Posted: September 22nd, 2011 |
Filed under: God, life | Tags: Bible study |
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This is the fourth in a series of word studies that I am doing to try to reveal the best explanation of a specific scripture.
For it is impossible, in the case of those who have once been enlightened, who have tasted the heavenly gift, and have shared in the Holy Spirit, and have tasted the goodness of the word of God and the powers of the age to come, and then have fallen away, to restore them again to repentance, since they are crucifying once again the Son of God to their own harm and holding him up to contempt. - Hebrews 6:4-6
What does it mean to have ‘tasted the goodness of the word of God”?
The three previous posts in this study are starting to fold in together and combine into a message that spells out the ‘goodness of the word of God.” When you have been ‘enlightened’, you have tasted. When you have ‘tasted the heavenly gift’, you have tasted the ‘goodness’. When you have shared in the ‘Holy Spirit’, you have tasted. All of these things offer hope and that hope is in ‘the powers of the age to come.’
Instead of rewriting what I have already written, I will illustrate the combined meaning with a strange love story. This love story was written in the Bible to illustrate what God’s love is like for you. God is Hosea and you are Gomer.
When Hosea married Gomer, he knew she was a slut. He didn’t marry her for some sexually twisted purpose; he married her because he loved her. God put them together. Maybe, in her own way, she loved him, too. They began their lives, had babies, and everything seemed to be normal until Gomer started slipping away again.
She wore jewelry that she didn’t get from him. She washed filthy lingerie that he never saw her wear. The scent of her perfume was tainted with the scent of another man’s lust. Hosea’s heart was raked across a shredder every time she flipped her hair and laughed her drunk laugh.
He knew Gomer wouldn’t listen to him, not like a wife. Her hips weren’t his. She wouldn’t be moved by witnessing his pain, not like he was her husband. It was somebody else’s breath that was on her. But, maybe she would listen to her children…
“Plead with your mother, plead—for she is not my wife, and I am not her husband—that she put away her whoring from her face, and her adultery from between her breasts; lest I strip her naked and make her as in the day she was born…” -Hosea 2:2-3
Gomer smirked at the threats.
‘I will go after my lovers, who give me my bread and my water, my wool and my flax, my oil and my drink.’ -Hosea 2:5
Hosea was a joke to her, but there was something she didn’t know.
It was Hosea that bought the jewelry that other men gave her. It was he who paid for the lingerie that other men removed. It was his wine that left her drunk and naked in another man’s bed.
“And she did not know that it was I who gave her the grain, the wine, and the oil, and who lavished on her silver and gold…” -Hosea 2:8
Why would he do that? Why would he slip gold into the hands of another man who would just use them to use her? It was because he was setting her up. He was giving her something to lose and, when the time came for her to see the whole truth, she would know that there was nothing she could do that would make him not love her. She thought she had secrets, but she was the one who was in the dark. He loved her so much, that he told the other men how to love her the way she wanted. He laid down his life for her and let her betray him so that when she lost her life, she would only have one place to go: back to him.
Therefore I will take back my grain in its time, and my wine in its season, and I will take away my wool and my flax, which were to cover her nakedness. Now I will uncover her lewdness in the sight of her lovers, and no one shall rescue her out of my hand. -Hosea 2:9-10
Hosea waited until she was high on herself, and then he took his provision away and let her fall. He let her suffer the shame and embarrassment of no longer being wanted. She saw herself as she really was. Used goods. Naked with no way to wash off the smell of lust and no fresh change of clothes for her walk home. She had to take the walk of shame and feel the hangover of the many nights before.
This is exactly where he wanted her. Smudged mascara, wrinkled dress, twisted underwear, and hangover breath. Yesterday’s hair, chipped nails, walking barefoot along the sidewalk because she couldn’t find her other shoe. A whore’s morning wilderness.
And there, says Hosea, “Therefore, behold, I will allure her,…And there she shall answer as in the days of her youth,” (Hosea 2:14, 15)
Hosea took her un-showered and showered her with his love because that was the only way she could really believe it. If she argued, ‘Don’t touch me. I’m dirty.’ He would respond, ‘If I touch you while you’re dirty, you will never doubt my love.’
He made a promise to her, “I will abolish the bow, the sword, and war from the land, and I will make you lie down in safety. And I will betroth you to me forever. I will betroth you to me in righteousness and in justice, in steadfast love and in mercy. I will betroth you to me in faithfulness. And you shall know…” (Hosea 2:18-20)
And she responded, “My husband.” (Hosea 2:16)
When God finally has you, and you are finally grasping His love, you can practically see Him lift His head to the heavens and yell, “I love her!” And the heavens will tell the earth, “He loves her!” and the earth will tell the grain, “He loves her!” and the grain will tell the wine, “He loves her!” and the wine will tell the oil, “He loves her!” (Hosea 2:21-22)
“…and I will sow her for myself in the land. And I will have mercy on No Mercy, and I will say to Not My People, ’You are my people’; and he shall say, ‘You are my God.’” -Hosea 2:23
When you have ‘tasted the goodness of the word of God and the powers of the age to come, then everything you see, everything you drink, everything you touch, will scream, “He loves you!”
