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Day Seventy-Seven, 24April14, The Lord’s Joy

April 24, 2014 by insolomonsporch

The Lord’s Joy

“Then I said, Behold, here I am, coming to do Your will, O God — [to fulfill] what is written of Me in the volume of the Book.  Heb 10:7 Amp

 

What can we know, by the authority of the Word, that precipitates the Lord’s joy?  What is the Lord’s joy?  By the word we know it is our strength.  It is central to what the Lord has bequeathed to us – His Joy, His Delight, His Enjoyment, His Gladness (JDEG) Jn 17:13.  It is spoken over and over again in the Word, especially the Books of John and 1John as something we should possess at our core.

Many believers read Hebrews 12:2, “… for the joy [of obtaining the prize] that was set before Him…”, and thus conclude it is we believers – the prize, that was the focus and source of joy for the Lord.  I would challenge you that it is way bigger than us.

Simply stated, I believe the joy of the Lord can be pinpointed as His obedience to the will of the Father. Obedience was the focus, and the central core to all that Jesus accomplished here on earth as He walked in flesh.  Yes, we are important.  But looming before us as believers and His prize, stands the pivotal purpose of God in sending Jesus. For all time, according to the desire of the Father, Jesus was emblematically bringing forth into the world the capacity for obedience because of His sacrifice on the cross, and thus His life being present in all of us who would receive Him. After all, what good would it do for Jesus to save us if He also didn’t provide for a way to change us – to make a way for us to also now obey? 

Hear these words from Hebrews 10:5-7: “Hence, when He [Christ] entered into the world, He said, Sacrifices and offerings You have not desired, but instead You have made ready a body for Me [to offer]; … Behold, here I am, ready to do Your will, O God…”.

As important as we are to Jesus, as important as it was to once and for all make a sacrifice to cleanse and perfect us, we the prize is not the source of Jesus’ joy. Rather, His eyes were on the Father – and pleasing Him in His obedience to the Father’s will.  That obedience even unto death is what ushers forth for us an astounding, freeing joy, that each of us can experience and embrace.

The next few posts are going to explore this joy of the Lord.  Hopefully, it will be like opening a fresh can on the topic that will exude a fragrance of joy so pervasive and stimulating, none of us will be the same again! 

Until next time … JOY!

Posted in Under-the-Influence, Devo Shorts 2011 | Leave a Comment »

Day Seventy-Six, “Exposing Another Gospel”

April 3, 2014 by insolomonsporch

Day Seventy-Five
Exposing Another Gospel
(It’s a Different Apple)

“For [you seem readily to endure it] if a man comes and preaches another Jesus than the One we preached, or if you receive a different spirit from the [Spirit] you [once] received or a different gospel from the one you [then] received and welcomed; you tolerate [all that] well enough! 2Cor 11:4 Amp

 

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Would you recognize another gospel, if you heard one? Would you register a note of discord with what you know from the Scriptures? Think about it…
I recently encountered a post on Facebook that stopped me cold. It sounded very savvy, very wise, even soothing to a Christian populous hungry for more. This is what it recommended:
“You need to associate with people that inspire you, people that challenge you to rise higher, people that make you better. Don’t waste your valuable time with people that are not adding to your growth. Your destiny is too important.”
On the surface this seems un-offensive, even sounds like sage advice. But I want to show you how to quickly recognize something when it is actually adversarial to the word of God and the gospel at large. We do this by plugging this vague guidance into a Bible reality to see if it agrees.
This above quote focuses you on the importance of your destiny, and the people who can get you there. So let’s look at a great man of Bible destiny, Joseph, son of Jacob. As you know, Joseph went on to literally save the world from famine and death. He became to the Egyptians, Zephenath-paneah, savior of the world (that’s quite a destiny for us to consider).
The quote is also urging you to carefully choose people of influence in your life – people that make you better. It says people that don’t add to your growth are wasting your time. So in Joseph’s case, let’s take a quick rundown of the people who impacted him. His brothers threw him down a well, plotted to kill him, but ended up selling him to traders bound for Egypt. He is sold as a slave to Potiphar’s house (a prominent officer of Pharaoh). In refusing seduction by Potiphar’s wife, he is imprisoned for rape – wrongly. He languishes in prison only to watch the possibility for restoration and release pass him by through the forgetfulness of Pharaoh’s butler and baker. It is only when Pharaoh himself is plagued with dreams that need interpretation that Joseph is remembered and brought before Pharaoh.

This is the changing point for Joseph, but to put it into perspective think of this: Joseph was 17 when his brothers sold him. He is roughly 30 when he is restored with them (13 years after they sell him), and during the second year of the famine he is roughly 39.
Our reality check with this quote then begs the question, how does the quote’s philosophy of choosing people to make you better — work for Joseph? The people who end up contributing to his destiny are betrayers, liars, cheats… ultimately they are seeking his destruction. They are the very people the quote guidance would encourage him to dump all along – yet he really didn’t have the chance. He became captive – not to their agenda, but to God’s. Out of Joseph’s own mouth he later says to his brothers: “As for you, you thought evil against me, but God meant it for good, to bring about that many should be kept alive, as they are this day.” Gen 50:20
The point in this discussion is: like Joseph we don’t know our full destiny. We can’t choose a path of people to include or exclude that can help us to achieve our destiny. We don’t have the wisdom or the intel to do so. God’s destiny for us includes an inner work that only He can inspire in us and draw out of us. No amount of selective saturation or posturing with people who I think can make me better can affect that inner change – God has a plan which I am not privy to!
I want to propose the entire tone of this quote is completely opposite of the Gospel message. Here are just a few Scriptures that clarify that claim:
– Rom 12:16 “… do not be haughty (snobbish, high-minded, exclusive), but readily adjust yourself to [people, things] and give yourselves to humble tasks. Never overestimate yourself or be wise in your own conceits.”
– 1Jn2:6 “Whoever says he abides in Him ought [as a personal debt] to walk and conduct himself in the same way in which He walked and conducted Himself.”
– Phil 2:8 “And after He appeared in human form, He abased and humbled Himself [still further] and carried His obedience to the extreme of death, even the death of the cross!”
The quote under examination carries no attitude of humility or sacrifice, obedience, nor love of others. It instead carries a distinct aroma of self-love and self-focus that puts itself and its perceived destiny before all other things. This has no affiliation with the Gospel of Jesus Christ and what He has done for us. It has no reliance on the Lord for the fulfillment of His destiny in us. Instead it strokes the ears and hunger of those who want to believe it, and comforts them in their pursuits and posturings as being in agreement with light – when the attitude of the heart in this quote is instead aligned with darkness.

