Who Are You (Tuesday) – Isaiah 62:1-12

by | Jan 12, 2016 | 02. Who Are You?

Who Are You – Isaiah 62:1-12

How are we, believers in the 21st century, connected to the story of ancient Israel? Paul and Isaiah helps us …

And you, being a wild olive, were grafted in among them and became a partaker with them of the rich root of the olive tree.  Romans 11:17

There shall come the root of Jesse, and He who arises to rule over the gentiles, in Him shall the gentiles hope. Rom 15:12 (Paul quoting Isaiah 11:10)

Isaiah and the other prophets speak of a day when Israel’s fortunes will be restored through a new covenant but there are events which must come first, such as; the Jews returning to Yahweh, provoked by jealousy of those grafted in, who, with their lives, prove the efficacy of this New Covenant. Apparently, they have not yet seen anything sufficient to provoke their interest. However, it remains; this new covenant is our connection to the ancient story. The New Testament teachers labor to equip the Bride of Christ to see herself as the light of the world – a material reflection of Yahweh himself, one so bright that Israel, and all nations, take note.

On your wall, O Jerusalem, I have appointed watchman; All day and all night they will never keep silent. You who remind the Lord, take no rest for yourselves; and give Him no rest until He establishes and makes Jerusalem a praise in the earth. Isaiah 62:6-7

I have a friend who daily walks the ancient walls of Jerusalem, giving God no rest, reminding him to remember his promises. As God listens, I’m sure his heart is moved to consider, not only his local real estate and Israel’s current citizenry, but his Bride.

Let us rejoice and be glad and give the glory to Him, for the marriage of the Lamb has come and His bride has made herself ready. And it was given to her to clothe herself in fine linen, bright and clean; for the fine linen is the acts of the saints. And he said to me, “Write, ‘Blessed are those who are invited to the marriage supper of the Lamb.'” Revelation 19:7

I believe God’s zeal is to assemble his family. The prelude to this, then and now, is to transfer the light of his life to his people so that they may shine brightly. The scriptures may call this Zion, the Holy City, the Church or the Body of Christ, but it all boils down to the manifestation of God’s life, in Christ. In light of these assumptions, I take a Gentile’s interpretive liberty with the opening verse of our passage.

For Zion’s (the Bride’s) sake I will not keep silent, and for Jerusalem’s (the Bride’s) sake I will not be quiet, until her righteousness goes forth like brightness, and her salvation like a torch that is burning. And the nations (particularly Israel) will see your righteousness, and all kings your glory.

More than anything, I aspire to attend the Marriage Supper of the Lamb but there are some sobering things said in regard to it. The lamps of those attending must be filled with oil. I am assuming this oil is the Holy Spirit and that the Spirit’s presence would provoke longing and anticipation. In Matt 25:1-13 (The Parable of the Ten Virgins) Father uses incentives and disincentives to motivate us. The bottom line is always …

            Be on the alert, for you do not know which day your Lord is coming. Matt 24:42

Father, teach us to number our days that we may present to you, hearts of wisdom. May your Bride hear her alarm going off, saying; “Awake sleeper, and rise from the dead, and Christ will shine on you”. May your life be manifest in our anticipation, our longing and our prayers. May we live to see the day when your people are no longer seen as forsaken. Let us witness that day when the nations say, “These are a holy people, redeemed of the Lord. His delight is obviously upon them.” Amen.

 

 

 

 

 

Who Are You? (Monday) – Matthew 3:13-17

by | Jan 11, 2016 | 02. Who Are You?

Who Are You?  – Matthew 3:13-17

I had two baptisms. The first was as an infant in the First Presbyterian Church of Enid Oklahoma early in 1953. That one was not a dunking. It was a sprinkling. Judging by the results, a lengthy immersion may have been helpful. The second was a dunking that took place 23 years later in the Tulsa Edison High School swimming pool in the spring of 1976. I don’t know if it was the chlorine, but things were much different after that one. I am being silly of course. The difference with my second baptism is that I was given a new heart.

As I resurfaced in that pool I didn’t hear a voice from heaven saying, “This is My beloved Son, in whom I am well pleased.” That happened a few months later after I had spent a night in revelry. (I checked the definition, and yes, it was “revelry”). I had been perfecting this lifestyle since I was 13. Based upon the emptiness I was feeling the next morning, I was certain I had lost my salvation.

