I Chose Freedom

 

God is spirit, and those who are worshipping Him must be worshipping in spirit and truth.

John 4: 24, Concordant New Testament 

These days I bristle at the thought of sitting through another boring sermon.  The thought of that raucous worship band makes me run for the exit.  It's not that I'm anti church, I'm anti institutional church.  I am anti mainstream, cookie cutter theology church.  I have sat through enough Sunday morning sermons to know what the message of the local brick and mortar church is.  I've been there.  As I sit here this morning writing, my mind flashes back to the days when it was simply expected that I was to be in church on a Sunday morning.  This is what Christians do.  This is where we listen to the latest notion that the head pulpit pounder has conjured up.  Yet the underlying message is always the same.  God sent Jesus to die for our sins, but be mindful that you also pray for His forgiveness.  If this sounds like a double standard, you're right.  I agree that Jesus died for my sins, but this is where the institutional church lost me.  If Jesus became sin on my behalf {2 Corinthians 5:21}, why do I continue to ask the Father for forgiveness?  If Jesus died to sin once for all {Romans 6:10}, must I continue to seek the Fathers forgiveness?  In the end, I chose the freedom of Christ Jesus over the traditions and rituals of the mainstream church.  For it is in Christ that I have discovered true freedom.  Freedom in knowing that I and the Father are one {John 17:21}.  The freedom in knowing that I now live as Christ Jesus who lives within my flesh body {Galatians 2:20}.  I no longer need to seek the nearest church on Sunday morning in order to feel closer to God.  I chose the freedom of knowing that I am now one with the Father.  Many Christians will spend this Sunday morning on their knees in front of church altars desperately seeking to be closer to the Father.  I suppose that I would somehow be seen as a disgruntled believer if I were to point out to these Christians the freedom which I have found in Jesus.  Perhaps it's no wonder that the mainstream church is losing members at an alarming rate.  Perhaps there are more like me who are seeking the freedom of Christ.  

If ever, then, the Son should be making you free, you will be really free. 

John 8: 36, Concordant New Testament 

Freedom in Jesus means that I am no longer beholden to the man created religious system found in the institutional church.  Those traditions and requirements are behind me.  In fact, I believe that it is these traditions and requirements which Jesus took to the cross with Him {Colossians 2:14}.  It is not by tradition or requirement that someone will come to know Jesus as I have.  It is not through traditions and requirements that one will find the freedom which is in Christ Jesus.  Don't get me wrong, I think that the church is a good starting point for someone looking to know about Jesus.  Yet the freedom of knowing the indwelling Christ will not come from any Sunday sermon preached there.  Knowing Christ within you will only come by the revelation of the Father.  This is how I came to know the Lord within me (of course, ME no longer exists).  The freedom found in Jesus is available to all of the Fathers children.  He allows us the freedom to seek it out for ourselves. 

~Scott~ 

Not In My Church!

 

'For I hunger and you give Me to eat' I thirst and you give Me drink; a stranger was I and you took Me in; naked and you clothed Me; infirm am I and you visit Me; in jail was I and you come to Me.'  "Then the just will be answering Him, saying, 'Lord, when did we perceive Thee hungering and nourish Thee, or thirsting and we give Thee drink?  And when did we perceive Thee a stranger and take Thee in, or naked and we clothed Thee?  Now when did we perceive Thee infirm, or in jail, and we came to Thee?'  "And answering, the King shall be declaring to them, 'Verily, I am saying to you, in as much as you do it to one of these, the least of My brethren, you do it to Me.'

Matthew 25: 35-40, Concordant New Testament 

It seems that we Christians have gotten the true meaning of the church confused over the years.  Even today, our brick and mortar church building fill up each Sunday with those who see themselves as 'Gods people.'  They, and only they, are blessed enough to be referred to as the church.  Well, believe it or not, I think that Jesus would have something different to say about that.  See, the church has never been a church of believers, but the body of Christ Jesus as a whole.  As we sit in our pews each Sunday, we are the body of Christ.  It is Jesus Himself who sits at the head of His church {Colossians 1:18}.  I mention this for one simple reason, because the church of Jesus has over the years lost its way.  The church as we know it has forgotten the meaning of the parable of Jesus we find in Matthew 25.  The parable where Jesus speaks of Himself as destitute, hungry and in prison.  Now, you may ask yourself, when was Jesus in jail?  He wasn't, but as He did many times to explain His lessons, He used metaphors and parables.  Why would Jesus feel the need to portray Himself as unwanted and destitute?  Because, as He explained to those who were listening, "As you do it to the least of My brethren, you do it to Me" {Matthew 25:40}.  Now, that may be a well known verse to many modern Christians, but knowing a verse and putting it into practice are two entirely different things.  I can recall being in church one Sunday morning while a gay rights protest was taking place outside the building.  These protestors believed, correctly, that many so called Christians did not want them around.  That day, I heard more than one church member proclaim, "Not in my church!"  Your church, really?  One term that I hear bantered around in Christianity every now and then is the term "unchurched."  For the longest time I saw this as referring to those who for one reason or another chose not to go to church.  No, I believe that the unchurched are those individuals whom we DON'T WANT within the four walls of our churches.  The homeless, those with alternative lifestyles and those struggling with addictions of one substance or another.  Here in Portland, Oregon, there is a street mission in our downtown area known as the Union Gospel Mission.  This is where you will surely find the unchurched, if you bother to look.  

