You call Me Teacher and Lord, and you say well, for so I am ….I say to you, a servant is not greater than his master… —John 13:13, 16

To have a master and teacher is not the same thing as being mastered and taught. Having a master and teacher means that there is someone who knows me better than I know myself, who is closer than a friend, and who understands the remotest depths of my heart and is able to satisfy them fully. It means having someone who has made me secure in the knowledge that he has met and solved all the doubts, uncertainties, and problems in my mind. To have a master and teacher is this and nothing less— “…for One is your Teacher, the Christ…” (Matthew 23:8).

Our Lord never takes measures to make me do what He wants. Sometimes I wish God would master and control me to make me do what He wants, but He will not. And at other times I wish He would leave me alone, and He does not.

“You call Me Teacher and Lord…”— but is He? Teacher, Master, and Lord have little place in our vocabulary. We prefer the words Savior, Sanctifier, and Healer. The only word that truly describes the experience of being mastered is love, and we know little about love as God reveals it in His Word. The way we use the word obey is proof of this. In the Bible, obedience is based on a relationship between equals; for example, that of a son with his father. Our Lord was not simply God’s servant— He was His Son. “…though He was a Son, yet He learned obedience…” (Hebrews 5:8). If we are consciously aware that we are being mastered, that idea itself is proof that we have no master. If that is our attitude toward Jesus, we are far away from having the relationship He wants with us. He wants us in a relationship where He is so easily our Master and Teacher that we have no conscious awareness of it— a relationship where all we know is that we are His to obey.

Journal DJR
Good morning Lord, It’s true, I recoil at the idea of Master…as in slave and master. I suppose that is correct because that is not the type of master you are. To get my head around the master concept I think of the master and apprentice system from the craft guilds. And the “masters” I’ve learned from in business and art. I learn from them, not because they make me, but because I want to. So that much is like our relationship, but then the analogy breaks down. I want to be like them in certain regards, but I see they have shortcomings that I dont want to follow. Unlike you. I also can and have surpassed them in certain areas. Unlike you.

The type of love you have is relentless: “Our Lord never takes measures to make me do what He wants. Sometimes I wish God would master and control me to make me do what He wants, but He will not. And at other times I wish He would leave me alone, and He does not.”

You are beginning to see and understand my love. I dont force. I woo. And I can wait. I’ve been teaching you to remain curious as I myself am curious. Because I have given you free will and choice. What will you choose? How much of what I offer will you receive? I’m curious, and watching. Like the prodigal’s father, I wait and watch.

No temptation has overtaken you except such as is common to man… —1 Corinthians 10:13

The word temptation has come to mean something bad to us today, but we tend to use the word in the wrong way. Temptation itself is not sin; it is something we are bound to face simply by virtue of being human. Not to be tempted would mean that we were already so shameful that we would be beneath contempt. Yet many of us suffer from temptations we should never have to suffer, simply because we have refused to allow God to lift us to a higher level where we would face temptations of another kind.

A person’s inner nature, what he possesses in the inner, spiritual part of his being, determines what he is tempted by on the outside. The temptation fits the true nature of the person being tempted and reveals the possibilities of his nature. Every person actually determines or sets the level of his own temptation, because temptation will come to him in accordance with the level of his controlling, inner nature.

Temptation comes to me, suggesting a possible shortcut to the realization of my highest goal— it does not direct me toward what I understand to be evil, but toward what I understand to be good. Temptation is something that confuses me for a while, and I don’t know whether something is right or wrong. When I yield to it, I have made lust a god, and the temptation itself becomes the proof that it was only my own fear that prevented me from falling into the sin earlier.

Temptation is not something we can escape; in fact, it is essential to the well-rounded life of a person. Beware of thinking that you are tempted as no one else— what you go through is the common inheritance of the human race, not something that no one has ever before endured. God does not save us from temptations— He sustains us in the midst of them (see Hebrews 2:18 and Hebrews 4:15-16).

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Journal DJR
Good Morning Lord, Thank you for showing us that we are all different and face different temptations. Something that is tempting to another doesn’t temp me, and vice versa. It’s interesting to look backwards from the temptation to see what’s driving it. And that temptation is usually a shortcut to what is a good thing, not an evil thing. For example, yielding to sexual temptation is a shortcut to the good sex that you intended. But it’s kind of like, No Pain, No Gain. ….No temptation to overcome, No growth. So what’s the best way to overcome temptation? Willpower alone certainly doesn’t work.

It’s all about making a choice. Like Joshua told the people:

Joshua 24:14-15 “Now therefore fear the Lord and serve him in sincerity and in faithfulness. Put away the gods that your fathers served beyond the River and in Egypt, and serve the Lord. 15 And if it is evil in your eyes to serve the Lord, choose this day whom you will serve, whether the gods your fathers served in the region beyond the River, or the gods of the Amorites in whose land you dwell. But as for me and my house, we will serve the Lord.”

One thing about making a choice is that you need to see the options clearly. You live in a world that is designed to distract you from the true issues and get your focus off the true choices and certainly don’t think about the consequences! Marketing, Politics, and even Religion all have agendas that they want you to conform to. Joshua was bringing the choice into clarity, and letting the people know that it was their choice. Did you notice… he said, “Choose you this day” It’s a daily manna type of thing. You will get to choose tomorrow also. Today’s choice will not be adequate for tomorrow’s temptations. Walk with me and commune with me and overcoming temptations will become easier and easier as you come to know me and find me trustworthy. Remember

1 Corinthians 10:13 No temptation has overtaken you except what is common to mankind. And God is faithful; he will not let you be tempted beyond what you can bear. But when you are tempted, he will also provide a way out so that you can endure it.

