Don't let the enemy turn God's sweet conviction into condemnation!
God gives us revelation about ourselves because He wants to bring us freedom and move us forward in becoming more Christ-like. This revelation from God is called conviction - it's God's way of revealing sin issues within our hearts and exposing something that’s damaging to us and possibly to others as well. If we stop getting conviction, or refuse to receive it, we’ll become stagnant in our growth and perhaps even a bit hard-hearted or stiff-necked.
Sometimes, however, that conviction is turned upside down by the enemy: what God reveals for the purpose of bringing freedom can be turned into torment. Conviction is a starting point for repentance and new growth, but the enemy can twist-up convicting revelation from the Lord and use it to keep us in a pool of self-condemnation.
If God says ‘be more gentle’ the enemy will tell us we’ve run over people all our lives and we’ll never change because we grew up in a rough family and people are sick of being around us and we have nothing to offer and yada,yada, yada.
But God says “I’m giving you an answer to your prayer. When you asked me why the same thing keeps happening over and over in your relationships I gave you this revelation. Now open my word and look into the word ‘gentle,’ then use it as a springboard for a new beginning in this area.”
Conviction from the Lord is a sign of His love and active involvement in our lives. That conviction might sting when we first get the revelation, but we cannot allow repentance and Godly sorrow to be turned into heaviness and self-condemnation by the enemy. The devil’s condemnation is his effort to entrap us in self-absorption on the very thing that God meant for freedom.
God leads and we follow – He does not hide Himself behind aggressive behavior toward us or push us into self-condemnation. Don't allow what God meant for good to be turned for bad by the enemy - His conviction is an opportunity for sweet surrender.
“ Search me, God, and know my heart; test me and know my concerns. See if there is any offensive way in me; lead me in the everlasting way (Psalm 139:23-24)
One of the reasons we can never be 100% certain, when judging things by
our own eyes and by natural appearance, is that we are limited in our
sight. Without revelation from the Spirit of God we are very one sided and self protective in our decision making.
The human mind judges things, in part, based on past experiences – and
we sometimes find it easier to sympathize with someone if we’ve had that
same experience. But we might also go back to that experience, even
subconsciously, and use it as a plumb line for discerning other
circumstances: those may be times when we find ourselves coming to the
wrong conclusion.
Even when we’re absolutely sure we’ve
discerned a situation correctly, it may be a good idea to step back and
ask God what’s behind the scenes that we can’t see. When we want to
move in and ‘fix’ it, there may be something deeper under the surface of
the situation that is much bigger than we anticipated or much different
than we judged from our perspective.
In short, we know in
part, it’s really that simple. And giving others the benefit of that
understanding is one way of working through situations whose endings are
potentially toxic.
Our confidence is in the Lord – we cannot
have confidence in our flesh and our ability to understand more than we
have confidence in God’s way of dealing with difficulties. We’re not
called to have a ‘bull in a China shop’ mentality: a thoughtful and
reflective spirit gives room and time for the Lord to move and it keeps
us from doing damage to ourselves and others when we lack full
understanding.
“The Lord's slave must not quarrel, but must
be gentle to everyone, able to teach, and patient, instructing his
opponents with gentleness. Perhaps God will grant them repentance
leading them to the knowledge of the truth.” (1 Tim 2:24-25)
If you’ve been around the Christian community
very long you’ve probably experienced a strange phenomenon which seems
to be gaining ground. Many churches, even of the same denomination, are very protective of their sheep – sometimes to the point of charging them to disassociate with others of the same belief.
I’m not making a blanket statement and saying that all churches are
this way, but there are enough of them that it seems to be an epidemic.
People leave one church and go to another for various reasons (and this
is not an accusation against either the specific church or the sheep
concerning why this happens) but warnings against other churches are
commonly shared with those that are leaving. It’s odd that we can see
how wrong someone else is but can’t see where we err in understanding –
granted, sometimes it’s valid to protect sheep from what lurks down the
highway.
John the Baptist refused to participate in a fight for
sheep (John 3): He knew they all belonged to Jesus anyway. John’s
disciples thought they had ‘first dibs’ on baptizing; it was their
ministry and now others were copying it! His disciples were flustered
because people were leaving ‘their group’ and going to ‘Jesus' group,’
but John put a quick end to their complaints by saying that “No one can
claim anything that has not been sent to Him by God.” In other words –
if they’re supposed to be here, they will be here, but if not, we are
all fighting in the same Army anyway!
John’s disciples saw
Jesus’ ministry as a rival, but the same attitude was with Jesus
disciples when they saw others driving out demons in Jesus’ name (Mark
9). Jesus told His disciples that whoever was not against Him was
ministering for Him – those that are serving God are all FOR God, not
against one another, regardless of location.
