Silver And Gold

As I read Proverbs Chapter 17 during my devotional time, God drew my attention to verse 3 which says, “The refining pot is for silver and the furnace for gold, But the LORD tests hearts.”

One of the many problems with what we call the church today, is that most of us never make it through the refiner’s pot.  Many never even make it to the pot itself.  Our Americanized version of Christianity implies that our relationship with Jesus should be at our convenience, completely unburdened by any personal sacrifice on our part because we are saved by grace, no strings attached.  But that is not what Jesus taught.  Jesus said that being His disciple would come at great personal cost to us.  That we must be willing to forsake all to follow Him:  our family, our children, our plans, our culture, and even ourselves, “If anyone comes to me and does not hate father and mother, wife and children, brothers and sisters—yes, even their own life—such a person cannot be my disciple.” (Luke 14:26).  He said the crucifixion of our self would be required to follow Him and be His disciple, “And whoever does not carry their cross and follow me cannot be my disciple.” (Luke 14:27).

You see, when Jesus spoke to first century hearers of “carrying your cross”, what they heard was “you must carry an instrument of your own death….daily.”  This would not have been an attractive component of what Jesus' teachings were calling them to do.  What Jesus was basically telling them was, “Follow Me to your own death, and I will give you new life, but that new life will cost you everything.”  At Luke Chapter 14, verse 28, Jesus tells His followers that they must count the cost to follow Him, then at verse 33 He tells them what that cost will be, “In the same way, those of you who do not give up everything you have cannot be my disciples.” (Luke 14:33).  Notice that Jesus is not saying here that we must simply be willing to give up everything to follow Him.  He is saying that those who do not give up everything they have, cannot be His disciples.  Jesus calls His followers to a radical devotion that has been largely lost within what we call the church today.

For the most part, what I see in the church today, is a congregation of people who want to follow a Jesus that doesn’t require anything from them.  They want to follow a Jesus that would never place them in a refiner’s pot, much less, ever lead them into the furnace.  I see people comfortable in their commercialized version of Christianity, worshiping the Jesus that they are being taught about by other people, rather than the Jesus they are personally pursuing themselves through prayer and careful study of scripture.  For the most part, those within the church today are following someone else’s version of Jesus rather than the real Jesus of the Bible Who says things like, “He cuts off every branch in Me that bears no fruit, and every branch that does bear fruit, He prunes to make it even more fruitful.” (John 15:2).

I guess the question we must ask ourselves is, are we silver or are we gold?  Or are we just a branch that should be cut off because we are bearing no fruit for God with our life?  Are we a branch that is even willing to be pruned by the refining pot, so that the salvation we have received by His grace will be a fruitful branch for His kingdom?  The refining pot will come at a great personal cost, it will be painful, you will grieve the loss of many things that you never realized you were holding onto.  One of the hardest things God ever asked me to do was to let go of what I aspired to do for His kingdom and submit to what He aspired for me to do.  How many of us are truly willing to let go of everything, no matter how much we have reasoned in our heart to continue to hold on?  How many of us have convinced ourselves that we are approaching the cross with empty hands, as we ought, only to look down and see them holding on to something we are trying to bring with us? 

As I meditated on the refiner’s pot versus the furnace, I realized how few people actually give themselves wholly over to Christ.  The refiner’s pot serves to prune a person, but the furnace utterly destroys them.  Pruned silver versus pure, untarnished gold.  The furnace leaves nothing of the old person remaining, everything is lost in the furnace, burned away into oblivion, leaving only a purified soul, flawless, whole and complete.  Our great aversion to the refiner’s pot should serve as an acute reminder of how desperately far away each of us are to the spiritual wholeness that comes by the furnace.  The refiner’s pot should remind us that no matter how righteous we think we are, there is always more work to be done in us.  As Christians, we should never be comfortable where we are at in our spiritual growth, but rather, we should long for the refinement that brings us to the spiritual wholeness that is promised by our Savior, Jesus Christ. 

The more you truly, personally know Christ, the more you will long for the refinement that comes at great personal cost.  The more you truly, personally know Christ, the more you eagerly anticipate, “the crown of righteousness, which the Lord, the righteous Judge, will award to me on that day--and not only to me, but also to all who have longed for his appearing.” (2 Tim 4:8).  

“If anyone builds on this foundation using gold, silver, precious stones, wood, hay, or straw, the work of each will be evident, because the Day will bring it to light. It will be revealed with fire, and the fire will prove the quality of each man's work. If what he has built survives, he will receive a reward. If it is burned up, he will suffer loss. He himself will be saved, but only as one being snatched from the fire.” (1 Cor 3:12-15)

“These trials will show that your faith is genuine. It is being tested as fire tests and purifies gold--though your faith is far more precious than mere gold. So when your faith remains strong through many trials, it will bring you much praise and glory and honor on the day when Jesus Christ is revealed to the whole world.” (1 Peter 1:7)

“But he knows the way that I take; when he has tried me, I shall come out as gold.” (Job 23:10)

“Do you not know that in a race all the runners run, but only one receives the prize? Run in such a way as to take the prize. Everyone who competes in the games trains with strict discipline. They do it for a crown that is perishable, but we do it for a crown that is imperishable.” (1 Cor 9:24,25)

Harbinger Emotions

Sometimes God puts challenging people in our lives to remind us that, without Him, we are broken too.  Lest we get too puffed up in our spiritual growth, sometimes God will place people in our lives to serve as a reminder to us of everything we have been forgiven. 

In 2 Corinthians, Chapter 12, Paul spoke of a, "thorn in my flesh, a messenger of Satan, to torment me." (v. 7).  We are never told what Paul's thorn was and although many speculations abound, it could have been anything from a particular emotion he may have struggled with, or a particular person, or both, or neither.  However, in my own personal experience, it is my emotions and the people that incite those emotions in me, which seem to be my thorn of torment, reminding me of my own weakness toward sin.

