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Tag: love (Page 5 of 6)

Restoration. Romans 5:10

June 3, 2018 /

 “ For if while we were enemies we were reconciled to God through the death of His Son, it is much more certain, having been reconciled, that we will be saved [from the consequences of sin] by His life [that is, we will be saved because Christ lives today].”

John 3:16, one of the most quoted verses of Scripture assures us of the unfathomable, unplumbed love of God. Listen: “For God so loved the world that he gave his one and only Son, that whoever believes in him shall not perish but have eternal life.”

And, God did this while we were yet His enemies—separated from partaking in, sharing in a loving, intimate relationship with Him because of our sin and rebellion. Yet so great is His love for His creation that even in our fallen state, He, this God we’ve denied, turned away from, rebelled against, said “no thanks” to, sacrificed the person He loved most—Jesus, His only Son. So that through Him—through His life, His death, and His resurrection—a way back to God—back to intimate relationship with Him, would be made for us…

Now I’ve been given many a gift over the course of my lifetime. Some that were downright amazing! However, never, never has anyone loved me so much that they were not only willing, but in fact went as far as, giving up their life—dying, to ensure that I was afforded the opportunity to have, share, partake of—life everlasting with God! Not even my momma, the one God chose to love me “the best”. Though I am certain that her mother’s prayers pierced His heart on more than one occasion—it is only Jesus who stood before the Father and said, Here I am Dad, I’ll die in her place.

And, in your place, and his, and hers, and theirs, and in place of the whole world…

Imagine if you will, the sacrificial love of both God and Christ towards us through this very pale light of comparison:

Most of us have heard of “Spiderman”. His name is Mamoudou Gassama. He’s the 21-year-old man who recently scaled a 5-story building to save the life of a little 4-year-old boy whose life hung—quite literally, in the balance. Now imagine further, if Mamoudou went to such extreme lengths to save this child, do you believe he would then deny this same child He had sacrificed so much for—”time for a visit with each other” if it was something the child he saved asked of him?

If a mere man—heroic and self-sacrificing as he may be, is capable of such extreme acts of sacrificial love, how much more God? “For if while we were enemies we were reconciled to God through the death of His Son, much more, having been reconciled, we shall be saved by His life” Romans 5:10.

And, if this same God sacrificed His very best—His greatest, most precious possession, His only begotten Son so that He might have relationship with—have reconciled to Himself a people He knew beforehand would reject His gift—reject Jesus; how much more will this same God give to those who have, who will, opened their hearts to this sacrificial loving gift of His Son? We find the full weight of that answer in our Scripture verse today.

Since He gave so mush to us while we were yet His enemies, how much more will He save those He calls His friends!

Jesus, God’s gift freely given to a sin-soaked, seditious world for the express purpose of reconciliation to, and relationship with Himself. A relationship none of us can ever—will ever have outside of our acceptance of Jesus as Lord and Savior. “For no one can come to me unless the Father who sent me draws them to me, and at the last day I will raise them up” John 6:44. Jesus, while speaking to His disciples—expresses this inextricable Oneness, this unity—the mystery of the Trinity between The Father and Himself. “Jesus answered, “I am the way and the truth and the life. No one comes to the Father except through me” –John 14:6 (emphasis my own).

God gave all—the very best He had to give while you and I were His enemies…

There is a perpetual bond that now exists between Mamoudou Gassama and the child who is known only as, “the child dangling from a 4th floor balcony.” Here is what this young hero had to say about his selfless act: I ran. I crossed the street to save him. He said he didn’t think twice. When I started to climb, it gave me courage to keep climbing.

If a perpetual bond can exist between a mere man—a stranger and a child, born from one heroic act of selfless sacrifice—how much deeper, wider, stronger is the bond between God and those that know Him—that call Him Father? “You see, at just the right time, when we were still powerless, Christ died for the ungodly. Very rarely will anyone die for a righteous person, though for a good person someone might possibly dare to die. But God demonstrates his own love for us in this: While we were still sinners, Christ died for us” –Romans 5:6-8. Belonging to God—having a relationship with Him doesn’t guarantee us, as with the toddler in Paris, that we’ll never be in a life-threatening situation.

He does guarantee us however, that He will scale any wall, face any enemy, endure any suffering, sacrifice everything to save us. In fact, He’s already done it! “It is rare indeed for anyone to die for a righteous man, though for a good man someone might possibly dare to die. But God proves His love for us in this: While we were still sinners, Christ died for us.…” Romans 5:7.

If you are a child of God take great comfort in the Father’s Providential love for you—in His promise of, “how much more”, found in Romans Chapter 8. “For I am convinced that neither death nor life, neither angels nor demons, neither the present nor the future, nor any powers, neither height nor depth, nor anything else in all creation, will be able to separate us from the love of God that is in Christ Jesus our Lord” 8:38-39.

Beloved, it’s no coincidence you’re here right now. If you have yet to call Him your Lord, today is the day! He’s just waiting for you to call out to Him, “Help, Jesus! Save me please!”  He hears your pray and is on His way before you even ask.  “And it shall come to pass, that before they call, I will answer; and while they are yet speaking, I will hear” –Isaiah 65:24

 

The Conclusion of; The Foreshadowing. Galatians 6:7-8

December 31, 2017 /

 “Do not be deceived: God cannot be mocked. Whatever a man sows, he will reap in return. The one who sows to please his flesh, from the flesh will reap destruction; but the one who sows to please the Spirit, from the Spirit will reap eternal life.…” —Galatians 6:7-8

 

The covering of our sins started in a garden. It is here we get our first glimpse of The Lamb of God…

God went to great lengths—to extreme measures, to ensure His sin-stained children were afforded a way to be returned to right relationship with Him. Last week we read that it was God Himself who enacted the first blood sacrifice for His own. He killed innocent animals that both Adam and Eve might be covered by their bloody skins—a foreshadowing of the work of Jesus. A murky glimpse at how His Innocent Blood would come to be willingly—lovingly, purposefully shed, once, for all…

So, if God went to such extreme measures—the sacrificing of His Only Begotten Son, that His children might be given a way to return to Him, why were Adam and Eve punished? Their sins were forgiven. Why were they made to endure God’s wrath? His Judgement?

Why are we?

Love. Judgement mingled with mercy forms the Cross…

As with all Truth, we find our answers squarely in the Word of God. Listen: “…And you have forgotten the exhortation that addresses you as sons: “My son, do not make light of the Lord’s discipline, or lose heart when He rebukes you. For the Lord disciplines the one He loves, and He chastises everyone He receives as a son.” Endure suffering as discipline; God is treating you as sons. For what son is not disciplined by his father? … (Hebrews 12:5-7; also see Deut. 8:5; Psalm 94:12; Psalm 119:75; Proverbs 3:11-12; and Revelation 3:19).

Clearly, the Word of God has much to say about God’s just judgement—the chastening of His children…

Don’t allow God’s great mercy and forgiveness to be confused with His justice—His Righteous Judgement’s. His Word assures us that once we have accepted Him as Lord and Savior of our lives we are—in that very instant, washed clean, and are reconciled to Him, through The Blood of Jesus. That’s the mercy part… “For God was pleased to have all His fullness dwell in Him, and through Him to reconcile to Himself all things, whether things on earth or things in heaven, by making peace through the blood of His cross.” —Colossians 1:20 Yet, though forgiven of our sins—and though they are remembered no more—no longer counted against us, sin always has and always will have consequences. That’s the just judgement part…

Last week I referred to King David being familiar with God’s punishment, His Righteous Judgement. David suffered great loss as the result of his sins with Bathsheba, another man’s wife; and the subsequent murder of her husband in a desperate attempt to cover up his sins. His treachery—his slippery slope into sinning started in rebellion—as most sin does. As King, it was a custom that each Spring all Kings and their armies would march against their enemies into war. Though Scripture doesn’t tell us why, David, rather than marching to war with his men, sent his Commander Joab and his officers, as well as all the fighting men of Israel, out to war without him. And, as result, one sleepless night David would get up and walk to his rooftop terrace to get fresh air. And It would be there that the enemy of his soul would be waiting to take him captive—if only a for a time…

Bathsheba was on an adjacent rooftop just finishing her ritual bath. It is thought she was a great beauty—fair in face and form. David saw her and desired her. He sent a messenger to go and get her. Yet not before he had inquired into who she was and learned that she was the wife of Uriah, one of his own fighting men. Had David been where he was supposed to have been—doing what he should have done, perhaps none of this would have happened. Isn’t that the way sin typically gets its hooks in us? When we have strayed from the straight path? And so it did with David. Yet, rather than turning from his sin and repenting, David delves deeper in. Bathsheba informs him that she’s now pregnant as a result of their adulterous affair.

