There is grace for
all of us, even the Pharisees..
I know
because I've been a Pharisee and judged others, and I can still be critical and
judgmental at times..So I want to say thank You, Papa, that You've got grace and
love in Your heart even for religious and legalistic people, for I've been one
and You loved me and saw behind the condemning attitude to a hurting person who
felt she must live up to some high standard and
felt she never would, felt You were disgusted with
her..
Maybe all critical attitudes simply come from this lack
of seeing that one is beloved, that there is no standard to have to measure up
to..that one is loved without any conditions and accepted even with all the
failures..
I know this Pharisee was healed by love and grace, and I
pray that all that struggle with condemning and critical attitudes can also be
just washed and overwhelmed and healed by His love and grace, too! And that if
there are any hurts or wounds from the past, that they would all be healed in
every way by His grace washing over, like a fountain of love and tenderness!
That every lie making anyone feel unworthy, unlovable, 'not good enough,'
alienated, alone, uncared for, or shameful would be silenced and melted into
nothing by the love shining from His face, the tender delight in His eyes for
all of us!
Grace and peace to all the Pharisees and hurting people out
there, you are loved as you are, you are accepted whether you ever change or
not, you are His dear and precious children and are totally embraced right now,
wherever you are at, no need to measure up, no standard to keep, no requirements
put upon you...you are perfect to Him just as you are and always have
been!
So please don't call yourself a Pharisee, that's not who
you truly are, it's a lie and false identity you may sometimes take as your own,
but it isn't really you!...You are His dear little innocent child, loved without
regard to right or wrong, good or bad, what you do or don't do, just plain loved
because you are His very own and daddies love their little ones... Don't even
worry about changing all your attitudes, seeing the truth more clearly or
anything at all...Everything is going to be okay, He won't reject you, He won't
hurt you, He won't leave you - Papa loves you, He's got you, and He won't let
you go.
- Under the Waterfall
Tuesday, December 31, 2013
Monday, December 30, 2013
Why I Have Passion. JESUS.
Bobby Grow Writes:
I was going to write two posts on aspects of Karl Barth’s theology, and one post on why I am Post-Tribulational instead of Pre-Tribulational (in response to a question my Aunt had on this); but instead I am
just going to
flow a little on what is driving me, what
impassions me, on the love of Christ. (I will still be writing on these other things in the next few days)
Karl Barth and Thomas Torrance (along with Martin Luther and John Calvin, Irenaeus, Athanasius, and Cyril of Alexandria et al in the background) have really helped to revolutionize my walk with Jesus Christ. I know some people think this is problematic, but I don’t really care. The reality is, is that Jesus Christ is alive, and he is alive in the life of the Father and the Holy Spirit, and I (we) have been invited to inhabit this life, the Godself life, through special invitation, in and through Christ. There is nothing mundane about that. There is nothing academic about that. This is rich. At some point it ought to emote some sort of response from, at the least, the faithful, and it ought to cause the un-faithful to become part of the bands of the faithful. I look around at the heart-ache, the crap of life (and there is a lot of it, right!), and to realize that all of this crookedness has been made straight for every single person on this earth is an overwhelming reality; of the kind that causes the heavens to erupt in great joy and cheer! I know we get focused (I mean I am right now, well I have been at moments today) on all of the real life minutia of our daily lives and thus responsibilities, but seriously, this focus usually is idolatry; it is idolatry because it stamps out and quenches God in our existential moments, and replaces them with or Him with our own fears and worries. And you know what? It is the wisdom of God, the wisdom of the cross, to penetrate into all of this and reverse it all to the glory of God.
As of late I have been really burdened by the lost. I am an evangelist at heart (if I showed you my resume you’d see). I don’t care if a person is a upwardly mobile materialist, a down and out downtrodden materialist, a homosexual, a heterosexual, a skater, a druggie, a pimp, a prostitute, someone who has nowhere to lay their head at night; Jesus is there, He is the God who is the Father’s yes in every part of this world. He underwrites all of reality with his gracious life, and makes sure that all is reconciled to Him. This is why, as of late, I am bursting with hope. Maybe you or someone dear to you has cancer, or some other terminal sickness; there is genuine hope. Maybe someone is going through absolute torment, and anguish, on the verge of suicide; there is hope. God in Christ has already reached down into that situation and met it. Even if the most tragic thing you could imagine happens (and it often does … even more than we could imagine); Christ crucified is there.
I was going to write two posts on aspects of Karl Barth’s theology, and one post on why I am Post-Tribulational instead of Pre-Tribulational (in response to a question my Aunt had on this); but instead I am
just going to
flow a little on what is driving me, whatimpassions me, on the love of Christ. (I will still be writing on these other things in the next few days)
Karl Barth and Thomas Torrance (along with Martin Luther and John Calvin, Irenaeus, Athanasius, and Cyril of Alexandria et al in the background) have really helped to revolutionize my walk with Jesus Christ. I know some people think this is problematic, but I don’t really care. The reality is, is that Jesus Christ is alive, and he is alive in the life of the Father and the Holy Spirit, and I (we) have been invited to inhabit this life, the Godself life, through special invitation, in and through Christ. There is nothing mundane about that. There is nothing academic about that. This is rich. At some point it ought to emote some sort of response from, at the least, the faithful, and it ought to cause the un-faithful to become part of the bands of the faithful. I look around at the heart-ache, the crap of life (and there is a lot of it, right!), and to realize that all of this crookedness has been made straight for every single person on this earth is an overwhelming reality; of the kind that causes the heavens to erupt in great joy and cheer! I know we get focused (I mean I am right now, well I have been at moments today) on all of the real life minutia of our daily lives and thus responsibilities, but seriously, this focus usually is idolatry; it is idolatry because it stamps out and quenches God in our existential moments, and replaces them with or Him with our own fears and worries. And you know what? It is the wisdom of God, the wisdom of the cross, to penetrate into all of this and reverse it all to the glory of God.
As of late I have been really burdened by the lost. I am an evangelist at heart (if I showed you my resume you’d see). I don’t care if a person is a upwardly mobile materialist, a down and out downtrodden materialist, a homosexual, a heterosexual, a skater, a druggie, a pimp, a prostitute, someone who has nowhere to lay their head at night; Jesus is there, He is the God who is the Father’s yes in every part of this world. He underwrites all of reality with his gracious life, and makes sure that all is reconciled to Him. This is why, as of late, I am bursting with hope. Maybe you or someone dear to you has cancer, or some other terminal sickness; there is genuine hope. Maybe someone is going through absolute torment, and anguish, on the verge of suicide; there is hope. God in Christ has already reached down into that situation and met it. Even if the most tragic thing you could imagine happens (and it often does … even more than we could imagine); Christ crucified is there.
Strength = Good, Weakness = Bad
I like to be strong. At least I like to
appear strong. You do too, I think. Most of us value strength and look
down on weakness. We honor those who have their lives together and regard with
suspicion those who do not.
Strength = good, weakness = bad. That is our functional formula. But it is not the Lord’s. 2 Corinthians 12 says it very differently: “ ‘My grace is sufficient for you,” said the Lord, “ ‘for my power is made perfect in weakness.’ Therefore I will boast all the more gladly of my weaknesses, so that the power of Christ may rest upon me. For the sake of Christ, then, I am content with weaknesses, insults, hardships, persecutions, and calamities. For when I am weak, then I am strong.”
Paul saw that weakness, not strength, was key to his ministry. He had to own his weakness so the Lord could fill him with strength. The stronger he was, the weaker the power of God would be; the weaker he was, the greater the power of God would be.
Kent Hughes says it well:
Jesus was weak. Paul rejoiced in his own weakness. And yet we are still afraid and ashamed to be weak. We would rather feign strength than admit weakness.
2013 is very nearly over; 2014 is very nearly upon us. As you look back at the year that was, and as you consider the year ahead, consider your weakness. Consider all the ways you were weak in the year that is now behind us. Consider how God can and will work in you in the year ahead if only you will be weak. Make this the year where you will rejoice in weakness so you can rely on God’s strength.
Strength = good, weakness = bad. That is our functional formula. But it is not the Lord’s. 2 Corinthians 12 says it very differently: “ ‘My grace is sufficient for you,” said the Lord, “ ‘for my power is made perfect in weakness.’ Therefore I will boast all the more gladly of my weaknesses, so that the power of Christ may rest upon me. For the sake of Christ, then, I am content with weaknesses, insults, hardships, persecutions, and calamities. For when I am weak, then I am strong.”
Paul saw that weakness, not strength, was key to his ministry. He had to own his weakness so the Lord could fill him with strength. The stronger he was, the weaker the power of God would be; the weaker he was, the greater the power of God would be.
Kent Hughes says it well:
But what we most need to see is that power in weakness is shorthand for the cross of Christ. In God’s plan of redemption, there had to be weakness (crucifixion) before there was power (resurrection). And this power-in-weakness connection is what Paul reflected on when he contemplated Christ’s praying three times amidst his weakness and powerlessness in Gethsemane before his death on the cross, which was followed by the power of the resurrection! Paul came to understand and embrace the fact that his thorn in the flesh was essential to his ongoing weakness and the experience of Christ’s ongoing power.Paul knew of Jesus, who was not afraid to let other people see his weakness. When he became weary and overwhelmed he would just up and disappear, heading into the wilderness to get some time with his Father. When he was in the garden he took some of his friends with him and asked if they would watch and pray. He knew weakness and he did not try to bluster his way through it.
Jesus was weak. Paul rejoiced in his own weakness. And yet we are still afraid and ashamed to be weak. We would rather feign strength than admit weakness.
2013 is very nearly over; 2014 is very nearly upon us. As you look back at the year that was, and as you consider the year ahead, consider your weakness. Consider all the ways you were weak in the year that is now behind us. Consider how God can and will work in you in the year ahead if only you will be weak. Make this the year where you will rejoice in weakness so you can rely on God’s strength.
Letting Go of Old Hurts
One of the hardest
things in life is to let go of old hurts. We often say, or at least
think: "What you did to me and my family, my ancestors, or my friends I
cannot forget or forgive. ... One day you will have to pay for it."
Sometimes our memories are decades, even centuries, old and keep asking
for revenge.
Holding people's faults against them often creates an impenetrable wall. But listen to Paul: "For anyone who is in Christ, there is a new creation: the old order is gone and a new being is there to see. It is all God's work" (2 Corinthians 5:17-18). Indeed, we cannot let go of old hurts, but God can. Paul says: "God was in Christ reconciling the world to himself, not holding anyone's fault against them" (2 Corinthians 5:19). It is God's work, but we are God's ministers, because the God who reconciled the world to God entrusted to us "the message of reconciliation" (2 Corinthians 5:19). This message calls us to let go of old hurts in the Name of God. It is the message our world most needs to hear.
Holding people's faults against them often creates an impenetrable wall. But listen to Paul: "For anyone who is in Christ, there is a new creation: the old order is gone and a new being is there to see. It is all God's work" (2 Corinthians 5:17-18). Indeed, we cannot let go of old hurts, but God can. Paul says: "God was in Christ reconciling the world to himself, not holding anyone's fault against them" (2 Corinthians 5:19). It is God's work, but we are God's ministers, because the God who reconciled the world to God entrusted to us "the message of reconciliation" (2 Corinthians 5:19). This message calls us to let go of old hurts in the Name of God. It is the message our world most needs to hear.
Sunday, December 29, 2013
All Things for Good
“God is never doing just one thing in what he does with us. He is always
doing thousands of things that we cannot see. He never has only one purpose in
what he does. He always has thousands of purposes, in everything he does. He is
infinitely wise, and everything he does relates to everything else that he does
sooner or later. For those who love him and are called according to his purpose,
all of them—all of them!—work together for good.
”
Self-Proclaimed "Biblicists"
A problem with self-proclaimed
"Biblicists" is that they also self-proclaim their interpretation of the Bible
as the right interpretation. To guard the narrow-mindedness of their theological
interpretation, rules and regulations are set up to channel people to their
theological viewpoint without realizing they are being controlling and
manipulative by snuffing out people's chance at finding and experiencing the
freedom that Christ came to provide and proclaim through His living, death and
resurrection.
The Bible's theological foundation is Jesus, the life He lived and the Gospel He died for that He revealed to Paul...His Gospel of Grace. Self-proclaimed Biblicists MUST keep in mind the difference between Jesus as the theological foundation of the Bible and their interpretation of the Bible. This means that if their self-interpretation of the Bible of Who God is, and what His purpose and plan for the community of the redeemed in the community of humanity is, does not compute to Jesus, "the express image of God", to acknowledge that their self-proclaimed Biblicist interpretation is the WRONG one.
