The children of Israel had come out of Egypt some 40 years ago. Now they are at a place where their leader, Moses, who had heard from God and led them for those 40 years through the wilderness, has just died. I am sure there were some who began to wonder what in the world they were going to do!
In Joshua, chapter 1, verse 2, we see God speak to Moses' right hand man, Joshua. It says, in The Message, "Moses my servant is dead. Get going. Cross this Jordan River, you and all the people. Cross to the country I'm giving to the People of Israel." God is letting Joshua know that he is now the new leader.
Remember, this country, is the place God had promised to them. It is the "promised land." There is so much God had promised them and it is just past the Jordon River in that land. It is the place of blessing! The place of abundance! The place of refreshing! Everything they wanted and desired!
We are like those travelers. We are in the process of crossing over from where we are to where HE is taking us. This whole life is a life of crossing over to the fullness of all that God has for us. We just have to cross over and take hold of it!
So, in crossing over, we are leaving something in order to gain something else. How about these things --
Leaving bondage to take hold of freedom!
Leaving fear to take hold of faith!
Leaving less to to take hold of more!
Leaving lack to take hold of plenty!
Leaving rebellion to take hold of obedience!
Wow, that sounds great, doesn't it? But add these to that list!!!
Leaving weakness to take hold of strength!
Leaving rejection to take hold of acceptance!
Leaving unforgiveness to take hold of forgiveness!
Leaving discouragement to take hold of encouragement!
Leaving sadness to to take hold gladness!
Leaving hate to take hold of love!
Leaving emptiness to take hold of fullness!
Leaving law to to take hold of grace!
Leaving judgement to to take hold of mercy!
Leaving darkness to to take hold of light!
Leaving carnality to to take hold of spirituality!
Leaving disagreement to to take hold of agreement!
Leaving defeat to to take hold of victory!
Leaving unholiness to to take hold of holiness!
Leaving dishonor to to take hold of honor!
Leaving deception to take hold of truth!
Leaving weariness to take hold of refreshing!
Leaving sorrow to to take hold of joy!
Leaving death to to take hold of life!
There is so much in this life in Christ! But, we have to cross over Jordon. Leave the old to take hold of the new!
Wednesday, January 27, 2010
Saturday, January 23, 2010
So Are You Unworthy?
How many of you can admit that you have struggled at times with a sense of not being worthy? I think every one of us have at one time or another. Many of us still live in an "Old Testament Mentality", but we need to see, and move toward, "New Testament Reality!"
We have a mentality that stays more aware of sin than righteousness. And what I really want to say is, we believe there is more power in sin than in the blood of Jesus! But let me ask you, how much power is in the blood of Jesus? Back in the day, we used to sing about the power in the blood. Was it just a song, or were we declaring the truth? I say there is power in the blood of Jesus. Enough power to wipe us clean from our past life!
Paul said in 2 Corintians 7:2, "...we have wronged no man...". Remember, he was in charge of killing the Christians at one time! Look at how powerful the blood of Jesus is. It gave Paul the ability to move forward in the newness of life and forget those things that were behind. In 2 Corintians 5:17, from the God's Word Translation, it says, "Whoever is a believer in Christ is a new creation. The old way of living has disappeared. A new way of living has come into existence."
The last post on this blog was that faith would not operate without love working in our heart. But there is another thing that will keep faith from working. Conscieness of sin! We get into this thing of telling ourselves, "O I'm not worthy for God to do anything for me. After all, look at all I have done!" Let me ask you, what can wash away your sins? Nothing but the blood of Jesus!
Let me say this, faith cannot rise above your sense of self worth! It isn't about what you have done to deserve anything from God! It is about what God has already done for you! He provided the power in the blood to cleanse you and I from a conscieness of sin! We are free from that old mentality that we have to work for our salvation.
We need to become righteous conscience. What I mean by that is, aware of all that has been placed into our lives! 2 Peter 1:3, from the Contemporary English Version Bible, says, "We have everything we need to live a life that pleases God. It was all given to us by God's own power, when we learned that he had invited us to share in his wonderful goodness." Did you see that? "...everything we need to live a life that pleases God." God didn't short change us when he gave us this life! We have everything we need!! 2 Corinthians 5:21, says in the Message translation, "In Christ, God put the wrong on him who never did anything wrong, so we could be put right with God." We have been made right!!! We are righteous because of Christ! You are righteous!
So, are you going to believe what God says about you and all HE has provided for you to live this life? Or are you just going to think how you are not worthy? You have to believe one or the other, there is no in between!
