by RobertCummins | Dec 27, 2014 | 55. Joy and Celebration
Revelation 19: 6-9
What motivated the Holy Spirit to visit the aged apostle John on Patmos and give him the revelation that became the conclusion to our cannon of scripture? What are we to do with it? There is not much practical application here unless it is to make sure your wardrobe is predominantly white. (There are lot of people dressed in white in this book!)
In The Middle With Mystery we often wade off from the shoreline a bit before we enter into much perceived mystery. In Revelation, one step and we are in way over our heads….
And the twenty-four elders and the four living creatures fell down and worshiped God who sits on the throne saying, “Amen. Hallelujah!” …….Then I heard something like the voice of a great multitude and like the sound of many waters and like the sound of mighty peals of thunder, saying, “Hallelujah! For the Lord our God, the Almighty, reigns.
It is ironic that I happen to be sitting at a friend’s desk. He happens to be named John and he happens to be an apostle in the network of prophetic and intercessory believers he serves. I am very big on divine-coincidence so I glance to my right and on his shelf, I see a book which is an answer to my initial question. It is Storm Warning by Billy Graham. He also wrote Approaching Hoofbeats: The Four Horseman of the Apocalypse.
Billy Graham is typical of all God’s great saints. While the great harlot of Babylon has seduced the souls of men into an orgy with this world, the great ones are intoxicated with the things not of this earth. The souls of all men are haunted by the notion that there may be more to life than meets the eye. The souls of God’s saints have gained the clarity of faith to see and increasingly focus on the invisible kingdom of God. The book of Revelation is grade “A” nutrition to the faith-infected soul looking toward the “more” of God.
Revelation even adds particulars to the mysteries; the Marriage Supper of the Lamb being among them.
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.” It was given to her to clothe herself in fine linen, bright and clean; for the fine linen is the righteous acts of the saints. Then he said to me, “Write, ‘Blessed are those who are invited to the marriage supper of the Lamb.'” And he said to me, “These are true words of God.”
I am thinking now of Paul, as another encouragement as to what we are to do with the book of Revelation. To Timothy, Paul’s son in the faith, he says……
I know whom I have believed and I am convinced that He is able to guard what I have entrusted to Him until that day.
We know Paul considered his flawless resumé and his pedigree to be as dung, so was it his reputation that he had entrusted to God? I am more inclined to think that Paul saw everything that he was and might have been as buried in Christ and that he was raised up into new life with eyes of faith to anticipate a future of glory not just the applause of men. I believe Paul was attracted to the idea that Jesus was due considerable honor that he had not received on earth. I believe Paul and all God’s authentic saints are pining to see their King honored and worshipped in a manner befitting One of His stature. At the very least, the Lamb’s Marriage Supper should include this agenda item.
The real problem for us, in accepting an invitation to the Marriage Supper of the Lamb is our wardrobe. Really! What is a person to wear to this gala of cosmic import? Well, as I’ve already said, it needs to be just the right shade of white. We might think some of our whites would look nice at this function but if they are shaded in the very least by our works, they will not get us in the door. What looks like a shade of white to us is grotesquely stained to God. We must look in our wardrobes and see if we can find those garments of white that were given to us by the Lamb who was slain. This is will be the only acceptable attire for the Marriage Supper of the Lamb.
It was given to her to clothe herself in fine linen, bright and clean; for the fine linen is the righteous acts of the saints.
Some will want to protest that our attire for the party should be composed by the deeds of our Christian service. While this is true in a sense this needs to be clarified. The acts referred to here are a particular type of acts. In fact hey are the acts born of a particular type of faith. Paul again is our reference point. Of his own labors he says….
For this purpose also I labor, striving according to His power, which mightily works within me………for it is God who is at work in you, both to will and to work for His good pleasure.
For Paul, it was no longer he who lived but Christ lived in him and through him. Like all saints Paul had to learn how to labor in the yoke of Christ, how to carry the burden so that it was light. The life of a saint is a mysterious experiential affair. Precise and detailed instructions on how to dress would only subvert the process of making ourselves ready, of clothing ourselves in fine linen, bright and clean.
There is no way into the Marriage Supper of the Lamb other than through the door which is Christ Himself. Jesus has been sending invites out to his people for centuries but we know from the parables that few respond. How then can we even imagine that we would get in? It is simple but it is not easy. It involves responding to the invitation in the right way.
Behold, I stand at the door and knock; if anyone hears My voice and opens the door, I will come in to him and will dine with him, and he with Me.
