Reception, Perception and Installation

 

Reception, Perception and Installation

 

Matthew 13:14-17

And in them is fulfilled the prophecy of Esaias, which saith, By hearing ye shall hear, and shall not understand; and seeing ye shall see, and shall not perceive: For this people’s heart is waxed gross, and [their] ears are dull of hearing, and their eyes they have closed; lest at any time they should see with [their] eyes, and hear with [their] ears, and should understand with [their] heart, and should be converted, and I should heal them. But blessed [are] your eyes, for they see: and your ears, for they hear. For verily I say unto you, That many prophets and righteous [men] have desired to see [those things] which ye see, and have not seen [them]; and to hear [those things] which ye hear, and have not heard [them].

 

We are a very blessed people in this nation.  We are rich and wealthy in many things.  One of the things we are wealthy in, is the rich knowledge and understanding we have of the Word of God.  We think of places like China and countries where the Bible has been outlawed and how hungry the saints of God there are for a fraction of what we have and take for granted.  My concern is the responsibility for what I do know and understand.

The nation of Israel was not so different.  They had the law and the prophets.  They were the richest nation on earth concerning spiritual knowledge and understanding of who God is.  They were the source of true spiritual life to the nations.  Unfortunately, here is Christ in there very midst and they don’t even perceive Him for who He is.

When we talk about reception, we talk about taking in or receiving something.  Many of us have taken in spiritual information over a great deal of our lives; some of us not near so long.  What are we doing with what we receive?  Do we use it to condemn and judge others who don’t have what we have?  Do we simply retain this knowledge in our hearts and minds, but it is having no real affect in changing our lives?  Israel, like many of us, learned to go through all of the spiritual and religious motions of honoring God and keeping ceremony, but what happened to their spiritual senses and the application of the life changing principles that they had knowledge of?

I become concerned when I look at my life and think, am I just talking about these things of God, passing on what He has made known and real to me, but not really installing them into every aspect of my own life.  Often I don’t perceive these principles manifest in my personal walk as I know they ought to be.  If I know them, then I can’t claim ignorance.  I am without excuse.  This is where I find that knowledge alone is not enough.  What I know and what I live can be two totally different things.  If what I hear and know and see doesn’t affect a heart change then I may be puffed up with knowledge, but void true spiritual life.  Jesus didn’t come just to give us more information about who God is; He came to be the life changing information that can transform you and me from the hopeless lost individuals that we were into the sons and daughters of the Most High God, bearing His standard and nature.  The Lord has given us His Holy Spirit to take this information and put His finger on the areas of our heart that need change and transformation.  We can bow our necks as Israel is indited of doing here, dulling our spiritual senses so that while there may be knowledge, there is no true revelation and change taking place in our hearts.  Thus, we continue our walk through life projecting a spiritual and religious front, while inwardly we are void of true Spirit and Life.

Do we all have doubts and questionings at times about God and our faith, of course we do.  If we didn’t, we wouldn’t be walking by faith.  It is “the knowing” that Christ has placed in our hearts, that continues to raise a standard of confidence against such doubts.  We can’t say we always understand why things are as they are, or happen as they happen, but we have an assurance in our hearts that God is God and forever sets upon the throne having dominion over all things.  In that confidence we rest knowing that nothing can separate us from His love.

The installation of that which we spiritually perceive and understand is a lifelong and continual process.  Our greatest danger is falling into complacency and apathy along the way.  We must never take our spiritual relationship with Christ for granted.  Like our marriages, it needs continual nurturing, fellowship, relationship and commitment.   Otherwise it will be said of us, “For this people’s heart is waxed gross, and [their] ears are dull of hearing, and their eyes they have closed; lest at any time they should see with [their] eyes, and hear with [their] ears, and should understand with [their] heart, and should be converted, and I should heal them.”

Blessings,

#kent

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Tales of Jealousy, Betrayal and Revenge

 

Tales of Jealousy, Betrayal and Revenge

 

Matthew 26:6-14

 

6While Jesus was in Bethany in the home of a man known as Simon the Leper, 7a woman came to him with an alabaster jar of very expensive perfume, which she poured on his head as he was reclining at the table.

8When the disciples saw this, they were indignant. “Why this waste?” they asked. 9″This perfume could have been sold at a high price and the money given to the poor.”

10Aware of this, Jesus said to them, “Why are you bothering this woman? She has done a beautiful thing to me. 11The poor you will always have with you, but you will not always have me. 12When she poured this perfume on my body, she did it to prepare me for burial. 13I tell you the truth, wherever this gospel is preached throughout the world, what she has done will also be told, in memory of her.”

