A Cloud of Witnesses

This morning I was reading Hebrews 11, the faith chapter.  I saw something that I never saw before.  The Word is like that…always revealing itself in truth and love.    I love reading God’s hall of fame, and there is much that I have missed prior to this reading.  

He starts the chapter by defining faith…the substance of things hoped for, the evidence of things not seen.  “For by it the elders obtained a good testimony” Hebrews 11:2.  This is so important, and I never really saw it before.  There is a standard of faith.  “When the Son of Man comes, will He find faith on the earth” Luke 18:8?  Have you ever wondered what God really wants of His people?  Here it is.  What God needs is our witness.  Have you ever thought of this that God NEEDS something from us.  He needs for us to support Him.  He needs for us to cast our vote on Him.

The next thing that Hebrews shows us in Hebrews 11:3 is an acknowledgement of creation…the world was framed by the word of God so that the things which are not seen were not made of things which are visible.   This is amazing to me.  He is saying in verse 3 a repeat of verse 1 in a different sort of way.  He is saying that at creation the earth was without form and void, His spirit moved over this, and He spoke the Word of God.   This is the substance of things hoped for, the evidence of things not seen.  We all stand at a place of creating the unknown whether it be a relationship that is developed or destroyed by our words, whether it is an idea (thought / energy) that becomes reality like writing a book, building a business, making a garden…the substance of things hoped for the evidence of things not seen.  This is so amazing.  In the journey of faith that God invites us into, He is saying that the principles of creation are ours to use.  

In today’s world, we call this a manifestation principle.  Another way of putting this is “as a man thinks, so is he.”  Proverbs 4:23: :Keep thy heart with all diligence, for out of the heart flow the issues of life.”  The substance of things hoped for, the evidence of things not seen.  The power of life and death are in the tongue says Proverb 18:21.  By the power of our tongue, we create…for good or bad.

Hebrews 11:4 tells us that Abel obtained a witness that he was righteous…God testifying of his gifts.  “…and through it, he being dead still speaks.”  His righteous act still speaks and testifies to God of righteousness.  God needs our testimony / witness.  “Know ye not that to whomever ye yield yourselves as servants to obey, his servants ye become whom ye obey, whether of sin which leads unto death, or of obedience unto righteousness? Romans 6:16”

As I read through the faith chapter, the sweetness that I see from what is said by Paul about those listed causes me to see God’s heart of love towards His people.   Paul ends the list of those we know and continues with the acts of faith that was credited to others and says of this group listed in the hall of fame “of whom the world was not worthy” Hebrews 11:38.  God says that the world was not worthy of having these people in it.  Does that touch your heart?  It does mine.  

I believe that we are each invited to call out of nothing God’s original intent for our lives.  He gives us an amazing definition and shows us how He did it.  He gives us the list of witnesses so we know it can be done and what it might cost.  In Hebrews 12:1-2 it says: “Therefore we ask, since we are surrounded by so great a cloud of witnesses, let us run with endurance the race that is set before us, looking unto Jesus, the author and finisher of our faith, who for the joy that was set before Him endured the cross, despising the shame, and has sat down at the right hand of the throne of God.”

We have been rescued from the camp of evil.  He has shown us how to create (not the things of the world), but the things of heaven.  Seek ye first the kingdom of God and all that you need will be added (Matthew 6:33).  The synergy of this calls forth the greatest creation of self and God’s kingdom.  Praise God.

The Blessings of the Christ Child

This morning as I thought about the Christ child and what He means to us, the word redemption came to me in a different sort of way.  We are used to thinking about Him being the redeemer.  I am so very glad for our beautiful Savior.  But this morning I was reminded that redemption comes in different ways.

Redemption may come in the form of a new revelation of truth.  This may be truth about ourselves or truth that we discover in the Scripture.  Sometimes a Scripture that we have read over and over takes on a new meaning and offers redemption in some part of our life.  Sometimes redemption happens through the words of others…our souls are in need of healing and a word from  someone else redeems us.  It is beautiful.

