Friday, July 31, 2009

RUN AS TO WIN-ALONE OR TOGETHER?

1Co 9:24 Don’t you know that those who run in a race all run, but one receives the prize? Run like that, that you may win.

Some would take this to mean that I, as an individual, must run with the goal of winning the prize, forsaking everything around me, and focusing only on me getting myself to the finish line first. And, in the worldly games Paul was using as an illustration, that is indeed the proper attitude to have. However, any believer who, in their desire to "be sold out to the Lord," or any other such pet phrase, adopts this attitude will be missing the entire point of what Paul was saying.

In our English bibles, we would tend to think Paul had in mind individual accomplishment when he said to run "that you may win." However, a quick peek behind the word "you" reveals that he had in mind, not an individual "you," but a corporate one. The word is plural, not singular. Paul was speaking to a body of believers, all of whom, together, he encouraged to run the race that they all would win.

What a world of difference that makes in how this is expressed in our lives, isn't it. For our Father has a heart, not for individuals who can boast that they are "in the Word" a lot, or "a prayer warrior" who spends many hours a week in prayer, or one who really knows how to "share the gospel" with everyone they meet. These things are well and good, but the focus is on the individual. With regard to prayer, they may be spending time in prayer for others, but the very fact that somehow you know how much time they spend, if they are making sure somehow everyone knows, makes it an individual expression, and thus misleading. Even in evangelizing, it often becomes a statistical game where one racks up as many souls on his or her wall as trophies to show everyone how spiritual they are.

This does not mean that one should not engage in these things, but I can assure you that if any of these things are of the Lord, they will be expressed in a different way, with the focus being on something far different than on us as individuals.

Where is the Father's heart then? It is in the building up of his dwelling place, the body of us believers he dwells in. What this means, and how this applies to the scripture above, is that in running the race we are not focused on our own "personal relationship with the Lord," as much as we are focused on our brothers and sisters God has placed us around, spurring them on, encouraging them in the race, helping each other so that we all see ourselves crossing that line as one corporate winner.

Father's heart is on the assembly of Christ, as a whole, and his interaction with us individually and with the world is only in relation to that same goal, of his invisible attributes of glory, wisdom, love, etc, being visibly expressed through us who make up the body of Christ.

Looking at the surrounding verses of the one above will help us see that this very thing was on Paul's mind and heart as well. Let's consider that now:

1Co 9:19-23 For though I was free from all, I brought myself under bondage to all, that I might gain the more. To the Jews I became as a Jew, that I might gain Jews; to those who are under the law, as under the law, that I might gain those who are under the law; to those who are without law, as without law (not being without law toward God, but under law toward Christ), that I might win those who are without law. To the weak I became as weak, that I might gain the weak. I have become all things to all men, that I may by all means save some. Now I do this for the sake of the Good News, that I may be a joint partaker of it.
1Co 9:27 but I beat my body and bring it into submission, lest by any means, after I have preached to others, I myself should be rejected.

With regard to how he dealt with unbelievers, I think it is easy to see that in seeking them, his focus was not on himself, for he was willing to enter into the world of other people, for their salvation. How much easier it could have been for him to demand that everyone look at him and join with him as he pursued this marvelous relationship with the Lord. In other words, he didn't stand in the safety of a "church building" preaching a message to wow the people into a decision he could count toward his quota, only to leave them and onto the next place. But no, instead he joined with them, became part of who they were, as he was able to do, for his focus was not on making himself a raised standard for others to try to reach, but he mixed among them so that, as he put it, "may be a joint partaker." He saw these unbelievers, not as underneath him, to be treated as such, but as potential joint partakers. He knew the importance of jointly partaking of all that the Good News brings, for that is God's heart, always the whole, and the individual only toward the greater goal of the whole, meaning the whole body of Christ, and all gathered in him.

But surely the last statement, about how he chose to treat himself, and the concern that he might be rejected, that speaks of his individuality doesn't it? Well, let's see....

