Micromanaging God

I was recently involved in a discussion about praying for a special need.  One individual was saying how they were very specific about what they wanted God to do. It struck me then that they were trying to ‘micromanage’ God.  

I realized that I had been guilty of that very thing more than once in the past!

We talk about bosses micromanaging their employees—giving a capable employee a task, then coming by every few minutes to tell him how to do it, checking his progress, redirecting  or even taking over the task themselves for a few steps.  We are irritated when a boss does that. We all realize that the task would be accomplished much more efficiently if the boss would allow the capable employee to do his job.

How much more ridiculous would it be if the employee stuck his head in the boss’s office every few minutes to give him step by step instructions on making his latest report, to make sure there were no typos in his work, ensuring that he knew the proper format for that report or checking to be be sure the boss had replaced the ink cartridge in his printer.  

But how often do we do that exact thing with God?  We pray for healing.  Then we go step by step through the symptoms telling God what to do.  We ask for His help in a financial situation. Then explain very carefully what needs to happen for the situation to be resolved and when the funds need to arrive and who needs to wait patiently.  Or even in our spiritual burdens.  We not only ask God’s help but we also tell Him how to fix it. 

Yep.  I’ve done that.  But from now on I won’t. 

Job 23:10 tells us He knows the way we take and a little farther on we learn that (Job 28:23) God knows the way and he knows the place for making things happen.  And here I am, telling the Master of the Universe how to arrange to fix my little problem!  Before we even call on Him the Lord knows what our difficulty or burden is.  He already had the plan in mind to deal with it.  (Isa. 65:24)  We don’t need to outline the process for Him.   He has the entire situation in hand!  And here I am, telling Him what to do for me! 

And even though I have been guilty of trying to tell God, how and when and where, I’ve also relied many times on the verse in Romans that speaks of the Spirit making intercession with unutterable groanings.  If the Spirit translates our groanings, we have no need to give God step by step instruction.  So why am I just now realizing that?

Yes, we are taught to bring our burdens before the Lord.  Let us therefore come boldly unto the throne of grace, that we may obtain mercy, and find grace to help in time of need.  And yes he is a very present help in time of trouble. (Ps. 46:1)   But are we hindering our faith by trying to tell God how to supply our needs and give us help? Are we floundering in worry and heartache because God isn’t following our directions?

We all know that He will supply our needs. (But my God shall supply all your need according to his riches in glory by Christ Jesus.  Philippians 4:19) And yet when it comes to asking, we seem to think we need to tell Him how to do it.

Modern Christian Music

Folks, If it looks like a duck, walks like a duck, sounds like a duck, it IS a duck.  If it looks like a wolf, acts like a wolf, sounds like a wolf, it IS a wolf!  Don't be deceived just cuz the title on the album cover says Christian"  "Beware of false prophets, which come to you in sheep's clothing, but inwardly they are ravening wolves. "Matt 7:15

Our TV cable package includes a series of music stations. During the day I usually play either the Classical station or the “Easy Listening” lineup softly in the background.

Yesterday I either dropped the remote or sat on it. (I don’t remember which.)  But suddenly this wild, weird, pounding music exploded across the room.  I grabbed the remote and looked up. I thought it was a worldly rock station.  I was shocked to see that I had switched it to a ‘Christian’ music station.   I could hardly decipher the words, but the SPIRIT blasted out with all the ravening power of Satan. 

Before you get up in arms, you really should read this…

Dan Lucarini, a former worship leader in the contemporary church scene, left the ‘Christian Music’ genre that mimics modern pop, rock, hip hop, and/or jazz, etc has taken a stand against the music he once promoted. 

Read his comments here and then check out his book.  I don’t know what his understanding is of the scriptures or even whether or not he is fundamentalist or what, but his stand on Modern ‘Christian’ music is sound.

At the heart of his argument is that rock music, and all forms of it, is a music style that was created by immoral men for immoral purposes.

Whether it's soft rock, pop/rock, jazz, praise and worship, Chris Tomlin, Delirious? or Hillsong, CCM is "scandalous and offensive because of where it came from and what it means around us in the world today," he argues.

"And I don't believe that Christians can just take it and sanctify it and call it holy," he says to those who say it can be used to reach people for God. "I think it's a mistake."

It's like serving a nice juicy steak on a garbage can lid (even if you try to scrub it, it remains a dirty garbage can lid), he explains.

Read more at http://www.christianpost.com/news/former-worship-leader-why-i-left-ccm-movement-39870/#wsxjwLddB0QfJq7T.99

Oh the Unsearchable Riches!

It’s been on my mind and heart since I got up this morning, maybe even before I got out of bed!  The Unsearchable Riches of Christ.   Unto me [Paul], who am less than the least of all saints, is this grace given, that I should preach among the Gentiles the unsearchable riches of Christ; Eph 3:8

 

 Colosians 2:2-3 tells us of the riches in Christ.  “That. . . hearts might be comforted, being knit together in love, and unto all riches of the full assurance of understanding, to the acknowledgement of the mystery of God, and of the Father, and of Christ;  In whom are hid all the treasures of wisdom and knowledge”

The world is so caught up in the thought of material riches that the riches of Christ are worthless to them.  It is only the child of God who values those riches beyond silver and gold, houses and lands.  Here it says the ‘full assurance of understanding.’  Too often we rely on the understanding that comes from Man.  We send our youth to bible colleges; we spend hours with Bible study courses offered by different religious groups and preachers.  But so many ‘Christians’ today have never learned to rely on the assurance of understanding that comes from God.  We want to know the Bible but we don’t pursue the Holy Spirit’s gently and too-slow guidance.  We want the same instant gratification that the world seeks in their lives.  

I would never deny that we cannot learn a great deal through our intellectual capacity but we can never comprehend the riches of the things of God.  That comes only through the leadership of the Holy Spirit.  And very, very often it runs directly contrary to the things taught as ‘truth’ in Bible colleges and seminaries.  Only through the study of the Word while we are alone with the Holy Spirit and no other can we have the ‘full assurance of understanding” the ‘mystery of God.’  “For as the heavens are higher than the earth, so are my ways higher than your ways, and my thoughts than your thoughts  (Isa. 55:9)  So much time is wasted by men and women trying to understand the mysteries of God through the teaching of professors in Bible school.