“…if indeed you have tasted that the Lord is good” then you are “a living stone rejected by men but in the sight of God chosen and precious,” (1 Peter 2:3-4)
The story between you and God is a strange love story. It’s designed to grab you when you have no where else to turn and adorn you when you least deserve it. ‘Rejected’ by everyone else while being called ‘chosen and precious’ by Him.
Posted: September 21st, 2011 |
Filed under: God, life | Tags: Bible study |
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This is the third in a series of word studies that I am doing to try to reveal the best explanation of a specific scripture.
For it is impossible, in the case of those who have once been enlightened, who have tasted the heavenly gift, and have shared in the Holy Spirit, and have tasted the goodness of the word of God and the powers of the age to come, and then have fallen away, to restore them again to repentance, since they are crucifying once again the Son of God to their own harm and holding him up to contempt. - Hebrews 6:4-6
What is “sharing in the Holy Spirit” like?
This can be understood better by examining the contrast between Spirit and flesh.
The Holy Spirit marks you with the seal labeled “perfect” because of the grace of Jesus. Alternately, the flesh looks to better itself by its own works. (Vines)
Galatians 4 uses Abraham’s illegitimate son, Ishmael, and his legitimate son, Isaac, as examples of the contriving of the ‘flesh’ versus the gift of the ‘Spirit.’ The reason why these two are good examples is because Ishmael was conceived out of a ‘works’ or ‘flesh’ based faith and Isaac was conceived as a God-promised gift to a woman who could never conceive on her own.
But just as at that time he who was born according to the flesh persecuted him who was born according to the Spirit so also it is now. –Galatians 4:29 (this scripture references Ishmael laughing at Isaac in Gen 21:9)
“Persecuted” can mean a lot of things, but in this example in scripture it means that the one who is more about ‘works’ mocks the one who is more about ‘grace’.
For the desires of the flesh are against the Spirit, and the desires of the Spirit are against the flesh, for these are opposed to each other, to keep you from doing the things you want to do. But if you are led by the Spirit, you are not under the law. –Galatians 5:17-18
This scripture can be explained by Paul’s flesh vs. spirit dilemma in Romans 7. Paul wanted to do good, but had nothing good in him, so he was unable. He didn’t want to make bad choices, but he still did. His ‘flesh’ kept him from “doing the things [he] want[ed] to do”. The relief from the tug-of-war is found in the last sentence: “But if you are led by the Spirit, you are not under the law.”
In the same way a ‘do not touch’ sign on a table makes you want to touch the table, the law makes you more rebellious than you would be without it.
What then shall we say? That the law is sin? By no means! Yet if it had not been for the law, I would not have known sin. For I would not have known what it is to covet if the law had not said, “You shall not covet.” But sin, seizing an opportunity through the commandment, produced in me all kinds of covetousness. For apart from the law, sin lies dead. –Romans 7:7-8
If you have freedom to touch the table, you probably wouldn’t even think about touching it. Freedom brings out your ‘Spirit’ nature the same way the law brings out your ‘flesh’ nature.
For the law of the Spirit of life has set you free in Christ Jesus from the law of sin and death. –Romans 8:2
The minute you start focusing on all the things you should not do, they become more enticing and you build your life in a way to avoid them. It looks noble, no doubt, but those who do this fail to notice that sin is their ‘true north’ and they build their lives according to it. When you try to avoid sin, it is sin that is guiding you.
Think of it like a predator that you do not want near your home. You find out where the predator lives and you build your home far away from it. If the predator moves, you move. It’s a life of fear that keeps its eyes on the enemy as a way of self-preservation.
If your eye is on the predator and his moves dictate your moves, then he is controlling you. Living in the spirit means that you do not have to live in fear, you can live where you want or where you’re lead, because the predator is no longer a threat. You are not ‘led’ by avoidance. More often than not, the Holy Spirit will lead you to a place where you cannot, without it, survive.
In trying to do right, you become wrong because your focus is on the sin, not on God. You’re relying on your ability, not the Spirit. It’s very backward and hard to grasp, but it’s the truth. This is a ‘narrow path’… remember? It’s not ‘narrow’ in they way it is typically understood. It’s narrow because you have to rely on faith (spirit) and not yourself (flesh).
A man is told that, in order to walk in the Spirit, he must walk across a tightrope to get to the other side of a huge ravine. He surveys the task and finds it to be impossible. So, he gathers some equipment to secure him to the rope in case he falls. He’s strong, he’s smart, and he’s resourceful. He puts on gloves to protect his hands, he makes sure his equipment is working properly, and he begins his journey along the rope. Once he’s on the other side, he is blindsided by what he learned. It’s not about the rope, it’s not about crossing the rope, and it’s not about the destination. It’s about who his faith was in. He relied on himself to make it, and though he traveled the path, he failed.
You can argue that God gave him the equipment to do it himself, but that’s not how walking in the Spirit works. Ishmael was born because Abraham had the ability to conceive him, but that was flesh. Peter walked on water without the use of anything but faith. As soon as he realized what he was doing, he started to sink.
You are not righteous because you are moral. As soon as you become aware of your morality, you start to sink.
Anything that you can take credit for is all you. You can say that you give credit to God, but that’s the argument of Sarah. God promised Abraham that his offspring would be a nation, but Sarah couldn’t have children, so she took it into her own hands and had Abraham sleep with her servant, Hagar. Why Abraham took the chance to sleep with another woman and didn’t argue with her is between him and God and that is exactly what Sarah said to him. “May the Lord judge between you and me!” (Gen17:5) Sarah was desperate to fulfill God’s purpose for her family, but her ‘flesh’ trumped her faith and she immediately regretted it.
