How Salvation Looks

2 Kings 2: 9 NIV

When they had crossed, Elijah said to Elisha, “Tell me, what can I do for you before I am taken from you?”  “Let me inherit a double portion of your spirit,” Elisha replied. 

Do You Have The Salvation of Jesus?

I have several times been stunned by what people of various ages and backgrounds don’t know.  What seems to me to be common knowledge is not always.  Perhaps you too have been surprised by someone’s lack of familiarity with what you thought everyone understood.   Maybe you spoke with someone who did not know why Christmas is celebrated or where the oil should be put in a car or what a trapezoid is or how many days there are in June.  None of us know everything and you don’t either but sometimes we can be caught by surprise when an intelligent and normal person has never considered what something was that you thought everyone understood.

Salvation is one of the most common terms used in Christian conversations and yet it is not really understood by many of us.  How does salvation look?  What is salvation for you now?  Can salvation be recognized when you see it?  Would someone who spent time with you be able to tell that you have salvation?  What characterizes salvation?

A good place to begin this discussion is by considering someone that Jesus Himself said had salvation.  Zacchaeus may be the most famous tax collector of all time.  He of course climbed a tree to be able to see Jesus over the crowd surrounding the Lord as He passed through Zacchaeus’s town.  Spotting the diminutive Zacchaeus, the Lord warmly called for Zacchaeus to come down from the tree and take him home for lunch.  Some would call Jesus audacious for making such a demand but Zacchaeus was thrilled.  Instantly Zacchaeus announced to Jesus and the crowd standing about that he was giving half his possessions to the poor and to all who claimed Zacchaeus cheated them by charging too much for taxes he promised to pay them back four times the amount he had taken.  Our familiarity with this account drains off much of the electricity it generated when first witnessed by the original onlookers.  Immediately after Zacchaeus made his proclamation of his new way of life, Jesus announced, “Today salvation has come to this house because this man, too, is a son of Abraham.”  (Luke 19: 9 NIV)

In Jesus’ declaration we have the assertion of God that at least in this instance, salvation had a decided look to it. We can see two distinct manifestations of salvation in Zacchaeus.  He threw himself upon God to bring him happiness and contentment.  He did not need all the wealth he had accumulated nor the perks it brought him.  Zacchaeus was happy just having Jesus in his life.  We have in scripture numerous examples of “anti-salvation” too.  Consider the reaction of the elder brother in Jesus’ parable of the Father who welcomed home his young profligate son.  The older brother became furious that his father received his brother back with such enthusiasm and extravagance.  His chief complaint was that for years he had been loyal to his father and never was thrown a party, never given precious gifts.  The father must have been devastated by his older son’s blatant lack of satisfaction with him. Clearly his dad picked up on this part of the son’s complaint when he pleaded with his son to welcome back his brother.  “”My son,” his father said, “you are always with me, and everything I have is yours.”  (Luke 15: 31)

Salvation, at least for Zacchaeus, made him happy just to be with Jesus.  He stopped caring so much for whatever else he had or didn’t have.  The older brother, on the other hand cared very much what he had or didn’t have and was not too interested in his father at all.  The father had to point out to the older son, “you have me”, as if the older son either did not know that or care.  Jesus did not have to point out to Zacchaeus that Zacchaeus had Him;  having Jesus was all that mattered to him.  Zacchaeus was well aware of his life with Christ and was thrilled to have Jesus regardless of anything else coming or going from his life.  Does your salvation look like that?

There is another aspect to the salvation of Zacchaeus that must be noted.  His salvation could be seen in his response to his past.  Illuminated before him in his mind was the wrong he had done and the ways he had cheated people by exacting unwarranted taxes from them. Zacchaeus; when he really saw Jesus and the salvation He offered knew he was a sinner through and through and had no mind to hide any of it from God or anyone else.  Zacchaeus started his new life with God by despising his sinning and choosing to live a good and honest life.  Does your salvation look like that?

If it were not for the great spiritual insight it offers, the account of Elijah and his effort to leave behind his apprentice Elisha so he wouldn’t be present when the Lord took him is almost comical.   When the Lord was about to take Elijah up to heaven in a whirlwind, Elijah and Elisha were on their way from Gilgal. Elijah said to Elisha, "Stay here; the Lord has sent me to Bethel."  But Elisha said, "As surely as the Lord lives and as you live, I will not leave you." So they went down to Bethel…Then Elijah said to him, "Stay here, Elisha; the Lord has sent me to Jericho."   And he replied, "As surely as the Lord lives and as you live, I will not leave you." So they went to Jericho… Then Elijah said to him, "Stay here; the Lord has sent me to the Jordan."  And he replied, "As surely as the Lord lives and as you live, I will not leave you." So the two of them walked on.  (2 Kings 2:1-6 NIV)  When finally the two arrived at the Jordan River, Elijah took his cloak, struck the water of the Jordan with it and the Jordan River parted, allowing the two to cross on dry ground.  At that point, Elijah asked his apprentice what he could do for him.  When they had crossed, Elijah said to Elisha, "Tell me, what can I do for you before I am taken from you?"  "Let me inherit a double portion of your spirit," Elisha replied.  "You have asked a difficult thing," Elijah said, "yet if you see me when I am taken from you, it will be yours — otherwise not." (2 Kings 2: 9-10 NIV)

What an interesting request!  Elisha wanted a double portion of Elijah’s spirit…whatever that was.  Essentially Elisha wanted lots of what Elijah was inside of himself.    He was asking for the nature and personality of Elijah to be his.  And he got it.  As soon as Elijah was taken by God up to the heavens in a fiery chariot, Elisha left and came to the Jordan River.  Elisha did the same thing he saw his master do before; he took off his cloak, struck the Jordan River with it and voila, the water parted once more and Eisha was able to walk across it on dry ground.  Elisha saw many more miracles take place, even more than we read for Elijah.  He really did receive a “double portion” of Elijah’s spirit!

The Bible tells us that like Elisha, we can have the spirit of another in us…the Spirit of God.  You, however, are controlled not by the sinful nature but by the Spirit, if the Spirit of God lives in you. And if anyone does not have the Spirit of Christ, he does not belong to Christ.  But if Christ is in you, your body is dead because of sin, yet your spirit is alive because of righteousness.  And if the Spirit of him who raised Jesus from the dead is living in you, he who raised Christ from the dead will also give life to your mortal bodies through his Spirit, who lives in you. (Romans 8: 9-11 NIV)  How was Elisha to know if he was going to possess the spirit of Elijah?  If he witnessed Elijah being taken away by God, then he could know Elijah’s spirit would be his.  How do you know if the Spirit of God is in you?  If you are not controlled by the sinful nature but rather by the Spirit, then He lives in you!  Does your salvation look like that, like the Spirit of God lives in you and controls the way you live?

There is one more report in Scripture that we must consider when it comes to our salvation.  At the end of Luke is recorded a fascinating account of Jesus, after He was crucified and died, returning to life in a new resurrection body.  He suddenly appeared as two of His friends were walking from Jerusalem to the small town of Emmaus.  The disciples didn’t recognize him the entire time they walked but along the way Jesus explained how the Bible in the Old Testament told about everything that happened to Him and why.  Once they got to their home though and Jesus sat down with them to eat, the disciples made an astonishing discovery.  When he was at the table with them, he took bread, gave thanks, broke it and began to give it to them.  Then their eyes were opened and they recognized him, and he disappeared from their sight.  They asked each other, "Were not our hearts burning within us while he talked with us on the road and opened the Scriptures to us?" (Luke 24:30-32 NIV)

Jesus did two things for the disciples.  He opened their eyes so that they could see Him…not as a stranger or just another teacher but as God.  He also opened the Scriptures for them so that they could see Him there too.  How can you tell that salvation has come to you?  First, you realize by experience that Jesus Christ is real and He is Lord of all.  This is no longer a curiosity for you or an intellectual exercise of debate but a surety within; a decided matter.  Secondly, the Scriptures become a driving force for you and a fascination that skeptics and critics cannot shake loose from you.  You read the Bible and have a powerful drive to read the Bible.  You see things in it you did not notice before you had salvation.  The Bible becomes personal for you, the source of strength and wisdom you need and want.

