John Knox laid unusually strong emphasis on the ascension of Jesus Christ in the
self-same body which was born of the Virgin Mary, and was crucified, dead and
buried and which rose again, and very rightly. It is one of the most neglected
doctrines of the Faith. Ascension is not just an addendum to the story of Jesus,
a ringing down of the curtain on his earthly life, but it is one of the great
essential salvation events. The ascension of the Lord Jesus is the inauguration
of the Kingdom of God over the whole creation, but as centred in Christ it is
the Kingdom of Christ. What did the ascension do?
(1) It was the completion of the Incarnation event. He who descended also
ascended. The very same body which had been born of the Virgin Mary, was
crucified, and died and was buried, ascended into heaven, for the accomplishment
of all things. Thus the saving work of Christ reaches up into eternity, into the
ultimate mystery of God.
(2) The union of God and man in Christ was assumed into the immediate
presence of God the Father on his throne — there Christ wears our human life,
and it is in our name that he is there at the right hand of God the Father
Almighty, standing in for us.
(3) In our name and for our comfort he ascended to take possession of his
Kingdom, to inaugurate it and enlarge it. There he is given and receives all
power in heaven and on earth — there the crucified Christ sits at the right hand
of power and glory.
(4) The Heavenly Session of Christ speaks of the fact that he ever lives to
make intercession for us as our Advocate and High Priest and only Mediator, and
prays and intercedes for us. This is the teaching of the Epistle of Hebrews, and
plays a central role in Knox’s doctrine of the Lord’s Supper.
(5) In his ascension Christ opened the heavens into which we may appear in
him before the throne of the Father’s mercy. Christ’s ascension is the ground of
our comfort and assurance. It is the ascended Christ who sends us his Spirit,
the Comforter. Thus the full meaning of the ascension is to be discerned in
relation to the outpouring of the Holy Spirit upon the Church. It is in this
light that the Church of Christ is to be understood, as ‘the blessed society
which we the members have with our Head and only Mediator Christ Jesus, whom we
confess and avow to be the Messiah promised, the only Head of his Kirk, our just
Lawgiver, our only High Priest, Advocate and Mediator.
Thursday, January 30, 2014
Is Loving Religion Loving God
People who love religion more than truth...love their denomination more than
God. However, they love themselves most of all. Why?
Because their actions speak louder than their saying “I love God.”
God wants us to love Him for who He is. He doesn’t want lip service, where we merely go to Sunday-go-meetings once a week and sing “My Jesus I love Thee.” He wants us to show that we love Him by our daily living.
In 2 Timothy 3 the Bible warns that the last days people will be hypocritical in their love for the Lord, and that will produce perilous times. Beginning in verse 1 we read, “This know, also, that in the last days perilous times shall come. For men shall be lovers of their own selves, lovers of [money] . . . lovers of pleasures more than lovers of God, having a form of godliness, but denying the power thereof; from such turn away”
This verse says people will have a form of godliness? That means they will be religious people who say they love God, but their lifestyles will speak louder than their words. They will love themselves, their money, and their pleasures more than they love God.
Because their actions speak louder than their saying “I love God.”
God wants us to love Him for who He is. He doesn’t want lip service, where we merely go to Sunday-go-meetings once a week and sing “My Jesus I love Thee.” He wants us to show that we love Him by our daily living.
In 2 Timothy 3 the Bible warns that the last days people will be hypocritical in their love for the Lord, and that will produce perilous times. Beginning in verse 1 we read, “This know, also, that in the last days perilous times shall come. For men shall be lovers of their own selves, lovers of [money] . . . lovers of pleasures more than lovers of God, having a form of godliness, but denying the power thereof; from such turn away”
This verse says people will have a form of godliness? That means they will be religious people who say they love God, but their lifestyles will speak louder than their words. They will love themselves, their money, and their pleasures more than they love God.
Wednesday, January 29, 2014
The Surpassing Glory of the New Covenant
“In a broad sense the Old Testament was the economy of conviction of sin. The
law revealed the moral helplessness of man, placed him under a curse, worked
death. There was, of course, gospel under and in the Old Covenant, but it was
for its expression largely dependent on the silent symbolic language of alter
and sacrifice and lustration. Under it the glory which speaks of righteousness
was in hiding.
In the New Covenant all this has been changed. The veil has been rent, and through it an unobstructed view is obtained of the glory of God in the face of Jesus Christ. And with this vision comes the assurance of atonement, satisfaction, acces to God, peace of conscience, liberty, eternal life.
”
— Geerhardus Vos
In the New Covenant all this has been changed. The veil has been rent, and through it an unobstructed view is obtained of the glory of God in the face of Jesus Christ. And with this vision comes the assurance of atonement, satisfaction, acces to God, peace of conscience, liberty, eternal life.
— Geerhardus Vos
Sickness and Pain
Sickness and pain whether physical, emotional or psychological is a
part of life's journey while we are confined to the earth suit we live in. The
suffering some people go through along life's journey is excruciatingly painful
and sometimes long lasting.
Often the encouragement given by well meaning people is, "The good thing about it is that you are safe in the Father's care no matter the outcome of the situation you find yourself in. Just rest in His love for you that He may be glorified in whatever the outcome of your pain is."
Often the response is an apology for not trusting God more, or the admission that they are being overwhelmed with fear and doubts as if by doing so they aren’t living up to the expectation of my prayer for them. That only adds to their pain, it doesn’t lighten the load. And prayers are never something to live up to, but to find refuge in.
When we pray we ask God to do something. We are not pressuring the paining person to pretend they are doing better. Yet sometimes the person prayed for is under pressure to respond in a positive manner? Someone prays for healing and we have to act healed, or for joy and we have to smile and act happy afterwards. What has ridiculous religion done to believers? Has it made people believe that the trusting life in God means a life without pain, without seasons of doubt, or without blinding tears?
If so, why did Paul tell us not only to rejoice with those that rejoice, but also to weep with those who weep? Why did Jesus during his time on earth offer up “prayers and petitions with loud cries and tears?” If Jesus found the reality of the broken creation so painful, that it led him to tears, and even to doubt God’s presence with him on the cross, why would we think we should be stronger? He wants to have fellowship with us in our suffering as much as in our joy.
When someone prays for you in you season of sickness, please don’t feel that you need to pretend all is well even if they pressure you to. Realize that God is going through your pain with you. When we pray we should not want people to pretend to confess to healing when their guts are churning inside. We need to encourage people to hold their pain before Him until His rest finds them. Resting in God in our tears, anguish, and doubts opens a door to greater wisdom and engagement than any pretense of healing ever will.
Some of the best moments with God have come out of tear-stained eyes and when healing comes you faith in God is strengthened and you won't lose faith in God if healing doesn't happen.
Yes, pain hurts, and life stinks on times, that is normal thing in the earth realm. One way to deal with pain, fear, hurt, and disappointment, is to realize that it’s part of the world we live in. People are suffering with varying degrees of pain. We can can either have a pity party for ourselves because of our pain...or we can try to help others through their pain, which in turn will help us.
Jesus said that He would never leave us or forsake us...that means that when we suffer He is with us as God was with Him in His suffering.
\- Glenn Regular
Often the encouragement given by well meaning people is, "The good thing about it is that you are safe in the Father's care no matter the outcome of the situation you find yourself in. Just rest in His love for you that He may be glorified in whatever the outcome of your pain is."
Often the response is an apology for not trusting God more, or the admission that they are being overwhelmed with fear and doubts as if by doing so they aren’t living up to the expectation of my prayer for them. That only adds to their pain, it doesn’t lighten the load. And prayers are never something to live up to, but to find refuge in.
When we pray we ask God to do something. We are not pressuring the paining person to pretend they are doing better. Yet sometimes the person prayed for is under pressure to respond in a positive manner? Someone prays for healing and we have to act healed, or for joy and we have to smile and act happy afterwards. What has ridiculous religion done to believers? Has it made people believe that the trusting life in God means a life without pain, without seasons of doubt, or without blinding tears?
If so, why did Paul tell us not only to rejoice with those that rejoice, but also to weep with those who weep? Why did Jesus during his time on earth offer up “prayers and petitions with loud cries and tears?” If Jesus found the reality of the broken creation so painful, that it led him to tears, and even to doubt God’s presence with him on the cross, why would we think we should be stronger? He wants to have fellowship with us in our suffering as much as in our joy.
When someone prays for you in you season of sickness, please don’t feel that you need to pretend all is well even if they pressure you to. Realize that God is going through your pain with you. When we pray we should not want people to pretend to confess to healing when their guts are churning inside. We need to encourage people to hold their pain before Him until His rest finds them. Resting in God in our tears, anguish, and doubts opens a door to greater wisdom and engagement than any pretense of healing ever will.
Some of the best moments with God have come out of tear-stained eyes and when healing comes you faith in God is strengthened and you won't lose faith in God if healing doesn't happen.
Yes, pain hurts, and life stinks on times, that is normal thing in the earth realm. One way to deal with pain, fear, hurt, and disappointment, is to realize that it’s part of the world we live in. People are suffering with varying degrees of pain. We can can either have a pity party for ourselves because of our pain...or we can try to help others through their pain, which in turn will help us.
Jesus said that He would never leave us or forsake us...that means that when we suffer He is with us as God was with Him in His suffering.
\- Glenn Regular
Healing Our Memories
Forgiving does not mean
forgetting. When we forgive a person, the memory of the wound might stay
with us for a long time, even throughout our lives. Sometimes we carry
the memory in our bodies as a visible sign. But forgiveness changes the
way we remember. It converts the curse into a blessing. When we forgive
our parents for their divorce, our children for their lack of attention,
our friends for their unfaithfulness in crisis, our doctors for their
ill advice, we no longer have to experience ourselves as the victims of
events we had no control over.
Forgiveness allows us to claim our own power and not let these events destroy us; it enables them to become events that deepen the wisdom of our hearts. Forgiveness indeed heals memories.
Forgiveness allows us to claim our own power and not let these events destroy us; it enables them to become events that deepen the wisdom of our hearts. Forgiveness indeed heals memories.
Tuesday, January 28, 2014
The Sanctification of Fallen Flesh
However, while we must say all that about
the flesh that the Word assumed, we must also say that in the very act of
assuming our flesh the Word sanctified and hallowed it, for the assumption of
our sinful flesh is itself atoning and sanctifying action. How could it be
otherwise when He, the Holy One took on himself our unholy flesh? Thus we must
say that while He, the holy Son of God, became what we are, He became what we
are in a different way from us. We become what we are and continue to become
what we are as sinners. He, however, who knew no sin became what we are, yet
not by sinning himself. Christ the Word did not sin. He did not become flesh of
our flesh in a sinful way, by sinning in the flesh. If God the Word became
flesh, God the Word is the subject of the incarnation, and how could God sin?
How could God deny God, be against himself, divest himself of His holiness and
purity? Thus His taking of our flesh of sin was a sinless action, which means
that Jesus does not do in the flesh of sin what we do, namely, sin, but it also
means that by remaining holy and sinless in cur flesh, He condemned sin in the
flesh He assumed and judged it by His very sinlessness.
- T F Torrance
Grace Thrashers
Grace thrashers feel safe when people sin under the striving to keep
the law and religious rules of performance religion because they can shift the
blame for people’s sinning on the sinning saints themselves by saying...”I told
the people not to commit sin”...but when someone sins under the Grace Gospel
they blame the Grace Gospel by claiming that gives people a license to
sin.
It boggles my mind that the claimers who claim that living up to some standard of the law is is evidence of true faith and not realizing they are diluting the greatest news that the community of humanity can ever hear. We are to share the Best News of all good news...God provided free grace while we were yet sinners because of Christ...yet the religious pharisees do every thing in their power to hide grace behind the wall of rules, regulations and laws.
“This sloppy grace message is a license to sin!” is the accusation of grace haters, as though people need a license to sin. If that is so, why do law keepers sin! Are they naive enough to think they don’t sin!
We are all sinners, even the grace thrashers, God-fearing, church-going “Christians”. Sin is a natural part of living life in this earth suit in a fallen world. It is only by God’s pure and unfettered grace, as demonstrated once for all through Jesus Christ, that we are made something else...righteous... we are not righteous because we do not sin, but because the Grace of God provides the power to overcome sin.
Religious performers disguises their sanctimonious trap with “we are saved by grace” then drops the people caught in their deceptive trap in to a pot of hot hogwash of maintaining their salvation by works.
The grace haters promises grace, then delivers condemnation. The rule keepers say they preach the good news of grace, then preaches the bad news of hellfire.
Consider how the good news gospel is snowed under by the relentless garbage of denominational "segregation" “man-made doctrines",” and behavioral “ethics.” Denomination against denomination, segregating over bible interpretation, terminology, dress codes, religious standards, seating arrangements, music styles…and all the other senseless man-made ideologies.
The damning message of religious behaviorism, “Behave right (according to our religious standards), or you will burn in hell,” layers the gospel under layer after layer of the religious hog-wash of measuring up to the religious rules and regulations.
Paul called this “another gospel that isn’t the gospel at all.” It’s religion. It holds out salvation like some carrot-and-stick maintained by unquantifiable good deeds. It is a damnable lie against the the Grace Gospel of Jesus Christ.
Jesus did not bring some make religion acceptable by adding by salvation by grace to religion. He brought us freedom "from religion" through His gospel of Grace, which is good news for sinner and saint alike.
The nonsense about how that would mean we could “just go out and sin all we want since we’re already forgiven needs to be thrown out for the hogwash it is.” Nobody who trusts God wants to sin. When you trust God to love you and forgive you, you want to be like Jesus; you don’t want to be a sinning devil. But when we do sin, in spite of the fact that we don’t want to, we have an advocate with the Father, 1 John 2:1-2 tells us (and he tells us that so we won’t sin, not so that we will sin.
