December, 2008.
Unto us a child is born, unto us a Son is given. And the government shall be upon his shoulders……..
With the birth of Jesus, God made good on his promise made to Adam and Eve in the garden of Eden. A promise that he reminded his people of throughout the history of the Old Testament.
The birth of Jesus meant the the reality of the fulfilment of all those promises made in days of old.
It meant the demonstration of God’s absolute faithfulness concerning his people.
Jesus Christ, by whom all things were created.
Who became as one of us, so much so that he was not recognized as being supernatural, even by his peers.
And yet he is Almighty God.
He is an everlasting Father.
He is the Prince of Peace.
In him all the promises of God find their fulfillment.
He is the sufficient One, for both time and eternity.
Of his kingdom and dominion there shall be no end.
He saves his people from their sins.
He saves his people from themselves.
He saves his people from slavery to the law of sin and death.
He is the comforter to those who mourn.
He heals the broken hearted.
He gives sight to the blind.
And makes the lame to walk.
He makes the deaf hear the sound of birds.
He is able to bind the strong man of false beliefs who would keep us captive slaves.
He is our breastplate of righteousness.
He is the helmet of salvation, the shield of faith, the girdle of truth.
HE IS THE WORD OF GOD.
In him our sin, not in part, but the whole,
Was nailed to his cross and we bear it no more…..
We have been made free, for the Son became sin for us.
We have freedom for the asking and he will not turn away…..
Freedom from powers and principalities……
Freedom from the stranglehold of rejection.
Freedom from the torment of un-forgiveness.
Freedom from the bondage of addiction.
Freedom from the hell of having been abused, whatever the form of it.
Freedom from the pit of guilt.
Freedom from the chains of depression.
Freedom from the mental torment of any of these powers of this dark world.
Powers that would possess our life and thoughts, often all day and all night.
Christmas is the dawn of a new day.
He came so that we might have new life, not an improved version of the old life,
A new Life, and that we might have that new life in abundance.
…….For unto us a child is born, unto us a Son is given, and the government shall be upon his shoulder, and his name shall be called Wonderful, Counselor, the mighty God, the everlasting Father, the Prince of peace.
Of the increase of his government and of peace there shall be no end…….(Isaiah 9:6, 7.)
On a personal note, may you all enjoy a Blessed Christmas 2008 and may the year 2009 be a year of prosperity in all respects, especially a year in which you may experience the reality of the Life that is to be found only in the Lord Jesus Christ.
St. Thomas, Dec./’08.
Saturday, January 24, 2009
HIS FAITHFULNESS REACHES TO THE SKY……
November, 2008
Someone sent me this message:
The light of God surrounds us.
The love of God enfolds us.
The power of God protects us.
The presence of God watches over us.
Wherever we are, God is and all is well.
_______________
This is our Reflection for this month, purposely as short as this to enhance its impact.
Can we really believe these few, short sentences, not just mental assent, but as a moment by moment reality? When we are able to answer that question in the affirmative, it will affect the way we live, the way we respond to circumstances, the way we pray.
If, for whatever reason, we have difficulty believing this, we have a Father who delights in giving his children the things they desire. It is something we cannot achieve in any way at all, it can only be received from his Fatherhand when we ask him.
We would no longer be praying anxiously that God would be with us, praying anxiously that God would help us overcome some sin in our life, praying anxiously that God would bless the activities that we are engaged in for him, or praying anxiously that God would protect our wealth in these uncertain times.
And here we might add our own particular anxieties.
In short, our Father would eliminate all our anxieties and allow us to rest in the truths expressed in these few, short sentences.
This kind of Christianity would be much more than just something we believe, it would be Life to us, the very Life of the Lord Jesus Christ, expressed through us , his children.
The love of God, being shown to the world around us.
Great is your faithfulness, O God my Father,
There is no shadow of turning with you,
You change not, your compassions, they fail not,
As you have been, you forever will be.
St.Thomas, Nov./’08.
Someone sent me this message:
The light of God surrounds us.
The love of God enfolds us.
The power of God protects us.
The presence of God watches over us.
Wherever we are, God is and all is well.
_______________
This is our Reflection for this month, purposely as short as this to enhance its impact.
Can we really believe these few, short sentences, not just mental assent, but as a moment by moment reality? When we are able to answer that question in the affirmative, it will affect the way we live, the way we respond to circumstances, the way we pray.
If, for whatever reason, we have difficulty believing this, we have a Father who delights in giving his children the things they desire. It is something we cannot achieve in any way at all, it can only be received from his Fatherhand when we ask him.
We would no longer be praying anxiously that God would be with us, praying anxiously that God would help us overcome some sin in our life, praying anxiously that God would bless the activities that we are engaged in for him, or praying anxiously that God would protect our wealth in these uncertain times.
And here we might add our own particular anxieties.
In short, our Father would eliminate all our anxieties and allow us to rest in the truths expressed in these few, short sentences.
This kind of Christianity would be much more than just something we believe, it would be Life to us, the very Life of the Lord Jesus Christ, expressed through us , his children.
The love of God, being shown to the world around us.
Great is your faithfulness, O God my Father,
There is no shadow of turning with you,
You change not, your compassions, they fail not,
As you have been, you forever will be.
St.Thomas, Nov./’08.
THE RETURN OF THE REDEEMED.
May, 2007
……….I will lay down my life for your sake…….John 13 : 37.
I will…….., I pledge………, You can count on me……..
I shall be true to you till death do us part…….
How many pledges have been made with the best of intentions?
And how many pledges have been lived up to?
Peter must have meant it sincerely, when he pledged to lay down his life for Jesus. That’s the kind of man he was, impulsive, but true.
Jesus quickly pricked that balloon of self-confidence.
Jesus must have loved his loyalty and idealism, but he also knew it was rooted in the wrong soil. The soil of confidence in self, the soil of flesh.
What is born of the flesh is flesh, what is born of the Spirit is spirit, John 3:6.
Jesus said something like: “Peter I love you, but you know what? Before this very night turns into day, you will have denied your association with me three times”.
Peter was to find out that night the unreliability of what the Bible calls flesh.
Intentions, plans and decisions that have their origin in the human brain, rather than the counsel of the Spirit of God.
Yes, it is in Him (God) that believers live and move and have their being, Acts 17:28.
But God allows his people the choice to live after the Spirit or after the flesh,
Rom.8:5, 6 (KJV).
Being transformed by the renewing of the mind, seeks to end living after the flesh and more and more live after the Spirit, Rom.12:2.
Many a well intentioned church program is born of the flesh, rather than Spirit. Usually there is dissention, strife and frustration in such programs. And those programs have a way of petering out.
Any decision or program that calls for haste is always suspect as being not of God.
In the night of denial Peter came face to face with himself. The Bible says that after the deed was done, Jesus turned and looked at Peter and instantly Peter knew what a dismal failure he really was.
When he realized what he had done, he went outside and wept bitterly. Everything had come to an inglorious end. Judas betrayed Jesus into the hands of the authorities and worst of all he himself had proven to be a most unreliable friend.
There was nothing left but to take up his former profession, he returned to the fishing boats, John 21:3.
Did any of the other disciples go through a similar experience? We do not know.
Except we do know that the apostle Paul on the road to Damascus was forcefully confronted with the fact that his zeal for his God was born of the flesh.
The younger son in Luke 15:12 came face to face with being a failure when he was tending the pigs and decided to return to his father.
There is always a way back to the Father, for the younger son, for Peter and also for Paul.
Blessed are the believers who are so confronted with their being a failure. Not so much as having failed in a certain endeavor, but being a failure.
And for today’s believer there is also always a way back to the Father.
As a matter of fact, the Father was in all of whatever befell us from the beginning with the purpose to form in us the character of Jesus.
It is the Father himself who allows us, His children to wander far from Him into the realm of the flesh, with the inheritance of His life, eternal life in our possession.
Only those believers who by God’s grace are confronted with their failure to live the Christian life, decide to return to the Father and cast themselves on his mercy.
The majority are so busy struggling on in that mess, that confronting themselves does not even occur to them.
Any effort of service we do for God in expectation of reward is born of flesh.
Any effort of obedience to gain God’s favor is born of flesh.
Any effort at self-improvement is born of flesh.
Any effort of obedience for the sake of obedience is born of flesh.
Any effort that requires God’s help is born of the flesh.
A harsh diagnosis? Absolutely, but just the same, no less true.
So, where do we begin when we conclude: “There must be a better way?”
A good beginning would be to pray Ps. 139: 23, 24.
“Search me O God and know my heart, try me and know my thoughts; and see if there be any wicked (fleshly) way in me, and lead me in the way everlasting”.
Tell God that we give Him liberty to do with us whatever it takes to conform us to the image of His Son Jesus Christ.
It also means that all the accumulated knowledge about living the Christian life is up for serious review, except the very foundation doctrines, such as who God is, who Jesus is and who the Holy Spirit is.
Those of us who come face to face with our own total failure to live the Christian life and cast themselves upon God’s mercy will find a Father waiting with open arms to receive us. He will not even mention to remind us of the futility of our former wanderings in a far away country. He will only rejoice because of a sheep that was lost and now is found.
And how do we go from here? Don’t worry, rest in Him, He will guide, He will direct and bring to pass what is needed.
When all this happens, then this prophesy will come to pass:
“Therefore the redeemed of the Lord shall return, and come with singing unto Zion; and everlasting joy shall be upon their head. They shall obtain gladness and joy, and sorrow and mourning shall flee away.
I, even I am He that comforts you”. Is.51:11, 12.
St.Thomas. May/2007.
CHRIST OUR LIFE.
September, 2008
Excerpt from the book “The normal Christian life”, by Watchman Nee.
The Cross has been given to procure salvation for us.
The Spirit has been given to produce salvation in us.
Christ risen and ascended is the basis of our salvation.
Christ in our hearts by the Spirit is its power.
“I thank God through Jesus Christ!” That exclamation of the Apostle Paul is fundamentally the same in its import as his other words in Gal. 2:20 which we have taken as the key to our study: “I live; and yet no longer I, but Christ”.
We saw how prominent is the word “I” throughout Romans 7, culminating in the agonized cry: “O wretched man that I am…….”
Then follows the shout of deliverance “Thank God……JESUS CHRIST’! and it is clear that the discovery Paul has made is this, that the life we live is the life of Christ alone.
We think of the Christian life as a “changed life”, but it is not that.
What God offers is an “exchanged life”, a substituted life, and Christ is our substitute within.
“I live; and yet no longer I, but Christ lives in me”.
This life is not something which we ourselves have to produce. It is Christ’s own life reproduced in us.
…………God will not give me humility or patience or holiness or love as separate gifts of his grace. He is not a retailer dispensing grace to us in packets, measuring out some patience to the impatient, some love to the unloving, some meekness to the proud, in quantities that we can take and work on as a kind of capital.
He has given only one gift to meet all our need: “His Son Jesus Christ”.
As I look to Him to live out His life in me, He will be humble and patient and loving and everything else I need -- in my stead.
Remember the word in the first epistle of John: “God gave us eternal life, and this life is IN His Son. He that has the Son has the life, and he that has not the Son of God has not the life”. (I John 5:11, 12).
The life of God is not given us as a separate item; the life of God is given us in the Son.
It is “eternal life IN Christ Jesus our Lord, (Rom.6:23).
Our relationship to the Son is our relationship to the life.
It is a blessed thing to discover the difference between Christian graces and Christ; to know the difference between meekness and Christ, between patience and Christ, between love and Christ.
Remember again what is said in I Cor. 1:30:”Christ Jesus …….was made unto us wisdom from God, and righteousness and sanctification, and redemption”.
The common conception of sanctification is that every item of the life should be holy; but that is not holiness, it is the fruit of holiness. “Holiness IS Christ.
It is the Lord Jesus Christ being made over to us to be that.
So you can put anything there: love, humility, power, self-control. Today there is a call for patience: He is our patience! Tomorrow there may be a call for purity: He is our purity! He is the answer to every need.
That is why Paul speaks of the ”fruit of the Spirit” as one (Gal 5:22) and not of “fruits” as separate items.
God has given us His Holy Spirit, and when love is needed the fruit of the Spirit is love; when joy is needed the fruit of the Spirit is joy.
It is always true.
It does not matter what your personal deficiency, or whether it be a hundred and one different things, God has always one sufficient answer, His Son Jesus Christ, and He is the answer to every human need.
How can we know more of Christ in this way? Only by way of an increasing awareness of need. Some are afraid to discover deficiency in themselves, and so they never grow.
Growth “in grace” is the only sense in which we can grow, and grace, we have said, is God doing something for us.
We all have the same Christ dwelling within, but revelation of some need will lead us spontaneously to trust Him to live out His life in us in that particular circumstance.
Greater capacity means greater enjoyment of God’s supply.
Another letting go, a fresh trusting in Christ, and another stretch of land is conquered.
“Christ my life” is the secret of enlargement.
We have spoken of trying and trusting, and the difference between the two. Believe me, it is the difference between heaven and hell. It is not something to be talked about as a satisfying thought; it is stark reality.