Today more than ever it is time for believers to become savvy of the wiles of the enemy and his intention to distract, deceive, and waylay us on a route not consistent with Bible Truth. It’s time to part company with arguments, and theories and reasonings and every proud and lofty thing that sets itself up against the [true] knowledge of God; and to lead every thought and purpose away captive into the obedience of Christ (the Messiah, the Anointed One), — especially every Facebook thought and offering found there… (or anywhere else for that matter).
Shalom

 

Posted in Under-the-Influence, Devo Shorts 2011 | Tagged , , , | 2 Comments »

Imagine … The Bride, Chapter Eight, The Bride Lives… In Fellowship with Light

March 16, 2014 by insolomonsporch

Chapter Eight

The Bride Lives … in Fellowship With Light and The Yoke of Jesus:

(The Place of Abiding, The Safeguard Against Error)

 

“…how can light have fellowship with darkness?” 2Cor 6:14 Amp

“Whoever loves his brother [believer] abides (lives) in the Light, and in It or in him there is no occasion for stumbling or cause for error or sin.  But he who hates (detests, despises) his brother [in Christ] is in darkness and walking (living) in the dark; he is straying and does not perceive or know where he is going, because the darkness has blinded his eyes.” 1Jn2:10-11 Amp

                When we talk about walking in the Spirit, abiding in Christ, walking in the light, abiding in love – these are all expressions that speak to the same process and disposition; that is they refer to taking the yoke of Jesus upon us and living in that place of yielded-ness and Christlikeness.  For the Bride, this continually expansive submission to Christ’s life and vision is not only imperative, without it we are truly nothing of His.  As the Bride is to be the physical presence of Christ empowered by the Holy Spirit here on earth – she can do nothing without Him.  Conversely, with Him she can do all things.  In between these two states the Bride must live and move and have her being in Him.  The Bride must become one with Jesus.  He is her Lord and the Most High God.  To receive Him is to receive His yoke.

 The Yoke

            Jesus’ yoke.  Think of brilliant light –         whiter than any white you have ever seen.  Like the light of Jesus at the transfiguration, where He became resplendent – washed in a glowing light.  Now think of this like a mantel around your shoulders, a sphere or ellipse that is carried aloft by its own power and properties.  It has substance and mass, light can pass through it yet it is not transparent.  It is in fact cloud-like.  Sometimes you can sense Its presence upon you.  It focuses you and leads you – yet you are free to move.  It wraps you in love as thick as honey, and your heart is buoyant with the depth of this love, yet you see people and events in clarity and truth.  You see motives, hearts, and woundings, beyond three dimension. Within the fold of this yoke there is unity, and fellowship, and oneness with Jesus and the Father.  In the parameters of this yoke all the wisdom, power, and giftings of the Godhead are operative.  This is how I think of the yoke that Jesus offers us.  And yet … we are often unaware of it.

            There is a second yoke as well.  Not the yoke Jesus offers – but one of slavery, oppression, lawlessness, darkness, sin, and eternal damnation.  Its weight is immense, pride strengthens its hold, and its grip upon lives is like shackels upon the hearts and minds of its inmates.  It is confining, and enslaving, and unforgiving, and unyielding.  Its bonds are only removed once its hold has been broken from off its captives.

            A brief study will show us that Jesus’ yoke – all that He offers us — arose from His sacrifice on the Cross. It is derived from His Messianic Kingdom and the New Covenant  which Jesus cut with the Father in Heaven.  This yoke is Jesus’ offering to us as His believers and followers.

In Matthew 11:29-30 Jesus mentions His yoke is easy, and gives rest for our soul.  One of the Strong’s renderings for this word “yoke” that brings great insight is “balance, for a pair of scales.”  The balance is the post that everything rests on.  All is held at the intersection of the balance post and the arm that holds the scales in place. On the shoulder of that balance or yoke rests the arm for the scales.  All the weight of everything on the scales rests upon that small place.  The balance shoulders every weight, steadies it, and keeps it in place. The stuff sitting on the scale doesn’t carry the weight – the balance does – or more exactly the yoke does.  He gives us His yoke, and He takes all of our weights, cares, and sin.

Now this is my opinion, but I can make a fairly good case to support some of it … but I believe there are multiple aspects to the yoke of Jesus.

For instance, in Galatians Chapters 4 and 5 we find a discussion of a yoke of slavery, and right with it – Jesus’ yoke of freedom.  By extension we also see here a yoke of the law and of grace.  From 1 John 2 and 3 we might also notice there are yokes of light and darkness, love and hatred.  Romans 6, 7, and 8 speak of similar juxtapositions between what could be seen as a yoke of the flesh and the yoke of the Spirit.  But what I hope to express is that while Jesus has one yoke – this yoke has many facets that are all reflective of Him.  They can be spoken of as Love, Grace, Freedom, Light, Spirit, Kingdom, righteousness, and Life.  Yet more than just words that simply define — they carry the characteristics of Jesus Himself.

The other yoke descriptions such as hatred, law, slavery, darkness, and flesh/world/sin/death are antithetical or opposites of Christ.  And while they coalesce as a yoke as well – this yoke stands as one that opposes all that Christ is and what His yoke offers.  These are truly two polar opposites, these yokes. They are antagonistic to each other and opposed to each other just as Galatians 5:17 clarifies that the desires of the flesh are opposed to the desires of the Holy Spirit.

 The Litmus Test for Knowing Him

Now, in Matthew, Jesus asked us to take His yoke upon us and to learn of Him.  First John Chapter 2:3-6 begins to show us a way to determine if we are knowing Him more.  You see – one might just be able to make the statement according to Scripture that without taking on Jesus’ yoke we can never get to know Him.  Thus, knowing Him in increasing measure becomes a means to validate that we have indeed taken His yoke upon us.