I believe those in attendance at that grand event will be those who have been availing themselves by faith of the door that Jesus opened into the the Holy of Holies by way of His death and resurrection. Because they had found Christ in themselves and diligently stewarded that mysterious reality through by resting in Him, their lives produced those kinds of acts that were referenced as the righteous acts of the saints.
Father, may we hear afresh Your invitation to our hearts to draw near. May we discover how to stir afresh the gift of Christ within that we may live out of Your limitless life, escaping the restrictions of our time bound and diluted thinking. Through You and by You and for You Lord; may our hearts be made ready with praise. Let us rejoice and be glad and give the glory to You. May our voices blend and add to the sounds of many waters saying, “Hallelujah! For the Lord our God, the Almighty, reigns. Amen.
by RobertCummins | Dec 26, 2014 | 55. Joy and Celebration
Joy and Celebration – Exodus 15:1-21
The enemy is Pharaoh in today’s story and he has said of God’s people “They are wandering aimlessly in the land; the wilderness has shut them in.” So, he gave orders and an elite division of the Egyptian army chased after them with all the horses and chariots of Pharaoh, his horsemen and his army, and they overtook them camping by the sea. Obviously, Pharaoh is about to demonstrate his might and return his laborers back into slavery. Sadly, this has become an appealing option to most of the Israelites to being buried in the wilderness.
The chances of Pharaohs’ success were not 100 or a 1000 to 1. The odds makers were not even giving a prayer of a hope for God’s people. Back into bondage would be the inevitable slam dunk outcome. While this may have been the apparent reality, Jehovah’s perspective was radically different. He said, “I will be honored through Pharaoh and all his army, and the Egyptians will know that I am the Lord.” In other words it was the Lord who had lured Pharaoh into His trap. God had His enemy precisely where He wanted him.
One of the great truths in the New Testament happens to be about the Old Testament. It is this…
For whatever was written in earlier times was written for our instruction, so that through perseverance and the encouragement of the Scriptures we might have hope.
The evening news and the Forward of seemingly every Christian book is a troubling reminder that the human race (including God’s people) are wandering in the wilderness, hemmed in between the evil hordes and the apparent impossible circumstances before them. Most people (including God’s) anticipate the chaos and carnage this inevitable squeeze will cause. Its not a matter of “if” to most, its a matter of when and how much. Here is a radical but fair question in light of the outcome of Israel’s story; “Is it possible that in our times, God has maneuvered His enemy into the same trap He lured Pharaoh?” Could your faith be aroused to imagine that God has His enemy (in our individual and corporate circumstances) right where He wants him? Let’s refresh our memories in regard to our current reality.
For our struggle is not against flesh and blood, but against the rulers, against the powers, against the world forces of this darkness, against the spiritual forces of wickedness in the heavenly places.
The real rulers of this world (known in scripture as principalities and powers), operating under the command of Satan (the prince of this world) are not armed with AK-47’s and nerve gas. They are armed with sophisticated and strategically organized lies. In scripture these are referred to as empty deceptions, traditions of men, philosophies, elementary principles, fortresses, speculations and lofty things, all raised up against the knowledge of God. My catch word for all these deceptions is strongholds. May our refresher course remind us that our primary and ultimate residence is not America the Beautiful, the Land of the Free. We live on a battle field.
We, like ancient Israel, look around us. In front of us we see a future that looks like an impossible obstacle – an increasingly economically and geopolitically unstable world ready to be grabbed up by any one of a seemingly growing pool of opportunistic and well-armed despots. We look behind us and see a formidable array of ill-intentioned forces gathered there as well, all just too ready to escort us back into slavery.
Remember, the enemy’s tools are lies intended to deceive. What we do not realize is where we are bound in deceit. Our shackles are not on our legs and arms. We are shackled-in-heart where we are agreeing with one or many of the attractive options laid out on the enemy’s smorgasbord. If we are saying, “This does not apply to me; I an American! I am free to choose”, we are just feeling the steel grip of our shackles. While we are touting our freedom, the enemy looks upon us and laughs as we robotically feast upon the half-truths and blatant lies that have become our reality – the codes and traditions we live by. Again a reminder. Jehovah has a plan up the sleeve of his mighty right arm. He has actually revealed it already.
One of God’s 5-Star generals, Paul would say to us, “You are bound in heart because you are looking at things as they are outwardly. (2 Corinthians 10:3-7) He would go on to say…..
See to it that no one takes you captive through philosophy and empty deception, according to the tradition of men, according to the elementary principles of the world, rather than according to Christ. Colossians 2:8
For though we walk in the flesh, we do not war according to the flesh, for the weapons of our warfare are not of the flesh, but divinely powerful for the sake of destroying the well arranged lies that infect men’s hearts, which consequently control and manipulate the world. We are destroying all the lies and unlocking all the shackles.