And He is the head of the body, the ecclesia, Who is sovereign, firstborn from among the dead, that in all He may be becoming first. 

Colossians 1: 18, Concordant New Testament 

In my employment, I am usually subjected each day to the effects of the homeless population of our city.  The trash, needles and human waste are simply a normal part of our daily duties.  For this reason, I came to dislike the homeless.  Yes, I am a Christian and I didn't like the homeless, go figure.  Then I met Heather.  She was a homeless young lady I came across not too long ago who was struggling with addiction and life on the street.  In that moment, instead of approaching her with anger for her condition, something in my heart compelled me to see the human side of this young lady.  Her story touched me, she wanted to see her family again but not in the way she was living.  Before my job took me away, I prayed with Heather that she would find the healing she needed.  I can guarantee that Heather was part of the unchurched of our society.  These are the people who are crying out to be accepted by others.  Traditionally, the local church has been seen as a haven for those who are down and out.  It's the church where people go to when they have nowhere else to turn.  Maybe it's the expectation that Christians will spread the mercy of the Lord.  In a perfect church, that would be the case.  In a church seeing Christ Jesus as the head of the body of believers, there would be refuge for the unchurched and unwanted.  Can you imagine a closet drunk or abuser walking into a church one Sunday morning and hearing Jesus proclaim, 'NOT IN MY CHURCH!'  Of course, that would never happen, but that is what we as believers are doing to the body of Christ.  I guess there really is no perfect church.  

For ritual clean and undefiled with God the Father is this; to be visiting the bereaved and widowed in their affliction, to be keeping oneself unspotted from the world. 

James 1: 27, Concordant New Testament 

~Scott~ 

The Fear Of God

 

Fear is not in love, but perfect love is casting out fear, for fear has chastening.  Now he who is fearing is not perfected in love. 

1 John 4: 18, Concordant New Testament 

How much do you fear the Lord?  How much do you fear the fire and brimstones of His anger?  Well, in conversation with a good friend and coworker this week, it became clear to me that he certainly serves the Lord out of fear in some ways.  He fears of losing his salvation if his sins are too great.  I get it.  I spent a good deal of time within churches who taught that God indeed could be angered to the point of taking it out upon the children He loves.  This was part of the mainstream church theology which I grew up in.  So, in a way, I can emphasize with my friend in how he is feeling.  But do these fears of ours hold any merit?  Is God a Lord who is short tempered depending upon which sins we commit?  Is the anger of the Lord so on edge that He may one day deprive us of our salvation if we don't fly right?  Some who live in the fear of the Lord might tend to believe in this way of thinking.  I do not.  If we were to place these ideas we have about God upon our earthly parents, we would see Him as engaging in child abuse.  Is this the loving God we know?  The larger question is, does God desire for us to live in fear of Him?  For the answer to this I turn to one of my favorite passages in the book of John.  A passage which clearly shows us the true nature of the Lord we serve.  We know from the apostle John that God...is love {1 John 4:8}.  He loved us enough to send His only Son to die for us {John 3:16}.  He loved us enough to create us in His ow image {Genesis 1:27}.  This is the love of God personified.  Yet, far too many Christians fight the daily battle between what the church teaches and the love we find in the Lord.  I've been there.  The fear that I would be cast into a lake of fire if God became angry with my mistakes.  The fear that even after showing His love and mercy at the cross that He would seemingly cast me aside.  This was my fear of the Lord.  

For God gives us a spirit not of fear but of power and love and self control. 

1 Timothy 1: 7, Concordant New Testament 

Do you imagine a God who lords over us with intimidation?  To me this is not love at all.  Are we compelled to love God simply because we are afraid of what He may do to us?  Or do we love Him because He loved us first {1 John 4:9}?  This love which the Father has for us has always been.  This love which the Father has displayed for us knows no end.  There is nothing which we might ever do which will do away with the love which He has for His children.  His love endures all {1 Corinthians 13:7}.  The notion that Gods love is conditional is a negative lie espoused by the church.  It simply is not true.  So we fast, tithe and suffer through a life of fear of what God might do to us if we stray from His ways.  Instead of being thankful for His love and mercy upon us, we live in fear of Him.  I suggest that this has never been the way in which the Lord wants us to live.  How is it that we can be one with Christ and the Father if we fear Him?  Has God sent His Son to cleanse us simply to lord over us with fear?  Or, out of His love for us has He released us from the chains of slavery to sin which once bound us?  I would suggest that we have never served a God of anger but a God of endearing love who desires His children return to Him.  

Perceive what manner of love which the Father has given us, that we may be called children of God!  And we are!  Therefore the world does not know us, for it did not know Him. 

~Scott~ 

Mansions Of Glory

 But the serpent said to the woman: Not to die shall you be dying; for Elohim knows that on the day you eat of it your eyes will be unclosed, and you will become like Elohim, knowing good and evil.  Then the woman saw the tree was good for food, that it brought a yearning to the eyes and that the tree was desirable for gaining insight.  So she took of its fruit and ate.  She also gave some to her husband with her, and he ate. 