14Then one of the Twelve—the one called Judas Iscariot—went to the chief priests 15and asked, “What are you willing to give me if I hand him over to you?” So they counted out for him thirty silver coins. 16From then on Judas watched for an opportunity to hand him over.

 

The Lord began to open up some interesting parallels in the Word concerning jealousy, betrayal and revenge.  As I read the above scripture I believe it was no accident that the story of the woman anointing Jesus’ feet and the decision of Judas to betray Jesus are sequential.  It brought to mind the story of Cain and Abel.  Genesis 4:2-8 gives us this account, “Now Abel kept flocks, and Cain worked the soil. 3 In the course of time Cain brought some of the fruits of the soil as an offering to the LORD. 4 But Abel brought fat portions from some of the firstborn of his flock. The LORD looked with favor on Abel and his offering, 5 but on Cain and his offering he did not look with favor. So Cain was very angry, and his face was downcast. 6 Then the LORD said to Cain, “Why are you angry? Why is your face downcast? 7 If you do what is right, will you not be accepted? But if you do not do what is right, sin is crouching at your door; it desires to have you, but you must master it.” 8 Now Cain said to his brother Abel, “Let’s go out to the field.” And while they were in the field, Cain attacked his brother Abel and killed him.”

The parallel we see here is that, as the woman was presenting her sacrifice of tears, precious perfume and the washing with her hair, Judas was despising her offering and John 12:4-8 shows his heart as he suggests a better sacrifice and offering than wasting the perfume on Jesus.  “But one of his disciples, Judas Iscariot, who was later to betray him, objected, 5″Why wasn’t this perfume sold and the money given to the poor? It was worth a year’s wages” 6He did not say this because he cared about the poor but because he was a thief; as keeper of the money bag, he used to help himself to what was put into it. 7″Leave her alone,” Jesus replied. ” It was intended that she should save this perfume for the day of my burial. 8You will always have the poor among you, but you will not always have me.” It may be conjecture, but it seems to me that Jesus’ rebuke to Judas created an offence in his heart much like the rejection of Cain’s sacrifice.  Whenever we hold an offence in our hearts of bitterness, jealousy, and rejection we open our spirit up to the darkness that is waiting to enter in.  Suddenly there is anger, the desire for revenge and the seeds of murder.  What Cain and Judas share in common is a heart that was self seeking and unwilling to give its best and its all to God.  God even spoke and pointed out to Cain the problem with his attitude, “Then the LORD said to Cain, “Why are you angry? Why is your face downcast? 7 If you do what is right, will you not be accepted? But if you do not do what is right, sin is crouching at your door; it desires to have you, but you must master it.” Had Cain or Judas or the other examples we could give, such as Saul and David, been willing to humble themselves and acknowledge a wrong spirit and attitude in their hearts and repent of it they could have been accepted.  Humility and repentance are the mastery of sin.  These characters chose to hold on to the offense and then act out their anger; giving place to murder in their hearts.

What is the lesson God is speaking?  Offense and unforgiveness in our hearts, that goes unrepented of, will open up our spirit to the darkness of revenge and even murder.  That murder may not be physical, it could come in the form of the words we speak, slander, gossip, betrayal or undermining another in some other way.

There are times in our life we feel rejected, slighted, passed over and we feel it is so unfair and maybe it is, but watch your attitude.  Humble yourself before the Lord and allow Him to show you what is acceptable and good.  When I look back over my life and the times I didn’t get the promotion or I applied for jobs and was rejected, I can see now that God wasn’t rejecting me, He was protecting me and leading me in the way that was best for me.  I can see how through times that I was rejected, in time it led to even better things and greater opportunity when God did open the door.

Let go of any offenses or jealousies that you are harboring in your heart.  Repent of them and trust God, rest in Him, He will show you the acceptable way.

Blessings,

#kent

The Will and the Way of God

 

The Will and the Way of God

 

1 Chronicles 15:2

Then David said, None ought to carry the ark of God but the Levites: for them hath the LORD chosen to carry the ark of God, and to minister unto him for ever.

 

There is a story in 1 Chronicles that tells us of David’s desire and zeal to bring the Ark of the Covenant up to Jerusalem.  Here in 1 Chronicles 13:7-10 we read about his first attempt and see that not only was it unsuccessful, but it resulted in the Lord’s anger and the death of a man.   “And they carried the ark of God in a new cart out of the house of Abinadab: and Uzza and Ahio drove the cart. And David and all Israel played before God with all [their] might, and with singing, and with harps, and with psalteries, and with timbrels, and with cymbals, and with trumpets. And when they came unto the threshingfloor of Chidon, Uzza put forth his hand to hold the ark; for the oxen stumbled. And the anger of the LORD was kindled against Uzza, and he smote him, because he put his hand to the ark: and there he died before God.”  Our reaction to this account might not be so unlike David’s, somewhat shocked, stunned and thinking, “God, why were you so severe?”  When God responds to men’s actions and His judgement results in death, one of the first and foremost things it generates is a fear of God, not just in the “be afraid” sense, but in the sense that we can’t take God’s will and His ways for granted.

