The toll is now up to 500 hacked to death, mostly women and children. A short video on what’s behind it and what we can do.
[youtube=http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Dv6DLY1OW6c]
Where church and society are heading
Over at the Washington Examiner, Mark Tapscott has written a very insightful article looking forward. It’s pretty rare to have someone take a peak into the future and come up with a believable scenario, especially one that runs counter to prevailing wisdom, but that’s what Mark has done. And what he envisions for our society has repercussions for the church as well.
The amazing Watchman Nee, via SermonIndex.net
Two things struck out at me. First, the value of godly parents. Although Nee didn’t give himself to Christ until his latter teen years, all those years of praying and “training up” must have had an enormous influence. Second, astonishingly, Nee is not a product of any theological school. He learned by people and books, study and devotion, and by obedience to the Light he was given.
Witnessing to the culture
Sanctified political action is a good and even necessary thing which should be pursued. But if we don’t change the hearts of the people we are going to lose the culture, and then the nation itself, and no law or politics will be able to stem that tide. The church can function without government support. It’s terribly undesirable, inconvenient and painful, as we abundantly see in persecuted nations, but it can be done. But the church cannot function with the personal testimonies of the saints.
It’s open season on Christians
News comes today that five Christians from World Vision relief services were killed execution-style in Pakistan. Two days previous some two hundred Christians – men, women, children and infants – were brutalized and slaughtered in central Nigeria.
In Pakistan, these Christians were delivering much-needed charitable services to the population. Their crime was not subscribing to the dominant religio-political ethos, Islam.
Central Nigeria is the fault line between the Christian south and the Muslim north. Christians there have been counseled by church leaders not to go on the offensive, and not to seek vengeance, but that they do have the right to defends themselves against attack (I think that’s a balanced reading of the New Covenant, but of course in specific circumstances the Lord can direct otherwise as He chooses). Despite this peaceful stance, the Muslims struck at night and hacked away.
It’s hard to imagine this level of persecution. I remember in my readings of Foxe’s Book of Martyrs that it all seemed so removed from reality and was hard to relate to. Boy was I wrong. It’s happening right now, on our watch. In fact, the number of Christians killed for the faith is at its all-time highest levels.
We need to cling to our assurance that the Lord works all things for good for those who love Him, because it is true and we need the strength it imparts. Here are some good things that I would like to see come out of these horrors:
- That the Body of Christ would draw together worldwide in the unity of love and faith, and become more powerful in intercession.
- That those facing brutality would be comforted and made strong.
- That at the proper time a way of escape would be made for them.
- That a mighty witness to Jesus would arise from the resolve and the principled response to evildoing.
- That the consciences of both evildoers and the ordinary people trapped in evil cultures would be smitten by these evil deeds done to peace-loving people, causing doubt in the existing structures and preparing for the implantation of the Word of eternal life in Jesus.
The world has become a smaller place due to modern communications, transportation, economics and the reach of terrorism. It’s hard on us, but in the strife the Lord is using the interactions of cultures to spread the Gospel. While this is the most martyr-prone era in history, it also is the greatest era of conversions in history. And especially in bedarkened lands, the Lord is backing up the human witness with all manner of dreams, visions and visitations. This mighty advance of the Kingdom is exactly why satan is raging so violently.
The devil’s time is short, so let us encourage ourselves in the Lord, resolve not to waver, and take this Gospel wherever we can, in season or out, whatever the cost.
Peace be upon our departed friends for a race well run, and comfort to their loved ones.
The still waters of grace
My personal Grace Awakening continues apace, but the past two days have been characterized by rest.
Rest is new to me, and not natural to my old nature. I’m a confirmed Type A, driven, entrepreneurial sort, so don’t blame it on me – I simply do not know HOW to rest! But that is changing.
A couple of times in the past few days I have seen in my mind some thing I thought of doing, and then distinct from it I simultaneously saw my motivation for doing it. And the motivation was rooted in gaining the acceptance of man.
That’s what a person does when he grows up without such acceptance, and it’s understandable. But it’s not something that God can bless, because it’s not holy. Our source – our only source – must be Him. If we rely on the whims of fallen man to justify ourselves, we build on shifting sand indeed.
