Remember, Reflect, Reread, Revisit

Over the last two days the Lord has had me reflecting back on some of His words to me. There has been a  theme of revisiting and reminding myself of some of the things He has spoken.  This morning I felt led to turn to Nehemiah chapter 8, Here are the verses that caught my attention this morning - Nehemiah 8:13-18 NIV:

[13] "On the second day of the month, the heads of all the families, along with the priests and the Levites, gathered around Ezra the teacher to give attention to the words of the Law. [14] They found written in the Law, which the Lord had commanded through Moses, that the Israelites were to live in temporary shelters during the festival of the seventh month [15] and that they should proclaim this word and spread it throughout their towns and in Jerusalem: “Go out into the hill country and bring back branches from olive and wild olive trees, and from myrtles, palms and shade trees, to make temporary shelters”---as it is written. 

[16] So the people went out and brought back branches and built themselves temporary shelters on their own roofs, in their courtyards, in the courts of the house of God and in the square by the Water Gate and the one by the Gate of Ephraim. [17] The whole company that had returned from exile built temporary shelters and lived in them. From the days of Joshua son of Nun until that day, the Israelites had not celebrated it like this. And their joy was very great. 

[18] Day after day, from the first day to the last, Ezra read from the Book of the Law of God. They celebrated the festival for seven days, and on the eighth day, in accordance with the regulation, there was an assembly."

As I was reflecting  on this word I felt like I should turn to Psalm 77:6-15 NIV:

[6] "I remembered my songs in the night. My heart meditated and my spirit asked: 

[7] “Will the Lord reject forever? Will he never show his favor again? 

[8] Has his unfailing love vanished forever? Has his promise failed for all time? 

[9] Has God forgotten to be merciful? Has he in anger withheld his compassion? ” 

[10] Then I thought, “To this I will appeal: the years when the Most High stretched out his right hand. 

[11] I will remember the deeds of the Lord; yes, I will remember your miracles of long ago. 

[12] I will consider all your works and meditate on all your mighty deeds.” [

13] Your ways, God, are holy. What god is as great as our God? 

[14] You are the God who performs miracles; you display your power among the peoples. 

[15] With your mighty arm you redeemed your people, the descendants of Jacob and Joseph."

Clearly the theme is remembering what the Lord has done and has spoken.  It is good for me to review what the Lord has said regularly, and that is something I have not been very good at of late.  The Lord speaks into our lives to give us direction and guidance, and perspective.  Sometimes His words are spoken as confirmation and to provide assurance that He is in deed paying attention to your life.  

In the verses from Nehemiah, the people discover that they have forgotten as a people one of the feasts they were supposed to celebrate.  They had been in captivity for a few generations and had apparently not remembered to pass down the teachings, or not done the job well.  One wonders what we as a Church have forgotten in the two thousand years we have been functioning, let alone in the last couple of generations?

The verses from Psalm 77 is more of a remembering history and recalling times of sweetness or closeness of the Lord!  The Lord never changes in His affection for us, but we certainly do go through seasons where we are more aware of His love.  It is good to remember, and rekindle on our side these memories and even the affection.  

In summary,  I am encouraged to spend some time today remembering, reflecting, rereading and revisiting God's words, actions and encouragements.  I am encouraged that there is much He wants me to be reminded of in my life.  He has done amazing things and remembering is a great way to feed the flames of gratitude and affection!  

Thank you Lord for all that You have spoken and done in my life in 2021.  I look forward to 2022!!

Amen!

Possessing The Land

On Sunday, during worship, I heard a phrase in my mind, "possess the land".  This is reference to the promised land for ancient Israel, but the thought I had was that this phrase has a New Testament, New Covenant,  Kingdom of God now, application.  I don't believe I have thought that through before and I wanted to take some time to reflect on what that might mean for us today.  The original verses I was reading from came from Numbers 33:51-54 NIV:

[51] “Speak to the Israelites and say to them: 'When you cross the Jordan into Canaan, [52] drive out all the inhabitants of the land before you. Destroy all their carved images and their cast idols, and demolish all their high places. [53] Take possession of the land and settle in it, for I have given you the land to possess. [54] Distribute the land by lot, according to your clans. To a larger group give a larger inheritance, and to a smaller group a smaller one. Whatever falls to them by lot will be theirs. Distribute it according to your ancestral tribes."

Now the interesting thing about all this, which I am sure is not news, is that the people actually had to work to possess the land.  It was not an empty land and the previous inhabitants needed to be conquered or driven out.  Possessing the land requires effort.  Possessing the land was their inheritance, but they needed to work to clear the land and settle in it.  

