Plantations Of Stone

 

However, the Most High does not dwell in temples made with hands, as the prophet says:

'Heaven is My throne, and the earth is My footstool.  What house will you build for Me?  says the LORD, Or what is the place of My rest?  Has My hand not made all these things?

Acts 7: 48 - 49 NKJV 

There is a simple sign in someone's front yard that I pass day after day in my travels.  I do not know the person (s), but if I were to guess I would say that they have had a negative experience somewhere along the line with religion.  The sign reads simply 'Religion = Genocide.'  Now, a few years ago I might have been ready to march up to this guys front door and defend my faith.  These days...not so much.  What changed?  Well, religion didn't change for sure that I can tell.  What changed was my own understanding of what religion is...and isn't.  I've sat through more than my share of Sunday morning sermons spoken by some pulpit pounder trying to preserve his own job.  I've endured many a ear splitting jam session by some new age praise and worship band whose purpose it was to draw people into church.  I've sat through far too many classes designed to explain and overcome the difficulties of life.  I've been there...I get it.  I have a better understanding now of what religion is.  The boring sermons, the loud music and the endless classes.  This is where our religious systems have brought us.  Judging from the tithing plates being passed around each Sunday, we're expected to pay for all of this as well.  So if religion is a system, what examples do we have of what religion is not?  Well, I'll come right out and say that religion, in my opinion, IS NOT genocide.  However, I will say that religion is akin to slavery.  Yes, the religious system as we know it is slavery.  Religion enslaves people into a belief that God is angry with them over their sin.  Not only that, despite the fact that Jesus died for our sins, we must constantly seek Fathers forgiveness for any "unseen" sin we may have engaged in.  Our religious system is a cult based on the guilt of our former life, not on the hope of our new creation {2 Corinthians 5:17}.  Now, onto what religion is not.  

"God, who made the world and everything in it, since He is Lord of heaven and earth, does not dwell in temples made with hands.  Nor is He worshipped with men's hands, as though He needed anything, since He gives to all life, breath and all things."  

Acts 17: 24 - 25 NKJV 

Let's make a checklist shall we.  On one list we will list all which our religious system has given to you.  On the other page we will then list all which the Lord has given to you.  Which list do you think is more impressive?  Which list do you think is more beneficial to you?  Has religion given you life?  Has religion ever given anything life?  I know that there will be more than a few hardcore religious types out there who will rattle off more than a few things which they feel that religion has given to us.  So I ask you, what has religion ever given to you that God has not already created?  This is one thing that religion is not...self sustaining.  The religious system needs the resources of people to survive.  In contrast, Jesus did not command those few fishermen to follow Him.  No, He simply invited them to 'Come and see' {John 1:39}.  This is the invitation which Christ gives to all who seek Him...come and see.  Religion is not freedom.  I have listened to far too many people who speak of freedom in the Lord while they continue to struggle with the forgotten sin which the pastor warned them about.  Don't be deceived, sin in itself is slavery.  However, God has dealt a death blow to sin through the finished work of Christ.  As a result, despite what the pastor tells you, we are no longer slaves to sin {Romans 6:6}.  I have found that true freedom does not come from how often we go to church.  We are not redeemed by how much we tithe.  True freedom only comes from our own realization of who we are.  The apostle Paul spoke to this reality in Galatians.  Paul explains that it is Jesus Himself who now lives in us {Galatians 2:20}.  Paul was a man raised in the religious system of his day.  If anyone knew religion...it was Paul.  Yet, somewhere on a road to Damascus, God decided it was time for Saul to throw away all he thought he knew about Him and to introduce him to His Son.  His offer still stands today.  Think you know God?  Come and see.

Then Jesus turned, and seeing them following, said to them, "What do you seek?"  They said to Him, "Rabbi (teacher), "Where are you staying?"  He said to them, "Come and see."  They came and saw where He was staying, and remained with Him that day.  

John 1: 38 - 39 NKJV 

~Scott~ 

Living Blessed

 

So Jesus answered and said to them, "Have faith in God.  "For assuredly I say to you, whoever says to this mountain, 'be removed and be cast into the sea,' and does not doubt in his heart, but believes that these things he says will be done, he will have whatever he says.  "Therefore I say to you, whatever things you ask when you pray, believe that you receive them, and you will have them." 