And that’s where events worsened. “But each one is tempted when by his own evil desires he is lured away and enticed. Then after desire has conceived, it gives birth to sin; and when sin is fully grown, it gives birth to death.” —James 1:15-16

Scripture tells us the rest of the story…

David summons Uriah, tries to get him to sleep with his own wife, Bathsheba, so it could be said that the child that had been conceived in secret was, in fact, Uriah’s own. When Uriah, a man of honor, didn’t sleep with his wife, David had him sent to the front lines—into the thick of battle, thus ensuring he’d die there. And he does. And David takes Bathsheba as his wife. And the Lord, the same God Hagar called, El Roi. The God who sees me—saw, was witness to, what King David had done. And so, God sends the Prophet Nathan to convict David of his sin and to pronounce His Righteous Judgement. And, after hearing Nathan’s account, David is convicted saying of his actions, “I have sinned against the Lord.” —2 Samuel 12:13. Now, listen to what Nathan says to David in response to his confession of sin. “…And the Lord has taken away your sin; you will not die. However, because you treated the Lord with such contempt in this matter, the son born to you will die.” (You can read the full account of this story in 2 Samuel, Chapters 11 &12).

David, like Adam and Eve, was forgiven his sins because this first blood covenant covered their sins, the shedding of innocent blood instituted in the Garden of Eden by God— a foreshadowing of Jesus’s coming. We will see further evidence of this and its lasting effects on the lives of the Israelites. God instructs His servant Moses in the building of the First Temple and in the shedding of blood for the forgiveness of sin…

Though God forgave David his sin—a sign of His unfathomable mercy, Yet, David suffered the consequences of his sins—a demonstration of the law of seed-time and harvest told in His Word. “Do not be deceived: God cannot be mocked. Whatever a man sows, he will reap in return. The one who sows to please his flesh, from the flesh will reap destruction; but the one who sows to please the Spirit, from the Spirit will reap eternal life.…” —Galatians 6:7-8

Listen to the words Nathan spoke to David concerning God’s judgement resulting from David’s sin: “This is what the Lord says, ‘I am going to bring disaster on you from your own family: I will take your wives and give them to another[d] before your very eyes, and he will sleep with them in broad daylight. You acted in secret, but I will do this before all Israel and in broad daylight.’”—2 Samuel 12:11-12

Yes, God first covered His children—His chosen, with animal blood. The law—His law, commanded it. “According to the law almost everything is purified with blood, and without the shedding of blood there is no forgiveness.”—Hebrews 9:22

But God—our all-loving, merciful Father—is also our Righteous and Just Lord. Blood was shed so that sin—whose penalty is death, might be forgiven. “For the wages of sin is death, but the gift of God is eternal life in Christ Jesus our Lord.” —Romans 6:23

David did not receive what he deserved—death. Neither did Adam and Eve. And, neither do we if, we are God’s child…

Yet, sin is so egregious to God that man had to be cut off from a Holy God as its result. Every man who does not have a relationship with God is actually, ‘a walking dead-man’—spiritually speaking. They are likened to the white washed tombs Jesus spoke of when He chastised the Pharisees. On the outside all appears well enough—they do good deeds, help when they can, they try not to hurt anyone. But on the inside—nothing more than a dead man’s bones. The Word of God is clear; As it is written: “There is no one righteous, not even one; There is no one who understands; no one who seeks God. All have turned away; they have together become worthless; there is no one who does good, not even one.… (Romans 3:10-12)

We’ve just celebrated Christmas. The little baby we saw laying in a manger, wrapped in milk rags, was placed there to die. His entire purpose for coming into the world was to die for it. To shed His Innocent Blood that you and I and he and she, and all of them, might have Life in Him and restoration with the Father. The spilling of animal blood was never intended as a permanent solution for reconciling God and man. A lasting and True—a complete sacrifice, had to be offered. So, God sent His Only Son to do what only One who is Pure and Holy can do.

Cleanse us of our sins. Once, and for all…

Yet, it is in this most loving act that we witness how both God’s great mercy and His just judgement are intrinsically linked—how they live as one. At the Cross, an Innocent suffered that the guilty might live. “For indeed Christ died for sins once for all, the Just and Righteous for the unjust and unrighteous [the Innocent for the guilty] so that He might bring us to God, having been put to death in the flesh, but made alive in the Spirit;” —1 Peter 3:18

Nowhere in Scripture does God tell us we get a pass on the consequences of our sins. They cost Him too much to simply look the other way. That we are not dead as their result is yet another astounding display of God’s unfathomably great mercy and love on display for all who will—to witness.

Rest assured, sinful decisions have consequences, if not in this life, then in the next. We are blessed, though, because the principle of reaping and sowing works in a positive way as well: “The one who sows to the Spirit will from the Spirit reap eternal life” (Gal. 6:8). We can sow good seeds that will turn negative situations into positive ones. –Charles Stanley

Have you asked Jesus into your life? Won’t you do that now? He’s waiting for you…

“Rescued from the Wrath” Romans 5:9-10

August 20, 2017 /

 “Therefore, since we have now been justified [declared free of the guilt of sin] by His blood, [how much more certain is it that] we will be saved from the ]wrath of God through Him. For if while we were enemies we were reconciled to God through the death of His Son, it is much more certain, having been reconciled, that we will be saved [from the consequences of sin] by His life [that is, we will be saved because Christ lives today].” 

If you want to know the love of God, know the work of Christ. —John Piper

From the moment John spoke the words that forever changed the world—forever altered, shifted human history, and with it—every man’s destiny: “Behold The Lamb of God, who takes away the sin of the world!”,  we were—we are still, being introduce to Redemption, to Life. In the blink of an eye the man that everyone was pushing past to get to John the Baptist—takes center stage. He has stepped across time and donned a body made of flesh just to be with us. He once was wrapped in milk rags and put to bed in a manger—an animal hotel. He left The Throne of Heaven, left the Father’s presence, to step into the sin-stained world He spoke into existence. One that would cry out for His Very Blood—and they’d get it.

One that had the to freedom to denounce Him—and it did. And it does, still…

Yet the last time we’d heard anything about Him—this Jesus, he was about 12 years old. His parents were desperate with fright—searching everywhere for this Lamb—their son, Mary’s, and Joseph’s—God’s own. They’d thought they’d lost Him—little did they know He could never be lost. That’s our choice, man’s, to go on being lost that is— not God’s, ever. Our Scripture verse today bears witness to that Truth. Because of God’s unfathomable, unplumbed, love He chose to give—gave to the world, the whole world, in the form of His only Son, a way back to Himself. So that whomsoever would believe in Him would have life eternal—reconciliation, a relationship, with God.

That’s the heart of God for all of humanity—for you. Believe it, or not…

Because you, we deserve it? No. Despite, regardless of, contrary to, everything, anything, and I do mean anything, you and I may have done—might have been through, God loves us, loves you, personally. Right this minute, just as you are. And, He has a plan and a purpose for your life—for your reading this message at this exact moment. As sin-stained and guilty as you may be—however dirty, or unworthy you may feel, contrary to anything that may have been inflicted upon you, done to violate you, whether you know Him or have yet to meet Him. You are loved by God.