When salvation comes to you, Jesus Christ becomes a part of you and what matters to Him matters to you and the sort of character He has gets worked into you just like it did in the Apostle Paul and Peter and John and James and Mary Magdalene and Mary the mother of Jesus.   It cannot be missed, your resemblance to Jesus and how He thinks when salvation comes to you.  Salvation is not a place where you go but a person you become.  The new you becomes free of sin and full of Christ living through you.  Every time you obey God, more of Him comes out of you and the world as a result, is a better place.

Earthy Lives

Recently we went camping and it was quite the adventure.  Of course we forgot major items…like pillows, a bin for washing dishes, a first aid kit.  Fortunately no one got hurt, we figured out a way to wash the dishes and who needs pillows when you have arms where you can rest your head.  We were surprised when we got to the campground by the weather.  We should have known better than expect warm weather like we had at home.  The campsite was right by the ocean a couple hours north of San Francisco which is famously foggy in the summer.  Not only was the fog so thick that we could not even see the ocean despite it being right next to us but it was freezing cold.  I was the only one without a sleeping bag and the blanket I had was too small so I tossed and turned all night trying my best to get warm.  The next day I sat next to the fire and did not wander far from it.  The funny thing about camping is that we intentionally go somewhere where we will be dirty all day, smell like we came out of a forest fire, have to go outside into the cold in the middle of the night to use the bathroom, get bit in the evening by mosquitoes and have no access to our cell phones.  For a few days, we were “earthy”.

When you think of someone as being earthy, you probably have one of two ways of interpreting the description.  One, the person is interested in the environment, not into technology, grows vegetables, rides a bike to work and doesn’t take showers very often.  Earthy people avoid shaving, live in rustic settings, are either strongly for guns or against them, let strange animals wander about on their property.  Another way to think of one who is earthy is that the person is casual, easy to get to know, does not try to impress others but is always “just themselves”.  Earthy people are relaxed and comfortable with themselves, may belch in public and are unconcerned about how they pronounce words or their choice of words.  But when we talk about being “earthy” with regard to our discussion today, it will be to describe what the Bible literally says about you.  You are earthy.

To do justice to the discussion of the earthiness of humanity, we must take a brief journey into the far ancient past.  The Bible is rather opaque in its account of what took place before the six days of creation and the putting together of Adam and Eve.  The Bible provides some hints at what occurred and we must admit that we might be wrong about what we think it is saying.  In the quite old book of Job is a fascinating passage that is generally overlooked.  "Where were you when I laid the earth's foundation?  Tell me, if you understand.  Who marked off its dimensions? Surely you know!  Who stretched a measuring line across it?  On what were its footings set, or who laid its cornerstone— while the morning stars sang together and all the angels shouted for joy?  (Job 38:4-7 NIV)

What the NIV translates as angels is literally in the Hebrew “sons of God” but “angels” is precisely what the verse is describing.  There was a time in very ancient history when the earth’s structure was being put together that the stars “sang together and the angels shouted for joy.  Before Satan rebelled against God and threw the universe into chaos, there was great happiness at what God had done among the spiritual beings He had made.  The angels cried out their tremendous pleasure at God’s work.  But then the cataclysmic insurrection took place among the angels.  How you have fallen from heaven, O morning star, son of the dawn!  You have been cast down to the earth, you who once laid low the nations!   You said in your heart, "I will ascend to heaven; I will raise my throne above the stars of God; I will sit enthroned on the mount of assembly, on the utmost heights of the sacred mountain.  I will ascend above the tops of the clouds; I will make myself like the Most High." (Isaiah 14:12-14 NIV)  This passage, although it is used metaphorically to describe the actions of the king of Babylon, also tells us about the rebellion of Satan and Satan’s allies among the “sons of God’.  Rather than submitting themselves to God during the early days of the universe, Satan incited anarchy among the angel beings (the morning stars) so that some joined Satan in the fight against God’s rule and others stood with God as Sovereign Lord.

Jesus refers to this war on God when He responded to the joy of the seventy-two disciples who during their mission trips found the demons submitting to the name of Jesus.  He replied, "I saw Satan fall like lightning from heaven.” (Luke 10:18 NIV)  Where did Satan fall when like a lightning bolt Satan was cast down from heaven?  Isaiah 14 tells us it was to the earth.  Revelation 12: 7-9 agrees.  And there was war in heaven. Michael and his angels fought against the dragon, and the dragon and his angels fought back.  But he was not strong enough, and they lost their place in heaven.  The great dragon was hurled down — that ancient serpent called the devil, or Satan, who leads the whole world astray. He was hurled to the earth, and his angels with him. (Revelation 12:7-9 NIV) Our Lord saw this before He became a man born in a manger.  He saw this before the earth was made the home of humanity.  Now, we are going to speculate about something and we might be wrong in this but it seems to be the case.  There is a fascinating set of terms our Lord uses to describe the earth before the six days of creation.  In the beginning God created the heavens and the earth.  Now the earth was formless and empty, darkness was over the surface of the deep, and the Spirit of God was hovering over the waters.  (Genesis 1:1-2 NIV)

So in the beginning when Satan and Satan’s fellow anarchists existed and the angels who were loyal to God existed, the heavens and the earth existed.  Isaiah tells us of the existence of heaven and earth when the terrible rebellion took place. How long the heavens and the earth existed before the six days of creation occurred, we have no way of knowing.  But if Satan and Satan’s allies were cast down to earth it is not surprising to discover something rarely discussed about the earth before God prepared the earth for the coming of mankind.  It was as the NIV translates it, “formless” and “empty”.  These two English words do not give us the complete picture of what the earth was like during that time.  Formless and empty are translations of two Hebrew words that rhyme: “thohu” and “vohu”.  The first, thohu, speaks of wreckage and chaos.  So before God made the earth ready for mankind, it was wrecked and full of chaos.  The second term, Vohu speaks of that which is under judgment.  So the earth, at the time the six days of creation began was under judgment and wrecked.

In Genesis 1: 3, God reclaims the earth for His special creation, prepares it with loving care for the “apple of His eye”, those made in His own image, humanity.  The chaos is pulled into order, the wreckage becomes a beautiful paradise and then at the pinnacle of the six days, God crafts man out of the dirt of the earth and breathes a spirit into him.  People are not just spiritual beings, they are earthy and spiritual, a part of the earth and a part of God.  But Satan was not willing to idly sit by while God established a new society on the very spot where he had ruled.  Satan, as a serpent, tricked Eve into rebelling against the God who gave her life and Adam chose loyalty to his wife over the clear command of God and together, Adam and Eve pulled the universe into chaos once again with their Sin and rebellion against God, the perfect environment for Satan to flourish.

