Not Troubled

Fear and anxiety are entrenched in our society. We can't help it! Or can we?

Peace I leave with you, My peace I give to you; not as the world gives give I to you. Let not your heart be troubled, neither let it be afraid. John 14:27 

Fear not, for I am with you; be not dismayed for I am your God. I will strengthen you, yes I will help you, I will uphold you with my righteous right hand. Isa 41:10 

When you go out against your enemies, and you see horses and chariots more numerous than you, do not be afraid of them; for the Lord your God is with you who brought you out of the land of Egypt. Deut 20:1 

Come to me all you who labour and are heavy laden, and I will give you rest. Matthew 11:28

It seems to me that if God fills His words to us with such instructions as 'fear not', it must be possible to do so. Could it be that fear has become such an innate, automatic response that we would think of 'fear not' as a laughable suggestion?

Full-blown fear is as hard to control as an enraged bull, a stampede of elephants, a train at full speed: containing such a thing takes a lot of force, some serious time, and a lot of work. God is strong enough to commandeer your speeding train - much stronger than what we could ever be but from what God is saying, it seems that we could stop it from starting in the first place. I like that!

What strikes me most after the idea that fear could be a choice rather than an uncontrollable force is that our Heavenly Father hates the idea of us being afraid. He really really really doesn't want us to have troubled hearts. He is so serious about it that He would have Jesus invite us to go to Him and receive rest, that he would leave us His peace - as if it were a present on our doorstep, a key under the flowerpot, a loving note on the kitchen bench; He gives it to us.

Most people reading this would say, "Wow that's awesome!" then go away without really taking Him seriously and picking up His gift for keeps. What if we were to take Him seriously? Own it forever for ourselves? How different would life be?

Hebrews chapter 4 talks about entering the rest that God Himself is in today. He set the world in motion, He prepared the futures of billions of lives, pressed 'start' then sat back. He knows how things will end. He has put measures in place along the way to help us and be there for us - but He's not sweating it. He's not anxious about what will happen. He's at rest. And Hebrews chapter 4 says that God has promised that we can enter this same rest. The Israelites missed it by disobeying and not trusting God's strength, plan and ultimately His character. They didn't trust Hin, and therefore had no faith in the promise 'I am with you.'

But we can learn from them. We can live in the same measure of peace and rest that God is in, that Christ left with us, and lives in within our hearts. Will we take Him up on the offer?

This image courtesy from http://switchgaming.blogspot.com.au/2009/03/open-letter-to-game-developers.html. No copyright infringement intended - this image was found without copyright information.

Redefining

I am reminded today that anything we do for God without His leading and power is like blowing at the wind.

All the words a person could say of themselves - no matter how skillfully crafted - can never do what one word from God can.

And do not be conformed to this world, but be transformed by the renewing of your mind, that you might prove what is that good and acceptable and perfect will of God. Rom 12:2

Heart with Excellence

On Sunday, around our worship team Evaluation table, we talked about engaging in worship so that the congregation are able to be encouraged and led by the way we connect with God on stage. It brought up the age-old question about keeping the balance between technical excellence and sincerity. The following points came up during our discussion:

• It is no testimony to the world when a band is out of sync, out of tune and out of touch with the congregation
• The worship team can be the thermostat for the rest of the service

On the other hand:

• Not everyone engages in worship by singing or playing music
• if we focus too much on 'looking' engaged, it can build a sort of fakeness, a spiritual facade that is actually more dangerous than honesty about how one is feeling
• God has all the perfect music in heaven He could want, and yet He prefers our worship
• God is more pleased with a sincere worshipper who is out of tune than a slick performer who does not engage their hearts with Him

If God wanted perfect performance, He already has plenty of it in Heaven and yet, He comes down into our little gatherings, sits with you in your car as you sing to Him and treasures those moments far more than the heavenly music around His throne. I have heard of cracked, off-tune voices that bring down the glory of God. Why? It is because He loves the music of our hearts when we engage in spending quality time in His presence: He responds to our hearts cry,a the music we make deep within our souls as we turn our eyes on Him and behold His majesty and goodness in awe.

The way we worship may not be through music. It could be, for example, through prayer, acts of service or gratitude. We should practice worshipping God in all these ways throughout our lives precisely because worship is not a pose or activity - it is a sincere offering of acknowledgement and adoration through a personal connection with God in whatever form that might take. All these acts of worship produce a beautiful harmony of music that is sweet to the ears of God.

 This leads to a question that God challenged me with, and that I now challenge you with: could you enjoy your time of worship with great music in a big Church as equally as when you are in a small group of people who all sing off-key? If our answer is 'maybe not!', it means we have not tuned our hearts to the key of heaven. We miss the point of worship if we rely on good music to connect.

I've written previously about we may end up worshipping the music rather than God Himself - and it is a very real danger in our secular, performance-driven society.

At the same time, it would be wrong if a band does not make the most of the skill they have been given, and hone it to the best of their ability. Not every band is world-class but I believe in stewardship of the gifts we have been given. If you are using some kind of skill in a worship team - whether it is musical or technical - neither look down on it nor serve it: use it to bless the Lord, and the people He loves. In order to do so, you may need to improve your technique so that you are more able to match what you hear inside your heart to the sound that reaches people's ears.

I have concluded that a band that stewards their gifts well does so as a testimony to the world to their sincerity and love for God. If they happen to be amazingly gifted and produce albums that not only compels the secular entertainment industry to respect them but also moves people closer to God, then that is their gift, their anointing and their lot, and this too is also a testimony. Music, after all, first comes from God. It is only logical that those closest to Him should also be some of the best at performing it. And yet, not everyone is gifted in this way. Every band has their gift and their place - but all are called to honour God and connect His people to Him. All are called to bring heaven down to earth, and God's presence to the needy. Worship teams are not your regular band: they are instruments of God connecting the divine to the earthly.

The heart comes first, but at the same time, we must steward our gifts well. If you are part of a worship team, I encourage you to reflect on where both your heart, and your skills are at when you worship God.

Source: http://img.ehowcdn.com/article-new/ehow/images/a07/mh/nm/church-band-instruments-800x800.jpg

Let the Redeemed Say So

Let the redeemed of the Lord say so, whom He has redeemed from the hand of the army. Psa 107:2
Speaker: Ps. Jasmine

You are redeemed! The redeemed of the Lord are then His temples where His Spirit dwells (1 Cor 6:19-20). As His temples, we are called to be instruments of righteousness (Rom 6:13).

There is therefore now no condemnation to those who carry His presence (Rom 8:1) because you are justified by Jesus' Name; know for certain now that you belong to Jesus and He belongs to you - and not only this: He also makes you able to serve Him.

To serve Him is to carry out His mission for which you have been sent: to manifest the Kingdom of God to those around you and introduce Jesus to those who do not know Him. Your mantra becomes "share, live for Christ and see souls saved". Your mission field is first your family, then your friends, classmates and work colleagues.

Revelations 12:11 tells us, "[the saints] overcame him [Satan] by the blood of the Lamb, and by the word of their testimony, and they did not love their lives to the death."

On a practical level, we overcome when we do not live for ourselves but for the One who died for us, and rose again, and stand in the power of His blood. Yet, we are also conquerors by identity because we are co-heirs with Christ, who has put all His enemies under His feet. If you know that you are a conqueror, then you will not be affected by rejection or the opinions of people and will continue to carry out your mission with faithfulness and His power.

Jesus is always with you. You ARE an overcomer. You will be a great minister in His Name. And God has called you to be you - not anyone else. You do not need to meddle in other people's mission fields or try to minister the way someone else does. You need to do it the way God has already equipped you: that is where you will be the most effective.

How do we introduce Jesus? When someone finds a great restaurant, or new singer or game that they admire, they recommend it to friends and rave about it. Let's introduce Jesus to our friends and rave about Him!

You are beloved servants of Christ. You are not your own (1 Cor 6:19). Your life and your body is for the Lord to serve Him (1 Cor 6:12-13). So be alert throughout your day and be available to share, encourage and introduce Jesus to others so that they may have a living, powerful hope, and see God's light in this dark world.

