Testing the Spirits

Time to get serious about spiritual discernment. It’s been time for a very long time…

1 John 4:1
“Beloved, do not believe every spirit, but test the spirits to see whether they are from God, for many false prophets have gone out into the world.”

2 Peter 2:1
“But false prophets also arose among the people, just as there will be false teachers among you, who will secretly bring in destructive heresies, even denying the Master who bought them, bringing upon themselves swift destruction.”

1 Timothy 4:1
“Now the Spirit expressly says that in later times some will depart from the faith by devoting themselves to deceitful spirits and teachings of demons,”

Proverbs 14:15
“The simple believes everything, but the prudent gives thought to his steps.”

Matthew 7:15-16
“Beware of false prophets, who come to you in sheep’s clothing but inwardly are ravenous wolves. You will recognize them by their fruits. Are grapes gathered from thorn bushes, or figs from thistles?”

Deuteronomy 13:1-5
“If a prophet or a dreamer of dreams arises among you and gives you a sign or a wonder, and the sign or wonder that he tells you comes to pass, and if he says, ‘Let us go after other gods,’ which you have not known, ‘and let us serve them,’ you shall not listen to the words of that prophet or that dreamer of dreams. For the Lord your God is testing you, to know whether you love the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul. You shall walk after the Lord your God and fear him and keep his commandments and obey his voice, and you shall serve him and hold fast to him. But that prophet or that dreamer of dreams shall be put to death, because he has taught rebellion against the Lord your God, who brought you out of the land of Egypt and redeemed you out of the house of slavery, to make you leave the way in which the Lord your God commanded you to walk. So you shall purge the evil from your midst.” (This one is interesting because the signs and wonders told of actually come true! A test of faithfulness to God’s word. Beware.)

Jeremiah 5:31
“the prophets prophesy falsely, and the priests rule at their direction; my people love to have it so, but what will you do when the end comes?”

There are many more, but will stop with these – plenty of fodder for thought and prayer. There are wolves in sheep’s clothing and snakes everywhere. So –

Matthew 10:16
“Behold, I am sending you out as sheep in the midst of wolves, so be wise as serpents and innocent as doves.”

1 Peter 5:8
“Be sober-minded; be watchful. Your adversary the devil prowls around like a roaring lion, seeking someone to devour.”

(All quotes from ESV.)

Old hymn:
“Lord, keep us steadfast in Your word;
Curb those who feign by craft or sword
to wrest the kingdom from Thy Son
and set at naught all He hath done.”

Return!

Some people promote the idea that not all people are God’s children. (Here’s why I’ll never be a Calvinist: double predestination).

The foregoing is true up to a point. However, when we’re “born again” of water and the Spirit, God is reclaiming what He created who belong to Him, which is all people, who have been held captive by Satan and sin.

Here’s a little, lowly, imperfect “parable” of how that works. If someone is kidnapped, is he or she any less a child of his or her original parents, even if he has spiritual Stockholm syndrome and supports and advances the views of his captors? He may be lost or doomed because of his lostness, born in captivity, but that does not change the Father’s love for him.

The Father comes seeking to save that which is lost!

The evil one has no natural right to those he has taken and holds in bondage, as he is a liar and a thief from the beginning. That is how he maintains control, by repeated lies and illusions – which people buy into.

Additionally, our natural state is one of rebellion against God and “fallenness” from His Grace, because all fell when Adam fell, but that does not mean that we are not – by His rights – God’s children. In the original sense. We have to be redeemed, restored, reconciled. He would have all to be saved and to come to the knowledge of the Truth – because all are technically His.

What parent whose child has been kidnapped will not do everything in His power to bring that child back to him? Thus –

“But God, who is rich in mercy, because of His great love with which He loved us, even when we were dead in trespasses, made us alive together with Christ (by grace you have been saved), and raised us up together, and made us sit together in the heavenly places in Christ Jesus, that in the ages to come He might show the exceeding riches of His grace in His kindness toward us in Christ Jesus. For by grace you have been saved through faith, and that not of yourselves; it is the gift of God, not of works, lest anyone should boast. For we are His workmanship, created in Christ Jesus for good works, which God prepared beforehand that we should walk in them.” (Ephesians 2:4-10 NKJV)

Priorities 2024 and Beyond

It’s not about what I can name and claim as mine in Christ; rather it is about His claims on me, since He has purchased and won me from sin and death and from the authority of the evil one, to be a participant in His plan and purpose. See Romans 8:29, 30 in its entire context.