Satan is called the “god of the world” in 2 Corinthians 4: 4 in the KJV, the “god of this age” in the NIV.  Both are correct as the Greek word that is used in the verse can be translated either way.  Satan has authority both in this age and in the world where the Lord cast him.  Here though is the key point.  The full verse reads, “The god of this age has blinded the minds of unbelievers, so that they cannot see the light of the gospel of the glory of Christ, who is the image of God.” (NIV)  Satan’s chief skill set is to convince people they don’t need Jesus Christ and that they are better off not involving Him in their lives.  Paul’s accusation leveled against a sorcerer says much about the sorcerer but even more about Satan.  "You are a child of the devil and an enemy of everything that is right! You are full of all kinds of deceit and trickery. Will you never stop perverting the right ways of the Lord?” (Acts 13:10 NIV) If Elymas the sorcerer was a child of the devil, an enemy of everything right and full of all kinds of deceit and trickery, what does this say of the devil?  We must be careful here to realize that Satan is known most for fooling the world and shifting the world’s opinion of what God is really doing.

No one ever thinks they have been caught in a trap of Satan’s.  Eve didn’t.  She thought she made the decision all on her own to eat the forbidden fruit.  Adam simply chose Eve over God.  You never enter into one of Satan’s schemes thinking you have been fooled.  Otherwise you would see right through it.  When you come alongside Satan in his rebellion against God, you don’t generally think about Satan at all.  You are just mad, you feel like you have been treated badly, you want something you don’t have, you are frustrated, you are having too much fun, you are bored.  Satan doesn’t attack God when he comes after you; he gives you an option that makes sense.  David didn’t commit adultery with Bathsheba because he wanted to rebel against God!  He slept with her because it seemed reasonable to him and it was reasonable to Bathsheba.  Peter did not stand up to Jesus’ insistence that He would soon die because he was fed up with Jesus; he did so because he thought Jesus was being too pessimistic and not trusting the Father enough to see Him through this new crisis.  Jesus knew this contention of Peter’s came straight from Satan and made that clear when He demanded, "Get behind me, Satan! You are a stumbling block to me; you do not have in mind the things of God, but the things of men." (Matthew 16:23 NIV)  Satan makes certain that when we rebel against God, it seems reasonable to us and perfectly normal.

Satan’s great plan; it is his plan since the earth was in chaos and he saw what the Lord did in six days, was to somehow cut off the connection between heaven and earth, to make humanity self-reliant, independent, secure.  Satan does not want us broken-hearted, depressed or sick.  Satan wants us confident, sure of ourselves.  Satan wants us not needing God, functioning well without Him.  But when we begin to see who we really are, when our false sense of independence starts to unravel and we realize that we are sinners and we have an emptiness and real brokenness that only God can make right, the sham is uncovered.  Satan is the liar and father of all lies and life without God, without Him at every inch of it will fall apart.  Jesus Christ did not die so that we might live free of God at times but that in every way we build our lives in Him.  We seek Him with every decision we make, turn to Him at every moment, trust Him with every part of our day.  Satan has fooled the world into thinking we don’t need God.  We don’t have to turn to Him, don’t have to seek Him with our decisions and circumstances.  It is a lie.  Every inch of life needs Christ to fill it and you are not the exception, you are the rule.  Turn to Christ!  Turn to Him again and again.  Don’t stop turning to Him.  He is your Savior…not just for Heaven but also for Earth.

Easter Blindness

Luke 24:15-16 NIV

As they talked and discussed these things with each other, Jesus himself came up and walked along with them; but they were kept from recognizing him.

Have You Missed Something Lately?

Several times I went to Russia to teach for a few weeks at a Christian college in Moscow.  Although I did not speak any Russian, my lecture was translated to the students in Russian.  This meant for extended lag times when I waited for the translator to finish before I moved forward with my teaching.  I kind of liked the gaps; it gave me time to compose my thoughts and make sure I was staying on topic.  It made it a bit tedious for the students though as they had to wait for me to say what I had to say before they could find out what it was.  However, there was an interesting dynamic to this class that it took me a while to recognize.  I tried to entertain the students a bit by giving funny anecdotes from my life and sometimes I realized there were students laughing before the translator finished.  At first I thought maybe the translator was saying something funny or making comments about what I had said.  This happened several times and because I was insecure, I assumed that maybe the translator was adding to what I was saying to make my lectures more interesting.  Then of course it dawned on me what was happening.  Some of the students were laughing before the translator finished translating because they understood English and were laughing along with me as I told my stories.  It was like within my class there was a secret society of English speakers who I was not aware existed.  They could have remained embedded there for the full time I taught if they had not let the cat out of the bag by laughing before the translator repeated my stories.

There are many times when we don’t pick up on crucial information…like when we don’t realize how angry our wives are, or when we don’t notice that our husbands don’t like what we just cooked.  Perhaps you have talked about someone and didn’t realize that person was right behind you.  You might find out that there was a deduction you could have taken off your income tax but didn’t know about it until it was too late.  Maybe you had not realized one of your children wasn’t doing his schoolwork until you saw his report card.  Maybe you thought you were having a great conversation with someone only to discover the person didn’t like you.  Have you ever believed you were doing badly at work only to have your boss complement you for what you are doing?   You might have discovered someone close to you had cancer but were not aware of it.  Maybe you found out when you were in school that a classmate had a crush on you and were oblivious to it.  Our world has lots of secrets it keeps from us…some because we aren’t paying close attention, others because we don’t have a way of accessing the information.  Easter Sunday was one of those days when what seemed to be the case, wasn’t always as it seemed.

The first Easter was a day full of surprise.  After watching Jesus brutally beaten, his skin shredded by a Roman flogging, and then suffer his agonizing death on the cross; Jesus’ disciples and close friends were emotionally devastated.  Some were afraid for their own lives; others were in shock over what had happened to Jesus.  No one was prepared for the events of Easter Sunday and it took them all a while to realize what had happened.  This becomes clear when we take a close look at what transpired. 

Somewhere near dawn, Mary Magdalene and some other women came to the tomb of Christ hoping somehow to put anointing spices on His body.  They were of course well aware that a heavy stone had been placed in front of the tomb entrance and there guards were stationed there to keep Jesus’ body from being removed.  How they planned on pushing back the stone, we have no idea.  Perhaps they thought they could talk the guards into doing it for them.  When Mary Magdalene and another woman got to the tomb, they found the stone rolled away and the guards gone.  This shattered Mary Magdalene’s already fragile psyche and she rushed off to tell the disciples that Jesus’ body had been stolen.  Peter and John hustled back with Mary Magdalene trailing far behind them.  When she got to the tomb, Peter and John had already been inside and ran off another way carrying with them the startling news that something supernatural had taken place in Jesus’ tomb and His body was gone.  At the tomb, two angels greeted Mary Magdalene but she was so distraught she did not know it was angels talking to her.  Let’s listen to John the Apostle’s description of what happened. 

Mary stood outside the tomb crying. As she wept, she bent over to look into the tomb and saw two angels in white, seated where Jesus' body had been, one at the head and the other at the foot.  They asked her, "Woman, why are you crying?"  "They have taken my Lord away," she said, "and I don't know where they have put him."  At this, she turned around and saw Jesus standing there, but she did not realize that it was Jesus. (John 20:11-14 NIV)

There are two interesting assumptions Mary Magdalene made that are very normal and understandable and they are related.  The first is that the angels she met inside the tomb of Jesus were not angels.  Who she thought they were is anyone’s guess but she certainly did not realize they were angels.  Either she completely overlooked the tell-tale signs or there was no evidence for her to consider that would lead her to recognize them as angels.  Immediately, Mary Magdalene turned around and saw Jesus but shockingly, she didn’t know it was Jesus.  Neither His voice nor His look gave Him away.  "Woman," he said, "why are you crying? Who is it you are looking for?"  Thinking he was the gardener, she said, "Sir, if you have carried him away, tell me where you have put him, and I will get him." (John 20:15 NIV)  Why did Mary Magdalene, staring straight at Jesus, not know it was Him?  This is of course a mystery to us.  The same thing happened with two disciples who were walking away from Jerusalem toward the small village of Emmaus.

