We lie to ourselves all the time. We try to convince ourselves of an alternate reality because we are not willing to be honest when we are faced with our own failings and faults. We lie to ourselves when we say it is well with our soul, knowing that we are far from where we are suppose to be with Jesus. We even rationalize our sin, saying Jesus understands, as we throw ourselves under the power of that sin.
We may be kidding ourselves but we are not kidding our God.
Do we forget how we are connected with him; Jesus in me and me in Jesus? He is not some deity or power who stands at a distance; he is one with us, knowing all out thoughts, emotions, plans, ideas, dreams, desires, longings, sins. He knows us and wants us to know him even more. So when we ignore him, lie to ourselves and place ourselves under the power of sin again, we break his heart.
The Word of God has been given to us to reveal God to us, to teach us, to rebuke, correct and encourage. When we study it, looking deep into it's depth, some amazing things happen. The Spirit speaks to us, warning us when we are going astray and encouraging us in the right direction.
A couple of the warning signs that things are not well with this relationship is when we are plagued by fear and anxiety. When we are strong in the Lord we know he holds our future and we do not fear the unknown. When we are lying to ourselves about this relationship, we find it hard to think of the unknown, to face major obstacles, to even consider our future. We are overcome by anxiety, fear, helplessness, a sense of not having the resources to overcome. It isn't anything new.
We should be able to identify with the Israelites as they faced the command to move into the Promised Land, the first time. This was the generation who were possessed by the slave mentality and could never seem to go beyond it. These were the whiners, complainers, rebels against Yahweh. Not having a solid and growing relationship with the Lord is shown in their reaction to the command to possess the land:
"All the Israelites criticized Moses and Aaron. The entire community said to them, 'If only we had died in the land of Egypt or it only we had died in this desert! Why is the Lord bringing us to this land to fall by the sword? Our wives and our children will be taken by force. Wouldn't it be better for us to return to Egypt?'" (Numbers 14:2-3)
See where fear of the unknown takes us? We imagine the worse case scenario. It was Yahweh who had promised this land to Abraham's children. It was Yahweh who rescued them in power from the slavery of Egypt. It was Yahweh who was defending them and feeding them in the desert. It was Yahweh who went ahead of them, leading. If they had only examined this relationship they would have marched boldly into the land, as their children would do 40 years later. Instead they allowed themselves to be led by fear.
If we are weak, filled with fear and anxiety, it is because we do not know who Jesus is, what are his promises and who we are in him. Paul reminded his student Timothy:
"Hence I remind you to rekindle the gift of God that is within you through the laying on of my hands; for God did not give us a spirit of timidity but a spirit of power and love and self-control." (2 Timothy 1:6-7)
In another place the Spirit reminds us "we are not of those who shrink back and are destroyed". Fear and anxiety do not belong to those who are growing in Christ but to those who are lying to themselves.
Know the Word. Know the promises. Know the Lord. Know yourself and be honest. We are all going to get there in the end if we do not let go.
Showing posts with label oneness. Show all posts
Showing posts with label oneness. Show all posts
Thursday, March 3, 2016
Thursday, April 10, 2014
The Mystery Of Oneness In A Land Of Shifting Shadows
Being one with Jesus is our goal. This we must understand, grasp, desire and move toward. Being one with Jesus is not something we do hidden away somewhere. It is perfected in the ugliness, the noise and confusion of life.
Oneness requires us to be free from everything that would lay claim to us. It does not mean that we have no interaction with these things. We just lower their importance to the place where they have no power over us and we can take or leave them at will.
Oneness is taking place as we come to realize, accept and revel in the fact that everything we require to exist, flourish and become our potential is found only in Jesus Christ. This means that everything else becomes mere shadows, lacking importance or substance to us. We are content with whatever we have in the moment with no fear of not having it in the next because the one thing we need and can never afford to lose can never be taken from us because he promised he wasn't going anywhere.
This is the reason why Jesus said it is hard for those who are rich to enter in. They cannot imagine being without their wealth. To enter in, this wealth must become like smoke to them, no substance and the only thing to have substance must become their only reality. But this is true of many things that lie to us, that tell us we can't live without them.
Family.
Drugs.
Friends.
Alcohol.
Sex.
Careers.
Social media.
Education.
Books.
Sports.
Politics.
Television / Movies / Music / Dance / Theatre / Art
If these are not like smoke to you; if you cannot imagine being without them in the next moment; if you can't imagine existing in a world without them, how do you expect to enter in? Oneness with Jesus comes at a cost but those who discover the truth of the relationship are willing to pay any price to possess it.
But we don't see it this way. We don't see our love for Jesus reducing everything else to wispy smoke.
