Do this in remembrance of Me!

Do this in remembrance of Me!

In ecclesiastical circles, the Lord’s Supper is known as a sacrament, which is simply a religious rite or observance. As normal, what was meant for us as a why to remember Jesus’ sacrifice has become a nearly meaningless ritual. We have institutionalized it, codified it and organized the life right out of it. When Jesus sat with His twelve disciples on the night of that last supper, His heart was heavy. He knew what was in store for Himself but He also knew what was in store for those seated with Him.

One would betray Him with a kiss, and then, finding himself deceived, commit suicide. One would vow undying allegiance only to find his pride, his bravado and his fealty shattered before the next sunrise. One would see himself losing a brother but gaining a mother. Another who wallow in doubt and sorrow. All would have their world shattered, their very purpose for living questioned and their hope lost.

But Jesus wanted them to remember so He took an event that they were well acquainted with – the Passover – and told them to remember.

When the hour came, Jesus and his apostles reclined at the table. And he said to them, "I have eagerly desired to eat this Passover with you before I suffer. For I tell you, I will not eat it again until it finds fulfillment in the kingdom of God."

After taking the cup, he gave thanks and said, "Take this and divide it among you. For I tell you I will not drink again of the fruit of the vine until the kingdom of God comes."

And he took bread, gave thanks and broke it, and gave it to them, saying, "This is my body given for you; do this in remembrance of me."

In the same way, after the supper he took the cup, saying, "This cup is the new covenant in my blood, which is poured out for you. Luke 22:14-21 NIV

For Jesus, this was not a religious activity nor was He establishing a sacrament. He was with His friends. He knew that He and they were about to embark on a very difficult and deadly journey and He wanted them to remember.

Even the Passover was established to help the Jews remember – to remember God’s salvation from Death and their deliverance from slavery. It is good to remember.

So it is today that we, in the United States, remember. We remember those who fought to allow us to live in freedom. We remember those who gave so that we might be safe and secure. We remember those who died in our place so that we would not be slaves to any tyrants.

What follows is an outtake from the movie “A Few Good Men”. Pay particular attention to Colonel Jessp’s (played by Jack Nicholson) monologue.

Colonel Nathan Jessep on the Standwritten by Aaron Sorkin

Jessep: You want answers?
Kaffee (Tom Cruise): I think I'm entitled to them.
Jessep: You want answers?
Kaffee: I want the truth!
Jessep: You can't handle the truth! Son, we live in a world that has walls. And those walls have to be guarded by men with guns. Who's gonna do it? You? You, Lt. Weinberg? I have a greater responsibility than you can possibly fathom. You weep for Santiago and you curse the Marines. You have that luxury. You have the luxury of not knowing what I know: that Santiago's death, while tragic, probably saved lives. And my existence, while grotesque and incomprehensible to you, saves lives...You don't want the truth. Because deep down, in places you don't talk about at parties, you want me on that wall. You need me on that wall.We use words like honor, code, loyalty...we use these words as the backbone to a life spent defending something. You use 'em as a punch line. I have neither the time nor the inclination to explain myself to a man who rises and sleeps under the blanket of the very freedom I provide, then questions the manner in which I provide it! I'd rather you just said thank you and went on your way. Otherwise, I suggest you pick up a weapon and stand a post. Either way, I don't give a damn what you think you're entitled to!


There are many who protest the war in Iraq as others did Vietnam. But they forget that those very military actions are what preserve their right to protest and live. War is not pretty and until Jesus comes back to establish His 1,000 year reign, it is going to get worse not better.

And yet, we must remember!

Living near Yuma, AZ, I have many opportunities to encounter men and women serving in the armed forces. I have met a number of Marines who have served in Iraq or Afghanistan because of the Marine Air Station located in Yuma. We also have the Yuma Proving Ground, home of the Army and their Golden Knights parachute squad. About an hour away, there is a Naval Air Station which happens to be the winter home for the Blue Angels. We routinely see Harriers flying over head. All this is say, that I take every chance I get to meet those serving in the military to say “Thank you”. We have families in our home school group whose dads are currently overseas. I tell the families left behind how much we appreciate their sacrifice.

Do this in remember of Me!

It is good to remember and even better to say thanks!

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Leave a comment!

Just wanted to let you know that you can leave a comment on a particular posting which I and others can read.

At the bottom right, after each post, is the word "comments". Just click on that word and it will allow you to type in anything you might like to say.

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The harvest is ripe but the laborers are few! 

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Wheat ready for harvest - Yuma, AZ 

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Breaking up the Fallow Ground

What follows is what I believe to be one of the most challenging and life changing sermons of modern history. I can never read it all in one sitting because of how the Holy Spirit works me over. I encourage you cry out as David did,

Search me, O God, and know my heart;
test me and know my anxious thoughts.
See if there is any offensive way in me,
and lead me in the way everlasting.
Ps 139:23-24 NIV

BREAKING UP THE FALLOW GROUND:
An Outline For Repentance From Chapter 3 of "Revival Lectures" by Charles G. Finney; edited and paraphrased by Keith and Melody Green

This is for Christians who have had trouble finding the true peace that is promised with conversion. For those who are frustrated because they are constantly struggling with weakness and sin, this could well be the very help they've been praying for. Charles Finney saw more true conversions in his life and ministry than any other American before or since. We thank God for continuing to anoint and use his writings. Many thousands have been helped by this article to break through to God's precious forgiveness. Remember one thing as you read this - God loves you so much, and is waiting for you to be thoroughly cleansed by His grace through repentance. - Keith and Melody Green

The Jews were a nation of farmers, and it is therefore a common thing for God to refer, in the Scriptures, to scenes from their daily lives as illustrations. Hosea addresses them as a nation of backsliders, but uses words that farmers and shepherds are familiar with. He rebukes them for their idolatry and sharply warns them of the impending judgments of God.
A revival consists of two parts: its effect on the Church, and its effect on the ungodly. I will speak at this time of a revival in the Church. Fallow ground is ground which has once been tilled, but now it lies waste and has gotten hard. It needs to be broken up and made soft again, before it is ready to receive seed.
If you mean to break up the fallow ground of your heart, you must begin by looking at your heart: examine carefully the state of your mind and see where you are. Many people never even seem to think about doing this! They pay no attention to their own hearts, and never know whether they are doing well in their walk with the Lord or not; whether they are gaining ground or going backwards; whether they are bearing fruit or are totally barren. Now you must draw off your attention from all other things and look into this right now! Make a business of it, do not be in a hurry. Examine the state of your heart thoroughly, and see where you are: are you walking with God everyday, or with the Devil?
Self-examination consists of looking at your life, considering your motives and actions...calling up your past and seeing its true character. Look back over your past history. Take up your individual sins one by one, and look at them. This doesn't mean that you should just take a casual glance at your past life, and see that it has been full of sins and then go to God and make a sort of general confession, asking forgiveness. This is not the way. You must take them up one by one. It's a good idea to take a pen and some paper as you go over them, and write them down as they come to mind.
Go over them as carefully as a businessman goes over his books; and as often as a sin comes to your memory, write it down! General confessions of sin are not good enough. Your sins were committed one by one; and as much as you are able, they ought to be reviewed and repented of one by one. Now begin, and start with what are usually, but improperly called 'sins of omission' (i.e. things you didn't do that you should have).

Sins of Omission

INGRATITUDE (unthankfulness). Take this sin, for example, and write down under this heading all the times you can remember where you have received great blessings and favors from God for which you have never given thanks. How many cases can you remember? Some remarkable protection where your life was spared, some wonderful turn of events that saved you from ruin. Write down the instances of God's goodness to you when you were living in sin, before your conversion, for which you have never been half-thankful enough; and the uncountable mercies you have received since. How long the list of times where your ingratitude has been so black that you are forced to hide your face in shame! Get on your knees and confess them one by one to God, and ask Him to forgive you. As you're confessing these, they will immediately remind you of others...write these down too! Go over them three of four times in this way, and see what an incredible number of times God has given you mercy for which you have never thanked Him!