To the extent that self-proclaimed Biblicists are willing to embrace those whom they theologically disagree with determines their understanding of God's grace...to this point...that understanding is very limited. When it comes to matters of Bible interpretation, self-proclaimed Biblicists need to understand that as mortals is that certainty in methodological interpretation simply eludes their grasp and that what they thought to be right may be wrong, and what they thought to be wrong may be right.
What the self-proclaimed Biblicists need to understand is that faithfulness to Christ and His Gospel is more important than self-proclaimed theological orthodoxy.
We all must realize that the best way in which the gospel can be presented to the community of humanity is not by what flows over the tongue and mouthed, but how life is lived as the community of the redeemed. There needs to be in us as believers an authenticity which cannot be questioned, so there is no variation between what we say and how we live. What we say must line up with Who we are... that is authenticity. People have to see Christ in us and living through us.
If we are going to talk the talk we must walk the walk!
The Bible's theological foundation is Jesus, the life He lived and the Gospel He died for that He revealed to Paul...His Gospel of Grace. Self-proclaimed Biblicists MUST keep in mind the difference between Jesus as the theological foundation of the Bible and their interpretation of the Bible. This means that if their self-interpretation of the Bible of Who God is, and what His purpose and plan for the community of the redeemed in the community of humanity is, does not compute to Jesus, "the express image of God", to acknowledge that their self-proclaimed Biblicist interpretation is the WRONG one.
To the extent that self-proclaimed Biblicists are willing to embrace those whom they theologically disagree with determines their understanding of God's grace...to this point...that understanding is very limited. When it comes to matters of Bible interpretation, self-proclaimed Biblicists need to understand that as mortals is that certainty in methodological interpretation simply eludes their grasp and that what they thought to be right may be wrong, and what they thought to be wrong may be right.
What the self-proclaimed Biblicists need to understand is that faithfulness to Christ and His Gospel is more important than self-proclaimed theological orthodoxy.
We all must realize that the best way in which the gospel can be presented to the community of humanity is not by what flows over the tongue and mouthed, but how life is lived as the community of the redeemed. There needs to be in us as believers an authenticity which cannot be questioned, so there is no variation between what we say and how we live. What we say must line up with Who we are... that is authenticity. People have to see Christ in us and living through us.
If we are going to talk the talk we must walk the walk!
Saturday, December 28, 2013
Long Walk to Freedom
Watched "Mandela: Long Walk to
Freedom". Very touching. Perpetrators of evil see themselves most clearly
through the eyes of their victims. But if victims only see themselves through
the eyes of their oppressors, they will in turn become oppressors. Both victims
and those who injured them need a greater reference than one another to be
free.
Jesus became one with victims, the ultimate
innocent victim of unjust murder. In our identification with Him on that cross,
we see evil for what it is - we see ourselves through the eyes of an innocent
victim. But in His resurrection He deprives the murderer (humanity) of their
victim. In our identification with Him in His resurrection, we see love for
what it is - we see ourselves, not as victims demanding revenge, but as victors
over evil, offering forgiveness. Unlike the blood of many innocent victims, His
blood does not cry for vengeance, but for forgiveness.
We have all been victims and we have all
been victimizers. Victims can become obsessed with their victimizers, and
perpetrators of violence can become obsessed with their victims ... caught in
hate and caught in shame. If we only see each other we will forever be caught
in this circle of violence.
The message of Jesus breaks this circle of
evil, by giving us a new reference for who we are. The victim is no longer a
victim, if he or she chooses forgiveness instead of revenge. The victimizer no
longer needs to live in the shame of his or her evil, as they receive
forgiveness. Jesus introduces us to our true mirror - the God in who's image
and likeness we were created, to reflect dignity, love and the courage to be
our true selves in the midst of perversity.
Thank you Mandela and the many victims of
violence in South Africa ... and across the world, for once again living the
message of Jesus, offering forgiveness and rejecting revenge. Thank you for helping
humanity rise above the perverted identities of victims and victimizers, and
once again reflect our true humanity.
You have planted the seeds of a new
community. I see a South Africa no longer caught in the cycle of violence, hate
and shame. I see a world that wakes up to the basic message of Christ - love
... as you love yourself; love even your enemies. It is far beyond the
political-correctness-message of tolerance ... for that will ultimately fail.
Love never fails.
- Andre Rabe
Its Not Really About Me and My Faith, Its All About God and His Grace
In the past I have worried that I didn't
have enough faith, or that my faith wasn't complete, or that I would lose
faith..and all this focus on my faith made me unsure of my standing before God,
unsure of where I was with Him on a day to day basis and also unsure of my
eternal destiny. If it was so important and all about my faith, what if I lost
faith or didn't have enough at any one time? Would that meant that I would lose
blessings, help, His favor, or..worst of all, my salvation and place in heaven?
It scared me so much. I used to cling to verses like Phil. 1:6 because they
gave me some hope that somehow God would get me through to heaven, since I felt
my faith wasn't so hot! I instinctively knew that if it was 'all up to me and
my faith' to get to heaven, be blessed, have healing or get God's favor and work
in my life, then I was in trouble because I was not capable on my own of having
perfect faith! I couldn't handle the responsibility, and it made me feel
insecure and troubled and afraid.
Then God began to open my eyes to something wonderful, something I had never really been taught before...He opened my eyes to grace! He showed me that it wasn't all about me and my faith to make things happen, it was all about HIM and HIS GRACE and He had already made things happen and would bring them all about! Since it was all about Him and His responsibility to come through for me, my favor and acceptance with God, His work in my life, and my eternal destiny were thus absolutely certain and secure - for HE never fails, HE never wavers, HIS plan is always carried out, HIS work is always finished! I was able to stop worrying and start resting. I was able to start enjoying my life with God and looking forward to an eternal heavenly future that was for sure! The Holy Spirit testified deep within me that this was so. Oh what joy filled me up!
Now God is showing me something even more beautiful, helping me understand it all even better - He is showing me that in the eternal realm, salvation is already DONE! That means I am not waiting to get to heaven, I am ALREADY there! I've died with Christ, been raised with Christ, ascended with Christ, and have been seated with Christ at the right hand of God the Father in heaven - already! This happened 2000 years ago in our time, but really in God's time it happened before creation! For God said that the Lamb Jesus was slain before the foundation of the world - and I was there in Him, it happened to me, too, way back then! Before we even had a problem, God solved it. Before I even initiated anything, He initiated redemption and made everything okay for me. Before I even sinned, He took away my sin at the cross. Before I was lost, I was found by Him! Before I took one step out of line, He put me back together! Before I withdrew from relationship with Him, He connected me with Him eternally! Before I lost faith, HE had faith on my behalf. Before I even needed rescue, He saved me! Wow! My salvation has been secure since before time began - now THAT'S eternal security!
But what about faith? I know it is great to have faith, and faith is a natural response when we hear this good news that God has saved us. Yet I realize now I was putting so much emphasis in the past on "my faith" that I wasn't realizing that I was making faith into a work. Faith isn't a 'thing I do' to make something happen, like blessing or salvation. Faith isn't something I must do to 'get' God to be favorable toward me or do something for me. Faith is trust. It is what happens when you discover someone is trustworthy. You discover someone is trustworthy by seeing what they've already done for you to prove their love and loyalty to you. When you see that someone has made a big sacrifice for you to help you, you see they really love you and you're able to trust them to take care of you. And when you see that someone loves you even when they know the worst about you, even when you reject and mistreat them, then you are able to open up and trust them to accept and not reject you. And that's just what Jesus did at the cross - He proved His love for us by giving up His own life to free us from sin's hold. And He loved and did this for us when we were at our worst - in fact, we humans killed Him, and He asked His Father to forgive us and even came out of the grave with His arms stretched out in love and forgiveness for all, taking no revenge, just going on as if we hadn't killed Him at all, loving us and being open and friendly towards us just the same!! THAT is a God we can trust!
Faith doesn't make something happen. Faith is what naturally occurs when we see what has already happened to us through God's love and Jesus' finished work. So faith doesn't bring salvation. Faith sees that salvation already happened! Faith is simply seeing reality! All these years we may have thought God was angry or distant, thought we had to earn our way with Him, thought salvation was all up to us, thought we were being graded by our performance...and now we discover that wasn't reality, that was all a lie! We discover the truth, we see reality - that God is pure love and ONLY love, that He always loved and accepted and embraced us, no matter what wrong things we did, that we never had to earn our place with Him, that salvation was all up to Him and He already succeeded in doing it - for Jesus freed us from sins through bringing us with Him through death and brought us into life and fellowship in the Trinity by bringing us with Him out of the grave and up into heaven and plopping us right into Papa's lap! - that we are SAFE and SECURE and LOVED and ACCEPTED forever no matter what, we are HIS children, always were, always will be! God awakens us out of the nightmare of Satan's lies, and we SEE reality, His reality, the eternal and only REAL reality! That is all faith is to me now, not making something happen but seeing what already happened, what already IS!
We can rest, because salvation in the end is all about God and His grace, not all about us and our faith! What a relief to know that we are in the arms of the God of grace and that He will never let us go!
- Under the Waterfall
Then God began to open my eyes to something wonderful, something I had never really been taught before...He opened my eyes to grace! He showed me that it wasn't all about me and my faith to make things happen, it was all about HIM and HIS GRACE and He had already made things happen and would bring them all about! Since it was all about Him and His responsibility to come through for me, my favor and acceptance with God, His work in my life, and my eternal destiny were thus absolutely certain and secure - for HE never fails, HE never wavers, HIS plan is always carried out, HIS work is always finished! I was able to stop worrying and start resting. I was able to start enjoying my life with God and looking forward to an eternal heavenly future that was for sure! The Holy Spirit testified deep within me that this was so. Oh what joy filled me up!
Now God is showing me something even more beautiful, helping me understand it all even better - He is showing me that in the eternal realm, salvation is already DONE! That means I am not waiting to get to heaven, I am ALREADY there! I've died with Christ, been raised with Christ, ascended with Christ, and have been seated with Christ at the right hand of God the Father in heaven - already! This happened 2000 years ago in our time, but really in God's time it happened before creation! For God said that the Lamb Jesus was slain before the foundation of the world - and I was there in Him, it happened to me, too, way back then! Before we even had a problem, God solved it. Before I even initiated anything, He initiated redemption and made everything okay for me. Before I even sinned, He took away my sin at the cross. Before I was lost, I was found by Him! Before I took one step out of line, He put me back together! Before I withdrew from relationship with Him, He connected me with Him eternally! Before I lost faith, HE had faith on my behalf. Before I even needed rescue, He saved me! Wow! My salvation has been secure since before time began - now THAT'S eternal security!
But what about faith? I know it is great to have faith, and faith is a natural response when we hear this good news that God has saved us. Yet I realize now I was putting so much emphasis in the past on "my faith" that I wasn't realizing that I was making faith into a work. Faith isn't a 'thing I do' to make something happen, like blessing or salvation. Faith isn't something I must do to 'get' God to be favorable toward me or do something for me. Faith is trust. It is what happens when you discover someone is trustworthy. You discover someone is trustworthy by seeing what they've already done for you to prove their love and loyalty to you. When you see that someone has made a big sacrifice for you to help you, you see they really love you and you're able to trust them to take care of you. And when you see that someone loves you even when they know the worst about you, even when you reject and mistreat them, then you are able to open up and trust them to accept and not reject you. And that's just what Jesus did at the cross - He proved His love for us by giving up His own life to free us from sin's hold. And He loved and did this for us when we were at our worst - in fact, we humans killed Him, and He asked His Father to forgive us and even came out of the grave with His arms stretched out in love and forgiveness for all, taking no revenge, just going on as if we hadn't killed Him at all, loving us and being open and friendly towards us just the same!! THAT is a God we can trust!
Faith doesn't make something happen. Faith is what naturally occurs when we see what has already happened to us through God's love and Jesus' finished work. So faith doesn't bring salvation. Faith sees that salvation already happened! Faith is simply seeing reality! All these years we may have thought God was angry or distant, thought we had to earn our way with Him, thought salvation was all up to us, thought we were being graded by our performance...and now we discover that wasn't reality, that was all a lie! We discover the truth, we see reality - that God is pure love and ONLY love, that He always loved and accepted and embraced us, no matter what wrong things we did, that we never had to earn our place with Him, that salvation was all up to Him and He already succeeded in doing it - for Jesus freed us from sins through bringing us with Him through death and brought us into life and fellowship in the Trinity by bringing us with Him out of the grave and up into heaven and plopping us right into Papa's lap! - that we are SAFE and SECURE and LOVED and ACCEPTED forever no matter what, we are HIS children, always were, always will be! God awakens us out of the nightmare of Satan's lies, and we SEE reality, His reality, the eternal and only REAL reality! That is all faith is to me now, not making something happen but seeing what already happened, what already IS!