Yes, God is for us and not against us, so we need to understand to what end He has saved us. It’s not so that we may take His grace for granted, walk away, and do our own thing. Will and life must be surrendered. See Ephesians 5:1-21.

Also it’s not about your best worldly life now, nor the restoration of old normal or the Republic. Nor is it about the Zionist state of Israel. God’s Word is to be heard and heeded for what it reveals and especially Who it reveals, not for what we want it to say, or about what some charlatan false teacher says it is. God’s agenda is a heavenly one. Christ’s kingdom is not of this world. Neither is mine, if I am His.

Ask for the Mind of Christ. Continue to ask, seek, and knock for the Holy Spirit – with persistence, continually. See Luke 11:5-13.

Short and sweet.

The Holy “KISS” – Keep It Simple Saints!

Soli Deo Gloria!

Incarnation Two Point Oh!

“For of His fulness we have all received, and grace upon grace.”

John 1:16 NASB 1977

It’s That Time Again!

It’s Christmas time again. Some say Jesus was born December 25; others say not. I prefer to not get into that. I’ve heard convincing “proofs” both ways. Honestly, does it matter?

Here’s why I ask that. I think the symbology of nature works well, however, this time of year. It’s a time when darkness is driven away by the light, and the days get longer, the nights shorter. Gradually we head toward more light and warmth and new life in spring, as nature comes to life again, so to speak!

The whole cosmos tells of Jesus! “… The heavens declare the glory of God; the skies proclaim the work of His hands. Day after day they pour forth speech; night after night they reveal knowledge.” Psalm 19:1,2. And, “For since the creation of the world God’s invisible qualities, His eternal power and divine nature, have been clearly seen, being understood from His workmanship, so that men are without excuse.” Romans 1:20.

Likewise, the more Jesus takes over the heart and life surrendered in full to Him, the brighter He shines, and the darkness in us is driven out by the Holy Spirit. He works in our hearts to make us “look more like Him”, spiritually speaking. And the more people are experiencing this, the more greatly His light will shine everywhere.

He redeemed us, by shedding His blood for us on the cross, to bring us fully into His loving purpose for us, to save us from the power of the evil one, and bring us into eternal life forever with Him in Heaven. The story of Jesus is about a rescue operation offered to all mankind. This is what Christmas is heralding. It’s worth celebrating.

This is the reason for the season, as they say. it was the beginning when, “… God sent His Son, born of a woman, born under the law, to redeem those under the law, that we might receive our adoption as sons.” Galatians 4:4,5. When He came to be, by the power of the Holy Spirit, conceived and born of the holy Virgin Mary, then – “The Word became flesh and made His dwelling among us. We have seen His glory, the glory of the one and only Son from the Father, full of grace and truth.” John 1:14.

This was foretold by all the prophets, for example, by Isaiah 9:6,7 – “For unto us a child is born, unto us a son is given, and the government will be upon His shoulders. And He will be called Wonderful Counselor, Mighty God, Everlasting Father, Prince of Peace. Of the increase of His government and peace there will be no end…” He governs from within hearts and lives surrendered to Him. One at a time. So this Christmas season is the celebration of His arrival here on earth so long ago, to unfold this plan for us, which is to also be worked within us by the Holy Spirit.

The important thing is to begin to have a “Christmas” in the heart that overtakes the whole of our life and transforms it, gives it meaning, and takes us loved and whole – by His sovereign grace – into eternity.

He invites everyone to this! “Come to Me, all you who are weary and burdened, and I will give you rest. Take My yoke upon you and learn from Me; for I am gentle and humble in heart, and you will find rest for your souls. For My yoke is easy and My burden is light.” Matthew 11:28-30.

Are you ready to surrender the wearisome load, take His yoke in exchange, and learn of Him?

The Need For A Spiritual Heart Transplant

We often do not see what’s in our own hearts, what motivates and drives us to make the choices we make. We like to notice what’s wrong with others – “Here, let me remove that sliver from your eye” – when in fact what we’re looking through is the log in our own. (This writer guilty as charged!) “How can you say to your brother, ‘Let me take the speck out of your eye,’ while there is still a beam in your own eye? You hypocrite! First take the beam out of your own eye, and then you will see clearly to remove the speck from your brother’s eye.” Matthew 7:4,5.