He knows you—and more, He loves you deeply…

See while Jesus was hanging on His Cross dying for you, dying for me, the very Cross He willingly went to so that you might escape eternal death—escape a life, this life, separated from Him—from the Father, from His very best for you, both now, and in the world to come, He did so knowing if you’d respond to Him, to His great love for you, or not.He knew if you’d say yes to Him or, if you’d turn away as many standing there did that fateful day did. Our society, this world, has done a bang-up job, and I say this loosely and with intended irony, of stressing one of God’s greatest character traits—His great love for us. And, while this is true, the God’s great love part, it is also equally true that there are times His love is used as a blanket to cover over our sins, our bad habits, and actions. And that love—His love, biblically based love, has or had nothing to do with. No part of…

 

As I write this, the deplorable, hate-filled, evil, events that recently took place in Charlottesville that did their level best to recreate a racial divide paralleled to that of the pre-civil rights era, come to mind as one such example of just how man will attempt to turn, bend, reshape, the love of God for all mankind, into a sanctimonious, weak-as-water, far from holy, version of its most base nature. Its lowest version of itself. And yet, somehow equate that nature, those actions, to the will and intentions of a holy, loving, God…

Which leads me into the oft forgotten counterpart of God’s great love—His wrath. You can’t fully grasp one without having, at one point, known the other. We as a people choose to skip over the wrath part of God when we see it written somewhere, hear it preached from Sunday morning pulpit’s. But denying God’s wrath does not negate it, nor the effect it has on a person’s life. I started off this teaching with a quote from renowned bible scholar, John Piper. And it’s to him that we’ll turn now for a slice of his teaching on Romans 5:9-10. Listen as he explained how the love of God and His wrath—are inextricably linked: The Bible makes it plain that God will one day pour out the full measure of his wrath on the sinful unbelieving world, and the unrepentant will be cast into what John calls the “lake of fire.” Revelation 20:15, “And if anyone’s name was not found written in the book of life, he was thrown into the lake of fire.” And Revelation 14:10 describes it like this: They will “be tormented with fire and brimstone in the presence of the holy angels and in the presence of the Lamb. And the smoke of their torment goes up forever and ever.” It is like fire. It is torment. It is forever and ever with no end. This is terrifying. If enmity ever had meaning, this is it. If this is not having an enemy, then there is no such thing as having an enemy. God will one day pour out his enmity – his wrath – on the whole world of humankind who have ever lived and not trusted him. The question is: Who can rescue us from this wrath of God? The clear answer of this text – and the whole New Testament – is this:

Only God can rescue us from the wrath of God…

 

Where can we see this? Verse 9: “having now been justified, shall we be saved.” Verse 10: “If while we were enemies we were reconciled to God through the death of his Son, much more having been reconciled, we shall be saved by his life.” In all those actions, we are being acted upon. Who is acting? Who is doing this justifying, reconciling, saving? The answer is God the Father. How do we know that? Because in verse 10 it says, “we were reconciled to God through the death of his Son.” But if the Son was doing the reconciling, it wouldn’t say he did it “through the Son.” You wouldn’t say. “The Son of God reconciled us to God through his Son.” No. The Father, himself, loves us.

That was the clear point of verse 8, “But God demonstrates His own love toward us, in that while we were yet sinners, Christ died for us.” Here’s the good news: the love of God rescues us from the the wrath of God against sinners. Don’t try to defend the love of God for us by denying the wrath of God against sinners. If you do, you will undermine the love of God. Because the greatest demonstration of the love of God is the way it rescues us from the wrath of God. If you deny wrath to defend love, you lose love. God the Father himself works to rescue us from his wrath. And the point is that he has done this in the past, and he will do it in the future. This is the way both verse 9 and 10 are built. Verse 9: “Much more then, having now been justified by His blood [that’s the past work of God – “blood” referring to the death of his Son whom he sent], we shall be saved from the wrath of God through Him [that’s the future work of God].” Then verse 10: “For if while we were enemies we were reconciled to God through the death of His Son [the past work of God in history], much more, having been reconciled [in the past], we shall be saved by His life [the work of God in the future].”

Friends, whether you’ve met Him yet, or not. And whether you believe in Him yet, or not, does not negate—will never negate, the fact, the Truth, that God so loves you that He sent Jesus to restore you to Himself, to have a relationship with you, and to save you, rescue you, as in the days of Noah, from His certain wrath…

 “For God so [greatly] loved and dearly prized the world, that He[even] gave His [One and] only begotten Son, so that whoever believes and trusts in Him [as Savior] shall not perish, but have eternal life” John 3:16

Won’t you say yes to Him, to His hand extended toward you in love—while it still today?

 

 

 

 

“I See You” Isaiah 65:1

August 6, 2017 /

 “I let Myself be sought by those who did not ask for Me;
I let Myself be found by those who did not seek Me. I said, ‘Here am I, here am I,’ To the nation [Israel] which did not call on My Name.”

Though referring to the Israelite’s, some scholars believe this passage was directed—intended, foretold the engrafting of the gentile believers into a relationship with God. Certainly, the Apostle Paul alludes to this in Romans 9:25 when referring to God in the writings of Prophet Hosea. ““As He says also in Hosea, “I WILL CALL THOSE WHO WERE NOT MY PEOPLE, ‘MY PEOPLE, AND HER WHO WAS NOT BELOVED, ‘BELOVED.’” To say nothing of the fact that Paul spent his life bringing the message that he as a Jew received—to the gentile world.

But rather than focus on Paul’s teachings or a scholar’s interpretation, though both very valuable and certainly insightful in pointing us towards the Truth, let us instead listen to Jesus…

He sums up what we find in the writings of the Prophet Hosea concerning gentile believers and within the many teachings of Paul’s concerning the inclusion of the gentiles within His Words—within one definitive declaration, one all-inclusive statement He made to His disciples—about themselves, about us, about all believers, Jew and Gentile alike, listen: “You have not chosen Me, but I have chosen you and I have appointed you [I have planted you], that you might go and bear fruit and keep on bearing, and that your fruit may be lasting [that it may remain, abide], so that whatever you ask the Father in My Name [as presenting all that I Am], He may give it to you” (John 15:16).

And there you have it from the God that created you and wants you all for Himself. This from the God who made room for you at His Cross. Who said, “I love you—regardless, of race or color, contrary to your ethnic background or the denomination you’re affiliated with, I don’t care if you’re a Jew or a gentile—you are mine. You are why I stepped down across time and eternity and donned a suit of flesh and blood.  I loved you—love you, enough to come that you might have my life in exchange for yours. It’s why I died for you.”

It is this God—Jesus, that I want us to see today. See as clearly as you’re able—see with your heart.

This God who stood over the great void and called all things into being leaving man no wiggle room to say, I didn’t know about you—wasn’t sure about your creating this world—creating me, “For ever since the creation of the world His invisible attributes, His eternal power and divine nature, have been clearly seen, being understood through His workmanship [all His creation, the wonderful things that He has made], so that they [who fail to believe and trust in Him] are without excuse and without defense” (Romans 1:20).

Whether you believe in Jesus or not, that doesn’t change the reality of who He is or what He has created. He is evidenced literally everywhere you look, nor the fact, again, believe it or not, that He’ll one day return to judge this world. A tough pill to swallow for some I’m sure, yet the Truth remains Truth even if we choose not to believe it. Understand however, that the heart of God is that not one person perishes but that everyone believes in Jesus and receive eternal life. In His great patients with us, and in His  love for us, He gives us time to say yes to Him but He will not force Himself on anyone who doesn’t want Him. “The Lord does not delay [as though He were unable to act] and is not slow about His promise, as some count slowness, but is [extraordinarily] patient toward you, not wishing for any to perish but for all to come to repentance” (2 Peter 3:9).

When Jesus went to the Cross He went to willingly pay the debt owed God for the sins of the whole world. So, if you are reading this now, that means your sins too. God saw you then as He stood over the void at the time of creation and He sees you still. You were counted among those Jesus chose to die for. However, God in His omniscience, knew not everyone would be won to Him—would come to Him, in the same way. After all, we’re each a unique creation. Each of us has been given—is endowed with, unique gifts, talents, personalities, and character traits. And it is with these unique gifts that we’re equip with that help us to reach those others may  never be able to reach. It is our unique experiences that enable us to reach those God will put us near, those He is calling to Himself.

