The Good Of The Father (Wrecking Balls)

 

"Understand that it is external things of the flesh like alchohol, porn and infidelity that will take down your marriage 

~Charlie Kirk~ 

As someone who has spent part of their life embroiled in the slavery of pornography, I can fully understand how it is that it could be a wrecking ball to any marriage.  While it wasn't porn that doomed my own parents marriage, my fathers infidelity certainly played a large part in it.  See, back in my dads day, men were told that they were the dominant ones.  They were strong and expected to shoulder the load of any marriage.  This was just how it was not only in mainstream culture, but in Christian circles as well.  I won't get into the specifics of how it is that a porn addiction could bring down a marriage, let's just say that I've seen my share of unions busted due to a partners addiction to this monster.  Add to that the addiction of alchohol and you have a duo of marriage killers.  While not the only issues which married couples deal with, they certainly are difficult to overcome.  What makes the slavery of addiction difficult to overcome is the underlying belief that man is his own self, his own being.  Nothing could be further from the truth.  In my own time spent in my addiction, I believed that I could shrug it off at any time.  After all, I was a man.  Well, that was another lie that I told myself.  The first being the lie that I was my own self.  I ran my life.  I did my own thing, lived for the day as they say.  Unfortunately, all of that brave talk couldn't save me from the false narrative that I alone controlled my life.  My first memory that I have of a realization that this life was not my own came at a Promise Keepers conference that a Christian friend of mine dragged me into.  Most of that weekend is lost in time, but I distinctly recall a speaker, himself a reformed addict who found Christ, tell the men in that arena, "Jesus is waiting for you to give it all to Him."  Huh?  Jesus can do what I couldn't?  I remember praying that night that He help me in my fight.  Well, it took more than a few years to overcome my resistance of the self, but He eventually lifted those bonds of slavery which had held me for so long.  

Or are you not aware that your body is a temple of the holy spirit in you, which you have from God, and you are not your own?  For you are bought with a price, by all means glorify God in your body

Paul to the Corinthians (1) 6: 19, Concordant New Testament 

It wasn't until I had spent a few years removed from the mainstream church that I began to hear the words of a dear friend of mine, that my life was not my own, but as Christ in me {Paul to the Galatians 2:20}.  Ironically, my friend had been having the same struggles in his life and his place in the Father.  I have been fortunate enough to have shared in that journey with him and see my life in the Father as well.  It's no secret that couples who are believing in the Lord have a much lower divorce rate than those who don't.  Yet I continue to see these marriages struggle under the commitment to the lie that our life is indeed our own.  For it's part, the traditional church has spoken to this false narrative for thousands of years.  I recently had a conversation with a gym friend who insisted that sin was our own barrier to God.  I would call Bernie Sanders on that!  The barrier that is between ourselves and God is in our own mind.  It is our belief that sin separates us from the Father.  If this is true, what of the work of Jesus on the cross?  For it is Jesus Who has given himself for sin {Paul to the Corinthians (2) 5:21}.  How is it that Jesus could have died to sin, yet sin still be alive and well?  Again, this has been proclaimed from the pulpits of the church for thousands of years.  If porn, booze and drugs are a wrecking ball to marriages, then our own belief that our life is our own is a wrecking ball to our relationship with the Lord.  

There is no independent, self-operating self in the universe, except the One who calls Himself the I AM {Exodus 3:14} and says, "I am the Lord and there is none else, there is no God beside Me" {Isaiah 45:5}.