We can rest, because salvation in the end is all about God and His grace, not all about us and our faith! What a relief to know that we are in the arms of the God of grace and that He will never let us go!
- Under the Waterfall
The Building of Spirituality
Every circumstance we face in life is
an opportunity for character building. Character is not something that is built
in heaven, it's built on earth and helps bring the atmosphere of heaven to
earth. The forming of character is dependent on attitude and response during
opposition. Its a matter of choice to be spiritual by trusting God and resting
in His grace or carnal by trusting to self and religious
performance.
To fight the spiritual dissatisfaction that is raging within you by further religious involvement brings deeper spiritual dissatisfaction because it is not spiritual growth food to feed the spiritual man. God makes us aware when we are unsatisfied spiritually. Never be satisfied with the spiritual status quo of religious performance because it hinders true spiritual growth.
God never made us just for religious spiritual survival. He made us to be inhabited by His life that we might rise in the fullness of the reality of that life which can never be found in religious spirituality.
"But we have this treasure in earthen vessels..." (2 Cor. 4:7)...the treasure is not in religious performance or segregated denominated buildings.
What is this treasure? Jesus. Who is Jesus? PLEASE get this...He is the life of the Father expressed to humanity. Now that He is in His community of the redeemed...we are to be the expression of Father God to the community of humanity by Christ living His life through us. When God gives us a spiritual revelation, He has to work it out in us and through us to benefit humanity. His life grows not by carnal knowledge in the carnal mind or religious knowledge (man-made ideologies). The spiritual man is not fed by human reasoning or by feeding on religious involvement. It is not fed by the natural things that are around us. It is fed by the revelation of Who Jesus is and what Jesus has done...Grace Knowledge.
As long as we remain religiously focused we will not understand His Grace message and we become spiritually confused, spiritually frustrated, spiritually resentful, and spiritual dropouts; and we stagnate as the community of the redeemed. The devil will do everything in his power to discourage us from understanding and living the Grace message. It is the devil's business to keep us focusing on secondary things so that the main issue is neglected which gradually produces a diminishing of Christ's life within us until, eventually, spirituality reality is gone, leaving nothing but religious satisfaction. This is how the gospel loses vitality and spiritual reality for the community of humanity.
We will never realize who we are in Christ if we never come to an understanding of the Grace gospel of Jesus Christ. When you enter into the fullness of Grace revelation you enter into really knowing who you are and your involvement if Gods Plan and purpose for the community of humanity. You live different, talk different and walk different. Words like defeat, impossible will melt away from your speech because Christ through you can do anything. You realize when you live life daily, Jesus is walking down the street in you ready to do His work through you.
The miracle of the imparted life of Christ to you by GRACE, is far beyond human comprehension. It is only unveiled by God. You have within you the hope of the ages. He needs to be manifested to the community of humanity and religion has failed in the revealing of that revelation because they know more ABOUT what others say ABOUT God than they KNOW God Himself.
- Glenn Regular
To fight the spiritual dissatisfaction that is raging within you by further religious involvement brings deeper spiritual dissatisfaction because it is not spiritual growth food to feed the spiritual man. God makes us aware when we are unsatisfied spiritually. Never be satisfied with the spiritual status quo of religious performance because it hinders true spiritual growth.
God never made us just for religious spiritual survival. He made us to be inhabited by His life that we might rise in the fullness of the reality of that life which can never be found in religious spirituality.
"But we have this treasure in earthen vessels..." (2 Cor. 4:7)...the treasure is not in religious performance or segregated denominated buildings.
What is this treasure? Jesus. Who is Jesus? PLEASE get this...He is the life of the Father expressed to humanity. Now that He is in His community of the redeemed...we are to be the expression of Father God to the community of humanity by Christ living His life through us. When God gives us a spiritual revelation, He has to work it out in us and through us to benefit humanity. His life grows not by carnal knowledge in the carnal mind or religious knowledge (man-made ideologies). The spiritual man is not fed by human reasoning or by feeding on religious involvement. It is not fed by the natural things that are around us. It is fed by the revelation of Who Jesus is and what Jesus has done...Grace Knowledge.
As long as we remain religiously focused we will not understand His Grace message and we become spiritually confused, spiritually frustrated, spiritually resentful, and spiritual dropouts; and we stagnate as the community of the redeemed. The devil will do everything in his power to discourage us from understanding and living the Grace message. It is the devil's business to keep us focusing on secondary things so that the main issue is neglected which gradually produces a diminishing of Christ's life within us until, eventually, spirituality reality is gone, leaving nothing but religious satisfaction. This is how the gospel loses vitality and spiritual reality for the community of humanity.
We will never realize who we are in Christ if we never come to an understanding of the Grace gospel of Jesus Christ. When you enter into the fullness of Grace revelation you enter into really knowing who you are and your involvement if Gods Plan and purpose for the community of humanity. You live different, talk different and walk different. Words like defeat, impossible will melt away from your speech because Christ through you can do anything. You realize when you live life daily, Jesus is walking down the street in you ready to do His work through you.
The miracle of the imparted life of Christ to you by GRACE, is far beyond human comprehension. It is only unveiled by God. You have within you the hope of the ages. He needs to be manifested to the community of humanity and religion has failed in the revealing of that revelation because they know more ABOUT what others say ABOUT God than they KNOW God Himself.
- Glenn Regular
Being a Safe Place for Others
When we are free from
the need to judge or condemn, we can become safe places for people to
meet in vulnerability and take down the walls that separate them.
Being deeply rooted in the love of God, we cannot help but invite people
to love one another. When people realise that we have no hidden
agendas or unspoken intentions, that we are not trying to gain any
profit for ourselves, and that our only desire is for peace and
reconciliation, they may find the inner freedom and courage to leave
their guns at the door and enter into conversation with their enemies.
Many times this happens even without our planning. Our ministry of reconciliation most often takes place when we ourselves are least aware of it. Our simple, nonjudgmental presence does it.
Many times this happens even without our planning. Our ministry of reconciliation most often takes place when we ourselves are least aware of it. Our simple, nonjudgmental presence does it.
Friday, December 27, 2013
Living the Gospel Instead of Living Religion
Many people are bound by the
limitations of man-made denominational doctrines and imprisoned within the shell
of religious concepts and traditions. Believers who are caught in that trap are
locked into a pattern of thought in living life believing they are Christ's
representatives bringing the gospel to the community of humanity in the power
and the anointing of the Holy Spirit, when in reality they are full of religious
pride and denominational arrogance and unaware of God's plan and purpose for the
community of the redeemed in gospelizing the community of
humanity.
Instead of living and verbalizing their religious convictions they need to live in the love of God and love people by the unction of the Spirits power that is available only through the grace gospel of Jesus Christ. It is only God's grace anointing that will break the chains of denominational bondage and the religious prison bars of deceptiveness.
There are more imprisoned people outside of jail than there are on the inside. People who are imprisoned by religious concepts, philosophies, ideologies, deceptions and denominational traditions that they believe are scripturally correct, yet, it has nothing to do the gospel of Jesus Christ.
This world system is built upon the fallen nature of man. It is built upon the nature of death. The world system is in the grips of death and cannot bring life to people.
It is ironic and sad, but the religious system that they claim brings life, is built on the same world system and it is bringing death instead of life to people in the community of the redeemed. This worldly religious system does not and can not, know the power of the resurrected Christ. But the gospel of Christ's grace that gives life, is the power of God unto salvation to everyone that believes. (Romans 1:16)
He that has the Son has life, he that has not the Son has not life. The entire gospel, the entire purpose of God and everything in the scriptures is to bring man into a relationship with God for Him to make is abode in us so that the resurrection life of Jesus can work through us. It is the life of Christ in us and outworking through us that empowers us as the community of the redeemed to affect the community of humanity.
It is the devil's business to get us involved in religious busyness so that we stifle Christ's life in us from living through us. Satan wants us to be under the influence of the carnal nature operating in religious deceptions so we will not pursue the power of Christ's life within us. Satan wants us to live in disobedience to the the written word, or live by our deceived interpretation of it. He knows that he cannot destroy the life of Christ in us, he can only bring us to a place that we allow it to be stagnate and unprofitable to the community of humanity.
There are all kinds of things in the religious world that will dormant us and prevent His life from expressing itself through us.
We can have denominational life without God life. This is what has happened in the religious denominational world and often people don't know the difference. You may be in a denomination that you feel is doing the best they can. But if you become filled with the fullness of God to comprehend His grace message, you will realize that God is trying to destroy many of the things that denominations are doing. Anything that is man centered and man created from programs to preaching, God wants to destroy. Anything that is done in buildings called "church" (even if in the Name of God) that does not fulfill the purpose of God, He wants destroyed. God doesn't dwell in name-tagged buildings (denominations) created by man. He dwells within people. We are the 'inhabited called out" ones.
Even though we have His life implanted in us at the new birth, if we don't know the purpose of that life after salvation we will never enter to the fullness of God where we are affecting the community of humanity for His purpose.
Instead of living and verbalizing their religious convictions they need to live in the love of God and love people by the unction of the Spirits power that is available only through the grace gospel of Jesus Christ. It is only God's grace anointing that will break the chains of denominational bondage and the religious prison bars of deceptiveness.
There are more imprisoned people outside of jail than there are on the inside. People who are imprisoned by religious concepts, philosophies, ideologies, deceptions and denominational traditions that they believe are scripturally correct, yet, it has nothing to do the gospel of Jesus Christ.
This world system is built upon the fallen nature of man. It is built upon the nature of death. The world system is in the grips of death and cannot bring life to people.
It is ironic and sad, but the religious system that they claim brings life, is built on the same world system and it is bringing death instead of life to people in the community of the redeemed. This worldly religious system does not and can not, know the power of the resurrected Christ. But the gospel of Christ's grace that gives life, is the power of God unto salvation to everyone that believes. (Romans 1:16)
He that has the Son has life, he that has not the Son has not life. The entire gospel, the entire purpose of God and everything in the scriptures is to bring man into a relationship with God for Him to make is abode in us so that the resurrection life of Jesus can work through us. It is the life of Christ in us and outworking through us that empowers us as the community of the redeemed to affect the community of humanity.
It is the devil's business to get us involved in religious busyness so that we stifle Christ's life in us from living through us. Satan wants us to be under the influence of the carnal nature operating in religious deceptions so we will not pursue the power of Christ's life within us. Satan wants us to live in disobedience to the the written word, or live by our deceived interpretation of it. He knows that he cannot destroy the life of Christ in us, he can only bring us to a place that we allow it to be stagnate and unprofitable to the community of humanity.
There are all kinds of things in the religious world that will dormant us and prevent His life from expressing itself through us.
We can have denominational life without God life. This is what has happened in the religious denominational world and often people don't know the difference. You may be in a denomination that you feel is doing the best they can. But if you become filled with the fullness of God to comprehend His grace message, you will realize that God is trying to destroy many of the things that denominations are doing. Anything that is man centered and man created from programs to preaching, God wants to destroy. Anything that is done in buildings called "church" (even if in the Name of God) that does not fulfill the purpose of God, He wants destroyed. God doesn't dwell in name-tagged buildings (denominations) created by man. He dwells within people. We are the 'inhabited called out" ones.
Even though we have His life implanted in us at the new birth, if we don't know the purpose of that life after salvation we will never enter to the fullness of God where we are affecting the community of humanity for His purpose.
True and Solid Peace
“It is the word of God alone which can first and effectually cheer the heart
of any sinner. There is no true or solid peace to be enjoyed in the world except
in the way of reposing upon the promises of God. Those who do not resort to them
may succeed for a time in hushing or evading the terrors of conscience, but they
must ever be strangers to true inward comfort.
And, granting that they may attain to the peace of insensibility, this is not a state which could satisfy any man who has seriously felt the fear of the Lord. The joy which he desires is that which flows from hearing the word of God, in which he promises to pardon our guilt, and readmit us into his favor. It is this alone which supports the believer amidst all the fears, dangers, and distresses of his earthly pilgrimage; for the joy of the Spirit is inseparable from faith.
