ABBA FATHER

The father to child relational metaphor of God’s relationship to man is more than a metaphor. God, our Divine Daddy, loves us unconditionally, not because of what we are but whose we are, and He is, necessarily, much more than our earthly father. He is all knowing, all powerful and everywhere simultaneously, and His creation, of which we are a part, is moving and evolving according to the plan He purposed within Himself. With wisdom and power far above and beyond any earthly daddy, He is able to bring about our utmost for His highest, and He does just that! He has made us partakers of His Spirit... partakers of Christ... partakers of The Cross, that in this “Oneness” we might be transformed into the very nature of His Beloved Son. He punishes us when needed to guide and align our behavior according to His will. He lets us roam when we demand freedom from Him, and welcomes us back with open arms when we realize the cost of flying solo. He does not isolate us from the deceitfulness of riches or the glitter of the world’s pleasures, allowing us to overcome misplaced desires, learning in the process the cost of pursuing lover’s less wild then the eternal lover of our soul. He allows suffering and all the variegated hues of adversity... the pressures of this life: It is in adversity that Self walks the lonely road to Golgotha while patience endurance does its perfecting work, using that which purposes to overcome and destroy to unwittingly transform us, dying daily that the Christlife might emerge. His goal is our perfection... spiritual maturity... transformation into His very own character and nature, making us “perfect” for the abundantly eternal life He has prepared for us. He allows persecution, a measure of our Christlikeness, to further our transformation while condemning the evil that produces it, sharing in the suffering of our Lord and bearing in our body the marks of His Lordship. He knows what is best for us, and will never let our wants overpower His wisdom, giving us only good things... eternally good things, things that are truly good for us. He allows us to suffer the consequences of our actions, that in responsible reaping we may learn the power of our will to choose... that decisions have descendants, learning our need for His wisdom in all the decisions of this life, effectively drawing us into His Lordship. And in all of this He lavishly pours His love into our hearts... that we might in turn be loving, and teaches us to set our mind on things above... our Blessed Hope in Him. He allows in His wisdom what He could easily prevent in His power, loving us too much to leave us the way we are. He holds our breath in His hands and owns all our ways, setting our feet in His stocks and watching each ordered footstep... lest we wander too far. He records our every thought and act in His book, collects our tears in His bottle, and sings over us lullabies of love. And, He never, ever leaves us forsaken – we are never, ever alone!