So 1Jn2:3 tells us that we can estimate that we are knowing Him more deeply if we are keeping and observing His commandments.  No new commandment is being given here, but rather an old commandment is being restated, and in this restatement it is made clear that it is fully realized or accomplished “in Christ.”  We are to love our brothers and sisters in Christ.

Why is this so important?  Because we see in 1Jn 2:9, if you don’t love as stipulated – then you are deceived and in in darkness.  You see, “Love” is the greatest gift of the Lord, and it is the most defining element of Jesus’ yoke.  It stands to reason, as a litmus test, if one thinks He is knowing Jesus more and more and is being obedient to His commands (to love), but does not love – he is deceived.

In Fellowship

There is a need for simple agreement between what we believe, and what we do. It is called “congruence.” There is agreement between what we are inside, and how we are behaving on the outside.  There is even greater need for agreement or fellowship between us (The Bride) and Jesus.  This is the intention behind the discussion of Paul in 2Cor 6:14-16.  The words used to describe the desired relationship are yoked, partnership, fellowship, common, and agreement.  Over and over Paul is making a case for believers to be in full agreement with Jesus, and light, and fellowship, and harmony.  This point cannot be underestimated in importance.

If we think we are in agreement with Jesus yet we hold an opinion in conflict with Him, or His word – we do not have true fellowship with Him, for at that moment we have broken fellowship and we reside in darkness.  If we see His requirement to love – yet we retain hatred, we are in darkness.  If we exercise our own opinion on any Biblical subject and find we are out of agreement with Jesus’ word on the subject – we are in darkness, and we are operating under a spirit of error and rebellion. If we think we are progressing in Christ, yet we do not love – we are not operating under the yoke of Christ.  We have deceived ourselves and are still held in slavery by a yoke – of bondage, hatred, and darkness.

In a sense – we can almost think of Jesus, His word, His Truth, His Spirit, His Life, His Light and all other aspects of His yoke as layers of His Yoke.  Almost like spherical planes stacked one upon the other, distinct, yet comprising one Yoke – they exist in total agreement.  They are one Yoke.  The have complete fellowship, each one with the other.

Likewise, there is similar perfect agreement and unity between Jesus and the other members of the Godhead.  “… Behold, the Lord our God is One.” (Deut 6:4)  Where Jesus is, there is Light, and there is Truth.  Thus to abide with Christ means we abide in His Light and His Truth and His teachings.  Another way to think of this is: as we have His agape love for our brothers, we abide in His Light, and sin and error have no access to us.

          Jesus and His Yoke Frees us From Error

            This concept of protection from error is further addressed in 1 Jn 2:27 which says:  “But as for you, the anointing (the sacred appointment, the unction) which you received from Him abides [permanently] in you; [so] then you have no need that anyone should instruct you.  But just as His anointing teaches you concerning everything and is true and is no falsehood, so you must abide in (live in, never depart from) Him [being rooted in Him, knit to Him], just as [His anointing] has taught you to [to do].”

            And also 1John2:10:

            “Whoever loves his brother [believer] abides (lives) in the Light, and in It or in him there is no occasion for stumbling or cause for error or sin.”

            By abiding in Christ and His Light (read Yoke) the occasion for sin or error is removed. To abide in Christ is also to abide in His Truth and His Light, and His Love.  They are perfect overlays of each other. We cannot abide in the Love of Christ, and then fail to adhere to and embrace His Truth and Light.  To abide in one, we abide in all.  To fail to abide in one means we fail to abide in all. This is what we want to focus on more particularly.

            When each of us is saved, we are anchored in Christ, but we are not completely sold out to truth, or light or love.  These are things that get sorted out as we progress in Christ.  It is the working out of our salvation with fear and trembling.

Think of it like the devastation of Katrina within New Orleans.  Once recovery work was started, it took time and effort to overturn the damage.  We too were each damaged and devastated by lives lived in darkness and sin.  But once we were saved, consecration to Christ, obedience to Him, and the renewal of our mind by the word began to overthrow the previously despotic rule of the flesh and sin in our lives.  The moment we are saved, we are all Christ’s, positionally.  But He begins the task of becoming Lord over our lives freeing us from every yoke of bondage to darkness, slavery, and every lofty thing in us that exalts itself against the true knowledge of God.  He does this through His Word and the agency of the Holy Spirit applying the work of the atonement in us.

            Think then, of the danger in these end times for believers to ever imagine that their wisdom can contend with the truth of God.  I speak here specifically of where believers begin to parse the word of God, for any one of various reasons.  Sometimes we have trouble getting our heads around a particular doctrine or teaching.

For instance, think of the debate that rages between believers and denominations (The Bride) over topics such as eschatology (end times prophecy), the gifts of the Holy Spirit and the Baptism of the Holy Spirit, just to name two.  There are many others.  Matthew 24:12 speaks of the church in the end times when it states: “And the love of the great body of people will grow cold because of the multiplied lawlessness and iniquity.”

          The Greatest Need is Love

We need to stop here for a second to emphasize something.  Imagine my foot stomping on the ground here.  In three pivotal Scriptures we have looked at – Love was the front-end – the doorway so to speak.  In 2 Cor 6:14-16, where Paul discourses on fellowship and light, just prior to that he is urging them to open there hearts and affection for the people of God.  He is saying they need to love! In 1Jn2:10 we have seen that to abide in the Light and to be free from stumbling or error or sin – we must love!  And lastly, we see (Mt 24:12) that as the love of the end-times church dwindles and waxes cold, lawlessness and rebellion increase. Love keeps us in the fellowship of Light and Harmony with Christ.  Love keeps us abiding in truth.  Love keeps us free from error and sin. So as love in Christ declines in these last days, abiding in Christ also declines, and error and lawlessness increase.

I also want to say that where we lack in certainty in our understanding, agape love can provide the entrance to apprehend in the spirit what our minds cannot yet grasp.  It is also this agape love that keeps us in the right position of submission and humility before the Lord.  Thus, even where I don’t understand – I can still submit and obey (like Abraham with Isaac as an offering).  It is in this place of love that the fruit of the Holy Spirit is propagated and nurtured.  It is here that no charge that can be brought against me.  It is here, that the character and presence of Christ expands – where love is.  God is Love.

