In our lives there are many things to which we cling that we hold as dear and true. We believe and argue the points of these truths, daring anyone to move us from our solid, albeit stubborn, rock of faith. But...is all that we believe in really His Truth? That which is real and that which is truth is not one and the same. Much of what we believe, much of what we fight for, and much of what divides us is merely man’s willful ways and not the Way of Jesus Christ at all. Jesus taught by example, and all of His examples were, and are, grounded and rooted in Love, Grace and Truth. That which is reality to us is usually, if not always, decided by our own perceptions, and all of our perceptions are influenced by what we see, hear and think we know. And by what we are taught.

From the day of our birth, our parents and family members begin “inputting” valuable (at least to them) data that will shape and mold us for the rest of our lives. Then, as we reach school-age, our teachers begin to place their stamp upon us. All through life we encounter new “truths”, new facts, new ways, and only the Grace of God protects us from error and deceit. Some of what I’ll say in this teaching will challenge what many of you believe. Some of you will be glad to hear some of these words, for they will hopefully remove doubts and questions you may have had for years. Others will struggle with and despise what you read, and that’s okay, for what man thinks or writes or teaches is subjective...but God’s Word is not. It is eternal and pure forever. We all must ultimately answer to Him, and Him alone when it comes to how we dealt with and accepted His Truth.

Day by day, all throughout our lives, we are exposed to philosophies and ideas. No one person has the monopoly on Truth. Only the Spirit of God can reveal God’s Truth, and man can only hope to pass it on as faithfully as possible. All of our teachers, families and friends influenced our lives for better or for worse, and until we come face to face with the Holy Spirit we have no idea of what Truth really is. We may be very moral in our living; we may be quite kind in all our endeavors; but when the Light of the Spirit of the Lord reveals who and what we really are, only then can we truly begin to “see” and to “know”.

I will, perhaps, be challenging (or maybe “shaking” or “awakening” is a better word) some of your beliefs and some of your long-held facts, but that’s okay, for I was there once -- being tested and proven on what I believed. But...for me to challenge anything, first we must assume there are things that need to be said -- things that need challenging. What, if anything, is wrong with the church today? There are many who see nothing whatsoever wrong with it (especially the churches they are in), while there are others who think there is nothing “right” with it. I’m somewhere in between the two. There is plenty right, but sadly the wrong seems to overshadow that right.

Are there problems in the church today? Very simply put...yes. What are they? That is not so simply put, because to first even question the “perfection” and the “purity” of the church requires one to search their own heart to see “if there be any wicked way in me” (Psalm 139:24). As I first began to question things that I saw happening all around me, I had to look very carefully and honestly at my own heart and determine my own motives. Was there jealousy or envy? These are the two most obvious traps. As I saw that my motives were not those of envy or jealousy, my next reaction was fear.

If what I thought I saw or heard was really what I saw and heard, then I felt very vulnerable...and betrayed. How could these things happen in God’s House? And why?

Heavenly truth -- real Spiritual truths -- are overwhelming. They are also very simple and to the point. For example: “You must be born again.” We, like Nicodemus, would most likely have some questions about such a simple declaration. “How can such a thing be?”, or “Why should such a thing be?” We may even feel somewhat righteous in our own hearts and declare we have no need to “repent” or “confess our sins”. All of these matters are profoundly simple and yet deeply complex, because the carnal mind has an all but impossible time comprehending spiritual things (please read Romans 8:4-8).

The word “enmity”, in Romans 8:7, means “hostile or opposed”. The carnal mind simply cannot accept the Truths of God. That’s why it never really serves any lasting purpose to “argue” with anyone (especially non-believers) about Spiritual Truths. But once we are “born again”, our hearts and minds gradually begin to see the beauty of His Truths and the wonderful purpose of His Salvation, but please note: We “gradually begin to see the beauty of His Truths and the wonderful purpose of His Salvation” -- it does not come all at once!

Salvation is not only to save us from an eternity in hell, though that’s reason enough to rejoice eternally. Salvation is God, the Father, seeking those who will worship Him in Spirit and in Truth (John 4:21-26), and in that “process” of worshipping Him and getting to know Him, we do, indeed, begin to understand Him and His Ways, as well as begin to fully and more completely grasp (and appreciate) the Glories of His Salvation. (Yes, I know...it would be nice to know it “all” at the beginning, but it simply does not work that way...and those of us who are married know full well that we have to “learn” to love and appreciate -- and even to understand -- our spouses, as we get to know all about them.)

God, the Father, is seeking sons and daughters; He desires a relationship... that of loving children for their Father and Loving Father for His children. He wants us to know just how much He knows us and loves us and cares for us, and furthermore...He wants us to know Him, love Him and care for Him. To know, love and care for our Father can be realized in this manner: We must love and care for His Body. And we must know Him...or to put it another way, we must “discern His Body” (1st Corinthians 11:29 & 12:23-27 and Ephesians 4:11-16).