Think about if for a moment with me about how we handle the things of God.  When I examine my times that are supposed to be set aside and consecrated for Him, I see my own personal agendas and ways leaving smudgy, dirty little finger and handprints all over them.  Think for a moment of God’s will and way being like this huge plate glass window that is sparkling clean and transparent.  Then here come His kids.  They don’t even think, “I need to really be aware and respect the purity and cleanness of this window.  I can look through it, but I don’t want to put my hands on it or I will dirty it.”  If it was a sliding glass door then there would be a proper means by which we would pass through it, open and close it, without placing our hands on the glass.  This is a rough illustration of what David did and why Uzza died when He touched the Ark.  In Leviticus 20:26 God speaks of His desire for His people, “And ye shall be holy unto me: for I the LORD [am] holy, and have severed you from [other] people, that ye should be mine.”

The Ark of the Covenant was the most sacred of the pieces of the Tabernacle.  Its place was in the Holy of Holies and it represented the very presence and place of God.  Throughout the Word there is an awesome respect and fear that is directed toward it, for what it represented.  It wasn’t that David’s heart was not in the right place because He wanted to bring the Ark up to Jerusalem, it was his methods that were wrong.  There are right ways and wrong ways to handle the things of God.  When we get careless and sloppy in our walk with God, we find ourselves incurring judgements and disciplines for the way we are handling the things of God.  Hopefully it won’t be as severe as Uzza, Nadab and Abihu, or Ananias and Sapphira.  These people gave their lives to be examples to us not to take the things of God lightly and not to do things our own way.  Many of us are far guiltier of this than we realize and I’m feeling the conviction that the Lord wants us to really begin to examine our relationship and our action concerning the things of God.  There was a right way that David should have been transporting that Ark.  That was a priesthood function that was laid out very explicitly by God in Exodus.  Do we fully realize that we are the priesthood of God that carry about the Ark of God in our spirits?  How are we handling the precious entrustment God has placed upon us to carry His name and His testimony in our daily lives.  Have we grown careless in our commitment and our obedience to Him?  Are we doing many of the things in our lives, both spiritually and naturally, our way instead of His?  Are we putting our dirty little hands of selfishness all over the window of His Holiness?  God wants us to transport His life in these bodies with immense joy, rejoicing and gladness, but He wants us to take special care that we do it His way and not ours, no matter how good it may seem.  Let’s ask the Lord to show us the areas of our lives where we may be dishonoring and disobeying Him.  Let’s covet His Holiness and Righteousness, seeking to be well pleasing and compliant with His will and His ways.  God has extended much grace toward us, but that is not our license for sin and dishonor concerning the Holy Life He has placed in our keeping.

“Lord, help us not to be foolish concerning our lives and walk in You.  Help us to always look upon You with the utmost reverence and respect.  Help us to honor and obey you, searching out Your will and Your ways of godly and righteous living.”

Blessings,

#kent

Spiritual Ignorance

Ephesians 4:17-19

So I tell you this, and insist on it in the Lord, that you must no longer live as the Gentiles do, in the futility of their thinking. 18They are darkened in their understanding and separated from the life of God because of the ignorance that is in them due to the hardening of their hearts. 19Having lost all sensitivity, they have given themselves over to sensuality so as to indulge in every kind of impurity, with a continual lust for more.

 

Spiritual Ignorance

 

What causes spiritual ignorance?  This passage in Ephesians gives us a pretty clear understanding that spiritual ignorance is a symptom of the hardening of the heart.  When a life is given over to sin, impurity, sensuality and continual lust for more it brings with it a darkness.  The heart becomes callused and insensitive to the Spirit of God and spiritual truth.  It becomes enveloped in a darkness and perversion of understanding concerning spiritual matters.  This spiritual ignorance is the bondage of sin and strongholds that keeps us captive to the world system of sin and death.  We only know how to operate under that law and paradigm.  We learn here that even for us a Christians whom Christ has delivered out of this darkness that this must no longer be our paradigm or way of thinking and living.  When we let the world come into our lives it will bring with it that veil of spiritual darkness and ignorance.  It will make our hearts insensitive to the moving and speaking of the Holy Spirit.  The apostle Paul strongly exhorts and commands us as the body of Christ to no longer be partakers of this mindset and lifestyle.  We are like fish that have been released from the hook and lure of sin, but if we don’t learn from that and turn away, we will be hooked again.  Once a fish is hooked it loses its ability to chose its own direction, but is led by the angler that has it captive.  Satan still wants to get his hooks in you, but the Word is exhorting us to not even be a part of that pond that is polluted with darkness and impurity.