         The Warning to the Bride

            Back to the critical point here — you and I and the Bride at large, are not qualified to pick and choose from the Bible what to believe or not based on what we like, or agree with, or what makes us comfortable or happy.  We are not in such a privileged position to do so, nor do we have the wisdom to do so.  In fact, that action constitutes idolatry. As Jesus (the Word made flesh) is in perfect agreement with His Light and His Truth, we are not free to rewrite or edit them to our liking or comfort.  And yet, this is often exactly what believers attempt to do when they cannot grasp or rationalize, in their own thinking, a Biblical Truth.

            If the Word of God, Jesus, Truth and Light are indeed all in agreement, then to reject any part of the Word is in fact like rejecting part of Jesus or His Truth or Light.  It is to move outside of the Yoke of Jesus, outside love, and to welcome and indulge error and darkness into the Bride that should be a body filled with light and truth.  Listen with that in mind, again, to what 2Cor 6:14-16 says:

            “Do not be unequally yoked with unbelievers [do not make mismated alliances with them or come under a different yoke with them, inconsistent with your faith]. For what partnership have right living and right standing with God with iniquity and lawlessness?  Or how can light have fellowship with darkness?  What harmony can there be between Christ and Belial [the devil]? Or what  has a believer in common with an unbeliever?  What agreement [can there be between] a temple of God and idols?  For we are the temple of the living God; even as God said, I will dwell in and with and among them and will walk in and with and among them and I will be their God, and they shall be My people.”

            You and I can, in ignorance, yield to a yoke of darkness and captivity when we yield to a yoke not of the Lord’s.  It is a mismated alliance.  It is a joining together of things that are of God, with things that are not.

Jesus has said to us, Take My yoke upon you and learn of Me (Mt 11:29-30).  His yoke is like His Word, His Light and His Truth.  It is not something to be parsed, edited, or tampered with.  To receive Christ is to embrace His Word and Light and Truth – without our editing them.  He is Lord and we submit to Him, and to His yoke – intact.

            In this day, the Bride faces a great challenge to yield only to Jesus, His word, and His yoke. She must submit to Him, resist the enemy, and he will flee from her.  But the greatest entrance and success for her abiding in Christ and to having fellowship with her Lord is to remain in His Love and to allow it to remain in Her. Let our fellowship with Jesus be in the fullness of Who He is – with no presumption to edit, or parse, or substitute our own creation for the Wisdom from above.  God forbid!

            The crowning accolade for the end times Philadelphia Church (Rev 3:8) is that they have kept His Word and guarded His message and not renounced His Name.  The Bride must wake up to this warning – to forsake the Lord’s yoke in any part is to forsake His word, His Love, His Truth,  His fellowship — and by forsaking His love to instead to open wide the door to error, rebellion, and lawlessness.

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Day Seventy-Five, Who is — Always A Groomsman — Never a Bride?

January 18, 2014 by insolomonsporch

Day Seventy-Five

Who Is — Always a Groomsman — Never a Bride?

“He who has the bride is the bridegroom; but the groomsman who stands by and listens to him rejoices greatly and heartily on account of the bridegroom’s voice.  This then is my pleasure and joy, and it is now complete.”  Jn 3:29 Amp

            Prepare to be shaken!

John the Baptist is an amazingly provocative character who the Lord has used to showcase before me a decidedly challenging level of obedience.  It has caused me to wonder … do we (the Bride) have this kind of obedience in us towards the Lord.  If I may explain…

When we perceive the church today — there is visible an almost celebratory wave of exultant exuberance that is understandable – but the caution for us is that even that exuberance must be submitted to and before the One we serve as Lord and Master, and King of Kings.  Even our exuberant love must be obedient! And sometimes the requirements of obedience may curtail what we would like to do in the name of love.

Some examples before we look at John…

In his own wisdom and deep feeling for the Lord, Peter began to rebuke the Lord for speaking about going to the cross – and the Lord’s words to Him were, “… Get behind Me, Satan! For you do not have a mind intent on promoting what God wills, but what pleases men [you are not on God’s side, but that of men].”

            Loving God means being on God’s side – even at the cost of your own best ideas, or your emotional perspective on what it means to follow Christ.

            Moses was precluded from entering the Promised Land because of personal failure at the waters of Meribah.  To not enter the Promised Land had to be a horrendous blow and disappointment.  It had to be one of the hardest moments in his life, and even after much pleading God finally tells him,  “It is enough!”  So Moses is held back from the greatest desire of his heart – to go into the Promised Land.  Instead, he was led to pass his mantle of leadership to Joshua, and to go die after ascending Mount Nebo.

            Loving God means submission – even when that submission feels like it will kill you!  We must obey!

            Now the hardest incident, even harder than Moses, is John the Baptist.  Yet it is one I see that is saturated with the grace of God.  He has known Jesus in the flesh as his cousin.  He has known Him in the Spirit as His Lord.  But He will never know Him as part of the Bride.  Though John heralds the way for Jesus and harkens the ears of the Israelites to His coming, and is even chosen to close out the age prior to the Kingdom of Heaven (Mt 11:11), he will never be part of the bride of Christ.  This is disturbing, and foreign, and even awful as I look from the seat of one in the Body of Christ.  And yet, John effervesces in great grace he says – (identifying himself as the groomsman… “This then is my pleasure and joy, and it is now complete.”)

            This is an astounding display of grace, love, and obedience in being all that God calls you to be!  Even when it is less than you might desire.  Who could say they would be content with not being part of the Bride of Christ?  Yet John is joyful!  That is a dying to self that the Body of Christ needs to embrace. We must give over all that we dream of being in His service in obedience and submission to His call.

It begs the question… is this the stuff the Bride is yet made of?  Are we willing to be all that He calls us to be, even if that differs from what we desire or imagine?  Even if it meant His sacrifice on the Cross (like Peter), or not entering the Promised Land (like Moses), or not being a part of the Bride ( like John)?

            I am seeing that there are places where my faith and trust and submission must take me in obedience, where exuberance cannot go.