”
And, granting that they may attain to the peace of insensibility, this is not a state which could satisfy any man who has seriously felt the fear of the Lord. The joy which he desires is that which flows from hearing the word of God, in which he promises to pardon our guilt, and readmit us into his favor. It is this alone which supports the believer amidst all the fears, dangers, and distresses of his earthly pilgrimage; for the joy of the Spirit is inseparable from faith.
A Nonjudgmental Presense
To the degree that we
accept that through Christ we ourselves have been reconciled with God we
can be messengers of reconciliation for others. Essential to the work
of reconciliation is a nonjudgmental presence. We are not sent to the
world to judge, to condemn, to evaluate, to classify, or to label. When
we walk around as if we have to make up our mind about people and tell
them what is wrong with them and how they should change, we will only
create more division. Jesus says it clearly: "Be compassionate just
as your Father is compassionate. Do not judge; ... do not condemn; ...
forgive" (Luke 6:36-37).
In a world that constantly asks us to make up our minds about other people, a nonjudgmental presence seems nearly impossible. But it is one of the most beautiful fruits of a deep spiritual life and will be easily recognized by those who long for reconciliation.
In a world that constantly asks us to make up our minds about other people, a nonjudgmental presence seems nearly impossible. But it is one of the most beautiful fruits of a deep spiritual life and will be easily recognized by those who long for reconciliation.
Thursday, December 26, 2013
Claiming Our Reconciliation
How do we work for
reconciliation? First and foremost by claiming for ourselves that God
through Christ has reconciled us to God. It is not enough to believe
this with our heads. We have to let the truth of this reconciliation
permeate every part of our beings. As long as we are not fully and
thoroughly convinced that we have been reconciled with God, that we are
forgiven, that we have received new hearts, new spirits, new eyes to
see, and new ears to hear, we continue to create divisions among people
because we expect from them a healing power they do not possess.
Only when we fully trust that we belong to God and can find in our relationship with God all that we need for our minds, hearts, and souls, can we be truly free in this world and be ministers of reconciliation. This is not easy; we readily fall back into self-doubt and self-rejection. We need to be constantly reminded through God's Word, the sacraments, and the love of our neighbours that we are indeed reconciled.
Only when we fully trust that we belong to God and can find in our relationship with God all that we need for our minds, hearts, and souls, can we be truly free in this world and be ministers of reconciliation. This is not easy; we readily fall back into self-doubt and self-rejection. We need to be constantly reminded through God's Word, the sacraments, and the love of our neighbours that we are indeed reconciled.
Wednesday, December 25, 2013
The Task of Reconciliation
What is our task in this
world as children of God and brothers and sisters of Jesus? Our task
is reconciliation. Wherever we go we see divisions among people - in
families, communities, cities, countries, and continents. All these
divisions are tragic reflections of our separation from God. The truth
that all people belong together as members of one family under God is
seldom visible. Our sacred task is to reveal that truth in the reality
of everyday life.
Why is that our task? Because God sent Christ to reconcile us with God and to give us the task of reconciling people with one another. As people reconcile with God through Christ we have been given the ministry of reconciliation" (see: 2 Corinthians 5:18). So whatever we do the main question is, Does it lead to reconciliation among people?
Why is that our task? Because God sent Christ to reconcile us with God and to give us the task of reconciling people with one another. As people reconcile with God through Christ we have been given the ministry of reconciliation" (see: 2 Corinthians 5:18). So whatever we do the main question is, Does it lead to reconciliation among people?
Glorious Ruin
Grace is available because Jesus went through the valley of the shadow of death and rose from death. The gospel engages our life with all its pain, shame, rejection, lostness, sin, and death.
So now, to your pain, the gospel says, "You will be healed." To your shame, the gospel says, "You can now come to God in confidence."
To your rejection, the gospel says, "You are accepted!" To your lostness, the gospel says, "You are found and I won't ever let you go."
To your sin, the gospel says, "You are forgiven and God declares you pure and righteous."
To your death, the gospel says, "You once were dead, but now you are alive."
So now, to your pain, the gospel says, "You will be healed." To your shame, the gospel says, "You can now come to God in confidence."
To your rejection, the gospel says, "You are accepted!" To your lostness, the gospel says, "You are found and I won't ever let you go."
To your sin, the gospel says, "You are forgiven and God declares you pure and righteous."
To your death, the gospel says, "You once were dead, but now you are alive."
Tuesday, December 24, 2013
Christ Has Loved Us
“There is no other solution to the marvellous mysteries of His Incarnation
and Sacrificial Death but this: Christ has loved us.
There is not a circumstance of our Lord’s history which is not another form or manifestation of love.
His incarnation is love stooping.
His sympathy is love weeping.
His compassion is love supporting.
His grace is love acting.
His teaching is the voice of love.
His silence is the repose of love.
His patience is the restraint of love.
His obedience is the labor of love.
His suffering is the travail of love.
His cross is the altar of love.
His death is the burnt offering of love.
His resurrection is the triumph of love.
His ascension into heaven is the enthronement of love.
His sitting down at the right hand of God is the intercession of love.
Such is the deep, the vast, the boundless ocean of Christ’s love!
”
— Octavius Winslow
There is not a circumstance of our Lord’s history which is not another form or manifestation of love.
His incarnation is love stooping.
His sympathy is love weeping.
His compassion is love supporting.
His grace is love acting.
His teaching is the voice of love.
His silence is the repose of love.
His patience is the restraint of love.
His obedience is the labor of love.
His suffering is the travail of love.
His cross is the altar of love.
His death is the burnt offering of love.
His resurrection is the triumph of love.
His ascension into heaven is the enthronement of love.
His sitting down at the right hand of God is the intercession of love.
Such is the deep, the vast, the boundless ocean of Christ’s love!
— Octavius Winslow
Sunday, December 22, 2013
Emotions In The Christian Life
Chapter 5 of "Prayer in
Practice," which is entitled 'Feelings in Prayer,' is perhaps the best
piece of writing on the subject of emotions in the Christian life that I have
read.
Tugwell begins by noting just how
unreliable feelings are: "I may feel inspired without being inspired; I
may feel marvelous... but that may be caused simply by a good dinner and an
insensitive conscience. Conversely, I may feel awful, but 'if our heart
condemns us, God is greater than our heart." He points out that in our era
of "romantic fundamentalism of experience, which will believe only what I
can feel on my pulse" that we must realize that we can be seriously
deceived about our own experience. Yet, we cannot fall into unending doubt and
so we begin by realizing feelings are not infallible and then getting to know
ourselves, our feelings, and the ways in which our feelings may 'misfire', well
enough that we can discern when to trust.
Tugwell lists four ways in which feelings
can misfire:
1. They may bounce like a bad cheque. That
is, there may be nothing behind them. So we may feel charitable without living
out the virtue of charity and allow the feeling to be a substitute for reality.
2. They may be artificial or contrived. We
may feel something, and feel it very strongly, despite it not being 'real.' The
perfect example is the group high or happiness; everyone else in the room is
jumping and shouting and singing, this is contagious, and so I join in.
3. They may be distorted. We prefer to view
things simply, to make them plain and clear, but real emotions come as part of
complex reactions to complex life. It is tempting to ignore ambiguity for the
sake of ease of understanding and in so doing distort how we see our own
feelings.
4. They may be absent. We may feel we
should have felt something, but did not, and so either convince ourselves that
we did.
With this in mind Tugwell explains that
feelings, by themselves, are not very helpful. However, as part of a whole
context of our person they are not only necessary but good. And God will use
them, sending us times of consolation and joy, wooing us with a more intimate
presence, or filling our hearts with a fire and a passion from His Spirit.
These are good graces from God, but "we must not try to stockpile good
feelings. It is of the nature of feelings that they come and go, and usually
not when you want them to. We must not try to perpetuate feelings, however
elevated they seem to be. We must not try to recapture them when they have gone.
We must accept them when they are there and, if they are helpful and good,
then, other things beings equal, we should accept them with joy and
gratefulness; if they are negative and unhelpful, we must find the bets way to
get through them with a minimum of damage. But either way, we must be a fish,
and not get swamped by them."
And it is in the midst of this, adds
Tugwell, that knowing ourselves is so crucial.
Tugwell's conclusion?
"And so we should seek, not so much
dramatic feelings, as the simple 'feeling' of God. It is rather like learning
to recognize the footsteps of someone you know well. Or it is like learning to
recognize the style of a painter. Familiarity with his ways will enable us more
and more to recognize certain patters, certain configurations, certain little
details, as signs of his artistry. If we love him at all, then to recognize him
will carry with a certain excitement and joy. But in itself it is a very simple
recognition of sheer factuality. It is not a sense of 'I like this' but just of
'there it is.' This quiet sense... is a tremendous asset in the Christian life.
It will enable us, underneath whatever storms of emotion may be raging, to rest
tranquil in humility and peace. then our emotional response will be rooted, it
will proceed from the depths."
- Simon Tugwell, Prayer in Practice.
Solitude
Solitude
by Ella Wheeler Wilcox
Laugh, and the world laughs with you,
Weep, and you weep alone;
For the sad old earth must borrow its
mirth,
But has trouble enough of its own.
Sing, and the hills will answer;
Sigh, it is lost on the air;
The echoes bound to a joyful sound,
But shrink from voicing care.
Rejoice, and men will seek you;
Grieve, and they turn and go;
They want full measure of all your
pleasure,
But they do not need your woe.
Be glad, and your friends are many;
Be sad, and you lose them all, -
There are none to decline your nectared
wine,
But alone you must drink life's gall.
Feast, and your halls are crowded;
Fast, and the world goes by.
Succeed and give, and it helps you live,
But no man can help you die.
For there is room in the halls of pleasure
For a large and lordly train,
But one by one we must all file on
Through the narrow aisles of pain.
Our Good Shepherd Always Finds Us
This is one of my favorite quotes, and I
wanted to share it here. It is from 'Prayer' by Simon Tugwell. My favorite
part is where he says, "Our hope is in His determination to save us, and He will
not give in." That is such a comfort to me!
Jesus the Good Shepherd Who Looks For Us And Finds Us (Simon Tugwell)
"Another picture that our Lord loves to use is that of the shepherd who goes out to look for the sheep that is lost (Matthew 18:12). So long as we imagine that it is we who have to look for God, then we must often lose heart. But it is the other way about: he is looking for us. And so we can afford to recognize that very often we are not looking for God; far from it, we are in full flight from him, in high rebellion against him. And he knows that and has taken it into account. He has followed us into our own darkness; there where we thought finally to escape him, we run straight into his arms.
"So we do not have to erect a false piety for ourselves, to give us hope of salvation. Our hope is in his determination to save us. And he will not give in!
"...we can let ourselves off that desperate question, “Am I in the right place?” ”Have I done the right thing?” Of course, we must sometimes acknowledge sins and mistakes and we must try to learn from them; but we should not foster the kind of worry that leads to despair, God’s providence means that wherever we have got to, whatever we have done, that is precisely where the road to Heaven begins. However many cues we have missed, however many wrong turnings we have taken, however unnecessarily we may have complicated our journey, the road still beckons, and the Lord still “waits to be gracious” to us (Isaiah 30:18)."
Simon Tugwell
I love this quote! It really reminds me of our security in Him and how He has got this whole salvation thing wrapped up in His perfect work and faithfulness! His is the initiative, His is the work, His is the responsibility, and His is the resolve...so we are safe, we are secure, we are assured that we'll forever be snug and cozily at home with Him! He will not fail us! We may think we've just fallen too far to ever come up again, yet right in the deepest pit of all we find that God is there with us! We suddenly find that by His grace, the pathway that seemed to be going down is actually going up, and the hellhole turns into heaven! Because HE is there! HE is with us, no matter where we end up, and HE keeps us! He makes the dark places light and the crooked places straight, flattens mountains into plains and turns the storm into calm! No matter what, He makes it all come out for good! Thus, we cannot get lost, because anywhere we go or even run from Him, there He is, holding us, saving us, blessing us, keeping us, carrying us to heaven!! It's like Rob Rufus says, grace is an UP escalator, and no matter how many times we fall on this escalator, it just keeps going UP!
So we can fail and still be safe and secure, for it's all by His grace that we are fine and well and safe, not by our own doing or keeping! We are free to be ourselves, admit our weaknesses, have problems and issues. We are free to take risks, free to try new things and sometimes not succeed, free to be fallible and free to be wrong, free to not understand everything, free to even have erroneous beliefs or doctrines about some things! And free to be human, to be weak, to be emotional, to be real, to be genuine! For no matter what we do, where our thoughts and acts take us, what lies or traps we fall in, what confusion we have, or what lies we believe, He is determined to save us, He is able and willing to save us, He DOES save us, He HAS saved us! And therefore we ARE safe, forevermore!