Genesis 3: 4-6, Concordant Old Testament (The Pentateuch) 

There is a story that is told of an elderly man who once offered a woman his mansion, which contained one hundred rooms.  The woman, perhaps knowing that this might be a offer too good to be true, inquired of the kind gentleman what the catch was.  "No catch," said the man.  "However, the only thing I ask is that you never enter the room at the top of the stairs, the one hundredth room of the house."  The woman thought this was an odd request, but accepted the mans offer nonetheless.  In time, the elderly man passed away and the woman was left alone by herself in the mansion.  Also with the passage of time, her curiosity burned over the room at the top of the stairs.  What was its secret?  Why had the old man forbid her from ever entering it?  Eventually her curiosity got the best of her and one day she climbed the stairs towards the forbidden room.  As she stood at the door of the room, her hand on the doorknob, she again pondered the old mans warning.  Slowly she turned the knob until she gazed upon the interior of the forbidden room.  Imagine her surprise when the room the elderly man had insisted she never enter contained...nothing.  It was exactly the same as the other rooms in the mansion.  The moral of this story, of course, is that even though we may be curious about such things which we have been warned are not beneficial to us, our own curiosities may eventually lead us into that forbidden room we were once warned about.  Adam and Eve had the perfect life in the Lords creation.  Some might say that they were in paradise.  They had it all, food, drink, everything they would ever need.  More than that, they also had a relationship with their Father creator.  But there was an issue.  Along with His paradise He had created, God instructed Adam and Eve that they must never eat of the fruit of the tree in the middle of the garden {Genesis 2:16-17}.  Now, to be totally honest, it wasn't the curiosity of Adam and Eve which eventually led them into the fall in the garden.  The prodding of the serpent (AKA Satan) was the final nail in the coffin of their perfect life in the garden.  The lie of Satan convinced Eve that once she ate of the forbidden tree that she...would be like God the Father.  Not knowing any better, Eve bought into the lie and took of the forbidden fruit.  Adam, well, he was simply along for the ride at that point.  

With Christ have I been crucified, yet I am living; no longer I, but LIVING IN ME is Christ.  Now that which I AM NOW LIVING IN THE FLESH, I am living in faith that is of the Son of God, Who loves me, and gives Himself up for me. 

Galatians 2: 20, Concordant New Testament 

(Italics added for those questioning the meaning of this passage) 

I've done quite a bit of thinking of the actions of the first couple in the garden.  They truly had all they would ever need, God had assured them of that.  Yet apparently Eve, with Satan's prodding, somehow came to believe that she could actually be like God.  Eve had to have known who God was, she and Adam communed with the Father on a regular basis.  However, what Adam and Eve did not know is that they were already like God.  Both had been created in the image of the Lord {Genesis 1:27}.  Yet all Adam and Eve knew was their benefits of living in the garden, they were unaware of how they came into being...but God knew.  Like the old man warning the woman never to enter into the forbidden room, God cautioned Adam and Eve never to take of the fruit of the tree He warned them about.  The rest, as they say, is history.  Adam and Eve bought into the lie that they were somehow separate from God.  Nothing could be further from the truth.  The apostle Paul reveals to us that it is Christ who "LIVES IN ME" {Galatians 2:20}  Yet, if Paul has been crucified as he rightfully claims, how can Jesus LIVE IN ME?  The only thing left of Paul was his flesh vessel.  There was no Paul, yet he claims that LIVING IN ME IS CHRIST.  For the sake of conversation with those who will not answer questions, who is the "me" Paul is referring to?  The "me" which Jesus not inhabits.  Yet Paul adds something important to his iconic passage of the indwelling Christ.  He stakes the claim that "I am living in faith that is of the Son of God."  Paul knew that he lived as Christ Jesus who now dwelled in him.  Going down rabbit holes of scripture seeking the key to some forbidden room to unlock the meaning of Paul's verse is a fools errand...and we are anything but.  We have died to our old nature.  Christ Jesus has now  filled that void left empty within us.  It is not I who live, but Christ lives within me.  

So that, if anyone is in Christ, there is a new creation: the primitive passed by.  Lo!  There has come new!

2 Corinthians 5: 17, Concordant New Testament 

~Scott~ 

Contemporary Jesus

 

"Remember, the people who know me are the one who are free to live and love without any agenda."

William P Young, The Shack 

I was contemplating the other day how the world looks at Jesus.  How is it that you look at Jesus?  When you think of Him, what is that first thing that you think of?  Well, many well meaning people get stuck on the idea of a contemporary Jesus.  That is, a generic, stripped down version of the Jesus who you think you knew.  When I think of Jesus, I think of the indwelling Christ who lives in me.  I was assisted in this revelation by the words of the apostle Paul.  Paul writes in Galatians that it is Jesus who now lives within him {Galatians 2:20}.  This is who I think of when I think of Jesus.  Yet, it wasn't always that way.  I used to follow the leader and adhere to the contemporary version of the risen Lord.  I saw Jesus as being holy, kind and loving.  This, in a nutshell, is the essence of the contemporary Jesus.  Jesus is looked upon for His love and mercy, and there is absolutely nothing wrong with that.  However, there is so much more to Jesus than just this contemporary belief.  One can very well know about Jesus and yet know nothing OF Him.  If you know more about Jesus than you know of Him, you may be following a contemporary Jesus.  Contemporary Jesus is easy to understand.  We simply know the attributes which Jesus possesses and celebrate Him as a result of these.  Jesus is admired because He is loving.  Jesus is to be revered because of His mercy.  All of these are true.  There is no disputing that this is the man He was.  However, when we peel away the shell of the contemporary Jesus, we're left with the man few have ever known.  Few know that it is Jesus who became sin on account for all {2 Corinthians 5:21}.  Fewer still know that it is Christ Jesus who put that sin to death once and for all {Romans 6:10}.  This is part of the true nature of Christ which few people have yet to realize.  I suggest that the contemporary Jesus is built around the narrative and theology of the story of Jesus as taught for centuries by the mainstream church.  The Jesus which I know is more than a story.  