Part of the problem in the church today is we don’t discern the Lord’s Body. It is more than just “recognizing it” as we go to church each week, smiling at Brother Jones or greeting Sister Sarah. It means to “make a judicial estimation of” or to “separate and judge thoroughly”. That, dear brothers and sisters, requires wisdom and understanding of His Truth. That will also get us into trouble if we don’t know what we are doing. Why do I say that? Because, simply put, there is already plenty of “judgment” in the church today, but the problem is...not all of it is righteous, Godly judgment.

Actually, very little judgment we see and hear today is “righteous”. And, to be quite honest...most judgments are petty and jealous judgments. “Discerning the Lord’s Body” requires gracious, loving, parental watchfulness. And it also requires gracious, loving and parental-like judgments -- not harsh and unreasonable judgments. Much patience, care and tolerance is needed in the Body of Christ today, and yet we have been very, very impatient, “throwing the baby out with the bath water”, “insisting that the horse go before the cart”, and we’ve even “cut off our noses to spite our faces”. You may insert any old, tired and tedious cliché here; it will easily fit. We’ve done everything but the right thing; we’ve done things selfishly, soulishly and with spite. And sadly... much of what we have done is to our own shame, as well as to the shame of His Body.

If Shepherds, and I specifically mean pastors, would care for the sheep as “the Good Shepherd” oversees His flock, then the church would be in so much better shape, and the world would even benefit from it. This is what God desires: For us to be “a glorious church, without spot or wrinkle...holy and without blemish” (Eph. 5:27). He desires to make us so much better than we could ever imagine or hope to be. He desires that we be like His Dear Son...full of Grace and Truth. And here we are, back to Truth once more.

As already stated, God’s Truth is not subjective, nor is it relative. His Truth is Eternal, and our hearts and minds must grasp it, and we have to submit and agree to each and every Principle He has brought before us. We do not have to “know it all” (all the scriptures, all the Word, all of His Truths); we just have to grasp and accept whatever He has revealed to our hearts. To do anything less only hinders our own spiritual progress, not to mention what it may do in the way of hindering others.

Now...on that matter of being “born again”: Our hearts must yield to the principles of repentance, recognizing that we’re sinners, even when we may think we’re quite moral in all our dealings or quite kind in all our earthly relationships. The Holy Spirit, though, searches out the real thoughts and intents of our hearts (Hebrews 4:12), and His findings tell us: We are sinners, plain and simple, in need of the Lord’s Redemption. No matter our status or our situation, no matter our geneology or the color of our skin...the Truth is:

“ALL have sinned and come short of the Glory of God!” Once we get past that part, the part that we are all sinners (each and every one of us -- no one is excluded!), then we can enter into a new and deeper relationship with the Lord. For it is true, “...if any man be in Christ, he is a new creature (or: he is a brand-new creation); old things are passed away; behold, all things are become new” (2nd Cor.5:17).

In the beginning of our walk with Him, we are as babes, and to the degree that we are fed and cared for, to that degree we will grow. To the degree that we are taught good, sound Biblical Truth, to that degree we’ll walk and live in Truth and in His Light. But, as I mentioned earlier, God’s Truth is neither subjective nor relative. It is the same, eternal, pure Word that was and always will be. How we learn God’s Truth in His Word, and how we accept that Truth, will determine how we live our lives and how our lives will influence those around us, whether we want it to or not.

Now...here’s the “rub”: All of us learn and grow at different rates, and the very hardest thing to do in the Body of Christ is not to look at others and either judge ourselves harshly because we don’t “measure up” to them; OR we judge them harshly because we feel they don’t “measure up” to us! Either way, dear saints, we lose in that situation. Comparing ourselves to others, in any situation, is unhealthy. We’ll talk more on this later, because this is a problem area in the Body of Christ that needs some attention.

Ephesians 6 gives us a pretty clear picture of the importance of the armor of God: The girdle of Truth and the breastplate of Righteousness in verse 14; the shoes of Peace, verse 15; the shield of Faith, verse 16; the helmet of Salvation and the sword of the Spirit, verse 17. All of these weapons, with exception of the Sword, are defensive weapons. The Sword, the Word of God, is both defensive and offensive, and it is imperitive that we learn the differences between “offense” and “defense”. As is the subject of comparing ourselves to others, this is an area of teaching in the Church that has suffered for many, many years.

Learning to wield a sword in the natural takes months, probably years to perfect. One must learn the stance, the moves, and the positions of both offense and defense. In the Spirit it is the same. We must be taught how, when and who to fight. Too many of us just want to “get in there and fight”, without any forethought, with a minimum of training and with no concern for the results. We have the desire to fight deeply ingrained in us, but that is carnal and opposed to the Spirit. It is one of many things that the Holy Spirit has to “root out of us”. He did it with Moses, with Israel, with David, with the disciples, and He will most assuredly do it with us.

