Unfounded Expectancy

In my thirty-five plus years of ministry I have come to the conclusion that the greatest potential for sidetracking a believer from the “sacred path” is when simple trust/faith in God's promises start to become overshadowed and replaced by the keeping of religious laws, rules and regulations. This causes trust/faith to be exchanged for an unfounded expectancy that God will reward our works with the blessings that faith alone provides. Not to mention, this confidence in our capability and strength creates a greater sense of FEAR that we will be punished according to our sins and failures when we miss the mark. And will we ever miss it.
Galatians 5:2,4 (Amplified) "...for if you distrust Him, you can gain nothing from Him. If you seek to be justified and declared righteous and to be given a right standing with God through the Law, you are brought to nothing and so separated (severed) from Christ. You have fallen away from grace - from God's gracious favor and unmerited blessing." Sounds to me like Paul was clearly addressing the fact that the capacity to reach our potential gets fully short-circuited when we seek to please God by following any kind of "law" as a means of gaining His approval, favor, blessing, and provision of salvation.
This is certainly one of the MOST practiced and required pitfalls in Christendom, that carries the greatest approval rating among religious brethren and peers, but the Bible seems to imply that God "cuts the umbellical cord" when we take these measures.
Isn't it odd that Paul was not telling the Galatians that their "sins" were getting in the way of their relationship with God, (for there is a provision for sin) but that keeping the law (which IS holy) rather than trusting God's promise to justify the wicked was the culprit for their demise? No provision for that. How can the law help us when the Bible declares metaphorically that we've died to it and married another? Great food for thought...
In our lack of understanding, we continue embracing religious notions insisting that the law be upheld and practiced to "maintain" righteousness. But, mind you, not the whole of the law, (as required by God for those who insist it be followed (Gal. 5:3) but "selective enforcement" of hand-picked rules and laws that appeal to our sense of morality and uprightness. Even new laws have been created and put in place that was never a part of the original intent of the churches founding requirements. Weren't there enough laws given through Moses without trying to heap some other mans requirements upon them?
Do you want to live your potential to its maximum? Walk daily according to the leading of the Holy Spirit and follow the cardinal "law" of LOVE. (God and neighbor as yourself.)
Quit following Judaic laws, rules and regulations, and put your faith wholly in the one (Jesus) who has the capacity to help you.
By holding fast (in faith) to the "HEAD" (Christ) you will grow with a growth that is from God. (Col.2:19) Counting on God to bless your rigorous intensity to please Him by keeping rules, laws and rituals will only end in frustration and defeat. Haven’t we had enough of that in life? Let’s get on with real living and let faith stand on it’s own as the means of embracing all the goodness that God has to offer in this life and the next.
Let faith take hold of the sufficiency that grace provides.
Then take a sigh of relief and drink deeply.
You are so loved.

He Knows Everything

Just like everyone else on the planet, I have issues with faith. I relate fully to the man who said to Jesus, "Lord, I believe... help my unbelief." Who (being truthful) cannot sincerely identify with the person who spoke these words to the Master? I have never and probably never will relate to people who profess great faith any more than I relate to people who flag wave a profound standard of personal righteousness. I've been in too many situations where preachers, pastors, evangelists and ministry personalities who do profess such great faith hide from view in situations of great conflict, so those they "teach" won't see them "under the circumstances" they publicly claim to live above. As for me, I can't lay claim to living above circumstances. I live in them. And I am convinced that God lives there with me, guiding, leading, empowering and uplifting me through each and every situation giving sufficient grace for the need.

Truth is... I can't see Jesus. I can't truly "feel" Jesus. I can't "call him up and tell him what I want" as the song implores us to do. This relationship requires faith for operation, but the journey is all about starting with little and learning how to put it to work in every human situation possible. Then, just when I think I've got a better handle on faith, a new situation comes into play that totally challenges and trumps my previous faith experience. To take it a step further... it's not even our faith we're working with, but the faith God gives us for the task of making this relationship effective. I'm grateful for it, but because of my humanity and need for all things tangible through the senses to feel secure... I fall short of using that gift of faith to its potential. I don't always know how to use it or apply it correctly, even though I've read most every five to seven step book on how make faith work. And... like most people, my heart condemns me when I fall short. Through the years I've tried to pick myself up and do better after failing before taking it to Jesus for consideration. Then I have to use the faith I've been given when I confess my shortcomings to trust that God keeps me plugged-in to right relationship. Almost like a viscious circle. The Bible says have faith, my mind says "do better" and my church friends give me umpteen million rigorous spiritual exercises to undertake that are guaranteed to make me more spiritually fit and fail proof than before. And I stand before God wanting to do my best, and feel condemned for not acheiving the goal.