Men and women can learn to carry out the tasks of pastorship.  They can learn to manage congregations and finances. They can learn the ways of dealing with people and diplomacy.  They can learn many things but NOT the mystery of God.  That comes only through the teaching of the Holy Spirit.  They sit under teachers or study courses outline all of the ‘doctrines’ of the Bible.  Then they go home and study those outlines and notes and say to themselves ‘the Holy Spirit taught me this.”  No it wasn’t the Holy Spirit, it was a Man.  The Holy Spirit teaches us from the Word and not written or spoken word from a Man. 

So many sincere and honest pastors stand in pulpits today and follow the leadings and teaching of Man and then wonder why their congregations aren’t prospering.  They say the standards of God for holy living are too stringent, that’s why the people aren’t flocking to their doors.   So they lighten up on the righteousness ‘angle’ and stress an entertainment program.  The congregation begins to grow and they say, “God is blessing us.”   No Satan is pleased and the people are gratified to be able tocall themselves ‘Christians’ without obeying the principles of God.

 This verse tells us of “all the treasures of wisdom and knowledge” that are found in Christ.  This is not the knowledge of the world, nor does it make us wise in the ways of the world.  God desires to give us a knowledge of His Word and the path of righteousness; the teachers in the world cannot give us that.  In all actuality they would prefer not to follow it if they were shown it.  A nominal religion is much more comfortable.  There is no conviction for sin, there is no guilt for refusing to follow the Spirit’s pricking and there is no condemnation for sin. 

I am so thankful that I’ve learned of the Unsearchable Riches of Christ.  I may not know all about everything just yet.  But I’ve learned enough to make me yearn for more. 

responses to What the church is...and isn't

I was a little shocked at some of the responses to my last post.  I also posted it on Facebook and it was surprising to me how many people I'd always considered to be honestly following the Lord and walking close to Him regarded it.  They ranged from an attitude of discounting and disregarding the questions to open hostility toward them.

I guess the original questions came from a book on pagan Christianity--kind of an oxymoron.  The book was pointing out how many of our Christian traditions can be traced to old pagan customs.  I've not read the book so I don't know what exactly it said, but I do know that many of the things done in churches today can have their sources traced directly back to pagan ways of worship. Early 'church' leaders wanted to incorporate the pagans into the church without the necessity of a real conversion so they simply cloaked the teachings of Salvation under a semblance of paganism.  Christmas, for example, was a pagan custom observing winter solstice.  "Christ-mass" was instituted to combine the winter solstice observation and the celebration of birth of Christ.  The Christmas trees and yule logs and so forth were simply carry overs.

OK, enough of that.  The one woman, with the most violent opposition, didn't want to address the questions at all, but only wanted to dispute their validity because they had come from that book she read.

Here's the point I wanted to make.  Regardless of the 'source' of the questions, the person who sent them to me posed them to make his readers seriously consider the things they were doing that they considered 'worship' which were not pleasing to God. The Word teaches us that But the hour cometh, and now is, when the true worshippers shall worship the Father in spirit and in truth: for the Father seeketh such to worship him. God is a Spirit: and they that worship him must worship him in spirit and in truth. (John 4:23,24) If we are incorporating pagan rites into our worship we have stepped away from the Truth of the Word.

Kit Pharo, the author of the devotion where I found the questions, has been impressed to make ordinary Christians aware of the state of modern Christianity in his own little corner of the world.  I have been blessed at the way the Holy Spirit is leading him into truth.

He has been given the beginning of an understanding regarding the Church. I'm anxious to see how the Lord leads him on.  His desire is that people will look at they way they worship, at the way they follow God.  He wants them to learn that 'church' is not a place we go once or twice a week. He wants them to know that WE are the Church as we follow God in Spirit and in Truth.

Consider the questions, not as sourced from some book that you can discount, or as from some guy that made them up, but as a way to evaluate your place before God and to grow closer to Him.  And as I said, it could be vitally important to your salvation. 

what the church is....and isn't

A friend of mine had been posting for several weeks about what the Church is.  And what it isn't.  Sadly, his conclusion has been that the religious organization that we call 'the Church' today is nothing like what God requires of His People. I have agreed with him 100%.  He doen't come from a 'church of God' background, but he definitely comes from a 'holy spirit taught' background.  A little while ago he posed several questions that every single church-going person in the world ought to consider.  I'm posting them here.

So consider these scriptures:  Psalm 78:36-38;  Isaiah 29:13;  Matthew 15:8-9;  Mark 7:6-8;  Acts 2:42-47

Now think about these questions:  

What if… everything we’d been taught and think we know about “church” and worship is wrong?

What if… we have not been worshiping according to God’s standards but rather human traditions?

What if… we began to seek God’s truth in how to worship and what He wants instead of trying to justify our traditions with His Word?

What if… we weren’t supposed to meet a few times a week for worship in a special building but rather meet every day for worship and fellowship?

What if… there wasn’t supposed to be church buildings, Sunday school teachers, orders of worship, pastors, sermons, Sunday morning dress-up and performances, worship leaders, ministers of music, tithing, clergy salaries, grand baptism performances, abbreviated Lord’s Suppers, altar calls, or formal Christian education?

What if… we devoted ourselves to God’s Word, Christian fellowship and prayer?

What if… we sold our possessions and gave to anyone in need?

What if… God added to our numbers daily those who were being saved?

What if… we allowed Jesus through the instrument of the Holy Spirit to be the Head of the church and truly lead us in worship with our single focus on pleasing God?

What if… everyone really participated in worship as described in the Bible?

And the other side of the coin: 

What if… there weren’t 38,000 different religious denominations?

What if… our worship was only rules taught by men?

What if… our worship was not pleasing to God?

Think about it. How serious would these questions be if every single one of them is applicable to our Salvation?  

Maybe it is time we laid aside everything we have been taught about how we are to worship and really put our faces in the Word of God with enough sincerity to allow the Lord to lead us.