LACK OF LOVE FOR GOD. Think how grieved and alarmed you'd be, if you suddenly realized a great lack of affection for you in your wife, husband, or children; if you saw that someone else had captured their hearts, thoughts and time. Perhaps in such a case you would almost die with a just and holy jealousy. Now, God calls Himself a jealous God. Have you not given your heart to other loves and infinitely offended Him?

NEGLECT OF THE BIBLE. Put down the cases where for perhaps weeks, or longer, God's word was not a pleasure. Some people, indeed, read over whole chapters in such a way, that afterwards they could not tell you what they had been reading. If that is so with you, no wonder your life has no direction, and your religion (relationship with God), is such a miserable failure.

UNBELIEF. Recall the instances in which you have virtually charged the God of truth with lying, by your unbelief of His express promises and declarations. If you have not believed or expected to receive the blessings which God has clearly promised, you have called Him a liar.

LACK OF PRAYER. Think of all the times you have neglected private- prayer, family-prayer and group-prayer meetings; or prayed in such a way as to grieve and offend God more, than if you hadn't prayed at all.

NEGLECT OF FELLOWSHIP. When you have allowed yourself to make small, and foolish excuses that have prevented you from attending meetings. When you have neglected and poured contempt upon the gathering of the saints merely because you "didn't like church!"

THE MANNER IN WHICH YOU HAVE PERFORMED SPIRITUAL DUTIES. Think of all the times when you have spoken about God with such lack of feeling and faith, in such a worldly frame of mind, that your words were nothing more than the mere chattering of a wretch who didn't deserve that God should listen to him at all. When you have fallen down upon your knees and "said your prayers" in such an unfeeling and careless way, that if you had been put under oath five minutes later, you could not say what you had been praying for.

LACK OF LOVE FOR SOULS. Look around at all your friends and relatives, and think of how little compassion you have felt for them. You have stood by and seen them going straight to hell, and it seems as though you didn't even care. How many days have there been, when you have failed to make their wretched condition the subject of even one single fervent prayer, or to prove any real desire for their salvation?

LACK OF CARE FOR THE POOR AND LOST IN FOREIGN LANDS. Perhaps you have not cared enough about them to even attempt to learn of their condition. Do you avoid missions-magazines? How much do you really know or care about the unconverted masses of the world? Measure your desire for their salvation by the self-denial you practice, in giving from your substance to send them the gospel. Do you deny yourself even the hurtful expenses of life, such as tobacco, alcohol, expensive food, clothes, and entertainment? Do you defend your standard of living? Will you not suffer yourself ANY inconvenience to save them? Do you daily pray for them in private? Are you setting aside funds to put into the treasury of the Lord when you go up to pray? If you are not doing these things, and if your soul is not agonized for the poor and lost of this world, then why are you such a hypocrite as to pretend to be a Christian? Why, your profession of faith is an insult to Jesus Christ!

NEGLECT OF FAMILY DUTIES. Think of how you have lived before your family, how you have prayed, what an example you have set before them. What direct efforts do you habitually make for their spiritual welfare?

LACK OF WATCHFULNESS OVER YOUR WITNESS. How many times have you failed to take your words and actions seriously? How often have you entirely neglected to watch your conduct and speech, and having been off your guard, have sinned before the world, the church, and before God!

NEGLECT TO WATCH OVER YOUR BRETHREN. How often have you broken your covenant, that you would watch over them in the Lord? How little do you know or care about the state of their souls? And yet you are under a solemn duty to watch over them. What have you done to get to know them better? How many times have you seen your brothers or sisters growing cold in faith and have not spoken to them about it...neglecting one spiritual duty after another, and you did not reprove them in love? You have seen them falling into sin, and you let them go on. And you pretend to love them? What a hypocrite! Would you watch your wife or child going into disgrace, or falling into a fire, and hold your peace?

NEGLECT OF SELF-DENIAL. There are many professing Christians who are willing to do almost anything in religion that does not require self- denial. They think they are doing a great deal for God, and doing about as much as He ought to reasonably ask, but they are not willing to deny themselves any comfort or convenience whatever for the sake of serving the Lord. They will not willingly suffer reproach for the name of Christ. Nor will they deny themselves the luxuries of life to save a world from hell. So far are they from realizing that self- denial is a condition of discipleship, that they do not even know what it is. They never have really denied themselves a ribbon or a pin for Christ and the gospel. Oh, how soon ones such as these will be in hell! Some are giving from their abundance, and giving a lot, and will even complain that others do not give more; when, in truth, they are not giving anything that they need, or anything that they would enjoy if they kept it. They only give of their surplus wealth!


Sins of Commission

LOVE OF THINGS AND POSSESSIONS. What has been the state of your heart concerning your worldly possessions? Have you looked at them as really yours - as if you had a right to use, or dispose of them as your own? If you have, write it down! If you have loved property, and sought after it for its own sake, or to gratify ambition or to lay it up for your family, you have sinned and must repent.

VANITY. How many times have you spent more time decorating your body to go to church than you have in preparing your heart and mind for the worship of God? You have cared more about how you appeared outwardly to men than how your soul appeared in the sight of God. You sought to divide the worship of God's house, to draw off the attention of God's people, to look at your pretty appearance. And you pretend that you do not care anything about having people look at you. Be honest about it! Would you take all this pain about your looks if every person were blind?

ENVY. Look at the cases in which you were jealous of those who were in a higher position than you. Or perhaps you have envied those who have been more talented, or more useful than yourself. Have you not so envied some, that it has caused you pain to hear them praised? It has pleased you more to dwell upon their faults than upon their virtues...upon their failures rather than their successes. Be honest with yourself, and if you have harbored this spirit of hell, repent deeply before God.

BITTERNESS. Recall all the instances in which you have harbored a grudge, or a bitter spirit toward someone, or have spoken of Christians in a manner completely devoid of charity and love. Love "hopes all things", but you have given no benefit of doubt, and have suspected the worst!

SLANDER (gossip). Think of all the times you have spoken behind people's backs of their faults, real or supposes, unnecessarily and without cause. This is slander. You need not lie to be guilty of slander; to tell the truth with the intent to injure is slander.

LEVITY (a spirit of excessive humor). How often have you joked before God, as you would not have dared in the presence of an earthly dignitary or important official. You have either been an atheist and forgotten that God existed, or have had less respect for Him and His presence, than you would have had for a mere judge on earth.

LYING. Now understand what lying is. Any form of designed deception is lying. If you purpose to make an impression other than the naked truth, you lie. Put down all those cases you can recollect. Do not call them by any soft names. God calls them lies and charges you with lying, so you'd better charge yourself correctly! Think of all your words, looks, and actions designed to make an impression on others contrary to the truth, for selfish reasons.

CHEATING. Set down all the cases where you have dealt with anyone in a way you, yourself would not like at all. That is cheating. God has said that we should treat all men in the same manner we would like to be treated. That is the rule. And if you have not done so you are a cheat! God did not say that you should do what you would expect them to do, for if that were the rule it would allow for all kinds of wickedness in our actions. But it says, "Do what you would want them to do to you! (Have you cheated the government? i.e., unemployment insurance, welfare, food stamps, social security, student loans, etc...gained by fraud?)

HYPOCRISY. For instance, in your prayers and confessions to God, set down all the times in which you have prayed for things you didn't really want. How many times have you confessed sins that you never intended to stop doing? Yes, you have confessed sins when you knew in your heart you as much expected to go and repeat them, as you expected to live!

ROBBING GOD. Think of all the instances in which you have totally misspent your time, squandering the hours which God gave you to serve Him, and save souls. Precious time wasted in vain amusement or worthless conversation, in reading worldly novels, or even doing nothing; cases where you have misused your talents and ability to think. Think of how you have squandered God's money on your lusts, or spent it for things which you really didn't need, which did not contribute to your health, comfort, or usefulness.

BAD TEMPER. Perhaps you have abused your wife, or your children, or your family, or employees, or neighbors. Write it all down!