Secondly, they needed to purify the land of the idolatry and wrong worship, effectively driving out the territorial spirits that had been resident in that land.  God was not just another god, with a small g, but was God of All, and this was His land, and they were receiving their inheritance from Him!

As I was reflecting on these verses I reminded of two things from the New Testament, the sending out the twelve apostles, and the early church accounts found in Acts 2 - 4.  The first bit is found in all three of the synoptic Gospels, but I like Matthews version.  Matthew 10:1,5-8 NIV:

[1] "Jesus called his twelve disciples to him and gave them authority to drive out impure spirits and to heal every disease and sickness." 

[5] "These twelve Jesus sent out with the following instructions: “Do not go among the Gentiles or enter any town of the Samaritans. [6] Go rather to the lost sheep of Israel. [7] As you go, proclaim this message: 'The kingdom of heaven has come near.' [8] Heal the sick, raise the dead, cleanse those who have leprosy, drive out demons. Freely you have received; freely give." 

I see in this Kingdom proclamation a similar command to that which was given by the Lord, they are to go in and drive out that which is not of God, while proclaiming His Kingdom.  Jesus gave them authority, for it was in His name that they could do these things, as it was in God's name that Israel was able to take possession of the Land.  We know that the Kingdom does not exist of geography, but rather of the hearts of men and women, as Jesus says its within us (Luke 17:26).  In a very real sense, this sending out of the Twelve, was the first major expansion of the Kingdom, and they were allowing God to take possession of His Kingdom, and driving out the previous inhabitants, sickness, leprosy, demons and even death.  The question is whether our command as the church is any different today?

The second bit was the life of the early church, post-ascension.  I make that distinction only because Jesus was here on earth during the sending the of the Twelve, and one could think that maybe that command was specific to them, and not the church's command.  In Acts 2, immediately after Pentecost, we see an energized new church, 3000 people added to the believers in one day, now meeting regularly.  Luke writes the following account of those first days... Acts 2:42-47 NIV:

[42] "They devoted themselves to the apostles' teaching and to fellowship, to the breaking of bread and to prayer. [43] Everyone was filled with awe at the many wonders and signs performed by the apostles. [44] All the believers were together and had everything in common. [45] They sold property and possessions to give to anyone who had need. [46] Every day they continued to meet together in the temple courts. They broke bread in their homes and ate together with glad and sincere hearts, [47] praising God and enjoying the favor of all the people. And the Lord added to their number daily those who were being saved."

One could draw some parallels between these first days in the early church and the first days in the Promised Land, if one wanted to, for they both speak of a new era, and change in the destiny of people of God, and the fulfilment of one His promises. Rather than go hard after that comparison, I just want to look at what possessing this new land (if we use that analogy) looked like for this new Church.  

It was a time of regular expansion (people were added to their number daily).  The Kingdom was rapidly being added to, and they understood this was part of their command (see Matt 28:18-20)

It was a time of regular fellowship and regular communion (breaking of the bread)..  The people met together and established their identity, and shared as was needed. The sense was that they were a unique and new people.

They continued in the working of miracles, and signs and wonders, which were the calling card, or proof of God's hand upon them, and their authority as provided by God. It was this that made them different, this authority and miraculous provision for the expansion of the Kingdom.

They focused on the teachings and the Word of God, as spoken by Jesus and revisited by the Apostles.  They had a new covenant, and Jesus' teachings were the focus, rather than the Law (I am making an assumption here that is based on the later writings of the New Testament). 

This was a time of rapidly increasing belief - God was moving and they were all in. 

Continuing on and looking at Acts 4, we find the church continuing to hold onto what they had been taught and commanded to do, and Peter & John were thrown into jail for healing the man that was crippled from birth.  They got back together with the other believers after their release and this was how they all responded, praying a bold prayer - Acts 4:29-35 NIV:

[29] "Now, Lord, consider their threats and enable your servants to speak your word with great boldness. [30] Stretch out your hand to heal and perform signs and wonders through the name of your holy servant Jesus.” 

[31] After they prayed, the place where they were meeting was shaken. And they were all filled with the Holy Spirit and spoke the word of God boldly. 

[32] All the believers were one in heart and mind. No one claimed that any of their possessions was their own, but they shared everything they had. [33] With great power the apostles continued to testify to the resurrection of the Lord Jesus. And God's grace was so powerfully at work in them all [34] that there were no needy persons among them. For from time to time those who owned land or houses sold them, brought the money from the sales [35] and put it at the apostles' feet, and it was distributed to anyone who had need."

We find here similar happenings as to what was described in Acts 2.  They are proclaiming the word, continuing to work miracles, signs and wonders, continuing to meet together, continuing to share with one another as needed.  