            Like Abraham laying his beloved son on the altar as a living sacrifice – we must lay not just some things, but ALL things down as well, with confidence that though we may not yet see it, the Lord knows what He is doing!  Even in the age to come there will be a place where souls are saved – yet they will not be part of the Bride, for we will already be raptured!

            My appreciation for what obedience cost these particular saints has skyrocketed as I have looked from this vantage point.  And yet, we the Bride should not be deceived … salvation cost the Lord Jesus everything, and us nothing. But a life of obedience to Him now that …

             will cost us everything – to live as His saints!

Posted in Under-the-Influence, Devo Shorts 2011 | Tagged , , , , | 1 Comment »

Day Seventy-Four, Why You Thirst

December 26, 2013 by insolomonsporch

Day Seventy-Four

Why You Thirst…

 

“… if any man is thirsty, let him come to Me and drink!” Amp Jn 7:37

          With roughly ¾’s of the earth’s surface being covered with water, and the fact that every life form is dependent on water – water takes on a vital priority for life to continue.  It is unique as well among physical elements, because only water exists in all three states: solid, liquid, and vapor.  Incredibly – water actually increases in its volume as it freezes – thus allowing it to rise to the surface as it freezes.  It therefore insulates the water below it, which allows life to continue within that body of water.  How unique is our water … and the God Who formed it?

          As humans, we are comprised of nearly 65% water.  It is thus vital to our proper functioning as well.  We each require roughly 8-10 glasses of water a day to support healthy processes – yet how often do we fill that need with other things: coffee, soda, sports drinks, even alcohol?

          I have found many times I have actually misinterpreted my thirst as hunger – and have eaten something when I was really just thirsty.  But we have been hardwired to need water – physically it is an imperative to health and life.  Like our need for air – water is necessary for our life to continue.  Thus, this is the reason for our thirst, our registered craving for this liquid libation.

          But our need for water is not only physical.  I believe we have an equally great spiritual need for water as well.  However, this need is perhaps the least understood – or appropriately fulfilled.  Like our physical need, this spiritual need can be misinterpreted, and attempted to be met with other things.  But just like there is no substitute for water, there is no substitute for the living water that we require spiritually.  We have, I believe, a God-given God- fulfilling thirst.

          Many times in Scripture, this thirst is addressed.  I would like to point out three of my favorites.  First:  Isaiah 55:1.  (These are all from the Amplified Bible.)

          “Wait and listen, everyone who is thirsty!  Come to the waters; and he who has no money, come, buy and eat!  Yes, come, buy [priceless, spiritual] wine and milk without money and without price [simply for the self-surrender that accepts the blessing].”

          There is a reason for your thirst and a satisfier for your thirst – but you must come to the Source – the Waters to drink!

          Next is: Jn 7:37-38.

          “Now on the final and most important day of the Feast, Jesus stood, and He cried out in a loud voice, If any man is thirsty, let him come to Me and drink!  He who believes in Me [who cleaves to and trusts in and relies on Me] as the Scripture has said, From his innermost being shall flow [continuously] springs and rivers of living water.”

          Here Jesus is showing us He is the Waters – He is the Source Who will quench our thirst!  All we have to do is come to Him – then you yourself will flow in this water!

          Lastly, is Isaiah 58:11, which is referenced in Jn 7:38 (as the Scripture has said).

          “And the Lord shall guide you continually and satisfy you in drought and dry places and make strong your bones. And you shall be like a watered garden and like a spring of water whose waters fail not.”

          Our thirst (our true need and perception of that need) both physically and spiritually is a grace from the Lord.  It is there to keep us drinking, to keep us hydrated and healthy, both physically and spiritually, of Him.  Thirst keeps us connected vitally to our Source.  And if we will allow Him – He will satisfy us and sustain us in every situation we encounter.  Yet, His grace is such that He will not force us to drink.  He allows us to choose, both physically and spiritually, the thing we will rely on.  He never will take that choice away.  Unfortunately – physically and spiritually, there is a consequence to choosing poorly and making something else other than water and living water primary in our diet.  That consequence is death.

          This year, may your thirst increase and be recognized and fully satiated in Jesus Christ –  the Author and Perfector – of us all.

  Merry Christmas and a wet and watered New Year!

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Day Seventy-Three, Finding the Gate of Greatness Through Humility

December 12, 2013 by insolomonsporch

Day Seventy-Three

Finding the Gate of Greatness — Through Humility

“Whoever exalts himself [with haughtiness and empty pride] shall be humbled (brought low], and whoever humbles himself [whoever has a modest opinion of himself and behaves accordingly] shall be raised to honor.” Mt 23:12 Amp

            Jesus Christ is our pattern, our example, and He is our way.  For that reason it is of great profit to look at Jesus through the lens of humbleness that He walked out from the cradle to the grave for our benefit, and realize – this should be our path as well.  So let us not just take note of that this season, but allow a full work of the word to change our thinking that we may be made low…

            The Greek meaning of humble in James 4:6 is tapeinos — #5011, not rising far from the ground, lowly, of low degree, low with grief, depressed, lowly in spirit, humble.  It is the same meaning used in Matthew 11:29 where Jesus tells us to come to Him to learn of Him — and describes Himself as gentle and humble and that we will find rest for our souls in Him.

            Now think of Christ’s entrance into this world – in a lowly manger.  In an animal feed trough even: born to Mary and Joseph in mean estate – having nothing as far as this world’s riches – but ushering into this world a way of knowing true riches of His Kingdom.  He made Himself so very low – so that you and I could become very rich – in Him (Phil 2:5-10).  He covered His glory in a tent of inglorious flesh and took upon Himself our image.  Then in that image went to a place of cursing – to be crucified on a tree – so that He could bear the sins of the world and the reproach due mankind for its disobedience.  But now even though He has been raised from the dead to glory once again, He continues to hold the frame of the Son of Man for all time.

            As I read through the Scriptures detailing the humbleness of Christ, I am not only connecting with Who He is, but how He is – for He changeth not.  It is an astounding thing that the Creator of all is so humble and meek.  For our sake He demonstrates power in restraint — not only so that we may know Him, but that we would recognize the profit of becoming subject to Him and thus like Him – even in this humility.  The gate to the greatness of Christ is indeed found through humility! In reference to Him – we should not rise far from the ground!