The problem is how to free oneself of this bondage. That’s where the Word and the Spirit come in. And the Word and the will of the Spirit of the New Covenant can be summarized in one word: Grace.
Can it be that God really grants forgiveness independent of our worthiness? That is the Gospel, yet I suspect that many Christians have not inculcated that truth into their souls in a practical way. I know that despite all my study, I hadn’t by a long shot.
We are like the unjust servant in Mt. 18 who, completely forgiven of a huge debt by his king, goes out and beats his fellow servant over a far smaller sum. It may not have been greed that motivated him. It’s quite possible that the truth of being FULLY forgiven didn’t really sink in, and that he still felt pressured, perhaps by pride, to pay back what he could.
I’ve observed that the fellow slave we beat on the most is usually the one that is most convenient. And when no one else in around, the guy that is left turns out to be oneself. How ironic that the torturers mentioned in that parable actually can be the very one being tortured. When we’re not in a state of grace we become our own worst enemy.
But God has a solution. Completely independent of our works or worthiness, He lavishes debt forgiveness upon us. There is only one condition, but that condition is so outlandish, so unthinkable to the flesh that it can be the hardest thing for us to accomplish: we must humble ourselves to accept the offer.
Another amazing irony is how even the Gospel can be taken as law. As we know, above all, law makes sin manifest and brings condemnation. If we don’t forgive we won’t be forgiven. Am I loving my enemies enough? Doubts are bred, we try to fight the battle in the mental and emotional realms, and we become like a dog chasing its tail. All the while we’ve lost sight of the Giver of all good gifts, His kindhearted will that we live freely, and His power to deliver us to that state.
Instead, God’s forgiveness is freely given up-front. “Neither do I condemn you; go and sin no more”. The absolution comes first, then the power to conquer sin. The order is critical to our spiritual health,. Otherwise, we will be futilely fighting this battle in our own strength, as the New Covenant simply degrades to another Old Covenant, appealing to Pharisees but destroying those of honest conscience.
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I took a break from reading The Christian’s Secret of a Happy Life1 today. But I’m filling in with Tozer’s delightful The Pursuit of God. It is beautifully written, but more importantly, it has a rare anointing for drawing one close to God. I was tempted to post the second chapter, The Blessedness of Possessing Nothing, and I will do so if someone requests it. Meanwhile the whole book can be downloaded at ProjectGuttenberg.org. After I download these things I format them for Word, where I can add my own footnotes, mark-up, etc. I can save you that step if you contact me.
1 BTW, Smith’s use of the term “Happy” is legit. The happiness she directs us to is borne of holiness, and that holiness is a product of grace, not works. This is not a man-centered gospel, but the true Gospel of grace that she so wonderfully advocates.
Divine opponent, Divine friend
Joseph Prince brought out some great insights in his devotional today. It was about the Syro-Phoenician woman who sought Jesus’ help for her demonized daughter. This passage can be hard to understand, and many skeptics have used it to paint Jesus as uncaring and even racist, or at the least, temperamental. For anyone who really knows the Gospels, those charges are impossible, but they have been used to sow doubt in those unfamiliar with the Savior’s character.
And Jesus went away from there and withdrew to the district of Tyre and Sidon
And behold, a Canaanite woman from that region came out and was crying, “Have mercy on me, O Lord, Son of David; my daughter is severely oppressed by a demon.”
The Prince piece started me conjecturing what was really going on. First, he pointed out that the woman, though a Gentile, approached Jesus using his Davidic messianic title, Son of David. Why did she do this? Desperate for her daughter, she sought to incur Jesus’ favor by pretending to be a Jew herself, or at least by showing that she knew and respected the Jewish religion.
But he did not answer her a word. And his disciples came and begged him, saying, “Send her away, for she is crying out after us.”
And what did trying to massage Jesus get her? Silence! Hmmm. The woman gets persistent (just as Jesus teaches us to be), but now the disciples want to get rid of her! From the woman’s perspective, things are going downhill, fast.
He answered, “I was sent only to the lost sheep of the house of Israel.”
Finally Jesus answers. But how does He answer? He further stonewalls the woman. This is the story’s crisis point. Everything the woman had planned to do had now been done, to no effect. Out of ammo, the woman was either going to have to give up on her miracle or do something unplanned and desperate.