“Lord, I cannot do it, therefore, I will no longer try to do it.”
This is the point most of us fall short of. “Lord, I cannot”; therefore I will take my hands off; from now on I will trust You for that.
We refuse to act; we depend on him to do so, and then we enter fully and joyfully into the action that He initiates.
It is not passivity, it is a most active life, trusting the Lord like that; drawing from Him, taking Him to be our very life, letting Him live his life in us as we go forth in His Name.
The Normal Christian Life.
By Watchman Nee.
Pages 125 – 128.
Reflections, Sept./’08.
Excerpt from the book “The normal Christian life”, by Watchman Nee.
The Cross has been given to procure salvation for us.
The Spirit has been given to produce salvation in us.
Christ risen and ascended is the basis of our salvation.
Christ in our hearts by the Spirit is its power.
“I thank God through Jesus Christ!” That exclamation of the Apostle Paul is fundamentally the same in its import as his other words in Gal. 2:20 which we have taken as the key to our study: “I live; and yet no longer I, but Christ”.
We saw how prominent is the word “I” throughout Romans 7, culminating in the agonized cry: “O wretched man that I am…….”
Then follows the shout of deliverance “Thank God……JESUS CHRIST’! and it is clear that the discovery Paul has made is this, that the life we live is the life of Christ alone.
We think of the Christian life as a “changed life”, but it is not that.
What God offers is an “exchanged life”, a substituted life, and Christ is our substitute within.
“I live; and yet no longer I, but Christ lives in me”.
This life is not something which we ourselves have to produce. It is Christ’s own life reproduced in us.
…………God will not give me humility or patience or holiness or love as separate gifts of his grace. He is not a retailer dispensing grace to us in packets, measuring out some patience to the impatient, some love to the unloving, some meekness to the proud, in quantities that we can take and work on as a kind of capital.
He has given only one gift to meet all our need: “His Son Jesus Christ”.
As I look to Him to live out His life in me, He will be humble and patient and loving and everything else I need -- in my stead.
Remember the word in the first epistle of John: “God gave us eternal life, and this life is IN His Son. He that has the Son has the life, and he that has not the Son of God has not the life”. (I John 5:11, 12).
The life of God is not given us as a separate item; the life of God is given us in the Son.
It is “eternal life IN Christ Jesus our Lord, (Rom.6:23).
Our relationship to the Son is our relationship to the life.
It is a blessed thing to discover the difference between Christian graces and Christ; to know the difference between meekness and Christ, between patience and Christ, between love and Christ.
Remember again what is said in I Cor. 1:30:”Christ Jesus …….was made unto us wisdom from God, and righteousness and sanctification, and redemption”.
The common conception of sanctification is that every item of the life should be holy; but that is not holiness, it is the fruit of holiness. “Holiness IS Christ.
It is the Lord Jesus Christ being made over to us to be that.
So you can put anything there: love, humility, power, self-control. Today there is a call for patience: He is our patience! Tomorrow there may be a call for purity: He is our purity! He is the answer to every need.
That is why Paul speaks of the ”fruit of the Spirit” as one (Gal 5:22) and not of “fruits” as separate items.
God has given us His Holy Spirit, and when love is needed the fruit of the Spirit is love; when joy is needed the fruit of the Spirit is joy.
It is always true.
It does not matter what your personal deficiency, or whether it be a hundred and one different things, God has always one sufficient answer, His Son Jesus Christ, and He is the answer to every human need.
How can we know more of Christ in this way? Only by way of an increasing awareness of need. Some are afraid to discover deficiency in themselves, and so they never grow.
Growth “in grace” is the only sense in which we can grow, and grace, we have said, is God doing something for us.
We all have the same Christ dwelling within, but revelation of some need will lead us spontaneously to trust Him to live out His life in us in that particular circumstance.
Greater capacity means greater enjoyment of God’s supply.
Another letting go, a fresh trusting in Christ, and another stretch of land is conquered.
“Christ my life” is the secret of enlargement.
We have spoken of trying and trusting, and the difference between the two. Believe me, it is the difference between heaven and hell. It is not something to be talked about as a satisfying thought; it is stark reality.
“Lord, I cannot do it, therefore, I will no longer try to do it.”
This is the point most of us fall short of. “Lord, I cannot”; therefore I will take my hands off; from now on I will trust You for that.
We refuse to act; we depend on him to do so, and then we enter fully and joyfully into the action that He initiates.
It is not passivity, it is a most active life, trusting the Lord like that; drawing from Him, taking Him to be our very life, letting Him live his life in us as we go forth in His Name.
The Normal Christian Life.
By Watchman Nee.
Pages 125 – 128.
Reflections, Sept./’08.
MARY’S AND MARTHA’S.
May, 2008
……..But one thing is needful: for Mary has chosen that good part which shall not be taken away from her ……..Luke 10:42.
The Bible tells us that Mary was the one who sat at Jesus’ feet.
In our imagination we can see Jesus entering the house of Mary, Martha and Lazarus in the village of Bethany.
The Bible does not at all relate to us how their house could accommodate 13 guests all at once, but apparently that was possible.
Martha sees all these (welcome) guests and just knows that suddenly, there is a lot of work to be done to make everyone comfortable. Water for foot washing, water for drinking, lunch to be prepared, etc.
Mary too, sees all these welcome guests, but what she really “sees” is Jesus, she has eyes for nothing or no one else but Jesus. She loves Him, that explains all.
Rabbi, she might have said, what is it wonderful for you to come, it makes my day.
And please, tell me more about yourself and your Kingdom, you told me so much the last time you were here and I long to hear more about it.
And it is as if we can hear Jesus say to her: “ O.K., sit down here and let’s talk.”
And Jesus begins to give her more of that living water, the same as what He gave the woman at the well of Sychar some time ago. Water that will spring up in her as a well into eternal life, John 4:14. Words that resonate in her and become Life in her, for the soil of her heart has been well prepared by the Holy Spirit of God.
Jesus is imparting His Life into Mary, His Life, which is eternal Life. This eternal Life is to intimately know the Father and the Son whom He has sent, John 17;3.
And for Mary and Jesus nothing else matters, food and guests, everything can wait.
Martha, in contrast, is happy also to see Jesus and all these guests. She too, has good memories of past visits. But for her duty goes before pleasure and she sets about to serve her guests. And she fully expects the same from Mary, her sister.
There is water to be fetched, a fire has to be started, food has to be prepared, the floor should have been swept this morning, too bad, it is too late now to do that.
And where is Mary hanging out, she should know what is expected of her without the need to spell it out. Martha makes herself busy with all these necessary things and all the while her blood pressure slowly rises: “Where is this girl, what has gotten in to her?”
Martha’s service is characterized by a sense of duty, this is what others expect me to do.
She in effect offers her service to Jesus and his disciples, that what she can do.
There is no doubt of her sincerity in what she is offering. In all her sincerity she is offering the best she knows how.
When Mary starts serving (and that time will certainly come), it will not be from a sense of duty, or what she believes is expected of her, it will be the natural outflow of her nature, the new nature that is synonymous to the new Life that Jesus gives to all who love His appearing.
Her actions are not called “service”, because “service” always depicts a master/servant relationship.
Mary’s actions will be known as “ministry”, for those actions are not the products of her brain, they are born in the heart of God, communicated to her by the Holy Spirit.
She knows that like Jesus, she is an instrument in her Father’s hands.
The thought of duty or what is expected of her will not even occur to her, because she knows that her acceptance by her Lord is not based on what she might do for Him.
She rests in the knowledge that Jesus loves and accepts her just the way she is.
And when the time comes that someone else is sitting at the feet of Jesus while she is doing all the serving, that will not be offensive to her.
For she will know by experience what it is like to sit at the feet of Jesus and she will have joy in seeing someone else having that same deeply satisfying experience.
And, says Jesus, Mary has chosen that good part which shall not be taken away from her.
Note well, Jesus does not reprimand Martha for what she is doing or not doing, but He does indicate that Mary has made the better choice.
It is as if Jesus is saying: “Martha, I love what you are doing for me, but I am not primarily interested in your service, I am more than anything interested in having you.
Allow me to have you, all of you and I will mold you and shape your character, your being, in what I have purposed for you.
For that is the good part that Mary has already chosen, the part that shall not be taken away from her.
The tragedy of the past and even more of our present time is that the Church has chosen to follow Martha’s example and is instilling Martha’s mentality into it’s people right from children’s Sunday school on up.
The church is always focussing on how it might find new and better ways to enhance the Kingdom of God in this world.
And that is a dangerous road to travel, a road that is focussed on our selves and what we might do for God. It will turn the Church into a social agency eventually.
Something we see happening already all around us.
Often the Church offers a message of forgiveness for sins of the past. It offers heaven for the future and in between a life of service to advance the Kingdom of God in this world.
And all the while the Church has little to offer hurting people than the words:”We will pray for you”, or otherwise often refers such people to counselors who in many cases do not know the Lord.
There used to be a time when the different denominations were very focussed on “purity” of their various doctrines. Now, in today’s world, when these distinctions that separate us from other Christians are losing much of their former importance, many churches are now emphasizing service as the all important thing with special emphasis on what we know as the “Great Commission”of Matt. 28:19 and 20.
The reasons why advertising slogans and so-called “seeker friendly services” are not working very well could be the subject of a small book.
If we missed the essence of our calling when we focussed on purity of doctrine, we are missing it again by emphasizing service, even if it is service (in our estimation) to the glory of God.
Service is always born in the heart of man, that which seems to be a good thing to do in the present circumstances and we then commence to pray that God would bless our plans.
It nearly always leads to conflict, disappointment, dissatisfaction with self and/or others.
Prov.14 vs. 12: There is a way which seems right to a man, but the end of it are the ways of death.
Service in itself is highly commendable, the problem is that God’s people are being motivated to serve as an act of obedience, Christian duty, something God expects from His people once they join His “army” of believers, many are told. Obedience as a response to many Biblical commandments, ranging from loving God to witnessing to environmental stewardship.
The result of that is that church services nearly always have a motivational character in these churches.
(It would be interesting to find out when and for what reason we started calling these Sunday morning gatherings “services”.)
In these churches people seem to be asked to believe that the more things they do for God, the more pleased He will be with them and the better they will feel about ourselves.
But no matter how it is dressed up, it remains a “Martha mentality”.
In Luke chapter 15 Jesus tells the parable of a father and two sons.
When the older son emphasized to his father all the good and faithful service that he had performed for him, he didn’t even get a “Thank you, but……”.
And when the younger son offered to be a servant in his father’s house, the man ignored that request altogether and pressed the dirty slob to his heart.
The older son had offered his service to his father, faithful, diligent service.
All his efforts were made for his father.
And as the parable indicates, that will often lead to bitterness.
Because the “younger brother” will one day come home in the life of any of God’s children who nurture an “older son” mentality, it is only a matter of time.
The faithful service of the older son, when all was said and done, was not recognized.
That truth will be frightening for many of us who believe that by faithful service we can gather treasures in heaven.
And the determination that we will be different, we won’t be bitter when brother comes home and gets all the attention, that is a pipe dream.
The younger son, in contrast, had nothing to offer but his dirty, ragged self.
That is all he had.
And he threw himself at his father’s mercy.
Do with me whatever you want, but let me be in your house.
Let me be a “Mary”, let me sit at your feet, teach me the way of Life, for you are the way of Life. He now understands that life in the Father’s bosom is greatly to be preferred than anything else. And he now knows that his Father prefers it that way.
…….But Mary has chosen that good part…….
That was in the end also the choice of the younger son.
And when the younger son begins service to others (and he too, like Mary will get to that place), it will not be from a sense of duty or obedience, it will flow from his nature, the nature of the Father. And that shall not be called service, it shall be called ministry.
For service is the response to duty and obedience.
But ministry is the reponse to love and compassion.
It shall be a reflection of the love and compassion of the Father, expressed and made known to us in the Son, the Lord Jesus Christ.
That is the good part that the Holy Spirit revealed to Mary, as recorded for us in Luke 10:42.
St.Thomas, May ’08.
……..But one thing is needful: for Mary has chosen that good part which shall not be taken away from her ……..Luke 10:42.
The Bible tells us that Mary was the one who sat at Jesus’ feet.
In our imagination we can see Jesus entering the house of Mary, Martha and Lazarus in the village of Bethany.
The Bible does not at all relate to us how their house could accommodate 13 guests all at once, but apparently that was possible.
Martha sees all these (welcome) guests and just knows that suddenly, there is a lot of work to be done to make everyone comfortable. Water for foot washing, water for drinking, lunch to be prepared, etc.
Mary too, sees all these welcome guests, but what she really “sees” is Jesus, she has eyes for nothing or no one else but Jesus. She loves Him, that explains all.
Rabbi, she might have said, what is it wonderful for you to come, it makes my day.
And please, tell me more about yourself and your Kingdom, you told me so much the last time you were here and I long to hear more about it.
And it is as if we can hear Jesus say to her: “ O.K., sit down here and let’s talk.”