We have a mentality that stays more aware of sin than righteousness. And what I really want to say is, we believe there is more power in sin than in the blood of Jesus! But let me ask you, how much power is in the blood of Jesus? Back in the day, we used to sing about the power in the blood. Was it just a song, or were we declaring the truth? I say there is power in the blood of Jesus. Enough power to wipe us clean from our past life!
Paul said in 2 Corintians 7:2, "...we have wronged no man...". Remember, he was in charge of killing the Christians at one time! Look at how powerful the blood of Jesus is. It gave Paul the ability to move forward in the newness of life and forget those things that were behind. In 2 Corintians 5:17, from the God's Word Translation, it says, "Whoever is a believer in Christ is a new creation. The old way of living has disappeared. A new way of living has come into existence."
The last post on this blog was that faith would not operate without love working in our heart. But there is another thing that will keep faith from working. Conscieness of sin! We get into this thing of telling ourselves, "O I'm not worthy for God to do anything for me. After all, look at all I have done!" Let me ask you, what can wash away your sins? Nothing but the blood of Jesus!
Let me say this, faith cannot rise above your sense of self worth! It isn't about what you have done to deserve anything from God! It is about what God has already done for you! He provided the power in the blood to cleanse you and I from a conscieness of sin! We are free from that old mentality that we have to work for our salvation.
We need to become righteous conscience. What I mean by that is, aware of all that has been placed into our lives! 2 Peter 1:3, from the Contemporary English Version Bible, says, "We have everything we need to live a life that pleases God. It was all given to us by God's own power, when we learned that he had invited us to share in his wonderful goodness." Did you see that? "...everything we need to live a life that pleases God." God didn't short change us when he gave us this life! We have everything we need!! 2 Corinthians 5:21, says in the Message translation, "In Christ, God put the wrong on him who never did anything wrong, so we could be put right with God." We have been made right!!! We are righteous because of Christ! You are righteous!
So, are you going to believe what God says about you and all HE has provided for you to live this life? Or are you just going to think how you are not worthy? You have to believe one or the other, there is no in between!
Wednesday, January 20, 2010
Faith Not Working? Try This!
Let me put it this way. Have you ever prayed and tried to believe for something. You prayed and prayed. Nothing ever happened. We may even begin to wonder why God isn't listening to you. We have all been there.
Well, Galatians 5:6, in the Good News Bible, says, "For when we are in union with Christ Jesus, neither circumcision nor the lack of it makes any difference at all; what matters is faith that works through love. According to what I see in this scripture, the bottom line for my faith to operate, or work, is LOVE.
Many years ago the Lord showed me this scripture and gave me an understanding of it that has helped me for many years. Let me share it with you, maybe it can help you too!
We have all heard messages about the door of faith. Well, the Lord showed me something that went a little farther than just the door of faith. See, every door opens and closes by a little thing that many times we don't see, a hinge. The hinge is what enables that door to open and close. Without a hinge, you can't have a door. You end up with either an open space, or hole in the wall, or you have a solid wall, with no way to move between rooms.
If you want the door of faith to be wide open to you, you must realize there is a hinge on that door, and that hinge is called love. The door of faith operates on the hinge of love.
Bottom line, if my faith doesn't seem to be operating to well, maybe I better look to my heart and see if I am walking in love. If I am not, faith will not work, because faith works by love. In 1 Corinthians 13:8, it says, "love never fails...". So we see that love is a very powerful force. So powerful, that it is stronger than faith, because faith will not work without it!!
So, let me ask you? Has faith been working in you? Maybe you should try this!
Well, Galatians 5:6, in the Good News Bible, says, "For when we are in union with Christ Jesus, neither circumcision nor the lack of it makes any difference at all; what matters is faith that works through love. According to what I see in this scripture, the bottom line for my faith to operate, or work, is LOVE.
Many years ago the Lord showed me this scripture and gave me an understanding of it that has helped me for many years. Let me share it with you, maybe it can help you too!
We have all heard messages about the door of faith. Well, the Lord showed me something that went a little farther than just the door of faith. See, every door opens and closes by a little thing that many times we don't see, a hinge. The hinge is what enables that door to open and close. Without a hinge, you can't have a door. You end up with either an open space, or hole in the wall, or you have a solid wall, with no way to move between rooms.
If you want the door of faith to be wide open to you, you must realize there is a hinge on that door, and that hinge is called love. The door of faith operates on the hinge of love.
Bottom line, if my faith doesn't seem to be operating to well, maybe I better look to my heart and see if I am walking in love. If I am not, faith will not work, because faith works by love. In 1 Corinthians 13:8, it says, "love never fails...". So we see that love is a very powerful force. So powerful, that it is stronger than faith, because faith will not work without it!!