They were talking with each other about everything that had happened.  As they talked and discussed these things with each other, Jesus himself came up and walked along with them; but they were kept from recognizing him.  He asked them, "What are you discussing together as you walk along?"  They stood still, their faces downcast. One of them, named Cleopas, asked him, "Are you only a visitor to Jerusalem and do not know the things that have happened there in these days?"  "What things?" he asked.  "About Jesus of Nazareth," they replied.

(Luke 24:14-19 NIV) Here these two disciples were; talking about Jesus of Nazareth, not knowing the entire time they were talking to Jesus of Nazareth.  Like Mary Magdalene, Jesus was unrecognizable to them even though He was perfectly Himself.  Luke says these two disciples were “kept from recognizing him.”  What that means we have no idea but that is the case.  What should have been so easy to realize, that they were with Jesus, was a complete secret to Mary Magdalene and these two disciples.  They could not see God right in front of them.

It is getting more and more difficult for people to realize they are having God moments.  Like Mary Magdalene they are either kept from seeing God at work or they aren’t open to noticing Him.  The Bible is filled with ordinary moments becoming extraordinary experiences with God.  The prophet Jeremiah noticed an almond tree branch and God confided in Him that He was “awake” to accomplish all He promised to do.  Likewise, when Jeremiah came across a tilted boiling pot, the Lord informed Him that disaster was coming upon Jerusalem from the north.  How did David have the inspiration for writing one of the most well-known poems in literature, the 23^rd Psalm?  He did his job watching sheep for his dad and he thought about how much God cares for us.  The Lord is my shepherd; I shall not be in want. He makes me lie down in green pastures, he leads me beside quiet waters, he restores my soul.  He guides me in paths of righteousness for his name's sake. (Psalm 23:1-3 NIV)

James the brother of Jesus watched plenty of boats sailing upon the Sea of Galilee and thought about how such a small item as a rudder could force a big boat to turn.  At some point, the Lord pointed out to Him that the rudder of a boat is like a tongue.  Both are small but each has a huge impact.  Paul the Apostle spent time on farms and saw how the branch of a wild olive tree could be grafted into the trunk of a cultivated olive tree.  He then heard from God that the Lord did the same thing by bringing Gentiles into the Kingdom of God through the Jewish people.

There are perhaps a hundred different moments when God can break into your day and speak to you.  You might be blind to it like Mary Magdalene or like David you might see as clear as day God moments.  Something as simple as a trip to the mechanic or a stop light could be the moment God breaks through to you.  You could be preparing dinner when the Lord has something to say to you or working out in the gym when He shows you something.  If an almond tree can be a great revelation for Jeremiah, what might a rose bush be or a conversation with one of your children.  The resurrection of Jesus Christ proves at least this.  God does not need our help to conquer death or anything else for that matter.  He didn’t search out the disciples on the road to Emmaus because it was essential he get advice from them on how to strengthen and encourage the rest of the disciples.  He came to the disciples because He loved them and wanted them to live in Him rather than just hear of Him.  You too are on the road to Emmaus.  God may say something to you at any moment.  He might show you something when you are not prepared to see it.  Our Lord does not just want you to read about Him, He wants you to have personal experience being with Him.  Praise Him.  Think about Him.  Ask Him questions.  Thank Him for what He gives you.  Gradually you will become aware of Him and you will know how to recognize Him speaking to you.  Sometimes you will think God has spoken to you but it won’t be Him.  As you keep turning to Him again and again though, you will hear Him and it really will be Him.  He will be present with you and your heart will skip a beat because you will know Jesus Christ Himself is there right where you are.  No longer will it be a story about Him; someone’s statement about Him, it will be you with Him and He will speak to you so that you know it is Him.  It will be your Easter Sunday!

Dynamic Change

There are many of us who are weary; we have tremendous burdens that wear down our souls and we are tired of all the difficulties we face.  Not everyone is like this.  Some are cheery and pleased beyond measure with their lives.  All the "breaks" seem to fall their way and nothing much troubles them.  There is though, a great number of us who are going through the motions at work, just trying to get by at home, trudging through mud at school and we need more than just a pat on the back; we need the supernatural hand of God upon us.  Thomas the disciple lived in such a gloom that even the good news of his fellow disciples that Jesus was alive could not shake him out of it.  Only Jesus Christ Himself could lift the despair of his heart.  Our age is one of disbelief; that there are no devils tormenting souls, no satanic power working amongst us.  It is just the circumstances, broken relationships and troubled pasts that we have in the middle of our darkness.  Amateur and professional counselors alike do their best to try to "get at the root of our issues" and after years of probing and manipulating and prescribing, the "terror of the night" is still there.   The misery and torment so many of us suffer is real and it cannot all be explained by our experiences; the wise must take into account the very real presence of unseen evil forces in our world.  Perhaps you have tried your best to get at what is wrong with someone you love dearly and you have gotten nowhere.   You are at the end of your rope with this person and you don't know what more could be done.  God may never show you what is causing the "jangling of nerves" and anguish but maybe if you would give the Holy Spirit space, Jesus Christ could be brought in contact with the broken soul and do what was done for Mary Magdalene.  Are you willing to intercede with desperate determination for the weary souls you know and by God's grace, bring Jesus Christ to them through your praying?  Remember that Jesus told His disciples that some people could only be helped through prayer!  Prayer was not in Jesus' mind the feeble alternative of weak and unsophisticated minds; it was the great blast of dynamite that alone could break loose certain people from their despair and turmoil when the "wise and skilled" come up against those cases too big for them to handle.

After Jesus had gone indoors, his disciples asked him privately, "Why couldn't we drive it out?"  He replied, "This kind can come out only by prayer."     Mark 9:28-29 NIV

Lovers

It seems that love is ubiquitous.  Even Adolf Hitler had his loves.  But like him I can only love you so much and no more and that is how it is with you too.  There are limits to our loving...it does not in actuality go beyond our liking.  Love is for us an ebb and flow of sensibilities.   There is a reasonableness to love that is perpetuated by the myth of the straightness of our thinking and evaluating.  When it comes to love, we make decisions on it based on how we determine the rightness and wrongness of each other.  Fairness of love is evaluated constantly.  We love but only so far...so far as we think is best.  Love was never intended to be reasonable though.  It is as chaotic as a hurricane when it gets in the hands of God.  The swirl of crashing wants and desires wrecks our love at every turn.  But God's love is determined; a bulldog that won't be budged.  He loves the adulterer, the molester, the perverter of justice, the liar, the racist and the despot.  The miracle of God is that He somehow turns the sins of the many into the Sin of the One and through Christ, Love is unleashed into the unreasonable world.  I cannot love a single person I don't like yet in the boundless mercy of God, I have the capacity to love where love is not found in me.   No Christian with the Love of Christ in him or her can say, "I cannot love that far!"  We can.  And we must.  If God has worked His way in us, then His love must work its way out of us or we will be the most miserable of creatures.  Love withheld becomes a stench within.  But when we let His love flow from us wherever He chooses to take it, a swelling joy takes it place so that it too spills out like Mary's perfume...which she poured out onto Christ in love.

