How to be made Perfect

Why did Jesus lay down His life? What was accomplished on the cross? Sacrifices in the temple already atoned for sins (or, covered; removed sins), a truth made plain in that the author of Hebrews wrote that “if He were on earth, He would not be a priest, since there are priests who offer the gifts according to the law” (8:4). What animal sacrifices could never do, however, was to cleanse our conscience (9:13-14; 10:1-2). When he wrote that “it is not possible that the blood of bulls and goats could take away sins” (10:4), speaking of the Day of Atonement (cp. Lev. 16:6-10), he did not mean that these sacrifices had actually done nothing all along, because clearly they did atone for sins (Lev. 17:11); what is meant here, then, is that these sacrifices could never cause a man, let alone a corporate people, to be perfect (Heb. 10:1).

But this is what Christ’s sacrifice was able to do that no other could. And this is what is meant by the promise of the new covenant, where God will no longer remember our sins (Jer. 31:31-34). When our Messiah was cut off, He ended sacrifice and offering (Dan. 9:27a), meaning that there was no longer a need for the Day of Atonement, because by His blood we are made a new creation (2 Cor. 5:17), able to attain perfectness and to enter the promised Sabbath rest of God (Heb. 6:1; 4:9). This is because in Christ we stand before God as sons, now able to have a right relationship with Him. Our old man died with Christ, and our new man was risen with Christ. I am not the same man I once was, and I can testify of this because of His blood and my own crucified – or judged (Col. 3:5-11) – old man (cp. Rev. 12:11). His was not what is so commonly termed a “substitutionary” death, but a dying that we must sympathize with through daily participation if we are to ever cease from sinning (Rom. 6:1-11).

The difference between masks and uniforms

I know it’s been awhile. Much longer and I think I may have fallen away from the blogging world yet again. School’s been busy; our schedule is changing now that Kel has graduated from Intro; I now teach end-times for Intro students on Thursday mornings; and the Lord has been redirecting me from my three years’ focus on Jesus’ return to His death, resurrection, and ascension. More on that last bit later.

What I wanted to quickly share here was one of the most simple yet profound truths I’ve ever heard, which Mike Baker said at one of the Thursday fasting meetings. When we wear masks, we cannot have true intimacy. If I put up a façade before my wife, my daughter, my family or friends, or before my beloved Jesus, I hinder the otherwise pervading love that would be had between us. A person’s countenance is paramount – do not hide yours behind falsities. Remove everything that encumbers fellowship, and be violent about it. Jesus died that we would have right relationships restored to us.

Uniforms, however, can be a very good thing. Being a veteran in the Army, I understand a thing or two about what a uniform will do to a regular Joe; suddenly the Superman within the Clark Kent becomes known to him, and he is able to act seemingly supernaturally, though in actuality it was available all along. I applied this familiar understanding to the priesthood, and quickly concluded that as a priest according to the order of Melchizedek, that I need to daily put on my priestly garb in order to access efficiently that “power of an endless life” (Heb. 7:16) that I have already been given in Christ, my sympathizing High Priest who has the grace to give me for strength to serve my God without hindrance. All praise be to our Forerunner, Jesus!

The Lord spoke to me…

Today marks the first day that I have ever gone out evangelizing. I went with a friend, TJ, who is a seasoned evangelist, and quite an extrovert. As a major introvert, it’s not so much that I’m afraid of conversation as it is that conversation wears me out, whereas TJ seemed to become more and more energized as we went along. The balance, I think, kept us going strong throughout the entire three hour period.

We decided to proclaim the good news at some of the strip malls of Overland Park, speaking with the workers of every store without customers, which just happened to be most all of them. I learned a ton from TJ – he has a gift that I am jealous for, where he is able to direct a conversation to his desired end, even when he is not the one primarily speaking! It was awesome to watch him so easily control the dialogue. And while all that was invaluable, without contest the most important thing I walked away with was the revelation of the immense power of a person’s testimony.

This is a confession: Unbeknownst to myself (this laid dormant for nearly three years), I have loathed my own testimony. I see now that I had felt I could only tell a select few my personal story of how I came to salvation, and this only to charismatic Christians, because I was brought up in a spiritually dead church. When I would tell people, I would skip most everything, because I could not imagine prophecy, demons, dreams, or signs having any positive impact on their lives, or on their relationship with me. In the page “My Testimony”, I have publicly shared those parts that in the past I so frequently removed.

What changed my mind? The Lord spoke through TJ, and His words washed over me as with water; then (as weird as this may sound) He spoke through me to me, sealing my heart as by fire. He told me that most people in the world are spiritual people with spiritual encounters, and that this would only continue and amplify as the Day approaches. My King has given me a powerful testimony to declare truth to the darkness, that He would make a distinction between His people and His enemies. And moreover my Father spoke lovingly to me of His joy in how it was that He captured my heart in love for Him and for His Son and for His Spirit, and that from endless ages past He knew me and of how it was that He would pursue me. Words cannot express the joy that my “Yes” to Him meant – surely even the Word made flesh could only laugh and dance! How long He had been waiting for that day!

Thank You, Father, for outrunning me, and for doing it in the perfect way that You did! And for all those pursuing other lovers, get ‘em, God!

Jesus’ Inheritance

In the previous post, I brought up John 5:17, where Jesus says, “My Father has been working until now, and I have been working,” but I haven’t yet spoken of what I believe He meant. We are to be at rest, and the Father is to be at rest in us, yet we are also to do the works befitting of love. Is this a contradiction? I don’t believe it is, for we are not to only focus on our inheritance, but in Jesus’ inheritance. We do not have an inheritance apart from what Jesus will be given, and therefore we ought to be more diligent in seeing Jesus receive the fullness of His reward, for it is His birthright.

