Commune With God

Last night, while sitting in the living room getting ready to read Psalms, I felt like I should just go to my room and read. My husband had a movie on (I’m usually pretty good at tuning things out), the kids were still up, and I was desiring alone time with God.

I had a pretty rough week – on a number of levels. Struggling with issues with my kids at church that I really just want God to take care of, trying to focus on the unity of the Spirit. You know how the enemy loves to run rampant when we give him room in these areas! The baby had been sick all week, so I missed both Wed and Sun church. Feeling the weight of the burdens of everyday life – raising our teenage nephew, kids, home, work, church commitments, ministry work. I was having a hard time staying prayed up and motivated to “dig deeper” each day. If you’ve ever had an oppressive spirit come against you, you know what I mean. To top it off, I was letting distractions keep me in that place – house cleaning, movies, people, shopping, etc. Anything to keep me busy. Too busy for God is what it came down to. In one week I had become spiritually weak and tired of fighting the battles.

With all this consuming me, my heart was longing for alone time with Jesus—His calling unto me, I’m sure. Yet, there I sat, on the couch in the living room next to my husband. I opened my Bible to Psalm 4 and this is what I read:

“Hear me when I call, O God of my righteousness: thou hast enlarged me when I was in distress; have mercy upon me, and hear my prayer. O ye sons of men, how long will ye turn my glory into shame? how long will ye love vanity, and seek after leasing? Selah.
But know that the LORD hath set apart him that is godly for himself: the LORD will hear when I call unto him. Stand in awe, and sin not: commune with your own heart upon your bed, and be still. Selah.” v 1-4

Commune…upon your bed…and be still.

Thank you Lord! That was the push I needed. Off I went with my Bible in hand, to lock myself in my room, sit upon my bed, be still, and commune with my Jesus.

What a glorious communion it was! To cry out to Him, to repent of where I’d been rebellious, to seek His strength, and feel His loving arms wrapped around me, telling me: You are not enduring alone. I will never leave you or forsake you. Lay your burdens at My feet. Cast all your cares on Me, for I care for you.

Not only my Rock and my Salvation, but my Strength and my Shield. After who knows how long and some tear-soaked tissues later, the heaviness was lifted and I found myself back in the joy of His presence.

When was the last time you locked yourself away to simply commune with Jesus? To give yourself the OK to cry to Him and be weak before Him?

"The sacrifices of God are a broken spirit: a broken and a contrite heart, O God, thou wilt not despise." Ps 51:17

If it’s been a while, I encourage you to set aside the cares of this world and follow the gentle leading of His Spirit. Allow Him to fill you with all the love and peace and joy and strength that He is. ♥

Back to Surrender

God keeps leading me back...

“And the very God of peace sanctify you wholly; and I pray God your whole spirit and soul and body be preserved blameless unto the coming of our Lord Jesus Christ. Faithful is he that calleth you, who also will do it.” 1 Thess 5:23-24

Will do what? Sanctify you wholly. On 3 levels: body, soul, and spirit.

Since we are called according to His purpose and He is forever Faithful and True, He will make us exactly what we need to be to complete the good works He has before ordained that we should walk in. When we completely surrender to Jesus, He is free to perform in and through us to the fullest.

“The LORD will perfect that which concerneth me: thy mercy, O LORD, endureth for ever: forsake not the works of thine own hands.” Ps 138:8

“Being confident of this very thing, that he which hath begun a good work in you will perform it until the day of Jesus Christ:” Phil 1:6

Why? So that He may be glorified in us and His name exalted in all the earth.

“Wherefore also we pray always for you, that our God would count you worthy of this calling, and fulfil all the good pleasure of his goodness, and the work of faith with power: That the name of our Lord Jesus Christ may be glorified in you, and ye in him, according to the grace of our God and the Lord Jesus Christ.” 2 Thess 1:11-12

“He restoreth my soul: he leadeth me in the paths of righteousness for his name's sake.” Ps 23:3

“Help us, O God of our salvation, for the glory of thy name: and deliver us, and purge away our sins, for thy name's sake.” Ps 79:9

Sometimes I have to remind myself that it is HIS work in me, not MY work for Him. In this, is His perfect will made manifest in the earth.

The Name of Jesus

I’m curious why people will grab hold of the name of Jesus and shout all praise, will quote verse by verse to show His authority in various situations (even to cast out demons and raise the dead!), but when it comes to baptism they shun His name and hold fast to a tradition which wasn’t even implemented into the Christian church until around 325 AD (see History notes at bottom of page). Why do we oppose what the Word of God actually says?

