Saturday, December 24, 2011

Bread of Life: Part I - The Hunger Inside of Us

This photo is property of the James 1:22 Project
About a year ago, I asked God in my spirit to reveal to me the depth of Jesus' declaration of Him being the "Bread of Life."  (John 6:48)  I've spent a lot of time in Bible study, meditation, and prayer for wisdom on this very deep and rich subject for the past year and I've been overwhelmed by what the Holy Spirit has taught me.  In fact, I think that I'm going to have to explain what I've been taught in separate posts because the subject matter is so dense that I wouldn't want to abbreviate or limit this teaching in any way since it is a true gift from the Lord.

God created people with appetites and desires designed to motivate us to behave according to His will.  For instance, our desire for sex is born from God's command to multiply and fill the earth.  (Genesis 1:27-28)  Likewise, God created our natural bodies to be fueled by food and, therefore, we have a natural hunger for what is able to nourish and sustain us.  Hunger motivates us to seek items to consume that will satiate the appetite inside.  We innately know how to distinguish what is food and what isn't so that we can continue to be nourished and survive.  There is no shame in any of these God-given desires and appetites so long as they are satiated in a God honoring manner.

The most important hunger that God gave man at creation was the desire to know Him, love Him, and reverence Him.  This is also known as having the "Fear of God."  However, once sin entered the world through man's disobedience to God, our appetites and desires became skewed as perversion set in.

In the simplest of terms, sin is separation from God.  God is Holy and cannot look upon sin.  (Habakkuk 1:13)  Our sin broke the perfect fellowship that we once had with God.  The hunger that God gave man to desire Him, love Him, and reverence Him still exists but without His fellowship, we are lost.  As a result of that broken fellowship with God, our appetites and desires for temporal things became our gods.  The hunger to know God is still there but we wrongfully keep trying to satiate the God-sized hole in our soul with temporal things and, as a result, are caught in an ever accelerating downward spiral of sin.  The gap between us and God widens with each failed attempt to find the way to fill the vacuum of our lost fellowship with our Creator God.  It is all  folly, of course, to think that anything other than God Himself can fully satisfy that hunger.

It isn't for a lack of knowledge that we fail.  After God delivered the children of Israel out of slavery in Egypt, He began to teach His chosen people His statutes and God Himself declared the greatest of all of the commandments to be:
Deuteronomy 6:5 KJV
And thou shalt love the LORD thy God with all thine heart, and with all thy soul, and with all thy might.
But God didn't stop with a decree.  No.  He then went on to tell His children that this command was so important that it needed to be hidden in their hearts and meditated upon day and night.  (Deuteronomy 6:6-7)  So critical was this command that the Lord decreed that they ought to literally write it down and bind the words of this command to their hands and to their foreheads as well.  (Deuteronomy 6:8)  He even commanded His children to go so far as to post the command upon the door posts of every house and even on their gates.  (Deuteronomy 6:9)  All of these commands were designed to keep the Word of the Lord ever before them as a reminder that the object to satisfy the hungry emptiness in their soul can be found in God alone.  But as the proverb says:
Proverbs 1:7 KJV
The fear of the LORD is the beginning of knowledge: but fools despise wisdom and instruction.
Therein lies the problem with sinful man; knowledge of God's greatest commandment cannot not bring about reconciliation with God nor does it bring eternal life.  Instead, knowledge of God's greatest commandment ought to make us acutely aware of our sinful condition and desperate for reconciliation with Him.  It ought to humble us to know we are sinners and without hope (unless God intervenes) because we are all guilty of breaking this commandment.  We were born into sin and cannot avoid breaking it.  (Psalm 51:5)  It ought to make us ready to receive a Savior from above.  It ought to take us to a place of humility before a Holy God and, therefore, our condition should mirror those people that Jesus describes in the beatitudes.


