, he charged them in the name of the Lord to rebuild the Temple and the Holy City, raising it up out of the burnt ruins. And, get this – he provided them all the resources they would need out of his own royal treasury! It was miraculous indeed.

“The people rallied with a renewed faith and set out for the Holy City. They talked excitedly all along the way of their return; each day growing more and more enthusiastic about the job that lay before them.

“But then they saw The City. It was worse than they had imagined; far worse. In fact, it no longer even looked like a city at all. Rather, its appearance was that of a huge pile of disjointed rocks; burnt and covered with years of untouched dirt. The only signs of life were peasants who had established makeshift tent cities, strewn about the colossal debris. And there were the wild animals roaming freely amid the ruins.

 The challenge they faced in rebuilding a holy temple from the ruins of toppled debris is not at all different from what we face in seeing our own ruined and ravaged lives redeemed and set right before the Lord today.
we not lived in a long captivity to Confusion? Has not the Temple of the Lord been desecrated in our hearts and lives. Haven’t fires burned, and windstorms blown, and dust accumulated on the altars of our devotions to God? And does not a dark and intimidating presence taunt us with our powerlessness to do anything about it?

The word which God gave to Zerubbabel is now given to us. “It’s not by might, it’s not by power; but it is by My Spirit,” says the Lord.

And like those faithful re-builders of old, we too will lift The Shout of Grace up to heaven. Yes, we will boldly bear witness to the power of Christ at work in our lives, enabling us to be who God created us to be and to do what He has called us to do – right where we are.

“So, my dear friends and fellow-builders, take heart. Whatever obstacle it is that you face, stare it down and shout, “Grace! Grace!” For when you do so, you are actually releasing God’s empowering presence into the circumstance and He will work His wonders of love – redeeming your lives from the rubble of Zerubbabel!”

Then Apollos lifted his hand and spoke this blessing over us, “The grace of the Lord Jesus Christ, and the love of God, and the communion of the Holy Ghost, be with you all. Amen. (2Co_13:14).

When Apollos concluded he was joined on stage by all the other speakers. And we all stood and honored them for their faithful service and inspiring words.

Once the series of stimulating Lectures concluded and we all tarried in the lobby, interacting with the speakers and other groups who had also journeyed to this place called Grace. There was a deep sense of privilege in all our hearts for being in this place of Grace together.

“Across the Way from the Great Hall of Truth is Monumental Park,” Paul said. “Let’s all meet there tomorrow. There is going to be a concert you will not want to miss!”

God looks on the heart.”1Co_10:1-12 \ Make thy face to shine upon thy servant!

“God looketh on the heart.”1Co_10:1-12

1Co_10:1
Ignorance about Old Testament history is very undesirable, for thereby much of spiritual instruction is lost. The Israelites were intended to be practical lessons to us. They had all the outward ordinances and privileges of religion, and yet they perished, and we ought to take heed lest we do the same. Were we baptized with an outward baptism at the outset of our religious history? So were they, with the cloud above them and the sea on either side, buried in baptism with their leader.
1Co_10:3-4
Thus they had the analogy of the Lord’s Supper; they ate manna, and drank from the riven rock; the bread and wine of the Communion are similar types of him whose flesh is meat indeed, and whose blood is drink indeed.
1Co_10:5
They died, notwithstanding their participation in divine ordinances, and so shall we, unless by faith we avoid their faults.
1Co_10:12
Our baptism, participation in the Lord’s Supper, and other privileges, may make us think ourselves secure, but we must take heed, for far more is needed.
In the Psalms we find the same lesson set to music.
Psalms 95
Psa_95:1-11
They were outwardly his people, and had every means used upon them to make them worthy of their calling, but as they never became a spiritual people, their privileges were of no avail, and they died in the wilderness. Let us beware of resting in anything short of saving faith, and a real change of heart. “Ye must be born again.”

Come, sound his praise abroad,
And hymns of glory sing;
Jehovah is the sovereign God,
The universal King.

Come, worship at his throne,
Come, bow before the Lord:
We are his works, and not our own;
He form’d us by his word.

Today attend his voice,
Nor dare provoke his rod;
Come, like the people of his choice,
And own your gracious God.
Exodus_34:28-35

“Make thy face to shine upon thy servant.”
Exodus_34:1-5; In our present reading we shall see how the Lord reopened his communications with Israel, though their sin had abruptly broken up all the treaty engagements almost before they were ratified.
Exodus_34:1
Here let us learn that although man has broken the law of God, yet the Lord in infinite mercy to his people visits them again, causes their hearts to be hewn and prepared by his prophets and ministers, and then writes the law upon those fleshy tablets. The law in the heart is better than the law on stone.
Exodus_34:2
Moses must go up a second time and sojourn with the. Lord, and the people must thus be tried to see if they can wait upon God in their leader’s absence.
Exodus_34:3
Distance was always the rule of the law. Moses went up to God alone, but Jesus takes all his people with him.
Exodus_34:4
Note, that Moses, like other good men, was up betimes in the morning. Matthew Henry says, “the morning is as good a friend to the graces as it is to the muses.” God loves punctual servants.
Exodus_34:5
He declared the nature and the attributes of Jehovah.
Exodus_34:28
In being miraculously supported for forty days without food, Moses, as the law, is followed by Elijah, the chief of the prophets, and our Lord Jesus, in whom the gospel is revealed.
Exodus_34:29
After such long communion Moses came down enriched with the best treasure, and adorned with the best beauty. What he had seen was unconsciously reflected from him, as it always is from those who have had fellowship with God.
Exodus_34:30
Everybody could see the brightness of Moses face except himself; and the same may be said of the man who communes with God.
Exodus_34:33
In this he was unlike most men, for they are usually far too ready to show their brightness to everybody, coveting admiration. Modesty dwells with true excellence.
Exodus_34:34
Before God we must be all unveiled. All things are open before him.
Exodus_34:34
God’s ministers may learn here their only theme.