We have been released through the blood of Jesus to swim in the living waters of God’s life and righteousness.  These waters are washing and cleansing our paradigm of thinking and believing till we come into the fullness of Christ likeness and being.

Ephesians 4:20-32 tells us what that looks like.  “You, however, did not come to know Christ that way. 21Surely you heard of him and were taught in him in accordance with the truth that is in Jesus. 22You were taught, with regard to your former way of life, to put off your old self, which is being corrupted by its deceitful desires; 23to be made new in the attitude of your minds; 24and to put on the new self, created to be like God in true righteousness and holiness.

25Therefore each of you must put off falsehood and speak truthfully to his neighbor, for we are all members of one body. 26“In your anger do not sin”: Do not let the sun go down while you are still angry, 27and do not give the devil a foothold. 28He who has been stealing must steal no longer, but must work, doing something useful with his own hands, that he may have something to share with those in need.

29Do not let any unwholesome talk come out of your mouths, but only what is helpful for building others up according to their needs, that it may benefit those who listen. 30And do not grieve the Holy Spirit of God, with whom you were sealed for the day of redemption. 31Get rid of all bitterness, rage and anger, brawling and slander, along with every form of malice. 32Be kind and compassionate to one another, forgiving each other, just as in Christ God forgave you.”

We are exhorted here to allow the Holy Spirit  to take us through a transformation process by swimming away from the polluted pond that we once swam in; turning away from those former things that had us in spiritual ignorance and darkness concerning the will and purposes of God for our lives.  All those former strongholds and tendencies we are turning our back on and we are no longer allowing them to exist in the landscape of our lives.

We start by dealing with very practical issues that confront us in our daily lives.  We no longer react out of a fallen nature, but now we choose to respond out of Christ’s nature of holiness and righteousness.  We no longer looks at life through our fallen state of ignorance, but through the illuminating and transforming truth of God’s Words and the nature of Jesus.  The ways of Jesus don’t make sense to this world, because He is not of this world, and now, no longer are we.

As we come into the light of God’s truth and salvation our minds begin to be cleared of the former darkness we lived under and our hearts start to become sensitive again to the moving and prompting of the Holy Spirit so that we don’t continue in those former things.  We are living out of a new nature and new attitude of mind.  We are putting on the new self or person, “created to be like God in true righteousness and holiness.”   We know longer walk in spiritual darkness and ignorance as before, but in the truth of His Word and the holiness of His ways.

Blessings,

#kent

Effects of Corruption

 

Effects of Corruption

 

Galatians 6:8

For he that soweth to his flesh shall of the flesh reap corruption; but he that soweth to the Spirit shall of the Spirit reap life everlasting.

 

In this day and age many of us deal with computers.  They are a great tool and instrument of help anda  blessing to our lives as long as they are working properly.  When something starts to go south they can become a tremendous source of frustration.  Sometimes we experience a corruption in our software and it may start as a minor glitch, but it rarely gets better on its own and left to itself it could eventually affect and shutdown our whole system.

The effects of sin work much the same way in us.  When we give place to areas of sin in our lives it is often minor at first, but the more we feed it, the hungrier it gets.  Little by little it leads us down a path of greater and greater corruption.  It is like a cancer that may manifest in one area of our body.  Left unattended it can grow and spread till it can affect other areas of the body as well.  It can overtake us to point that we begin to lose moral compass and control over its direction.  Often times, the Holy Spirit will deal with us about it and even send others into our life to exhort us and warn us of our corruption.  The corruption of sin can again rule over us if it is given place and allowed to have dominion.  That sin will eventually manifest itself to the point that it can be spiritually life threatening and totally destructive to our lives.  That which we sought to hide in the corner may be suddenly shouted from housetops and we can find ourselves publicly naked and humiliated.  Those that once admired us may now despise us because of the reproach our corruption has brought upon us.  All that we had spent years building in reputation and integrity can be destroyed in a moment.  It is vitally important that we judge ourselves, lest we be judged.  Whom the Lord loves He chastens.