The temptations that you are concerned with now are different that when you were young… or when you will be old. But they all come under the “Big Four” list that I have shown you. To Look good, Feel good, Be right, and Be in control. All the temptations common to man fall in one or more of those categories. Those are the gods on the other side of the river that Joshua refers to. So be wise. Know your enemy and Choose you this day, Who you will serve…

We have renounced the hidden things of shame… —2 Corinthians 4:2

Have you “renounced the hidden things of shame” in your life— the things that your sense of honor or pride will not allow to come into the light? You can easily hide them. Is there a thought in your heart about anyone that you would not like to be brought into the light? Then renounce it as soon as it comes to mind— renounce everything in its entirety until there is no hidden dishonesty or craftiness about you at all. Envy, jealousy, and strife don’t necessarily arise from your old nature of sin, but from the flesh which was used for these kinds of things in the past (see Romans 6:19 and 1 Peter 4:1-3). You must maintain continual watchfulness so that nothing arises in your life that would cause you shame.

“…not walking in craftiness…” (2 Corinthians 4:2). This means not resorting to something simply to make your own point. This is a terrible trap. You know that God will allow you to work in only one way— the way of truth. Then be careful never to catch people through the other way— the way of deceit. If you act deceitfully, God’s blight and ruin will be upon you. What may be craftiness for you, may not be for others— God has called you to a higher standard. Never dull your sense of being your utmost for His highest— your best for His glory. For you, doing certain things would mean craftiness coming into your life for a purpose other than what is the highest and best, and it would dull the motivation that God has given you. Many people have turned back because they are afraid to look at things from God’s perspective. The greatest spiritual crisis comes when a person has to move a little farther on in his faith than the beliefs he has already accepted.

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Journal DJR
Good Morning Lord, It seems that getting and staying comfortable detracts from our moving on in our faith journey. That is counter intuitive because we mainly seek to get and stay comfortable when left to our own devices.

It’s true, your faith and even our relationship is kind of like a muscle. You build it by stressing it and testing it. Then you have more faith and can stretch it more

When you were under the fig tree, I saw you. —John 1:48

Worshiping in Everyday Occasions. We presume that we would be ready for battle if confronted with a great crisis, but it is not the crisis that builds something within us— it simply reveals what we are made of already. Do you find yourself saying, “If God calls me to battle, of course I will rise to the occasion”? Yet you won’t rise to the occasion unless you have done so on God’s training ground. If you are not doing the task that is closest to you now, which God has engineered into your life, when the crisis comes, instead of being fit for battle, you will be revealed as being unfit. Crises always reveal a person’s true character.

A private relationship of worshiping God is the greatest essential element of spiritual fitness. The time will come, as Nathanael experienced in this passage, that a private “fig-tree” life will no longer be possible. Everything will be out in the open, and you will find yourself to be of no value there if you have not been worshiping in everyday occasions in your own home. If your worship is right in your private relationship with God, then when He sets you free, you will be ready. It is in the unseen life, which only God saw, that you have become perfectly fit. And when the strain of the crisis comes, you can be relied upon by God.

Are you saying, “But I can’t be expected to live a sanctified life in my present circumstances; I have no time for prayer or Bible study right now; besides, my opportunity for battle hasn’t come yet, but when it does, of course I will be ready”? No, you will not. If you have not been worshiping in everyday occasions, when you get involved in God’s work, you will not only be useless yourself but also a hindrance to those around you.

God’s training ground, where the missionary weapons are found, is the hidden, personal, worshiping life of the saint.

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Journal DJR
Good Morning Lord, It is clear that the daily battle is what counts… not super acts of heroism. Little victories daily are what prepare us for the big things when they come. So how can we be victorious against the enemy of our souls on a daily basis. Perhaps the first thing to do is to define victory. Maybe the hardest part is to un-define it… reverse the thinking that we are hardwired with. To look good, feel good, be right, and be in control…. That human hardwiring is then amplified by our society.

Carnal tools won’t work in a spiritual battle and the corollary is probably true as well….Spiritual tools won’t work in a carnal battle. So to re define victory: It is walking in daily connection with Jesus, being unmoved by circumstances, except as, like Jesus, we do what we see the Father doing and say what we hear the Father saying. (John 5:19) So how do we do that? At best we can offer an incomplete list of a few things that seem to work, along with the disclaimer that another person’s mileage my vary. A good start is essential. We need today’s manna. Yesterday’s won’t do. So dedication and devotion at the start of each day is important. CO2 works for us. Others may find other ways to re-connect and re-commit, but a good start is essential.

Surrender is essential. Surrender of our rights to the big 4 drivers of unredeemed humanity, look good, feel good, be right and be in control. Then a pre-commitment to obey, and then really obeying. Connection and conscious connection is key. There are some tools to help maintain that connection in the face of clamoring circumstances. Visioning is helpful. This is where the “personal relationship” becomes personal. How we see ourselves with Jesus, sometimes in the throne room, sometimes walking along together having a discussion, sometimes driving together. A vision of wrapped up sins and failures boxed up and delivered to the foot of the cross is helpful. Also hands raised up in praise. Empty hands. That have been emptied of those 4 hooks of humanity. Seeing objectively, the “balcony view” is helpful in staying curious, waiting to see what God is doing and going to do in otherwise overwhelming circumstances.

I’m sure there are many other tools that are helpful. One thing to note is that the standard list given by all churches since Jesus’ time… go to church more, read the Bible more and pray more… is not listed here. Not because those are not good things, but because, alone, they will only produce what they produced for the Pharisees of Jesus day. Of course they are good things to do, but without Surrender, Connection, Curiosity, and Obedience… they remain dead tools that earned the Pharisees Jesus strongest rebuke. Holy Spirit, help me today to use all these tools and walk in victory as a man after God’s own heart.