It's quite
obvious from Paul's letters to the churches that none of them was
serving perfectly - they were a work in progress. But in spite of their
issues, we have no record of Paul or anyone else telling believers to
stay away from specific NT churches. While caution never hurts, it
seems we have reached a point of abrasively criticizing other churches,
even when we've previously broken bread with them and know their hearts
for the Lord.
Perhaps there’s an element of feeling rejected
that comes into play in these types of circumstances - but personal
feelings of rejection can be healed by forgiving others, and accepting a
dose of God’s reality as recorded in both John 3 and Mark 9. But more
importantly, we should be content to know that the sheep who have left
our fold are still serving God and fellowshipping with other believers –
and we are continuing to do what God calls us to do as a small part of
the larger Army! In the end, we who believe are linked arm in arm in
Kingdom service.
Peace to the Church!
They dragged the woman to Jesus, forcing her
half dressed body into the midst of the temple crowd where Jesus was
teaching. There she stood in front of the crowd; both her and Jesus had
been ‘put on the spot’ in front of everyone in the temple.
“What do you want us to do with her, Master?” they sarcastically asked
Him. Jesus knew their intention was to trap Him – they’d been waiting
for a moment to catch Him and label Him as a lawbreaker - even if they
had to set Him up to do it!
But as people often do who seek
self elevation, they had given Jesus just enough information to swing
the argument to their favor, hoping to be elevated in the eyes of the
people who stood by and watched. The accusers hoped to be rid of Jesus
once and for all and regain the honor and status that ‘belonged to
them.’
But where was the other half of the adulterous duo – it
takes 2 to tango – even the law recognized that both parties were guilty
(Deut. 22). When Jesus asked if any of the accusers were without sin
they began to disappear one by one – hoping that Jesus wouldn’t
confront their own sins.
They knew that Jesus had seen into
them –he had seen their adulterous and greedy hearts. But what they
didn’t perceive was that Jesus was giving them as much mercy as He was
giving the adulterous woman. Jesus offered them the same forgiveness
he offered her, knowing full well that the bucket of each of their sins
was overflowing.
When they scattered from the scene it was
because of fear – fear of being exposed. But the adulterous woman left
forgiven and whole! She stood in front of Jesus and faced her sin and
received His love and forgiveness, but they left in bitterness of heart,
agitated at having been humiliated.
Jesus waited until the
accusers left, then spoke gently to the woman. He had no need to prove
himself ‘right’ in the eyes of the crowd because His motive was to
restore this woman to God. The accuser’s motive is to point out his own
righteousness by illuminating the wrong in others: a method of gaining
followers and self satisfaction.
We who love God also love the
brethren – we are not those who fall into the trap of being the accuser
of the brethren. We are those who offer mercy and forgiveness, those
whose motives spring from a deep desire to see those who are caught in
sin fully restored to God.
“We must be able to exercise
gentleness and forbearance toward those who err, since we ourselves are
also liable to moral weakness.” (Paraphrased, Heb. 5:2)
As New Testament people, we are not under a
law which requires us to schedule temple visits, give certain offerings
on certain days, or celebrate holy days. We know that God is looking
for relationship with us, and out of that relationship should flow the desire to fellowship with Him, walk in obedience and serve others.
But the freedom we’ve been given can easily turn into a trap of the
enemy if we are not mindful in the Lord of how our human flesh operates
and how the enemy takes advantage of our weaknesses. Freedom from
structure, freedom from specific requirements to meet together, freedom
to do what we want to do….these freedoms are blessings that can turn
into opportunities to neglect the life of God in us and through us. And
perhaps most importantly, when our freedoms are used incorrectly they
can damage the spiritual walk of other people.
What kind of freedoms might be easily abused?
-Food freedoms – how free are we when we become sick from our diets and this limits our ability to serve God?
-Fellowship freedoms – how free are we when the enemy can isolate us
from fellowship and keep us from the accountability the Body offers?
-Financial freedoms – how free are we when we can swipe a piece of
plastic today and have to work another 15 hours next week to pay it off?
-Doctrinal freedoms – How free are we when we allow society to
dictate what God's word says? God brings His word to pass, not varied
interpretations of His word.
These are hard things to take in -
but they are not meant for condemnation - just to make us aware of how
the enemy may be trying to trap us in our 'freedom.'
In
reality, our freedom is not freedom FROM something, but freedom TO the
Lord. The Holy Spirit in our lives takes us into full fellowship, where
true freedom resides – but freedom without responsibility is a usurping
of the power of the Holy Spirit in our lives. God empowers us to
freely serve and love Him – and that empowerment leads to spiritual
discipline and perseverance – the freedom to grow in Him, and know Him
and show the real Him to the world around us!
