God's Planned Blessing IS Bigger Than We Think!

On Sunday morning I was reading a bit of scripture and felt like I should read from Ezekiel 47, which is the story of the prophecy of water flowing from the throne, and I decided to do a little research, to really understand that vision a bit more.

Here are the verses - Ezekiel 47:1-12 NIV:

[1] "The man brought me back to the entrance to the temple, and I saw water coming out from under the threshold of the temple toward the east (for the temple faced east). The water was coming down from under the south side of the temple, south of the altar. [2] He then brought me out through the north gate and led me around the outside to the outer gate facing east, and the water was trickling from the south side. 

[3] "As the man went eastward with a measuring line in his hand, he measured off a thousand cubits and then led me through water that was ankle-deep. [4] He measured off another thousand cubits and led me through water that was knee-deep. He measured off another thousand and led me through water that was up to the waist. [5] He measured off another thousand, but now it was a river that I could not cross, because the water had risen and was deep enough to swim in---a river that no one could cross. [6] He asked me, “Son of man, do you see this?” 

"Then he led me back to the bank of the river. [7] When I arrived there, I saw a great number of trees on each side of the river. [8] He said to me, “This water flows toward the eastern region and goes down into the Arabah, where it enters the Dead Sea. When it empties into the sea, the salty water there becomes fresh. [9] Swarms of living creatures will live wherever the river flows. There will be large numbers of fish, because this water flows there and makes the salt water fresh; so where the river flows everything will live. [10] Fishermen will stand along the shore; from En Gedi to En Eglaim there will be places for spreading nets. The fish will be of many kinds---like the fish of the Mediterranean Sea. [11] But the swamps and marshes will not become fresh; they will be left for salt. [12] Fruit trees of all kinds will grow on both banks of the river. Their leaves will not wither, nor will their fruit fail. Every month they will bear fruit, because the water from the sanctuary flows to them. Their fruit will serve for food and their leaves for healing.”

I was reading these familiar verses and trying to understand the geography that Ezekiel was describing, so I got out my bible with its maps in the back, and did some online research.  I have always assumed the river flows down to the Mediterranean Sea, but in reading this carefully, He actually says the Dead Sea, and looking at the maps, I realized that was correct.  The water flows east, and east of the Temple is the Kidron valley, and it seems to flow into the Dead Sea, which is East of Jerusalem.  To make that clear Ezekiel spoke of En Gedi and En Eglaim, and both of those were found on the shores of the Dead Sea.  

As I was thinking about this, I remembered that the Dead Sea is the lowest place on earth, maybe a few hundred feet below sea-level.  When I went on line to confirm this memory, I found out that the surface of the Dead Sea is about 1400ft. below sea level!  Now the interesting thing is that in Ezekiel's vision, he sees so much water that it makes the (Dead) sea fresh, and even flows down through the Arabah.  Looking at ancient maps, the Arabah Wadi is to the south of the Dead Sea and actually looks like it is a low area that goes all the way to the Red Sea.  If the water flows through this area labeled Arabah,  we are now talking about a significant distance (about 100miles) that it flows.  In addition, to flow to the Red Sea it would need to fill the entire Dead Sea up to more than sea level (1400ft plus) to flow to the Red Sea (sea level).  

So if I am reading this correctly, there are two options.  First, Ezekiel's vision could be about a miracle of a river of fresh water that flows from Jerusalem to the Dead Sea, that when it enters the Dead Sea makes it completely fresh, somehow negating all of the salt content that is there presently,  and and it becomes so fresh  that it supports a multitude of fish like the fish of the Mediterranean Sea (which would be strange for an inland sea). We would be looking at a complete transformation of the waters of the Dead Sea which is 31 miles long and 9 miles wide and almost 10 times as salty as the ocean. The second option is that the flow of water is so great that it fills up the Dead Sea valley so much that it flows out to the south and flows all the way down the Arabah to the Red Sea, and enters the sea there, which would actually explain how an abundance of fish like those found in the Mediterranean Sea could be found there.

With either option, we are talking about miracle of incredible proportions!  I always thought this was a nice prophecy and imagery, but now that I have studied it in greater detail, I realize how much bigger God's perspective and plans are than we can think or imagine.  I mean think about Ezekiel giving this prophecy to people who know the geography and topology of the region!  I am sure they were thinking there is no way either of these options could ever happen!  

My reflection on all of this, is that when God speaks about increase, or blessing, we often limit ourselves to thinking along logical progressions or scenarios that are actually potentially possible.  In this case, neither option is either remotely possible, naturally.  We are talking about a miracle that is way beyond splitting the Red Sea, or stopping the Jordan River during flood stage, maybe it is a miracle on the scale of turning the Nile to blood (Exodus 7:19-20), but It think it is bigger.  Regardless, in this case it is a miracle of blessing and transformation so great that an entire nation, and region would be blessed and significant prosperity would follow!  The whole land surrounding this flow of water becomes fruitful and blessed!  

Recently at our church, the Lord has released a few words about increasing our vision, increasing our dreams, increasing His blessing and increasing our requests of the Lord.  I was greatly encouraged by this historical perspective of Ezekiel's prophecy!  I was encouraged to think bigger thoughts, to realize that God has a much larger perspective than can be explained by human logic or natural occurrence!  He is about planning and doing things that absolutely defy explanation or understanding, and He is inviting us to allow Him to draw us deeper into understanding His purposes, even if that means radically altering the way we think (which I think is a good thing)!

So today, I encouraged to ask the Lord to expand my vision, to increase my faith, and to ask for blessing beyond human or natural possibility!  I am reminded of the famous verses from Isaiah 55:8-9 NIV: “For my thoughts are not your thoughts, neither are your ways my ways,” declares the Lord. [9] “As the heavens are higher than the earth, so are my ways higher than your ways and my thoughts than your thoughts."  Lord, help me to increase my thoughts and faith that they might be more in-line with Yours!

Amen!

Here are a few Maps of Israel for Reference.