It is no casual confession for me to say that many times, the people that seem to torment me the most, are those who have the very same flaws that I have overcome or may continue to struggle with myself.  To which God must continually remind me, I would never have overcome those flaws if not for His grace and His grace alone, which is the very same thing He reminded Paul, "My grace is sufficient for you, for My power is perfected in weakness.” (v. 8).

For example, when I feel like someone is manipulating another person for their personal gain, I feel contempt.  I feel great contempt against manipulation because God has placed in my heart a raging desire for truth.  Thus, in my quest for truth, my contempt against all things non-truth is a thorn in my side because it is an emotion that can easily and seamlessly turn into resentment, bitterness, rage, criticism, condemnation and grudge-bearing, all of which are sinful.  Contempt, which is disapproval tinged with disgust, is not necessarily a sinful emotion in and of itself.  It is quite likely Jesus felt contempt when He overturned the money changer's tables in the temple (Matt 21:11-13).  However, my personal temptation towards contempt is a messenger of Satan in my flesh, reminding me of my own personal proclivity towards sinful emotions. 

Jesus had full mastery over His emotions and although He may have been superficially tempted by sinful emotions, He never, ever indulged in them because He was utterly sinless and always in control of His thoughts, emotions and behavior.  I, however, am not, therefore, for me personally, contempt is a harbinger of other emotions crouching at my door (Gen 4:7).  It is a thorn that pierces my flesh to remind me that I am vulnerable to temptation, which makes me vulnerable to sin.

Why make such candid, intimate confessions and expose myself?  Because when we expose our flaws, we give the enemy nothing to work with.  When we acknowledge and confess our sins and areas of weakness, we shine the light of truth upon any potential foothold for the enemy in our life and rob him of the opportunity to do his work in secret.  I feel very strongly that this was one of the many reasons that Paul himself was so candid in his confessions about his own shortcomings.  He was simply exposing any potential within himself towards sin, and in so doing, fully submitting himself to God to work in those areas in his life.

We all have thorns in our flesh.  For some of us, those thorns may be harbinger emotions that easily and quickly lead us to sinful emotions crouching at our door.  For example, admiration can be a harbinger of lust, immoral arousal, covetousness, envy, dissatisfaction or ingratitude, all of which are sinful emotions.  Confidence can be a harbinger of pride, insensitivity or narcissism.  Harbinger emotions are thorns in our flesh, messengers of Satan to remind us of our own sinfulness, our own weaknesses, and our desperate need for Jesus every moment of every day.  They are thorns of temptation which serve to sharpen us, refine our flesh, and drive us into the arms of our loving Father Who is mighty to save and always eager to pour out His endless grace upon us.

"So to keep me from becoming conceited because of the surpassing greatness of the revelations, a thorn was given me in the flesh, a messenger of Satan to torment me, to keep me from becoming conceited. Three times I pleaded with the Lord to take it away from me. But He said to me, 'My grace is sufficient for you, for My power is made perfect in weakness.' Therefore I will boast all the more gladly about my weaknesses, so that Christ's power may rest on me. That is why, for Christ's sake, I delight in weaknesses, in insults, in hardships, in persecutions, in difficulties. For when I am weak, then I am strong." (2 Cor 12:7-10)

Our Form Of Godliness

He who dwells in the shelter of the Most High will abide in the shadow of the Almighty. (Psalm 91:1)

As I meditated on this scripture this morning, God impressed upon my spirit that rather than dwelling in the shelter of the Most High God, Who so many of us claim to worship and follow, we are, instead, dwelling in the shadow of the world.

Jesus reiterates in the New Testament, that to truly be His disciple, we must abide in Him:  “Abide in Me, and I in you. As the branch is not able to bear fruit of itself unless it abides in the vine, so neither you, unless you abide in Me… If you keep My commandments, you will abide in My love; just as I have kept My Father's commandments and abide in His love.” (John 15:4-10).

Far too many of those who claim to belong to Christ, are living spiritually fruitless lives because they are not dwelling in the shelter of the Most High by reading, studying and living according to His word, fellowshipping with other mature Christians, nor spending significant, heartfelt time in prayer seeking His presence and will for their lives.  But rather, our thoughts, desires, likes and dislikes are all shaped by the world.  Instead of being products of the life-changing, transforming power of the Holy Spirit, we are products of our culture.  A genuine relationship with Christ is supposed to free us from all that.  When Jesus said, “Follow Me”, He was calling us to an act of surrender that would lead to our freedom.  But truly, “All of us, like sheep, have gone astray, each of us has turned to his own way.” (Isaiah 53:6).

The foundation of the Gospel is repentance that leads to salvation.  Jesus’ first recorded words in the Gospel of Mark, when He begins His earthly ministry, are:  "The time is fulfilled, and the kingdom of God is at hand; repent and believe in the gospel." (Mark 1:15).  Jesus preached the Gospel by saying, “Repent.”  To repent means to turn away from one thing and turn towards another.  And Jesus said to be His disciple, we would have to do it every day, for the rest of our lives (Luke 9:23,24).  Despite all our efforts to repackage the Gospel, to make it “culturally relevant”, or more appealing and “seeker sensitive”, the foundational message remains the same.  We have confused “relatability” with “appeal”.  Jesus never sought to make the Gospel appealing, but He did seek to make it relatable.  People are affected by the Gospel of repentance and Lordship salvation because they can relate to it, not because it appeals to them. 

On the contrary, the Gospel, in and of Itself, is wholly UN-appealing to sinful men.  The Gospel accuses us of treason against God and convicts us of our guilt as sinners condemned to hell.  The Gospel forces us to look at our desperate, lost condition, magnifying the warts of our flaws and weaknesses.  It is an eternal reality-check that reminds us that we are but clay vessels, broken and shattered, useless and dead in our sins.  Yet at the same time, it gives us the single, solitary answer to our wretched condition:  Jesus Christ.  The hopelessness of our condition is remedied through our surrender to follow Christ, Who is the Way, the Truth and the Life (John 14:6); The Light of the World to those who live in darkness (John 12:46); The Gate for the lost sheep (John 10:7-9); The Fountain of Living Water to those thirsty for truth (John 4:10; 7:38); and The Bread of Life for those hungry for righteousness (John 6:35,48,51).