I’m sure this argument has gone on for ages amid the religious community, but the truth must always be brought to light. We cannot fear to hide what God’s word says. I’m not judging anyone’s salvation based on how you’ve been baptized, but I woke up with this troubling my spirit this morning. Before you dismiss reading the rest of this because you may have been baptized one way and not another, I would encourage you to read on. I’m not promoting or demoting any one denomination or doctrine thereof. I, personally, do not belong to any denomination but am simply a Christian who loves Jesus and His truth.

Let’s start with what the Bible says about traditions:

“But in vain they do worship me, teaching for doctrines the commandments of men.” Matt 15:9

“Making the word of God of none effect through your tradition, which ye have delivered: and many such like things do ye.” Mark 7:13

“Beware lest any man spoil you through philosophy and vain deceit, after the tradition of men, after the rudiments of the world, and not after Christ.” Col 2:8

The commandment of Jesus to the disciples is found in Matt 28:18-20:

“And Jesus came and spake unto them, saying, All power is given unto me in heaven and in earth. Go ye therefore, and teach all nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father, and of the Son, and of the Holy Ghost: Teaching them to observe all things whatsoever I have commanded you: and, lo, I am with you always, even unto the end of the world. Amen.”

The most common argument against baptizing in Jesus name is that in this verse Jesus gave the “formula” for which baptism should occur. Where does He say that? Where does any scripture in the Bible say that? In fact, when Jesus wanted to give you a “formula” or way to do something, He said so, as when teaching the disciples how to pray in Matt 6:9: “After this manner therefore pray ye: Our Father which art in heaven, Hallowed be thy name.”

Here, however, He tells them to baptize in “in the name of…”. Are Father, Son or Holy Ghost names? No.

The name by which the Father is revealed to us: Jesus. As seen in:

John 17:6 "I have manifested thy name unto the men which thou gavest me out of the world: thine they were, and thou gavest them me; and they have kept thy word.”

John 17:26 “And I have declared unto them thy name, and will declare it: that the love wherewith thou hast loved me may be in them, and I in them.”

John 5:43 “I am come in my Father's name, and ye receive me not: if another shall come in his own name, him ye will receive.”

The name of the Son: Jesus. As seen in:

Matt 1:21 “And she shall bring forth a son, and thou shalt call his name JESUS: for he shall save his people from their sins.” (There’s more, but I believe this is the most obvious).

The name in which the Holy Ghost is sent: Jesus. As seen in:

John 14:26 “But the Comforter, which is the Holy Ghost, whom the Father will send in my name, he shall teach you all things, and bring all things to your remembrance, whatsoever I have said unto you.”

Furthermore, Col 3:17 says, “And whatsoever ye do in word or deed, do all in the name of the Lord Jesus, giving thanks to God and the Father by him.” "Do all in the name of the Lord Jesus" seems all-inclusive here, why would baptism be excluded?

Now, let’s look at the most obvious, plainly stated form of baptism in the early church:

“Then Peter said unto them, Repent, and be baptized every one of you in the name of Jesus Christ for the remission of sins, and ye shall receive the gift of the Holy Ghost.” Acts 2:38

“(For as yet he was fallen upon none of them: only they were baptized in the name of the Lord Jesus.)” Acts 8:16

“And he commanded them to be baptized in the name of the Lord. Then prayed they him to tarry certain days.” Acts 10:48

“When they heard this, they were baptized in the name of the Lord Jesus.” Acts 19:5

Paul continues in this truth:

“Know ye not, that so many of us as were baptized into Jesus Christ were baptized into his death?” Rom 6:3

“Is Christ divided? was Paul crucified for you? or were ye baptized in the name of Paul? I thank God that I baptized none of you, but Crispus and Gaius; Lest any should say that I had baptized in mine own name.” 1 Cor 1:13-15 – Of course Paul didn’t baptize in his own name. Whose name did he baptize in? Jesus.

“For as many of you as have been baptized into Christ have put on Christ.” Gal 3:27

And we know: “Neither is there salvation in any other: for there is none other name under heaven given among men, whereby we must be saved.” Acts 4:12

So, why would we be so quick to trade the very Word of God for traditions and doctrines of man?

We are called to: “Study to shew thyself approved unto God, a workman that needeth not to be ashamed, rightly dividing the word of truth” (2 Tim 2:15). I encourage you to study these scriptures and any others the Lord would lead you to. Allow the Spirit of God to reveal truth as He is the Spirit of Truth.