One day the earth will be filled with the knowledge of the glory of the Lord, as the waters cover the sea. (Habakuk 2:14)
I don’t believe this knowledge of God will just be God-facts gathered and recorded by academics. It won’t be second hand or propositional truth stored in books or data-banks by the scribes. I believe the earth will be covered with God’s people who found themselves just about where Israel found herself and we today find ourselves. We will discover where this world’s empty deceptions have woven their way into our beliefs and values and we will repent. We shall renew our minds and thus renovate our hearts. Then we shall be filled with the knowledge of God. Living Truth will one day be manifest in the story of God’s people as the earth is inhabited by those who have realized they themselves are the temples of God, the place where God’s glory now dwells. The earth then, shall be filled with knowledge and the glory of God. The Word shall become flesh in aggregate. This will be our story and a formidable weapon in our warfare.
This ultimate “then” will be established because God’s people discover what we have in Christ “now“. The kingdom of God has come and it shall never decrease. It grows as one lie after another is exposed and displaced by living Truth. In Christ, a new Exodus began and God invites us to face our enemy and our obstacles in faith. Those who have discovered abandonment will be led to their Promised Land. The question is will there be sheep driven into Canaan unwillingly? I believe an honest read of the New Testament will not provide security for those holding on to their rights to live life as it suits them. Holding on to our independence is not at all a safe place to be in our hearts spiritually. The kingdom is where Christ rule is expanding. How could we be a part of His kingdom when we insist on having our way?
This battle is so close to home we most often do not even see it. The enemy has done an exceptional job at hemming us in but simultaneously the Lord has him right where He wants him. That is why I have distributed 100 copies of “The Gift of Being Yourself by David Benner to a host of my friends and family. It says much about the front-line of spiritual warfare. Our hearts are the beachhead of God’s invasion of His planet. That is why the wisest man who ever lived told us to……
Keep vigilant watch over your heart; that’s where life starts.
Benner’s book says as much about securing this beachhead and cooperating with our Commander in retaking that which has been stolen as any book I have found. If you did not receive a book from me and would like one, please let me know. I knew I might accidentally leave a few folks out.
Father, raise up fresh divisions of the kingdom family-army who will surrender their hearts to you and submit to your rights of rulership. May they rise with a militant heart and discover that it was for such a time as this that they were born. May they say with a warrior’s heart that they will not be denied the right to lay their lives down in this ultimate conflict. Equip us to say, “We shall not shirk this responsibility. We will not squander this opportunity.” Amen.
May the song of the growing kingdom regiments begin to fill this earth……
Then Moses and the Israelites sang this song to God, giving voice together, I’m singing my heart out to God—what a victory! He pitched horse and rider into the sea. God is my strength, God is my song, and, yes! God is my salvation. This is the kind of God I have and I’m telling the world!This is the God of my father— I’m spreading the news far and wide! God is a fighter, pure God, through and through. Pharaoh’s chariots and army he dumped in the sea, The elite of his officers he drowned in the Red Sea. Wild ocean waters poured over them; they sank like a rock in the deep blue sea. Your strong right hand, God, shimmers with power; your strong right hand shatters the enemy. In your mighty majesty you smash your upstart enemies, You let loose your hot anger and burn them to a crisp. At a blast from your nostrils the waters piled up; Tumbling streams dammed up, wild oceans curdled into a swamp. The enemy spoke, “I’ll pursue, I’ll hunt them down, I’ll divide up the plunder, I’ll glut myself on them; I’ll pull out my sword, my fist will send them reeling.” You blew with all your might and the sea covered them. They sank like a lead weight in the majestic waters. Who compares with you among gods, O God? Who compares with you in power, in holy majesty, In awesome praises, wonder-working God? You stretched out your right hand and the Earth swallowed them up. But the people you redeemed, you led in merciful love; You guided them under your protection to your holy pasture.
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by RobertCummins | Dec 24, 2014 | 55. Joy and Celebration
Philippians 4:4-9
Rejoice in the Lord always; again I will say, rejoice! Let your gentle spirit be known to all men. The Lord is near. Be anxious for nothing, but in everything by prayer and supplication with thanksgiving let your requests be made known to God. And the peace of God, which surpasses all comprehension, will guard your hearts and your minds in Christ Jesus.
Sometimes when I read the scripture it is like this…..
Oh Lord, Thy word is a light unto my path and a knife unto my heart.
For the record, I know this verse is not in the bible (at least not in one place).
