... but we [will be] like angels of God in heaven..."
Heaven is our final destination. But make no mistake, we will no more be angels there, as we are here.
People make the passing from this life to the next life everything but sacred. They argue whether we sleep until the Second Coming, or we immediately raise to be with Christ the moment of the passing. While interesting, these discussions take away from both the Sacredness and Vocation of the Second Birth.
Soon we will understand that there are many categories of creatures in heaven. There are all sort of angels - each with rank and role - all sorts of beasts, all sorts of beings. And then we will arrive, too - separately distinct from all others, joining with them in the ongoing activities of worship and work in the all Eternal Plan of God.
Jesus slammed the pharisees on two accounts (vrs. 29). One: that they did not know the Scriptures. They had accumulated knowledge of the resurrection - from myth and tradition - but had watered down their actual belief in what the Scriptures actually said. For them, the Scriptures were a nice body of information that had their own little world, or reality, about them - whether true or false - not unlike Narnia. They were distant in heart with the Texts who described who they were and their sure future.
He also slammed them for not knowing the power of God. They were unable to grasp the immense New World awaiting those on the Other Side. They had not experienced the power of God through the Holy Spirit (though had witnessed it in Jesus' ministry) and thus based their worldview on the ground of their being, not in the sky of his footstool. For them, the idea of resurrection itself was a myth.
But we are different. We see things from this side of the Tomb. We have a foretaste of the Resurrection Life in the joy we often experience when we worship or pray. We believe the glorious power of Heaven's Love swelled so much for us that - as an old wineskin bursts forth with the inertia of the New Wine - it could no longer be contained and blasted forth from the tomb in violent torrents of Living Water. The stone was the finger in the dike. And no finger can hold back that kind of power.
For believers in Christ, heaven is as real as anything we see, for we live in that Stream. One Day we will be completely caught up in it - indeed, swept away in it. One day the torrents flooding forth from the Tomb itself will not be able to hold back the overwhelming back-flow of Love that God has for us. The rocks will turn to sand and the Rock of Ages will appear, with one - and only one thought in mind - being with you and me!
He will descend from the Throne of Love and escort his Beloved into a New Life - a life of activity, a life of work, a life untainted by sin or the power of the devil where we will join with all of the gloriously redeemed, a motley crew, gathered from all time and places where, I believe, we will to continue on with the good work of proclaiming His Glory and Witness across the unreached creature-groups in the Universe and Beyond, eventually winning all Creation to that same Heaven.
You perhaps were thinking we'd just be strumming harps and singing in choirs? Wake up, dude. This is not your grandparents' heaven.
Tuesday, February 15, 2011
Monday, February 14, 2011
Matthew Devotions: 22:3
"... he sent out his servants to call those who had been invited to the wedding feast..."
As servants of Christ, our role is to fit those who have been called with their wedding garments.
Christ calls everyone to join him in the Feast, yet not all come. Some have excuses, others are procrastinators. Still others make light of it and think it's a pipe dream. Still he calls - still his servants are instructed to gather, proclaim, and to usher. And still his servants find very few people actually willing to go.
It's rough being a servant. Servants - if not wholly focused on their mandate from on High - may sometimes think they are not performing like they should, or that there is something wrong with their performance. If they were doing all things right then everyone would hear them, confess Christ, and want to wear a gown, they think.
But that's not true. People have their own wills. They choose their paths, we cannot do that for them. Many will turn away and that is not our problem. Our priority is to be ready for the ones that will come, the ones that God has drawn into the Feast. That is what the Father is doing. That is what we are about. Only that.
"Friend, how did you come here without a wedding garment?" (vrs. 12). In the old days it was the King's responsibility to provide the wedding garments - so the man in this story had absolutely no excuse for not having one. We cannot speak to that. Yet, as servants of Christ, we are all about the business of fitting those who have decided to freely purchase a Garment for their sure, future Feast.
"Fitting others" comes in a lot of ways. What can be done to hem the robe for a tight fit? What can the servant do - through loving, nurturing, teaching, modeling, and blessing - that which will sure up the Garments of those he has called us to serve? When they walk into that Room we want them to shine with the luster of Bridegroom. We want them to radiate and reflect the love of the Day, without blemish or wrinkle.