And Jesus begins to give her more of that living water, the same as what He gave the woman at the well of Sychar some time ago. Water that will spring up in her as a well into eternal life, John 4:14. Words that resonate in her and become Life in her, for the soil of her heart has been well prepared by the Holy Spirit of God.
Jesus is imparting His Life into Mary, His Life, which is eternal Life. This eternal Life is to intimately know the Father and the Son whom He has sent, John 17;3.
And for Mary and Jesus nothing else matters, food and guests, everything can wait.
Martha, in contrast, is happy also to see Jesus and all these guests. She too, has good memories of past visits. But for her duty goes before pleasure and she sets about to serve her guests. And she fully expects the same from Mary, her sister.
There is water to be fetched, a fire has to be started, food has to be prepared, the floor should have been swept this morning, too bad, it is too late now to do that.
And where is Mary hanging out, she should know what is expected of her without the need to spell it out. Martha makes herself busy with all these necessary things and all the while her blood pressure slowly rises: “Where is this girl, what has gotten in to her?”
Martha’s service is characterized by a sense of duty, this is what others expect me to do.
She in effect offers her service to Jesus and his disciples, that what she can do.
There is no doubt of her sincerity in what she is offering. In all her sincerity she is offering the best she knows how.
When Mary starts serving (and that time will certainly come), it will not be from a sense of duty, or what she believes is expected of her, it will be the natural outflow of her nature, the new nature that is synonymous to the new Life that Jesus gives to all who love His appearing.
Her actions are not called “service”, because “service” always depicts a master/servant relationship.
Mary’s actions will be known as “ministry”, for those actions are not the products of her brain, they are born in the heart of God, communicated to her by the Holy Spirit.
She knows that like Jesus, she is an instrument in her Father’s hands.
The thought of duty or what is expected of her will not even occur to her, because she knows that her acceptance by her Lord is not based on what she might do for Him.
She rests in the knowledge that Jesus loves and accepts her just the way she is.
And when the time comes that someone else is sitting at the feet of Jesus while she is doing all the serving, that will not be offensive to her.
For she will know by experience what it is like to sit at the feet of Jesus and she will have joy in seeing someone else having that same deeply satisfying experience.
And, says Jesus, Mary has chosen that good part which shall not be taken away from her.
Note well, Jesus does not reprimand Martha for what she is doing or not doing, but He does indicate that Mary has made the better choice.
It is as if Jesus is saying: “Martha, I love what you are doing for me, but I am not primarily interested in your service, I am more than anything interested in having you.
Allow me to have you, all of you and I will mold you and shape your character, your being, in what I have purposed for you.
For that is the good part that Mary has already chosen, the part that shall not be taken away from her.
The tragedy of the past and even more of our present time is that the Church has chosen to follow Martha’s example and is instilling Martha’s mentality into it’s people right from children’s Sunday school on up.
The church is always focussing on how it might find new and better ways to enhance the Kingdom of God in this world.
And that is a dangerous road to travel, a road that is focussed on our selves and what we might do for God. It will turn the Church into a social agency eventually.
Something we see happening already all around us.
Often the Church offers a message of forgiveness for sins of the past. It offers heaven for the future and in between a life of service to advance the Kingdom of God in this world.
And all the while the Church has little to offer hurting people than the words:”We will pray for you”, or otherwise often refers such people to counselors who in many cases do not know the Lord.
There used to be a time when the different denominations were very focussed on “purity” of their various doctrines. Now, in today’s world, when these distinctions that separate us from other Christians are losing much of their former importance, many churches are now emphasizing service as the all important thing with special emphasis on what we know as the “Great Commission”of Matt. 28:19 and 20.
The reasons why advertising slogans and so-called “seeker friendly services” are not working very well could be the subject of a small book.
If we missed the essence of our calling when we focussed on purity of doctrine, we are missing it again by emphasizing service, even if it is service (in our estimation) to the glory of God.
Service is always born in the heart of man, that which seems to be a good thing to do in the present circumstances and we then commence to pray that God would bless our plans.
It nearly always leads to conflict, disappointment, dissatisfaction with self and/or others.
Prov.14 vs. 12: There is a way which seems right to a man, but the end of it are the ways of death.
Service in itself is highly commendable, the problem is that God’s people are being motivated to serve as an act of obedience, Christian duty, something God expects from His people once they join His “army” of believers, many are told. Obedience as a response to many Biblical commandments, ranging from loving God to witnessing to environmental stewardship.
The result of that is that church services nearly always have a motivational character in these churches.
(It would be interesting to find out when and for what reason we started calling these Sunday morning gatherings “services”.)
In these churches people seem to be asked to believe that the more things they do for God, the more pleased He will be with them and the better they will feel about ourselves.
But no matter how it is dressed up, it remains a “Martha mentality”.
In Luke chapter 15 Jesus tells the parable of a father and two sons.
When the older son emphasized to his father all the good and faithful service that he had performed for him, he didn’t even get a “Thank you, but……”.
And when the younger son offered to be a servant in his father’s house, the man ignored that request altogether and pressed the dirty slob to his heart.
The older son had offered his service to his father, faithful, diligent service.
All his efforts were made for his father.
And as the parable indicates, that will often lead to bitterness.
Because the “younger brother” will one day come home in the life of any of God’s children who nurture an “older son” mentality, it is only a matter of time.
The faithful service of the older son, when all was said and done, was not recognized.
That truth will be frightening for many of us who believe that by faithful service we can gather treasures in heaven.
And the determination that we will be different, we won’t be bitter when brother comes home and gets all the attention, that is a pipe dream.
The younger son, in contrast, had nothing to offer but his dirty, ragged self.
That is all he had.
And he threw himself at his father’s mercy.
Do with me whatever you want, but let me be in your house.
Let me be a “Mary”, let me sit at your feet, teach me the way of Life, for you are the way of Life. He now understands that life in the Father’s bosom is greatly to be preferred than anything else. And he now knows that his Father prefers it that way.
…….But Mary has chosen that good part…….
That was in the end also the choice of the younger son.
And when the younger son begins service to others (and he too, like Mary will get to that place), it will not be from a sense of duty or obedience, it will flow from his nature, the nature of the Father. And that shall not be called service, it shall be called ministry.
For service is the response to duty and obedience.
But ministry is the reponse to love and compassion.
It shall be a reflection of the love and compassion of the Father, expressed and made known to us in the Son, the Lord Jesus Christ.
That is the good part that the Holy Spirit revealed to Mary, as recorded for us in Luke 10:42.
St.Thomas, May ’08.
COME UNTO ME ………..
July, 2008
Come unto me, all of you that labour and are heavy laden, and I will give you rest.
Take my yoke upon you, and learn of me; for I am meek and lowly in heart; and you shall find rest for your souls.
For my yoke is easy and my burden is light, Matt. 11 : 28 – 30.
Rest for our souls……
How many of us are looking for just that, rest for our weary burdened souls.
Rest from our battle with persistent sins.
Rest from attempting to get our balance sheet of sins and good works to show a positive balance.
Rest from trying to emulate the life Jesus lived, after all He said to learn from Him.
Rest from praying for God to help us to overcome a bad habit and then continually falling again and again for the same old temptation.
Rest from the burden of believing that God will only work in our life and the lives of others in response to our prayers.
Often the logical conclusion is then that “it “ does not work. Maybe for others, but not for me. And the load of guilt has just become a little heavier.
O yes, the desire is there alright, but how to do it?? (Rom. 7:18.)
When we find the yoke of Jesus hard and the burden heavy, then maybe, just maybe we need to learn something from Jesus that we have missed before.
When we accept that God’s Word is truth, bedrock truth, then it is up to us to ask the Holy Spirit what we are missing.Because obviously, we have missed something.
When Jesus promises to give us rest, then it would be obvious that he is also able to give that rest from his abundance.
So, how does Jesus obtain that rest?
Well, let us read the passage again.
……For I am meek and lowly in heart…….
There is the key…..meek and lowly in heart. Teachable, able to accept direction and being humble which makes one teachable and able to accept direction.
We already know by experience that trying to be consistently as loving and forgiving as Jesus is just plain hard work with unsatisfactory results.
Therefore we must look for something else.
That “something else” is that Jesus does not help us to find that rest, for He is that rest.
Jesus was never in a hurry, He was never anxious, He was always at peace, He always showed patience with people, even when these people showed anxiety and lack of faith.
Why? When we look for the answer in the right places we find some remarkable facts.
We find for example in John 5:19 that Jesus says that He, the Son can do nothing of himself, (of His own accord), but only what He sees the Father doing.
Or in John 8:28……that I am He, and that I do nothing of myself…..
John 10:30 ……I and my Father are one…..
Jonh 14:10 ……The words that I speak unto you, I speak not of myself, but the Father who dwells in me, He it is that does the works.
Acts 2:22 …..Jesus of Nazareth was a man accredited by God to you by miracles, wonders and signs, which God did among you through Him, as you yourselves know.
From all this we may know that Jesus did nothing on His own initiative, He was an instrument in His Father’s hands, no more, no less.
He acted in submission to His Father’s will at all times.
His inseparable union with His Father also gave Him His peace and rest, because He knew that His Father would accomplish everything that needed to happen through Him.
Nothing would be left undone that needed doing, Jesus rested in that assurance.
Now when Jesus says “learn of me”, that is what we need to learn, to completely rely on our Father to accomplish in us what needs to be accomplished.
To completely rely on our Father to protect our children when they grow up and are no longer under our control.
To make God responsible for the victory over our persistent sins.
Yes, that is right, He wants to be responsible! He is patiently waiting for us to throw in the towel. Until we do, He cannot work.
He is a jealous God who will not share His glory (credit) with anyone.
A young mother asked me one time if I would pray for her to have more patience with her two little children. I replied : how about if you prayed yourself?
She said; I have been praying and trying for months, it does not work.
I suggested to her to stop trying and to begin relying. Relying on God to make the patience of Jesus a reality in her daily life. Ask for it and rely, believe that our Father, who loves us so much will gladly do as we ask.
Only those dear children of God who have experienced having been made free by the power of God know the overwhelming reality of rest and freedom God wishes to give to all His children who are burdened by sin and unbelief.
And the same is true for any other burden we might carry.
Jesus is our Peace.
Jesus is our Rest.
But only if we ourselves get outside of the equasion. That is what we need to learn from Jesus.
For it is God who works in you to will and to do of his good pleasure, Phil.2:13.
When we stop trying and begin relying then we also learn that His yoke is easy and that His burden is light.
Relying on God to do all the work is not a copout, it is an act of faith and trust.
St. Thomas, July/’08.
NOTES AND QUOTES.
May, 2008
This time, in order to provide some variety to Reflections, may I copy for you some notes, quotes and studynotes which I collected from speeches, seminars and study courses from a variety of authors in no particular order.
These quotes are mainly from the following authors: Dr. Edwin Louis Cole of The Chr. Men’s Network, Rev. Kelly Varner of N.Carolina, Dr. James Stone of Baton Rouge, Louisiana and Mr. Don E. Higgins of Kitchener, ON.
#. Truth about oneself is always unacceptable,
Except by devine revelation.
# God puts no limitation on faith,
Faith puts no limitation on God.
# Facing reality is the first step towards change in a person’s life.
# Human nature will oppose anything that is not properly understood.
# Repentance is the pivotal point between ruin and reconcilliation.
# Humility precedes blessing, pride goes before a fall.
# The heart of men is corrupt beyond measure, there is no cure, Jer.17:9.
It is like a tree that produces corrupt fruit, it must be cut down.
In the death of Jesus, God provided for the death of that tree, the tree being me.
# Everything in the Kingdom of God is positive.
# The spirit of the Kingdom is peace.
# All the principles of the Bible are the keys of the Kingdom.
# All the characteristics of the Kingdom emanate from the character of the King.
# The Kingdom of God is the purpose of God.
# The Kingdom of God is a present reality.
# The Kingdom of God is present wherever He is recognized as Lord and
# The glory of the King are the citizens of His Kingdom.
# Man enters the Kingdom by way of repentance.
# “Crown of Life”, Jas.1 vs.12:
It’s the life that is a crown,
It is the overcoming, reigning life,
It is Christ’s life,
A life that follows death, death to self,
It is resurrection Life,
This life is not “my” life – it is “His” Life,
And forever remains “His” Life.
Through His grace He has made me a partaker of His Life,
Which in truth is eternal Life.
# God judged us worthy of salvation and proved it in the person of His Son Jesus Christ.
# The Christian’s inheritance: The fullness of God in him/her.
# The life of the Spirit is always beyond what we are capable of.
# The purpose of divine reconcilliation is to restore agreement with God.
# Sin always promises to serve and to please,
But its desire is to enslave and dominate.
# Behind every excuse hides a lack of desire.
# Pride is the backbone of hostility.
# Doubt breeds fear, fear causes failure.
# Rejection leads to un-forgiveness, bitterness, anger, hatred, rebellion, depression and ultimately, suicide.
# When we loose sight of Jesus, it is usually because all we see are our circumstances and we listen to people.
# Christians are pre-destined to be conformed to the glorious image of the Lord Jesus Christ.
# God’s blessings are not a sign of His favor,
They are a sign of His mercy.
