March 5, 2013

^"By faith we understand that the universe was formed at God’s command, so that what is seen was not made out of what was visible." Hebrews 11:3

 

Yesterday in the message I talked about "DTR" moments. "DTR" stands for Define The Relationship moments. "DTR's" are those necessary but awkward moments when relationships move forward or retreat. For example, the move from the first few dates to becoming a steady relationship is a DTR.

 

This week's "soulshift" also requires a "DTR" of another sort -  a Define The Reality moment.

Reality is generally defined in terms of what can be seen, heard, felt, tasted or smelled. You could expand that definition to include things that can be scientifically proven.

But, the problem with reality is it limits life to what can be experienced through the five senses or the intellect. We all know there is more to life than that. Most people will concede the existence of a spirit realm that can't be proven through the senses. There are different theories, beliefs and opinions regarding that realm but few deny it is real.

So, we recognize the existence of two realities. You and I have to decide for ourselves which reality more real to us. Is the physical world more real than the spiritual world or vice-versa? There is an entire chapter in the New Testament devoted to that question.
 
It comes down to this question when the two realities come into conflict, "Will I believe what I see or will I believe what He says?"

In our text verse the writer of Hebrews comes down on the side of what God says trumping what we see. Think about what he says here, ^"By faith we understand that the universe was formed at God’s command (what He said), so that what is seen was not made out of what was visible." Hebrews 11:3

According to the claims of this verse, the visible world came from the invisible world. So, therefore, what is unseen is actually more real than what is seen! That is the essence of faith!

How about you? How strong is your faith? What is most real in your world? Do you believe what you see more than you believe what He says?




 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

March 4, 2013

"Now faith is confidence in what we hope for and assurance about what we do not see. This is what the ancients were commended for. By faith we understand that the universe was formed at God’s command, so that what is seen was not made out of what was visible."  Hebrews 11:1-3

 

Barbara and I were enjoying one of our day trips that we love to take. We had jumped onto the Blue Ridge Parkway at Roanoke, VA and went down to Linville Falls in North Carolina. The day was getting away from us by the time we headed back north on the Parkway. Just ten miles short of the main highway where we planned to jump off the Parkway we ran into fog. I am not talking about fog that makes it hard to see clearly, I am talking about a thick, soupy and zero visibility fog.

 

Driving in the fog is never fun but driving in zero visibility road that is two lane, narrow, and has no shoulders is terrifying.

 

I was literally driving blind. I could not see what was ahead of me nor could I see any behind me. That was very uncomfortable.

 

There was no place to pull off and even if there was I would have been afraid of some one might follow me off the road and rear-end my vehicle.

 

Trying to remain calm, I looked around for some point of reference to guide me. that was when I noticed the white line that marked the edge of the roadway. That line was clearly visible and you can be sure that I fixed my eyes on that white line alone. I knew as long as I stayed just to the left of that line I would not run off the road. So I did and I didn't.

 

As I drove at a slow rate of speed and remained focused on the white line I was able to get us to our exit and leave the Parkway. It was only a few miles until we drove out of the fog and I could relax. I am sure I left fingerprints in the steering wheel.

 

Thinking back on that harrowing experience I realized how similar it was to the life of faith. Living by faith is often like driving blind with only one focus to guide me. That one guiding principle or the "white line" for me is the Word of God. I depended on what I could see to steer me safely through the unseen.

 

Life often seems to be lived in a fog of uncertainty and it is easy to become anxious. Learning to navigate the unseen in a world of sight is the challenge of faith. Reorienting your life from the seen to the unseen is a soul shift every believer must make.

 

How are you doing?

 

How do you handle the fog?

 

What will guide your life today?