However, the transformation to newness of life offered by Christ can only come when we truly follow Him.  And to truly follow Him, we must repent and turn away from the brokenness and sinfulness of our world and culture.  We must die to our self so that Christ can live in us to do His work through us.  Salvation in Christ is the free gift of grace offered to all mankind, through faith in Jesus Christ as Lord of our life (Eph 2:8).  Which begs the question we must all ask ourselves:  Is my faith in Christ simply an intellectual awareness of Him, or have I truly let go and surrendered to Him as Lord?  Is my faith based on an ideal?  A denomination?  A concept?  Or do I truly know Christ as a person?  Can I recognize His voice over my own?  Do I have intimate knowledge of His commands and teachings?  Do I long to apply His words of truth to my life?

The Apostle Paul warns young Timothy of the characteristics of many of those who will call themselves Christians in the last days.  Among those characteristics, he says that they will be “lovers of pleasure rather than lovers of God, holding to a form of godliness, although they have denied its power. Have nothing to do with such people.” (2 Tim 3:4,5).  Of this verse, Arno Froese asks, “What power are they denying?”  To which he answers, “The power of turning a sinner into a saint; the power of turning a saint into a sacrifice; the power of the Gospel to take away my rights, my self-assertion, and replace it with total servitude to the Lord.  That is the power of the Gospel being diminished and denied today.”

Snotty Tissues

As I sit at my computer this morning and cry, I ask God to write something beautiful.  Something that will spiritually feed me and others.  I ask God to write it because I often get to points in my faith where I simply don't have any words.  Overwhelmed with weariness, all I can do is cry.  I cry because I am a sinner.  I cry because I don't have the answers.  I cry because this world is broken.  I cry because I want to serve God with my life, but I'm still not sure what I'm supposed to be doing.  I cry because I don't want to get it wrong.  I cry because I don't want to be prideful when I get it right.

The reality is, we are all a mess and we all need Jesus every second of every day.  Some days will seem more desperate than others.  It is on those days that we are reminded of just how fragile and insufficient we are to fight this battle in our own strength.  I can't tell you how many times I have just wanted to throw my hands up in the air and walk away-- frustrated, disgusted, defeated.  But then I remind myself of Jesus' words, "Because of the increase of wickedness, the love of most will grow cold, but the one who stands firm and endures to the end will be saved." (Matthew 24:12,13).  I remind myself that I fight this battle because it is a battle worth fighting. 

I have cried out to God so many times, asking Him why He made me the way He did-- a woman with the heart of a lion, with the resolve of a steel beam, with the determination of a mule.  He made me in such a way that all I know how to do is fight and stand firm.  Just like a vase was made to be a vase, or cup was made to be a cup, I only know how to do what I was made to do.  The devil screams in my face that there is no place for such a woman in the church, he beats me over the head with scriptures that say a woman is to be silent and gentle (1 Cor 14:34; 1 Tim 2:11,12).  I am not quiet, nor gentle, so I often find myself wondering where I belong.  The devil knows our weaknesses, so he sweetly whispers in my ear, "You don't belong anywhere." 

I may not know my end-game purpose and I may still be figuring out my place, but the one thing I do know is that the devil is a liar.  I also know that God is perfect in mercy and perfect in love and I cannot base my relationship with Him on my feelings and misperceptions.  God's word says, "Delight yourself in the Lord and He will give you the desires of your heart." (Psalm 37:4).  The desires of my heart are to change lives, save souls and pierce people's hearts with the truth of God's word, and I believe that God will use me to do that, even if my only weapons are a box of Kleenex and a pile of snotty tissues.

Jesus never promised us that our commitment to follow Him would be easy.  On the contrary, He warned us that the world would hate us (John 15:18; John 17:14; 1 John 3:13), that we would have many trials and sorrows (John 16:33), that our hearts would be troubled and to not succumb to fear (John 14:27), and that we would endure many hardships to enter the kingdom of heaven (Acts 14:22).  But God has promised that we wouldn't have to fight alone (Deut 31:8; John 14:16-18) and that we would be more than conquerors through our great, mighty and capable Savior Who loves us (Rom 8:37).

"Trust in the Lord and do good; dwell in the land and cultivate faithfulness. Delight yourself in the Lord, and He will give you the desires of your heart. Commit your way to the Lord, trust also in Him, and He will do it. He will bring forth your righteousness as the light, and your justice as the noonday. Rest in the Lord and wait patiently for Him;" (Psalm 37:3-7)

"For then you will delight yourself in the Almighty and lift up your face to God. You will pray to Him, and He will hear you;" (Job 22:26,27)

"Cast your burden upon the Lord and He will sustain you; He will never allow the righteous to be shaken." (Psalm 55:22)

"Blessed be the Lord, who daily bears our burden, The God who is our salvation." (Psalm 68:19)

"How precious are your thoughts about me, O God. How vast is the sum of them!" (Psalm 139:17)

The Only Thing

One of the questions I have been asking my group of ladies that regularly attend weekly Bible study is, "Is God's Word enough?"  I asked them what their motives are for coming to our church, why are they here, what are they looking for?  Because if we go to church for any other reason besides fellowship that honors God, worship that honors God and humble service that honors God, then God's Word will not be enough.  Unless our motives for going to church are purely centered around seeking God and Him alone, then His Word will not be enough for us.  I put it to them this way:  If our building burned down and we had no music, no pews, no TV monitors, no kitchen, no coffee pot, no nursery, no air conditioning, and all we could do was meet together in the parking lot, would they still be drawn here to assemble together with other Christians simply to worship together, discuss God's Word and learn? 