Difficulties in the life of believers are not a sign of God’s dis-favor,
Those too, are a sign of His mercy.
For He would use our embrace of these troubles in His process to conform us to the image of His Son Jesus Christ.
# The fruit of one’s lips determines the work God has done on one’s behalf.
# A man will not call on God untill his need is greater than himself.
# What a Christian believes about himself will determine how he experiences life.
When he believes he is a sinner, he will act like a sinner.
For a Christian to believe he is a sinner is to effectively deny the all-sufficiency of the sacrifice of Jesus Christ. And that is sin!
When a Christian believes he is a saint, he will live like a saint.
He will rejoice in the fact that resurrection life is a present reality.
# Faith is an attitude of the heart, not an exercise of the mind.
# Victorious living requires self-discipline.
# Prevention is easier than rehabilitation.
# Little love translates into much law.
Much love translates into little law.
# The inheritance of the saints is to reign with Christ in this life and the life hereafter. Delivered from the power of darkness and having been translated into the Kingdom of Light, Col. 1:12.
# The love of the truth is the criteria of spirituality.
# The hatred of evil is proportional to the quality of our love for God.
# Some paradoxes of the Christian life:
Life comes out of death.
Victory is the result of surrender.
Receiving is the result of giving.
Strength follows the admission of weakness.
Wholeness comes after brokeness.
Joy comes after sorrow.
# G.R.A.C.E. = God’s Riches At Christ’s Expense.
St. Thomas, May ’08.
MR. LAW AND MR.GRACE. PART III.
April 23, 2008
For sin shall not have dominion over you, for you are not under the law, but under grace, Rom.6:14.
(It is highly recommended to carefully read Romans chapter 7.)
We ended our last discussion by asking: How do we enter this new way of living, which is so vastly to be preferred over the present conditions that so many of us find ourselves in? If we were to attempt to live the truth of Rom. 7:24 and 25 intellectually, it would be just a repeat of vs. 18 and 19.
But how do we live and experience that truth spiritually then?
First, it must be said that our God has designed a different pathway of life and grace for each of His children.
Therefore, what follows may be taken more as an illustration than as a pattern to follow. And yet……? Come with me and let’s see where God’s provision for us leads to.
The short answer to our question might be found in Psalm 139:23 and 24.
“Search me O God and know my heart, try me and know my thoughts.
And see if there be any wicked way in me, and lead me in the way everlasting”.
This is equivalent to giving God permission to “clean” us up, individually.
We really have no inkling of how wicked we are until our Father reveals that to us in His great mercy towards us, even if we are His children.
Praying this prayer might lead to what follows in this article in God’s own time.
Remember, our God follows no set patterns in His dealings with His dear children.
How do we come to the place where Rom.7:24 is the cry of our heart: O wretched man that I am, who shall deliver me…..?
Not just mental assent, but an agonizing cry from the depth of our being.
Many of us do not relate to this, because we have grown up and/or live in a spiritual environment where we believe that doing our best for God in all kinds of activities that enhance the coming of his Kingdom will give us favor with God. Obedience is the essence of this way of Christian living.
God is well aware of our many sins, but He knows that we are weak and therefore He also knows that He cannot expect that we would keep His commandments perfectly all the time, so the reasoning goes.
When we do the best we can, He would be satisfied, even though we come far short of His commands and expectations.
Because we love Jesus with all our heart, we do not want to sin, but we just can’t help it.
Since we are sinners, we need to ask for forgiveness every day.
Our traditions, not the word of God, has taught us that’s the way it is.
And then for some of us comes the day when we realize that there is no Scriptural basis for this way of living and reasoning at all.
To the contrary, when God commands us to love Him with all our heart and soul He really means it. Or when He commands us to be perfect even as He is perfect, He means it, no compromises. He gave us 10 commandments, not 10 suggestions.
Do we really love Jesus? Well then keep His commandments.
Can we honestly say that we keep His commandments? No? Well then, we do not really love Him, no matter what we tell ourselves.
And if we do not love Him who is light, then we are in darkness and our Christianity is futility.
Jas.2:10 makes it even worse: when we fail in one command, we are guilty of breaking the whole law.
That is the implication of John 14:15 and 21: “If you love me, keep my commandments.
He that has my commandments and keeps them, he it is that loves me”.
When we become serious with God and His Word, we become acutely aware of our own wretchedness, even though we might have been Christians for a long time.
We then become acutely aware that we are completely unable to please God when we break His whole law every day again.
Yes, the cross of Jesus has delivered us from our sins. But now we begin to sense that that is not enough. We also need to be delivered from self, the sinful self that is the source of those sins.
This deliverance was 100 % incorporated in the death of Jesus on the cross for us.
It is just that we cannot appreciate this deliverance from self until we have been painfully confronted with our own depravity.
Rom. 7:24 does not say: “Who shall deliver me from my sin?”
It says: “Who shall deliver me (self, myself) from this body of death?
Who shall deliver me from this personality that keeps on producing sin?.
We now begin to see that even our good works mean nothing in light of our being such a failure at living the Christian life.
Knowing this leaves a person wanting to throw in the towel for good.
Moses, the man of God must have felt this way when he fled for his life into the desert.
Or Peter when Jesus turned and their eyes met, after Peter had sworn that he did not know this man from Nazareth, the man he so dearly loved.
Or Paul when he came face to face with Jesus on his way to Damascus.
When we have come this far there is nothing left but to abandon ourselves upon the mercy of God. for there is no other option left to us.
Not every Christian will experience this kind of agony of spirit.
Blessed is the child of God who travels through this “valley of the shadow of death”.
Every step through this spiritual desert, however painful, is ordained of God.
The failures of Moses, Peter or Paul and so many others were all ordained of God for the purpose of His glory and their good.
This is the way He prepares for Himself a vessel for His own purposes.
This is the way He removes all confidence in ourselves, our own abilities to serve God.
John 12:24 “Unless a grain of wheat fall into the ground and die, it remains alone. But if it die, it brings forth much fruit”.
This is all so that we might (intimately) know Him and the power of His resurrection, and the fellowship of his sufferings, being made conformable (like Him) in his death, Phil.3:10.
When there is nothing left, it is like death.
All the agony of our troubled hearts He knows of and He allows it to come our way so that we, after we have experienced this agony of spirit and now experience His great mercy to us, that we might call Him “my Husband” and no longer “my Master”,
Hosea 2:16.
The relationship of a servant and his master will always be that these two have separate lives. They may live in the same house, but they live their lives separately.
In contrast, the word “husband” implies a union of body and spirit, becoming one body.
This union produces far more than good works performed in obedience to a master, this union produces Life. And this Life will bear fruit that is pleasing to the Father.
O wretched man that I am, who shall deliver me ……?
The answer is provided in the next verses.
I thank God (it is) through Jesus Christ our Lord.
There is therefore now no condemnation to them who are in Christ Jesus! Rom.8:1.
The Bible says that we are in Him, therefore we are one with Him and share in His Holiness and Righteousness.
Our God’s grace extended to us means we need not earn His favor.
He loves us unconditionally because He chooses to do so.
In our past we used to do our best to live a good Christian life for God, now we seek to let Jesus live His life through us.
The agony of spirit displayed in Rom.7:18 and 19 is now a thing of the past when we look to Jesus to fulfill the law in us and through us. Whereas in our past we struggled against sin in our own strength, we now know that we have no strength.
Phil. 4:19 “I can do all things through Christ who is my strength”.
That also means that without Him I have no strength.
There truly is nothing left for us to do than to cast ourselves on our Father’s mercy.
That is the only place where we will find rest, the rest that Jesus promised in Matt. 11:28 “Come unto me all of you who are burdened and heavy laden, and I will give you rest”.
For sin (the law of) shall not have dominion over you; for you are not under the law, but under grace, Rom. 14:6.
Is this then the end of it all?
Fortunately, no. Our Father will continue to purify us through trials and difficulties to wean us more and more from our self-confidence and self-sufficiency in order that we might be more and more conformed to the image and likeness of Jesus in faith, character and life.
St. Thomas, Jan.’08.
For sin shall not have dominion over you, for you are not under the law, but under grace, Rom.6:14.
(It is highly recommended to carefully read Romans chapter 7.)
We ended our last discussion by asking: How do we enter this new way of living, which is so vastly to be preferred over the present conditions that so many of us find ourselves in? If we were to attempt to live the truth of Rom. 7:24 and 25 intellectually, it would be just a repeat of vs. 18 and 19.
But how do we live and experience that truth spiritually then?
First, it must be said that our God has designed a different pathway of life and grace for each of His children.
Therefore, what follows may be taken more as an illustration than as a pattern to follow. And yet……? Come with me and let’s see where God’s provision for us leads to.
The short answer to our question might be found in Psalm 139:23 and 24.
“Search me O God and know my heart, try me and know my thoughts.
And see if there be any wicked way in me, and lead me in the way everlasting”.
This is equivalent to giving God permission to “clean” us up, individually.
We really have no inkling of how wicked we are until our Father reveals that to us in His great mercy towards us, even if we are His children.
Praying this prayer might lead to what follows in this article in God’s own time.
Remember, our God follows no set patterns in His dealings with His dear children.
How do we come to the place where Rom.7:24 is the cry of our heart: O wretched man that I am, who shall deliver me…..?
Not just mental assent, but an agonizing cry from the depth of our being.
Many of us do not relate to this, because we have grown up and/or live in a spiritual environment where we believe that doing our best for God in all kinds of activities that enhance the coming of his Kingdom will give us favor with God. Obedience is the essence of this way of Christian living.
God is well aware of our many sins, but He knows that we are weak and therefore He also knows that He cannot expect that we would keep His commandments perfectly all the time, so the reasoning goes.
When we do the best we can, He would be satisfied, even though we come far short of His commands and expectations.
Because we love Jesus with all our heart, we do not want to sin, but we just can’t help it.
Since we are sinners, we need to ask for forgiveness every day.
Our traditions, not the word of God, has taught us that’s the way it is.
And then for some of us comes the day when we realize that there is no Scriptural basis for this way of living and reasoning at all.
To the contrary, when God commands us to love Him with all our heart and soul He really means it. Or when He commands us to be perfect even as He is perfect, He means it, no compromises. He gave us 10 commandments, not 10 suggestions.
Do we really love Jesus? Well then keep His commandments.
Can we honestly say that we keep His commandments? No? Well then, we do not really love Him, no matter what we tell ourselves.
And if we do not love Him who is light, then we are in darkness and our Christianity is futility.
Jas.2:10 makes it even worse: when we fail in one command, we are guilty of breaking the whole law.
That is the implication of John 14:15 and 21: “If you love me, keep my commandments.
He that has my commandments and keeps them, he it is that loves me”.
When we become serious with God and His Word, we become acutely aware of our own wretchedness, even though we might have been Christians for a long time.
We then become acutely aware that we are completely unable to please God when we break His whole law every day again.
Yes, the cross of Jesus has delivered us from our sins. But now we begin to sense that that is not enough. We also need to be delivered from self, the sinful self that is the source of those sins.
This deliverance was 100 % incorporated in the death of Jesus on the cross for us.
It is just that we cannot appreciate this deliverance from self until we have been painfully confronted with our own depravity.
Rom. 7:24 does not say: “Who shall deliver me from my sin?”
It says: “Who shall deliver me (self, myself) from this body of death?
Who shall deliver me from this personality that keeps on producing sin?.
We now begin to see that even our good works mean nothing in light of our being such a failure at living the Christian life.
Knowing this leaves a person wanting to throw in the towel for good.
Moses, the man of God must have felt this way when he fled for his life into the desert.
Or Peter when Jesus turned and their eyes met, after Peter had sworn that he did not know this man from Nazareth, the man he so dearly loved.
Or Paul when he came face to face with Jesus on his way to Damascus.
When we have come this far there is nothing left but to abandon ourselves upon the mercy of God. for there is no other option left to us.
Not every Christian will experience this kind of agony of spirit.
Blessed is the child of God who travels through this “valley of the shadow of death”.
Every step through this spiritual desert, however painful, is ordained of God.
The failures of Moses, Peter or Paul and so many others were all ordained of God for the purpose of His glory and their good.
This is the way He prepares for Himself a vessel for His own purposes.
This is the way He removes all confidence in ourselves, our own abilities to serve God.
John 12:24 “Unless a grain of wheat fall into the ground and die, it remains alone. But if it die, it brings forth much fruit”.
This is all so that we might (intimately) know Him and the power of His resurrection, and the fellowship of his sufferings, being made conformable (like Him) in his death, Phil.3:10.
When there is nothing left, it is like death.
All the agony of our troubled hearts He knows of and He allows it to come our way so that we, after we have experienced this agony of spirit and now experience His great mercy to us, that we might call Him “my Husband” and no longer “my Master”,
Hosea 2:16.
The relationship of a servant and his master will always be that these two have separate lives. They may live in the same house, but they live their lives separately.
In contrast, the word “husband” implies a union of body and spirit, becoming one body.