HINDERING OTHERS FROM BEING USEFUL. You have not only robbed God of your own talents, but tied the hands of somebody else. What a wicked servant is he who not only is useless himself, but hinders the rest! This is done sometimes by taking their time needlessly. Thus you have played into the hands of Satan, and not only proved yourself to be an idle vagabond, but prevented others from working also.

SOME IMPORTANT GUIDELINES TO FOLLOW

If you find you have committed a fault against anyone, and that person is within your reach, go and confess it immediately, and get that out of the way. If they are too far away for you to go and see them, sit down and write them a letter (or better yet call them) confessing the injury you have committed against them. If you have defrauded anybody, send the money, the full amount and the interest.
Go thoroughly to work in all this! Go now! Do not put it off; that will only make matters worse. Confess to God those sins that have been committed against God, and to man, those sins that have been committed against man. Do not think about getting off easy by going around the stumbling-blocks. Take them up out of the way. In breaking up your fallow ground, you must remove every obstacle. Things may be left that you may think are little things, and you may wonder why you don't have your peace with God, when the reason is your proud and carnal mind has covered up something which God has required you to confess and remove. Break up all the ground and turn it over. Do not turn aside for little difficulties; drive the plow right through them, beam deep, and turn the ground up so that it all may be mellow and soft, and fit to receive the grain and bear fruit, "a hundredfold".
When you have gone thoroughly over your whole history in this way, if you will then go over the ground a second time, you will find that the things you have put down will suggest other things of which you have been guilty, connected with them, or near them. Then go over it a third time, and you will recollect other things connected with these. And you will find when you are finished that you can remember an amount of history in specific detail, that you did not think that you could remember even if you had all eternity.
Unless you take up your sins in this way, and consider them in detail, one by one, you can form no idea of the amount or weight of them. You should go over the list as thoroughly, and as carefully, and as solemnly, as if you were preparing yourself for the judgment (1Corinthians 11:31).
As you go over the catalogue of your sins, be sure to resolve upon immediate and entire reformation. Wherever you find anything wrong, resolve at once in the strength of God to sin no more in that way. It will be of no benefit to examine yourself, unless you determine to change, in every aspect, that which you find wrong in heart, temper, or conduct.
Set yourself to the work now; resolve that you will never stop until you find you can pray. Let there be this deep work of repentance and full confession, this breaking down before God, and you will have as much of the spirit of prayer as your body can bear. The reason why so few Christians know anything about the spirit of prayer is because they never would take the pains to examine themselves properly, and so they've never known what it is to have their hearts all broken up in this way.
It will do no good to preach to you while your hearts are in this hardened, waste, and fallow state. The farmer might just as well sow his grain upon concrete; it will bring forth no fruit. This is why there are so many fruitless professing Christians in the Church, and why there is so much technique and tradition, and so little sincere feeling. Look at the Sunday-school for instance and see how many programs and trappings there are, and how little of the power of Godliness. If you go on like this, the work of God will continue to harden you, and you will grow worse and worse, just as the rain and snow on an old fallow field make the turf thicker and the clods stronger.
Professing Christians should never satisfy themselves or expect a revival just by getting all excited, blustering about, and talking to sinners. They must get their fallow ground broken up. You may get into an excitement without this breaking up; you may show a kind of zeal, but it will not last long. It will not take hold of sinners, unless your hearts are broken up. The reason is, that you go about mechanically, without the Spirit, having not broken up your fallow ground. And now, finally, will you break up your fallow ground? Will you enter upon the course now pointed out and persevere until you are thoroughly awake? If you fail here, if you do not do this, and get prepared, you can go no farther with me. I have gone with you as far as I can, until your fallow ground is broken up. Now, you must make thorough work upon this point or all I have further to say will do you little good. No, rather it will only harden, and make you worse. If you do not set about this work immediately, I shall take it for granted that you do not want to be revived. If you do not do this, I charge you with having forsaken Christ, with refusing to repent and do your first works (Revelation 2:5)!

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A Prepared Bride 9 - Loving God Emotionally

On one occasion an expert in the law stood up to test Jesus. "Teacher," he asked, "what must I do to inherit eternal life?"

"What is written in the Law?" he replied. "How do you read it?"

He answered: "'Love the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your strength and with all your mind'; and, 'Love your neighbor as yourself.'"

"You have answered correctly," Jesus replied. "Do this and you will live."
Luke 10:25-28 NIV

What is the significance of loving God with all of our soul?

Though there are many definitions and descriptions of the soul, the one that I would like to focus on is the soul as the seat of our emotions, that place from which our emotions flow.

As teenagers, we were told to not get emotionally involved with the people we were dating. That is like telling the ocean to stay away from the beach! Not so much any more but for a long time men were taught that to show emotion, except at a football game, was less than manly. Church pews are filled with people who cannot, will not or may not show emotion during worship. If any one breaks down crying or breaks out in laughter, they are ushered out of the service or at the very least looked upon with distain. God forbid that we demonstrate the same level of emotion during worship as we do for the latest episode of “Extreme Makeover: Home Edition”. As Mr. T would say, “I pity the fool" who would actually show the same fervor for God that we show for our local professional sports teams.

Scripture, however, paints for us a very different picture.

Israel had an emotionally response when the Egyptians were defeated in the Red Sea.

When Pharaoh's horses, chariots and horsemen went into the sea, the LORD brought the waters of the sea back over them, but the Israelites walked through the sea on dry ground. Then Miriam the prophetess, Aaron's sister, took a tambourine in her hand, and all the women followed her, with tambourines and dancing. Miriam sang to them:

"Sing to the LORD,
for he is highly exalted.
The horse and its rider
he has hurled into the sea."
Ex 15:19-21 NIV

There was some singing and shouting and dancing about!
David got a little emotional when the Ark of the Covenant returned to Jerusalem.

As the ark of the LORD was entering the City of David, Michal daughter of Saul watched from a window. And when she saw King David leaping and dancing before the LORD, she despised him in her heart. 2 Sam 6:16 NIV

Michal paid a price for her criticism of David’s joy. She became barren.

The references in which we are commanded to shout to God are to numerous to list but here are just a few.

Clap your hands, all you nations;
shout to God with cries of joy.
Ps 47:1 NIV

Come, let us sing for joy to the LORD;
let us shout aloud to the Rock of our salvation.
Let us come before him with thanksgiving
and extol him with music and song.
Ps 95:1-2 NIV

Shout for joy to the LORD, all the earth.
Worship the LORD with gladness;
come before him with joyful songs.
Ps 100:1-2 NIV

David writes in Psalm 150 that we are to praise God with all sorts of instruments and dancing. The prophet Zephaniah proclaimed,

The LORD your God is with you,
he is mighty to save.
He will take great delight in you,
he will quiet you with his love,
he will rejoice over you with singing."
Zeph 3:17 NIV

The phrase “he will rejoice” in the Hebrew is:

giyl (gheel); or (by permutation) guwl (gool); a primitive root; properly, to spin round (under the influence of any violent emotion), i.e. usually rejoice...:*

God spins around with violent emotion over you with singing!

Other passages in the Old Testament that use this same word include:

Serve the LORD with fear and rejoice with trembling. Ps 2:11 NIV

Rejoice in the LORD and be glad, you righteous;
sing, all you who are upright in heart! Ps 33:1 NIV

This is the day the LORD has made; let us rejoice and be glad in it. Ps 118:24 NIV

Paul exhorts us to:
Rejoice in the Lord always. I will say it again: Rejoice! Phil 4:4 NIV

But then he also encourages us to:
Rejoice with those who rejoice; mourn with those who mourn. Rom 12:15-16 NIV

In Ecclesiastes, we are told that there is a time for everything and a season for every activity under the sun including “a time to weep and a time to laugh, a time to mourn and a time to dance…” Eccl 3:4 NIV

Jesus said, “Blessed are you who weep now, for you will laugh.” Luke 6:21 NIV

Paul spoke of the anguish of his soul over his lost countrymen.
“I speak the truth in Christ-I am not lying, my conscience confirms it in the Holy Spirit- I have great sorrow and unceasing anguish in my heart. For I could wish that I myself were cursed and cut off from Christ for the sake of my brothers, those of my own race, the people of Israel. Rom 9:1-4 NIV

David also wrote of sorrow and weeping.
“…weeping may endure for a night, but joy cometh in the morning.” Ps 30:5KJV

We find the full gambit of human emotions expressed in our relationship with God. He, too, reciprocates those emotions because He created them. There will be sorrow – godly sorrow that leads the repentance.