They are the fruit we are called to bear…

Yet this essential point remains consistent for all; we were each made in His image—His likeness, and we were created to worship Him (Genesis 1:27; Ephesians 2:10; Revelation 4:11; Isaiah 43:21). God has surrounded mankind with an inexhaustible display of Himself—conformation of His handiwork, His creations, that we might see Him in all things—at all times. Look up to the sky—there you’ll find evidence of God’s creation, look down to the ground, again, evidence. Look at your child, wife, husband, boyfriend, or girlfriend—each evidence! There is not one thing that was not created by God. From the atom to Adam, from a blade of grass , a ray of light, to Orion’s belt.

Everything was brought into existence by God. Including us…

You—me, Jew, Gentile, all of us, who did not seek after Him, this loving God, He made, makes—Himself known to us daily in countless ways. In sunlight and moonbeams, in smiles and tears and music and leaves rustling on the trees. Through that feeling in your gut that tells you that you were made for so much more—you were, and you are. That Beloved, is evidence of the One you did not—are not looking, seeking after—who was, is, seeking after you.  It’s a sure confirmation that whether you see Him yet or not—He sees you, and He loves you with an eternal, inescapable, all-consuming love.

Listen to how the Apostle Paul speaks about this while addressing believers in Colossae, “For by Him all things were created in heaven and on earth, [things] visible and invisible, whether thrones or dominions or rulers or authorities; all things were created and exist through Him [that is, by His activity] and for Him” (Colossians 1:16).

We started together with God speaking to those of us who weren’t looking for Him through a Scripture found in the Old Testament, what better place to end our time together than back with God, back in the Old Testament as well. Listen Beloved, and take heart, to what God is saying to those who were also once far away from Him: “For I know the thoughts and plans that I have for you, says the Lord, thoughts and plans for welfare and peace and not for evil, to give you hope in your final outcome. Then you will call upon Me, and you will come and pray to Me, and I will hear and heed you. Then you will seek Me, inquire for, and require Me [as a vital necessity] and find Me when you search for Me with all your heart” (Jeremiah 29:11-13).

He sees you Beloved, you matter to Him…

While it is still today, if you don’t yet know Jesus, won’t you welcome Him in to your heart? He’s waiting just for you…

 

 

 

 

“Connection” John 15:4

June 4, 2017 /

 “Live in me. Make your home in me just as I do in you. In the same way that a branch can’t bear grapes by itself but only by being joined to the vine, you can’t bear fruit unless you are joined with me.” John 15:4

So, let me ask you, what are you connected to?

What type of soil have you taken root in? Is your life producing good fruit? Lasting, eternal fruit that is a product of—evidence of, The Holy Spirits work in your life?

If it’s not, it can…

In today’s Scripture Jesus is telling us to remain—stay connected to, be rooted, in Him. Share in the same Oneness—same union, with Him, that He shares with the Father. To make our home with—reside in, Him. Jesus does nothing outside of The Father’s Will (John 5:19;30; 8:28). And in all things—always, Jesus makes connection to The Father His priority. All else that flows from Jesus’ life—flows out of that indestructible, and most sacred Oneness.

In John 15 Jesus uses a common agricultural note, one easily understood by His audience, to make a spiritual—an eternal, point. That He—Jesus, is not only our root-system, The trunk to our vine, more His Holy Spirit is that pure life-giving water that flows freely into and through us. Nourishing us, enabling not only our growth—but also what type of, and how much, fruit we can or will produce. If and only if—we remain connected to Him.

Just as Jesus would do nothing outside of The Father’s will—neither should we. In all things pertaining to Life Jesus is our Truest Guide—our Teacher.

Notice that I said He would do nothing. Jesus was not only fully God, He was also fully man. Theoanthropos. And, in being a man He—like us, had the ability to choose to do things His own way. We witness both this ability to choose and His willing eagerness to submit to, rely on God, during His Temptation in the wilderness. (Luke 4:1-13) Yet, because of the great love He has for The Father—because they are One and have the same Divine Attributes, Jesus chooses God’s perfect will for His life—even unto His earthly death. He could not do otherwise being One with God…

God cannot contradict Himself. If He did, we could not believe what He says or know how to follow Him.

Therefore, we would do well to model this—Jesus’ love, His devotion and faithfulness and submission, in our own life—in our relationship with God.

But how did Jesus do it? Stay so seamlessly connected to The Father? Through connectedness, obedience, love, and submission…

So then,  how can we too maintain the connection to Jesus that He’s referring to in John 15 since we are fallible man?

We see it spelled out—the how-to in John 14. Through a continuous dialogue with The Father and, in living a life of obedience to God’s Commandments—putting His will first, submitting to His Sovereignty—His Lordship, over our lives. Simply put, by following the example of Jesus.

We need a solid root system. An unshakable, vital faith in The God that loves us like no other—and, more, a trust in Him who knows what’s best for His creation.

But how exactly is that accomplished?

Jesus—The Living Word is telling His disciples that He must leave them but that He wouldn’t leave them as orphans—separate from Himself. Rather, He was sending them another that would be with them for all time. In other words, He was telling them that His journey—His time on earth with them was ending, but that His purpose for coming was just getting started. If fact, His being there, with them—on earth, couldn’t fully accomplish all that the Father intended when sending Him into the world until this other One God was going to send also—arrived. “Truly, truly, I say to you, the one believing in Me, the works that I do, also he will do. And he will do greater than these, because I am going to the Father” (John 14:12).

Jesus’ life, death, and, resurrection was the beginning of, the Genesis of, God’s plan to save a lost and dying world. He—Jesus was the only One worthy to die in our place—for the sins we committed. (1 Peter 1:19) He alone was pure—and as a result, He alone had the power to not only lay His life down that He would stay connected to The Father eternally—but also on the third day, He would again pick up His life thus ensuring that we too might not only share in eternal life with Him and The Father, but that while we were still here in this life, if we, like the disciples, had a relationship with Him—a right connection with Jesus, then we would be guaranteed this same Comforter—His Holy Spirit. The Pure Water of The Word. (John 10:18; John 7:37-39; Isaiah 44:3; John 4:14)

And here we find our find our answer. How do we stay connected to Jesus? Through both His example and His Spirit within us that is leading and guiding us into all Truth…

One fact that I discovered in researching grapevines was this: That its root system filters out harmful elements that may be in the soil so that the sap—the very life-blood that feeds the vine will be pure.

Doesn’t that description of the vines roots loosely summarize Jesus’ message to His disciples, to us?

If you choose to live a holy, a fruitful life—be mindful of what you allow yourself to become rooted, attached, fixed, to. You’re able only to produce good and lasting fruit because of My Spirit, My Word in you. Acting as the filter in your life. Straining away those things that will harm you—us, our connection, My purpose for your life. And guiding you towards, allowing to flow into you, all that you need for Godly living. Stay firmly rooted in Me…

Jesus instructed His disciples—us, to remain, abide, stay fully connected to—rooted in Him. Just as He is in The Father, that our life be built on The Pure Water of The Word, His Spirit,  and coupled with a willing obedience to live out The Father’s Commandments. To be grounded in love, possessing an unshakable faith in God’s Sovereignty and Just Judgement, That this might produce in us—and through us, pure and lasting fruit.

Just as He did in Jesus…

“I am the Real Vine and my Father is the Farmer. He cuts off every branch of me that doesn’t bear grapes. And every branch that is grape-bearing he prunes back so it will bear even more. You are already pruned back by the message I have spoken” John 15:1-3

“Do Your Part.” John 11:35

May 14, 2017 /

 

“Then Jesus, deeply moved again, came to the tomb. It was a cave, and a stone lay against it. 39 Jesus said, “Take away the stone.” Martha, the sister of the dead man, said to him, “Lord, by this time there will be an odor, for he has been dead four days.” 40 Jesus said to her, “Did I not tell you that if you believed you would see the glory of God?” 41 So they took away the stone. And Jesus lifted up his eyes and said, “Father, I thank you that you have heard me. 42 I knew that you always hear me, but I said this on account of the people standing around, that they may believe that you sent me.” 43 When he had said these things, he cried out with a loud voice, “Lazarus, come out.” 44 The man who had died came out, his hands and feet bound with linen strips, and his face wrapped with a cloth. Jesus said to them, “Unbind him, and let him go.”

This week’s teaching was meant to come out of the first Chapter of Colossians, and was also to be titled, “Doing your part.” That was the plan. And, though the title of this week’s teaching will remain the same, the text, however, was changed.