We live in a fantasy of having the world and Jesus. We live in the illusion of a divided heart. We conveniently skip over the parts where Jesus tells us there is a cost to following him. We like listening to those who want us to believe there is value in all this other stuff. We want to live heaven now among things that are mere shadows of what is coming by giving them substance, allowing them value, allowing them to lay claim to us.
Oneness with Jesus is his expressed prayer for us. In this oneness his will is all we desire. In this oneness we understand value. In this oneness we gladly accept as he moves smokey things in and out of our lives. What is that to us? The only thing of value to us is he himself and he isn't going anywhere. He promised. He is the air in our lungs, the reason for the beat of our heart and the cause of the electrical pulsing of our brain.
If only we could grasp this. If only we would decide to live in his realty for us and leave the shadowy things where they belong. If only we would live with a heart fully possessed by the one who longs to possess it. If only we could walk in a concrete world as citizens of the land of oneness with Christ.
Oneness requires us to be free from everything that would lay claim to us. It does not mean that we have no interaction with these things. We just lower their importance to the place where they have no power over us and we can take or leave them at will.
Oneness is taking place as we come to realize, accept and revel in the fact that everything we require to exist, flourish and become our potential is found only in Jesus Christ. This means that everything else becomes mere shadows, lacking importance or substance to us. We are content with whatever we have in the moment with no fear of not having it in the next because the one thing we need and can never afford to lose can never be taken from us because he promised he wasn't going anywhere.
This is the reason why Jesus said it is hard for those who are rich to enter in. They cannot imagine being without their wealth. To enter in, this wealth must become like smoke to them, no substance and the only thing to have substance must become their only reality. But this is true of many things that lie to us, that tell us we can't live without them.
Family.
Drugs.
Friends.
Alcohol.
Sex.
Careers.
Social media.
Education.
Books.
Sports.
Politics.
Television / Movies / Music / Dance / Theatre / Art
If these are not like smoke to you; if you cannot imagine being without them in the next moment; if you can't imagine existing in a world without them, how do you expect to enter in? Oneness with Jesus comes at a cost but those who discover the truth of the relationship are willing to pay any price to possess it.
But we don't see it this way. We don't see our love for Jesus reducing everything else to wispy smoke.
We live in a fantasy of having the world and Jesus. We live in the illusion of a divided heart. We conveniently skip over the parts where Jesus tells us there is a cost to following him. We like listening to those who want us to believe there is value in all this other stuff. We want to live heaven now among things that are mere shadows of what is coming by giving them substance, allowing them value, allowing them to lay claim to us.
Oneness with Jesus is his expressed prayer for us. In this oneness his will is all we desire. In this oneness we understand value. In this oneness we gladly accept as he moves smokey things in and out of our lives. What is that to us? The only thing of value to us is he himself and he isn't going anywhere. He promised. He is the air in our lungs, the reason for the beat of our heart and the cause of the electrical pulsing of our brain.
If only we could grasp this. If only we would decide to live in his realty for us and leave the shadowy things where they belong. If only we would live with a heart fully possessed by the one who longs to possess it. If only we could walk in a concrete world as citizens of the land of oneness with Christ.
Monday, August 6, 2012
Reality Check
It can be frustrating sometimes to help people understand the new reality of being a Christian. It's not like we just joined the local Boy Scouts or Girl Guides and now have a pledge to live up to and a motto to follow. It's not like attending a concert where we enjoy the moment, hold on to the memories but the experience fades. Being a Christian is not like anything anyone can experience in any other way. It is a transformation, something we are changed into, a new creation, nothing that can be housed in our old way of thinking.
So many people think that being a Christian is a birth right; their parents were Christians so they are Christians. Others believe it is just a matter of joining a church and practising some ceremonies. Some don't have a clue what it is but they claim to be one, spouting off opinions about moralities they can't even begin to fathom. But here is the reality of being a Christian:
For in Christ all the fullness of the Deity lives in bodily form, and you have been given fullness in Christ, who is the head over every power and authority. (Colossians 2:9-10)
Now, without getting into the heavy duty theology of it, let me put it very simply: When you became a Christian you became one with God. You were changed so that God took up residence in you and you took up residence in God. The entire Christian life is about coming to grips with this reality, where we learn to live in this oneness. It makes for a good study. You should especially study the gospel of John the teaching on the Vine and what Jesus prayed before being arrested. But you have to go beyond the study and live the experience, daily. I want to explain the consequences of this new reality.
Unlike worshipping a person or an idol, a Christian life is a "working out" of this oneness with God. We want to live in a way that honours this relationship, where we do not offend God in us by using our body for sin or filling our mind and heart with things that pollute and distract us from this relationship. It is not a matter that Christians follow a moral code, although we do have a list of things that reveal the character of God so we know what offends him. But our new reality is that this "law" is written on our hearts by the Spirit of God, so that even if we have not known the written law the Spirit makes it known to us. As Christians we are without excuse.