Godly sorrow brings repentance that leads to salvation and leaves no regret, but worldly sorrow brings death. 2 Cor 7:10 NIV

But there will also be great joy, jubilation, shouting and singing and dancing about. We need to get the practice in here because once we stand with the host of heaven, there is going to be a great sound, as the rushing of many waters, to declare His glory!

After this I heard what sounded like the roar of a great multitude in heaven shouting:

"Hallelujah!
Salvation and glory and power belong to our God…”
Rev 19:1 NIV


*(Biblesoft's New Exhaustive Strong's Numbers and Concordance with Expanded Greek-Hebrew Dictionary. Copyright (c) 1994, Biblesoft and International Bible Translators, Inc.)

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A Prepared Bride 8 – Loving God Intellectually

Loving God intellectually!

Almost all of us have gone to camp at one time or another and sung that old favorite,

“I have decided to follow Jesus,
I have decided to follow Jesus,
I have decided to follow Jesus;
No turning back,
No turning back.”

Joshua confronted the ever wavering Israelites by issuing this challenge in Josh 24:14-15,

"Now fear the LORD and serve him with all faithfulness. Throw away the gods your forefathers worshiped beyond the River and in Egypt, and serve the LORD. But if serving the LORD seems undesirable to you, then choose for yourselves this day whom you will serve, whether the gods your forefathers served beyond the River, or the gods of the Amorites, in whose land you are living. But as for me and my household, we will serve the LORD." NIV

Serving God is a matter of choice. We must choose to love God. It does not come naturally. The kinds of things that come naturally are listed by Paul.

The acts of the sinful nature are obvious: sexual immorality (adultery and fornication), impurity (sensuality, malice and excess) and debauchery (unrestrained shamelessness); idolatry (the giving to any human desire a precedence over God's will*) and witchcraft (sorcery, use of drugs or manipulation); hatred (hostility, enmity, the opposite of love), discord (quarreling, contention, strife), jealousy (envy, indignation), fits of rage (fierce wrath, uncontrolled anger), selfish ambition (looking out for number 1 at the cost of all else), dissensions (to stir up to sedition and rebellion), factions (a self-willed opinion that leads to division and the formation of sects**) and envy (the feeling of displeasure produced by witnessing or hearing of the advantage or prosperity of others**); drunkenness (alcoholism, habitual intoxication), orgies (uncontrolled behavior resulting from drunkenness, riots), and the like. I warn you, as I did before, that those who live like this will not inherit the kingdom of God. Gal 5:19-21 NIV

I did not have to teach my children to lie. They knew how to do that instinctively. I have to teach my children to speak the truth. Why do laws exist? Because without rules, without boundaries, we would have anarchy – an absence of government, a state of lawlessness and disorder. Laws exist to keep human nature in check. Left unchecked, human beings will inevitably return to the description Paul gave us above. No matter how cute and cuddly that little baby may seem, it is a sinner with a rebellious heart and unregenerate spirit who must one day, like all of us, decide to follow Jesus.

However, it is not just a one time thing. Granted, we receive forgiveness and eternal life when we choose to accept Jesus as our Lord and Savior, but we must decide each day and many times during each day to follow His will.

Paul exhorts us.

Therefore, my dear friends, as you have always obeyed-not only in my presence, but now much more in my absence-continue to work out your salvation with fear and trembling, for it is God who works in you to will and to act according to his good purpose.
Phil 2:12-13 NIV

Our salvation is not based on works but it does need to be worked out into our daily lives.

Jesus told HIs discipled, "If anyone would come after me, he must deny himself and take up his cross daily and follow me. Luke 9:23 NIV

And the writer of Hebrews reminds us.

See to it, brothers, that none of you has a sinful, unbelieving heart that turns away from the living God. But encourage one another daily, as long as it is called Today, so that none of you may be hardened by sin's deceitfulness. We have come to share in Christ if we hold firmly till the end the confidence we had at first. As has just been said:

"Today, if you hear his voice,
do not harden your hearts
as you did in the rebellion."
Heb 3:12-15 NIV

We will encounter crossroads many times where we must decide whether we will follow Jesus or not. We must choose to do what is right. We must obey His Word and choose not to be angry or vengeful. We must decide not to wallow in self-pity. We choose not to gossip about a neighbor.

In each of these situations, we are loving God intellectually. We are worshipping Him with our minds. We are maintaining that wall which keeps strife, dissension, fear (which is the opposite of faith) and chaos at bay.

Again, as Joshua challenged the Israelites,

Choose you, this day, whom you will serve!

As for me and my house, we will serve the Lord!

*from International Standard Bible Encyclopaedia, Electronic Database Copyright (c)1996 by Biblesoft
** from Vine's Expository Dictionary of Biblical Words, Copyright (c)1985, Thomas Nelson Publishers

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A Prepared Bride 7 – Loving God Spiritually

Loving God Spiritually

The first wall in our lives that needs maintained and often repaired is that of worship – the action and attitude of devotion to our God. As we have seen in Matt 22, Jesus instructs us that the first is greatest commandment is to love God with all of our hearts, minds, souls and, from Deuteronomy, strength.

For the sake of our discussion, I want to concentrate on one of the interpretation of heart from Scripture – the spirit.

Our God and Father is not looking for automatons or robots who will spew out endless repetitions but for a people who will worship Him in Spirit and in Truth.

Jesus had an encounter with a woman from Samaria. During His discussion with her, Jesus states,

"Believe me, woman, a time is coming when you will worship the Father neither on this mountain nor in Jerusalem. You Samaritans worship what you do not know; we worship what we do know, for salvation is from the Jews. Yet a time is coming and has now come when the true worshipers will worship the Father in spirit and truth, for they are the kind of worshipers the Father seeks. God is spirit, and his worshipers must worship in spirit and in truth." John 4:21-24 NIV

Jesus tells us here that the Father is seeking, looking for, and awaiting those who will give themselves freely and openly to loving Him without hesitation or restraint. However, unlike other religions, God seeks a relationship with those who worship him. He wants there to be an exchange – our death for His life.

Another encounter Jesus had illustrates the need for this relationship.

Now there was a man of the Pharisees named Nicodemus, a member of the Jewish ruling council. He came to Jesus at night and said, "Rabbi, we know you are a teacher who has come from God. For no one could perform the miraculous signs you are doing if God were not with him."

In reply Jesus declared, "I tell you the truth, no one can see the kingdom of God unless he is born again."

"How can a man be born when he is old?" Nicodemus asked. "Surely he cannot enter a second time into his mother's womb to be born!"

Jesus answered, "I tell you the truth, no one can enter the kingdom of God unless he is born of water and the Spirit. Flesh gives birth to flesh, but the Spirit gives birth to spirit. You should not be surprised at my saying, 'You must be born again.' The wind blows wherever it pleases. You hear its sound, but you cannot tell where it comes from or where it is going. So it is with everyone born of the Spirit." John 3:1-8 NIV

In order to have a relationship with God, you must be born into His family, i.e. born again, born of the Spirit. As Jesus said to the woman at the well, “God is spirit, and his worshipers must worship in spirit and in truth.” We must be of the same Spirit. Jesus told Nicodemus, “the Spirit gives birth to spirit.”


To be born of water is to be born naturally – the fluid in which we float for those months in our mothers’ womb. To be born again or born of the Spirit is to have eternal life breathed into out dead spirits. As one fellow put it, “Jesus did not die to make bad people good. He died to make dead people live.”