Paul told Titus: “For the grace of God that brings salvation has appeared to all men. It teaches us to say ‘No’ to ungodliness and worldly passions, and to live self-controlled, upright and godly lives in this present age, while we wait for the blessed hope, the glorious appearing of our great God and Savior, Jesus Christ, who gave himself for us to redeem us from all wickedness and to purify for himself a people that are his very own, eager to do what is good” (Titus 2:11-14).
It’s grace that teaches us to say no to ungodliness. It’s grace that makes us eager to do what is good. Knowing we’re already forgiven and accepted does not lead us into the devil’s sinning spree, but into deeper fellowship with our Lord and Savior.
The Grace Gospel is GOOD NEWS.
- Glenn Regular
It boggles my mind that the claimers who claim that living up to some standard of the law is is evidence of true faith and not realizing they are diluting the greatest news that the community of humanity can ever hear. We are to share the Best News of all good news...God provided free grace while we were yet sinners because of Christ...yet the religious pharisees do every thing in their power to hide grace behind the wall of rules, regulations and laws.
“This sloppy grace message is a license to sin!” is the accusation of grace haters, as though people need a license to sin. If that is so, why do law keepers sin! Are they naive enough to think they don’t sin!
We are all sinners, even the grace thrashers, God-fearing, church-going “Christians”. Sin is a natural part of living life in this earth suit in a fallen world. It is only by God’s pure and unfettered grace, as demonstrated once for all through Jesus Christ, that we are made something else...righteous... we are not righteous because we do not sin, but because the Grace of God provides the power to overcome sin.
Religious performers disguises their sanctimonious trap with “we are saved by grace” then drops the people caught in their deceptive trap in to a pot of hot hogwash of maintaining their salvation by works.
The grace haters promises grace, then delivers condemnation. The rule keepers say they preach the good news of grace, then preaches the bad news of hellfire.
Consider how the good news gospel is snowed under by the relentless garbage of denominational "segregation" “man-made doctrines",” and behavioral “ethics.” Denomination against denomination, segregating over bible interpretation, terminology, dress codes, religious standards, seating arrangements, music styles…and all the other senseless man-made ideologies.
The damning message of religious behaviorism, “Behave right (according to our religious standards), or you will burn in hell,” layers the gospel under layer after layer of the religious hog-wash of measuring up to the religious rules and regulations.
Paul called this “another gospel that isn’t the gospel at all.” It’s religion. It holds out salvation like some carrot-and-stick maintained by unquantifiable good deeds. It is a damnable lie against the the Grace Gospel of Jesus Christ.
Jesus did not bring some make religion acceptable by adding by salvation by grace to religion. He brought us freedom "from religion" through His gospel of Grace, which is good news for sinner and saint alike.
The nonsense about how that would mean we could “just go out and sin all we want since we’re already forgiven needs to be thrown out for the hogwash it is.” Nobody who trusts God wants to sin. When you trust God to love you and forgive you, you want to be like Jesus; you don’t want to be a sinning devil. But when we do sin, in spite of the fact that we don’t want to, we have an advocate with the Father, 1 John 2:1-2 tells us (and he tells us that so we won’t sin, not so that we will sin.
Paul told Titus: “For the grace of God that brings salvation has appeared to all men. It teaches us to say ‘No’ to ungodliness and worldly passions, and to live self-controlled, upright and godly lives in this present age, while we wait for the blessed hope, the glorious appearing of our great God and Savior, Jesus Christ, who gave himself for us to redeem us from all wickedness and to purify for himself a people that are his very own, eager to do what is good” (Titus 2:11-14).
It’s grace that teaches us to say no to ungodliness. It’s grace that makes us eager to do what is good. Knowing we’re already forgiven and accepted does not lead us into the devil’s sinning spree, but into deeper fellowship with our Lord and Savior.
The Grace Gospel is GOOD NEWS.
- Glenn Regular
Monday, January 27, 2014
Walking with Jesus from Incarnation to Ascension - Day 4 - God is Light, Life and Love!
God is Light" (1 John 1:5), "I am the Life" (John
14:6), "God is Love" (1 John 4:8).
Walking with Jesus, beginning before the beginning, we find that He is the Word and that He is God! Back before time began, before creation even happened, there was God. God IS! He always just IS! A Present God! A God who is truly I AM at all times! The Word Jesus IS God! Jesus is the perfect expression of God to us and is God! And who does He express Him/Himself to be? How can we describe this wonderful God? I look at scripture and see that God describes Himself so beautifully..."God is Light" (1 John 1:5), "I am the Life" (John 14:6), "God is Love" (1 John 4:8).
I love thinking of how God is defined as Light, Life and Love! There aren’t any bad words used to describe Him, only good ones, only beautiful ones..for He is ONLY beauty and goodness and grace. It just makes my heart sing to know that there is nothing evil or harsh or upsetting in Him, but only attractiveness, loveliness, tenderness, and delight..
God is Light..and that means there is no darkness in Him at all! There are no ulterior motives, no hidden self-centered agenda, no ‘using’ us for His own ends. There is no harsh side of God, no ‘dark side’ of Him; He is ONLY and EVER pure light! To me that speaks of purity of His essence, so pure love, pure goodness, pure truth, with no shadows. He is the Light that dispels all the darkness of lies and delusions of the enemy, showing that they are actually NOTHING, having no substance at all! He is so good to know and His light doesn’t expose us or shame us; rather, it enlightens us and shows us own own beauty and purity, since we are made in His image! Thus, we also are light beings, without dark shadows in us. That tells me I don’t have to worry that I am ‘bad’ or ‘evil’ at the core. At my core is His Spirit of pure light, and that describes me as well!
God is Life…and that means there is no death in Him at all! He is exuberant, joyful, fulfilling, ever-blessing and ever-refreshing life..His very life is our life, sustaining and carrying us along in Life. His Spirit of Life gave us our breath, and as Andre said, His very name ‘Yah-weh’ is the sound of human breathing!! We are truly of His breath and have His life pulsing through us, wow! In Him is no death – this tells me He is never, ever destroying me, hurting me, tearing me down, crushing me, or sucking the joy or vigor from me – NO! He is always building me up, invigorating me, filling and fulfilling me! Jesus said eternal life is knowing Him, and to be part of His very life, eternal and immutable, is to know Him with a depth of intimacy that I can’t even fathom. I feel I am only beginning to even know Him, but He tells me that it will only get better and better as I get to know Him more..I have been so afraid of Him in the past, and it is taking time to recover from years of thinking He was angry or harsh or demanding. I am finding Him so full of pure love, without a bit of harshness or meanness, and also I am finding Him so refreshing and enlivening, never taking away from my quality of life but always making it infinitely better. He is not scary at all, what a relief! Which brings me to the final word to define Him..
God is Love….that means there is nothing to fear in Him! He is perfect Love, the kind I’ve only dreamed about but always longed for, the kind that causes us to just be still in awe and wonder at such pure and beautiful love that holds us all in such tender embrace, in such a place of innocence and sweetness! He is the Perfect Love that truly loves me as I am, understands me, accepts me, never demands that I change but instead celebrates that I am perfect for Him right now! In fact, He is the Perfect Love that never takes from me but instead gives to me constant affection, affirmation, strength, joy and peace, always giving and never asking anything in return. And this love is safe – He isn’t going to hurt me, harm me, wound me, or be against me. He is going to protect me, shelter me, always hold on to me and never let me go! Finally, I have found Someone who will love me unconditionally, with a pure and satisfying love!
Thank You, dear Lord, for just being wonderful YOU and for being so different from who I thought you were. You are so much better than I ever dreamed or imagined. It is a dream come true to not feel afraid of You but instead drawn to rest in Your arms…and what a surprise to find that I have been held in those arms, embraced by You in love, since before time began! I was never lost to You, but always found and cherished in Your heart..what a wonderful Daddy and wonderful God You are..I couldn’t ask for a better God than YOU! I just want to know You more and really enjoy the intimate union fellowship that is mine even now, even in my recovery time from all the lies I had been told about you and about myself. What a relief to know that I am safe at home with You and that my enjoyment of You will only get more and more expansive and satisfying as eternity moves along!
Walking with Jesus, beginning before the beginning, we find that He is the Word and that He is God! Back before time began, before creation even happened, there was God. God IS! He always just IS! A Present God! A God who is truly I AM at all times! The Word Jesus IS God! Jesus is the perfect expression of God to us and is God! And who does He express Him/Himself to be? How can we describe this wonderful God? I look at scripture and see that God describes Himself so beautifully..."God is Light" (1 John 1:5), "I am the Life" (John 14:6), "God is Love" (1 John 4:8).
I love thinking of how God is defined as Light, Life and Love! There aren’t any bad words used to describe Him, only good ones, only beautiful ones..for He is ONLY beauty and goodness and grace. It just makes my heart sing to know that there is nothing evil or harsh or upsetting in Him, but only attractiveness, loveliness, tenderness, and delight..
God is Light..and that means there is no darkness in Him at all! There are no ulterior motives, no hidden self-centered agenda, no ‘using’ us for His own ends. There is no harsh side of God, no ‘dark side’ of Him; He is ONLY and EVER pure light! To me that speaks of purity of His essence, so pure love, pure goodness, pure truth, with no shadows. He is the Light that dispels all the darkness of lies and delusions of the enemy, showing that they are actually NOTHING, having no substance at all! He is so good to know and His light doesn’t expose us or shame us; rather, it enlightens us and shows us own own beauty and purity, since we are made in His image! Thus, we also are light beings, without dark shadows in us. That tells me I don’t have to worry that I am ‘bad’ or ‘evil’ at the core. At my core is His Spirit of pure light, and that describes me as well!
God is Life…and that means there is no death in Him at all! He is exuberant, joyful, fulfilling, ever-blessing and ever-refreshing life..His very life is our life, sustaining and carrying us along in Life. His Spirit of Life gave us our breath, and as Andre said, His very name ‘Yah-weh’ is the sound of human breathing!! We are truly of His breath and have His life pulsing through us, wow! In Him is no death – this tells me He is never, ever destroying me, hurting me, tearing me down, crushing me, or sucking the joy or vigor from me – NO! He is always building me up, invigorating me, filling and fulfilling me! Jesus said eternal life is knowing Him, and to be part of His very life, eternal and immutable, is to know Him with a depth of intimacy that I can’t even fathom. I feel I am only beginning to even know Him, but He tells me that it will only get better and better as I get to know Him more..I have been so afraid of Him in the past, and it is taking time to recover from years of thinking He was angry or harsh or demanding. I am finding Him so full of pure love, without a bit of harshness or meanness, and also I am finding Him so refreshing and enlivening, never taking away from my quality of life but always making it infinitely better. He is not scary at all, what a relief! Which brings me to the final word to define Him..
God is Love….that means there is nothing to fear in Him! He is perfect Love, the kind I’ve only dreamed about but always longed for, the kind that causes us to just be still in awe and wonder at such pure and beautiful love that holds us all in such tender embrace, in such a place of innocence and sweetness! He is the Perfect Love that truly loves me as I am, understands me, accepts me, never demands that I change but instead celebrates that I am perfect for Him right now! In fact, He is the Perfect Love that never takes from me but instead gives to me constant affection, affirmation, strength, joy and peace, always giving and never asking anything in return. And this love is safe – He isn’t going to hurt me, harm me, wound me, or be against me. He is going to protect me, shelter me, always hold on to me and never let me go! Finally, I have found Someone who will love me unconditionally, with a pure and satisfying love!
Thank You, dear Lord, for just being wonderful YOU and for being so different from who I thought you were. You are so much better than I ever dreamed or imagined. It is a dream come true to not feel afraid of You but instead drawn to rest in Your arms…and what a surprise to find that I have been held in those arms, embraced by You in love, since before time began! I was never lost to You, but always found and cherished in Your heart..what a wonderful Daddy and wonderful God You are..I couldn’t ask for a better God than YOU! I just want to know You more and really enjoy the intimate union fellowship that is mine even now, even in my recovery time from all the lies I had been told about you and about myself. What a relief to know that I am safe at home with You and that my enjoyment of You will only get more and more expansive and satisfying as eternity moves along!
- Under the Waterfal
Saturday, January 25, 2014
God's Love, Mercy and Grace
We can fathom many things.
We can exasperate many things.
We can exaggerate many things.
We can over emphasize many things.
But...we can NEVER fathom, exasperate, exaggerate or over
emphasize:
God's Love for people, it is the reason He gave His Son, it is
measureless and divine.
God's Mercy to people, it is boundless and fathomless and endures
forever.
God's Grace for people, it is greater than all our sin, it pardon's
and cleanses from sin, that's what makes it so amazing.
Rest in God's Love, Mercy and Grace and your security in life and
death will be assured.
Friday, January 24, 2014
His Gentle Heart
God is so gentle with us! He never hurts
those who are already hurting! He never wounds the wounded! Instead, He
understands us, He tenderly caresses us, He soothes us, heals the wounded
places, loves us back to sanity and life! I write this especially for those
with low self-image, for I have been wounded by that and still feel its weight
on me! God is showing me lately that He truly understands and is so gentle with
us, and that He is a safe place of complete love and acceptance, that His heart
is truly a sheltering, healing place for those with low self-esteem!
He knows why we have felt the way we do, He sees the hurts and wounds that have brought about such thoughts, He truly understands us! He is so gentle with us and never breaks the bruised reed! He says and does exactly what is perfect suited for our healing and His touch is always good, uplifting and healing, never harsh or hurtful..