Who, being the effulgence of His glory and emblem of His assumption, besides carrying on all by His powerful declaration, making a cleansing of sins, is seated at the right hand of the Majesty in the heights. 

Hebrews 1: 3, Concordant New Testament 

Is the belief in a contemporary version of Jesus a bad thing?  Not always.  I can testify that believing in the contemporary stories of Jesus eventually led me into a deep relationship with Him.  However, it all began with my understanding of who Jesus was.  I know that Jesus was my Lord and savior.  I knew that He bled and died to free me of my sin nature.  So it is that I had a early understanding of who Jesus was.  I would not discount the preaching of the personality and works of Christ, as this may in fact lead others to desiring a deeper relationship with Him.  However, the issue which I continue to see is the teachings of the church centering on the popular version of Jesus only.  Maybe this is what keeps the pews filled on Sundays.  Paul wrote to the church at Corinth that he had fed them with milk and not solid food as they were not able to handle much more{1 Corinthians 3:2}.  I see this in the mainstream church of today.  Paul spoke to those in Corinth as carnal rather than newborns in Christ Jesus.  He saw the church at Corinth as carnal, filled with envy and divisions amongst the body {1 Corinthians 3:3}.  Does this sound like any church you've had the opportunity to be in?  This is where the contemporary Jesus is spoken.  However, I would rather have someone know about the life of Christ than know nothing of Him.  We can trust that in His timing, the Father will reveal His Son unto them.  

As recently born babes, long for the unadulterated milk of the word that by it you may be growing into salvation, if so to be that you taste that the Lord is kind.  

1 Peter 2: 2-3, Concordant New Testament 

~Scott~ 

Master Of Disaster

 

And He is saying to them, "Why are you timid, scant of faith?"  Then, being roused, He rebukes the winds and the sea, and there came a great calm.  Now the men marvel, saying, "What manner of Man is this, that the winds as well as the sea are obeying Him?"

Matthew 8: 26-27, Concordant New Testament 

My friend shared a story this week of how he was visited by the local chapter of the Jehovah's witnesses.  Their question to him was if he thought that the Lord was behind the recent rash of wild fires on the Island of Hawaii.  To his credit, my friend did not engage these door to door salesmen in their conversation.  The question is not if the Lord was the cause of the devastation, but what He is doing through His people in the midst of it all.  Instead of looking for fire and brimstone, we should be looking into how God is leading even more of His children to return to Him.  Yet the mainstream church narrative will continue to be that somehow God has become upset with this current world and that He, in turn, is wreaking havoc upon a population of sinners.  Nothing could be further from the truth.  When we pull back the curtain of the institutional church message we find not a God bent on destruction, but a Lord who desires His children to return to Him.  Jesus Himself relayed the desire of the Father in the garden.  He spoke of Gods children, that being us, being one with He and the Father {John 17:21}.  Forget what you've heard about the wickedness and destruction of Sodom and Gomorrah.  This is not the true nature of the Father.  The true nature of the Father is one of love {1 John 4:8}.  I suggest that God would rather lead one of His children to return to Him than punish them for wrongdoing.  Jesus explains that there is more joy in heaven over a single sinner who returns to the Lord than for 99 people who need no repentance {Luke 15:7}.  The desire of the Lord remains that all should return to Him {John 3:17}.  

For I am reckoning that the sufferings of the current era do not deserve the glory about to be revealed for us. 

Romans 8: 18, Concordant New Testament 

There is no doubt that the Father is always involved in each and every aspect of the world we live in, including the weather.  Every time I hear some ultra liberal climate change believer spouting their so called science, I think of Job.  Jobs friends were puzzled as to why he continued to praise the Lord in the face of his tragedies.  His family almost wiped out and his crops destroyed.  Even his wife advised him to "curse God and die!"{Job 1:9}.  Through it all Job remained faithful.  In the end, God challenges Job with a dose of reality.  The Father inquires of Job if he alone knows of the wonders of the Lords creation.  Has he seen the storehouses of snow and hail?  Has he indeed seen how the winds are divided? {Job 38:22-30}.  What climate change believer has ever seen the climate in the way the Father has?  I suggest that such people are simply alarmists spewing a point of view.  It is the Lord who has created the heavens and the earth.  The Lord saw everything He had created, and it was good {Genesis 1:31}.  Despite all of the advances in modern technology, we fail to comprehend the true nature of the climate which surrounds us.  Of course, there is a good reason for that.  They fail to understand because they have never known the Lord {1 John 4:5}.  God is indeed in control of all that surrounds us.  Our question should always be, what is it that He is showing us through all of it?  What opportunities will there be for believers to share with the victims of disaster the love and peace of the Father.  THAT is the question we need to be asking ourselves.  The crisis is not in the liberal ideas of climate change, but in revealing the Father through us.  

