My Encouragement Lately

The Lord has been using Psalm 21 to encourage my heart so much the past few days. I just wanted to share (note: I've replaced "the king" part in the passage). I pray that no matter what you may be going through or facing that you will stop and do one thing, the only thing you MUST do, exalt the Lord.

Exalt: to rise, rise up, lift up, take up, set up, erect, exalt, set on high.

Sometimes it is so easy to focus on fixing what is before us (whatever that may be), but the Lord says that if we will drink from the living water He gives we will not thirst. Instead of trying to go down deep for the water from the well of our humanity let us lift our eyes and hearts to Him in worship and drink of the water that doesn't run dry. When we do that we not only are sustained but we become a fountain for others to come and drink from. John 7:38 "He who believes in Me, as the Scripture has said, out of his heart will flow rivers of living water."

Like Moses sang in Exodus 15: 2, "The LORD is my strength and my song; he has given me victory. This is my God, and I will praise him— my father's God, and I will exalt him!"

Psalm 21

"How I rejoice in your strength, O Lord! I shout with joy because You give me victory. For you have given me my heart’s desire; you have withheld nothing I requested. You welcomed me back with success and prosperity. You placed a crown of finest gold on my head. I asked you to preserve my life, and You granted my request. The days of my life stretch on forever. Your victory brings me great honor, and you have clothed me with splendor and majesty. You have endowed me with eternal blessings and given me the joy of Your presence. For I trust in the Lord. The unfailing love of the Most High will keep me from stumbling. You will capture all Your enemies. Your strong right hand will seize all who hate You. You will throw them in a flaming furnace when You appear. The Lord will consume them in his anger; fire will devour them. You will wipe their children from the face of the earth; they will never have descendants. Although they plot against you, their evil schemes will never succeed. For they will turn and run when they see your arrows aimed at them. Rise up, O Lord, in all your power. With music and singing we celebrate your mighty acts."

The song below challenges me so much. I look at it in light of relationships in general and any other matter of the heart (not necessarily in light of Hagar's exact situation).

So when your there, all alone
Your heart is broken, your body worn
And time after time, and man after man
Have torn out your heart, while holding your hand
You are empty, your soul is thirsty
Your heart is angry, for men have done you wrong
And your running through the wilderness
Not knowing where else to turn
Go to the fountain of Living Water
And there you'll meet the Lord

50 Characteristics of Pharisees- Part 2

"And Moses indeed [was] faithful in all his house, as a ministering servant, for a testimony of the things to be spoken after; but Christ, as Son over his house, whose house are we, if indeed we hold fast the boldness and the boast of hope firm to the end." Hebrews 3:5-6

"Take heed, brethren, lest haply there shall be in any one of you an evil heart of unbelief, in falling away from the living God: but exhort one another day by day, so long as it is called To-day; lest any one of you be hardened by the deceitfulness of sin: for we are become partakers of Christ, if we hold fast the beginning of our confidence firm unto the end." Hebrews 3:12-15

I just want to take a moment and make it clear that these posts are not to point the finger nor condemn anyone or any group of people, ironically that would be Pharisaical. Also I am, for the most part, only listing/summarizing what Poonen himself says in this series, any side notes by me are italicized. I am simply sharing what the Holy Spirit has been using to reveal Himself to me over the past several months in hopes to, if nothing else, provoke my brothers and sisters in Christ to further love and good works for the glory of the Father. Things such as these, and many more, are so easy to let slip in our lives. Even out of our pure heart and pursuit for righteousness and Truth we can find ourselves facing our biggest issue, our SELF. My prayer is that God will continue to open up our eyes, that we may see and that our whole bodies will be full of Light. Maturity and perfection are never ending processes. May we be found faithful, humble and ever bearing fruit worthy of repentance.

Here are my promised notes for Part 2 of Zac Poonen's sermon~

The mark of God's blessing in the lives of His children is the ability to see the things in us that do not line up with the Father and cleanse ourselves, being conformed to His nature. If you are not getting light on the un-Christ-likeness things in yourself, God is NOT blessing you. We should be moving on the perfection. So many of us are earth bound simply because we don't ask the Lord, "show me the Pharisee in ME".

Matthew 23 (what we should be lead out of) is the opposite of 1 Corinthians 13 (what we should be lead into). Love is the opposite of Law.