Yet, what’s deep in the heart cannot always be perceived, but it is the source of all that plagues mankind, individually and collectively, unless the heart is divinely changed one person at a time – by understanding the Gospel and receiving the Holy Spirit. Scripture is clear that the heart is the first thing that needs to be cleansed. In fact we need a new heart, the very heart of Jesus Himself, Who makes it clear, “For from within the hearts of men come evil thoughts, sexual immorality, theft, murder, adultery, greed, wickedness, deceit, debauchery, envy, slander, arrogance, and foolishness. All these evils come from within, and these are what defile a man.” Mark 7:21-23 BSB.

“Who can discern his own errors? Cleanse me from my hidden faults.” Psalm 19:12 BSB. Often there’s a deep spiritual blindness that also resides within us, which needs to be corrected. We do not see how we really are. But we can ask!

“Create in me a clean heart, O God, And renew a steadfast spirit within me.” Psalm 51:10. NKJV

This can only come from the Holy Spirit’s work within us, WHOM it is the Father’s will for us to have. He knows what we need. Father knows best! Yes, He really does. He knows there is only One Who can bring the only cure!

So Jesus directs us, “So I say to you, ask, and it will be given to you; seek, and you will find; knock, and it will be opened to you. For everyone who asks receives, and he who seeks finds, and to him who knocks it will be opened. If a son asks for bread from any father among you, will he give him a stone? Or if he asks for a fish, will he give him a serpent instead of a fish? Or if he asks for an egg, will he offer him a scorpion? If you then, being evil, know how to give good gifts to your children, how much more will your heavenly Father give the Holy Spirit to those who ask Him!” Luke 11:9-13 NKJV.

The Holy Spirit cannot be replaced by our own works righteousness, religious rituals, ascetic self abuse, or self righteous attempts to please God, or any other self centered attempts to “appease” Him or to be saved. (It is a trick of “that ol’ time religion” that says it can.) The Holy Spirit alone brings forth the fruits of a living faith that bears testimony to His Presence in us in good works.

“But God, who is rich in mercy, because of His great love with which He loved us, even when we were dead in trespasses, made us alive together with Christ (by grace you have been saved), and raised us up together, and made us sit together in the heavenly places in Christ Jesus, that in the ages to come He might show the exceeding riches of His grace in His kindness toward us in Christ Jesus. For by grace you have been saved through faith, and that not of yourselves; it is the gift of God, not of works, lest anyone should boast. For we are His workmanship, created in Christ Jesus for good works, which God prepared beforehand that we should walk in them.” Ephesians 2:4-10 NKJV. 

(This is one of the most exciting Gospel passages in Scripture!)

It is not enough to “know about” Jesus. We need to know Him personally, and that cannot come about unless the Holy Spirit is received within the believer. You can have “religion” all your life and still be missing Jesus! Each believer must be His receiver! Yet there also must be foundational Biblical understanding / doctrine along with the heart changed by the Holy Spirit. While the head must be informed of the truth, the heart must experience this truth as a divinely bestowed internal change at the deepest level of being. 

Be cautious of involvement with any church affiliation which marginalizes either correct foundational teachings or, on the other hand, the need to receive the Holy Spirit. It must be both and, not either or! Neither should be emphasized above the other!

“Jesus answered and said to him, ‘Most assuredly, I say to you, unless one is born again, he cannot see the kingdom of God.’ Nicodemus said to Him, ‘How can a man be born when he is old? Can he enter a second time into his mother’s womb and be born?’ Jesus answered, ‘Most assuredly, I say to you, unless one is born of water and the Spirit, he cannot enter the kingdom of God. That which is born of the flesh is flesh, and that which is born of the Spirit is spirit. Do not marvel that I said to you, ‘You must be born again.’” John 3:3-7 NKJV.

But that is only the beginning of a new life – the narrow way – of being in Christ and “Christ in me, my hope of glory.” We could say that His heart replaces mine spiritually, inwardly. There is evidence of a changed heart by a changed life, and an ever changing heart and an ever changing life resembling Jesus in character. 

He cleanses and renews us. That is what “conversion” is about. It is ongoing. 

The prophesy of old is fulfilled over and over again in every changed heart! 