Redemption may come in the most unlikely packages…a baby…the Christ child.  Only a few welcomed Him.  They welcomed Him as a king.  The redemption He brought, however, was not redemption from Rome.  It was redemption from Evil who is the master manipulator of our Rome.  We wrestle not against flesh but against powers.  Redemption is in this truth.  We keep beating our heads against flesh and blood.  This is true on all levels.  For instance, we have the Scripture that says, “He sent his word, and healed them, and delivered them from their destructions” Psalm 107:20.  Unless we are developing spiritual eyesight, we will miss the redemption that comes in the message that is being given when we struggle with physical issues.  Healing is so much more than physical.  Over 90% of our physical distresses are triggered by emotional and spiritual things.

Redemption comes in unlikely processes.  A child is born.  Thirty years of living happens.  Thirty years of getting to know this man called Jesus.  Can any good things come from Nazareth?  Walking side by side daily, they did not recognize that their redemption was here.  Here was a process that took time.  It was a process that modeled he that is the least shall be great.  It is a process that was full of paradoxes…it still is.  In what looked like complete failure, there was complete victory.  

Redemption comes in many, many little triumphs of doing the loving thing.  “He who does good is of God…” Third John 11.  Sometimes the doing good just seems like a little thing.   Jesus said that we have done it unto Him if we have done it unto anyone.  One of those beautiful paradoxes we get to experience.   

We have been given the gift of redemption.  That means that we have been rescued from the enemies camp.  When we were not ready for the truth.  When we were not ready for the package.  When we were not ready for the process.  God fractured the Godhead and poured out a Son from heaven!  This love is still redeeming us in so many ways each day.  The modeling of this love is teaching us to look for this redemption and to be about the Father’s business of extending to others redemption in whatever good that we are called to do.  Redemption…if we have done it to others, we have done it to/for Him. 

May the blessings of the Christ child fill you with joy and enhanced spiritual eyesight as we behold and celebrate Him.  

  

The Love Song of Heaven

The shepherds heard the angels sing…peace on earth, good will to men.  Here is the love song of heaven.  If you want to know how much the Father loves us, listen to the song of heaven.  What do you hear?  What do you learn?  What is the message about the Father?  

I often have people say to me that they can embrace the sweet Jesus, but the Father they fear.  What does John 14:8-11 say?  “Philip said to him, “Lord, show us the Father, and it is enough for us.”  Jesus said to him, “Have I been with you so long, and you still do not know me, Philip? Whoever has seen me has seen the Father. How can you say, ‘Show us the Father’?  Do you not believe that I am in the Father and the Father is in me? The words that I say to you I do not speak on my own authority, but the Father who dwells in me does his works. Believe me that I am in the Father and the Father is in me, or else believe on account of the works themselves.

This verse is a foundational truth about God.  It does not say that if we have seen Jesus we have an incomplete and inaccurate view of the Father. All that we can understand about the Father is clearly seen in Jesus.

Jesus is the Father’s revelation of himself…“if you have seen me, you have seen the Father.”

I often talk about our identity in Christ.  It has occurred to me after so many that have issues with the Father’s identity that we need to hear the truth about God.  He is not the bad guy of heaven who needs the Son to stand between us and the Father.  This is such a distortion of the image of God and the Son…for you see, they are one.

Not reading and understanding scripture is where we get these distortions.  I am amazed at how we keep passing on to generation after generation of God’s children this dreadful lie.  It speaks of our lack of personal Bible study and how willing we are to accept and pass on the lies.  Scripture is truth that sets us free.  Free from the identity crises of God, Christ, and mankind.  

For GOD so loved the world that He gave His only son that whosoever believes in Him should not perish but have everlasting life.  We could and will spend an eternity basking in this love and truth.  