This union produces far more than good works performed in obedience to a master, this union produces Life. And this Life will bear fruit that is pleasing to the Father.
O wretched man that I am, who shall deliver me ……?
The answer is provided in the next verses.
I thank God (it is) through Jesus Christ our Lord.
There is therefore now no condemnation to them who are in Christ Jesus! Rom.8:1.
The Bible says that we are in Him, therefore we are one with Him and share in His Holiness and Righteousness.
Our God’s grace extended to us means we need not earn His favor.
He loves us unconditionally because He chooses to do so.
In our past we used to do our best to live a good Christian life for God, now we seek to let Jesus live His life through us.
The agony of spirit displayed in Rom.7:18 and 19 is now a thing of the past when we look to Jesus to fulfill the law in us and through us. Whereas in our past we struggled against sin in our own strength, we now know that we have no strength.
Phil. 4:19 “I can do all things through Christ who is my strength”.
That also means that without Him I have no strength.
There truly is nothing left for us to do than to cast ourselves on our Father’s mercy.
That is the only place where we will find rest, the rest that Jesus promised in Matt. 11:28 “Come unto me all of you who are burdened and heavy laden, and I will give you rest”.
For sin (the law of) shall not have dominion over you; for you are not under the law, but under grace, Rom. 14:6.
Is this then the end of it all?
Fortunately, no. Our Father will continue to purify us through trials and difficulties to wean us more and more from our self-confidence and self-sufficiency in order that we might be more and more conformed to the image and likeness of Jesus in faith, character and life.
St. Thomas, Jan.’08.
Friday, January 9, 2009
MR. LAW AND MR.GRACE, PART II.
March 27, 2008
For sin shall not have dominion over you, for you are not under the law, but under grace, Rom. 6:14.
(It is highly recommended to carefully read Rom. chapter 7.)
Rom. 7:1-6 compares and explains the above concept in the context of marriage.
Verse 7-13 explains the virtues of the law and its effect on mankind, exposing sin for what it is, an unholy force in man that produces rebellion against God and results in death and damnation for the sinner.
Verse 14-24 is a narrative of the woman mentioned in the beginning of the chapter, when she, with the best of intentions sets out to please her new husband and finds herself to be an utter failure in that well intentioned endeavor.
Verse 25 displays that from this situation also, only Jesus can set us free.
So, let’s pick up where we left off in Part I.
The joy of being born again now that she has accepted Jesus and the thrill of being united with Him is absolutely overwhelming for the woman.
Her past life of sin and failures were put to death and buried with her old (former) nature, (Eph.4 calls that the “old man”) and she enjoys truly a completely new beginning.
“…….Old things have past away, all things have become new…..II Cor. 5:17”.
And…. the woman determines, this time it is going to be different.
This time she will redouble her efforts to please her new husband, Mr. Grace. She mistakenly believes that he would place similar demands on her like Mr. Law once did.
And she is sure that Mr. Grace will help her to meet His demands, all she needs to do is ask Him.
It does not take all that long for her to experience great conflict, so well expressed in verse 18 and 19 of this chapter: “For to will is present with me, but how to perform that which is good I find not. For what I do is not the good that I want to do, no, the evil that I do not want to do, this I keep on doing”.
The woman’s re-created spirit urges her to do good, but her un-regenerated mind makes her question whether what the Spirit urges, is the best for her in the situation. And her self-sufficient mind and flesh usually win.
In her immaturity and self-sufficiency she presumes that what pleased Mr. Law, will also please Mr. Grace. And fails all the time in her effort to avoid evil and to do good.
Except, this new husband does not reprimand her or threaten her like Mr. Law did.
Mr. Grace is infinitely patient and waits for the day when the woman reaches the point of despair, vs. 24. This whole scenario is described in Rom.7:13-24.
Few Christians reach the point of despair. Most believe that their God is a god of compromise and that He would be satisfied with their best efforts.
There is no Scriptural basis for this way of thinking at all.
And what happens to the woman when she has come to loath herself because of her failure, her inability to live the Christian life ”properly”?
In her anguish she turns to Mr. Grace and pours out her anxious heart, vs. 25.
And to her great surprise, He is not upset or angry with her.
To the contrary, He is delighted that she has returned to Him and that she has ended her adulterous relationship with her former husband, Mr. Law, ( Isaiah 51:11).
What she did was looking to Mr.Law trying to obey the law to please Mr Grace.
And Mr.Law did nothing to help her, he just laid more commandments on her.
As it is, Mr Grace receives her in his arms and consoles her.
.
(On a personal note, anyone who would suggest that the foregoing is just conjecture, may I respectfully suggest that such a person has not yet experienced the sorrow of vs. 24 and is still in an unholy relationship with Mr. Law.)
Rest in me, says Mr. Grace, and I will do in you all that needs to be done so that you may experience my joy, my peace and my righteousness.
Rest in me, everything that you believe you need to do and be for me, I would be so happy to do in you, believe me, I love you with an everlasting love.
All I ask of you that you yield yourself to me, to allow me to renew your mind as I have already renewed your spirit, Rom.12:2.
My grace is sufficient for you, you already are what you so desperately want to be, loved and accepted by me, except you have been trying to achieve all that by your own effort, by your attempt to gain my favor by being obedient.
Any attempt by you to assist me in any way at all will obscure what I wish to accomplish in you. In submission and surrender to me is your victory secured.
And so ends the story of the woman who was once married to Mr. Law.
She was aware with her mind of her being united with Mr. Grace, her new husband, but now she knows it in her inner being. The joy of the Lord is now no longer a concept, it is a daily reality in her life.
Of a truth it may be said, they lived happily ever after.
Many are the Christians who consent to Rom.7:14-23.
Yes, they say, that is how it is, falling and getting up again, of a certainty, we will never be perfect. We have to take up our cross and keep on trying.
Few are the Christians who identify with this passage of Scripture to the point of vs.24,
O wretched person that I am, who is going to deliver me …….?
These are those for whom a whole new way of living is prepared.
It is a way of living of taking up one’s cross and following Jesus in abandonment to Him.
Their new way of living will be characterized this way: “Not I , but Christ”.
They have passed through the spiritual desert of the self-life and now they are entering the promised land of Spirit led Christ life.
But how do we enter this new way of living that is to be vastly preferred over the present condition so many Christians find themselves in, whether they realize it or not.
How do we come to the truth of Rom.7:24, not just intellectually, but, even more so, spiritually, emotionally, with our whole being?
That will be the subject of our next issue of Reflections.
St.Thomas, Sept. ’07.
For sin shall not have dominion over you, for you are not under the law, but under grace, Rom. 6:14.
(It is highly recommended to carefully read Rom. chapter 7.)
Rom. 7:1-6 compares and explains the above concept in the context of marriage.
Verse 7-13 explains the virtues of the law and its effect on mankind, exposing sin for what it is, an unholy force in man that produces rebellion against God and results in death and damnation for the sinner.
Verse 14-24 is a narrative of the woman mentioned in the beginning of the chapter, when she, with the best of intentions sets out to please her new husband and finds herself to be an utter failure in that well intentioned endeavor.
Verse 25 displays that from this situation also, only Jesus can set us free.
So, let’s pick up where we left off in Part I.
The joy of being born again now that she has accepted Jesus and the thrill of being united with Him is absolutely overwhelming for the woman.
Her past life of sin and failures were put to death and buried with her old (former) nature, (Eph.4 calls that the “old man”) and she enjoys truly a completely new beginning.
“…….Old things have past away, all things have become new…..II Cor. 5:17”.
And…. the woman determines, this time it is going to be different.
This time she will redouble her efforts to please her new husband, Mr. Grace. She mistakenly believes that he would place similar demands on her like Mr. Law once did.
And she is sure that Mr. Grace will help her to meet His demands, all she needs to do is ask Him.
It does not take all that long for her to experience great conflict, so well expressed in verse 18 and 19 of this chapter: “For to will is present with me, but how to perform that which is good I find not. For what I do is not the good that I want to do, no, the evil that I do not want to do, this I keep on doing”.
The woman’s re-created spirit urges her to do good, but her un-regenerated mind makes her question whether what the Spirit urges, is the best for her in the situation. And her self-sufficient mind and flesh usually win.
In her immaturity and self-sufficiency she presumes that what pleased Mr. Law, will also please Mr. Grace. And fails all the time in her effort to avoid evil and to do good.
Except, this new husband does not reprimand her or threaten her like Mr. Law did.
Mr. Grace is infinitely patient and waits for the day when the woman reaches the point of despair, vs. 24. This whole scenario is described in Rom.7:13-24.
Few Christians reach the point of despair. Most believe that their God is a god of compromise and that He would be satisfied with their best efforts.
There is no Scriptural basis for this way of thinking at all.
And what happens to the woman when she has come to loath herself because of her failure, her inability to live the Christian life ”properly”?
In her anguish she turns to Mr. Grace and pours out her anxious heart, vs. 25.
And to her great surprise, He is not upset or angry with her.
To the contrary, He is delighted that she has returned to Him and that she has ended her adulterous relationship with her former husband, Mr. Law, ( Isaiah 51:11).
What she did was looking to Mr.Law trying to obey the law to please Mr Grace.
And Mr.Law did nothing to help her, he just laid more commandments on her.
As it is, Mr Grace receives her in his arms and consoles her.
.
(On a personal note, anyone who would suggest that the foregoing is just conjecture, may I respectfully suggest that such a person has not yet experienced the sorrow of vs. 24 and is still in an unholy relationship with Mr. Law.)
Rest in me, says Mr. Grace, and I will do in you all that needs to be done so that you may experience my joy, my peace and my righteousness.
Rest in me, everything that you believe you need to do and be for me, I would be so happy to do in you, believe me, I love you with an everlasting love.
All I ask of you that you yield yourself to me, to allow me to renew your mind as I have already renewed your spirit, Rom.12:2.
My grace is sufficient for you, you already are what you so desperately want to be, loved and accepted by me, except you have been trying to achieve all that by your own effort, by your attempt to gain my favor by being obedient.
Any attempt by you to assist me in any way at all will obscure what I wish to accomplish in you. In submission and surrender to me is your victory secured.
And so ends the story of the woman who was once married to Mr. Law.
She was aware with her mind of her being united with Mr. Grace, her new husband, but now she knows it in her inner being. The joy of the Lord is now no longer a concept, it is a daily reality in her life.
Of a truth it may be said, they lived happily ever after.
Many are the Christians who consent to Rom.7:14-23.
Yes, they say, that is how it is, falling and getting up again, of a certainty, we will never be perfect. We have to take up our cross and keep on trying.
Few are the Christians who identify with this passage of Scripture to the point of vs.24,
O wretched person that I am, who is going to deliver me …….?
These are those for whom a whole new way of living is prepared.
It is a way of living of taking up one’s cross and following Jesus in abandonment to Him.
Their new way of living will be characterized this way: “Not I , but Christ”.
They have passed through the spiritual desert of the self-life and now they are entering the promised land of Spirit led Christ life.
But how do we enter this new way of living that is to be vastly preferred over the present condition so many Christians find themselves in, whether they realize it or not.
How do we come to the truth of Rom.7:24, not just intellectually, but, even more so, spiritually, emotionally, with our whole being?
That will be the subject of our next issue of Reflections.
St.Thomas, Sept. ’07.
MR. LAW AND MR. GRACE, PART I.
February 28, 2008
………For sin shall not have dominion over you; for you are not under the law, but under grace, Rom. 6:14.
(It is highly recommended to carefully read Rom. chapter 7.)
What would be the implication of that statement in our everyday circumstances?
Rom. 7:1-6 attempts to make that clear to us in the context of marriage.
A woman who is married to a man is bound by holy law of matrimony to that man.
If she happens to leave him and marries another, she will be called an adulteress.
But if the husband dies, she will be free to marry another man.
Like a woman bound by holy matrimony to a man, so we were by birth all bound to the Law, a system of commandments, rules and regulations that we were to keep and live by in order to win God’s favor and eternal life. Let’s call this entity Mr. Law.
He demanded nothing short of perfect obedience from his “wife”, on penalty of death. He was very well aware of the “wife’s” constant failure to meet even the simplest of his demands, but nothing changed, he was without mercy.
In the above mentioned situation, that if Mr. Law, were to die, then the “wife” would be free from his demands.
There is little chance of that happening ever.
Rom.7:12 says that the law is holy and the commandment is holy and just and good.
Mr. Law is healthy and well, he will remain, his demands will not diminish.
To continue the metaphor of marriage, what would happen if the woman’s life was terminated?
If that were to happen that would also free her from her bondage to Mr. Law.
Her death would be the execution of the penalty for her failure to meet Mr. Law’s demands. At the same time death would free her from Mr. Law’s demands.
No laws are ever enforced on those who are dead.
That is exactly what happened, God provided that by putting her to death the woman would be freed from being bound to Mr. Law.
Rom.6:3,4 …..all of us who were baptized (immersed) into Christ Jesus were baptized (immersed) into His death. We were therefore buried with Him through baptism (immersion) into death….