Jesus the Good Shepherd Who Looks For Us And Finds Us (Simon Tugwell)
"Another picture that our Lord loves to use is that of the shepherd who goes out to look for the sheep that is lost (Matthew 18:12). So long as we imagine that it is we who have to look for God, then we must often lose heart. But it is the other way about: he is looking for us. And so we can afford to recognize that very often we are not looking for God; far from it, we are in full flight from him, in high rebellion against him. And he knows that and has taken it into account. He has followed us into our own darkness; there where we thought finally to escape him, we run straight into his arms.
"So we do not have to erect a false piety for ourselves, to give us hope of salvation. Our hope is in his determination to save us. And he will not give in!
"...we can let ourselves off that desperate question, “Am I in the right place?” ”Have I done the right thing?” Of course, we must sometimes acknowledge sins and mistakes and we must try to learn from them; but we should not foster the kind of worry that leads to despair, God’s providence means that wherever we have got to, whatever we have done, that is precisely where the road to Heaven begins. However many cues we have missed, however many wrong turnings we have taken, however unnecessarily we may have complicated our journey, the road still beckons, and the Lord still “waits to be gracious” to us (Isaiah 30:18)."
Simon Tugwell
I love this quote! It really reminds me of our security in Him and how He has got this whole salvation thing wrapped up in His perfect work and faithfulness! His is the initiative, His is the work, His is the responsibility, and His is the resolve...so we are safe, we are secure, we are assured that we'll forever be snug and cozily at home with Him! He will not fail us! We may think we've just fallen too far to ever come up again, yet right in the deepest pit of all we find that God is there with us! We suddenly find that by His grace, the pathway that seemed to be going down is actually going up, and the hellhole turns into heaven! Because HE is there! HE is with us, no matter where we end up, and HE keeps us! He makes the dark places light and the crooked places straight, flattens mountains into plains and turns the storm into calm! No matter what, He makes it all come out for good! Thus, we cannot get lost, because anywhere we go or even run from Him, there He is, holding us, saving us, blessing us, keeping us, carrying us to heaven!! It's like Rob Rufus says, grace is an UP escalator, and no matter how many times we fall on this escalator, it just keeps going UP!
So we can fail and still be safe and secure, for it's all by His grace that we are fine and well and safe, not by our own doing or keeping! We are free to be ourselves, admit our weaknesses, have problems and issues. We are free to take risks, free to try new things and sometimes not succeed, free to be fallible and free to be wrong, free to not understand everything, free to even have erroneous beliefs or doctrines about some things! And free to be human, to be weak, to be emotional, to be real, to be genuine! For no matter what we do, where our thoughts and acts take us, what lies or traps we fall in, what confusion we have, or what lies we believe, He is determined to save us, He is able and willing to save us, He DOES save us, He HAS saved us! And therefore we ARE safe, forevermore!
Do You Really Have Any Authority?
What a fabulous quote that really is just a paraphrase of Jesus' own words from
the bible:
"You can't understand truth because you care what other men think about you."
If that's accurate, and being reminded that it was first spoken by Jesus, after all, then doesn't it stand to reason that so long as one is bound by the opinion of man, he will be unable to discern, and thus, understand, much less, know (or, perhaps, even see) truth as it really is? He likely cannot even call truth truth. So this being bound by the opinion of man is a big deal. One could say that it is a major roadblock to seeing truth. (Ah… artery blockage, if you will.)
Wayne put it this way, "If you care what other people think about you, you'll never find the truth. Because you're making true whatever ingratiates you to the people with whom you want to be ingratiated."
The authority of Jesus is what threatened the powers that be-d... ok, were. As Wayne points out, the New Testament speaks extensively of the authority that Jesus had. But, to what authority is it referring? Because it certainly wasn't granted by man.
Wayne goes on to say, "It was the authority of an indestructible life. It was the authenticity of a man who spoke and lived truth, in the context of love. And that completely overturns the power structures of our day."
The logical play out is that without truth, you have no authority. (And, if you are a slave to man's opinion of you, you have not truth.)
Wow. If that's real authority, and I believe it is, then doesn't that speak volumes to us on many levels… only one of which is in the authority of the parent to the child?
How might that kind of authority shape/change a life?
- With Unveiled Face
"You can't understand truth because you care what other men think about you."
If that's accurate, and being reminded that it was first spoken by Jesus, after all, then doesn't it stand to reason that so long as one is bound by the opinion of man, he will be unable to discern, and thus, understand, much less, know (or, perhaps, even see) truth as it really is? He likely cannot even call truth truth. So this being bound by the opinion of man is a big deal. One could say that it is a major roadblock to seeing truth. (Ah… artery blockage, if you will.)
Wayne put it this way, "If you care what other people think about you, you'll never find the truth. Because you're making true whatever ingratiates you to the people with whom you want to be ingratiated."
The authority of Jesus is what threatened the powers that be-d... ok, were. As Wayne points out, the New Testament speaks extensively of the authority that Jesus had. But, to what authority is it referring? Because it certainly wasn't granted by man.
Wayne goes on to say, "It was the authority of an indestructible life. It was the authenticity of a man who spoke and lived truth, in the context of love. And that completely overturns the power structures of our day."
The logical play out is that without truth, you have no authority. (And, if you are a slave to man's opinion of you, you have not truth.)
Wow. If that's real authority, and I believe it is, then doesn't that speak volumes to us on many levels… only one of which is in the authority of the parent to the child?
How might that kind of authority shape/change a life?
- With Unveiled Face
Saturday, December 21, 2013
It Won't Wear Out
“If you are one of God’s children, there is something in your life that will
not wear out. In fact, it has the amazing capacity to be new day after day after
day. Scripture says that God’s mercies are ‘New every morning.’
Now, you know you need mercy, because you know you need forgiveness and help. Almost every day you mess up in some way. Almost every day you face things that are bigger than the size of your personal wisdom and strength. You and I constantly need the mercy of forgiveness and the mercy of enablement. And so, it is very encouraging to know that God’s mercy is new every day! God’s mercy never grows stale and it never loses it’s transforming power. God’s mercy is brand new morning after morning after morning.
This also means that God’s mercy is form-fit for the problems that you are facing right here, right now. Each morning you are given new mercies for the particular things that you will face that day.
So, you can wake up tomorrow with courage and hope. And you can do this, not because of your strength and wisdom, but because you know that the most important thing you have ever been given will never wear out. You can also have hope because you know that the God who has given that new mercy, knows exactly what you are about to face.
”
— Paul David Tripp
Now, you know you need mercy, because you know you need forgiveness and help. Almost every day you mess up in some way. Almost every day you face things that are bigger than the size of your personal wisdom and strength. You and I constantly need the mercy of forgiveness and the mercy of enablement. And so, it is very encouraging to know that God’s mercy is new every day! God’s mercy never grows stale and it never loses it’s transforming power. God’s mercy is brand new morning after morning after morning.
This also means that God’s mercy is form-fit for the problems that you are facing right here, right now. Each morning you are given new mercies for the particular things that you will face that day.
So, you can wake up tomorrow with courage and hope. And you can do this, not because of your strength and wisdom, but because you know that the most important thing you have ever been given will never wear out. You can also have hope because you know that the God who has given that new mercy, knows exactly what you are about to face.
— Paul David Tripp
Thursday, December 19, 2013
He Atoned for Your Sins at the Cross
“One of the sweetest statements from the lips of Jesus is this: ‘Come, you
blessed of My Father, inherit the kingdom prepared for you from the foundation
of the world’ (Matt.
25:34b).
There is a plan of God designed for your salvation. It is not an afterthought or an attempt to correct a mistake. Rather, from all eternity, God determined that He would redeem for Himself a people, and that which He determined to do was, in fact, accomplished in the work of Jesus Christ, His atonement on the cross.
Your salvation has been accomplished by a Savior, One who did for you what the Father determined He should do. He is your Surety, your Mediator, your Substitute, your Redeemer. He atoned for your sins on the cross.”
— R. C. Sproul
There is a plan of God designed for your salvation. It is not an afterthought or an attempt to correct a mistake. Rather, from all eternity, God determined that He would redeem for Himself a people, and that which He determined to do was, in fact, accomplished in the work of Jesus Christ, His atonement on the cross.
Your salvation has been accomplished by a Savior, One who did for you what the Father determined He should do. He is your Surety, your Mediator, your Substitute, your Redeemer. He atoned for your sins on the cross.”
— R. C. Sproul
Living Life
Many people consider the amassment of
things, money, recognition, position, education, man-made religious titles,
secular or religious authority, secular or religious control and possessions as
success in life, some consider it as living
life.
Life doesn’t consist of one’s possessions. It is not found in what one owns or controls. It doesn’t even come from finding the "right denominated church." True life, quite simply is the practical, knowable and experiential presence of God as reality in daily life living. It is an inner sense of assurance and confidence that we are loved by Him and His provision is ours and our whole being is not only in His hands but, we are in Him and He is in us and the evidence of such is that He works through us in the engagement of His purpose as the community of the redeemed in the community of humanity. This life isn’t derived from things or good circumstances, but in fact supersedes them. Living His life will endure the most adverse circumstances and we will allow these circumstances to transform us to be a reflection His love and purpose the the community of humanity. People live in its beauty and serenity even in the most severe places of need or pain.
Jesus promised that His followers, (believers) again and again that His kingdom would flood their hearts with the abundance of life. He compared it to a spring of refreshing water flowing out of them and assured them that living His life had in mind the fullness of our joy even in the midst of adverse circumstances. These are the promises and assurances of living as a believer.
But not all believers find their way into that reality...For...it is not found in religious rituals or practices, it is not found in denominational adherence, it is not found in secular or religious positional recognition. A lot of people go through life searching for life living peace but experience a seemingly endless cycle of dissatisfaction, spiritual emptiness and frustration?
Real life living will help you find freedom from flesh-focused attempts to to work for or please God in and of ourselves, and allow us to live His life in the abundance of reality as His loved child, loving the across-our-path people we meet.
Religion does NOT bring the satisfaction of life living!
Jesus IS the SATISFACTION of LIFE LIVING!
Life doesn’t consist of one’s possessions. It is not found in what one owns or controls. It doesn’t even come from finding the "right denominated church." True life, quite simply is the practical, knowable and experiential presence of God as reality in daily life living. It is an inner sense of assurance and confidence that we are loved by Him and His provision is ours and our whole being is not only in His hands but, we are in Him and He is in us and the evidence of such is that He works through us in the engagement of His purpose as the community of the redeemed in the community of humanity. This life isn’t derived from things or good circumstances, but in fact supersedes them. Living His life will endure the most adverse circumstances and we will allow these circumstances to transform us to be a reflection His love and purpose the the community of humanity. People live in its beauty and serenity even in the most severe places of need or pain.
Jesus promised that His followers, (believers) again and again that His kingdom would flood their hearts with the abundance of life. He compared it to a spring of refreshing water flowing out of them and assured them that living His life had in mind the fullness of our joy even in the midst of adverse circumstances. These are the promises and assurances of living as a believer.
But not all believers find their way into that reality...For...it is not found in religious rituals or practices, it is not found in denominational adherence, it is not found in secular or religious positional recognition. A lot of people go through life searching for life living peace but experience a seemingly endless cycle of dissatisfaction, spiritual emptiness and frustration?
Real life living will help you find freedom from flesh-focused attempts to to work for or please God in and of ourselves, and allow us to live His life in the abundance of reality as His loved child, loving the across-our-path people we meet.
Religion does NOT bring the satisfaction of life living!
Jesus IS the SATISFACTION of LIFE LIVING!
Wednesday, December 18, 2013
Without the Aid of the Holy Spirit the Plan of God is Subject to Misunderstanding
It is IMPOSSIBLE to know the mind and
plan of God for the community of humanity without the teaching of the great
teacher given to the community of the redeemed by God Himself...the HOLY
SPIRIT.
God gave us His Holy Spirit to help us to understand the revelation of Jesus Christ through the written word by the Spirit revealing the contextual and historical understanding of its setting and the application of that understanding so that Jesus can work His works through His people.
To leave the understanding and revelation of God's plan for humanity to the leaders of man-made institutions lends to the followers of that institution being misled because of interpreting the word to protect or boost their belief system.