The Gentle Heart of God is our home, and what a safe place He is! He is a place where all feel completely safe, never judged or shamed, always accepted and included, always made to feel better and not worse...where burdens are lifted, not put on anyone!
I have often felt that with my issues, there was something I needed to 'do' to get better, receive my healing, make things manifest, etc. But God is, I think, telling me to just forget all that and rest. When I woke up this morning, there was a verse on my mind from Him - "My presence will go with you, and I will give you rest.”
- (Ex. 33:14). How wonderful that He will always go with us, no matter what, always be there for us, and that He will GIVE us rest! It reminds me of another verse, "The Spirit of the Lord caused them to rest" (from Is. 63:14). He will even bring us/cause us to rest! We don't even have to 'try' to rest! There is truly nothing to do! Wow, what a relief. There is nothing we have to 'do' to recover from low self-esteem. God is not pressuring us or requiring anything of us..we can completely relax...He is taking care of us! We are helpless, totally dependent on our dear Father for help and relief, and oh how wonderful that is, for He is absolutely faithful and successful in all He does! He will drive away the lies, that is HIS department, not our worry at all! It's HIS department, because HE is the One who is Perfect Love that drives away fear! His love will continually wash over us and heal us of all shame and low self-esteem, no matter how long it takes! And we don't even have to worry that we're not 'getting better fast enough' for He has no expectations of us, just expectations of Himself and His love...He knows His love is powerful and stronger than anything, and He is confident and sure that He will eradicate the enemy's lies from our lives! His love never fails us! He will always love us, and He is going to convince us of our belovedness!
There is nothing at all wrong with us, He does not think we are 'deficient' or 'messed up,' He isn't wishing we'd just 'get it together,' He doesn't see us as messed up, side-lined, or self-absorbed either...no! He truly sees us as innocent in the whole matter, sees us as innocent little children who have been lied to, and He is so full of wrath at those lies and will drive them away so that they cannot hurt his little babies anymore!! He always relates to us from a place of perfect innocence, sees us as innocent and always has! He knows our hurts, our wounds, our past struggles and confusions, He knows what is in our hearts, sees our pure little hearts that just want Him, that just want love, and that have been denied the full joy of experiencing that love because of the lies that the enemy has attacked us with, the lies we've heard growing up through media, religion, school, work, and other confused people. His love is for us even when the whole world and even we ourselves sees against us! He has never had any thought toward us except perfect love and acceptance!
God is really impressing upon me lately that for those of us who struggle with low self-image, or really any struggle, that He doesn't see us as sick, still needing to 'get to a goal,' or 'not yet fixed.' God is saying we are complete and whole and perfect right now! That He is happy and pleased with us at this very moment! That even if the mess in our brains never gets straightened out, we are a-okay to Him! He is just fine with us right now, as we are, no changes needed or required..He doesn't even see us as 'people with low self-esteem' for He sees us as WHOLE and FINE! HE just sees us as HE always has, as we REALLY are - His beautiful, precious, beloved little children! Perfect! We are His darlings and the apple of His eye, the light of His world, His delight, His pride and joy! Each of us is His favorite, and He will convince our hearts of that, and we'll enjoy His loving presence for all eternity!
- Under the Waterfall
He knows why we have felt the way we do, He sees the hurts and wounds that have brought about such thoughts, He truly understands us! He is so gentle with us and never breaks the bruised reed! He says and does exactly what is perfect suited for our healing and His touch is always good, uplifting and healing, never harsh or hurtful..
The Gentle Heart of God is our home, and what a safe place He is! He is a place where all feel completely safe, never judged or shamed, always accepted and included, always made to feel better and not worse...where burdens are lifted, not put on anyone!
I have often felt that with my issues, there was something I needed to 'do' to get better, receive my healing, make things manifest, etc. But God is, I think, telling me to just forget all that and rest. When I woke up this morning, there was a verse on my mind from Him - "My presence will go with you, and I will give you rest.”
- (Ex. 33:14). How wonderful that He will always go with us, no matter what, always be there for us, and that He will GIVE us rest! It reminds me of another verse, "The Spirit of the Lord caused them to rest" (from Is. 63:14). He will even bring us/cause us to rest! We don't even have to 'try' to rest! There is truly nothing to do! Wow, what a relief. There is nothing we have to 'do' to recover from low self-esteem. God is not pressuring us or requiring anything of us..we can completely relax...He is taking care of us! We are helpless, totally dependent on our dear Father for help and relief, and oh how wonderful that is, for He is absolutely faithful and successful in all He does! He will drive away the lies, that is HIS department, not our worry at all! It's HIS department, because HE is the One who is Perfect Love that drives away fear! His love will continually wash over us and heal us of all shame and low self-esteem, no matter how long it takes! And we don't even have to worry that we're not 'getting better fast enough' for He has no expectations of us, just expectations of Himself and His love...He knows His love is powerful and stronger than anything, and He is confident and sure that He will eradicate the enemy's lies from our lives! His love never fails us! He will always love us, and He is going to convince us of our belovedness!
There is nothing at all wrong with us, He does not think we are 'deficient' or 'messed up,' He isn't wishing we'd just 'get it together,' He doesn't see us as messed up, side-lined, or self-absorbed either...no! He truly sees us as innocent in the whole matter, sees us as innocent little children who have been lied to, and He is so full of wrath at those lies and will drive them away so that they cannot hurt his little babies anymore!! He always relates to us from a place of perfect innocence, sees us as innocent and always has! He knows our hurts, our wounds, our past struggles and confusions, He knows what is in our hearts, sees our pure little hearts that just want Him, that just want love, and that have been denied the full joy of experiencing that love because of the lies that the enemy has attacked us with, the lies we've heard growing up through media, religion, school, work, and other confused people. His love is for us even when the whole world and even we ourselves sees against us! He has never had any thought toward us except perfect love and acceptance!
God is really impressing upon me lately that for those of us who struggle with low self-image, or really any struggle, that He doesn't see us as sick, still needing to 'get to a goal,' or 'not yet fixed.' God is saying we are complete and whole and perfect right now! That He is happy and pleased with us at this very moment! That even if the mess in our brains never gets straightened out, we are a-okay to Him! He is just fine with us right now, as we are, no changes needed or required..He doesn't even see us as 'people with low self-esteem' for He sees us as WHOLE and FINE! HE just sees us as HE always has, as we REALLY are - His beautiful, precious, beloved little children! Perfect! We are His darlings and the apple of His eye, the light of His world, His delight, His pride and joy! Each of us is His favorite, and He will convince our hearts of that, and we'll enjoy His loving presence for all eternity!
- Under the Waterfall
Thursday, January 23, 2014
What Hell Did Jesus Go To, and Why Did He Go There?
"Jesus went to hell so we do not have to go" was the title of the
sermon.
This is one of the most despicable lies presented by the deceived trapped preachers of religion, especially when the hell referred to is the fire and brimstone hell of religion.
The Bible does not support it...it is deception's lie and it is an atrocity to present it as a part of the Gospel. As we will find out...it is a direct contradiction to the words of Jesus. Jesus took up on Himself our sins on the cross, He did not go to hell so people do not have to go there.
Did Jesus really go to a hell fire and brimstone hell between the cross and the resurrection? That is what most denominations think when they read the line in...not the bible...but in the Apostles' Creed that states, "He descended to hell." Some have changed the creed to read, "He descended to the dead".
The thing we need to realize is that the Apostles’ Creed is not a passage from the Bible. Also, it was not actually written by the Apostles, it is a man made creation. Any creation by man is only as good as far as it is supported by Scriptures. Never put them on a level where they are given gospel status.
Another thing to realize is the phrase “He descended to hell” is not found in any of the earliest versions of the Creed such as the “Old Roman” version. It actually does not appear until the mid-seventh century, at least not with the understanding of "hell" rather than the grave. We do have a version from the end of the 4th century by Rufinus that includes "descended into hell" but the writer specifically notes that he understands the term to simply mean that Christ was buried. The Greek term is hades, which can simply mean “grave” rather than hell.
After Rufinus, we don't see the entire phrase again until the mid-seventh century. (Wayne Grudem, “He Did Not Descent Into Hell: A Plea for Following Scripture Instead of the Apostles’ Creed.")
The Old Roman Creed, from the second half of the second century, simply says that Jesus was crucified, buried, and then rose from the dead. (O.G. Oliver, Jr., “Apostles’ Creed,” In Evangelical Dictionary of Theology, ed. Walter A. Elwell)
Most importantly, the Bible does not teach that Jesus went to hell so we would not have to go. Remember what Jesus said to the repentant thief on the cross next to Him. Jesus told him, “Truly, I say to you, today you will be with me in Paradise” (Luke 23:43). This thief, and Jesus, would be in Paradise that day, not hell. Luke 23:46 records Jesus saying, “Father, into your hands I commit my spirit!” before He died. John 19:30 records Jesus saying, “It is finished,” as He bowed His head and gave up His spirit. When Jesus died on the cross, He had finished the work of atonement. He did not then spend three days burning in hell to pay for our sins. That work was finished on the cross. When Scripture discusses how Jesus paid for our sins, it consistently points to the cross (1 Cor. 1:17-18; Gal. 6:14; Eph. 2:16; Phil. 2:8; Col. 1:20; 2:14; Heb. 12:2) not to any suffering in hell.
Jesus went to the abode of the dead to liberate the Old Testament saints and bring the gospel to non-saints...He did not go there so we would not have to go there.
- Glenn Regular
This is one of the most despicable lies presented by the deceived trapped preachers of religion, especially when the hell referred to is the fire and brimstone hell of religion.
The Bible does not support it...it is deception's lie and it is an atrocity to present it as a part of the Gospel. As we will find out...it is a direct contradiction to the words of Jesus. Jesus took up on Himself our sins on the cross, He did not go to hell so people do not have to go there.
Did Jesus really go to a hell fire and brimstone hell between the cross and the resurrection? That is what most denominations think when they read the line in...not the bible...but in the Apostles' Creed that states, "He descended to hell." Some have changed the creed to read, "He descended to the dead".
The thing we need to realize is that the Apostles’ Creed is not a passage from the Bible. Also, it was not actually written by the Apostles, it is a man made creation. Any creation by man is only as good as far as it is supported by Scriptures. Never put them on a level where they are given gospel status.
Another thing to realize is the phrase “He descended to hell” is not found in any of the earliest versions of the Creed such as the “Old Roman” version. It actually does not appear until the mid-seventh century, at least not with the understanding of "hell" rather than the grave. We do have a version from the end of the 4th century by Rufinus that includes "descended into hell" but the writer specifically notes that he understands the term to simply mean that Christ was buried. The Greek term is hades, which can simply mean “grave” rather than hell.
After Rufinus, we don't see the entire phrase again until the mid-seventh century. (Wayne Grudem, “He Did Not Descent Into Hell: A Plea for Following Scripture Instead of the Apostles’ Creed.")
The Old Roman Creed, from the second half of the second century, simply says that Jesus was crucified, buried, and then rose from the dead. (O.G. Oliver, Jr., “Apostles’ Creed,” In Evangelical Dictionary of Theology, ed. Walter A. Elwell)
Most importantly, the Bible does not teach that Jesus went to hell so we would not have to go. Remember what Jesus said to the repentant thief on the cross next to Him. Jesus told him, “Truly, I say to you, today you will be with me in Paradise” (Luke 23:43). This thief, and Jesus, would be in Paradise that day, not hell. Luke 23:46 records Jesus saying, “Father, into your hands I commit my spirit!” before He died. John 19:30 records Jesus saying, “It is finished,” as He bowed His head and gave up His spirit. When Jesus died on the cross, He had finished the work of atonement. He did not then spend three days burning in hell to pay for our sins. That work was finished on the cross. When Scripture discusses how Jesus paid for our sins, it consistently points to the cross (1 Cor. 1:17-18; Gal. 6:14; Eph. 2:16; Phil. 2:8; Col. 1:20; 2:14; Heb. 12:2) not to any suffering in hell.
Jesus went to the abode of the dead to liberate the Old Testament saints and bring the gospel to non-saints...He did not go there so we would not have to go there.
- Glenn Regular
Wednesday, January 22, 2014
A Believer
A believer is aware that freedom comes from a relationship with God
and is not to be controlled by religious Do's, Don'ts, and the Should's and
Could's of a religion.
A believer is required to follow only Jesus Christ the Shepard without the burdensome yoke of religious bondage by renouncing religion as the avenue of finding God and renouncing the lordship of professional denominated title holders that consider themselves the spiritual religious elite within institutional religion.
A believer holds to the fact that Jesus is the Way, the Truth and the Life, and there is no biblical mandate to maintain a religious relationship with an institution called "church" in order to gain or maintain a spiritual relationship with God.
A believer is a God lover thus, is a people lover.
A believer proves all things by the Spirit to ensure the spirit of what is said is of God, and to discern false teachers who use the name of Jesus to validate their manipulative abuse and misuse of scripture and their greediness, through the witness of the Holy Spirit God's appointed Teacher.
A believer is a follower of Jesus Christ therefore, can know and hear His voice and follow Him without the noise of religious interference due to man-made denominational creeds and man-made doctrines formulated by the denominational hierarchy.
A believer biblically declares that Jesus Christ is the sole Head of His Body, the community of the redeemed, which is a spiritual community living in the community of humanity that elevates no man appointed religious leader to an exalted position above the common body as the spiritual elite, for Jesus alone is the Head.