A Little History:
The early church form of baptism was changed around 325 AD at the first Council of Nicaea, at which time the “trinity” as we know it today was not yet established, but was on its way at the insistence of Emperor Constantine to appease the growing controversies in the land. At this time, the equality of the Father and the Son had been established by way of the “homoousion” formula—essentially defining them “as one substance.” It wasn’t until the 4th century AD that the Holy Spirit was added and thus, we have what today’s church calls the “trinity.” With this little bit of knowledge: Why do we baptize in a “formula” that wasn’t even established until 400 years after Jesus commanded the disciples to go into all the world and baptize? Jesus gave them a name and 400 years later the religious men, under pressure from the emperor, instituted a religious tradition.

"First Council of Nicaea." The Columbia Encyclopedia, Sixth Edition. 2008. Encyclopedia.com. 17 Jan. 2011 http://www.encyclopedia.com/.

E. A. LIVINGSTONE. "Nicaea, First Council of." The Concise Oxford Dictionary of the Christian Church. 2000. Encyclopedia.com. 17 Jan. 2011 http://www.encyclopedia.com/.

JOHN BOWKER. "Nicaea, Council of." The Concise Oxford Dictionary of World Religions. 1997. Encyclopedia.com. 17 Jan. 2011 http://www.encyclopedia.com/.

JOHN BOWKER. "Homoousion." The Concise Oxford Dictionary of World Religions 1997. Retrieved January 17, 2011 from Encyclopedia.com: http://www.encyclopedia.com/doc/1O101-Homoousion.html

E. A. LIVINGSTONE. "Arianism." The Concise Oxford Dictionary of the Christian Church 2000. Encyclopedia.com. 17 Jan. 2011 http://www.encyclopedia.com/.

Following After Wisdom

Is it truly possible to learn from the mistakes of others? To heed the wisdom of our elders without having to go through what they did? Or, do we all have to be rebellious teens, so to speak, who need to learn from our own experiences?

I want to heed the wisdom of those who have gone before me, my spiritual elders. I want to take Wisdom by the hand and walk this path God has laid before me. Is it possible without having to learn the "hard way?"

"Man that is born of a woman is of few days and full of trouble." (Job 14:1) The way I see it, trials and suffering come to all. They are a part of this dying world and as long as this is our abode, we must endure them. But how to rejoice through them? By allowing the godly wisdom imparted to us by those who have endured already to be our guide. Jesus foremost, Paul, Peter, John, Timothy and such, but also those we know now.

If it is possible to not have to add to the trials, this is the way I want to endure.

"And unto man he said, Behold, the fear of the LORD, that is wisdom; and to depart from evil is understanding." Job 28:28

"My mouth shall speak of wisdom; and the meditation of my heart shall be of understanding." Ps 49:3

"Happy is the man that findeth wisdom, and the man that getteth understanding." Prov 3:13

Think about it: Speak of the fear of the Lord, let the meditation of your heart be on departing from evil. In these we will find happiness. :)

A Sad Truth

It makes my heart sad to see so many Christians, especially on FB, searching out evils in the body of Christ. Are we the church police? Are we Holy Ghost investigators? Is it our job to examine every church (we've never gone to), every preacher and teacher that is in the spotlight, every Christian musician and highlight where they may or may not be exactly in line with scripture? The last time I checked the Bible said to examine OURSELVES that we be in the faith. Yes, if it's YOUR OWN church it needs to be addressed according to the word of God. Yes, depart from those who are involved in obvious sin, restore such a one with meekness if we're able, but why go blast a group or individual all over the internet? Especially those we have NEVER made a single personal contact with. How is this bringing glory to God? How is this in any way helping those souls you believe are deceived? Stop looking for the speck in other people's eyes and remove the plank from your own because I can most certainly say that those who post and blast and gossip and slander these churches, preachers, musicians, etc. are not 100% in line with scripture themselves. If it were possible we would not need the blood of Christ. Let us not forget, "such were some of you," and even Peter denied Jesus three times yet was restored to do a great work in Him. We all have to answer for our own faults and failings.

Instead of hammering down and casting out members of the body of Christ, spend that time in prayer for a great awakening, for God's Spirit to move in the hearts of the blind that their souls might be saved. Be an intercessor instead of a mouthpiece for the enemy. If I spent half the time in prayer for people I even THINK are deceived as I do reading this garbage, how much more would the Lord's work be done?