The Purpose of the Five-Fold Ministries Gifts

This morning I am reflecting on Ephesians 4:1-7,11-13 NIV:

[1] "As a prisoner for the Lord, then, I urge you to live a life worthy of the calling you have received. [2] Be completely humble and gentle; be patient, bearing with one another in love. [3] Make every effort to keep the unity of the Spirit through the bond of peace. [4] There is one body and one Spirit, just as you were called to one hope when you were called ; [5] one Lord, one faith, one baptism; [6] one God and Father of all, who is over all and through all and in all."

[7] "But to each one of us grace has been given as Christ apportioned it."

[11] "So Christ himself gave the apostles, the prophets, the evangelists, the pastors and teachers, [12] to equip his people for works of service, so that the body of Christ may be built up [13] until we all reach unity in the faith and in the knowledge of the Son of God and become mature, attaining to the whole measure of the fullness of Christ."

I was aware in reading these familiar verses this morning, that at least in the NIV translation, Jesus gave the five-fold ministries to the Body of Christ, to equip His people (His sons and daughters).  Sometimes we get all caught up in the gifts of certain people, but they were given to us all, not for us to be in awe of them, but so that they can help us mature.  Those who operate in these gifts are supposed to build up the Body of Christ.  Think of them as personal trainers in the ways of the Spirit!

I am reminded of some verses in Ezekiel 34, where the Lord is speaking about the shepherds, and how they have not done a good job shepherding his people (his flock).  Several years ago the Lord took me to this passage and asked me where He placed the most value, in the shepherds or in the sheep?  The answer is quite simple, the sheep of His flock are what's valuable!  In the same way, when we look at these verses from Ephesians, we can think that the Apostles, Prophets, Evangelists, Pastors and Teachers are those that are most valuable, but in the same way as the shepherds serve the sheep, they are supposed to serve the Body of Christ, being responsible for the leading, guiding, and enabled the maturing and building up of the Body of Christ.

If we go back to the beginning of this chapter, Paul is speaking about unity in the Body of Christ.  His focus is on all of the members, not just on the leaders.  His desire is that they learn to operate in humility, gentleness, patience, love and peace.  They are called to embrace one hope, one faith and one baptism in proclaiming their faith!  The giving of Apostles, Prophets, Evangelists, Pastors and Teachers is to enable and make way for this unity and way of life.  These really are shepherding gifts, and as such, me must remember that the value in the Lord's eyes is on all His sons and daughters, not just the few that are called to serve the Body in these particular ministries.

Lord, I thank You for Your wisdom, and Your gifts that You have given to us.  We understand that if we are in the Body of Christ, then these are the gifts that You have given us to help us mature and reach unity in faith.  We call for You to give these gifts in abundance that we all might be built-up!

Amen!

Contending for God's Promises

Yesterday morning I was praying and thinking through some things related to my work, and I felt Like the Lord helped me gain some insight related to contending for His promises.

Without getting into the details, I could say that 3 years ago the Lord moved me into a new job, and much of that transition occurred immediately after He released some specific promises into my life, concerning increase, upgrade and His blessing.  Since that time, I have been battling to see progress, even having the new company go into receivership.  Last year had all the signs of being one of my best years ever financially, and instead I spent 3 months laid off, and making considerably less than I did the year before, and less than half of what I hoped to make.  We are almost 6 months into this year, and while things are looking up, there is much hard work and effort ahead of me.

I was reflecting over thes last few years during prayer,  not really complaining or griping, but rather looking over the things I have seen, accomplished and been through and just trying to identify the Lord's hand in all of it, making sure I was where I was supposed to be. As I was thinking and reflecting, I  felt the Lord say that my present battles could be likened to what Israel experienced when they entered the Promised Land, and I knew immediately what He meant.

When He released His promise to Israel to give them the Promised Land, a land flowing with milk and honey, Israel was all for God's promise!  It is interesting that when He promises the Land, He indicates that it is presently occupied.  Here are the verses where God first speaks this promise to the nation of Israel - from Exodus 3:16-17 NIV:

[16] “Go, assemble the elders of Israel and say to them, 'The Lord, the God of your fathers---the God of Abraham, Isaac and Jacob---appeared to me and said: I have watched over you and have seen what has been done to you in Egypt. [17] And I have promised to bring you up out of your misery in Egypt into the land of the Canaanites, Hittites, Amorites, Perizzites, Hivites and Jebusites---a land flowing with milk and honey.'

Now, based on this promise, one could think that God recognized that the land was occupied by others, but that He would drive out those peoples, and just give the land to Israel!  There was no mention of struggles, or battles or fighting.  No mention of a long time in the desert, nor any mention of the hardships they would endure.  In fact, I think that is one reason why Israel didn't have the courage to enter the promised land the first time they saw it.  Here are the verses describing when those sent to explore the land came back from their 40 days of exploration - from Numbers 13:27-28 NIV:

[27] "They gave Moses this account: “We went into the land to which you sent us, and it does flow with milk and honey! Here is its fruit. [28] But the people who live there are powerful, and the cities are fortified and very large. We even saw descendants of Anak there."

Rather than focus on the truth of God's promise and remember that God had already provided for them the miraculous defeat of the Egyptian army, the people  instead cowered in fear at the people who occupied the land.  Caleb and Joshua were both convinced that with the Lord's help they could win the land, but the rest of the people were afraid. Because of their response they spent the next decades in the desert, and only two of the adults of that generation actually entered the land and possessed it, Caleb and Joshua.

If we turn to the book of Joshua, the whole taking of the promised land is described, and it took a willingness to battle, to fight and to rely on the Lord!  God did drive the people out of the land, but He used Israel to do it!  He provided the strategic plans and even miraculous signs, but most of the actual work of cleaning the land  ended up being the work of the people.  They had to march into battle and fight. They had to endure!  They had to contend for the fulfillment of the promise.  Finally after eleven chapters of battles and victories, they came to a time and place where they were at peace in the land, and they were occupying it and enjoying its fruit - Joshua 11:23 NIV:  "So Joshua took the entire land, just as the Lord had directed Moses, and he gave it as an inheritance to Israel according to their tribal divisions. Then the land had rest from war."