To be continued...

Friday, July 24, 2009

IT IS NOT AS IT APPEARS TO BE

Take a look around you. Pick an object, any object. Now, get closer to it. Stare at it. You can do this with any object in the room you are in and I can guarantee you one thing; what you think you are seeing is not actually what is.

Let's take, for example, the computer screen you are looking at. It appears to be, feels like, a solid, visible, stationary object right? In one sense, it is, but in another sense, it is not. Here is why. Every object that you can see or feel is made up of something not visible. That's right, not visible to the naked eye.

Every physical object is made up of atoms, units of energy that are too small to see, yet, when formed together, billions upon billions, they form matter, such as the screen you are looking at. So, while the screen may appear to be a solid, uniform thing, it is actually billions of atoms all tightly packed together in the shape and form of a screen. Not only that, but while it may appear to be stationary, that too, is deceiving. You see, all atoms that make up matter are in constant motion, motion too fast for us to see with the eye, even if we could see it. But everything, from the wall in a room, to a table, a chair, etc, is in constant motion. In other words, where there is energy, there is motion. Where there is no energy, there, and only there, is there no motion.

Now, as always, I am sharing this because it demonstrates to me an important spiritual principle, which is: When you read scripture, it is not as it appears to be. I will leave you to ponder the various ways that is true.

Ron

Thursday, July 23, 2009

WHAT IF THE BIBLE WERE BEING WRITTEN TODAY?

In looking at the various Bibles you can find, one thing you will find that is pretty common. Among the most popular types of Bibles are the study Bibles. The one's with all the notes and commentaries and explanations and charts, etc. I imagine therefore, if man were left to himself to write the Bible today, he would not have started it with the simple statement, "In the beginning, God created the heaven and the earth." No, you would most likely find a 46 page dissertation first, outlining all the various reasons to believe that such a God exists, and thus, I would imagine, the Bible would be a much thicker book than it currently is, with all the additional explanations we humans would feel compelled to write.

How wonderfully simple, yet powerful, are the many many assumed statements in scripture which cut through all the garbage; not because they are so eloquently worded, not because all the objections are answered, but, miraculously, in spite of it all. This bears witness to the truth that this is a God thing, not a man thing. It must be of him, not of us.

Monday, July 20, 2009

IN THE LIGHT YET IN DARKNESS-HOW?

I wonder what went through the minds of those men of Athens as Paul stood there and made the following statement:

He made from one blood every nation of men to dwell on all the surface of the earth, having determined appointed seasons, and the boundaries of their dwellings, that they should seek the Lord, if perhaps they might reach out for him and find him, though he is not far from each one of us. ‘For in him we live, and move, and have our being.’ As some of your own poets have said, ‘For we are also his offspring.’ Being then the offspring of God, we ought not to think that the Divine Nature is like gold, or silver, or stone, engraved by art and design of man. Act 17:26-29

If you read over this too quick, it is easy to miss a very fascinating truth Paul lays out for them (and us) to ponder. God draws all people from every nation ever to exist into one point of origin, which Paul describes as one blood. That of course, would be Adam and Eve. Then he shares how God set times and boundary lines as to when and where different groups of peoples should be.

The reason God does this is so that they would seek him. Now, in reading the next part, do you see a bit of humor perhaps in what Paul says? He describes them as reaching out for him, in other words, groping for him as if in the dark. So the idea is that here we have this God who people are groping around as though blind, trying to find him. Yet, (and here is the funny part to me) Paul goes on to say that God is not far from each one of us.

Perhaps you can picture someone with a blindfold on groping around trying to find someone, and that someone is right behind them the whole time, so close yet so far. But here is the irony. He next describes how close God is to everyone, including these people seeking for him, when he says that "in him we live, and move, and have our being." God is not someone who is behind, or in front of, or next to. That is too far. We are in him! The very fact that we are alive is testimony that we are in God.