Perhaps you are like me in that at times rejoicing in the Lord sounds as appealing as doing the hokey pokey and turning thyself about. Perhaps the spirit you have demonstrated to all men (or carefully hidden from them as the case may be) is really about as gentle as a wolverine. Perhaps the Lord feels light years away. And what do we do with the word of God when we are rating our peace in negative numbers? This is when His word can be a gracious knife unto our hearts. Since this is where my heart has been of late and I am being tempted to labor in the perceived vacuum of God’s presence, I thought I would share how the word of God eventually becomes the light unto my path.
I know some of you are saying, “Brother, if Thou wouldst return to the fold, we could pump-Thou -up. I do appreciate the sentiment but I sincerely doubt it. I just spent 20 years trying earnestly to get inflated and found myself deflated instead. This is no criticism to the local-pump. It’s just that there came a time when that pump simply no longer fit my nozzle. That’s a silly way of saying it, but there came a time (by design I believe), in the presence of a perceived vacuum we find ourselves crying out for Christ alone, “Lord breathe in me.”
I suppose it has been the Blue Book in recent years, more than anything, that has enabled me to get my wind back. It has simply been God’s invitation to come before Him, to be still, to meditate and to simply enjoy Him. For this reason, the Blue Book (next to the green-backed Living Bible my mom sent me to college with) is the most precious material gift I may have ever received.
It was given to me by a spiritual friend and mentor. (Note; Spiritual friends and mentors are essential to the kingdom journey.) The Blue Book was an invitation that sat unopened for many months. I knew it was a devotional book. (….Like structure was what I needed in my relationship with God!) Nooo….what I need is a blast from the Holy Spirit. Thank you very much.) However, being the book browsing addict that I am I cracked the pages and was drawn in by the mysterious and seductive voices of grace. (The BB is crammed with these voices.) I heard the Father’s voice in the rich excerpts I was reading, saying, “Come. Eat.”
I once had a very cool dream. I awakened in a lodge and went down a set of stairs into a huge living room with all sorts of people milling around. (This lodge was my idea of a mansion for sure. It looked and felt like the main lodge in Yellowstone.) I saw Jesus standing with a group of folks. He broke away and welcomed me as an old friend and escorted me to a buffet. He told the person running the buffet to give me the strong meat of His Word. The dream ended. What do you do with that? Well…when I connect it to the Blue Book invitation, I “Come and eat.” Here is what I am learning by responding to the invitation offered through the BB;
Coming and Eating
1. The “coming” part is simply me showing up. I have chosen the morning for this because I am definitely at my best early in the day. It has taught me first that meals (actually banquets) are set before me (in the presence of my enemies) on a continual basis.
2. It has helped my table manners. It has taught me that meals are meant to take time. The meal is mostly about the growing communion with those seated around the table (the Father, the Son and the Holy Spirit).
3. Chewing slowly, thoroughly drawing the nourishment from each bite. Meditating (mulling over) words and phrases, asking questions, inviting the Others at the table to ask questions and make comments make the family dining experience more enjoyable.
4. Writing our impressions, insights and answers down in an on-line or actual journal will build a continuity and depth of relationship – which is the point.
5. For some (myself included) pausing, meditating and writing (pmw) is like letting a rope and bucket deep down into a well. As I go through the pmw habit it is like drawing that bucket up and finding living personalized water, not water someone else drew up.
6. The process is not complete for me unless it pmw &p (p= prayer). Graham Cooke talks about praying crafted-prayers. By this he means ones that God’s word and His Spirit have stirred in the heart which have been refined by scripture, the Spirit’s promptings and life.
Now how does this apply to today’s passage? If you are young in your walk with God, and you’re just not feelin-it (as I confessed was my state), you may hear the admonitions of scripture (rejoice, be gentle and at peace) as further evidence that you are just a fallen wretch, reasoning if you were a legitimate son (or daughter), you would instinctively be rejoicing and gentle. God’s word may feel like a great holy-bludgeon producing guilt, reinforcing the sense of depravity. You may rationalize your reactions as the only appropriate ones before a holy and righteous God.
If you are more mature, having experienced his double edged scalpel, you will know how merciful and redeeming the blade is since the outcome always proves to be increased community with the Trinity. If there is a perceived vacuum in response to God’s word, we will not permit condemning voices to suggest that we are just fallen beings who naturally struggle in relationship with God. We eventually learn when the accuser comes saying, “If you were a son of God, then…. (fill in the particular lie)”, this is our cue to take our stand on the pure gift of our restored communion with God – a kingdom reality on which we cannot improve. We can only say, “Thank you Lord. I love You too.” The maturing saint will (by design) be given multitudes of opportunity to rejoice and give thanks in the presence of contrary feelings. This is apparently God’s chosen means of growing faith and raising sons to maturity. (By all means read the “Bonus” included after the prayer.)