We have this erroneous idea that we need to look for a church that has a lot to offer us, like we are shopping for the best insurance plan or retirement package.  Like, God somehow owes us the most pleasant worship experience He can muster based on our entertainment-idolizing culture.  Our lives are filled with the empty busyness of daily mundane necessity and the deceptive vanity of selfish pursuits, therefore we reason that anything we expend our "free" time upon must give us the most bang for our buck. 

Yet, on the other side of the world a room full of spiritually hungry Christians meet in a room that possesses a lone, bare light bulb and twenty to thirty metal chairs.  Forsaking all, they meet at the peril of their own lives, craving each other's presence, hungry for God's Word, thirsty for righteousness, compelled to seek each other out, drawn together by the Spirit within them that has sealed them for the day of redemption.  For them, God's Word is enough.  For them, God's Word is everything.  For them, God's Word is the only thing.

"Do not grieve the Holy Spirit of God, by Whom you were sealed for the day of redemption." (Eph 4:10)

"For the word of God is living and active. Sharper than any double-edged sword, it pierces even to dividing soul and spirit, joints and marrow. It is able to judge the thoughts and intentions of the heart." (Heb 4:12)

"All Scripture is God-breathed and is useful for instruction, for conviction, for correction, and for training in righteousness, so that the man of God may be complete, fully equipped for every good work." (2 Tim 3:16,17)

"They devoted themselves to the apostles' teaching and to the fellowship, to the breaking of bread and to prayer." (Acts 2:42)

"The congregation of believers was one in heart and soul. No one claimed that any of his possessions was his own, but they shared everything they owned." (Acts 4:32)

"Join one another in following my example, brothers, and carefully observe those who live according to the pattern we set for you. For as I have often told you before, and now declare even with tears: Many live as enemies of the cross of Christ. Their end is destruction, their god is their belly, and their glory is in their shame. Their minds are set on earthly things. But our citizenship is in heaven, and we eagerly await a Savior from there, the Lord Jesus Christ,.." (Philippians 3:17-20)

Paradox Mine

I live a paradox.  I have an irresistible compulsion to speak the truth of God's word and nothing else gives me greater fulfillment in the depths of my soul, however nothing else causes me greater distress and social chastisement. Believe me when I tell you that I have no grand delusions of self-righteousness, I am acutely aware of my own sinfulness and shortcomings.  However, sometimes the narrow path of truth can be lonely.  When you preach grace you fill a church, but when you start preaching righteousness people lose their minds.  I've estranged family members and lost friends because of my relentless pursuit of God and His call upon my life.  I have counted the cost to follow and serve God, He will always be first in my life, regardless of the consequences, because that is the kind of radical devotion Jesus actually demands from all of those who call upon His name as Savior and Lord.

A few weeks ago during a conversation with the interim pastor for our church, he said, "I preach sin and hell."  Like, he wanted to make sure that we wouldn't be surprised by such a thing.  I can honestly say that the only thing that bothered me by his statement was that he felt it was necessary to make us aware that he preached the full counsel of God.  I felt great compassion for him because I wondered, was there a time somewhere along his tenure as a pastor that he was given grief for his dedication to the full Gospel of Christ?  His question only made me love him more because that is something that I can totally identify with.  His question only made me even more thankful that it was him who God has sent to pastor our church during this time of our loss.  

When we claim Jesus Christ as our Savior, what do we think He is saving us from?  Jesus didn't die to forgive us for our sin, He died to save us from it.  Scripture tells us, "Indeed, all who desire to live godly lives in Christ Jesus will be persecuted." (2 Tim 3:12).  How many of us are being persecuted for our desire to live Godly lives in obedience to scripture?  The stark reality of Western Christianity is that most of the persecution comes from those within our own faith.

As I pondered these things in my heart today, as I wrestled with God-- on the one hand, compelled by His Spirit to preach righteousness; on the other hand, compelled by my flesh and my own reasoning to make my case for compromise-- I felt Him lay on my heart:  "You need to be preaching righteousness like I'm coming back tomorrow." 

Indeed.  We should all be preaching righteousness in eager anticipation to stand before the great and terrible judge.

"For we must all appear before the judgment seat of Christ, that each one may receive his due for the things done in the body, whether good or bad. Therefore, since we know what it means to fear the Lord, we try to persuade men. What we are is clear to God, and I hope it is clear to your conscience as well." (2 Cor 5:10,11)

"Therefore, since we are receiving an unshakable kingdom, let us be filled with gratitude, and so worship God acceptably with reverence and awe.  For our God is a consuming fire." (Heb 12:28,29)

"Watch therefore, and pray always that you may be counted worthy to escape all these things that will come to pass, and to stand before the Son of Man.” (Luke 21:36)

"I charge you in the presence of God and of Christ Jesus, Who will judge the living and the dead, and in view of His appearing and His kingdom:  Preach the word; be prepared in season and out of season; reprove, rebuke, and encourage with every form of patient instruction. For the time will come when men will not tolerate sound doctrine, but with itching ears they will gather around themselves teachers to suit their own desires." (1 Tim 4:1-3)

"Then I saw heaven standing open, and there before me was a white horse. And its rider is called Faithful and True. With righteousness He judges and wages war. He has eyes like blazing fire, and many royal crowns on His head... He is dressed in a robe dipped in blood, and His name is The Word of God... And from His mouth proceeds a sharp sword with which to strike down the nations, and He will rule them with an iron scepter. He treads the winepress of the fury of the wrath of God, the Almighty." (Rev 19:11-15)

 

A Spoonful Of Toilet Water

As I was making my 18 month-old's bottle this morning, I wondered, "How much turd-laden dirty toilet water would be okay to put in here?  A teaspoon?  A half-teaspoon?  A quarter-teaspoon?  Five drops?"  How much dirty toilet water would you say is okay to put in my baby's bottle?  Most sane people would recoil in horror and say, "Absolutely none!"  For you to understand why I thought this, let me give you the context of what I was thinking about prior to my musings about how much dirty toilet water would be okay for my child to consume.