But because of his great love for us, God, who is rich in mercy, made us alive with Christ even when we were dead in transgressions-it is by grace you have been saved. Eph 2:4-5
NIV

Outside of Christ, we are dead – eternally dead. That is what hell and the lake of fire are all about – eternal, never ending, unrelenting death. There are many who believe that hell is the absence of the presence of God, that it is a place where God isn’t and that is what makes it so terrible. How can this be? Is God omnipresent or not? Is He everywhere present at all times or is there is little niche where He isn’t that we call hell?

David wrote in Psalm 139, verse 8,

Where can I go from your Spirit?
Where can I flee from your presence?
If I go up to the heavens, you are there;
if I make my bed in the depths, you are there. NIV

The Hebrew word translated “depths” is Sheol. It is the place of the dead which we would translate as hell.

Among the teachings we receive in Bible College or Seminary is those which demonstrate the nature and character of God. We use such words as immutable (unchanging), omniscient (all-knowing) and omnipresent (everywhere present simultaneously). If God cannot change and He is everywhere then hell is not the absence of God but the presence of God without mercy!

Therefore, to avoid the judgment of God and enjoy the mercy of God in His presence, we must enter into a relationship with Him. This is a relationship that He himself initiated.

Therefore, if anyone is in Christ, he is a new creation; the old has gone, the new has come! All this is from God, who reconciled us to himself through Christ and gave us the ministry of reconciliation: that God was reconciling the world to himself in Christ, not counting men's sins against them. And he has committed to us the message of reconciliation. We are therefore Christ's ambassadors, as though God were making his appeal through us. We implore you on Christ's behalf: Be reconciled to God. God made him who had no sin to be sin for us, so that in him we might become the righteousness of God. 2 Cor. 5:17-21 NIV

Our sin separates us from God. He chose to die on our behalf so that we could be reconciled, reconnected, reinitiating our relationship with our Heavenly Father. He wants to have a relationship with us. He is looking for those who will worship Him in spirit and in truth.


Yet the LORD longs to be gracious to you;
he rises to show you compassion.
For the LORD is a God of justice.
Blessed are all who wait for him!
Isa 30:18 NIV

Though our God is a just and righteous God, He looks for opportunities to be merciful. We just need to obey. We need to be faithful. We need to accept Jesus as the Christ, as our Lord and our Savior. We must recognize our sin – our disobedience, our rebellion. We must repent – turn away from our sin and turn to God. We must embrace His death as our only way to eternal life. Then we can enter into a relationship with the God of all creation, He who created us from the beginning, and worship Him – heart to heart!

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A Prepared Bride 6 – Worship Introduction Part 2

Love the LORD your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your strength. Deut 6:5-6 NIV

Matthew records that the Pharisees, the religious leaders of the day (i.e. equivalent to the district superintendents, presbytery and pastors of our day) were trying to find some reason, some flaw, and some heresy with which they could entrap Jesus and thereby remove him from the public eye. So one of the, an expert in the law, (i.e. a lawyer or church counsel) asked Jesus a question.

“Teacher, which is the greatest commandment in the Law?”

Jesus replied: "'Love the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your mind.' This is the first and greatest commandment.” Matt 22:36-39 NIV

Jesus is here reciting an oft quoted passage from Deuteronomy. These words form the beginning of what is termed the "Shema" ("Hear") in the Jewish Services, and belong to the daily morning and evening office. They may be called "the creed of the Jews.”
(from Barnes' Notes, Electronic Database. Copyright (c) 1997 by Biblesoft)

From our perspective, this greatest commandment and its source in Deuteronomy challenge us in the way in which we are to love our God and therefore how we are to demonstrate that love which we call worship.

For today, I will simply list them.

We are to love the Lord our God,

1. with all our heart – spiritually
2. with all of our soul – emotionally
3. with all of our mind – intellectually
4. with all of our strength – actively

I leave you to think on these until I can address each one in greater detail.

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A Mission Board Replies to Paul's Application

Were the Apostle Paul to apply for acceptance by a mission board, this just might be the type of response he would receive.

Rev. Saul Paul
Independent Missionary
Corinth, Greece

Dear Mr. Paul,

We recently received an application from you for service under our Board.
It is our policy to be as frank and open-minded as possible with all our applicants. We have made an exhaustive survey of your case. To be plain, we are surprised that you have been able to "pass" as a bonafide missionary.

We are told that you are afflicted with a severe eye-trouble. This is certain to be an insuperable handicap to an effective ministry. Our Board requires 20/20 vision. At Antioch, we learn, you opposed Dr. Simon Peter, an esteemed home missionary and actually rebuked him publicly. You stirred up so much trouble at Antioch that a special Board meeting had to be convened in Jerusalem. We cannot condone such actions.

Do you think it seemly for a missionary to do part-time secular work? We hear that you are making tents on the side. In a letter to the church at Phillipi, you admitted that they were the only church supporting you. We wonder why.

Is it true that you have a jail record? Certain brethren report that you did two years time at Caesarea and were imprisoned at Rome.

You made so much trouble for the business men at Ephesus that they refer to you as "the man who turned the world upside down." Sensationalism, in missions, is uncalled for. We also deplore the lurid "over-the-wall-in-a-basket" episode at Damascus.

We are appalled at your obvious lack of conciliatory behavior. Diplomatic men are not stoned and dragged out of the city gates, or assaulted by furious mobs. Have you ever suspected that gentler words might gain you more friends? I enclose a copy of Dalius Carnagus' book, "How To Win Jews and influence Greeks."

In one of your letters, you refer to yourself as "Paul the aged." Our new mission policies do not envisage a surplus of superannuated recipients.

We understand that you are given to fantasies and dreams. At Troas, you saw "a man of Macedonia" and at another time "were caught up into the third heaven" and even claimed "the Lord stood by" you. We reckon that more realistic and practical minds are needed in the task of world evangelism.

You have caused much trouble everywhere you have gone. You opposed the honorable women at Berea and the leaders of your own nationality in Jerusalem. If a man cannot get along with his own people, how can he serve foreigners? We learn that you are a snake-handler. At Malta, you picked up a poisonous serpent which is said to have bitten you, but you did not suffer harm. Tsk, Tsk, Tsk!

You admit that while you were serving time at Rome that "all forsook you." Good men are not left friendless. Three fine brothers, by the names of Diotrephes, Demas and Alexander, the coppersmith, have notarized affidavits to the effect that it is impossible for them to cooperate with either you or your program.

We know that you had a bitter quarrel with a fellow missionary named Barnabas. Harsh words do not further God's work.

You have written many letters to churches where you have formerly been pastor. In one of the letters, you accused a church member of living with his father's wife, and you caused the whole church to feel badly; and the poor fellow was expelled.

You spend too much time talking about "the second coming of Christ." Your letters to the people at Thessalonica were almost entirely devoted to this theme. Put first things first from now on.
Your ministry has been far too flighty to be successful. First Asia Minor, then Macedonia, then Greece, then Italy and now you are talking about a wild goose chase into Spain. Concentration is more important than dissipation of one's powers. You cannot win the whole world by yourself. You are just one little Paul.

In a recent sermon, you said "God forbid that I should glory in anything save the cross of Christ." It seems to us that you also ought to glory in our heritage, our denominational program, the unified budget, our Cooperative Program and the World Federation of Churches.
Your sermons are much too long for the times. At one place, you talked until after midnight and a young man was so asleep that he fell out of the window and broke his neck. Nobody is saved after the first twenty minutes any way. "Stand up, speak up and then shut up," is our advice.
Dr. Luke reports that you are a thin little man, bald, frequently sick and always so agitated over your church that you sleep very poorly. He reports that you pad around the house praying half the night. A healthy mind in a robust body is our ideal for all applicants. A good night's sleep will give you zest and zip so that you wake full of zing.

We find it best to send only married men into foreign service. We deplore your policy of persistent celibacy. Simon Magus has set up a matrimonial bureau at Samaria, where the names of some very fine widows are available.