Finally, a word about the intentionality of thought. It is not critical that everyone thinks deeply or intellectually but it is essential that we all think purely. There is simply no way to watch over our hearts – Christ’s home without managing our thought life. So………
Finally, brethren, whatever is true, whatever is honorable, whatever is right, whatever is pure, whatever is lovely, whatever is of good repute, if there is any excellence and if anything worthy of praise, dwell on these things.
The Blue book has been a treasure chest of content that meets this Philippians 4 specification. And perhaps more than that is has helped change my spiritual diet and linked me to a lifetime supply of nutrition.
Father, I pray that your scalpel might do its work cutting away all that is not true in me. Forgive me for the struggle I put up in this process. Teach us to rest and trust in you more and more for your name’s sake. Even when we are under the knife, permit us to enjoy our communion with You, the Son and the Spirit. So be it.
Bonus (contributed by John Westrope)
“Friend, go up higher.”
— Luke 14:10
When first the life of grace begins in the soul, we do indeed draw near to God, but it is with great fear and trembling. The soul conscious of guilt, and humbled thereby, is overawed with the solemnity of its position; it is cast to the earth by a sense of the grandeur of Jehovah, in whose presence it stands. With unfeigned bashfulness it takes the lowest room.
But, in after life, as the Christian grows in grace, although he will never forget the solemnity of his position, and will never lose that holy awe which must encompass a gracious man when he is in the presence of the God who can create or can destroy; yet his fear has all its terror taken out of it; it becomes a holy reverence, and no more an overshadowing dread. He is called up higher, to greater access to God in Christ Jesus. Then the man of God, walking amid the splendours of Deity, and veiling his face like the glorious cherubim, with those twin wings, the blood and righteousness of Jesus Christ, will, reverent and bowed in spirit, approach the throne; and seeing there a God of love, of goodness, and of mercy, he will realize rather the covenant character of God than his absolute Deity. He will see in God rather his goodness than his greatness, and more of his love than of his majesty. Then will the soul, bowing still as humbly as aforetime, enjoy a more sacred liberty of intercession; for while prostrate before the glory of the Infinite God, it will be sustained by the refreshing consciousness of being in the presence of boundless mercy and infinite love, and by the realization of acceptance “in the Beloved.” Thus the believer is bidden to come up higher, and is enabled to exercise the privilege of rejoicing in God, and drawing near to him in holy confidence, saying, “Abba, Father.”
“So may we go from strength to strength,
And daily grow in grace,
Till in thine image raised at length,
We see thee face to face.”
by Charles Spurgeon
by RobertCummins | Dec 23, 2014 | 55. Joy and Celebration
Nehemiah 8:1-10
The contrast between our times and Ezra’s is startling. A remnant of the Jewish nation has just returned from 70 years of captivity. The public has gathered in a unified spirit of hunger and contrition. They are keenly aware their captivity was a result of ignoring Yahweh. Collectively, they asked that the Word of God be read to them. They stood to honor the Word. They wept as its truth pierced their hearts. The officials encouraged them not to mourn and weep rather…..
to celebrate, compose your heart in joy, for the joy of the Lord is your strength.
In the U.S., the states are not united. There is definitely not a unified voice. Our nation is split and Washington DC, the governing mind, is the bi-polar consequence. The nations of the world wait in four year cycles to see which personality they will be dealing with. On the surface of things, it appears that public life is shaped by debates, elections and legislation. Beneath the never-ending and futile political rancor I believe our divide is a spiritual one that involves the Word of God.
At a foundational level, there is a collective spirit to a nation that either honors the authority of scripture or it does not. Instead of asking that the scriptures be honored and read, our nation has decided that the Bible and its Author intrude on our personal rights. This is against the religion of the Land of Liberty. The courts enforce this religion, claiming that it interferes with the division between church and state. Do you believe if the scriptures were read publicly the nation would rise to its feet in honor and bow its knee in humility?
Consequently, we are not a nation that has just returned from captivity. More accurately, we are a nation on its way into captivity. Proverbs 22:7 says: “the borrower becomes the lender’s slave”. We are a people and a nation drunk on credit. In our foggy state of denial, we have permitted our bi-polar Father, in Washington DC, to leverage the future of our nation for our current comfort. Does our nation have the stomach to elect officials who acknowledge our addiction? Its very unpopular to tell someone in denial that they are an addict and then ask them for their vote. I think most of us see where this is going.