So, let me ask you? Has faith been working in you? Maybe you should try this!
Thursday, January 14, 2010
Are You Crammed Full Of It?
In Romans 15:13, from the New American Standard Bible, it says, "Now may the God of hope fill you with all joy and peace in believing, so that you will abound in hope by the power of the Holy Spirit." I am thankful that HE is The God Of Hope. The word here for hope also means "expectation." HE is to be my hope and expectation.
See, part of where we end up getting disappointed and discouraged is that we often place our hope in something or someone other than HIM. Our hope is in our prayer, our study of the Word, our going to church regularly, etc.. You know, all the things that we do. But God wants our hope and expectation to be HIM, not our attempts at serving HIM and doing all the right things!
I want to look at something else from this scripture. Paul's prayer was that the God of hope would fill you and I with joy and peace while we are believing! I like that and I am in agreement with it. Let it be Lord!!
But look at this one word, "fill". This word excites me! It means "to make replete, or (fig.) to furnish or satisfy". But literally it means "to cram (like a net)." Being crammed full!! That is so cool!!
See, it is the period of "while we are believing" that we do much of our struggling. That waiting period, between when we first ask, to the time that prayer is fulfilled, can be a short time or seemingly a long time, or anywhere in between! The longer it takes, the more we seem to struggle with faith. But God doesn't want us to struggle. Paul recognized this and prayed this prayer for all of us because he knew that it was easier to continue in this walk if we are crammed full of joy and peace and all the other things of God's Spirit.
I love the idea of being crammed full of joy and peace while I am believing God. It gives me the understanding that God wants me to be successful in this walk, and HE wants me to enjoy it while I am doing it! I need the joy of the Lord and I need the peace of God.
Crammed full of HIS joy, crammed full of HIS peace, crammed full of HIS love, crammed full of HIS strength, crammed full of HIS Spirit, crammed full of HIS faith, crammed full of HIS gentleness, crammed full of HIS faithfulness, and every other attribute of God that HE wants in our life. He doesn't just want us full, but "crammed full."
So, are you crammed full of it?
See, part of where we end up getting disappointed and discouraged is that we often place our hope in something or someone other than HIM. Our hope is in our prayer, our study of the Word, our going to church regularly, etc.. You know, all the things that we do. But God wants our hope and expectation to be HIM, not our attempts at serving HIM and doing all the right things!
I want to look at something else from this scripture. Paul's prayer was that the God of hope would fill you and I with joy and peace while we are believing! I like that and I am in agreement with it. Let it be Lord!!
But look at this one word, "fill". This word excites me! It means "to make replete, or (fig.) to furnish or satisfy". But literally it means "to cram (like a net)." Being crammed full!! That is so cool!!
See, it is the period of "while we are believing" that we do much of our struggling. That waiting period, between when we first ask, to the time that prayer is fulfilled, can be a short time or seemingly a long time, or anywhere in between! The longer it takes, the more we seem to struggle with faith. But God doesn't want us to struggle. Paul recognized this and prayed this prayer for all of us because he knew that it was easier to continue in this walk if we are crammed full of joy and peace and all the other things of God's Spirit.
I love the idea of being crammed full of joy and peace while I am believing God. It gives me the understanding that God wants me to be successful in this walk, and HE wants me to enjoy it while I am doing it! I need the joy of the Lord and I need the peace of God.
Crammed full of HIS joy, crammed full of HIS peace, crammed full of HIS love, crammed full of HIS strength, crammed full of HIS Spirit, crammed full of HIS faith, crammed full of HIS gentleness, crammed full of HIS faithfulness, and every other attribute of God that HE wants in our life. He doesn't just want us full, but "crammed full."
So, are you crammed full of it?
Tuesday, January 12, 2010
How Do You Sound?
There is a small book toward the end of the Old Testament by the name of Habakkuk. In this small book is one of the largest truths given to us in the Bible. In chapter 3, verses 17 and 18, the Good News Bible says, "Even though the fig trees have no fruit and no grapes grow on the vines, even though the olive crop fails and the fields produce no grain, even though the sheep all die and the cattle stalls are empty, I will still be joyful and glad, because the LORD God is my savior."
What a determined way of thinking! Actually, what a determined way of living!! See, The Lord our God is a good God, and HE deserves all of our praise. HE actually commands us to praise HIM in 1 Thessalonians 5:18 , from the Message translation, "Thank God no matter what happens. This is the way God wants you who belong to Christ Jesus to live." . See, we really don't even have the right to not praise HIM. In Habakkuk, we see that no matter what is happening, how things are going, the writer of this book said, "I will still be joyful and glad..."