I've heard so many defend their position of gossip (because that's essentially what it is). "We're not to point out sin?" or "Paul told Peter." or "Jesus did it in the temple." Yes, point out sin if it is in your life, your church, the people you are in contact with. Yes, address a brother to his face. Yes, address any anti-Biblical practices in your church. I don't think Paul went and told ALL the other disciples how crooked Peter was and to stay away from him. If you feel that strongly that someone is a devil, then do it according to the WORD! That's the only way. The internet is a gossip forum if that's what you allow it to be, despite how "good" you think your intentions are. Remember, there is none good except God.

People put so much effort into making these videos, arranging their blogs & websites, but how many laid one ounce of mercy for that soul they are blasting at the feet of Jesus? How many of you who instigate division in the body of Christ, take time out of your lives to pray for those you so obviously despise? Isn't it more important to take all that effort and energy and encourage people to be in their prayer closets, in the word, in the Spirit themselves so as not to be deceived? It's not our job to uncover every deceiver we THINK is out there. It's the job of the Holy Ghost to lead us each individually. We should be teaching how to be led by the Spirit and be a son of God instead of spreading fear of deception. In Christ is perfect love and perfect love casts out all fear.

When the time comes to make that decision, we don't really have each other to show us who is and who is not truly of God anyhow. Only those being led by the Spirit of truth will be able to discern such a thing. Otherwise, we're just leaning once again on another man's wisdom and that's the very thing we're instructed not to do.

Stop playing uber-spiritual and start DOING what God says. Be ye merciful for He is merciful, pray for those you despise, if you see a brother overtaken in a fault then restore him in meekness lest you also fall. As much as we think we're doing a service, the truth is gossip and backbiting will enter the kingdom of heaven no more than those deceivers you're trying to expose. Praise God each of our lives are not in the spotlight. Praise God His mercy begins anew every day. Praise God He has given us power to heal, deliver and restore. Praise God He has given us the Spirit of truth to lead us into all truth! Let us be wise in the wisdom of God and forsake the ways of the world.

Sacrifice & Surrender 2

We are called to a life of sacrifice and surrender—a term that is highly overused and highly lacking in action. We are called to give up the things that we desire. When David says, “Delight thyself also in the LORD: and he shall give thee the desires of thine heart” (Ps 37:4), I believe this speaks to a change in our heart’s desires. The more we delight in Him, the more He leads us to desire the things of His kingdom as opposed to the things of this world.

No matter what Jesus wanted in His person, His flesh—for we know at one point He asked the Father that the cup of sacrifice would pass from Him—He knew that ultimately the Father’s will must be accomplished. “Saying, Father, if thou be willing, remove this cup from me: nevertheless not my will, but thine, be done” (Luke 22:42). This is the life to which we are called—sacrifice and surrender.

The life of Jesus was a demonstration of so much more than what many choose to see. Many Christians openly embrace His character, striving to be vessels of His love, mercy, compassion, even to work miracles as He did. But how many openly embrace the sacrifice and surrender to the Father’s will that Jesus modeled? We want the fullness of the blessing of God, the fullness of the manifestation of the Spirit in our lives; yet, we don’t surrender or sacrifice to the fullest. We are to be conformed to the image of whole person of Jesus Christ, not just the attributes we deem acceptable or convenient.

Yes Lord, even if I have to live in poverty (for Paul clearly did); even if I have to be socially rejected, and amid the Christian community as well (for Jesus and all the disciples were rejected of the world AND the religious sect); even if I have to be hated and persecuted (for Jesus tells us we will be hated even as He was hated); even if my own children, parents, and siblings cast me aside, I will be obedient to Your word and the leading of Your Spirit. Even if I have to give up the American Dream, my every heart’s desire, I choose to be found worthy to follow You.

“He that loveth father or mother more than me is not worthy of me: and he that loveth son or daughter more than me is not worthy of me. And he that taketh not his cross, and followeth after me, is not worthy of me. He that findeth his life shall lose it: and he that loseth his life for my sake shall find it” (Matt 10:37-39).

I choose sacrifice of the flesh and surrender to the Father’s will so I will be found a good and faithful servant. I choose the leading of the Spirit through the hardest (and most purifying) trials so I will be found a son of the Most High God. The righteousness, peace, and joy found in such a lifestyle stretch far beyond any temporal pleasure the fulfillment of the desires of this world brings.

Praise You my God! For You are true joy and peace, and in You there is hope forevermore! Hallelujah!