“Say to those with anxious hearts: ‘Be strong, do not fear! Behold, your God will come with vengeance. With divine retribution He will come to save you.’ Then the eyes of the blind will be opened and the ears of the deaf unstopped. Then the lame will leap like a deer and the mute tongue will shout for joy. For waters will gush forth in the wilderness, and streams in the desert.” Isaiah 35:4-6 BSB.

Conversion is the real and ongoing miracle – going from spiritual blindness to seeing, from deafness to hearing His Voice, from lameness to leaping for joy in the Holy Spirit. It is to be made into a new creature! 

The glory of Zion is, above all else, an interior miracle, a matter of the heart. “Now when He was asked by the Pharisees when the kingdom of God would come, He answered them and said, ‘The kingdom of God does not come with observation; nor will they say, See here! or ‘See there! For indeed, the kingdom of God is within you.” Luke 17:20,21.

Heaven’s “real estate” starts within each person “occupied” by the Holy Spirit. It is seen in each one who “resembles” Jesus in ever increasing love, humility, and virtue (fruit of the Holy Spirit).

“I will also sprinkle clean water on you, and you will be clean. I will cleanse you from all your impurities and all your idols. I will give you a new heart and put a new spirit within you; I will remove your heart of stone and give you a heart of flesh. And I will put My Spirit within you and cause you to walk in My statutes and to carefully observe My ordinances.” Ezekiel 36:25-27 BSB.

Ask. Seek. Knock. Have a “prayer rule” to spend time with the Great Physician Who alone can keep His promises and knows what we need, when we need it, in this matter of the heart. He will help us to see what we ordinarily cannot. Get into the Word, and let it dwell richly within you. (Colossians 3:16). It won’t happen with these “1 minute a day with God” pseudo devotionals. We don’t spend 1 minute a day eating food to preserve our temporal life. Should we not feed our eternal souls spiritually enough for this journey here below?

Soli Deo Gloria!

A Work in Progress

A Work in Progress – Becoming What We Are in Christ

1 Samuel 16:7b NKJV. “… For the LORD does not see as man sees; for man looks at the outward appearance, but the LORD looks at the heart.”

2 Corinthians 5:14, 16 NKJV. “For the love of Christ compels us, because we judge thus: that if One died for all, then all died; … Therefore, from now on, we regard no one according to the flesh. Even though we have known Christ according to the flesh, yet now we know Him thus no longer.”

Is this to say that we need not espouse the directive to become holy, that our sanctification is not to be manifest, that we never encourage or exhort or pray for one another, or that the life of Christ within us remains some sort of hidden candle that never brings its light to the world, or that it is OK to sin that grace may abound?

By no means!

What it does mean is that we do not judge according to our own standards of what we see on the outside of a person, as indicating what God is doing on the inside of a person, as to their spiritual progress. We are to regard them as someone for whom Christ shed His blood and thus they are His claim. What He works in them, or the time it takes is not up to us.

So often our regard for one another is according to the flesh. We need to “see” a different way. Paul points to a “mystery” here: that is, if One (Jesus Christ) died for all, then all died. 

This is the feature of proclaiming the Gospel, so that all who died in Christ may hear and also join Him in His resurrection, as having been made new creatures in Him.

Let’s consider that in light of Ephesians 2:4-10.  I’ll let you look that up rather than writing it here. Have you taken this reality to heart? It means to live according to the “vision” of already having died and made love in the death and resurrection of Jesus! It is in this reality that we live, move, and have our being – becoming what we have been made already – ever being cleansed and made whole by grace through faith, and that the Holy Spirit is ever cleansing us and making us whole – wholly – holy more like Jesus all the time.

We become what we are. Paradoxically. Choose into it and live out from it. That is the expectation of the Gospel!

Pick up an acorn from the ground, and say, “This is an oak tree!” And so it will be – when it is planted into the ground, subjected to being diminished and to dying to its current form. That must happen, if the “life codes” put in it by our Creator are to be awakened, and thus it may gradually become something other than a little nut. It involves a process to become what it is, that great big tree that we cannot see, except with the eyes of faith in God’s intention for the acorn.

Like the acorn, we are to become what we are, not just remain little nuts. That is the expectation of the Gospel! But, as Jesus makes clear, “Most assuredly, I say to you, unless a grain of wheat falls into the ground and dies, it remains alone; but if it dies, it produces much grain.” John 12:24 NKJV. That is applicable to any seed, pit, or nut.

Here’s another way to see it. 