The Lord's point in all of this to me was that Just because He provided a promise, doesn't mean He will deliver that promise on a silver platter, or immediately.  Rather, His Promise is supposed to release a vision for my future, that allows me to press in, and contend to receive.  The Israelites had to contend for their inheritance, the land of God's promise.  In the same way, we will likely need to contend for the promises of God in our life!   Sometimes God's promise is immediately dropped in our lap, but other times it does require our participation and effort. In regards to my job and God's promises, I need to press in and pursue Him, and continue to believe that His promise is still true.

Thank you Lord for encouraging me in this season of battling and contending!  Help me to stand on Your promises, and not give up hope, but rather trust in Your faithfulness!  MY encouragement to all is that God is capable and is working on your behalf to fulfill everyone of His promises, don't give up hope!

Fear, Doubt and Fervor vs. Grace and Relationship

This morning I am continuing the theme of rules, lists and rites, vs. relationship in regards to our faith walk.  I felt like I should read from Paul's letter to the Galatians, and frankly I was pretty tired this morning so wasn't thinking about what might be in Galatians 2, or wanting to continue my recent reflection, however, when I turned there I saw that Paul was dealing with one of the biggest issues in the early church, adding rules to Gospel of grace,  and even Peter was being swayed by this teaching.

To begin with, I want to understand the timing of this all, as I think it is germane to how I think about the situation. Now Paul dates this as happening after some 17 years of his ministry, and I will copy a few of the verses and then look at them - Galatians 2:1,8-14 NIV:

[1] "Then after fourteen years, I went up again to Jerusalem, this time with Barnabas. I took Titus along also."

[8] "For God, who was at work in Peter as an apostle to the circumcised, was also at work in me as an apostle to the Gentiles. [9] James, Cephas and John, those esteemed as pillars, gave me and Barnabas the right hand of fellowship when they recognized the grace given to me. They agreed that we should go to the Gentiles, and they to the circumcised. [10] All they asked was that we should continue to remember the poor, the very thing I had been eager to do all along."

[11] "When Cephas came to Antioch, I opposed him to his face, because he stood condemned. [12] For before certain men came from James, he used to eat with the Gentiles. But when they arrived, he began to draw back and separate himself from the Gentiles because he was afraid of those who belonged to the circumcision group. [13] The other Jews joined him in his hypocrisy, so that by their hypocrisy even Barnabas was led astray."

[14] "When I saw that they were not acting in line with the truth of the gospel, I said to Cephas in front of them all, “You are a Jew, yet you live like a Gentile and not like a Jew. How is it, then, that you force Gentiles to follow Jewish customs?"

So we know that Paul was converted after the persecution of the church broke out following Stephen's stoning, which was clearly a few years after Pentecost (church history has him dying in 36CE).  Paul lays out the timeline of this situation in Antioch, as being some time after his 2nd journey to Jerusalem, his first occurring 3 years after his conversion  (39 - 40CE).  So this is now 14 years later, at least, since we don't know how long it was from Paul's second visit to Jerusalem that Peter made his way to Antioch, in Acts 15 it sounds like Peter might have actually been to Antioch before Paul's 2nd visit to Jerusalem.  Anyway, we have at least 3 + 3 + 14 =  20 years after Jesus death and Resurrection.  My point in looking at this, is my amazement at how quickly things can get screwy, or twisted.

Peter received the original revelation of the Gospel being opened to the Gentiles in Acts 10 & 11, which clearly happened after the stoning of Stephen. After Peter went back to the leadership team in Jerusalem and explained this all, they were all in agreement that this was clearly of God - Acts 11:18 NIV: "When they heard this, they had no further objections and praised God, saying, “So then, even to Gentiles God has granted repentance that leads to life.”

We know that the Gospel rapidly spread, and the church expanded into many of the regions and Antioch was one of the main centers, and really the second major church, as we see in these next verses - Acts 11:20-26 NIV: Some of them, however, men from Cyprus and Cyrene, went to Antioch and began to speak to Greeks also, telling them the good news about the Lord Jesus. [21] The Lord's hand was with them, and a great number of people believed and turned to the Lord."

[22] "News of this reached the church in Jerusalem, and they sent Barnabas to Antioch. [23] When he arrived and saw what the grace of God had done, he was glad and encouraged them all to remain true to the Lord with all their hearts. [24] He was a good man, full of the Holy Spirit and faith, and a great number of people were brought to the Lord. [25] Then Barnabas went to Tarsus to look for Saul, [26] and when he found him, he brought him to Antioch. So for a whole year Barnabas and Saul met with the church and taught great numbers of people. The disciples were called Christians first at Antioch."

So here we have the rapid expansion of the Gospel into the Gentile populations, and it is the Gospel of Grace through Faith.  However, the circumcision group wasn't happy with these new converts because they weren't being required to follow certain of the rites and requirements of the Jewish faith.  Because they (Jewish believers) were following these rules (the basics of the Law) they felt that they were better Christians, and were even separating themselves according to the old requirements.  They went so far as to say that unless you were circumcised you couldn't be saved (Acts 15:1)! The whole thing is captured in Acts 15, although with much less passion than Paul describes it here in his letter to the Galatians.  Paul, immediately saw the danger of this type of teaching and mindset and confronted it head-on, even to Peter's face.

What is clear is that this teaching introduced questioning and doubt about the Gospel of grace through faith, and was trying to add rules and requirements.  The people wanted to pursue the Lord to the best of their ability, and this was made to sound like that!  They were being convinced that in some way they were lesser Christians because they hadn't checked off certain activities, or followed certain rules.  They were losing sight of the glorious truth of the Gospel of Grace through Faith!

Going back to the timeline, while 20 years doesn't seem like much time in the overall history of the church, it is plenty of time for things to change and morph, and get out of balance.  As I look back at the last 20 years of my life, my thinking and attitudes have certainly changed, I am hoping for the better and towards greater maturation.  However, when I look back at my life, I also know that there has been a depth of insight and understanding in the scriptures that I can use to guide my thinking, to guide my theology, and most of that wasn't available to these people.  They hadn't written any of Jesus' teachings down yet (that we know of), James had written his letter and  Paul had only written two of his pastoral letters.  The church was very susceptible to wrong teaching and ideas that sounded good, sounded like a better way, and whole groups were being swayed and affected.  Even people like James and Peter were embracing this thinking and they were original Apostles!