Dog piling on my misery were those familiar voices; “Robby, you idiot. You could screw up an anvil with a rubber mallet. Look what you have done now. You’ve lost the best thing you ever had. How typical of you to ruin this, just like you ruin everything. You are a looser!” I had not heard these voices since surrendering my heart to Christ. This was the voice of death. It had been stalking me for years. I cried out to the Lord as I was driving back to Tulsa from Enid, “Lord, I cannot bear to live without you. Even though I deserve it, please, please, please do not abandon me. I will die without you.” I had never spoken more sincere words. God’s response to this prayer is why I am not a Baptist (or a Presbyterian). They unfriended me when I told them what happened next.

Why, I do not know, but I began to weep. My tears turned into a flood. A torrent of emotion poured out of me, the likes of which I had never experienced. I was scared. I was not only loosing my salvation, I was apparently loosing my mind. As it turned out, my fears were unfounded. Even though it was terrifying at one level (God’s presence tends to do this), the next hour was the sweetest and most powerful 60 minutes of my life. I will not relate it all here, but suffice it to say, the Lord got it across that I too was his beloved son and he was well please with me.

In this encounter, he pledged to never leave nor forsake me. He also made it resoundingly clear that the name of Jesus is majestic in ways human language cannot begin to describe. My precious friends and family may ask, “So, Mr. Mystic, in what ways have you been more holy since this encounter?”  “And, Mr. Fear and Trembling, what wisdom did you came away with?” Well, as to holiness, I for sure vowed to never ever revel again but I have only been moderately successful with this. As to wisdom, make double-darn sure you have a very secure friendship before sharing a God encounter with a Baptist or a Presbyterian.

This living, real-time word put a hammer blow to the old voices but, I regret to say, it did not extinguish them. In a more subdued tone, I heard them for another 30 years. I was to learn that condemnation is every bit as potent in the context of religion as it is in revelry. Religious devotion and service were salves (and I poured it on!) … but the One who pledged to never leave nor forsake me, had freedom in mind. His process of liberation is what MwM celebrates.

 

Father, whatever it takes, permit us to discover our identities, in Christ. Help us to see what a generous, kind, strong and faithful Father you are. May our mouths be muzzled until our hearts are free.  Amen.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Made In His Image (Sunday) – Colossians 1:15-23

by | Jan 10, 2016 | 01. Made in His Image

Made In His Image – Colossians 1:15-23

Colossians 1:15-23 NAS

He is the image of the invisible God, the firstborn of all creation. For by Him all things were created, both in the heavens and on earth, visible and invisible, whether thrones or dominions or rulers or authorities-all things have been created through Him and for Him. He is before all things, and in Him all things hold together. He is also head of the body, the church; and He is the beginning, the firstborn from the dead, so that He Himself will come to have first place in everything. For it was the Father’s good pleasure for all the fullness to dwell in Him, and through Him to reconcile all things to Himself, having made peace through the blood of His cross; through Him, I say, whether things on earth or things in heaven.

And although you were formerly alienated and hostile in mind, engaged in evil deeds, yet He has now reconciled you in His fleshly body through death, in order to present you before Him holy and blameless and beyond reproach – if indeed you continue in the faith firmly established and steadfast, and not moved away from the hope of the gospel that you have heard, which was proclaimed in all creation under heaven, and of which I, Paul, was made a minister (and coach).

When the ball is hiked in a football game, the viewer’s eyes are trained on the quarterback. The ultimate compliment to a QB and a play caller is when the defense is fooled. While everyone is focused on one area, yardage is being gained on another part of the field, and by someone unexpected. Many of us may be fooled as well as we think of God’s work in the earth today. The unit God has on the field is His Church and …

                              when it comes to the church, he organizes and holds it together

Unfortunately those watching the western division of The Saints versus the Demons do not see the Church gaining any ground. It would seem the Church only knows a few plays and the opponent knows them all, stopping most of them for a loss. How can this be?  Is there a problem with the offensive coordinator? Is there a problem with the play? The theology of some even lead them to believe that God has ordained this quarter to be a loss. For the record, I don’t see any coach, especially ours, ordaining a loss, and there is certainly no problem with The Play or its Caller. Read our passage again, this time with your heart. (Note: You cannot speed-read and heart-listen at the same time.)

Everything, absolutely everything, above and below, visible and invisible, rank after rank after rank of angels—everything got started in Him and finds its purpose in Him. He was there before any of it came into existence and holds it all together right up to this moment…He was supreme in the beginning and—leading the resurrection parade—He is supreme in the end. From beginning to end He’s there, towering far above everything, everyone. So spacious is He, so roomy, that everything of God finds its proper place in Him without crowding. Not only that, but all the broken and dislocated pieces of the universe—people and things, animals and atoms—get properly fixed and fit together in vibrant harmonies, all because of His death, His blood that poured down from the cross. Colossians 1:15-20 MSG

George Barna has compiled some of the game stats for Team-Church in his book Revolution. The numbers strongly suggest the western church is stuck at the line of scrimmage, deep in their own territory. However Barna’s eye has not been fooled. He is also following the ball on a play that is gaining some yardage. It is being executed by an unexpected player on a part of the field not many are watching … Look at the sideline – something is going on there, behind the coaches.