But she came and knelt before him, saying, “Lord, help me.”
Remember, the Jews would have nothing to do with these Gentiles, yet still the woman dares to cast herself before Jesus. It’s no longer the “Son of David” appellation from afar. It’s now “Lord”, in an intimate voice, up close and personal.
And he answered, “It is not right to take the children’s bread and throw it to the dogs.”
Jesus stills opposes the woman, but Prince points out that the Greek word used for dogs here signifies a little dog – we would call it a puppy. Though His words still say “no”, the tone of Jesus voice expresses tenderness toward the woman. She sees a ray of hope and is encouraged.
She said, “Yes, Lord, yet even the dogs eat the crumbs that fall from their masters’ table.”
Then Jesus answered her, “O woman, great is your faith! Be it done for you as you desire.” And her daughter was healed instantly. – Matt 15:21-28
All the while Jesus seemed to be uncaring, and even adversarial, He was masterfully drawing the woman out of herself and towards himself. He wasn’t satisfied with distant, impersonal worship, and He certainly wasn’t impressed with religious titles or knowledge.
He pressed the woman to reveal her true self, not out of callousness, but so that she could enter into intimate relationship with her Savior. His actions were borne of love, not disdain. All the while that He seemed uncaring, He wanted her to take up the challenge and overcome the obstacles, and He was delighted when she did so.
As always, Jesus was in perfect control of the situation at all times, and He perfectly engineered the conversation so that the woman – His seeming adversary – not only could gain the blessing for her daughter, she could be forever changed in the process!
There is no one like our matchless Jesus, and there never can be. We can take an important lesson from this. Whenever the Bible presents a difficult passage, adopt the view that there is an explanation even if we don’t know it at this time. God is still in the business of drawing people out, to prove what’s in their hearts and to draw them close to Him.
And whatever our need in life, even when Jesus seems to be silent, even when He seems to be adversarial, He’s really on our side advocating for us the whole time. Never doubt the kind intentions of the Savior. Press in and receive the blessing!
Overwhelmed by God’s grace
I can’t write too much yet about what I’ve been experiencing and learning the past few weeks. It has been earth-shaking to the max. I have been drinking in God’s grace so deeply that years of weariness, caused by trying to walk Christianity out in my own strength, has been released in my soul as my restraints loosen, washing over me as it oozes out. So presently I really can’t do much, but it’s a good feeling because I know it’s the precursor to freedom and empowerment.
It began about three weeks ago, when a friend on Facebook tipped me off to the videos of Joseph Prince. He really has a handle on the Gospel of grace that Paul preached. Paul was persecuted for his Gospel for reasons we still often do not fully understand – that it’s a radical departure from the keeping of the Law; and it’s a radical departure from anything religious man (and man is religious, no matter what particular costume he may be wearing, including secularism) could ever concoct.
For three days I went on a “Prince Extravaganza”, soaking it in, finding new Life. The power of grace began to be released in my soul. Whenever old doubts and anxieties would appear, a simple faith would arise to deflect them: everything was in God’s hands, and He is so very able to take care of me. It literally was like a light would go on in my soul, and the tension would be immediately released. It was miraculous.
Then, through Andrew Strom’s Revival list, I came across the site SermonIndex.net. Poking around, I found a Watchman Nee article (there are about 160 there; it’s a great resource), The Gift, or the Giver?
Nee very insightfully makes the point that the ultimate test of faith and intimacy is to see beyond our Isaac, to God Himself. It’s not about how much Isaac pleases us, it’s about being pleased and consumed with the larger principle of God’s will. That little synopsis does the piece a disservice, but that’s all I can write right now. I strongly recommend reading it.
Reading a few other things at that site, I went looking for Tozer’s The Pursuit of God. I eventually found that for download at ProjectGuttenberg, but before I did I struck out at CCEL.org. But while at CCEL I spontaneously downloaded Hannah Smith’s The Christian’s Secret of a Happy Life.
WOW! I read the book decades ago, but this time I feel like I’ve been hit by a freight train, full-on. And yes, I have died of the injuries! That is, my flesh died. My paltry attempts to live the Christian life died.
Now I see that it’s all grace, it’s all Him. It’s Him working in me through faith. The whole salvation, justification, glorification plan is His from the outset, our job is to receive and believe. As Nee says, its Luke 15 context proves that the Prodigal Son story really is about the Father regaining what was lost, not the son finding himself.
