The Good Of The Father (Defenders Of The Truth)

 

Religion has actually convinced people that there is a invisible man living in the sky watching everything you do, every minute of every day.  And the invisible man has a special list of ten things he does not want you to do.  And if you do any of these ten things, he has a special place, full of fire and smoke and burning and torture and anguish, where he will send you to live and suffer and burn and choke and scream and cry forever and ever until the end of time!  But he loves you.  He loves you, and he needs money.  He always needs money.  He's all-powerful, all-perfect, all-knowing and all-wise, somehow he just can't handle money 

~George Carlin~ 

I remember being in those group discussions.  We were usually brought together to discuss one church teaching or another.  However, eventually someone would bring up a question which in some way challenged the theology of what the pastor was speaking to.  When this happened, the discussion leader would immediately shut down the question and tell us to stay on the topic at hand.  It seemed that any discussion concerning "Other" aspects of scripture or Christianity were not to be discussed at all.  I have often wondered how I would have been treated by these "Defenders of the truth" were I to speak of the truth of Jesus in me.  Of course, back then Jesus had yet to be revealed in me.  Still, I knew of more than a few church brethren who were labeled as "Dissenters" by the defenders of the truth within the church.  I didn't find out until after I left the mainstream church that one of the duties of any institutional church pastor is to readily shoot down any opinions which could interfere with the narrative of the church.  That narrative being the theology which is taught to this day in the traditional church.  One of my Gym Rat partners has even been asked to leave a church congregation simply because he questioned the teachings of the senior pastor.  This simply was not tolerated.  It seems that the church system relishes church goers who arrive on Sunday and dutifully sit through the sermon and absorb all which is being taught.  I used to be among that crowd.  But then "It" happened.  Whether it was from the revelation of the Father or simply hearing the questions of other dissenters within the church, I began to have questions of my own.  Why was I still concerned over sin if Jesus gave Himself that I would be free from it {Paul to the Romans 6:11}?  I asked one of the defenders of the truth this very question one Sunday, but I was quickly brushed aside.  Instead of taking this literally, I began to question the teachings of the church more and more.  The final straw came one Easter Sunday morning.  As the pastor finished his traditional Easter message of how Jesus died on that cross for the forgiveness of sin and rose three days later, he then asked the congregation to come forward and confess any sins they might be led to confess at the altar at the front of the sanctuary.  The double speak was pretty obvious to me in that moment.  Pastor or no pastor, I was GONE!  

Beloved, do not believe every spirit, but test the spirits to see if they are of God, for many false prophets have come out into the world 

First Epistle of John 4: 1, Concordant New Testament 

Many believers might not understand, but walking away from the mainstream church was one of the best decisions I could have made.  For I did not learn of the truth of Christ Jesus in me through some Sunday defender of the truth sermon, but from the revelation of the Father.  It would seem that He waited until I was no longer under the influence of man-made religion before He began His process of revealing His truth in me.  For that I am grateful.  I could not have understood my union life in the Father if I had continued to follow the doctrine of the church which proclaims that God is separated from me {Johns Account 14:20}.  I could not have digested the words of the apostle Paul while still being taught that sin was a road block in my life {Paul to the Romans 6:6-11}.  I now realize that in order for me to understand that revelation which the Father was unfolding in me, that I had to be outside of the confines of organized religion.  So it was for the man Saul, steeped deeply in the Jewish faith and actively persecuting the followers of Jesus.  For once Christ was revealed unto him, he forsook that religion which he had been raised up in {Paul to the Galatians 1:15-16}.  As it was for Paul, my own revelation came once it pleased the Father {Paul to the Galatians 1:15}.  Of course, it was also His purpose that I endure my time in the mainstream church as well.  For in that time I not only developed the friendships which I still enjoy today, but I developed a understanding for the scriptures as well.  I do not regret my time spent in the church, because I know that this was the Fathers time to grow in me an understanding of who He is.  I often tell those people I talk with not to take my words as gospel, but to read the scriptures and wait for the Fathers leading.  I'm guessing that I wouldn't have made a very good defender of the truth.  