HE’S A GOOD, GOOD DADDY

YOUR LOVE

HUMBLED BY YOUR MAJESTY

I STAND IN AWE OF YOU

THE NECTAR OF YOUR SPIRIT FEEDS MY SOUL

I LOVINGLY ADORE YOU

MY PRECIOUS LORD AND KING

LET THESE EYES OF MINE CONTINUE TO BEHOLD

YOUR LOVE

LET ME BEHOLD YOUR LOVE

SO EXALTED BY YOUR GRACE

I STAND ON HOLY GROUND

THE FRAGRANCE OF YOUR PRESENCE

COVERS ME

I YEARN SO MUCH TO KNOW YOU

OH LOVER OF MY SOUL

LET THIS HEART OF MINE CONTINUE TO BEHOLD

YOUR LOVE

LET ME BEHOLD YOUR LOVE

IF NEVER MORE I STAND SO GRACED

TO FEEL YOUR PRESENCE, SEE YOUR FACE

THIS GREATEST GIFT YOU COULD IMPART

WILL ALWAYS SHINE AND TOUCH MY HEART

YOUR LOVE

LET ME BEHOLD YOUR LOVE

WITH CHAINS OF LOVE YOU GRACE MY PATH

HOLDING ME FAST THROUGH LIFE AND DEATH

OH LORD PLEASE LET YOUR MERCY COVER ME

CHANGED BY YOUR LOVE, AMAZING GRACE

AMAZING GRACE TO RUN MY RACE

RENEWED IN LOVE MY SPIRIT IS SET FREE

YOUR LOVE
LET ME BEHOLD YOUR LOVE

HUMBLED BY YOUR MAJESTY

EXALTED BY YOUR GRACE

THE NECTAR OF YOUR SPIRIT

COVERS ME

I LOVINGLY ADORE YOU

AND YEARN TO KNOW YOU MORE

LET THESE EYES OF MINE CONTINUE TO BEHOLD

YOUR LOVE

LET ME BEHOLD YOUR LOVE

BUT ONE THING IS NEEDED

Mary:  “But one thing is needed, and Mary has choose the good part, which will not be taken away from her” (Lk. 10:42 NKJV).  Mary appeared three times in scripture, in three     different episodes of life, and on each occasion she is sitting at the feet of Jesus (Lk. 10:39; Jn. 11:32; 12:3), bearing the brunt of someone’s harsh words for her single minded devotion to our Lord.  Mary was a person of one thing - passion for Jesus - who prized every minute in the presence of an audience of one.  In a sense this passage paints a comparison of our soul and spirit.  Martha, representing our soul, is “worried and troubled about many things”.  Our soul is never at rest and always distracted by the natural realm.  These distractions are not always “bad things” in and of themselves” as in   this case where “much serving” had distracted Martha from intimate fellowship with Jesus.  Remember, “good” is always the greatest enemy of “best”:  Martha wasn’t out hitting the local pub; she was serving food to Jesus and His disciples.  But she was “distracted” from the “one thing that was needed”, and missed out on the “good part”.  Mary, representing our spirit, wants to abide in the presence of God with     passionate, single-minded determination. This is the “one thing that is needed”, the “good part” - passionate, whole hearted, intimate devotion to our savior.  But we must willfully choose to be a person of one thing, refusing to allow our soul to distract us from the wooing of the Holy Spirit.  In all her fussing about, Martha never realized that Jesus could have easily “created” dinner - the miraculous is never far behind passionate intimacy.

GOOD IS ALWAYS THE ENEMY OF BEST

THE LORD KNOWS THOSE WHO ARE HIS

In 2 Cor. 1:22 God has “sealed us” and given us the “earnest of the spirit.”  In Ephesians 1:13 “having believed,” we are “sealed with the Holy Spirit of Promise.”  In Ephesians 1:14 the Holy Spirit is described as the “earnest of our inheritance until the redemption of the purchased possession.”  In Ephesians 4:30 we are “sealed for the day of redemption” by the Holy Spirit, where the word “redemption” literally means “deliverance to Jesus at His coming.”  And 2 Timothy 2:19 states, “The solid foundation of God stands, having this seal: The Lord knows those who are His.” The word “earnest” (gr., arrhabon) means a down payment or security deposit guarantee made by a purchaser and is in common usage in real estate transactions (i.e., earnest money).  The word “sealed” (gr., sphragis/sphragizo) means to mark indicating ownership, security and destination.

The Holy Spirit which Christ promised is the first installment, first portion or foretaste, of the manifold blessings to come, of our inheritance in Christ Jesus. It’s just a taste, a snippet of what Daddy has prepared for us, signifying Christ’s love and commitment to us, and the guarantor of our inheritance in God’s kingdom. Having believed, we are marked with the ownership of God, His righteousness, secure in His promises and destined to be with Him.  This mark (seal) is more than just an identifier; it is the essential component of our relational dynamic with God. Reconciliation, the cross, reestablished access to God. The imputing of God’s righteousness enables us to come into His presence without getting fried, making communion now and forever possible. We are cloaked like a coat, clothed with His righteousness, sinless in His sight, sinless but not perfect.  The down payment has been made, the Holy Spirit has been “deposited” in our earthen vessels to secure the purchase transaction with God and guarantee our inheritance in His Kingdom. Notice the reciprocal nature of the word “earnest”; it guarantees the purchase, ownership, to the buyer and guarantees the purchased item an inheritance in its new owner. The Holy Spirit has clothed us in the very righteousness of God, giving us access into the King’s presence – the King’s scepter is always lifted for us – and marked us as God’s purchased property until Christ’s return to claim and pick up His own.  And the foundation of God’s promise is firm and strong (i.e., “sure”, gr., stereos) providing this security to us, “The Lord knows those who are His.”

THEREFORE, COMFORT AND ENCOURAGE ONE ANOTHER WITH THESE WORDS

SUFFERING

A clear understanding of the role of “suffering” in the Christian life is important. The ancient goldsmith refined crude gold ore by bringing it to a liquid in a crucible, under intense heat. The impurities which float on the surface were skimmed off; when the goldsmith could see the reflection of his face clearly mirrored in the surface of the liquid, he knew the content was pure gold. The Apostle Peter had this imagery in mind when he spoke of the “fiery trials” of the saints. Paul and James likewise admonished to count the joy and rejoice in the perfecting work of trials and tests, what Jesus called the narrow gated “difficult” way to eternal life in Him. Christian suffering may take on many forms but come it will for we are called to adversity:

Whether it comes in the form of rebukes, chastening and scourging which accompany Sonship, the reining in of our wayward will … Whether it comes in the form of trials and tests of faith which are the divine accompaniment and godward impetus of becoming Christlike … Whether it comes in the form of persecution and tribulation because of a Christlike nature …Whether it comes as the natural consequence of sin, reaping what we have sown … Suffering will come!