I was just thinking, Luke writes, "no one claimed that any of their possessions was their own", and one wonders if this is because they were now focused on possessing something far greater!  They went from possessing things, to possessing the Promise, the New Covenant and the Command of the Lord!  They were embracing fully the Kingdom of God reality that was evident in their midst.  

I am reminded of an interesting point the Lord made concerning possessing the land, found in Leviticus 25:23-24 NIV:

“ 'The land must not be sold permanently, because the land is mine and you reside in my land as foreigners and strangers. [24] Throughout the land that you hold as a possession, you must provide for the redemption of the land."

I am wondering if this bit, was being embraced fully by the early church, recognizing that the possessions they had were actually the Lord's and they were just caring for them, but were free to share them with others, specifically because of that?  It seems that they were taking a pretty radical approach, at least in my American mindset, and we don't really see this modeled anywhere else that we know of in the early church.  We do know they were encouraged to give freely, to spread the wealth, if you will.  

Anyway, things to think more on, things to look at in my own heart, and mostly a Gospel of the Kingdom of God present with demonstration to proclaim!

Lord help us!

The Coming Light

This morning, as I sat watching the approaching sunrise, I was reminded of some verses from Isaiah 60:1-5 NIV:

[1] “Arise, shine, for your light has come,

 and the glory of the Lord rises upon you. 

[2] See, darkness covers the earth and thick darkness is over the peoples, 

but the Lord rises upon you and his glory appears over you. 

[3] Nations will come to your light, and kings to the brightness of your dawn. 

[4] “Lift up your eyes and look about you: 

All assemble and come to you; your sons come from afar, and your daughters are carried on the hip. 

[5] Then you will look and be radiant, your heart will throb and swell with joy; 

the wealth on the seas will be brought to you, to you the riches of the nations will come."

As I reflect on these verses I am reminded of John's opening stanzas in his wonderful Gospel, and I see many parallels.  Here are a few of his opening verses - John 1:1-5,9-14 NIV:

[1] "In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God, and the Word was God. [2] He was with God in the beginning. [3] Through him all things were made; without him nothing was made that has been made. [4] In him was life, and that life was the light of all mankind. [5] The light shines in the darkness, and the darkness has not overcome it. 

[9] The true light that gives light to everyone was coming into the world. [10] He was in the world, and though the world was made through him, the world did not recognize him. [11] He came to that which was his own, but his own did not receive him. [12] Yet to all who did receive him, to those who believed in his name, he gave the right to become children of God--- [13] children born not of natural descent, nor of human decision or a husband's will, but born of God. 

[14] The Word became flesh and made his dwelling among us. We have seen his glory, the glory of the one and only Son, who came from the Father, full of grace and truth."

Truly, the words of Isaiah concerning the light, the Glory of God coming, has been fulfilled.  Nations have come to the Light of Christ!  Sons and Daughters from far away have come to the Light!  The world has been changed and continues to embrace the fulfillment of God's plan and purposes!  One day the Glory of the Lord will cover the earth!  Both Isaiah and John saw similar visions and heard similar statements:

Isaiah 6:3 NIV: "And they were calling to one another: “Holy, holy , holy is the Lord Almighty; the whole earth is full of his glory.”

Revelation 4:8 NIV:  "Each of the four living creatures had six wings and was covered with eyes all around, even under its wings. Day and night they never stop saying: “ 'Holy, holy, holy is the Lord God Almighty,' who was, and is, and is to come.”

Revelation 5:13 NIV:  "Then I heard every creature in heaven and on earth and under the earth and on the sea, and all that is in them, saying: “To him who sits on the throne and to the Lamb be praise and honor and glory and power, for ever and ever!”

Each time we celebrate Christmas, we are one year closer to the final fulfillment of God's word and the Glory of Jesus Christ!  Let us celebrate Jesus,  the Light that has come into the world today!  Let us remember His great love, His desire for all the world to know Him and His love!

Amen & Amen!

The Right To Become A Child of God

 

As we are celebrating Christ's birth tomorrow, I thought it would be good to spend some time reflecting the following verses from John 1:9-14 NIV:

[9] "The true light that gives light to everyone was coming into the world. [10] He was in the world, and though the world was made through him, the world did not recognize him. [11] He came to that which was his own, but his own did not receive him. [12] Yet to all who did receive him, to those who believed in his name, he gave the right to become children of God--- [13] children born not of natural descent, nor of human decision or a husband's will, but born of God." 

[14] "The Word became flesh and made his dwelling among us. We have seen his glory, the glory of the one and only Son, who came from the Father, full of grace and truth."

