Jesus, The One

(Note from the writer of this blog: It's been quite a while since my last post, but at times the reality of living out what I've written about takes precedence over writing. Greater maturity requires time, effort, sacrifice and much Grace.) 

   

In my previous posts I've written mostly about the schism which occurred within man when he was separated from the perfection of his unity with God and the unity within himself because of that divine connection.  It has already been established, in my point of view, that this separation entered man when the Adam fell out of fellowship with his Creator when he followed satan’s voice instead of God’s. You can read more about that in the archived March 22, 2014 post, Three Lives? Revisited.  But now, I’d like to close out 2014 with the answer God provided for man to be restored to such a wondrous position with Himself.  

   

One thing caused the separation, and only one thing can restore it, and it all has to begin at that point.  Just as the separation occurred at once in one life-changing event though the effects of the downfall increased with time, so does the restoration occur with one life-changing event increasing over time as we receive understanding and begin cooperating with Him in the process.  It’s our choice, just as it was Adam’s choice to follow a strange voice.

What is the One Thing?  The Word says concerning Jesus: the fullness of the Godhead dwelt in Him bodily and we are complete In Him.  It is Jesus Himself, The Volunteer who provided the way to bring us back into Unity with The Father. Is this oversimplifying the process? Perhaps a bit, but as we know every journey must begin somewhere and that’s usually with a choice.  After all, the great fall of man came with one man’s choice and the reality of it became mankind's journey into the increasing darkness of it.  Our adversary hides himself in that darkness because that's what he is-Darkness-and it's what he has used successfully to keep man from the Light of Truth.  

The choice to receive and follow the One who made the way for the restoration of our perfect unity with Him has to begin somewhere, and the true beginning came at the birth of Jesus when He offered forgiveness and the full benefit of sonship to anyone who would receive it (because the work was as good as finished when He was born into the earth taking on the form of man).  And the great part of this is that it’s our choice and all we have to do to begin a new life journey is to believe and receive His offer!  We are not forced to follow His way, but He graciously provided it so man could be restored to even a greater place than the first Adam enjoyed in his beginning.  God fully intended him to grow in understanding in all things--growing into maturity of who he was really created to be--a living, breathing, powerful son of the Living God including the benefits, rights, authority and responsibility associated with such an exalted position.   

 If you read Psalm 8 you’ll discover that even the angels desired to know more about man.  They wanted to know who this created being was that God Himself visited him!  After all, their understanding  was limited to what they knew, that all of His created beings came to Him.  They had never seen God Himself go any where at anytime to seek out anyone before--much less spend time with them enjoying their company!  I mean really, what a deal! That understanding makes the following scripture concerning God's relationship with Jesus very enlightening! 

 ...God anointed Jesus of Nazareth with the Holy Ghost and with power: who went about doing good, and healing all that were oppressed of the devil; for God was with him. (my emphasis)  

How interesting!  The person God sent to restore mankind's oneness with Him enjoyed the Presence of the Father with Him!  Sounds kind of like Adam's relationship with God in the Garden of Eden.  Though Adam failed when temptation came, the Last Adam didn't.  Jesus spoke a number of times, about only doing what He saw the Father do, and only saying what He heard the Father say thereby successfully living out what Adam failed to do.  See these confirming scriptures in John 5:19-20 and verse 30; John 8:28; John 12:49.  And the following is very telling, but seldom quoted with  the answer Jesus gave the scribe who asked what was the first (and greatest) commandment. Mark 12:29 follows:

And Jesus answered him, The first of all the commandments is, Hear, O Israel; The Lord our God is one Lord: (my emphasis) 

Most of us are familiar with the rest of the answer, but seeing it all in context is quite revealing. Mark 12:28-32 follows: 