Mat 23:3 "Therefore whatever they tell you to observe, [that] observe and do, but do not do according to their works; for they say, and do not do."
17. Has knowledge without obedience

• They sit in the chair of Moses- they have a lot of knowledge and authority but they do not do anything they say.
• knowledge + obedience = life
• knowledge - obedience = death
• The people who stink the most are those who have maximum knowledge and minimum obedience. The sad part is, these people don't realize they stink.

Mat 23:3-4  "Therefore whatever they tell you to observe, that observe and do, but do not do according to their works; for they say, and do not do. For they bind heavy burdens, hard to bear, and lay them on men’s shoulders; but they themselves will not move them with one of their fingers."

18. They preach things without practicing them first.

• Matthew 23:3 is opposite of Acts 1:1 "Jesus did and then preached". 
• With these two opposites you see how to build Babylon and how to build Jerusalem. 
• Jesus preached what he had already practiced.
• If you preach it without living it you're just seeking honor, the Word must become flesh in you.
• Do not speak on something you have not done, speak on what you know and have lived.
• Be patient and wait so you can speak with authority.
• You don't appoint an English teacher to teach Chemistry. Atheists in our schools know it but elder brothers in our churches don't. This is how Phariseeism infiltrates our churches.

Mat 23:4  "For they bind heavy burdens, hard to bear, and lay them on men’s shoulders; but they themselves will not move them with one of their fingers."

19. Bind heavy burdens on others

• Like a speaker who says "tithe your time like you tithe your money" but when asked if he spent 2.4 hours with the Lord a day he said "no brother". Hypocrisy.
• They build Babylon and and destroy the work of God in people's lives.
• From The Message, "Instead of giving you God's Law as food and drink by which you can banquet on God, they package it in bundles of rules, loading you down like pack animals."
• How do you preach God's Word? The Word can be presented in two different ways.
• Jesus preached from the same old testament the Pharisees preached from but He liberated people. The Pharisees took the same old testament and bound people up.

Mat 23:5 "But all their works they do to be seen by men..."

20. Seek honor from men.

• Praying to get honor, watching how you pray to get a reaction. You aren't praying to God but men.
• Many people are boring till the day they die because they never judge themselves, they think everything is okay.
• If you work on yourself God will show you what to cleanse out.
• It doesn't matter than men know what you do for Him (in your family, relationships, education, ministry), it only matters that He knows. 
• The more you cleanse yourself from seeking honor the more you'll be able to build the true church of God, otherwise it will only be Babylon.

Mat 23:5 "...They make their phylacteries broad and enlarge the borders of their garments."

21. Think holiness is in the dress.

• We have so many ideas which are completely the opposite of the Spirit of Jesus Christ. We've got these ideas in our heads from Babylonian Christianity that we've grown up in and they don't change because we don't meditate on Scripture.
• We're afraid of what people will think of us.
• Pharisees are not only looking for honor but they are always observing others. "what are they doing? what are they wearing?"
• They have eyes like owls and then go talk about others "can you believe...". 
• You should not have time to talk about what other people are doing or spending their money on.

Mat 23:6-7  "They love the best places at feasts, the best seats in the synagogues, greetings in the marketplaces, and to be called by men, ‘Rabbi, Rabbi.'"

22. Love position and titles of honor.

• Do you feel proud that you're now an elder brother? This is saturated Phariseeism. 
• They like to sit at the head table.
• Don't seek honor if you want to build the church. 
• They like to control others. Don't let anyone control you.
• Don't let people put you on a pedestal. We all have one teacher which is Christ and we are all classmates.
• Don't let people set you up as experts.
• Don't allow them to tell you what to do. Save that authority only for the Lord and let Him tell you what to do.
• If you're a leader don't let people maneuver you into taking charge of their lives, let God take charge of their lives.
• There is only ONE leader, Jesus Christ.
• A big part of why their churches are not becoming better and they are failing as elder brothers, They don't know the freedom of the Spirit. (We have to 1. stop depending on people for our direction from the Lord. There is a difference between counsel from men and obedience to God. Each one of us is responsible for the Word that is spoken to us. 2. let go of people and allow them to walk out THEIR walk with the Holy Spirit on their own, even if they make a mistake and even if they fall. We have to trust the Holy Spirit in them enough to believe all things. 3.be humble to admit our faults or errors and take personal responsibility for them.)

Mat 23:13  "But woe to you, scribes and Pharisees, hypocrites! For you shut up the kingdom of heaven against men; for you neither go in yourselves, nor do you allow those who are entering to go in."

