Sunday, August 30, 2009

SON, LAMB, LION

blessed is the son, who showed us father's grace,

blessed is the son, who for the human race,

became a mortal man, submitting to time and space,

blessed is the son, the son of man.


blessed is the lamb, who took away our sin,

blessed is the lamb, condemned it all within,

the likeness of our flesh, the victory he did win,

blessed is the lamb, the lamb of god.


blessed is the lion, he rules and he will reign,

blessed is the lion, to whom we all proclaim,

that he alone is lord, it is our one refrain,

blessed is the lion, of judah


we come as one to praise, we come as one to call,

on him who gives us love, on each one does it fall,

and as we take him in, he manifests to all,

thus he fills all things, both great and small.


by the power of, the spirit of our lord,

we declare right now, all in one accord,

no matter what the cost, it's one we can afford,

the lord has paved the way, who is adored.


we are all one heart, the song of grace we sing,

we live in the light, the message of truth we bring,

to vanquish all that's dark, by the faith of our great king,

the one we call the lion,

the one we call the lamb,

the one we call the son,

we love you lord.

Thursday, August 20, 2009

MENU OR MEAL?

Trying to get your sustenance from reading the Scriptures, instead of looking to the Word of God for it, is like eating a menu instead of the meal. That is the mistake the religious leader in Jesus day made. They looked to the scriptures to find life, when Life himself was standing right in front of them, being pointed to by the Scriptures they were reading.

The menu bears testimony to the meal, that it exists. The menu moves you to the meal. That is exactly the function of the Scriptures. They bear testimony to the Bread and Water of Life, as realities. The Scriptures move you to feed on the reality.

Ron

Wednesday, August 19, 2009

THEN PUT TO DEATH YOUR MEMBERS WHICH ARE ON THE EARTH

Col 3:5-6 Put to death therefore your members which are on the earth: sexual immorality, uncleanness, depraved passion, evil desire, and covetousness, which is idolatry; for which things’ sake the wrath of God comes on the children of disobedience.

Paul wrote these words to believers in Colossae. At first glance, it appears as though the members on the earth he is speaking of here are alive and working in their members, and in need of them putting those members to death.

In a nutshell, I believe that this verse is rightly understood in light of Col 2:20, and 3:1-4, which I will get to shortly. However, let us just think through this a bit. If the above understanding is true, then the question becomes, how does one go about putting these members to death? How would you answer?

The way most have been taught to deal with these problems is from the standpoint of what one sees, not of faith. For example, with regard to sexual immorality, the common ways a person tries to deal with such a sin is to try to avoid things that they think will lead them to commit the act. Perhaps they will make attempts to turn away from looking at an attractive person of the opposite sex. Or maybe they will avoid going to a beach for fear of seeing someone there dressed in a way that is tempting. Some will have accountability groups to help keep tabs on their behavior. The list can go on and on, but one thing is for sure. Any of these or other attempts to put to death such members will only ultimately result in failure.

Why? Because the problem isn't the behavior, it isn't what is seen. And yet, that is what most will make it out to be, and thus try to deal with it according to what is seen, in outward ways. It does not work. I know from personal experience.

Well then, if me trying to actively put to death these things doesn't work, then how do we put them to death? The answer is as profound as it is simple:

Believe what is already true about you, in Christ.

That has always been the problem with man, that which has gotten him into trouble. It has never been the behavior. The behavior is merely the symptom of something else, and that something else is unbelief.

What was it that God said was the reason Israel died in the wilderness, and not enter the promised land? Was it their actions? Not exactly no. Listen to what God says:

Heb 3:18 To whom did he swear that they wouldn't enter into his rest, but to those who were disobedient?
Heb 3:19 We see that they were not able to enter in because of unbelief.

If they had believed God, that he would give them the land of their fathers, they would have gone right on in. Because they did not believe it, they acted in unbelief, which was disobedience, and thus missed out on entering the land.

So what is it that the Colossians were encouraged to believe so as to put to death their members on the earth? Let us see the realities:

Col 2:20 If you died with Christ from the elements of the world...
Col 3:1 If then you were raised together with Christ, seek the things that are above, where Christ is, seated on the right hand of God.
Col 3:2 Set your mind on the things that are above, not on the things that are on the earth.
Col 3:3 For you died, and your life is hidden with Christ in God.
Col 3:4 When Christ, our life, is revealed, then you will also be revealed with him in glory.

