December 3, 2009

“Not by Might nor by Power”

Music and video for today: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Ga6Qtxzd6vk&feature=related

My speech and my preaching were not with persuasive words of human wisdom, but in demonstration of the Spirit and of power . . . —1 Corinthians 2:4

If in preaching the gospel you substitute your knowledge of the way of salvation for confidence in the power of the gospel, you hinder people from getting to reality….

 reality being the power of the Spirit, allowing the power of the Spirit to work through you. When we do this it is apparent to you and all those around you. It is all about connection…..JDV/ DJR 

Take care to see while you proclaim your knowledge of the way of salvation, that you yourself are rooted and grounded by faith in God 

(another way of saying being connected DJR).

Never rely on the clearness of your presentation, but as you give your explanation make sure that you are relying on the Holy Spirit. Rely on the certainty of God’s redemptive power, and He will create His own life in people.

Reality being the connection with God. JDV

Reality; being connected to the very Spirit of God, cannot be shaken….powerful and supernatural manifestations can take place when we are connected to the the God of the universe….as we connect with others.  JDV/DJR

If your faith is in experiences, anything that happens is likely to upset that faith. But nothing can ever change God or the reality of redemption. Base your faith on that, and you are as eternally secure as God Himself. Once you have a personal relationship with Jesus Christ, you will never be moved again.

Oswald’s definition of “personal relationship with Jesus Christ” is an undiluted definition that means being actually and completely connected to the person of Jesus Christ….. not the idea of being connected to Jesus Christ. There is a very big difference……… JDV

That is the meaning of sanctification. God disapproves of our human efforts to cling to the concept that sanctification is merely an experience, while forgetting that even our sanctification must also be sanctified (see John 17:19 ). I must deliberately give my sanctified life to God for His service, so that He can use me as His hands and His feet.

Perhaps the church can explore the thought that as we are grounded in the reality, the connectedness to God, we can as a body, disagree on issues of doctrine, but stay united as we stay connected. ….JDV

December 2, 2009

Christian Perfection

Video and music: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=othmFqaw0Yk

Not that I have already attained, or am already perfect . . . —Philippians 3:12

It is a trap to presume that God wants to make us perfect specimens of what He can do— God’s purpose is to make us one with Himself. The emphasis of holiness movements tends to be that God is producing specimens of holiness to put in His museum. If you accept this concept of personal holiness, your life’s determined purpose will not be for God, but for what you call the evidence of God in your life. How can we say, “It could never be God’s will for me to be sick”? If it was God’s will to bruise His own Son ( Isaiah 53:10 ), why shouldn’t He bruise you? What shines forth and reveals God in your life is not your relative consistency to an idea of what a saint should be, but your genuine, living relationship with Jesus Christ, and your unrestrained devotion to Him whether you are well or sick.

Christian perfection is not, and never can be, human perfection. Christian perfection is the perfection of a relationship with God that shows itself to be true even amid the seemingly unimportant aspects of human life. When you obey the call of Jesus Christ, the first thing that hits you is the pointlessness of the things you have to do. The next thought that strikes you is that other people seem to be living perfectly consistent lives. Such lives may leave you with the idea that God is unnecessary— that through your own human effort and devotion you can attain God’s standard for your life. In a fallen world this can never be done. I am called to live in such a perfect relationship with God that my life produces a yearning for God in the lives of others, not admiration for myself. Thoughts about myself hinder my usefulness to God. God’s purpose is not to perfect me to make me a trophy in His showcase; He is getting me to the place where He can use me. Let Him do what He wants.

The issue is to stay connected and available through our relationship with Jesus Christ. JDV

The issue is not to conform or “be a good Christian” it is to stay connected and let God use us whenever and however He chooses. Our step by step spiritual growth plan does not seem to work out in real life. We cannot hope to “become a better person” then be used by God. We simply stay open to be used how and when God chooses.

We do not have to be conformed before we are confirmed by God as He uses us. We are confirmed simply accepting the gift of Jesus on the cross. This gift prooduces all we ever need as we stay connnected.

It seems that adding any “metric” to our spiritual quest will actually become deterrant to our true spiritual objective which is connectedness to him.