.

It might make a BIG difference in your life!

early morning

Do you know the peace of the very early morning?  

Until just a few years ago I didn’t.  For a lot of years, I was busy. The busy-ness all involved very legitimate things-teaching, working on the mission, taking care of my mom, raising my kids and holding down a job, much of it all at the same time. If I woke up in the early morning my first concern was going back to sleep so I could have the energy to get all of those legitimate things accomplished.

It has only been since I retired that I’ve come to know how blest we can be in the early hours of the morning. I’ve not had anything of pressing importance to keep me from sitting and soaking up the peace. 

The world is sleeping. Our neighborhood is a very quiet one anyway and at three in the morning it is even absolutely hushed.  Our house is absolutely still, even the busy cats are asleep and, of course, the dogs are dead to the world. Even those little noises that come with every house-- the sound of the warm air flowing from the ducts, the gurgle of water in a pipe, the click of a clock-- are muted.  Nothing disturbs the stillness.

It’s then that God can be so very near and it is so very easy to hear His Voice. 

I’ve learned to simply sit and reflect on life and the things of God.  One of the greatest blessings that hascome with reading the Word of God for nearly sixty years is that it becomes engraved in your heart and mind. (For this is the covenant that I will make with the house of Israel after those days, saith the Lord; I will put my laws into their mind, and write them in their hearts: and I will be to them a God, and they shall be to me a people.   Yep, it’s true!)  And when you are still, the Holy Spirit brings those scriptures back to mind.  You don’t even need to pick up the Bible, He just scrolls them through one after another until His sermon is finished.

And after the Holy Spirit has led you through those scriptures He begins to bring to mind those people in your life who need your prayer.  To me that’s as amazing as how He lays the scriptures on your heart because sometimes those He brings to mind are people that you would have no reason to think of or pray for and yet there it is, the burden of prayer resting heavy on you. 

How does He do that? 

I don’t know but I know the blessings of it.  It happens most often in the dark silence of early morning.  It is at that time of day we can truly ‘be still and know that I am God.’ And it is at that time of day we can realize that we are a very, very small part of the Lord’s Plan.  It is humbling and uplifting at the same time.  When I consider thy heavens, the work of thy fingers, the moon and the stars, which thou hast ordained; What is man, that thou art mindful of him? and the son of man, that thou visitest him? For thou hast made him a little lower than the angels, and hast crowned him with glory and honour.

Doesn’t that make you feel so special in the eyes of God?  And doesn’t it make you feel so insignificant in His overall Plan?  A less familiar scripture, one of Job’s questions, says What is man, that thou shouldest magnify him? and that thou shouldest set thine heart upon him? And that thou shouldest visit him every morning, and try him every moment?  Job 7:17-18 

I think it is only in the early hours that we can realize how much He has magnified us and set His heart on us.  I know for me those hours of realization have become a special part of my life because it is then that He is so close.

I’m not one of those people who say you have to get up at the crack of dawn and have devotions.  Nor do I feel that I must ‘discipline’ myself to spend time in the Word or with the Lord.  For me there is no ‘discipline’ involved in reading or meditation on the Word of God.  I do it because there is a part of me that draws me to it. It is like breathing. I do it because I am drawn to it like a magnet draws iron filings.

I used to read my Bible, ordinarily, at the end of the day and go to bed with the words in mind. I had a tiny bible that I kept in my drawer at work and sometimes during the day a scripture would come to mind and I would take a couple minutes to go and read the text. Or sometimes in the morning I would look for something that had been in my mind as I woke up. Now I read and study on and off all day long.  (How good to be ‘retired’.) And all of those times are sweet.  But I think my favorite time is at three or four in the morning when I just wake up for no apparent reason and spend the next three hours being quiet with the Lord.  For so many, many years I wasn’t able to do that, but now I can.

Makes me think of Ecclesiastes.  To every thing there is a season, and a time to every purpose under the heaven:  Old age is a season and the purpose of it is that we now have time to sit still and dwell in the presence of God in a way we never could when we were younger.

If you can, the next time you wake up three hours before you usually get out of bed, go ahead and get up.  Don’t turn on the radio, or put on a CD or even turn on the lights.  Just go out to your favorite chair and sit there quietly.  Think about the Lord and His blessings.  Allow the Holy Spirit to lead you and let the Lord sit right there in the room with you.  It will be a blessing.

Modern Religion

Notah and I were talking this morning. He was saying that the youth in their congregation were doing a spaghetti dinner to earn some money for the youth group.  They aren’t sure what they are going to do with it but they decided to do it as much for a youth activity I think as a real money making venture.

There had been some talk of using the cash for the kids to attend the youth campmeeting in the summer, but the adults weren’t too enthusiastic about that since rather than a real bible learning/teaching experience that Youth Campmeeting is more of a summer recreation camp.  Several adults from the congregation had gone a year or so ago and didn’t seem too impressed with it.

I remembered when I was a teen.  We didn’t have such a thing as a ‘youth camp.’  We went to real campmeeting for a week.  There were three main services every day and an early morning prayer service.  There was also an afternoon youth meeting for those of us between 13 and 19 or 20 years old.  We stood in a circle meeting at a designated place where there was not a lot of foot traffic.  There was a short bible reading or lesson, time for testimonies and a prayer time where the youth were able to request prayer for the sorts of things that burden young people.  The prayer time lasted until everyone who had a burden of prayer had voiced their petition.  Sometimes three or four prayed; sometimes only one, but it was a ‘real’ prayer time.

My friends and I were in all three main services and generally in the prayer service at 8:00 AM and the youth meeting.  The local youth from the congregation there were not so diligent, but they did show up for most of the services and youth service—kind of like their parents who had jobs and family responsibilities that couldn’t be put on hold for the week of campmeeting. 

We heard the testimonies of the old saints (and the younger ones, too.) We learned that the effectual fervent prayer of a righteous man could accomplish.  We learned to pray with a simplicity and burden that is seldom found in modern congregations.  We learned to remain in prayer until prayers were answered.  We saw men and women coming for healing trusting the Lord for His Promises.  And we saw bodies healed of crippling afflictions, tumors and twisted bodies. 