It is easy for us to give God praise when everything is going pretty well in our lives. Not much of a problem to praise God when you are on the mountaintop. But when things begin to get a little uncertain, or troublesome, the praise that is in our mouth seems to dry up like a creek in the hot summer. Many times, we then begin to struggle in our walk with the Lord. But God wants us to realize that when we praise Him, we are showing that our confidence and faith are in God! We are putting, and keeping, our trust in HIM!!
Our scripture in Habakkuk lists all kinds of things going wrong, problems happening. Just like some of the things going on in your life and in my life. We may have all kinds of things going wrong, not working out the way we wanted them to, or hoped they would. Poor me! I feel so sorry for me! Nothing ever goes my way! That is the sound of defeat! But you know something? All those problems do not change God at all!! He deserves our praise! Even when we don't feel like it, or even want to!
See, everything you and I do in this walk with HIM is by faith. God never intended for us to walk this walk by our feelings. If that were the case then about half the time we wouldn't even feel like the child of God! In Hebrews 11:6 in the Good News Bible it says, "No one can please God without faith, for whoever comes to God must have faith that God exists and rewards those who seek him." Praise is the biggest act of faith you and I can operate in. As I said in an earlier post, purposeful praise increases faith.
I know some of us may be facing huge things on the horizon, but, even in the midst of facing these things, God has not changed!! Giving praise to HIM in these times is what helps keep our focus on Jesus and not the problems. HE is a Great Big God and HE deserves Great Big Praise.
Psalms 34:1, again in the Good News Bible, says, "I will always thank the LORD; I will never stop praising him."
Psalms 33:1, from the Message translation says, "Good people, cheer GOD! Right-living people sound best when praising."
So, how do you sound?
What a determined way of thinking! Actually, what a determined way of living!! See, The Lord our God is a good God, and HE deserves all of our praise. HE actually commands us to praise HIM in 1 Thessalonians 5:18 , from the Message translation, "Thank God no matter what happens. This is the way God wants you who belong to Christ Jesus to live." . See, we really don't even have the right to not praise HIM. In Habakkuk, we see that no matter what is happening, how things are going, the writer of this book said, "I will still be joyful and glad..."
It is easy for us to give God praise when everything is going pretty well in our lives. Not much of a problem to praise God when you are on the mountaintop. But when things begin to get a little uncertain, or troublesome, the praise that is in our mouth seems to dry up like a creek in the hot summer. Many times, we then begin to struggle in our walk with the Lord. But God wants us to realize that when we praise Him, we are showing that our confidence and faith are in God! We are putting, and keeping, our trust in HIM!!
Our scripture in Habakkuk lists all kinds of things going wrong, problems happening. Just like some of the things going on in your life and in my life. We may have all kinds of things going wrong, not working out the way we wanted them to, or hoped they would. Poor me! I feel so sorry for me! Nothing ever goes my way! That is the sound of defeat! But you know something? All those problems do not change God at all!! He deserves our praise! Even when we don't feel like it, or even want to!
See, everything you and I do in this walk with HIM is by faith. God never intended for us to walk this walk by our feelings. If that were the case then about half the time we wouldn't even feel like the child of God! In Hebrews 11:6 in the Good News Bible it says, "No one can please God without faith, for whoever comes to God must have faith that God exists and rewards those who seek him." Praise is the biggest act of faith you and I can operate in. As I said in an earlier post, purposeful praise increases faith.
I know some of us may be facing huge things on the horizon, but, even in the midst of facing these things, God has not changed!! Giving praise to HIM in these times is what helps keep our focus on Jesus and not the problems. HE is a Great Big God and HE deserves Great Big Praise.
Psalms 34:1, again in the Good News Bible, says, "I will always thank the LORD; I will never stop praising him."
Psalms 33:1, from the Message translation says, "Good people, cheer GOD! Right-living people sound best when praising."
So, how do you sound?
Saturday, January 9, 2010
Is This Fish God's Hand?
We have all heard messages about Jonah and the great big fish (or whale if you prefer). How he heard from God to go preach to Ninevah, but ran the other way. We have heard about his rebellion, fear, repentance, eventual obedience, more anger, his pity party, depression, death wish, and more anger. He was quite character! Like most of us that God wants and does use! Every message I have heard from the story of Jonah, I enjoyed. So much truth there that applies to my life right now, everyday!