Think on that a moment. Here we have people groping around for a God that is closer than they could ever imagine! Here is the best illustration I can think of to describe this:

Imagine a person who closes his eyes, and is put into a fully lit room. He is told that the room is brightly lit, but all he can see is darkness because his eyes are closed. So he fumbles around the room endlessly trying to find the light switch so he can see the light. Of course, such a story is humorous but describes very aptly the situation Paul was sharing with these men. They were blind to the light of God's existence, and in their religion, they groped around trying to find him, to figure him out. Yet, all the while, he was right there, for they were in him the whole time.

To me this understanding of one's spiritual eyes being closed and needing to be opened, which Paul and others spoke of, makes it clear how everyone can be in the light, yet most are in the darkness still. The difference is not the light, or lack of it, but the fact that most have their eyes closed, so to them they are in total darkness; and hence, stumble around.

It is only when God opens their eyes, whether it be the usual way, through the good news being shared by someone who is a believer, or perhaps like a Paul, in a more direct way, that they then can see that they are in the light.

Here is another statement Paul made which I believe ties together with what I have shared. He said:

2Co 5:14-21 For the love of Christ constrains us; because we judge thus, that one died for all, therefore all died. He died for all, that those who live should no longer live to themselves, but to him who for their sakes died and rose again. Therefore we know no one after the flesh from now on. Even though we have known Christ after the flesh, yet now we know him so no more. Therefore if anyone is in Christ, he is a new creation. The old things have passed away. Behold, all things have become new. But all things are of God, who reconciled us to himself through Jesus Christ, and gave to us the ministry of reconciliation; namely, that God was in Christ reconciling the world to himself, not reckoning to them their trespasses, and having committed to us the word of reconciliation. We are therefore ambassadors on behalf of Christ, as though God were entreating by us: we beg you on behalf of Christ, be reconciled to God. For him who knew no sin he made to be sin on our behalf; so that in him we might become the righteousness of God.

There is so much here, but what I want to focus on is the statement that "we know no one after the flesh from now on."

Whatever it means to not know someone after the flesh, it is not limited to believers, for he says "no one." That includes Jesus himself, as he says in the next part. Why do we know no one, including Jesus, after the flesh anymore? He tells us why by painting historical events from the death to the resurrection of Jesus. At his death, not only did he die, but in dying for all, all died. Yes, every person who ever lived died as a result of Jesus dying for them. A co-death took place that day.

Why did he die, thus causing the death of everyone else? So that those who live should no longer live for themselves, but for him. You see, in dying, something was left dead, and something new was made alive. He tells us this when he speaks of the other reason why we know no one after the flesh. That something that was made alive Paul describes as the new creation. All in Christ died, as a co-death, and when Christ was made alive, thus began the process of the new creation. Everyone is in Christ, for it is in him that God accomplished his will, which was "reconciling the world to himself." That is a done deal, in Christ.

From God's standpoint, the flesh has been dealt with in Christ. The new creation is all he is concerned with now, and the old is left as a witness, decaying and passing away as it is. We no longer know Jesus as the perfect man who did really cool miracles and said really awesome things. We also don't know him as a man who hungered, grew weary, and experienced all the weaknesses of being a man. No, he is so much more now! He is our very life, the one who is the very wisdom and peace and truth of God. Limited no more by flesh.

Likewise, because of the new creation, we know no one anymore after the flesh either. When I look at someone, I must deal with them according to who they truly are, not what they appear to be. For to deal with them in any way other than in Christ is to know them after the flesh. Thus, when I take an interest in you, I am taking an interest in Christ. When I point you past your failures to him, I am knowing you as you truly are. This, as hard as it may be to believe, is true for everyone.

Yet, even though all of this has happened, why do most still not believe? Because most are still blinded, and thus groping around for someone they are living inside of. This is why we have had "committed to us the word of reconciliation," begging people everywhere to "be reconciled to God." Just as happened with Lydia, people hear the message, and the Lord opens their eyes as he chooses so they believe and see the light.