            I highly recommend you do a word study of “humble” in the Scripture.  Allow the word to come into your heart and wash away every notion of self-pride or high opinion.  Finally, end in your reading with this verse from 1Peter 5:5-6.  It is sure to open your eyes concerning humility.

            “Likewise, you who are younger and of lesser rank, be subject to the elders (the ministers and spiritual guides of the church) – [giving them due respect and yielding to their counsel]. Clothe (apron) yourselves, all of you, with humility {as the garb of a servant, so that it’s covering cannot possibly be stripped from you, with freedom from pride and arrogance] toward one another.  For God sets Himself against the proud (the insolent, the overbearing, the disdainful, the presumptuous, the boastful) – [and He opposes, frustrates, and defeats them], but gives grace (favor, blessing) to the humble.”

            Because the Son of God came as the servant of God, we now have the choice and ability to be humble ourselves, and serve in His Name.  He has both become the Way and made a Way for us – with Himself, not far from the ground… but also to be seated in heavenly places with Him.  To choose the one – we must receive also the other.  It is less about being clothed as a servant – it is about being clothed with Christlikeness!

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Day Seventy-Two, Our Shortcomings Remain

November 22, 2013 by insolomonsporch

Day Seventy-Two

Our Shortcomings Remain

“Even when we were dead (slain) by [our own] shortcomings and trespasses, He made us alive together in fellowship and in union with Christ; [He gave us the very life of Christ Himself, the same new life with which He quickened Him, for] it is by grace (His favor and mercy which you did not deserve) that you are saved (delivered from judgment and made partakers of Christ’s salvation).”  Eph 2:5 Amp

 

            As we mature in Christ and His likeness, it is easy to believe we have left our natural shortcomings behind in the dust.  But it is the liability for these very shortcomings that keeps us humble and keeps us from spiritual pride and contempt for other believers and those not yet saved.

            It is not a pleasant thing – to see vividly our nature rear its ugly head, but what we must understand is that as we face these shortcomings with humility, and bring them to the Lord, then the very same grace from Christ Jesus that saved us is operative in the situation — and is available to bring us once again into fellowship and union with Christ.

            If I hide the truth that shortcomings still exist, if I contrive to hide them, push them down, or fail to recognize them, then I also fail in that moment to secure needed grace.  It will stand in the wings ready for my acknowledgement – but it will not fill me until I see my deficiency and bring it to Him in repentance and ask forgiveness.

            In this way – I remain a work in progress before Christ.  In spiritual places I am indeed perfect in Him.  But perfection must be worked out in me to where Christ is Lord over my flesh.  I must enforce His word over and in me to walk according to the Spirit, and in the light as He is in the light.  Without this recognition of continuing shortcomings – I become hardened, prideful, deceived and walking in contempt that others are not as far along as I.

            These, my shortcomings, are a blessing in disguise, as they keep me soft and pliable before the Lord.  They keep me ever in need of repenting, and ever in receipt of His active grace.  The danger is where I become hardened by pride, I am incapable of receiving His needed grace!

            Paul recounts this to us beautifully and poignantly in Philippians 3:12.  Concerning Paul’s own perfected state he explains:

                        “Not that I have now attained [this ideal], or have already been made perfect, but I press on to lay hold of (grasp) and make my own, that for which Christ Jesus (the Messiah) has laid hold of me and made me His own.”

            So what do we take away from this?  We recognize our shortcomings will never end as long as we are alive in this body of flesh.  But we additionally recognize that after I confess and repent of these, I have the Lord’s active grace operating in me to press on and overcome.  The goal is not to be fixated on our deficiencies – nor to be caught up in bewailing that we are not perfect.  But rather to lay hold of Him and His perfection because He is more than sufficient for me!  In this way, I lose sight of myself, and lay hold of Him. He increases and I decrease.

            The fact of my shortcomings is true for this age.  But they are dwarfed by the abiding reality of Christ in me the hope of glory – which is for this age and the age to come.  My face to face encounters are here to keep me humble, and to keep me open to His grace.  Many people, both believers and unbelievers may get the dubious pleasure of witnessing my shortcomings.  But hopefully they will also get to witness the overcoming life of Christ emerge out of the ashes of my collision with my flesh – if I will remain mindful that I live not to be exalted myself, but to lift up Christ in me.

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Day Seventy-One, That Which Never Fails…

October 24, 2013 by insolomonsporch

Day Seventy-One

That Which Cannot Fail:

The Answer and Access to What You Have Most Wanted!

“Know, recognize and understand therefore that the Lord your God, He is God, the faithful God, Who keeps covenant and steadfast love and mercy with those who love Him and keep His commandments, to a thousand generations.” Deut 7:9 Amp

            Inside every man, woman, and child on earth there is a need and aching hunger to know their God.  This honest need can be twisted, contorted, and wrecked by our attempts to satisfy it with things other than God Himself.  This hunger is a true impulse and desire from God – but you and me can corrupt it by what we yield to in an attempt to scratch that God-given itch.  But the answer to this need, the fulfillment of this life-long hunger – is to set our love on God!  That is to acknowledge Him, and set our desire – that hunger for the preeminent thing in our lives – lovingly upon Him.  As we do that in sincerity – we set in motion a chain of events, blessings, and outpourings from God – that would stagger you in their immensity and enormity!  Interested?  Check this out…

            In Psalm 91:14, we see the very entrance, allure, and promise for this place of awesomeness in God.  The Amplified Bible (of course) renders this most specifically.  I like that!  It says of the one who has made God – his God, his refuge, and his fortress:

“Because he has set his love upon Me, therefore will I deliver him; I will set him on high, because he knows and understands My name [has a personal knowledge of My mercy, love, and kindness – trusts and relies on Me, knowing I will never forsake him, no, never].

He shall call upon Me, and I will answer him; I will be with him in trouble, I will deliver him and honor him. With long life will I satisfy him and show him My salvation.”