They died with Christ.
They were raised together with Christ.
Their life is hidden with Christ in God.
Christ is our life.
We will be revealed with Christ in glory.

Dead people don't sin. If Christ is our life, and we know he can't sin, neither can we. Who we are has been raised with Christ, which is contrasted with the members on this earth. These members have nothing to do with Christ, nor with our life, which is his. Our life is hidden in God, and there is no sin in God, hence, whatever these members are, cannot be in God.

As we come to grips with these realities, we will realize that this has nothing to do with effort on our part, or of our getting out of the way, or of there being less of me and more of him, or of any other myriad of religious expressions one could come up with. It is simply about the reality that Christ is living his life in and through us, and in believing that and living life, we will see him express himself in ways that we will see outwardly that will demonstrate the truth that our members are in fact already dead. It is only when we try to come up with ways to make it happen (as though it were not true already) that we end up seeing the law of sin and death spring into action, and our members appear to be very much alive, when in fact it is sin which is revived in our dead members that is doing the acting.

ALL IN CHRIST, OR IN CHRIST ALL?

Recently, in sharing with something my understanding that God has redeemed all of mankind, and all will, each in their time, acknowledge that willingly, I shared the correspondency I see in 1Co 15:22:

For as in Adam all die, so also in Christ all will be made alive.

The usual response you will hear to this verse is this:

Yes, all who are in Adam die, and since everyone is in Adam, we all die.
All in Christ will be made alive, and since not everyone is in Christ, that only applies to believers.

If the scripture were worded that way, I could agree with them. However, a subtle twist has taken place which changes the entire meaning of the verse. For it does not say "all in Adam die, so also all in Christ will be made alive." "Adam" and "Christ" are the cause here, and that cause is for the same "all."

The scriptures make it very clear that God reconciled all things to himself "in Christ," on the cross. That is where all mankind has been ever since. I would ask, where does it say that anyone isn't in Christ? You will not find that anywhere, although you can find scriptures which you can make to imply to you that some are not.

Let me give an example:

Someone might say that the scripture says "If anyone is in Christ, he is a new creation." You might say that he would not use the word "if" if everyone were in Christ, so he is speaking only of a select group.

I agree with what Paul says here, but not with what you think it means. Where does it say that some are not in Christ? Does the "if" cause you to doubt that everyone is a new creation? You see, you would have to read that idea into the text in order to make it say that. This statement by Paul was not written so that the reader might wonder if they are indeed in Christ. It was written to assure them that they indeed are. He wanted them to believe the truth. It is no different than when he, on another occasion, wrote: "If you have been raised together with Christ, seek the things that are above..." Again, not written to question whether any of these believers was raised with Christ, for indeed, they all were. It was written to get them to think, "Ah, yes! He is speaking of me, and you!"

I just read a blog by a brother who made this wonderful comment, that when Paul said there is no condemnation for those in Christ Jesus, that he did not just mean there is no condemnation for us, but that we condemn no one as well. Think on this:

The only place there is no condemnation is in Christ Jesus. Then why is there so much condemnation today, even among those who believe? Because we have not yet grasped this statement as true. The world still operates under the power of condemnation, a power that Christ shattered on the cross. The only reason anyone still feels condemnation is because they either believe what someone tells them about themselves, or they believe themselves that they are guilty or shameful in some way.

The truth, however, remains the same regardless: There is NO condemnation. The only way I can condemn another person is to see them after the flesh, and identify them with it. I can do that with believers as well as unbelievers, as well as myself. But as I listen to the Spirit, who says not to see ANY MAN (or woman) after the flesh, then truly there can be no condemnation, for I see them as they truly are, whether they are believers or not.

Ron

Wednesday, August 12, 2009

FIRE AND WATER, THEY DO MIX

I noticed in my study recently of Daniel's account of the heavenly vision, which is repeated in Revelation, that the throne of God is said to be fire, and that a river of fire comes out from him, from his throne.

Dan 7:9 I watched until thrones were set up and the Ancient One, who has lived for endless years, sat down. His clothes were as white as snow and the hair on his head was like pure wool. His throne was fiery flames, and its wheels were burning fire.
Dan 7:10 A river of fire flowed. It came from him. Thousands and thousands served him. Ten thousand times ten thousand were stationed in front of him. The court convened, and the books were opened.