But I want to share something about this story that I think is so cool! I can honestly say I have never heard anyone preach about this with this story. One night as I was preaching at the church I attended at the time, this just began to come out of me! I had not even considered this till I heard it coming out of my mouth. Please! I am not saying no one else has ever preached this. I am saying, I just haven't heard anyone else preach this!
Here it is -- I think one of the biggest things we miss from this story is the divine protecton of God! See, many of us have thought and considered that the big fish was prepared, appointed, made ready, sent, commanded, assigned (these are all the words used in many different translations of the Bible for this verse) to go get Jonah because of His rebellion and disobedience. I want to tell you, I think the big fish was there to swallow Jonah up and to protect him from everything else that was in the sea!!!
God knew that Jonah was going to repent and turn back to HIM! The Bible tells us in Isaiah 46:10 that God says HE declared, or announced, the end of things from the very beginning! God knows everything, or HE is not God! So, with that in mind, we must look at all the things that Jonah was rescued from by being in the belly of this great big fish!
Obviously, sharks? How about other great big fish? What about the octopus? Giant squids? Jelly fish? More storms? Other ships? Birds flying overhead? Waves crashing over his head? Deadly sea snakes? I don't know all that is out there, but I trust you are getting the idea. God protected him because God still had a plan for Jonah and didn't want him to die at sea!
I am convinced that God has protected us, when maybe we thought it was the enemy trying to kill us! Think about it! If it were you swallowed up by a great big fish, what would your thoughts be? "This is it, I'm going to die in this thing! This isn't how I wanted to go. I don't remember learning to fish from the inside?! I should have bought a donkey instead of a boat ticket! Nobody even knows where I am!" And finally, "God forgive me and help me!!!" We could all come up with some pretty colorful dialog right here. I wonder if Jonah thought that if he wasn't in the belly of this thing, he might could swim to shore? Or maybe float on some of the things that had been thrown overboard?!
And yet this fish had a purpose!!! To protect Jonah till he repented!!! Then deliver him to the shore as close to Ninevah as it could!!!
Don't despise things you don't understand! You might think it is the end and you are going to die where you are, but it likely is God's protection on you to get you where HE wants you!!!
But I want to share something about this story that I think is so cool! I can honestly say I have never heard anyone preach about this with this story. One night as I was preaching at the church I attended at the time, this just began to come out of me! I had not even considered this till I heard it coming out of my mouth. Please! I am not saying no one else has ever preached this. I am saying, I just haven't heard anyone else preach this!
Here it is -- I think one of the biggest things we miss from this story is the divine protecton of God! See, many of us have thought and considered that the big fish was prepared, appointed, made ready, sent, commanded, assigned (these are all the words used in many different translations of the Bible for this verse) to go get Jonah because of His rebellion and disobedience. I want to tell you, I think the big fish was there to swallow Jonah up and to protect him from everything else that was in the sea!!!
God knew that Jonah was going to repent and turn back to HIM! The Bible tells us in Isaiah 46:10 that God says HE declared, or announced, the end of things from the very beginning! God knows everything, or HE is not God! So, with that in mind, we must look at all the things that Jonah was rescued from by being in the belly of this great big fish!
Obviously, sharks? How about other great big fish? What about the octopus? Giant squids? Jelly fish? More storms? Other ships? Birds flying overhead? Waves crashing over his head? Deadly sea snakes? I don't know all that is out there, but I trust you are getting the idea. God protected him because God still had a plan for Jonah and didn't want him to die at sea!
I am convinced that God has protected us, when maybe we thought it was the enemy trying to kill us! Think about it! If it were you swallowed up by a great big fish, what would your thoughts be? "This is it, I'm going to die in this thing! This isn't how I wanted to go. I don't remember learning to fish from the inside?! I should have bought a donkey instead of a boat ticket! Nobody even knows where I am!" And finally, "God forgive me and help me!!!" We could all come up with some pretty colorful dialog right here. I wonder if Jonah thought that if he wasn't in the belly of this thing, he might could swim to shore? Or maybe float on some of the things that had been thrown overboard?!
And yet this fish had a purpose!!! To protect Jonah till he repented!!! Then deliver him to the shore as close to Ninevah as it could!!!
Don't despise things you don't understand! You might think it is the end and you are going to die where you are, but it likely is God's protection on you to get you where HE wants you!!!
Wednesday, January 6, 2010
Who You Been Fightin?
Several years ago, in the middle of worship, the Lord showed me something that I have never forgot.