Mark 11: 22 - 24 NKJV 

I was thinking this week about a new term I could introduce among believers in Jesus.  It's something we've all seen before, but with a radical new twist.  How many remember the "Name it and claim it" days of the institutional church?  I do.  I was taught that if I needed something from God, that all I needed to do was pray long and hard enough and He would provide for me.  Like any good parent, if a child asks often enough the parent finally gives in, right?  Well, unfortunately things don't always work out that way.  When they don't there will certainly be hurt feelings as well.  I recall beseeching the Father for more than a few blessings over the years.  Some were realized while others were not.  So, Obviously I don't have some magic leverage with God.  Yet, as I thought about my current status quo this week I came to realize something.  I am living blessed.  Living blessed?  What is this I speak of?  Well, basically what I see living blessed as is knowing in my heart that I have what I need.  Through the provision of the Lord, I have what I need.  Now, that's not saying that I wouldn't turn down a new car or more money in my account, but for what I need...I am living blessed.  In my heart I know that whatever happens, that God will provide for me what I need.  That's the kicker, our assurance that the Lord will provide for us.  These are not simply words which we memorize from scripture, but our unshakable belief that God will provide.  It's not a new version of name it and claim it based upon our own prayer efforts.  We believe it, therefore God will deliver it.  The "it" I speak of can be different for different people.  A single mother will believe in her heart that God will provide for her family.  While a public official will trust that God will give him the wisdom to lead.  Whatever it is that we need, we can rest assured that God already knows about it and will work in His timing.

Now faith is the substance of things hoped for, the evidence of things not seen. 

Hebrews 11: 1 NKJV 

I still remember it like it was yesterday.  I had seen my mother kneeling in prayer on the old couch in our living room.  Sometimes she would be crying, while others she would simply be silent.  I didn't realize until later the burden she felt in providing for her family.  One particular Christmas season was pretty tight financially, and I would come home from school to find her once again kneeling in front of the couch...quiet in prayer.  I also would not know until later in life how deep my mothers faith in God truly was.  Despite her circumstances, she believed that God would provide for her family.  The day before Christmas there was a knock at the door.  As my mother stood there, a total stranger handed her a envelope and walked away.  That envelope held $200 in cash.  Now, this was back in the 1970's, so $200 was a big thing.  The very first thing my mother did after closing the door was to pray.  Once again kneeling upon the old couch.  So I ask you, was it her constant prayers which finally persuaded God to help us?  Or, as I believe, was it her unshakable faith that if she came boldly to the throne of the Lord that He would honor her request?  I would mention that I have neither the time nor the patience for those institutional church embedded souls who swear up and down that our repeated prayers are needed in order to sway Gods favors.  The apostle Paul tells us in Ephesians that our salvation IS NOT based upon our own works {Ephesians 2:8-9}.  I can pray "SAVE ME GOD!" ten million times and I would not end up any closer to knowing Christ than your average pagan world worshipper.  However, if I BELIEVE in my heart that Jesus is the Son of God, and that the Father indeed raised Him from the dead, then the Father is indeed in me{1 John 4:15}.  This isn't a matter of simply building up enough credits to buy our salvation, but in believing that through Christ Jesus we have it.  Once we can understand this, then we are truly living blessed.  

That if you confess with your mouth the Lord Jesus and believe in your heart that God raised Him from the dead, you will be saved. 

Romans 10: 9 NKJV 

~Scott~ 

Workplace Jesus

 "I have been crucified with Christ; it is no longer I who live, but Christ lives in me; and the life which I now live in the flesh I live by faith in the Son of God, who loved me and gave Himself for me."