Consider this. The Bible teaches us in Romans 5 "Therefore being justified by faith, we have peace with God through our Lord Jesus Christ." This verse was the writers golden opportunity to speak the truth and tell it like it really is. It could have read, "Therefore being justified by BEING GOOD... or justified by being RELIGIOUS... or justified by keeping the LAW... or justified by paying your TITHES... or justified by going to CHURCH... or justified by sacrificing your first born child into the fires of... " The eternal truth was cemented in that verse. We have peace with God by the simple means of being justified by faith. Faith alone. Not faith PLUS something else.

God knows everything about us and is fully aware of our inability to continually do the right thing the right way at the right time in the right place for the right reason. But, he still loves us. We have to have faith in the fact that he knows all about us and sees everything we do. Good and bad. And he still loves us. While we were his enemies, he loved us. Herein is love, not that we loved him, but that he loved us first...

I was always taught to believe that what gets in the way of my relationship with God is sin. That somehow each time I sin I short-circuit the lifeline of his connection to my being, causing the need to start all over from the beginning. In the church I grew up in, we just got saved over and over again to compensate for our inability to keep getting it right. That perspective became like a concrete block around my neck and impossible to carry. I just couldn't get it right all the time, not to mention the unbearable weight of my heart under the condemnation of my own mind telling me, "There you've gone and done it again!" But I've come to relate to the Apostle Paul who explained his own struggle so clearly in Romans chapter 7. "When I want to do what's right... I don't. I'm forever doing the wrong..." Paul's insights should help us all to grasp the fact that sin is not the factor that causes us to become separated from God. However, a lack of FAITH, preventing us from resting in the assurance that he loves us is detrimental to the foundations of our relationship. Faith dares us to look at ourselves in light of the mirror of the Word of God and stand assured in the truth that his love is unchanging for us when we are good or bad. He has made the provisions we need available on a daily basis through the sacrifice of Jesus as the only spotless substitute. If we say we have no sin, we call God a liar and the truth is not in us. If we sin, we confess our moral and spiritual failures, and the blood of Jesus continually cleanses us of our unrighteousness. Simple. Sin doesn't seem to get in the way, but only a lacking of confidence in God's ability to provide in the situation.

Our best efforts to maintain a sense of perfect uprightness will always be met with futility and frustration. We are just not made up of the stuff necessary to accomplish such a noble task. We may have good intentions, but we just don't have the moral currency to acquire such perfection. But, we never cease to strive for following the perfect example of our heavenly Father whose ways are above our own. His perfection compels us to be elevated in our efforts to be the best with all that we've been given, to showforth the praises of him, while never accepting for a moment the arrogant need to believe that we have the means to achieve that goal in and of ourselves. I don't even believe that we have the means with God's help... not in this body. The body we live in will forever draw us away from all that is right, good, holy and righteous. That is why in the eternal relationship we have with God here and now, the just shall live by FAITH. (Never by works, lest we boast.) For all these things, he has given us GRACE. And grace is sufficient.

All this said, we come to the conclusion that 1 John 3:19,20 is deeply relevant to our human and spiritual condition and needs. "...so we will be confident when we stand before the Lord, even if our hearts condemn us. For God is greater than our hearts, and he knows everything."

God is good. We can't fool him, or hide anything from him. Face it... our best efforts are always less than perfect. But perfection is not key for pleasing God. Faith is the key. We continue daily to walk by faith during the good and bad times, success and failure, when openly upright or utterly fallen and remain constantly aware that when trying our best to live in love we can stand before the Lord in all confidence, even when our hearts condemn us. He is still faithful and greater than our hearts. And he knows everything. And he still loves us. Faith can have a foundation in our hearts and lives if we embrace his everlasting love. Fear and condemnation fade into the background when our minds become fixed on God's love. After all, it's not my works, or goodness, or religious fervor, etc. that matters here, but the assurance or faith that God loves us in our best efforts and our worst failures. So, even when our hearts condemn us, we can still stand confidently in his unsearchable love. He knows everything.

May the God who knows us and made it his perfect will to justify the wicked, cause our hearts to believe in his eternal love and rely on his eternal Word of truth.