We had been in an extended time of prophetic worship and were just lingering in His presence. All of a sudden, by the Spirit, I began to see a sword in the distance, but it was moving toward me. I had the sense that this sword had been in battle, don’t know exactly how I knew that, but that was what I felt. The sword continued to get closer and closer. I began to see a shine on the sword. It shined and shined. It finally reached me.
Instantly, I felt the Lord speak to my heart. HE said, “Notice that there is no blood on this sword, even though it has been in battle.” No blood, no grime, no dirt, just a shine.
Then I felt the Holy Spirit bring back to my memory a scripture. Ephesians 6:12, in the Modern King James Version, says, “We wrestle not against flesh and blood, but against principalities, against powers, against the world's rulers, of the darkness of this age, against spiritual wickedness in high places." The Good News Bible puts it this way, “For we are not fighting against human beings, but against the wicked spiritual forces in the heavenly world, the rulers, authorities, and cosmic powers of this dark age. “ I began to understand that the Lord was trying to speak to me about the real battle.
Many times the enemy of our life will try to get you and I engaged with someone else in anger, envy, lies, resentment, unforgiveness, jealousy, manipulation, intimidation, fear, you know, all these kind of things. But remember, we just read, we aren’t in a fight with human beings over our spiritual life. What the Scriptures do say is, that other people are not our enemy! The Bible is pretty clear who our enemy is, it is the principalities, powers, rulers of darkness, spiritual wickedness in high places. IT IS NOT EACH OTHER!!!
We, as the Body of Christ, have fought each other to such a degree that there are some who will not even fellowship or have anything to do with others who are not like them. And yet those others are blood-bought, with the very same blood of the Lamb that you and I have! They are just like you and I! Jesus died for all those who were lost in sin! That was every one of us! Those of us who have accepted Jesus into our hearts are members of the same body. We are brothers and sisters by the blood, not belief and doctrine!
I know people hurt us in many ways. Our self-defense mechanisms kick in to gear when we think we are being taken advantage of. We put up walls to keep others out because we are afraid that we are going to get hurt. The problem is, we put the walls up in the wrong place! We have just cut ourselves off from the rest of the Body of Christ. We have got to remember, that person who is being used to inflict the pain or anguish, is not our enemy. They might obviously be a tool the real enemy is using, but they are not my enemy.
We are all having to walk this walk by faith. As my friend Deb says, “it’s a faith thing.” The problem with thinking we are in a warfare against others is, that it is not a battle of faith. A battle of faith doesn’t work against other blood-bought believers. It most likely doesn't even work against people who are not born again. It probably only works against the real enemy of our soul.
So, who you been fightin ?
We had been in an extended time of prophetic worship and were just lingering in His presence. All of a sudden, by the Spirit, I began to see a sword in the distance, but it was moving toward me. I had the sense that this sword had been in battle, don’t know exactly how I knew that, but that was what I felt. The sword continued to get closer and closer. I began to see a shine on the sword. It shined and shined. It finally reached me.
Instantly, I felt the Lord speak to my heart. HE said, “Notice that there is no blood on this sword, even though it has been in battle.” No blood, no grime, no dirt, just a shine.
Then I felt the Holy Spirit bring back to my memory a scripture. Ephesians 6:12, in the Modern King James Version, says, “We wrestle not against flesh and blood, but against principalities, against powers, against the world's rulers, of the darkness of this age, against spiritual wickedness in high places." The Good News Bible puts it this way, “For we are not fighting against human beings, but against the wicked spiritual forces in the heavenly world, the rulers, authorities, and cosmic powers of this dark age. “ I began to understand that the Lord was trying to speak to me about the real battle.
Many times the enemy of our life will try to get you and I engaged with someone else in anger, envy, lies, resentment, unforgiveness, jealousy, manipulation, intimidation, fear, you know, all these kind of things. But remember, we just read, we aren’t in a fight with human beings over our spiritual life. What the Scriptures do say is, that other people are not our enemy! The Bible is pretty clear who our enemy is, it is the principalities, powers, rulers of darkness, spiritual wickedness in high places. IT IS NOT EACH OTHER!!!
We, as the Body of Christ, have fought each other to such a degree that there are some who will not even fellowship or have anything to do with others who are not like them. And yet those others are blood-bought, with the very same blood of the Lamb that you and I have! They are just like you and I! Jesus died for all those who were lost in sin! That was every one of us! Those of us who have accepted Jesus into our hearts are members of the same body. We are brothers and sisters by the blood, not belief and doctrine!