I love the simplicity of John's language, yet it carries great depth of meaning. I love verses 12 and 13, revealing the path to relationship with God as simple as receiving Him, believing in His Name, and becoming a child of God.  

I find his statement that God gave us "the right to become children of God" interesting.  The Young's Literal Translation (YLT) has this as "the authority to become children of God".   The Greek word that is used by John is exousia, and Thayer defines it as follows:

1} power of choice, liberty of doing as one pleases

    a) leave or permission

2) physical and mental power

    a) the ability or strength with which one is endued, which he either possesses or exercises

3) the power of authority (influence) and of right (privilege)

4) the power of rule or government...

We derive the word exercise from this Greek word, and that provides some helpful insight into this great mystery.  It is God who makes this all available (the ability to become His child), but it our choice to exercise this opportunity.  We can have an exercise room in the basement, but if we never go down and use it we will never receive any of the benefits of it.  In a similar way, God has removed all barriers to our relationship with Him, yet it must be our choice.  Our choice to believe, to receive, to desire to become His child. Our natural birth on this earth, was not our choice, but our second birth is, and is made possible by God, through Jesus.

The fact that God came to earth, becoming fully man, choosing to be born in humbleness, living most of His life in quietness, establishing a ministry with humble people of little influence, suffering and dying and rising, all so that He might open up this right, this authority, this choice to us to become His children is just amazing, and many find it too improbable to believe.  But to those that do believe, to those that do receive this most inauspicious truth, He gives the ability to make this choice to become His children. This is part of the Glory of God!

So, today let us celebrate His coming to earth, believing and receiving and choosing to accept this great gift!  He is the true light, let us choose to be children of the light!

Amen!

What We Worship Matters

This morning I ran across an interesting verse while reading in Second Kings.  Here are a couple of verses to help set context - 2 Kings 17:14-15 NIV:

[14] "But they would not listen and were as stiff-necked as their ancestors, who did not trust in the Lord their God. [15] They rejected his decrees and the covenant he had made with their ancestors and the statutes he had warned them to keep. They followed worthless idols and themselves became worthless. They imitated the nations around them although the Lord had ordered them, “Do not do as they do.”

The phrase that stood out to me was, "They followed worthless idols and themselves became worthless."

That saying just makes me stop and think.  

The NASB translation has it "they followed vanity and became vain".

The transliteration of the original Hebrew words would be hebel hawbal, and could be translated empty, vapour, or vanity, and became vain, or empty.

Looking at that statement, I guess we could say what we worship matters!  In their case they worshipped nothingness, thinking they were something, and in the end they were nothing, of no value, essentially empty of worth, or substance in God's eyes. 

I think about all the things people give themselves to these days, we have influencers and those trying to be influencers, people focused on gaining followers on social media, and the like, and it just seems to all be emptiness, or vanity.

Going back to that phrase, we could also say that we take on the value of what we worship.

While God loves his sons and daughters, there is only one name that is Highest, one name that causes every knee to bow, one name that is the center of all worship.  I believe that John saw this very thing in his revelation on Patmos.  Here are just a few verses - Revelation 5:9-14 NIV:

[9] "And they sang a new song, saying: “You are worthy to take the scroll and to open its seals, because you were slain, and with your blood you purchased for God persons from every tribe and language and people and nation. [10] You have made them to be a kingdom and priests to serve our God, and they will reign on the earth.” 

[11] Then I looked and heard the voice of many angels, numbering thousands upon thousands, and ten thousand times ten thousand. They encircled the throne and the living creatures and the elders. [12] In a loud voice they were saying: “Worthy is the Lamb, who was slain, to receive power and wealth and wisdom and strength and honor and glory and praise!” 

[13] Then I heard every creature in heaven and on earth and under the earth and on the sea, and all that is in them, saying: “To him who sits on the throne and to the Lamb be praise and honor and glory and power, for ever and ever!” 

[14] The four living creatures said, “Amen,” and the elders fell down and worshiped."

Amen and Amen!  In this season, let us remember who we worship!  Let our worship of Him bring value to us, not in our own eyes, but in the eyes of God!  

A Trustworthy Statement

This morning I am reflecting on a few verses, which interestingly were part of what was apparently an early hymn found in 2 Timothy 2:11-13 NASB:

[11] "It is a trustworthy statement: 

For if we died with Him, we will also live with Him; 

[12] If we endure, we will also reign with Him; 

If we deny Him, He also will deny us; 

[13] If we are faithless, He remains faithful, for He cannot deny Himself."

These verses were some of the first that impacted me as an early Christian, and as such they have a special place in my heart.  Yesterday morning I was reflecting on Jesus' statements about being Messiah and how he dealt with the people who wee wanting to stone Him for saying He was the Son of God.  I was reflecting on how Jesus always seemed to respond with grace and invitation to His detractors,  giving them the opportunity to repent.  However the end of verse 12 here, seems to be in conflict with that statement, at least at first pass.