23. They corrupt others.

• This is the great tragedy in Christendom. 
• Young people are lead astray. They lack role models.

Mat 23:14  "Woe to you, scribes and Pharisees, hypocrites! For you devour widows’ houses, and for a pretense make long prayers. Therefore you will receive greater condemnation.”

24. Take advantage of poor people.

• They exploit widows.
• They swipe money from these poor people to live in grandness themselves. 
• Not just about money but in all manner of life. 
• Elder brothers should not take advantage of others. 
• If someone wants to go someway, do not stop them...even if you don't agree with it. 

 Mat 23:14  "Woe to you, scribes and Pharisees, hypocrites! For you devour widows’ houses, and for a pretense make long prayers. Therefore you will receive greater condemnation.”

25. Pray long prayers in public

• Major problem today, people do not pray at home.
• If people do not heed this just leave them alone.

Mat 23:15 "Woe to you, scribes and Pharisees, hypocrites! For you travel land and sea to win one proselyte, and when he is won, you make him twice as much a son of hell as yourselves."

26. Make people feel they are born again when they are not. 

• Their converts are twice the sons of hell.
• They try and convince people they are filled with the Holy Spirit when they are not. 
• It's not about a prayer or a matra, this will insulate someone from the actual gospel (the power of God unto salvation).
• We must be God-fearing and humble, without that it is just Babylon in a different color.
• Godliness doesn't equal poverty.

Mat 23:5 "Woe to you, blind guides, who say, ‘Whoever swears by the temple, it is nothing; but whoever swears by the gold of the temple, he is obliged to perform it.’ Fools and blind! For which is greater, the gold or the temple that sanctifies the gold? And, ‘Whoever swears by the altar, it is nothing; but whoever swears by the gift that is on it, he is obliged to perform it.’ Fools and blind! For which is greater, the gift or the altar that sanctifies the gift? Therefore he who swears by the altar, swears by it and by all things on it. He who swears by the temple, swears by it and by Him who dwells in it. And he who swears by heaven, swears by the throne of God and by Him who sits on it."

27. Interpret scripture without revelation from God.

• They add their own modifications to the Word.
• This is inconsistency. They don't realize that they are doing the same things that they are trying to prove that others are doing.

Mat 23:23 "Woe to you, scribes and Pharisees, hypocrites! For you pay tithe of mint and anise and cummin, and have neglected the weightier matters of the law: justice and mercy and faith. These you ought to have done, without leaving the others undone."

28.Sticklers for the letter of the law.

• They often neglect mercy.
• They major on minor issues.
• What did Jesus speak on? Concentrate on the major things.

Mat 23:23  "Woe to you, scribes and Pharisees, hypocrites! For you pay tithe of mint and anise and cummin, and have neglected the weightier matters of the law: justice and mercy and faith. These you ought to have done, without leaving the others undone."

29. Have no justice, mercy, faithfulness.

• Deal with the things that need to be dealt with.

Mat 23:24  "Blind guides, who strain out a gnat and swallow a camel!"

30. Strains out mosquito's and swallows camels.

• They concentrate on the small things.
• Don't write a life story that is wrong from start to finish and all you do is focus on the commas and periods. 
• We need to judge OURSELVES first.
• The commas are important but you can't leave love out.

Mat 23:26  "Blind Pharisee, first cleanse the inside of the cup and dish, that the outside of them may be clean also."

31. Cleanse the outside life.

• Inside they are self-indulgent, selfish. 
• It's not about other people but they make sure they look right.

Mat 23:30  "and say, ‘If we had lived in the days of our fathers, we would not have been partakers with them in the blood of the prophets."

32. They say things conscerning what others do, "I would never have done that".

• He doesn't realize the corruption in his own flesh.
• The only difference between you and them if you didn't do what they did is the restraining power of the Holy Spirit. 
• Squeeze out all the puss from the boil of Phariseeism that has infected the church for years. 

Mat 23:34-36  "Therefore, indeed, I send you prophets, wise men, and scribes: some of them you will kill and crucify, and some of them you will scourge in your synagogues and persecute from city to city. that on you may come all the righteous blood shed on the earth, from the blood of righteous Abel to the blood of Zechariah, son of Berechiah, whom you murdered between the temple and the altar.Assuredly, I say to you, all these things will come upon this generation.."

33. Persecute God's prophets.

• Get's offeneded when he hears a prophet. 
• He gets disturbed. 
• Doesn't like to feel like he's being corrected and don't like to hear what the prophet says. 
• Takes it personal.