The Holy Spirit always has the final Word.

As I was preparing to type the original message given me, I went back into my Word for a bit more time with Jesus. And it was at that moment, when I picked-up my now opened Bible, that I began to read what was before me. It was the account of Jesus’s resurrecting of Lazarus. In the margin, I’d made a notation some time ago that reads: Jesus will handle the resurrection, you do your part.

I don’t believe in coincidence. So, that the very same words that were to be the title of this week’s teaching were right in front of me was not lost on me. God was trying to get my attention.

And He had it now…

You see, this, doing your part, has been an ongoing theme for me lately. And, It makes me wonder if perhaps you too aren’t hearing some version of these same words in your Spirit as well? To cooperate, submit maybe? I ask this because this much I know—it has been my experience that: The Word a human vessel receives from the Lord is first meant to minister to them, the hearer, and then flow outwards to those who will receive it…

As I read this Scripture, several points jumped out at me—

 

So, now, the first thing that caught my attention was the opening sentence. It informs us that Jesus was deeply moved— but why? What happened, touched Him so, that Scripture allows us a glimpse into how He’s feeling? I believe that to pr

Before we jump in, my prayer for you, for me, is this: that we will give our will’s, our wants, what may seem ‘right’—sound, to us, over to the will and calling of Jesus. That we will trust Him above all else. Putting to death all the internal chatter that clamors for answers to the life-robbing, peace stealing, why’s. May the exhale of our every breath be, Thy Will be done. Whether we understand it—or not. Whether it makes sense—or not. Even if we must say yes with wobbly knees and trembling voice—yes. We say yes. I say yes, to His will, His way, and, His Divine timing.

Yes Lord…

operly answer this, we must go backward a bit. Towards the beginning of this same chapter, we find the source of His pain. Jesus has informed His disciples that Lazarus, His friend, has died.

At first, they don’t get that he’s dead. Because Jesus had told them that Lazarus had ‘fallen asleep’. Naturally, their minds thought of ordinary sleep–rest. So, Jesus made it plain for them, stating emphatically that Lazarus was dead. He went on to tell them that it was good that He hadn’t been there to intervene. You see, Jesus was about to perform a miracle in the lives of so many through —this, His, one-act of obedience to God.

This is one of the many instances in the Bible, where we witness God’s ways—His thinking and knowledge being far above our own…

Now, standing before the tomb Jesus was also deeply moved by the pain his friends, Mary and Martha, Lazarus’s sisters were feeling. Moved too because he witnessed the outpouring of grief that came from their friends and neighbors. Moved because His act of obedience to the Father to stay put earlier, to not go to Lazarus, His friend—to not intervene, not touch, and heal, as He had for so many, had allowed others to experience so much pain.

And so, “He wept.” He was after all, fully man—too.

But all of this—His pain and theirs, did not stop Jesus’ obedience to the will of The Father. To allowing Lazarus to die. There was a greater good that was about to come of this. Jesus knew obedience to the Will of The Father was more important than all else—obedience is paramount (Micah 6:6-8).

The second point that struck me was that an obstacle blocked Jesus’s way into Lazarus’ tomb. An obstacle blocked His entrance into the very place He needed to go—was required to enter, in order for the miracle He had come to perform to take place. And the Word tells us—makes us see, makes a point of Jesus’s saying, “Take away the stone.”

But why?

Wasn’t He already there—hadn’t He come to do His part? Raise Lazarus from the dead? So why move the stone? After all, He’s God. He could have had Lazarus walk right through it. Move itself, for that matter. So then, maybe moving this stone symbolizes something more? Goes beyond just the moving of an actual stone? Maybe this need to ‘roll a thing away’ points us directly towards our need to obey? Maybe it points us towards seeing the need to do our part—my part, your part, towards our choosing to listen to God’s voice and say yes to His command to roll away the stone that impedes His entrance into our dead places—so that, in His time, new life might come forth.

So, with that in mind, let me ask you, what is there in your life preventing Jesus from entering? And, are you willing to obey His command to roll it away?

Next, what caught my attention, were Martha’s words. When Jesus told those present to move the stone out of His way, Martha’s response was to tell Jesus no—don’t do that. What are you thinking? He’s been dead for days and it stinks in there! Sounds reasonable, right? After all, isn’t that what happens when we hide ‘our flesh’ in places we think no one can see? It festers—and, no good can come of that. It stinks. So, we choose to keep the tomb to our dead—shameful, painful—even prideful, ‘things’ sealed off—safe.

See! No stink here…

Is there something telling you, whispering, to keep things closed off, sealed away—your hurts, the shame, pain, fear, all that dead stuff inside. To keep it from Jesus?

Is it telling you, He won’t love you if He sees.

Beloved, that’s so wrong! It’s a flat-out lie!

See Jesus knows that for us to have True Life, we must let Him into our stinking—rotten fleshly places. We must agree to have the stone, our stone, moved away that He might have full access to us—to every yucky—stinking part of us!

He won’t come in unless He’s invited…

And, so, next we’ll see Jesus praying to The Father. Thanking Him for hearing His prayers. We hear Jesus saying, that it’s for the benefit of those gathered around that He came at all—that The Father had sent Him in the first place. But why?

Because the Truth is this: whatever Jesus is doing to us—in us, through us, it’s not just for or about us…

One part—a piece, of God’s Divine plan,  the moment He chooses to save each of us—was, is, an ability—through partnership with Him, to multiply our capacity to impact this world for the sake of His Kingdom—our home. We are saved, in part, to be used—to be the hands and feet of Jesus in this lost and dying world. To be vessels used by Him—each uniquely gifted and equipped. We know this is Truth because again—as always, The Word confirms The Word made Flesh…

Listen to Jesus speaking to His Disciples—to us of our responsibility: “And He said to them, “Go into all the world and preach the gospel to every creature” (Mark 16:15). Or more, in Acts 1:8: “…. And you will be my witnesses, telling people about me everywhere–in Jerusalem, throughout Judea, in Samaria, and to the ends of the earth.”

And, lastly, after the stone had been rolled away—after He had been granted access, after the shame of the stench of rotten flesh had been exposed, and, after prayer, then, and only then, was the true purpose of His coming accomplished. New Life. All that hear His voice cannot help to respond—not even the grave can hold them back (Colossians 1:18; 1 Corinthians 15:55-57; Rev, 1:18). “Lazarus, come out!” And He did. And we did, and many will continue to—all those that are called by His name must leave their dead things (the flesh) behind to be released into the Light of Life. Their salvation, their new life…

“Take off the grave clothes and let him go.” Jesus will always have the final Word, in His divine time…

Yet, as Peter tells us in 1 Peter 1:13-16, we too, have a part to play. Here, now, listen: “Therefore, prepare your minds for action; be self-controlled; set your hope fully on the grace to be given you when Jesus Christ is revealed. As obedient children, do not conform to the evil desires you had when you lived in ignorance. 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.’”

Plainly put: We must do our part. After Jesus called Lazarus to come out, Lazarus moved, he acted. And so must we. “Jesus said to her, “Did I not tell you that if you believed you would see the glory of God?”

“Faith, Love, and Aloha” 1 Cor. 13:13

April 23, 2017 /

“And so faith, hope, love abide [faith—conviction and belief respecting man’s relation to God and divine things; hope—joyful and confident expectation of eternal salvation; love—true affection for God and man, growing out of God’s love for and in us], these three; but the greatest of these is love” (1 Cor. 13:13 AMPC).

 “Aloha” means Love in Hawaiian. Love is defined in many ways. When most people hear the word “Aloha” they interpret its meaning as a mere greeting, a casual hello, but it is so much more than that. I love the way Makanacharters.com explains the true meaning of the spirit of aloha: “The real meaning of Aloha in Hawaiian is that of Love, Peace, and Compassion. It’s the guidelines of how to live a life of Aloha is when the heart is so full it is overflowing with the ability to influence others around you with your spirit.”

 God’s word also gives us the meaning of the word, Aloha. Aloha may sound so simple, yet it is filled with a deeper meaning.

