Fences

I went for another walk last night.

I wanted to walk to the bridge over our pond, but I took the long way around. I chuckled to myself as I thought how “taking the long route”

was definitely symbolic of my own life. As I got nearer to the pond, I also got nearer to the barn gate between me and the pond. I could see the pond, I could see where I wanted to be, but there was a fence there, between me and the place I was trying get to.

When I got to the gate, I stood there for a minute, my heart heavy with the thought of how many souls are just like this in their spiritual life. They see the bridge, they see that place of freedom, but they just keep standing at the gate. They just keep building fences. Last night, as I climbed over the barn gate, I wondered why I stood at my own spiritual gate for so long before realizing that just because fences don’t move, doesn’t mean that we can’t. I wondered why it took me so long to realize that all those fences between me and spiritual freedom weren’t put there by God, but by me. 

When Jesus began His ministry, both religious and political people saw Him as dangerous. Jesus was dangerous to fence builders and fence maintainers, because Jesus came to remind people of the Father’s heart— a Father Who desires for His children to be free. Jesus came to give mankind greater revelation to words written on scrolls—  to explain to us their deeper meaning, and to fulfill them. 

He came to set the captives free— whether captive to sin, or captive to religion, or even captive to themselves— for Whom the Son sets free, is free indeed. 

(John 10:9,10) I am the gate. If anyone enters through Me, he will be saved. He will come in and go out and find pasture. The thief comes only to steal and kill and destroy. I have come that they may have life, and have it in all its fullness. I am the good shepherd. The good shepherd lays down His life for the sheep.

(John 8:24,31-36) “That is why I told you that you would die in your sins. For unless you believe that I am He, you will die in your sins.”.. So He said to the Jews who had believed Him, “If you continue in My word, you are truly My disciples and you will know the truth, and the truth will make you free…Truly, truly, I tell you, everyone who sins is a slave to sin…So if the Son sets you free, you will be free indeed.”

(1 Tim 2:3-7) This is good and pleasing in the sight of God our Savior, who wants everyone to be saved and to understand the truth. For there is one God and one Mediator who can reconcile God and humanity—the man Christ Jesus. He gave his life to purchase freedom for everyone. This is the message God gave to the world at just the right time. And I have been chosen as a preacher and apostle to teach the Gentiles this message about faith and truth…

Jesus Marveled

Jesus marveled. Imagine being the person who caused Jesus to marvel? 

In Matthew Chapter 8, we are given the account of a Roman centurion’s encounter with Jesus Christ. The centurion asks Jesus to heal his servant. But when Jesus agrees to go to the centurion’s house to heal the servant, the centurion replies, “Lord, I am not worthy to have You come under my roof. But just say the word, and my servant will be healed.” 

The centurion explains to Jesus that he understands how authority works, and he not only recognized, but also had utter trust in the Lordship of Jesus Christ. And we are told, “..when Jesus heard this, He marveled and said to those following Him, ‘Truly I tell you, I have not found anyone in Israel with such great faith.’” Brothers and sisters, Jesus said this “to.. those.. following.. Him.” He said this to His disciples. He said no one in all of Israel had demonstrated such faith. Let’s think about that for a minute.

I think this encounter has far deeper implications than what I usually see it used to teach (i.e. miraculous healing, demonic deliverance). This encounter with the centurion was after Jesus’ Sermon on the Mount, when many were “amazed at His teaching” and “large crowds followed Him.” Many followed Jesus and were amazed at His teaching, many saw His miracles (Matt 5:23-25), but by our Lord’s own words, none of those people—alas, even His own disciples up to that time— possessed a faith so utter and so complete in His Lordship, in which He could marvel. 

Oh Lord, open our eyes to any blindness within us so that it may be said of us: “I have not found anyone in Israel with such great faith.”

(Luke 18:7,8) Will not God bring about justice for His elect who cry out to Him day and night? Will He continue to defer their help? I tell you, He will promptly carry out justice on their behalf. Nevertheless, when the Son of Man comes, will He find faith on earth?

(1 Peter 1:7-9) [Trials] have come so that the proven genuineness of your faith—of greater worth than gold, which perishes even though refined by fire—may result in praise, glory and honor when Jesus Christ is revealed. Though you have not seen Him, you love Him; and though you do not see Him now, you believe in Him and rejoice with an inexpressible and glorious joy, for you are receiving the end result of your faith, the salvation of your souls.