 Dear friends, let us love one another, for love comes from God. Everyone who loves has been born of God and knows God. 1 John 4: 7-8 NIV

The Psychology of Pain

Psychology of Pain

Job 16:6 NIV

"Yet if I speak, my pain is not relieved; and if I refrain, it does not go away.”

Why Do We Have To Face Pain?

I can’t make up my mind.  What is the worst form of pain to face?  Unconscious pain, manifested in nightmares and unexplained depression and anxiety is debilitating.  Conscious pain, brought on by clear and obvious events that make us miserable and breed anger and despair.  Physical pain which can be excruciating or more or less just tolerable is terrible too.  When I was in high school, I separated my shoulder playing goalie for our soccer team.  We didn’t have anyone else to play goalie so I finished the first half and then the second half.  I could not lift my hand above my shoulder which made it pretty tough diving to stop shots and that night I could not sleep because of the pain.  In fact it hurt to even breathe for two weeks.  The pain prevented many of my favorite activities…I could not play basketball, couldn’t practice with my softball team and could barely take notes in class.  I often prayed during the next few weeks that God would take the pain away, that He would help me get to sleep and that He would (I thought this somehow was needed) forgive me of whatever sins I had been committed that led Him to push such pain upon me.

When we are pain free, we are also many times carefree.  We can think about anything we want, daydream, put plans into place and take on whatever projects we care to start.  But when we are suffering from pain, we get swept away by it.  If you have lost your job and you are dumbfounded by your bills, the pain of your circumstance clogs your mind and makes it so you can think of nothing else.  When you have suffered a great trauma in childhood, the pain of it never really leaves you and it bubbles up in your dreams, your relationships and in your handling of problems and trying times.  Physical pain numbs your brain to everything else.  A broken finger, a bad back, an upset stomach and it takes a tremendous act of the will to think about something other than the pain.  You have done it and so have I, tried to get rid of pain with aspirin, Motrin, or perhaps illegal drugs or heavy drinking.  We go to counselors when our psychological pain is too much to bear and to chiropractors for the physical pain.  But why do we have to suffer pain at all?  What is the good of pain?  Why would God let us face pain if He could stop it?

There is nothing speculative about pain…we all face pain and some of us experience it every single day.  At the risk of being misunderstood and misinterpreted, it would be worthwhile to consider the point at which pain became a part of the human experience.  When Adam and Eve first sinned, the outcome was that Eve would suffer pain in childbirth and Adam pain in trying to get his work done.  To the woman he said, "I will greatly increase your pains in childbearing; with pain you will give birth to children.  Your desire will be for your husband, and he will rule over you." (Genesis 3:16 NIV)  That is both physical pain and tremendous potential for psychological pain for the woman.  To Adam he said, "Because you listened to your wife and ate from the tree about which I commanded you, 'You must not eat of it,' "Cursed is the ground because of you; through painful toil you will eat of it all the days of your life. (Genesis 3:17 NIV)  Again, we have for Adam physical pain and psychological pain built into the struggle to make a living.   Pain, in its most raw sense is the result of sin, of Adam and Eve deciding to be the master of their souls, to live as if God is absent.  That is the essence of all sin, the declaration of independence from God.  Sin is the force behind all that is wrong in our world and all that is wrong in us.  Both the sins we commit and the sins of others warp our personalities and our thinking.  Enough sin and God becomes an enemy and a prison guard rather than our joy and freedom.  Sin wrecks us from top to bottom and we often don’t even know it.

Pain knocks the legs out from under our independence.  If I have come to think that I am the boss, pain makes a fool of the thought.  Pain makes itself king and it refuses to be carelessly cast aside.  Try to ignore pain and if it continues, you cannot.  You can medicate pain but it comes back up and rules over you as a fierce tyrant.  You can go to Disneyland, hang out at a jazz bar, watch your favorite team on TV or start a new relationship but pain won’t let go of you and you cannot just shake it off.

The ancient book of Job located in the middle of the Bible is a sort of case study on pain.  It gives us a fresh understanding of what pain is and why God lets it continue for now.  Job lived a pretty care-free life up to the moment God and Satan had their monumental meeting in the heavens.  God pointed out just how good Job was and Satan contended that he was only good because God kept him from pain.  God insisted that Job would still be loyal to Him if he faced pain and Satan replied, “Let’s see!”  However, God only let Satan bring Job psychological pain.  This is not to belittle Job’s pain!  What he faced was horrific.  In one day all his kids died and he lost his wealth.  It is fascinating though to see that this psychological pain did not knock him off his feet.  At this, Job got up and tore his robe and shaved his head. Then he fell to the ground in worship and said: "Naked I came from my mother's womb, and naked I will depart.  The Lord gave and the Lord has taken away; may the name of the Lord be praised."  In all this, Job did not sin by charging God with wrongdoing.  (Job 1:20-22 NIV)

For many, psychological pain is the worst sort of pain and it renders them unable to function practically.  The loss of a loved one, the abuse suffered as a child, the devastation caused by financial ruin, the experience of rejection all create a level of pain that can be unbearable.  But Job was not brought to his knees by psychological pain and so Satan demanded (if one can demand anything of God) that the Lord let Job suffer physical pain…and that did the trick.  The sores Satan used to afflict Job knocked Job off his feet.  He was wrecked by his pain.  He wished he had never been born.  "May the day of my birth perish, and the night it was said, 'A boy is born!'” (Job 3:3 NIV)  He wished he could just die. "If only you would hide me in the grave and conceal me till your anger has passed!” (Job 14:13 NIV) The pain was so intense that Job was forced by it to turn to his friends to help him cope with it.  But his friends did not have the capacity nor the will to really help him in his pain, and so Job did what pain is intended to stir in us, Job turned to the only one left to him.  God!

Before the pain, Job was carefree and unperturbed by what he faced.  When pain attacked him though, Job had only two categories of thought…pain and God.  Now we must admit Job’s thoughts about God were not civilized as we think of religiously civilized thought.  He said God was unfair.  "As surely as God lives, who has denied me justice, the Almighty, who has made me taste bitterness of soul, as long as I have life within me, the breath of God in my nostrils, my lips will not speak wickedness, and my tongue will utter no deceit.  I will never admit you are in the right; (Job 27:2-5 NIV) He thought God didn’t care.  “…then know that God has wronged me and drawn his net around me.  "Though I cry, 'I've been wronged!' I get no response; though I call for help, there is no justice.” (Job 19:6-7 NIV) He decided God was his enemy.  “God assails me and tears me in his anger and gnashes his teeth at me; my opponent fastens on me his piercing eyes.” (Job 16:9 NIV)

Something happened though with Job as his pain continued.  He began to think of God in a new way…as the one He needed, as his redeemer.  The Hebrew word translated redeemer is a fascinating term.  It describes one who is a relative that has the means to get you out of debt when you sold your land because you were too poor to keep it or a relative who marries you as a widow to protect your family or one who buys you out of slavery.  The redeemer was a savior who paid the price for your rescue.  When pain comes upon you and when it is deep pain, you can only think seriously of two matters: your pain and the hope of someone saving you from your pain.  Job voiced this well as his pain had evolved from psychological pain to physical pain and then to spiritual pain.  “I know that my Redeemer lives, and that in the end he will stand upon the earth.  And after my skin has been destroyed, yet in my flesh I will see God; I myself will see him with my own eyes — I, and not another.  How my heart yearns within me!” (Job 19:25-27 NIV)  If you read closely the last parts of Job’s comments before God intervenes, all he can think about is God…His mind is on nothing else; not his marriage, not his friendships, not his finances; he is laser focused on God.  He does not need a tasty dinner, a new flock of sheep, a house with more rooms, an upgrade on his computer, a better smart phone, a wife who listens to him or friends who respect him.  He needs, and really needs a redeemer…he needs God.