Galatians 2: 20 NKJV 

It's been said that a person will spend a good amount of their lifetime away from home and at work.  Like it or not, if you are a working person, then you will spend most of your time either at your job or worrying about your job.  Of course, over time this leads to various conflicts with our employers and those we work with.  Some years ago I worked in a busy bus yard cleaning buses each night.  It was rough, but the money was good.  One of the best pieces of advice I got from someone who had been there longer than me was that there was a lot of people in the yard at one time, so I wouldn't get along with them all.  And I didn't.  I would give this same advice to anyone in the workplace, you're not going to get along with everyone.  No matter how difficult we try to be that nice guy, that religious guy or that guy who has no feelings, we won't get along with everyone.  Trust me, I've tried over the years.  I've seen my share of people who would go out of their way to make someone miserable.  Of course, I also noticed that it was these very people who were themselves miserable.  Coincidence?  There have been those times when I have felt inferior and low and have felt like making others feel the same way I did.  I get it.  But at the risk of digging up another Christian cliche, is this what Jesus would do?  For over time I've also come to realize that many of the conflicts we have in the workplace can come down to one issue...how we feel about ourselves.  It's no secret that if we feel sad or hurt or angry, that this also affects our own behavior.  When our behavior is affected, we may treat those around us wrong.  When that happens, conflicts arise.  Coincidence?  So, how is it that we can go through each day knowing in our hearts that we are good people?  How is it that we can start seeing those around us as the same good people?  Well, I will tell you that it all begins with Jesus.  That's right, Jesus is the center of how we see ourselves AND those around us.  If you've always thought that Jesus simply was there to save us from our sins, then you're in for a important discovery in your faith.  Yes, Jesus did save you from your sins, but He is also a intimate part of your life.  

"That they all may be one, as You, Father, are in Me, and I in You; that they also may be one in Us, that the world may believe that You sent Me." 

John 17: 21 NKJV 

We cannot even begin to understand the intimate relationship we share with Christ until we understand the truth of who He is.  Is Jesus our Savior who died for our sins and after that ascended into heaven to be with the Father?  Yes, but this is only part of the truth of Jesus.  The apostle Paul speaks to the relationship we share with Jesus in Galatians.  It is Paul who speaks to Christ living in us {Galatians 2:20}.  If we understand the truth of Christ in us, then we also must understand that it is Jesus Himself who shares in every aspect of our life.  Yes, including our work life.  If we understand the truth of Christ Jesus, we began to see ourselves differently as well.  For if Jesus lives in us, then we are definitely not the person which we fear others see us as.  Of course, knowing the truth of Jesus also means that those we work with are definitely not the same people you might have thought they were either.  As Christians, we do not hold a monopoly on who it is that Jesus lives in.  The truth is, the Spirit of Jesus is in us all, there are those who simply choose not to recognize it.  The prayer of Jesus in the garden in John 17 gives us a glimpse into how Jesus Himself desires we see ourselves.  That we "All may be one" {John 17:21}.  As Jesus and the Father are one, so are we one with them.  This is something I've only come to realize over time.  The world will continue to try to spread the lie of the deceiver that we are not important to the Lord.  That we are but sinners.  Yet the truth of Christ Jesus assures us that it is He who now lives in us.

By this we know that we abide in Him, and He in us, because He has given us of His Spirit.

1 John 4: 13 NKJV 

~Scott~ 

Knowing Jesus

 

The other disciples therefore said to him, "We have seen the Lord."  So he said to them, "Unless I see in His hands the print of the nails, and put my finger into the print of the nails, and put my hand into His side, I will not believe."  And after eight days His disciples were again inside, and Thomas was with them.  Jesus came, the doors being shut, and stood in the midst, and said, "Peace to you!"  Then He said to Thomas, "Reach your finger here, and look at My hands, and reach your hand here, and put it into My side.  Do not be unbelieving, but believing."  And Thomas answered and said to Him, "My Lord and my God!"  Jesus said to him, "Thomas, because you have seen Me, you have believed.  Blessed are those who have not seen and yet have believed." 