Let’s read: “Love is patient, love is kind. It does not envy, it does not boast, it is not proud.  It does not dishonor others, it is not self-seeking, it is not easily angered, it keeps no record of wrongs. Love does not delight in evil but rejoices with the truth. It always protects, always trusts, always hopes, always perseveres.  Love never fails. But where there are prophecies, they will cease; where there are tongues, they will be stilled; where there is knowledge, it will pass away” (1 Corinthians 13:4-8).

This Scripture captures the essence of the “aloha spirit.”

I must be honest and say there are times I don’t always display a true spirit of Aloha. Especially to the ones who are closest to me. We all can agree, just by reading the newspapers or watching the news, that as a society, we have the capacity to be, ‘an impatient people.’ Those who are easily irritated, quick-tempered, quick to anger—and speak, but not quick to listen or pay attention to the ones we love…

And I too am guilty.

And, living with the feeling that time is running out, we’ve become a society fueled by instant gratification—being patient has been left in the proverbial dust…

I know I forget mine there too often! patients that is…

Have you ever noticed that nowhere within the verses of 1 Corinthians 13:4-8 does it say that Love is happiness and feeling wonderful? Or that it’s getting what you feel that you deserve? Or, that you must be number one. That your needs should be placed above all others. No, Love requires sacrifice. It requires us to walk in the ways outlined within this Scripture—being patient, kind, loving, etc…

And it must start with me—you, us. This Aloha. This giving of love—of giving our all. It’s a ‘them-first” then me thing. It is my responsibility to first be filled with love so that I may then have love to share. How? Through my relationship with Jesus. The same type of unconditional love that flows from my Heavenly Father. Please, don’t get me wrong, I’m not saying to place yourself at the bottom—to never look after yourself. Quite the contrary. What I am saying however, is that before you can give love, you must both know and be known by love.

It is this self-less love that is at the core of true love. True Aloha…

I believe that’s what’s at the heart of this proverb—what is meant in God’s Word; that we should watch over—guard, our heart’s.

“Watch over your heart with all diligence,
For from it flow the springs of life” (Proverbs 4:23 , AMP).

Let’s be a people who displays God’s Aloha…

We are all brought to Jesus in one of the 3 ways mentioned in 1 Corinthians 13:13. Through Faith, in Hope, and with Aloha. No matter where you are in your walk with Jesus, you possess the ability to leave others seeing what we here on the Hawaiian Islands know and live— “The Spirit of Aloha!”

I had been given an assignment by my Life Coach. She asked  that I write my obituary. The reason, she said, was that I might know now, while alive, might call to mind—see, some of the “results” of my life. By creating a word-picture of how it is I might ‘look’ to others after I’ve passed away…

What would I like people to remember about me?

Before I leave you, I want to challenge you to do some homework. Write your own obituary. Read it to yourself—a friend, someone close, and see how accurate it is, and then…ponder. Ask yourself if you are—or have, come close to being the person you want to be remembered as—now? Ask yourself if your close, and if you aren’t, what must you do to get there— while it’s still today? And with whatever remaining today’s you may have left. Work backwards to accomplish what you feel is your purpose, your call in this life, and do it well.

Do it with the Spirit of Aloha…

We don’t all have to preach that others may come to Jesus. All we have to do is Love as He loves. Unconditionally, and with abandoned. I pray that you will be blessed by reading my obituary, but more, that through the writing of your own you grow in love. So, in that spirit, I’ll go first, here goes…

But, the greatest is Love…

“As I have left this earth to step into the true light of my every existence, I say Three things are more important than my passing. Faith, Hope, and Aloha! To those who knew me, I Love You. I, Angelica Janice-Pua Mohala Kauhako went to be with the one who created me; so, don’t be too sad; live like there’s no tomorrow. I loved and enjoyed being a woman, wife, mother, grandmother, mama, aunty, cousin, sissy, and servant.

Thank you all for allowing me to enjoy the time with you that no one will ever be able to duplicate.

I’ve held Certifications, Diplomas, Acronyms, and Titles; BUT none of that mattered to me considering who I wanted to be for Jesus and to all of you. As I am now in Heaven with my Heavenly Father I’d like to be remembered as one who loved you all well when I did get a chance to spend time with you; some more than others, some just briefly…But nonetheless, time is time. Remind yourself daily that you are valued and loved in this fleeting world. May the Joy of the Lord be your strength during this time of loss, now, and forever.

To those whom God trusted in my care and gave me as my 5%. remember Our Heavenly Father is your greatest asset in this life, and this life is brief compared to the eternal. Smile and remember that Jesus is the giver of dancing giggles. Nothing in this life can compare to being in Gods will. Some days, months, and even some years may seem hard, dark, lonely, never-ending, painful—but if we hang on to Jesus and wait, He promises us to bring us through it. Don’t try to avoid it. Take chances when it comes to loving others, its hard work, it takes risks, sometimes pain, and always commitment. But it’s all worth it, so very worth it. I can only hope that I succeeded in showing you all this before I departed this world. When you feel, you need me or miss me just close your eyes and let the light shine on your face and know that it is Him you need and not me, and that although you may miss me, I am dancing with my Father in Heaven waiting for you to arrive someday.

1 Corinthians 13:13 says, “And now these three remain: Faith, Hope, and Love but the greatest is Love.”

I Love You, But Jesus Loves you more…

Aloha!!!

 

 

 

 

 

 

“I See You.” Luke 19:36-38

April 9, 2017 /

Jesus wasn’t using His natural eyes to see those gathered on the road near Jerusalem’s gate, those crying out Hosanna! —it wasn’t that kind of “seeing” going on that day. The seeing He used was born from His knowledge of us, of them—from His Omniscience…

This type of “seeing” belongs to God alone.  Webster defines this ability to see as: Having complete or unlimited knowledge, awareness, or understanding; perceiving all things.

Stated Scripturally: “You have searched me, LORD, and you know me. You know when I sit and when I rise; you perceive my thoughts from afar. You discern my going out and my lying down; you are familiar with all my ways. Before a word is on my tongue you, LORD, know it completely” (Ps. 139:1-4).

Have you ever completely misjudged a person’s intentions? I know I have. You’re certain, convinced that you know who they are and what they’re were made of. You feel as though you know the exact role, the purpose, they were brought into your life to fulfill. Everything about them just seemed to fit your ideal—this “picture-perfect” image you had of them.

And then wham!

That person you just knew would go left suddenly went right—and not just right, but a hard right! You’re left standing slack-jawed and powerless, your hopes and expectations have crashed and burned. You’re left with mere rubble. You’re standing stunned, mangled, from this devastating brush with an unwanted reality that has now landed squarely at your bruised, and bitter feet…

The thing is, it’s only after—the ragged shards of “betrayal” have been removed—when that blindsided feeling of total let down has ebbed, that you’re left to really see the part you played in your own pain.

You were responsible. The other person involved was simply being who they were—who’d they’d always been. It was your misguided expectations of them—how they’d fit into your story—that created the real problem. And so it was—in varying degrees, with the those milling about the city gates—His disciples, those followers, shouting Hosanna, Hosanna in the Highest!

They too had a sure level of responsibility for their actions…

A Lamb atop a colt is how He arrived that day (Zech. 9:9). But that’s not how they saw Jesus. For most of those gathered He had come solely to deliver them—and for most, their envisioned deliverance would come not through His sacrifice—but only via a bloodied sword. Not through One who’d willingly lay down His life for all—but through a messianic deliverer, a would-be king, one that would readily shed the blood of those that oppressed his people. And not one who would willingly lay down and shed His own blood…

Passover was about a week away and preparations for this time of sacred celebration was underway. Jerusalem was teaming with those who had come to purchase their lambs and herbs—there grains and figs. The air crackled with a festive joy! And look, there, it’s Jesus! How perfect was this! Their King—the One they knew had been sent to them by Yahweh. After all, no one had ever done miracles like this man.

They had seen Prophets and Holy men before—but this Jesus was different…

They’d witnessed blind men regained their sight, a tax collector who had given away most everything he’d owed to follow Jesus, and the most miraculous of all, the dead that had been brought back to life—not once but twice! So surely now He would free them from this oppressive Roman tyranny—after all, isn’t that why He’d come—to set the captive free (Luke 4:18) …?

A wholehearted sacrifice must cost you something… (2 Sam. 24:23-25).