As I mentioned before, the whole thing seems to me to be based on fear and doubt.  Peter was afraid of the members of the circumcision party (Gal 2:12).  What was he afraid of??  I think He was afraid that people would think he wasn't embracing the highest calling, and was abandoning it in favor of the easy path of the Gospel of grace through faith.  Most leaders want to be known for taking the hard path, leading the charge, not slouching in the rear, taking it easy.  On top of that, people were fearful that they weren't really saved just by faith, and were wondering if they had responded to a false Gospel!  This isn't that different than many of the teachings that are floating around today, some that teach that a simple sin can cause you to lose your salvation, others that say sinful lives are evidence that you were never saved, others that hold up radical life-styles as the highest calling!  All of these cause people to respond out of fear or fervor, rather than living out of relationship.

It is so easy for us to embrace teaching we hear from some fired up teacher calling us to the higher calling!  To often we don't stop and think and look to the Lord, to listen to Him!  We can listen to someone expounding on the depravity of sin, and see some of that in our own lives and wonder if we have even been saved!  There are those that hold up certain experiences as the only true sign of salvation, and others that say these certain experiences are from the devil!  All of these deal in fear, and I just don't believe the Gospel of grace through faith uses fear as a primary motivation.  We are being called into relationship with a God who loves us, and who set us free from sin and death.  He loves us and is motivated by love (John 3:16)!  He wants us to be motivated by love (John 13:34-35)! John tells us that perfect love casts out fear (1 John 4:18), so what place does fear have in the Gospel, the Good News?

It is so important that we focus on the person of Jesus, the person of the Father and the person of the Holy Spirit!  Our faith is about relationship, not rules or rites!  We are invited into a life of relationship with them, the Holy Trinity!  They want to live with us, live in us, speak to us, guide us, teach us, remind us, and love us!  God relates to each of us uniquely, as any Father would relate to each of His children!  We are invited to the highest calling in life as His son or daughter!  It doesn't get any higher than that!  Jesus is the firstborn of many sons and daughters (Rom 8:29), and there is no rank in our relationships as sons and daughters!

We can get caught up in looking at others and comparing ourselves to them, to their walk, to their life, to their fervor, and we should be looking to the Lord!  We are called to love Him first, and then to love one another!  Nowhere are we called to compare ourselves to one another!  We can learn from others, be encouraged by others, but our primary focus must always be our relationship with the Lord!  He is the only one who is our Lord!  He is our Father, and He loves us and He will guide each of us in the best possible path!

In summary, I come back to a statement I heard Graham Cooke make, "the Gospel is such good news that it seems too good to be true, but it is true!"  Let us look to our lives and cast out fear and doubt, judgment and critical spirits, and let us embrace the Gospel of grace through faith, through relationship with the Lord!  Let us set ourselves and others free from the thinking that adds to this Gospel!  As Paul says - Galatians 2:21 NIV: "I do not set aside the grace of God, for if righteousness could be gained through the law (rules and rites), Christ died for nothing!”

Amen!

Rules and Lists vs. Relationship

This morning I am reflecting on Paul's letter to the Colossians, and most of the second chapter.  Paul is encouraging freedom and grace towards one another.  Here are the verses I am looking at - Colossians 2:2-3,6-8,16-17,20-23 NIV:

[2] "My goal is that they may be encouraged in heart and united in love, so that they may have the full riches of complete understanding, in order that they may know the mystery of God, namely, Christ, [3] in whom are hidden all the treasures of wisdom and knowledge."

[6] "So then, just as you received Christ Jesus as Lord, continue to live your lives in him, [7] rooted and built up in him, strengthened in the faith as you were taught, and overflowing with thankfulness. [8] See to it that no one takes you captive through hollow and deceptive philosophy, which depends on human tradition and the elemental spiritual forces of this world rather than on Christ."

[16] "Therefore do not let anyone judge you by what you eat or drink, or with regard to a religious festival, a New Moon celebration or a Sabbath day. [17] These are a shadow of the things that were to come; the reality, however, is found in Christ."

[20] "Since you died with Christ to the elemental spiritual forces of this world, why, as though you still belonged to the world, do you submit to its rules: [21] “Do not handle! Do not taste! Do not touch!”? [22] These rules, which have to do with things that are all destined to perish with use, are based on merely human commands and teachings. [23] Such regulations indeed have an appearance of wisdom, with their self-imposed worship, their false humility and their harsh treatment of the body, but they lack any value in restraining sensual indulgence."

My good friend and I were talking about these very things yesterday morning, how we like to keep score, how we like to focus on tasks rather than relationship.  I know in the past I have meditated on how we are uncomfortable with allowing people to operate in a relational paradigm concerning their faith, ourselves included.  We want rules and lists and tasks so that we can "judge" our progress. We like things that are nice and neat, and lists are that.  We think we could enjoy a life of checking off things to do, events to attend, and such.  However, the invitation of the Lord is to relationship.  Each of us is invited in the same way and each of us should have our own unique expression of relationship with the Lord, as He is the Lord of our lives.

Our temptation is to put together a list of things, a calendar of events, a schedule and a chart and then use that to judge our progress rather than entering into the give and take of relational contexts.  Relationships take time, effort and communication!  Relationships require participation of both parties, and growth and change.  Relationships mature over time and increase in depth of insight and understanding of one another.  In our relationship with the Lord, these are all true.

In our relationship with the Lord, as we allow Him to speak into us and call us forward in personal growth so that we can become more like Him, the Lord will bring up things to consider, opportunities for change, and invitations to embrace.  For each of us those things will be unique as to where we are in relationship, and unique to our own growth and maturity individually.  He might invite me to step away from social media for a while as He speaks into me, others He might encourage to reach out to those in need, still others might be invited to spend more time in prayer.  No one thing is better than another, and each is crafted by the Lord to lead us to our next step in growth and maturity in Him.

Continuing that line of thought, there are those that are invited to embrace singleness, others are called to marriage; some invited to embrace to voluntary poverty, others to extravagant giving from their wealth; some are invited to service in full-time ministry, others to ministry in the workplace; some are led to prayer and intercession, others to evangelism and outreaches.  Somehow we can slide into thinking we can rank or "judge" the different calls and invitations and think of some as more important, or more favored than others!  We want to compare, to "judge", and that is what Paul discourages here.