As I said, I’m too much in process to say much more yet. But I wanted to flag my readers that my absence here has not been wasted time. God is doing something marvelous. And I wanted to leave a breadcrumb trail in case any of you are looking for some great viewing/reading material.
Hope to check in soon. Until then, be, and stay, blessed.
A new practical ecumenicism
Is a new practical ecumenicism leading to real unity of the faith among various arms of the church? http://ow.ly/1cPvm #Christian
That was my first post here via HootSuite, and it worked flawlessly. But I had to edit the subject, so some early links may be broken.
As for the ecumenicism, I’m guardedly for it. The Lord has commanded us to be one, just as He and the Father are one. (Jn 17) Consider that in the Trinity, unity is perfected because the perfect bond of unity, Love, is perfect.
On this side of the Great Divide, we will not agree on everything, and we shouldn’t sweep such matters under the rug. But we can focus on what unites, and then pray that the complete truth will out – in God’s way and timing. If we are calling on the name of the Lord from a pure heart, I believe we can walk together. (2Ti 2.22)
We are waking up to a common foe among us, the latest permutation of the spirit of the age at work in the sons of disobedience, and we should work together as much as faith and conscience will allow. (Eph 2.2, 5.6; Col 3.6)
BTW, a few days snowbound and without power certainly adds to one’s perspective. Hard to believe there ever was life without Internet.
In related news, I’m learning some things I need to digest.
Blessings,
Paul
Thoughts on love
Ah, St. Valentine’s Day. Candy kisses and pink greeting cards. Nothing wrong with that, per se, but instead of making singles feel more lonely, divorcees more heartbroken, husbands more pressured and wives more miffed, how about we return the holiday to its original meaning, and try to recapture the true nature of love? For that, let’s turn to The Authority on perfect love, 1 Corinthians 13:
If I speak in the tongues of men and of angels, but have not love, I am a noisy gong or a clanging cymbal.
And if I have prophetic powers, and understand all mysteries and all knowledge, and if I have all faith, so as to remove mountains, but have not love, I am nothing.
If I give away all I have, and if I deliver up my body to be burned, but have not love, I gain nothing.
These are amazing lines. It’s not eloquence and articulation that make us anything; they can be a cover for a bad heart. It’s not depth of understand or wisdom; knowledge can be cold and lifeless. It’s not even powerful faith that builds us up; faith without love becomes aggression. And surprisingly, it’s not even great sacrifice that amounts to anything, if it’s not rightly motivated.
There is something else more basic than all these things, which alone gives life, and without which we are nothing: love. The next section of 1Cor 13 describes the characteristics of perfect love:
Love is patient and kind; love does not envy or boast; it is not arrogant or rude. It does not insist on its own way; it is not irritable or resentful;
it does not rejoice at wrongdoing, but rejoices with the truth.
Love bears all things, believes all things, hopes all things, endures all things.
Love never ends.
If I could wrap this up in one short statement, I would say that love seeks the good of the one loved above the self interest of the one who loves. This is not merely some gauzy romantic fantasy (though romance can be a wonderful part of true love), this is redemptive, costly love.
The world would be a much better place if we all loved on this plane, but where do we find the inspiration and strength to love this way? 1Jn 4:8 tells us that God is love. So let’s do a mathematical substitution on this same section of 1Cor 13. For every instance of “love”, we’ll substitute “God” and change the pronouns accordingly.
God is patient and kind; God does not envy or boast; He is not arrogant or rude. He does not insist on His own way; He is not irritable or resentful;
He does not rejoice at wrongdoing, but rejoices with the truth.
God bears all things, believes all things, hopes all things, endures all things.
God never ends.
You see, this is exactly how God deals with us. The Author of love, who indeed is Perfect Love Himself, did not instruct us to love without first modeling it for us Himself. His teachings are always a reflection of His character, so whenever we see something in the Bible that God expects us to do, at the same time we’re also receiving a clue as to His true nature.
God is not a hard taskmaster to be abjectly feared, who “takes up what he did not lay down, and reaps what he did not sow.” (Lk 19.21) No, we love because He first loved us (1Jn 4.19). Christ was the forerunner, laying down his life, so that we too should lay down our lives for the brethren (1Jn 3.16).