As Christians, our faith demands that we, "'Come out from them and be separate,' says the Lord. 'Touch no unclean thing, and I will receive you.'" (2 Cor 6:17).  Notice that verse doesn't say, "...says Kalli" or "...says the Baptists" or "...says the Catholics" or "....says the Pentecostals".  That verse says, "...says the Lord."    Yet for a vast majority of contemporary Christians, we have no problem being double-minded or having a divided-heart when it comes to walking out our faith.  We have no problem allowing the dirty toilet water of the world into our lives. 

How much of the world is it okay to bring into our new life in Christ?  Five rated-R movies?   Two pornographic images?  Three afternoons of gossip?  Four drunken weekends?  Ten songs glorifying sex, drugs, broken relationships or rebellion?  How many times must I hear, "That's legalistic....I'm only human....it's only a t.v. show....we're going to make mistakes..."?  No, a mistake is something you do by accident or because of overwhelming weakness.  God gives us grace for our mistakes and weaknesses.  God gives us grace for our ignorance as we are growing in spiritual maturity.  Rebellion, on the other hand, is something you do with full knowledge and understanding that what you are doing goes against the basic tenets of your faith.  God may give grace toward rebellion for a time, solely at His discretion.  But for the most part, rebellion forfeits God's grace and brings a person into judgment, saved or not.  In all circumstances, rebellion requires repentance, confession and forgiveness:

-"If we deliberately go on sinning after we have received the knowledge of the truth, no further sacrifice for sins remains, but only a fearful expectation of judgment and raging fire that will consume all adversaries." (Heb 10:26,27)

-"Anyone born of God refuses to practice sin, because God's seed abides in him; he cannot go on sinning, because he has been born of God. By this the children of God and the children of the devil can be distinguished: Anyone who does not practice righteousness is not of God, nor is anyone who does not love his brother." (1 John 3:9,10)

-"Come back to your senses as you ought, and stop sinning; for there are some who are ignorant of God--I say this to your shame." (1 Cor 15:34)

What do we do with verses like that?  Where do they fit in our comfortable, excuse-laden version of Christianity?  How do they reconcile with our buddy-version of God, Who winks at our sin and is utterly devoid of fearsome wrath?  Here's the deal:  We can claim the Christian faith all we want, we can make excuses, we can continue our lame attempts to justify our behavior, but after it's all said and done, the Lord we claim to worship and serve said that it is our faith which manifests itself in obedience that makes us His:

-"If you love Me, you will keep My commandments." (John 14:15)

-"Whoever has My commandments and keeps them is the one who loves Me." (John 14:21)

-"If anyone loves Me, he will keep My word. My Father will love him, and we will come to him and make Our home with him." (John 14:23)

-"If you keep My commandments, you will remain in My love, just as I have kept My Father's commandments and remain in His love." (John 15:10)

-"By this we can be sure that we have come to know Him: if we keep His commandments." (1 John 2:3)

-"For this is the love of God, that we keep His commandments. And His commandments are not burdensome." (1 John 5:3)

-"And this is love, that we walk according to His commandments." (2 John 1:6)

Wow Jesus, You're so legalistic.

Our obedience doesn't save us, but it is our obedience that distinguishes the authenticity of our faith and sets us apart from the world as belonging to Christ.  Our obedience does draw us closer to God, our obedience does serve to protect us from the fiery darts of the enemy, our obedience does help us to hear God's voice more clearly, our obedience does make us a sanctified vessel fit for use in God's kingdom to bear Him fruit, "God’s firm foundation stands, bearing this seal: 'The Lord knows those who are His,' and, 'Everyone who calls on the name of the Lord must turn away from iniquity'... Therefore, if anyone cleanses himself from what is dishonorable, he will be a vessel for honorable use, set apart as holy, useful to the Master of the house, ready for every good work. Flee the evil desires of youth and pursue righteousness, faith, love and peace, along with those who call on the Lord out of a pure heart." (2 Tim 2:19-22)

Do you belong to Christ?  Then live a lifestyle of repentance, daily turning away from iniquity, daily bearing your cross to your own death, daily seeking God's presence and asking Him to fill you with a hunger for obedience and a thirst for righteousness.  We must daily surrender to the transforming power of the Holy Spirit to pull us out of this world, because even a little leaven (or toilet water) works through the whole batch of dough, "You were running well; who hindered you from obeying the truth?.. A little yeast works through the whole batch of dough." (Gal 5:7,9).  Pursue righteousness, faith, love and peace, because that is what it truly means to be a Christian.

"But just as He Who called you is holy, so be holy in all you do, for it is written:  'Be holy because I am holy.' Since you call on a Father Who judges each man's work impartially, live your lives in reverent fear during your temporary stay on earth." (1 Peter 1:15-17)

"Little children, let no one deceive you: The one who practices righteousness is righteous, just as Christ is righteous. The one who practices sin is of the devil, because the devil has been sinning from the very start. This is why the Son of God was revealed, to destroy the works of the devil." (1 John 3:7,8)

"But you know that Christ appeared to take away sins, and in Him there is no sin. No one who remains in Him keeps on sinning. No one who continues to sin has seen Him or known Him." (1 John 3:5,6)

"We know that anyone born of God does not keep on sinning; the One who was born of God protects him, and the evil one cannot touch him." (1 John 5:18)

"For sin shall not be your master, because you are not under law, but under grace. What then? Shall we sin because we are not under law, but under grace? By no means! Do you not know that when you offer yourselves as obedient slaves, you are slaves to the one you obey, whether you are slaves to sin leading to death, or to obedience leading to righteousness? But thanks be to God that, though you once were slaves to sin, you wholeheartedly obeyed the form of teaching to which you were committed. You have been set free from sin and have become slaves to righteousness." (Rom 6:14-18)

The Grievances Of A Nobody

On October 31, 1517, Martin Luther nailed a copy of his 95 Theses to the door of the Wittenberg Castle church.  These 95 Theses were written because of Luther's fervent belief that scripture dictated two truths that had been wholly perverted by the Church in his time:

1.  The Bible, not men, is the central religious authority

2.  The salvation of a person's soul is only by God's grace through their faith in Jesus Christ and cannot be earned by any deed of men

Luther's 95 Theses were written as a response to the Catholic Church selling "indulgences" to absolve sin-- which basically means people were encouraged by the church to purchase their own forgiveness, all proceeds of those purchases benefitting the Church.  It was these 95 Theses that eventually led to the Protestant Reformation, which led to the division of the Christian Church even to this day.  Once again, in this Laodicean Church age, the Church finds itself in gross neglect of obedience and adherence to scripture. Once again, the larger portion of the Church has given precedence to the traditions, formulas and programs of men, over Jesus' simple plan of proclaiming Him as Lord and teaching His commands (Matt 28:18-20).  Agenda has become more important than relationship.  The sheep are starving and they don't even know it. 