Stand fast in
Christ - empowered by the Holy Spirit Don’t be entangled in false
freedom, only to find yourself in bondage. Christ has made us free
indeed – free to serve Him in all righteousness. (Paraphrased, Gal 5:1)
Jesus had a mission: He knew the purpose of
His life and He refused to be swayed from that purpose. Though Jesus was
fully human, He refused to take on the distractions that came from
men’s ideas and mindsets. Jesus chose instead to give Himself fully to God’s plan and He kept Himself focused on fulfilling that plan in God’s way.
This is what Godly determination and spiritual tenacity do in us: they
keep us focused first on God and His plans, and second on the avenue
with which He desires us to accomplish His will.
Determination
is a drive of the heart. It’s not something that comes from the head
or it would be swayed with various trains of thought. Determination has
made a decision and sees life’s purpose as the means for living out
that decision.
Tenacity is a holy boldness that conquers the
worst of resistance to the will of God. It’s a bulldozer when needed or
a gentle word when needed – but its power lies in accomplishing the
will of God at the expense of self preservation and self satisfaction.
Tenacity is willing to give up popularity or comfort or anything that
keeps the will of God from moving forward.
Men’s ideas and
plans are like anchors to the will of God, but holy determination and
tenacity are the super-human powers that push through the worst of men’s
mindsets and insults and distractions. Determination and tenacity are
empowerments of God that cause us to brush off the world and push
heavenward to the glory of God.
“Now when they saw the boldness
[holy tenacity and determination] of Peter and John, and perceived that
they were uneducated, common men, they wondered; and they recognized
that they had been with Jesus.” John 4:13
When we walk in His determination and tenacity, people will see that we have been with Jesus!
Pessimism is defined as “the tendency to see,
anticipate, or emphasize only bad or undesirable outcomes, results,
conditions and problems (Dictionary.com).”
By its nature, pessimism is lack of love. According
to 1 Cor. 13, love is always ready to believe the best. That’s not to
say that love is blind, it’s most certainly truthful and honest, but it
does not project or emphasize outcomes, or assess situations, with the
worst of the worst results in mind.
When the Israelites were
sent into the Promised Land to spy it out, 10 pessimists and 2 optimists
made up the scouting party. Caleb and Joshua optimized their love for
God by seeing things through His eyes, the eyes of faith, and they came
back with a good report from the Promised Land. The 10 pessimists came
back with a fearful report and it caused the entire Israelite community
to enter into rebellion (Number 13).
This is not to say that
optimism must always have a wonderful report – but it has a God report!
God’s way and will and word are prominent in the life of the optimist –
he seeks God for each avenue in life and sees it as the best outcome
because it’s prescribed by God. In the worst of circumstances, such as
Paul and Silas’ imprisonment, the optimist can sing praise to God while
shackled to a cold, stone floor (Acts 16).
Everyone has a down
day once in a while, but a pessimistic life style does not give glory to
God. One may even say that pessimism resembles false prophecy –
because it does not seek God’s will and way but projects its own
thoughts and words in place of God’s. On the other hand, true optimism
has to be based on trusting God and accepting His will.
For the
person who leans toward pessimism, a study of the love of God may be
the cure. A revelation of God’s power and an understanding of the
promises in His Word may wash away the tendency to see the worst in
other people and circumstances, replacing it with great faith, which
works by love.
Stuck in a Rut of Excuses!
I’ve found
myself making excuses, at times, for staying in a rut. Perhaps it’s
human nature to be comfortable where we’re at, even though we dream of
better circumstances and know there’s more to life than what we’re
living. Not only do we limit ourselves, but we may limit God’s work and
will in our lives when we allow our minds to stay stuck in that rut.
Such
was the case with the lame man who sat at the Pool of Bethesda in John
5. For 38 years, the same amount of time the Israelite’s formally went
around the mountain in Exodus (they spent 2 traveling), this man waited
for someone to put him in the pool so he could be healed.
Jesus
words to this man must have felt like a brick upside of his head: “Do
you want to be healed?” Today we might respond by asking “Seriously?
I’ve spent 38 years begging people to carry me down these ultra-steep
steps and drop me in the pool, and you ask if I want to be healed?”
This man defended himself with a string of excuses that might hit home for some of us:
- “I have no man to put me into the pool” - he depended on people rather than God
- “I have to wait until the water is stirred” - he depended on circumstances rather than God
- “Someone has to put me IN THE POOL” - he depended on a location rather than God
-“While I’m waiting someone gets into the pool before me” - he blames others for not helping him enough and getting in his way
-It was the Sabbath Day – he limited himself to a particular day of the week or period of time.
Perhaps Jesus is saying today “Get up! Pick up that roll of excuses you’re laying on and wake up your faith in Me!”
The Living Water isn’t confined to a location or set of circumstances. Dive in!