Norman Grubb ~ No Independent Self 

~Scott~ 

The Good Of The Father (A Place For The Wicked)

 

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~ 

As near as I can tell, comedian George Carlin grew up learning the basics of the Roman Catholic religion.  He's been on record a saying so.  So, I can cut him a bit of slack when it comes to his own criticism of the church.  I, on the other hand, was raised mainly in the various sects of Christianity.  It goes without saying that through the years I have developed a critical view of the mainstream church for myself.  I cannot point to an exact moment as to where my critical thinking began, but I can recall a few of my non-church friend's ridiculing me for the apparent judgmental views of many Christians.  Indeed, many so called believers are way too much into pointing out how those around them should be adhering to the scriptures of the Lord.  I watched a video of a popular pastor the other day as he went through a litany of behaviors which God would supposedly punish in the end.  Of course, these included the usual Christian targets of homosexuals and sex before marriage.  Now, I am in no way advocating for immoral behavior, but I have been on the other side of that fence.  When I was younger, I would dabble in pornography to the extent where it became a addictive issue for me.  I heard all of the pastors who would condemn those who engaged in such behaviors.  Most of the time, I would spend time in prayer begging God not to forget me.  But the most disturbing moment came the day I heard a pastor in the church I was attending proclaim that there was indeed "A place for the wicked."  As someone who had been engaged in what the church would describe as immoral behavior, I suddenly felt as if I would not see my eternity with the God I loved.  Since then, I have come to see that this was simply one more lie spoken by the church.  Call it scare tactics or stretching the truth, I believe that the true love nature of the Father is something that is not spoken of much in the church {First Epistle of John 4:8}.  What is preached is mans need to "Be like" Jesus (another lie) and that his sin will forever be a barrier between himself and God.  I guess that does sound a bit judgmental.  

Whom, not perceiving, you are loving; in Whom, not seeing at present, yet believing, you are exulting with joy unspeakable and glorious, being required with the consummation of your faith, the salvation of your souls 

Peter to the Dispersion (1) 1: 8-9, Concordant New Testament 

I've come to realize that the mainstream church, be it Catholic or other, is more disposed to telling people what man speaks than what the word of the Lord tells us.  For the word has proclaimed that it is the Lords desire that ALL His children shall be saved {Johns Account 3:16-17}.  If there is indeed a hell as the church is so happy to tell us, what does that mean for the work of Christ on the cross?  If Jesus has given Himself for us, what need does God even have for hell?  Do we believe that we are a new creation in Christ or do we believe some Pharisee school pastor who claims that there is a special place for the wicked {Paul to the Corinthians (2) 5:17}?  Theoretically, if there is a place such as hell where the wicked will spend their eternity separate from God, who is it that ultimately decides who will end up there?  God?  The local pastor?  For there have been many mainstream church pastors who have taken to condemning those to hell who they feel deserve their fate.  That was my fear when I heard of the place for the wicked.  In my heart I knew that I was behaving wrong.  At the time, my own place in the Fathers love had yet to be revealed to me.  I believe that there are many believers out there today who are experiencing the same thing I did.  What changed my life was my eyes being opened to how God really sees me as His loved child.  While I believe that there is no hell per se, I do believe that there is a place for all of the Lords creation.  That is, a life in Him {Johns Account 14:20}.  

He who is not loving knew not God, for God is love

First Epistle of John 4: 8, Concordant New Testament 

~Scott~ 

The Good Of The Father (As 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 

What does it mean to be humble?  Is humility equal to weakness?  I pose this question because it is something a dear friend of mine called upon me to recognize this morning.  To be humble.  When I look at the traditional meaning of humility, the flesh in me immediately thinks of weakness.  Someone who is humble is one who is not prepared to stand up for themselves.  Well, at least not in the way the world would have them do so.  But what about One Who daily shows us the true meaning of humility?  What of Jesus?  For one cannot look upon Jesus and not see His own humility.  Yeah, there was that day when He drove the money changers out of His Fathers house, but that was, shall we say, righteous anger?  And how much humility did Jesus show unto the Jewish Pharisees when He called them out for their treatment of the Lord children?  Is it humble to shout, "Woe to you, Pharisees?"  Again, the righteous anger of Jesus?  I would argue that just because Jesus gave unto us a living example of humility, that He may not have considered Himself as being humble in nature.  And that brings me to my next point. The idea that humility is more about knowing who it is that we are than anything else.  Was Jesus confident in who he was?  Absolutely.  Jesus knew who He was and where He came from.  When He walked among the people, was He being humble, or was he seeing those people for who they really are?  The other day I had an incident, an argument, with a friend at the gym.  The topic was salvation, and my friend was adamant that in speaking the theology of the mainstream church, that the good shall be rewarded and the wicked punished.  Now, back in the day I may have argued this point to the death, but something stirred in my heart that this friend of mine was not aware of what he was talking about.  His eyes had yet to be opened as mine have.  So, I took the high road as they say.  I took this moment as a lesson that my friendship with him was more important than proving a point.  Humility in action.  