John 20: 25 - 29 NKJV 

A coworker asked me this week, "Do you trust in Jesus?"  I think that he was half expecting the ages old Christian speech that I "believe" in Jesus, so he worded it a bit differently.  Without hesitation I said yes.  Then the real reason for his question came out.  He said, "I don't know if I could trust in someone I'd never met or could not see."  Wow.  Honestly, I didn't have a answer for him.  In my heart I know that Jesus is as real as anything I can see around me, but how is it that we relate this to those around us?  We might believe in Christ Jesus, but trust me there are a lot of doubting Thomas' out there in the world.  I know because I used to be among them.  I used to go to church every Sunday and chant the Christian mantra, all the while doubting in someone I could not even see.  This had nothing to do with knowing how Jesus feels for me, but everything to do with what I knew about Jesus at the time.  I know that Jesus loves me.  I know in my heart that He accepted my sin upon Himself that I would be saved {2 Corinthians 5:21}.  He accepted the burden which was meant for me.  Knowing this was the beginning of my knowing the Jesus I longed for.  I wasn't looking for a glorified Christ who constantly needed to be reminded of what He had done for me.  No, what I was searching for was a personal relationship with Jesus who would say to me, "Look what I have done for you."  Not seeking His own honor, Jesus gave Himself that all would be saved {John 3:16-17}.  All too often, we point people to the verse in John 3:16.  That God loved the world so much that He gave us His only Son.  All of that is true.  Yet we often disregard the next verse, which I believe is key to this passage.  That "The world through Him might be saved."  

We love Him because He first loved us.

1 John 4: 19 NKJV 

The verse which began to turn me to seeing Jesus in a different way was 1 John 4:19.  First John 4 speaks a lot to the Lords love for us.  We learn of the Lords one true nature {1 John 4:8}.  For those Christians who are stuck in the Old Testament belief of a angry, vengeful God I present to you 1 John 4:8.  What began to change the way I looked at Jesus was the knowing that I gave Him nothing, that He loved me for who I am.  It was Jesus' knowing that I was special and loved that drove Him to that  cross.  He knew that without Him I was guilty.  He understood that without Him I had no future.  Knowing all of this, He gave Himself for me.  Not that I had anything to ransom.  Not that my own  status guaranteed that He do what He did.  Jesus saw all that I was...and loved me in spite of it.  This was the Jesus I had been searching for.  The personal connection with Him I had been needing.  How wonderful a story where Jesus, knowing all there is to know about me, wraps me in His love.  In fact, Jesus loved me even before I first loved myself.  So, how is it that we tell others about this Jesus who loves all no matter what they have done?  We do just that, we tell everyone that we can.  When the world looks upon us and sees what wonders which Christ has worked, they will naturally be curious.  We simply need to tell them what we already know in our own hearts...that we love Him because He first loved us. 

He who does not love does not know God, for God is love. 

1 John 4: 8 NKJV 

~Scott~ 

What's In A Name?

 

You shall not take the name of the LORD your God in vain, for the LORD will not hold him guiltless who takes His name in vain. 

Exodus 20: 7     NKJV 

I was listening this week to a radio preacher go through his tour of the Old Testament and the ten commandments.  As he did, I felt that sting of guilt once more.  I was once again reminded of where I had been, and what I had done.  Granted, the intent of the Lords commandments is not to make the children He loves so much feel guilty, but to provide His guidance.  That guidance has apparently been lost on me for awhile.  See, I have this habit that where I pronounce certain words in times of anger and frustration.  I know that we've all been there, but I was once again reminded of my faults by a hack radio preacher.  Do I do this maliciously?  Not at all.  I've simply gotten into the habit, as many others have, of saying certain things in certain situations.  I get it.  The good news for me is that this means that I can certainly retrain my habits.  But that's not the point of todays post.  Today I venture the question, what's in a name?  What is it about a name that would make us desire to never bring shame to it?  What is it about the very name of the Lord that should make us hold it in such high esteem that speaking ill of it would bring about feelings of guilt?  Well, if we take a look into who exactly God is we soon realize how very important He is to us.  He is God, the creator of the universe and all we will ever know and see {Genesis 1:1}.  He is God, who loved me enough to create me in His own image {Genesis 1:27}.  He is God, who loved me enough to redeem me that His Son would come to be in me {Galatians 2:20}.  He is God, and His name is above all names.  He is God our provider.  He is God our protector.  He is...God.  For these reasons, the name of the Lord should be uttered by me in love and never in happenstance.  The name of the Lord should never be a substitute to somehow make my conversations seem that much more important.  The Lords name should never be used to add emphasis to any situation.  He is God.  

Whoever confesses that Jesus is the Son of God, God abides in him, and he in God.