For this I entreat the Lord thrice, that it should withdraw from me.  And He has protested to me, "Sufficient for you is My grace, for My power in infirmity is being perfected."  With the greatest relish, then, will I rather be glorying in my infirmities, that the power of Christ should be tabernacling over me. 

2 Corinthians 12: 8-9, Concordant New Testament 

~Scott~ 

The Sin Narrative

 

Who Himself carries up our sins in His body on to the pole, that, coming away from sins, we should be living for righteousness; by Whose welt you were healed.  

1 Peter 2: 24, Concordant New Testament 

As my good friend and I were having a discussion on sin this week it occurred to me.  One of the main places where we continue to hear of the narrative of sin is from the pulpits of the mainstream church.  It seems that our downfall continues to be a good topic to bore congregations with.  Yet, I mention our downfall in the past tense, as the work of Christ Jesus upon the cross has done away with our former sin nature.  That's right, through Jesus our sins are forever blotted from sight.  We are no longer considered sinners, but justly saved through the love and grace of our heavenly Father.  But not according to the church.  Like a constant CNN Donald Trump news loop, the institutional church continues to hammer home the point that we are sinners needing forgiveness.  One can imagine the message this sends to Christians who hear this message.  My experience with a Christian coworker has convinced me that the sin narrative is alive and well.  For each and every conversation we have had concerning Jesus has included his belief that we are sinners still in need of the Lord's mercy.  I get it.  Until I was free of the narrative, I also believed that I was a sinner as well.  It seems almost ludicrous to harbor the belief that Christ gave Himself for the forgiveness of our trespasses yet still hold on to the belief that we remain sinners.  According to scripture, all have sinned {Romans 3:23}.  Also according to scripture, Christ died for the forgiveness of our sins {Romans 6:10}.  Notice that the apostle Paul is the author of both of these observations.  Was Paul double minded?  Hardly.  Indeed, all have sinned and were deserving of the grace of the Father.  His grace has been demonstrated through the death of Christ Jesus at the cross.  

Being justified gratuitously in His grace, through the deliverance which is in Christ Jesus.  Whom God purposed for a propitiatory shelter, through faith in His blood, for a display of His righteousness because of the passing over of penalties of sins which occurred before in the forbearance of God. 

Romans 3: 24-25, Concordant New Testament 

So, what is the benefit of continuing to replay the sin narrative?  What possible gain could the church expect from continuing to claim that our sin haunts our past?  As near as I can tell, continuing speak the sin lie could somehow convince an unknowing believer that they need the church to somehow gain acceptance with the Lord.  Because we are sinners, we need to be in church.  Because of our sin, we need to ask forgiveness from the Lord.  In a twisted way, repeating the sin narrative puts people in pews, which is the overall objective of the mainstream church.  Yet the truth which has set us free of our former nature has been exhibited through Christ Jesus.  We are no longer defined by what we once were, but by who we are.  Who are we?  We are children of the living God who have been redeemed by His love and grace from that which was done before {Romans 3:25}.  We are no longer slaves to the lie of the institutional church which continues to claim that we are but sinners.  The gift of the Lord, through Christ Jesus, has cleansed us of what once was.  The truth of the living Christ is what now defines us {Galatians 2:20}.  

For the One not knowing sin, He makes to be a sin offering for our sakes that we may be becoming God's righteousness in Him.  

2 Corinthians 5: 21, Concordant New Testament 

~Scott~ 

Knowing The Father

 "For this is the covenant which I shall be covenanting with the house of Israel after those days," the Lord is saying: "Imparting My laws to their comprehension, on their hearts, also, shall I be inscribing them, And I shall be to them for a God, And they shall be to Me for a people.

Hebrews 8: 10, Concordant New Testament 

I heard a radio pastor this week mention that we will truly know the Lord when we know and follow His desires.  Of course, his way of doing this was to somehow become closer to the Lord.  This, of course, takes time and effort on the believers part.  Are we willing to reach out in our attempt to get closer to God?  Ironically, this was something I heard all too often within the walls of the institutional church.  As sinners, man could only hope to be "closer" to Jesus in our lifetime.  The trouble is, many Christians continue to slog through the sin issue, not realizing what Jesus has already accomplished.  Yes, we were once all sinners and we carried that mark with us {Romans 3:23}.  What I can't figure is why the scripture of man being a sinner is still so widely accepted and yet the verses explaining how Christ defeated that sin is us are overlooked.  Indeed, the work of Christ on the cross erased our former sin nature {Romans 6:11}.  The apostle Paul writes that we should now consider ourselves to be "dead" to sin.  That means that we're no longer defined by the misdeeds of our past.  The slate has been wiped clean.  It is Jesus who took that sin upon Himself at the cross {2 Corinthians 5:21}.  Jesus literally gave Himself for us.  However, if you were to listen to more than a few modern church sermons on the topic of sin, one of the first things that is mentioned is that we are still sinners.  If this were indeed the case, then Jesus has died for nothing.  Fortunately, scripture assures us that this is no longer the case.  Jesus DID give Himself for me.  Jesus IS now in me {Galatians 2:20}.  Yet, the mainstream church continues to pick cherry pick which scriptures best describe who we are today.  