The Word of the Lord is light.  (Psalm 119:105)  But people who live in the darkness of their sin and don't retain the knowledge of God their Creator cannot see the light because His Word hasn't touched the void of emptiness in their soul.  How great is that darkness!  However, God had a solution in mind from the very beginning of time.  Because of our weakness and failure to look up for Him, God took on the form of humanity and came to us.  (Isaiah 7:14, Matthew 1:23)  The Word of God came to us and lived among us. (Isaiah 9:2):
John 1:1-18 KJV
In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God, and the Word was God.  (2)  The same was in the beginning with God.  (3)  All things were made by him; and without him was not any thing made that was made.  (4)  In him was life; and the life was the light of men.  (5)  And the light shineth in darkness; and the darkness comprehended it not.  (6)  There was a man sent from God, whose name was John.  (7)  The same came for a witness, to bear witness of the Light, that all men through him might believe.  (8)  He was not that Light, but was sent to bear witness of that Light.  (9)  That was the true Light, which lighteth every man that cometh into the world.  (10)  He was in the world, and the world was made by him, and the world knew him not.  (11)  He came unto his own, and his own received him not.  (12)  But as many as received him, to them gave he power to become the sons of God, even to them that believe on his name:  (13)  Which were born, not of blood, nor of the will of the flesh, nor of the will of man, but of God.  (14)  And the Word was made flesh, and dwelt among us, (and we beheld his glory, the glory as of the only begotten of the Father,) full of grace and truth.  (15)  John bare witness of him, and cried, saying, This was he of whom I spake, He that cometh after me is preferred before me: for he was before me.  (16)  And of his fulness have all we received, and grace for grace.  (17)  For the law was given by Moses, but grace and truth came by Jesus Christ.  (18)  No man hath seen God at any time; the only begotten Son, which is in the bosom of the Father, he hath declared him.
Jesus came as the light in the flesh just as God had promised he would in the prophets.  (Isaiah 42:6-7)  He came to seek and save that which was lost.  (Luke 19:10)  Jesus proved He was the Messiah through the working of many miracles throughout His ministry on Earth.  One of the miracles, the one known as "the feeding of the 5000," is documented in all four of the Gospel accounts in the Bible.  (Matthew 14:13-21, Mark 6:31-44, Luke 9:10-17, and John 6:5-15)  This miracle was so powerful that the truth of it caused men to consider making Jesus an earthly king right there on the spot.  (John 6:14-15)  What these men failed to see in themselves as a result of being in the presence of Jesus Christ is exactly the same thing that their ancestors failed to see in themselves as a result of having the knowledge of God's greatest commandment and that was their spiritual poverty apart from God.

God is light and His light is meant to expose the darkness within ourselves.  It should humble us and cause us to reach out to Him for mercy.  The witnesses to this miracle did not grasp their true need which is found in God through Jesus Christ.

The day after the miracle, the multitude went seeking for Jesus but did not find Him because He had departed from that place.  When they finally caught up to Jesus on the other side of the Sea of Galilee, they failed to approach Jesus in humility and awe as they ought to have done and, instead, sought to receive more material things from Him.  Jesus rebuked them saying:
John 6:26-27 KJV
...Verily, verily, I say unto you, Ye seek me, not because ye saw the miracles, but because ye did eat of the loaves, and were filled.  (27)  Labour not for the meat which perisheth, but for that meat which endureth unto everlasting life, which the Son of man shall give unto you: for him hath God the Father sealed.
The rebuke Jesus gives these men is meant to get their eyes off of temporal things (and ways) and to get rightly focused back on God and His Holiness.  Jesus laments that they are wasting their time chasing after bread which cannot sustain everlasting life.  He tells them that they should instead work for that bread which Jesus shall freely give to them.  The gift of life is Jesus (His name means "The Lord Saves") and He is the only thing that can satiate the hunger for God within all of us.

Are you hungering inside to know your Creator God?  Can you feel the sorrow inside of something missing deep within your soul?  He is calling you right now, this very minute.  Call out to Him for mercy and He will give you rest.  Please visit my page "The Great Exchange" to learn more about salvation through Jesus Christ.  God bless you.