The Notion of Divine Control

Matthew 7:11 "How much more shall your Father which is in heaven give good things to them that ask Him?" 

Jesus is laying down rules of conduct for those who have His Spirit. By the simple argument of these verses He urges us to keep our minds filled with the notion of God's control behind every thing, which means that the disciple must maintain an attitude of perfect trust and an eagerness to ask and to seek.

Notion your mind with the idea that God is there. If once the mind is notioned along that line, then when you are in difficulties it is as easy as breathing to remember - Why, my Father knows all about it! It is not an effort, it comes naturally when perplexities press. Before, you used to go to this person and that, but now the notion of the Divine control is forming so powerfully in you that you go to God about it. Jesus is laying down the rules of conduct for those who have His Spirit, and it works on this principle - God is my Father, He loves me, I shall never think of anything He will forget, why should I worry?

There are times, says Jesus, when God cannot lift the darkness from you, but trust Him. God will appear like an unkind friend, but He is not; He will appear like an unnatural Father, but He is not; He will appear like an unjust judge, but He is not. Keep the notion of the mind of God behind all things strong and growing. Nothing happens in any particular unless God's will is behind it, therefore you can rest in perfect confidence in Him. Prayer is not only asking, but an attitude of mind which produces the atmosphere in which asking is perfectly natural. "Ask, and it shall be given you."

-My Utmost For His Highest

50 Characteristics of Pharisees- Part 1

I came across this 3 part sermon by Zac Poonen several months ago and I must say it has challenged me to the core. It has caused me to examine my own self and  the Holy Spirit has and is still in the process of revealing the deep things of my heart and refining my disposition to be conformed to His. I would encourage everyone, when they have some time, to sit down and go through these. I'm on my fifth time listening and I'm still seeing things. I'm in the process of taking some notes and thought I would share them as I go. These are the first 16 that Poonen discusses in Part 1. It seems rather lengthy but I'm putting the verses anyway so I can have one reference place. I hope this speaks to you as much as it speaks to me~

3 leavens Jesus warned about:

• Herodians- worldly, complete opposite of the Pharisees, no repentance
• Sadducees- wrong doctrine, didn’t believe in the supernatural, all human effort
• Pharisees- had all their doctrines correct and emphasized holiness

Surprisingly Jesus’s greatest conflict was with the Pharisees. Why?

Pharisees:

• have all their doctrine right
• preach holiness (but it’s of the law)
• main ones who crucified Christ
• no peace in their heart or with others
• no joy or victory
• most dangerous because sincere people will follow them 

Most Christians today are in more danger of becoming a Pharisees than anything else. This is why it’s important to look at dispositions that attach themselves to Pharaseeism, not only will it have an impact on us BUT we will be held responsible for the people who follow. Some of these things are so subtle and can creep in out of our desire to be holy and have right doctrine which is why we should be aware, walk in humility, be honest with ourselves, have ears to hear and eyes to see. 

Mat 3:9 "and do not think to say to yourselves, 'We have Abraham as [our] father.' For I say to you that God is able to raise up children to Abraham from these stones..."  
1. Glories in his connection to godly men.

• takes pride in a reputation of holiness without having holiness himself.
• glory in his associations 

Mat 5:20 "For I say to you, that unless your righteousness exceeds [the righteousness] of the scribes and Pharisees, you will by no means enter the kingdom of heaven."

2. Glories in external righteousness.

*It’s about quality NOT quantity of righteousness*

• v 20 murder vs. anger- anger without overcoming will send you to hell
• v 27 adultery vs. lust- sinning sexually with your eyes or with your hands will send you to hell.
• The outside vs. the inside.

Mat 9:11 "And when the Pharisees saw [it], they said to His disciples, "Why does your Teacher eat with tax collectors and sinners?""

3. Doesn’t mix with sinful people

• Only mixes with “holy” crowd and therefore thinks he’s holy
• “why does your teacher mingle with sinners?”
• Is your righteousness something that can’t mingle with unconverted people?
• Do you only stay around "your people" in fear you’ll be defiled?
• This is NOT holiness but a deception
• Jesus wasn’t defiled because His righteousness was internal
• How many people have you brought into the body (not a church, not a ministry, not an organization and not a movement but the actual Body of Christ) by YOU?

Mat 9:14 "Then the disciples of John came to Him, saying, "Why do we and the Pharisees fast often, but Your disciples do not fast?"