Pain is the psychological button God uses to awaken us so that we will not waste our life with Him.  Imagine someone brilliantly talented at singing never developing her voice, a savant mathematician never bothering to study math, a greatly gifted inventor never working out one of her ideas.  The absurdity of unfulfilled talent is a terrible tragedy and yet there is not a talent we possess that compares to the opportunity before us to live our lives with Jesus Christ.  To cast our time with Him away is the greatest mistake of our lives and when we risk doing so, God pushes the button and pain erupts.  Suddenly we are thrown off our game, disoriented and like a driver trying desperately to get his car straightened when it begins to spin in a patch of black ice, we find pain shutting down every single concern we have but these two…our pain and our God.

Job’s story is about two matters only:  pain and the need for God.  Your life is the story of one matter…your life with God.  If you get distracted from this; if you lose your mind on something other than Jesus Christ saving you, it is a terrible tragedy for you.  Set your mind on Christ again and again and again.  When your mind is set on Christ and fully upon Him, then your mind is aligned with the mind of God and every thought you have has the power of God working in it and through it.  Why waste that great and glorious opportunity?  Why wait for pain to snap you back to reality?  God is present, God loves you, and God will work through you if you give Him the opportunity to do so!

Transcendent Doing

Just because you have believed in Jesus Christ does not mean you are His disciple.  You may have heard many good things about Him and acknowledge what He has done but not be His disciple.   You can even have powerful times of prayer and work with great and marvelous ministries tied to His name and not be His disciple.  The disciple of Jesus Christ lives out of a paradigm that is the fulfilment of Salvation.  It is a most explosive moment for the Christian when the realization strikes; "by myself I can do nothing".  It is not a partial accomplishing; it is not an imperfect doing.  It is nothing that can be done by myself.  We bark at the personal inadequacy expressed by this determination.  What is wrong with you?  Why are you so pessimistic?  Why do you give up so easily?  Don't quit yourself!  You can do it!  But the disciple realizes, "I cannot do it."  No matter how hard I work at my projects and goals, I am incapable of doing anything on my own.  Where we stumble on this is our view of "nothing".  I can build a computer program but to what point?  I can read an article but for what reason?  I can make lunch but why?  Everything hinges on the determination of the soul.  Am I at this moment in Christ, living through Him and by His might or am I on my own?  Does Scripture have its hold on me or am I just loosely associated with it?  Is the Holy Spirit worked through both my will and my reach?  It seems to the one without the Holy Spirit that Jesus' contention that even He by Himself could do nothing is gross irresponsibility.  Yet, nothing in eternity can be worked out on our own.  It is only in Jesus Christ and through Him that we take hold of heavenly purposes.  Everything else will be consumed by fire but what is done in God endures forever.  The disciple lets himself be held in the grip of Jesus Christ and decides by rugged determination to stay there regardless of the contending needs all around.  There were plenty of places our Lord could go during His life but He only went where the Father led Him.  Are you ready to take that next step?

By myself I can do nothing; I judge only as I hear, and my judgment is just, for I seek not to please myself but him who sent me.     John 5:30 NIV

The God Twitch

The God twitch is a spontaneous turning of one’s spasmodic concentration to God.  It is the sudden, spontaneous reaction to the Holy Spirit poking at your hot nerve.  Some are more reactive than others; quicker to flinch in God's direction.  If we don't realize what is happening we may mistake the poke as a crisis, as a terrible occurrence, as a heartbreak.  It is not.  It is the Lord making Himself unmistakably visible.  David felt it when Saul came after him in the wilderness.  Stephen felt it as he faced his martyrdom.  Jonah faced it as he sat in the belly of the great fish and Peter came upon it as he wept uncontrollably in the dark closet of Jerusalem Good Friday.  We may question many matters in our life but when Job like you was hit in the head by the lightning flash of God he became silent as a door knob.  There is nothing to do when God comes upon you with the force of heaven itself.  You must silently wait upon Him as He works Himself through every cell and corpuscle you possess.  Why should we think God would always deal with us peacefully and comfortably when the greatest people in the Bible were struck dumb by the weight of His awful Presence?  As Christians, we must stop making excuses for God; quit sugarcoating the ways He moves within us.  Did Ruth lose her husband or not?  Did Elijah face the terror of Jezebel or not?  Did Paul get beaten with rods or not?  It is anathema to make God out as some kind of silly puppy who bounces about mindlessly whenever we meet Him.  He is stern in His determination to make us face Him.  Should we think His glory is casual and light?  It is not!  It is as heavy as the weight of the firestorm that fell upon Sodom.  Nothing stops the force of our God's entrance when He decides to make Himself known to us with finality.  Just look at the picture we have of Jesus in Daniel 7 and try to wiggle out of this one simple attribute of God.  He is holy...terribly holy and it is a grave error to mistake Him as Santa Claus.  Sin is not a bad move on our part; it is the terrifying rebellion of a fool who dares come up against the Almighty God.  We must never mistake God as a doting father who overlooks every offence of his child.  He is not.  That is why the cross of Jesus Christ is such a roiling cauldron of chaos for Satan and the demon world.  Jesus Christ crucified is the lightning bolt of the Father that makes the entire world twitch in horror or in wonder.    The sins of the billions embedded within the dying body of the crucified King of Kings makes stones shatter in wonder and the universe come unglued in the end.   Are we so silly as to think God will only deal lightly with us when He comes upon us?

"As I looked, "thrones were set in place, and the Ancient of Days took his seat.  His clothing was as white as snow; the hair of his head was white like wool.  His throne was flaming with fire, and its wheels were all ablaze.  A river of fire was flowing, coming out from before him.     Daniel 7:9-10 NIV

Unperturbed

What seems to frustrate us most, at least for those who live actually, acknowledging  tragedy and wreckage are  the normal parts of life, is that we can't ever swing free of our troubles.  We may hide from them for a while or even make light of them as if we are indifferent to their bite but in the end troubles square us up and make full contact.  The soldier on the battlefield as well as the mother nursing her sickly child is matched up with troubles and they make a mockery of the misty dream-state concocted by teachers of Biblical positivism.  You would think, if you believed some, that the disciples never died, Mary Magdalene never got sick and John found Patmos a paradise.  It is there before us though.  We do get tired of our husband's mood swings, limp with arthritis and wake up to unemployment.  The bank does foreclose on our house and our daughter slams the door on us.  This stuff of life is here and we must recognize the root of it as it is.  We are a fool if we think Jesus never stubbed His toe, woke up with a migraine or failed to sway the crowd.  He, whose own brothers and sisters thought Him a fool and whose mother convinced herself He had lost His mind, lived out fully the farthest reach of sin and taking it within Himself buried that sin in the Cross.  Our sin has been crucified with Christ but its stench remains at every crack and mound.  Its damage remains like scars that seem to get worse with age.  What Jesus Christ has done for us though in taking our sin from us is make it possible for His life to live within ours, for Him to actually transform us that He and us become one new being.  This means that the same strength Christ had as He worked His way to Jerusalem is ours and the faith He had that made Him fearless as the storm threatened to swamp the boat where He slept is the faith we hold too.  We have no monstrosity to fear, no rejection to dread.  With Christ working His way through each part of us, we can be happy as sorrow strikes but not with the happiness of a lunatic but with the joy of the redeemed,  the joy flowing out of the One who has been baptized by death and come up again alive to the brim.  You can, in Christ, face your day not in some drunken stupor brought on by the old wine  you drank before but in the life you have now with the Lord Himself welling up as a fountain of Living water within you.  Drink deeply from that spring and face what comes to you with the strength God provides.  Nothing is too terrible to bear if Christ's very own blood flows through your veins.  It is not God who incites you to worry, not Christ who pushes dread upon you.  The word of God is always "fear not" just as surely as you breathe.  Don't dread the coming storm...be glad God has given you the opportunity to find out just how strong you now are and how unperturbed you can be.