If we would get revelation of the depths of God’s love for us, we would gain the power to overcome all obstacles, for faith works through love (Gal 5.6). Just as rejection can bring great pain and debilitation, there is great power in acceptance. This is why David sang, “Thy gentleness has made me great”. Whenever David blew it – which was rather often – he repented and found that God received him back with open arms, without reproach. And so David was able to accept forgiveness, clear the slate, and start over again, rather than carrying around guilt, shame, hurt, anger or bitterness.
As for prophecies, they will pass away; as for tongues, they will cease; as for knowledge, it will pass away.
For we know in part and we prophesy in part, but when the perfect comes, the partial will pass away.
All the gifts we have been given, as wonderful as they are, are just vehicles for us to help each other to grow in love. Paul says elsewhere:
But the aim of our instruction is love that comes from a pure heart, a good conscience, and a sincere faith. -1Tim 1:5
The day is coming when we will no longer need the manifestation gifts of the Holy Spirit, or any religious props at all. We will be continually walking in the fullness of God, so there will be no need for special manifestations.
But in that perfect presence love will continue to abide. It is something we will never outgrow.
When I was a child, I spoke like a child, I thought like a child, I reasoned like a child. When I became a man, I gave up childish ways.
For now we see in a mirror dimly, but then face to face. Now I know in part; then I shall know fully, even as I have been fully known.
So now faith, hope, and love abide, these three; but the greatest of these is love.
Paul is saying that we have an opportunity to mature in our concept of love. We don’t have to be tied to unclear, futile or toxic notions about what love is. We can turn to God and learn from Him, drinking in His very nature in the process. And when we see Him clearly, we will be like Him (1Jn 3.2). He is the ultimate example to which we can aspire:
For God so loved the world, that he gave his only Son, that whoever believes in him should not perish but have eternal life. – John 3:16
May we all find and walk in the fullness of this unfathomable love this day.
Amazing Watchman Nee anecdote
Watchman Nee, the Chinese church leader, had only six hours. He must lead the guard in front of his prison cell to Christ so that his letter of encouragement to Christians outside the prison could be delivered.
Authority
According to the Great Commission, our task is to take God’s sovereign authority into all creation, reclaiming it for Him. God has delegated all authority to Christ, who in turn has delegated it to us. Thus, when we are praying and working within God’s will, that infinite authority fully backs us up. That is why the gates of hell cannot prevail against the obedient church.
The key to the victory is that the church must in fact be obedient to the word.
‘The Word’ Bible program: screenshots (up. 1/30)
I’m uploading a couple of screenshots of The Word and will post them to twitter, so people can get a feel for how powerful this free Bible software is. This is a very exceptional gift that Costas has given the Body. And if you can help support the outreach by purchasing some paid modules through him, that’s great. But even if not, this is a great way to read and study the Word.
First, a general shot of my latest layout. Click on the pic for full size.
 That’s a Search window in the upper left, then a Bible window in the upper middle. The upper right is taken by a Strong’s dictionary and Tense-Voice-Mood of the Greek verbs. The bottom row has another two Bible windows, and then the excellent Guzik commentary. There’s a floating Bible window barely showing up from the bottom, which I pull into focus when I want to read something without disturbing the other Bible windows. |
 And now a shot of a popup. Merely hovering over any word calls up a keyed popup. In this case, the word referenced is “flesh” at the top left corner of the popup (in 2Cor 10.3). This feature makes looking through the English text, into the original language, so easy that a mouse click isn’t even needed. |
 Lastly, here’s a shot of a floating Bible window. I keep this one big and I drag it into place from being mostly off-screen when I want to do unimpeded reading with full Bible context. |
For more on The Word, including where to get it and free modules for it, click on the Bible Software tag below or in the right column.
Many “official” screenshots here.
What does it mean to live for Jesus?
Jesus warned us that the world would hate true followers, just as it hated Him. If we are willing to walk close to Jesus, sensitive to the leading of His Spirit, we are going to be placed in situations where we confront world systems. These are the “elemental things of this world” that keep people in darkness and bondage, and we will find that there are vested interests in these systems that do not want to see them exposed and dismantled.