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

March 3, 2013

^"Jesus continued: “There was a man who had two sons. The younger one said to his father, ‘Father, give me my share of the estate.’ So he divided his property between them.“Not long after that, the younger son got together all he had, set off for a distant country and there squandered his wealth in wild living. After he had spent everything, there was a severe famine in that whole country, and he began to be in need.  So he went and hired himself out to a citizen of that country, who sent him to his fields to feed pigs. He longed to fill his stomach with the pods that the pigs were eating, but no one gave him anything. “When he came to his senses, he said, ‘How many of my father’s hired servants have food to spare, and here I am starving to death! I will set out and go back to my father and say to him: Father, I have sinned against heaven and against you. I am no longer worthy to be called your son; make me like one of your hired servants.’ So he got up and went to his father.“But while he was still a long way off, his father saw him and was filled with compassion for him; he ran to his son, threw his arms around him and kissed him.“The son said to him, ‘Father, I have sinned against heaven and against you. I am no longer worthy to be called your son.’“But the father said to his servants, ‘Quick! Bring the best robe and put it on him. Put a ring on his finger and sandals on his feet.  Bring the fattened calf and kill it. Let’s have a feast and celebrate.  For this son of mine was dead and is alive again; he was lost and is found.’ So they began to celebrate. “Meanwhile, the older son was in the field. When he came near the house, he heard music and dancing. So he called one of the servants and asked him what was going on. ‘Your brother has come,’ he replied, ‘and your father has killed the fattened calf because he has him back safe and sound.’  “The older brother became angry and refused to go in. So his father went out and pleaded with him. But he answered his father, ‘Look! All these years I’ve been slaving for you and never disobeyed your orders. Yet you never gave me even a young goat so I could celebrate with my friends.  But when this son of yours who has squandered your property with prostitutes comes home, you kill the fattened calf for him!" Luke 15:11-30

This beloved parable serves as an illustration of how those who are children fall into becoming slaves. Each son did it in a different way but each ended up in bondage. They both were troubled in their souls but both misjudged the reason why.

The younger son had the attitude "I want"! He foolishly demanded his rights. If the father would only give him what was rightly his he would find fulfillment. But instead he become a slave of his own foolish greed. In squandering his fortune he found misfortune.

Now the older brother stayed home and played by the rules. He served his father and did his part. But during that time he developed the attitude "I deserve". And that attitude enslaved him in feelings of envy, resentment and frustration.

Only when the younger son had lost it all did he begin to realize that everything he really needed and wanted was at home with his father. He returned from his slavery to rediscover sonship.

Unfortuntely, the older brother never did.

This diagram shows the two extremes of spiritual slavery. On one side is what I call "rights" and it is characterized by the belief that happiness comes from having what I want and doing what I want. But like the Prodigal, it always ends up in slavery to those desires.

On the other end is what I call "religion". As the older brother illustrates, this form of slavery results from living close to the father and working for the father but trying to earn his love and favor rather than just  receiving it. And the attitude that kept him from receiving it was "I deserve".

Real satisfaction comes from being a son not demanding your rights or being religious.

Don't turn from the father like the young son. Don't spurn the father like the older brother.

Return to Him! Come home! Give up your rights and forget being religious. Confess you don't want anything but Him and that you don't deserve anything from Him. Just let Him be your Father and find your home in Him!
 

SLAVE SPECTRUM
 

 RIGHTS                       RELIGION

 

           “I Want” <------------------------------------------------------> “I Deserve”

 

-------------------------------------> SONSHIP <-------------------------------------

 

RELATIONSHIP

 

  “Daddy, I’m home!”

 

How is it with your soul?

Where are you on this diagram?

Where do you want to be?
 

 

 

March 2, 2013

^"People were bringing little children to Jesus for him to place his hands on them, but the disciples rebuked them. When Jesus saw this, he was indignant. He said to them, “Let the little children come to me, and do not hinder them, for the kingdom of God belongs to such as these. Truly I tell you, anyone who will not receive the kingdom of God like a little child will never enter it.”  Mark 10:13-15

 

"But as many as received him, to them gave he power to become the children of God, even to them that believe on his name:"  John 1:12

 

There are a number of ways to move from Slave to Child. The more you are around people who live as children in a healthy community of faith the easier the shift will be! Here are four things that can help:

 

LISTEN TO HIM – Get in the Word

Slaves listen to their masters because they have to. They are expected to obey their masters but how can they obey if they don't hear.