Jesus not only died for our misdeeds, sins, He also died to be the vehicle, our Representative in order that God might carry out the ultimate penalty, the putting to death of the sinner as demanded by Mr. Law.
He became sin for us, that we might be righteous before God, II Cor.5:21.
When Jesus died, we (being in him), died also. Gal.2:20 I have been crucified with Christ and I no longer live…..
Rom.7:4 My brothers and sisters, when you died, you also died to the demands of Mr. Law. YOU ARE FREE.
The law was enforced on you, you paid the penalty in full in your representative Jesus.
Mr. Law no longer has any claim on you.
But this is not the end of the story.
Rom. 6:5 If we have been united with Him (Jesus) like this in his death, we will certainly also be united with Him in his resurrection.
When Jesus left the burial tomb, then we, being in Him, left the tomb also. We have been given a new life, it is the life of Jesus, eternal life.
We are no longer bound to Mr. Law, we now are united with Jesus.
Eph.5:30 says that we are members of His body, of His flesh and of His bones. For the purpose of this narrative, may we call Jesus Mr. Grace?
Mr Grace is quite the opposite of Mr. Law.
Mr. Grace makes no demands on the woman, some of His attributes are well described in
I Cor. ch.13. He loves, has patience, He holds no grudges or records.
All Mr. Grace (Jesus) asks that His new wife (the woman, you and me), would rest in His completed work of salvation on her behalf.
That she would look to Him for all her needs, including anything that needs to be done in her to make her more and more like her new husband.
That is what is meant by bearing fruit unto God, Rom.7:4.
Fruit unto God is to allow Him to do in her His work of sanctifying her according to His good pleasure. That in this way she would display the new life found in her Savior Christ Jesus.
“Have your own way Lord, You are the Potter, I am the clay…….”Jesus said in John 14:10 My words to you are not my own. Rather it is the Father, living in me, who is doing the work.
Likewise, believing in Jesus and the subsequent renewing of our sin polluted mind is the work of the Holy Spirit and not the result of the believer’s efforts.
And what would Mr. Grace require of the woman, His bride?
As stated earlier, nothing except that she believes His words and trusts Him, that she in submission surrender herself, even abandon herself to His love and care.
By definition, grace is no longer grace if there are conditions attached. In that case it would be grace plus something and grace would no longer be grace.
Salvation is not just a single event of being saved unto eternal life. It is progressive as well as we by grace are being transformed into His image as we yield to the Holy Spirit’s sanctifying work.
As the song says: “From glory to glory He’s changing me/ His likeness and image to perfect in me/ From earthly things to the heavenly/ The love of God show to the world.
Now that the woman is united to Mr. Grace, we would expect that from now on everything would be well and beautiful.
The next step in the process of her sanctification, of making her fit for the Master’s use, is one of conflict and sorrow.
That will be the subject of the next issue of Reflections.
St. Thomas,
20/8/’07.
………For sin shall not have dominion over you; for you are not under the law, but under grace, Rom. 6:14.
(It is highly recommended to carefully read Rom. chapter 7.)
What would be the implication of that statement in our everyday circumstances?
Rom. 7:1-6 attempts to make that clear to us in the context of marriage.
A woman who is married to a man is bound by holy law of matrimony to that man.
If she happens to leave him and marries another, she will be called an adulteress.
But if the husband dies, she will be free to marry another man.
Like a woman bound by holy matrimony to a man, so we were by birth all bound to the Law, a system of commandments, rules and regulations that we were to keep and live by in order to win God’s favor and eternal life. Let’s call this entity Mr. Law.
He demanded nothing short of perfect obedience from his “wife”, on penalty of death. He was very well aware of the “wife’s” constant failure to meet even the simplest of his demands, but nothing changed, he was without mercy.
In the above mentioned situation, that if Mr. Law, were to die, then the “wife” would be free from his demands.
There is little chance of that happening ever.
Rom.7:12 says that the law is holy and the commandment is holy and just and good.
Mr. Law is healthy and well, he will remain, his demands will not diminish.
To continue the metaphor of marriage, what would happen if the woman’s life was terminated?
If that were to happen that would also free her from her bondage to Mr. Law.
Her death would be the execution of the penalty for her failure to meet Mr. Law’s demands. At the same time death would free her from Mr. Law’s demands.
No laws are ever enforced on those who are dead.
That is exactly what happened, God provided that by putting her to death the woman would be freed from being bound to Mr. Law.
Rom.6:3,4 …..all of us who were baptized (immersed) into Christ Jesus were baptized (immersed) into His death. We were therefore buried with Him through baptism (immersion) into death….
Jesus not only died for our misdeeds, sins, He also died to be the vehicle, our Representative in order that God might carry out the ultimate penalty, the putting to death of the sinner as demanded by Mr. Law.
He became sin for us, that we might be righteous before God, II Cor.5:21.
When Jesus died, we (being in him), died also. Gal.2:20 I have been crucified with Christ and I no longer live…..
Rom.7:4 My brothers and sisters, when you died, you also died to the demands of Mr. Law. YOU ARE FREE.
The law was enforced on you, you paid the penalty in full in your representative Jesus.
Mr. Law no longer has any claim on you.
But this is not the end of the story.
Rom. 6:5 If we have been united with Him (Jesus) like this in his death, we will certainly also be united with Him in his resurrection.
When Jesus left the burial tomb, then we, being in Him, left the tomb also. We have been given a new life, it is the life of Jesus, eternal life.
We are no longer bound to Mr. Law, we now are united with Jesus.
Eph.5:30 says that we are members of His body, of His flesh and of His bones. For the purpose of this narrative, may we call Jesus Mr. Grace?
Mr Grace is quite the opposite of Mr. Law.
Mr. Grace makes no demands on the woman, some of His attributes are well described in
I Cor. ch.13. He loves, has patience, He holds no grudges or records.
All Mr. Grace (Jesus) asks that His new wife (the woman, you and me), would rest in His completed work of salvation on her behalf.
That she would look to Him for all her needs, including anything that needs to be done in her to make her more and more like her new husband.
That is what is meant by bearing fruit unto God, Rom.7:4.
Fruit unto God is to allow Him to do in her His work of sanctifying her according to His good pleasure. That in this way she would display the new life found in her Savior Christ Jesus.
“Have your own way Lord, You are the Potter, I am the clay…….”Jesus said in John 14:10 My words to you are not my own. Rather it is the Father, living in me, who is doing the work.
Likewise, believing in Jesus and the subsequent renewing of our sin polluted mind is the work of the Holy Spirit and not the result of the believer’s efforts.
And what would Mr. Grace require of the woman, His bride?
As stated earlier, nothing except that she believes His words and trusts Him, that she in submission surrender herself, even abandon herself to His love and care.
By definition, grace is no longer grace if there are conditions attached. In that case it would be grace plus something and grace would no longer be grace.
Salvation is not just a single event of being saved unto eternal life. It is progressive as well as we by grace are being transformed into His image as we yield to the Holy Spirit’s sanctifying work.
As the song says: “From glory to glory He’s changing me/ His likeness and image to perfect in me/ From earthly things to the heavenly/ The love of God show to the world.
Now that the woman is united to Mr. Grace, we would expect that from now on everything would be well and beautiful.
The next step in the process of her sanctification, of making her fit for the Master’s use, is one of conflict and sorrow.
That will be the subject of the next issue of Reflections.
St. Thomas,
20/8/’07.
NEW YEAR’S RESOLUTIONS.
January 29, 2008
Most of us are all too familiar with New Year’s resolutions.
Good intentions, determination are all there, but the staying will power usually turns out to be lacking.
I read an article written by a pastor from Red Deer Alberta about Christian disciplines,
such as spending time to read the Bible, communicate with God in prayer, fellowship with other believers, etc.
I can relate to these disciplines and New Year’s resolutions in my own life.
I’m sure many of us have had similar experiences.
This though, is not the issue I would like to address.
No, I cannot help you with a sure fire method to increase will power.
As I was reading the aforementioned article, I became aware that in previous writings I may have left the impression that I advocate something that could be called “lazy grace”.
All a person needs to do is to say “yes” to Jesus, attend church and you are assured to someday go to heaven.
While that is true basically, that is not at all the intent of the Gospel.
Luke 2:52 states that Jesus increased in wisdom and stature and the Scriptures make it very clear that God would have believers grow in wisdom, knowledge and grace in the Lord Jesus Christ as well.
No one becomes spiritually mature in a day or two.
Yes, God promised us that the Holy Spirit will lead us into all truth, John 16:13.
The part we need to play is to present ourselves a living sacrifice……to be transformed by the renewing of our mind, so that we may learn the will of God concerning ourselves. Rom.12:1, 2. Our thought patterns need to change from what the Bible calls carnal (earthly) thinking to spiritual thought patterns.
II Timothy 3:16 reads this way in the Amplified Bible:
“Every Scripture is God-breathed – given by His inspiration – and profitable for instruction, for reproof and for conviction of sin, for correction of error and discipline in obedience, and for training in righteousness (that is holy living in conformity to God’s will in thought, purpose and action).
So that the man of God may be complete and proficient, well-fitted and thoroughly equipped for every good work”.
In order to become all this we first need the enlightenment and revelation of the Holy Spirit and our consistently making ourselves available to Him (living sacrifice) by reading, study, meditation, prayer, fellowshipping, etc.
Many of us have experienced failed efforts at consistent Bible reading and study.
(Unless we were made to do it at Bible College.)
Do not despair at those failed efforts.
It teaches us that we need more than will power to be consistent.
And more than prayers for God’s help for more of that will power.
That “more” is to ask God to create IN us a hunger for Him and for His Word.
He will give it to us, that is His promise in Luke 11:13……how much more will your heavenly Father give the Holy Spirit to them that ask Him.
Or John 16:23 …Whatsoever you shall ask the Father in my name, He will give it to you.
The “whatsoever” always has to do with LIFE, LIFE that is IN Jesus. That is why the Father sacrificed His only begotten Son, to bring LIFE where only death existed, that we might be partakers of that LIFE.
It cost our Father the sacrifice of His Son to make this LIFE available to us, would He then not give it in abundance to those of us who ask Him ?
For this LIFE goes far beyond forgiveness of sins and going to heaven someday.
In the meantime, we ought to continue our (feeble) efforts at practicing these Christian disciplines, seek friends of like mind and be conscious of any spiritual growth opportunities that come our way.
By way of illustration, may I share some of my personal journey.
That journey began by being so privileged to be born to believing parents who taught me in the way of the Lord, although that is not essential to grow spiritually.
At age 38 I felt that I was such a failure at being a Christian that I was ready to give up.
I turned to God and admitted my failings and allowed for Him, that if He saw any potential in me, would He then prepare me for whatever that might be.
That is now more than 30 years ago. Shortly after that our (my wife and I) search for truth began.
Someone introduced us to the Full Gospel Business Men’s Fellowship. I was a member for 15 years. It truly was a spiritual banquet, we could not get enough.
Someone told us about a weeklong seminar about the origin and resolving of basic youth conflicts. So for a whole week we traveled every afternoon from Simcoe to the Coliseum Building in Toronto.
For almost 2 years we traveled every Monday night from Simcoe to Kitchener.
We bought and read books, listened to tapes at home or when we traveled.
We went out of our way to attend meetings where we listened to speakers of whom we already knew that they shared words of LIFE.
We were taught by godly people who were Chr. Reformed, others were Baptist, Pentecostal, Roman Catholic, Anglican, United Church, etc.
Does growing spiritually take effort and self-discipline? It sure does.
Were there dormant times? Certainly.
But even nature is dormant in winter, it does not mean there is no life.
All resolutions (New Year’s included) that concern our spiritual wellbeing and are dependent on our will power and stamina only, are bound to meet with failure.
Those of us who from a pure heart ask God to create in us a hunger for Him and His Word, prepare yourselves for an adventurous and exciting journey.
And do expect affliction, God’s reason for that is explained in Ps. 119:71. It is His desire for each one of us that righteousness, peace and joy would be an experiential reality all the days of our lives.
St. Thomas, Jan.’08.
Most of us are all too familiar with New Year’s resolutions.
Good intentions, determination are all there, but the staying will power usually turns out to be lacking.
I read an article written by a pastor from Red Deer Alberta about Christian disciplines,
such as spending time to read the Bible, communicate with God in prayer, fellowship with other believers, etc.
I can relate to these disciplines and New Year’s resolutions in my own life.
I’m sure many of us have had similar experiences.
This though, is not the issue I would like to address.
No, I cannot help you with a sure fire method to increase will power.
As I was reading the aforementioned article, I became aware that in previous writings I may have left the impression that I advocate something that could be called “lazy grace”.
All a person needs to do is to say “yes” to Jesus, attend church and you are assured to someday go to heaven.
While that is true basically, that is not at all the intent of the Gospel.
Luke 2:52 states that Jesus increased in wisdom and stature and the Scriptures make it very clear that God would have believers grow in wisdom, knowledge and grace in the Lord Jesus Christ as well.
No one becomes spiritually mature in a day or two.
Yes, God promised us that the Holy Spirit will lead us into all truth, John 16:13.