(Matt 7:21-23) Not everyone who says to Me, ‘Lord, Lord,’ will enter the kingdom of heaven, but only he who does the will of My Father in heaven. Many will say to Me on that day, ‘Lord, Lord, did we not prophesy in Your name, and in Your name drive out demons and perform many miracles?’ Then I will tell them plainly, ‘I never knew you; depart from Me, you workers of lawlessness!’

(John 6:40) For this is the will of my Father: Everyone who sees [beholds, perpetually gazes upon for the purpose of analyzing and comprehending, experiences in a way that leads to discernment] The Son and trusts [relies upon, entrusts themselves to, places confidence in, abides in] Him shall have eternal life, and I shall raise him in the last day. 

Never Alone

I went for a walk last night, out to the bridge over our pond. 

As I met with the Lord and contemplated many things, I looked out and saw one of our ducks alone out on the water. I thought to myself, “Lord, sometimes I feel like that.” Sometimes I feel like I’m alone in the water, just paddling around by myself, trying to understand this great, big world. Trying to understand how it all fits together, and where I fit in all of it. 

Sometimes I feel the weight of smallness, as I gaze around at the whole of creation that seems to swallow me up. Sometimes I feel wary about the seeming encroaching dusk and fading light. I think to myself, “It’s coming, and there is absolutely nothing that any of us can do to stop it. Because the sun must set, and the dark night come, before we rise on the wings of the dawn.”

As I looked at the solitary duck and contemplated all my deep thoughts, I suddenly realized the duck was not alone at all. I suddenly noticed the duck’s reflection in the water and as I looked, I could now see two ducks instead of just one. And I thought to myself, “Oh Lord, that is like us! We are never alone when we are a reflection of You.” Where we are, there He is also. Always. 

And that is what I want to share with you today. Those who reflect the image of the Lord are never alone. Where we are, there He is also. Always. 

(Psalm 139:8-10) If I ascend to the heavens, You are there; if I make my bed in Sheol, You are there. If I rise on the wings of the dawn, if I settle by the farthest sea, even there Your hand will guide me; Your right hand will hold me fast.

(Heb 13:5,6) Keep your lives free from the love of money and be content with what you have, for God has said: “Never will I leave you, never will I forsake you.” So we say with confidence: “The Lord is my helper; I will not be afraid. What can man do to me?”

(John 14:1-6) “Do not let your hearts be troubled. You believe in God; believe in Me as well. In My Father’s house are many rooms. If it were not so, would I have told you that I am going there to prepare a place for you? And if I go and prepare a place for you, I will come back and take you to be with me that you also may be where I am. And you know the way to the place I am going." “Lord,” said Thomas, “we do not know where You are going, so how can we know the way?” Jesus answered, “I am the way and the truth and the life. No one comes to the Father except through Me.”

The Branch

 

This is you. And this is me. Without Christ in us, we are all dead branches.  

A couple years ago I was weeping and praying on the barn steps and the Spirit told me to open my eyes, and asked “What do you see?” And I said, “A branch.” Each day after that, when I would sit on the hay loft steps and look out the barn window, this branch was always dead-center in my vision. One day after a storm, it broke off and I picked it up off the ground and brought it inside my barn, and to this day it sits on the dusty work counter right in front of me whenever I come out here to pray as a reminder. 

It reminds me of when God told Moses to have each tribe of Israel to place a wooden rod, which is essentially a dead branch, “in the tent of meeting in front of the testimony, where I meet with you.” God was tired of their grumbling and bickering and He sought to resolve it by showing the people that it was He and He alone Who chose His servants and caused them to bear fruit. On that day, every tribe of Israel was symbolized by a dead branch, and the only one that had life in it, didn’t come from itself but from God’s own hand. 

It reminds me of when God told Ezekiel to get two sticks and bind them together, to show the Israelites that it is He who unites us, it is He Who gathers us together and makes us one in His hand. It is He Who establishes us and Who makes us His holy eternal dwelling place. It is He who will do what no human can do: make us all one mind and one heart in Jesus Christ, our King and Lord forever. 