The old brothers used to talk of stakes being driven in out lives.  It was a strange reference for me for many years. Now I understand it.   Look upon Zion, the city of our solemnities: thine eyes shall see Jerusalem a quiet habitation, a tabernacle that shall not be taken down; not one of the stakes thereof shall ever be removed, neither shall any of the cords thereof be broken Isa 33:20  Enlarge the place of thy tent, and let them stretch forth the curtains of thine habitations: spare not, lengthen thy cords, and strengthen thy stakes   Isa. 54:2    That is what they meant about having a stake driven in our heart.

Those testimonies and prayers and eyewitness experiences drove stakes in my heart.  They were direct evidence of the Holy Spirit’s power in the lives of men and women who were sold out and devoted to following the Lord.  They left an indelible imprint on my heart.  Those ‘stakes’ were the thing that anchored me solid and secure during high school and college. They fastened my focus on God and the things of God.  They held me when other youth were leaving the Church for the World.  They blessed me when everything around was pulling away from God. 

I wish our youth today could experience those old campmeetings.  

Shortly before my father died, he wanted to go to a campmeeting site that we had gone to when I was a child 7, 8, 9 years old.  I can remember it from those days.  The campmeeting was filled with godly men and women.  They spent their days in prayer, praise and preaching services.  They dressed in modest apparel and made their kids behave themselves.  The children were right beside them, leaving only for a short trip to the bathroom.  There was an afternoon service for the kids while the adult service was going on.  Some of them returned to their parents when the kids’ service was over; others played under the leaders’ supervision in a selected area.  We had friends that we played with between services and for a while after the night service, but by and large, we spent the time with our parents in services. 

I believe my dad wanted to meet an old friend there so we went down.  It was only about an hour from where we lived in Sugarcreek. 

We were shocked at the change!  The only thing I recognized was the layout of the grounds!  We arrived about the latter half of the morning service.  The tabernacle was only about half filled.  There were as many people wandering the grounds as there were in service.  There were kids running everywhere, but very few in service. 

We had lunch in the dining hall.  (At least that was the same.  Everybody ate.)  It was about an hour and a half until afternoon service.  I didn’t see anyone I knew, but dad met a few people his age who were there.  He enjoyed talking with them about old times.  The camp grounds had many large trees scattered over it and there were benches or chair under them where folks could sit and visit.  But when the bell rang for service not very many bothered to leave their shady seats to go to the tabernacle.  A shelter that could have held a couple hundred or three people had a scattering of around a hundred.  There were more people outside.

The other thing I noticed immediately was that there were NO youth around any place.  When I mentioned it to someone, they said, “Oh they took the youth to the ------ Water park in Columbus!”  I couldn’t believe it but everybody there treated it as common place and completely acceptable.  No wonder the Church of God denomination has such a shallow stand today.  They don’t guide their youth into even the superficial experience the adults hold!

I’m burdened for my grandkids and for the kids of this generation.  They are never having the experience of honest-to-goodness spirit led preaching and spirit filled singing and testimony.   Consequently they accept any noisy, enthusiastic ‘concert’ for real praise and worship. They swallow any little lesson with several scriptures incorporated into a social dialogue as ‘good messages’  And when they are exposed to spirit filled worship and preaching, they don’t like it.  It makes them uncomfortable.  They are brought under conviction and it isn’t something they know how to deal with.

God help us!

We Are Come!

 I had a big day yesterday for a knee just 3 weeks out from total replacement.  I went in after dinner to lie down for a while.  I napped a little bit—until Maggie decided it was play time and began romping all over the bed.  Then I asked Rachael and Michael to entertain her a little so I could rest easier.  But my knee kept aching.

I started thinking of Hebrews 12:16 -30.  Actually I focused on verse 22:  ²²But ye are come unto mount Sion, and unto the city of the living God, the heavenly Jerusalem, and to an innumerable company of angels,   Then I had to get up and read the entire portion of scripture accompanying it.  What a fantastic place to be in the Lord!  To be taken into the fellowship of the general assembly and church of the firstborn, which are written in heaven, and to God the Judge of all, and to the spirits of just men made perfect.  What a fantastic privilege! 

I thought of the respect accorded to the old Mt Sinai when Moses went up to receive the 10 commandments.  Remember how God called on Moses to issue a warning to the people in Exodus 19:9-19.  God declared the mountain holy to His Own purpose for that time and the consequence of ‘dis-respecting’ it was death.  If even one of the animals belonging to the children of Israel touched the mountain it was to be killed.  If you read the account you will see what great fear the warning provoked in the people when Moses went up on the mountain.

In Hebrews, the writer compares the Holy Mountain of the Church to that Old Testament mountain.  He begins by speaking of Esau and how he despised his birthright for a moment of fleshly fulfillment and later even though he regretted it, there was no restoring it. ¹⁶Lest there be any fornicator, or profane person, as Esau, who for one morsel of meat sold his birthright. ¹⁷For ye know how that afterward, when he would have inherited the blessing, he was rejected: for he found no place of repentance, though he sought it carefully with tears.

We are reminded how much greater a promise we have been given today by Christ’s sacrifice on Calvary!  ¹⁸For ye are not come unto the mount that might be touched, and that burned with fire, nor unto blackness, and darkness, and tempest, ¹⁹And the sound of a trumpet, and the voice of words; which voice they that heard intreated that the word should not be spoken to them any more:  We don’t see a physical mountain that is surrounded with fire and blackness and storm.  We don’t hear a literal trumpet or voice.  We might be more careful of obeying our God if that were true.