Monday, November 21, 2011

Acts Chapter One: The Most Grieving Distinction Between 1st Century and 21st Century Disciples of Jesus Christ

Our church has small groups that meet during the week for fellowship, worship, and accountability.  We are currently reading the book of Acts as part of our fellowship and worship focus.  This is giving us a great opportunity to meet with the Lord in His Word on our own and then come together and hear how the Holy Spirit spoke with each of us during the week.  We are currently doing one chapter per week.  I'm willing to share some of my thoughts on Acts chapter one.

I often wonder what Jesus was teaching the 1st century disciples about the Kingdom of God in Acts 1:3?  I wonder because later in Acts 1:4-8, it shows how the witnesses were ready to believe the gospel but were not able to apprehend the full scope of the mission.  They still expected that Jesus would now establish the kingdom that was promised to the Jews in the Old Covenant.  (Which, by the way, will still happen according to Acts 1:7)  So, even after 40 days in the presence of the resurrected Christ, they could not understand the mission?  I am persuaded to think that this ignorance on behalf of these disciples shows how they still walked in the darkness of their own understanding because the Holy Spirit had not yet descended upon them.

I've always read Acts 1:7-8 with Jesus having a tender and patient tone.  In verse 7, Jesus reveals to the disciples that God knows the beginning to the end and that He is the keeper of secret things.  (Proverbs 25:2)  I think that God's reason for gradual revelation is His way to give opportunity to grow weak faith in His children.  (Colossians 1:25-27)

Jesus knows that he must ascend to heaven so that the Holy Spirit can come for their own benefit.  (John 16:7)  He understands their present ignorance but he also knows that the problem will soon be resolved because once Jesus goes up, the Holy Spirit comes down.  

The disciples do the best that they can without the Holy Spirit.  They know that they need to replace Judas and they use scripture as a guide.  (Acts 1:16, Acts 1:20)  They end up narrowing the field of candidates based upon important criteria such as being a follower of Jesus Christ from the time of John's baptism as well as being a witness to the resurrection of the risen Lord.  However, after all of that, the disciples draw lots to leave it all in God's hands.  Since apostles are "chosen" ones, leaving it in God's hands was the way to go.  Incidentally, this is the last time we read of the disciples using lots to determine God's will because once the Holy Spirit descended, knowing His will is sought through prayer because He dwells within us.

My biggest take away from this chapter of Acts concerning the disciples is that, despite being actual witnesses to the crucifixion and the resurrection of Jesus Christ and despite being taught by Him about kingdom things for at least forty days before ascending into heaven, their presupposition of what the coming of Messiah meant (which was to establish God's kingdom here on earth) kept getting in the way with the glorious new message of the Gospel and Messiah's mission in His first advent which is to save those that are lost (Luke 19:10.)  Those disciples understood and believed that Messiah had come in the flesh but, without the Holy Spirit, they could not grasp the idea that God's mercy and redemption through Messiah was only at its beginning stages.  However, by and through the Holy Spirit, the disciples were able to grasp the fullness of the gospel and began to work for Him bringing the news of God's mercy to the entire world.  

The most grieving distinction between 1st century disciples and 21st century disciples is that the 1st century disciples were quick to believe the gospel of Jesus Christ but slow to comprehend the fullness of it while 21st century disciples are quick to comprehend the gospel of Jesus Christ but slow to believe it.

Faith is an action word and belief is something you not only say but do as well.  There are always evidences of belief to be seen by yourself and others.  (James 2:18)  I encourage you to examine yourself just as it says to do in 2 Corinthians 13:5.  Here are a few soul searching items to consider in your self examination:
  1. Are you in tune with the things of the Spirit or are you burdened by the things of the world?  (Colossians 3:2)
  2. Does your daily character resonate with the fullness of the fruit of the Spirit?  (Galatians 5:22-23)
  3. Do you live your life in such a way that it shows that you long for Christ to return?  (Revelation 22:20)
The One who calls you is true and He says, "Behold I come quickly; and my reward is with me, to give every man according as his work shall be."  (Revelation 22:12)

"Amen.  Even so, come, Lord Jesus."  (Revelation 22:20)