For you are manifesting a letter of Christ, dispensed by us, and engraven, not with ink, but with the spirit of the living God, not on stone tablets, but on the fleshly tablets of the heart. 

2 Corinthians 3: 3, Concordant New Testament 

How is it that we will know that we truly know God?  Fortunately, it will not be determined by how what church we attend or how much we dump onto that tithing plate.  For these are but church traditions not lending to knowing the Lord in an intimate way.  No, we will be confident that we know the Lord when we realize that we do KNOW Him.  When we are confident in our hearts that God dwells in us.  A relationship with Jesus is not simply memorizing verses and praying, but knowing in our hearts that He lives in us.  In the marriage relationship, there comes a point after the passage of time where husband and wife know each other deeply enough that they can understand what each other feeling in a given moment.  I believe that this also holds true in our relationship with the Father.  Paul mentions in the book of Hebrews that God has written His commandments upon our hearts {Hebrews 8:10}.  Paul mentions that we are carrying within each of us "A letter of Christ," again, engraved upon our hearts {2 Corinthians 3:3}.  It is the desires of the Lord which are written upon the hearts of all.  In this we know the Father.  Of course, there are those who choose to overlook or flat out ignore that which is a part of them.  This in no way means that the laws of the Lord were written only upon the hearts of the believer.  We all have this reminder of the Lord within us.  This is who we are. 

Let the word of Christ be making its home in you richly, in all wisdom, teaching and admonishing yourselves; in songs, in hymns, in spiritual songs, singing, with grace in your hearts to God.

Colossians 3: 16, Concordant New Testament 

~Scott~ 

Why I Believe

 

To whom God wills to make known what are the glorious riches of this secret among the nations, which is: Christ among you, the expectation of glory. 

Colossians 1: 27, Concordant New Testament 

The challenge was thrown down a few days ago by a friend who read my post titled "Being Jesus."  His challenge?  Prove to him that I know that Christ Jesus is in me.  At first this sounded quite a bit silly.  Why would I need to prove to another that which I accept and believe in my heart?  Yet, for the sake of a better conversation about Jesus, I will do my best to try and convince the doubters that I truly do believe in the indwelling Jesus in me.  My first piece of evidence is that scripture tells me that this is true.  Not only does Jesus promise me that He will be with me until the end of this eon {Matthew 28:20 CNT}.  I am assured that Jesus is with me until the time that this age ends, whenever that will be.  The apostle Paul also assures me more than a few times of the living Christ in me {Galatians 2:20, Colossians 1:27, Romans 6:8}.  Now, I would stop there and rest assured that Christ is in me, if it were not for the knowing I have in my heart that Jesus is in me.  We've all felt the assurance of something we feel very strongly about.  We know we love our family.  We know what we believe to be true.  It is this knowing which assures me that Jesus is indeed in me.  So it is that I have scriptures which speak to the indwelling Christ in me, as well as my deeper knowing that Jesus dwells in me.  What more do I really need?  There are numerous preachers out there who will argue in the defense of their beliefs, that's not me.  There was a time where I would turn even the most innocent conversation about God into my own personal defense of the Lord.  That is, until I realized that God does not require me to defend Him.  On the contrary, it is I who usually needs Gods defense.  

Philip is saying to Him, "Lord, show us the Father, and it is sufficing us."  Jesus is saying to him, "So much time I am with you, and you do not know Me, Philip!  He who has seen Me has seen the Father, and how are you saying, 'Show us the Father'?  

John 14: 8-9, Concordant New Testament 

Despite having been in the presence of Jesus for some time, Philip had the nerve to ask Him to "Show us the Father."  I can almost see Jesus' thinking when He heard this.  "Man, Philip, here I've been teaching and preaching all through the land, with you and the others along with me, and you have the nerve to ask Me to show you the Father"?  One can almost see the frustration of Jesus in Johns scripture as He addresses His disciple.  Philip was asking Jesus to show him proof of what He had been teaching.  My friend was asking me to prove what I believe to him.  This wasn't the only time the disciples doubted Jesus, of course, there was also that time on the sea of Galilee where they marveled at how the winds and waves obeyed His commands.  It seems that wherever we go, that others will be seeking to hear proof of why it is we believe.  Why is that?  What are they really looking for?  Do they want what we have?  Maybe, but by describing to others why we believe, we open the door to a deeper conversation about Jesus.  I think that it's safe to say that the name Jesus is one of the most recognizable names in history.  Yet, few actually know Him.  Paul referred to it as a mystery, to whom God wills to make known the secret among the nations.  Our expectation of the glory of Christ Jesus.  It is by the revelation of the Lord that one experiences the knowing of Christ in them.  Somehow, I don't think my friend will be satisfied with that answer.  

That they may all be one, according as Thou, Father, art in Me, and I in Thee, that they also may be in us, that the world shall be believing that Thou dost commission Me. 

John 17: 21, Concordant New Testament 

~Scott~ 

Something Close To Discipline

 

And you have been oblivious of the entreaty which is arguing with you as with sons: My son, do not disdain the discipline of the Lord, nor yet faint when being exposed by Him.  For whom the Lord is loving He is disciplining, yet He is scourging every son whom He is assenting.  For discipline are you enduring.  As to sons is God bringing it to you, for what son is there whom the father is not disciplining?  