No, here is the part that thrilled me.  We aren’t come to some literal mountain. But we are come  unto mount Sion, and unto the city of the living God, the heavenly Jerusalem, and to an innumerable company of angels, ²³To the general assembly and church of the firstborn, which are written in heaven, and to God the Judge of all, and to the spirits of just men made perfect,   And more beautiful than that We come there through  Jesus the mediator of the new covenant, and to the blood of sprinkling, that speaketh better things than that of Abel. Just think!  We are blessed to have obtained the fullness of the covenant initiated on Mount Sinai!  We have immediate access to all the blessing that those early Israelites struggled so hard to attain.  How fantastic!   We can dwell in the midst of that spiritual mountain, in the heavenly Jerusalem, the city of the living God!  Accepting Christ’s atonement for our sins poured out blessings on us today that are breath taking! 

Think about it!  Christ has given us access to all the righteousness to which the Israelites aspired  by following the Old Law!  His blood has provided us forgiveness for sins and the power to live above sin, free from its bondage!  It thrills me to the very depth of my being!  The Israelites feared to set foot on the mountain but WE, WE, are blessed to dwell in the midst of it!  Mount Sion, the city of the living God, the heavenly Jerusalem, the general assembly and church of the first born! 

It makes me think of Psalms 87 where the psalmist says: The LORD loveth the gates of Zion more than all the dwellings of Jacob. Glorious things are spoken of thee, O city of God. Selah. I will make mention of Rahab and Babylon to them that know me: behold Philistia, and Tyre, with Ethiopia; this man was born there. And of Zion it shall be said, This and that man was born in her: and the highest himself shall establish her. The LORD shall count, when he writeth up the people, that this man was born there.

We were born into that holy city and assembly!  How glorious it is to know that I was born in her!  Not as a literal Jew, but as a spiritual one,  born of the Spirit through water and the blood of Jesus!  When we accepted Christ’s invitation to be born again we were born into that holy city, the Church of the living God!  Don’t those words ring in your soul!  Over and over, pealing out the joy of that new birth!  It takes my breath away! 

And while I was thinking on all of that, I considered how lightly so many Christians today consider the edicts of the Lord.  They play church.  They sit under ministers who present lectures in human values and social enrichment.  They make social contacts.  They give lip service to serving God and use the Love of God to cover all manner of sin! They disregard the tremendous and majestic heritage which God offers His People because they prefer to follow their own sinful and fleshly ways.  In many cases it is even done ignorantly because the ministry they are depending on for Biblical teaching is failing in their calling.

Masses of Christians treat the things of God so casually.  Oh yes, they ‘pay proper respect’ to the church buildings and they call one another brother or sister and refer to their spiritual leader as ‘pastor’ or ‘reverend’ and they go to church services on Sunday morning.  They even pay a ‘tithe’ of some sort or a ‘pledge’ to the local congregation.  Most of them profess themselves to be  ‘Christians’ and are proud of their affiliation with a ‘local body of believers.’ They consider themselves to be freed from following the ‘old law’ but have no commitment to the deeper dedication that comes with complete salvation in Christ. They do all the outward things that proclaim them to be good Christians.  And yet as Christ said they neglect the weighter things of following the Lord.  ( . . . ye tithe mint and rue and all manner of herbs, and pass over judgment and the love of God: these ought ye to have done, and not to leave the other undone. Luke 11: 38-42) 

In the religious world today men and women have no qualms about professing themselves ‘born again Christians’ and still living in sin.  Many times their lifestyle is such that even sinners recognize their hypocrisy.  We can see regularly professing Christians committing adultery and living in open sin but still ‘witnessing’ to the saving power of Jesus. 

What a travesty!   What insincerity!  What a trampling underfoot of the Son of God, and [counting] the blood of the covenant, wherewith [we are] sanctified, an unholy thing!  (Heb 10:29)
I thought of the consequence to the people and animals who disregarded God’s warning back at Sinai.   God has similar warning for men and women today who disregard His standards and ignore His Word.  ²⁵See that ye refuse not him that speaketh. For if they escaped not who refused him that spake on earth, much more shall not we escape, if we turn away from him that speaketh from heaven:  ²⁶Whose voice then shook the earth: but now he hath promised, saying, Yet once more I shake not the earth only, but also heaven. And this word, Yet once more, signifieth the removing of those things that are shaken, as of things that are made, that those things which cannot be shaken may remain.

 God’s ministers still have a responsibility to speak as the Spirit gives them utterance, to warn men and women of the Judgment of God to come.  As the prophets of old (Ezekiel 33: 1-7)  had a responsibility to their people so do God’s men today have the same responsibility.
God is still sending His Message of deliverance from sin and freedom to worship Him in righteousness.  He is shaking the foundations of Satan’s prison house and freeing those men and women who turn to him. And mankind still has the choice of refusing His Word or accepting it.   Yet, men still deny and refuse it!  They would have been among those who were very careful for fear of physical death not to touch the mountain while Moses was there.  They would observe all the outward demands and be very careful how their obsequious attitude toward the ‘things of God’ is noticed, but like the Pharisees in Luke they ignore the deeper spiritual things that are more easily hidden from casual onlookers.   They are stomping on the spiritual mountain and considering that their sin is overlooked because the hand of God no longer reaches out to strike them dead for their disobedience. 

But today we worship as spiritual Jews, not literal.  Our death today is not literal but spiritual.
In Moses time all of the worship was focused on outwardly keeping of laws and ordinances; the consequences were literal.  If God said ‘death’ it was a literal physical death.   Today, the Word tells us that we are not literal Jews, but spiritual; our spirituality lies “inwardly; and circumcision is that of the heart, in the spirit, and not in the letter[of the law]  That life requires a much deeper commitment to the things of God and a more careful walk before Him.  And when God speaks of death now it is a spiritual condition and if we continue in our ways we find ourselves dead in trespasses and sin.  (Eph 2:1)

But, oh! the glory of accepting and following the Way of the Lord!   We are brought into His Church, His holy mountain, His Kingdom which stands sure.  Wherefore we receiving a kingdom which cannot be moved, let us have grace, whereby we may serve God acceptably with reverence and godly fear:  And we are given grace to serve God in holiness, consistently and faithfully!  Amen!

²⁹For our God is a consuming fire.  That fire consumes all the sin and dross in our life and makes us holy acceptable before God. 