I have been a part of several ministries that proclaimed the "high" calling, as if their particular ministry or way of life was better than most others.  They appealed to our desire to do great things in our fervor and love, and while each was excellent, they were embracing a form of spiritual pride, and that is always dangerous.  In this particular letter Paul is addressing some of the "high-callings" of that time, those that wanted to add to the Gospel, those that said there were rules for special days, or fasts, or even ascetic life in the desert and that these were better than other ways of life!  He was addressing in particular the false humility of a life of poverty and asceticism with a fasted life-style as an outward humbleness that hides an inner pride of being better than everyone else.

Our goal, each of us, should be to embrace relationship with the Lord as He leads us!  We should encourage each other in our individual walks, and give grace to everyone else for the pursuit of the Lord as He uniquely draws them.  We should assume that while many might have similar walks, that the Lord is equally Lord of other's lives, as He is of our own.  We should allow Him to direct and guide, teach and discipline.  We need to realize that He is working in all of our lives, as He promised He would. We need to embrace personal responsibility for our own lives, and learn not to "judge" others.

We would do well to embrace Paul's encouragement from the verses above - Col 2: 6-7 NIV: "So then, just as you received Christ Jesus as Lord, continue to live your lives in him,  rooted and built up in him, strengthened in the faith as you were taught, and overflowing with thankfulness."  Let us embrace gratitude for the invitation, for the life of blessings, and for the relationship!  He is the reason we are here!  He is the reason we have experienced salvation!  He is the reason we have seen personal growth!  He is the reason we are seen as righteous before the Father!  It is His gifts of life and abilities that we enjoy everyday.  It is His breath that fills us and moves through us!

So, let us continue to live our lives, rooted and built up in relationship with Him!  Let us embrace His grace, and extend this same grace to everyone else!  Let us embrace relationship as the only thing that matters, and stop keeping score!  Let us entrust our walk and the walk of everyone else to the Lord, for He is the only one who is able to be Lord for everyone equally!

Dealing With Selective Memory In Our Faith Walk

This morning I opened my bible and I read from where I had last left off in Exodus, and the following verse popped - Exodus 16:3 NIV:  "The Israelites said to them, “If only we had died by the Lord's hand in Egypt! There we sat around pots of meat and ate all the food we wanted, but you have brought us out into this desert to starve this entire assembly to death.”

This is a great example of revisionist history - in the common mindset of the people.  The Israelites seemed to forget that they were slaves in Egypt and had been crying to God to save them!  They were mistreated and beaten and forced to work long hard hours by cruel task masters.  Here are the verses from earlier in Exodus describing their situation - Exodus 1:8-9,11-14 NIV:

[8] "Then a new king, to whom Joseph meant nothing, came to power in Egypt. [9] “Look,” he said to his people, “the Israelites have become far too numerous for us."

[11] "So they put slave masters over them to oppress them with forced labor, and they built Pithom and Rameses as store cities for Pharaoh. [12] But the more they were oppressed, the more they multiplied and spread; so the Egyptians came to dread the Israelites [13] and worked them ruthlessly. [14] They made their lives bitter with harsh labor in brick and mortar and with all kinds of work in the fields; in all their harsh labor the Egyptians worked them ruthlessly."

- and -

Exodus 2:23-24 NIV
[23] "During that long period, the king of Egypt died. The Israelites groaned in their slavery and cried out, and their cry for help because of their slavery went up to God. [24] God heard their groaning and he remembered his covenant with Abraham, with Isaac and with Jacob."

I don't know about you, but this doesn't sound like sitting around pots of meat, eating all the meat they wanted!  They were remembering the fact that the Egyptians fed them, but were forgetting that they did so so that they could work them ruthlessly!  They were having selective memory and because of it they were accusing God of failing to provide for them.   Here God had done exactly what they asked (freed them from their slavery in Egypt) and was leading them to the promised land, and all they could think of was how good they had it in Egypt!

I heard a great teaching by Bill Johnson a few years back talking about the testing that accompanies extreme obedience.  He was talking about the way the Lord will sometimes allow time or difficulty to test our resolve in our trust in Him. Here is my blog entry on that day - http://amomentwithgod-srh.blogspot.com/2014/05/obeying-into-weakness.html

The point Bill was making was sometimes our obedience leads us into times of greater trusting, and even perceived weakness, before the final fulfillment of God's promise.  In this case today, the Israelites cried out to God.  He answered by mightily working on their behalf, and part of that transition included leading them through the desert, where food and water were scarce.

Rather than focus on the the great things God had done already, they only looked at was immediately in front of them!  Instead of remembering the whole truth and being grateful, they chose to focus on the small (in reference to Slavery in Egypt) issue of being hungry!  It was a legitimate issue, and God is faithful to provide!  However, rather than stay in a place of trust and believing that God had provided so far and already worked miracles, and was sure to do so again, they started accusing God of failing them!  They went immediately to the place of unbelief and accusation, spurred on by their less than perfect memories of how they got there!

This morning I am encouraged to remind myself of all the Lord has done in my life!  I am encouraged to remember His mercy, His compassion, His faithfulness, His intervention in my life, His leading me, His connecting me, His miraculous provision and answers to prayer!  I am encouraged to look at my thoughts and to repent of any unbelief or accusations I am making against Him, realizing that I am clearly not remembering the whole story!

Lord, I am so grateful for all that You have done, and are continuing to do in my life.  I sometimes can't see how or where You are leading me, but I know that You are good, You are faithful and You love me!

Amen!

Learning About God In Our Expereinces

This morning I have been reading from Exodus 16 & 17, and they are stories of the Lord's provision.  He gave them Manna and Quail to eat (16) and provided them water where there wasn't any (17) and led them in victory by having Moses raise His arms with the Staff of the Lord, to the Lord and afterwards Moses built an altar and called it the Lord is my Banner (nace - something lifted up, standard, signal, signal pole, ensign, banner, sign, sail).