So how do we do that? They are heading to a feast that we have already attended. They have only smelt the savoring meat and faintly heard the New Song riding on the Wind through the windows of their souls. But we have tasted of the meat, drank of the New Wine, and even danced before angels before the Throne. We have been there and thus know how to sure up the Garments of Grace. With that knowledge - the knowledge of their sure future - what can the Servants of Christ do in order to completely fit them for the Feast?
Servants take whoever is called and, knowing what they know, empty themselves upon the Called - fitting them with the Garments which will grant them access to the Wedding Feast of the Lamb.
As servants of Christ, our role is to fit those who have been called with their wedding garments.
Christ calls everyone to join him in the Feast, yet not all come. Some have excuses, others are procrastinators. Still others make light of it and think it's a pipe dream. Still he calls - still his servants are instructed to gather, proclaim, and to usher. And still his servants find very few people actually willing to go.
It's rough being a servant. Servants - if not wholly focused on their mandate from on High - may sometimes think they are not performing like they should, or that there is something wrong with their performance. If they were doing all things right then everyone would hear them, confess Christ, and want to wear a gown, they think.
But that's not true. People have their own wills. They choose their paths, we cannot do that for them. Many will turn away and that is not our problem. Our priority is to be ready for the ones that will come, the ones that God has drawn into the Feast. That is what the Father is doing. That is what we are about. Only that.
"Friend, how did you come here without a wedding garment?" (vrs. 12). In the old days it was the King's responsibility to provide the wedding garments - so the man in this story had absolutely no excuse for not having one. We cannot speak to that. Yet, as servants of Christ, we are all about the business of fitting those who have decided to freely purchase a Garment for their sure, future Feast.
"Fitting others" comes in a lot of ways. What can be done to hem the robe for a tight fit? What can the servant do - through loving, nurturing, teaching, modeling, and blessing - that which will sure up the Garments of those he has called us to serve? When they walk into that Room we want them to shine with the luster of Bridegroom. We want them to radiate and reflect the love of the Day, without blemish or wrinkle.
So how do we do that? They are heading to a feast that we have already attended. They have only smelt the savoring meat and faintly heard the New Song riding on the Wind through the windows of their souls. But we have tasted of the meat, drank of the New Wine, and even danced before angels before the Throne. We have been there and thus know how to sure up the Garments of Grace. With that knowledge - the knowledge of their sure future - what can the Servants of Christ do in order to completely fit them for the Feast?
Servants take whoever is called and, knowing what they know, empty themselves upon the Called - fitting them with the Garments which will grant them access to the Wedding Feast of the Lamb.
Tuesday, February 8, 2011
Matthew Devotion: 21:41
"... who will render him the fruits in their seasons..."
In times of inactivity, remember: the ebb and flow of the intensity of our walks with Christ may not so much be the product of your own doing, but the result of a natural "season" in your life.
If you are born to bear fruit - fruit for the Kingdom that will last - and you are - that, in itself, negates the thought that your spiritual vibrancy will be at 100% full throttle each and every day of your life.
For a tree to bear fruit there needs to be seasons. There will always be those times when the fruit is sweet and people will cluster to your Vine. Conversaly, there will always be those times when the Vinedressor will till the soil around your roots, prune your branches, and prepare you for the Greater Harvest in Spring.
Leaning to accept this spiritual ebb and flow - season of fruitfulness to seasons of preparation - is difficult for us. In seasons perceived fruitlessness it is easy to think, "Where has God gone? Where are the glory days?" And sometimes, in seasons of intense fruitfulness - when the sparks are flying and the Witness is sure - we think, "All I want is a little peace and quiet!"
But God knows. He is the Manager of All Seasons. He knows your potential and prunes you so that you display his absolute best fruit - Fruit of the Vine. In "spiritual lulls" you don't need to wonder if there is anything good left in you. Rather, know that he is gardening. He is faithful. His Word never returns void.
The bearing of fruit is the one thing - perhaps the only thing - that is seen and handled by others for the Witness of the God's Love. John cries in the wilderness, "Bear fruit worthy of repentance!" In other words, "Let me see something in your life that shows me something of the interior work of repentance in your life." Jesus said, "By your fruit you will be known." In other words, "Others will know you by the actions, lifestyle, morals, and spiritual fortitude you display." And Paul writes, "The fruit of the Spirit is love, joy, peace, long-suffering, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness, and self control." These are not standards of conduct or morality - these are fruits of the Spirit. They are natural displays of the one who is grafted into the Vine from Heaven, Jesus Christ.