When I read of the account in Revelation, this time a river of water of life is seen coming from his throne:

Rev 22:1 The angel showed me a river filled with the water of life, as clear as crystal. It was flowing from the throne of God and the lamb.

So I got to meditating on this, and it was like the Lord told me that the fire and water are the same thing, it is the same river flowing from him, the fire for the destruction of anything ungodly and the purification of what is of God, while the water is for the nourishment and life of all that is of God.

Another thought occurred to me tonight as I was thinking more on this. Shamayim is a compound of the words fire (sh) [the letter meaning, not the word] and liquid water (mayim). So the very word heaven contains in it these two elements together.

To me this continues to give the whole new understanding of the concept of fire in scripture, as well as the judgments associated with it that the natural mind sees only in a negative light instead of the beauty that God appears to portray it in.

Rose sent me this message, from a message board I am on, giving further insight into this:


Rose wrote:
Very good insights Ron!

Have you also noticed Rev. 4:5 and Rev. 15:2?
Rev. 4:5 And out of the throne proceeded lightning’s and thundering and voices: and [there were]seven lamps of fire burning before the throne, which are the seven Spirits of God.


Rev. 15:2 And I saw as it were a sea of glass mingled with fire: and them that had gotten the victory over the beast, and over his image, and over his mark, [and] over the number of his name, stand on the sea of glass, having the harps of God.
God Bless

Rose

It appears as though these seven lamps of fire, the seven spirits of God, God's spirit in completeness being likened to fire, and then then the sea of glass, speaking of calmness, with fire in it.

And yet another correlation...

Rev 4:5 Lightning, noise, and thunder came from the throne. Seven flaming torches were burning in front of the throne. These are the seven spirits of God.
Rev 4:6 In front of the throne, there was something like a sea of glass as clear as crystal.


Rev 22:1 The angel showed me a river filled with the water of life, as clear as crystal. It was flowing from the throne of God and the lamb.

Rev. 15:2 And I saw as it were a sea of glass mingled with fire:

Perhaps this is the meaning of what Jesus spoke of when he said:

Luk 3:16 John replied to all of them, "I baptize you with water. But the one who is more powerful than I is coming. I am not worthy to untie his sandal straps. He will baptize you with the Holy Spirit and fire.

I have been taught that the baptism with the Holy Spirit was the good baptism, and the one with fire is the destructive, bad one we don't want. However, I have come to see that they are one and the same. God's spirit is both water AND fire, and we have been baptized in both.

While it is easy to only think of fire as destructive, and in a negative light, like you said, it purifies. In fact, that is the Greek word for fire, pur, where we get our English word pure from. It only consumes and destroys what is consumable, things not of God. At the same time it purifies that which is not consumable, things which are of God. And the best news of all is, we are of God!

As I was doing my termite job, another insight came to me I wanted to share that really hit home with me. Remember this verse I shared earlier?

Rev 4:5 And from the throne proceeded lightnings, and the sound of thunders; and seven lamps of fire were burning before his throne, which are the seven Spirits of God.
Rev 4:6 And before the throne, as it were a sea of glass like crystal;

Rev 15:2 And I saw as it were, a sea of glass mixed with fire.

I asked the Lord, what is the significance of the sea being as glass? My mind went to a sea that was totally calm. Imagine if you saw such a sight. Would it not look like glass? A sea, normally turbulent and restless, in total peace and rest.

The sea of glass along with the fire pictures the amazing fact that, despite all the fiery trials that we go through, which serves to reveal the gold (picturing God's nature) that we possess, we are at peace, in total and utter rest, like a sea of glass.

The rest of humanity is likened to a sea as well, only they are described in this way:

Isa 57:20 But the wicked are like the churning sea. It isn't quiet, and its water throws up mud and slime.
Isa 57:21 "There is no peace for the wicked," says my God.
Jud 1:13 Their shame is like the foam on the wild waves of the sea.

Each of us has our own fire to go through, yet in it all, you read of this sea of glass, this total peace, as we drink of life's water free. There is peace in the midst of the fire. Shadrach, Meshach, and Abednego did so literally, in shadow. We do today, in reality.