We ought to put His desires first, and not that we may receive more, but that He may be given what is due Him. Should anything be withheld from Him? Is He not worthy of our all? He gave His life for His enemies that some might turn to Him in love! But as it is written, “How then shall they call on Him in whom they have not believed? And how shall they believe in Him of whom they have not heard? And how shall they hear without a preacher? And how shall they preach unless they are sent?” (Rom. 10:14-15); we must be found contending for a sending!

Though I am very afraid of street preaching and of evangelizing (I am very much an introvert and a bit of a recluse) – and I’m sure that I’m not the only one – we really ought to be *more* afraid of *not* speaking. If by our words we will be judged (Matt. 12:37), then it follows that by our lack of words we will also be judged. The tongue was likened by James to a bit in a horse’s mouth, to the rudder on a ship, and by a small fire with the ability to spread into a much greater fire (3:3-5). Sometimes a ship needs to make corrections, but sometimes it needs to stay on a straight course. And I would consider myself, like the tongue, to be “a little member”, able to cause either perfect order or awful destruction. Jesus, tame my tongue!

Father, I *so* desire to be a chosen vessel of Yours to bear Your name “before Gentiles, kings, and the children of Israel” (Acts 9:15)! My passion is the be “a vessel for honor, sanctified and useful for [You,] Master, prepared for every good work” (2 Tim. 2:21)! The fear of the Lord is ever within me, as I take to heart Your word, that we teachers “shall receive a stricter judgment” (Jas. 3:1) – that it is not enough to know of You, or even to know You intimately; no, we must be obedient to walk out what it means to be Christ followers (cp. Matt. 25:1-13; 1 Pet. 2:21).

Holy Spirit, work mightily through us at the parade outreach, that Jesus would receive His full inheritance, not just in those who love Him, but in those who *will* love Him by our words! Speak through us on that day, in Jesus’ name I ask. Amen.

Entering His Rest

Yesterday (Monday – my dates have been wrong) I didn’t get a chance to write as I wanted to, so I’ll write now for then, and later for now (if that makes sense). At FCF Mike Bickle spoke about our highest calling – being a house of prayer. All day yesterday I was striving to have what I had on that Sunday. The harder I tried, the further I seemed from it. I was practically begging the Lord that it would be made known to me what exactly it was that I had on Sunday that I was overlooking Monday. I was sooo desperate for the peace and joy again – I’ve never felt so alive as I did on Sunday. (I had always believed that I was alive, but I now know that I was very mistaken!)

Well, I’ve been spending most all of my time for the past month in the book of Hebrews, and the Lord brought me to chapter 4 verses 9-11, which says, “There remains therefore a rest for the people of God. For he who had entered His rest has himself also ceased from his works as God did from His. Let us therefore be diligent to enter that rest, lest anyone fall according to the same example of disobedience.” I was so excited by this, because I felt that I *had* entered that rest on Sunday! So what did Paul mean that God ceased from His works? In John 5:17, Jesus comes across as saying that His Father has never stopped working… how was I to understand these passages?

I again asked Him to show me what Gen. 2:2 meant; that “on the seventh day God ended His work which He had done, and He rested on the seventh day from all His work which He had done.” After waiting on Him, He brought me to Isa. 66:1-2, where He spoke saying, “Heaven is My throne, and earth is My footstool. Where is the house that you will build Me? And where is the place of My rest? For all those things My hand has made, and all those things exist. … But on this one I will look: on Him who is poor and of a contrite spirit, and who trembles at My word.”

He then taught me that the works He ceased from doing on the seventh day was the work of making a resting place for Him to dwell in! Next He showed me that it is the nature of spirits to seek rest, even unclean spirits (Matt. 12:43-45). God is spirit, and created us with a spirit, and each of our hearts are like a tabernacle – only the Holy Spirit or only unclean spirits can rest there; both cannot abide within the same tabernacle. I was *so* encouraged, because I knew beyond all doubt that it was the Holy Spirit who was at rest in my heart!

To “be diligent to enter that rest” was not what I was doing on Monday – on Monday I was leaning upon my own strength to enter that rest, which made it impossible to do that which I wanted so badly. The rest that we are to daily enter is by God’s grace, given us as we stand boldly before His mercy seat (Heb. 4:16), placed behind the veil, which we enter through to the Presence by hope (Heb. 6:19). Faith without substance is presumptuous faith, and not true faith at all; true faith is “the substance of things hoped for” (Heb. 11:1), by which we obtain the promises given us and embrace them until we are all made perfect and receive those promises. Daily we must obtain these promises – such as the promise of God abiding in us who love and obey Him (John 14:23) – and be violent to take them.

Ceaseless prayer is violent. Humbling ourselves that we would receive His grace is violent. True faith in Jesus, our High Priest and forerunner, is violent. Obedience to His word to the death is violent. Confessing that we are “strangers and pilgrims on the earth” (Heb. 11:13) is violent. Having nothing in common with the ways of the world, that the world would hate us and not be worthy of us, is violent. Let us be violent!

Jesus, let the lost and the compromising enter Your rest! I ask You that at the St. Patrick’s Day outreach many demons would be stirred from their perches, and that the Holy Spirit would come like fire to burn away all that hinders love. Father, give us Your heart for the lost! And I ask for myself, and for all who would agree with me, that You would even take us (for but a short time – have mercy!) to the place where there is no rest day or night, that our hearts would be sealed and our faces set like flint to bring those not of Your fold through Your gate, that they would be made to “lie down in green pastures; [and to be led] beside the still waters” (Ps. 23:2). Let many enter Your rest on that day, in Jesus’ name. Amen.