A believer knows that attending Sunday-go-meetings is not the determining factor that constitutes being a member of His body or for receiving or maintaining salvation. Neither is Church a programmed-event-driven meeting held in a building at predetermined times for the assembling of people. Rather, Church is a 24/7 life living relationship with the Divine by the community of the redeemed, in the community of humanity, experiencing His Life within and out-flowing through them as He does His work in meeting the needs of humanity.
A believer realizes that nowhere does the bible allude that following Christ cross is following a religious institution in its doctrinal delusional confusion, man-made constitution, tradition, custom or practice.
A believer is accountable to God alone, and God alone is the Judge...not religious people because of their hierarchical position.
A believer is a witness of the fact that Jesus is the Light of the world, the Bread of life, the Manna from heaven, the Living waters, the Vine of which we are the branches, the Establisher of the the community of the redeemed, the Sustainer of His body and the only Master that believers have.
A believer recognizes that the “fivefold ministry” are not offices or positions filled by denominational-appointed paid professionals, but are leaders raised up by the Holy Spirit from among Jesus' body to point people to Jesus and not a religious institution.
A believer acknowledges that leaders within His body are not divinely entitled to use manipulative tactics by offering free gifts, God’s blessing, or the threat of curses by God to obtain tithes and offerings and enlistment of people to keep the religious wheel turning.
A believer realizes that religious institutions are built on man-made foundations primarily for the benefit of feeding the denominational self-important, power and prestige of the “spiritual elite” who manipulate the gullible to give of their, energy time and money.
A believer believes Jesus' words, "where two or three are gathered in My name, there Am I in the midst", that does not warrant gathering in a building known as a church, neither does it require that a hireling or "professional" denominated clergy need be present as the spiritual pipeline from God to the people.
A believer acknowledges that the veil of the temple was rent from top to bottom, providing believers full access into God’s presence because of the finished and completed work of Jesus Christ on the cross, no longer needing a man- ordained-priest to enter God's presence for us.
A believer asserts that Jesus Christ is our All-Sufficient One, and that people's dependency upon religion and professional clergy was made obsolete by the Priesthood of Jesus Christ and the Priesthood of all Believers.
A believer believes in the SUPREMACY, SUFFICIENCY and SUSTAINABILITY of Jesus Christ.
A believer is required to follow only Jesus Christ the Shepard without the burdensome yoke of religious bondage by renouncing religion as the avenue of finding God and renouncing the lordship of professional denominated title holders that consider themselves the spiritual religious elite within institutional religion.
A believer holds to the fact that Jesus is the Way, the Truth and the Life, and there is no biblical mandate to maintain a religious relationship with an institution called "church" in order to gain or maintain a spiritual relationship with God.
A believer is a God lover thus, is a people lover.
A believer proves all things by the Spirit to ensure the spirit of what is said is of God, and to discern false teachers who use the name of Jesus to validate their manipulative abuse and misuse of scripture and their greediness, through the witness of the Holy Spirit God's appointed Teacher.
A believer is a follower of Jesus Christ therefore, can know and hear His voice and follow Him without the noise of religious interference due to man-made denominational creeds and man-made doctrines formulated by the denominational hierarchy.
A believer biblically declares that Jesus Christ is the sole Head of His Body, the community of the redeemed, which is a spiritual community living in the community of humanity that elevates no man appointed religious leader to an exalted position above the common body as the spiritual elite, for Jesus alone is the Head.
A believer knows that attending Sunday-go-meetings is not the determining factor that constitutes being a member of His body or for receiving or maintaining salvation. Neither is Church a programmed-event-driven meeting held in a building at predetermined times for the assembling of people. Rather, Church is a 24/7 life living relationship with the Divine by the community of the redeemed, in the community of humanity, experiencing His Life within and out-flowing through them as He does His work in meeting the needs of humanity.
A believer realizes that nowhere does the bible allude that following Christ cross is following a religious institution in its doctrinal delusional confusion, man-made constitution, tradition, custom or practice.
A believer is accountable to God alone, and God alone is the Judge...not religious people because of their hierarchical position.
A believer is a witness of the fact that Jesus is the Light of the world, the Bread of life, the Manna from heaven, the Living waters, the Vine of which we are the branches, the Establisher of the the community of the redeemed, the Sustainer of His body and the only Master that believers have.
A believer recognizes that the “fivefold ministry” are not offices or positions filled by denominational-appointed paid professionals, but are leaders raised up by the Holy Spirit from among Jesus' body to point people to Jesus and not a religious institution.
A believer acknowledges that leaders within His body are not divinely entitled to use manipulative tactics by offering free gifts, God’s blessing, or the threat of curses by God to obtain tithes and offerings and enlistment of people to keep the religious wheel turning.
A believer realizes that religious institutions are built on man-made foundations primarily for the benefit of feeding the denominational self-important, power and prestige of the “spiritual elite” who manipulate the gullible to give of their, energy time and money.
A believer believes Jesus' words, "where two or three are gathered in My name, there Am I in the midst", that does not warrant gathering in a building known as a church, neither does it require that a hireling or "professional" denominated clergy need be present as the spiritual pipeline from God to the people.
A believer acknowledges that the veil of the temple was rent from top to bottom, providing believers full access into God’s presence because of the finished and completed work of Jesus Christ on the cross, no longer needing a man- ordained-priest to enter God's presence for us.
A believer asserts that Jesus Christ is our All-Sufficient One, and that people's dependency upon religion and professional clergy was made obsolete by the Priesthood of Jesus Christ and the Priesthood of all Believers.
A believer believes in the SUPREMACY, SUFFICIENCY and SUSTAINABILITY of Jesus Christ.
Tuesday, January 21, 2014
None But He
“Do I need the Lord Jesus Christ? Yes, infinitely, but chiefly on two
accounts. The guilt of sin on me is mountainous; none but he can remove it. The
power of sin in me is marvellous, none but he can subdue it.
But am I willing to have the Lord Jesus Christ? Yes, most heartily: for there is a dreadful necessity that the miseries of my soul should be relieved; he, and none but he, can relieve them.
”
The Life of Dr. Cotton Mather
But am I willing to have the Lord Jesus Christ? Yes, most heartily: for there is a dreadful necessity that the miseries of my soul should be relieved; he, and none but he, can relieve them.
The Life of Dr. Cotton Mather
God's Opinion of Us
Under the Waterfall writes........
My good friend and fellow blogger Dave N. has written a wonderful note on the loving acceptance of God, and how His opinion of us sets us free to live loved..and I wanted to share it here. These thoughts have encouraged me so much, especially the idea of God praising us and being so well-pleased with us, and the idea of leaving behind old lying voices of shame and enjoying the freedom found in God's acceptance - freedom to be ourselves, to live life with joy, to accept ourselves and others! Hope you all enjoy this note from Dave:
On God's Opinion of Us
by Dave N.
We just need to be forgetful people. So many believers are consumed with past mistakes but Paul specifically says:
Brethren, I count not myself to have apprehended: but this one thing I do, FORGETTING those things which are behind, and reaching forth unto those things which are before,
Paul says, "This one thing I DO....FORGETTING...." This is a very important practice we should follow. We are to forget what is past but never forget what manner of man/woman we are in Christ Jesus. We are not to walk away from the Law of Liberty forgetting our glorious image we truly are (James 1:24) but we truly have died to the Mosaic Law. The Mosaic Law will always point a finger to condemn but the Law of Liberty only speaks glorious freedom.
When we focus on our sins is when are considered "blind" and have "forgotten" that we had been forgiven of past sins (2nd Peter 1:9). So many believers are consumed with some sin of the past (5 minutes ago or 5 years ago). This is why the author of Hebrews stated there is "no more conscience (remembrance) of sins" (Hebrews 10:2) because of the once for ALL (behold the Lamb of God which taketh AWAY the sin of the WORLD) sacrifice. God remembers our sins and iniquities "no more" (Hebrews 10:17). If God remembers no more then we are to "forget." We are to forget what we were or what religion claimed we were and behold who we forever are as sin has no room for display in our thinking. We are what He is and not what we do.
"God has just been showing me this, how important it is not to pass judgment on myself (or others)"
This is where freedom truly lies. Romans 14:22:
"Hast thou faith? have it to thyself before God. Happy is he that condemneth not himself in that thing which he alloweth."
Paul said this about himself in 1st Corinthians 4:3:
"But with me it is a very small thing that I should be judged of you, or of man's judgment: yea, I JUDGE NOT mine own self."
Paul went on to share how the Lord judges in verse 4 but we know that there is no "condemnation" in Christ Jesus and that is why Paul said in verse 5 "...and then shall EVERY MAN have praise of God."
The glorious thing about the gospel of grace is that the verdict was already passed before you or I even committed a single act. We are justified, sanctified, and washed. The problem with behavioral modification teaching is that we are constantly looking for approval by our performance. Every person who says, "I am a good person" is probably telling the truth but such a statement means that they are hoping that God will one day pass the same sentence upon them by their performance. Performance oriented thinking leads that person to keep assessing themselves before God where they live in a state of condemnation (Oh God, I did that sin again).
People live backward lives because of religion. We do not perform to gain God's approval but we perform because of God's approval. Even when we "think" we are huge failures is to know that we are always "accepted in the Beloved" (accepted = well pleasing). We can be assured that when we are judged by the Lord that "we shall have praise of God." Acceptance always precedes behavior. Love always precedes behavior. God loved us when we were sinners and Christ died when we were enemies. We are that special to God.
Remember, we always sin but we are NEVER to associate them to ourselves as they can no longer define us. People who worry over their sins or performance before God will be a slave to low self esteem. God highly esteems us and that means that if we never do another good work for God is to know that we remain highly esteemed. We are and always will be well pleasing to Him. We shall have praise from God. We are the trophies of His grace. He is forever proud of us.
It's sad that much of our lives are spent trying to gain approval of others. I cannot tell you how many times I daydreamed making myself into something I was not as I would picture the world around me rolling out the red carpet. I cannot tell you the freedom of forgetting those things which are behind (either good works or my sins) and simply living in the reality that I have all things in Christ. I no longer strive to gain the worlds approval.
No believer has it better or worse than us as we all are complete in Christ. I do not need the world to pat me on the back. I do not need to esteem myself better before others more than I ought. This is why pride goes before a self esteem fall. When we seek to live up to a certain worldly or religious standard then experiencing a emotional fall is to be expected. This is why so many believers hate themselves and call themselves, "A good for nothing Christian." This is why so many doubt their salvation because of the religious standards (law/bondage) they strive to follow and when they fail is when they experience an emotional fall that wears them out. It even wears out the legalist who continually performs and seems to be doing a good job at maintaining his/her religious duties but inwardly they are burning out..
We cannot live up to religious or worldly standards or we will ultimately crash. Depression is often due to failed expectations. We live trying to be accepted but that acceptance is almost always based on appearance/performance. It is when we see God's loving hands embracing us is when we can lovingly embrace ourselves and those around us. We can embrace flaws. We finally allow chaos to be a part of our lives as we can live without things being perfect. We can finally relax and simply be ourselves. We can take off the religious masks and be the very person we are. We can live life loved.
I am aware of my flaws but I no longer hold them against myself. My poor self esteem was due to trying to live up to religious/worldly standards. I now forget those things that are past and that includes my so-called righteousness as but dung for the excellency of Christ. I now see myself robed in the excellency of Christ and am satisfied.
The key to victory is throwing out those religious/worldly expectations and live free.. "Cast out the bondwoman and her son and live free!!!!" Living free lies outside of religion, law, and this present world. We cannot be bound to any of those things because they come with expectations/standards that follows with condemnation for failure. The world, the law, and religion are critical and judgmental of themselves, people, and their environment that will affect us the same way if we follow. We are not to be conformed to this world (world often refers to the religious system) but be transformed by the renewing of our minds. Beholding our glorious image in Christ transforms us into that same glory (2nd Corinthians 3:18).
We are to follow Paul's advice and not care what people think of us. Let's not judge ourselves. The one thing that we are to do is forgetting what is past. I like how the New Life Version translates 2nd Timothy 2:15:
"Do your best to know that God is pleased with you. Be as a workman who has nothing to be ashamed of. Teach the words of truth in the right way."
Do your best to know that God is pleased with you but performance, past behavior, or even people's assessment of you has no place in knowing whether or not God is pleased.
Dave N.
My good friend and fellow blogger Dave N. has written a wonderful note on the loving acceptance of God, and how His opinion of us sets us free to live loved..and I wanted to share it here. These thoughts have encouraged me so much, especially the idea of God praising us and being so well-pleased with us, and the idea of leaving behind old lying voices of shame and enjoying the freedom found in God's acceptance - freedom to be ourselves, to live life with joy, to accept ourselves and others! Hope you all enjoy this note from Dave:
On God's Opinion of Us
by Dave N.
We just need to be forgetful people. So many believers are consumed with past mistakes but Paul specifically says:
Brethren, I count not myself to have apprehended: but this one thing I do, FORGETTING those things which are behind, and reaching forth unto those things which are before,
Paul says, "This one thing I DO....FORGETTING...." This is a very important practice we should follow. We are to forget what is past but never forget what manner of man/woman we are in Christ Jesus. We are not to walk away from the Law of Liberty forgetting our glorious image we truly are (James 1:24) but we truly have died to the Mosaic Law. The Mosaic Law will always point a finger to condemn but the Law of Liberty only speaks glorious freedom.