If you are in him, you will display these things - without even trying. They have little to do with what you do and everything to do with who you are in Christ. You are made to bare fruit - naturally. If you are walking with God good fruit will follow. Period. The most you can do is nurture the plant, fanning into flame the gift that is in you by blessing whatever the Vinedresser is doing at any particular time in your life.
So in your times of barrenness, in your times when you find yourself wondering "where have all the flowers gone?" remember that the Vinedresser is quite busy. He continues working working the soil, pruning your branches, maybe even uprooting you and placing you in another field. He has a Plan. He sees ahead. You cannot.
Bless your season. Rest assured that you have not been forsaken. You have not run dry. This time is a planned time, a preparation time, wherein the Vinedresser is working and waiting for the precise time to produce in you a glorious, fruitful future wherein many will taste and see that the Lord is good!
In times of inactivity, remember: the ebb and flow of the intensity of our walks with Christ may not so much be the product of your own doing, but the result of a natural "season" in your life.
If you are born to bear fruit - fruit for the Kingdom that will last - and you are - that, in itself, negates the thought that your spiritual vibrancy will be at 100% full throttle each and every day of your life.
For a tree to bear fruit there needs to be seasons. There will always be those times when the fruit is sweet and people will cluster to your Vine. Conversaly, there will always be those times when the Vinedressor will till the soil around your roots, prune your branches, and prepare you for the Greater Harvest in Spring.
Leaning to accept this spiritual ebb and flow - season of fruitfulness to seasons of preparation - is difficult for us. In seasons perceived fruitlessness it is easy to think, "Where has God gone? Where are the glory days?" And sometimes, in seasons of intense fruitfulness - when the sparks are flying and the Witness is sure - we think, "All I want is a little peace and quiet!"
But God knows. He is the Manager of All Seasons. He knows your potential and prunes you so that you display his absolute best fruit - Fruit of the Vine. In "spiritual lulls" you don't need to wonder if there is anything good left in you. Rather, know that he is gardening. He is faithful. His Word never returns void.
The bearing of fruit is the one thing - perhaps the only thing - that is seen and handled by others for the Witness of the God's Love. John cries in the wilderness, "Bear fruit worthy of repentance!" In other words, "Let me see something in your life that shows me something of the interior work of repentance in your life." Jesus said, "By your fruit you will be known." In other words, "Others will know you by the actions, lifestyle, morals, and spiritual fortitude you display." And Paul writes, "The fruit of the Spirit is love, joy, peace, long-suffering, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness, and self control." These are not standards of conduct or morality - these are fruits of the Spirit. They are natural displays of the one who is grafted into the Vine from Heaven, Jesus Christ.
If you are in him, you will display these things - without even trying. They have little to do with what you do and everything to do with who you are in Christ. You are made to bare fruit - naturally. If you are walking with God good fruit will follow. Period. The most you can do is nurture the plant, fanning into flame the gift that is in you by blessing whatever the Vinedresser is doing at any particular time in your life.
So in your times of barrenness, in your times when you find yourself wondering "where have all the flowers gone?" remember that the Vinedresser is quite busy. He continues working working the soil, pruning your branches, maybe even uprooting you and placing you in another field. He has a Plan. He sees ahead. You cannot.
Bless your season. Rest assured that you have not been forsaken. You have not run dry. This time is a planned time, a preparation time, wherein the Vinedresser is working and waiting for the precise time to produce in you a glorious, fruitful future wherein many will taste and see that the Lord is good!
Thursday, February 3, 2011
Matthew Devotion: 21:14
'... then the blind and lamb came to him in the temple, and he healed them..."
When the Temple is cleansed, miracles of God abound!
In this Palm Sunday passage three notable things happened:
I mentioned the first point in the last blog.
Most important here is to note the righteous rage that Jesus demonstrated when he saw the religious barricades preventing the Children of God from worshiping the Father in Spirit and Truth. And, even today, he is still in the business of tearing walls down. Why? In order to restore us to a right relationship with the Father. In the story, Jesus is cleaning the Temple in Jerusalem. In our life's, he is cleaning the Temple of our hearts.