If we find corruption in our lives, our remedy is repentance, changing our mind and going the other direction.  This isn’t always easy because of the stronghold that sin can have upon us.  We may well need to humble ourselves and go to other mature members of the body of Christ to help us in these areas of bondage and corruption.  Freedom from corruption will first begin to come with our decision and commitment to get free from it.  We may need some help and deliverance, but we still have the power of Christ within to enable us to walk after the Spirit and not after the flesh.  Perhaps there is corruption at work in many of us that we need to deal with, confess, and get deliverance from, that we might live a life of liberty and freedom in Christ.

Blessings,

#kent

Sound the Alarm in Zion

 

 

Sound the Alarm in Zion

 

Joel 2:1

Blow the trumpet in Zion; sound the alarm on my holy hill. Let all who live in the land tremble,

for the day of the LORD is coming. It is close at hand-

 

Set your feet in righteous paths for the destruction is outside the walls of My protection and grace.  Return unto Me with your whole heart and not a divided heart.  Rend your hearts and not your garments.  The Lord’s love is toward His people and His compassion fails not.  Life is what He has called you too, but the destroyer has come to destroy and he will have his day.  Your safety is in the secret place, the place where I will hide you under the shadow of My wing.  Indeed a thousand will fall at your right hand and ten thousand at your left, but it will not come nigh unto you, if you are hidden in Me.  Fear and trembling will consume the earth, but where the Spirit of the Lord is, there is peace.

Come now to Me with your whole heart.  Fix your eyes upon Me now and lay down your encumbrances as the farmer leaves his plow.  It is a day of reckoning and judgement that is at hand.  Prepare the way of the Lord and prepare your hearts to receive Him.   Darkness will cover the earth as the water covers the sea.  You are My lights in the dark places.  You are the lamp by which many will find their way.  My life and presence within you will draw men from the darkness as they see your light shine.  It is a day to make ready, a day to buy and store up the oil and a day to buy gold refined in the fire.  Hear the voice of the Bridegroom as He is calling unto His bride to make ready the way of the Lord, for the time is near at hand.

The people that are called by My name shall be strong and do exploits, but not before the day of great testing and turning away.  It is a day when the love of many will wax cold.  It is a day to be either cold or hot for the lukewarm will not withstand the day of My abiding.  Many will fall away, for their hearts were wavering and divided.  The way of the cross calls for a full and total willingness to die to everything that is not of Me.  Many carry a cross of convenience, but the fire will reveal the true nature of one’s faith.  Set your heart to know Me in Spirit and in Truth.  The façade of Christianity will be torn down and thrown away and then will the true one stand.  My Church shall no longer be a religion, but a reality in the earth.  The earth will see it revealed for what it is and not what it has been perceived to be.

This is a call to the faithful and true.  Let him who has an ear hear what the Spirit has to say unto the churches.  Let My ways be your ways and My thoughts be your thoughts, for you are a redeemed people, sanctified by the blood of the Lamb.  Put on the garments of righteousness and gird yourself with praise.  Rise up and let your worship be true and real from your heart.  I will inhabit the praises of my people and I will abide in those who enter into Me.  Come now, prepare your hearts while there is still time.  Cast off your complacency, for when men say, “Peace, Peace, then comes sudden destruction.”

Hear the trumpet in Zion and the sound that I speak in my holy hill, “Prepare ye the way of the Lord.  Rend your hearts and not your garments.  Seek Me while I may be found.”

Blessings,

#kent

Blessing and Cursing

 

Blessing and Cursing

 

Deuteronomy 30:19

I call heaven and earth to record this day against you, [that] I have set before you life and death, blessing and cursing: therefore choose life, that both thou and thy seed may live:

 

This scripture in Deuteronomy brings to light that as life is the opposite of death, so it is blessing and cursing.  The Lord is also teaching us that it is the choice of life that brings blessing and the choice of death that brings cursing.  In Deuteronomy 30:16-18 the Lord further qualifies this principle of life and death, blessing and cursing; “In that I command thee this day to love the LORD thy God, to walk in his ways, and to keep his commandments and his statutes and his judgments, that thou mayest live and multiply: and the LORD thy God shall bless thee in the land whither thou goest to possess it. But if thine heart turn away, so that thou wilt not hear, but shalt be drawn away, and worship other gods, and serve them; I denounce unto you this day, that ye shall surely perish, [and that] ye shall not prolong [your] days upon the land, whither thou passest over Jordan to go to possess it.”