Nothing according with faction, nor yet according with vainglory -- but with humility, deeming one another superior to one's self, not each noting that which is his own, but each that of others also

Paul to the Philippians 2: 3-4, Concordant New Testament 

There are some who say that the greatest command of Jesus is that we love one another {Johns Account 13:34}.  Why would this be considered the greatest precept given by Jesus?  Well, because it showcases the love which Christ had for Gods children.  Yet, more than that, when we love those around us we are exhibiting the love nature of the Father through us {First Epistle of John 4:8}.  Make no mistake, when we love, it is God showing His own love through us.  For many this will be a hard pill to swallow, especially if you have been raised in the paradigm that you have somehow been separated from God.  But we do well to remember that we are created in His likeness {Genesis 1:27}.  We also do well to remember that it is God Who gives to us life and all which we have {Acts of the Apostles 17:25}.  So, how is it that we could ever be separate from God?  I know that I have banged that drum a lot in my writings, but it's my desire that all will see the truth we have in the Father.  That our life is not our own {Paul to the Corinthians (1) 6:20}.  I feel that it's important to note that during His time on earth, Jesus never glorified Himself.  He Who healed the sick and roused the dead from the grave never gave Himself the credit for doing so.  Jesus knew that it was the Father working through Him.  So it is with us.  When we love, it is the love of the Father manifested through us. 

~Scott~ 

The Good Of the Father (Something New)

 

He who is not loving knew not God, for God is love

First Epistle of John 4: 8, Concordant New Testament 

What is your idea of God?  How is it that you see Him in your life?  I would say that the way which we see God in our own life directly affects how we see the world around us and treat other people.  This morning I received a email from a dear friend on how it is that he had seen others in the past.  Instead of seeing those around us as created in the Fathers likeness, we all too often look upon them in a negative way as jerks or sinners.  I thank the institutional Christian religion for this line of thinking.  For if there is one thing which I learned in the church it is that there are good and wicked people in the world.  I would agree on this, to a point.  Yes, there are good people in the world, but there are also those who choose to act in a way that is contrary to how it is in which we have been created.  Many churches will tout that mankind has been created in the likeness of the Father {Genesis 1:27}.  While this is definitely true, something happened along the way to who we now perceive ourselves to be.  We forgot who we are in God.  More importantly, we've forgotten who those around us are in the Father as well.  For how can we look upon someone with a straight face while condemning them of being a sinner?  Were they not created in the very same likeness of the Father that we were?  I admit that I've struggled with this a lot in the past.  In fact, I'd say that seeing those around me as the Fathers loved creation is something I continue to struggle with.  The fact that we're bombarded every day with messages that depict others in a negative way does nothing to help matters.  I'm not just talking about the slanted mainstream media either, but of we who claim to be in Gods likeness.  Everyone who has been around other people for any length of time is familiar with the gossip which we humans can and do produce.  Yes, I've been down that road one too many times both on the giving as well as receiving end.  The funny thing is, it feels well and fine to gossip about others, but when the script is flipped and someone gossips about us we suddenly take it seriously.  THAT is the definition of hypocrisy.  While much of this behavior has been learned through the church, each one of us also makes our own decisions that not only affect our lives, but the lives of those around us. 