Camp 2012 S5: Loving Obedience =>Christlikeness =>Power

Loving Obedience => Christlikeness => Power  - Melissa Yong
Camp 2012: The Spirit of the Lord is Upon Me, Session 5

Acts 19:13-17 gives an arresting account that goes like this:

Then some of the itinerant Jewish exorcists took it upon themselves to call the name of the Lord Jesus over those who had evil spirits, saying,
"We exorcise you by the Jesus whom Paul preaches."
Also there were seven sons of Sceva, a Jewish chief priest, who did so.
And the evil spirit answered and said, "Jesus I know, and Paul I know; but who are you?"
The the man in whom the evil spirit was leaped on them, and overpowered them, and prevailed against them, so that they fled out of that house naked and wounded.
This became known both to all Jews and Greeks dwelling in Ephesus; and fear fell on them all, and the name of Jesus was magnified.

Bear in mind that the Bible is not just a bunch of made up stories - it inclues historical accounts of events that actually happened, many having being verified by contemporary historians, manuscripts and archaeological findings.

This passage tells us something that is very key to living and demonstrating the power of God: we must resemble Jesus. How do we get there? First of all, you need to understand that the nature of Jesus Christ was birthed into you when you accepted Him as Lord and Saviour; you are ABLE to be like Him! Next is obedience.

Loving Obedience
There are different levels of obedience: there is reluctant obedience, dutiful obedience, and obedience borne of love for the Lord and the desire to make Him smile. We all need to start somewhere but we all need to come to the point of loving obedience: we obey because we genuinely choose and want to.

Obedience isn't just about keeping the 10 commandments; it is about keeping the heart of God's law, surrendering our own right to do what we want in order to live the way God has commanded. The one thing that ties the whole of His commandments together is love: love for God compels us to live sanctified lives dedicated for His purpose, not ours. This will in turn be demonstrated by love for others

A lifestyle of consistent obedience to God transforms us into Christ's likeness.

The Reason Why
Why does it have to be the progression from obedience to Christlikeness before we can wield the kind of power that Jesus had, that the disciples had? Because: 1) it is not by might, nor by power, but by the Spirit of God (Zech 4:6), 2) we are not of this world.


The power of God is not in effort, nor in intent. It is by His Spirit that people are transformed, made whole, relationships and lives restored. It is also by His Spirit that our new nature - that provides the access to God's power through identity as children of God, and through legal right as co-heirs with Christ - was created.

If we want any hope of operating in His power, we cannot live contrary to its nature - otherwise, we just get in the way of what God wants to do. The nature of the power of God is the nature of God himself: love, justice, truth, righteousness, meekness - and the list goes on. Jesus' Name is powerful but just wielding His Name like the seven sons of Sceva is not enough. The person who is submitted under authority has the authority of the person they are submitted to.

It is the difference between being one of James Packer's innumerable employees, and being his best friend or executive associate. The employee cannot say 'I know James Packer' or act in his interests with as much authority as his best friend or executive associates.

In the same way, many Christians know ABOUT God but have not made the time to know Him intimately and carry His presence. Many Christians haven't consciously experienced the leading of the Holy Spirit in everyday life. How can we expect to see miracles everyday, face demons and display the Kingdom of Heaven if we don't really know it or its King ourselves?

The Purpose
The purpose of power is not for self-fulfillment, but for fulfilling the desire of our King to find and restore the lost, needy and hurting. He calls it 'reaping the harvest'. There are so many out there who need to be brought into His Kingdom in order for them to experience the fullness of life He meant for them to have. He has called you and I to bring in the harvest.

Let's commit to consistently and purposefully laying down the right to govern our own lives in order to bring it under the authority of Jesus Christ. As we do this, we will find that His unbounded power is waiting to be unleashed on the works of Satan and bring restoration to a hurting world.

Camp 2012 S4: Redefining Success

Redefining Success - Jonathan Poh
Camp 2012: The Spirit of the Lord is Upon Me, Session 4

Success is not in what you do; success is knowing your identity in Christ [and living it out]. The following three 'P's illustrate what His Church looks like, and the calling which we have been given.

Pursue His Presence
Pursuing God's presence is the greatest and most principal thing. The fruits of such a lifestyle establishes our foundation, grounds us in His love and is our primary calling - Psa 27:4. It is in His presence that we find the most fulfillment, and the centre of God's heart for the Purpose He sends us to accomplish.

Pursue His Purpose
Purpose helps define what you do and who you are.
Purpose comes out of intimacy with God - Matt 28:17-19

Pursue His Power
John 14:12 says, "Most assuredly, I say to you, he who believes in Me the works that I do he will do also; and greater works than these he will do, because I go to My Father."
Power is needed to complete the Purpose God created us for.

Ekklesia - it is a Greek word that is translated in the Bible as 'Church' or assembly. To the Greeks, however,  it connoted a group of people who governed a people and made laws - like a parliament. To the Romans, it was people who infiltrated and transformed spheres of society to change them and make them like Romans.

Christ-followers should be reaching the "seven mountains of influence" in society and transforming them into areas of integrity, godliness, justice and truth - like the Kingdom of Heaven. And it doesn't end there - we are called to disciple the nations: "Go ye therefore and teach all nations..." (Matt 28:19

If you want to be a person of significance, it is important to re-align our definition of success with God's: it is knowing and living out your identity in Christ. Pursue His presence, purpose and power with all your being.

Just Step Out

Sometimes we wait for God to act before we do; but this isn't always the way God works!

I listened today to a message where a guy called Ray Vander Laan explained social, geographical and historical background to passages in the Bible in a Focus on the Family series called 'That the World May Know'. He explained that because of the nature of the Jordan River, once you step in, you're in, possibly over your head!

He brought out an important point that I want to share with you today: if the priests of Joshua's time had said, "I'll wait here till God parts the water, then I'll step in," they would have never entered their Promised Land. The Bible says in Joshua 3:15:

"as those wo bore the ark came to the Jordan, and the feet of the priests who bore the ark dipped in the edge of the water (for the Jordan overflows all its banks during the whole of harvest), that the waters which came down from upstream stood still, and rose in a heap very far away at Adam, the city beside Zarephath.
So the waters that went down into the Sea of the Arabah, the Salt Sea, failed and were cut off; and the people crossed over opposite Jericho."

God acted as He said He would when they stepped into the river, not before. It requires faith and total commitment - but that's exactly what God responds to. Just as in Daniel's day when Shadrach, Meshach and Abed-Nego were willing to go all the way into the furnace because they refused to compromise on their obedience to God, God stepped in when the situation had gone to the stage where they would have been impossible to rescue (see my post From the Fire to see more on this).

Let's not be afraid to give God our total commitment when He calls you to do something: just step out in faith and obedience; He's waiting to show Himself strong to you. Step in and watch Him work on your behalf!

image sourced from http://trainingwithmatt.com/archives/908

Marriage in Australia

It's time to make your voice count for an issue that will affect the social fabric of Australia for the generations that come after us: marriage.

Australia is poised to make a decision about whether the definition of marriage should be revised to include same-sex marriage. The current definition is: "the union of a man and a woman to the exclusion of all others, voluntarily entered into for life". This nation was built on Biblical principles - yes there have been mistakes about racial equality - but the Bible is clear about same-sex relationships:

Rom 1:24-27: 

Therefore God also gave them up to uncleanness, in the lusts of their hearts, to dishonour their bodies among themselves, who exchanged the truth of God for the lie, and worshipped and served the creature rather than the Creator...for this reason God gave them up to vile passions. For even their women exchanged the natural use for what is against nature.

Likewise also men, leaving the natural use of the woman, burned in their lust for one another, men with men committing what is shameful, and receiving in themselves the penalty of their error which was due. 

1 Cor 6:9:
Do you not know that the unrighteous will not inherit the kingdom of God? Do not be deceived. Neither fornicators, nor idolaters, nor adulterers, not homosexuals, nor sodomites... 

Lev 18:22
You shall not lie with a male as with a woman. It is an abomination.

Anyone who tries to prove that the Bible says otherwise twists the truth to their own hurt. God designed us in a specific way; perversion of our natural design causes physical disease, spiritual and emotional death. Every nation that built itself on Biblical principles has prospered; when these nations move away from their founding principles, they open the floodgates to the consequences of rebellion against our original design and grieves the heart of our Creator.

Let every Christian who has a heart for this nation now fight on their knees to move heaven and earth so that its people live in righteousness, blessing and power. And let the government know - because they want to hear from you!

Go to this website and complete the survey: http://www.aph.gov.au/Parliamentary_Business/Committees/House_of_Representatives_Committees?url=spla%2Fbill+marriage%2Findex.htm

Camp 2012 S3: God Qualifies the Called

God Qualifies the Called - Rachel Poh
Camp 2012: The Spirit of the Lord is Upon Me, Session 3

God doesn't call the qualified; He qualifies the called. He is looking for people who just take Him at His Word and act on it. He wants people who put up their hand and say, 'Pick me!', then He will change you and mould your character.