You wrote recently to Timothy that "you had fought a good fight." Fighting is hardly a recommendation for a missionary. No fight is a good fight. Jesus came, not to bring a sword, but peace. You boast that "I fought with wild beasts at Ephesus." What on earth do you mean?
It hurts me to tell you this, Brother Paul, but in all of my twenty-five years experience, I have never met a man so opposite to the requirements of our Foreign Mission Board. If we accepted you, we would break every rule of modern missionary practice.

Most Sincerely yours,
J. Flavious Fluffyhead,
Foreign Mission Board Secretary

(original source unknown)

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A Prepared Bride 5 – Introduction Part 1

Hearing that Jesus had silenced the Sadducees, the Pharisees got together. One of them, an expert in the law, tested him with this question: "Teacher, which is the greatest commandment in the Law?"

Jesus replied: "'Love the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your mind.' This is the first and greatest commandment. And the second is like it: 'Love your neighbor as yourself.' All the Law and the Prophets hang on these two commandments." Matt 22:34-40 NIV


Hear, O Israel: The LORD our God, the LORD is one. Love the LORD your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your strength. Deut 6:4-5 NIV

Of the four walls that make up the city of God the New Jerusalem, the first that I would like to give attention to is worship – living a life where every word, every thought, every action is a demonstration of our love for our Almighty God.

Even before that, however, a word about walls. The illustration of walls and the description of the walls in Revelation 21 are not meant to be used to exclude anyone nor is it meant to isolate the church from the world. We are called to be in the world but not of the world. Jesus prayed this prayer for us.

“I have given them your word and the world has hated them, for they are not of the world any more than I am of the world. My prayer is not that you take them out of the world but that you protect them from the evil one. They are not of the world, even as I am not of it. Sanctify them by the truth; your word is truth. As you sent me into the world, I have sent them into the world.” John 17:14-19 NIV

We have been sent into the world but are protected from it. If Jesus prayed it, it is so! We are to be insolated against the enemy’s influence not isolated from the world. Jesus hung out with an unsavory crowd.

While Jesus was having dinner at Levi's house, many tax collectors and "sinners" were eating with him and his disciples, for there were many who followed him. When the teachers of the law who were Pharisees saw him eating with the "sinners" and tax collectors, they asked his disciples: "Why does he eat with tax collectors and 'sinners'?"

On hearing this, Jesus said to them, "It is not the healthy who need a doctor, but the sick. I have not come to call the righteous, but sinners." Mark 2:15-17 NIV

If we have no friends or even acquaintances that are not saved, we have isolated ourselves and are not following Jesus’ example.

How, then, can they call on the one they have not believed in? And how can they believe in the one of whom they have not heard? And how can they hear without someone preaching to them? And how can they preach unless they are sent? As it is written, "How beautiful are the feet of those who bring good news!" Rom 10:14-15 NIV

The lost cannot hear the Good News unless someone tells them and no one can tell them unless they go!

We lived in Memphis, TN for 9 years – the birthplace of the blues, the home of Elvis Presley. There is a street called Beale Street downtown. For the most part, it is several blocks of bars featuring live music. To have an establishment on Beale Street, you have to have live music. There is Elvis Presley’s Memphis. B.B. King has a place there, as well as the sister of Jerry Lee Lewis. There is even a Hard Rock Café.

Through the years, many Christians have felt “the need” to preach to these sinners. They will carry crosses up and down the street or pass out tracts. There was one fellow who duct taped a megaphone to a parking meter two block away and “preached” at the sinners on Beale Street, screaming at them that they were going to hell.

Though I admire their zeal, I challenge their methods. My Bible tells me that the folks in the world are already condemned. ( Whoever believes in him is not condemned, but whoever does not believe stands condemned already because he has not believed in the name of God's one and only Son. John 3:18 NIV) Which best represents how Jesus would deal with Beale street and the lost whom He loves – standing two blocks away and screaming condemnation, passing out tracts without once making eye contact or conversation or hanging out on a bench or, God forbid, in a club, praying for God’s guidance, listening to the voice of the Spirit and conversing with a lost soul, letting your words be words of life to him?

Jesus condemned the establishment, the religious and the hypocrites of His day who so encumbered His people with unnecessary rules and regulations, traditions and forms of godliness that they were without hope. (Sound like anybody you know?) He came to bring freedom, freedom from eternal death – separation from God’s mercy, freedom from religion – man’s manipulation of his relationship with God, and freedom from condemnation – man and the enemy’s constant reminding of failures and sin.

Jesus was and is a friend of sinner (Matt 11:19) Are you?

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Moon rise over cornfields in Arizona 

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Politics over protection?

We spent 3 days in Naco, AZ this week.

Here is a report on how politics is playing a role in leaving our borders unprotected.
Border Patrol told to stand down in Arizona By Jerry Seper THE WASHINGTON TIMES

"U.S. Border Patrol agents have been ordered not to arrest illegal aliens along the section of the Arizona border where protesters patrolled last month because an increase in apprehensions there would prove the effectiveness of Minuteman volunteers..."

They are talking about the area from Naco to Douglas, AZ.

We should be outraged!

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A Prepared Bride 4 – Four Walls

I saw the Holy City, the New Jerusalem, coming down out of heaven from God, prepared as a bride beautifully dressed for her husband. Rev 21:2-3 NIV

As you read through the rest of the chapter (I am assuming that you will be that curious and/or diligent!), you will discover a description of this New Jerusalem. Among the things that are revealed is that the city has four walls and that the city is about 1500 miles wide, 1500 miles deep and 1500 miles high. That equals 3,375,000,000 cubic miles! It is no insignificant place. Remember, however, that this is not a place but a people, you and I, those who accept Jesus Christ as their Lord and Savior.

For the sake of illustration then, and to provide some continuity to what I am about to share, I would like us to look at these walls in the following manner.

Worship
Fellowship
Discipleship
Stewardship.

I want to remind you that we are this city and that it is we who, by the grace of God and power of His Spirit, must prepare ourselves to be a bride beautifully dressed for her husband. Therefore, since we are this city as well as a bride, we must keep our walls in good repair. If we do then the enemy cannot gain access to our city and we can grow having provided an environment for bearing much fruit.

Today, I will highlight these four walls, these areas of responsibility that we have, these ministries which which we have been entrusted.

1. Worship – the recognition that all of our lives must be an act of worship to the Father
Hearing that Jesus had silenced the Sadducees, the Pharisees got together. One of them, an expert in the law, tested him with this question: "Teacher, which is the greatest commandment in the Law?" Jesus replied: "'Love the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your mind.' This is the first and greatest commandment. Matt 22:34-38 NIV

2. Fellowship – the recognition that we can only grow by being a part of God’s family
And the second is like it: 'Love your neighbor as yourself.' All the Law and the Prophets hang on these two commandments." Matt 22:39-40 NIV

3. Discipleship – the recognition that our calling is to introduce others to Christ and grow them up in Him.
Then Jesus came to them and said, "All authority in heaven and on earth has been given to me. Therefore go and make disciples of all nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit, and teaching them to obey everything I have commanded you. And surely I am with you always, to the very end of the age." Matt 28:18-20 NIV

4. Stewardship – the recognition that all that we have and are belongs to God.
"Who then is the faithful and wise servant, whom the master has put in charge of the servants in his household to give them their food at the proper time? It will be good for that servant whose master finds him doing so when he returns. I tell you the truth, he will put him in charge of all his possessions. But suppose that servant is wicked and says to himself, 'My master is staying away a long time,' and he then begins to beat his fellow servants and to eat and drink with drunkards. The master of that servant will come on a day when he does not expect him and at an hour he is not aware of. He will cut him to pieces and assign him a place with the hypocrites, where there will be weeping and gnashing of teeth. Matt 24:45-51 NIV

I will allow you to ponder these but fear not I will be greatly expanding each of these topics in future blog entries!