(Excerpts taken from "The Gospel of John: Believe and Live" by Elmer Towns)
Jewish Rabbi’s developed offshoots of the law
which they gave equal standing with the law. One of those offshoots, or
rules, stated that no man could talk with a woman in public, not even
his wife.[1] To further this idea, the Rabbi’s considered it blasphemous to teach the law, in any degree, to a woman.
Knowing these ‘rules’ fully, Jesus purposefully met with the Samaritan
woman at the well in John 4. Not only did he speak with her alone, but
He discussed the gift of living water with her and initiated a revival
in the Samaritan town of Sychar.
In human eyes, seen through
the Jewish culture of the day, the Samaritans were un-savable and
undeserving of God’s attention - the Jews considered them to be taboo
and worse than animals. But Jesus broke the boundaries of their culture
and purposely gave living water, salvation, to this Samaritan woman
who’d had 4 husbands and was now living with a man.
A woman, an
adulterer, and worst of all, a blasphemous Samaritan - someone that
today’s religious mindset might put the ‘taboo’ sticker on. Someone who
doesn’t agree with our doctrine. Someone who has been rejected because
of our man-made rules. But God sent Jesus out of His way to meet with
this woman and bring her salvation: He opened her eyes through the gift
of prophecy in Jesus – a true example of how He gifts us for the purpose
of extending grace to others.
Because Jesus went outside of
the cultural and religious box, the Samaritans had living water and
forgiveness given to them, and the schism of division between the Jews
and the Samaritans began to close on that day. The town of Sychar was
changed and revival broke out – their hearts were turned to God.
Man-made ideas sometimes sneak into our doctrine and are given equal
standing with God’s Word. These mindsets cause us to reject certain
kinds of people instead of rejecting ideas that don’t agree with the
Word of God. Jesus separated the ideas from the person – He loved the
person and rejected both the Samaritan and Jewish ‘religion’, but He
stood strong in the Truth of God’s Word.
God help us to reject religion, live in Your Truth and take that Truth to those we’ve considered ‘taboo.’
1. (Baker’s NT Commentary, Jn 4:27).
With His spoken Word, God created the
universe. That ‘Word’ is Jesus Christ (John 1) – He is the creative
Word through which God brought the world into existence, and He still
resounds as the Living Word in the
natural universe. This is why the natural world around us testifies to
the existence of God – His imprint remains on it because through His
Word of Power (Jesus Christ) He created and formed it into His divinely
inspired handiwork (Romans 1:20).
Just as creation testifies of
the existence of God, we also do as we’re transformed into His image.
The Living Word, Jesus Christ, the Bible – they are one in the same -
and as the Bible is opened, read, and understood by us regularly, that
same Word changes us from the inside out. We become a product of His
creation, just as the natural world is, but for us it’s a spiritual
creation.
John 1:1 says “The Word became flesh.” This is
talking about Jesus Christ becoming a blood and flesh human being.
However, in a spiritual sense, the same thing happens to us. As we read
the Word and take it into our hearts, the Holy Spirit broods over it,
just as He brooded, hovered over and nurtured the Word at creation (Gen.
1), causing the Word to take root and grow. As the Word is established
in us we are recreated into the image of God, and once again, the Word
becomes flesh.
This is our process of sanctification and
becoming more Christ-like. We actually become a part of His body
extended from heaven (where He is the head), to earth (where we are His
body) (Eph 1:22-23). This is not to say that we become equal to God, but
that we take on the character and image of Jesus Christ and form His
Body on earth.
However, if we want to be changed into His
image, we must develop a love for the Word and spend time in it – giving
the Spirit of God something to brood over and nurture in our lives.
Today I pray for all who read this – that God would give us an immense
hunger, desire and passion for Him and His Word. I pray that God would
help us to submit to the Spirit’s brooding and we would become a living
Epistle, the Word made flesh, for His glory!
“And the Word became flesh and dwelt among us, and we beheld His glory.” (John 1:14)
Love is so completely foreign to the operation of the world that it may be the one thing that causes them to stop and take note!
The world has satisfied itself through medical science, space travel and amazing architectural feats - but love can never be simulated.
The greatest, untapped power supply of our time may be the love of God!
Love endures through the worst trials, showing patience and kindness
Love never is envious nor boils over with jealousy, is not boastful or self promoting
Love is never arrogant and inflated with pride
Love is not rude (unmannerly) and does not act unbecomingly
Love does not insist on its own rights or its own way, for it is not self-seeking
Love is not touchy or fretful or resentful
Love takes no account of the evil done to it – paying no attention to a suffered wrong
Love does not rejoice at injustice and unrighteousness, but rejoices when right and truth prevail
Love bears up under anything and everything that comes, is ever ready to believe the best of every person
Love never fails
(1 Cor 13)
God help us to understand and operate in your love – perfected and fully furnished for your glory!