Rachel shared how before she caught hold of God, she was a very quiet, shy person. Then, when she realised that God was more real than she thought, she decided to act on His words. When she heard that if she prayed for people, they would be healed, she decided to do just that.

The first time she set out to do this, she spotted a girl limping along in a car park with her knee in a bandage. Rachel explained that she had just found out that she could pray for people with healing and asked if she could pray for her. The girl did not seem very convinced but allowed her to pray. After the first time, the girl tested her leg and announced that nothing had changed. Undaunted, Rachel prayed again - but again, nothing changed. Disappointed, Rachel let her go. Later, she spotted the girl again walking normally without the bandage.

"Hey!" she called, "what happened?"
"Oh hey," replied the girl, "it's all good now so I took off the bandage. Thanks."Then she strode away.

Rachel was left scratching her head. She wasn't sure if the girl was actually healed or not. She looked for a second person to pray for. She found a second girl with her leg elevated and her knee under ice, obviously in great pain, and asked if she could pray for her. The girl assented.

Again, the first prayer brought no immediate change. Rachel prayed a second time, but this time the girl tested her knee with a very perplexed look on her face. She jumped up, flexing it without difficulty, then exclaimed, "What did you do to it?!" She too could throw away her ice.

Later on, Rachel found a guy who had injured his thumb so that the joint in his palm had ballooned significantly. Rachel laid her hand on the swelling and asked the Kingdom of Heaven to come upon it. As soon as she took her hand away from the boy's hand, she jumped back in astonishment - it had reduced in swelling by at least half. This was the beginning of a habit since to look for people to pray for and release the power of God on their behalf.

She shared how we could look for opportunities to do this in everyday life. One day, she was at a tram stop with a friend who seemed to have some neck pain. Rachel asked about it, and her friend said, "Oh, don't worry about it. It's just some mild pain - no big deal." However, Rachel encouraged her and the friend let her pray for her.
Rachel positioned her hands some distance from her friend's neck without touching it and prayed - nothing. She prayed again, and felt suddenly very warm, and her hands burned hot although she was not touching her friend. She thought perhaps that it was the weather.
When she finished praying, her friend's expression was of shock and surprise: "The pain is gone - and - my neck got really hot!" Rachel was amazed, "My hands got really hot!"

We serve a mighty, living God who is waiting to back us up with signs and wonders if we step out in faith! Will you be one of those who makes themselves available and just says, "Pick me!"?

Camp 2012 S2: God's Design + New Creation Identity= Purpose with Power

Camp 2012: The Spirit of the Lord is Upon Me, Session 2
Speaker: Melissa Yong

We cannot live with strong purpose if we do not embrace our God-given identity. This applies both individually, and corporately. We are hindered from walking in the full power of the Spirit if we do not embrace BOTH God's Design AND our New Creation identity created in us the day we chose the Lord as our God.

We need to see God's design in all aspects of your life and embrace it.
Every part of you, down to the colour of your eyes was created for a purpose. Your family, socio-economic status as you grew up, the race you are - all of it is in God's design.

I talk often about a story about Amy Carmichael, a missionary around the turn of the century from India who wrote that as a little girl, she envied her mother's beautiful blue eyes. She would pray for blue eyes but wake up the next morning, disappointed. But when she became a missionary, she would one day find herself darkening her skin with pigment, putting on a sari, walking into the dark temples and carry out the little girls who were being forced to participate in sexual religious rites. They were being abused and often ill-treated, and it was she, with her brown eyes who was able to rescue them.

You might never know the reasons for all that you are and look like - but every single thing about you positions you uniquely for a role, influence and connections that no one else will have.

For those with tragic, difficult stories, I offer this: while we are not able to see the big picture, I propose that the mistakes and weaknesses of ourselves, and of our ancestors, as well as the work of the enemy have a big part to play in any brokenness or tragedy in our stories. God's great mercy is that He can use all of that brokenness to make something both beautiful and good to come out of it. Trust Him. He will both heal you and use your story to heal others.

We need to work on our character flaws in humility and obedience to God.
If we would turn to God about our character flaws, He will not only help you, but use the same struggles you have to become gateways to wisdom, experiences with the love and power of God, and enable you to relate to the people you were created to reach out to.

We need to know our Identity in Christ.
You are Beloved (1 John 3:1)
You are Accepted (John 1:12)
You are Righteous (2 Cor 5:21)
You are Powerful (Rom 8:16-17, Rev 1:6)

Our Full Identity is BOTH God's Initial Design AND Identity in Christ
We only live out our FULL identity and potential when we:

• Accept God's design with thanksgiving. Acceptance of this leads transformation as we relax into what we were created to be.
  For example, Mum often talks about the transformation that occurred in her life when she found out that she was beloved by God. Previously, she had thought that she was ugly and felt rejected. After she found out her identity in God was as His beloved, and that this awesome, mighty God was at her side, she transformed from a painfully quiet girl who often cried into confident girl who was quite at home with telling strangers about the gospel and preaching in front of many people.
  Accepting God's design for our lives allows us to blossom.
• Walk closely with God in humility and obedience.
  When we walking closely with God, we get to know His heartbeat, His love for the world, and His pressing desire to make them whole. All of us have been given a passion: something we're great at doing and love to do. Connecting this to the heart of God gives us a purpose to our passion.
  When we then follow God in humility and obedience, we learn wisdom and walk in HIS power, not our own limited understanding.

Accepting God's design requires faith and trust, but it yields character transformation. Walking closely with God requires humility, obedience and some effort but it connects you to your purpose, and the power you need to get it done.

Daniel in the Plan of God

Daniel could have counted himself extremely ill-treated by God. He was violently carried away from his family, his country torched and ravaged, friends and family killed or separated from him - perhaps never to be seen again - to a foreign nation and uncertain future.

He could have tried to pretend to never be a Hebrew again since being one caused so much trouble in the first place. But from the very first chapter in the book of Daniel, we see him holding tightly to his identity as a Hebrew. The Chaldeans conquered each land with military force, then made sure that they would never rise against them by assimilating the vanquished into Chaldean culture until they lost their own roots and became just like the conquerors. This is what they tried to do to Daniel, Shadrach, Meschach and Abed-Nego.

Yet, they continued to observe the law of God - even when it was inconvenient to. They with wisdom and respect showed that they not only born of noble families, but noble in character also - which brings me to my next point: Daniel and his friends were brought into their position at the King's court precisely because of God's design in their family, appearance and skill-set.

Daniel 1:3-4 tells us that King Nebuchadnezzar instructed his eunuchs to find Hebrew young men from the King's line or noble families who were both good looking and smart. Daniel and his friends fit the bill to the T. They could have tried to deny their noble upbringing, or thought their smartness to be a curse because for these very things they were separated from their friends and families - but they accepted God's design for them. They could have rejected, railed and denied their captive circumstances, but they determined to make the best of them, and to honour God while they were at it.

So because of their acceptance of both God's design in their lives, and their identity as chosen people of God, they stuck fast to God, honoured Him and were empowered to interpret the King's dreams, move the Kings' hearts, and thus influence the nation's laws and destiny. O for more Daniels!

Daniel Chapter 5 tells us that Daniel became known as the one 'in whom is the Spirit of the Holy God'. Two different kings, in different empires made a decree that all should revere, and that no one should speak ill of Daniel's God because 'there is no other god that can deliver like this', and 'He is the living God, and steadfast forever' (Dan 3:29; 6:26-27).

This is the influence of one who is trusting, humble and obedient to the God who designed him and called him to be His child.

YOU are called to be like Daniel. Everything about you has a reason and purpose. Trust the Lord in all things about you, walk with Him in humility and obedience, and you will be able to live in the power of the Spirit of God and show the world that He is alive.

Camp 2012 S1: Living a Purposeful, Transformed Life

Camp 2012: The Spirit of the Lord is Upon Me, Session 1 Summary
Speaker: Ps. Jasmine Yong

God has a great plan and purpose for each individual. The sum of our lives is to know Him and glorify Him forever.

When Engineers create a car or electronic device, they write a user's guide. When God created you and I, He wrote a manual - the Bible. God has given us life, and His manual needs to be followed to get the most out of it. When we violate the principles set out in the manual, we bring ourselves problem and pain.

Therefore, obedience is not only a good idea but essential to living our lives to the fullest, and most joyful possible.