Most of us do not see this play simply because our eye has been trained to think of “church” as a place or an event. Our conditioning has trained us to see Pastor as Coach and QB. While our eye may be following the institutional church, the ball is actually being carried by the Church, a vast and growing squad of aching souls who are standing up, getting off the pew and declaring, “I am not just a benchwarmer!”

From the Owner’s perspective, the ball has never really been dropped. The players, as they have always been, are scattered strategically on the field. Barna has taken note that many believers are not only getting up off the bench, they are finding their way into smaller groups where they can discover how God has equipped them and how they can make their essential contribution to The Play.

Along with Coach Paul, MwM aspires to encourage all men and women to discover their essential gifts and insert themselves into the line up of friends and family where only love can advance the ball and reverse the momentum of this battle.

Father, May we see the contest with your eyes. May we find our way into the skirmish where our God-given skill sets can be used to devestate the enemy.  Thank You for Life. We look forward to the day when you truly run up the score. So be it.

Made in His Image (Saturday) – 2 Corinthians 3:12-18

by | Jan 9, 2016 | 01. Made in His Image

Made In His Image – Colossians 1:15-23

Colossians 1:15-23 NAS

He is the image of the invisible God, the firstborn of all creation. For by Him all things were created, both in the heavens and on earth, visible and invisible, whether thrones or dominions or rulers or authorities-all things have been created through Him and for Him. He is before all things, and in Him all things hold together. He is also head of the body, the church; and He is the beginning, the firstborn from the dead, so that He Himself will come to have first place in everything. For it was the Father’s good pleasure for all the fullness to dwell in Him, and through Him to reconcile all things to Himself, having made peace through the blood of His cross; through Him, I say, whether things on earth or things in heaven.

And although you were formerly alienated and hostile in mind, engaged in evil deeds, yet He has now reconciled you in His fleshly body through death, in order to present you before Him holy and blameless and beyond reproach – if indeed you continue in the faith firmly established and steadfast, and not moved away from the hope of the gospel that you have heard, which was proclaimed in all creation under heaven, and of which I, Paul, was made a minister (and coach).

When the ball is hiked in a football game, the viewer’s eyes are trained on the quarterback. The ultimate compliment to a QB and a play caller is when the defense is fooled. While everyone is focused on one area, yardage is being gained on another part of the field, and by someone unexpected. Many of us may be fooled as well as we think of God’s work in the earth today. The unit God has on the field is His Church and …

                              when it comes to the church, he organizes and holds it together

Unfortunately those watching the western division of The Saints versus the Demons do not see the Church gaining any ground. It would seem the Church only knows a few plays and the opponent knows them all, stopping most of them for a loss. How can this be?  Is there a problem with the offensive coordinator? Is there a problem with the play? The theology of some even lead them to believe that God has ordained this quarter to be a loss. For the record, I don’t see any coach, especially ours, ordaining a loss, and there is certainly no problem with The Play or its Caller. Read our passage again, this time with your heart. (Note: You cannot speed-read and heart-listen at the same time.)

Everything, absolutely everything, above and below, visible and invisible, rank after rank after rank of angels—everything got started in Him and finds its purpose in Him. He was there before any of it came into existence and holds it all together right up to this moment…He was supreme in the beginning and—leading the resurrection parade—He is supreme in the end. From beginning to end He’s there, towering far above everything, everyone. So spacious is He, so roomy, that everything of God finds its proper place in Him without crowding. Not only that, but all the broken and dislocated pieces of the universe—people and things, animals and atoms—get properly fixed and fit together in vibrant harmonies, all because of His death, His blood that poured down from the cross. Colossians 1:15-20 MSG

George Barna has compiled some of the game stats for Team-Church in his book Revolution. The numbers strongly suggest the western church is stuck at the line of scrimmage, deep in their own territory. However Barna’s eye has not been fooled. He is also following the ball on a play that is gaining some yardage. It is being executed by an unexpected player on a part of the field not many are watching … Look at the sideline – something is going on there, behind the coaches.

Most of us do not see this play simply because our eye has been trained to think of “church” as a place or an event. Our conditioning has trained us to see Pastor as Coach and QB. While our eye may be following the institutional church, the ball is actually being carried by the Church, a vast and growing squad of aching souls who are standing up, getting off the pew and declaring, “I am not just a benchwarmer!”