In this time of beholding the Christ child…the sweet, lovely Jesus…let us see that in all that He reveals, it is a revelation of the Father.  If, as scripture says, Jesus did not come to condemn us, then you can be sure the love song of heaven has no words of condemnation either.  There is only one accuser of the brethren…the devil. If the Son pleads His blood, it is to stand between God and the Devil...the accuser.  This is the Biblical law of "witnesses."  There has to be two or three witnesses for something to be so.  We have the Father, the Son, and the accuser.  

If a scripture seems to be talking about God’s condemnation, read it again.  The devil is the one who condemns us…read the story of the woman caught in adultery.  Jesus (and God) do not condemn.  The real bad guy is the devil.  He has a charge against us and against God for not immediately destroying us when we were deceived in the garden…like the woman caught in adultery which is a visual aid of what happened in the garden of Eden.

Peace on earth, good will to men.  The love song of heaven.  The greatest Christmas gift we can give God this Christmas is to understand this love song and see that if you are seeing  the Son, you have seen the Father.  The scripture says that a house divided against itself cannot stand.  What many people have received as truth about the Godhead is actually a doctrine of a false god.  Celebrate the truth of the holiday...that is the love song of heaven…peace on earth, good will to men.  Praise God.

God's Children Out of Bondage

“But ye are a chosen generation, a royal priesthood, an holy nation, a peculiar people; that ye should show forth the praises of Him who hath called you out of darkness into His marvelous light:” 1 Peter 2:9.  

This verse has something exquisite to share with us.   It starts with WHO we are in Christ Jesus.  It is in knowing this and embracing this identity that God gives us, that the rest of the verse has potential.  

Over the last several years, I have been impressed with this thought: Unless we know who we are in God, we do not get the whole, amazing story.  Add to that this thought: Unless we believe the truth about who God is, who we are in Christ will make little difference.  What you believe about God will effect either positively or negatively what we believe about ourselves.  

I am not the only Christian who was raised with a false god…a God of hellfire and damnation, angry with me, distant because I had been bad.  All of this is a lie.  First of all, I never did anything bad that God should hold me so accountable for things over which I had no control.  From the first of our religious instruction as children, many are taught that “Jesus doesn’t love bad boys or girls.”  How horrific that God’s image is so distorted to a precious mind of a child.  How terrible to do this to a child’s image of self.

For a long time, I have been giving God permission to reveal the truth about Himself and me in relationship to Him.  It has been a sweet journey of freedom.  I love the Lord.  Given that, I have struggled with much of what I was taught as a child and adult about God and me.  How sweet that God encourages my questioning of all this.  He wants me to get to the truth because then I am free and so is He.  We are in this together.  If I am held captive by lies about my image in Him, He is held captive, too.

When I get it that I am chosen, royal, holy, and special (significant, safe, supported, secure), I have something to praise Him about…being called out of the darkness of the lie into the glorious light of truth.  

Many Christians are not comfortable with this identity because it is not what they have been taught.  Our first reaction is to put up a defense the same as defending our state of being selfish sinners.  Someone recently questioned me about the idea of self-improvement work…isn’t that being selfish focusing on self?  Yet, Jesus invites us to love ourselves as we love others.  And the truth is that unless we love ourselves and realize our correct identity in God, we cannot extend to others that vision of grace.

The more I see of Divinity, the more I see His plan for me.  His words that I have the fullness of the Godhead and the mind of Christ are a part of His original intent for us.  If you study the story of Israel being removed from Egypt in the deliverance, you will see that the first thing God did was to establish an identity for them…in tribes and within the context of tribes, a chosen people.  He gave them all that they needed to know their significance and to feel secure.  He surrounded them with all that a learning, growing child needs in order to become physically and emotionally healthy people.  This is a beautiful story and gives us much wisdom in training up a child.  We need to remember that Israel was not much more than animals when delivered from Egypt…four hundred years of slavery can do that.  These are great lessons for us as we continue to be in slavery in our own personal Egypt.  

“But ye are a chosen generation, a royal priesthood, an holy nation, a peculiar people; that ye should show forth the praises of Him who hath called you out of darkness into His marvelous light:” 1 Peter 2:9. 