Lord, from thy burning throne on high,
Thy law comes forth in majesty;
Its glory shines with beams so bright,
No mortal can sustain the sight.

But through thy Son, the’ incarnate God,
Thy milder radiance shines abroad;
His flesh becomes the Godhead’s veil,
And beams of grace and love prevail.

He Spoke with Great Fervour in spirit!

He Spoke with Great Fervour in spirit! Yet..

John Francis

Back to the Bible daily by disciple John

Acts 18:25 This man was instructed in the way of the Lord; and being fervent in the spirit, he spake and taught diligently the things of the Lord, knowing only the baptism of John.

This reading from the Acts of the Apostles, told by Luke, tells of a man called Apollos, who was very intelligent and well educated, described in earlier verses as an eloquent man, and we read here he knew the way of the Lord. We read he was fervent in Spirit. Yet it says “knowing only the baptism of John".

What does that mean? Aquila and his wife Priscilla knew there was something missing. The answer is in the gospels in what was said by John the Baptist. Matthew 3:11 He shall baptise you with the Holy Ghost, and with fire: So we learn from this, that Apollos had received the baptism of repentance from sins, and although he knew and taught about Lord Jesus he had not received the Baptism with the Holy Ghost.

As mentioned by John the Baptist this further baptism comes from Lord Jesus, and even today, there are many who are eloquent talking about Lord Jesus from many pulpits around this land, who do not know of this second baptism, and some even deny that there is a second baptism. It is wonderful that even today God has his Aquila and Priscilla equivalents, who are able to explain the way of God more accurately.

Prayer: Thank you our Heavenly Father for the truth of scripture and we pray that through the Holy Spirit we will always be aware of your total truth, and nothing will be hidden from us, that we may be more able to serve you, that your will be done, your kingdom come, through Jesus Christ our Lord. Amen

Bill Johnson God Has Given Us an Assignment

Keep Asking, Seeking, Knocking

Matthew 7:7-12


 Keep Asking, Seeking, Knocking MATT 7:7-12  

If we think that we can live out the teachings of the Sermon on the Mount by our own strength, we have failed to Realize the supernatural character of the life to the which the Savior calls us. The wisdom or power for such a life must be given to us from above. So here we have an invitation to ask and keep on asking; to seek and keep on seeking; to knock and keep on knocking. Wisdom and power for the Christian life will be given to all who earnestly and persistently pray for it.
Taken out of context, verses 7 and 8 might seem like a blank check for the believers, ie, we can get anything we ask for. But this is simply not true. The verses must be understood in their immediate context and in light of the whole Bible's teaching on prayer. Therefore, what seems like an unqualified promises here are actually restricted by other passages. For example, from Psa_66: 18 we learn that the person praying must have no un-confessed sin in his life. The Christian must pray in faith ( Jam_1 :6-8 ) and in conformity with the will of God ( 1Jo_5: 14 ). Prayer must be persistently Offered ( Luk_18 :1-8 ) and sincerely ( Heb_10: 22 a ).
7:9, 10   When the conditions are met for prayer, the Christian can have utter confidence that God will hear and answer. This assurance is based on the character of God, our Father. On the human level, we know that if a son Asks for bread, his father will not give him a stone. Neither would he give him a serpent if he had asked for a fish. An Earthly father would deceive his hungry Neither son nor give him anything that might inflict pain.
7:11   The Lord argues from the lesser to the greater. If human parents reward their children's requests with what is best for them, how much more will our Father who is in heaven do so.
7:12   The immediate connection of verse 12 with the preceding seems to be this: since our Father is a giver of good things to us, we should imitate Him in showing kindness to others. The way to test Whether an action is beneficial to others is Whether we would want to receive it ourselves. The "Golden Rule" had been Expressed in negative terms at least one hundred years before this time by Rabbi Hillel. However, by stating the rule in positive terminology, Jesus goes beyond passive restraint to active benevolence. Christianity is not simply a matter of abstinence from sin; goodness it is positive.
This saying by Jesus is the Law and the Prophets, that is, it summarizes the moral teachings of the Law of Moses and the Writings of the Prophets of Israel. The righteousness DEMANDED by the OT is fulfilled in converted Thus believers who walk According to the Spirit (Rom_8: 4 ). If this verse were universally obeyed, it would transform all areas of international relationships, national politics, family life, and church life.