It reminds me of the day that the Lord asked Jeremiah, “What do you see?” And Jeremiah responded, “I see a branch.” And it reminds me of the next thing that God told Jeremiah after he saw the branch, “You have observed correctly,” said the LORD, “for I am watching over My word to accomplish it.” 

And I think that is a very good reminder to us all. 

(Zech 6:12,13) And you are to tell him that this is what the LORD of Hosts says: ‘Here is a man whose name is the Branch, and He will branch out from His place and build the temple of the LORD. It is He who will build the temple of the LORD, and He will be clothed with majesty and will sit and rule on His throne. And He will be a priest on His throne. And there will be harmony between the two.’

(Num 17:7-10) And Moses placed the rods before the LORD in the tabernacle of witness. The next day, Moses went into the tent of the testimony; and behold, the rod of Aaron for the house of Levi had sprouted and put forth buds and produced blossoms, and it bore ripe almonds…And the LORD said to Moses, “Bring Aaron’s rod back before the Testimony, to be kept as a sign against the rebels, that you may put their complaints away from Me, lest they die.”

(Ezekiel 37:20-23) Hold before their eyes the sticks you have written on then say to them, Thus says the Lord GOD: Behold, I will take the people of Israel from the nations among which they have gone, and will gather them from all around, and bring them to their own land. I will make them one nation in the land, on the mountains of Israel, and one king will rule over all of them. Then they will no longer be two nations and will never again be divided into two kingdoms. They will no longer defile themselves with their idols and vile images or with any of their offenses, for I will save them from all their sinful backsliding, and I will cleanse them. They will be my people, and I will be their God.

(Jer 1:11,12) And the word of the LORD came to me, saying, “Jeremiah, what do you see?” And I said, “I see an almond branch.” “You have observed correctly,” said the LORD, “for I am watching over My word to accomplish it.”

(John 15:5) I am the vine and you are the branches. The one who remains in Me, and I in him, will bear much fruit. For apart from Me you can do nothing.

You Are Free

I find it remarkable that the first words of God to mankind were, “You are free…” (Gen 2:16)

I also find it remarkable that as we look back over millenniums of human existence, we see our intrinsic longing for freedom bound in a cycle of gaining it, only to lose it again because of self-enslavement. We will spill rivers of blood trying to gain freedom, only to lose it again through over-governance— over-governance that we permit by our own free will, until that will begins to feel the tightening grip of enslavement around its throat again.  

When we look back over history, we see the church does the very same. The blood of Christ was spilled to set us free, yet as each successive century passed, the church became more and more enslaved through over-regulation. Then, the blood of reformers was spilled to remind us of our freedom, only for factions and movements to spawn across the landscape working to rob us all over again. Alas, the cycle continues because such is the curse of a creation that tries to make its own way— whether by politics or religion— because both equally enslave— one enslaving our outer man, the other enslaving our inner. 

Little children, Christ in you longs to reign freely and Christ rules over everything. He that is in you is greater than anything in this world. Christ longs to draw you upward, out of the darkness of your mind. Satan thrives in that darkness, working to keep you fearfully walking that tightrope, constantly focused on self—“don’t lean too far or you’ll fall off!” If Christ be in you, then beloved you are free. You are no longer enslaved to sin, the chains of your enslavement have been broken. Thus, there is no reason for any of us to live in a self-made cell. 

Today I want to remind you of God’s first words to mankind, “You are free to eat from any tree in the Garden…” Any tree but the one that enslaves us: The Tree of mankind determining what is right and wrong through our own reason— knowledge of good and evil not rooted in the heart of the Father who desires our freedom, but in the heart of man who will always inevitably enslave.

(Gen 2:16,17) And the LORD God commanded him, “You may eat freely from every tree of the garden, but you must not eat from the tree of the knowledge of good and evil; for in the day that you eat of it, you will surely die.”

(Gal 5:13-15) For you have been called to live in freedom, my brothers and sisters. But don’t use your freedom to satisfy your sinful nature. Instead, use your freedom to serve one another in love. For the entire law is fulfilled in keeping this one command: “Love your neighbor as yourself.” But if you are always biting and devouring one another, watch out! Beware of destroying one another.