On the surface, it would seem that all we have to do is just elect the right people and we will all be fine. Whether we like to admit it or not, our elected officials are a reflection of us. Most Americans, even though we think of ourselves as Christian, do not consider the scriptures as authoritative. The truth of God’s Word is not piercing the heart of our nation, I believe, because it has not really pierced the heart of the church. So, what can we do if politics and government will not (or cannot) save us?
Check out: What Leading With Vision Really Means by Erika Andersen.
(www.fastcompany.com/3003293/what-leading-vision-really-means)
From that article: (comments in parentheses are mine not Erika’s)
“People want leaders who look beyond today. They want to have the sense there is a master plan to carry them through whatever short-term trials and tribulations arise….They look to the leader to articulate, in a compelling way, a clear and positive future state (more than 4 years) toward which they can direct their efforts. When leaders focus only on the current crisis or this quarter’s numbers, (or on making promises to get elected) it seems to us that they’re more interested in maintaining the status quo or protecting themselves than in creating a successful future. They are not seen as leaders. (Welcome to America – the former Land of the Free)
It may seem that I am deviating from my normal practice of writing about the heart and its causative role in all outcomes. Today is really no different. I am just saying that our nation’s heart is the sum of our individual hearts and that it is our individual hearts which will ultimately determine our personal and corporate destiny. It is amazing what one heart can do!
While it is tempting to wring our hands in despair, concerned the pilot on this flight is drunk and is most certainly going to crash the plane, we will be better off to not storm the cockpit. Instead we should shift our dependency and focus to God (the One with whom we have to do). We seem to forget that as big and impressive as he is our father in Washington is not ultimately in charge. You might be asking, “So, as a Christian what can I do to make a difference? Those were almost precisely the words Jeremiah Lamphier (just an individual businessman) used to spark an awakening in 1857. Check out The Fulton Street Revival. Historical events such as this awaken our faith and prove that all things are possible with God.
While there is always cause for joy and celebration in Christ, to this nation, having once declared its independence from England and more recently from God, the Spirit would say compose your hearts in contrition so that you may once again find God’s favor. Then the Lord will once again be your strength and then you shall celebrate.
Where then shall we find our hope? On our knees. There we shall compose our hearts before the One with who we will all individually and corporately have to do.
Father, you have been known to save nations in behalf of a righteous remnant. May that be the case in the U.S.. May you awaken those to pray who are bold and confident enough to ask for the soul of this nation to be saved. Awaken the hearts of the current day Ezras and Nehemiahs. May your Word somehow pierce the veil of darkness that has blinded our nation to Your love and to Your goodness. Have mercy upon us Lord we pray in Jesus name. Amen.
by RobertCummins | Dec 22, 2014 | 55. Joy and Celebration
John 15:9-17
Here is a problem. We cannot give or receive love – the essence of God’s greatest commands and kingdom mandates, with walls around our hearts (we have built) which insulate us from God and each other. Sadly, with my walls up, my life was more about religion than Life. It certainly wasn’t about joy and celebration.
The most scandalous and extravagant action ever taken was by Jesus Christ over two millennia ago. It was scandalous because the object of the gift (us) was (and is) indifferent and even hostile toward the Gift. It was also scandalous because, while we were created in his likeness, through disobedience, had become alien in nature to the Giver.
It was extravagant because of the immeasurable distance the Giver went to reach us. Prior to Jesus Christ, the distance between God and us was far greater than the light years that astronomers use as a measure. What is the unit of measurement between the realms of heaven and earth anyway?
The great mystery is that once upon a time God’s realm and ours overlapped in a place where the first man and woman walked with God and were given dominion and responsibility over this place we know as the Garden of Eden. They disobeyed though and consequently the realms began to separate leaving this earth (and men’s hearts) separated and subject to death and futility.
Only a being that shared both man’s nature and God’s could restore the union between these realms. Driven by irrational affection for his fallen ones, God satisfied the overarching laws of eternal justice by coming Himself to earth as the Son of Man. Regardless the distance, He Himself has become the bridge between the realms.
For there is one God, and one mediator (a bridge if you will) also between God and men, the man Christ Jesus, who gave HImself as a ransom for all…. (1 Tim 2:5-6)
This cosmic act of reconciliation and restoration was precipitated and motivated by the driving force of the cosmos – love. I believe that ultimately love will be vindicated as the primary and unrivaled motivation and power in all realms. Some may say, “How can you say this only days after a Sandy Hook or less than a century after Auschwitz (events that He could have easily prevented had He chosen). All I can say to that accusation against God is that it is unhelpful, unwise and it will one day seem ludicrous, because we will discover that God has saved the tears of the victims. My deep suspicion is that they were His tears to start with.