 

A child must listen to his father as well. But he hears out of love and respect because he is a child.

 

To come out of slavery, grab the Word of God! Read it! Obey it! Know it! Memorize it!

 

The Word of God has power to free you from the need to achieve in order to earn His favor. His Word has power to deliver you from being a people-pleaser and change you to a God pleaser. The Word can set you free from legalism and from the tyranny of addiction.

LIVE FOR HIM – Get in His will

A slave works hard under the tyranny of his master and against his own will or desires. But a child lives to please his father! Many sons want to be like their father and often end up doing what he does. A child finds pleasure in pleasing his dad.

LIVE IN HIM – Get on His way

"Solomon, the wisest son who ever learned once said, Trust in the Lord with all your heart and lean not on your own understanding; in all your ways submit to him, and he will make your paths straight" Proverbs 3:5-6

LOVE BEING WITH HIM – Go on a walk with Him

A slave isn't expected to enjoy being around his master. A child does. A child of God spends nearly every waking moment at his father's side. A child loves to be able to walk with his father and enjoy his presence.

And He walks with me, and He talks with me,
And He tells me I am His own;
And the joy we share as we tarry there,
None other has ever known.

 

In his short story “Capital of the World”, Ernest Hemingway tells about a Spanish father who wanted to be reconciled with his runaway son. The despairing father missed his son so much that he placed an advertisement in the local newspaper. The advertisement read simply, “Paco, meet me at the Hotel Montana at noon on Tuesday. All is forgiven! Love, Papa.” But Paco is a very common name in Spain—and when the father went to the hotel the next day, there were eight hundred young men named Paco waiting for their forgiving fathers!
 

 No one wants to be a slave. Everyone wants to be a child

Are you a slave or are you a child?

March 1, 2013

“Not long after that, the younger son got together all he had, set off for a distant country and there squandered his wealth in wild living. After he had spent everything, there was a severe famine in that whole country, and he began to be in need. So he went and hired himself out to a citizen of that country, who sent him to his fields to feed pigs. He longed to fill his stomach with the pods that the pigs were eating, but no one gave him anything. “When he came to his senses, he said, ‘How many of my father’s hired servants have food to spare, and here I am starving to death!"  Luke 15:13-17

 

You probably recognize this portion of Scripture as being taken from the Parable of the Prodigal Son and it shows how one can shift from being a son to being a slave.

 

Here are some of the modern forms of slavery:

 

Achievement - being a slave to performance.

 

It is actually more apparent in the case of the old brother in this parable but it is rampant in our culture. While there is nothing wrong with achievement, living to achieve is a problem. When you are driven by the need to out perform everyone else in order to prove yourself it is not a healthy way to live.

 

As seen in the older brother, having an inordinate need to perform and achieve usually is driven by unrealistic goals and results in frequent frustration.

 

Affirmation - being a slave to popularity.

Both sons seemed to care more about what others thought of them than the approval of the father.

The approval and validation of others is a powerful influence in life. It is important to everyone but seems to be an obsession for some who define their self-worth based upon what others think of them.

Do you care about the Father's opinion or are you a slave to the need for man's approval?

Adherence - being a slave to legalism..

In the two sons you see both extremes in regard to rules. The older son kept them all with a critical heart and the younger brother rebelled with a careless heart. As a result, neither them enjoyed the love of their father.

Legalism supposes that keeping rules can result in holiness. The law-breaker believes that casting off rules will result in happiness.

Each is a slave to misconception.

Addiction - being a slave to appetites.

When you think of addiction you most likely think about abuse of chemical substances. More often than not, that is the case.

Certain personality types lend themselves to addiction, but those drawn into addiction are drawn by a need to feel good and escape from emotional, physical or psychological pain. They begin using the pain-killers but soon abuse them. In an attempt to escape momentarily from pain they become a slave to a great source of pain - addiction.