“Sharing in the Holy Spirit” is when you know, without question, that you were a part of something that had nothing to do with your ability.
hagar, abraham, ... and sarah.
Below are some suggestions for discussions:
- What are some other examples of the spirit vs. flesh? (Mary and Martha?…)
- Sarah was looked upon in “contempt” by Hagar. (Gen16:5) The Bible uses this as an example of flesh vs. spirit. (Gal4:29) Have you every been treated as ‘less than’ because of your view of grace? How would you encourage someone who has?
Posted: September 20th, 2011 |
Filed under: God, life | Tags: Bible study, personal |
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This is the second in a series of word studies that I am doing to try to reveal the best explanation of a specific scripture.
For it is impossible, in the case of those who have once been enlightened, who have tasted the heavenly gift, and have shared in the Holy Spirit, and have tasted the goodness of the word of God and the powers of the age to come, and then have fallen away, to restore them again to repentance, since they are crucifying once again the Son of God to their own harm and holding him up to contempt. - Hebrews 6:4-6
What is “the heavenly gift”?
Life, grace, righteousness (Vines)
And the free gift is not like the result of that one man’s sin. For the judgment following one trespass brought condemnation, but the free gift following many trespasses brought justification. For if, because of one man’s trespass, death reigned through that one man, much more will those who receive the abundance of grace and the free gift of righteousness reign in life through the one man Jesus Christ. -Romans 5:16-17
Once again, scripture shows that Jesus cancels out Adam’s legacy. Adam brought condemnation. Jesus brought justification.
It’s depressing to me that people find it easier to believe in an angry God than a God of mercy. People find it easier to accept defeat than to believe in victory. The problem is that they can’t get over their relationship to the Law.
For God has done what the law, weakened by the flesh, could not do. –Romans 8:3
The sting of death is sin, and the power of sin is the law. -1 Corinthians 15:56
Think of it like an abusive ex who was a good person until alcohol made him or her a terrorist. The fear-laced memory of the former is stealing your ability to be loved and accepted by anyone new.
It’s hard to accept a gift if you don’t trust the giver. What’s in it for them? And what are they going to require of you if you accept it?
I remember when I was six-years-old and living in a foster home with a couple that couldn’t conceive their own children. I always thought it was why the foster mom didn’t seem to like me. She would point out my flaws and had an uncanny knack for making me feel ashamed of myself for being me.
I was the only child in the house and used to sit in front of the mirror and pretend I had a friend. I would stare at my features trying to figure myself out. I had a hard time feeling real. Sometimes I would try to see my real mom in my face. But, most of the time I would stare at my body and wonder what made me unwanted.
When I would catch her watching me, she would tell me that I was “very vain” and walk away. Her words cut through me like a serrated blade and I literally winced.
I still wince.
I tried to be good and to show her that I had manners, but when I called her ‘ma’am’, she grabbed the skin on my throat, tugging me toward her so that we were face-to-face. While pinching my skin so hard that I could feel my heart beat in my neck, she gritted her teeth and told me that I was never to call her ‘ma’am.’
I wanted to give her gifts for Christmas, but had no money, so I went in my room and looked for something she might like. My real mom was a gypsy, and every time I got taken away from her she would give me pieces of her jewelry so that I would be connected to her. I went into my room and found one of my mother’s rings. I never would have given it away if I didn’t think it would make my foster mom love me.
I didn’t have a box, but wanted it to be safe, so I hid it in a wad of soft toilet paper. Then I sneaked a scrap of wrapping paper and some tape.
When I placed the gift under the tree, the foster mom went over and picked it up. I could tell I was about to be in trouble, but I knew that when she opened it she would be impressed. It was a piece of my six-year-old heart in that terribly wrapped wad. I suddenly felt ashamed seeing what looked like an odd piece of trash in her hand. Christmas was still a few days away, so it surprised me when she ripped it open. She was so rough with it that the ring fell on the floor.
She bent down to look at it and said, “Serena, you don’t give people your used junk as gifts.” Then she walked away.
I felt small and sick. The foster mom had rejected me and I betrayed my real mom. I picked up the tainted ring, threw it in the bathroom trash, and went to my room because I couldn’t hide my emotions. I felt alone and I wanted my mom back. I thought I was honoring her by throwing it and the memory it would now represent in the trash, but it kept calling out to me in my mother’s voice. I ran to the trash, dug it out, and put it under my pillow so that I could hold it in my hand all night. Cleansed with the sweat of my sticky palm.
I went on to several different foster homes after that. They weren’t all as lonely as that one, but I never did get my fill of love.
I told you all that to tell you that it has always been hard for me to accept love. After I became a Christian, I still felt like a foster child with God. I wasn’t one of His prized possessions. I was a dirty little street kid that He let come around. I felt like He had bonds with others that He didn’t share with me. I felt like He spoke secrets to others that He never told me.
I was still loyal to Him and tried to prove my worth. I wanted Him to love me and I never had to question it if I never did anything wrong. I relied on my conscience to give me a vacant spot on His floor. But, I still felt like an odd piece of trash in a scrap of wrapping paper.