The part we need to play is to present ourselves a living sacrifice……to be transformed by the renewing of our mind, so that we may learn the will of God concerning ourselves. Rom.12:1, 2. Our thought patterns need to change from what the Bible calls carnal (earthly) thinking to spiritual thought patterns.
II Timothy 3:16 reads this way in the Amplified Bible:
“Every Scripture is God-breathed – given by His inspiration – and profitable for instruction, for reproof and for conviction of sin, for correction of error and discipline in obedience, and for training in righteousness (that is holy living in conformity to God’s will in thought, purpose and action).
So that the man of God may be complete and proficient, well-fitted and thoroughly equipped for every good work”.
In order to become all this we first need the enlightenment and revelation of the Holy Spirit and our consistently making ourselves available to Him (living sacrifice) by reading, study, meditation, prayer, fellowshipping, etc.
Many of us have experienced failed efforts at consistent Bible reading and study.
(Unless we were made to do it at Bible College.)
Do not despair at those failed efforts.
It teaches us that we need more than will power to be consistent.
And more than prayers for God’s help for more of that will power.
That “more” is to ask God to create IN us a hunger for Him and for His Word.
He will give it to us, that is His promise in Luke 11:13……how much more will your heavenly Father give the Holy Spirit to them that ask Him.
Or John 16:23 …Whatsoever you shall ask the Father in my name, He will give it to you.
The “whatsoever” always has to do with LIFE, LIFE that is IN Jesus. That is why the Father sacrificed His only begotten Son, to bring LIFE where only death existed, that we might be partakers of that LIFE.
It cost our Father the sacrifice of His Son to make this LIFE available to us, would He then not give it in abundance to those of us who ask Him ?
For this LIFE goes far beyond forgiveness of sins and going to heaven someday.
In the meantime, we ought to continue our (feeble) efforts at practicing these Christian disciplines, seek friends of like mind and be conscious of any spiritual growth opportunities that come our way.
By way of illustration, may I share some of my personal journey.
That journey began by being so privileged to be born to believing parents who taught me in the way of the Lord, although that is not essential to grow spiritually.
At age 38 I felt that I was such a failure at being a Christian that I was ready to give up.
I turned to God and admitted my failings and allowed for Him, that if He saw any potential in me, would He then prepare me for whatever that might be.
That is now more than 30 years ago. Shortly after that our (my wife and I) search for truth began.
Someone introduced us to the Full Gospel Business Men’s Fellowship. I was a member for 15 years. It truly was a spiritual banquet, we could not get enough.
Someone told us about a weeklong seminar about the origin and resolving of basic youth conflicts. So for a whole week we traveled every afternoon from Simcoe to the Coliseum Building in Toronto.
For almost 2 years we traveled every Monday night from Simcoe to Kitchener.
We bought and read books, listened to tapes at home or when we traveled.
We went out of our way to attend meetings where we listened to speakers of whom we already knew that they shared words of LIFE.
We were taught by godly people who were Chr. Reformed, others were Baptist, Pentecostal, Roman Catholic, Anglican, United Church, etc.
Does growing spiritually take effort and self-discipline? It sure does.
Were there dormant times? Certainly.
But even nature is dormant in winter, it does not mean there is no life.
All resolutions (New Year’s included) that concern our spiritual wellbeing and are dependent on our will power and stamina only, are bound to meet with failure.
Those of us who from a pure heart ask God to create in us a hunger for Him and His Word, prepare yourselves for an adventurous and exciting journey.
And do expect affliction, God’s reason for that is explained in Ps. 119:71. It is His desire for each one of us that righteousness, peace and joy would be an experiential reality all the days of our lives.
St. Thomas, Jan.’08.
LIFE..... LIFE THAT IS IN JESUS.
January 5, 2008
What is this LIFE? This LIFE of which Jesus spoke so very often?
John 14:6 “I am the Way, the Truth and THE LIFE”.
John 10:10 “….. I am come that you may have LIFE, and that you may have it in abundance”.
John 11:25 “I am the resurrection and THE LIFE, he that believes in me, though he were dead, yet shall he live”.
John 17:3 “And this is LIFE (eternal), that they (you and me) might know you, the only true God and Jesus Christ whom you have sent”.
JOHN 17:21 “…..as you Father are in me, and I in you, that they also may be one in us….”.
Acts 17:28 “For in Him we live and move and have our being……”.
I Cor. 1:30 “….. but of Him (God) are you in Christ Jesus”.
Col.3:3 “…..For you died and your LIFE is hidden with Christ in God”.
I John 5:12 “He that has the Son has LIFE; and he that has not the Son of God has not LIFE”.
Some random observations:
LIFE is to be joined spiritually to the Source of LIFE – God Himself.
Jesus did not come to forgive sins, He came to give us LIFE, His LIFE, so that we might be partakers of that LIFE, which is in Him.
The intent of this LIFE is not what we might do for God, the intent is what He might do in us.
This same LIFE was continually His focus when He was on earth in His human appearance.
Resurrection LIFE, this new LIFE is embodied in a Person, His name is Jesus Christ.
LIFE is Jesus Christ, in whom we have love, acceptance and value.
LIFE is to know God as our Father and Jesus whom He has sent.
LIFE is to experience living by and out of the Father’s provision.
LIFE is to know that in Christ victory cannot be achieved over sin and self,
this victory can only be received.
LIFE is living by God’s grace, there are no pre-conditions except that we
choose to accept His grace, after that there are no expectations to
meet or live up to.
LIFE is soaring on eagle’s wings above our circumstances, for we may trust
that all these circumstances work for our good for each one of us.
LIFE is the freedom of knowing that in the day of judgment nothing will be
laid to our charge, for the penalty for all our sin and sinfulness has
been paid in full in our Lord Jesus Christ.
LIFE is also the freedom of knowing that in that day there will be nothing
to receive credit for, for there is not any good that we could have
done except it had been done through Christ who is our strength (LIFE).
LIFE is knowing that the evil One cannot touch us.
LIFE is to know that it is God who sanctifies Himself in us.
LIFE is to have no expectations about heaven except being with the One we
love, who gave His LIFE for us.
LIFE is being dead, dead to sin and self and being alive in Christ, for He is
our LIFE.
This Life is characterized by peace, His peace, for He is our peace. Peace for the hurts of days gone by, peace in the challenges of today and peace for the uncertainties of tomorrow. Peace that passes human understanding.
This LIFE is beyond our comprehension, we can see it in others, or experience its effect, but we cannot rationally explain it.
It remains a mystery, even to us to whom God has revealed the riches and the glory of this mystery, the mystery of “Christ in us, our hope (sure expectation) of glory”.
St.Thomas, Nov.2007.
What is this LIFE? This LIFE of which Jesus spoke so very often?
John 14:6 “I am the Way, the Truth and THE LIFE”.
John 10:10 “….. I am come that you may have LIFE, and that you may have it in abundance”.
John 11:25 “I am the resurrection and THE LIFE, he that believes in me, though he were dead, yet shall he live”.
John 17:3 “And this is LIFE (eternal), that they (you and me) might know you, the only true God and Jesus Christ whom you have sent”.
JOHN 17:21 “…..as you Father are in me, and I in you, that they also may be one in us….”.
Acts 17:28 “For in Him we live and move and have our being……”.
I Cor. 1:30 “….. but of Him (God) are you in Christ Jesus”.
Col.3:3 “…..For you died and your LIFE is hidden with Christ in God”.
I John 5:12 “He that has the Son has LIFE; and he that has not the Son of God has not LIFE”.
Some random observations:
LIFE is to be joined spiritually to the Source of LIFE – God Himself.
Jesus did not come to forgive sins, He came to give us LIFE, His LIFE, so that we might be partakers of that LIFE, which is in Him.
The intent of this LIFE is not what we might do for God, the intent is what He might do in us.
This same LIFE was continually His focus when He was on earth in His human appearance.
Resurrection LIFE, this new LIFE is embodied in a Person, His name is Jesus Christ.
LIFE is Jesus Christ, in whom we have love, acceptance and value.
LIFE is to know God as our Father and Jesus whom He has sent.
LIFE is to experience living by and out of the Father’s provision.
LIFE is to know that in Christ victory cannot be achieved over sin and self,
this victory can only be received.
LIFE is living by God’s grace, there are no pre-conditions except that we
choose to accept His grace, after that there are no expectations to
meet or live up to.
LIFE is soaring on eagle’s wings above our circumstances, for we may trust
that all these circumstances work for our good for each one of us.
LIFE is the freedom of knowing that in the day of judgment nothing will be
laid to our charge, for the penalty for all our sin and sinfulness has
been paid in full in our Lord Jesus Christ.
LIFE is also the freedom of knowing that in that day there will be nothing
to receive credit for, for there is not any good that we could have
done except it had been done through Christ who is our strength (LIFE).
LIFE is knowing that the evil One cannot touch us.
LIFE is to know that it is God who sanctifies Himself in us.
LIFE is to have no expectations about heaven except being with the One we
love, who gave His LIFE for us.
LIFE is being dead, dead to sin and self and being alive in Christ, for He is
our LIFE.
This Life is characterized by peace, His peace, for He is our peace. Peace for the hurts of days gone by, peace in the challenges of today and peace for the uncertainties of tomorrow. Peace that passes human understanding.
This LIFE is beyond our comprehension, we can see it in others, or experience its effect, but we cannot rationally explain it.
It remains a mystery, even to us to whom God has revealed the riches and the glory of this mystery, the mystery of “Christ in us, our hope (sure expectation) of glory”.
St.Thomas, Nov.2007.
…..UNTO US A CHILD IS BORN……
December 9, 2007
…..unto us a Son is given; and the government shall be upon His shoulder; and His name shall be called Wonderful, Counselor, Almighty God, the everlasting Father, the Prince of Peace, Is.9:6.
For God so loved the world that He gave His one and only Son, that whoever believes in Him shall not perish, but have eternal life, John 3:16.
We again will celebrate, celebrate the birth of Jesus the Christ, the Messiah.
The Son of God, also the Son of man.
Jesus by whom the worlds were fashioned and came into being.
Who in obedience to His Father gave His life as a ransom for sinners.
In Him was life, and the life was the light (life) of men, John 1:4.
He who made up the hedge, who stood in the gap for His people. Ez.22:30.
Jesus, who broke down the middle wall that separated God and man.
Jesus, who is the Way, the Truth and the Life.
Jesus, who is the Resurrection and the Life.
Jesus, the Author AND the Finisher of our faith.
We have become partakers of His life by our immersion into His death and resurrection, a new everlasting life for everyone who believes that Jesus is the Son of God, who sacrificed His life to save us from spiritual darkness and death, Rom.6:3-11.
And since Jesus is our life, we may share, be partakers of His divine nature, II Peter 1:4.
Jesus is our Savior.
Jesus is our Lord.
Jesus is our Life.
God himself made Jesus our wisdom, righteousness, sanctification and redemption, I Cor.1:30.
He is our peace.
Jesus is the fruit of the Spirit, therefore:
He is our love,
He is our joy,
He is our longsuffering,
He is our gentleness,
He is our goodness,
He is our faith, meekness and temperance.
The fruit of the Spirit is a Person, His Name is Jesus.
And we, being in Jesus, being one with Him, have been delivered for all time and eternity from the tyranny of the Devil, Heidelberg Catechism question and answer # 1, Eph.5:30, I John 5:18.
Unto us a child is born…..HALLELUIAH !!!
Let us celebrate, celebrate Jesus!
Let all peoples and nations who rejoice in His appearing celebrate!
Let us celebrate for light is come, the light of LIFE in Christ Jesus the Lord!
May your Christmas season also be a season of celebration and blessing as we remember in a in a special way the birth of the Savior, Christ Jesus the Lord.
Simon VanderKooy,
St.Thomas,
Dec. 2007.
…..unto us a Son is given; and the government shall be upon His shoulder; and His name shall be called Wonderful, Counselor, Almighty God, the everlasting Father, the Prince of Peace, Is.9:6.
For God so loved the world that He gave His one and only Son, that whoever believes in Him shall not perish, but have eternal life, John 3:16.
We again will celebrate, celebrate the birth of Jesus the Christ, the Messiah.
The Son of God, also the Son of man.
Jesus by whom the worlds were fashioned and came into being.
Who in obedience to His Father gave His life as a ransom for sinners.
In Him was life, and the life was the light (life) of men, John 1:4.
He who made up the hedge, who stood in the gap for His people. Ez.22:30.
Jesus, who broke down the middle wall that separated God and man.
Jesus, who is the Way, the Truth and the Life.
Jesus, who is the Resurrection and the Life.
Jesus, the Author AND the Finisher of our faith.
We have become partakers of His life by our immersion into His death and resurrection, a new everlasting life for everyone who believes that Jesus is the Son of God, who sacrificed His life to save us from spiritual darkness and death, Rom.6:3-11.
And since Jesus is our life, we may share, be partakers of His divine nature, II Peter 1:4.
Jesus is our Savior.
Jesus is our Lord.
Jesus is our Life.
God himself made Jesus our wisdom, righteousness, sanctification and redemption, I Cor.1:30.