We must know the difference between “parry” and “thrust”; we must know when to attack the enemy, as well as knowing how to stand and defend ourselves and others when he attacks. Parry means: “to turn or drive away (an attacker); to fend off, repel, ward off, or even to beat off.” We all know what thrust means. Just like it sounds: “to push or shove with force; to stab, as with a dagger”. We’ve all done it, had it done to us, or seen it done, haven’t we?

Now...back to “parry”: To parry an opponent’s attack, we must know who is our opponent. Too many people in the church today are busy in fleshly conflicts with brothers and sisters in Christ. I’ll admit... some of our dear brothers and sisters may need a good spanking, but it is NOT our place to do such a thing! That is the Lord’s work, and we must learn to let Him deal with troublesome brothers and sisters, through pastors and other leaders. But I digress...

Paul says, in Ephesians 6:12: “We wrestle not against flesh and blood...”, meaning our brothers or sisters, or even those in the world. This is in the beginning of his discourse on “the whole armor of God”. This is a Godly Principle, a Truth, an unchanging fact of God’s Word...we cannot struggle with or against human beings, neither physically, emotionally, nor mentally...if we intend and hope to grow in Grace and mature in Christ Jesus. If we do struggle and fight against the Body of Christ (and even against those in the world), we will suffer the consequences.

All of our warfare is spiritual, in the “heavenlies”, and we have to first learn how to recognize it, then how to go about dealing with it. This is where discernment comes in: The ability to recognize what is soul, what is flesh and what is spirit. “Spirit” could be either human, demonic or the Holy Spirit.

One of the things we want to address is the difference between “flesh” and “spirit”, and in doing so we will look at Zadok as the minister of the Spirit, while we will refer to Abiathar as the minister of the flesh. One is influenced and guided by the Holy Spirit; the other is led by his own carnal desires, urged on by his own will, and ultimately seeks his own purposes.

As I said earlier: Discerning the Lord’s Body, understanding what’s really going on in the church, and spiritually “seeing” the true motives and schemes of people around us is the truest part of “making judicial estimations” and being able to “separate and judge thoroughly”. However, these discernments don’t come easily, or quickly, in the life of the Christian.

First of all, discernment is a gift (see 1st Cor. 12:10). Secondly, this gift of discernment is entrusted to those who will respect the gift, not using it as some “barometer” to check out and/or compare themselves with someone else’s spirituality. And lastly, the journey to spiritual discernment is more often than not a long and arduous road that will lead through many tests, trials and tribulations. It is not an easy road. Receiving the “gift” of discernment, or learning true discernment through life’s experiences and the Word of God all require patience, faith and trust.

Having said that, let me add: Those who “resist” the learning process of tests and trials will not find themselves at the wonderful end of that road, nor will they reap the glorious benefits. This road and these trials are all for the molding and shaping of those who would carry the responsibility of the gift of discernment. (By the way...the gift of discernment is probably the least desired gift of the nine.) Everything you may go through in your life, no matter how little you may understand it or enjoy it, is for the creation of a “right character” and a “righteous heart” within you, so be patient and continue to lean on, cling to, and trust in God...for He will not fail you.

We all say we want to “be like Jesus”, but none of us happily and willingly want to go through the sufferings He went through. We’d rather find another route; something a little safer, slightly softer and more secure. This is only human nature, but it is the core of that very nature He is trying to change...“old things are passed away...all things are become new.” Change is not only at the very crux of Salvation, but it is also of the utmost importance in the “knowing” of our God. That is why the path we follow -- the path He leads us upon -- is necessary, even though that path may lead through fiery trials and deep, raging waters.

I’m not just randomly or arbitrarily putting these thoughts and ideas down on paper, to suit my own needs or my own ends. For nearly thirty years, I have watched and observed as first one and then another goes “through the fire” or “passes through the waters”. I, myself, have gone through my share of fiery trials and watery tests, and something wonderfully “odd” always happens to any saint who passes through willingly and without grudge. They always come forth “without the smell of smoke upon them, or even on their clothes!” (Daniel 3:27) And they are “never overcome by the floods of waters” (Psalm 32:6 & 18:13-24).

If you are interested in this teaching: There is a continuation to the thought and focus of what we are saying, and this last passage fits very well with where we’re headed in the next section of the teaching. These struggles, tests and temptations are difficult, and -- were it not for His Grace, Mercy and Compassion -- none of us would survive. Yes, this road is often hard and lonely, but the reward is rich and vast when we reach an understanding of what “judicial estimation” truly means.

Rightness, righteousness, verity, justice, equity...all of these words are closely linked to Zadok and are instrumental in Moving the Church from Abiathar to Zadok. For Zadok means, among other things, “Right Character”. Although it may seem more “practical” to first take a look at Abiathar and his vile and soulish ways, we will nonetheless first look at Zadok, the true and righteous minister of the Lord.