And not to be configured to this eon, but to be transformed by the renewing of your mind, for you to be testing what is the will of God, good and well pleasing and perfect

Paul to the Romans 12: 2, Concordant New Testament 

I am not naive enough to believe that everyone has been exposed to the truth of the Fathers love as I have.  I recently received an email from a good friend who spoke of the words of the apostle Paul in renewing our minds {Paul to the Romans 12:2}.  Paul speaks of not being conformed to this eon, but to be transformed by the renewing of your mind.  I can honestly say that I have seen these words of Paul from a different perspective lately.  I've had to renew my own thinking of how it is that I see those around me.  Not as how the world looks upon them, but as they truly are in the Lord.  How liberating would this be if everyone adhered to this truth?  Would personal conflicts even still exist?  The words of Paul also have gotten me to thinking that our beliefs we have about those around us are also an error in our own way of thinking.  There is a reason by which Paul called for a renewing of our minds.  It's because that we have forgotten the truth of the Father.  One of the best examples is the reluctance of the mainstream church to grasp the truth that God desires all be saved.  The truth is, ALL HAVE been saved, many are simply not aware of it.  They need to have their minds renewed.  Our error in thinking continues to believe that we are under the control of the deceiver Satan.  That we have been separated from the Father.  Nothing could be further from the truth.  A good friend commented to me this week that the power of identity is the key to our transformation.  Who do you see yourself as?  What is your identity?  Have you looked unto the face of Jesus to see who He truly is {Paul to the Corinthians (2) 3:18}?  Once we see ourselves and others in Christ, our own thoughts will have been renewed.  

Now we all, with uncovered face, mirroring the Lords glory, are being transformed into the same image, from glory to glory, even as from the Lord, the spirit. 

Paul to the Corinthians (2) 3: 18, Concordant New Testament 

~Scott~ 

The Good Of The Father (The Road Less Traveled)

 "Enter through the cramped gate, for broad is the gate and spacious is the way which is leading away into destruction, and many are those entering through it.  Yet what a cramped gate and narrowed way is the one leading away into life, and few are those who are finding it" 

Matthews Account 7: 13-14, Concordant New Testament 

Not too long ago, I wrote on the cost that we pay for following Jesus.  While we may never see that cost which Jesus Himself paid, there is indeed a price to be paid.  Jesus Himself spoke to this when He proclaimed that to follow Him, one must enter through "Cramped gate" {Matthews Account 7:13}.  For to enter through the spacious gate "Is the way which is leading into destruction" {Mattews Account 7:13}.  What was Jesus referring to when He spoke of this?  Well, can you think of that which you have left behind in order to follow Jesus?  For myself, I have lost everything from friends and coworkers to opportunities.  There have been many instances where those who claim to follow Christ have been subjected to discrimination from those around them.  In my experience, I have also often faced the ridicule of others for choosing to follow the preaching "Of a dead guy."  For the most part, I take this all in stride, as this is part of the price that I've paid for my life in Christ.  To forsake the pleasures which the rest of the world indulges is but another price to be paid to follow Jesus.  Granted, I've spent my time in the pleasures of the world already.  Yet I do not see those days as lost, but as my gain in Christ.  From his prison cell, the apostle Paul wrote of that which he had given up in his life following Jesus.  For Paul, to live was to be in Jesus, and to die, gain {Paul to the Philippians 1:21}.  Paul did not consider the pleasures of the world around him to be worth that which was awaiting him through Christ {Paul to the Colossians 3:23-24}.  Is this life even possible in this modern world of ours?  I would say yes.  For my life is proof that one can forsake that which the world calls "Normal" in order to follow Jesus.  Indeed, I have faced the mocking and insults from those choosing to enter through the broad gate.  To choose not to follow the world is simply not seen as normal.  I've even been accused of being involved in a cult for my beliefs.  The way I see it, my life in the Father has a greater reward than a life following the desires of this world.  

