And the anointment which you obtained from Him is remaining in you, and you have no need that anyone may be teaching you, but as His anointing is teaching you concerning all, and is true, and is no lie, according as it teaches you also, remain in Him.
1 John 2: 27: Concordant New Testament
As a writer, not everyone is impressed with my work. Not everyone agrees with what I put out on my page. No matter, my ultimate goal is that everyone knows the truth of Christ Jesus in them. Yet there are those who see something with my writings every now and then. Something which they judge in a negative way at times. I have stood accused of using "Institutional" language in a few of my posts. Whatever does this mean? Well, the long and short of it is...church words. Words or phrases which many a Christian has heard time and time again over the years. I've heard them myself, and I wasn't impressed. All too often, church words take us to a place where a true relationship with Christ Jesus simply isn't possible for any believer. Church words keep us enslaved to the mainstream church idea that we are still sinners in the Lords eyes. Now, there are times when I simply don't realize that I might be rehashing my own version of church words as I write. I get it. I chalk that up to too many years learning in the church system. Writing about something you have been told for years is true is easy. What's difficult is writing about something that too many in Christian circles do not take seriously. That is, the indwelling of Jesus in us. The apostle Paul spoke to this realization in Galatians. As Paul proclaimed, it was no longer he who lives, but that Christ lives in him {Galatians 2:20}. I do not see this revelation as church words simply because I have never once heard this truth proclaimed from any pulpit. But other words are seen as church words. Words like sin, judgement and being like Jesus. Basically, a lot which can be seen as being taught from the pulpits of the modern mainstream church are, in effect, church words. Go figure.
To whom God wills to make known what are the glorious riches of this secret among the nations, which is: Christ among you, the expectation of glory.
Colossians 1: 27 Concordant New Testament
Not to ruffle anyone's feathers, but I also know a few more church words which I do not find to be counter productive. They are, God loves you and Christ died for you. These are definitely church words many Christians have heard spoken from the church and are recognized as true. But I would like to suggest a few other words that should also be recognized as true. Christ is in you; you are dead to sin. That last one always seems to get more than a few protests in response when I speak it to others. Dead to sin? What blasphemy is this? The same blasphemy Paul speaks to in Romans 6. It is Paul who declares that we should now consider ourselves dead to sin {Romans 6:11}. Now, for those of you who say that I am simply cherry-picking scripture, that is exactly how I see more than a few of those who get their feathers ruffled and proclaim that what they are reading is somehow "Institutional" in nature. Do you not understand that the Father can use any part of His creation to lead another to the truth of His Son in them? What if someone, like I did, recognized the church words they continued to hear each Sunday yet yearned for something more? To be honest, I do not intentionally cherry pick verses or mainstream church teaching that I might further the advancement of the church. I use what I have experienced so that others will come, as I have, to the knowing of Christ Jesus in them.
Knowing this, that our old humanity was crucified together with Him, that the body of sin may be nullified, for us by no means to be still slaving for sin. For one who dies has been justified from sin. Now if we died together with Christ, we believe that we shall be living together with Him also, having perceived that Christ, being roused from among the dead, is no longer dying. Death is lording it over Him no longer. For in that He died, He died to sin once for all time, yet in that He is living, He is living to God. Thus you also, be reckoning yourselves to be dead, indeed, to sin, yet living to God in Christ Jesus our Lord.
Romans 6: 6 - 11 Concordant New Testament
~Scott~
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