Category Archives: the gospel

Too Much, Too Many

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Look how much has been written about the glory of God and Christ.   A 30 some year display of pure obedience and love for his Father.   Just 30 some years out of the history of Man.

The great abundance of Man’s history is filled with rebelion and chaos.  If the accusations God has against Man were to be written in books, how many volumes with that be?   But for the Lord Jesus, the volumes of accusations against me might easily well up to over 3000 books.

But look how great the wisdom of God is, he wrote all that is necessary in one single book, an amazing book of tragedy and release.

Wake-up Call

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Jesus didn’t wake up my soul to be popular.  He woke me up to stand against the things I have done.  He woke me up to stand for the things that are his.  He woke me up to stand against the things that were about to destroy me forever.  He woke me up to, in some fashion, be crucified with him.

There is joy in the Holy Brotherhood of Christ.  Faithfully, he is teaching me to live in that Joy, that joy that surpasses all understanding of mere men.

Come, drink of the cup that is true life.  Approach the throne of the Living God in the name of Jesus. 

Remain there.

What are we lookin at?

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Don’t look at the bum.  Look at the man.  Look past his position in society.  Look past the dirt and a shame.  Look past the isolation.  Look past the potential violence.  See the child who desires love.

Don’t look at the Fashion, pretty hair, makeup and elegance.  Look at the woman.  See the precious little girl she still is.  See how she is caught up in what she was taught; the lie of seduction.  Help her see that what she has learned is not helpful; love her as a soul. 

Don’t look at the flashing smile, rehearsed gestures, pretty words and promises.  Look at the man who says he’s a politician.  In his place, the tools of his trade are lies.  But he is still a little boy.

Don’t listen only to the religious words a man speaks.  Look at the man.  Full of misunderstandings, he strives to master the unknown.  Help him do so with you in mind.  Then, benefit comes to both.

Why do we refuse to judge rightly?  Why are we so lazy that we receive the veneer without thought?  Love is not that willingly blind.  Why do we refuse the eyes that God is so willing to give?

Help where we can.  Correct where we must.  In all things, let our minds be directed by the Holy will of God.  Then our judgments can stand the test.

Don’t look at your accomplishments, no matter if they’re religious or secular.  Look at the man and weep.  Yet do not judge before the appointed time.  Assess with the sobriety of Christ.  Leave room for Life.  Forever, you will be nothing more than a baby.

Judge all things with eternity in mind. 

“THINK ETERNITY!”  Think love.  Do what it says!  Become the people you say you are.

To the Wilderness With You

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I spent the first 43 years of my life burning up my days with my own understanding.  Even when I read the gospel, prayed, and try to live it, there was still my own understanding guiding my thoughts.  I had to come to a terrible end before I could relinquish my control.

Did it need to take that long?  The answer is simple: he’s not finished with yet.  Who have I become?  Who will he yet cause me to be?

In light of this I have advice for every man and woman.  Strike out.  Pack what you think is necessary and follow after Jesus.  My journey began somewhere.  So must yours.

Onward.

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The religion of a man comes about because he thinks he has found the extent of God’s requirement for him.  How far the man goes in Christ depends on how much he desires to learn.  Doesn’t our obedience to the Living God’s Holy Son depend on our will?

God has in mind for us great things.  He has in mind for us beautiful, holy, righteous, eternal, and glorifying things.  But far too often man settles for some small routine.  He gathers about himself just enough to say, “I have done the Lord’s will.  He is pleased with me”.  Such religions have a veneer of righteousness.  But consider the following.

God is not my co-pilot.  He is the one at the helm.  He owns the ship.  He owns the Sea and the Wind.  He owns the place we are going to.  He owns the place we have come from. 

The religion of man tends to say, “I have pleased God by coming through that door.  I will then go back through that door and return to the place I am”.  How can that be reasonable?  It is so easy to do the things we have learned to do.  Still, the Lord beckons us unto death; death to self and Life to Him.

The Sprout of Salvation

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It is not frustrating.  And it is not in vain.

It is frustrating when we perceive the things of God from our own mind and heart.  For then, our work for the Living God seems fruitless.

We speak to our brother about Christ, but he casts us away as if we are insane.  He goes about his business of death with a smile on his face, as if he has just vanquished a foolish enemy.  Calling us names in his mind, heart, and words, he considers us vile and useless.

He happily goes back to his useless gods:  “To these I am familiar.  I understand when they speak about my dreams and ambitions.  They are set concretely by the evidence of History.  This nation or that has relied heavily on the traditions I love so much.  The after life is mysterious.  But these gods give me consolation in my sorrow.  They speak well of my potential.”

With the sleight-of-hand that belongs to death, he throws away our testimony for Christ.  Our words are full of fault in his eyes.  For they give no praise or quarter to man.  The testimony of Christ is foolishness to such people.

I consider this with sober mind.  I want his salvation.  I want to hear the praise of Christ on his lips.  I want to see a changed heart that is willing to learn and love.

But I am caught up in frustration.  The very thing I do not have a right to own.  For salvation does not belong to me.  It is not within my grasp to grant or to take away.  I cannot open the eyes of his heart.  I cannot open his ears that he should hear.  And I cannot manipulate his heart that he should learn to love and to be humble.

Salvation belongs to our God and to the Lamb.  For he dispenses his wisdom from heaven.  What he gives, when he gives, and how he gives, is dictated by eternity.  And he does not speak the Gospel to us in words that can be spoken or perceived by Man. 

God speaks his Gospel to us in the faithfulness that surrounds us.  He speaks in a language that never ceases.  He speaks vast volumes of books in a short and poignant sentence. 

All the while Man looks for the key.  But his hands are not big enough to handle the object of release which God offers from heaven.

What is the summation of this?  I confess I do not know. 

I have spoken to my brother.  I have acted toward him in a godly fashion, full of love and desire to understand.  I have prayed for him consistently.  And I strive, with all I have, to be patient.  Still the sun has not risen in his heart.  And now he has ordered me to stop speaking to him about such things.  In fact, he has vowed to stop speaking to me altogether. The door to him is now slammed shut.

Here I sit, just outside his door, wondering and perplexed.

Let the wisdom of God be the wisdom of God.  What more can I say?  It is not mine to wield the mystery of salvation.  It is simply mine to cast the seeds about, letting the wind of God direct their fall.

I cannot give the Living God counsel.  It is mine simply to be faithful.  In war we can watch as others are killed.  And there is nothing we can do to stop it.  In life, some will live and some will die.  Who are we to say no to the One who has made all things perfectly well?

But I wonder.  What are we learning through all this?  What are we gaining through the loss that is so prevalent about us?  Who are we, as we stand in the midst of a Slaughter?  Hip deep in spiritual blood, what is the value is our life in Christ to those who die?

The answer lies in a language I have never heard.  This puzzle piece fits perfectly in the vast array of God’s glorious eternity.  God is not anxious about such a question.  For he has had the answer long before the world was ever made.

Does this give me peace?  The peace this gives me lives in the place I cannot translate.  For still I am anxious to see Christ appear in my brother.  And doesn’t every Christian feel the same?

Holy Father, we leave these things in your hand for that is where your wisdom has dictated it shall be.  Salvation is yours.  Still we pray in earnest that your love should appear. 

“By Your Grace”, you have taught me.  And I am convinced there is no other answer.  Your strength is Christ Jesus.  Still we beg you to move, yet according to your wisdom.