IN THE DARK....focus on GOD!
Sigh! So much to get done. If I can just break through the ceiling, the wall. But not yet, HE’S not ready! Sometimes I get weary trying to get out to no avail. It’s not that I feel unsafe. It’s just that I want more. I’m in a cell, but I’m not miserable or feeling tight. I just need to sit tight. I’m anxious sometimes to go out into the light. But HE’S not ready. I’m not ready. I’m still in embryonic form. It’s not time yet for me to be birth. I’ve got to trust the process. A premature birth is dangerous to the fetus. God is not ready to release me from the darkness of the womb of HIS nurture. Like a seed I first have to be planted way down in the dark soil, and build more roots before I surface. I need to germinate. Patience is a virtue. Rest is good!
What do I do when I’m not getting enough done fast enough? When my goals and aspirations are not being materialized and instead other agendas keep surfacing on my shores? What do I do when the people who are constantly relying on me are unreliable. Even though I know that God is my source, do I continue to let Judas kiss me? Do I continue to be faithful to the unfaithful? To what avail? Do I just sit and wait patiently and do nothing? Not going anywhere anytime soon!
….I guess this is how Daniel felt in the lion’s den; knowing it was God that was keeping the lions from devouring him; yet wondering when he was going to get out of there. Or Jonah in the belly of the whale. When you know that it’s God who’s keeping you but you’re curious to get transferred to a more favorable environ. You want to get to a more comfortable place, anywhere but there. What about Joseph in prison? Clearly it was God who took him to Egypt. He had gotten a vision soooooooooooooo long ago about his dominion over his brothers. First he was beaten, then sold, then imprisoned, then released, then lied upon, then imprisoned again. Yet he remained faithful to God through it all. If God brought you to it, HE'LL get you through it.
"God is not a God of buck-up!"....Pastor David Henry
Proverbs 3: 5-6
Trust in the Lord with all your heart, And lean not on your own understanding. In all your ways acknowledge HIM, And HE shall direct your paths.
The purpose of your life....
Your whole life is about fulfilling God's purpose, not yours. Ephesians 2 God made us to do good works which please HIM. This includes: dominating the earth, loving each other, loving and relating to HIM, obeying HIS commands, enjoying the earth, enjoying our lives on earth. The thing is, we cannot accomplish any of these goals without correct instructions. God is very organized. And HIS intent is for the earth to function as organized as heaven does. That is why Jesus taught HIS disciples to pray by giving them a template which included "THY Kingdom come, THY Will be done, here on earth as it is in heaven". Jesus was the first example of an 'extra-terristial being' i.e. a person
who lived in heaven coming to earth to teach us the ways of heaven. Even though God had sent the Holy Spirit and angels to relate to men in the past, they were all short-term appearances. The only two people who had ever really related to/ dwelt with God were Adam and Eve. They were distracted and deceived by the devil. They forfeited the plan. Genesis 1-3 It was not enough time and training for them to get it right.
Why Jesus came....
Jesus came to the earth to restore man's broken relationship with God, and to fulfill God's purpose for our lives. God is holy. In order for us to be acceptable in the presence of God we would have to become holy as well. The only thing that could make us holy is the pure blood of Jesus Christ HIS Son.
Hebrews 9:22
And according to the law almost all things are purified with blood, and without shedding of blood there is no remission of sins.
Ever since Adam and Eve sinned, God promised to send Jesus to clean up their mess. Genesis 3 Then God gave us laws to keep us on the right track and prophets/ prophecies to remind us that Jesus would come and make it better. When the time was right Jesus came and died on the cross, so that HE could give us the Holy Spirit to teach us how to successfully accomplish God's plan for our lives on earth. The Holy Spirit could not live in 'unclean vessels'. Jesus was man on earth, HIS mission limited HIM to one location at a time. But the Holy Spirit is not limited to location. HE can be with and in all of us simultaneously.
Matthew 5: 17-19
17 “Do not think that I came to destroy the Law or the Prophets. I did not come to destroy but to fulfill. 18 For assuredly, I say to you, till heaven and earth pass away, one jot or one tittle will by no means pass from the law till all is fulfilled. 19 Whoever
therefore breaks one of the least of these commandments, and teaches
men so, shall be called least in the kingdom of heaven; but whoever does
and teaches them, he shall be called great in the kingdom of heaven.
God's plan for man's life on earth is to enjoy the privileges of living in the Kingdom of heaven. It's like being a King who has colonized another territory. You send your 'governor' or representative to set up a 'colony' of your kingdom. In a colony, the citizens speak the same language, share a similar culture, and are entitled to the same privileges as the residents in the original kingdom. The original kingdom is the headquarters with the resources. The laws and constitution/ principles are the same in both territories. Jesus brought the government of the Kingdom of heaven to earth when HE came. Isaiah 9 After HIS resurrection Jesus told HIS disciples to wait on the Holy Spirit who would teach them all things i.e. the culture of the Kingdom of heaven).
St. John 14:26
But the Advocate, the Holy Spirit, whom the Father will send in My name,
will teach you all things and will remind you of everything I have told
you.
Jesus told HIS disciples that the reason HE came to earth was to preach the gospel of the Kingdom of heaven and HE commissioned them to do the same. Matthew 4-28 Everything about us should reflect this mandate. When we understand the Kingdom, we understand our authority. Jesus had dark days like those in the wilderness; like the one in Gethsemane, but HE was not distracted. HIS mission was to expose us to the Kingdom of heaven, restore it to us, and give us the Holy Spirit to sustain it here on earth. Gethsemane was HIS last chance to 'cop out', i.e. to disobey God's will for HIS life on earth. Once HE got arrested, the rest was history. Joseph could have slept with Potipher's wife. Distraction and deception are very subtle. It is important to know what is God's command to you, and to obey it no matter what. Just as we all have a unique fingerprint, so too we all have a specific purpose in God's plan for our lives on earth. Everything in the earth is just a 'thing'. Things are replaceable and incomparable to those in the Kingdom of heaven. It's seasonal and liable to roth. Matthew 6 God's will is for us to set our affections on the things of heaven in HIS Kingdom. It's a different mindset for a different lifestyle.
2 Set your affection on things above, not on things on the earth.
3 For ye are dead, and your life is hid with Christ in God.
In the Kingdom of heaven your value system is the opposite of the kingdom of earth. The kingdom of earth is temporal and so is its wealth. It is ruled by the devil. he is God's enemy. At the end of the day, the mission is God's glory. God must be glorified. It's what Kings demand. Kings take care of their children and citizens. It's in their nature and reflects their glory. Their territories/ colonies reflect their wealth, power and dominion. Jesus reclaimed earthly dominion and gave it back to man when HE died on the cross. Then HE went back to be with HIS Father in heaven. HE is now seated on HIS throne at the right hand of God The Father. Mark 16 It doesn't matter where you start. With God you always finish on top. The Almighty God is in always control. HE sees all, HE knows all! Trust HIS plan. Give HIM all the praise! HE is Sovereign over all!
TESTIMONY: ISIS Assassin Meets Jesus | Testimony by Sean Feucht
WORSHIP: Oceans
Be a flint....focus on GOD!
No comments:
Post a Comment