We can be very clever in devising walls and barriers that set us up for a limited intimacy with God. We procrastinate, we sin. We seek to manage God. We tell ourselves God forgives us but then refuse to believe - outside of some self-sacrificial self-righteous act of self-indulgent penance which needs to really hurt - he has really forgiven us. We even have been known to establish religious protocols in our devotions which do more to work us away from Intimacy with God than to gracefully and quite easily, simply receive the Gift.
(Many churches lack the manifest experience of the Father - the joy of Heaven, the healing, empowerment, the gifts of the Spirit - because of religious clutter in their gatherings, as well.)
Jesus knows there is nothing more on the Father's heart than to be with his kids. And he knows how happy we would all be if all the clutter was cleared from our Temple Courts. So - being a God of Love and an enemy of all things bad - he strategically destroys anything that would get in the way of that. Conversely, he builds up everything that would enhance that. In this sense, he is a bit like his cousin John, who levels our mountains and fills in our valleys to prepare us to encounter the Way of the Lord.
Must run in the family.
If you ever sense he is driving out all those who are buying and selling in the the Temple of your heart; best to go with it. Who can stand before his mighty blast? It is all for Love's Sake anyway and you'll only pull a muscle clinging to that which will only hurt you in the log run anyway.
It is when this happens - the clearing of the Temple - that healing breaks forth. Or, perhaps the clearing of one's Temple and the healing of the blind and lame are both one and the same event?
Regardless, it was when all the clutter was removed from the Courts that the Lovingkindness of the Kingdom became manifest. Healing happened. People were set free to dance and worship their God, just like they had always been made to do, just like they have always dreamed of being.
When the Temple is cleansed, miracles of God abound!
In this Palm Sunday passage three notable things happened:
- the great multitudes laid their cloaks before him
- Jesus cleared out the sin and purged the blockages between God and his people
- there was a big healing service
I mentioned the first point in the last blog.
Most important here is to note the righteous rage that Jesus demonstrated when he saw the religious barricades preventing the Children of God from worshiping the Father in Spirit and Truth. And, even today, he is still in the business of tearing walls down. Why? In order to restore us to a right relationship with the Father. In the story, Jesus is cleaning the Temple in Jerusalem. In our life's, he is cleaning the Temple of our hearts.
We can be very clever in devising walls and barriers that set us up for a limited intimacy with God. We procrastinate, we sin. We seek to manage God. We tell ourselves God forgives us but then refuse to believe - outside of some self-sacrificial self-righteous act of self-indulgent penance which needs to really hurt - he has really forgiven us. We even have been known to establish religious protocols in our devotions which do more to work us away from Intimacy with God than to gracefully and quite easily, simply receive the Gift.
(Many churches lack the manifest experience of the Father - the joy of Heaven, the healing, empowerment, the gifts of the Spirit - because of religious clutter in their gatherings, as well.)
Jesus knows there is nothing more on the Father's heart than to be with his kids. And he knows how happy we would all be if all the clutter was cleared from our Temple Courts. So - being a God of Love and an enemy of all things bad - he strategically destroys anything that would get in the way of that. Conversely, he builds up everything that would enhance that. In this sense, he is a bit like his cousin John, who levels our mountains and fills in our valleys to prepare us to encounter the Way of the Lord.
Must run in the family.
If you ever sense he is driving out all those who are buying and selling in the the Temple of your heart; best to go with it. Who can stand before his mighty blast? It is all for Love's Sake anyway and you'll only pull a muscle clinging to that which will only hurt you in the log run anyway.
It is when this happens - the clearing of the Temple - that healing breaks forth. Or, perhaps the clearing of one's Temple and the healing of the blind and lame are both one and the same event?
Regardless, it was when all the clutter was removed from the Courts that the Lovingkindness of the Kingdom became manifest. Healing happened. People were set free to dance and worship their God, just like they had always been made to do, just like they have always dreamed of being.
Monday, January 31, 2011
Matthew Devotion: 21:11
"... so the multitudes said..."
One of the easiest ways to share the Gospel comes simply in the labeling of "Jesus" in any given situation. "This" is "that." "That is how Jesus works." "This is the prophet, Jesus, a Nazarene from Galilee."