When I sinned my huge, horrible sin, I was told that I was no longer welcome. All of His other kids told me that His love doesn’t reach to the depths of my filth and the decent thing would be to disappear. They honored Him by throwing me away.
I felt small and sick. My shame screamed in my ears and my heartbeat mocked my spirit. I was the rejected betrayer, once again. I was the ring calling out from the trash.
God came running after me. He left everyone in the house and called my name into the night.
God never spoke to me when I was earning my way the way He does now that I am incapable. I find His grace in the clarity of His voice. I find life in what I hear Him say. He never called me righteous until I knew for a fact that I wasn’t.
He held me through my night and cleansed me with the blood in his sticky palm.
That’s ‘the Heavenly gift.’
I only have a couple of photos of myself when I was a child. I have a photocopied picture of myself when I was six, but I ‘X’ed it out when I was little. A forever reminder of my self-worth. This is the closest I could get to my age from the story. It’s a picture of me when I was three.
Below are some suggestions for discussions:
Events in your past affect the way you handle life now. Things that you struggle with in your relationships, even in your own head, have a root. Often times, we make attribute human qualities to God. We limit Him. This makes it hard to trust His love, to accept His ‘heavenly gift’, and believe that He is not judging our worth based on us.
- What do you think God sees when He looks at you?
- Which human qualities are you attributing to God?
Posted: September 19th, 2011 |
Filed under: God | Tags: Bible study |
22 Comments »
This is the first in a series of word studies that I am doing to try to reveal the best explanation of a specific scripture.
I have included a few of the cross-reference scriptures to help understand the word in Biblical context. The scriptures and interpretation are found by reading every scripture where the word is used and by following the cross-references from the original scripture.
For it is impossible, in the case of those who have once been enlightened, who have tasted the heavenly gift, and have shared in the Holy Spirit, and have tasted the goodness of the word of God and the powers of the age to come, and then have fallen away, to restore them again to repentance, since they are crucifying once again the Son of God to their own harm and holding him up to contempt. - Hebrews 6:4-6
What is “enlightened”?
Sight (Vines)
What are we supposed to be seeing?
No longer will there be anything accursed…-Revelation 22:3 (the curse was because of Adam’s sin Gen 3:17)
In the same way that Adam changed everything for the human race, Jesus changed everything for the human race. Jesus reversed what Adam started.
We know this is true, that we are living in a redeemed world, because:
…there shall never again be a decree of utter destruction. -Zechariah 17:11
This plan was carried out when Jesus came:
In his days Judah will be saved, and Israel will dwell securely. And this is the name by which he will be called: ’The LORD is our righteousness.’ - Jeremiah 23:6
He is still ‘our righteousness’ so it is still ‘His days’.
We are supposed to be aware that Jesus changed everything for the human race. If He hadn’t, then we would still be waiting on our Savior. With this in mind, we no longer have to conduct ourselves as though we are one misstep away from ruining everything. He is ‘our righteousness’. What Jesus did steals the power from our failures and sets us free to be innocent by His grace.
Jesus reversed Adam’s sin. Sin no longer has the power.
It’s a hard road for those with weak faith. Even the strong in faith need to die to their ‘selves’ regularly to get this. Paul said that he died to himself daily. What that means is that we literally have to keep the finished work of Jesus active in our minds in order to counteract the way the rest of the world works. In everything else we do, we have to compete and earn our way. In the rest of the world, hardly anybody gets things handed to them. After enough time of trying to perfect your spiritual journey, it gets tiring to never feel like you’re good enough. You have to remember than you never will be. It might take huge stumble to get you to accept that. It did for me.
What you need is assurance that Jesus actually did what He set out to do. Scriptures prove it.
For “God has put all things in subjection under his feet.” - 1 Corinthians 15:27
Absolutely nothing is out of God’s control, jurisdiction, or purpose. Nothing upsets His plans, nothing has the power to knock Him off track. Sin is included in that. It no longer has power. It exists, but is always used for God’s purpose. God’s purpose is for you to know Him. Sin cannot separate you from His love. You can see it as the thing that kicks you out or the thing that reveals your need for Jesus. It’s your choice. You can accept it or reject it, but you can’t change the truth. Accepting the truth changes you.
But to all who did receive him, who believed in his name, he gave the right to become children of God, who were born, not of blood nor of the will of the flesh nor of the will of man, but of God. … And from his fullness we have all received, grace upon grace. For the law was given through Moses; grace and truth came through Jesus Christ. - John 1:12-13, 16-17
You are not a child of God because of your family, you are not a child of God because you want to be, and you are not a child of God because someone else wants you to be. You are a child of God because He chose you. He says you are, so you are. That is grace. ‘Grace upon grace.’ Jesus wiped out all of the proof that you are not good enough. Accepting that is your salvation.
The same is true in reverse:
You are not rejected by God because of your family, you are not rejected by God because you rejected Him, you are not rejected by God because someone else rejects you. You are not rejected by God because God chose you. The law wipes out proof that you are good enough. Rejecting that enslaves you.
When you can ‘see’, or when you have been ‘enlightened’, you know that you cannot ever be ‘good enough’. You have ‘the right’ to be a child of God because of the grace of Jesus. ‘Grace upon grace.’