Prov 4:20-22
My son, give attention to my words; incline your ear to my sayings.
Do not let them depart from your eyes; keep them in the midst of your heart;
for they are life to those who find them, and health to all their flesh.

When we connect with God's plan and manual for our lives, we will be changed into His image day by day. We will also be able to demonstrate the truth and power of God to the world. You are a demonstrator of God's salvation!

Who is God? Liege Lord

Who is God?

King: Liege Lord

Liege Lord: A feudal lord entitled to allegiance and service (Webster's Online Dictionary).

In this age of democracy, we have lost much of the concept of allegiance, submission and dependence on another. Some concept of each is retained, but the weight of their meaning is somewhat dimmed by lack of positive contemporary examples. So, I'll try to explain some concepts from the feudal era that may help with understanding these concepts in a new light.

In the feudal system, the King and local lords could grant land to vassals. Vassals referred to their lords as 'my Liege' - you may have heard this term in some historical movies. Vassalage was sworn in by a ceremony in which the person becoming that vassal sword alliegiance and service to the lord. This oath was to create a bond between the two people that was supposed to last their lives.

In this system, the Lord protected and provided for his vassals, and the vassals were to stay loyal to the King and fight for Him in battles when called. (Encyclopedia Britannica; The Middle Ages Website ).

We are, in effect, vassals to God: when someone accepts Jesus as Lord and Saviour, you are making covenant with God to say, 'I recognise your authority over me. I have glimpsed the fact that You are a good, merciful, powerful God who actually loves me so I choose to submit to You and obey You. You are my Liege." 

In the Old Testament, covenants were never broken. The Old and New Testament is another way of saying 'Old Covenant' and 'New Covenant'. We are under the New Covenant Jesus made in His blood. We make a commitment to loyalty, obedience and service to God, and He has sworn to bless and protect and be God to us. The difference is that we are not just servants, but family. The other great difference is that our Lord has sacrificed His own life to set us free from our old lord of Satan, sin and death. He is worthy of our love and allegiance.

Everyday, there is a battle for the Throne of Your Heart

There really is. Throughout each day, you will meet many decision-points where you choose your way of dealing with something, or God's way. In essence, you are choosing who is sitting on the throne of your heart. Many people are in a perpetual state of rebellion by sitting on the throne in their hearts even though they "received Jesus as Lord and Saviour".

See R.Sipe's article "Who's on the Throne?" on his blog 'Daily Discipleship' for a clear and insightful commentary on this topic, and a useful diagram that helps illustrate this concept.

Jesus taught that only those who keep His commandments (do things His way) are true lovers of God. So the next time someone describes someone else as, "they love the Lord" - measure that statement against Jesus' definition of 'loving the Lord':

He who has My commandments and keeps them, it is he who loves Me. And he who loves Me will be loved by My Father, and I will love him and manifest Myself to him.” - John 14:21

If someone says, "I love God," and hates his brother, he is a liar; for he who does not love his brother whom he has seen, how can he love God whom he has not seen? - 1 John 4:20

Notice that not everyone who has Jesus' commandments loves Him. Only those who HAVE them AND KEEP (value, treasure, obey) them are those who love God.

The word 'manifest' means 'to exhibit, display, to reveal its presence, to put beyond a shadow of a doubt' (Webster's Online Dictionary). Do you want Jesus to MANIFEST himself to you? Have AND keep His commandments.

 Eph 2:1-3 & Col 3:5-7 show us that those who are deemed disobedient are those who conduct their lives to fulfill the desires of the flesh and of the mind. Romans 8:8 tells us that the people who walk in the flesh cannot please God.
THEREFORE -  to walk in the Spirit is to walk in obedience. In order to do this, we must deny the urges to fulfill the lusts of the flesh.

• walking in the Spirit requires submission to our Liege.   
• If we live our lives focused on the needs and desires of our body, we have deposed God from His throne, and made ourselves king.
• this is a choice that we have to continually make. 

Let us determine in our hearts that God should always be King. We fall when we give ourselves the right to sit on the throne when we have no business there at all.

How do we tell if we are ‘walking’ in the flesh instead of the Spirit?

1.     Be able to identify how the flesh operates: Gal 5:19-21 All the works of the flesh are disobedience to the commandments of God - so any disobedience constitutes to walking in the flesh.

3.     Rom 8:6 – the consequence of carnal living is death; that of the Spirit is life.
We can tell if we’re not in the Spirit if evidence of the law of sin and death is at work: anxiety, stress, fear, anger, sickness, depression etc
If we are walking in the Spirit, we will be experiencing the opposite: peace, joy, blessing, efficiency, health etc.

Similarly, what are your MOTIVATORS? Common ones are fear, anxiety, lust, greed. These are fleshly motivators. If we act according to them, we are acting according to our carnal nature that is an enemy to God and cannot (read 'impossible to') be subject to His laws (Rom 8:7). This is therefore disobedience and rebellion to God.

If we are led by the Spirit, we would be led by His nature: love, peace, wisdom. Therefore anything that is opposite or in conflict with these things is not of God. Walk in the Spirit, and you will be walking in obedience.

Choosing the ways of the Spirit
a) How do we ‘put to death’ the deeds of the flesh?
What does it mean in Rom 8:15 – “…by the Spirit put to death the  deeds of the body”

Answer: Gal 5:16 - Walk in the spirit and you shall not fulfill the lusts of the flesh.

This is by no means an easy thing - it is a struggle everyday for the throne of your heart. Will you let flesh rule, or His Spirit?

For example:

• Tempted to feel irritated at someone? - instead, choose to speak a soft word of encouragement. And keep it up, too!
• Someone at home is grumpy and says things that could make you grumpy too. Instead of letting yourself get riled up and infected by the grumpiness, respond to the person, not the attitude because 'love is not easily provoked' (read 1 Cor 13 for more definitions of love)
• Tempted to be lazy and not prepare for tomorrow's big day - stop and ask God for wisdom for how to prepare, then do it.
• Thoughts about the impending exam or placement make you anxious. You stay up all night burning the midnight oil, get even more stressed when you realise that you aren't remembering everything. You get tired and depressed and think that you will fail. This is a sure sign that you have been 'leaning on the arm of flesh' - you're depending on your own ability and not God's. Instead, of going through all that - at the first thought of anxiety, apply Phil 4:6-7 - be anxious for nothing but in everything by prayer and thanksgiving, give your requests to God...with thanksgiving. Then, ask God for wisdom on what and how to study, then do it without giving in to the thoughts of fear.
  
  See my article

a) Apply the Law of Lift

This is what I like to call the law of the spirit of life in Christ Jesus. The law of sin and death, which is what our bodies like to operate in, keep us bound to our limitations an weaknesses so that we are bound to fail. This is what I believe is analogous to the law of gravity. It is a law that is ubiquitous and seemingly unconquerable. BUT if you apply the law of lift, you are free to work in the bounds of another law that is able to overcome gravity. This is the law of the spirit of life in Christ Jesus.

Applying this law is to walk in obedience to God's Word, and choosing to be motivated and lead by love, wisdom and peace - because GOd is love, wisdom and peace.

b) Find godly sources of visual and auditory input to feed our spirit with the things of God

c) Make practical steps

Make a list of the commandments and teachings in the Bible then identify the ones we should be doing but may not be very good at. Then, make steps to keep that commandment consistently until it becomes your own habit.

Example list:

•  When someone borrows something from you, don’t ask for it back
• When you pray privately, do it in secret
• Pay your tithes by budgeting for it first before all the bills and expected expenses 
• Forgive others and ask for forgiveness before coming to God in prayer. 
• Keep on praying in the spirit. Use a common occurrence of something in your life as a trigger for prayer eg toilet breaks (works for me!) - avoid choosing triggers that will keep you busy for too long eg phone calls
• Consider others over and beyond yourself: when tempted to look after yourself first, choose looking after another instead. Make sure you do this in common-sense driven by wisdom, not selfish agendas. 
• Judge not. Search your own self first and deal with it with God before you think anything negative about someone else.
• Be anxious for nothing but in prayer and supplication, present your requests with thanksgiving to God.
• Honour the Sabbath Day: search the Bible for God's version of keeping a Sabbath Day holy, then apply steps to gradually make your day match His version.

N.B Apologies for strange font size differences in this article - Blogger seems to be playing up and I don't know how to fix it!

Re

He Came Anyway

Have you ever thought of Palm Sunday like this?

