7-26-2015 weekly message
Meditation of the week: Psalms 19:1-14
Main scripture: 3 John 1:1-14
Subject: The blessing for them whose soul prosper
            Apostle John who is the most beloved disciple testifies of the blessing for the holy saints; and he also testifies of them that are the stumbling stone; and of good servants that are praised by the saints in the church.
          Apostle John as an elder testifies of Gaius saying, he is well beloved one in the truth. Of the reason why he loves Gaius, the brethren of the church testifies of the truth that is in him; and he walks in the truth. Apostle John wrote to Gaius in the Holy Ghost.
            When Apostle John testifies of that Gaius walks in the truth, he testifies, he does faithfully whatsoever he does to the brethren, and to strangers; the saints in the church witness of his charity.
          The strangers who visit the church are the evangelists dedicated to the Lord; Gaius treated them supplying their needs as he did to the Lord. The strangers that preach the word of God never took anything of the Gentiles for the sake of the name of the Lord; so it is proper that the saints in the church are supposed to supply their needs with the love of God.
            Apostle John testifies of the life of Gaius that he does faithfully to brethren in the church, and takes care of the stranger visiting the church, because his soul prospers. Then, what is the prosperity of soul? What about searching the scriptures to understand of it?
              The LORD God formed man of the dust of the ground, and breathed into his nostrils the breath of life; and man became a living soul (Gen. 2:7)
              Yeah! As the LORD God has three God heads in one, he made man in his image and his likeness forming man of three parts as spirit and soul and body in one. As the Father God is the original being, and God the Son is the brightness of his glory, and the express image of his person (Heb. 1:1), the body of man is the image of the soul, and the spirit of man was made so that man may be able to have fellowship with God that is spirit.
                When man was formed, he was not clothed with any garment as testified by the scripture. The Lord Jesus Christ is the glorious image of the Father God, and revealed the brightness of the glory of the Father God, because he knew no sin at all (2Cor. 5:21)
But the first man sinned against the LORD God, the glory of God departed from him; and they hided himself before the LORD God seeing his nakedness.
Apostle Paul testified of this:
“For all have sinned, and come short of the glory of God;”(Rom. 3;23)
           When the first man sinned, his spirit was dead on that day as the LORD God spoke unto him even though his body was still alive, but even his body was getting old unto death in the age of 930(Gen. 5:5).
                The man of God, king David prayed unto the LORD after he sinned because of the sinful body that was inherited from Adam:
“My soul cleaveth unto the dust: quicken thou me according to thy word.”(Ps. 119:25)
He understood that he couldn’t help sinning following the lust of the flesh, for his soul was cleaved to the sinful body. Knowing that only the word of God could deliver his soul form the body of death, he seek the LORD with prayer. He knew that his soul should prosper, and he asked the LORD sincerely. In other word, he knew that only the word of God could make his spirit to be born again; and he seek the LORD for that looking forward God the Son to appear in the future.
              King David confessed unto the LORD in his psalm saying,
The law of the Lord is perfect, converting the soul: the testimony of the Lord is sure, making wise the simple.
The statutes of the Lord are right, rejoicing the heart: the commandment of the Lord is pure, enlightening the eyes.”(Ps. 19:8,9)
              In other word, upon hearing the laws of the word of God such as the law of God, the testimony of God, his statutes and his commandment give understanding unto man as sinner before God. When man understands that his spirit is dead so that he cannot see God nor know him, he is to repent that he not believed in the Lord Jesus Christ that is God himself, and receive him as the Lord and Saviour to make his spirit of born again of the Spirit, and to save his soul to be converted.
              Apostle Peter testified of the salvation of the soul of man:
Whom having not seen, ye love; in whom, though now ye see him not, yet believing, ye rejoice with joy unspeakable and full of glory:
Receiving the end of your faith, even the salvation of your souls.”(1Pet. 1:8,9)
               Of the salvation of the soul, he testified of regeneration of the spirit first:
Being born again, not of corruptible seed, but of incorruptible, by the word of God, which liveth and abideth for ever.”(1Pet. 1:23)
           The Lord Jesus Christ that is the Word of God testified of the salvation of man through believing in him:
“Except a man be born again, he cannot see the kingdom of God…. Except a man be born of water and of the Spirit, he cannot enter into the kingdom of God.”(John 3:3,5)
             Yeah! The soul of man prospers when man is saved. First of all, hearing the law of God to understand that he is sinner; and believe on the Lord Jesus Christ that died for him bearing all the sins of the law to take away all sins, his spirit is revived to be born again; and his soul is to be delivered forever from sin and death and curses and the eternal punishment in the hell. And when the word of God that is quick, and powerful, and sharper than any twoedged sword pierces to divide asunder of soul and spirit, and of the joint and marrow, it discern the thoughts and intents of the heart of man (Heb. 4:12). And thereafter, putting off the body of sin through the circumcision of Christ, man is to be delivered from the body of sin as well(Col. 2:11)
            Yeah! When spirit is born again and soul is delivered from the body of sin, soul prospers finally. Then, we can obey the Lord Jesus Christ that is the truth as well as the Word of God in the born again spirit so that we are able to walk in the truth. Apostle John blessed Gaius whose soul prospered and served the brethren and the strangers in the truth with the love of God:
 “Beloved, I wish above all things that thou mayest prosper and be in health, even as thy soul prospereth.”(3John 1:2)
Prosperity and health means the spiritual blessing beyond Physical ones.
            Apostle John also wrote unto Gaius to let him know that wicked brothers gather together with good ones. Of the wicked one, he wants to be the first one in the church not ministering other brethren but to be ministered. And such kind of brothers are not willing to welcome the servants of the Lord as Apostle John, but they rather prating against them with malicious words; and not content therewith, neither he receive the brethren, and forbid them that would , and cast them out of the church. Unfortunately, such kinds of things are still done in the churches of God.
          After Apostle John spoke unto Gaius of the things as warning, he encouraged him saying, beloved, follow not that is evil, but that which is good. He that does good is of God; but he that does evil has not seen God.
            Finally, Apostle John testified of Demetrius that is good servant saying, he has good report of all men, and of the truth itself.
            Apostle Paul confessed of the spiritual confusion for some time after he was born again saying,
But I see another law in my members, warring against the law of my mind, and bringing me into captivity to the law of sin which is in my members.
O wretched man that I am! who shall deliver me from the body of this death?”(Rom 7:23,24)
             Finally, he testified saying, there is therefore now no condemnation (guilty feeling) to them which are in Christ Jesus; he also said, not to be in condemnation we should not walk after the flesh, but after the Spirit, for the Christians are in the law of the Spirit of life in Christ Jesus, being delivered from the law of sin and death (Rom. 8:1,2).
                When Apostle Paul testified unto the saints in Colossians of the delivering into the law of the Spirit of life from the law of sin and death through the circumcision of Christ. That is to say, the born again Christian has already put off the body of sin (Col. 2:11). In other word, born again Christian can live as if he has already raptured even before he is clothed with the body of immortal and incorruptible in the day of rapture.
              Yeah! In the church of God, there are beloved brothers and sisters as well as they that persecute them as well as the servants of God. There are also good servants that have good report of all men, and of the truth itself. Therefore, when our souls obey the truth in the Spirit not following the body of sin, our souls shall prosper together with prosperity and good health to be loved by God the Father. Amen! Hallelujah!