28 And one of the scribes came, and having heard them reasoning together, and perceiving that he had answered them well, asked him, Which is the first commandment of all? 29 And Jesus answered him, The first of all the commandments is, Hear, O Israel; The Lord our God is one Lord 30 And thou shalt love the Lord thy God with all thy heart, and with all thy soul, and with all thy mind, and with all thy strength: this is the first commandment. 31 And the second is like, namely this, Thou shalt love thy neighbour as thyself. There is none other commandment greater than these. 32 And the scribe said unto him, Well, Master, thou hast said the truth: for there is one God; and there is none other but he:

Looking at these scriptures in the light of the subject at hand puts things in even greater perspective.  The LORD God is ONE even though He is Three in One-Father, Son and Holy Spirit-and there is no schism in Him, in Them, in what they think, say or do.  Jesus clearly explained that He was one with the Father in thought and deed in John 17:21-23 and desired also that we would be one in them so it must be possible. 

That God desires us to be one with Him and has provided the way to restore the heritage of sonship to us is truly mind boggling to consider!  To say it takes time to mature in the wholeness offered to us is a complete understatement, but none-the-less true!   To perhaps say it better, I'll borrow a popular phrase from a character in Toy Story: It will take "infinity and beyond!", but we have that kind of time with God if we'll just choose to start the journey while we're still here having the right and privilege to do so.

There's so much more to say about this and I hope to be able to share more in later posts.  Hopefully, it won't take as long as it did to start on this one.  I trust He will lead us all into that higher and better way of sharing in His way of seeing, speaking, doing and living, while keeping us within the realms of His grace and truth leaving behind all harshness and religiosity.  

Living "a higher and better way" reminds me of what my mother use to say when waking us in the mornings, "Rise and shine!"  Funny though, how that  expression is from the Word in Isaiah.  Since Jesus is the Light of the World, and His promise to us is that if we follow Him we won't walk in darkness, it makes me all the more want to "Rise and shine!"  So, I'll close with that Truth in the Word which we all can receive by faith from Him.  

 Isaiah 60:1-2  kjv

Arise, shine; for thy light is come, and the glory of the Lord is risen upon thee. 2 For, behold, the darkness shall cover the earth, and gross darkness the people: but the Lord shall arise upon thee, and *his glory shall be seen upon thee.  (emphasis, mine) 

 * His glory is His Presence with us!  And in the light of what we've been looking into in this post, it means so much more. 

Second Closing: I just had to add this.  My favorite movie clip of  all time...sometimes people are not too happy with  the way our light shines! 

                            https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=CFpF5-mF-D8 

The True Source of Encouragement

This post concerns part of an email I received from KCM written by Kenneth Copeland.  It's a standard response, but very relevant and timely.  It's such an encouraging reminder of how to go about  the challenges we have to face in this life.  I plan to keep it as a reminder and  thought ya'll (a Southern United States colloquialism for whoever I'm speaking to at the moment) might like it, too.

 I added the bold type because when I look at it again, that's what I want to see first!

What's the biggest challenge you are facing today? Is it something to do with your health? Your finances? Your relationships? 

Let me encourage you on how to resolve your challenge. First of all, don't get so focused on the problem you can't hear what God has to say about it. Don't try to figure out what you're going to do instead of looking for what He can and will do. 

Second, ask Him! At some time in your life you have surely experienced His divine intervention. He hasn't changed. And He knows exactly what to do. He's always waiting and willing to get right in the middle of your situation and help you through it and finally, out of it. Don't be discouraged. Just turn your heart toward Him and let Him show you the way to go, the scripture to stand on, the words to say, the decision to make. He's there and He's waiting for you to ask.

As soon as I read it I felt it was a compliment to my last post.  While I was forwarding the email to some family and friends, it occurred to me that others might be encouraged by it as well.  So, to you my extended family and friends, I share it here.

In closing I'll leave you with the following word of encouragement from the greatest Encourager of all:

       John 16:33New International Version (NIV)

33 “I have told you these things, so that in me you may have peace. In this world you will have trouble. But take heart! I have overcome the world.” 