"Whoever believes in me, as the Scripture has said, streams of living water will flow from within him."   John 7:38 NIV

Spilling Out

God has not called you to "be all you can be".  He has no interest whatsoever in you developing your potential or making something of yourself.  He is transforming you that the Son of Man might live through you.  What good really is it that you gain the world and lose your soul?  Anyone can reach their potential and have no need of Jesus Christ whatsoever.  The Lord did not send His Son to die for you so you could do that!  Our Savior gave up His life on the Cross to redeem you from all your scurryings and strivings because it all leads no where but to destruction.  He bought you back from death so that you might be made complete in Christ alone.  Your education and professional advancement and success at getting your children into prestigious colleges is of no use to God at all and even less use to you if the Lordship of Christ is not front and center in you.  If He is not the Life in your life, then you have made a wreck of the opportunity God has given you to be.  Satan is more than happy to let you continue your course as long as Christ is not spilling out of you in your daily dealings.  If Jesus Christ does not tumble forth from you as you get after your work assignments, while you are doing the dishes and as you settle down at the library to start your homework, then it is a meaningless exercise.  But if the Spirit of God generates your whirl of activities, even if they are mundane, then you have lived well.  What good is your sermon if it does not have the taste of Jesus Christ in it and of what use are your flashes of brilliance as you entertain your friends if nothing of it has the aroma of Christ?  Everywhere you go, the resurrected Christ goes with you.  Your challenge is to let Him loose.   Give Him sway wherever you are!  The power of God working through you is the greatest of miracles!  Why would you ever keep that back?  Let just one person in on your life with Christ and a landslide of sweetness might spill out of you into a world waiting for a single soul to come its way with Jesus Christ at the forefront of what she does.

If anyone speaks, he should do it as one speaking the very words of God. If anyone serves, he should do it with the strength God provides, so that in all things God may be praised through Jesus Christ.  1 Peter 4:11 NIV

Holiness Revisited

The moment you begin to drift off course and fall into the casual assumption that God isn't paying attention and isn't too concerned with how you are doing things, you must look squarely at the Lord's response to Nadab and Abihu.  The instantaneous reaction to their relaxed approach to manning the Temple is something to shake loose your cool self-assurance.   We speak ferociously of the grace and mercy of God but the Lord did not ponder long in His reaction to those two .    Aaron dared not even stammer a protest at the destruction of his older sons because he recognized Who was present.  Later when the Lord struck Miriam with leprosy for grumbling about Moses, Aaron witnessed once more the profound  violence with which God handles rebellion.   We may be glib about many things in life but we must not be so with regard to God.  He remains  a raging fire even if we see Jesus as meek and mild. (See Hebrews 12:28)  It may take years to erect a superstructure but in only a matter of moments the entire building can collapse in a heap.  God might be patient with you and you could mistake it for indifference but that might be a disastrous determination.  You are in play because the Lord wants you where you are with whom He has you at the time you are there.  Veer off without consideration for the Lord and His interest in you and the wreckage could be terrible.  The severe cost at which God has redeemed you should stop you dead in your tracks.  The sending of Jesus Christ to face what He did, the Son, the Beloved, informs you of just how seriously the Lord takes this matter of what you do and how you do it.  The wretched death of Christ defines the cost at which God lets you go about your business however you do so.  Each decision you make, every casual turn you consider is marked by the bloody crucifixion.  Does God care if you act in faith or disregard His Word?  Ask Mary Magdalene who watched Christ die.  Ask His mother Mary who cringed at the blood dripping from His brow.  Ask John who stood gaping with horror as Jesus  groaned in agony.  If it is true, that Jesus Christ would have done as He did on the blood-thirsty hill if there was only one sinner on earth needing His life...you…, then perhaps you should reassess how seriously you take your actions day in and day out.   Holiness has largely been laid to rest in our age of forgetfulness but the Lord certainly never forgot the value and importance of holiness nor did the women who stood at the foot of the Cross.

But just as he who called you is holy, so be holy in all you do; for it is written: "Be holy, because I am holy."   1 Peter 1:15 NIV

Full Effort

Philippians 3:13-14 NIV

… straining toward what is ahead, I press on toward the goal to win the prize for which God has called me heavenward in Christ Jesus.

What has your full attention?

The other day I was at a very nice restaurant with a good friend and we had a great time together.  The food was delicious and honestly I ate far too much.  I gained a full pound just having lunch there.  As we were leaving, the Lord prodded me to go to a couple with a newborn child and start a conversation with them.  I was not sure why He wanted me to do it; I didn’t know them and it could have seemed odd to the couple but I was certain the Holy Spirit was pushing me to approach them.  Now it could have been that this was just something I wanted to do…they had a cute baby and perhaps I was happy for them and wanted to let them know I was happy for them.  Maybe I just wanted to try to sell the young couple on our church; I am a pastor and that is my job.  It might just well be that it is my personality to talk with people I don’t know and start conversations at random places.  I know anyone who was watching me could have made any of these same deductions.  But I was sure that the Lord in some way that is beyond my ability to explain or prove wanted me to approach the couple who were busy enjoying their lunch and their baby and visit with them a minute or two.  What outcome there might be, I did not know nor did I have any idea what the Lord wanted me to say actually.  So there I was, about to leave the restaurant, with the Lord’s insistence that I stay just a bit longer and inject my life into the lives of two people who were perfect strangers.

Is it true that we each are being moved along by an unseen hand of one who has designs upon us that we may or may not know or care to know?  Do we have a purpose to our lives, a reason why we are here?  Is it to get an education, to work hard and do well in school?  Are we here to be successful in some career or at least make a good living at what we do?  Are we here to buy a house, get a car, pay off our debt?  Is there a purpose to our lives?  Are we here to gain US citizenship, make sure our kids get a quality education, pass along what we have learned to the next generation, aggravate people, watch as much TV as possible, find a husband or wife, develop an addiction, look good when we are old, stay healthy?  What is our purpose here?

There is an interesting account in the Bible that gets at an important consideration if we do think there might be a reason why we are on this planet for a certain period of time.  Most of are not under the illusion that we are going to stay here one hundred years or more and certainly are not going to have thousands of years to get everything done that we think we need to do before we die.  So there is a certain level of urgency each of us faces when it comes to doing what we feel we should do.  David, who already was king of Judah, was invited by the northern tribes of Israel to be their king also.  Their previous king, Ish-Bosheth had been murdered, and so the popular choice to replace him was David.  David eagerly agreed to the offer but the armies of the northern tribes had to sign off on the deal as well. It was not long before nearly three hundred thousand men came to meet with David, soldiers representing all twelve tribes of Israel, and pledge their support of him as king.  In fact, they were fiercely decided on this. They came to Hebron fully determined to make David king over all Israel. All the rest of the Israelites were also of one mind to make David king.  (1 Chronicles 12:38-39 NIV)  “Fully determined” implies an unwavering sense of direction or purpose.  They came to David’s camp for a reason and intended to accomplish the task they had decided upon before leaving.  The army was full of purpose; it was not a spontaneous excursion so they didn’t treat it as such.  They were in Hebron to make David king over Israel and and they did it.

