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Pleasing (ἀρέσκω)

Pleasing (ἀρέσκω) expresses the concept of acting in a fawning manner to win favor or to act in a way that is pleasing. Therefore, it has a negative, flattery, and a positive, pleasing, side to its meaning.

On Herod’s birthday, Herodias’ daughter danced before Herod and his guests to please him, instigating a response from him that resulted in a promise of a reward. This allowed Herodias to have John the Baptist put to death for calling out Herod’s unlawful act of being with her (his brother’s wife), for she had already instructed her daughter to ask for his head when the King offered her whatever she wanted because she pleased him, Matthew 14:6.

At the beginning of the Church, before the complete revelation concerning the Church was given, the first assembly in Jerusalem faced an issue with the care of the widows among the Hellenistic Jews. This issue required substantial attention and would impact the disciples’ ability to minister to the saints. To address this, the disciples called the multitude together to discuss selecting men who would handle the day-to-day affairs of the assembly, including ensuring that all widows were adequately cared for. This solution would allow the disciples to focus on ministering the Word instead of serving tables. The proposed resolution pleased the multitude, creating the position of Deacon, Acts 6:5.

The desires and works of the flesh cannot please God, for they are carnal in nature and, therefore, hostile to God, Romans 8:8. Because God imputes Christ’s death and resurrection to us, we are able to walk in newness of life, free from slavery to the sin nature, Romans 6:5-6. However, when we try to live the Christian life through law, the result […]

Pleasing (ἀρέσκω)Luther Walker2024-09-05T05:52:16-07:00

Knowing the Desirous will of God – Using Your Spiritual Gift

We are not to be ignorant of Spiritual gifts (1 Corinthians 12:1). Each person who is placed into the body of the Christ is given a Spiritual gift that is to be used to edify the body (2 Corinthians 5:17; Ephesians 1:22-23). There are two specific areas in Scripture that state this is a single gift, along with basically the entire twelfth chapter of 1 Corinthians discussing the members of the body who are not the same as other members. In 1 Corinthians 12:11 Scripture states that the Spirit distributes to each an individual gift according to His determination.

But the One and same Spirit works all these things dividing each one individually just as He determines, 1 Corinthians 12:11

The Apostle Peter also discusses this gift, stating we each receive one and are to distribute it for the edification of the Church as stewards.

Each one just as he receives a gift unto himself also while serving as a proper steward the manifold grace of God, 1 Peter 4:10

The Holy Spirit is the One Who chooses which gift we receive, and God the father is the One who set each member within the body according to His desirous will.

1 Corinthians 12:18 But now the God set the members, each one of them, in the body, just as He desirously willed.

After the completion of the Scriptures, we are informed that the revelatory and confirmation gifts cease to be active, and now the focus is on the gifts that edify the Church.

Love never falls, but whether prophecies, they will be rendered ineffective, whether tongues, they will cause themselves to cease, whether knowledge, it will be rendered ineffective. For out from a part we experientially know and out from a part […]

Knowing the Desirous will of God – Using Your Spiritual GiftLuther Walker2023-11-25T07:55:10-08:00

Cleansing From Sin

After confessing our sin, God’s response is to forgive us of that sin and begin to cleanse us from all unrighteousness. This cleansing begins when we start to walk in the light and are practicing the truth (the doctrine by which we have victory over sin – Know, Romans 6:6; Reckon, Romans 6:11, Yield Romans 6:13).

But if, perhaps, we walk in the light, as He is in the light, we have fellowship with one another, and the blood of Jesus His Son keeps on cleansing us from every sin – 1 John 1:7.

In God there is no darkness (1 John 1:5), so when we are walking in the light, as He is in the light, we will not manifest any aspect of our sin nature, for it is darkness; rather, we will express the new nature we have in Christ. Therefore, because we will be doing the things related to the light, we will naturally separate and cleanse ourselves from the things of darkness (2 Corinthians 7:1).

Unrighteousness not only includes sin, but also the determination within the mind that works out to sin (All sin has a quality of unrighteousness – 1 John 5:17). That unrighteous determination happens because we are not doing the truth; rather, we are seeking to fulfill the desires of the flesh and walking in darkness. However, as we walk in the light, we are going to be able to train our senses to identify what is proper and what is wrong (Hebrews 5:14), identify the desires from the flesh (Galatians 5:19-21), recognize the methodologies Satan uses to trip us up (Ephesians 6:10-18), stop directing love towards the world system (1 John 2:15), and walk by the Spirit so that we […]

Cleansing From SinLuther Walker2023-12-14T08:22:10-08:00

Confession of Sins

If, perhaps, we should confess our sins, He is faithful and righteous in order that He should send away our sins and cleanse us from all unrighteousness – 1 John 1:9

Confession of sins means we are agreeing with God that our action is sin. It is not telling God you sinned, but a verbal agreement with Him that your action was contrary to His expectations of you. In order to agree with God concerning sin, we have to understand what sin is for a Christian. Under the Mosaic Law, sin is defined through the law; however, Christians are not under law (Romans 6:14). In 1 John 3:4 Scripture defines what sin is, which is anything done contrary to God’s standard – “All the ones doing the sin also do the lawlessness, and the sin is the lawlessness.” Sin is lawlessness. What is lawlessness for one who is not under any law? It is not living out from faith (Romans 14:23). For our standard is to live out from faith (Romans 1:17), not by law.

How do we do something that is not out from faith? It comes down to our knowledge and our conscience. Our conscience accuses or excuses our actions (Romans 2:15) based upon our knowledge. When we do something against our conscience as Christians, we are doing something that we know is against God’s expectation of us in that situation and therefore are not taking Him at His Word, which results in sin. The one who eats believing that the food will defile him sins by eating, Romans 14:23. Sin is also manifested when we know to do good, that is to do what God desires, but we choose to go our own way […]

Confession of SinsLuther Walker2023-12-14T08:22:34-08:00

Using Our Anger in a Correct Manner

What should we do in our anger? We can be wrathful but are not to sin in our wrath. We need to use it in a correct way. Expressing rage at unrighteousness is not sinful. Using that anger to stand for the truth and not back down is just. Exposing the works of darkness by living as luminaries in the midst of this corrupt and perverted generation is the best way we can use our anger.

Using Our Anger in a Correct MannerLuther Walker2023-11-27T10:32:16-08:00

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