How much worse punishment, do you think, will be deserved by the one who has spurned the Son of God, and has profaned the blood of the covenant by which he was sanctified, and has outraged the Spirit of grace? …but my righteous one shall live by faith, and if he shrinks back, my soul has no pleasure in him.” – Hebrews 10:29, 38
Not believing earns a worse punishment than those in Moses day received for not obeying the Law. Their punishment was ‘death without mercy’. I have no idea what punishment would be ‘worse’. If you live your life as though what Jesus did were not enough, thereby going back to the Law, you ‘outrage the Spirit of grace’. It is your faith in the finished work of Jesus that sets you right. Your failures are not what displease God. Your inability to accept His gift is what displeases God.
Grace, when taught correctly, seems too good to be true. It sounds too easy. People will hear it, think it should be harder, and shrink away from the simplicity.
It’s not supposed to be hard. The only thing hard about it is letting go of your wealth of good intent and strength in personal ability. This is great news for those who are wrecked with their failures. It’s challenging to those who just want that little extra to top them off.
In summary…
We’re supposed to be seeing that we live in a new existence that was created when Jesus came. We are not in the same existence that became a curse when Adam sinned. Everything is subject to God’s control and nothing is unusable for Him. His view of us is through the vision of His Son. Rejecting this is evidence that somewhere within you, you feel like you can do good enough to not need to rely on the gift of grace from Jesus. That outrages the spirit of grace. God would not have sent His Son if there were any way you could do it on your own. No act is greater worship than to relax your white knuckled grip and let Him take the weight off of your shoulders. Relief is what enlightenment feels like. Hope is what happens next. Worship is just natural.
Below are some suggestions for discussions:
- Do you have a hard time accepting grace?
- What difference would it make in your life if you were to believe that Jesus reversed Adam’s sin? (Would it make you see yourself differently? Would it make you see others differently?)
- What are the implications if this is all true?
- If you have been ‘enlightened’, what is it that made it all click for you?
Posted: September 14th, 2011 |
Filed under: God, life | Tags: grace, purpose |
15 Comments »
“Crisis always reveal a person’s true character.” - Oswald Chambers
It’s completely normal to start panicking when the house of cards falls down. You were so proud of yourself with all that balance and mad skills of engineering and near catastrophe avoidance. Enough success can make anyone hone their slick moves in the dance of ‘Yay!’.
But when the cards fall and the mess is made, we kick the table and remove our party hats. Back to being a ‘nobody’ and questioning our purpose. It’s the moment of failure when you realize that your faith was in yourself and now you don’t know how to get back to the faith that was pure.
The only pure faith is that which is in Jesus and all He is.
For no one can lay a foundation other than that which is laid, which is Jesus Christ.-1 Corinthians 3:11
God sends the storm to show you what you’re made of. He does it on purpose. He’s not trying to crush you, He’s trying to show you where you’re looking. If you’re not looking at Him, you need to know it and this is the best way to do it. All He’s trying to do is get you to see Him, to see your need for Jesus, and to get you to stop relying on how good you are at doing what He called you to do. If you’ve been called to do something, thinking you can do it, He’s going to let you know how incapable you are.
For God has consigned all to disobedience, that he may have mercy on all. -Romans 11:32
He makes sure you know what failure is. He does this so you know His mercy. It’s the only way to get you to stop relying on yourself to be who you’re supposed to be.
…it will be revealed by fire, and the fire will test what sort of work each one has done. -1 Corinthians 3:13
If you’re relying on yourself, then all pieces of ‘you’ that are giving you strength will be burned up. There is nothing like a little dose of humility to keep you strong.
Failure is not proof that you were not or are no longer a Christian. See this is where the revelation of where your faith takes place. Faith in the ability to not fail will be met with the destruction of that faith.
- How do you forgive yourself? See what God is trying to show you.
- How do you ‘love’ the one who failed? See what God is trying to show you and them.
He’s bringing you out of superficial faith in Jesus and making it perfectly clear. Your need for Him and your inadequacy are all revealed while your faith is realigned to where it should be.
If the work that anyone has built on the foundation survives, he will receive a reward. -1 Corinthians 3:14
The reward is that you get to keep what was built right. You get to keep what wasn’t false.
“Everyone then who hears these words of mine and does them will be like a wise man who built his house on the rock. And the rain fell, and the floods came, and the winds blew and beat on that house, but it did not fall, because it had been founded on the rock.” -Jesus in Matthew 7:24-25
The ‘words’ that Jesus is talking about come right before that verse. They are:
- judge the same way you want to be judged (verse 1-2)
- get the chunk of wood out of your own eye so you can see to remove the splinter from someone elses (verse 3-5)
- don’t waist your time on people out for their own gain (verse 6)
- rely on Jesus for what you need to fulfill what He asks (verse 7-11)
- do to others what you want done to you (verse 12)
- get life only from Jesus, not from how great you are (verse 13-14)
- beware of people who preach religion without the grace of Jesus. you know them by their love (verse 15-20 and John 13:34-35)
- be aware that not everybody who claims to know Jesus and does great things in His name are actually known by Him (verse 21-23)
This is what ‘a wise man’ builds his life on. Jesus is the rock. If you build your life of faith on those words, then, when the storms of life come, you will still have something left. That’s your reward.