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A Prepared Bride 3 - Manifest Presence

I have written two other articles about the prepared bride which can be read here:

A Prepared Bride 1 - Rev. 19:6-8

and

The Prepared Bride 2 - Revelation 21

which explain in better detail that the bride of Christ, being the church, the body of those who have accepted Jesus as their Savior and Lord is the New Jerusalem, that this Holy City of scripture is not a place but a people.

In Revelation 21:8-21, we can read a description of this great city which, we must remember, is a people not a place.

Peter also wrote about this spiritual building.

As you come to him, the living Stone-rejected by men but chosen by God and precious to him- you also, like living stones, are being built into a spiritual house to be a holy priesthood, offering spiritual sacrifices acceptable to God through Jesus Christ. 1 Peter 2:4-5 NIV

Paul spoke of it as well.

Don't you know that you yourselves are God's temple and that God's Spirit lives in you? 1 Cor 3:16 NIV

What agreement is there between the temple of God and idols? For we are the temple of the living God. As God has said: "I will live with them and walk among them, and I will be their God, and they will be my people." 2 Cor 6:16 NIV

And then we have this proclamation recorded in Revelation,

And I heard a great voice out of heaven saying, Behold, the tabernacle of God (the dwelling place) is with men, and he will dwell with them, and they shall be his people, and God himself shall be with them, and be their God. Rev 21:3 KJV (emphasis mine!)

We must recognize that, though God's presence was manifested in the Ark of the Covenant inside the Holy of Holies in the Tabernacle and the Temple, He cannot be contained in human structures only in His creation - man!

Even we cannot contain Him.

Their is a phenomenon in the Pentecostal and Charismatic circles know as "being slay in the Spirit" or "falling under the power". I, personally, have seen much abuse of this, mostly because people have been taught that this manifestation is a necessary evidence of a powerful move of the Spirit. It would be interesting to note that this never happened under Jesus' ministry with the twelve. However that doe not negate the experience. It just highlights that Jesus never felt the need to "push" the manifestation of the Spirit.

That reminds me of a story from Bible College. I attended Elim Bible Institute in Lima, NY, just 20 south of Rochester. They get summer there around July 4 or 5! It is a cold part of the country. I digress from digressing!

It was a three course in 1974. We had Seniors who had been tested in the fire and generally didn't put up with much weirdness, freshmen who were all zeal and no direction and Juniors who were in the process of working out their salvation with fear and trembling! It seems that there arrived on campus, a freshman who would not smile or laugh. It did not take very long until the Seniors were fed up with this super-silliness and confronted the individual.

When asked why he would not smile or laugh, he replied that he could find no recorded occurrence of Jesus either laughing or smiling. Therefore, he was going to follow his Lord's example. One of the Seniors, obviously full of the Holy ghost and wisdom, turned to this student and quietly stated,

"There's no record of Him going to the bathroom either. What are you going to do about that?"

The freshman stood stunned and, as the truth of, not only, that statement but the profoundness of his stupidity hit him, he began to laugh. And he laughed and he laughed and he laughed. So liberated was he that his entire ministry from that day forward was characterized by the joy of the Lord. He was being robbed by the enemy.

Let us be careful to not build a doctrine around the silence of scripture. There is an entire denomination built on the absence of any mention of instruments in the New Testament. They use no guitars, no pianos, no instrumentation of any kind in worship just because they are not mentioned. They will play secular music though. I knew one minister-in-training that was a pretty good jazz pianist but he could use his talent to glorify God.

As Col. Sherman T. Potter from M.A.S.H. would say, "Horse puckey!"

Anyhow, back from an other rabbit trail and returning to the manifest presence of God, we find in scripture a number of instances of this presence overwhelming a human body.

Ezek 1:28-2:2 This was the appearance of the likeness of the glory of the LORD. When I saw it, I fell facedown, and I heard the voice of one speaking. He said to me, "Son of man, stand up on your feet and I will speak to you." As he spoke, the Spirit came into me and raised me to my feet, and I heard him speaking to me. NIV

Ezek 3:23-24 And the glory of the LORD was standing there, like the glory I had seen by the Kebar River, and I fell facedown. Then the Spirit came into me and raised me to my feet. NIV

Dan 8:17-18 As he came near the place where I was standing, I was terrified and fell prostrate. "Son of man," he said to me, "understand that the vision concerns the time of the end." While he was speaking to me, I was in a deep sleep, with my face to the ground. Then he touched me and raised me to my feet. NIV

Dan 10:8-10 So I was left alone, gazing at this great vision; I had no strength left, my face turned deathly pale and I was helpless. Then I heard him speaking, and as I listened to him, I fell into a deep sleep, my face to the ground. A hand touched me and set me trembling on my hands and knees. NIV

Rev 1:17-18 When I saw him, I fell at his feet as though dead. Then he placed his right hand on me and said: "Do not be afraid. I am the First and the Last. 18 I am the Living One; I was dead, and behold I am alive for ever and ever! And I hold the keys of death and Hades. NIV

In some of these examples, they fell down as dead men. In others, they went into a deep sleep. It is my belief and my experience both in having folks "fall under the power" while I ministered and "being slain in the Spirit" while being prayed for, that the mortal human body, at tmes, cannot adequately deal with an intense manifestation of God's presence resulting in a collapse. This is not unconsciousness nor it is irrisitable. A person is both aware of their surroundings and capable of either refusing the experience or ending it at their discretion.

We neither want to refuse this work of the Spirit nor end it prematurely. I see it as kind of "spiritual anesthesia" wherein we are so surrendered to the will of the Father that we completely yield our selves - spirit, soul and body - to the Spirit's work. In the same way that much brain surgery is done with the patient awake, so here does the Spirit work within our minds, souls and spirits in a concentrated and miraculous way.

At other times, we will want to yield ourselves to the work of the Spirit in order to receive revelation, to see visions or dream dreams,

I will pour out my Spirit on all people. Your sons and daughters will prophesy, your old men will dream dreams, your young men will see visions. 29 Even on my servants, both men and women, I will pour out my Spirit in those days. 30 I will show wonders in the heavens and on the earth...Joel 2:28-30 NIV

The conclusion to all this is that God tabernacles, dwells with and in men. He is preparing a place who are His people. We must also participate in this preparation by practicing His presence, His righteousness, His holiness by doing, by action which flows out of a heart sold out, a heart of integrity, a heart of worship!

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Throwing in the Towel. Ps. 46:10

In the world of boxing, when a manager senses that his fighter can't take any more in the ring, he throws in a towel from outside, ending the fight. David writes is Psalm 46:10,

Be still, and know that I am God. NIV

There are two applications for this verse. First, from the context,

Come and see the works of the LORD,the desolations he has brought on the earth. He makes wars cease to the ends of the earth;he breaks the bow and shatters the spear,he burns the shields with fire.Ps 46:8-9 NIV

David is describing the complete victory that belongs to God and the utter defeat that those who oppose Him must face. Then comes the exhortation,

Be still, stop fighting thrown in the towel and recognize that I am God, that I am cannot and will not be defeated. David goes on to write,

"I will be exalted among the nations,I will be exalted in the earth." Ps 46:10

This is not an eventuality but a certainty.

It is written:
"'As surely as I live,' says the Lord, 'every knee will bow before me; every tongue will confess to God.'" Rom 14:11 NIV

The second application is personal. Stop fighting God and what He wants to do in your life. We can be like Jacob and wrestle with God (Gen. 32:24-30), but we must remember that after that encounter, Jacob walked with a limp. If you want to wrestle with God, your walk may suffer! It is better to throw in the towel, to throw your hands into the air and shout, "I surrender all!" (They should write a song with that title. ;-)

If we will cease the struggle,

For our struggle is not against flesh and blood, but against the rulers, against the authorities, against the powers of this dark world and against the spiritual forces of evil in the heavenly realms, (Eph 6:12 NIV)

if we will surrender to His will, then He will show Himself as God in our situation and in our lives!

If we will but be still long enough, He will reveal Himself as God and King!