4. Aesthetics. One who disciplines their bodies.

• Emphasize a lot of fasting 
• External self control
• If you’ll start with your tongue you can control you whole body!
• Jesus came to demolish this religion of “don’t eat, don’t touch”
• Produces self-righteousness
• Jesus said not to let anyone know if you’re fasting. Quit talking about your fasts. 

Mat 12:1-2 "At that time Jesus went through the grain fields on the Sabbath. And His disciples were hungry, and began to pluck heads of grain and to eat. And when the Pharisees saw [it], they said to Him, "Look, Your disciples are doing what is not lawful to do on the Sabbath!"
Mat 15:1 "Then the scribes and Pharisees who were from Jerusalem came to Jesus, saying "Why do Your disciples transgress the tradition of the elders? For they do not wash their hands when they eat bread."

5. Very critical of other people in small matters

• If the church is full of elder brothers like this the whole church will end up being a bunch of Pharisees.
• Rev 2/3- what happens when the elder brothers are free or bound, the whole church will follow. The church becomes like its elder brother. If the elder brother is legalistic, the whole church will become legalistic.
• If the elder brother is like this (legalistic), submit to him but don’t follow him because he is destroying himself and it will destroy you.
• Never follow a legalistic person if you want to follow Jesus
• They are always watching and constantly examining people.

Mat 12:9-16  "Now when He had departed from there, He went into their synagogue. And behold, there was a man who had a withered hand. And they asked Him, saying, “Is it lawful to heal on the Sabbath?”—that they might accuse Him. Then He said to them, “What man is there among you who has one sheep, and if it falls into a pit on the Sabbath, will not lay hold of it and lift it out? Of how much more value then is a man than a sheep? Therefore it is lawful to do good on the Sabbath.” Then He said to the man, “Stretch out your hand.” And he stretched it out, and it was restored as whole as the other. Then the Pharisees went out and plotted against Him, how they might destroy Him. But when Jesus knew it, He withdrew from there. And great multitudes followed Him, and He healed them all. Yet He warned them not to make Him known."

6. Live by rules.

• What does your rule book say?
• They asked the question“Is it lawful to heal on the Sabbath?” just to catch Jesus and accuse Him.
• They live by accusation.
• Covering the head issue (most “rules” enforced really aren’t rule but rather principles).
• If we live by rules we bring everyone into bondage.
• Be sure you make rules for your family that are correct, do not be more partial to your family and harsh on others.

Mat 12:14 "Then the Pharisees went out and plotted against Him, how they might destroy Him."

7. Motivated by jealousy, hatred, murder.

• It is a progression, you may take only one step but it leads to others.
• Jealous of someone who can do something (even in the ministry) that you can’t do and therefore become critical.
• It’s Cain’s religion. If we follow Cain’s religion we will ultimately build Babylon, even if all our doctrines are right.

Mat 12:24  "Now when the Pharisees heard it they said, “This fellow does not cast out demons except by Beelzebub, the ruler of the demons.”

8. Suspicious and assume the worst of others.

• A godly man will always assume the best (is this not what Love is?).
• Assume the worst about others even if the person is doing something right.
• When you see your own kids do it you assume the best and make excuses. This is being critical of those who aren’t your family members and being partial.

Mat 12:24  "Now when the Pharisees heard it they said, “This fellow does not cast out demons except by Beelzebub, the ruler of the demons.”

9. Very careless in their speech.

• Pass judgments in their speech.
• Psalm 105:15- dangerous to carelessly speak about God’s people.
• v 32 "Anyone who speaks a word against the Son of Man, it will be forgiven him; but whoever speaks against the Holy Spirit, it will not be forgiven him, either in this age or in the age to come."  There must be repentance!

Mat 15:1-9  "Then the scribes and Pharisees who were from Jerusalem came to Jesus, saying, “Why do Your disciples transgress the tradition of the elders? For they do not wash their hands when they eat bread.” He answered and said to them, “Why do you also transgress the commandment of God because of your tradition? For God commanded, saying, ‘Honor your father and your mother’; and, ‘He who curses father or mother, let him be put to death.’ But you say, ‘Whoever says to his father or mother, “Whatever profit you might have received from me is a gift to God”—  then he need not honor his father or mother.’ Thus you have made the commandment of God of no effect by your tradition. Hypocrites! Well did Isaiah prophesy about you, saying: ‘​These people draw near to Me with their mouth, And honor Me with their lips, But their heart is far from Me. And in vain they worship Me, Teaching as doctrines the commandments of men.’
10. Neglects his family responsibilities in the name of religion.