“And everyone who hears these words of mine and does not do them will be like a foolish man who built his house on the sand. And the rain fell, and the floods came, and the winds blew and beat against that house, and it fell, and great was the fall of it.” -Jesus in Matthew 7:26-27
He’s not concerned with pushing you out, He wants you to get it right. He’s going to strum the strings that are out of tune, not to shame you, but to show you where you need some tuning.
If anyone’s work is burned up, he will suffer loss, though he himself will be saved, but only as through fire. -1 Corinthians 3:15
Failure is an out of tune string. How will you know it’s out of tune unless you play it?
Do you not know that you are God’s temple and that God’s Spirit dwells in you? -1 Corinthians 3:16
He LOVES you! He’s making His home in you. He’s making you able to stand when life tries to knock you down.
If anyone destroys God’s temple, God will destroy him. For God’s temple is holy, and you are that temple.-1 Corinthians 3:17
He won’t let anyone destroy you. He’ll destroy them first. If you condemn another and destroy their faith you become an enemy to God. Remember, faith is not in self, it is in Jesus. Remind them of Jesus, not themselves.
God is the protector of all He owns, ready to fight for you when you’re under attack.
“Sing about a fruitful vineyard: I, the LORD, watch over it; I water it continually. I guard it day and night so that no one may harm it. I am not angry. If only there were briers and thorns confronting me! I would march against them in battle; I would set them all on fire.” -Isaiah 27:2-4 NIV
But, He doesn’t want to fight. He wants you ALL. Both the wise and unwise. The attacked and the attacker. God’s love goes far beyond the mistakes of humans.
“Or else let them come to me for refuge; let them make peace with me, yes, let them make peace with me.” -Isaiah 27:5 NIV
God loves you and because of that, He makes sure that you are not a crippled mess of half-baked religion and misguided faith. Sooner or later, we’ll learn the Truth no matter what we do. Everything is His, everything marked with the stamp of ‘Redemption’. Use your light of faith, your ‘saltiness’ to bring out the God flavors. You belong to Him. Take your lessons and grow into the art of beauty and let love drip from the fruit of your life.
Let no one deceive himself. If anyone among you thinks that he is wise in this age, let him become a fool that he may become wise. For the wisdom of this world is folly with God. For it is written, ”He catches the wise in their craftiness,” and again,”The Lord knows the thoughts of the wise, that they are futile.” So let no one boast in men. For all things are yours, whether …the world or life or death or the present or the future—all are yours, and you are Christ’s, and Christ is God’s. -1 Corinthians 3:18-23
Posted: August 3rd, 2011 |
Filed under: God, life | Tags: grace, purpose |
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“Keep a cool head. Stay alert. The Devil is poised to pounce, and would like nothing better than to catch you napping.” -1 Peter 5:8 MSG
I always thought that scripture was for the non-failures. This warning does no good for those who have already been pounced. But, that’s not how it works. Scripture breathes and it speaks, but it only makes sense when you use the light of the Gospel to see it. These words are meant to speak to you wherever you are. They are true no matter what you do.
You who are cowered in the corner, the directionless zombie, these words are for you, too. There is still hope. You can hear it in the scriptures. People don’t make them mean something, the Gospel does. The Gospel is “all men saved” and “no man left behind.” If you’ve fallen off your wagon, you need to hear these words.
“Keep your guard up.” -1 Peter 5:9 MSG
It’s not too late for you to keep your guard up. Hissing thoughts are attacking the cross and they’ll tell you that you’re finished. Who wins when you believe that? If you’re still alive, then there is still hope. Keep your guard up. Remember Jesus. Remember what he came to do, why he came to do it, and what his last words were. “It is finished.” That means that you are not finished. You are not exempt from the sacrifice.
You don’t get to choose your value. He chose it for you when he spread his arms. Every time he could have cried out for angelic rescue, he held his tongue because of you.
“You’re not the only ones plunged into these hard times. It’s the same with Christians all over the world.” -1 Peter 5:9 MSG
There is purpose for the pain. Something is dying in you and it is supposed to die. Think about what it is that you miss. Your good name? You have a new name. You have to let go of the old to accept the new. What better way to get you to let go of your old than to have it tarnished with your human nature? Your track record? Your track record was keeping you from relying on grace. It’s grace that saves, not your ability to always choose right. What better way to get you to rely on grace than to show you that you are unreliable? We all have to go through the process of losing ourselves to find real life. “It’s the same with Christians all over the world.” You believe something false when you don’t believe that God still wants you. This has to change and you’re in the middle of it.
“So keep a firm grip on the faith.” -1 Peter 5:9 MSG
Jesus is the center of that faith. Do you believe what he did? I know it’s hard to believe that he did it for you because you feel so unworthy, but that’s the point. You are exactly who he knew you were. You haven’t deceived him, you’ve only deceived yourself. You thought you were better than this and the truth has been the truth the whole time, you just didn’t know it. You’ve never been better than this and that is why he came. Why else would such extreme measures be taken by the God who created you? Life is a process of growing and pruning, pain and healing. He cuts you back to the basics of faith so that you don’t get caught up in yourself and lose him. You were further from him in all your sparkly goodness than you are right now in all your brokenness. The Gospel is good news to sinners. The key to salvation is belief. That’s where you are right now. You may have grown up with faith talk, but this is different. This is real. You know it’s real because the pain drowns out everything else. It’s the deathbed realization. Priorities get realigned in tragedy.