I thought it worth working through this morning, as being some of the most ancient "trustworthy statements'' about our faith, it is unquestionable to an extent.  As I was reflecting on these verses this morning, I felt like I gained some additional understanding that was helpful and in line with what I have experienced in Christ.

There is an eternal perspective that is important when reading scripture, as is evident here.  Eternal life is found in knowing Christ Jesus.   John wrote it this way, "And this is the testimony: God has given us eternal life, and this life is in his Son.  Whoever has the Son has life; whoever does not have the Son of God does not have life." (1 John 5:11-12 NIV).

Since we can know Christ Jesus here, and live in union with Him here, we can experience eternal life while still present on the earth in our earthly bodies.  We also look forward to an "eternal reward" in heaven, so there is a now (present) and future aspect to this eternal perspective, and of course there is a state of pre-salvation that many people are in, prior to entering into relationship with their Savior Jesus, and that is important to note.  Thus, if we read these verses with a pre/now/future understanding we can understand these verses more clearly.

Breaking them down - 

"For if we died with Him, we will also live with Him;"  (Now and Future)

"If we endure, we will also reign with Him;: (Now and Future)

"If we deny Him, He also will deny us;" (Future only)

"If we are faithless, He remains faithful, for He cannot deny Himself." (Pre/Now/Future)

I might not have the right of it, but this is how I think it works.  We can die to our old selves, embracing Jesus, here during our earthly life, and when we do this we are living with Him.  If we endure in our faith through life's difficulties, we will experience His sovereignty, even during our earthly life, and certainly in our heavenly inheritance.  We have the opportunity to experience some bit of Heaven's reality here and now, and that is just a taste of what is to come.

In a slightly different light it seems to me that If we deny Him during our life, He continues to provide us the opportunities to repent and change our minds.  He has paid for all our sins and would see all men saved, if possible.   Paul wrote the following, "This is good, and pleases God our Savior, who wants all people to be saved and to come to a knowledge of the truth." (1 Timothy 2:3-4 NIV).  He also wrote, "But God demonstrates his own love for us in this: While we were still sinners, Christ died for us." (Romans 5:8 NIV). He doesn't give up on us in our sin, even in our denial, but continues to extend mercy, continues to draw us to Him, to present the truth, that we might accept His salvation.  

I could go on with several other verses and examples, but I believe that the second half of verse 12, where it says He will deny us, is only experienced on the day of our judgment.  Christ is clear that there will be a day (See Matt 25:31-46) when a final decision is made by the Lord concerning our life.  Now this might happen at the time of our death, or at some future time on the "Day of Judgment", which is referenced by Jesus, Paul, James and Peter, but it will happen if God's word is true.  I don't need to know the exact details of how this all works, but I do know that the Lord is loving, compassionate, merciful, faithful, forgiving and just, and that none of these characteristics interferes with any of the others. 

This morning I am encouraged to look toward the day of God's full expression of sovereignty, and revelation in heaven, and to look for the expression of these even here and now, in my life and through my life.  I am encouraged to trust God, to believe the totality of His Word, even if I don't fully understand it all.  I am encouraged that God has this all totally under control, and as a merciful God, He will work it out.

Me, I will live my life for Him, I will endure, I will strive to grow in my faith, and I will never deny Him.

Amen!

Koinonia Group of Suffering

 

Lately my honey and I have been talking about the minor sufferings of life, old age, soreness, and the like.  I guess that is normal for people who are getting older.  The question is how to embrace the uncomfortable, and even down-right disabling, in light of our faith.  My honey has had cancer twice, and her sufferings are far greater than many, and yet, far less than many others.  In some streams of faith the phrase "redemptive suffering" is welcomed, and we were talking about that phrase and the reality of it.  Redemption originally had to do with recovering something that has been lost or stolen, and is first used by God in describing how He would rescue Israel out of Egypt (See Exodus 6:6)

This morning I opened my bible to Paul's letter to the church in Philippi and was reflecting on the following verses - Philippians 3:7-11 NIV:

[7] "But whatever were gains to me I now consider loss for the sake of Christ. [8] What is more, I consider everything a loss because of the surpassing worth of knowing Christ Jesus my Lord, for whose sake I have lost all things. I consider them garbage, that I may gain Christ [9] and be found in him, not having a righteousness of my own that comes from the law, but that which is through faith in Christ---the righteousness that comes from God on the basis of faith. [10] I want to know Christ---yes, to know the power of his resurrection and participation in his sufferings, becoming like him in his death, [11] and so, somehow, attaining to the resurrection from the dead."