• Giving money to God when your family suffers. This is hypocrisy.
• Do you neglect you wife or husband  and family responsibilities “for the sake of the church” or “relationship”?
• 1 Tim 5:8 "But if anyone does not provide for his own, and especially for those of his household, he has denied the faith and is worse than an unbeliever."

Mat 15:12-14 "Then His disciples came and said to Him, “Do You know that the Pharisees were offended when they heard this saying?” But He answered and said, “Every plant which My heavenly Father has not planted will be uprooted. Let them alone. They are blind leaders of the blind. And if the blind leads the blind, both will fall into a ditch.""

11. Easily offended.

• We live before God’s face not man's!
• Being offended because of correction needs to be dealt with.
• Learn how to get over it because if you don't it will send you to hell.
• Don’t go running after offended people. LEAVE THEM ALONE, LET THEM GO. They are blind.

Mat 15:14 "Let them alone. They are blind leaders of the blind. And if the blind leads the blind, both will fall into a ditch.""

12. Spiritually blind.

• They don’t know where they’re going.
• Extremely dangerous when it’s an elder, don’t follow him!
• Look for a man whose vision is clear and who knows how to love both Jesus and people (without condemning them, the Holy Spirit doesn't need your help).

Mat 16:6-12  "Then Jesus said to them, “Take heed and beware of the leaven of the Pharisees and the Sadducees.”And they reasoned among themselves, saying, “It is because we have taken no bread.” But Jesus, being aware of it, said to them, “O you of little faith, why do you reason among yourselves because you have brought no bread? Do you not yet understand, or remember the five loaves of the five thousand and how many baskets you took up?  Nor the seven loaves of the four thousand and how many large baskets you took up?  How is it you do not understand that I did not speak to you concerning bread?—but to beware of the leaven of the Pharisees and Sadducees.” Then they understood that He did not tell them to beware of the leaven of bread, but of the doctrine of the Pharisees and Sadducees.""

13. Is a hypocrite. (Most well known characteristic)

• Hypocrite’s origin is Greek, means “Actor”. It’s all a show, their lives are different at different times.
• Sunday morning becomes an act (even in home church!).
• What’s the rest of the week like? Both is actions AND speech.

Mat 19:3 "The Pharisees also came to Him, testing Him, and saying to Him, “Is it lawful for a man to divorce his wife for just any reason?”"

14. Seek to catch people in their words.

• Mat 22:15 "Then the Pharisees went and plotted how they might entangle Him in His talk.
• Take things out of context.
• Luke 11:54 "lying in wait for Him, and seeking to catch Him in something He might say, that they might accuse Him." If you are always listening carefully to what others are saying and take a small piece out of the sentence, saying “ah ha” that is wrong. 
• A Pharisee will never make an allowance, “maybe I heard him wrong or maybe I misunderstood, maybe he wasn’t serious”.
• Isaiah 11:3- do not judge by what your ears hear or your eyes see because you could be WRONG.

Mat 15:8  "He said to them, “Moses, because of the hardness of your hearts, permitted you to divorce your wives, but from the beginning it was not so."

15. Hard hearted.

• The heart can’t melt because it’s far from God.
• When you’re hard towards other people you can be sure you’re miles away from God.
• People with soft hearts- they will judge themselves and not others.
• Some will judge their wives but not themselves and others will be extremely lenient with their own family and harsh on others.
• Do you change all the rules when it comes to yourself, your wife and you children?
• Don’t go around trying to enforce your convictions on other people.

Mat 21:15  "But when the chief priests and scribes saw the wonderful things that He did, and the children crying out in the temple and saying, “Hosanna to the Son of David!” they were indignan."

16. Cannot appreciate true worship and praise.

• Heaven is worshiping loudly, like thunder- why aren’t we?!