From the Owner’s perspective, the ball has never really been dropped. The players, as they have always been, are scattered strategically on the field. Barna has taken note that many believers are not only getting up off the bench, they are finding their way into smaller groups where they can discover how God has equipped them and how they can make their essential contribution to The Play.

Along with Coach Paul, MwM aspires to encourage all men and women to discover their essential gifts and insert themselves into the line up of friends and family where only love can advance the ball and reverse the momentum of this battle.

Father, May we see the contest with your eyes. May we find our way into the skirmish where our God-given skill sets can be used to devestate the enemy.  Thank You for Life. We look forward to the day when you truly run up the score. So be it.

Made In His Image (Friday) – Ephesians 2:4-10

by | Jan 8, 2016 | 01. Made in His Image

Made In His Image – Colossians 1:15-23

Colossians 1:15-23 NAS

He is the image of the invisible God, the firstborn of all creation. For by Him all things were created, both in the heavens and on earth, visible and invisible, whether thrones or dominions or rulers or authorities-all things have been created through Him and for Him. He is before all things, and in Him all things hold together. He is also head of the body, the church; and He is the beginning, the firstborn from the dead, so that He Himself will come to have first place in everything. For it was the Father’s good pleasure for all the fullness to dwell in Him, and through Him to reconcile all things to Himself, having made peace through the blood of His cross; through Him, I say, whether things on earth or things in heaven.

And although you were formerly alienated and hostile in mind, engaged in evil deeds, yet He has now reconciled you in His fleshly body through death, in order to present you before Him holy and blameless and beyond reproach – if indeed you continue in the faith firmly established and steadfast, and not moved away from the hope of the gospel that you have heard, which was proclaimed in all creation under heaven, and of which I, Paul, was made a minister (and coach).

When the ball is hiked in a football game, the viewer’s eyes are trained on the quarterback. The ultimate compliment to a QB and a play caller is when the defense is fooled. While everyone is focused on one area, yardage is being gained on another part of the field, and by someone unexpected. Many of us may be fooled as well as we think of God’s work in the earth today. The unit God has on the field is His Church and …

                              when it comes to the church, he organizes and holds it together

Unfortunately those watching the western division of The Saints versus the Demons do not see the Church gaining any ground. It would seem the Church only knows a few plays and the opponent knows them all, stopping most of them for a loss. How can this be?  Is there a problem with the offensive coordinator? Is there a problem with the play? The theology of some even lead them to believe that God has ordained this quarter to be a loss. For the record, I don’t see any coach, especially ours, ordaining a loss, and there is certainly no problem with The Play or its Caller. Read our passage again, this time with your heart. (Note: You cannot speed-read and heart-listen at the same time.)

Everything, absolutely everything, above and below, visible and invisible, rank after rank after rank of angels—everything got started in Him and finds its purpose in Him. He was there before any of it came into existence and holds it all together right up to this moment…He was supreme in the beginning and—leading the resurrection parade—He is supreme in the end. From beginning to end He’s there, towering far above everything, everyone. So spacious is He, so roomy, that everything of God finds its proper place in Him without crowding. Not only that, but all the broken and dislocated pieces of the universe—people and things, animals and atoms—get properly fixed and fit together in vibrant harmonies, all because of His death, His blood that poured down from the cross. Colossians 1:15-20 MSG

George Barna has compiled some of the game stats for Team-Church in his book Revolution. The numbers strongly suggest the western church is stuck at the line of scrimmage, deep in their own territory. However Barna’s eye has not been fooled. He is also following the ball on a play that is gaining some yardage. It is being executed by an unexpected player on a part of the field not many are watching … Look at the sideline – something is going on there, behind the coaches.

Most of us do not see this play simply because our eye has been trained to think of “church” as a place or an event. Our conditioning has trained us to see Pastor as Coach and QB. While our eye may be following the institutional church, the ball is actually being carried by the Church, a vast and growing squad of aching souls who are standing up, getting off the pew and declaring, “I am not just a benchwarmer!”

From the Owner’s perspective, the ball has never really been dropped. The players, as they have always been, are scattered strategically on the field. Barna has taken note that many believers are not only getting up off the bench, they are finding their way into smaller groups where they can discover how God has equipped them and how they can make their essential contribution to The Play.

Along with Coach Paul, MwM aspires to encourage all men and women to discover their essential gifts and insert themselves into the line up of friends and family where only love can advance the ball and reverse the momentum of this battle.

Father, May we see the contest with your eyes. May we find our way into the skirmish where our God-given skill sets can be used to devestate the enemy.  Thank You for Life. We look forward to the day when you truly run up the score. So be it.