As I write this, I can see a very large painting I finished some months ago, yet it was started over 25 years ago! There were clearly long periods of dormancy. Other priorities seemed to prohibit finishing it. It sat in the basement gathering dust for years after only the background had been painted. It had to be lifted out of its space in the dark, and put back on the easel. Cleaned up before the rest of the paint could be applied to it. Then recently, something prompted me to get working on it again, and it seemed urgent to complete it. So a work in progress, even though with many delays, had finally become what it was intended to be – after it became clear in my mind what the subject was really all about.

As I finished it, I realized that this is how the Christian life works. It’s always a work in progress. We are its recipients, thanks be to the Holy Spirit.

We should never give up on anyone, especially our fellow believers, as confused or problematic as they may seem to us! Jesus does not give up on us! 

This is why we do not cease to give thanks and to make mention of one another in our prayers, that the God of our Lord Jesus Christ and Father of glory, may give to us all the spirit of wisdom and revelation in the knowledge of Him. This is a paraphrase from Ephesians 5 beginning at verse 15-23. It was how Paul prayed for believers!

This prayer is well worth adapting, to be prayed over all who name the name of Christ Jesus. We can include our sometimes discouraged selves! We cannot see what we are to be without the spirit of wisdom and revelation in the knowledge of Him. Once you see it, you cannot unsee it, and the “vision” will encourage and spur you on.

It’s important to get rid of the reductionistic, “linear” thinking that has beset the definitions of the Gospel. We have to see all that He has made available to us, in order to be all that He desires us to become according to His will – comprehending no one according to the flesh. In other words according to our human, finite opinions about where this one or that one ought to be by now.

The Holy Spirit used my painting to illustrate this to me. The chief Creator and Master Artist! He reinforced – with the encouragement of this project – an understanding about His work in me, and especially in others. It just doesn’t happen all at once. His grace is all sufficient! And He is patient beyond our imagining.

I have also noticed that some of the great classic hymns were not brought forth to completion overnight. Lyrics, for example, might have been penned by a Reformer from the 16th century, but the words were known only to a few of perhaps his contemporaries. Or the words may have been written by someone anonymous, yet having a good sense of being able to combine good theology with poetry. Yet a century later, someone else comes up with a melody. And a century after that someone translates it, and it is published and put into a hymnal – which you have the honor of holding in your hands. The truly worthwhile works seldom happen in the blink of an eye.

(And just an aside – this is also why I advocate for the use of hymnals: They put you in a prayerful posture, with your head bowed and your hands in a receptive position, filled with the word of God in poetic rendition.) 

Nature and creative processes are works of God that don’t happen overnight. And so it is with those to whom God gives the right to become His sons and daughters, those who believe on His name. We are His workmanship, cast in the earth forge of affliction and trial, to bring forth beings of eternal glory and beauty and fitting us for the heavenly kingdom. This is an amazing gift!

Consequently we must be patient in prayer, even for those who may resist the Gospel as they live according to the world and the flesh. Prayer and patience will prevail. We see them and call upon God on their behalf, always remembering that the purchase price of their soul has been paid by the blood of the Lamb Who takes away the sin of the world. 

There’s also a time and a place for a truthful admonition, rebuke, or some encouragement, by the way.

We should also be ever prepared to present the precious foundational Gospel with this understanding: that which has been provided in and through the work of Christ Jesus must be entered into and lived, in repentance and faith, ever turning to Him Who has been given all authority in heaven and on earth.

Let’s never take for granted the “Great Commission.” “Then Jesus came to them and said, ‘All authority in heaven and on earth has been given to me. Therefore go and make disciples of all nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit, and teaching them to obey everything I have commanded you. And surely I am with you always, to the very end of the age.’ ” Matthew 28:18-20 NKJV. Pray, ponder, proclaim!

“But, beloved, do not forget this one thing, that with the Lord one day is as a thousand years, and a thousand years as one day. The Lord is not slack concerning His promise, as some count slackness, but is longsuffering toward us, not willing that any should perish but that all should come to repentance.” 2 Peter 3:8,9 NKJV.

Spiritual Sea Change

Ephesians 2:3 (context verses 1-10). Among them (referring to those dead in trespasses and sins, the sons of disobedience under the prince of the power of the air) we too all (“we” – clearly Paul includes himself, although he had been quite “religious”) formerly lived in the lusts of our flesh, indulging the desires of the flesh and of the mind, and were by nature children of wrath, even as the rest.