December 1, 2009

The Law and the Gospel

Music and video:https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=RIkast4OCLc

Whoever shall keep the whole law, and yet stumble in one point, he is guilty of all —James 2:10

The moral law does not consider our weaknesses as human beings; in fact, it does not take into account our heredity or infirmities. It simply demands that we be absolutely moral. The moral law never changes, either for the highest of society or for the weakest in the world. It is enduring and eternally the same. The moral law, ordained by God, does not make itself weak to the weak by excusing our shortcomings. It remains absolute for all time and eternity. If we are not aware of this, it is because we are less than alive. Once we do realize it, our life immediately becomes a fatal tragedy. “I was alive once without the law, but when the commandment came, sin revived and I died” ( Romans 7:9 ). The moment we realize this, the Spirit of God convicts us of sin. Until a person gets there and sees that there is no hope, the Cross of Christ remains absurd to him. Conviction of sin always brings a fearful, confining sense of the law. It makes a person hopeless— “. . . sold under sin” ( Romans 7:14  ). I, a guilty sinner, can never work to get right with God— it is impossible. There is only one way by which I can get right with God, and that is through the death of Jesus Christ. I must get rid of the underlying idea that I can ever be right with God because of my obedience. Who of us could ever obey God to absolute perfection!

From 35000 feet, on an airplane this morning, (amazing times we live in ) I am worshiping and praying along with the devotional and song. The music and lyrics choked me up a bit as I came to feel the impact of God’s grace and mercy. Trying to “feel” close to God is tricky…because our feelings are tricky, the enemy vigilient. Whenever we fail and God knows we will, our accuser stands there shouting out our failure trying to bring us down from the victory Jesus freely provides. All we need to do is accept the gift…..JDV

We only begin to realize the power of the moral law once we see that it comes with a condition and a promise. But God never coerces us. Sometimes we wish He would make us be obedient, and at other times we wish He would leave us alone. Whenever God’s will is in complete control, He removes all pressure. And when we deliberately choose to obey Him, He will reach to the remotest star and to the ends of the earth to assist us with all of His almighty power.

November 27, 2009

The Consecration of Spiritual Power

Consecration is the solemn dedication to a special purpose or service, . The word “consecration” literally means “to associate with the sacred“. A synonym for consecration is to sanctify..Wekipedia

Today’s music and video: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=oMtz1fJv340&NR=1

. . . by whom the world has been crucified to me, and I to the world —Galatians 6:14

If I dwell on the Cross of Christ, I do not simply become inwardly devout and solely interested in my own holiness— I become strongly focused on Jesus Christ’s interests.

This transformation occurs inside of believers becasue of the work of Jesus on the cross, and has nothing to do with our work or accomplishments. We become transformed by the power of the Spirit of God simply by focusing on the cross and staying connected to the person of Jesus. jdv

I have been crucified with Christ, and it is no longer I who live, but Christ lives in me; and the life which I now live in the flesh I live by faith in the Son of God, who loved me and delivered Himself up for me.” (Galatians 2:19-20).

Our Lord was not a recluse nor a fanatical holy man practicing self-denial. He did not physically cut Himself off from society, but He was inwardly disconnected all the time. He was not aloof, but He lived in another world.

Was this because Jesus was the ultimate practitioner of the “Balcony View” or Objective View?  Perhaps what He cut Himself off from was the subjective, view with its visceral tension and reactions.    Perhaps the other world he lived in was simply on the balcony with his Father.   ….I only do what I see the Father doing…jn 5:19              What a great aspiration for us as well!!!  djr

In fact, He was so much in the common everyday world that the religious people of His day accused Him of being a glutton and a drunkard. Yet our Lord never allowed anything to interfere with His consecration of spiritual power.

It is not genuine consecration to think that we can refuse to be used of God now in order to store up our spiritual power for later use. That is a hopeless mistake. The Spirit of God has set a great many people free from their sin, yet they are experiencing no fullness in their lives— no true sense of freedom. The kind of religious life we see around the world today is entirely different from the vigorous holiness of the life of Jesus Christ. “I do not pray that You should take them out of the world, but that You should keep them from the evil one” ( John 17:15 ). We are to be in the world but not of it— to be separated internally, not externally (seeJohn 17:16 ).

We must never allow anything to interfere with the consecration of our spiritual power. Consecration (being dedicated to God’s service) is our part; sanctification (being set apart from sin and being made holy) is God’s part. We must make a deliberate determination to be interested only in what God is interested. The way to make that determination, when faced with a perplexing problem, is to ask yourself, “Is this the kind of thing in which Jesus Christ is interested, or is it something in which the spirit that is diametrically opposed to Jesus is interested?”

November 26, 2009

Music and video for today: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=hILaSh78yHQ&feature=related

. . . except in the cross of our Lord Jesus Christ . . . —Galatians 6:14

If you want to know the power of God (that is, the resurrection life of Jesus) in your human flesh, you must dwell on the tragedy of God. Break away from your personal concern over your own spiritual condition, and with a completely open spirit consider the tragedy of God. Instantly the power of God will be in you.