Once again it has become necessary to hammer a ledger of charges against the church door.  And although I am a lowly nobody, tucked away in a quiet corner of the Southern US, I bring these charges against the church to bear record in heaven.  And although these charges do not total 95, they are the sum total of what has been laid upon my heart in grievance.

1.  We want to follow a Jesus that doesn't require anything from us.  We want a Jesus of convenience, rather than One of personal sacrifice.  Even though Jesus clearly articulates in His teaching that we must not only be willing to forsake all we have to follow Him, but also be willing to die to ourselves. (Mark 8:34; Matt 16:24; Luke 9:23)

2.  We appoint and elect spiritual leaders in the church out of convenience, camaraderie, or desperate necessity, rather than according to the character requirements given in scripture or the genuine leading of the Holy Spirit.  Men who have never even read the Bible in Its entirety, who have exhibited no consistent dedication to their own spiritual maturity, neither consistent management of the spiritual growth of their own family, are put in positions of spiritual leadership in the church.  It is far better to have a vacant position of leadership, than to fill it in desperation, according to whim or with those simply seeking a title or positions of authority. (1 Tim 3:1-13; Titus 1:5-9)

3.  We seek teachers who will empower us, rather than convict us.  
There is authority in and through the Name of Christ, but we are not in control, He is.  Preachers who promise empowerment through Christ are teaching people to substitute themselves in the place where Christ should be.  We are at His feet, He is the only One on the throne.  (1 Cor 15:27,28)

4.  We want changed circumstances instead of changed lives.  We don't mind submitting our circumstances for Christ to work on, but we do not want to submit to the transforming power of the Holy Spirit working within us developing and refining our character.....because inner transformation costs too much.  (Phil 2:12,13)

5.  We are not coming to the cross broken and in desperate need of a Savior, longing to be free from the tyranny of sin in our lives.  We want to be saved from the punishment for our sins, but we do not want the necessary personal death that goes along with it, drawing us out and away from sin. We want new wine in old wineskins. (Romans 6)

6.  We are Biblically illiterate which has led to a gross lack of discernment within the Church as a whole.  We follow ministries because they are emotionally appealing and tell us what we want to hear.  Someone who truly hears the voice of God will not appeal to your ego or personal motives or agenda.  When we follow ministries simply because they appeal to us, any spiritual changes made within us are either temporary or not by the Holy Spirit and will ultimately lead us further away from the truth. (2 Tim 4:3,4)

7.  We do not recognize our Shepherd's voice because we spend little-to-no time listening to Him in intimate, daily prayer or consuming scripture.  (Titus 1:16; John 10:27)

8.  We spend far more time pursuing and managing our own kingdom, rather than pursuing to learn about and understand God's kingdom.  We are damned by distraction and spiritually crippled with the busyness of producing fruit for our own kingdom, which perpetually eats up any time and opportunity for us to bear fruit for God's kingdom.  Our time is wasted and consumed day-after-day building with straw and hay on a foundation of sand. (1 Cor 3:12,13)

9.  We measure our relationship with God according to the tasks we perform within or for the church, rather than the time we actually spend in personal fellowship with Him.  We pursue ministry over relationship. (Rev 3:1)

10.  We have littered the Christian landscape with the half-built towers of those who began to build, but failed to fully count the cost of what it means to truly follow Christ.  When you preach or follow half the Gospel, you will only build half the tower. (Luke 14:28-30)

We are a nation of empty lamps and dirty cups, claiming Christ as Savior but full of worldliness and devoid of any consistent inner transformation by the Holy Spirit.  God does not operate according to our own personal version of the Christian faith.  God isn't simply whatever we imagine Him to be.  The Gospel cannot be found in our commercialized version of Christianity.  Neither is the Gospel fully represented in our staunchly held denominational bias and conventions.  We want Christ, but we want Him to operate within our Sunday morning program.  We want Christ, but we want the world too.  This is why the church has increasingly turned from being a well-spring of Living Water, into putrid pond-water that gives no life at all.  Jesus said He came to give us rivers of living water (John 7:38), but we want the water to flow into our neatly enclosed area, where it can no longer flow, but it sits and turns to scum. 

If you find yourself at a point in your life where you feel inexplicably pulled into a deeper, more meaningful relationship with God, I encourage you to surrender.  I encourage you to pray for God to send you the people that He will work through to quench your thirst, and the church that He will work through to feed your soul.  I encourage you to pray for Living Water.  That is God's will for His children, and He always answers prayers according to His will.