~Scott~ 

The Good Of The Father {Lies The Church Told Me)

 

Beloved, do not believe every spirit, but test the spirits to see if they are of God, for many false prophets have come out into the world 

First Epistle of John 4: 1, Concordant New Testament 

I recently finished recording a podcast with my good friend Dennis where I discussed those issues that I have with the mainstream church.  For anyone who has been reading these posts for awhile, you know that I have not been a huge fan of the modern day institutional church system.  Keep in mind that I grew up in a Christian home, so I was fed the theology of the church from a very young age.  But as I have grown in the knowing of Christ Jesus in me I have come to the realization that many of the things which I was once taught were not necessarily the truth.  Now, I know that there will be many on the church side of the aisle that will read these words and at once deem me a blasphemer and worthy of God's punishment.  I'll wear that badge with honor.  In my heart I know that the Lord is speaking the truth of His Son through me.  Since I introduced Jesus into this conversation, let me begin with Him.  Growing up, I was taught that there was absolutely NO way that I could ever be intimately close to Jesus.  Pastor after Pastor spoke that the best that I could ever hope to accomplish was to emulate Him, to "Be like" Jesus.  See, I was a sinner, one which a holy Savior could never be in the presence of {Paul to the Romans 3:23}.  However, from these same pulpits came the words that it was Jesus Himself who cleansed me from my sins.  Which was it?  Am I a sinner, or has Jesus indeed saved me from myself?  Well, the theology of the traditional church system proclaims that Jesus indeed bled and died on that cross for my sins.  Yet, somewhere along the way they also decided that, despite this truth, my sin continued to be in front of me.  So yes, this is a lie which the church told me.  Jesus Himself has proclaimed that we live in union with He and the Father {Johns Account 14:20}.  I am in Him, and He is in me.  The ancient Greeks had a term they used to describe someone with a shared lineage.  We know that term today as synapomorphy.  It is through synapomorphy that we live in union with Christ Jesus.  Of course, I never heard this truth uttered from the pulpits of the mainstream church.  

Yet hallow the Lord Christ in your hearts, ever ready with a defense for everyone who is demanding from you an account concerning the expectation in you, but with meekness and fear

Peter to the Dispersion (1) 3: 15, Concordant New Testament 

By far, the biggest lie which the church told me, and the one which has taken me so long to overcome, is the lie that I was still a sinful being despite the work of Christ Jesus on the cross.  It is this lie, spoken by a church pastor, which ultimately led me to walk away from the church.  See, the church teaches that despite the sacrifice of Jesus, we still struggle with the effects of sin today.  One of the most liberating passages of scripture I have ever read was penned by the apostle Paul.  It is Paul who has proclaimed that, through Christ, that I am now "Dead, indeed, to sin" {Paul to the Romans 6:11}.  It is Jesus who has given Himself "Once for all time" {Paul to the Romans 6:10}.  Paul got it.  Yet the mainstream church has seemingly ignored Paul's words because they do not fit into the narrative of the traditional church theology.  This theology, conceived and written by man, came about from the first council of Nicaea in the year 325.  The Nicene creed was designed from the beginning to bring the beliefs of the Christian faith under the umbrella of one theology.  In essence, this was the beginning of the indoctrination of millions of believers in Jesus.  The apostle John proclaims that we are to "Test the spirits to see if they are of God" {First Epistle of John 4:1}.  Is it of God that Jesus missed some sins in His sacrifice on the cross?  Is it of God that we would be forever separated from our creator?  Yet these are only a few of the lies which the mainstream church continues to speak to.  Paul has proclaimed that it is Christ Jesus who lives in him {Paul to the Galatians 2:20}.  Yet the church ignores this truth when it speaks to the separation of God from His creation.  I understand that there will be those in the Christian faith who will disagree with me.  However, for those who question my words I offer up a solution.  Follow the words of the apostle John and do as I have done, test the spirits.  How do the lies of the church coincide with the good of the Father?  The good of the Father comes from the revelation in us of the truth of His Son Jesus.  