Life Happens

Since my last post lots of life has been happening, much to face, much to deal with-difficulties which are common to us all but unique in effect to us as individuals.  And since my  posts are based on our lives and God's provision, His bringing us back into the oneness we lost with Him and within ourselves, I've had great opportunity during this season to face and deal more effectively with those broken connections within which have kept me from living life more fully In Him.  Sometimes even in the midst or our greatest difficulties we discover root issues we've struggled with, perhaps unknowingly (well, mostly unknowingly!), that have kept us from living our lives more fully and victoriously even in the midst of great difficulty.

I hope to be back with more pretty soon.  Not with  the particulars of the circumstances of my life, because we all have those, and we don't need to be inundated with those of others at every turn.  But I would like to share a little portion of how very Good God Is and how He's so willing to bring us all into His Peace and provision in the midst of this crazy world we live in...

Holman Christian Standard Bible
I have told you these things so that in Me you may have peace. You will have suffering in this world. Be courageous! I have conquered the world."   John 16:33

...and it is my desire to become more courageous through greater oneness with Him.


Scripture quotations marked HCSB are taken from the Holman Christian Standard Bible®, Used by Permission HCSB ©1999,2000,2002,2003,2009 Holman Bible Publishers. Holman Christian Standard Bible®, Holman CSB®, and HCSB® are federally registered trademarks of Holman Bible Publishers.

The Voice Revisited

Another Re-post.

[In this post I mentioned something about a  little"happy dance."  Just so you'll know, on my previous blog I often included a link for a fun dance video at the end.]

Sunday, August 11, 2013

The Voice

Currently, there's a show on TV in the United States called The Voice.  Contestants vie to be chosen by one of the judges to be a part of their team.  If chosen, they will be mentored and taught by a star judge (of their choosing), but the irony is, that even though they've been chosen, they could still lose their spot on the team.  Eventually all are eliminated but 1 contestant who wins the title of  "The Voice."   The interesting part of the show is this:  when the contestants sing for the first time hoping for a spot on one of the teams,  the judges can't see the contestants, but only hear their voice.   If a judge chooses someone for his team, he hits a buzzer and the chair he occupies turns around so he can see who he, or she, has chosen.

This is very similar to what happened to Adam and Eve.  They heard a voice,  chose it over the one they knew, and it was only after having chosen a stranger's voice and following it, were their eyes opened to the one whom they had chosen. 

As I mentioned in an earlier blog, it's good to be aware of the enemy's tactics, because what worked in the beginning still works today to seduce us into following strange voices-and there are many-and often it's much later before we discover the consequences of those choices.  Now briefly, I will share a bit more concerning the effects of what happened since mankind became more accustomed to hearing the accuser's voice once we were separated from our relationship with the Father, our Creator and source of Life.

Notice Adam's response when God  asked if he'd eaten from the forbidden tree, 

Gen. 3:12  KJV

11 .... Hast thou eaten of the tree, whereof I commanded thee that thou shouldest not eat? 12 And the man said, The woman whom thou gavest to be with me, she gave me of the tree, and I did eat.

Most often we've been taught that Adam  blamed  Eve for what happened,  but is  that  what he really did?
No.  He clearly blames God for his behavior!  Because God gave him the woman,  Adam blames Him! Never mind that God originally gave Adam the command to have authority over the Garden to keep it, actually over everything He created.  I share this because it is the Number One tactic Satan still uses against mankind.  He still speaks, accusing God for everything, and  man in our natural state hearing the deceiver's voice in many ways and by numerous means, bombarded by it over the years, has come into agreement with the evil one.  That is his modus operandi!  He started  by accusing God of lying to Adam and Eve when he told them they surely would not die, but their eyes would be opened and they would be as God!  The fog of seduction, lies, lust and deception which is what and who the deceiver IS came in with his presence, accompanied the accusation and rested on them.  Once Adam and Eve heard it without resisting it, the lie took root, and again, the rest is history.

I believe that Eve when questioned by God concerning her actions, at least answered more forthrightly:

Gen. 3:13  KJV

And the LORD God said unto the woman, What is this that thou hast done? And the woman said, The serpent beguiled me, and I did eat.