Palm Sunday is the day Jesus rode into Jerusalem on a donkey and her colt. It would be the last time He would enter it a free man. The next time He would be paraded through Jerusalem would be as a convicted criminal, bloodied, torn, hated. He must have known this on that day as the crowds thronged around Him, strewing the path with tree branches, singing 'Hosanna to the Son of David! Blessed is He who comes in the Name of the Lord! Hosanna in the Highest!"

I wonder what His disciples thought that day. They had entered Jerusalem with their Master with some trepidation because they had last left it in an uproar: Jesus had nearly been stoned to death because He had taught, "I am the Son of God" (John 10:22-39). The sense of impending danger was so strong that Thomas the Twin had said to the other disciples, "let us also go, that we may die with Him"when Jesus announced plans to return to Bethany, which was only 2 miles away from Jerusalem (according to John 11:18).

Perhaps they felt that their fears had been unfounded while the crowds sang and celebrated joyfully at Jesus' arrival on the donkey. On Palm Sunday, He entered Jerusalem as its King, fulfilling the prophecy of Zechariah (Zech 9:9):

Tell the daughter of Zion, behold your King is coming to you, lowly and sitting on a donkey, a colt, the foal of a donkey.

About a week later, He would stagger through its streets carrying a heavy Cross as their King, and He would die to His last breath as their King, convicted by the declaration above His head: "THIS IS THE KING OF THE JEWS". He was sacrificed in their place as a mute, willing sacrifice for the jeering crowds who spat and cried, "Crucify Him!"

He had come to Earth for this very reason: to bring them back to the root principles He had instated in the fledgling years of the Israeli nation as they wandered in the desert; to call them back to Himself and away from the man-made foolish additions to the Mosaic statutes that the religious leaders of the day called The Law; He came to pay the punishment for their sin, the sins of their forefathers, and for the generations to come so that they could enter His presence as beloved children, not terrified subjects.
He wanted His family to be near to Him -- so, although He knew that they would not understand, He had come anyway. They would laud Him, and then they would crucify Him, but He came anyway.

All throughout His ministry, many Jews had asked Him, "Are you the Christ? If you are, tell us plainly." So He did - but they did not accept it, and killed Him for it. To this day, many Jews today still reject Jesus as their Messiah but it does not change the fact that He is.

The Bible speaks of a time when all Israel shall be saved (Rom 11:25-27). Their time is coming soon because His death and resurrection for the very people He had first come to was not in vain. He had come for them first as His chosen people, then to the rest of the world because that had always been His plan. Soon, their eyes will be opened and they will find Him. And so, His prediction, "the first will be last, and the last will be first" will again be witnessed on a whole new level.

Let us remember the pain of His heart, and yet the joy that He was waiting to experience on the other side of the Cross as we realise that He knew what would happen, but came for us anyway. Let us not be weary in well doing in the light of Jesus' meekness and great sacrifice in comparison to our own, then live our lives for Him so that the world may know He lives.

Happy Palm Sunday!

from http://ferrelljenkins.files.wordpress.com/

Who is God? King: Lord of Hosts

Today we gain insight into God as the Lord of hosts.


The Law of First Mention
The Law of First Mention is a theological idea that the first meanings and connotations related to any term when first used in the Bible carries throughout the Bible to the subsequent uses of that term.

If we apply this concept, we can get an appreciation for a richer understanding of 'Lord of hosts'.
The term 'Lord of hosts' is not used specifically until 1 Samuel but we gain an important preview in Joshua 5:13-14:

And it came to pass, when Joshua was by Jericho, that he lifted his eyes and looked, and behold, a Man stood opposite him with His sword drawn in His hand. And Joshua went to Him and said to Him, "Are You for us or for our adversaries?"
So He siad, "No, but as Commander of the army of the LORD I have now come."
And Joshua fell on his face to the earth and worshiped, and said to Him, What does my Lord say to His servant?"

This 'Man' was no ordinary one. He came with a drawn sword, ready for a battle, a warrior.
He said, '...as Commander of the army of the LORD I have now come". The Hebrew for 'commander of the army of the Lord' is sar tsaba YHWH.

Sar (שר) = chief, ruler, prince (Strong concordance, blueletterbible.org).
Tsaba (צבא) = an army.
YHWH (יהוה) is God's name first revealed to Israel when He was about to deliver them from their lives of Egyptian slavery (Exodus 6:2-3). This name of God speaks of covenant, commitment to His promises in that covenant, and relationship: "I will take you as My people, and I will be your God" (Exodus 6:7).

It is commonly accepted that this Commander was in fact Jesus Christ. He met Joshua at a crucial point in their campaign to possess the Promised Land: Jericho was the gateway to Canaan. Jesus, as the Commander was there to ensure God's wil be done by instructing Joshua to the way to victory -- He was there to guide the movement of a nation.

The first two times the actual term 'Lord of hosts' (YHWH Tsaba or, as commonly latinised Jehovah Saboath) is in 1 Samuel, where we are introduced to Elkanah and Hannah, and their son Samuel who became the last of the judges of Israel.

This man [Elkanah] went up from his city yearly to worship and sacrifice to the Lord of hosts in Shiloh... - 1 Sam 1:3a (emphasis mine) 

Then she [Hannah] made a vow and said, "O Lord of hosts, if You will indeed look on the affliction of Your maidservant and remember me, and not forget your maidservant, but will give Your maidservant a male child, then I will give him to the Lord all the days of his life, and no razor shall come upon his head." - 1 Sam 1:11 (emphasis mine)

Therefore, if we put Joshua and 1 Samuel chapter 1 together, Lord of hosts speaks of:

• the Lord as a warrior, fighting on our behalf for God's purposes to be fulfilled
• the sovereignty and rulership of God over nations and individual lives
• in a personal sense, YHWH Tsaba is our ever present help and refuge (see Psalm 64)
• the holiness and majesty of God
• the power and strength of God

Scripture Study
When we look into scripture, we will find that in many uses of the title 'Lord of hosts', the same sense of God's fighting spirit, majesty and power is being conveyed as our help, refuge, hope. Therefore, whenever God declares something with the words 'says the Lord of hosts', He is making a firm statement as a majestic, powerful Warrior King who has committed to keeping His promises towards us.

• Amos 4:13
  For behold, He who forms mountains, and creates the wind, who declares to man what his thought is, and makes the morning darkness, who treads the high places of the earth - the Lord God of hosts is His Name.
• Isaiah 31:4-5
  As a lion roars, and a young lion over his prey (when a multitude of shepherds is summoned against hin, he will not be afraid of their voice nor be disturbed by their noise), so the Lord of hosts will come down to fight for Mount Zion and for its hill. Like birds flying about, so will the Lord of hosts defend Jerusalem. Defending it, He will also deliver it; passing over, He will preserve it.
• Isaiah 44:6
  Thus says the Lord, the King of Israel, and his Redeemer, the Lord of hosts; I am the First and I am the Last; besides me there is no God.
• Zech 4:6
  Not by might, nor by power but by My Spirit, says the Lord of hosts.

Notice that the term 'hosts' is never capitalised. Some commentaries say this is because it is not just referring to heavenly armies, but denotes God's sovereignty over any army.

So who is the Lord of hosts? Read Isaiah 44:6 again. We read later in Revelations Jesus himself saying many times, "I am the Alpha and Omega, the Beginning and the End, the First and the Last."

Revelations 19:11-16 says:

Now I saw heaven opened, and behold, a white horse. And He who sat on him was called Faithful and True, and in righteousness He judges and makes war...He was clothed with a robe dipped in blood, and HIs name is called The Word of God. And the armies in heaven, clothed in fine linene, white and clean, followed Him on white horses... And He has on His robe and on His thigh a name written:

 KING OF KINGS AND LORD OF LORDS.

We know from John 1 that the Word was made flesh and dwelt among us. Therefore, the Lord of hosts is Jesus Christ our Redeemer, our majestic, sovereign, all-powerful King.


The Lord of hosts Today


The YHWH Tsaba of the Old Testament was a distant God, unreachable except to a select few. There are many verses that have words to this effect, "the Lord of hosts, who dwells between the cherubim" (eg. 1 Sam 4:4; 2 Sam 6:2; Isa 37:16).

This refers to the Ark of the Covenant, which was located in the deepest, most Holy Place of the tabernacle or temple, hidden behind a veil as thick as a man's hand. Only the High Priest was able to enter behind the veil once a year, and only after many animal sacrifices.