Our God is calling us to Life today.  He is calling us back to a sanctified and committed walk with Him.  Even in the light of world events, we are beginning to see a greater distinction of light and dark, good and evil, godly values and worldly values.  The grays are fading into black and white and God is calling us to the place of no more compromise.  Our nation is in peril because we have become tolerant and complacent with sin, not only in our nation and its values, but foremost in our own lives.  Our nation is reflecting the values of our own hearts.  We, as a nation who has said our trust is in the Lord, have stopped honoring, reverencing and fearing Him in the way that is due His awesome name.  We like Aaron’s son’s, Nadab and Abihu, have been offering up strange fire in our sacrifice of worship to God.  We worship and serve God our way and not His way.  We count as common and ordinary that which is Holy and to be feared.  God is a wonderful and loving God who desires to bless us and bring us into the fullness of His blessing and inheritance for us, but we must never allow ourselves, as we already have, to become careless and sloppy about who our God is.  He is not a God that will wink at our sin and continue to allow us to go our own way.  Whenever we get careless and fail to truly fear, reverence and adore our awesome Lord and Father, judgements are soon to follow for we are making a choice for cursing and not blessings, we are choosing death and not life.  God says in the scripture in Deuteronomy, “But if thine heart turn away, so that thou wilt not hear”.  Are you and I truly hearing the voice of the Spirit of God in this hour?

Joshua put a challenge before the children of Israel in Joshua 24:15, “And if it seem evil unto you to serve the LORD, choose you this day whom ye will serve; whether the gods which your fathers served that [were] on the other side of the flood, or the gods of the Amorites, in whose land ye dwell: but as for me and my house, we will serve the LORD.”  Our God is not honored by, nor will He continue to tolerate our religious, fleshly worship and way of life.  We have made His name a reproach, because the world so often sees in us, less of what they perceive God to be, and more of what they see in those of the world.  What we see in the general embodiment of Christianity is not the heart of God, but a strange fire of sin, self, flesh and Spirit, an unholy mixture.  God wants to visit us again with His glory and His presence, but if He does in the state that we are in, we will die.  Judgement will come swiftly upon us.  His presence must manifest itself in a sanctified and holy place that has been consecrated unto Him alone.  God is not interested in our religious trappings; He is interested in believers who want an intimate relationship with Him and are willing to pay the price to obtain it.  In the Song of Solomon there were virgins without number, but there was only one Beloved, only one bride with whom He would be intimate and lover.

Our blessing is His Life.  When we possess our Father’s heart and He fully possesses us we will not be turned away to other gods.  We will pursue His life and presence with all that is within us.  We will be His sanctuary, His priesthood and His beloved.  It is time for us to make the choice of life or death, blessing or cursing.  If we continue lukewarm and double-minded He will spew us out of His mouth. We must prepare the way of the Lord for He is coming to a bride as it says in Ephesians 5:27, “That he might present it to himself a glorious church, not having spot, or wrinkle, or any such thing; but that it should be holy and without blemish.”  Today is our day to repent and return unto Him with our whole heart, mind, soul and strength.  He is worthy.

Blessings,

#kent

Spoiled Leftovers

 

Spoiled Leftovers

 

Colossians 3:5-11

5Put to death, therefore, whatever belongs to your earthly nature: sexual immorality, impurity, lust, evil desires and greed, which is idolatry. 6Because of these, the wrath of God is coming.  7You used to walk in these ways, in the life you once lived. 8But now you must rid yourselves of all such things as these: anger, rage, malice, slander, and filthy language from your lips. 9Do not lie to each other, since you have taken off your old self with its practices 10and have put on the new self, which is being renewed in knowledge in the image of its Creator. 11Here there is no Greek or Jew, circumcised or uncircumcised, barbarian, Scythian, slave or free, but Christ is all, and is in all.

 

When we were saved and came into Christ we may have experienced a wonderful salvation and deliverance experience.  While we by faith stepped into Christ and heavenly places not all of our old baggage fell by the wayside at that moment.  While we were forgiven and all of our sins were washed away, it didn’t mean we never sinned or fell short again.  The reality is that God didn’t just take all of the responsibility away from us and say now you are all pure, holy and you are just like me.  In our spirits He did.  In that inner man there is one in the likeness of Christ.  But for that “Christ in us” to possess all of us it is a life-long process and one only fully consummated at His presence or coming.

Meanwhile we are caught up in the battleground of the mind and soul.  Our inner man is intent on holiness, righteous and conformity to Christ, but sin still wants to work in our outward members.  Did you ever have a beautiful refrigerator with great food in it, but you keep smelling this stench and wonder where is that odor coming from?  You keep digging and digging and finally you find a baggy with an old rotten onion, so you throw that out, but it still stinks.  You look some more and you open up this yogurt container that has more hairy mold than you’ve got whiskers.  You grimace and wrinkle your nose as you throw it out.  Still there is this smell, but what you find is that some of the foods you really like are the culprits.  Oh man, you don’t want to throw those out, because you really like them, even if they aren’t good for you, so you tuck them away so they will be less noticeable, but you can still munch on them when you get the urge.  Likely it is not the spirit man that wants to hold on to them, it is the flesh.  We have ways of justifying our flesh and our little stashes where we make provision for those things we outwardly love, crave or don’t want to let go of.