When we focus on our sins is when are considered "blind" and have "forgotten" that we had been forgiven of past sins (2nd Peter 1:9). So many believers are consumed with some sin of the past (5 minutes ago or 5 years ago). This is why the author of Hebrews stated there is "no more conscience (remembrance) of sins" (Hebrews 10:2) because of the once for ALL (behold the Lamb of God which taketh AWAY the sin of the WORLD) sacrifice. God remembers our sins and iniquities "no more" (Hebrews 10:17). If God remembers no more then we are to "forget." We are to forget what we were or what religion claimed we were and behold who we forever are as sin has no room for display in our thinking. We are what He is and not what we do.
"God has just been showing me this, how important it is not to pass judgment on myself (or others)"
This is where freedom truly lies. Romans 14:22:
"Hast thou faith? have it to thyself before God. Happy is he that condemneth not himself in that thing which he alloweth."
Paul said this about himself in 1st Corinthians 4:3:
"But with me it is a very small thing that I should be judged of you, or of man's judgment: yea, I JUDGE NOT mine own self."
Paul went on to share how the Lord judges in verse 4 but we know that there is no "condemnation" in Christ Jesus and that is why Paul said in verse 5 "...and then shall EVERY MAN have praise of God."
The glorious thing about the gospel of grace is that the verdict was already passed before you or I even committed a single act. We are justified, sanctified, and washed. The problem with behavioral modification teaching is that we are constantly looking for approval by our performance. Every person who says, "I am a good person" is probably telling the truth but such a statement means that they are hoping that God will one day pass the same sentence upon them by their performance. Performance oriented thinking leads that person to keep assessing themselves before God where they live in a state of condemnation (Oh God, I did that sin again).
People live backward lives because of religion. We do not perform to gain God's approval but we perform because of God's approval. Even when we "think" we are huge failures is to know that we are always "accepted in the Beloved" (accepted = well pleasing). We can be assured that when we are judged by the Lord that "we shall have praise of God." Acceptance always precedes behavior. Love always precedes behavior. God loved us when we were sinners and Christ died when we were enemies. We are that special to God.
Remember, we always sin but we are NEVER to associate them to ourselves as they can no longer define us. People who worry over their sins or performance before God will be a slave to low self esteem. God highly esteems us and that means that if we never do another good work for God is to know that we remain highly esteemed. We are and always will be well pleasing to Him. We shall have praise from God. We are the trophies of His grace. He is forever proud of us.
It's sad that much of our lives are spent trying to gain approval of others. I cannot tell you how many times I daydreamed making myself into something I was not as I would picture the world around me rolling out the red carpet. I cannot tell you the freedom of forgetting those things which are behind (either good works or my sins) and simply living in the reality that I have all things in Christ. I no longer strive to gain the worlds approval.
No believer has it better or worse than us as we all are complete in Christ. I do not need the world to pat me on the back. I do not need to esteem myself better before others more than I ought. This is why pride goes before a self esteem fall. When we seek to live up to a certain worldly or religious standard then experiencing a emotional fall is to be expected. This is why so many believers hate themselves and call themselves, "A good for nothing Christian." This is why so many doubt their salvation because of the religious standards (law/bondage) they strive to follow and when they fail is when they experience an emotional fall that wears them out. It even wears out the legalist who continually performs and seems to be doing a good job at maintaining his/her religious duties but inwardly they are burning out..
We cannot live up to religious or worldly standards or we will ultimately crash. Depression is often due to failed expectations. We live trying to be accepted but that acceptance is almost always based on appearance/performance. It is when we see God's loving hands embracing us is when we can lovingly embrace ourselves and those around us. We can embrace flaws. We finally allow chaos to be a part of our lives as we can live without things being perfect. We can finally relax and simply be ourselves. We can take off the religious masks and be the very person we are. We can live life loved.
I am aware of my flaws but I no longer hold them against myself. My poor self esteem was due to trying to live up to religious/worldly standards. I now forget those things that are past and that includes my so-called righteousness as but dung for the excellency of Christ. I now see myself robed in the excellency of Christ and am satisfied.
The key to victory is throwing out those religious/worldly expectations and live free.. "Cast out the bondwoman and her son and live free!!!!" Living free lies outside of religion, law, and this present world. We cannot be bound to any of those things because they come with expectations/standards that follows with condemnation for failure. The world, the law, and religion are critical and judgmental of themselves, people, and their environment that will affect us the same way if we follow. We are not to be conformed to this world (world often refers to the religious system) but be transformed by the renewing of our minds. Beholding our glorious image in Christ transforms us into that same glory (2nd Corinthians 3:18).
We are to follow Paul's advice and not care what people think of us. Let's not judge ourselves. The one thing that we are to do is forgetting what is past. I like how the New Life Version translates 2nd Timothy 2:15:
"Do your best to know that God is pleased with you. Be as a workman who has nothing to be ashamed of. Teach the words of truth in the right way."
Do your best to know that God is pleased with you but performance, past behavior, or even people's assessment of you has no place in knowing whether or not God is pleased.
Dave N.
Oh Wisdom Where Art Thou?
We are told that the older we get the wiser we get. If that is the case,
sometimes I wonder why I can't find the wisdom I am supposed to have that is
inherent in getting older.
Well, I guess I will have to take refuge in the fact that "He who holds his tongue is wise" and shut up.
Then again, not finding the wisdom that corresponds to my aging to do so, here goes.
Regarding Spiritual Wisdom, it does not automatically come by the number of years a person is a believer. If so, there would not be so many spiritually unwise saints when it comes to living as a loved child of God and understanding the Grace Gospel of Jesus Christ regarding God's plan and purpose for the community of the redeemed in the community of humanity. Neither would there be so many believers judging and condemning people.
Spiritually wise people would also understand that the Bible cannot be understood by man's limited reasoning or by people's religious perceptions, because they will end up interpreting the Bible based on their religious beliefs instead of allowing it to formulate what they believe.
Rightly understanding the Bible, saints would realize that segregation of believers based on Bible interpretation fosters disunity and is in opposition to the unity that Christ prayed and died for and they would be more loving, compassionate and forgiving.
With the correct understanding of the Bible the hatred, the segregation, the elitism, the religious manipulation and control of people, spiritual abuse and religious betrayal would be greatly decreased. The religious powers that have robed us of our freedom in Christ and fogged our mind and prevented us from knowing our true nature as the community of the redeemed would end.
Spiritual Wisdom would cause us to share forgiveness, compassion, love and grace throughout our realm of influence in the community of humanity affecting it with God's plan and purpose.
This will not happen through some religious self-serving means that will serve only to segregate and isolate those different from .
- Glenn Regular
Well, I guess I will have to take refuge in the fact that "He who holds his tongue is wise" and shut up.
Then again, not finding the wisdom that corresponds to my aging to do so, here goes.
Regarding Spiritual Wisdom, it does not automatically come by the number of years a person is a believer. If so, there would not be so many spiritually unwise saints when it comes to living as a loved child of God and understanding the Grace Gospel of Jesus Christ regarding God's plan and purpose for the community of the redeemed in the community of humanity. Neither would there be so many believers judging and condemning people.
Spiritually wise people would also understand that the Bible cannot be understood by man's limited reasoning or by people's religious perceptions, because they will end up interpreting the Bible based on their religious beliefs instead of allowing it to formulate what they believe.
Rightly understanding the Bible, saints would realize that segregation of believers based on Bible interpretation fosters disunity and is in opposition to the unity that Christ prayed and died for and they would be more loving, compassionate and forgiving.
With the correct understanding of the Bible the hatred, the segregation, the elitism, the religious manipulation and control of people, spiritual abuse and religious betrayal would be greatly decreased. The religious powers that have robed us of our freedom in Christ and fogged our mind and prevented us from knowing our true nature as the community of the redeemed would end.
Spiritual Wisdom would cause us to share forgiveness, compassion, love and grace throughout our realm of influence in the community of humanity affecting it with God's plan and purpose.
This will not happen through some religious self-serving means that will serve only to segregate and isolate those different from .
- Glenn Regular
Is The Way The Bible is Used Beneficial to the Community of Humanity
For many believers, using the Bible
as the guide to living a spiritual life, the definitive, and final answer for
everything is believed that is how God intended Bible to be used. But is that
the case.
I know the Bible is all divided up into nice chapters and verses that are conveniently weaponized and used as proof text ammunition to validate man-made doctrine?
The fact is, the chopping up of scripture didn’t start until long after the post cross books were written.
Is the way the bible is used God's design? What if God didn’t intend for it to be the unquestionable 'Word of God'? What if God isn’t behind the way verses of the Bible are ripped up to prooftext everything? What if God doesn’t approve of our blind devotion to, and the idolization of a book?
I know that sounds repulsive to the traditional way of thinking, but biblically could that be the case?
What about in the gospels where we hear Jesus declaring, “You have heard it said… but I say…” Sometimes he’s just talking about tradition or the teachings of other religious leaders. But a lot of times, he’s talking about the scripture we call the Old Testament.
Is he breaking the bonds of scripture to bring new truth and spiritual life into his people?
The freedom he is declaring doesn’t even stop there.
According to the book of Acts, Peter was at a house in the town of Joppa when he decided to go up to the roof and pray while lunch was being prepared. Not long after he had began praying, he fell into a trance and had one of those famous biblical visions from God. In the vision, he saw a sheet fall from heaven full of all sorts of creatures..."four-footed creatures and reptiles and birds of the air”...and he heard a voice saying, “Take and eat.” Peter said “no” because scripture forbade him from doing so. The voice told him again to take and eat and once more Peter refused. This happened three times and three times Peter said no, citing scripture.
To the scripture believers of his day it was an odd vision that only becomes odder when you step back and realize what’s really going on.
God was speaking and God was telling Peter to violate scripture. Wow...we know now Regular, you are a heretical!
What we see here in Peter’s vision, and throughout the New Testament is a fundamental and radical shift from the old way of doing things (no more sacrifices, from how God related to God’s people (no more need for a high priest), from scripture itself (no longer bound by the Law).
It is a seismic shift to something radically different than the way it was done before.
So why was God doing something so radical and so obviously contradictory to scripture and tradition?
Because in Jesus God was doing a brand new thing through his community of the redeemed, a Spirit thing that couldn’t be bound by scripture that would break people free from the being shackled to the past.
Today most people still use the Bible the same way Peter did...as a book to be blindly followed, and an idol that even God is answerable to. Then the religionist would post Facebook postings about heretics in the church trying to deceive the faithful, then load their mouth firing tongues
Full of Bible verses to “prove” they are right, follow that with a thorough trashing of their opponent’s knowledge of the Bible, and finally wrap things up by denouncing them as a heretic.
Not realizing that when all self-righteous work was done, just like Peter, we would have successfully quashed the move of the Spirit.
The Bible is meant to give us direction to Christ and love people has he loved them, but instead we’ve turned it into a jailer that shackles us to ideology, dogma, doctrine, denominationalism and legalism.
Instead of letting the Bible lead us to Jesus the Truth, we use it as a weapon to attack people who believe differently than we do and defend our ideological idols.
If Peter had continued to use scripture the way we do today, instead of getting out of the way for God to move, the power of the Spirit would have been stifled and the redeemed community would not have gotten off the ground. If Paul had used scripture the way we do today, he could have never taken the gospel to the ends of the earth and ministered to the Gentiles because they were outside of Israel’s covenant as described in scripture. I wonder...is that the reason that in over 2000 years of gospel preaching the majority of people still do not know the gospel?
Believing God's Grace message doesn’t negate the importance of scripture. It simply puts it in proper perspective and allows gives it its proper function...a pointer to Christ, not an idol to be worshipped or a weapon to be wielded to prove stupid man-made beliefs.
If we fail to understand how the Bible is used...or misused and abused...is not ordained of God, we will get left behind because we’re so busy quoting Bible verses and holding God hostage to scripture we won't be able to understand the work of his Grace unfolding in the community of the redeemed to benefit the community of humanity.
- Glenn Regular
I know the Bible is all divided up into nice chapters and verses that are conveniently weaponized and used as proof text ammunition to validate man-made doctrine?
The fact is, the chopping up of scripture didn’t start until long after the post cross books were written.
Is the way the bible is used God's design? What if God didn’t intend for it to be the unquestionable 'Word of God'? What if God isn’t behind the way verses of the Bible are ripped up to prooftext everything? What if God doesn’t approve of our blind devotion to, and the idolization of a book?
I know that sounds repulsive to the traditional way of thinking, but biblically could that be the case?
What about in the gospels where we hear Jesus declaring, “You have heard it said… but I say…” Sometimes he’s just talking about tradition or the teachings of other religious leaders. But a lot of times, he’s talking about the scripture we call the Old Testament.
Is he breaking the bonds of scripture to bring new truth and spiritual life into his people?
The freedom he is declaring doesn’t even stop there.
According to the book of Acts, Peter was at a house in the town of Joppa when he decided to go up to the roof and pray while lunch was being prepared. Not long after he had began praying, he fell into a trance and had one of those famous biblical visions from God. In the vision, he saw a sheet fall from heaven full of all sorts of creatures..."four-footed creatures and reptiles and birds of the air”...and he heard a voice saying, “Take and eat.” Peter said “no” because scripture forbade him from doing so. The voice told him again to take and eat and once more Peter refused. This happened three times and three times Peter said no, citing scripture.
To the scripture believers of his day it was an odd vision that only becomes odder when you step back and realize what’s really going on.
God was speaking and God was telling Peter to violate scripture. Wow...we know now Regular, you are a heretical!
What we see here in Peter’s vision, and throughout the New Testament is a fundamental and radical shift from the old way of doing things (no more sacrifices, from how God related to God’s people (no more need for a high priest), from scripture itself (no longer bound by the Law).
It is a seismic shift to something radically different than the way it was done before.
So why was God doing something so radical and so obviously contradictory to scripture and tradition?