Most people are very close to seeing Jesus. They are made in his image. All they need is someone to help them out a little. A little defining goes a long way.
In this story of Jesus riding into Jerusalem on the back of a donkey the multitudes are filled with joy. They are crying, "Hosanna!" - grownups and children alike! Their cries carry authority. Their proclamation carries integrity, and so they are heard and understood by the dwellers in Jerusalem.
But it wasn't just the words that spoke to them. Anyone can say words. It was something in the Heart of those proclaiming Christ in the their midst. When they cried their "Hosanna!" it was as if angels, and archangels, and all the company of heaven were proclaiming their praise through them as well - as if all Creation was backing their chorus of praise and adoration.
Such is the anointing power of a reflection united with its Image.
The heavenly beings were already in submission to the Throne. Their status in heaven shows that. But now the people get into the game. They too - howbeit through personal sacrifice - spiritually unite with Heaven in the Universal Proclamation. Earth and Heaven have become aligned, all intentionally humbled, bowed low, rejoicing before the One enthroned in the Parade of Glory.
When beings of Earth and Heaven get on the same page the Kingdom "snaps and sparkles" in wonderfully crisp ways - ways that are immediately understood by by believers and nonbelievers alike.
For us, the Doorway into this Holy Synchronization is sacrificial in nature. It comes in the laying down of our cloaks. To those living in that day a cloak was more than just a piece of fabric. It was a coat, a shelter from the sun, a blanket of warmth in the winter, a comfort for cuddling at bedtime. Their cloaks, laid on on the road before the King revealed an act of self-sacrifice, holy submission, and sold-out trust. It was a way of saying, "Have it all!" "You have my life." "All I have is yours and I lay it at your feet and worship you!"
As their cloaks hit the ground their hearts hit heaven. At that moment these followers of Jesus became one with all the Saints who had also given their all - their cloaks - to praise of his glorious Name. It was here, in this act of faith and worship, when God met them. Finally they had arrived and were able to praise him freely without care, echoing the Heaven Hosts who were also up there doing the same.
No wonder they were able to praise with shameless hearts! No wonder the chorus of heaven became their back up band! Their hearts became carefree and dripping with the joy-filled Integrity of Heaven. They were no longer bound and proclaimed with heaven and earth alike, "This is the One, this is Jesus of Nazareth!"
No wonder the people listened, really listened.
One of the easiest ways to share the Gospel comes simply in the labeling of "Jesus" in any given situation. "This" is "that." "That is how Jesus works." "This is the prophet, Jesus, a Nazarene from Galilee."
Most people are very close to seeing Jesus. They are made in his image. All they need is someone to help them out a little. A little defining goes a long way.
In this story of Jesus riding into Jerusalem on the back of a donkey the multitudes are filled with joy. They are crying, "Hosanna!" - grownups and children alike! Their cries carry authority. Their proclamation carries integrity, and so they are heard and understood by the dwellers in Jerusalem.
But it wasn't just the words that spoke to them. Anyone can say words. It was something in the Heart of those proclaiming Christ in the their midst. When they cried their "Hosanna!" it was as if angels, and archangels, and all the company of heaven were proclaiming their praise through them as well - as if all Creation was backing their chorus of praise and adoration.
Such is the anointing power of a reflection united with its Image.
The heavenly beings were already in submission to the Throne. Their status in heaven shows that. But now the people get into the game. They too - howbeit through personal sacrifice - spiritually unite with Heaven in the Universal Proclamation. Earth and Heaven have become aligned, all intentionally humbled, bowed low, rejoicing before the One enthroned in the Parade of Glory.
When beings of Earth and Heaven get on the same page the Kingdom "snaps and sparkles" in wonderfully crisp ways - ways that are immediately understood by by believers and nonbelievers alike.
For us, the Doorway into this Holy Synchronization is sacrificial in nature. It comes in the laying down of our cloaks. To those living in that day a cloak was more than just a piece of fabric. It was a coat, a shelter from the sun, a blanket of warmth in the winter, a comfort for cuddling at bedtime. Their cloaks, laid on on the road before the King revealed an act of self-sacrifice, holy submission, and sold-out trust. It was a way of saying, "Have it all!" "You have my life." "All I have is yours and I lay it at your feet and worship you!"