Yet we are encouraged, and are delighting rather to be away from home out of the body and to be at home with the Lord

Paul to the Corinthians (2) 5:8, Concordant New Testament 

In Corinthians, Paul speaks to being away from home, out of the body and to being at home with the Lord {Paul to the Corinthians (2) 5:8}.  So, where is our focus?  Are we delighting in the achievement of what the world has to offer?  Or, are we rejoicing in the promise of what is to come?  For I know from experience that there is not much rejoicing when one enters through the broad gate.  When I was involved in following the desires of this world, I never saw myself as complete.  Sure, I was doing everything which those around me said would make me happy, but I was far from that.  I didn't realize it back then, but the broad gate just wasn't for me.  I couldn't profess to be a Christian and follow the desires of the world around me.  I had to choose one or the other.  Thankfully, my choice was made easier by the Fathers revelation of His Son in me.  As with Paul, I only came to this knowing when it delighted the Lord {Paul to the Galatians 1:15-16}.  Sure, it may have been better for me if I had come to this realization earlier in life, but I look at the testimony which I have shared with others which may not have been possible if I had chosen to follow the Lord earlier in life.  The truth is, when the time came for me to choose the broad or narrow gate, I chose that which led me to a life in the Father {Johns Account 14:20}.  

~Scott~ 

The Good Of The Father (Seek Thee Jesus)

 

If, then, you were roused together with Christ, be seeking that which is above, where Christ is, sitting at the right hand of God.  Be disposed to that which is above, not to that which is on the earth

Paul to the Colossians 3: 1-2, Concordant New Testament 

I will began this page with one important question, who is Jesus?  Jesus asked this very question of His own disciples {Matthews Account 16:15}.  Some of His followers answered with John the Baptist of one of the ancient prophets of Israel.  But Simon Peter, yes, the same Simon who would deny Jesus on the eve of His crucifixion, answered that Jesus was indeed "The Christ, the Son of the living God" {Matthews Account 16:16}.  As Jesus proclaimed, Simon did not come to this truth on his own, but "By My Father who is in the heavens" {Matthews Account 16:17}.  So, again I ask, who exactly is Jesus to you?  For I already know who He is for me.  To me, Jesus is He in Whom my life now resides {Johns Account 14:20}.  Like Simon, this truth of the Lord Jesus was not revealed to me by some up and coming mainstream church pulpit pounder, but by the Father opening my eyes to the identity of His Son.  I mention this because far too many people seek out Jesus through the church, which is the LAST place where the truth of Christ will be preached.  Indeed, in all of my years sitting in the pews of the church, I've never heard the truth of Christ mentioned.  What I have heard is the same old song and dance theology which too many Christians have come to accept as truth.  That mankind is separated from God and Jesus.  Indeed, Jesus is seated at the Fathers side in heaven, carefully watching over His Fathers creation.  As I've mentioned before, this has been one of the lies spoken by the church.  A dear friend of mine reminded me the other day that the power of identity is the key to our transformation.  The apostle Paul speaks to this renewing of our minds {Paul to the Romans 12:2}.  For too many believers, this transformation has yet to occur in their lives.  Like Simon Peter, we await the opening of our eyes to the true identity of Christ, and ourselves.  

He is saying to them, "Now you, who are you saying that I am?"  Now answering, Simon Peter said, "Thou art the Christ, the Son of the living God."  Now, answering, Jesus said to him, "Happy are you, Simon-Bar Jonah, for flesh and blood does not reveal it to you, but My Father Who is in the heavens."

Matthews Account 16: 15-17, Concordant New Testament 

Many believers, if asked of their one true identity, would answer in the flesh.  That is, they would answer in human terms in order of physical appearance or family genealogy.  I don't fault them for this response, for this is what we have been taught from the beginning.  We are in the flesh, not the spirit.  Indeed, this has been the message given unto us by the mainstream church.  That our identity is ornately flesh and sinful from birth {Paul to the Romans 3:23}.  Our own minds follow these identity politics by continuing to believe in the sinful flesh.  Paul realized this error in our thinking, and our own need for our minds to be renewed {Paul to the Romans 12:2}.  How is it that we can look upon Jesus and see the truth of our own identity if we are still of the belief that our own flesh is wicked and sinful?  This is part of the struggle I faced when my eyes were opened to who I really am in Christ.  How could Jesus ever be in a sinful man like me?  For those fans of The Chosen series, this is struggle Simon faces when Jesus calls him to follow Him.  Our minds have become focused on the flesh, and not the spirit.  To that I say, seek thee Jesus.  For when we our eyes are opened to who it is that we really are in the Father, we will began to see Jesus when we look at ourselves.  As my friend reminded me, the power of identity is the key to our own transformation and the renewing of our minds.  When we see the flesh not as a barrel of sin, but at the vessel of our life in the Father. 