“The suffering won’t last forever.” -1 Peter 5:10 MSG
He knows you are suffering, but he’s telling you that it won’t last forever. He never said it wouldn’t hurt. The hurt burns out the false so that the only think left is truth. I’ve been there, too, and I promise you, his words are true. “The suffering won’t last forever.”
“It won’t be long before this generous God who has great plans for us in Christ—eternal and glorious plans they are!—will have you put together and on your feet for good. He gets the last word; yes, he does.” -1 Peter 5:10-11 MSG
He has a plan and a purpose for your life. You may have messed up what you thought He had planned, but who do you think it is that you’re serving? God gets the last word concerning you and you can look at Jesus to see what He said. He gets the last word. That means that your sin doesn’t. Thank God.
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Posted: July 12th, 2011 |
Filed under: God, life | Tags: grace, purpose |
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I love reading the Bible in different translations. Sometimes the older versions choose wording that is out of our culture’s vocabulary enough to bring new light to the meaning.
This particular set of scriptures has significant meaning to me because it is the only verse I dated in my Bible. I dated it the last time I read my Bible before I fell.
“Keep a cool head. Stay alert. The Devil is poised to pounce, and would like nothing better than to catch you napping. Keep your guard up. You’re not the only ones plunged into these hard times. It’s the same with Christians all over the world. So keep a firm grip on the faith. The suffering won’t last forever. It won’t be long before this generous God who has great plans for us in Christ—eternal and glorious plans they are!—will have you put together and on your feet for good. He gets the last word; yes, he does.” -1 Peter 5:8-11
I had no idea.
In the aftermath, I was brought back to these verses when I was searching for answers about my eternal fate. It told me:
- He knew.
- I wasn’t alone.
- “The suffering won’t last forever.”
- One day I would be okay and I would be okay forever.
- He’s in control.
These things are huge for someone who knows how bad they messed up. There are people who are there right now and they need hope, not condemnation. Condemnation is ripping them to pieces and you, as a believer, have to stop it. That should be the only thing you want to do. The truth about Jesus should be screaming from every pore on your body.
He knew about your sin before it happened. He understands where you are and what is happening to you in your spirit. He knows the forces against you and He hears every word they say. For whatever reason, this is important. This pain, torment, uncertainty, terror, anger, and the blood in your tears are doing something important. Remember the story of the threshing floor? Where the wheat was stripped of it’s outer shell? The seed died and was buried. He calls you ‘wheat’. You are the wheat and your outer shell is being ripped from you. You are dying in the dirt.
Why? Why would a seed need to be exposed and shoved in the dirt? What good can come from a thunderous rain that goes on and on?
New life.
That’s what this is all about. It’s a transformation and you needed to go through whatever would be the most effective for the overall purpose. It seems so cruel, but that is where the real decision comes in. Do you want Him? Do you trust Him? You have to die to fit through the Gate and He knows what will kill you. Life through death. You have to really understand doubt to understand faith.
Then, like a parent mouthing the words for their nervous little play actor, He tells you that you’re not alone. Everyone has to go through their own personal hell and the worst thing about it is that nobody can go with you. He lets this happen by using here-and-now things and circumstances. Nobody will understand you. Nobody will know what to say to you. Nobody will want to be around you. Nothing is without purpose. “It’s the same with Christians all over the world.”
Very soon, you will be able to believe it when He says that He’ll “have you put together and on your feet for good.”
Here are the same scriptures in a different translation:
“Be sober, be vigilant; because your adversary the devil, as a roaring lion, walketh about, seeking whom he may devour: Whom resist stedfast in the faith, knowing that the same afflictions are accomplished in your brethren that are in the world. But the God of all grace, who hath called us unto his eternal glory by Christ Jesus, after that ye have suffered a while, make you perfect, stablish, strengthen, settle you.” -1 Peter 5:8-11 KJV
Resist giving up, that’s what the “adversary” is really after. Everyone not only is going through it, but they must go through it. You have been called, with grace, to eternal life, but you must “suffer for a while”. Then, He will establish you and make you stronger. He will settle you.
“He will settle you” takes on an immeasurable significance. Like an infant crying through the night. Like girl with no roots. He will “settle you.”
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Posted: July 9th, 2011 |
Filed under: God, life | Tags: grace, love wins |
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When I see the mess, I see the end. The mess is part of the beauty. It’s more than the hope of capricious wishful thinking. It’s the kind of certainty that makes it feel like a cheat for faith. Damaged people are my favorite. The wounds are something to be grafted to. Take a community of broken people and watch them form bonds that no green twig can challenge. A body formed and grafted by the pieces of others to build a seamless Temple to house the worship of them, The Pardoned. The man with decades of wounds can write his worship from the depth of his pain and lead the rest in a song that seemed like it was written for them. “Rescue me, Rescue me.” And the forgotten places cry out in unison. Two or more gathered and the valley of dry bones raises up with a new Spirit and the freshness of Breath.
A lot of our wounds were inflicted by those who were supposed to be safe. When they stepped outside the Truth, they got cut off. And you, because of your faith in Jesus, found sanctuary in the very place they said you could not come.
So I ask, did they stumble in order that they might fall? By no means! Rather through their trespass salvation has come… -Romans 11:11 ESV
Through the failure of the insider, the outsider gets to run to the Truth. The forgotten, the wounded, the lamb with a limp, relies more on the Savior than the guards at His tomb. They think He’ll be stolen. They fear a contaminated scene. They don’t get it like the woman waiting to see the sun through her swollen eyes.