Saturday, July 4, 2009

A SONG OF PERCEPTIONS- MAN'S AND GOD'S

PERCEPTIONS

I see a couple, a man and wife,
there in the garden, with the tree of life,
thoughts assailed her, lead her astray,
Adam followed, and from that day,

They became darkened, only sin to see,
nothing but shame, pain, and misery.
Cast from Eden, and life within,
they served someone, who's name was sin.

That was man's perception, built upon the lie
that we could live apart from life, not die.
Hidden within is a mystery, waiting for all to see
mystery, wrapped in glory.

I see a nation, born from Abraham,
taken from Egypt, to the promised land.
a law given, for them was made.
And it blessed all, those who obeyed.

That law they thought would, bring life and rest.
Instead it condemned them, for they failed the test.
Hopeless cycle, with no escape,
'Till Messiah, their sin to take.

That was man's perception, built upon the law,
that we could live if we could keep it all.
hidden within is a mystery, waiting for all to see
mystery, wrapped in glory.

I see a savior, a most holy seed,
one who fills all things, and meets every need.
When he came down, his life to give,
we eat of him, and truly live.

He is the dwelling, for both God and man.
the mystery unfolds, showing us his plan.
The old killed off, He starts afresh,
Life by spirit, apart from flesh.

That is God's perception, built upon the life,
found in Jesus, and us as his wife.
hidden no more is the mystery, but plain for all to see.
Christ in us, hope of glory.

Can you fathom such a hope contained within his plan,
Mercy springing from a common man?
We united to him as one spirit and body,
bringing light and life eternally,
bringing light and life eternally.

I see our Lord now, and I hear his voice
within each one of us, so let's all rejoice.

Ron

Wednesday, July 1, 2009

WHAT DO MAN, WOMAN, GOD, AND FIRE HAVE IN COMMON?

The more I study the Hebrew language, the more I fall in love with, not only it's simplicity, but also its depth. Hebrew is the only language that has both sounds and words contained within the letters that make up a word. In other words, each letter is a word with a meaning that, when combined with other letters with their meanings, create a short story within each word. A wonderful example is found in the words for man and woman. Let us see what story they tell us.

When God created man, he wanted to make someone that reflected what he was all about, so out of all the physical things he could think of, he chose fire. Yes, fire. Fire is one of the most used metaphors to describe God. The word for fire is made up of 2 letters, aleph and shin, spelled ASh. The aleph is a picture of an ox head, and the shin is a picture of teeth. Together they describe fire as a strong devourer.

What does this have to do with man and woman? Well, the word for man is made up of the word for fire. The word for woman is as well. The only difference is that there is a letter added to the word for man and woman. For man the yod is added in the middle, making man the 3 letter word aleph, yod, shin. For woman the hey is added at the end, making the 3 letter word aleph, shin, hey.

Is there any significance to the yod being added to make man, and hey being added to make woman? Yes there is, for the yod and hey make up the shortened form of the most often used name for God in scripture, Ieue. The yod is a picture of an arm, which pictures work, and the hey is a picture of a man with outstretched arms, picturing revelation, or something to behold.

What we see is God putting of himself in man and woman. Man, as AISh, is a fire who characterizes the God who works and accomplishes. Woman, as AESh, is a fire who characterizes the God within who reveals his character, as well as the beauty of God as something to behold.

God, the worker of revelation, knew that man, left to himself, would only destroy, just as a fire does. With God in man, and God in woman, and together, God in them as a married couple, we see the positive side of fire, warmth and light. With the perception of God being removed, we see only the negative side, destruction.

What a wonderful truth to know that God, in simple picture form, has shown us that he indeed, dwells in us, for it is only in that dwelling that we are truly who we were created to be, man, and woman.

Ron