And not to be configured to this eon, but to be transformed by the renewing of your mind, for you to be testing what is the will of God, good and well pleasing and perfect. 

Paul to the Romans 12: 2, Concordant New Testament 

~Scott~ 

The Good Of The Father (Something Out Of Nothing)

 

The God Who makes the world and all that is in it, He, the Lord inherent of heaven and earth, is not dwelling in temples made with hands, neither is He attended by human hands, as if requiring anything, since He Himself gives to all life and breath and all

Acts of The Apostles 17: 24-25, Concordant New Testament 

The other day I came across an ad for a local church which proclaimed that those who attended would somehow be "Transformed."  I immediately thought to myself, transformed from what?  Transformed into what?  I feel that like a good deal of those within the mainstream church, that this particular house of worship had fallen into the same old institutional church theology.  That man is a sinner, and that he needs to somehow be "Transformed" from that into one that is more agreeable to God.  But wait, hasn't this already been accomplished?  Did not God, after I was created in His Likeness, declare all to be "Good" {Genesis 1:31}?  So, how is it that one who has been declared "Good" by the Father needs to be transformed into something else?  Are we not already complete in the Lord?  Yet, I'm not at all surprised since we're dealing with the centuries old lie of the mainstream church.  The lie that has been perpetrated for thousands of years, that we have somehow been separated from He Who created us.  Therefore, having become separated from God due to our sin, we need to be transformed into something which He will find more agreeable to Him.  What would that even be?  For if God has declared His creation to be good, what changes need to be made?  God has not declared His creation to be somewhat good.  He has not declared it to be partially good.  No, the Father has proclaimed that His own creation, mankind included, is now GOOD.  It seems that the only way that one would disagree with this heretical belief of mine is if they adhere to the theology of the mainstream man-made church.  Sadly, this theology of the church flies in the face of what we see in the scriptures.  Jesus Himself has proclaimed that we live in union with He and the Father {Johns Account 14:20}.  The apostle Paul speaks to how he has died with Christ and that Jesus now lives in him {Paul to the Galatians 2:20}.  Is this scriptural evidence not proof enough that we're not apart from God?  The theology of the church is based around man as a born sinner {Paul to the Romans 3:23} and his constant struggle to return once again to the Lord.  Yet Paul speaks to our "Being justified gratuitously in His grace" in the following verse.  So, if we have been justified in the grace of the Father, are we still considered a sinner?  I suppose you would be if you adhere to the false teachings of the church.  

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 

Thousands of years ago, religious authorities put to death many of the followers of Jesus, including His own disciples, for the words which they spoke.  The apostle John spoke of the need to "Test the spirits" to see if they are indeed of God {First Epistle of John 4:1}.  We can indeed test the spirits, or examine the words and teachings of the church, in order to see if they are of the Lord.  This is what I have attempted to do in my writings.  I may have come across as pretty critical of the church, but this is due to my own testing of the spirits.  I see the revelation introduced by Paul of our life in Christ.  What I did not see was that same teaching spoken in the church.  In fact, there is indeed a discrepancy between the theology spoken within the church and that of a few key parts of scripture.  The insistence of the church that man remains a sinner is but one example of this disconnect.  Yes, we were born sinners, but we were crucified beside Jesus on the cross.  That man is now dead.  What remains is our life in the Father.  To continue to speak to our old sin identity is but one of the lies of the modern church.  For what God has declared to be good has no need to be transformed.  

~Scott~