Let's look at one word whose usage and meaning in the way that it is understood and practiced, has impacted the world and subverted the intention that God purposed for what the word supposedly represents.
When the word "Church" is used the thing that comes to people's mind is a denominated or non-denominated steepled building upon the hill, instead of the Holy Spirits word that was give to the original people who recorded the word that was given to them. This has led the people of the world to accept deception as truth when it comes to the meaning of the Holy Spirit given word.
Because the man-appointed fallible translators substituted the word “church,” meaning a building, instead ecclesia the Holy Spirit given word reflecting a functioning body as a community of the redeemed, it has affected our whole approach to the meaning of the body of Christ. We have been given a word from the translators that has nothing to do with the original Greek word ecclesia.
When Jesus said, “Upon this rock I will build my ecclesia,” (Mat 16:18) the translators purposely used a word identifying a building rather than the people. What He said was that upon the great truth confessed by Peter, that Jesus was the Christ, the Son of the Living God, Jesus would build His assembly, His gathering, or His community of redeemed people. Jesus did NOT say that He would build a church and He did not do such a thing! The ecclesia of Christ is NOT a church in the sense of a denomination or a name-tagged ! All churches as buildings and the denominations that they represent are the works and creations of men at best and inspired by Satan at the worse. Jesus did not set up a religious institution of any kind. The ecclesia (ek, "out of or from," and kaleo, "a calling or to call") is His called out, obedient people, wherever they are! God's ecclesia is not an organization or institution...It is a functioning function of the members of His body (the called out ones) the "community of the redeemed"!
Church...as it it understood and practiced today is an hinderance to the purpose and plan of God for the community of humanity by the community of the redeemed because instead of being a functioning body in living spiritual life daily, it is a regulated body in living religious life in regulated event-driven meetings in denominated buildings for a couple of hours on Sundays or other set aside times and days.
Let's be the functioning body of the community of the redeemed that Jesus said He would build affecting the community of humanity for His good.
- Glenn Regular
God gave us His Holy Spirit to help us to understand the revelation of Jesus Christ through the written word by the Spirit revealing the contextual and historical understanding of its setting and the application of that understanding so that Jesus can work His works through His people.
To leave the understanding and revelation of God's plan for humanity to the leaders of man-made institutions lends to the followers of that institution being misled because of interpreting the word to protect or boost their belief system.
Let's look at one word whose usage and meaning in the way that it is understood and practiced, has impacted the world and subverted the intention that God purposed for what the word supposedly represents.
When the word "Church" is used the thing that comes to people's mind is a denominated or non-denominated steepled building upon the hill, instead of the Holy Spirits word that was give to the original people who recorded the word that was given to them. This has led the people of the world to accept deception as truth when it comes to the meaning of the Holy Spirit given word.
Because the man-appointed fallible translators substituted the word “church,” meaning a building, instead ecclesia the Holy Spirit given word reflecting a functioning body as a community of the redeemed, it has affected our whole approach to the meaning of the body of Christ. We have been given a word from the translators that has nothing to do with the original Greek word ecclesia.
When Jesus said, “Upon this rock I will build my ecclesia,” (Mat 16:18) the translators purposely used a word identifying a building rather than the people. What He said was that upon the great truth confessed by Peter, that Jesus was the Christ, the Son of the Living God, Jesus would build His assembly, His gathering, or His community of redeemed people. Jesus did NOT say that He would build a church and He did not do such a thing! The ecclesia of Christ is NOT a church in the sense of a denomination or a name-tagged ! All churches as buildings and the denominations that they represent are the works and creations of men at best and inspired by Satan at the worse. Jesus did not set up a religious institution of any kind. The ecclesia (ek, "out of or from," and kaleo, "a calling or to call") is His called out, obedient people, wherever they are! God's ecclesia is not an organization or institution...It is a functioning function of the members of His body (the called out ones) the "community of the redeemed"!
Church...as it it understood and practiced today is an hinderance to the purpose and plan of God for the community of humanity by the community of the redeemed because instead of being a functioning body in living spiritual life daily, it is a regulated body in living religious life in regulated event-driven meetings in denominated buildings for a couple of hours on Sundays or other set aside times and days.
Let's be the functioning body of the community of the redeemed that Jesus said He would build affecting the community of humanity for His good.
- Glenn Regular
The Fullness of Time
Jesus came in the
fullness of time. He will come again in the fullness of time. Wherever
Jesus, the Christ, is the time is brought to its fullness.
We often experience our time as empty. We hope that tomorrow, next week, next month or next year the real things will happen. But sometimes we experience the fullness of time. That is when it seems that time stands still, that past, present, and future become one; that everything is present where we are; and that God, we, and all that is have come together in total unity. This is the experience of God's time. "When the completion of the time came [that is: in the fullness of time], God sent his Son, born of a woman" (Galatians 4:4), and in the fullness of time God will "bring everything together under Christ, as head, everything in the heavens and everything on earth" (Ephesians 1:10). It is in the fullness of time that we meet God.
We often experience our time as empty. We hope that tomorrow, next week, next month or next year the real things will happen. But sometimes we experience the fullness of time. That is when it seems that time stands still, that past, present, and future become one; that everything is present where we are; and that God, we, and all that is have come together in total unity. This is the experience of God's time. "When the completion of the time came [that is: in the fullness of time], God sent his Son, born of a woman" (Galatians 4:4), and in the fullness of time God will "bring everything together under Christ, as head, everything in the heavens and everything on earth" (Ephesians 1:10). It is in the fullness of time that we meet God.
Tuesday, December 17, 2013
Saintless Saints
The failure of the self-righteous is
in not knowing that the pretense of self-righteousness is the pretending that it
is Godly righteousness. The attitude of I'm right, you're wrong is prevalent in
their speaking, they listen to respond with a rebuttal rather than listening to
learn. Why? Because in their mind they are right and therefore, can't be
wrong.
This "superior" religious attitude was around in Jesus day and were the people He spoke His harsh words to.
Jesus told the sell-righteous leaders of His day; "Verily I say unto you, the Publicans and the harlots will go into the Kingdom of God before you!" (Matthew 21:31) And He told His disciples, "For I say unto you, that except your righteousness shall exceed the righteousness of the Scribes and Pharisees, ye shall in no case enter into the Kingdom of Heaven!" (Matthew 5:20)
He un-fearfully told them, "Woe unto you, Scribes and Pharisees, hypocrites! For ye make clean the outside of the cup and of the platter, but within they are full of extortion and excess! Thou blind Pharisee, cleanse first that which is within the cup and platter, that the outside of them may be clean also! Woe unto you, Scribes and Pharisees, hypocrites! For ye are like unto whited sepulchers, which indeed appear beautiful outward, but are within full of dead men's bones, and of all uncleanness! Even so ye also outwardly appear righteous unto men, but within ye are full of hypocrisy and iniquity!" (Matthew 23:25-28)
Why were the Scribes and the Pharisees so self-righteous and hypocritical? Because they were so self-righteous they did not think themselves to be sinners like everyone else, they refused to admit that there was anything wrong with them. Therefore they were "blind leaders of the blind" and they all fell into the ditch, and they committed the sin of self-righteousness and rejection of Jesus Christ, thus they were sinners. (Matthew 15:14)
The self-righteous of today tend to think because they have said the "sinners prayer" they are not the same as the self-righteous Pharisees. Saying the "sinners prayer" to gain salvation and then try to do things to maintain that salvation is declaring that Jesus' work was not enough thus, the doing that the do are self-righteous acts. Self-righteous people feel good about not admitting they are bad. That's why the worst kind of people in the sight of God are the self-righteous hypocrites who sit on high on their superior religious horse pretending to be good and look down on the nonreligious, disgusting bunch of no-gooders!
"There is none righteous, no, not one!" "For by grace are ye saved through faith and that not of yourselves, it is the gift of God, not of WORKS lest any man should boast!" (Romans 3:10; Ephesians 2:8,9) This principle is true of everything! So we just need to give up on trying to be good ourselves and admit, "I'm a sinner, of course I make mistakes!" God then can work things to our good to become His righteous righteousness.
The the self-righteous are deceived to the point where what they think is righteousness is just the opposite of God's ideas of righteousness. They don't realize what God's righteousness is and they practice their own idea as to what it is.
Self-righteousness is spawned in the cesspool of the devil's religious hog-wash and is totally the opposite of God's righteousness! This self-righteous, holier-than-thou do-gooder, the supposedly sinless perfectionist is an attempt of the devil to deceive people that Jesus needs our help with our salvation relationship thus, living in rebellion to Jesus and His finished work!
Whereas God's idea of righteousness is the pitiful, hopeless, lost, humble, sinful sinner who knows he needs God. "He came not to call the righteous to repentance, but sinners!" (Mat.9:13) So God's idea of goodness is godliness, a people who know they need God and depend on Him for salvation, not the do-gooder, churchy self-righteous hypocritical Pharisees who think they can maintain their salvation by their doing of goodness.
God's idea of saintliness is not sinlessness or self-righteousness. It's a sinner saved by grace, a sinner who has no perfection, no righteousness of his own at all, but is totally dependent on the grace and the Love and the mercy of God to save him and maintain his relationship with God!
Listen...there is absolutely no reason to pretend to be saintly by covering up our sin. God knows we are anything but perfect and can't be perfect while living in our earth suits. So the only question, the only standard is: Do we depend on the Lord totally, trust Him and His grace and His Love and His mercy and give HIM all the glory and all the credit?
That's what the Lord looks to as saintliness, the person who knows he's a sinner and therefore gives God the credit for working through him for any good that results from his doing. As Paul said, "I know that in me, my flesh, dwells no good thing." (Rom.7:18) There's nothing righteous about me or my flesh, anything good is only the Lord's doing.
In God's eye that's SAINTHOOD!
- Glenn Regular
This "superior" religious attitude was around in Jesus day and were the people He spoke His harsh words to.
Jesus told the sell-righteous leaders of His day; "Verily I say unto you, the Publicans and the harlots will go into the Kingdom of God before you!" (Matthew 21:31) And He told His disciples, "For I say unto you, that except your righteousness shall exceed the righteousness of the Scribes and Pharisees, ye shall in no case enter into the Kingdom of Heaven!" (Matthew 5:20)
He un-fearfully told them, "Woe unto you, Scribes and Pharisees, hypocrites! For ye make clean the outside of the cup and of the platter, but within they are full of extortion and excess! Thou blind Pharisee, cleanse first that which is within the cup and platter, that the outside of them may be clean also! Woe unto you, Scribes and Pharisees, hypocrites! For ye are like unto whited sepulchers, which indeed appear beautiful outward, but are within full of dead men's bones, and of all uncleanness! Even so ye also outwardly appear righteous unto men, but within ye are full of hypocrisy and iniquity!" (Matthew 23:25-28)
Why were the Scribes and the Pharisees so self-righteous and hypocritical? Because they were so self-righteous they did not think themselves to be sinners like everyone else, they refused to admit that there was anything wrong with them. Therefore they were "blind leaders of the blind" and they all fell into the ditch, and they committed the sin of self-righteousness and rejection of Jesus Christ, thus they were sinners. (Matthew 15:14)
The self-righteous of today tend to think because they have said the "sinners prayer" they are not the same as the self-righteous Pharisees. Saying the "sinners prayer" to gain salvation and then try to do things to maintain that salvation is declaring that Jesus' work was not enough thus, the doing that the do are self-righteous acts. Self-righteous people feel good about not admitting they are bad. That's why the worst kind of people in the sight of God are the self-righteous hypocrites who sit on high on their superior religious horse pretending to be good and look down on the nonreligious, disgusting bunch of no-gooders!
"There is none righteous, no, not one!" "For by grace are ye saved through faith and that not of yourselves, it is the gift of God, not of WORKS lest any man should boast!" (Romans 3:10; Ephesians 2:8,9) This principle is true of everything! So we just need to give up on trying to be good ourselves and admit, "I'm a sinner, of course I make mistakes!" God then can work things to our good to become His righteous righteousness.
The the self-righteous are deceived to the point where what they think is righteousness is just the opposite of God's ideas of righteousness. They don't realize what God's righteousness is and they practice their own idea as to what it is.
Self-righteousness is spawned in the cesspool of the devil's religious hog-wash and is totally the opposite of God's righteousness! This self-righteous, holier-than-thou do-gooder, the supposedly sinless perfectionist is an attempt of the devil to deceive people that Jesus needs our help with our salvation relationship thus, living in rebellion to Jesus and His finished work!