 The Hebrew word  *"beguile" in this verse comes from a root meaning to lead astray; mentally, to delude; morally, to seduce.  I believe her answer was true to what actually happened to her, and we've usually only heard that she blamed the serpent, but she actually admitted to being seduced by him.  Since then, it probably has been easier for women to be deceived in our natural state,  that's what I've always heard in religious circles, however it is only part of the story--but when confronted with the Truth, I believe it is also easier for women to agree with it, which can lead to repentance.

Now that this has been written,  the question remains:  Who and what are we listening to?  The natural man in his fallen state hears and gives heed to natural things, such as what we've experienced, what we've been told, the thoughts that assail our minds without considering the source from which they come, even inanimate objects- the things we see speak to us, the things we read speak to us, pains in our bodies speak to us and on and on and on.   But  God Himself took on the form of a man in order to quicken and make alive our spirits once again,  by bearing the consequences of the fall of man taking on and overcoming death itself in all its forms.  Jesus, the One who was always with Him even as God decided to create man, (Gen 1:26a And God said, Let us make man in our image, after our likeness: KJV) volunteered for the job.  He came into the world recreated in the image of man and overcame the curse through his life and his death-all  in complete obedience to God's way of doing things- and because of this, death was overcome and could not hold Him!  He chose to become sin for us without sinning Himself.  What we could not do, He did for us....and if we  hear  the truth and choose to receive the payment He made for us, even as death came into Adam's and Eve's spirits and all those born thereafter, so will The Life Of God come into our spirit and we will be born again, made alive in our spirit by the power of the Holy Spirit.  With this act of believing and receiving,  we are made right  with God by receiving the gift of Jesus' rightness.  Thus we are re-connected to our Father, Creator and our God.  Now we can use our recreated spiritual ears to hear God's voice,  as He  not only walks with us in the "cool of the day" but every moment of our lives.  Through this divine re-connection we can be mentored and instructed  by His Spirit who will lead us into all Truth, and  unlike the TV show, The Voice, we all can be the Winner!  The only thing we have to do is to believe and receive for ourselves.  God gives us a choice, though it's available to all, He won't force us to choose Him, but He strongly desires all to do so!....like any good parent desires the best for their children!

This is the beginning of the "good part" I mentioned in a previous blog.  The unity of the Three in One that God is: though three, He's One Unified Being and that's how He created man to be also-though 3 distinct parts, all functioned in unity like God and with God.  This was lost with the fall leaving mankind destined to live according to his senses, his sensual nature, with soul and body calling the shots, rather than the spirit which is still the divine order.  Jesus  made the way for the breath of lives to be restored to man when the spirit of man is born again and made alive In Him when we receive Him.  Though our spirits are made alive all at once when we receive Him, the transformation of our minds and bodies is a  process which takes time. Once we see the need and have a greater understanding of what it means to have an undivided heart, we can begin to cooperate with God's way of doing things enabling us to proceed faster.

Learning more about His provision for us is the expected direction following blogs will take....so more Really Good News is on the way!  

 And maybe later,  we can even enjoy another little happy dance just for fun!

*Strong's Number H5377

...and the journey continues (still)

It certainly has been a while since my last post, but hopefully I'll be here more often now.  It seems a good time to start again with a post from my previous blog.  So here it is:

Saturday, August 24, 2013

...and the journey continues

Since I've been writing on the subject of an undivided heart, it's no surprise to me that I've seen--ever so much more--the need for realignment in not just a few areas of my own heart via the voice of the Spirit and the Word.  I wanted to put an exclamation mark at the end of that sentence, but the truth is that what was just "said" is a matter of fact, not a surprise.   It's kind of like taking a bath or eating, just because we had a bath or ate a meal in the past doesn't mean we won't need to do it again--over, and over.   But one good thing about it is that we don't have to eat all day long, and surprisingly, not nearly as much as some of us do at times (myself for certain), nor do we need to stay in the tub or the shower all day long to get the job done!  Note the exclamation mark.   That's something to be excited about.  Really.  But we all know that eating is  not only necessary and beneficial,  it can also be a very pleasant experience-unless it's one of those times when we have to eat something we don't like but we do because it's good for us.   Same with a bath or shower.   Sometimes we might feel just way too tired to go to the effort, but it's so much better if we do, especially if we have something on us that might take extra effort to wash off, say paint or grease, something like that.  Other times a nice long shower or bath is just wonderful, very relaxing and soothing to the body and soul. 