Isn’t that the most wonderful thing!  It woke me up and kept me up!  Our Lord is breathtaking, overwhelming!  Take time to just read Hebrews 12:16-29.  And read it again and again, until the glory of it fills your soul! 

truth will change us

I was reading a book, not a religious book, just a secular one and I came across the following; Truth is like a fire. . .It never –never-- leaves what it touches unchanged. That really struck me. The author was being philosophical about something mundane, but I immediately understood the statement as it applied to God’s Eternal Truth.

It makes me shiver to think how true that is. The Word of God has endured for more than 2000 years now as the standard for the lives of men and women. Political regimes have tried to destroy it. Religious organizations have tried to revise it. And Man has just blatantly tried to cast its teaching aside. But It has never-never-left the lives of men and women untouched.

I used to have a relative who was raised in a Christian family in a godly church congregation. When she was old enough she left home and pursued a couple exciting careers neither of which were conducive to living for the Lord. Of course she chose to go her own way in spite of the truth she had know from childhood.

She came home after a few years and seemed to repent. She went to church regularly and

professed highly. Within a short time she married a Christian man. They had four children and lived together in relative accord, but she could never completely abandon her desire for the world. After 10 or 12 years she found a reason to accuse her husband of infidelity and sued for divorce. The man, in his innocence, was shattered, but gave her most of the marital property and allowed her to have custody of the children.

A few years later she proved to be not as good a mother as he had expected and the lies she told her young children caused many hard feelings against their father until they were old enough to think for themselves. She followed a sinful life-style and when the children were older they began to tell of the her many immoral actions and the times her friends would bring her home and dump her on the sofa where she remained passed out cold. The ten and twelve year olds were left to try and undress her and get her into bed-or make her comfortable on the sofa.

Her bitterness eventually extended to the children and they left home to live with their father or with friends. Today, the woman lives in a lovely empty house. Her children are gone to their own lives and although they try to relate to her as children to parents, the way is rocky.

Her husband, whose influence she tried so hard to destroy, enjoys a good relationship with all his children. He lives almost next door to his youngest and his grand children. The others also have close contact with him.

Truth touched her life. She chose to walk away from it and deny God in her life. But she was not unchanged. Her end is worse than her beginning.

Truth will change us one way or another… Don’t ever think we can ‘take it or leave it.’ Once we have come face to face with the Word of God, It is there and It has an eternal effect on our life.

river of peace

I love living for the Lord! It is so wonderful to wake up with a song on your mind and in your heart. What a blessing.

This morning, in that musing time between deep sleep and full waking, the hymn, River of Peace, came running through my mind. It had nothing to do with me because I hadn’t been thinking on peace the night before or even considering the subject, but there it was pouring it’s blessings through my whole being. “Oh, this river of peace Makes me perfect and whole; And its blessings increase, Flowing deep in my soul.:

The Lord spoke through Isaiah and said of His People, Behold, I will extend peace to her like a river (Isa. 66:12) That peace doesn’t come in the things of the world. There will always be wars and conflict, but within the heart of the child of God there is everlasting Peace.

Politicians and religious leaders and humanitarians go around talking of Peace and trying to legislate it or shame people into it. But world peace will never come through the auspices of mankind. Peace comes only through our fellowship with the Lord God. Natural men, men living in the flesh and for the flesh will never come to agreements and harmony. Every natural man strives only for himself, his own desire and benefit. Nothing except the love and grace of God within us can cause a man or woman to truly work for the benefit of others.

So the peace that was pouring through my soul this morning wasn’t that of  peace in the world or peace with among my fellow men. It was the Peace of God that passes all earthly comprehension. D.S. Warner wrote of that Peace more than a hundred years ago and it is just as true now as it was then. This kind of Peace endures.

The River of Peace

I’ll sing of a river divine,  Its waters from trouble release; More precious than “honey and wine,” That river, sweet river is peace.

It reaches from heaven to earth,  It issues from under the throne;  Great peace! oh, thy infinite worth! Sweet peace in my Jesus alone.

Oh, wonderful life-giving flood, Thy waters so crystal and pure  Make glad all the “City of God”; forever thy blessings endure.

Oh, Jesus, the tempest of sin  Is hushed into heavenly rest, Since tasting the pure, living streamThat flows from Thy crucified breast.

My moments as angels appear, All gliding so gently along  Each dropping a blessing so rare, Enraptures my soul with a song.

Refrain:

Oh, this river of peace Makes me perfect and whole;  And its blessings increase,  Flowing deep in my soul

Peace I leave with you, my peace I give unto you: not as the world giveth, give I unto you. Let not your heart be troubled, neither let it be afraid. John 14: 27

(If you don't know the melody here's a link for it.  http://library.timelesstruths.org/music/River_of_Peace/

satan leaves us 'chronically dissatisfied'

While I was reading this morning the news was on in the background. A sound byte caught my ear. The commentator was saying that new studies indicate that the ‘pursuit of happiness’ may not, after all, be good for us. The psychotherapist or psychologist or behaviorist who was being interviewed (I didn’t catch it soon enough to collect this detail) was saying that people tend to go for the short term gratification rather than what is best for the long haul. When they do that they are ‘chronically dissatisfied” because the short term goals for happiness are seldom lasting and they are left always wanting more.

For me that statement can be compared to being dead tired but instead of stopping work, having a decent meal and a rest we grab a quick cup of coffee or an alcoholic ‘pick-me-up’ and keep going. The immediate effect is that we are no longer tired, but in the long run we crash. The immediate gratification is accomplished but once that initial spurt is gone we are still dead tired.

As happens so many times when I am here alone in the quiet of my room my mind extended this to the spiritual province. People often look at the children of God and ask, “How can they speak of joy when things are so bad for them? How can they say they have peace when their life and the world are in turmoil? How can they be happy when they have absolutely nothing to be happy about?” And the lady this morning gave me the modern psychological key to an answer. The child of God does not operate in pursuit of the short term goal. We don’t pursue temporal happiness.