I know people hurt us in many ways. Our self-defense mechanisms kick in to gear when we think we are being taken advantage of. We put up walls to keep others out because we are afraid that we are going to get hurt. The problem is, we put the walls up in the wrong place! We have just cut ourselves off from the rest of the Body of Christ. We have got to remember, that person who is being used to inflict the pain or anguish, is not our enemy. They might obviously be a tool the real enemy is using, but they are not my enemy.
We are all having to walk this walk by faith. As my friend Deb says, “it’s a faith thing.” The problem with thinking we are in a warfare against others is, that it is not a battle of faith. A battle of faith doesn’t work against other blood-bought believers. It most likely doesn't even work against people who are not born again. It probably only works against the real enemy of our soul.
So, who you been fightin ?
Tuesday, January 5, 2010
Get The Chains Off !
In Acts 16, Paul and Silas are sitting in jail. They had been beaten with rods and locked into the stocks. It is dark and gloomy and really smells, because they are in the inner prison, the belly of the prison, the place where the raw sewage runs out of the building. The absolute worst part of the prison. This is as bad as it could possibly be. Do you get the idea?
But something bigger was about to happen. The Bible tells us they were praying and worshipping God, and the other prisoners were listening to them. Suddenly, around midnight, there was an earthquake that shook the foundation of the prison and the doors of the cells began to open and everyone's chains began to unfasten! The jailer wakes up from it all and sees the doors opened, so he pulls out his sword to kill himself because he was sure the prisoners had already escaped. Paul yells out for him to stop and tells him everyone is still there, no one has left! The guard asks them what does he need to do to be saved! He then takes them to his own house and his the whole family gets saved! Great story! Really exciting to think of the power of God at work to do such a wonderful feat! But I want to point out something to you that might have been overlooked by many of us.
See, in verse 25, we see that the other prisoners were listening to Paul and Silas praying and singing. Then in verse 26 we see that everyone's chains were unfastened! All the prisoners! Not just Paul and Silas'! Everyone's!
Here is my point - our praying and worshipping of God might be what sets someone else free and opens up the way for them to experience God for themselves!
As Christions, we know that people are listening to, and watching our lives with a sharp ear and eye. Some to critize, some to encourage, some to laugh, some to scorn, some out of curiosity. Whatever the case, we are being listened to and watched. Our response can have a greater impact in the lives of others than we can possibly imagine!
I must come to understand that life is not about me! There is a bigger picture that I need to see. Many years ago, my pastor said, "If your vision is smaller than God's, it's too small". If my focus is always and only on my self, then I have a vision that is much too small. My deliverance can be someone elses deliverance! I never know all the needs of the people around my life. So I don't know what all is going on in their minds.
We all experience difficulties in this life. No of us are exempt. When others see me going through difficult times, and hear me singing and talking about how good and faithful my God is, in spite of what I am going through, it just might cause them to be set free enough from their prisons that they might be able to turn their hearts and minds to the goodness of our God!
So let me ask you? When you find yourself in a difficult time, or a "prison" of any kind, what do the other "prisoners" hear coming from you? Is it complaining, frustration, pity parties, stuff like that? Or do they hear you praying to God asking for help, strength, direction, and listening to you sing to God of how great and how faithful HE is in spite of what seems to be going on?
As your and my chains come off, others chains can come off too!
But something bigger was about to happen. The Bible tells us they were praying and worshipping God, and the other prisoners were listening to them. Suddenly, around midnight, there was an earthquake that shook the foundation of the prison and the doors of the cells began to open and everyone's chains began to unfasten! The jailer wakes up from it all and sees the doors opened, so he pulls out his sword to kill himself because he was sure the prisoners had already escaped. Paul yells out for him to stop and tells him everyone is still there, no one has left! The guard asks them what does he need to do to be saved! He then takes them to his own house and his the whole family gets saved! Great story! Really exciting to think of the power of God at work to do such a wonderful feat! But I want to point out something to you that might have been overlooked by many of us.
See, in verse 25, we see that the other prisoners were listening to Paul and Silas praying and singing. Then in verse 26 we see that everyone's chains were unfastened! All the prisoners! Not just Paul and Silas'! Everyone's!
Here is my point - our praying and worshipping of God might be what sets someone else free and opens up the way for them to experience God for themselves!
As Christions, we know that people are listening to, and watching our lives with a sharp ear and eye. Some to critize, some to encourage, some to laugh, some to scorn, some out of curiosity. Whatever the case, we are being listened to and watched. Our response can have a greater impact in the lives of others than we can possibly imagine!