Paul has such a wonderful grasp of things, and didn't shy away from calling people to embrace things that were uncomfortable.  Of course, He wrote this during times of persecution and difficulty, but they really do apply to even the most gentle of Christian lives, for we are all called to deny ourselves and pick up our cross (Matt 16:24) and that is uncomfortable for all.  The one phrase that I have only understood briefly is the end of verse 10, here the NIV translates it "participation in his sufferings" but the NASB more accurately translates it "fellowship of his sufferings".  The Greek word used here by Paul is the word Koinonia, which is a word that is sometimes used to describe fellowship groups where people establish life connections.  It could be translated communion, or fellowship, and envisions a tight friendship where experiences are encountered together.  When suffering is involved, this sharing of life can certainly be welcomed, especially by the one who is suffering and in need of encouragement and even of lifting up.

So going back to Paul's letter, he combines this personal discomfort, if you will, of denying oneself with embracing relationship with the Lord, which includes Jesus' death and resurrection.  While he doesn't mention it specifically here, this is clearly the source of our salvation.  Jesus went through all that He did that we might be redeemed, set free from the power of sin and death, and welcomed into relationship with the Father.  This redemptive work was all about others, essentially all the rest of the world.  Jesus represents, for us, the ultimate life of self-sacrifice for the sake of others.  That theme is where our conversations have recently led us, living our life, as uncomfortable as they may be, for the sake of others.  In our particular case, for the sake of our children and grand-children.  

It really shouldn't be a surprise to us that we are called to view life this way, but it was a bit new to me, at least in the intentionality of it.  That I live my life for my wife and children, working hard to lead, to provide, to encourage, to be a dad and husband have always been my focus.  I didn't really spend much time thinking about it, just did what I knew I needed to do.  However, as life becomes more of a struggle with pains and sufferings, I find that my reasons for my actions must become more intentional.  I find myself choosing to embrace the discomfort, for the sake of our future, and our future interactions with our children and children's children. What a great gift they are, and what a great responsibility of allowing our lives to be light, bearing witness to our relationship with Christ Jesus.  In some small way, this does feel like we are laying our lives down for our family, making decisions that will benefit our children and grands.  In this way, I do see that there is some small fellowship with Jesus, who laid down His life for us all.  Jesus spoke of this as recorded in John 10:17-18 NASB:

[17] "For this reason the Father loves Me, because I lay down My life so that I may take it again. [18] No one has taken it away from Me, but I lay it down on My own initiative. I have authority to lay it down, and I have authority to take it up again. This commandment I received from My Father."

Jesus' self-sacrifice was obviously far more painful and absolute, but this laying down one's life for others, is clearly at the core of all He did, and in embracing a similar approach to life, we do share a certain fellowship.  My honey, upon recovering from cancer twice said she was now the member of a club that she never wanted to be part of... but as part of that club, she could help others who were struggling with the same.   She was able to, in some small way, help others find a way through their struggles, and in doing so, find value in what she went through.  In maintaining her faith through all her suffering, she is a strong witness to the love of God providing comfort and hope in the midst of difficulty, questions and fear.  In daily dealing with the ravages of her treatments, continuing to love and care for others, continuing to press into relationship with Jesus, she is definitely part of the koinonia group of sufferings.  This certainly was never her intent in life, but has now become her daily cross, one that she embraces to the best of her ability, for the sake of her family and friends.  In choosing life, in choosing to love, in choosing to be a part of the lives of those she loves, in choosing to continue to pursue the Lord, she is redeeming her suffering, and praying that her life leads others to redemption and salvation.

My honey is just one of many that I know who are choosing to live their lives for others, and in some way redeeming their suffering.  Rather than being a victim of illness, she and many others are choosing everyday to do all they can for others and for future opportunities of life.  They are embracing life as members of this koinonia group of suffering, led by Jesus himself.  Their lives bear witness to the faithfulness and redemptive work of Jesus' life, death and resurrection.

Amen!

You Are The Body of Christ

For reflection this morning, I am looking at some famous verses from Paul's letter to the church in Corinth.  Thank God they needed help, for Paul's first letter is such a wonderful guide, even framework for the Body of Christ.  Here are the verses I am looking at - 1 Corinthians 12:7-14,27-30 NIV:

[7] "Now to each one the manifestation of the Spirit is given for the common good. [8] To one there is given through the Spirit a message of wisdom, to another a message of knowledge by means of the same Spirit, [9] to another faith by the same Spirit, to another gifts of healing by that one Spirit, [10] to another miraculous powers, to another prophecy, to another distinguishing between spirits, to another speaking in different kinds of tongues, and to still another the interpretation of tongues. [11] All these are the work of one and the same Spirit, and he distributes them to each one, just as he determines. 