I thought of Paul writing to the Philippians when he told them, “Now I want you to know and continue to rest assured, brethren, that what has happened to me [this imprisonment] has actually only served to advance and give a renewed impetus to the spreading of good news (the Gospel). So much is this a fact that throughout the whole imperial guard and to all the rest here my imprisonment has become generally known to be in Christ that I am a prisoner in His service and for Him. And also most of the brethren have derived fresh confidence in the Lord because of my chains and are much more bold to speak and publish fearlessly the Word of God [acting with more freedom and indifference to the consequences]. (Phil 1: 12-14 Amplified) Look at the long term benefits Paul was seeing in his bad times. His short term situation was not provoking of any joy or happiness or peace, but he was fixed on the Long Term.

Further down in the same chapter he reiterates again, 19For I am well assured and indeed know that through your prayers and a bountiful supply of the Spirit of Jesus Christ (the Messiah) this will turn out for my preservation (for the spiritual health and welfare of my own soul) and avail toward the saving work of the Gospel. Now look where Paul was aiming! This is in keeping with my own eager desire and persistent expectation and hope, that I shall not disgrace myself nor be put to shame in anything; but that with the utmost freedom of speech and unfailing courage, now as always heretofore, Christ (the Messiah) will be magnified and get glory and praise in this body of mine and be boldly exalted in my person, whether through (or ‘by’) life or through (or ‘by’) death. For me to live is Christ [His life in me], and to die is gain [the gain of the glory of eternity]. We can see by this that Paul wasn’t worrying about what was happening just at the moment. His Joy lay in the final accomplishment.

In this statement he is looking toward the “spiritual health and welfare” of his soul and that the work of the gospel might be accomplished. He isn’t looking for personal immediate satisfaction or accomplishment. His desire is that Christ might be lifted up and glorified by what ever is happening to Him. He is looking down the road for himself and others. His goal is the ‘joy set before him’ as was the vision of Christ when he endured the cross. (Heb 12:2)

The child of God has discovered that the pleasures of the world hold no lasting satisfaction. We might labor for the day or week or month to purchase some object or entertainment that lasts only for a short time and is gone, leaving us with an emptiness within. We might spend the night or the week in laughter and partying and fun, but when it is over there is nothing left but dust and brittle memories. We might purchase fine foods and exclaim how satisfying they are to the palate, but the next morning we are again hungry. The fine food satisfied no longer than a peanut butter sandwich and a glass of milk.

Jesus knew this when He said, Labour not for the meat which perisheth, but for that meat which endureth unto everlasting life, which the Son of man shall give unto you: for him hath God the Father sealed. And He talks of enduring satisfaction. This is the bread which came down out of heaven; not as the fathers ate and died; he who eats this bread will live forever." (John 6: 14, 58) The child of God is partaking of that long term satisfaction and has his eyes on the long term goal.

The testimony of Paul, again in Philippians, has always been an encouragement: But what things were gain to me, those I counted loss for Christ. Yea doubtless, and I count all things but loss for the excellency of the knowledge of Christ Jesus my Lord: for whom I have suffered the loss of all things, and do count them but dung, that I may win Christ, And be found in him, not having mine own righteousness, which is of the law, but that which is through the faith of Christ, the righteousness which is of God by faith: That I may know him, and the power of his resurrection, and the fellowship of his sufferings, being made conformable unto his death; If by any means I might attain unto the resurrection of the dead. Not as though I had already attained, either were already perfect: but I follow after, if that I may apprehend that for which also I am apprehended of Christ Jesus. 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, I press toward the mark for the prize of the high calling of God in Christ Jesus. (Phil. 3:7-14)

Paul wasn’t ‘chronically disappointed.’ His daily joy and satisfaction rested in the high calling of God in Christ. And there was his blessing. We should take note of his example and be sure our pursuit of happiness rests in achieving Christ’s ends and not the temporal ones of this world.

by a mighty hand, and by a stretched out arm,

I’ve always been blessed by a particular concept in the Bible. The Old Testament tells us repeatedly how God saved his people by His Highty hand and Outstretched Arm. The first scripture describing this is in Deut4:33-35: God assayed to go and take him a nation from the midst of another nation, by temptations, by signs, and by wonders, and by war, and by a mighty hand, and by a stretched out arm, and by great terrors. . .Unto thee it was shewed, that thou mightest know that the LORD he is God; there is none else beside him.And again in Deuteronomy 26:8 And the LORD brought us forth out of Egypt with a mighty hand, and with an outstretched arm, and with great terribleness, and with signs, and with wonders:

The image of the arm of God reaching down to intervene in my behalf thrills me to the depths of my being. And I think again, “What, who am I that God would intercede for ME?” But I know He does exactly that. I may never have seen a literal arm reaching out to work for me, but I have certainly seen the effects brought about by that Arm. Not just once but many times. And I rejoice that when I come to Him as a humble petitioner that His Mighty Hand and Outstretched Arm will be extended for me.

I pastor I once sat under preached that we must ‘claim the gifts” of the spirit. I’ve known others who encouraged their congregations to “claim the power, claim the authority to do wonders in Jesus’ name” but to me that is too arrogant for words. That is Satan taking gifts of the Spirit and corrupting them for his own purposes. I have no ‘claim’ to such gifts or power and wonders.

It becomes a matter of pride for men to say, ‘I am a Christian and I ‘claim’ this power and this authority!”  It is a matter of overwhelming hubris.

I remember the first time I heard the word ‘hubris’ used. It was by a professor of Comparative Literature who was discussing the attitude of some Greek or other. I gathered the word’s meaning from the context but later I went and looked it up. Hubris is defined as excessive pride or arrogance; in classical tragedy it usually leads to the hero’s downfall. We find a trend in modern religion for men rise up in arrogance, in hubris and ‘claim’ the gifts of the Spirit and ‘claim’ the authority God has for us and ‘claim’ the power over demons and sickness and all other matters of life.

But how can I ‘claim’ something that is already working in my behalf. That Mighty Hand and Outstretched Arm thrill me. I don’t need to ‘claim’ it. It is already Mine! The gifts are there as the Father distributes them and all the tantrums we may throw demanding them or 'claiming' them won’t get us a gift that the Father doesn’t have for us. The only ones who find it necessary to “claim” the gifts are those who don’t have them. And the only ones who don’t have them are those who aren’t truly born again. They may ‘claim’ to be but the gifts will quietly follow their salvation not be more obvious that their righteousness.  If the righteousness isn't there then the gifts being displayed are false.  They are not of God but of Satan.