Whereas God's idea of righteousness is the pitiful, hopeless, lost, humble, sinful sinner who knows he needs God. "He came not to call the righteous to repentance, but sinners!" (Mat.9:13) So God's idea of goodness is godliness, a people who know they need God and depend on Him for salvation, not the do-gooder, churchy self-righteous hypocritical Pharisees who think they can maintain their salvation by their doing of goodness.
God's idea of saintliness is not sinlessness or self-righteousness. It's a sinner saved by grace, a sinner who has no perfection, no righteousness of his own at all, but is totally dependent on the grace and the Love and the mercy of God to save him and maintain his relationship with God!
Listen...there is absolutely no reason to pretend to be saintly by covering up our sin. God knows we are anything but perfect and can't be perfect while living in our earth suits. So the only question, the only standard is: Do we depend on the Lord totally, trust Him and His grace and His Love and His mercy and give HIM all the glory and all the credit?
That's what the Lord looks to as saintliness, the person who knows he's a sinner and therefore gives God the credit for working through him for any good that results from his doing. As Paul said, "I know that in me, my flesh, dwells no good thing." (Rom.7:18) There's nothing righteous about me or my flesh, anything good is only the Lord's doing.
In God's eye that's SAINTHOOD!
- Glenn Regular
The Only Forgiveness That Matters
“There may be some foul spot in our lives; the kind of thing that the world
never forgives, the kind of thing, at any rate, for which we who know all can
never forgive ourselves. But what care we whether the world forgives, or even
whether we can forgive ourselves, if God forgives, if God has received us by the
death of His Son?
If we could appeal to God’s approval as ours by right, how bravely we should boast—boast in the presence of a world of enemies! If God knows that we are right, what care we for the blame of men? Such boasting, indeed, can never be ours. But we can boast in what God has done. Little care we whether our sin be thought unpardonable or no, little interested are we in the exact calculation of our guilt. Heap it up mountain high, yet God has removed it all.
‘I know not,’ the Christian says, ‘what my guilt may be; one thing I know: Christ loved me and gave Himself for me.’
”
— J. Gresham Machen
If we could appeal to God’s approval as ours by right, how bravely we should boast—boast in the presence of a world of enemies! If God knows that we are right, what care we for the blame of men? Such boasting, indeed, can never be ours. But we can boast in what God has done. Little care we whether our sin be thought unpardonable or no, little interested are we in the exact calculation of our guilt. Heap it up mountain high, yet God has removed it all.
‘I know not,’ the Christian says, ‘what my guilt may be; one thing I know: Christ loved me and gave Himself for me.’
— J. Gresham Machen
Monday, December 16, 2013
Trust and Permission
I'm beginning to see a cycle between trust and permission.
The more I am able to trust Father with the nitty gritty details of my life, the more I give Him permission to make Himself known in me.
As I was speaking with a friend, I commented about how much the Lord has accomplished in me over these past several years and how I had done absolutely nothing to "try" to make it happen. I said that I was done trying. And, a word came to my mind that I will maintain is all that I perhaps could take any credit for (not that I need or want it). That is the word permission.
I know the word has come to mind before, but I must have used it at least 5 times in response to her inquiry, as I insisted that "trying" has not been at all how I would categorize my activity, which has really been my in-activity, in my formerly religious mindset.
What I see in the bible is a stream of trust, won by the Father, that compelled His followers to take action. In essence a "permission" was given Papa to accomplish what only He could anyways.
That's now how I would describe this interplay between us and Papa. As we begin to see his heart for us, He wins our trust in an area, which in turn causes us to grant Him permission to show us more, or do more in us. It seems to just continue on with the snowball effect, the more we trust, the more we grant Him permission to work. And on and on the dance goes.
The more I am able to trust Father with the nitty gritty details of my life, the more I give Him permission to make Himself known in me.
As I was speaking with a friend, I commented about how much the Lord has accomplished in me over these past several years and how I had done absolutely nothing to "try" to make it happen. I said that I was done trying. And, a word came to my mind that I will maintain is all that I perhaps could take any credit for (not that I need or want it). That is the word permission.
I know the word has come to mind before, but I must have used it at least 5 times in response to her inquiry, as I insisted that "trying" has not been at all how I would categorize my activity, which has really been my in-activity, in my formerly religious mindset.
What I see in the bible is a stream of trust, won by the Father, that compelled His followers to take action. In essence a "permission" was given Papa to accomplish what only He could anyways.
That's now how I would describe this interplay between us and Papa. As we begin to see his heart for us, He wins our trust in an area, which in turn causes us to grant Him permission to show us more, or do more in us. It seems to just continue on with the snowball effect, the more we trust, the more we grant Him permission to work. And on and on the dance goes.
Love Fuels the Power to Forgive
Therefore, if you refuse to forgive
LOVE is not ACTIVE in your life.
The love that forgives is not a soft and fuzzy sentiment that lets people manipulate, misuse and abuse people for their own ends. Love forgives because it is the powerful motivating factor of a believers life because Jesus is the believers life. To hold grudges therefore, is to hinder the life of Christ within us from releasing forgiveness because we do not love as Jesus loves.
The outflow of "forgiving love" is respect and commitment to God and to people. If we say we love God but refuse to forgive then something is blocking our love for God and for people in our lives.
Love respects people as genuine human beings, even after they have treated you like dirt. People who hurt you badly are not just lumps of degenerate corruption; they are complex people who may be used by the enemy, but there is more to them than meanness and craziness. They have the potential to become better people, truer people than they were when they stung you. Respect for them will help you see the real enemy, the rat behind the person. And this respect can stimulate you to move in the direction of forgiveness. Our fight is not with flesh and blood, but with spiritual wickedness in high places.
True love dares to commit itself to someone, and therein lies both its vulnerability and its power.
The very love that dares to be vulnerable by making a commitment allows God's power to heal you of the pain that commitment brings.
Committed love gives us strength to tough out the bad times in the hope of better times. Committed love does not throw in the towel before the fight is really over. It holds on. And while it holds, it energizes, it gives you strength to keep the door open for the day when a new beginning may be possible.
Loves Forgiveness is the KEY that sets us FREE from the prison of self-destruction.
The love that forgives is not a soft and fuzzy sentiment that lets people manipulate, misuse and abuse people for their own ends. Love forgives because it is the powerful motivating factor of a believers life because Jesus is the believers life. To hold grudges therefore, is to hinder the life of Christ within us from releasing forgiveness because we do not love as Jesus loves.
The outflow of "forgiving love" is respect and commitment to God and to people. If we say we love God but refuse to forgive then something is blocking our love for God and for people in our lives.
Love respects people as genuine human beings, even after they have treated you like dirt. People who hurt you badly are not just lumps of degenerate corruption; they are complex people who may be used by the enemy, but there is more to them than meanness and craziness. They have the potential to become better people, truer people than they were when they stung you. Respect for them will help you see the real enemy, the rat behind the person. And this respect can stimulate you to move in the direction of forgiveness. Our fight is not with flesh and blood, but with spiritual wickedness in high places.
True love dares to commit itself to someone, and therein lies both its vulnerability and its power.
The very love that dares to be vulnerable by making a commitment allows God's power to heal you of the pain that commitment brings.
Committed love gives us strength to tough out the bad times in the hope of better times. Committed love does not throw in the towel before the fight is really over. It holds on. And while it holds, it energizes, it gives you strength to keep the door open for the day when a new beginning may be possible.
Loves Forgiveness is the KEY that sets us FREE from the prison of self-destruction.
The Freedom to Refuse Love
Often hell is portrayed
as a place of punishment and heaven as a place of reward. But this
concept easily leads us to think about God as either a policeman, who
tries to catch us when we make a mistake and send us to prison when our
mistakes become too big, or a Santa Claus, who counts up all our good
deeds and puts a reward in our stocking at the end of the year.
God, however, is neither a policeman nor a Santa Claus. God does not send us to heaven or hell depending on how often we obey or disobey. God is love and only love. In God there is no hatred, desire for revenge, or pleasure in seeing us punished. God wants to forgive, heal, restore, show us endless mercy, and see us come home. But just as the father of the prodigal son let his son make his own decision God gives us the freedom to move away from God's love even at the risk of destroying ourselves. Hell is not God's choice. It is ours.
God, however, is neither a policeman nor a Santa Claus. God does not send us to heaven or hell depending on how often we obey or disobey. God is love and only love. In God there is no hatred, desire for revenge, or pleasure in seeing us punished. God wants to forgive, heal, restore, show us endless mercy, and see us come home. But just as the father of the prodigal son let his son make his own decision God gives us the freedom to move away from God's love even at the risk of destroying ourselves. Hell is not God's choice. It is ours.
Sunday, December 15, 2013
Thoughts for Today
The bitterness of hate sours the
sweetness of love.
The bitterness of nit-picking sours the sweetness of relationship.
The more understanding, compassion and forgiveness you show people...the more you will accept and love people.
The bitterness of nit-picking sours the sweetness of relationship.
The more understanding, compassion and forgiveness you show people...the more you will accept and love people.
Spread Your Wings
Spread your wings and
fly!
Fly away from yesterday’s failures and guilt.
Fly away from today’s fears and tears.
Fly away from tomorrows scurries and worries.
Fly FREELY into God's arms of compassion, comfort, understanding and love and you will find rest!
Fly away from yesterday’s failures and guilt.
Fly away from today’s fears and tears.
Fly away from tomorrows scurries and worries.
Fly FREELY into God's arms of compassion, comfort, understanding and love and you will find rest!
Saturday, December 14, 2013
Is the Sin of the Self Righteous Saint Worse Than the Sin of the Sinning Sinner
And He spake this parable unto
certain which trusted in themselves, that they were righteous, and despised
others: Two men went up into the temple to pray; the one a Pharisee, and the
other a publican. The Pharisee stood and prayed thus with himself, 'God, I thank
Thee that I am not as other men are, extortioners, unjust, adulterers, or even as this publican! I fast twice in
the week, I give tithes of all that I possess.' And the publican, standing afar
off, would not lift up so much as his eyes unto Heaven, but smote upon his
breast, saying, 'God be merciful to me a sinner!' I tell you, this man went down
to his house justified rather than the other: for everyone that exalteth himself
shall be abased, and he that humbleth himself shall be exalted! (Luke
18:9-14)
According to this story, Jesus was not impressed with the holier-than-thou, self-righteous, egotistical, self-praising, tithe-giving, food fasting, law-keeping, Scribe and Pharisee. The Pharisee kept the jot and the tittle of the law to the degree that when he went to pick mint and anise out of his garden, he would pluck off ten percent to make sure that he tithed properly. (Matthew 23:23) But Jesus told His disciples, "This self-righteous Pharisee is not the most righteous!...But the more righteous of the two is this poor publican and sinner!"...A tax collector, who to the Jews was the worst kind of a character they could possibly imagine! They were usually extortionists, cheaters and robbers of the poor!...Franchised tax collectors for the Romans, considered traitors to their brethren! The Romans would tell them how much taxes they needed and how much people had to pay Caesar, and then they could charge whatever they wanted above and beyond that for their own income. They were hated by their Jewish brethren, considered lower than a snake's belly!
The descriptive words attributed by Jesus to this Pharisee has coursed their way down the corridors of history to this present day "christians". We miss Jesus' point in this story completely when we use scripture has ammunition against people because they believe differently and sin differently than we do. Such egotistical pride is a believers downfall.
In the sight of God there is no worse sin than self-righteous religious pride!...The self-righteous, Pharisaical, proud, religious person who "thanks God he's not as other people", and looks down on them because they don't have as much faith or fast as he do, nor do the do's and not do the don'ts of the law!...Those self-righteous proud hypocrites who are so proud of their own success and righteousness that they look down from their lofty man-appointed spiritual position and tell the lowly pew-warmer what God wants of them and for them because they are more godly! They are the most stubborn and intolerant people that you could meet! They have no mercy, no compassion, no sympathy or no forgiveness for sinning people who really haven't got it all together as they do themselves.
Self-righteousness renders a person a spiritual pauper.
According to this story, Jesus was not impressed with the holier-than-thou, self-righteous, egotistical, self-praising, tithe-giving, food fasting, law-keeping, Scribe and Pharisee. The Pharisee kept the jot and the tittle of the law to the degree that when he went to pick mint and anise out of his garden, he would pluck off ten percent to make sure that he tithed properly. (Matthew 23:23) But Jesus told His disciples, "This self-righteous Pharisee is not the most righteous!...But the more righteous of the two is this poor publican and sinner!"...A tax collector, who to the Jews was the worst kind of a character they could possibly imagine! They were usually extortionists, cheaters and robbers of the poor!...Franchised tax collectors for the Romans, considered traitors to their brethren! The Romans would tell them how much taxes they needed and how much people had to pay Caesar, and then they could charge whatever they wanted above and beyond that for their own income. They were hated by their Jewish brethren, considered lower than a snake's belly!