(Luke 4:17-19) And the scroll of the prophet Isaiah was given to Him, unrolling it, He found the place where it was written: “The Spirit of the Lord is upon Me, because He has anointed Me to proclaim good news to the poor. He has sent Me to proclaim freedom for the prisoners and recovery of sight for the blind, to set the oppressed free, to proclaim the year of the Lord’s favor.”

Unto Us A Son Is Given

Sometimes I feel like we’ve made Christianity into a mine field. 

Step here, but not here or you’ll get blown to smithereens. Walk this path, but not this one or you’ll lose a foot. Watch out for that spot or…oops, you got too close. If you had only understood that a little better…if you had only seen this a little clearer…if you had only…

It seems strange to me that the more I grow in comprehending my Maker and His work of sanctification in me, the more I become aware of just how truly wretched we are and how far we fell from grace... and just how hopeless mankind is without Christ in us… and that if God doesn’t do the work in us, it will never get done. For all intents and purposes, sanctification seems to be me growing in appreciation of the sheer magnitude and value of God’s grace. 

I went from living in constant fear of sinning, of making a mistake, of getting it wrong, to coming face to face with the fact that my faith in Christ includes my faith that the Holy Spirit is fully capable of performing God’s sanctifying work in me despite myself. I went from being oblivious to sin, to conviction of sin, to obsession with the realization that sin is everywhere in everything, and found myself crying out to God all over again…”Save me!”

Beloved, Christianity is not a mine field. Christianity is trust in Jesus Christ as the Son Who came to take away the sin of the world. The One Who came to call us out of darkness and into His marvelous light. Christianity is the good news of the gospel which announces that unto us a Son has been given, unto us a child was born—God manifested in the flesh to bear the cost of our crimes and the burden of our iniquity. He is our wisdom and our salvation. He is the Light of the world and the Lamb Who was slain…

“And He will be called Wonderful Counselor, Mighty God, Everlasting Father, Prince of Peace. Of the increase of His government and peace there will be no end. He will reign on the throne of David and over his kingdom, to establish and sustain it with justice and righteousness from that time and forevermore. The zeal of the LORD of Hosts will accomplish this.” (Isaiah 9:6,7)

And that is truly something to celebrate. 

Grace On The Witness Stand

We have put grace under suspicion. 

We have placed it on the witness stand to testify in defense of itself. We have placed a crown of thorns upon its head and mocked it with our own righteousness. We have called as our witnesses  those who have misused it, misunderstood it, and maligned it as proofs of its dubiousness. We prosecute God by His own word, implying that His grace is insufficient when we draw people to put faith in our own teachings rather than drawing them to deeper faith in Jesus Christ. 

Prophecy of Messiah said that the light would shine in the darkness, and there is no greater darkness than the human heart. No greater illusions dwell in any realm than that of our own understanding. We are sick beyond cure, yet God gave us the cure by being born a man who lived a sinless life, and who died to impute that sinlessness to us through His atoning blood. There is no other righteousness to be found among mankind, than that of God’s own Son— Jesus the Nazarene. 

After all these years of being a Christian, of journeying and learning and teaching and seeking, I sat on the barn steps yesterday and gazed out this window with tears streaming down my face and said, “I accept Your righteousness, because I have none. I accept Your grace, because I need it.” May I never place a crown of thorns upon the head of grace and mock it with my own notion of righteousness. 

In this time of testing of hearts, may we remember that our hearts are purified not by how much we get right, but by trusting in and relying upon the only One who got it right. 

(2 Tim 1:9,10) He has saved us and called us to a holy calling, not because of our works, but by His own purpose and by the grace He granted us in Christ Jesus before time began. And now He has revealed this grace through the appearing of our Savior, Christ Jesus, who has abolished death and illuminated the way to life and immortality through the gospel..

(2 Cor 4:6,7) For God, who said, “Let light shine out of darkness,” made His light shine in our hearts to give us the light of the knowledge of the glory of God in the face of Jesus Christ. Now we have this treasure in jars of clay to show that this surpassingly great power is from God and not from us.

(Luke 1:76-79) And you, child, will be called a prophet of the Most High; for you will go on before the Lord to prepare the way for Him, to give knowledge of salvation to His people, in forgiveness of their sins, because of the tender mercy of our God, by which the Dawn will visit us from on high, to give light to those who sit in darkness and in the shadow of death, and to guide us to the path of peace.