1 John 4: 15 NKJV 

I find it hard to believe that we hold the name of our families above the name of the Lord, but it's true.  I have seen many times where someone took it as a personal offense when someone disparaged their family name.  However, they would be the first ones to let the name of the Lord slip past their lips in a not so gracious manner.  Should we believers be at all concerned by our casual uses of Gods name?  I think so.  If a radio preacher speaking on not using the Lords name in vain can make me feel the twinge of guilt, imagine what he's doing to the average Christian out there.  Yet, I don't feel that we should revere the name of the Lord out of guilt or shame.  That's no longer part of our life {Romans 8:1}.  The way I see it, we should revere the name of the Lord because of what He has already done in us and through us.  We love Him because He first loved us {1 John 4:19}.  We love Him because He has made our sin a past tense in our lives {Romans 6:6}.  We love Him for His Son who now lives in us {Galatians 2:20}.  Is our love for the Lord any different for the love we feel for our own families who at one time or another provided for us?  Yet our families will never be able to provide for us what the Lord has already done.  Our love and reverence for Him should reflect our one true heart for Him.  He is God our provider.  He is God our Savior.  He is God.  

Therefore God also has highly exalted Him and given Him the name which is above every name, that at the name of Jesus every knee should bow, of those in heaven, and of those on earth, and of those under the earth, and that every tongue should confess that Jesus Christ is Lord, to the glory of God the Father.  

Philippians 2: 9 - 11 NKJV 

~Scott~ 

Our True Heart

 

And the LORD was sorry that He had made man on the earth, and He was grieved in His heart.

Genesis 6: 6 NKJV 

Growing up in a single parent home for much of my younger years, you would think that I would have been a terror for my mother to deal with.  Well, since many of the archives are still classified, I will say that I had my moments for sure.  One of those moments occurred after school one October day.  I remember the time of year because it was near to my birthday.  Now, growing up I hung out with a few...questionable kids.  This day, as my mother and I walked through a local store, I decided to procure a early birthday gift without my mom, or the store clerks knowledge.  It wasn't malicious in nature at all, as I cried all the way home knowing how it would make my mom feel.  Yes, she marched me back to the store to apologize to the clerk and return the item, but I was more saddened by how it made her feel.  In fact, there were many times I would stop and think about what I was about to do weighing it against how my mother would feel about what I had done.  Believe me, this is a powerful feeling.  I was thinking on this the other day as I was contemplating the many of us, myself included, carry with us.  That being using the Lords name in vain.  Now, as a Christian you might not put much stock in this as a bad behavior, but do you think that God feels the same way?  Do you think that God simply laughs it off each and every time one of His children uses His holy name in vain?  I don't think so.  As I wrestle with my own words used in times of anger and frustration, I need to weigh it against how God feels in His heart when I do these things.  Wait wait wait...God has a heart?  Yes!  This is revealed to us through scripture.  In Genesis 6, we're told that the Lord was grieved in His heart over the behaviors of man He created {Genesis 6:6}.  We are created in His very image, therefore we have a heart as well {Genesis 1:27}.  You could say that Gods heart...is our one true heart.  

"I have been crucified with Christ; it is no longer I who live, but Christ lives in me; and the life which I now live in the flesh I live by faith in the Son of God, who loved me and gave Himself for me."

Galatians 2: 20 NKJV 

In order to see the Lords heart as our one true heart we first need to understand how it is that God...could be in us.  In fact, some Christians might very well turn their backs to this idea as false teaching.  The apostle Paul speaks to the idea of Christ Jesus in him in Galatians.  It is Paul who speaks to Christ Jesus in him {Galatians 2:20}.  This wasn't simply a passing feeling for Paul, for he knew from personal experience the life changing presence of Jesus.  It was Jesus Himself whom Saul met on that road to Damascus.  It was Jesus who led Saul into the city where his life transformation began.  I trust that Paul knows of what he speaks.  Let us say for all intents and purposes that what Paul has spoken to us is true.  That Christ Jesus indeed lives in us.  That the former life we once had was put to death on the cross of Christ {Romans 6:6}.  Now all that is left in us...is Jesus.  It is His heart which is now our own.  The true heart.  Knowing this, how do you feel when you feel your behaviors have fallen short?  Are you worried about what others around you might think?  Or, following His true heart in you, are you sad when the heart of the Lord is grieved?  Do you regret those moments when God was hurt over what we've done?  I have done some serious contemplating of this.  I would not say that we need to change, as that would mean that we need to change from being Jesus.  That simply isn't true.  I believe that what we need to do is to realize the heart of the Lord which each of us has within us.  Once we do that, we will be more in tune with the life He desires for us.