He is our peace.
Jesus is the fruit of the Spirit, therefore:
He is our love,
He is our joy,
He is our longsuffering,
He is our gentleness,
He is our goodness,
He is our faith, meekness and temperance.
The fruit of the Spirit is a Person, His Name is Jesus.
And we, being in Jesus, being one with Him, have been delivered for all time and eternity from the tyranny of the Devil, Heidelberg Catechism question and answer # 1, Eph.5:30, I John 5:18.
Unto us a child is born…..HALLELUIAH !!!
Let us celebrate, celebrate Jesus!
Let all peoples and nations who rejoice in His appearing celebrate!
Let us celebrate for light is come, the light of LIFE in Christ Jesus the Lord!
May your Christmas season also be a season of celebration and blessing as we remember in a in a special way the birth of the Savior, Christ Jesus the Lord.
Simon VanderKooy,
St.Thomas,
Dec. 2007.
A NEW CREATION, THE BRIDE OF JESUS CHRIST.
November 7, 2007
……And the angel said : “Come with me and I will show you the Bride, the Lamb’s wife, Rev.21 : 9.
And what a beauty she is.
She is the creation of Almighty God, she is new, the old has passed away, ALL things have become new, II Cor. 5 : 17.
She is born, not of blood, nor of the will of the flesh, nor of the will of man, BUT OF GOD, John 1 ; 13.
She is a partaker of the divine, eternal nature of God, II Peter 1 : 4.
The Lord her God who dwells in her is mighty, He saved her, He rejoices over her with great joy, He rests in his love for her, for everything that needed doing to prepare her for her lofty, eternal calling has been accomplished in her and for her, Zeph. 3 : 17.
She is crucified with Christ, in his death is where she died and her former self, the old man has passed away, nevertheless she lives, and yet not she, it is Christ who lives in her and she now is a living partaker of that LIFE that is only to be found in Christ, Gal. 2 : 20.
She is a member of his body, of his flesh , and of his bones.
He is her head and her Savior.
He sanctified and cleansed her and presented her to himself not having any spot or wrinkle, she truly is holy and without blemish, Eph. 5 : 23, 27, 30.
The word of God calls her a chosen generation, a royal priesthood, a holy nation, a peculiar people, called into being to show the praises, the magnificence of Him who brought her out of darkness into his marvelous light, I Peter 2 : 9.
It is she in whom are manifested al the fruit of the Spirit, love, joy, peace, longsuffering, gentleness, goodness, faith, meekness and temperance, Gal. 5 : 22/23.
It is she who God himself took from among the heathen, he gathered her together from among all nations from all over the earth and brought her into her own land. A safe country, the Kingdom of God where the KING rules and the enemy of her soul has no jurisdiction.
He, the KING, sprinkled clean water upon her and cleansed her from all her filthiness and idolatry.
He, the KING, gave her a new heart and put a new spirit within her. He also took away the stony heart out of her flesh. She now has a heart of flesh.
On top of all that the King put his own Spirit within her who will cause her, (see to it) that she will walk in the ways of the Lord, to keep his commandments and do them.
He, the KING, also promised her that she would dwell safely in the land that he gave her, that she is HIS personal possession and that he will be forever faithful to be her God.,
Ez. 36 : 24 – 28.
He, the KING, has kept his promise that he would not always chide, or keep up his anger forever, or deal with her according to her sins, or even make her bear the consequences of her iniquities.
For as the heaven is high above the earth, so great is his mercy toward her.
Her transgressions, which were many has he removed from her as far as the east is from the west, Ps. 103 : 10 – 12.
Even the law of ordinances, which served to cause a heavy burden of guilt, even to condemn her, in any case was contrary to her, has been taken out of the way, having been nailed to his, Jesus’ cross, Col. 2 : 14.
So much so that to her Christ has become the end of the law for obtaining righteousness, for in that He fulfilled the law, Rom. 10 : 4.
Those ordinances, which were against her at one time , have now become his promises to her, in that he, the KING, has put his Spirit within her to cause her to walk in his ways, to keep his commandments and to do them.
Since she is born of God, she does not even commit sin; for the seed of God remains in her and she cannot sin, because she is born of God, I John 3 : 9.
This is one of the “better promises” of the New Covenant that replaced the Old or First Covenant, Hebr. 8 : 6.
The first Adam was also born of God. Luke 3 : 38 says that he was a son of God.
That Father/Son relationship was broken when he chose disobedience.
For the bride that is no longer possible.
She may at times, be out of fellowship, but that will not change the relationship.
(All this does not serve to propagate “sinless perfection “ on the part of the believer, while he/she passes through this life here on this earth. That however, is a different subject that needs to be discussed under a separate heading.)
She is also an overcomer, for in her death with her Lord she overcame the beast, his image, his mark, and the number of his name, Rev. 15 : 3.
This ugly mark, which signifies the power of the law of sin to which she was a slave, a beast that completely controlled her life. So much so that her very life depended on this allegiance.
This beastly nature caused her to be an independent, self-centered, self-indulgent person.
The old (self) has passed away, all things have become new, she now is a partaker, joint heir, of the divine nature, the very nature of the Lamb, II Cor. 5 : 17.
She now bears the name of the Lamb in her forehead, Rev. 22 : 4.
All the foregoing may seem utopian, the dreams of a fantastic dreamer who removed all boundaries from his imagination.
And when we allow ourselves to be guided by human wisdom, that which we observe with our own eyes, yes, then all this is truly out of this world.
And in all truthfulness, it certainly is out of this world, because it is not of this world.
The legal status of this young woman, who the Scriptures call “The Bride”, is no longer a citizen of this world, she is a citizen of a heavenly kingdom, the Kingdom of God.
She is in this present world, but she is no longer of this world, John 15 : 19.
She is also a present reality, defying human wisdom, which cannot grasp the things of the Spirit, for those realities are spiritually discerned, I Cor. 2 : 14.
“Beloved, NOW are we the sons of God, and it does not yet appear what we shall be;
(we have this treasure in earthen vessels, that the excellency of the power may be of God and not of us, II Cor. 4 : 7), but we know that when he shall appear, ( in us, as his instruments of mercy) we shall be like him, ( being a demonstration of His nature) and we shall observe Him as He is, II John 3 : 2”.
Most of us, if not all of us have at one time or another met such a human “angel”, someone who just personified the love and compassion of the Lord Jesus Christ.
…….And the Angel said: “Come, and I will show you the Bride, the Lamb’s wife…….”.
And how beautiful she is, altogether lovely.
She is Almighty God’s creation, with the purpose to display His majesty.
When she makes herself available to Him, as a living sacrifice, even in this present earthly existence, then we see a demonstration of her true, divine nature.
And by God’s choosing and grace I may count myself to be a living member of the Bride, the Lamb’s wife. And since that is so, I may in awe and wonderment accept that what the Word says about the Bride, I may also apply to myself.
When the Holy Spirit revealed the reality of these truths to me, it was like the dawning of a new and glorious day when the early rays of the sun are reflected a thousand times in the dew drops in the trees and bushes of a garden.
St. Thomas,
April 2007.
……And the angel said : “Come with me and I will show you the Bride, the Lamb’s wife, Rev.21 : 9.
And what a beauty she is.
She is the creation of Almighty God, she is new, the old has passed away, ALL things have become new, II Cor. 5 : 17.
She is born, not of blood, nor of the will of the flesh, nor of the will of man, BUT OF GOD, John 1 ; 13.
She is a partaker of the divine, eternal nature of God, II Peter 1 : 4.
The Lord her God who dwells in her is mighty, He saved her, He rejoices over her with great joy, He rests in his love for her, for everything that needed doing to prepare her for her lofty, eternal calling has been accomplished in her and for her, Zeph. 3 : 17.
She is crucified with Christ, in his death is where she died and her former self, the old man has passed away, nevertheless she lives, and yet not she, it is Christ who lives in her and she now is a living partaker of that LIFE that is only to be found in Christ, Gal. 2 : 20.
She is a member of his body, of his flesh , and of his bones.
He is her head and her Savior.
He sanctified and cleansed her and presented her to himself not having any spot or wrinkle, she truly is holy and without blemish, Eph. 5 : 23, 27, 30.
The word of God calls her a chosen generation, a royal priesthood, a holy nation, a peculiar people, called into being to show the praises, the magnificence of Him who brought her out of darkness into his marvelous light, I Peter 2 : 9.
It is she in whom are manifested al the fruit of the Spirit, love, joy, peace, longsuffering, gentleness, goodness, faith, meekness and temperance, Gal. 5 : 22/23.
It is she who God himself took from among the heathen, he gathered her together from among all nations from all over the earth and brought her into her own land. A safe country, the Kingdom of God where the KING rules and the enemy of her soul has no jurisdiction.
He, the KING, sprinkled clean water upon her and cleansed her from all her filthiness and idolatry.
He, the KING, gave her a new heart and put a new spirit within her. He also took away the stony heart out of her flesh. She now has a heart of flesh.
On top of all that the King put his own Spirit within her who will cause her, (see to it) that she will walk in the ways of the Lord, to keep his commandments and do them.
He, the KING, also promised her that she would dwell safely in the land that he gave her, that she is HIS personal possession and that he will be forever faithful to be her God.,
Ez. 36 : 24 – 28.
He, the KING, has kept his promise that he would not always chide, or keep up his anger forever, or deal with her according to her sins, or even make her bear the consequences of her iniquities.
For as the heaven is high above the earth, so great is his mercy toward her.
Her transgressions, which were many has he removed from her as far as the east is from the west, Ps. 103 : 10 – 12.
Even the law of ordinances, which served to cause a heavy burden of guilt, even to condemn her, in any case was contrary to her, has been taken out of the way, having been nailed to his, Jesus’ cross, Col. 2 : 14.
So much so that to her Christ has become the end of the law for obtaining righteousness, for in that He fulfilled the law, Rom. 10 : 4.
Those ordinances, which were against her at one time , have now become his promises to her, in that he, the KING, has put his Spirit within her to cause her to walk in his ways, to keep his commandments and to do them.
Since she is born of God, she does not even commit sin; for the seed of God remains in her and she cannot sin, because she is born of God, I John 3 : 9.
This is one of the “better promises” of the New Covenant that replaced the Old or First Covenant, Hebr. 8 : 6.
The first Adam was also born of God. Luke 3 : 38 says that he was a son of God.
That Father/Son relationship was broken when he chose disobedience.
For the bride that is no longer possible.
She may at times, be out of fellowship, but that will not change the relationship.
(All this does not serve to propagate “sinless perfection “ on the part of the believer, while he/she passes through this life here on this earth. That however, is a different subject that needs to be discussed under a separate heading.)
She is also an overcomer, for in her death with her Lord she overcame the beast, his image, his mark, and the number of his name, Rev. 15 : 3.
This ugly mark, which signifies the power of the law of sin to which she was a slave, a beast that completely controlled her life. So much so that her very life depended on this allegiance.
This beastly nature caused her to be an independent, self-centered, self-indulgent person.
The old (self) has passed away, all things have become new, she now is a partaker, joint heir, of the divine nature, the very nature of the Lamb, II Cor. 5 : 17.
She now bears the name of the Lamb in her forehead, Rev. 22 : 4.
All the foregoing may seem utopian, the dreams of a fantastic dreamer who removed all boundaries from his imagination.
And when we allow ourselves to be guided by human wisdom, that which we observe with our own eyes, yes, then all this is truly out of this world.
And in all truthfulness, it certainly is out of this world, because it is not of this world.
The legal status of this young woman, who the Scriptures call “The Bride”, is no longer a citizen of this world, she is a citizen of a heavenly kingdom, the Kingdom of God.
She is in this present world, but she is no longer of this world, John 15 : 19.
She is also a present reality, defying human wisdom, which cannot grasp the things of the Spirit, for those realities are spiritually discerned, I Cor. 2 : 14.
“Beloved, NOW are we the sons of God, and it does not yet appear what we shall be;
(we have this treasure in earthen vessels, that the excellency of the power may be of God and not of us, II Cor. 4 : 7), but we know that when he shall appear, ( in us, as his instruments of mercy) we shall be like him, ( being a demonstration of His nature) and we shall observe Him as He is, II John 3 : 2”.
Most of us, if not all of us have at one time or another met such a human “angel”, someone who just personified the love and compassion of the Lord Jesus Christ.
…….And the Angel said: “Come, and I will show you the Bride, the Lamb’s wife…….”.
And how beautiful she is, altogether lovely.
She is Almighty God’s creation, with the purpose to display His majesty.
When she makes herself available to Him, as a living sacrifice, even in this present earthly existence, then we see a demonstration of her true, divine nature.
And by God’s choosing and grace I may count myself to be a living member of the Bride, the Lamb’s wife. And since that is so, I may in awe and wonderment accept that what the Word says about the Bride, I may also apply to myself.
When the Holy Spirit revealed the reality of these truths to me, it was like the dawning of a new and glorious day when the early rays of the sun are reflected a thousand times in the dew drops in the trees and bushes of a garden.
St. Thomas,
April 2007.
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