If you are not getting light on the un-Christ-like things in yourself, God is not blessing you. We should be moving on the perfection

Love is the opposite of Law

Spilled Out From Nowhere...but His Faithfulness

I can’t explain how thankful I am and how amazed I am at how God works. I love Him. It’s like He’s constantly telling me, “Lauren, I’m not going to fit in your box”. Just when we think we’ve figured Him out, become comfortable with our idea of His character, He does something that drastically reveals the never-endingness of who He is. It’s times like that where He draws us into the wilderness, which for a while seems to consist of nothing but confusion and contradiction. The wilderness- the place of uncomfortableness, the place where He strips us, strips our box to its very foundation, shakes everything that can be shaken. But there, in that place of broken humility and tender aching of the soul, He speaks comfort. It is there, if we’re willing to remain, to endure the heat, the burn from the scorching Son, that He will begin to give us the water of His word. To refresh our souls from the drought that was needed to break through our pride and answer the cry for a desperate passion. It is there, in the place we least expected, that He brings joy unspeakable and full of glory. The wilderness- a beautiful picture of the grace and love of the ultimate lover. It is there where, like the most phenomenal gardener, He grafts us deeper into the Vine- opening up the promised vineyards of our inheritance through our adoption. Our very life source becomes a part of who we are. In that wilderness He places valleys, the last thing we would want to go through, as doors of hope- to open our eyes to the things unseen, to increase our faith while we have nothing of ourselves to hold on to, nothing of our logic to distort the reality of Him. The gentlest Guardian, He protects us from ourselves. It is there, in the place of what should be considered mourning, that He orchestrates the most amazing song of praise in our Spirit…the master musician. Like a skillful historian He reminds us of our days of utter despair and desolation- proving to us His faithfulness with the most irrefutable case any lawyer could ever imagine. 

Pouring in and pouring out. His heart echoes within the chambers of our souls, rhythmically synchronizing each and every movement to fit His perfectly. Breathe in. Breathe out. This is Life. Simultaneously, better yet singularly. Him. Betrothed, in righteousness. One, in faithfulness. It is here we know and are known with an intimacy like no other. It is here where the two become one- something much deeper than one flesh. The two become ONE. One Spirit. Him. For is this not the whole point of life? Is this not life itself? To be ONE with Him for the glory of Him. 

This is the beauty of the wilderness- ironically considering how much we try to avoid it. Maybe it’s because we can’t see what’s happening while we’re there- Oh, but the refreshing that comes by enduring- this is what trust is. Staying when you don’t even know where you are. Waiting when there seems to be nothing to wait for. Moving forward when it seems like you have no direction. Listening when all that you hear is silence. Crying out even when you get not one response. Trust is endurance- it’s the manifestation of not only our belief but our love for Him. Because of that may we, like Paul said, “hold fast to the confession of our hope without wavering, for He who promised is faithful.” So be it. 

I’m not sure where all that came from- somewhere inside me that’s been hidden for a while. I’ve been praying, not knowing what to pray for. Listening, by hearing (for the most part) silence. I’ve been walking all the while feeling like I’m in place. “What has He been doing in me? Has He been doing anything? What are You trying to reveal to me? Teach me Father.” These have been my questions. But as I can see, He is. He is faithful. This post is more for me than it is for you. We have an amazingly breathtaking God- do you realize that? There really is no one like Him. I’m reminded of that song:

 He gives beauty for ashes,

Strength for fear,

Gladness for mourning,

Peace for despair

 And of course Shane & Shane with:

I'm so satisfied
At the thought of You
Growing up in me
Covering everything
My happiness is found in less
Of me and more of You

And this all happens in the wilderness. And so, may our joy be made full. In Him. Only Him.

Unto You, be all the glory

"For it is the God who commanded light to shine out of darkness, who has shone in our hearts to give the light of the knowledge of the glory of God in the face of Jesus Christ. For we have this treasure in earthen vessels that the excellence of the power may be of God and not of us." 2 Cor. 4:6-7

 God commanded light to shine OUT of darkness. 

 We pray for God to change us, break us, and make us into what He wants us to be however we often expect Him to do that a certain way. God never works according to the dictations of man. It’s comical at times because we pray for something like humility but then get upset when God humiliates us. We pray for desperation but then complain because we feel lacking. We pray for the likeness of Christ but then run from our Cross. We ask God to “give” us these things, expecting Him to almost simply thrust them upon us one day, but that is not how He works most of the time. He works from the inside out. It reminds me of the phrase, “God doesn’t call the equipped, He equips the called”. I am experiencing this being worked out in me through some major real-life application to say the least! It amazes me that out of utter uselessness Our Father makes things useful. Out of lifelessness, He creates. Out of crippling weakness, He develops unshakable strength. In the midst of brokenness, He births unquestionable stability. Out of sorrow and suffering He brings forth joy unspeakable. Light shines out of darkness. He doesn't bring the darkness out but instead shines the light in. God IS light and in Him is no darkness (1 John 1:5). So, the overflow of Himself into our vessel is what transforms us. The flood of who He is, in all His fullness, produces a purging that can be generated by no man. We can try to orchestrate it and produce results but until everything becomes about Him and Him alone all we are in actuality are weak humans trying to limit a sovereign God. The power of the Holy Spirit at work within every believer enables us to walk free from the inability to produce results according to the limitations imposed on us by our flesh. It is God who works in us both to will and to do for His good pleasure (Phil. 2:13).