Saturday, November 5, 2011

Jesus' Mission and Christian Mercy

Jesus said this about himself in the gospel of Matthew 5:17:
Matthew 5:17 KJV
Think not that I am come to destroy the law, or the prophets: I am not come to destroy, but to fulfil.
Jesus' mission wasn't to create a license for sin nor condone it. On the contrary, almost the entire Sermon on the Mount (Matthew chapters 5-7) is devoted to elevating the Law, raising the bar if you will, on the holiness of God and how no human is without sin in His presence. Jesus always preached the entire counsel of God from the Law and the Prophets. (The Old Testament.)  Jesus' mission was to call sinners to repentance but sinners don't understand that they're sinners unless they are first confronted with being condemned by the Law.

The heart of the gospel message is mercy; God's mercy towards sinners and we're all sinners. Christians are to extend the same mercy towards others as they have received from God through Jesus Christ.

So, to be clear, Christian mercy doesn't condone sin. Rather, it is a compassionate and humble forbearance of sin until that day when Jesus comes again.

However, those that seek for a way to justify sin in their own lives have not fully understood the gospel message and one would be justified in questioning that person's devotion to Christ if he/she claimed to be "in Christ."





Wednesday, October 26, 2011

Faith and Waiting Upon the Lord

A friend on facebook posed the following questions on her status update:
I asked myself after doing my study do we lack faith because we're too distracted and busy and just don't seek God anymore or don't spend enough time with Him? Why were there so many miraculous stories in the Bible but we dont see them today? Our world is not seeing God because we are not attempting anything that ONLY God can do. We have become a self sufficient and self dependent society and forget that God can do things far better.
This is how I replied:

I agree that worldly distractions (as well as faith in money) squelch faith. It says as much in Jesus' parable of the sower in Matthew 13 when the Word is choked by the thorns and that person is then unable to bear fruit. The root of the problem in this example is misplaced faith: pride (too busy for God) and self-reliance (a form of idolatry, ie., faith in self) trump faith in Jesus Christ and Him crucified; who is the sum total remedy for our sinful condition before a Holy God.

When God has a hold of you as His child, His will is to grow your faith so that you will be completely humble and reliant on him. The most common thing that the Lord does to grow your faith in Him is to make you wait. Instant gratification is shallow (and the Lord knows this as evidenced by those of the rocky ground persuasion in that same parable) and so waiting becomes the vehicle that transforms those disciples into the good soil that bears fruit for the Kingdom of God.

All of the old testament heroes of the faith (Hebrews 11) didn't experience the miracle promised of God without going through the dark valley of a trial or the dry desert of waiting for it first. God made Abraham wait 25 years before the son of promise, Isaac, to arrive. If that wasn't enough, God then commanded Abraham to go and sacrifice Isaac to the Lord. The amazing thing is that Abraham never balked at God's commandment to sacrifice Isaac because he had learned that God's Word is sure. God had grown his faith through the waiting and the fulfillment. Thus, Abraham proved his faith by reckoning that God would provide in spite of how grim it looked. I am constantly bewildered by Abraham's act of faith and this is the kind of faith that he wants to grow in me and you! Just be prepared to wait on it!

The church has been waiting for nearly 2000 years for Jesus Christ to return and we know that He will because God's Word is sure. There are many saints that have come before us that fell asleep in Christ waiting expectantly for the greatest miracle of all: Jesus Christ's 2nd advent. The best news is that no believer is going to miss it:

1 Thessalonians 4:14-17 KJV

(14) For if we believe that Jesus died and rose again, even so them also which sleep in Jesus will God bring with him. (15) For this we say unto you by the word of the Lord, that we which are alive and remain unto the coming of the Lord shall not prevent them which are asleep. (16) For the Lord himself shall descend from heaven with a shout, with the voice of the archangel, and with the trump of God: and the dead in Christ shall rise first: (17) Then we which are alive and remain shall be caught up together with them in the clouds, to meet the Lord in the air: and so shall we ever be with the Lord.