Someone will lay a foundation of need. It’s the accusations, the condemnations, the run around, and the judgment that usher in the Hopeless Procession. You get beaten down, lied to, your words twisted, and your sin exposed. You lose the right to your privacy, the right to your honesty, and the right to own your spot on your own journey. They take your name and make it a sin to speak. They take your work and make a curse to continue. You are left with a death to worth and to purpose. Your Human Race Membership has been abducted.
In that spot of anger and terror, of sorrow and confusion, you hear the Whisper call through the night. “Come.” Your memories, your bag of lead sins, the scars that you carry are heavy on your shoulders and heavier on your heart. You can’t take another step, not when you have no place to go. “Come to me.”
“Come to me, all who labor and are heavy laden, and I will give you rest. Take my yoke upon you, and learn from me, for I am gentle and lowly in heart, and you will find rest for your souls. For my yoke is easy, and my burden is light.” -Jesus, Matthew 11:28-30 ESV
There is a canyon between those who leave you and the One that calls you. He is different. He’s not like them. He is gentle and lowly in heart. Your Creator is gentle. The Sovereign is lowly in heart. The Lion of Judah is roaring your name.
“a bruised reed he will not break,
and a smoldering wick he will not quench,
until he brings justice to victory;
and in his name the Gentiles will hope.” -Matthew 12:20-21 ESV
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Posted: June 29th, 2011 |
Filed under: God, life | Tags: grace, purpose |
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I’m for the underdogs, the given up on, the undeserving, and the torn apart. I’d rather sit and drink coffee with the heathen than with the out-of-touch leaders. I’d rather further someone else than spend time furthering my cause.
Grace isn’t something you can harness and make your slave. You don’t get to bridle it, domesticate it, and ride it like it’s yours. You swim in it, like an ocean. You sleep under it, like the stars. You live in it, like a Kingdom. You breathe it, like life.
They want to pray for the couple fighting to adopt the baby and I want to pray for the forgotten father fighting for a chance to be a dad. They want to encourage the parents with the unruly teen and I want to shower the kid with acceptance. They need help prosecuting the criminal and I want to find the criminal and tell her she still has a chance.
People sacrifice one for another, but I say that the sacrifice has been made so nobody has to be lost. It’s not about taking sides, but if sides are taken, I take the side of the blamed.
“What are we to do with her?” They question. “What a shame.” There is no shame, not in His Kingdom. There is no condemnation. Have they forgotten?
In what Kingdom do you live? Look around, do you see Jesus? Can you see Him in the man flipping you off? Can you see Him in the father sitting in jail? Can you see Jesus in the girl whose beer made her lose her shoes?
Blessed are the pure in heart, for they shall see God. -Matthew 5:8 ESV
What you see is what you are. “The pure in heart” can see Him.
There is no shame where there is hope. How can you know Him and not hold out hope? How can you know Him and not see Him in them? There is no condemnation where Jesus is. Where are you? Is there condemnation where you are? Jesus is with us all, do you not know where you are?
Having purified your souls by your obedience to the truth for a sincere brotherly love, love one another earnestly from a pure heart… - 1 Peter 1:22 ESV
You have to know the truth to know where you are. “Sincere brotherly love”, even for the unloveable. Especially for them.
You get a pure heart from knowing the truth, the truth that leads to love and hope. You will be like Him when you can see Him. (1 John 3:2)
And everyone who thus hopes in him purifies himself as he is pure. - 1 John 3:3 ESV
When you see them, look for Jesus and act accordingly.
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Posted: April 17th, 2011 |
Filed under: God | Tags: grace, love wins |
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“…he played at religion with toy gods. Still, I stuck with him. I led [him]. I rescued him from human bondage, but he never acknowledged my help, never admitted that I was the one pulling his wagon, that I lifted him, like a baby, to my cheek, that I bent down to feed him.” – Hosea 11:2-4
I want you to know that God will never leave you. He has the patience of a Father. He plays with you, even if you are not playing back. He’s holding you, even if you think you’re holding yourself up. He brings you to his chest, even if you have forgotten His smell. He sustains you, even if you can’t see Him.
You are His child and He loves you. He loves you even if you do not love Him back. He’s leading you, carrying you, pulling you in your wagon…
You can turn from Him, get disoriented by false belief, and call for help from false gods who do not answer. You can evoke His anger, but He’s holding back. He’s holding back on account of you.
If you’re still here, having lived through such hell and disillusionment, He has not let you go.
He still loves you. Come back. Follow the sound of His roar of Love in this war of Love and run back home. Your bed is made, your dinner is on the table. Your seat in the child’s wagon is still there.
But how can I give up on you, …? How can I turn you loose, …? How can I leave you to be ruined…, devastated…? I can’t bear to even think such thoughts. My insides churn in protest. And so I’m not going to act on my anger. I’m not going to destroy… And why? Because I am God and not a human. I’m The Holy One and I’m here—in your very midst. The people will end up following God. I will roar like a lion—Oh, how I’ll roar! My frightened children will come running from the west. Like frightened birds they’ll come… like scared doves. I’ll move them back into their homes. God’s Word! – Hosea 11:8-11