When Jesus sent the apostles out to teach He told them; The harvest truly is great, but the labourers are few: pray ye therefore the Lord of the harvest, that he would send forth labourers into his harvest. Go your ways: behold, I send you forth as lambs among wolves. Carry neither purse, nor scrip, nor shoes: and salute no man by the way. And into whatsoever house ye enter, first say, Peace be to this house. And if the son of peace be there, your peace shall rest upon it: if not, it shall turn to you again. And in the same house remain, eating and drinking such things as they give . . . And heal the sick that are therein, and say unto them, The kingdom of God is come nigh unto you.

But into whatsoever city ye enter, and they receive you not, go your ways out into the streets of the same, and say, Even the very dust of your city, which cleaveth on us, we do wipe off against you: notwithstanding be ye sure of this, that the kingdom of God is come nigh unto you. . .

Jesus didn't talk about giving prophecies or revelations.  He didn't instruct them to organize powerful events or miracle campaigns.  He sent them out to preach the Word. 

Some like to skip over that part and go right to the verses following it because those verses establish their right to ‘claim’ authority and is the source of their ‘power.’   17And the seventy returned again with joy, saying, Lord, even the devils are subject unto us through thy name. Notice that they were rejoicing not in the message and the power of that Glorious Salvation, but in the more attention getting fact that they could cast out devils. Jesus said: Behold, I give unto you power to tread on serpents and scorpions, and over all the power of the enemy: and nothing shall by any means hurt you. Notwithstanding in this rejoice not, that the spirits are subject unto you; but rather rejoice, because your names are written in heaven (Luke 10:19-20). They had power over all things YET He said don’t rejoice in this, but rejoice because you name is written in heaven. Jesus simply gives us the power to do these things, but the most important aspect of our lives and ministry is the power of Salvation acting in the way we live from day to day.

Too many ministers today are rejoicing in the attention-getting, self aggrandizing thing like casting out devils, healing the body, ‘ministering’ in all and sundry areas, taking authority unto themselves more than glorifying Christ.  I look at the TV preachers and the those who command ‘mega-churches.’ WHO is being glorified and lifted up?  What do we see when we look at their organizations? Surely not Jesus; oh they are claiming (there’s that word again) to be doing a work for Jesus, but WHO do we think about when we look at those great healing campaigns and revival campaigns and huge church buildings and all the ‘outreach’?   Who do we see? Jesus? No, we think first of the Man who is running the show. We admire him; He is supposedly doing it in the name of Jesus, but, more importantly or rather more noticeably, he is building his own reputation and wealth, and popularity. It isn’t Jesus who is being lifted up; it is the man who is the charismatic organizer of the whole thing. It is not the Mighty Hand and Outstretched Hand of God, it is the Flesh being put on display by the natural talents of a Human elevating himself.

I don’t need to ‘claim’ any authority. It was given to me and it is there for me to use. I need not ‘claim’ any power over demons or sickness; it is there for me to use. I don’t need to build myself up by telling everyone how many prayers I’ve had answered or how the Lord has worked by my hand to heal thesick and injured. I need not claim any great revelations of God’s Plan for Mankind. Those things are already laid out in the Word.

All I need do is look to the Lord and say, “Father, I’m you child and you have promised me all these things. Now I’m asking that you would do this thing for me.’ And then I can pray the prayer of faith; I can rebuke any demon; I can preach or teach any message that God lays on my heart; I can see miracles happen through my prayers; I can see storm winds turned aside; I can see nature do the Will of God through my asking.

And others will see it too--not because I have taken the initiative in accomplishing these things, but because I have put myself in the background and lifted up Christ.

I think of the multitudes who came to Jesus and after Him, to Paul and Peter and John and all the others.

They didn’t go around telling every one about the miracles they had done.

They didn’t go and brag about the messages they had preached or the things that had been ‘revealed’ to them. They didn’t tell people about the demons they had cast out of men and women.

All they did was preach Salvation and glorify God. And all the miracles and healings and exorcisms followed after them.

Jesus told his disciples gathered with Him on the hill before He ascended into Heaven: And these signs shall follow them that believe; In my name shall they cast out devils; they shall speak with new tongues; They shall take up serpents; and if they drink any deadly thing, it shall not hurt them; they shall lay hands on the sick, and they shall recover.

So then after the Lord had spoken unto them, he was received up into heaven, and sat on the right hand of God. 20And they went forth, and preached every where, the Lord working with them, and confirming the word with signs following. Mark 16:16-20 The signs followed the preaching of the Word, not after deep theological teachings, not after advertisements of great healing campaigns, not after self proclamation on the part of the disciples, but pure and simple preaching and teaching of the Word. 

The religious community today has the cart before the horse!  They are elevating the miracles and works above the preaching of the Word.   But that isn't the order that Christ established.

When Peter and John were preaching in Samaria a man named Simon was impressed by the miracles the performed that he came and asked that they Give me also this power, that on whomsoever I lay hands, he may receive the Holy Ghost.

But Peter said unto him, Thy money perish with thee, because thou hast thought that the gift of God may be purchased with money.Thou hast neither part nor lot in this matter: for thy heart is not right in the sight of God. Repent therefore of this thy wickedness, and pray God, if perhaps the thought of thine heart may be forgiven thee. For I perceive that thou art in the gall of bitterness, and in the bond of iniquity. After Peter’s rebuke the man did repent, but we aren’t told that he asked any more for that power. He didn’t have that pride that demanded the show.

I’m so thankful that God is faithful. And he cares for me with His Mighty Hand and Outstretched Arm. I only need to ask Him!

It isn’t by MY strength or MY power but by the power of God. Not by might, nor by power, but by my spirit Zech 4:6   Amen! I need not ‘claim’ any authority or might or power, it is right there-- at the end of that Mighty Outstretched Arm. Thank you, Lord!