However, Jesus Christ, our Redeemer and our Lord of hosts came in the flesh to walk among us. He gave His life to pay for our salvation.  When Jesus cried 'It is finished!' with His last breath on the Cross, there was an earthquake in which this veil in the temple was torn from top to bottom in a divine, sovereign act that opened the Holy of Holies for all to enter.

The Lord of hosts is now accessible by all who come in His blood and the Name of Jesus Christ. He comes as your commander-in-chief, and mine, One who has experienced life on this earth and understands our struggles and temptations, yet overcame them all. He is still the same majestic, powerful Creator King who is our refuge, and ever-present help in time of trouble.

When Peter, James and John first met Him, they were tired after a whole night of fruitless fishing. He climbed into their boat and suggested that they go fishing. They obeyed and He demonstrated that He was able to take care of their needs in miraculous abundance if they followed Him.

Over the next three years, they got to know His likes, dislikes, His habits, whether he liked lamb or goat better. They saw Him at work in ministry, sleeping, praying, frustrated, moved with compassion. They watched in awe as He stripped bare the pride of the Pharisees, healed the sick, raised the dead and cast out demons. He trained them to do the same. They followed Him like a tight-knit soldiers of a troop and carried out His instructions and orders. Then, in one terrifying night, He was taken from them and nailed to a Cross at such a speed that they were left reeling.

The emptiness and loss of direction was palpable the day when Peter suggested 'let's go fishing' (John 21). They had seen Jesus appear and disappear. He was alive, but it wasn't the same. Then a voice cuts through their heavy hearts from the shore and advises them to drop the net over a particular side. As if in a dream, slightly familiar but forgotten, they obey and pull up a net-groaning load of fish. John turns excitedly to Peter - "It is the Lord!"

The eager relief and joy of the disciples at this realisation can be felt between the lines in John 21 as they rush to the shore and crowd around their friend and leader, so happy, half-afraid to believe, yet not daring to speak. They were soon to learn that though He would no longer be physically with them, He would send His Spirit to dwell in their hearts and be with each one personally, always and forever. This is our God.

The Lord of hosts, Jesus Christ, is a God we can honour, love and give our lives for like the disciples gave their lives for Jesus; like soldiers who give their lives for the Captain they love and honour; as the Fellowship of the Ring followed Aragorn to fight for and with; as little brothers and sisters who hero-worship their big brother and stick up for his honour should there ever be any need to. Jesus Christ is worthy of our love and honour. He gave His life for us so that we could live and be with Him forever. He is a wise and mighty warrior, more than capable to fight for us and with us. Let us follow Him!

Rest

A quiet, smiling heart
Resting soft on pillowed peace
Grace blows softly through the eaves
Fragrant, sweet and light
Speaking of another land
Waiting close and yet so far
Of golden streets and Home
Belonging
There is naught that is required
All striving finds its end
In the arms of He who is
Strength and ceaseless Love
Might without end

Melissa

You are a New Creation: Walk in Love

In this article, we begin to explore some of the different ways the Bible teaches us to walk in the Spirit.

In You are New Creation (Part 1), we learnt:

• On the day you joined God's family, He created a new spirit within you - a new creation that is made with His nature of true righteousness and holiness
• You have a stowaway on your new journey with God: the 'old you'.
• This 'old you' lusts after counterfeit blessings and a brand of satisfaction which doesn't last and will always result in death: sickness, depression, unhealthy habits, relationship problems, fear, jealousy, insatiable ungodly appetites, conflict etc
• The only way to escape the consequences of its lusts is to crucify it altogether
• Walk in the Spirit and you shall not fulfill the lust of the flesh

What does it mean to 'walk in the Spirit'? I would propose that it means being led by the Spirit of God, rather than your own fleshly ('old you') desires. Scriptures such as Rom 8:8, Eph 2:3, Col 3:5-7 show plainly that those who spend their days satisfying their fleshly urges are walking in disobedience and cannot please God. Therefore, a lifestyle that obeys and follows the ways and nature of God is being led by the Spirit of God.

What is God's nature? The Bible tells us that He is love (1 John 4:8, 16), light (1 John 1:5) and wisdom (Isa 11:2), amongst a whole host of other attributes such as holiness and righteousness.

For the purposes of this blog, we will concentrate on love, light and wisdom because these are encapsulated in Ephesians 5:1-21 in an exhortation to the Ephesian Church. However, the principles explored in the study of walking in love, light and wisdom can be applied to walking in the other attributes of God that are part of our new nature.

Love

Therefore be imitators of God as dear children. 2 And walk in love, as Christ also has loved us and given Himself fo us, an offering and a sacrifice to God for a sweet-smelling aroma.

3 But fornication and all uncleanness or covetousness, let it not even be named among you, as is fitting for saints; 4 neither filthiness, nor foolish talking, nor coarse jesting, which are not fitting, but rather giving of thanks.
5 For this you know, that no fornicator, unclean person, nor covetous man, who is an idolater, has any inheritance in the kingdom of Christ and God. 6 Let no one deceive you with empty words, for because of these things the wrath of God comes upon the sons of disobedience. 7 Therefore do not be partakers with them. 

- Ephesians 5:1-7

It is apparent from the word 'but' in verse three that walking in love is not doing any of the list of things that we are told should 'not even be named among you'.

We can further explore this by looking at what love is.

Love suffers long and is kind; love does not envy; love does not parade itself, is not puffed up; does not behave rudely, does not seek its own, is not provoked, thinks no evil; does not rejoice in iniquity, but rejoices in the truth; bears all things, believes all things, hopes all things, endures all things. Love never fails... - 1 Cor 13:4-8a

Some examples:

• When a friend asks for some help, flesh would think 'what's in it for me?' whereas love would offer help unconditionally.
• When hubby doesn't pick up his dirty clothes for the upteenth time, the flesh would become irritated and scold; love would suffer long and be kind to him.
• When a husband, wife, friend or sibling outshines you, the flesh would feel wounded and try all means to prove that you are just as good; love would rejoice in your loved one's success without ill-feeling.
• Mum or Dad asks you to do something when you are in the middle of something else: flesh would yell something in a pouting, disrespectful or rebellious way; love does not behave rudely but chooses to respond in honour, respect and obedience.
• When you are telling someone a good story but they don't understand, or can't hear you, the flesh would become grumpy, get upset and say 'just forget it, OK!'; love is not easily provoked and can answer softly, without any grating inside
• When someone cuts you off on the road, the flesh thinks that you have a right to be angry; love just shrugs and lets it slide.
• Your child comes to show you something, or talk to you at an ill-timed moment. The flesh would lash out and reject your child; love would act with wisdom and kindness to show love, yet firmly direct them accordingly

Can you see how that if you respond in a fleshly way to the above examples, it would result in anger, conflict, hurt, a messed-up day? This is what Paul called 'death' in Romans 8:6 - to be carnally minded is death; but to be spiritually minded is life and peace: if you choose instead to walk in the ways of love each time, you will be spared that kind of carnage in your day.

Let's choose to walk in love at every moment. By God's grace and spirit, you are more than able.

Next time, we will explore how we can walk in God's Spirit by walking in His light and wisdom.

You are a New Creation: Walk in Light

You are a New Creation: Who You Really Are

This was a message shared at The Covenant Church, Sunday 18th March 2012.

Last week, we learnt that you are who God says you are. God had called Moses to be the deliverer of the Israelites out of Egypt. He certainly did not feel up to the job! But we learnt that it is not what you feel like nor what the evidence suggests that tells you who you really are. A boy born as a prince but brought up in a pauper's family does not make him any less of a prince. In the same way, God has said that if you are in Christ, then you are a new creation:

Therefore, if anyone is in Christ, he is a new creation; old things have passed away; behold, all things have become new. - 2 Cor 5:17

The Greek in the term 'new creation' has the connotation of the creation of a new person, a newly created being. We know this new person to be a co-heir with Christ, seated together in heavenly places with Him. This is the person who Jesus said would do greater things than He did! Jesus is the best example of the kind of person we are meant to be: destroying the works of the kingdom of darkness and establishing the Kingdom of Heaven wherever we go in demonstrations of power and of the Spirit.

However, perhaps you often feel like the little runty kid in this photo:

Your weaknesses, fears, jealousies, bad habits and your 'dark side' just seem too strong for you. You get up to succumb to it again and again. Yet, did you know that when you became a new creation, you are infinitely much stronger than your 'dark side'? 

You are actually the big guy in this photo. Do you notice the comfortable smile on this face? That's you. The runty one? That's who you used to be without Christ. He hangs around after the 'new you' was created. The Bible calls him 'the flesh' or the 'carnal nature'. 