[12] Just as a body, though one, has many parts, but all its many parts form one body, so it is with Christ. [13] For we were all baptized by one Spirit so as to form one body---whether Jews or Gentiles, slave or free---and we were all given the one Spirit to drink. [14] Even so the body is not made up of one part but of many." 

[27] "Now you are the body of Christ, and each one of you is a part of it. [28] And God has placed in the church first of all apostles, second prophets, third teachers, then miracles, then gifts of healing, of helping, of guidance, and of different kinds of tongues. [29] Are all apostles? Are all prophets? Are all teachers? Do all work miracles? [30] Do all have gifts of healing? Do all speak in tongues ? Do all interpret?"

[31] "Now eagerly desire the greater gifts. 

And yet I will show you the most excellent way."  (At this point he writes about Love...)

My reflection this morning is really more of a highlighting the key things that are resonating with me.

#1 - I am part of the Body of Christ (verse 27)

#2 - Whatever manifestation of the Spirit or gift I have been given is for the common good - the good of everyone, including me (verse 7)

#3 - We are all supposed to be connected and working in unison as members of the ONE Body of Christ (verse 13)

#4 - The Holy Spirit is the source of all that is needed, as He determines (verse 11)

#5 - God wants us to eagerly desire the greater gifts (verse 31) 

We are all critical to the Body of Christ.  If your physical Body is missing a part, or parts, it is limited in some way, unless its the appendix - :-)  We need to understand our significance!  This is not the church of the professional ministers, and the audience!  This is supposed to be the Church of every person connected and important and flowing in the manifestation of the Spirit for the good of everyone else!  This is not a Body where we can just drift along to the sweet by and by, we are meant to be active participants, desiring growth and health for the overall Body.

That being said, we all have different roles, different responsibilities, different callings, and even gifts.  They are given as the Holy Spirit determines, and His determination should be held as the highest directive.  In other words, who are we to only acknowledge only certain people's giftings or callings, when Holy Spirit has determined for the sake of the whole Body of Christ to distribute His manifestations to many if not all?! 

As a Body/Church we should be eagerly desiring for the great gifts to be evident, to be nurtured, to be encouraged!  We should not be afraid of Holy Spirit's manifestations, determinations and gifts, as they are critical to the healthy operation and growth of the overall Body of Christ!  If you are a teacher, you should eagerly desire God to raise up Apostles and prophets, etc. If you are a pastor, you need all of the above! If you are a member of any Church, you need all of the above, plus need to be praying that the Lord calls you to one of these! :-)

Lastly, none of this is about position, hierarchy, or power, or any specific denomination or congregation, it is about healthy balanced living and growth for the overall Body of Christ.  Do we need strong leaders, sure!  Will the Lord bring organization?  Sure He will!  Will there be some that are more visible than others?  Absolutely!  This is for Holy Spirit to drive and determine and we must humbly submit to His better ways and ideas.  We can think we understand what He is saying, and even take these words and apply them to our life, and keep the bit we like and agree with, and let the other parts lanquish or even be ignored, but Holy Spirit will make His way and will known.  I am confident that He will do everything well, and will not fail, even if He has to use sinful and weak individuals like me!  He actually doesn't have a choice, that's all that are available!  :-)

This morning, I am just encouraged that Holy Spirit really does have all this under control, and that being a part of the Body of Christ is much more than I have experienced so far!  I am convinced that we will see radical changes to our perspectives in the coming days and years!  I believe that the Lord is going to help us break out of our present limited view, and open our eyes to His worldwide, connected and powerful Body of Christ, and we will come to understand our critical part to play!

God: Father, Employer or Task Master?

Yesterday, during worship, I had another bit of revelation drop into my mind, and while not totally new, it certainly addressed something in me that needed to change.  Although disconcerting at times, correction from the Lord is always gentle, at least in my experience.  He leads me to my error and shows me the truth and and allows me to chose to change.

In summary, the idea that I was reflecting upon yesterday is that how we think about God, directly impacts our faith and our living out that faith. One could say they are directly tied to each other.  I am reminded of a book I read by A.W. Tozer, who said how we think about God is the most important thing in our life (paraphrased).  He made this same point, that our thinking about God impacts our living out our faith.  If we think God is an angry God, a task-master, than we will react to God that way, and perceive Him in that light.  If we think He cares only for righteousness via the Law, we will try to live our life in accordance to the Law.  If we think of Him as God of love, mercy, compassion and forgiveness we will relate to Him, and live out our life in that light.