Wednesday, October 19, 2011

A Discussion on the Beatitudes

A friend of mine from church asked me the following question on the Beatitudes from the Gospel of Matthew:
I have theology question for you. Right after Jesus preaches the beatitudes he says,

3"You are the salt of the earth, but if salt has lost its taste, how shall its saltiness be restored? It is no longer good for anything except to be thrown out and trampled under people’s feet. 14 "You are the light of the world. A city set on a hill cannot be hidden. 15 Nor do people light a lamp and put it under a basket, but on a stand, and it gives light to all in the house.16In the same way, let your light shine before others, so that they may see your good works and give glory to your Father who is in heaven.

who is the "you" in these statements? The crowd, or those who are doing the beatitudes? 
I followed this up with a reply as follows:

I am certain that Jesus is speaking this entire sermon on the mount to his inner circle of believers – the disciples – the ones that left everything to follow Him.

Jesus purposely withdraws from the work of healing the multitudes to take a moment to teach His tiny flock about Kingdom things as evidenced in verse 5:1. I’m sure that the multitudes are taking in this teaching as well but they cannot receive it the same way as His disciples can. (Matthew 7:28-29)  The disciples are the good soil and this Word from Jesus is going to bear fruit with them because they were chosen and have put their faith in Him only. Anyone else (outside of faith in Christ) represents the other types of soil that Jesus warns His disciples about later in a different parable.

Now specifically about the “you” in the statements concerning being salt and light – disciples of Jesus Christ only. In context, Jesus was addressing His inner circle here but I am comfortable saying that this applies to any disciple of Jesus Christ between then and now.

I believe that Jesus leads off with the Beatitudes to describe the types of people (the good soil) that are ready (and able) to receive the Gospel. Read the parable of the Sower in Matthew 13 then continue on.

Verses 3 through 10 (of the Beatitudes) are describing people who are distraught, broken, humble, thirsting for righteousness that they do not have of themselves, merciful and not selfish, have not hardened their heart, who long not just for peace but wanting to establish peace, and are willing to take a stand for righteousness. The law of God was designed to make His people into the (good soil) so that they could receive the Gospel of Jesus Christ. It was designed to be a mirror and expose man for what he really is; a sinner. Brokenness over sin leads to repentance and then to salvation by Jesus Christ. Sinners who are not broken are the other types of soil and cannot receive the Gospel. The message from John the Baptist and then from Jesus was always “REPENT! The Kingdom of God is at hand!” It’s impossible for a man to repent if he is not broken by his own sin. Brokenness leads to God’s gracious salvation in Jesus Christ alone and then to healing and change.

The Beatitudes are describing the disciples; those who are broken and in need of a Savior and the promise is that all of that brokenness will lead them to the promised salvation through faith in Jesus Christ. It’s a gradual revelation that Jesus is giving these folks back then but we, in the 21st Century, have the testimony of the complete revelation. Jesus graciously gives the disciples a foretaste of the coming revelation of His work on the cross as atonement for sinful mankind in Matthew 5:18-20:
Matthew 5:18-20 KJV
For verily I say unto you, Till heaven and earth pass, one jot or one tittle shall in no wise pass from the law, till all be fulfilled. (19) Whosoever therefore shall break one of these least commandments, and shall teach men so, he shall be called the least in the kingdom of heaven: but whosoever shall do and teach them, the same shall be called great in the kingdom of heaven. (20) For I say unto you, That except your righteousness shall exceed the righteousness of the scribes and Pharisees, ye shall in no case enter into the kingdom of heaven.
I find it interesting in the "Sermon on the Mount" that Jesus tells the disciples that the law is going to stay intact until all is fulfilled but then tells them that those who are law breakers and teach others to break the law will be called the least in the kingdom of heaven? Aren’t law breakers worthy of being tossed into the darkness where there is weeping and gnashing of teeth but here He is telling them they will be the least in the Kingdom of Heaven? How can this be unless, of course, the law breaking is atoned for? Jesus gives a clue of the type of righteousness that it was going to take (ie., not of themselves but of Christ alone) to enter the Kingdom in verse 20. The disciples wouldn’t be able to fully understand this entire thing until after the day of Pentecost though. And there are many that walk around today that lack this understanding as well.