“The disciples told him, “Rabbi, the Jewish leaders were just now trying to stone you to death, and you are going back there again” (John 11:8)? Yet despite the warnings Jesus received concerning His safety, He went back willingly, into Jerusalem, through those city gates—more, He did it boldly—lovingly, as the Lamb of God. No more silence, no more hiding. He was hand-chosen, Gods Passover Sacrifice.

And He entered knowing full-well that He would be slaughtered soon for the sins of the whole world…

A knowledge seemingly lost on so many of those gathered at the city gates…

Jesus saw their hearts. He’d heard, recognized, each voice He’d created as it sang His praises. He’d watched, knowingly, as they’d thrown down their palm branches and cloaks in homage (2 Kings 9:13) …

Yet what he truly saw was the condition of those hearts…

The motivation behind why most were praising Him—their blind and selfish desires for welcoming His coming. “… because He was near Jerusalem, and they assumed that the kingdom of God was going to appear immediately [as soon as He reached the city]” (Luke 19:11 AMPC).

Even His closest friends had missed the point of both His time with them, and His return to Jerusalem, listen: “But the disciples understood none of these things [about the approaching death and resurrection of Jesus]. This statement was hidden from them, and they did not grasp the [meaning of the] things that were said [by Jesus]” (Luke 18:34).

It wasn’t their time yet; their hearts were still being shaped to fit His…

However, unlike those present at His Triumphal Entry—only Jesus saw clearly the Truth behind why He was there. Why He’d come at all. And, despite their sins, their ignorance, and the outright betrayal that surrounded Him, despite the blindness of most of those looking at Him for gain, to satisfy some agenda, despite the flat-out hatred that pelted him like stinging stones coming from the religious leaders, He saw one thing only before Him—You, and me…

More, He too saw the fulfillment of His Father’s will. It was always before Him. The reason He’d stepped down across time and eternity was about to unfold. The purpose of His leaving behind the glory of Heaven with The Father and darning a suit of flesh, and blood, and, feelings…

He had set His face towards eternity. And nothing was about to deter Him…

Why would He do this? Why the sacrifice?

Because He is the Alpha and The Omega—seeing your beginning from your end (Rev. 1:8). He saw you in the crowd that day, carrying the weight of your sin and your misguided want of Him—and His heart went out to you. He knew you needed so much more than what you’d be able to get on your own…

You needed a Savior.

He saw you—and so He came for you, with one purpose in mind… And here it is:

“Those whom I [dearly and tenderly] love, I tell their faults and convict and convince and reprove and chasten [I discipline and instruct them]. So be enthusiastic and in earnest and burning with zeal and repent [changing your mind and attitude]. Behold, I stand at the door and knock; if anyone hears and listens to and heeds My voice and opens the door, I will come in to him and will eat with him, and he [will eat] with Me. He who overcomes (is victorious), I will grant him to sit beside Me on My throne, as I Myself overcame (was victorious) and sat down beside My Father on His throne. He who is able to hear, let him listen to and heed what the [Holy] Spirit says to the assemblies (churches)” (Rev.3:19-23 AMPC).

 

“Even the Tree Had A Purpose” Luke 19:4-6

March 19, 2017 /

“So he ran ahead and climbed a sycamore-fig tree to see him, since Jesus was coming that way.  When Jesus reached the spot, he looked up and said to him, “Zacchaeus, come down immediately. I must stay at your house today.” So he came down at once and welcomed him gladly” (Luke 19:4-6).

Only in Luke’s Gospel accounts do we find the Parables of the “lost things.” The coin, the sheep, and, the son. Luke’s lost theme points us towards the reason Jesus has come to Jericho on this particular day.

It was not accidental…

There is nothing random about God. He both can and will use anything, any circumstance, to reach us.

Luke directs our focus. He Causes us to realize why it was Jesus had stepped down across time and eternity to donned a suit of flesh. He has come to find that which is lost. “For the Son of man is come to save that which was lost” (Luke 19:10).

And He knows exactly where to go to find it…

Even the tree in Luke’s account had a purpose. Why? It was a place of gain. A predetermined location, a portal of sorts, where the Divine would meet a man and from that meeting the will of God would be born—again. A sign in our narrative of what was about to take place. Now it was Zacchaeus who would climb the tree to see Jesus. Soon however, it would be Jesus being lifted-up on a tree for all men to see. No longer would man’s view of His Savior be obstructed. Jesus would make certain of that…

It’s why He came, first into the world, but today, specifically, into Jericho.

Zacchaeus, a wealthy man by all accounts—and a chief tax collector, was about to gain the greatest gift he would ever own. One worth giving up—surrendering, turning over to, everything that he had known, accumulated—and clung to. Zacchaeus had heard of Jesus, perhaps he had even seen Him—as a passerby, or one standing in the many crowds that had followed Jesus. Certainly, he had heard tell of Him and of His power to do miracles—to restore to life that which was dead. To make those that were blind see. To bring healing and restoration to dead, useless limbs.

But, as a Jew, there was something else that caught Zacchaeus attention. He had heard the whispers…

Could this be the Messiah? The One he and his people had been waiting for? The One foretold by the Prophets of old? Spoken of by the elders? Or was He just another rabble-rouser? After all, there had been so many that had come claiming to be the one who would deliver his people.

Yet there was something about this one—something that caused Zacchaeus to get excited—more, hopeful, that perhaps, just maybe, He truly was the Messiah. The Son of the Living God. And he was not the only one to share this curiosity. The streets were filling up quickly, like when the people prepared for a festival. There was a great sense of expectancy and excitement in the air…

Why did I have to be born so short? I’ll never be able to see Him now, and I just must, I must! That tree, that’s it!! It’s perfect—it’s solid enough to support me, yet short enough for me to climb up; and yet tall enough for me to get just high enough so as not to miss Him as He passes by!

Perfect tree…

Jesus knew exactly where Zacchaeus was. He had seen across time and eternity that on this very day, at this very hour, Zacchaeus would climb this very tree—and more, God knew why he’d do it. Zacchaeus wanted more. And he was willing to do whatever it took to make sure he got it. Little did Zacchaeus know as he was climbing that tree that Jesus had seen him doing so before the very foundations of the world had been laid. And today—at this hour, was the exact moment Jesus had chosen to show Himself to Zacchaeus—for all Eternity…

Zacchaeus couldn’t have known that this simple tree he was climbing to better see this Jesus had been planted just for him, just for this reason—it was its purpose, to lift Him higher. To elevate Him above those that had come out of a “carnival curiosity.”

Zacchaeus had no idea, as he was climbing to catch a glimpse of this maybe Messiah, that he was actually on a bridge that God had constructed to bring the natural man and the Divine together.

One in a tree, another on the road below. Yet both on their respective paths to destiny. To the fulfillment of their Divine purposes…

And the rest of Luke’s account attest to the fact that this one tree had not been created in vain. Rather, in being the conduit that facilitated this supernatural encounter, it had fulfilled its purpose in being created…

And in Zacchaeus, we see the Spirit of Jesus’s Words found in Luke 18:14: coming to life; “I tell you, this sinner, not the Pharisee, returned home justified before God. For those who exalt themselves will be humbled, and those who humble themselves will be exalted.”

So here’s the question that God has put before me; and so I’ll ask it of you too. “What does your tree look like? What has He put before you that you would choose to climb up in to go higher—solely that you may see Jesus more clearly?”

Or is your tree something that God is asking you to walk away from—leave behind, let go of perhaps?

Will you, like Zacchaeus, drop everything so that you too may better see God?

“So he ran on ahead and climbed a sycamore tree to see Him, since Jesus was about to pass that way. When Jesus came to that place, He looked up and said, “Zacchaeus, hurry down, for I must stay at your house today” So Zacchaeus hurried down and welcomed Him joyfully.… (Luke 19:4-6; emphasis my own).

 

 

 

 

“From Those We Least Expect It…” Luke 22:21-22

February 26, 2017 /

   

“But behold, the hand of him who betrays me is with me on the table. For the Son of Man goes as it has been determined, but woe to that man by whom he is betrayed!” (Luke 22:21-22).

If you are of a certain age unfortunately you have felt the brutal sting of betrayal.