As their cloaks hit the ground their hearts hit heaven. At that moment these followers of Jesus became one with all the Saints who had also given their all - their cloaks - to praise of his glorious Name. It was here, in this act of faith and worship, when God met them. Finally they had arrived and were able to praise him freely without care, echoing the Heaven Hosts who were also up there doing the same.
No wonder they were able to praise with shameless hearts! No wonder the chorus of heaven became their back up band! Their hearts became carefree and dripping with the joy-filled Integrity of Heaven. They were no longer bound and proclaimed with heaven and earth alike, "This is the One, this is Jesus of Nazareth!"
No wonder the people listened, really listened.
Sunday, January 30, 2011
Matthew Devotion: 19:2
"... great multitudes followed him, and he healed them there..."
Jesus never turned away anyone who was seeking healing.
This passage is one of a few summary passages that reveals Jesus' hands on dealings with the sick, the in-firmed, and the outcast (see also passages around 4:23, 14:34, and 15:29). This particular piece is sandwiched between his teachings on forgiveness, divorce, and the danger of placing ones trust in riches - all of which are potentially the greatest kinks in the Kingdom.
Jesus' healing - his integration into each part of the human condition - is noticeable. He is not the kind of god who only goes so far into the darkness with us and then gives up. He is not the kind of god who waits for us to clean ourselves up before he'll talk to us. God is has already entered the darkest caverns of our hearts and the most painful experiences of our life. He is there, ready to lift us into Light and free us from all bondage.
Indeed, he perhaps is his best in our despair - as he comes alive and seizes any opportunity to provide a glorious echo of the Empty Tomb. Jesus has been there, he is here, and - indeed, if you were to fall further, stray deeper - even pass through the threshold of Death itself - he would be there as well, comforting, healing, and resurrecting you from darkness and into his marvelous Light.
Jesus isn't afraid to get his hands dirty.
That being said, he is also acutely aware of our sincerity, or insincerity, as the case may be, when we come to him in prayer. He is quick to convict and confront. He loves us and wants us freed of anything crippling us from making a non-stop beeline into the Easter Morn.
In the case of the rich young ruler, his crippling cord was his love of riches. (For us it may be different.) Jesus scanned the interior of this man's tomb and easily diagnosed that it was this man's love of wealth which was trip keeping him from fully running into the Day. His directive was specific: sell all you have. If the man would have confessed, of course - i.e. agreed with God's Word on the [any given] situation - he would have instantly known the power of Christ to bail him out of that situation. But he didn't. Indeed, may he thought it was too tall an order and he wouldn't be able to do it on his own.
Perhaps he had forgotten that the conviction of Christ is always accompanied by the Power to pull it off.
The whole of our condition - the depths of our sin, the snares of our humanity - may seem overwhelming to us. But they remain powerless in the Presence of the Risen Christ. It is his Nature to bless the good in us and to reveal the bad in us - in order that we can have more of the God in us.
Jesus never turned away anyone who was seeking healing.
This passage is one of a few summary passages that reveals Jesus' hands on dealings with the sick, the in-firmed, and the outcast (see also passages around 4:23, 14:34, and 15:29). This particular piece is sandwiched between his teachings on forgiveness, divorce, and the danger of placing ones trust in riches - all of which are potentially the greatest kinks in the Kingdom.
Jesus' healing - his integration into each part of the human condition - is noticeable. He is not the kind of god who only goes so far into the darkness with us and then gives up. He is not the kind of god who waits for us to clean ourselves up before he'll talk to us. God is has already entered the darkest caverns of our hearts and the most painful experiences of our life. He is there, ready to lift us into Light and free us from all bondage.
Indeed, he perhaps is his best in our despair - as he comes alive and seizes any opportunity to provide a glorious echo of the Empty Tomb. Jesus has been there, he is here, and - indeed, if you were to fall further, stray deeper - even pass through the threshold of Death itself - he would be there as well, comforting, healing, and resurrecting you from darkness and into his marvelous Light.
Jesus isn't afraid to get his hands dirty.
That being said, he is also acutely aware of our sincerity, or insincerity, as the case may be, when we come to him in prayer. He is quick to convict and confront. He loves us and wants us freed of anything crippling us from making a non-stop beeline into the Easter Morn.