I was just reflecting on how the Lord provided food, water and victory over their enemies, all in basically one page.  When they were marching through the desert, God provided everything they needed.  Initially they were hungry, and complained.  Then they were thirsty and complained and grumbled. It seems something never change, for that is exactly my response to difficulty that I encounter.

The Israelites were learning the character of God, learning to encounter Him in His provision and blessing!  They were learning to obey His directions, recognizing that He was true to His Word.  In these situations, they were able to increase their understanding and experience of Him.  Without the difficulty, they wouldn't have understood His miraculous provision and blessings.  They got into those situations because they were following God, but they didn't understand His purpose in revealing His supernatural provision as they were in need.

They were progressively learning about God, understanding His ways and experience seems to be the way they needed to learn.  God had revealed Himself in many ways, but wanted them to know beyond a shadow of a doubt about His character.  Maybe they should have been asking themselves, what is God going to show us about Himself in this place of need?  Maybe, that should be my first question, rather than assuming God has abandoned me, or is displeased with me in some way, or complaining about how I didn't sign up for this!

Graham Cooke talks about how difficulty is always a door to provision in the Kingdom of God, and how we are well served by learning to rest in God.  If we can embrace resting in God's faithfulness rather than complaining or grumbling or worry, what a difference we would see in our life!  If we can learn to see things from His perspective, to look to His revelation and provision, knowing that He is going to teach us through experience, then we can cease our complaining and grumbling and follow His direction.

This morning I am encouraged to remember all the things that He has shown me through experience, and to lay claim to His promises, provision and blessings! He is a good God!  He knows my needs before I even mention them!  He will show Himself faithful!

Amen!

Becoming "Like" Those We Are Called To

This morning, I am wanting to reflect on the following verses - 1 Corinthians 9:19-23 NIV:

[19] "Though I am free and belong to no one, I have made myself a slave to everyone, to win as many as possible. [20] To the Jews I became like a Jew, to win the Jews. To those under the law I became like one under the law (though I myself am not under the law), so as to win those under the law. [21] To those not having the law I became like one not having the law (though I am not free from God's law but am under Christ's law), so as to win those not having the law. [22] To the weak I became weak, to win the weak. I have become all things to all people so that by all possible means I might save some. [23] I do all this for the sake of the gospel, that I may share in its blessings."

My first thought and point of research is to consider Paul's saying that he makes himself a slave to everyone.  For us the idea of being a slave has such a negative connotation.  The Greek word douloo does mean slave, in bondage, but it can also mean to "give myself wholly to one's needs and service, make myself a bondman to him".   A much better translation in my mind, would be to have Paul saying he has made himself a "bondman" to everyone.  He was volunteering, and making a choice to serve.  We see this mentality echoed in his next sentences, his choosing to be "like" a Jew,  like one under the law, like one not under the law.

He actually takes this choice even further for the weak, and becomes weak for their sake.  It takes great strength and courage to empty oneself and embrace weakness.  He then goes on to say that He has "become all things to all people" so that He might save some.  What a radically different approach this is to sharing Gospel, compared to our standard Sunday fare.  For many churches, the invitation is to come to us and become like us and you can experience salvation!  It seems that for many the idea of going to the lost and becoming "like" them as a precursor to sharing the Gospel is now a strange and unacceptable concept.  We like to judge those who are lost, not become like them!

I am not throwing out all the rest of Paul's teaching where he encouraged his audience to become like him, to follow the witness of Christ, to follow the Law of Christ, but rather am reflecting on Paul's conscious decision to reach the lost and get down (if I can say that without being demeaning) to their level!  The fact that this discussion is within a chapter that starts out with Paul defending himself as an apostle, makes me think that people in the church were judging Paul for his freedom and the choices he was making to advance the Gospel.  I don't think much has changed in the church these days, as I believe many would be quick to judge someone who was so conscious of their freedom, and  who lived  like those who had, what some would call, radical lifestyles (using a more common phrase for today) to become a witness to the lost in those lifestyles.

As an example, we might revel in those Christians who are tattooed and pierced, and think them a type of sensation, but become like them?  We might like to minister to the poor, but would we want to become like them, moving out of our comfortable homes, selling our nice cars and living the life of the less fortunate, of the struggling?  We might like to visit foreign countries on missions trips, but to actually move there and minister in their midst?  All of these statements are challenging to my own comfort, and I am aware of my own struggle to even think this way.

At the same time, I don't want to over swing and think that this calling to some group that we are unlike is the calling of everyone!  There are lost all around us, in our workplaces, in our neighborhoods, in our local stores and public venues.  We don't have to strive to  become like someone we are not, to win people to the Gospel, for people like us (who are lost) are all around us!  We are called, each to the ministry field, but for many of us that field is immediately surrounding us, even our very families.  Maybe our radical call is to just minister the Gospel to those who are already in our lives!

My main point of reflection this morning is simply this - we should not judge our brothers and sisters in the Body of Christ who are different, who are reaching to different groups, different life-styles, different ethnic or societal groups.  We are each responsible to follow the direction of the Lord, to extend the Gospel of Grace, and to love one another!  We must not think ourselves better than someone else who looks or acts differently, for they might very well be following the Lord's specific directions and call!  We also must be willing to go where the Lord leads us, understanding that He loves the lost and desires that all might come to Him in relationship and love.  As Paul says in his letter to 1 Timothy 2:3-4 NIV: "This is good, and pleases God our Savior, [4] who wants all people to be saved and to come to a knowledge of the truth."

Amen!

Encouragement When Things Go Bad!

This morning as I was opening my Bible, I was reminded of my last two reflections, one about the Stoning of Stephen (Acts 7) and the other about the outpouring of the Holy Spirit on Gentiles during Peter's visit to them (Acts 11).  I was reminded of a couple of verses in chapter 11 that referenced back to  the stoning of Stephen and the result o of the persecution that broke out after it.  Here are the verses - Acts 11:19-21 NIV:

[19] "Now those who had been scattered by the persecution that broke out when Stephen was killed traveled as far as Phoenicia, Cyprus and Antioch, spreading the word only among Jews. [20] Some of them, however, men from Cyprus and Cyrene, went to Antioch and began to speak to Greeks also, telling them the good news about the Lord Jesus. [21] The Lord's hand was with them, and a great number of people believed and turned to the Lord."