Our text this week deals with that very issue, betrayal at that hand of one you invited in, your Judas. That one you opened your heart, home, and wallet to. The very one you shared all those confidences with. That same friend who, to term a modern colloquialism was, your ride or die. Your best-friend, that entrusted brother or sister, one who sat at your table and broke bread with you.

Forgive me if you feel I am belaboring this point, but it is imperative you understand the magnitude of the type of betrayal to which our scripture is referring,it is one of dire eternal consequence.

This was no faux-pas. No painful, yet, unintended shower of friendly fire.

To quote a famous  World War II propaganda expression: loose lips sink ships. At one time in our lives, we have each been guilty of betraying someone, consciously or not. Even the greatest of saints were once flesh-pots and calloused!  “There is some good in the worst of us and some evil in the best of us. When we discover this, we are less prone to hate our enemies.” Martin Luther King, Jr. (excerpt).

However, most people, when made aware of their unintended disloyalty, will immediately apologize and do all that is possible to seek immediate reconciliation. “Moreover if thy brother shall trespass against thee, go and tell him his fault between thee and him alone: if he shall hear thee, thou hast gained thy brother” (Matt. 18;15-17).

The Bible has many examples of betrayal at the hands of those we would consider members of this very family type…

Here in Hawaii, they are called “Hanai” relatives. Those we adopt, take into our hearts as family. Our inner circle. Hanai speaks directly to this friend that is like our kin because we have chosen to allow them in to ourselves, our hearts and trust…

As an example, look at the relationship that existed between King Saul and young David, shepherd boy and future King of a reunited Israel…

They clearly shared this deep bond of brotherly love and affection. Saul kept David with him like a second son, and David submitted himself to Saul in all things, served him valiantly, cared for him after he defeated the giant Goliath. Saul put David in charge of his men of war. David went from shepherd to general of Israel’s Army in the blink of an eye. Yet in the end, jealously and treachery strangled Saul’s heart of affection for David and Saul sought to kill him (1 Sam. 18:1-16 NKJV).

Strong’s Greek Concordance refers to this above relationship type as; Adelphos: A brother, member of the same religious community, especially a fellow-Christian. And, both Saul and David were fellow Jews who each loved and served the One True God.

Betrayal is inescapable as long as man exists. Satan made sure of that in the garden. And God spoke to its resulting condition, “I will put enmity between you and the woman, and between your offspring and her offspring; he shall bruise your head, and you shall bruise his heel” (Gen.3:15 ESV). An ongoing blood-feud between what we want to do and what we actually do.

Arguably, the greatest instance of betrayal known in scripture is found within Jesus’ inner circle of friends. His name: Judas Iscariot, his crime, apostasy. An unthinkable betrayal (Lk.22:3-4 ESV).

He is the one who freely choose to take all that Jesus had offered him, a place by His side, love, His teachings, instruction, care, and the opportunity to have new life and he rewarded Jesus for all of this how?

By selling him out for thirty pieces of silver!

Sound familiar?

How many in our world today are selling Him out for their equivalent of thirty pieces of silver?

Saying, both, to themselves and Him…

I thought following you would make life easier but it’s not working, see ya!

Why did you let this happen to me to my child?

No, I don’t want to have to hear your name in any public place and that’s my right!

My tax dollars pay to keep that school open and my son will not pray to you!

So what that you created the heavens and the earth, some book a bunch of uneducated men wrote says that and they all tell it differently, so no thanks!

I believe in the Big-Bang.

Jesus-smeasus…

Talk about betrayal…

This is Jesus were talking about! The One spoken of in John,  listen…“In the beginning was the Word and the Word was with God, and the Word was God. He was in the beginning with God. All things came into being through Him, and apart from Him nothing came into being that has come into being. In Him was life, and the life was the Light of men” (Jn.1:1-4 NIV).

This is Jesus Judas betrayed! You betrayed, I betrayed, the world betrays daily. Jesus. Who foresaw He would be betrayed, and spoke of it at the Last Super (Lk. 22:21-22 NIV). These same scriptures speak plainly of Judas’s betrayal and subsequent end. And we too face Judas’s same outcome, today, should we decide to join Judas in our betrayal of Jesus…

Spiritual death and hell await all those who betray Jesus and crucify Him afresh in their denial of His being, “The King of Kings, and Lord of Lords” (Rev. 19:16).

However, unlike Jesus, we can’t always foresee our betrayers. They don’t walk into our lives with signage that states, need your heart shredded, want to feel like a loser for trusting me? (Ps.55:12-14)

So, if we know that betrayal is unavoidable, how do handle it when it comes our way? When we experience the depression, yes, Christians do get depressed, that betrayal leaves in its wake? What of our self-doubt or the shell that we might so readily slip into for protection?

Do we give as good as we got by taking matters into our own hands?

After all, don’t we deserve retribution? NO. Certainly not!

If we are trying to follow in Jesus’ footsteps than we must set our hearts toward forgiveness, “Father, forgive them, for they know not what they do” (Lk. 23:34NIV). It is our responsibility, let me say that again, our responsibility to choose to forgive just as we have been forgiven. Keeping ever before us our own betrayal of the Beloved, least we forget…

Forgiveness is a conscience. It’s determined, deliberate, acted out. It’s not something that is simply thought about or felt. “But I say, love your enemies, Pray for those who persecute you!“ (Matt.5:44 NIV).

If we waited until we felt like forgiving those who have betrayed us, we wouldn’t act. Why? Because in our flesh, we wouldn’t feel like it! Forgiving is an act of submission, it takes humility, it is us handing Jesus our will and saying, “not my will but thy will be done” (Lk. 22:42 NIV).

Forgiveness is a command, we are ordered to do it (Eph. 4:32 NIV). God in His infinite wisdom knew that we as prideful man would seldom, if ever, willingly forgive each other such an offense as betrayal. Choosing to forgive those that we never saw it coming from, or, even from those we had a clue just might have it in them, is saying to Jesus; I remember when I betrayed you. For everyone has sinned; we all fall short of God’s glorious standard (Rom. 3:23).

Even now, after having walked with you, in my rebellion, I sin and betray you, still, in my thoughts, words and, deeds….

Thankfully for us, we have Jesus as our defender, our advocate before the Father. We have access to His promised forgiveness for our sins through repentance.

Sadly, and with eternal consequence, it’s something Judas never humbled himself to do…

And, through Jesus sacrificial, Atoning Blood, if we ask Jesus into our lives, He comes, as both our Lord and our Savior. 1 John 1:9 says, “If we confess our sins, he is faithful and just to forgive us our sins and to cleanse us from all unrighteousness.”

We as church-ed folk forget that just a moment ago, we too were the ones inflicting the betrayal…

I know I was.

Yet forgiveness doesn’t mean doormat. We aren’t letting the one that hurt us off the hook. Forgiveness simply means they can no longer live in our heart and head rent free! “Purify me with hyssop, and I shall be clean; Wash me, and I shall be whiter than snow” (Ps.51:7). You evict them from the space their betrayal used to take up and you make room for what God is trying to bring into your life now.

Don’t give the enemy a foothold to allow bitterness to set itself up in your heart…

Can we do this on our own, no. But in Christ Jesus, “I can do all things”(Phil. 4:15). Friend, don’t believe the lies of your accuser. Love always looks for the best. Don’t take my word listen to The Apostle Paul, “Love is patient and kind. Love is not jealous or boastful or proud or rude. It does not demand its own way. It is not irritable, and it keeps no record of being wronged. It does not rejoice about injustice but rejoices whenever the truth wins out. Love never gives up, never loses faith, is always hopeful, and endures through every circumstance” ( 1 Cor. 13:4-7).

 

I pray this has brought you some small comfort, helped to chase away or ease your feelings of; I’m so stupid, how did I not see this coming?

Let me leave you to refresh yourself with the knowledge of the One who fights your battles for you, if you’ll just ask Him into your heart today… “My dear children, I write this to you so that you will not sin. But if anybody does sin, we have one who speaks to the Father in our defense—Jesus Christ, the Righteous One. He is the atoning sacrifice for our sins, and not only for ours but also for the sins of the whole world” (1 John 2:1-2 NIV).

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