Praise is a love response.  That is so much different than another tick on a To Do list.  It is something that comes from within because you know you are chosen, royal, holy, and special.  It changes every thing.  Thank you, Father God.

The Bethlehem Story

“Now when Jesus was born in Bethlehem of Judea in the days of Herod the king, behold, there came wise men from the east to Jerusalem, saying, Where is he that is born King of the Jews? For we have seen his star in the east, and are come to worship him’” (Matt. 2:1,2 KJV). 

The story of the Wise Men has delighted us for years.  Children, portraying these gift-bearers in yearly Christmas pageants, try to capture the awe and magic of the story of the journey to find and worship a new king.  In our world today where things seem to happen instantly, we do not stop to think about a journey that took months on slow-moving camels.  This trip took time, money, and commitment.

Part of the beauty of Bible reading is that it continues to unfold new ideas, new truths.  One day while reading the Bethlehem story again, I discovered something new, something that until this time had not revealed itself to me.  It was simply a question about the star that led the Wise Men to Jerusalem.

The star!  Why did the star take the Wise Men to Jerusalem?  Think about it for a moment.  God knew where Jesus was in Bethlehem.  Why Jerusalem?  Jerusalem, the city of learned religious teachers and scholars, was a gathering place of Israel—the center of worship.  Was it to announce to the Jerusalemites the birth of Jesus?  Perhaps.  This answer, too, has resounding implications.

Think about a few of the consequences of this Jerusalem stop.  King Herod was made aware of the birth of a competitor for his throne when the Wise Men inquired as to the location of the Baby.  King Herod summoned the priests and scribes, and they stood before him and told him where the Baby was to be born—amazing!  A heathen king made them aware of something they should have known.  Were not the Jews praying for and looking for their Deliverer?   Another consequence—all the male children two years of age and under in Bethlehem were killed by the king’s decree.  All these things occurred because the Wise Men stopped in Jerusalem.

Parallels…Why didn’t the star take the Wise Men straight to Bethlehem?  Perhaps we can only guess, but what really seems important is this thought.  Jerusalem, the center of all the hubbub and activity of the Jews, is not where Jesus was found.  Can we find an application to our day, to our churches?  They, too, are the center for religious activity, for learning, doing, and being.  This is all well and good; we need our churches for this and other reasons, too.  But where is Jesus?

As important as all this is, there is another factor to be considered.  It is the trip from Jerusalem to Bethlehem to find Jesus.  This trip requires more than just being a part of the action in a religious institution.  It requires effort, time, and commitment to follow the star a bit further to a spiritual awareness of Jesus.  It means being quiet enough to hear Him speak.  It means letting go of feelings that limit ourselves and others.  Pride, selfishness, bigotry, prejudice, and all those other feelings, which are nothing more than our own personal fears working against the spiritual and emotional growth of ourselves and others.

Standing before Herod, the Wise Men announced that they had come to worship the King.  Worship was the reason they were in Jerusalem.  There was a great deal of worship happening in Jerusalem, but most of it did not include the worship of Jesus.  Our weekly attendance at church says to our neighbors, friends, family, and fellow church members that our intention is to worship the King.  However, if we stop and stay in Jerusalem, if we do not continue to follow the star, we will not find the King and worship Him, but will be worshiping at a shrine of our own making.

Wise Gifts…”When they had heard the king, they departed; and, lo, the star, which they saw in the east, went before them, till it came and stood over where the young child was.  When they saw the star, they rejoiced with exceeding great joy…They…worshipped him: and…presented unto him gifts; gold, and frankincense, and myrrh” (Matt. 2:9, KJV).  The extra journey to Bethlehem requires that we come away from the hub of activity and go a few more miles to find the King, worship, and give.  Amazing—the Wise Men got it right, and they got it in the right order!  Keeping their eyes on the star, they followed the star, they found the King, they worshiped Him, and they gave their gifts.  This kind of giving truly is the spirit of Christmas.