And here is a description of the persecution breaking out from the earlier account, with verses immediately following his death - Acts 8:1-8 NIV:

[1] "And Saul approved of their killing him."

"On that day a great persecution broke out against the church in Jerusalem, and all except the apostles were scattered throughout Judea and Samaria. [2] Godly men buried Stephen and mourned deeply for him. [3] But Saul began to destroy the church. Going from house to house, he dragged off both men and women and put them in prison."

[4] "Those who had been scattered preached the word wherever they went. [5] Philip went down to a city in Samaria and proclaimed the Messiah there. [6] When the crowds heard Philip and saw the signs he performed, they all paid close attention to what he said. [7] For with shrieks, impure spirits came out of many, and many who were paralyzed or lame were healed. [8] So there was great joy in that city."

My reflection this morning was how God used a terrible situation and turned it into the spreading of the Gospel worldwide, for clearly before the stoning of Stephen the growth of the church was almost all Jerusalem centric, and focused solely on the Jews.  There was a great effort underway by satan to try and destroy the church, and I am sure the thought was to kill the leaders, and squash this budding movement.

From the perspective of the believers, they were very afraid and they scattered immediately.  Logistically this meant that thousands of believers scattered into the surrounding area of Judea and Samaria and even as far as Phonecia, Cyprus and Antioch, all of which had strong populations of Jews.  If we just think about this from a mathematic perspective, according to Luke, the church went from being primarily Apostle lead, and spread to being almost 100% missionary!

We know from Acts 2 that there were about 120 followers in the upper room, and for this equation we can consider them Apostolic - by Acts 4 there were 5000 believers.  So if we count the 120 as leaders and 5000 believers, the church was 2.4% leaders and 97.6% followers/believers.  Once the persecution hit, those numbers immediately flipped and now the majority of believers were now preaching "the word wherever they went" and we see a completely different model for the spread of Christianity!

I am certainly not advocating persecution or disaster for the church, but what I am seeing is how impossible it is to stop the Holy Spirit!  He will lead and guide and direct, and turn the worst situation into explosive growth and blessing!  He is unaffected by the plans and efforts of man!

I am not overlooking the difficulty and struggle those that fled likely went through, for they were uprooting families and moving great distances in some cases.  They were afraid and were being hunted by Saul and his colleagues.  They were hard-pressed, but in the midst of all that, they saw God's plan and the Body of Christ expand and prosper.  It was clearly not the plan of any man or leader, and yet the Holy Spirit stepped right in and took over!  On top of that, He wouldn't settle for a spreading of the Good News among just the Jews, but directed them significantly to open the Gospel to the Gentiles!

The Holy Spirit was about something far greater than anyone likely understood for several years.   It was in looking back upon the effects of the persecution that Luke was able to see the hand of God moving. Jesus had spoken prophetically about this and even given the Apostles the charge to go to all the world (Matt 28) but I am sure not a single one of them imagined the persecution following the killing of Stephen would be the enabling event.  I am sure they likely had some plans for outreach and mission trips, and had some comfortable time-frames and plans, and instead we have persecution and scattering of the whole church!

So my encouragement this morning is to not worry about difficult situations or trouble caused by the plans of man!  There is a path forward in the Holy Spirit that will take those difficult situations and circumstances and turn them into massive blessing and growth!  I am also encouraged in my personal life to not worry so much, but to rather entrust myself to the Holy Spirit's guidance, direction and care!  It might be difficult for a season, but God will be glorified and I will be blessed to see Him move in and through my life.  So when things go bad,  let us look to the Lord, believe in His ability to save and transform!  Let us help one another and speak encouragement based on the history of God's faithfulness!   Let us remember His promise that He will never leave or forsake us (Deut. 31:6)!

Amen!

Following the Move of the Holy Spirit

Recently I have been reflecting on several circumstances in my life and career that seem less than optimal, and I have been pushing into the Lord, knowing that in Him and through Him, I will gain perspective and understanding.  I was reflecting on Paul's excellent encouragement from his letter to the Philippians 3:12-14 NIV:

[12] "Not that I have already obtained all this, or have already arrived at my goal, but I press on to take hold of that for which Christ Jesus took hold of me. [13] Brothers and sisters, I do not consider myself yet to have taken hold of it. But one thing I do: Forgetting what is behind and straining toward what is ahead, [14] I press on toward the goal to win the prize for which God has called me heavenward in Christ Jesus."

I know that God is capable, that He is working and He has plans that are being worked out in my life.  I am greatly encouraged to trust Him, and to embrace patience and intimacy with Him, while He works.

This morning, as I opened my Bible I felt like I should go back to the book of the Acts and spend some time reflecting on Peter's recounting of the outpouring of the Holy Spirit on uncircumcised gentiles.  It is so interesting how the Holy Spirit intervened and caused a significant change in understanding among the believers, but more importantly changed History for all of us who are not Jews.

After Peter finished his retelling of the whole situation, the believers decide that God apparently knows what He is doing - and that is where I am picking up my reflection this morning.  Here are the verses - Acts 11:15-21 NIV:

[15] “As I began to speak, the Holy Spirit came on them as he had come on us at the beginning. [16] Then I remembered what the Lord had said: 'John baptized with water, but you will be baptized with the Holy Spirit.' [17] So if God gave them the same gift he gave us who believed in the Lord Jesus Christ, who was I to think that I could stand in God's way?”

[18] "When they heard this, they had no further objections and praised God, saying, “So then, even to Gentiles God has granted repentance that leads to life.”

[19] "Now those who had been scattered by the persecution that broke out when Stephen was killed traveled as far as Phoenicia, Cyprus and Antioch, spreading the word only among Jews. [20] Some of them, however, men from Cyprus and Cyrene, went to Antioch and began to speak to Greeks also, telling them the good news about the Lord Jesus. [21] The Lord's hand was with them, and a great number of people believed and turned to the Lord."