Addiction is perhaps the most harmful form of selfishness - unless you become addicted to Jesus.

I am glad slavery in America was abolished 150 years ago. I look forward to a day when slavery of the soul is abolished.

For you, that day could be today.



 

 

 

 

 

February 28, 2013

^"People were bringing little children to Jesus to have him touch them, but the disciples rebuked them. When Jesus saw this, he was indignant. He said to them, “Let the little children come to me, and do not hinder them, for the kingdom of God belongs to such as these. I tell you the truth, anyone who will not receive the kingdom of God like a little child will never enter it.”  Mark 10:13-15

 

How is it with your soul?

 

In this soulshift series you get to measure your soul aside the soul of Jesus. It is as helpful as it is painful to see clearly how He is wired and how you must be rewired.

 

To this point you have been confronted with the fact He is minded differently from you and you are not souled like Him.

 

Doesn't it hurt to think that you can follow Jesus for a long time and still not have His mind or His heart?

 

That is what a soulshift is all about.

 

Now, buckle up for another soul shocker.

 

It would be easy to focus on another obvious slip up by the disciples as they tried to prevent the children from coming to be blessed by Jesus. But it's more important to hear what He said to them. He warned them unless they became like a child they would miss the kingdom.

 

Okay, you get a moment to let that sink in.
 

Three questions arise when once you get your mind around it.

 

What is the kingdom?

 

What has to happen?

 

How does it happen?

 

The kingdom is a culture. It is a mindset, a set of values, a way of believing, life principles, it is the reign of God that must rule your heart.

 

For this kingdom to come to you there must be a change at the deepest level, in the core of your being, in your soul. "Metanoia" is the word used for change and denotes a difference or a change in form. The difference here is from you ruling your life to surrendering to His reign.

 

How does this change happen? It happens by entering into a child-Father relationship with God by faith. The Creator, and the Almighty Who cannot be contained by a vast universe can fit into your soul!

 

His kingdom has come! Has it come to you?

 

Don't miss it! Don't miss Him! He longs to be your Father and adopt you as His child.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

February 27, 2013

^"They came to Capernaum. When he was in the house, he asked them, “What were you arguing about on the road?” But they kept quiet because on the way they had argued about who was the greatest." Mark 9:33-34

 

Okay, I was wrong.

 

I said in yesterday's post I had one more point to make on the "You to Me" selfishness topic. This WILL be my final comment regarding this important soulshift.

 

During a conversation I had today I thought about another very subtle form of selfishness that might not be recognized as such. Jesus addressed it with His disciples. It didn't slide past Him.

 

"What are you talking about, PB?"

 

I am talking about allowing selfishness in an attempt to be selfless.

 

Here is how it works.

 

While Jesus most selfless Person Who ever lived. In fact, in this text we see Him trying to reveal to them the very selfless act of sacrifice He was soon to suffer. Ironlically, as He did so His disciples were arguing over who would be the greatest among them.

 

Jesus could have reasoned, "Well, after all I was talking about myself so how can I get after them for being worried about themselves." Or He could have just pretended not to hear their conversation, but He didn't! He confronted them with their self-centeredness because He loved them too much to let them get away with selfishness.

 

For you or me it usually works like this. We have a spouse or a child or a teen-ager or a child who is being selfish. You know he is acting selfishly and is taking advantage of your gentleness. In your heart you know it isn't right and you feel disrespected but you know if you confront them or call them on their selfishness it could get tense. So, wanting to avoid a conflict you choose not to confront the selfish behavior. Instead, you bear the brunt of their selfish behavior and they go unchallenged.

 

While you convince yourself that you are being selfless you are in fact being selfish!

 

Say what?

 

You are being selfish because your reason for not confronting their selfish behavior is more about your comfort level and not about what is best for them. Your pseudo-selflessness is doubly harmful because it not only hurts you it enables their selfishness.

 

Are you enabling others to be selfish because you are too selfish to challenge them?

 

Jesus didn't.