Why has He done this? To give the light of the knowledge of the glory of God in the face of Jesus Christ.

For this is the mystery of the gospel is it not? Christ IN you, the hope of glory. What glory? Ours? So the world can see what amazing, dedicated people of God we are? No! It’s the glory of the Father in Jesus who endured the agonies of the Cross so we could be one with them. This is the whole reason for the being of man and this is what our lives are to be about. This refinement process, of burning us out of ourselves, is the process of the very character of the Creator of the universe being formed within us. When we see that He has brought us up to the high road of walking with Him in the light, being able to distinguish the darkness becomes a natural reflex. Our eyes have been trained to respond to the light, the pathways to our understanding have been enlightened so that we are now able to see what the hope of our calling in Him is- to be conformed to His image (in the face of Jesus Christ). If we are conformed to His image then we become conformed to light. So, the very nature of God Himself rules and reigns in our hearts and minds through the Holy Spirit…wow~

For we have this treasure in earthen vessels. For what reason?  
So that the excellence of the power may be of God and not us.

What is this excellence of the power of God? This is the whole point of the gospel! The power of God unto salvation. Not the power of God unto saving us from hell or heartache, but unto salvation. Salvation from what? What other than the sin that so easily ensnares us? (Heb. 12:1) He has made us free from the power of sin and self and given us the ability to walk in the same power that raised Christ from the dead! This is the newness of life! Maybe it’s just me but that stirs me up. Sometimes I think we forget what we have. We get caught up in trying to “serve” Him that we lose sight of Him. This is the hope that is in us! (1 Pet. 3:15) This is how we become the light of the world, a city set on a hill that cannot be hidden (Matt. 5:14). And why do we have this hope, what is the purpose of this power, of the knowledge of the glory of God? The glory of God! It’s like one huge circle. The light is shown so we can have the knowledge of the glory of God. The knowledge of the glory of God in the face of Jesus Christ (the mystery of the gospel) is imparted into these earthen vessels so that it may be evident that it’s all about the glory of God! It sounds so redundant but this is the reason for living is it not my brothers and sisters?

So I encourage you today, whatever you’re going through and faced with, press on to the upward call of the revelation of Jesus Christ in your mortal flesh. Run this race with all endurance! Be holy, just as He is holy. Lift up your eyes to your Father where your help comes from and conduct yourselves throughout the time of your stay here (in the situation you’re in and on this earth) in fear, working out your salvation; remembering that this is just a monetary, light affliction which is working for you a far more exceeding and eternal weight of glory. Remember that you were not redeemed with corruptible things, like silver or gold, from your aimless conduct received by tradition from your fathers, but with the precious blood of Jesus Christ, as of a lamb without blemish and without spot. For He was foreordained before the foundation of the world was, but was manifest, both on the Cross and now in your flesh, for you who through Him believe in God, who raised Him from the dead and gave Him glory, so that your faith and hope are in God and you walk in the newness of life. (Heb 12:1, 1 Pet. 1:17-20, Ps. 121:1, Phil. 2:12, 2 Cor. 4:17).

"But if the Spirit of Him who raised Jesus from the dead dwells in you, He who raised Christ from the dead will also give life to your mortal bodies through His Spirit who dwells in you." Romans 8:11

"To love at all is to be vulnerable. Love anything, and your heart will certainly be wrung and possibly broken. If you want to make sure of keeping it intact, you must give your heart to no one, not even to an animal. Wrap it carefully round with hobbies and little luxuries; avoid all entanglements; lock it up safe in the casket or coffin of your selfishness. But in that casket--safe, dark, motionless, airless--it will change. It will not be broken; it will become unbreakable, impenetrable, irredeemable. The alternative to tragedy, or at least to the risk of tragedy, is damnation. The only place outside of Heaven where you can be perfectly safe from the perturbations of love is Hell." ~C.S. Lewis