This is all such an interesting account of one of the most significant occurrences in the early church.  I really appreciate how Luke didn't mince words, but gave a clear recounting of the reaction and seeming inability to follow the lead and direction of the Holy Spirit.  I am also very grateful for the corrective  capabilities of the Holy Spirit. A couple of observations on these verses:

1) The Holy Spirit is fully capable of intervening in the life and practice of the church to bring correction, guidance and connect one to another.
2) There was a significant outpouring of the Holy Spirit, when Peter was speaking, that was evident to all and was a sign of the Holy Spirit's working!
3) This outpouring is tied closely with salvation and repentance, and seems to be missing these days, not due to lack of power on the Holy Spirit's part.
4) Even though the Jewish believers understood God's greater plan to include the Gentiles, after this retelling by Peter, they didn't apparently change their behaviour to match God's plan (see the end of verse 19) and God had to spur on some Cypriots and Cyreneans to actually start reaching out to the gentiles who were Greek.  Both of these locations were primarily Greek, so for them they were going to like-speaking peoples.
5) God provided all the encouragement they needed in the form of conversions (note it was those that went to the Greeks in Antioch that saw the great number of converts, not the Jews who went to Antioch - If we can draw that conclusion from verses 19-21).
6) We should be willing to follow the move of the Holy Spirit, to listen to what He is saying and watch what He is doing, and join in!
7) The Lord is looking for those who will listen and obey!
8) The Lord will find a way to accomplish His will, even if we miss it.  He may even bring in outsiders.

So this morning, I am encouraged that God is capable, and moving!  I am encouraged that even if I miss what He is doing, I am not the only individual available to do His work.  There is always an invitation, and encouragement to join in what God is doing!  He can divinely move and connect us to others, even those with no previous connection.  He will show His pleasure and hand through the pouring out of gifts and conversions!

Come Holy Spirit, move us and guide us and pour out Your power!

Amen!

Jesus Came to Save, Not to Judge

This morning I am reading from the twelfth chapter of John's  Gospel.  There is much that occurs in that chapter, but I am reflecting on the last few verses - John 12:44-50 NIV:

[44] "Then Jesus cried out, “Whoever believes in me does not believe in me only, but in the one who sent me. [45] The one who looks at me is seeing the one who sent me. [46] I have come into the world as a light, so that no one who believes in me should stay in darkness."

[47] “If anyone hears my words but does not keep them, I do not judge that person. For I did not come to judge the world, but to save the world. [48] There is a judge for the one who rejects me and does not accept my words; the very words I have spoken will condemn them at the last day. [49] For I did not speak on my own, but the Father who sent me commanded me to say all that I have spoken. [50] I know that his command leads to eternal life. So whatever I say is just what the Father has told me to say.”

I have reflected on the theme of Jesus representing the Father many times, but it just never gets old.  Here in verse 45 Jesus says that when we look at Him, we see the Father.  We don't need to wonder what the Father is like, we can look at Jesus, at what is recorded about Him, to His words and actions and see the Father.  His words, His actions, His compassion, His gentleness, His forgiveness, He mercy, His interest in the individual, His love for children, His healings, all are representative of the Father.

Secondly, Jesus says that He came into the world as a light.  I am reminded of Ps 36, which I happened to be reflecting on yesterday.

Psalm 36:5-9 NIV:

[5] "Your love, Lord, reaches to the heavens, your faithfulness to the skies.
[6] Your righteousness is like the highest mountains, your justice like the great deep. You, Lord, preserve both people and animals.
[7] How priceless is your unfailing love, O God! People take refuge in the shadow of your wings.
[8] They feast on the abundance of your house; you give them drink from your river of delights.
[9] For with you is the fountain of life; in your light we see light."

Yes, He brings illumination, and with that light, we see the Light of the Father. The light of life, the light of God, shines forth in Jesus, in  His words and in His actions, and now in His church!

His next section is quite interesting in that He speaks about judgment, and His role.  He clearly says that He came, not to judge, but to save! (Verse 47 above).  Sometimes I think the church takes these few verses and mistakenly creates a hammer of judgment from the word of God, for Jesus says it is His words that will condemn them on the last day.  Thus, we think we can hammer people with the Word, and  threaten them with condemnation, in the hopes of saving them.  We beat people with the Word, extracting rules and regulations, demanding they are obedient and telling them any faltering is potentially rewarded with eternal condemnation. We love the idea of His words being the judge, for we can make them into black and white rules for salvation or condemnation.  We are so focused on judgment, we miss the first statement that Jesus made, namely that He came to save the world!

It is interesting, we can get so focused on one thing that we miss everything else.  It is like when someone is speaking and they say something that reminds us of a memory we have, and instead of continuing to listen, we go off thinking about that memory.  In this case Jesus is talking about relationship with Him, relationship with the Father, looking to Him and to His words and actions and seeing the Father.  If we look at the scriptural record we see exactly how Jesus responded to sinners, to the lost, to the weary, to the unsaved.  He was constantly inviting those (and us) into relationship, and it is only in that context that salvation and eternal life is received (John 17:3).  In verse 47 above, Jesus speaks about hearing and keeping His words.  The Greek word that is translated keep,  could also have been translated treasures, guards, or protects.  He is speaking about all that He has said previously and encouraging the people to guard and protect and treasure all those words.  It is in embracing them, and choosing to repent, choosing to change, choosing to live differently, choosing relationship with Him, that Jesus is pointing to here, for that is exactly what He was just discussing.

As I look at the verses above I understand the following:

1) Jesus came to reveal the Father to us.
2) When we look at Jesus, we see the Father.
3) Jesus' life was meant to be a light to the world.
4) Now that we have seen the light (His life and example), we are given the opportunity to change, to embrace relationship with Him and the Father.
5) How we embrace (Keep) that invitation and example and choose to change, is significant.
6) Jesus came to bring revelation, and to offer salvation to the whole world (and that is the Father's heart as well).
7) Our lives will be examined on the last day, and the hope of the Father and Jesus is that we enter eternal life with them.
8) They have shown us the way, and it is our choice to follow or not, but it is always God's heart to save!
9) Jesus came to save, not to judge, and we should have that same heart.

Lord, my prayer is that we embrace Your heart more fully!  That we might represent You, even as You represented the Father.  We pray that we might be encouraged to keep, to protect, to embrace and treasure Your word and example, and that in doing so we might become more like you! We want to be a light, even as You are the Light!

Amen!