I find myself really drawn to this type of guarantee.  It’s almost magical or vending machine like.   Perhaps that is the reason that God has not seen fit to activate this mechanism in me more– Magic and Vending Machine not being the right reason.    Maybe I haven’t focused correctly on the tragedy of God, as Oswald suggests.   As I do that, even now, it does shrink the size of my problems that I was thinking of before starting this reading.   The challenge, it seems, is to stay in that place all the time.  Conscious of God’s Tragedy —djr

“Look to Me. . .” (Isaiah 45:22). Pay attention to the external Source and the internal power will be there. We lose power because we don’t focus on the right thing. The effect of the Cross is salvation, sanctification, healing, etc., but we are not to preach any of these. We are to preach “Jesus Christ and Him crucified” ( 1 Corinthians 2:2 ). The proclaiming of Jesus will do its own work. Concentrate on God’s focal point in your preaching, and even if your listeners seem to pay it no attention, they will never be the same again. If I share my own words, they are of no more importance than your words are to me. But if we share the truth of God with one another, we will encounter it again and again. We have to focus on the great point of spiritual power— the Cross. If we stay in contact with that center of power, its energy is released in our lives. In holiness movements and spiritual experience meetings, the focus tends to be put not on the Cross of Christ but on the effects of the Cross.

Once again Oswald reminds us that there is supernatural power for us in the cross and the sacrifice of our God. He reminds us that we stay connected to God’s  power by staying focused on the cross, NOT the effects of the cross. The effects, the results, and all the outcomes are controlled and manifest by the power of the living God when we simply focus on His sacrifice. We do not focus on our circumstance, the overwhelming and what looks like impending “train wreck” of our lives, we focus on Jesus at the cross.

When we do this, God is able to work supernatually in our lives. The cross is the foundation of our faith and our lives, day to day:

1 Cor 2:2 (Phi) …It was my determination to concentrate entirely on Jesus Christ himself and the fact of his death upon the cross.

 

A.W. Tozer: “The old cross is a symbol of death. God salvages the individual by liquidating him and then raising him again in newness of life. God offers life, but not an improved old life. The life He offers is life out of death. It always stands at the far side of the cross.”…….JD

The feebleness of the church is being criticized today, and the criticism is justified. One reason for the feebleness is that there has not been this focus on the true center of spiritual power. We have not dwelt enough on the tragedy of Calvary or on the meaning of redemption.

Perhaps we have not focused enough on the cross of Christ and the redemptive powers therein…..It seems that staying connected to God begins and ends here, everyday, every morning as we gather our manna for the day. …JD

November 24, 2009

Direction of Focus

Today’s Music: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=3-07PKW9PRI

Behold, as the eyes of servants look to the hand of their masters . . . , so our eyes look to the Lord our God . . . —Psalm 123:2

This verse is a description of total reliance on God. Just as the eyes of a servant are riveted on his master, our eyes should be directed to and focused on God. This is how knowledge of His countenance is gained and how God reveals Himself to us (seeIsaiah 53:1  ). Our spiritual strength begins to be drained when we stop lifting our eyes to Him. Our stamina is sapped, not so much through external troubles surrounding us but through problems in our thinking. We wrongfully think, “I suppose I’ve been stretching myself a little too much, standing too tall and trying to look like God instead of being an ordinary humble person.” We have to realize that no effort can be too high.

We can never stretch ourselves too thin when we keep our eyes on the Lord. Peter could walk on water when he looked to Jesus. We serve an awesome God that can accomplish anything. When we are connected to Him it is He that does the “stretching” and nothing is a “stretch for our God. We get tired and spread ourselves too thin when we operate out of our own strength. jd

For example, you came to a crisis in your life, took a stand for God, and even had the witness of the Spirit as a confirmation that what you did was right. But now, maybe weeks or years have gone by, and you are slowly coming to the conclusion— “Well, maybe what I did showed too much pride or was superficial. Was I taking a stand a bit too high for me?” Your “rational” friends come and say, “Don’t be silly. We knew when you first talked about this spiritual awakening that it was a passing impulse, that you couldn’t hold up under the strain. And anyway, God doesn’t expect you to endure.” You respond by saying, “Well, I suppose I was expecting too much.” That sounds humble to say, but it means that your reliance on God is gone, and you are now relying on worldly opinion. The danger comes when, no longer relying on God, you neglect to focus your eyes on Him. Only when God brings you to a sudden stop will you realize that you have been the loser. Whenever there is a spiritual drain in your life, correct it immediately. Realize that something has been coming between you and God, and change or remove it at once.

We have been learning that the primary focus for the believer is “being connected” to God through Jesus. Our “dashboard” lights called fear, anger, jealousy, pride, anxiety all (and more) tell us that we are no longer directly connected in that particular area (and in that circumstance) of our lives and that we are to return immediately to the intimate relationship we have known.

When we “seek first His kingdom” everything else falls into place….jd

I can do all things through Christ Jesus that strengthens me. Phillipians 4:13