Our entrance and access to these promises – rests on this one thing:  that we set our love on Jesus Christ! It means we set our singularly highest desire upon Him.  We make Him our greatest focus and pursuit.  We become fully attached to Him in all things.  The imagery used here is of the pillars that stand in the temple court (Jachin and Boaz) that frame the entrance to the inner court.  These pillars have capitals and sockets that are banded on them and hooks used to attach these decorative works.  In the same way – we are to be so attached to the Lord as to be seen as one work – one piece – one integral part with Him.  Yet unlike this artistic work on the pillars – our work of setting our love on Jesus is not a single crafting effort.  It is in fact the work of a lifetime: of daily choices, moment by moment elevations of the Lord and reassertions of His priority and preeminence in our lives.  Nothing else should take His place or come before Him! This is the setting of our love upon Him!

            As we make this choice to set our love upon Him in this way, something greater than we could imagine begins to happen.  A gate is opened that releases floodgates of the Lord’s love for us!  Now I want to be clear here.  The Lord’s love is not conditional – it has already preceded our own love for the Lord.  But our choice to set our love upon the Lord in this manner of singular devotion has an impact of tsunami proportions that we cannot minimize. God first loved us – yes – while we were yet sinners.  Our response to that love – when meeting the requirements known by God as “setting our love upon Him” – will issue forth in these promises being met.

            Another important aspect for this is the “knowing” – having personal knowledge of the Lord’s love, mercy and kindness for us.  As I have meditated on the Lord’s love described in 1Cor 13:1-10, the knowledge of His love has begun to bring me to a new dimension of experience.  His love never fails.  As a force in my life that I submit to continually – it will lead me, keep me, and guide me.  Like water which when entering a room has force, can move objects, can swirl, surge, and crest – the Lord’s love in me can move me.  His love urges, controls and impels me.  Not my perception of His love – nor my understanding of His love – but His actual love!  In Him – I live and move and have my being!  He is the source and fountainhead of the living waters within me.  By His Holy Spirit I can not only experience Him – but be a fulcrum for the focusing of these waters that He wants.

            Now listen to this carefully – and may it rise as living water within you! One of my favorite passages, Isaiah 58:11, says this:  “And the Lord shall guide you continually and satisfy you in drought and in dry places and make strong your bones. And you shall be like a watered garden and like a spring of water whose waters fail not.” There is only one thing in this world that fails not: the love of God.  It never fails, never fades, and never comes to an end.  Living water, from the Lord, is endued with love from God.  It bubbles up within us when we receive the Lord as Savior.  John 4:14 says: “But whoever takes a drink of the water that I give him shall never, no never, be thirsty any more. But the water that I give him shall become a spring of water welling up (flowing, bubbling) [continually] within him unto (into, for) eternal life.”

            We are the very garden of the Lord Jesus Christ. (Song of Solomon 4:12)  We are fed with His love as with waters from artesian wells springing up within us – feeding the needs we have for relationship with Him and saturating us with His love.  No greater gift has ever been purchased for us or been extended so freely.  But it is contingent on our willingness to receive it, and then to set our love upon Him.  It is there in that place of recognition and obedience that we receive the abundance of what He has for us.  It satisfies us beyond every desire and imagination.

            Where I set my desire, my longing, my love upon Him – He releases streams of living water which never fail – and which I cannot contain they are so full!

            Have you heard the cry of your own heart?  Have you seen its need that seems like a bottomless pit that nothing can fill?  Look to the Savior.  The thing which will satisfy your greatest need has been purchased for you.  It stands in readiness for you.  It is the love from Your God and Savior.  Make Him your Savior today, and set your love upon Him in an enduring, continuous way.  Then get ready for the outpouring of His love that will quench every thirst and meet every hunger.  He is the Answer!

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Day Seventy, UNSHAKEABLE

October 3, 2013 by insolomonsporch

Day Seventy

UNSHAKEABLE!

“So everyone who hears these words of Mine and acts upon them [obeying them] will be like a sensible (prudent, practical, wise) man who built his house upon the rock.” Mt 7:24 Amp

“…Yet once more will I shake and make tremble not only the earth but also the [starry] heavens.” Heb 12:26 Amp

“…as He is, so are we in this world.” 1Jn 4:17 Amp

“Forever, O Lord, Your word is settled in heaven [stands firm as the heavens]. Ps 119:89 Amp

            The person that is hidden in Christ Jesus, is obedient to Him and His word,  has their very substance in Him and is “as He is” – that one is unshakeable!  They have heard His word and it moves them to action and change — even a great change in their perspectives on things. They are being built upon the rock that is higher than I — Christ Jesus.  All that is of Christ in them – of faith, hope, and love… is unshakeable!  Our growth in Him, our maturity in Christlikeness – makes us unshakeable.

            To be unshakeable – is to be settled!  Like His word in heaven – which cannot be moved – the person built on Christ and His truth is settled, and thus unshakeable.

            Why is this important to me? Because where I let His word invade me, bring light and change, renew my thinking – I am settled! I no longer have a place for darkness to bring doubt – I am settled!

            The application of this was brought to bear powerfully as I was teaching a class to discuss according to Scripture: “Can the enemy read our thoughts?”  For as long as I have been a believer I have been told the enemy cannot read our thoughts.  But I had never relied solely on what the Bible explicitly said, or revealed by implication to be true.  So our class pursued this topic. But an interesting question arose, “Why does this even matter? Why do we need to know this if God can use every opportunity to overcome and leverage the enemy’s ability – so what if the enemy can read our minds?”

            First off – I will tell you my conclusion after much study and waiting before the Lord – was that indeed the enemy cannot read our thoughts.  But I believe he is legally able to access the quality of our thought patterns – whether they be of light or dark.  And of course he can plant many thoughts.  And does – which is our battle to overcome.  But this derivative question of why pursue such a course of inquiry if God has got it covered, provoked me.  I want to share why.

            To start, this is something that frequently happens in my life.  I study something.  I gain some insight and estimate that the issue is reasonably resolved.  It gets shelved.  But later, I may actually have to reinvestigate the whole thing if my thinking has not actually been renewed on the subject – if the Truth has not fully possessed me.

However, if I have investigated deeply enough and my thinking is actually renewed – then the issue becomes “settled” along the lines of truth.  In this place my thinking has so changed that it is not that I simply agree with the new information – but rather that that becomes my thinking.  It is here that my thoughts have come into agreement with the will of God and His truth.  They have become submitted to truth, and truth has invaded them.  I no longer have to check with my “Christian party line” so to speak.  But rather, my thoughts have been flooded with the light of truth.  In this place – Christlikeness now reigns.  In this area – as He is, so am I in the world.  In this place – I am unshakeable!