You are not randomly placed where you are without direction.  There is a point to who you are and why you are what you are.  Each of us faces a moment when we realize we really are sinners.  It is not that we have done a few things wrong; we are sinners through and through and we cannot fix that about us.  Some of us then discover that Jesus Christ alone gives us a way out from our sinfulness.  When He died on the Cross, Jesus took into His own body our sins and when Jesus physically died, those sins and their permanent effect died with Him.  To be forgiven of your sins, you must believe Jesus did that, He took your sins into His body and they died with Him and after that, three days later God raised Him from the dead.  Nothing about your sinfulness changes in your life until you decide this is so.  Your sins remain your death, they separate you from God and in the end you are without hope.

But when you by faith accept the work Jesus Christ did in dying for your sins, something astonishingly supernatural occurs.  Christ physically becomes a part of your life.  He enters you and joins you in all you do.  He empowers transcendent life changes that mark how you do things.  You change in ways noticeable and discreet.  Every Christian experiences this, a new life with Jesus Christ in the totality of life.  Jesus called it being “born again”.  If your life doesn’t change, then perhaps nothing is different with you.  You are not born again and not living with Christ in your life.  But if you have been remade by God through faith, then there is a different you in place, a “you” that includes Jesus Christ.

The Apostle Paul put it this way regarding the union of Christ and any true Christian.  We always carry around in our body the death of Jesus, so that the life of Jesus may also be revealed in our body.  For we who are alive are always being given over to death for Jesus' sake, so that his life may be revealed in our mortal body. (2 Corinthians 4:10-12 NIV)  Jesus Christ crucified becomes part of us, who we are, what we think and what we do.  Not only that, the life of Christ is there in us too.  What this does for us is make us dead to sin…sin no longer controls us like a slave master.  Christ crucified makes sure of that for our sins were killed in His body.  But because Christ alive lives in us too, His vibrancy and power are always ready to spring from us, show themselves in us.  We become alive with the personality and will and ability of Jesus Christ and that Christ-part-of-us will not remain dormant.  It like a seed planted in soil will eventually poke out of the ground and you are the soil where that seed is planted.

We have in the book of Acts a case study of what happens when Jesus Christ crucified and alive lives in you and becomes a part of your decision making, will and behavior.  In Acts 4: 13 is an interesting aside regarding the Christian people.  When they saw the courage of Peter and John and realized that they were unschooled, ordinary men, they were astonished and they took note that these men had been with Jesus. (NIV)  There is something tangible, something different about those who have become intimate with Jesus, who live with Him.  The ones observing it may not be able to put a finger on exactly what they see but it is recognizable.  Sprinkled throughout the book of Acts are some examples of how Christian people who are living with Christ in them look.

In Acts 7: 59-60 is the terrifying account of Stephen who was martyred for his faith crying out for God to forgive the very ones who were murdering him.  While they were stoning him, Stephen prayed, "Lord Jesus, receive my spirit."  Then he fell on his knees and cried out, "Lord, do not hold this sin against them." When he had said this, he fell asleep. (NIV)  To use a metaphor that could make some squeamish, Jesus Christ was seeping out of Stephen as he faced his death squarely.  That mercy he had for his killers was not his own, it was the nature and will of Jesus Christ living within him.  As you are being crushed by skull shattering stones, what you are comes out of you, not an imitation of something.  Stephen felt pity on his attackers because of the one living within Him, Jesus sincerely loved them.

When Paul, on his way to Damascus to arrest Christians, was converted by the personal work of Jesus Christ it was no small matter for the Christian Ananias to approach Paul and offer to baptize him and pray over him.  The prejudices he held were legitimate and based on factual information.  Paul was a real threat to him and his family.  To overcome this fear, Ananias had to possess Jesus Christ living in him who was fearless.  We know Ananias was afraid because he protested the demand of Christ that he go see Paul. "Lord," Ananias answered, "I have heard many reports about this man and all the harm he has done to your saints in Jerusalem.  And he has come here with authority from the chief priests to arrest all who call on your name."  (Acts 9:13-14 NIV)  Ananias the man felt the very natural panic at the mention of Paul’s name; Ananias with Jesus Christ unafraid living in him went courageously to Paul and prayed over him.

Something we have talked about before popped up in the Christian community that first few years after Christ ascended to the father.  Spontaneously and without coercion or any sort of Church direction, Christians started selling off their property and giving the proceeds to the work of the Church.  They weren’t pressured into doing it.  They weren’t even asked.  They just gave generously and sacrificially and it had a stunning effect upon other Christians as well as the community where they lived.  All the believers were one in heart and mind. No one claimed that any of his possessions was his own, but they shared everything they had.  With great power the apostles continued to testify to the resurrection of the Lord Jesus, and much grace was upon them all. There were no needy persons among them. For from time to time those who owned lands or houses sold them, brought the money from the sales and put it at the apostles' feet, and it was distributed to anyone as he had need. (Acts 4:32-35 NIV)  The reason why this was such an established practice is not because of the strategic training and pressure tactics in the Church; it occurred because the resurrected Christ lived in these people and His nature came out of them in tangible ways.  When Jesus Christ lives in you, your will moves in the direction of generosity and away from a drive to acquire possessions and gain for yourself stuff to hold and keep.

The point is that if you are actually Christian you have Jesus Christ, who suffered the Cross to take away your sins and rose from the dead and is not bound by the constraints of this world, living in you and undoing the constraints of your common thinking.  He makes you aware of the miracles that are possible. He opens you up to blessing people who hurt you and take from you and use you.  He gives you a determination to give up what you have to bring God glory.  He makes you courageous and confident and willing to die if you need to die for the Lord’s honor.  Jesus Christ living in you gives you the ability to quit judging people, quit deciding you don’t like them or won’t trust them or don’t want to have anything to do with them and gives you the determination to bless and pray for each person you encounter.  This does not come from you; it comes from Christ living in you.

We waste a lot of time and make ourselves miserable trying to fight off what Christ resurrected is in us.  Essentially we war against ourselves when we act selfishly, react angrily and refuse to love someone we dislike.  Because Christ resurrected has become a part of us, part of our personality…that is who we are.  The most miserable people in the world are those who war with themselves, who will not let Christ resurrected come out of them, show Himself in what they do.  Non-Christians can be perfectly content avoiding mean and irritating neighbors and co-workers and family members but Christians who have Christ resurrected living within them will be miserable if they try to be that way and the same is true when it comes to keeping too much for themselves and being afraid to trust God in stressful situations.  If you want to be unhappy, cranky and discouraged, then do your best to avoid who you are…Christ resurrected living within you.  If you want to be free of care, contented and courageous in your life with God, then let Christ resurrected have His way with you in what you do.  You cannot be at peace if you fight against who you are…but you will have perfect peace if you let Jesus Christ have complete sway within your personality.

Spend a week praying for God’s blessing upon someone who has treated you badly or someone you just don’t like.  Let Christ seep out of you.  Buy a sandwich for someone you don’t know and who doesn’t deserve your generosity.  Let Christ resurrected show Himself in you.  Do something nice for someone and never tell that person it was you who did it.  Let Christ resurrected show up where you are.  Announce your Christian faith in Christ where it isn’t known and see what God does with your courage.  Somehow find a way to give Christ resurrected room to live through you this week.