What is the flesh? It's when you indulge in any of the following - whether in fantasy or in reality:

adultery, fornication [ie sexual immorality], uncleanness, lewdness, idolatry, sorcery, hatred, contentions, jealousies, outbursts of wrath, selfish ambitions, dissensions, heresies, envy, murders, drunkenness, revelries, and the like (Gal 5: 19-21)

It is because you are used to obeying its whims that it seems impossible to defy; but now it's time to understand who God created you to be.

Ephesians 4:17-24 talks about putting off the old man, and putting on the new man (NB emphasis mine):

This I say, therefore, and testify in the Lord, that you should no longer walk as the rest of the Gentiles walk, in the futility of their mind, having their understanding darkened, being alienated from the life of God, because of the ignorance that is in them, because of the blindness of their heart; who, being past feeling, have given themselves over to lewdness, to work all uncleanness with greediness. 

But you have not so learned Christ, if indeed you have heard Him and have been taught by Him, as the truth is in Jesus: that you put off, concerning your former conduct, the old man which grows corrupt according to the deceitful lusts, and be renewed in the spirit of your mind, and that you put on the new man which was created according to God, in true righteousness and holiness.

'Put off' and 'put on' are phrases that connote choice, and an act of will. It seems here that Paul here is talking about shedding the 'old skin' that is corrupt and falling apart, then being renewed and being clothed with a new nature, a new creation that becomes the new you. This new you has God's nature of true righteousness and holiness. You are ABLE to overcome your weaknesses.

But like anyone who becomes set in their ways, it is hard to forget the habits of many years that come so easily to us. The answer? Kill it. Galatians 5:24 says: "And those who are Christ's have crucified the flesh with its passions and desires."

'Crucify' - that's another word that denotes a strong act of will. Take that kicking, screaming old you to the cross and nail it down. This is important to understand: the old you is not your friend. It doesn't want what you truly desire - the desires of the old you lust after counterfeits, imposters. The consequence of the fulfillment of those ungodly desires is death:

For to be carnally minded is death, but to be spiritually minded is life and peace. - Rom 8:6

'Death' includes stress, fear, anxiety, depression, sickness, marriage breakdown, misunderstanding, disunity, conflict, jealousy, unhealthy addictions and habits - and that's not even a comprehensive list! We don't want any of these things, and yet, that's what our 'dark side', the 'old you' will lead you to if you continue to allow it to determine your thoughts and actions:

Do not be deceived, God is not mocked; for whatever a man sows, that he will also reap. For he who sows to his flesh will of the flesh reap corruption, but he who sows to the Spirit will of the Spirit reap everlasting life. - Gal 6:7-8

It is crucial that we crucify the desires of the flesh because it simply cannot be made to obey because "the carnal mind is enmity against God; for it is not subject to the law of God, nor indeed can be." (Rom 8:7-8) There is no point pleading, cajoling or forcing it to conform to God's law. It is not subject to it, and cannot be - it must be killed by deliberately denying the desire and walking in the ways of the Spirit.

Galatians 5:16 tells us "walk in the Spirit, and you shall not fulfill the lusts of the flesh." This is the simple, yet difficult answer. It is 'simple' because the Bible clearly articulates how to walk in the Spirit , but it is difficult because every decision to deny the desire of the flesh can be an intense struggle, a war. Like the initial analogy of a prince growing up as a pauper, your new spiritual self that was created by God the day you joined His household will need retraining and a paradigm shift in the way you think in order to live out your true identity.

In the beginning, when your spiritual 'muscles' are untrained and unused, you will find the urge to follow the fleshly desire acute, and very difficult to resist. You will likely fail a few times before you can win. This is normal. In time, as you change your lifestyle to be one that is led by obedience to the Spirit rather than the flesh, you will be able to win faster and without collateral.

Meanwhile, now that we know who we really are, and what we want to leave behind, let's begin to look at some of the ways the Bible teaches us to walk in the Spirit over the next few articles.

Next up:
You are a New Creation: Walk in Love

Forgiveness is Free - but it Wasn't Cheap

I've done this myself before: expect forgiveness without any real intention of stopping the sin. Since when did any good judge consider a penitent 'sorry' authentic when the accused goes home and keeps breaking the law? That's not remorse, that's just getting themselves out of the dock one more time!

Will the judge really let this criminal off? If the judge continually keeps letting them off, he is not only a bad judge, but a stupid one.

God surely does forgive freely any sin that we are repentant of, but He isn't a bad judge, nor is He stupid because that's where the crux is: repentance. Repentance is when a person decides to change the course of their attitude and actions 180 degrees in the opposite direction. It requires real intention to stop the current habit or decision, then make steps to go in a completely different direction that avoids the former altogether. If a person is truly repentant and confesses His sin to God, then He who searches and sees inside every crevice of our hearts will forgive us unconditionally. But there is nothing in the Bible that promises forgiveness without repentance.

I am afraid that the message of grace can become so airy and lovely that it has lost its grounding in God's rock-hard standards of justice and righteousness. Let me be clear here: I agree with the message of grace. Without it, I am worse than lost. But I maintain that the message of grace is not complete without a clear understanding of God's righteousness and mercy.

This is what I am against: "You've done wrong? Oh, don't worry. God forgives you." Where is the call to repentance? Where is the conscience of sin, the conviction that leads to godly sorrow, which leads to repentance, which leads to transformation of character? This half-message of grace makes people feel better about themselves, but it will not empower them to change, and it certainly does not prepare them for the time when the Judge turns up.

Such an attitude will excuse people from confronting their sin. It gives them permission to continue, and the work of the Holy Spirit is quenched. Yet it was Jesus who always said, "Go and sin no more." We've been so careful to undo the 'principal's office' image of God that we have done just as bad by going to the opposite end of the spectrum.

Jesus' sacrifice for our forgiveness was not cheap. Yet, we've simmered it down to a phrase so well-used that it has almost lost its meaning: "He died on the cross". What does it mean, exactly? It means that He was beaten, thrashed and torn until He had not one part of skin whole; He was hammered into place on a wooden cross, stretched out so that He could hardly breathe, so dehydrated that to blink or speak was agony. His blood splattered in people's faces and dripped down the cross, and He endured utter despair when God Himself turned away and rejected Him -- all because you were condemned to that kind of death, but He took it on himself instead.

Consider this hidden little scripture in Hebrews 10:26-29 directed at Christians:

"For if we sin wilfully after we have received the knowledge of the truth, there no longer remains a sacrifice for sins...anyone who has rejected Moses' law dies without mercy on the testimony of two or three witnesses. Of how much worse punishment, do you suppose, will he be thought worthy who has trampled the Son of God underfoot, counted the blood of the covenant by which he was sanctified a common thing, and insulted the spirit of grace."

God wants people to feel better, but not at just any expense. His standards have never changed - only Jesus' blood can truly pay for all sin. Therefore, sin that continues to lurk beneath the hidden intention to continue sinning in private, or in a different way will still be sin that requires the blood of Jesus Christ. His blood is applied by confession of sin and repentance, not confession of sorriness.

Esau was sorry that he had lost the birthright - but only because he had lost all the blessings it brought. He was willing enough to give it away when he was hungry. In a similar vein, we can be sorry that we've sinned chiefly because it has brought some negative impact. If there had been none, we would happily continue. However, godly sorrow is that which brings an intense grief and pain at the very thought that we could do such things - that we should sin against God. Godly sorrow also leads to an intense hatred against the sin. Repentance is never ambivalent against sin.

For those who struggle in a death-hold with something far beyond your strength - I have been there. God knows your despair. He is infinitely merciful. He is the God of second chances, third, fourth and a thousand chances as we struggle against this oppressive thing in our lives. We find ourselves the victim of our own weaknesses, and we are powerless against it without some help. For some, there may be some demonic influence at work so that you either 1) yearn to be repentant but somehow can't find yourself able to, or, 2) are repentant, and would gladly give it up but find yourself succumbing to it again and again to the point of numbing despair and hopelessness. If this is you, I pray in the Name of Jesus Christ of Nazareth that the stronghold of Satan on you would be completely broken, and that every demonic influence be gone. I declare freedom to you in Jesus' Name and speak light into the dark places of your heart so that you can see the way out; I pray the grace, strength of the Lord into you so that you are able to take the way out, and be completely free from its grasp, never to succumb again. He whom the Son sets free is free indeed! Let there be a new thing in this life: the ability to live without any vestige of this sin, free to live in righteousness and truth.