What I saw yesterday was similar to an algebraic equation of 2x = y (or something similar).  I saw, in that moment, my expectations of God, revealing something about my faith, and belief towards God.  In the equation above, usually we would be given one factor and that would allow us to figure out the value of the other.  One could say that one side of the equation is hidden but revealed by the other.  

What I saw in my heart yesterday was an attitude towards God that revealed an inaccurate thought about Him, and impacted how I lived out my faith.  Specifically, I saw myself basing my understanding of God's love for me as being directly related to what He does for me, as in if He answers my prayers the way I want Him to answer them, then I believe that He loves me.  I found that I had placed expectations on Him, and that I was withholding some of my affection, waiting for an answer to some of my prayers.  In that moment, I realized that I wasn't embracing the Gospel of Grace, but rather a works based mentality, and worse  than that I wasn't seeing that in my own life,  instead I was projecting that on God!  I realized that I must have some works mentality, or legalism in my own life, where I believed that God only loved me if I did what He asked me to do!  

What I saw immediately reminded me of two separate examples from scripture, the first was the difference between Martha and Mary, as described in Luke 10:38-42.  In this story, Martha is busy with many tasks and Mary just sits at the feet of Jesus.  I saw that Mary understood that all she really needed was relationship with Him, listening to Him, and Jesus called that the better thing.  It seems to me that Martha was operating out of paradigm that Jesus expected her to make the preparations, and only in fulfilling those preparations would Jesus care for her.

The other story that came to mind was the Prodigal son, but not the younger son, but rather the older son, found in Luke 15:25-31 NIV:

[25] “Meanwhile, the older son was in the field. When he came near the house, he heard music and dancing. [26] So he called one of the servants and asked him what was going on. [27] 'Your brother has come,' he replied, 'and your father has killed the fattened calf because he has him back safe and sound.' 

[28] “The older brother became angry and refused to go in. So his father went out and pleaded with him. [29] But he answered his father, 'Look! All these years I've been slaving for you and never disobeyed your orders. Yet you never gave me even a young goat so I could celebrate with my friends. [30] But when this son of yours who has squandered your property with prostitutes comes home, you kill the fattened calf for him!' 

[31] “ 'My son,' the father said, 'you are always with me, and everything I have is yours.

I have always understood the older brother to have had a wrong impression of His father, of His father's heart towards himself.  We see this echoed in his reply, "Look! All these years I've been slaving for you and never disobeyed your orders. Yet you never gave me even a young goat so I could celebrate with my friends."  He saw his father as a slave master, and saw himself as a slave, someone who must follow orders.  It is clear that he didn't feel the father's affection for him, nor embrace his true identity as his oldest son. The Father takes that moment to correct the oldest son, and show Him the truth, that He loved him and everything the father had was available to him.  The older brother, rather than living his life in relationship with the Father and enjoying all the Father had, was living his life as a slave, and expecting the Father to act the way a salve master would, never rewarding his obedience, never embracing him, loving him or providing for him!  What an ugly perspective he had of an obviously loving father!

I saw in my life the root of a similar thought, only revealed by my expectations on the Lord!  I was waiting for Him to do something for me (the older son's expectations was a goat for a feast) to show that He really loved me. Rather than being grateful for all that He has already done, I was focused on the one or two things that I wanted, and it was quite ugly, frankly. 

Additionally, I saw that I was treating the Lord like my employer, rather than my father.  I was expecting that if I did 2X,  he would do Y.  As in, if I do these 40-60 hours of work in the week, I would get paid.  This, while a bit better than seeing God as a slave master, is still a wrong perspective.

However, rather than chastise me, the Lord just gently invited me to embrace change, to repent of my wrong attitudes and expectations and just enjoy the intimacy with Him that is always available.  He isn't making His love for me dependent on my obedience, and I shouldn't make my love for Him dependent on fulfilled expectations. He has loved me, and given me salvation, forgiveness and relationship all without me doing a thing.  I don't need to do anything but accept all that He is offering me.  Why would I embrace anything other than the Gospel of Grace? 

As I embraced this invitation during worship, I was reminded of my love for each of my children.  While I was excited for their birth, when I first held them each in my arms, I found my heart exploding with this passionate love for them!  They hadn't done a thing and yet I loved them with a passion that I had not experienced before.  I knew that regardless of their life, who they became, I would always love them.  I felt the Lord say that this is the same way He loves me, that I don't have to do a thing, that His love for me has never waned, nor been impacted in slightest by anything I have done, or not done.

This morning I am encouraged in that I hear the Lord saying the same thing - "My son, you are always with me and everything I have is yours!"  No requirements, no tasks, just relationship!

Amen and amen!