"Jesus stood up and called out in a loud voice, 'If anyone is thirsty, let him come to Me and drink. To the one who believes in Me, it is just as the Scripture has said: 'Streams of living water will flow from within him.'" (John 7:38)

"If anyone does not remain in Me, he is like a branch that is thrown away and withers. Such branches are gathered up, thrown into the fire, and burned. If you remain in Me and My words remain in you, ask whatever you wish, and it will be done for you. This is to My Father’s glory, that you bear much fruit, proving yourselves to be My disciples." (John 15:6-8)

Looking For Lovely

I taught a girls' Bible study this summer called, "Looking For Lovely".  The gist of the Bible study was to look for and focus on the lovely things among our circumstances.  The study focused on Romans 5:3-5 which says, "Not only that, but we also rejoice in our sufferings, because we know that suffering produces perseverance; and perseverance, character; and character, hope. And hope does not disappoint us, because God has poured out His love into our hearts through the Holy Spirit, whom He has given us."  As I watched my Pastor--my friend, mentor and father figure-- battle pancreatic cancer over this last year, I desperately searched for the lovely.  I insistently banged on the door of heaven, asking God to explain Himself.  I mulled over all the scriptural reasons for suffering, I pondered God's motives, I examined His intent, as if God needed me to judge His work.  In all this, I found nothing lovely.  In all this, at every turn, there seemed to be only ugly. 

I looked for purpose, but I found only suffering and pain.  I sought understanding, but I only experienced doubt and frustration.  My beloved Pastor went home to be with the Lord last Monday and it is now a week later that God has finally spoken.  The whole time my Pastor battled cancer, I asked God what was the purpose of building his character through suffering if it was only going to lead to death?  What was the purpose of refining his character if he wasn't going to stay alive to share what he learned?  God answered:  It wasn't Pastor's character that was being built, it was the character of all those who loved him.  God was building the character of all those who would continue their lives after our Pastor was gone.

Just like our Pastor poured out his life into ours while he was living-- teaching us, mentoring us, praying for us-- so would he be poured out in death, a final sacrifice unto God bearing "the sweet aroma of Christ among those who are being saved... a fragrance that brings life." (2 Cor 2:15,16) and "a sweet smelling aroma, an acceptable sacrifice, well-pleasing to God." (Phil 4:18).  All those who loved our Pastor persevered in prayer and persevered in faith.  Our prayers may not have been answered the way we expected or wanted them to, but our faith that God is still on the throne and is still perfect in holiness, love and justice, has persevered.  Through faith, we are more than conquerors over every temptation we faced to succumb to doubt, anger, or frustration.  We experienced all those things, yet they never prevailed over our faith.

It was hard for me to see any perseverance because I was too focused on the ugliness of the circumstances.  It is so easy to fall into the temptation to judge God's love for us based on our circumstances.  But scripture tells us that nothing can separate us from the love of Christ, neither "trouble or hardship or persecution or famine or nakedness or danger or sword.." (Rom 8:35).  Jesus never promised us that we wouldn't suffer, but He did promise that we would never be separated from His love. 

We are told that the fruit of hope is the result of all the suffering, all the perseverance and all the building of character, "And hope does not disappoint us, because God has poured out His love into our hearts through the Holy Spirit, whom He has given us." (Rom 5:5).  After all the suffering and persevering and building of character, we are left with hope and God's love.  We are left with the peace and assurance of our salvation and that one day very soon we will be with Pastor again.  We are left with fulfilling the purposes of God by the power of His Holy Spirit Whom He has given us.  We are left with only lovely.

 

Part 7 of 7: The Picture On The Puzzle Box

The seventh and final feast appointed to Israel by God to be literally fulfilled by Jesus Christ is the Feast of Tabernacles (Feast of Booths or Sukkot).  It is first mentioned in the scriptures as the Feast of Ingathering, "Celebrate the Festival of Ingathering at the end of the year, when you gather in your crops from the field." (Exodus 23:14-16).  It was to be celebrated after they entered the Promised Land and it was to be celebrated in conjunction with the Feast of Tabernacles (Lev 23:33-44).  For seven days they were to live in hastily constructed "booths" (the Hebrew word for booth is "sukkot") to commemorate their time in the wilderness and God's tabernacle that dwelled in the middle of the desert tents of the nation of Israel.  The Feast of Tabernacles (Sukkot) is not only a time of remembrance but also a time of great celebration, celebrating the bountiful harvest and the joy of community (Deut 16:14,15).

Because this feast follows a time of great repentance and judgment, the symbolic representation of this Feast of Tabernacles (Sukkot) is deliverance from bondage and restored fellowship with God among His people and the bountiful harvest of souls that will dwell with Him.  God dwelled among His people in the Tabernacle in the desert and He will once again dwell among His people here on earth, when Christ returns to dwell among us and rule the earth as King of Kings and Lord of Lords. 

We must always be ready for the appearance of Jesus our Lord.  We are commanded by Jesus to watch expectantly for his return.  Each year, the month of Elul prepares us for the Feast of Trumpets on the 1st of Tishri.  This year, the Jewish month of Elul begins at sunset on Saturday, September 3rd and it ends on the Feast of Trumpets on the 1st of Tishri, which begins at sunset on October 2nd.  This time period before the Feast of Trumpets is spent in honest, rigorous self-examination and repentance.  It is an annual purging and realigning, purging ourselves of any spiritual baggage and realigning ourselves with the lives that God calls us to live as those saved and washed by the precious blood of Christ.  Repentance is not a one-time thing we do when we come to the cross for salvation, but rather it is a lifestyle of perpetual self-evaluation and surrender that Christ calls us to live.

"For you are fully aware that the day of the Lord will come like a thief in the night... But you, brothers, are not in the darkness so that this day should overtake you like a thief." (1 Thess 5:2,4)

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Part 6 of 7: The Picture On The Puzzle Box

Every year the “Season of Repentance” runs forty days from the first day of the Hebrew month of Elul to the Day of Atonement (Yom Kippur).  It is during this time that we are reminded that we are a people under a covenant with God, bought by the blood of Christ, called to live lives that glorify Him and to examine our lives to ensure that we are living them for His glory, according to His word.  During the first thirty days of this season, we make every effort to repent, or “turn toward God.”  During this time we are to "awake" from the spiritual sleep induced by sin and ensure that our wicks are trimmed and our lamps are full.  It is a time of deep personal reflection, a time of surrender and a time to make absolutely certain we are allowing God to conform us to His purpose and His will, through the transforming power of the Holy Spirit.  These first thirty days are a time of preparation for the trumpet call of God, the shout from heaven to assemble ourselves together to join the Bridegroom on the Feast of Trumpets, the Feast that no man knows the day or the hour. 