            Now it is one thing for me to have the mind of Christ about a topic or issue – such as the enemy’s ability or inability.  This is a wonderful thing.  But it is something very different for me to begin to have the mind of Christ about God the Father, the Holy Spirit, and the Lord Jesus Himself in the context of this issue!

In the investigation of whether the enemy can read our thoughts, I gained not just what I think is the Biblical truth on this question, but serendipitously I gained way more!  By excavating the word of God on this topic I was not only brought to a new level of “settledness” over this question, but more importantly I was advanced in my “settleness” and actual “unshakeability” concerning the very nature of God! This is something I did not calculate gaining, but it so supersedes the value of the reason for the study to begin with as to be of exponential value to me as a believer!

God’s goal for us is unity with Him – in every area.  Total submission– because we trust Him with a trust like Job’s (“though He slay me yet will I trust Him.”)  Sometimes it is a stepping stone leap into this kind of trust.  We are not pursuing it directly – we don’t know how to do that.  But God in His graciousness will provoke us to pursue a line of questioning – and it ends up pursuing Him!  This is His inestimable grace at work! I can only stand amazed at it.

So why look for Bible truth for our Biblical questions? Because on the way to finding answers, sometimes God shows up and reveals that He Is!  What started as a search for doctrinal truth ends up as a God ordained renovation project where He shows us Himself and ushers us into a state of being ‘UNSHAKEABLE” in Him. HUA!

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Day Sixty-Nine, “Power! For Signs that Accompany the Saints

September 20, 2013 by insolomonsporch

Day Sixty-Nine

“POWER! For Signs that Accompany the Saints”

“And these attesting signs will accompany those who believe: in My name they will drive out demons; they will speak in new languages; they will pick up serpents; and [even] if they drink anything deadly, it will not hurt them; they will lay their hands on the sick; and they will get well.”  Mark 16:17-18 Amp

            To some religious scholars, Mark 16:9-20 is a highly contested part of Scripture.  Some Bibles indicate that it is not contained in the earliest manuscripts.  That in itself is a provocative discussion (but not one for here). Much of that contention is rooted in the Alexandrian versus Textus Recepticus discussion (btw Chuck Missler has an amazing teaching on Mark 16 and this debate –highly technical in math J).

I myself believe that the reason for the whole debate stems from the explicit power legacy that has been left to believers in Jesus Christ within these passages – especially those quoted above.

It is no surprise that the enemy seeks to discredit this passage through “doctrinal debate” over whether these passages are valid. He uses this same tactic to declare that Holy Spirit Baptism is not available for today.  The enemy will readily use a bogus rendering of Scripture (along doctrinal lines) and even the servants of God to discredit dangerous power passages.  Here is why….

            Mark 16:17-18 specifies seven “wills”, observances, or signs which “will accompany” those who believe [in the name of Jesus].” If you understand the basis for the Word of God, then you know that being written as they are, these Scriptures establish not only the Lord’s will for a situation, but they are themselves a source of power, an equipping, or empowerment for believers to draw from.  “Lord – you’ve said it – let it be done so in and through me….”

            So… where the word of God stipulates behaviors of the believer as in this passage – WE SHOULD EXPECT TO ACTUALLY DO SO!  To wit: followers of Jesus should believe, expect, pursue, and demonstrate:

            –  attesting signs

            – driving out demons

            – speaking in new tongues

            – picking up serpents

            – being free from the effects of poison

            – laying hands on the sick

            – the sick getting well

            Now, just for the fun of it – let’s contemplate the Mark 16:17-18 Scripture through the light of Mark 11:22-24.  The freedom released for believers to operate under these terms and the leading of the Holy Spirit is phenomenal! I really recommend that beyond just reading these two passages, you actually meditate on them, and let the Lord ignite their truth within you!

Mark 11:22-24 is as follows:

            “And Jesus, replying, said to them, Have faith in God [constantly]. Truly I tell you, whoever says to this mountain, Be lifted up and thrown into the sea! And does not doubt at all in his heart but believes that what he says will take place, it will be done for him. For this reason I am telling you, whatever you ask for in prayer, believe (trust and be confident) that it is granted to you and you will [get it].”

            By virtue of saying, “Have faith in God” – Jesus has released the power for the saints to actually do so.  As we speak to situations and conditions, and “mountains” of obstacles – and believe what we say – it will take place.  Is there a caveat here? Yes – I have to be steady state in my faith in God – and I must have faith that what I am saying is agreeable to God.  That is where doubt cannot move me! Trying to speak/pray/prophecy means as a given that I am operating in agreement with the will and the word of God – not as some loose cannon going off on my own.

            What then keeps me “in the mind of Christ” or in parity with what I can believe the Lord wants — with His will?  LOVE! Specifically, the Agape love of God! We let the love of Christ urge, control, and impel us (2Cor 5:14).  The King James uses “constrain” us. As we fill up as intercessors with the love that Jesus has for an individual, or situation, and His love is free to regulate us (by an active ongoing choice of our will holding us with Christ), then we will be fitted with perfection to do what Mark 16:17-18 specifies, according to the standards of Mark 11:22-24.

            This is the very power of God being displayed in demonstration that Paul the Apostle walked in (2Cor 2:4-5, 9, 12, 2Cor 4:19-20).  It is signs and wonders from God bringing validation to the words that are spoken in His name, with His heart, according to His authority and power.  This is the very place believers of today are being drawn, but are reluctant to go.  We stay like ships tied to the dock, never venturing out, afraid to be wrong. This pleases the enemy greatly!  He has succeeded in neutralizing us without firing a round!

            What then is the safeguard against being wrong? Against either being sidelined or misled by the enemy?  Have faith in God [constantly]!  Wait on the Lord.  Be in His Presence.  Know His voice.  Trust and obey.  Let the word of Christ dwell in you richly.  Know that it is not by your might and power, but by the Spirit – that great things are done.  Saints – it’s time to let faith in God arise in us, and do the exploits He is calling us to – under His Influence, for His Glory! (I am obviously preaching first to myself here!)

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