What we deal with is that if we are maintaining a relationship with Christ and seeking to please Him in all of our ways we run into conflict.  The Holy Spirit only allows us to indulge in our little hidden treasures for a time until He begins to put His finger on them.  Now it comes down to our will or His.  The truth is, that to His nose, these things are spoiled leftovers of our past nature and they are a stench to Him, but will we let go of them?  The Cross takes no prisoners in its process of holiness.  It exercises extreme prejudice on those things our flesh holds dear, because they represent idolatry to the Lord.  They are the place where our affections, commitments and loyalties often diverge from the Spirit as we make provisions for the flesh.

Most all of us deal with strongholds, these giants in our land, in one area or another that keep defying the living God.  Only as the Spirit of God rises up in us with dominion and authority will we conquer and overcome the strong will of rebellion that still abides in us.  It must to be our will in union with His.  Only as we relinquish everthing, every emotion, and every desire, can Christ be fully Lord of the land.  Romans 8:12-14 tells us, “12Therefore, brothers, we have an obligation–but it is not to the sinful nature, to live according to it. 13For if you live according to the sinful nature, you will die; but if by the Spirit you put to death the misdeeds of the body, you will live, 14because those who are led by the Spirit of God are sons of God.”  What are we going to do with our spoiled leftovers?

Blessings,

#kent

 

Romans 8:2

 

Romans 8:2

For the law of the Spirit of life in Christ Jesus has made me free from the law of sin and death.

 

Natural and Spiritual Laws

 

One of the things we become aware of as we embrace Christ and believe on Him through faith is that there are more than just natural laws at work in our universe and in the earth.  We begin to become aware and somewhat knowledgeable that there is a dimension of spirit as well as the dimension of the natural.  Many have a problem with this because the spirit world is not something we can see and yet we see the effects it can have as it comes into the natural realm.  We know that there are evil spirits, as well as good spirits.

In Christ we become more in tune with the spiritual part of our being.  In the natural we understand everything on the linear scale of time, a continuing cycle of birth, life and death. The natural is a sense realm, measured by physical senses and input.  In the spiritual realm we come to understand a dimension that is not governed by time and natural laws.  There are still laws that govern this realm, but they are different than those of the natural.  In the natural realm we have experienced a separation from the God of the spiritual realm through the law that now governs in the natural realm, the law of sin and death.  God, in Christ Jesus, has disannulled the power of this law, so that through faith in Christ we may be translated and brought into a dimension that is governed by another law that supercedes the first.  It is the law of the Spirit of life in Christ Jesus.  Those who live out of this law, live by a different standards and a different dictate.  In the former law of sin and death we lived under the dictates of natural desires and fleshly impulses, but under the law of the Spirit of life in Christ Jesus, we live out of the Spirit of Christ in us.  That is the dimension of eternal life, power and grace.  We are currently in the midst of these two laws in this body of both flesh and spirit, but we make the choice which law we choose to abide under.  The one results in death, the other in eternal life.  ‘The law of the Spirit of life in Christ Jesus has set me free from the law of sin and death’, if we abide in that law.  We are governed and judged under the law in which we abide.

Many of us are still content to abide in this natural dimension, remaining relatively ignorant of our spiritual calling and being.  We need to explore and come into a greater revelation and understanding of this spiritual dimension that we now have open to us in Christ.   How can we come into the fullness of the power and life that dwell in this dimension if we still have our heads in this natural dimension?  The Lord is calling us up into the knowledge of Him.  Let us press into this dimension of Spirit and Life.

Blessings,

#kent

The Horse and the Rider

 

The Horse and the Rider

 

Revelations 6:2

And I saw, and behold a white horse: and he that sat on him had a bow; and a crown was given unto him: and he went forth conquering, and to conquer.

 

 

For a great time now satan and his hordes have ridden roughshod over humanity.  They have brought destruction and heartache at every opportunity.  They have robbed and plundered the human spirit.  They defecate their filth and perversion throughout the earth and all of us have been made to wade through it.  Even upon the righteous, the God fearing and the God seeking they vomit condemnation and seek to beat down any hope and faith that they carry.  Through ignorance and darkness they have reigned, causing men to believe the lie.  They have perpetuated and proclaimed the law of sin and death throughout the land.  Mankind has hung its head in shame and by the sweat of their brow they pursue the riches of life, as they know it.