Knowing this, that our old man was crucified with Him, that the body of sin might be done away with, that we should no longer be slaves of sin.  For he who has died has been freed from sin.  Now if we died with Christ, we believe that we shall also live with Him, knowing that Christ, having been raised from the dead, dies no more.  Death no longer has dominion over Him.  For the death that He died, He died to sin once for all; but the life that He lives. He lives to God.  Likewise you also, reckon yourselves to be dead indeed to sin, but alive to God in Christ Jesus our Lord.

Romans 6: 6 - 11 NKJV 

~Scott~ 

Looking For Jesus

 

"God, who made the world and everything in it, since He is Lord of heaven and earth, does not dwell in temples made with hands.  Nor is He worshipped with men's hands, as though He needed anything, since He gives to all life, breath and all things.  And He has made from one blood every nation of men to dwell on all the face of the earth, and has determined their preappointed times and the boundaries of their dwellings, so that they should seek the Lord, in the hope that they might grope for Him and find Him, though He is not far from each one of us."

Acts 17: 24 - 27 NKJV 

Where is it that you look for the Lord?  Is it in church?  Do you seek Him in a that arena where you went to that revival men's conference that one time?  Wherever it is that you look for God, I can tell you that if it is man made, you're barking up the wrong tree.  I had a friend who once bragged about going to "Gods house" on Sunday mornings as if he half expected to meet and greet the Lord there.  Now, if this is what he expected, then I have no quarrel with that.  People will believe what they choose to believe in life.  However, when it comes to seeking God, we may want to keep one thing in mind.  That is, we've been going about it so wrong for so long.  As Christians, we have been taught that God indeed resides in His houses of worship.  The Israelites believed also that God resided in the inner sanctums of their temples which they constructed to worship Him.  It would seem logical right?  Gods presence in the midst of His people coming to know about Him.  Now, this may be true in some circumstances.  God indeed may be in the presence of His houses of worship.  My point is that we should not expect this to be the case for all churches.  Years ago, I would feel almost empty when I was outside of the church, as if God was far away from me.  That feeling always began to manifest itself as the weekly Sunday morning church service began to wind down.  I would soon be out of Gods house and step into a wicked world once again.  Sadly, many believers still see their spiritual lives in this way.  The church is the be all end all in their search for all things God.  

For we are His workmanship, created in Christ Jesus for good works, which God prepared beforehand that we should walk in them.

Ephesians 2: 10 NKJV 

Have you ever wondered, or prayed, where you could find God?  I have.  I remember feeling frustrated that the love and forgiveness of the Lord seemed to be bypassing me as I walked out of church every Sunday.  It never failed, I could walk into church with all the confidence of a good Christian soldier only to have my hopes failed by a pulpit pounders sermon on unresolved sin issues.  How could I ever find God?  Well, it turns out that I was looking for Him in the wrong place.  The apostle Paul tells us that God does not dwell in temples made with hands {Acts 17:24}.  He also reminds us that we are created in Christ Jesus for good works {Ephesians 2:10}.  But the groundbreaking passage which Paul speaks to where we truly should look for God comes to us from Galatians.  Here, Paul describes his own identity not as a Christian believer...but as Christ Jesus who lives in him {Galatians 2:20}.  That's right, instead of looking to a man made structure to seek the Lord, we should be fixing our eyes within ourselves.  For it is God who has given us life {Genesis 1:27}.  As Joseph and Mary searched for a young Jesus in the city of Jerusalem and eventually asked Him where He had been, He replied that He had "Been about His Fathers business" {Luke 2:49}.  Why would things be any different today?  Isn't Jesus still about His Fathers business?  If you were to ask Jesus, what do you think His answer would be as to where you can find Him?  I have a hint...start by looking within. 

"I have been crucified with Christ; it is no longer I who live, but Christ lives in me; and the life which I now live in the flesh I live by faith in the Son of God, who loved me and gave Himself for me."

Galatians 2: 20 NKJV 

~Scott~