Because in Jesus God was doing a brand new thing through his community of the redeemed, a Spirit thing that couldn’t be bound by scripture that would break people free from the being shackled to the past.
Today most people still use the Bible the same way Peter did...as a book to be blindly followed, and an idol that even God is answerable to. Then the religionist would post Facebook postings about heretics in the church trying to deceive the faithful, then load their mouth firing tongues
Full of Bible verses to “prove” they are right, follow that with a thorough trashing of their opponent’s knowledge of the Bible, and finally wrap things up by denouncing them as a heretic.
Not realizing that when all self-righteous work was done, just like Peter, we would have successfully quashed the move of the Spirit.
The Bible is meant to give us direction to Christ and love people has he loved them, but instead we’ve turned it into a jailer that shackles us to ideology, dogma, doctrine, denominationalism and legalism.
Instead of letting the Bible lead us to Jesus the Truth, we use it as a weapon to attack people who believe differently than we do and defend our ideological idols.
If Peter had continued to use scripture the way we do today, instead of getting out of the way for God to move, the power of the Spirit would have been stifled and the redeemed community would not have gotten off the ground. If Paul had used scripture the way we do today, he could have never taken the gospel to the ends of the earth and ministered to the Gentiles because they were outside of Israel’s covenant as described in scripture. I wonder...is that the reason that in over 2000 years of gospel preaching the majority of people still do not know the gospel?
Believing God's Grace message doesn’t negate the importance of scripture. It simply puts it in proper perspective and allows gives it its proper function...a pointer to Christ, not an idol to be worshipped or a weapon to be wielded to prove stupid man-made beliefs.
If we fail to understand how the Bible is used...or misused and abused...is not ordained of God, we will get left behind because we’re so busy quoting Bible verses and holding God hostage to scripture we won't be able to understand the work of his Grace unfolding in the community of the redeemed to benefit the community of humanity.
- Glenn Regular
What Does God Think About Sinners?
Scripture gives us the answer.
Romans 5:8, "But God commendeth his love toward us, in that, while we were yet sinners, Christ died for us." In this verse and as well as the well known verse John 3:16, we find no conditions placed on God's love for people. God doesn't say, "as soon as you accept Jesus, and clean up your act, I'll love you; " nor does He say, "I'll love you if you promise to love Me." In fact, in Romans 5:8, we find just the opposite. God desires us to know that His love is unconditional, so He sent His Son, Jesus Christ, to die for us while we were still sinners. We didn't have to clean up, and we didn't have to make any promises to God for Him to love us sinners. His love for us has always existed, and because of that, He did all the giving and sacrificing long before we were even aware that we needed His love.
God is Love, and His love is very different from human love. God's love is unconditional, and it's not based on feelings or emotions. He doesn't love us because we're lovable or because we make Him feel good; He loves us because He is love. He created us to have a loving relationship with Him, and He gave Jesus His own Son, so we could enter into a relationship with Him.
God thinks the world of sinners.
- Glenn Regular
Romans 5:8, "But God commendeth his love toward us, in that, while we were yet sinners, Christ died for us." In this verse and as well as the well known verse John 3:16, we find no conditions placed on God's love for people. God doesn't say, "as soon as you accept Jesus, and clean up your act, I'll love you; " nor does He say, "I'll love you if you promise to love Me." In fact, in Romans 5:8, we find just the opposite. God desires us to know that His love is unconditional, so He sent His Son, Jesus Christ, to die for us while we were still sinners. We didn't have to clean up, and we didn't have to make any promises to God for Him to love us sinners. His love for us has always existed, and because of that, He did all the giving and sacrificing long before we were even aware that we needed His love.
God is Love, and His love is very different from human love. God's love is unconditional, and it's not based on feelings or emotions. He doesn't love us because we're lovable or because we make Him feel good; He loves us because He is love. He created us to have a loving relationship with Him, and He gave Jesus His own Son, so we could enter into a relationship with Him.
God thinks the world of sinners.
- Glenn Regular
What is the Coming Wrath?
“You brood of vipers! Who warned you to
flee from the coming wrath?”
When John the Baptist said this to the
Pharisees and Sadducees, what did he mean (see Luke 3:7-8)? What is the coming
wrath? And is this something we should be concerned about?
Some commentators say John was referring to
the destruction of Jerusalem. The venerable Victorian Adam Clarke says the
coming wrath refers to “the desolation which was about to fall on the Jewish
nation for their wickedness.” But this doesn’t square with what Paul said to
Gentile Christians:
They tell how you turned to God from idols
to serve the living and true God, and to wait for his Son from heaven, whom he
raised from the dead—Jesus, who rescues us from the coming wrath. (1 Thess 1:9-10)
The Thessalonians didn’t need rescuing from
the Roman armies besieging Jerusalem. So the coming wrath has nothing to do
with the destruction of the Jewish capital.
Others say the coming wrath is a reference
to the great tribulation. “It’s all in Daniel somewhere. Don’t ask me where. I
heard someone preach on it once. I think it has to do with bar codes and
guillotines.”
Uh-huh.
Tell you what. Why don’t we stick with John
the Baptist, since he’s the one who brought up the subject? John described the
coming wrath as:
something that would make snakes flee (Matt 3:7)
Christ with a winnowing fork burning up the chaff with unquenchable fire
(Matt 3:12)
fruitless trees being cut down and thrown into the fire (Luke 3:9)
Snakes and fire – that’s the common thread.
That might remind you of something Jesus said to the Pharisees:
Fill up, then, the measure of the sin of
your forefathers! You snakes! You brood of vipers! How will you escape being
condemned to hell? (Matt 23:32-33)
Snakes are afraid of fire. But here’s the
good news: You are not a snake! Those in Christ need not fear the coming wrath.
Why do you need to know about wrath?
Why am I telling you this? Two reasons.
One, hardly anyone teaches on the wrath of God anymore. Two, in the absence of
good teaching, bad teaching has emerged to fill the void. Let me give you some
examples:
God is judging American for her sins; so put on sackcloth and ashes and
get busy repenting
natural disasters are the wrath of God in action; turn or burn baby
there is no coming wrath – it came already when God destroyed Jerusalem;
so no need to do anything
there is lots of wrath coming – at least three and a half years’ worth;
be scared, be very scared!
None of these thoughts corresponds with
what Jesus, John, or Paul said about the coming wrath. So what do you need to
know about the wrath to come? At least three things:
It’s coming
It’s wrath
For those who love life, it’s something to look forward to
Paul says in Romans 1:16-19 that everyone
ultimately receives something from God – either we receive the free gift of his
righteousness or we get the unwanted gift of his wrath. We receive
righteousness by receiving the goodness of God revealed in Jesus. We get wrath
by hardening our hearts, thrusting away his free grace, and rejecting the Life
that only he offers.
Now here’s the important bit – God has no
interest in pouring out wrath on people, not even the worst, most diabolical
sinner. Indeed, God loves everyone more than he loves his own life (Rom 5:8).
But at some point God must react to
ungodliness with wrath, or he isn’t God. At some point God must confront all
the evils of this world – the violence taking place in Sudan, the
sex-trafficking in Eastern Europe, the lunacy in North Korea – and say
“Enough!” Light and darkness cannot coexist.
So wrath is coming - as Jesus, John, and
Paul foretold. But wrath is not about God going all Rambo on the heads of bad
people. Jesus died for bad people. Wrath is for those things which are opposed
to God’s character. Wrath is for the chaff of demonic doctrines that deny
Jesus. And wrath is for manmade traditions that deprive us of his grace.
So why should the Pharisees be scared? Not
because God hates Pharisees! God loves Pharisees. But he surely hates their
religious practice of prostituting his love. He hates their death-dealing
religion that sees the poor oppressed and the widow kicked out of her home
(Luke 20:47). He hates everything that hurts his kids.
What’s the takeaway?
I guess you could say we have two choices.
We can be like Saul the Pharisee or Paul the Pharisee.
Saul the Pharisee went around clobbering
people in the name of religion and Jesus took it personally. “Saul, Saul, why
do you persecute me?” Saul picked a fight with the Author of Life and this is
never a smart move. Resist life and you end up dead. But Paul, the born-again
Pharisee, went around telling people the good news of God’s grace, which is
this…
For God did not appoint us to suffer wrath
but to receive salvation through our Lord Jesus Christ. (1 Thess 5:9)
God is not in the condemning business. He’s
in the saving business. He’s in the business of turning murderous Sauls into
life-saving Pauls. Selah!
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)
You thought we were saved from sin but Paul
says we are saved from wrath. (Remember, this is not God’s wrath towards
sinners, but his wrath towards ungodliness and unrighteousness and those things
which keep us from him.) You’ve not only been delivered from cancer of sin,
you’ve also been spared from chemotherapy of wrath.
What is the coming wrath?
The coming wrath is bad news for everything
that stands in the way of God’s good plans for us. The coming wrath is the end
of all that hurts us. It’s the end of tears and trafficking. It’s the end of
ethnic violence and slavery. It’s the end of mental illness and brokenness and
dead religion and thuggery and injustice in all it’s twisted forms.
Wrath is God cleansing the universe and
removing all that is contrary to his good nature. Wrath is God making things
right. Wrath is God saying “Yes!” to his kids and “No!” to those things that
cause us to stumble.
Homer_unpunishableYou could say that
everyone has a date with wrath. For Saul the Pharisee, that date was in the
future. By clinging to the anchor of hate-fueled religion, Saul was going down.
He was on the road to ruin and a highway to hell (whatever that is). But for
Paul the born-again believer, that date was in the past, as it is for all who
trust in Christ.
This is why you have nothing to fear from
the coming wrath. “The chastisement of our peace was upon him” (Is 53:5). On
the cross, God’s wrath against sin was fully satisfied. In Christ, you are
unpunishable and eternally secure.
- Paul Ellis
Saturday, January 18, 2014
The Image God Sees
by Allison Brown
Every journey has those times when the
lights seem to go out. We have a sense
of the space around us, but the details of “when”, “how” and “what” elude
us. God is present to our faith, but not
to our feelings and we bump around searching for a Light switch that seems to
have been moved.
Several years ago, I was in such a
time. There was an awareness of God’s
permission and grace, but it was vague and elusive. My brain was thrashing about trying to make
sense of nonsense, when an image suddenly came to mind.
It was a picture that was familiar; a
stunning black and white image of “The Monolith: The Face of Half Dome”, by
Ansel Adams. Long, long, ago, my first
job in Yosemite was working daily with these photographs, so it was like
remembering an old friend; an old friend whose story I’ve always loved.
As I was putting The Monolith away one day,
a long-time assistant to this master asked me, “Do you know how he did
it?” I didn’t – but I could tell that it
would be a tale worth hearing, so we poured some coffee and sat down by the
gallery fireplace.
In 1929, photography was still a relatively
young art form. Ansel was just beginning
to explore its possibilities but he was stymied by the challenge of
photographing Yosemite’s iconic views in black and white. The primary obstacle was that the gray value
of blue sky and that of granite are almost identical. In color, they contrast each other
magnificently. In black and white, they
blend together. So how could he capture on film what he saw with his eyes?
He decided to take a picture that existed
only in his mind, by doing things that didn’t seem to make sense.
Ansel put a red filter on the camera to turn
the blue sky to black. He used exposures
that didn’t make sense… until he got to the darkroom. There, in the hands of the master, what he
saw in his mind began to emerge on the paper where others could see it too.
As I remembered that afternoon, I
smiled. Here I was, frantically
searching for a light switch, that if found, would stop a necessary process of
development in my life. All my
expectations as to how God should work were being broken. Meanwhile, He was
soaking me in the encounters needed to bring out the image of me that I had yet
to see.
The reality of who we really are already
exists in the Father’s heart and in the Mind of Christ. I was discovering that my role was to be
still and know that in the Master’s care, He had the creativity, passion and
vision to bring me to life.
He wanted me to fall in love with the
process of being in His hands; to trust Him in the dark so we could overcome
the obstacles that would become evident in the light.
How often had I rushed His process,
settling for a basic image when a masterpiece was on offer? How many times had I protested that He wasn’t
doing it right? And what patience and kindness
He had shown when I panicked and ran for the light switch, bringing His current
development to a halt. He graciously
waited to turn it off again and start the process anew, asking me only to be
still and let Him finish.
A copy of The Monolith hangs in my
office. It reminds me daily to “Be
still, and know that He is God”. He is
the creative Master with an image of my identity that He wants to imagine with
me. The process takes time. The development of who I really am requires
my cooperation, but rests with His expertise. In stillness, in actively soaking
in His true nature, by remaining in faith and patience, the bigger picture of
my life to becomes evident.
What is the process of development that God
is currently soaking you in? Does the
outcome seem unclear or delayed? Be at
rest. Be still and listen for Him to
whisper who He really is and who you really are. It is the place where you will behold the
image that He sees and in the process, find that you are becoming like it.
- Allison Brown
Friday, January 17, 2014
My Prayer
Lord, thank you for not giving up on me. Thank you for not washing your
hands of me. Thank you for not turning your back on me and my brokenness.
Lord, thank you for not
considering me a hopeless case; for not shrugging your shoulders and walking
away from my innumerable failures, great and small.
Lord, thank you for
believing in me when I can't believe in myself.
Thank
you for hoping in me when I cant hope in myself. Thank you for trusting me when
I can't trust myself.
Thank you, Lord, for
being my Father who believes in me, who hopes in me, who trusts me and loves me
forever and ever no matter what.
Lord, forgive me for
thinking that your love for me and my love for you can be measured with the
same yardstick.
Your love for me
doesn't depend on what I do for you, Your love for me doesn't falter in the
face of silence.