I must come to understand that life is not about me! There is a bigger picture that I need to see. Many years ago, my pastor said, "If your vision is smaller than God's, it's too small". If my focus is always and only on my self, then I have a vision that is much too small. My deliverance can be someone elses deliverance! I never know all the needs of the people around my life. So I don't know what all is going on in their minds.
We all experience difficulties in this life. No of us are exempt. When others see me going through difficult times, and hear me singing and talking about how good and faithful my God is, in spite of what I am going through, it just might cause them to be set free enough from their prisons that they might be able to turn their hearts and minds to the goodness of our God!
So let me ask you? When you find yourself in a difficult time, or a "prison" of any kind, what do the other "prisoners" hear coming from you? Is it complaining, frustration, pity parties, stuff like that? Or do they hear you praying to God asking for help, strength, direction, and listening to you sing to God of how great and how faithful HE is in spite of what seems to be going on?
As your and my chains come off, others chains can come off too!
Friday, January 1, 2010
New Years Resolutions? Yeah, Right!
My son and some of his friends were talking about the New Year and some changes they wanted to make in their lives. I shared with them a quote that I had ran across a few weeks back, "Any time you sincerely want to make a change, the first thing you must do is raise your standards", by Tony Robbins. They were pretty receptive to that word and I began to think, that is a pretty good word for us all.
My dear friend, Steve Hines, was the first I ever heard quote this phrase, "If you always do what you've always done, you'll always get what you always got." Don't know where the origination of that came from (most likely the Holy Spirit!), but it is good too.
This New Years Day, many are planning to make changes in their lives for this year. We call them New Years Resolutions. I haven't been to big on those for a variety of reasons. I think it is because we miss the whole idea of making changes. If we want to make real changes in our lives, we must first, as Tony Robbins put it, "...raise our standards."
See, our standard in the Kingdom of God, is Jesus Christ Himself. In Hebrews 12:2, in the Message translation, it says, " Keep your eyes on Jesus, who both began and finished this race we're in. Study how he did it. Because He never lost sight of where he was headed--that exhilarating finish in and with God--he could put up with anything along the way: cross, shame, whatever. And now he's there, in the place of honor, right alongside God." In another translation it says, "fixing our eyes on Jesus..." We are to keep our eyes on Jesus! Not the problems, not the solutions that the world tells us, not even our own strength or understanding! On Jesus! As we keep our gaze and attention on Him, we are then "...raising our standards." We look at so many things, and people, that we have clouded our own lives and vision.
If we really want change, we "raise our standards", then we quit "doing what we have always done." Again, we want change in our lives, but many times we think we can continue to do the same old things we have always done and still get the change we want! Where in the world did we ever get the idea we could do that!! If you want to grow apples, you have to plant apples. If you want green beans, plant green beans. The seed that you plant is what you are going to grow in your garden. If you don't like the things you are growing, plant something different! If you don't like the way your life has been, quit doing the things you have been doing!!
If you want real change in your life, first, raise your standards, then, stop doing things the way you have always done them.
My dear friend, Steve Hines, was the first I ever heard quote this phrase, "If you always do what you've always done, you'll always get what you always got." Don't know where the origination of that came from (most likely the Holy Spirit!), but it is good too.
This New Years Day, many are planning to make changes in their lives for this year. We call them New Years Resolutions. I haven't been to big on those for a variety of reasons. I think it is because we miss the whole idea of making changes. If we want to make real changes in our lives, we must first, as Tony Robbins put it, "...raise our standards."
See, our standard in the Kingdom of God, is Jesus Christ Himself. In Hebrews 12:2, in the Message translation, it says, " Keep your eyes on Jesus, who both began and finished this race we're in. Study how he did it. Because He never lost sight of where he was headed--that exhilarating finish in and with God--he could put up with anything along the way: cross, shame, whatever. And now he's there, in the place of honor, right alongside God." In another translation it says, "fixing our eyes on Jesus..." We are to keep our eyes on Jesus! Not the problems, not the solutions that the world tells us, not even our own strength or understanding! On Jesus! As we keep our gaze and attention on Him, we are then "...raising our standards." We look at so many things, and people, that we have clouded our own lives and vision.
If we really want change, we "raise our standards", then we quit "doing what we have always done." Again, we want change in our lives, but many times we think we can continue to do the same old things we have always done and still get the change we want! Where in the world did we ever get the idea we could do that!! If you want to grow apples, you have to plant apples. If you want green beans, plant green beans. The seed that you plant is what you are going to grow in your garden. If you don't like the things you are growing, plant something different! If you don't like the way your life has been, quit doing the things you have been doing!!
If you want real change in your life, first, raise your standards, then, stop doing things the way you have always done them.
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