~Scott~ 

The Good Of The Father (The Problem With Seeing Jesus)

 

In that day you shall know that I am in My Father, and you in Me, and I in you 

Johns Account 14: 20, Concordant New Testament 

I discovered some time ago that the man I see in the mirror each day is not the man I remember.  For the man I remember was a mistake ridden sinner saved by grace.  At least that's what the church has taught me.  This presents the issue of knowing Jesus, which is also one of the main edicts of the mainstream church.  If I were indeed still a sinner, how is it that a holy Jesus could even be in my presence?  How is it that I could come before the throne of the Father if my sins were still before me?  Yet scripture, and the church, tell us that we can indeed do all of these things.  Somehow, the message has been lost that Christ Jesus gave Himself willingly for our sakes {Paul to the Corinthians (2) 5:21}.  Not only that, but Jesus has also proclaimed that we live in union with He and the Father {Johns Account 14:20}.  So, the truth which will be revealed in us reveals that He has died to sin "Once for all time" {Paul to the Romans 6:10}.  Not only for those who believe, but for all of God's children.  This week I found myself in an interesting discussion with a friend on the subject of Christ in all things.  While he agreed that Jesus could be and is present in all things, he scoffed at the truth that Christ is in all of us.  Despite scriptural references, he could not get past the sin issue which continues to grip those in the mainstream church.  The idea that, despite the work of Christ Jesus on the cross, that our sin is still before us.  How is it, my friend asked, that Jesus could reside in evil such as Adolf Hitler or violent criminals?  Believe me, as I first struggled with my own revelation of Christ in me, I wondered the same thing.  How is it that Jesus, being holy and perfect, can live in a sinner saved by grace?  The answer is simple, it is Jesus Himself who has defeated sin at the cross.  So, being without sin, Jesus is now free to live in union with the Lords children.  Again, for someone who is stuck in the rut of mainstream church theology, this might be a tough pill to swallow.  

Knowing this, that our old humanity was crucified together with Him, that the body of sin might be nullified, for us by no means to still be slaving for sin, for one who dies has been justified from sin.  Now if we died together with Christ, we believe that we should be living together with Him also, having perceived that Christ, having been roused from among the dead, is no longer dying.  Death is lording it over Him no longer, for in that He died, He died to sin once for all time, yet in that He is living, He is living to God.  Thus you also, be reckoning yourselves to be dead, indeed, to sin, yet living to God in Christ Jesus our Lord.

Paul to the Romans 6: 6-11, Concordant New Testament 

So, when someone who we have deemed unworthy looks into the mirror, what do they see?  A sinner?  One beyond the touch of the Lord?  I suggest that, knowing the truth of Christ, will see Him in that reflection.  But here's the issue with that, does he even know Jesus?  Does he realize the truth that has been revealed unto me?  I would say no.  For is he were aware of the saving truth of the Lord Jesus, he would see himself for who he really is.  That is, in union with Jesus and the Father.  So it is that I can proclaim that even the most vile of people indeed have the spirit of Christ within them, they simply fail to recognize who He is.  I see this issue, to some extent, in my friend.  Having spent many years in the mainstream church theology, he does not know who he truly is in Christ.  For him, his sin is keeping him from that relationship with Jesus.  Again, this is the same issue I struggled with when I received my own revelation of Christ in me.  I had yet to see that sin was no longer an issue.  Jesus had seen to that.  Living in the truth of Jesus which will be revealed unto us is a wonderful thing.  Not only are we free from the bondages of sin, but free to live a life in Him.  This is something the church refers to as "Freedom in Christ" but has no clue what that entails.  This is why those in the mainstream church have a problem with seeing Jesus as He truly is...in them.  

~Scott~