So it is with looking into some of the areas we need to see about ourselves as we choose to go through the transformation/realignment process.  There are varying degrees of both joy and pain as we see ourselves as we really are, but the rewards of  healing, strength and peace gained outweigh all the cost of having gone on yet another journey.  Again, we don't have to go, our Heavenly Father won't force anything on us, but if we're willing He will take us where we need to go in the best way possible and in perfect timing. 

He who created us knows exactly how to unify and "fix" us so we can operate and function in the manner in which each of us was uniquely designed.  We'll always have room for improvement or a little overhaul from time to time, but He's the One who's perfected and provided the way and means for us all.  Just think about it.  If our computers, and just about everything else we own, are in continuous need of up-dates,  how much more are we in need of being up-dated by our heavenly Father and Creator?

In keeping with this theme, I'm including a new selection from Rising--a little collection of poetry I wrote in days gone by--as well as re-posting one.  Each has something to say about the process I've briefly described here.  

The first one follows:

                                               

                                                

                                                                              P 

                                                          Sliding  U

                                                It seems to be impossible,

                                                  to do such a wonderful thing!

                                                But when the Lord is healing,

                                                  that’s the natural nature of things.

                                                You start out by sliding--

                                                   going on d

                                                                      o

                                                                        w

                                                                            n. 

                                                  It’s true!

                                                But when the work is finished,

                                                                                                          !

                                                                                                       u

                                                                                                     o

                                                 you’ll find a bigger, better  y

                                                                                                                    AJBB   1979

And the re-post:

Soul’s Rest

Ah, rest indeed is needed-

a time for quiet repose-

to hear the voice of gladness

speak gently with its prose.

To give the gift of freedom-

as soothing as the dew-

on parched flowers’ kingdom,

a gift from God to you.

So err not soul in sleeping,

just rest in gentle love;

the Light for your life’s keeping

flows freely from above.

                                                   

                                                                                    AJBB June 1977

And the really, really very Good and Great News is:  We don't have to be in charge of it!!!  Did I hear someone say, "Yay God!"?

More to come....

I know it's been a while since my last post, but there will be more to come, hopefully sooner rather than later!

Refined in a Furnace

The following is from Derek Prince Ministries and used by permission:



 

April 21, 2014 Refined in a Furnace Psalm 12:6 The words of the Lord are flawless, like silver refined in a furnace of clay, purified seven times.     NIV      “The words of the Lord” – those are the words that are brought to us in Scripture. They’re flawless, they’re without error. They are absolutely and totally reliable. Do you perhaps wonder how that could be since they were brought to us by human agents, by men who were often weak and fallible and made mistakes? How can it be that the message that comes to us through such men is absolutely infallible, authoritative?      The psalmist uses a beautiful picture. He says it’s like silver refined in a furnace of clay, purified seven times. You see, the silver is the message of God. The furnace of clay represents the human instrument, the human messenger. There’s a fire in that furnace which is the fire of the Holy Spirit, infinitely pure, infinitely purified, and, as the message comes through the fire, even though it’s in a furnace of clay, the fire purifies the message and makes it absolutely pure and absolutely reliable. That’s why you can put your faith without question in the absolute accuracy and authority of God’s Word, the Scripture.      The words of the Lord are flawless. They’ve been purified seven times (that speaks of the Holy Spirit) in a furnace of clay, and they come forth as pure as refined silver.   —Derek Prince To listen to Derek's original audio on our website click here. Derek Prince web address: www.derekprince.org