Let us not deny the Holy Spirit from His essential work of conviction. Without it, we are at serious risk of a terrifying judgement. Let us cultivate a tenderness of heart towards the tug of the Holy Spirit. And, in the case of those seeking Christ, we risk deceiving them into thinking that they have reached the gates of Heaven when we have not told them the whole truth. Can you afford to have this accusation levelled against you? I certainly cannot.

Who is God? King: The Kingdom of Heaven

What is this Kingdom of Heaven, and what has it got to do with us?

The Lord has established His throne in heaven, and His kingdom rules over all. - Psalm 103:19 

What is a Kingdom?
= king’s domain = the people and land under a King’s dominion, or rule

A kingdom is defined by:

• the leadership and rule of a King
• Laws made and enforced by the King
• Demands obedience and allegiance of its subjects
•  Unique culture and language
• A kingdom includes a community of people

People of the Kingdom of Heaven

Now, therefore, you are no longer strangers and foreigners, but fellow citizens with the saints and members of the household of God. - Eph 2:19

If you believe that Jesus Christ really did die on a Cross and paid the punishment for your sins, and have told God so, then He adopts you into His family. Once you are part of His family, you are automatically citizens of the Kingdom of Heaven. Any Kingdom's culture is dictated by the laws of the King and the attitudes and values of the King. We know that God is love, and therefore the culture of the Kingdom of Heaven is one of love, support, unity.


Its people are united by the love of the King, and love for what He loves - people. If our King would go out of His way to find the lost and wandering, then we as His community - His family - will do the same. The People of Heaven are those who would befriend the friendless and help the helpless.


Life in the Kingdom of Heaven

A Kingdom that has utterly destroyed its enemies will not have them in its midst. In the same way, the Kingdom of Heaven is devoid of the work of Satan. It is therefore free from sickness, fear, disunity, depression, darkness and oppression -- it is full of joy, peace, wholeness, light.


As representatives of the Kingdom of Heaven, we are to extend this Kingdom by establishing territory that is free from the works of Satan, and abounding in the works of God. This therefore is wherever we pray for people to bring healing, restoration, wholeness, Life. This might include our own lives, our schools, families and workplaces. Where this work is abounding and the works of Satan are being destroyed, the Kingdom of Heaven is being established. Jesus has sent us to heal the sick, bring deliverance to the captives and preach the Gospel to the poor. He is working through us to bring the lost to Himself. Fulfilling the Great Commission is extending the kingdom of Heaven.


The Message of the Kingdom
1. Jesus' Gospel: "Repent! The Kingdom of Heaven is Near"

From that time Jesus began to preach and to say, "Repent for the kingdom of heaven is at hand." - Matt 4:17 

Now after John was put in prison, Jesus came to Galilee, preaching the gospel of the kingdom of God, and saying, "The time is fulfilled, and the kingdom of God is at hand. Repent, and believe in the gospel" - Mark 1:14-15

His messages were marked with:

•  calls to repentance and to the standards of God’s righteousness and justice
• teaching of God’s ways
• miracles of healing, restoration and deliverance
•  I am the Son of Man (Dan 7:13-14), I am the Christ (Luke 22:70; 23:2)

Jesus gave many 'the Kingdom of Heaven is like...' stories to explain what it was like. Then he demonstrated it by healing the sick and delivering those possessed by demons.


2. the Early Church: "Repent! Believe in Jesus Christ and be saved" (my paraphrase)

The disciples, after Jesus returned to Heaven, carried a similar message to Jesus. Acts is full of accounts of their sermons. Examples include Peter's first sermon on the day of Pentecost (Acts 2); Peter's message at Cornelius' house (Acts 10:34-43); Acts 13:38-39 (Paul at Antioch); 1 Cor 15:1-5 (Paul to the Corinthians).

The recurrent message is:

•  Jesus is the Christ, the Son of God.
• Jesus died and rose again (witnessing of the fact)
• believe in Him and be saved.

Their messages were also accompanied by demonstrations of healing and deliverance. In essence, their message is still the same as Jesus'. The difference is that Jesus is no longer bodily present. Their message and demonstrations of power still speak of the nearness of the Kingdom of Heaven, and that its King is calling all into it.

3. The Gospel We Share?

So what is the gospel we should share? Should it not be the same on every count? Including the demonstrations?

After Jesus' resurrection, He instructed His disciples to make disciples of all nations and to be witnesses of Him.

What is a witness? It is someone who has seen or experienced something happen. They can testify of what happened because they were there. The disciples who received the Great Commission were witnesses because they had lived with Jesus, eaten with Jesus, worked with Jesus, seen Him forgive, heal and deliver; they had also seen Him suffer, die and rise again. They were witnesses that He is real, and that He continues to forgive, heal and deliver.

How can we be witnesses of something unless we have seen it? YOU can witness the power and reality of Jesus Christ of Nazareth because of what He has already done for you. Some of you can tell of miraculous transformation, others of deliverance from a lifestyle of darkness and oppression. Others can tell of answered prayer and a peace deep inside that you cannot deny.

You can continue to experience His ongoing work in your life when you take God seriously with His commandments and instructions in His Word. We are instructed to pray for our enemies, to not ask back for something that someone borrows from us, to forgive, to walk in God's standards of righteousness and justice - not our own, to not be anxious for anything but in everything by prayer and supplication present our requests to God.

When we take seriously God's Word and actually DO what it says, we will find that it is true, and that things are the way it says things are. Then we become witnesses to the power and truth of God's Word. Then we can tell people that the great things we have experienced is true, and that they can experience it too.

Are YOU a citizen of the Kingdom of Heaven?
It sounds fantastical, but it's more real than this world is. You are not just flesh and blood, but also spirit. After your body expires, your spirit lives on. Where does it go after that? It depends on you.

Satan doesn't want people to believe that God is real, that you can live the way you want and to hell with everyone else. If you believe him, there is no choice but to share in his fate - you'll be in eternal hell yourself. It is not the place God wants you to be. It was made for Satan, but there are only two camps in this universe, and if you aren't on God's side, you've chosen Satan's.

If you will believe that God IS real, and that He is real enough for you to pledge allegiance to Him, then you have come Home. God created you to discover Him. Your sins condemn you to pay its punishment by eternal death but Jesus came so that you would not need to pay it. He wants you to have eternal life close to Him forever - not eternal death. He took your place the day that He died an excruciating death on a Roman cross, and His blood flowed so that your wrongs could be forever forgiven. Then He rose again from the dead to prove that it didn't beat Him, but that He is greater than death.

While you live, His promise is to be with you, fight for you and provide for you, and so much more. After this life, you will be in Paradise with Him forever. Do you want this? If so, you need to tell Him. Below is a sample of a prayer that you can model after. 

When you pray this, mean it with all your heart and address Him directly even though you can't see Him- He's been waiting for you. Jesus said that when we pray, we should address the Father in His Name. This is because it was Jesus who died for you. If you pray in His Name, you are authorised to have what you ask. We say 'Amen' at the end because it means 'I really mean what I've just said'.

Dear Father God,  I come to you in Jesus Christ of Nazareth's name,
I've heard that you've been waiting for me to come Home. I have done so many wrong things in my life but I hear that Jesus took the punishment for it all so that I could be forgiven. I believe it. His blood was poured out to pay for my sins. I want so much for all these past wrongs to be erased. In a court of law, people plead guilty or not guilty - I plead guilty, but I also plead that your blood would erase my wrongs too. Please forgive me and wash me clean. I want to live this life forever clean, and to have a place with you in the Kingdom of Heaven.
I hear that you are a Love. I believe it. Since you are love, pour it into my heart and displace all the selfish, ugly parts that aren't meant to be there. Make me new - to be like you! I'm getting off the throne of my own life and asking that you become the new King. Teach me those laws that bring healing, restoration and peace to me and to everyone around me. Show me how to live a life that makes you smile everyday. Amen.

If you already have prayed a similar prayer like the above and consider yourself a Christian, I urge you to think about whether you've been truly living like one in heart, and not just in ritual. Why? It's easy to get into a routine of Christian things to do. But a true Christ Follower knows Him like a best friend and loyal servant, and works together with Him to extend the Kingdom - because that's what God is all about - pushing back Satan's Kingdom, taking it over, and freeing its people from Satan's grasp. Are you doing this? If not, it's time for a sincere get-together with God. Remember, He's always listening, even if you feel distant from Him. May you truly find your place in the Kingdom and walk in His ways.