God, in the fullness of times, has brought mankind a deliverer, Christ the Lord.  Though he was despised and rejected of the world, to many He has brought hope, faith and salvation.  Yet the horse and the rider of the enemy continues to ride through the camp of even God’s people causing division, dissention and disillusionment.  Even so, God has a remnant of the faithful.  The faithful press on and press in.  They will not give way to the oppressor and the tyranny of sin.  They have experienced their deliverance and though they may dwell in a land of captivity, there spirits are free and they have raised up their heads toward heaven.  The Lord has exhorted His people in Isaiah  51:6, “Lift up your eyes to the heavens, and look upon the earth beneath: for the heavens shall vanish away like smoke, and the earth shall wax old like a garment, and they that dwell therein shall die in like manner: but my salvation shall be for ever, and my righteousness shall not be abolished.”  The people of God look for a new day and a new age when former things will pass away and the foe of mankind will meet His end.  Hear what the Lord says in Isaiah 51to His people in this day, “1 “Listen to me, you who pursue righteousness and who seek the LORD : Look to the rock from which you were cut and to the quarry from which you were hewn; 2 look to Abraham, your father, and to Sarah, who gave you birth. When I called him he was but one, and I blessed him and made him many. 3 The LORD will surely comfort Zion and will look with compassion on all her ruins; he will make her deserts like Eden, her wastelands like the garden of the LORD. Joy and gladness will be found in her, thanksgiving and the sound of singing. 4 “Listen to me, my people; hear me, my nation: The law will go out from me; my justice will become a light to the nations. 5 My righteousness draws near speedily, my salvation is on the way, and my arm will bring justice to the nations. The islands will look to me and wait in hope for my arm. 6 Lift up your eyes to the heavens, look at the earth beneath; the heavens will vanish like smoke, the earth will wear out like a garment and its inhabitants die like flies. But my salvation will last forever, my righteousness will never fail. 7 “Hear me, you who know what is right, you people who have my law in your hearts: Do not fear the reproach of men or be terrified by their insults. 8 For the moth will eat them up like a garment; the worm will devour them like wool. But my righteousness will last forever, my salvation through all generations.” 9 Awake, awake! Clothe yourself with strength, O arm of the LORD; awake, as in days gone by, as in generations of old. Was it not you who cut Rahab to pieces, who pierced that monster through? 10 Was it not you who dried up the sea, the waters of the great deep, who made a road in the depths of the sea so that the redeemed might cross over? 11 The ransomed of the LORD will return. They will enter Zion with singing; everlasting joy will crown their heads. Gladness and joy will overtake them, and sorrow and sighing will flee away. 12 “I, even I, am he who comforts you. Who are you that you fear mortal men, 13 that you forget the LORD your Maker, who stretched out the heavens and laid the foundations of the earth, that you live in constant terror every day because of the wrath of the oppressor, who is bent on destruction? For where is the wrath of the oppressor? 14 The cowering prisoners will soon be set free; they will not die in their dungeon,

nor will they lack bread. 15 For I am the LORD your God, who churns up the sea so that its waves roar—

the LORD Almighty is his name. 16 I have put my words in your mouth and covered you with the shadow of my hand— I who set the heavens in place, who laid the foundations of the earth, and who say to Zion, ‘You are my people.’”

The spiritual day of battle is at hand.  Prepare your hands for war, a war not after the flesh, but after the spirit.  Put on the whole armor of God that you may stand in the day of battle.  “And I saw, and behold a white horse: and he that sat on him had a bow; and a crown was given unto him: and he went forth conquering, and to conquer (Revelations 6:2).”  “And I saw heaven opened, and behold a white horse; and he that sat upon him was called Faithful and True, and in righteousness he doth judge and make war. 12His eyes were as a flame of fire, and on his head were many crowns; and he had a name written, that no man knew, but he himself. 13And he was clothed with a vesture dipped in blood: and his name is called The Word of God. 14And the armies which were in heaven followed him upon white horses, clothed in fine linen, white and clean. 15And out of his mouth goeth a sharp sword, that with it he should smite the nations: and he shall rule them with a rod of iron: and he treadeth the winepress of the fierceness and wrath of Almighty God. 16And he hath on his vesture and on his thigh a namewritten, KING OF KINGS, AND LORD OF LORDS (Revelation 19:11-16).”  He’s coming!  He’s coming for His people, in His people and through His people.  He is coming to rule and reign.  He is coming with His army. “And they shall be as mighty men, which tread down their enemies in the mire of the streets in the battle: and they shall fight, because the LORD is with them, and the riders on horses shall be confounded.”  Prepare for battle.

Blessings,

#kent