Your love for me doesn't shrivel in the face of my refusal to
respond.
Your
love for me doesn't use me, force me, manipulate me or coerce me. Your love for
me is free, and it sets me free.
Forgive me, Lord, for
trying to do to you what your love won't allow you to do to me.
And even now you say to
me, "Throw away that yardstick!"
Lord, I'm so happy that
you re God!
- Brennan Manning
Replace Your Name for Israel
Wherever you see the word Israel, replace it with your own name.
Israel, how could I
give you up? My heart turns against it.... When Israel was a child I loved him,
I myself taught him to walk. I took him in my arms; Yet he has not understood
that I was looking after him. I led him with reins of kindness, with leading
strings of love. I was like someone who lifts an infant close up against his
cheek; stooping down to him I gave him his food.... How could I treat you like
Admah, or deal with you like Zeboim? My heart recoils from it, my whole being
trembles at the thought. I will not give reign to my fierce anger, I will not
destroy Ephraim again, for I am God, not man: I am the holy one in your midst
and have no wish to destroy. (Hosea 11:1,3-4,8-9)
In
the wilderness, too, you saw him: how the LORD carried you, as a man carries
his child, all along the road you travelled on the road to this place.
(Deuteronomy 1:31)
This is why I am going
to lure her and lead her out into the wilderness and speak to her heart. I am
going to give her back her vineyards and make the valley of Achor a gateway of
hope. There she will respond to me as she did when she was young, as she did
when she came out of the land of Egypt. (Hosea 2:14-17)
The LORD called me from
the womb, from the body of my mother. He named my name. (Isaiah 49:1)
Does a woman forget her
baby at the breast, or fail to cherish the son of her womb? Yet even if these
forget, I will never forget you. See I have branded you on the palms of my
hands, your ramparts are always under my eye. (Isaiah 49:14-15)
In the face of all
this, what is there left to say? If God is for us, who can be against us? He
who did not hesitate to give us what was most precious to Himself-gave him as a
matter of fact over into our hands - can we not trust such a God to give us, with
him, everything else we need? ... I have become absolutely convinced that
neither death nor life, neither messenger of heaven nor monarch of earth,
neither what happens today nor what may happen tomorrow, neither a power from
on high nor a power from below, nor anything else in God's whole world has any
power to separate us from the love of God in Christ Jesus our Lord. (Romans
8:31-34,38-39)
In
light of these passages, reflect on the words of Father Carey Landry's
beautiful song "Only a Shadow":
My own belief in you,
my Lord, is only a shadow of your faith in me, only a shadow of all that will
be when we meet face-to-face.... The love I have for you, my Lord, is only a
shadow of your love for me, only a shadow of all that will be when we meet
face-to-face.
-Brennan Manning
Calling Me a Second Time
Carl Jung, the great psychiatrist, once reflected that we are all
familiar with these words of Jesus: "Whatever you do to the least of my
brethren, that you do unto me" (Matthew 25:40). Then Jung asked a very
probing question: "What if you discovered that the least of the brethren
of Jesus, the one who needs your love the most, the one you can help the most
by loving, the one to whom your love will be most meaningful-what if you
discovered that this least of the brethren of Jesus ... is you?"
Then
do for yourself what you would do for others. And that wholesome self-love that
Jesus enjoined when He said, "Love your neighbor as yourself," might
begin with the simple acknowledgment, "What is the story of my priesthood?
It is the story of an unfaithful man through whom God continues to work!"
That word is not only consoling; it is freeing, especially for those of us
caught up in the oppression of thinking that God can work only through saints.
What a word of healing, forgiveness, and comfort it is for many of us priests
who have discovered that we are earthen vessels who fulfill Jesus' prophecy:
"I tell you solemnly, this day, this night, before the cock crows twice,
you will have disowned me three times."
The Lord is now calling
me a second time, affirming me, enabling me, encouraging me, challenging me all
the way into fullness of faith, hope, and love in the power of His Holy Spirit.
Ignorant, weak, sinful man that I am, with easy rationalizations for my sinful
behavior, I am being told anew in the unmistakable language of love, "I am
with you, I am for you, I am in you. I expect more failure from you than you
expect from yourself."
- Brennan Manning
Stress Melters
Laughter in massive doses. There is
humor in most situations you may find yourself in...find it and laugh your head
off. Learn to laugh at yourself when you make
mistakes.
Rest. Do not over stress your body because it will over stress your mind and cause frustration which will add to your stress. Listen to your body, treat it well and give it rest when needed.
Blessings. Count your blessings not your problems,
Forgiveness. Forgiving yourself and others will set you free from the stress that holding grudges cause.
Spontaneity. Practicing spontaneity once in a while will alleviate the drudgery of routine. and boredom.
Surprises. Cherish surprises in life, they may not be what you expected but it may be what you needed.
Vulnerability. Allow yourself to real, open and authentic. Tear down any emotional brick walls you have built around you and feel every exquisite emotion, both good and bad.
Attitude. Having a good one.
Walking. Take one, it removes cobwebs from the brain.
Music. Enjoy it, it soothes the mind.
Massage. Treat yourself to a full body massage.
Expectation-less. Stop trying to live up to the expectations of other people. No matter how much progress you make there will always be the people who insist that whatever you’ve achieved you could have done more.
Giving. Be a giving person not a taking person.
Godly. Be a godly person instead of a religious person.
Praise. Be a praiser not a complainer.
A small dose of stress that gives you a burst of energy is helpful.
However, stress in unhealthy doses is a energy zapper, a mind fogger, a body stopper, a peace snapper and a enjoyment blocker.
Stress is a part of living, learn to manage it by adapting the stress reliefs suggested above and it’s always wise to plow your anger and frustration into something positive. One thing is for sure: Regardless of the situation, life goes on.
Rest. Do not over stress your body because it will over stress your mind and cause frustration which will add to your stress. Listen to your body, treat it well and give it rest when needed.
Blessings. Count your blessings not your problems,
Forgiveness. Forgiving yourself and others will set you free from the stress that holding grudges cause.
Spontaneity. Practicing spontaneity once in a while will alleviate the drudgery of routine. and boredom.
Surprises. Cherish surprises in life, they may not be what you expected but it may be what you needed.
Vulnerability. Allow yourself to real, open and authentic. Tear down any emotional brick walls you have built around you and feel every exquisite emotion, both good and bad.
Attitude. Having a good one.
Walking. Take one, it removes cobwebs from the brain.
Music. Enjoy it, it soothes the mind.
Massage. Treat yourself to a full body massage.
Expectation-less. Stop trying to live up to the expectations of other people. No matter how much progress you make there will always be the people who insist that whatever you’ve achieved you could have done more.
Giving. Be a giving person not a taking person.
Godly. Be a godly person instead of a religious person.
Praise. Be a praiser not a complainer.
A small dose of stress that gives you a burst of energy is helpful.
However, stress in unhealthy doses is a energy zapper, a mind fogger, a body stopper, a peace snapper and a enjoyment blocker.
Stress is a part of living, learn to manage it by adapting the stress reliefs suggested above and it’s always wise to plow your anger and frustration into something positive. One thing is for sure: Regardless of the situation, life goes on.
Walking With Jesus From Incarnation to Ascension - Activity of God Before Creation - Day 03
- Under the Waterfall writes........
"In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God, and the Word was God. He was in the beginning with God." John 1:1
As I take this walk with Jesus from Incarnation to Ascension, I see that this story of Jesus starts before the Incarnation, even before the creation itself! For Jesus is the Word, the original thought of God, the perfect expression of Him, existing before creation, before time itself!
What was God doing before creation and time? I imagine what that was like, that ‘time’ outside time and that ‘space’ outside space, where all just IS, where God is and is I AM, present tense…the God who IS! And I think of how God is Love, love defines Him, He is the definition of love..pure love, infinite love, love with no shadows or dark sides…love with no harsh element..love with nothing withheld, a love that is completely transparent, self-giving, open…And I think of how God is there before creation in a circle of fellowship and love, all the members of the Trinity loving and sharing with each other. And I imagine God thinking of creating beings to share in this love circle, this happy fellowship, and I realize that I am on His mind! When He was in fellowship in that loving Tri-union, I was on His mind..When He was thinking of beings to share love with, I was on His mind..When He was thinking of creating the universe and tangible realm as a gift to them, an environment where His love could be shared and between those beings – us! – and Himself, I was on His mind…When He went ahead and chose and loved us, I was on His mind…When He called us by His own family name, called us His children, I was on His mind…When He knew He would do anything for us, these children of His, even to the point of Jesus’ giving up all for us to rescue us from the trap and ruin of living in a false identity, I was on His mind…When He planned for us to rule with Him, I was on His mind..on His mind, in His heart, and actually existing in Him in that eternal, Spirit realm! Already there in loving union with Him in the eternal heavenly realms! Wow!
Back in the time before time, the space outside space, where everything just IS, where God is I AM, I was there, hidden in Christ, snuggled into my Daddy’s arms! This place is a place of total innocence, where I have never seen what right or wrong is, where I have never been hurt and never will be, where I have never had an evil thought and never will, where there is no battle, no striving, and of course no separation from this Father who is Love..in this place all needs are satisfied and I am full, whole, complete, safe, warm, enjoyed, celebrated, adored, loved by my Daddy! That is the real me, my spirit identity that has existed even from before time and creation, wow! And through all the years on this earth, through all the turmoil and confusion, through all the feelings of aloneness, I have been there in His arms! And that is where I will always be, forever and ever!
God is a unity of Love, and He loved us before there ever was a world! Back before He planned time and creation, He had us in His mind and in His heart, and that’s where we always always ARE, yesterday, today and forever!
"In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God, and the Word was God. He was in the beginning with God." John 1:1
As I take this walk with Jesus from Incarnation to Ascension, I see that this story of Jesus starts before the Incarnation, even before the creation itself! For Jesus is the Word, the original thought of God, the perfect expression of Him, existing before creation, before time itself!
What was God doing before creation and time? I imagine what that was like, that ‘time’ outside time and that ‘space’ outside space, where all just IS, where God is and is I AM, present tense…the God who IS! And I think of how God is Love, love defines Him, He is the definition of love..pure love, infinite love, love with no shadows or dark sides…love with no harsh element..love with nothing withheld, a love that is completely transparent, self-giving, open…And I think of how God is there before creation in a circle of fellowship and love, all the members of the Trinity loving and sharing with each other. And I imagine God thinking of creating beings to share in this love circle, this happy fellowship, and I realize that I am on His mind! When He was in fellowship in that loving Tri-union, I was on His mind..When He was thinking of beings to share love with, I was on His mind..When He was thinking of creating the universe and tangible realm as a gift to them, an environment where His love could be shared and between those beings – us! – and Himself, I was on His mind…When He went ahead and chose and loved us, I was on His mind…When He called us by His own family name, called us His children, I was on His mind…When He knew He would do anything for us, these children of His, even to the point of Jesus’ giving up all for us to rescue us from the trap and ruin of living in a false identity, I was on His mind…When He planned for us to rule with Him, I was on His mind..on His mind, in His heart, and actually existing in Him in that eternal, Spirit realm! Already there in loving union with Him in the eternal heavenly realms! Wow!
Back in the time before time, the space outside space, where everything just IS, where God is I AM, I was there, hidden in Christ, snuggled into my Daddy’s arms! This place is a place of total innocence, where I have never seen what right or wrong is, where I have never been hurt and never will be, where I have never had an evil thought and never will, where there is no battle, no striving, and of course no separation from this Father who is Love..in this place all needs are satisfied and I am full, whole, complete, safe, warm, enjoyed, celebrated, adored, loved by my Daddy! That is the real me, my spirit identity that has existed even from before time and creation, wow! And through all the years on this earth, through all the turmoil and confusion, through all the feelings of aloneness, I have been there in His arms! And that is where I will always be, forever and ever!
God is a unity of Love, and He loved us before there ever was a world! Back before He planned time and creation, He had us in His mind and in His heart, and that’s where we always always ARE, yesterday, today and forever!
Walking With Jesus From Incarnation to Ascension - Understanding the Bible - Day 02
Under the Waterfall Writes......
"....He has spoken to us by
his Son, whom he appointed heir
of all things, and through whom
he made the universe. The Son is the radiance of God's glory
and the exact representation of his being,
sustaining all things
by his powerful word." Heb. 1:2-3
Walking with Jesus through His finished work, I will be looking at different scriptures and know I need to see them in a proper perspective. So what is that perspective? There is something deeper to understand than just words on a page. The Word isn't a book, really, is it? The Bible itself tells us that Jesus is the Word! What does that mean? What does it mean to see the scriptures through the lens of Jesus BEING the Word? I think it means He reveals Himself through the Bible, that He is the ultimate and original Word or thought of God! Jesus is the perfect expression of God and God's thoughts, "the exact representation of His being!" We can read the words of scripture and encounter THE Word of God, Jesus, there!
I feel like there is so much about the scriptures I don’t understand. I seem to have interpreted so much of the scriptures through ‘performance’ lenses for so long, that some parts I just have to set aside for now and realize that eventually God will make all clear and show me how to see those passages through His ‘grace’ lenses, which really means seeing all of scripture through Jesus and His finished work! Wow, that gets me excited! Just thinking of how we began, not in our mother’s womb, but in God, in His thoughts, in His mind, in the Word or logic of God, in Christ Himself! We are of Him, and so we are like Him! These truths are so new to me that I can barely grasp them…but how wonderful to rest in His knowledge about me..