The Christian life is about learning to surrender ourselves to Jesus every day. When we fail; when we ignore the Spirit's direction; when we allow our old nature to lead is in wrong directions, it is a matter of returning to the point of the relationship, asking for and receiving forgiveness, and getting back to it. It is not about trying to follow a list of rules but allowing the purpose of such rules to become part of the fibre of our being.
The Christian life is about growing in our awareness and understanding of God as he lives in us and we in him. It goes beyond great books, great sermons, wonderful teaching videos. It goes beyond self-improvement, self-help, self-discipline. It is coming to grips with the fact that all the fullness of the Deity lives in bodily form in Jesus and that we in turn have been given fullness in Christ. It is living the reality that Jesus is the head over every power and authority. That means when you speak in that authority every power and authority obeys because that authority lives in you.
This seems to be the new reality that most of the Church is trying to deny. We love our own little sub-culture that we are developing, with our own clothing line, music and video production, with our own lingo. We enjoy our conferences, seminars, Bible Colleges, curriculum development, our morality teaching but we are leaving out the authority and power, the Christ in us. We enjoy acting the part without the responsibility of living the power and authority.
Your new reality should be such that in this new relationship with God in you, nothing else has power over you; not sin, circumstances or disease. You should have more determination and joy that anyone you know. There should be no words of defeat in your vocabulary as you live the reality that all things are possible because of he who dwells in you and gives you strength. There is power in this relationship. There is power to overcome and you are one with the King who holds this power. You do not worship some distant god; Jesus Christ lives in you and you have abundant life through him. This is your reality, the reality of the Christian life.
So many people think that being a Christian is a birth right; their parents were Christians so they are Christians. Others believe it is just a matter of joining a church and practising some ceremonies. Some don't have a clue what it is but they claim to be one, spouting off opinions about moralities they can't even begin to fathom. But here is the reality of being a Christian:
For in Christ all the fullness of the Deity lives in bodily form, and you have been given fullness in Christ, who is the head over every power and authority. (Colossians 2:9-10)
Now, without getting into the heavy duty theology of it, let me put it very simply: When you became a Christian you became one with God. You were changed so that God took up residence in you and you took up residence in God. The entire Christian life is about coming to grips with this reality, where we learn to live in this oneness. It makes for a good study. You should especially study the gospel of John the teaching on the Vine and what Jesus prayed before being arrested. But you have to go beyond the study and live the experience, daily. I want to explain the consequences of this new reality.
Unlike worshipping a person or an idol, a Christian life is a "working out" of this oneness with God. We want to live in a way that honours this relationship, where we do not offend God in us by using our body for sin or filling our mind and heart with things that pollute and distract us from this relationship. It is not a matter that Christians follow a moral code, although we do have a list of things that reveal the character of God so we know what offends him. But our new reality is that this "law" is written on our hearts by the Spirit of God, so that even if we have not known the written law the Spirit makes it known to us. As Christians we are without excuse.
The Christian life is about learning to surrender ourselves to Jesus every day. When we fail; when we ignore the Spirit's direction; when we allow our old nature to lead is in wrong directions, it is a matter of returning to the point of the relationship, asking for and receiving forgiveness, and getting back to it. It is not about trying to follow a list of rules but allowing the purpose of such rules to become part of the fibre of our being.
The Christian life is about growing in our awareness and understanding of God as he lives in us and we in him. It goes beyond great books, great sermons, wonderful teaching videos. It goes beyond self-improvement, self-help, self-discipline. It is coming to grips with the fact that all the fullness of the Deity lives in bodily form in Jesus and that we in turn have been given fullness in Christ. It is living the reality that Jesus is the head over every power and authority. That means when you speak in that authority every power and authority obeys because that authority lives in you.
This seems to be the new reality that most of the Church is trying to deny. We love our own little sub-culture that we are developing, with our own clothing line, music and video production, with our own lingo. We enjoy our conferences, seminars, Bible Colleges, curriculum development, our morality teaching but we are leaving out the authority and power, the Christ in us. We enjoy acting the part without the responsibility of living the power and authority.
Your new reality should be such that in this new relationship with God in you, nothing else has power over you; not sin, circumstances or disease. You should have more determination and joy that anyone you know. There should be no words of defeat in your vocabulary as you live the reality that all things are possible because of he who dwells in you and gives you strength. There is power in this relationship. There is power to overcome and you are one with the King who holds this power. You do not worship some distant god; Jesus Christ lives in you and you have abundant life through him. This is your reality, the reality of the Christian life.
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