What’s going to keep us safe in this last hour?  Abiding in Him and His Word abiding in you; amen?  What’s going to keep us safe in this hour?  Being doers of the Word and not hearers, because if we’re not doing all that God has revealed to us, we’ll be deceived.  I would encourage you right now while you’re in your right mind to make a decision to be teachable, to listen to God’s method.  There’s not any one of us in the natural who desires to be under authority or to be told what to do.  We are all, in our flesh, rebels.  We are all seeking independence, to rule over our own lives.  We think of ourselves more highly than we ought to think.  Because of that, God has put in the church, as it pleases Him; apostles, prophets, evangelists, pastors, and teachers.  Ephesians 4:8 says, “When he ascended on high, he led captivity captive, and gave gifts unto men.”  He gave gifts unto men.  Verse 11, “And he gave some apostles; and some prophets; and some evangelists; and some pastors and teachers (Now watch!) for the perfecting of the saints.”  One of the things that we’re going to look at in these last days is the true shepherds of God will keep bringing to you the message of perfection; amen?  The world’s message is going to be liberty and independence, and it’s not a new teaching.  That spirit that continually gives independence to the individuals.  You’ll be able to see that message contrasted very clearly.  The message of the true gifts of God to the church is that perfection, that role that each and every one of us as members of the body of Christ have of being involved in the work of the ministry.  The ministry belongs to the church.  The ministry, as we see here, the ministry, we all have, the Scripture says, the same care one of another; amen?

We’re going to see a seditious spirit from the false prophets of independence.  “Stay home and stream.”  You know, there is nothing more unbiblical than, for people who call themselves Christians, to sit at home, indulge themselves, when the body of Christ needs help and edifying and love for one another; amen?  It’s so anti-Christian.  “I was glad when they said unto me, Let us go into the house of the Lord.”  Hallelujah!  You see in how it becomes me, me, me, what’s easy for me.  We can hide out at home and not experience persecution.  What does that have to say about your love one for another?  “And no greater love has any man than this that he would lay down his life for his friends.”  We see that it’s a message of us corporately carrying out the ministry, first to one another, secondly to take this message into the highways and byways, as we provoke one another to love and to good works.  These ministry gifts will continue to bring you to remembrance.  I know that you know these things, but I’m bringing you to remembrance; amen?  Our role is the “edifying of the body of Christ,” verse 12.  Verse 13, these gifts are there for the purpose of bringing us into the “unity of the faith,” to bring us to a true understanding and knowledge of the Son of Man, to bring us to the mature man, the perfect man, the measure of the stature of the fullness of Christ, so that we would no more be tossed to and fro by every wind of doctrine.  Then, he goes on and talks about our responsibility of then being intertwined, verse 16, “the whole body being fitly joined together,” every part making increase of the body unto the edifying of itself in love.  So, that’s what these ministry gifts are supposed to be doing and even more so, as we see that day approaching.  Isn’t that what the Scripture says?  Don’t forsake the assembling but even more.  You need this unity.  You need this oneness.  You need your lives intertwined.  You need this instruction and even more as you see the day approaching.