At the time of His earthly visitation, the law was only given to His chosen people. Now, after His glorification and the outpouring of the Holy Spirit on ALL FLESH – as we read in Acts 2:17 (which is quoting Joel) – the law of God is written on the hearts of all flesh. Men are without excuse. Even sinful men know God’s law – in their sinful condition they are slaves to sin and are depraved and cannot stop without Jesus but it is guaranteed that deep inside of them they know the difference between right and wrong – good and evil – they just don’t obey it because they can’t. They just need to acknowledge to their creator that they need a savior to set them free from the bondage of sin and receive the gift of salvation through Jesus Christ but men continue to harden their hearts against the good even though their consciences tell them otherwise.

Romans 1:18-19 KJV

For the wrath of God is revealed from heaven against all ungodliness and unrighteousness of men, who hold the truth in unrighteousness; (19) Because that which may be known of God is manifest in them; for God hath shewed it unto them.

I believe that there’s accountability for mankind to respond to the call of repentance and call on the name of the LORD for salvation as a result of this out pouring. It’s a Divine commandment to all men:
Acts 17:30 KJV

And the times of this ignorance God winked at; but now commandeth all men every where to repent:

Saturday, October 1, 2011

The Doctrine of the Baptism of the Holy Spirit

A friend of mine and I were discussing the doctrine of the Baptism of the Holy Spirit a few weeks ago.  This was a doctrine that made him pause at pursuing membership at my church.  The church that I am a member of lists the doctrine as such:

We believe the Holy Spirit baptizes each believing person into the body of Christ at the moment of salvation and that there is no second baptism of the Holy Spirit (Romans 8:37-39; 2 Corinthians 5:21; 1 Corinthians 12:13).

I was reading through the book of Acts last month and I came upon Acts 19:2-6:

Acts 19:2-6 KJV
He said unto them, Have ye received the Holy Ghost since ye believed? And they said unto him, We have not so much as heard whether there be any Holy Ghost. (3) And he said unto them, Unto what then were ye baptized? And they said, Unto John's baptism. (4) Then said Paul, John verily baptized with the baptism of repentance, saying unto the people, that they should believe on him which should come after him, that is, on Christ Jesus. (5) When they heard this, they were baptized in the name of the Lord Jesus. (6) And when Paul had laid his hands upon them, the Holy Ghost came on them; and they spake with tongues, and prophesied.
In this passage, Paul plainly asks these disciples by what were they baptized (washed) since they had not received the Holy Ghost and they admit that they were washed under John the Baptist's baptism for the repentance of sin. Paul concludes that they need to be baptized into Christ Jesus in order to receive the Holy Ghost. Upon hearing this Word from Paul, these disciples were baptized unto Christ Jesus and received the Holy Ghost. For these disciples, the Holy Ghost came as a second baptism because they were first baptized "unto John's baptism."

Jesus prophesied about the baptism of the Holy Ghost:
John 7:37-39 KJV

In the last day, that great day of the feast, Jesus stood and cried, saying, If any man thirst, let him come unto me, and drink. (38) He that believeth on me, as the scripture hath said, out of his belly shall flow rivers of living water. (39) (But this spake he of the Spirit, which they that believe on him should receive: for the Holy Ghost was not yet given; because that Jesus was not yet glorified.)

Perhaps converts at the time of Jesus' earthly ministry (prior to His glorification) were in a unique time period where those that believed prior to His glorification had to experience the Holy Ghost as a second baptism? In fact, all of the disciples of Jesus in this brief period of time had experienced baptism (either by John the Baptist or by the disciples of Jesus [John 3:26 and John 4:1-2]) prior to Jesus' glorification. Therefore, I am persuaded to think that the 2nd baptism of the Holy Spirit is confined to that unique period of time.


All who become disciples of Jesus Christ (since the time of His glorification until present) are indeed baptized only unto Him and because He is glorified and sits at the right hand of the Father, the Holy Spirit comes at the precise moment that someone believes in Him.