The context of this passage in John is “abiding in Christ”, the true vine. The Mediator Himself is restating Love’s intentions that we abide in Him. In my present understanding abiding would mean; remaining intentionally conscious and appreciative of His love and His life which is now within us, where the unity of heaven and earth have even now been restored in those who have entrusted themselves to the extravagant Giver and His Gift. (This is why I am more inclined to think that our intended primary and essential identity is to be a blend of saint – sons and friends, something immeasurably greater than just a sinner – servant and slave saved by grace. How do you see your primary identity? Back to our passage;
Just as the Father has loved Me, I have also loved you; abide in My love…These things I have spoken to you, that My joy may be in you, and that your joy may be full…This is my commandment, that you love one another, just as I have loved you..No longer do I call you slaves; for the slave does not know what his master is doing; but I have called you friends, for all things I have heard from the Father I have made known to you…,I chose you and appointed you to go and bear fruit, and that your fruit should remain, that whatever you ask of the Father in my name, He may give to you.
This I command you, that you love one another
I confessed that where I had spoken in His name without love as my primary motive, I was at best, conveying religion. Religion is that self-absorbed pursuit of God where there is conviction without compassion, form without substance and obedience without abiding. This is the one thing that lit Jesus’ fuse. (Think about the money changers and millstones from Matt 18:6 & 21:12)
I am aware of the temptation of making doctrines out of experience. I don’t want to add anything to scripture that isn’t already there. At the same time I also want to honor the Holy Spirit (my Teacher and Counselor) who affirms and connects my bible truths in the process of living in and through life’s experiences. It is in life’s tests and trials that I have been able to make some sense of scriptures that I have used to beat myself and others up with.
I believe the Holy Spirit has been restating bible truths to me in recent years through the filter of the Father’s love and grace. It seems to me (if I am hearing the Teacher correctly) that He delights in helping us understand how the restoration of heaven into our hearts in Christ redeems our experiences, making them a part of our stories. The process of living and abiding in Him makes Truth our own and it equips us in God’s ongoing mission of reconciling Heaven and earth. By transforming servants into sons he causes us to start looking like the Truth. As our stories are updated in His grace, we become the compelling message, joyfully validating the gospel with our lives.
We are a letter (or story)….known and read by all men, not written in ink, but rather by the Spirit of the living God, not on tablets of stone, but on tablets of human hearts. 2 Cor 3:3.
Having done a better job of watching over my heart, receiving some healing and change there in the past few years has liberated me to better love others. Having gone through this experience (believing I am made of the same stuff as others) causes me to speculate that the remaining distance between God and His chosen ones who remain in the earth will be bridged by His Love as it overthrows the stronghold of religion in all its myriad expressions in the hearts of His people.
Verses 15;7 &16 indicate that He will grant the requests made to Him by His abiding ones. If you were to lay that one request out there before the Lord, right now, knowing it was going to come true, what would it be?
Father, we pray that You would receive the reward of Your suffering – that reciprocation of Your great love from us, your lukewarm and indifferent children. We pray that Your Spirit would prevail within our hearts until every last barrier to your love is overthrown. Over come “religion” and destroy, through Your abiding ones, the lies that have been sown into this earth regarding You, the Giver and Jesus, the Gift. May we live joyfully and boldly out of our new natures in Christ, bearing the fruit of your love, amending all the damage we have done in Your name where we have failed to abide. In Jesus Name. Amen.
by RobertCummins | Mar 23, 2014 | 55. Joy and Celebration
John 15:9-17
From yesterday (12.16.12 / Direction): “Here is the problem. We cannot give or receive love, which is the essence of God’s greatest commands and kingdom mandates, when there are walls (strongholds) we have built around our hearts that insulate us from God and others. Sadly, with my walls up, my life was more about religion than Life itself. This is sinning against Love, Himself. There is accountability for this.”
This passage provokes me to reflect;
The most scandalous and extravagant action ever taken by any being was that of Jesus Christ over two millennia ago. It was scandalous because the object of the gift (us) was (and is) indifferent to the Giver. It was also scandalous because the “natures” of the beings were different. We, the object of the gift, through our disobedience, had become alien in nature to the Giver.
It was extravagant because of the impossible chasm and immeasurable distance the Giver went to reach us. Prior to Jesus Christ, the distance between God and us was far greater than the light years that astronomers use as a measure. What is the unit of measurement between realms?
The irony is that once upon a time God’s realm and ours overlapped in a place we know as The Garden of Eden and (I propose) in the heart of man (i.e. his spirit). When the first man and woman (who had dominion responsibility for this earth) disobeyed, the realms began to separate leaving this earth (and men’s hearts) separated and subject to death and futility.