At times it can seem like life is giving us a beating. The following are some thoughts about what this might be about, if we love Jesus and are truly desirous to follow Him. It helps to get some clarification on how things work in this relationship with Him.

When we are born of the Holy Spirit, or “born from above”, there is a difference between what we were by nature and what we have become and are becoming in Christ, by the power of the Holy Spirit. There is nothing short of a spiritual sea change (a transformation) – in thought, attitude, word, deed, worldview, and more. Everything of the self centered, self absorbed life decreases as Christ increases. That includes self righteousness appealing to human pride. Sometimes this is fast and drastic; at other times the pace is very slow. It depends on what God is doing and what He has in mind for the individual.

Locally along the coast of Lake Michigan, where the Great Lakes are sometimes referred to as the “Inland Seas”, we are being given a glimpse of this by the powerful forces of nature – if only we have eyes to see it. There is much of the “sea” rising up against the shore – sand, dunes, bluffs, trees, flora and fauna, trees, and even a few houses of those who have built on the sand are being washed away. The dirt and rocks are no match for the power of ever encroaching wind and waves combined. A sea change is being imposed upon the land by the forces of nature.

Could this be a lesson God has placed in front of us through His creation? As the purpose of the water and wind will have its way, so shall the purpose of God!

The soil, sand, and whatever is growing from it, or is built on it, is being washed away by the power of the water. The “dirt” must go. It stands in the way of God’s plans and purposes for our life, to remold and reshape us into His likeness. We cannot move what stands in the way of that of our own volition. We are part of it in fact. But it cannot stand against the Holy Spirit, represented by the strong wind and relentless waves. Once this process is occurring, it reconfigures everything, never to be the same again. This is God’s kind of “re-formation”. It may mean a dismantling of how things have been entirely, followed by a restart.

This analogy might be a poor one. When we ask and keep on asking for the Holy Spirit (Luke 11:5-13), He does not damage us irreparably. He demolishes within us that which keeps us captive to the prince of this world, the works of the devil in us which Jesus came to destroy (1 John 3:8), his “hooks” of the world, and the flesh. He does not damage us like the waters beating against the shore, but He does “storm” the kingdom of darkness within us which has established a beachhead and a foothold in His kingdom! This occupation of His Kingdom by darkness is not to be allowed. Our body and being are God’s holy temple, and His will is to remove all within it that has been set up by the prince of this world (with our complicity!), that stands against His good intentions for us, which is His love and blessing. That is what brings brings Him glory.

At the same time He restores and rejuvenates us, evidentially validating all of God’s promises, which are yea (sure) and amen (firm) in Christ Jesus (2 Corinthians 1:20).

If one is born from above, the process goes on to which we surrender, like the sands must surrender to the invincible sea – to His grace which changes us, causing a sea change within us. At times God’s love must be tough and persistent as a maelstrom. So it is good to understand that this can be a possibility.

“See now that I, I am He, And there is no god besides Me; It is I who put to death and give life. I have wounded and it is I who heal, And there is no one who can deliver from My hand.” Deuteronomy 32:39.

If anyone is experiencing God’s sea changes, the evidence will be that we will see changes in that person. This witnesses to the reality taking place, in a living relationship with Christ Jesus. The old heart – core of the being and its motivations – is replaced by a heart that resembles Jesus, because His transformation is taking place within. What takes place on the inside is seen on the outside. At some point. Sometimes quickly. Sometimes very gradually. 

For truly, we are His workmanship! (Ephesians 2:10).

Rejoice At ALL Times

Rejoice At All Times.

We need to get into this practice while the time upon us is not yet so severe.

“And He who searches our hearts knows the mind of the Spirit, because the Spirit intercedes for the saints according to the will of God. And we know that God works ALL THINGS TOGETHER for the good of those who love Him, who are called according to His purpose. For those God foreknew, He also predestined to be conformed to the image of His Son, so that He would be the firstborn among many brothers.” Romans 8:27-29.

All things, not just the things that make us feel good, or that we think are good. Our Lord’s higher purpose is why He calls upon us to “Make sure that no one repays evil for evil. Always pursue what is good for one another and for all people. Rejoice at all times. Pray without ceasing.” 1 Thessalonians 5:15-17. This has been forgotten in the current form of religion that deceitfully encourages “your best life now.”

May God have mercy on us and open our eyes!