Ron

Monday, August 10, 2009

GOD IS NOT SATISFIED WITH 100%

Here is a parable by Jesus which virtually every teaching or sermon will center around stewardship or responsibility. I would like to take things in a different direction though, for although most will focus on the servants and what they did, I would like to focus on the attitude of the man who gave them the money. Here is the parable:

"For it is like a man, going into another country, who called his own servants, and entrusted his goods to them. To one he gave five talents, to another two, to another one; to each according to his own ability. Then he went on his journey. Immediately he who received the five talents went and traded with them, and made another five talents. In like manner he also who got the two gained another two. But he who received the one went away and dug in the earth, and hid his lord's money. "Now after a long time the lord of those servants came, and reconciled accounts with them. He who received the five talents came and brought another five talents, saying, 'Lord, you delivered to me five talents. Behold, I have gained another five talents besides them.' "His lord said to him, 'Well done, good and faithful servant. You have been faithful over a few things, I will set you over many things. Enter into the joy of your lord.' "He also who got the two talents came and said, 'Lord, you delivered to me two talents. Behold, I have gained another two talents besides them.' "His lord said to him, 'Well done, good and faithful servant. You have been faithful over a few things, I will set you over many things. Enter into the joy of your lord.' "He also who had received the one talent came and said, 'Lord, I knew you that you are a hard man, reaping where you did not sow, and gathering where you did not scatter. I was afraid, and went away and hid your talent in the earth. Behold, you have what is yours.' "But his lord answered him, 'You wicked and slothful servant. You knew that I reap where I didn't sow, and gather where I didn't scatter. You ought therefore to have deposited my money with the bankers, and at my coming I should have received back my own with interest.
(Mat 25:14-27)

Notice that the man was not satisfied with just receiving back in full what he gave out. He was expecting interest. I am so very glad that our Lord, who represents the man in this parable, is not satisfied with merely getting back what he gave out in the first place.

I am speaking here of what Christ came to do for mankind. Imagine if God were only interested in a 100% return from what he gave out with regard to mankind. He could have done that, and if he did, then mankind would have been merely forgiven of the debt of sin incurred against them.

Imagine if that were all he did. What would we have? We would have the same propensity in man that existed back in the garden of Eden. Eventually sin would start all over again and we would be back in the same mess man ended up in in the first place.

No, God is not satisfied with 100%. He wants interest, and with the Lord Jesus Christ, he got interest. I will give 2 witnesses to establish this principle, then apply it to what we have received from the Lord.

The first witness is found in the law, where we will see that when someone sinned and needed to bring a sacrifice, he also needed to do something else, which we read here:

"If anyone commits a trespass, and sins unwittingly, in the holy things of Yahweh; then he shall bring his trespass offering to Yahweh, a ram without blemish from the flock, according to your estimation in silver by shekels, after the shekel of the sanctuary, for a trespass offering. He shall make restitution for that which he has done wrong in the holy thing, and shall add a fifth part to it, and give it to the priest; and the priest shall make atonement for him with the ram of the trespass offering, and he will be forgiven.
(Lev 5:15-16)

A fifth in interest was to be added to make restitution here. It was not enough to merely give the required sacrifice. Something more in abundance was required.

Notice how Paul applies this same principle to what Jesus did for mankind:

The law came in besides, that the trespass might abound; but where sin abounded, grace abounded more exceedingly;(Rom 5:20)

Here we have the following contrast:

1-The law comes in, making trespasses abound. This occurred because with the law there were many more of them, 613 to be exact. Thus, there were 613 trespasses that could take place. Sin truly abounded. This is contrasted with...

2-Grace comes in, and it abounds even more so than the trespasses did.

This is an important point to know. For if grace only abounded to the same extent sin did, then we would merely be forgiven of sin, and nothing more. That would be a sad state to be left in.

No, God wants interest. His interest is in, not only wiping the slate clean, and setting us free, but he also wants a humanity that he indwells, one that expresses him, where his image is seen.

And brothers and sisters, that is indeed the interest that Jesus accomplished on the cross. For not only are sins dealt with, but there is a new creation, of which we are! His image is able to be expressed in you and in me as we live life together in him. I'll say it again, thank God he is not satisfied with just 100%. That is the one, and only interest, I'm interested in. :)

Ron