You can see this again in Scripture in Acts 8:14-16:
Acts 8:14-16 KJV

Now when the apostles which were at Jerusalem heard that Samaria had received the word of God, they sent unto them Peter and John: (15) Who, when they were come down, prayed for them, that they might receive the Holy Ghost: (16) (For as yet he was fallen upon none of them: only they were baptized in the name of the Lord Jesus.)
I hope this encourages you to search deeper into this subject for yourself.

Friday, September 30, 2011

Issues of Unforgiveness

The past is only relevant insofar as it relates to issues of unforgiveness.

Unforgiveness is a trap.

Unforgiveness expects payment for sin. That's a folly notion because it is a payment that no human can afford to pay. It leaves both parties in bondage. Forgiveness, on the other hand, remits the debt and frees both parties. You may ask, "how can I afford to forgive?" The answer is that by and through God's grace you are rich in mercy because of what Jesus Christ did on the cross.

Sunday, September 25, 2011

Perseverance In Trials

I am often tempted (by my own flesh? by the enemy?) to feel that suffering through trials is equal to being out of favor with God. I know this is not true because the Bible says the contrary about trials. I know that trials are sovereignly allowed for our growth in Him and that they serve to build our faith (James 1:2-5) but I admit that, in my weakness, I am sometimes brought so low by circumstances that I feel that I might faint and I begin to lose heart. However, I am consistently reminded what Jesus told Ananias about the Apostle Paul:
Acts 9:15-16 KJV
But the Lord said unto him, Go thy way: for he is a chosen vessel unto me, to bear my name before the Gentiles, and kings, and the children of Israel: (16) For I will shew him how great things he must suffer for my name's sake.
That makes me shudder but gives me comfort at the same time. I shudder at the thought of suffering (for his name’s sake) but rejoice that I belong to Him. There’s an incredible amount of tension that exists between these two premises and I am persuaded to think that this tension is only resolved by the power of the Holy Spirit. And this is what I am learning from the Holy Spirit:
Faith bridges the mind with the heart. It carries His Word from the place of knowing what He has said to the place of living out what he has done.
Also, I know that faith is a gift from God because there is nothing inside of me that desires to endure trials. My natural self is inclined to bail out. Stand or fall. Fight or flight. Sometimes the battle for my heart and mind rages weekly with trials. At times it rages hourly. But in all things, as I remain in Him, His grace has been sufficient to endure. By His grace, little by little, His Word is being buried into my heart through faith.

Friday, April 1, 2011

On the Topic of Faith Without Works

James 2:17-26 KJV
Even so faith, if it hath not works, is dead, being alone. (18) Yea, a man may say, Thou hast faith, and I have works: shew me thy faith without thy works, and I will shew thee my faith by my works. (19) Thou believest that there is one God; thou doest well: the devils also believe, and tremble. (20) But wilt thou know, O vain man, that faith without works is dead? (21) Was not Abraham our father justified by works, when he had offered Isaac his son upon the altar? (22) Seest thou how faith wrought with his works, and by works was faith made perfect? (23) And the scripture was fulfilled which saith, Abraham believed God, and it was imputed unto him for righteousness: and he was called the Friend of God. (24) Ye see then how that by works a man is justified, and not by faith only. (25) Likewise also was not Rahab the harlot justified by works, when she had received the messengers, and had sent them out another way? (26) For as the body without the spirit is dead, so faith without works is dead also.
When I was a kid, I got stuck up on top of the roof of my grandmother's house and could not get down by myself because I was afraid of heights. My uncle brought a step ladder over but it was about four feet short of reaching the roof. My uncle told me to hang off the roof and he would grab my feet and bring me to the top of the ladder.

I had faith that my uncle would do exactly what he said but my doubt prevented me from taking action on that faith. It wasn't until I took action on the faith that I had that I was able to swing my feet over and be led to the top of the ladder by my uncle.

Faith without works leaves you stuck up on the roof and really isn't faith after all.  It's still unbelief.  Thank God that He is merciful to us even in our greatest hour of weakness and unbelief as evidenced in Mark 9:23-24.

Faith with works says that I believe what I've been told is true and, therefore, I will act upon it.