Hebrews 12: 5-7, Concordant New Testament 

One of the retorts I often hear from those opposed to believing in God is that they would never believe in a "angry God."  I suppose one could ascertain through reading the old testament that the Lord could be looked upon as somewhat angry.  What with the destruction of the wicked cities of Sodom and Gomorrah and the erasing of the earths population but for His chosen few {Genesis 6:23-24}.  God has also proclaimed that He is a jealous God {Genesis 20:5}.  I recently got into a discussion with a friend about what we have traditionally seen as the Lords punishment.  Back in my church days, whenever my life would hit a rough patch, there were those brothers who would begin to question me if there were anything God could be upset with me about.  The automatic assumption was that somehow I had angered God enough that He brought about His wrath upon me.  That's a good story, if you can sell it.  Are our tribulations in life as simple as God punishing a wrongdoer?  I'd say no.  The examples I look to are both written in scripture and have certainly been experienced by anyone who has been involved in parenthood.  The apostle Paul asks in Hebrews, "What son is there whom the father is not disciplining?"{Hebrews 12:7}  Indeed, if we are children of God, are we not also susceptible to the Fathers correction from time to time?  Could it be that what we see as discipline is simply the Fathers love guiding us in the right direction?  I recall growing up and being exposed to the discipline of my parents.  At the time I saw this as an injustice, but in time I began to see that it was for my own benefit.  As the loving discipline of our earthly parents is not meant to harm but to reprove what, then, can we say about the discipline of our heavenly Father?  Knowing that we humans have never been perfect, we must also know that the reproof of the Lord is at times needed.  

Thereafter, indeed, we had the fathers of our flesh as discipliners, and we respected them.  Yet shall we not much rather be subjected to the Father of spirits and be living.  For these, indeed, disciplined for a few days as it seemed best to them, yet that One for our expedience, for us to be partaking of His holiness.  Now all discipline, indeed, for the present is not seeming to be a thing of joy, but of sorrow, yet subsequently it is rendering the peaceable fruit of righteousness to those exercised through it. 

Hebrews 12: 9-11, Concordant New Testament 

Jesus has spoken to us that we should not expect a rose garden in this life of ours {John 16:33}.  We also know that Jesus Himself suffered at the hands of the authorities of His day {Isaiah 53:5}.  So, can we say that what we have previously seen as anger from God has been nothing more than His loving correction?  I would agree with that.  If I rightfully see myself as a child of God, I can also expect His Fatherly correction from time to time as well.  Far from being upset, we should rejoice that our heavenly Father is lovingly guiding us in the way He desires us to proceed.  If we often respected our earthly parents for the discipline they provided, how much more do we rejoice in the Lord for doing the same?  We're told that those the Father loves He disciplines {Revelation 3:19}.  So, why are we not rejoicing in the Fathers love whenever this happens?  Well, if you're like me, no discipline feels good when we're going through it.  Discipline means correction.  Discipline means that we were wrong or misguided in our actions.  We want to bask in the Lords love, not endure His correction.  Yet, we need to realize that, as children of the living God, God disciplines those He loves.  Rejoice! 

In this was manifested the love of God among us, that God has dispatched His only-begotten Son into the world that we should be living through Him. 

1 John 4: 9, Concordant New Testament 

~Scott~ 

Being Jesus

 

With Christ have I been crucified, yet I am living; no longer I, but living in me is Christ.  Now that which I am now living in the flesh, I am living in faith that is of the Son of God, Who loves me, and gives Himself up for me. 

Galatians 2: 20, Concordant New Testament 

I've heard the phrase a lot lately...being Jesus.  For most of mainstream church America, the phrase being Jesus may hold two totally different meanings.  For me, being Jesus is living as Christ Jesus who lives in me.  For many Christians, being Jesus denotes a lifestyle of "being like" Jesus.  That is, being as close to the behavior and values of Christ that one can get.  Which one more reflects the true Christ as He lives today?  Well, if one were to inquire of the apostle Paul, he would certainly explain that it is Jesus who dwells within us {Galatians 2:20}.  However, ask your local pulpit pounder and you just might get a different answer.  See, the mainstream church theology view of Jesus is that He lives on...in heaven.  Jesus was persecuted, crucified and put to death on a Roman cross.  After His death, Jesus was in the tomb for three days, whereupon He rose from the dead that Easter morning (Of course, man devised the Easter holiday).  After His death and resurrection, Jesus was witnessed by His disciples before being taken up into heaven {Acts 1:9}.  Perhaps this is why the mainstream church holds onto the belief that Jesus lives on in heaven.  Yet there is scripture which speaks to the indwelling Christ Jesus living in me {Colossians 1:27, 2 Corinthians 13:5}.  Paul certainly strived to speak of the reality of the indwelling Christ in all of us.  Yet the same church which preaches Paul has missed the boat.  For those who have been seeking a closer relationship with Jesus, the realization of Christ in you could well be a game changer.  It certainly has been for me.  The realization I received is not something which one can easily wrap your understanding around.  In fact, Paul referred to the realization of Christ in us as a mystery {Colossians 1:27}.  Indeed, truly knowing Jesus comes by the revelation of the Father.  