--"So then, dear friends, since you are looking forward to this, make every effort to be found spotless, blameless and at peace with him." (2 Peter 3:14).

--"Be always on the watch, and pray that you may be able to escape all that is about to happen, and that you may be able to stand before the Son of Man." (Luke 21:36).

The last ten days of this season, before the Day of Atonement (Yom Kippur), are known as "The Ten Days of Awe".   The Ten Days of Awe are time of additional repentance before the Day of Atonement, or Judgment Day, "Although God overlooked the ignorance of earlier times, He now commands all men everywhere to repent. For He has set a day when He will judge the world with justice by the Man He has appointed. He has given proof of this to all men by raising Him from the dead." (Acts 17:30,31). 

Symbolically, the Day of Atonement is when Christ physically returns to the earth to deliver "those who keep the commandments of God and hold to the testimony of Jesus" (Rev 12:17) and to judge the nations, "When the Son of Man comes in his glory, and all the angels with him, then he will sit on his glorious throne. Before Him will be gathered all the nations, and He will separate people one from another as a shepherd separates the sheep from the goats." (Matt 25:31,32) and rule the earth as King of Kings and Lord of Lords, "They will wage war against the Lamb, but the Lamb will triumph over them because he is Lord of lords and King of kings--and with Him will be his called, chosen and faithful followers." (Rev 17:14).

In Jewish tradition, the annual period of God's judgment of the world takes place during the Ten Days of Awe, which begin on Rosh Hashanah (Feast of Trumpets/Yom Teruah) and ends ten days later on the Day of Atonement (Yom Kippur).  The world enters judgment on the Feast of Trumpets, and ten days later judgment is set and the fate of the righteous and wicked are sealed for all eternity on the Day of Atonement.  According to Jewish tradition, everyone on earth is given these ten additional days to repent and get right with God before their fate is sealed and judgment is eternally set. 

However from a Christian/Messianic Jewish perspective, it is understood that these ten days are symbolic of the Great Tribulation and it is understood that all those whose names have been written in the Lamb's book of life since the foundation of the world who remain on the earth during this time will be purified through the fires of tribulation.

--"Do not fear what you are about to suffer. Look, the devil is about to throw some of you into prison to test you, and you will suffer tribulation for ten days. Be faithful even unto death, and I will give you the crown of life." (Rev 2:10)
--"And all who dwell on the earth will worship the beast--all whose names have not been written from the foundation of the world in the book of life of the Lamb who was slain." (Rev 13:8)
--"Here is a call for the endurance of the saints, those who keep the commandments of God and their faith in Jesus. Then I heard a voice from heaven say, 'Write this: Blessed are the dead who die in the Lord from now on.' 'Yes,' says the Spirit, 'they will rest from their labor, for their deeds will follow them.'" (Rev 13:14)

Ideally, we are to have gotten our spiritual house in order by repenting of all known sin and making any relationship reconciliation with others by the Feast of Trumpets (Yom Teruah).  This is the purpose of the month of spiritual preparation beforehand.  However, when we examine the overall picture of God's plan through the symbolism of His appointed feasts, it appears that those who have outstanding issues with God and man when the last trumpet sounds for the Feast of Trumpets, will find themselves subjected to further purification before they will be "able to stand before the Son of Man." (Luke 21:36).

This is almost a heretical concept to a church that worships a Jesus that doesn't require anything from them.  Western Christianity focuses only on God's grace and give little to no significance to God's very real seriousness about living sanctified lives.  As a culture, we are so far removed from what it truly means to be Christian that we have created our own religion.  Of this particular Laodicean age of Christianity, Jesus said we are blind and completely ignorant of our own spiritual nakedness.  He tells us we are in desperate need of sanctification by the Holy Spirit, but are too blind and lukewarm to care. (Rev 3:15-18).  His instructions to us at Revelation 3, verse 19, "Those whom I love, I reprove and discipline, so be zealous and repent",  lend even more seriousness to the annual season of repentance before the Feast of Trumpets.  Of the seven churches Jesus speaks to in Revelation, five of them are specifically instructed to "repent." (Rev 2:5; 2:16; 2:22; 3:3; 3:19).

Throughout time and history, one thing and one thing only has ever served to quickly awaken those in spiritual slumber, and that thing is tribulation.  Unfortunately, hardship and suffering are the only things that arouse the lukewarm from their stupor and turn them back to radical devotion and total surrender to Christ.

We've covered two of the last three appointed feasts to be literally fulfilled by Christ: 
 

1.  The Feast of Trumpets (Yom Teruah), which symbolizes the calling together of those under Christ's covenant, who have their wicks trimmed and their lamps full, described as "The virgins who were ready.." (Matt 25:10) and are "able to stand before the Son of Man." (Luke 21:36).  The month of Elul is the season of repentance, which gives all believers a window of time to set their lives in order and to thoroughly repent of any ungodliness in their lives so as to be found worthy to escape the coming judgment. If Jesus should tarry another year before He returns, then the believer has been spiritually rejuvenated and refreshed to bear fruit for God's kingdom and shine their light for God's glory throughout the ensuing year.

2.  The Day of Atonement and the preceding Ten Days of Awe, which symbolizes the Great Tribulation and the physical return of Christ on the Day of Judgment.  Those who are not spiritually ready when the last trumpet sounds for the Feast of Trumpets, who remain to be purified, will go through the purging of the tribulation period, so that they will be ready for the Day of Atonement, which is the final separation of the sheep from the goats.  These ten additional days of repentance are given for mankind to repent and get right with God before judgment is eternally set.

The last appointed feast that will be literally fulfilled by Christ is the Feast of Tabernacles, also known as the Feast of Booths or Sukkot.  We'll talk more about that in my next post.

Continue to Part 7 of 7:  The Picture On The Puzzle Box
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