Suffering’s source is satan who lives to inflict pain on humanity, but, just as in the time of Job, God, who is absolutely sovereign over all, establishes the conditions and sets the limits of satan’s attacks. Suffering is described by many words in scriptures: difficulties, sickness, persecution, troubles, hardship, adversity, distresses, affliction, tribulation, etc., all words translated from the Greek “thlipsis”, to crush in the wine press of life. Suffering may be of a physical, emotional, financial or relational nature, or any combination thereof, and may be swiftly metered or lingering. These are the Potter’s, sculpturing tools used by a God of love to transform our nature into His. God never wastes anything, especially suffering and pain, but uses it to our very best benefit according to His eternal purposes … the testimony of the Cross. Suffering burns out the dross in our nature, makes for humility, purifies and increases our faith, induces spiritual mettle, and enriches our lives, drawing us ever godward into Christlikeness. And like the goldsmith of old, God keeps us in the smelting furnace of His love until He can see the reflection of the face of the Lord Jesus in our lives. God is not so much interested in how much work we do for Him, as He is in how much we resemble His Son. This is the sanctifying work of the Holy Spirit, preparing us for eternity with God while teaching us to kneel and kiss the hand that sometimes hurts.

NO ONE SHOULD BE SHAKEN BY AFFLICTION AND SUFFERING,

FOR YOU SHOULD KNOW THAT WE ARE APPOINTED TO THIS

(1 Thess. 3:3)

THE WATERING HOLE: WHO IS GOD

Church today is viewed as a watering hole, a welcome natural oasis out in the desert that feeds a huge variety of natural life.  In this analogy Christian’s are the animals, the desert is the world and the church is the watering hole, the source of life itself, and without it we are dead.  Like a real watering hole things get a little crowded, and there’s a pecking order about who gets to be in the prime spots at the water’s edge.  The fittest and strongest will fight their way toward those prime spots while the weak ones, the marginalized, hang around the outer edges and find themselves easy prey for wild predators, the two legged kind.  If this seems to be carrying the analogy to far, then consider the fact that approximately 97% (average) of the people who walk into a church and make a commitment to Christ are gone within one year.  There are two wrong messages here, that the local church is the hope of the world and that Christianity is all about life lived within the walls of the church, a life full of the church, a life full of church-based activities.  Social religiosity is safe and comfortable, so we can feel good about ourselves and look forward to more church and more water to quench our spiritual thirst.  Is Christianity really supposed to be a faith lived out in isolation?  Is it really supposed to be carried out behind closed doors?  Is the main aim of the church to encourage people to be better at attending meetings?  Is it all about going to church to get?  And who is God? - How fresh is the water in the hole?  When we focus only on the water in front of us, when we forget the context of our lives in the world, we become far less useful in the fight - oh yes, don’t forget about the fight, the spiritual war being waged for the souls of mankind and our role beside our warrior king.  This message that Christianity is all about church (small c), about life lived within the confines of a building, doesn’t match up with the Bible model.  Formalized Christianity has drawn the church away from its’ divine charter as the launch pad from which believers (i.e., not pastors) obeyed the commands of Matthew 28:19 - to “go make disciples” and Matthew 25:31-46 to “help the poor, the sick, the oppressed.”  The church has usurped the role of God, pretending to be the water hole.  God and only God is the water hole - the source of life itself.  Jesus and Jesus alone is the hope of the world.  And we, the believers, need to be the Church (big C), to a lost and dying world.

SLAVES

We are all slaves
We choose our masters
Choose wisely
*   *   *
Lifestyle patterned after the world
Mind set on earthly things
Habitual domination by spirit of this age
Progressive process
Disobedience, rebellion, hostility against God
Relational separation from God
Strongholds of demonic influence
Look like the world
Walk like the world
Fruit of unrighteousness
*   *   *
Lifestyle patterned after the Kingdom
Mind set on things above
Habitual domination by the Holy Spirit
Progressive process
Intimate relationship with God
Stronghold of obedience to Christ
Look Christlike
Walk in Kingdom power
Kingdom fruit that glorifies God
*    *   *
Stop living, thinking and acting like the world
*   *   *
Start living, thinking and acting like Kingdom people
By the renewing of your mind
*   *   *
Then you will understand, test, and approve God’s will,
His good, well pleasing and complete will for you
*   *   *     
SET YOUR MIND ON THINGS ABOVE