Now if Christ is in you, the body, indeed, is dead because of sin, yet the spirit is life because of righteousness.  Now if the spirit of Him who rouses Jesus from among the dead is making its home in you, He who rouses Christ Jesus from among the dead will also be vivifying your mortal bodies because of His spirit making its home in you. 

Romans 8: 10-11, Concordant New Testament 

So, what is it to "Be Jesus?"  Well, I would say that being Jesus is for the one who has the revelation of Christ in them to allow His indwelling spirit to work through them.  Sounds impossible, right?  Yes, that's what the world would have you believe.  However, since my own revelation of Christ in me, I have found that I am nowhere near the man which the world claims that I am.  The world, and perhaps even the mainstream church, will speak to me of being a sinner deserving of the grace and forgiveness of the Father.  That is certainly true, and it has already happened with Christ Jesus at the cross.  I recall another phrase I heard a few years back, that the cross is not the end of the race, but the beginning.  His death upon the cross was not the end of Jesus, but the beginning.  While most of the mainstream church looks upon the cross as a symbol of the crucifixion of Christ, I have learned to view it as a sign of Jesus in me.  Being Jesus is living each and every day in the knowing that He is in me, that there is no longer one I would call "me."    When the tough times come, I know that I live through them as Christ who is in me.  The person I used to be was nailed to the cross with Christ.  Paul begins his iconic passage by proclaiming that he has been crucified with Christ Jesus and that "he" no longer lives.  Instead, living in him is Christ.  Paul was very familiar with being Jesus.  When the Father graces us with the revelation of His Son, being Jesus will no longer be a mystery.  

In this was manifested the love of God among us, that God has dispatched His only-begotten Son into the world that we should be living through Him. 

1 John 4: 9, Concordant New Testament 

~Scott~ 

When Politics Meets Religion

 Tell us, then, what you are supposing.  Is it allowed to give poll tax to Caeser, or not?  Now Jesus, knowing their wickedness, said, "Why are you trying Me, hypocrites?  Exhibit to Me the poll tax currency."  Now they bring to Him a denarius.  And He is saying to them, "Whose is this image and the inscription?"  They are saying, Caesar's."  Then He is saying to them, "Be paying, then, Caesar's to Caesar, and God's to God."  

Matthew 22: 17- 21, Concordant New Testament 

I've seen it all too often.  A certain issue in society will pop up in the news and all of a sudden more than a few churches come out with a stance for or against it.  Most recently it has been with the trans gender rights craze that is so prevalent in our country.  While most organized brick and mortar churches have come out against the proliferation of trans gender rights, others move to accept the changes accepting the trans gender person.  At Saint David of Wales Episcopal church here in Portland, changes have been made.  From labeling the restrooms as non binary to referring to the congregation as "siblings in Christ."  Not wishing to shut out those of the trans gender of non binary crowd, they allow changes deemed to make the church environment more, as they say, welcoming.  Maybe it's just be, but in my opinion, all are welcome in our houses of worship.  At least that was the original intent.  However, as I've so often said, whenever mankind is involved in religion, things can go haywire pretty quickly.  And what is religion but a man created concept?  I have seen no evidence of the trappings and traditions we see these days in the early church of the followers of Jesus.  Instead, we see a community of like minded believers coming together as one {Acts 2:44-47}.  I would venture to say that were a trans gender or similar non binary person enter into fellowship with these believers, that there would be no need to make special provisions.  All were welcome.  The focus was not upon religion of politics, but on the life and teachings of Christ Jesus.  And something amazing happened as a result.  Instead of the mass church exodus we have seen recently, the Lord "Added to those being saved day by day" {Acts 2:47}.  Obviously, many new believers felt welcomed in the presence of this new church.  

Now all those who believe were also in the same place and had all things in common.  And they disposed of the acquisitions and the properties, and divided them for all, forasmuch as some would have had need.  Besides persevering day by day with one accord in the sanctuary, besides breaking bread home by home, they partook of nourishment with exultation and simplicity of heart.  Praising God and having favor for all the people.  Now the Lord added to those being saved day by day in the same place. 

Acts 2: 44-47, Concordant New Testament 

Of course, the issue of trans gender and binary rights is not the first hot button issue which the mainstream church has taken a stand on.  I recall that while attending the last church I was involved with that the church leadership took a adamant stand on the position of traditional marriage between one man and one woman.  This, predictably, did not sit well with everyone in the community.  Yet the message to the congregation was that we were doing "God's work" by defending His principles.  Really?  Who honestly believes that God needs our assistance with His day to day operations?  I would venture to suggest that the Lord works THROUGH us instead.  The apostle Paul speaks to this in his writings on the indwelling Christ {Galatians 2:20, Romans 6:8}.  It is Christ Jesus who lives in us today.  Knowing this, we can know that God Himself will work through His children.  How else will the world know the Father but through the works of the Lord exhibited through us?  How is excluding others from worship showing the love of God?  It is no surprise, then, that all too many brick and mortar churches refuse to speak to the indwelling Christ in us.  How many political issues taken up by the mainstream church in recent history were nothing but opportunities for the Lords children to show His work through them?  When we see began the world through this truth, the Lord will add to those being saved.  

Perceive the manner of love the Father has given us, that we may be called children of God!  And we are!  Therefore the world does not know us, for it did not know Him. 

1 John 3: 1, Concordant New Testament 

~Scott~