A couple of days ago I shared the quote from Francois du Toit with a friend, that it’s all about Jesus, and Jesus is all about us. My friend replied, ‘But that makes us God!’ I didn’t know how to answer at the time, but the more I think about it, the more I realize the powerful truth behind my friend’s reaction, for the statement shows, not that we are God Himself, but at least God-like, for we are in the image of the very God of the universe, and Christ is like a mirror showing us how very God-like we are! It makes my heart sing to think of it!
All my life I have struggled with low self-esteem, feeling unworthy as a person, dealing with lots of shame. But now, I find that the deepest part of me is not bad and sinful as I had learned all my life, but instead in God’s image, like Christ, and thus very good and beautiful, pleasing to God and of infinite worth! Who can put a value on Christ? And yet, the scriptures are all pointing to Him, and to the fact that not only is He IN us but that He is an example OF us! So we, too, are of infinite value…We too are lovely and whole and good…We too are a delight to the Father…We too are wrapped in beauty eternal, wrapped in love, wrapped in God Himself, intertwined with Him in union down in the depths of our being, for that is how we were actually existing long ‘before’ time began, existing as love dreams in the Father’s heart!
That’s my true home, that’s my true essence, and even though I don’t fully understand many scripture passages, He is showing me that the written words point to a much greater reality than I ever imagined: Christ in me, representing me, mirroring my true, good, perfect, in-union-with God identity! It is such a relief to see myself and everyone else as basically good people, children of God who have simply believed a lie about themselves for far too long! The scriptures address that, too, for they not only point to Christ and our beginning in Him, but also to the wonderful way He freed us from the lies of the enemy that have confused us for too long and kept us trapped in a belief that we were inferior, shameful, sinful, ugly and far from God.
I am so glad to wake up in the morning and know that I am complete in Him, I am His very good girl, I am loved and close to Him and don’t need to ‘do’ a thing to make all that so, for it is already so. It has always been so, and Christ came to free my mind to see and believe and live in that reality. (Just writing those words almost seems heretical, because it seems too good to be true, and yet I am finding my heart leaping forth and believing these new ideas!)
So that is my understanding of how to read the scriptures – not as a book of ‘how to’ get to perfection before God but as a book revealing Christ, the perfection of God, who shows me who I am and where I come from and makes me able to live in that reality – that I am His perfect child already, originating in His thoughts of love, ready to share this love with the world so they too can awaken to the truth!
Walking with Jesus through His finished work, I will be looking at different scriptures and know I need to see them in a proper perspective. So what is that perspective? There is something deeper to understand than just words on a page. The Word isn't a book, really, is it? The Bible itself tells us that Jesus is the Word! What does that mean? What does it mean to see the scriptures through the lens of Jesus BEING the Word? I think it means He reveals Himself through the Bible, that He is the ultimate and original Word or thought of God! Jesus is the perfect expression of God and God's thoughts, "the exact representation of His being!" We can read the words of scripture and encounter THE Word of God, Jesus, there!
I feel like there is so much about the scriptures I don’t understand. I seem to have interpreted so much of the scriptures through ‘performance’ lenses for so long, that some parts I just have to set aside for now and realize that eventually God will make all clear and show me how to see those passages through His ‘grace’ lenses, which really means seeing all of scripture through Jesus and His finished work! Wow, that gets me excited! Just thinking of how we began, not in our mother’s womb, but in God, in His thoughts, in His mind, in the Word or logic of God, in Christ Himself! We are of Him, and so we are like Him! These truths are so new to me that I can barely grasp them…but how wonderful to rest in His knowledge about me..
A couple of days ago I shared the quote from Francois du Toit with a friend, that it’s all about Jesus, and Jesus is all about us. My friend replied, ‘But that makes us God!’ I didn’t know how to answer at the time, but the more I think about it, the more I realize the powerful truth behind my friend’s reaction, for the statement shows, not that we are God Himself, but at least God-like, for we are in the image of the very God of the universe, and Christ is like a mirror showing us how very God-like we are! It makes my heart sing to think of it!
All my life I have struggled with low self-esteem, feeling unworthy as a person, dealing with lots of shame. But now, I find that the deepest part of me is not bad and sinful as I had learned all my life, but instead in God’s image, like Christ, and thus very good and beautiful, pleasing to God and of infinite worth! Who can put a value on Christ? And yet, the scriptures are all pointing to Him, and to the fact that not only is He IN us but that He is an example OF us! So we, too, are of infinite value…We too are lovely and whole and good…We too are a delight to the Father…We too are wrapped in beauty eternal, wrapped in love, wrapped in God Himself, intertwined with Him in union down in the depths of our being, for that is how we were actually existing long ‘before’ time began, existing as love dreams in the Father’s heart!
That’s my true home, that’s my true essence, and even though I don’t fully understand many scripture passages, He is showing me that the written words point to a much greater reality than I ever imagined: Christ in me, representing me, mirroring my true, good, perfect, in-union-with God identity! It is such a relief to see myself and everyone else as basically good people, children of God who have simply believed a lie about themselves for far too long! The scriptures address that, too, for they not only point to Christ and our beginning in Him, but also to the wonderful way He freed us from the lies of the enemy that have confused us for too long and kept us trapped in a belief that we were inferior, shameful, sinful, ugly and far from God.
I am so glad to wake up in the morning and know that I am complete in Him, I am His very good girl, I am loved and close to Him and don’t need to ‘do’ a thing to make all that so, for it is already so. It has always been so, and Christ came to free my mind to see and believe and live in that reality. (Just writing those words almost seems heretical, because it seems too good to be true, and yet I am finding my heart leaping forth and believing these new ideas!)
So that is my understanding of how to read the scriptures – not as a book of ‘how to’ get to perfection before God but as a book revealing Christ, the perfection of God, who shows me who I am and where I come from and makes me able to live in that reality – that I am His perfect child already, originating in His thoughts of love, ready to share this love with the world so they too can awaken to the truth!
Thursday, January 16, 2014
Thorn Birds
Colleen McCullough's
best-selling novel The Thorn Birds begins with the legend of a bird that sings
only once in its life-and it sings more sweetly than any other creature on the
face of the earth. From the moment the bird leaves her nest, she searches for a
thorn tree, refusing to rest until she has found one. Then singing among the
savage branches, she impales herself upon the longest and sharpest thorn. And
dying, she rises above her own agony to out-carol, out-sing the lark and the
nightingale.
A superlative
song-existence the price.
The whole world stills
to listen and the Abba of Jesus smiles, for the best is bought at the price of
great pain.
At
this moment in my own personal legend, martyrdom does not seem to require
marching to the lions for Christ or bringing Him to Zaire or Nicaragua as a
missionary. The call I hear deep within me is to reveal His forgiving love to
those who have trespassed against me. It costs a lot to pray, "Thy will be
done" - death to the old man, overcoming grudges and long-standing resentments, transcending bitter memories and justifiable hostilities, reaching out
in reconciliation to those who have turned me down, ripped me off, and screwed
me up.
Maybe this is why the
only four times that "Thy will be done" occurs in the New Testament
is in the context of martyrdom. The older I get, the more I realize the truth
of the adage "It's easier to die for Christ than to live for Him."
Lord, deliver me from
self-righteous people. Deliver me from people who think they know you better
than anyone else. Who think that only they can understand your ways. Who think
that only they can interpret your word. Who wail and gnash their teeth over the
sins of the world, but fail to see their own.
Who urge others to
meekness and humility, but fail to follow their own advice.
Who
expound at length on charity but fail to practice it. Who preach mercy and
compassion, but fail to show it. Who insist that they alone hold the key that
unlocks the door to your kingdom. Who insist that they alone have found the
sure path by which to follow you.
Lord, deliver me from
myself. I, too, am one of these.
- Brennan Manning
Forgiveness Again
The proof par excellence of the Christian who has experienced God's
unbearable forgiveness and infinite patience is that he is able to be forgiving
and patient with others. Whatever other gifts he may possess, this sign given
by Jesus stamps his life as being "in the Spirit."
The author Francis
MacNutt said, "If the Lord Jesus Christ has washed you in His own blood
and forgiven you all your sins, how dare you refuse to forgive yourself?"
Self-hatred is a sin. Anything that causes division in the body of Christ is
sinful. When I am divided within myself, when I am so preoccupied with my own
sins, egocentricity, and moral failures that I cannot hear the anguished cry of
others, then I have subtly reestablished self as the center of my focus and
concern. Biblically, that is idolatry.
Recently a man
approached me in the terminal of the Kansas City International Airport and
asked, "Father, may I go to confession?" He began by revealing that he
was a priest. Then, broken with grief, he spoke of his twelve-year estrangement
from God, his life of drinking, debauchery, hypocrisy, self-hatred. The tears
rolled down his cheeks. His confession was heavy, heavy, heavy. Midway through,
I reached out and embraced him, crying, "Stop, for God's sake, stop. No
more. He sees your heart and understands. All your sins are forgiven. Be at
peace and don't sin anymore." With both of us in tears, I asked him to
pray Psalm 116 in thanksgiving, gave him absolution, and departed. Sitting on
the plane en route to Des Moines, I asked myself, "Brennan, would you do
for yourself what you just did for your brother?" Then I heard the words
of priest/psychologist Adrian van Kaam as if for the first time: "Gentleness
towards my precious, fragile self as called forth uniquely by God constitutes
the core of my gentleness with others and is the main condition for my presence
to God."
- Brennan Manning
Forgiveness
Forgive us our trespasses as we forgive those who trespass against
us."
This petition in the
Lord's Prayer is preceded by the prayer "Thy will be done." The will
of our heavenly Father is that we forgive even as we are forgiven, that we be
generous with others as God is with us.
There is considerable
discussion in the church today about what it means to be charismatic or Spirit
filled. Sometimes the remark "He is in the Spirit" implies that he
prays in tongues or gives powerful prophecies or inspirational homilies or
possesses the gift of healing. The only sign I know given by Jesus that a
person is filled with the Holy Spirit is found in Matthew 5:
You have heard the commandment, "You shall love your countryman but hate your enemy." My command to you is this: love your enemies, pray for your persecutors. This will prove that you are children of your heavenly Father, for his sun rises on the bad and the good, he rains on the just and the unjust. (verses 43-45, emphasis added)
- Brennan Manning
Second Summons
For twenty-two years I have been trying to make my Christian identity the
most important enterprise of my life. The old saw "Tell me how you
distribute your time and your money, and I'll tell you who you are" gives
me a guarded assurance that I have not been deceiving myself. Despite moments
of weakness, obvious imperfections, moral relapses, and moments of selfishness,
the overall tenor of my life has been fidelity to the truth as I understand it.
Jesus Christ is the
truth for me. His Word influences my judgment, affects the decisions I make and
the ones I refuse to make. His truth has helped me determine what is central in
life and what is secondary, what is important and less important, what is
crucial and what is marginal, fringe, peripheral. But is He real? Have I been
"carrying coals to Newcastle"? Does rhetoric match reality? I have
one life to live, and I want to live it to the hilt. Am I overcome by routine,
perfunctory prayers, the ordinariness of life, by daily duties done over and
over again? I trundle off to the desert to reexamine the direction of my life.
And the Lord summons me
a second time. In the chastening solitude of the Pennsylvania hills, He extends
a second invitation: "I want you to accept My Father's love." I
answered, "But I know that. It's old hat. I've come up to this deserted
place seeking new insight. I'm in a fit of fervor, red-hot, wide open. I'll
listen to anything You have to say. Go ahead, Lord, dazzle me. Lay a new word
on me. I know the old one."
And
He answers, "That's just what you don't know-the old one. You have no idea
of how much I love you. The moment you think you understand is the moment that
you do not understand. I am God, not man. You travel the world telling others
about Me-that I am a loving God. Your words are glib. How readily they roll off
your tongue. My words are written in the blood of My only Son. The next time
you preach of My life with such obnoxious familiarity, I may come and blow your
prayer meeting apart. When you come at Me with your pedantic professionalism, I
will expose you as a rank amateur. When you try to persuade others that you
understand what you are talking about, I will reduce you to silence and hurl
you flat on your face! You claim that you know that I love you. Then gird your
loins like a man. Now I will question you, and you tell Me the answers.
"Do you know that
every time you tell Me you love Me, I say thank you?
"When a fear-filled child comes to you in the darkness of a thunderstorm and asks with tear-streaked face, `Are you still here? Will you stay with me until it's light? Are you disgusted with me because I'm little and afraid? Are you going to give me away?' and you are grieved and saddened over the child's lack of trust, do you realize that you do the same thing to Me? Or don't you believe that I am at least as sensitive a father as you?
- Brennan Manning
You Do Unto Me
Carl Jung, the great psychiatrist, once reflected that we are all
familiar with these words of Jesus: "Whatever you do to the least of my
brethren, that you do unto me" (Matthew 25:40). Then Jung asked a very
probing question: "What if you discovered that the least of the brethren
of Jesus, the one who needs your love the most, the one you can help the most
by loving, the one to whom your love will be most meaningful-what if you
discovered that this least of the brethren of Jesus ... is you?"
Then
do for yourself what you would do for others. And that wholesome self-love that
Jesus enjoined when He said, "Love your neighbor as yourself," might
begin with the simple acknowledgment, "What is the story of my priesthood?
It is the story of an unfaithful man through whom God continues to work!"
That word is not only consoling; it is freeing, especially for those of us
caught up in the oppression of thinking that God can work only through saints.
What a word of healing, forgiveness, and comfort it is for many of us priests
who have discovered that we are earthen vessels who fulfill Jesus' prophecy:
"I tell you solemnly, this day, this night, before the cock crows twice,
you will have disowned me three times."
- Brennan Manning
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