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The Prepared Bride 2 - Revelation 21

One of the seven angels who had the seven bowls full of the seven last plagues came and said to me, "Come, I will show you the bride, the wife of the Lamb." 10 And he carried me away in the Spirit to a mountain great and high, and showed me the Holy City, Jerusalem, coming down out of heaven from God. Rev 21:9-11 NIV

There in an axiom in Alegra that is called the Transition Property. It goes like this:
If a = b and b = c, then a = c. Very simple, right? Let's apply this to these verses.

We have determined that the church, the company of those who have accepted Jesus Christ as their Savior and Lord, is the bride. In the verses above, John is told by an angel that he is going to show him, the bride, the wife of the Lamb. Therefore, John is going to be shown us, the church, the body of believers.

What does he see? John sees the Holy City, Jerusalem, coming down out of heaven from God. Let's apply our Transition property and see what we get.

If (a) we are the bride
and (b) John is to shown us,
then (c) John is going to see us, the bride, the church - right? If a = b, and b = c, then a = c!

Again,
if (a) John is to be shown the bride, the wife of the Lamb
and (b) John is shown the Holy City, the New Jerusalem, descending out of heaven from God,
then (c) the bride is the New Jerusalem! If a = b, and b = c, then a = c!

One more time!
If (a) John was to be shown us, the bride, the church
and (b) he was shown the New Jerusalem
then (c) we are the New Jerusalem!

The New Jerusalem is not a place but a people. It is not a location to which we will travel but it is a people we will become.

Then I saw a new heaven and a new earth, for the first heaven and the first earth had passed away, and there was no longer any sea. I saw the Holy City, the new Jerusalem, coming down out of heaven from God, prepared as a bride beautifully dressed for her husband. Rev 21:1-2 NIV

I addressed this need to be prepared in greater detail in A Prepared Bride 1 - Rev. 19:6-8 .

We are to be prepared. It is we who must do the preparing! It future posts I will be addressing the specifics of this preparation but suffice it to say that this preparation involves the bride clothing herself in righteous acts. The first book after the Gospels is the Acts of the Apostles. It isn't the contemplations of the apostles nor is it the meetings, the seminars or teaching series of the apostles. Though they did teach, I return to James who wrote,

In the same way, faith by itself, if it is not accompanied by action, is dead. But someone will say, "You have faith; I have deeds." Show me your faith without deeds, and I will show you my faith by what I do. James 2:17-18 NIV

Jesus gave this illustration.

"No good tree bears bad fruit, nor does a bad tree bear good fruit. Each tree is recognized by its own fruit. People do not pick figs from thornbushes, or grapes from briers. The good man brings good things out of the good stored up in his heart, and the evil man brings evil things out of the evil stored up in his heart. For out of the overflow of his heart his mouth speaks. Luke 6:43-45 NIV

Who we are must and shall be manifested in action! It may be as simple as helping a neighbor unload their groceries or as challenging as uprooting your whole family and moving to a foreign country to teach English as a second language. It could be as mundane as helping out in the nursery at church or as critical as preaching the Gospel to muslins in Saudi Arabia. But you have got to be doing something.

We must stop waiting around for our "ministry"! Truth be told the word "ministry" is the Greek word " diakonua" which means servant. We have even perverted that by using the transliterated word "deacons" as a title or office. In Luke 10:40, it is used of Martha as she is preparing the meal in the kitchen. In Acts 6:1, it signifies the distribution of bread to widows. It does connoted the other aspects of ministry that we recognize as well but first and foremost it means service.

Jesus instructed us,

"You know that the rulers of the Gentiles lord it over them, and their high officials exercise authority over them. Not so with you. Instead, whoever wants to become great among you must be your servant, and whoever wants to be first must be your slave- just as the Son of Man did not come to be served, but to serve, and to give his life as a ransom for many." Matt 20:25-28 NIV

Many of you may not realize that some time ago, Bob Dylan got saved. He produced a number albums (you know, those large, black vinyl discs that were played on a phonograph!) of Christian music. Unfortunately, he received little support from the Christian community. I hope and pray that he is still walking with the Lord! Anyhow, in 1979, he released an album entitled "Slow Train Coming" It is great stuff! A cut from that album is entitled "Gotta Serve Somebody". Here are a few words from that song.

"You may be an ambassador to England or France,
You may like to gamble, you might like to dance,
You may be the heavyweight champion of the world,
You may be a socialite with a long string of pearls

But you're gonna have to serve somebody, yes indeed
You're gonna have to serve somebody,
Well, it may be the devil or it may be the Lord
But you're gonna have to serve somebody."
Copyright © 1979 Special Rider Music

That is the truth - you're gonna have to serve somebody- the devil, the flesh, your resentment or God!

Serve the LORD! And if it seems evil to you to serve the LORD, choose for yourselves this day whom you will serve, whether the gods which your fathers served that were on the other side of the River, or the gods of the Amorites, in whose land you dwell. But as for me and my house, we will serve the LORD." Josh 24:14-15 NKJV

Get prepared! Get active! Do something!

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Jesus in the midst - John 20:19

Then, the same day at evening, being the first day of the week, when the doors were shut where the disciples were assembled, for fear of the Jews, Jesus came and stood in the midst, and said to them, "Peace be with you." John 20:19 NKJV

Unless you have visited China where it is illegal to gather as the church expect in government approved locations or in some muslin countries where you can be arrested for sharing the Gospel, it is hard to identify with, first, the fear of waiting for that knock on the door and then the joy and relief of having Jesus "in the midst."

You must understand that Mexico is established on the Napoleonic Law that you are guilty until proven innocent which means that you are arrested and you stay in jail until after your trial if you are found "not guilty". Sometimes bail if offered but it is not at all like in the USA.

In our short time here, we have had some run-ins with the authorities. Some more background for you. Law enforcement is arbitrary, i.e. you can never anticipate how or when a law will be enforced. When I see someone pulled over, getting a ticket, I always wonder, "What did they do to catch that policeman's attention?" Because less than 2 minutes ago, I watched 2 people run a red light or followed a guy for twenty minutes who never stopped for one stop sign. "La Mordida" is an custom we from "the other side" need to recognize. Literally translated it means "the bite". Culturally translated it is graft or bribes. But it must never be spoken of as such. For instance, as one traveler related it, he was stopped in Mexico for speeding or running an imaginary stop sign. To legally take take of the matter, they would have had to make the trip to the commandancia (police station), plead their case before the judge or magistrate and then pay a fine and court costs. However, they very deftly asked the officer if they could give him US$20 and he could take care of it for them because they needed to get across the border and head home.

Our encounters with the authorities resulted in a real fear that the police could show up at our door anytime and haul me off to jail - an unsavory thought at best. I spent the day cowering in our house, checking at the window with the sound of every car door and there were a lot of those because our neighbors are very popular for some reason. The only time I had any relief was when I was in prayer - which was happening a great deal.

After about 24 hours of this nonsense, I felt called to fast. In the afternoon of the second day, the Spirit of God brought the aforementioned situation with the disciples to my mind. They too were locked away, fearing for their lives, for three days. On the evening of the first day of the week(Sunday), Jesus came and stood in their midst. It happened to me just like that as well. I realized, by the revelation of the Spirit, that Jesus was here, that He was with me, not in some ethereal, mystical kind of way, but He was in the room with me. I experienced such relief with joy and faith replacing fear.

The next morning while in meditation and prayer, I began see, in my minds eye, angels appear on the corner post and wall all around our house. They, oddly enough, were not standing with sword drawn and shield high but were seated, some of them, talking to one another, unconcerned and unafraid. I realized that their posture was not because they were not fully alert nor unaware but because they recognized the ease with which they could defeat the enemy should he dare to show his face.

I became infused with faith, not an arrogance but a confidence that,

"He is my refuge and my fortress,my God, in whom I trust."
Surely he will save you from the fowler's snare and from the deadly pestilence. Ps 91:2-3 NIV

Today, not matter what fear you face, recognize that Jesus is in the midst and He says,
"Peace be with you."

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Sunset - Gulf of Santa Clara, Mexico 

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