In the case of the rich young ruler, his crippling cord was his love of riches. (For us it may be different.) Jesus scanned the interior of this man's tomb and easily diagnosed that it was this man's love of wealth which was trip keeping him from fully running into the Day. His directive was specific: sell all you have. If the man would have confessed, of course - i.e. agreed with God's Word on the [any given] situation - he would have instantly known the power of Christ to bail him out of that situation. But he didn't. Indeed, may he thought it was too tall an order and he wouldn't be able to do it on his own.
Perhaps he had forgotten that the conviction of Christ is always accompanied by the Power to pull it off.
The whole of our condition - the depths of our sin, the snares of our humanity - may seem overwhelming to us. But they remain powerless in the Presence of the Risen Christ. It is his Nature to bless the good in us and to reveal the bad in us - in order that we can have more of the God in us.
Friday, January 28, 2011
Matthew Devotion: 18:8
"... if your hand causes you to sin..."
The Kingdom of God - and the ensuing relationship with the Almighty - is like a waterway. It's banks rim with torrents of icy cold water. There are lagoons of peace and solitude and bays of clarity, wherein the sweetness of Communion between us and our God is such that its description rises above that of human language.
These pristine Waters need never be polluted - especially when its within our power to keep that from happening. We need to protect them.
Pollution happens when our faith moves away from the Faith of the Child. When we, by the build up of transgressions, find that our heart fails. It simply can no longer live into the simplicity and grace of the Gospel. The accumulation of bitterness, love of this world, pride, and the hardened attitudes of our hearts causes our inner grown-up to distance itself from the Child within.
That is why Jesus is so insistent that we do everything possible to keep small; everything possible to free ourselves from the things that cause others to stumble (v.6), that render attitudes of unforgiveness (v.22), divorce (19:8), and the love of money (19:22) - and all this, for the sake of the little Child within.
What are the influences that draws you away from this pure, childlike Faith? Search them out. Label them. And destroy them. Is it a hand, a foot, a refusal to forgive with the same grace wherein you have been forgiven? These things, if not pulled from the streams of Living Water, will eventually grow into boulders in our hearts and - in their natural progression - soon grow into great stone walls which will cause God in us to be dammed.
Jesus knows this world can be a hard place. He knows all too well the harshness it offers to the hearts of the Redeemed and how easily our precious Child is bruised, torn and afflicted in the hailstorms of this life. The emphasis here is on the preciousness of the Child, the Currents of Fellowship, the Intimacy of the Lagoons, and the Joy of Morning's Dawn - things so precious that it is worth sacrificing anything and everything, just in order stay in the sweet showers of God's Blessing.
The Kingdom of God - and the ensuing relationship with the Almighty - is like a waterway. It's banks rim with torrents of icy cold water. There are lagoons of peace and solitude and bays of clarity, wherein the sweetness of Communion between us and our God is such that its description rises above that of human language.
These pristine Waters need never be polluted - especially when its within our power to keep that from happening. We need to protect them.
Pollution happens when our faith moves away from the Faith of the Child. When we, by the build up of transgressions, find that our heart fails. It simply can no longer live into the simplicity and grace of the Gospel. The accumulation of bitterness, love of this world, pride, and the hardened attitudes of our hearts causes our inner grown-up to distance itself from the Child within.
That is why Jesus is so insistent that we do everything possible to keep small; everything possible to free ourselves from the things that cause others to stumble (v.6), that render attitudes of unforgiveness (v.22), divorce (19:8), and the love of money (19:22) - and all this, for the sake of the little Child within.
What are the influences that draws you away from this pure, childlike Faith? Search them out. Label them. And destroy them. Is it a hand, a foot, a refusal to forgive with the same grace wherein you have been forgiven? These things, if not pulled from the streams of Living Water, will eventually grow into boulders in our hearts and - in their natural progression - soon grow into great stone walls which will cause God in us to be dammed.
Jesus knows this world can be a hard place. He knows all too well the harshness it offers to the hearts of the Redeemed and how easily our precious Child is bruised, torn and afflicted in the hailstorms of this life. The emphasis here is on the preciousness of the Child, the Currents of Fellowship, the Intimacy of the Lagoons, and the Joy of Morning's Dawn - things so precious that it is worth sacrificing anything and everything, just in order stay in the sweet showers of God's Blessing.
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