Only a being that shared both natures (man’s and God’s) could restore the union between these realms. Driven by His irrational affection for the fallen ones, God satisfied the overarching laws of the eternal realm for justice by coming Himself to earth as the Son of Man. Regardless the distance, He Himself has become the bridge between the realms. (As a highway contractor I am pleased to finally have an infrastructure metaphor.)
“For there is one God, and one mediator (a “bridge” if you will) also between God and men, the man Christ Jesus, who gave HImself as a ransom for all….” 1 Tim 2:5-6
This cosmic act of reconciliation and restoration was precipitated and motivated by the driving force of the cosmos, love. I believe that ultimately love will be vindicated as the primary and unrivaled motivation and power in all realms. Some may say, “How can you say this only days after Sandy Hook or less than a century after Auschwitz (events that He could have easily prevented had He chosen). All I can say to that (accusation against God) is that it is unhelpful, unwise and that it will one day seem ludicrous, because we will discover that God has saved the tears of the victims. My deep suspicion is that they were His tears to start with.
The context of this passage in John is “abiding in Christ”, the true vine. The Mediator Himself is restating Love’s intentions that we abide in Him. My best understanding of abiding would be “remaining intentionally conscious and appreciative of His love and His life that is now within us -where the unity of heaven and earth are even now restored in those who have entrusted themselves to the extravagant Giver and His Gift. (This is why I am more inclined to think that our primary and essential identity is a blend of “saint – sons and friends”: something IMMEASURABLY greater than JUST a “sinner – servant and slave” saved by grace. How do you see your primary identity? Back to our passage;
“Just as the Father has loved Me, I have also loved you; abide in My love…These things I have spoken to you, that My joy may be in you, and that your joy may be full…This is my commandment, that you love one another, just as I have loved you..No longer do I call you slaves; for the slave does not know what his master is doing; but I have called you friends, for all things I have heard from the Father I have made known to you…,I chose you and appointed you to go and bear fruit, and that your fruit should remain, that whatever you ask of the Father in my name, He may give to you.
“THIS I COMMAND YOU, THAT YOU LOVE ONE ANOTHER”
I mentioned that there is accountability where we sin against the Giver and His Gift. I confessed that where I had spoken in His name w/o love as my primary motive, I, at best, was conveying “religion”. Here is my brief definition of that term; conviction w/o compassion; form w/o substance; obedience w/o ABIDING). This is the one thing that set Jesus off like nothing else. (I am thinking of money changers and millstones just now Matt 18:6 & 21:12)
I am aware (as I have confessed previously) of the danger of making doctrines out of our experiences. I earnestly want to avoid adding anything to the scriptures that are not already there. Yet, I also want to avoid a failure to give the Holy Spirit (my Teacher and Counselor) room to speak to my heart – helping me to make sense of the abundance of bible truths I have stored in my head that I used to often to beat myself and others up with over the years.
I believe the Holy Spirit has been restating many of these truths to me in recent years through the filter of the Father’s love and grace. It seems to me (as He has been doing just that) that He delights in helping us understand how the restoration of heaven into our hearts redeems our experiences, making them a part of our stories. Living and abiding with Him makes Truth our own and it equips us in God’s ever-present and ongoing task of reconciling Heaven and earth by transforming the servants into sons. We no longer just know truth. We are truth. As our stories are updated in His grace, we become the compelling message validating the good news with our joy.
“We are a letter (or story)..known and read by all men, not written in ink, but rather by the Spirit of the living God, not on tablets of stone, but on tablets of human hearts.” 2 Cor 3:3.
Having done a better job of watching over my heart – having some healing and change there in the past few years (which has definitely liberated me to love others better) has caused me to speculate that the remaining distance between God and His chosen ones who remain in the earth will only be bridged by His Love as it overthrows the stronghold of religion in all its myriad expressions in the hearts of His people.
Verses 15;7 &16 indicate that He will grant the requests made to Him by His abiding ones. If you were to lay that one request out there before the Lord, right now, knowing it was going to come true, what would it be?
Father, we pray that You would receive the reward of Your suffering – that reciprocation of Your great love from us, your lukewarm and indifferent children; that Your Spirit would prevail within our hearts until every last barrier to your love is overthrown. Over come “religion” and destroy, through Your abiding ones, the lies that have been sown into this earth regarding You, the Giver and Jesus, the Gift. May we live joyfully and boldly out of our new natures (in Christ), bearing the fruit of your love, amending all the damage we have done in Your name where we have failed to abide. In Jesus Name. Amen.