Yes, the walk is harder to bring into reality than the talk.  “As sorrowful, yet alway rejoicing; as poor, yet making many rich; as having nothing, and yet possessing all things.” 2 Corinthians 6:10.

To rejoice in such times is to surrender to God’s eternal highest and best for us with a sacrifice of praise.

Let The Son Shine In Me!

Saturday night ponderings…

Maybe instead of calling it Bible Study or Sunday School, we might consider calling our Berean-like activity “S.T.E.P.”: the Sonship Transformation Exploration Project, or even the Satanic Termination and Eviction Process. Both go hand in hand – one of them very empowering, the other very freeing, and both absolutely necessary.

John 1:12 and13 jump out at us with a very amazing idea. “But as many as received Him, to them gave He power to become the sons of God, even to them that believe on His Name.” It’s an amazing thought. Not one of those things you can take lightly once it impacts your awareness and opens your eyes. It also challenges the expectation of seeing ourselves as “believers”. We “believe” on His name. But what does that mean? And where does it go from there?

There’s so much more! We may feel a sentimental rush when we sing that little chorus, “To be like Jesus, to be like Jesus, all I ask, to be like Him…” Yet do we consider that this is not only within the realm of possibility, but actually one of the big reasons for being a Christian? To actually be like Jesus!

And didn’t Jesus also promise, “Verily, verily, I say unto you, He that believeth on Me, the works that I do shall he do also; and greater works than these shall he do; because I go unto my Father”? (John 14:12)

The first time I encountered these verses (or maybe they were encountering me) I had to wonder, Am I missing something here? There seems to be so much more in the way of powerful, transformative experience that goes with being a “believer”!

The Cross of our Lord Jesus Christ, it turns out, took on some really dynamic implications in light of our becoming sons of God. His finished work means the way is open for being restored to sonship, which was lost through the sin of our first parents. He gives us His teaching, and the Holy Spirit’s input in the process of salvation –  which leads us along as we are formed into sons of the Most High.

Romans 8:19 reveals that “the anxious longing of the creation waits eagerly for the revealing of the sons of God.” It appears that the creation itself is anxiously awaiting the revealing of not only the Firstborn Son Jesus, the Second Adam, but the rest of the His “younger siblings” we might say – to whom He gives the authority to become as He was in this world. This is in order for all of creation to be set free from slavery to corruption “into the freedom of the glory of the children of God”! This is a much bigger picture than we’re usually used to considering. 

Jesus, now – through the Holy Spirit – is still always about our Heavenly Father’s business, freeing and restoring God’s children in order for us to participate likewise in an entirely new way of being. And there’s more! It’s with a view to the glorious freedom of the entire creation. That’s a tall order!

This is a spectacular bit of news! In fact much of the entire chapter of Romans 8 has to do with our becoming “heirs of God and joint heirs with Christ!” It is also pointed out that this process does not come about through being some sort of spiritual couch potato, but through mortification of the deeds of the body, and through suffering. This is where the evil one experiences eviction!

This isn’t a real popular idea these days. Mortification has to do with the mind set on the spirit, not on the “flesh” and its agendas for “happiness”. To “mortify” means tosubdue – to put to death – the desires rooted in the sin nature – not only through self-denial and self discipline, but by realizing that the sufferings of this time are not worthy to be compared to the glory that is to be revealed in us. God is doing a work in us through suffering that leads us into glory! 

It’s an attitude that begins in the mind “set on” and motivated by the Holy Spirit, who testifies with our spirit that we are children of God – as we see God at work transforming us into sons through the difficult aspects of our lives. Nothing separates us from our Father’s Love! Even the threats of our times – two millennia after the Bible events of Jesus’ life and the early church and the Apostles’ writings – take on a different meaning in light of all this!

This understanding that’s gotten lost in a worldly-minded Christianity focused on its mini empire building, or what feels good as being exclusively “God’s will” for us… Strange. If Jesus had embraced that idea, there would have been no Cross and no redemption. Have we considered that in this light before? “For it became him, for whom are all things, and by whom are all things, in bringing many sons unto glory, to make the captain of their salvation perfect through sufferings.” (Hebrews 2:10)

Could we dare to go as far as to look upon the “negative” events in our life as a kind of experiential co-crucifixion, cleansing us and preparing for an infilling of the Holy Spirit, the likes of which we have never seen, in preparation for becoming sons of God? Something to consider, to pray for, and to ponder.