The descriptive words attributed by Jesus to this Pharisee has coursed their way down the corridors of history to this present day "christians". We miss Jesus' point in this story completely when we use scripture has ammunition against people because they believe differently and sin differently than we do. Such egotistical pride is a believers downfall.
In the sight of God there is no worse sin than self-righteous religious pride!...The self-righteous, Pharisaical, proud, religious person who "thanks God he's not as other people", and looks down on them because they don't have as much faith or fast as he do, nor do the do's and not do the don'ts of the law!...Those self-righteous proud hypocrites who are so proud of their own success and righteousness that they look down from their lofty man-appointed spiritual position and tell the lowly pew-warmer what God wants of them and for them because they are more godly! They are the most stubborn and intolerant people that you could meet! They have no mercy, no compassion, no sympathy or no forgiveness for sinning people who really haven't got it all together as they do themselves.
Self-righteousness renders a person a spiritual pauper.
- Glenn Regular
Heaven and Hell
Is everybody finally
going to be all right? Are all people ultimately going to be free from
misery and all their needs fulfilled? Yes and no! Yes, because God
wants to bring us home into God's Kingdom. No, because nothing happens
without our choosing it. The realisation of the Kingdom of God is God's
work, but for God to make God's love fully visible in us, we must
respond to God's love with our love.
There are two kinds of death: a death leading us into God's Kingdom, and a death leading us into hell. John in his vision saw not only heaven, but also hell. He says: "The legacy for cowards, for those who break their word, or worship obscenities, for murderers and the sexually immoral, and for sorcerers, worshippers of false gods or any other sort of liars, is the second death in the burning lake of sulphur" (Revelation 21:8). We must choose for God if we want to be with God.
There are two kinds of death: a death leading us into God's Kingdom, and a death leading us into hell. John in his vision saw not only heaven, but also hell. He says: "The legacy for cowards, for those who break their word, or worship obscenities, for murderers and the sexually immoral, and for sorcerers, worshippers of false gods or any other sort of liars, is the second death in the burning lake of sulphur" (Revelation 21:8). We must choose for God if we want to be with God.
Thursday, December 12, 2013
Joy to the World
A Short Christmas Story:
Joy to the world - God's not mad!
Despite the mess we've made;
despite the false accusations we've thrown
at one another and at God;
He is not mad!
He is not our problem!
He has come to help!
He would rather step into the middle of our
shit,
than judge us for it.
He would rather step into our arena of
conflict and shame,
than allow us to maintain a sense of
distance.
Not even sin can separate this God from us!
Jesus demonstrates a God who would rather
go to hell
than live without us.
Despite the many false message preached in
His name,
the angels still shout out: Joy to the
World!
- Andre Rabe
Scary Judge or Loving Papa
I feel that the
question is coming up in my mind recently, am I going to keep on seeing Him as
Scary Judge as I'd been taught or am I really going to see Him as Loving
Father!?! Without realizing it, in the past I'd seen Him as a Scary Judge,
whose bottom line was grading me on my performance, and thus I never could feel
totally safe and secure around Him, because I wondered if He really approved of
me, wondered if He was going to be disappointed with me or reject me because of
some failure on my part to act, think or believe right...Yet now I am learning
more and more that He is really a Loving Father!
He is not all about performance but is all about relationship! His way is not law but grace! His language isn't demands, pressure, rewards and punishment; it is actually acceptance, delight, freedom and gifts! He is a loving Daddy who loves to dote on His kids, in whose eyes they can do no wrong, who would never think of disowning them, who wouldn't want to even exist in a universe where they did not exist, who would gladly give up His own life to save them from harm, who would protect them from anything, who always thinks they deserve the very best, who thinks they are the greatest and most wonderful beings ever! He always sees past the wrongs they do to the hurts that may have caused them to act that way, always sees not the wrongs they might do but the needy, vulnerable little son/daughter dependent on Him for everything, needing so much to be loved. He will never turn His back on us, never stop loving us, never reject us based on some poor performance or mistake, never see us as anything but His dearly loved, precious children!
So I feel myself coming to a point where I am asking myself, am I ready to just let go of the old ideas and go forth bravely with the new? Do so can feel a little scary, because one is dropping old traditional beliefs that have been there for so long. And yet, a wonderful new vista opens up before me, full of a God who is truly LOVE, who is ALL LOVE, who is nothing BUT LOVE! A God who has no wrath! A God who does not judge! A God who isn't punishing but instead restoring! A God who is safe to be with, not scary! A Father, not a Judge!
It's freeing to let go of the old ideas about Him, thrilling and also vulnerable and new, like stepping into the unknown but feeling deep down that it's going to be a great ride! I feel Him saying that whatever He shows me about Himself, whatever new things He reveals, that all of it will only be better and more wonderful than what I believed before!
YES!! It's time to follow my heart and see Him as my loving, doting Papa who would never harm me, cast me out, punish me, or forget me! I am so safe with Him! I may not understand some of the passages in the Bible about Him, but I know what my heart tells me, and I think the Spirit in me witnesses in agreement!
- Under the Waterfall
He is not all about performance but is all about relationship! His way is not law but grace! His language isn't demands, pressure, rewards and punishment; it is actually acceptance, delight, freedom and gifts! He is a loving Daddy who loves to dote on His kids, in whose eyes they can do no wrong, who would never think of disowning them, who wouldn't want to even exist in a universe where they did not exist, who would gladly give up His own life to save them from harm, who would protect them from anything, who always thinks they deserve the very best, who thinks they are the greatest and most wonderful beings ever! He always sees past the wrongs they do to the hurts that may have caused them to act that way, always sees not the wrongs they might do but the needy, vulnerable little son/daughter dependent on Him for everything, needing so much to be loved. He will never turn His back on us, never stop loving us, never reject us based on some poor performance or mistake, never see us as anything but His dearly loved, precious children!
So I feel myself coming to a point where I am asking myself, am I ready to just let go of the old ideas and go forth bravely with the new? Do so can feel a little scary, because one is dropping old traditional beliefs that have been there for so long. And yet, a wonderful new vista opens up before me, full of a God who is truly LOVE, who is ALL LOVE, who is nothing BUT LOVE! A God who has no wrath! A God who does not judge! A God who isn't punishing but instead restoring! A God who is safe to be with, not scary! A Father, not a Judge!
It's freeing to let go of the old ideas about Him, thrilling and also vulnerable and new, like stepping into the unknown but feeling deep down that it's going to be a great ride! I feel Him saying that whatever He shows me about Himself, whatever new things He reveals, that all of it will only be better and more wonderful than what I believed before!
YES!! It's time to follow my heart and see Him as my loving, doting Papa who would never harm me, cast me out, punish me, or forget me! I am so safe with Him! I may not understand some of the passages in the Bible about Him, but I know what my heart tells me, and I think the Spirit in me witnesses in agreement!
- Under the Waterfall
Wednesday, December 11, 2013
A New Heaven and a New Earth
Long before Jesus was
born the prophet Isaiah had a vision of Christ's great unifying work of
salvation. Many years after Jesus died, John, the beloved disciple, had
another but similar vision: He saw a new heaven and a new earth. All
of creation had been transformed, dressed with immortality to be the
perfect bride of Christ. In John's vision the risen Christ speaks from
his throne, saying: "Look, I am making the whole of creation new. ....
Look, here God lives among human beings. He will make his home among
them; they will be his people, and he will be their God, God-with-them.
He will wipe away all tears from their eyes; there will be no more
death, and no more mourning or sadness or pain. The world of the past
has gone" (Revelation 21:5; 21:3-4).
Both Isaiah and John open our eyes to the all-inclusive nature of Christ's saving work.
Both Isaiah and John open our eyes to the all-inclusive nature of Christ's saving work.
Jesus and the Wrath of God
Are you familiar with the hymn In Christ Alone? Do you know this hymn is not hundreds of years old? It’s not even 20 years old. In Christ Alone is a very modern hymn. It was written in 2001 by Keith Getty and Stuart Townend.
I mention this hymn because it has these wonderful lyrics:
Till on that cross as Jesus died
The wrath of God was satisfied
For every sin on him was laid
Here in the death of Christ I live
The wrath of God was satisfied
For every sin on him was laid
Here in the death of Christ I live
“Wait a second, Paul. Are you saying God poured out his wrath on Jesus? That sounds twisted.”
I
agree that there is something dreadfully wrong with the picture of a
father killing his son to satisfy some legal need for blood. It falsely
portrays God as guilty of filicide, the murder of his own child.
I
know some people have been turned off from the gospel because they
thought God killed Jesus. Never mind that Jesus said: “No one takes my
life from me, but I lay it down of my own accord” (John 10:18).
But
how does the wrath of God figure into this? Did God pour out his wrath
on Jesus? Some say he didn’t but the hymn says it does. Which is it?
Before I give you my thoughts, I want to highlight three extraordinary facts about the cross.
1. On the cross Jesus literally became sin
God made him who had no sin to be sin for us, so that in him we might become the righteousness of God. (2 Cor 5:21)
Someone
once said, “Don’t marvel that you have become righteous. Marvel that
Jesus became sin.” Indeed, this is a great wonder. What does it mean?
Were our sins laid on him, as the hymn says? Or did the sinless son
somehow become sin itself?
The
words of Paul fire the imagination. We might imagine Jesus drawing the
disease of sin out of the human race into himself. Every hurt, every
wound, every offense, every ache, every wrong, every injustice, every
crime, every murder, every lie and rape, Jesus somehow bore.
But that was only the beginning. Look at what happened next…
2. God condemned sin in Jesus
For
what the law could not do in that it was weak through the flesh, God
did by sending his own Son in the likeness of sinful flesh, on account
of sin: He condemned sin in the flesh (Rom 8:3, NKJV)
That word “condemned” is katakrinō. It is just about the strongest word for condemn you can find. It’s made up of the verb krino, which means to judge, and the word kata which means down or against. Think of the word catastrophe and you get the idea.
God
hates sin. When Jesus became sin on the cross, God came down hard. How
hard? So hard that the sins of billions were condemned in the space of a
few hours. So hard that the Son of God himself couldn’t live through
it. So hard that sin has been dealt with once and for all (Heb 9:26). The cross was a total catastrophe for sin and a total victory for us.
This is pretty amazing, but we have one extraordinary fact left…
3. God was with Jesus on the cross when he died.
All
this is from God, who reconciled us to himself through Christ and gave
us the ministry of reconciliation: that God was reconciling the world to
himself in Christ… (2 Cor 5:18-19)
We have this idea that God was up there while Jesus was down here, but Paul understood that God was in Christ
the whole time. How does that work? I don’t know. The Trinity is a
mystery. I can't prove this but I believe when we see God the Father he
will bear the same nail marks as God the Son.
“But didn’t Jesus say God had forsaken him?”
I am sure that from Jesus’ perspective he felt forsaken but there’s a difference between feelings and reality. Remember, Jesus had never experienced sin. Yet on the cross he became sin. In the fog and haze of sin he lost sight of his loving Father. But that doesn’t mean God abandoned him. Not for a second.
We
need to change the way we look at the cross. The cross was not God
engaging in child sacrifice. That makes no sense at all. The cross was
God becoming one of us, taking on board the sin that afflicts all of us,
and condemning that sin in his own flesh. Now, with that foundation
laid, we can return to our question.
Was God’s wrath poured out on Jesus?
In
a manner of speaking, it was. Not because God the Father was angry with
God the Son. That could never happen! But because they were working
together with God the Holy Spirit to rid the human race of the scourge
of sin.
True, the Bible never actually says God poured out his wrath on Jesus. But it does say this:
Since we have now been justified by his blood, how much more shall we be saved from God’s wrath through him! (Rom 5:9)
Jesus
saved us from sin and he also saved us from the cure for sin – God’s
wrath. If you are in Christ, you don’t need to worry about the wrath of
God. Since Jesus experienced it, you will never will.
The
cross demonstrates both God’s love for us and his judgment against sin.
On the cross, God condemned sin. This is the glad-happy message of the
cross. Sin has been dealt with once and for all!
Now that's a hymn worth singing. That's a tune you can dance to!
- Paul Ellis
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