Drink deeply,
JP

Peace with God

From the beginning of time mankind has been on a search to try and figure out how to get in touch with forces beyond their knowing to gain favor and help for things outside their control. People began to sacrifice their crops, livestock, wine, their own blood, body parts and first born children in hopes of securing a better outcome on serious issues in life. It's a rather morbid history, but nonetheless true. The Bible is a perfect historical account of such matters, and deeply misunderstood by many in western culture. The need to "do something" in hopes of hooking God's eye and ear to better secure our ongoing relationship is from time immemorial.
However, in our religious culture, we still do the same things, maybe in different ways than described in the Old Testament, but follow after the same need to try and gain favor with an invisible God whose attention we so desperately need to gain. We go about it with the same religious fervor and zeal as both Hebrew and pagan peoples attempted to merit favor. We still sacrifice, observe ordinances, serve rules and regulations, create new never before prescribed laws to follow, give till it hurts, attend services till we're worn out and jump through every religious umpires hoops in hopes of not being disqualified from the prize of winning the gold medal of God's approval.
It's obvious that we have a deeply seated need for something we just can't reconcile ourselves to in our minds and hearts. That being, peace. An inner conflict is created because of our knowing that we have not measured up to God's standard either makes us ashamed and unwilling to approach him, or we cover our naked sins with the fig leaves of self-righteous deception in hopes that God won't notice and accept our perspective that we're "good people." Both deadly spiritually.
The old archaic and useless system and methods of sacrifices as a means of appeasing God's justice and granting temporary approval is over. The sacrifice of one greater than any bull or goat ultimately put to rest the need for offerings, rules, regulations, laws, religious observances, etc. that cushion our conscience toward our idea of what's necessary for favor with God.
There is no need to follow rules...
There is no need to observe laws...
There is no need to do special works....
All of these create a greater anxiety in our hearts and minds, because these observances cannot secure the one essential byproduct of peace, which is ASSURANCE.
There is, however, a means by which a human soul can be firmly fixed in the matter of knowing where we stand with God. FAITH.
The book of Romans chapter 5 verse 1 declares; "Therefore, being justified by faith, we have peace with God because of what Jesus Christ has done. Because of our faith, Christ has brought us into this place of highest privilege where we now stand... confidently...."

Can we trust God with a promise like that?
Can we embrace a simple truth and be forever set free from the uncertainty, fear, anxiety and pain of being outside of God's favor?
Can it really be this easy? Obviously... in our minds and hearts... it's not.
Then again, the Old Testament story of Abraham clearly given for our benefit. Romans 4:21,22 "He (Abraham) was absolutely convinced that God was able to do anything he promised. And because of Abrahams's faith, God declared him to be righteous."

Will you drop your heavy load of baggage you've been clinging to that's made you weary from trying to accomplish what only God can do for you? Come before him without it this time empty-handed and say, "I believe... help my unbelief. Give me faith to trust that in Christ your promise is enough to give me once and for all time the PEACE that passes understanding."
Then take the next step. REST in the confident assurance that God will accomplish what he said he would do without your assistance and efforts. THAT, my friend, is peace.
Trust him.
Peace be unto you.
Drink deeply.
JP

Invitation To Worship

We have been “bought with a price.” We are no longer our own. We have been purchased by God to serve His purpose. This is a concept that we often loose sight of in the daily routine of our lives. By loosing sight of this fact we fall short of our potential purpose. That is why we spend so much time “spinning our wheels” trying to get Gods attention through some frustrating work or deed that has not been required of us. By the death and resurrection of Christ, God has gone to great lengths to deliver us from the despair and hopelessness that comes from the tiresome labor of dead works. His mercy offers us the liberty without fear or dread of serving the One who now owns us. 1 Peter 2:9 declares that this price was paid so that we could “show forth the praises of Him who called you out of darkness into His marvelous light.” You were “bought with a price” so the invitation to worship the living God could be placed in your hands. This is a royal invitation given only to those who by faith have laid hold of the salvation offered by Jesus. No others may enter. The King now requests YOUR presence to respond to His great mercy by offering the sacrifices of praise, which is, the fruit of our lips giving thanks. We are invited into the Kings presence as loved and honored members of His family. Think about this. We no longer belong to ourselves, but to Him. Were it not for His act of mercy in our lives, we would be doomed to an eternity of certain death and hell. We do not owe it to ourselves or to God to take up a life of religious rigor and works that has no greater outcome than making us proud. Instead He now requests that we come before His presence of our own accord bringing with us a heart full of joy, gladness, appreciation, thanks and praise. God is always the object of our worship. That is not in question here. But, let us never forget that we are always the ones who receive the greater blessing when we are obedient to the simple, uncomplicated requests that the King makes of us. We are invited to enter the presence of the all-sufficient King. He is in need of nothing we have to bring. All that we offer will make Him none the better or richer. However, we are in need of EVERYTHING He has to offer. The Bible tells us, “In His presence there is fullness of joy… pleasures forevermore.” Being in His presence brings the fulfillment to our purpose for being created. The presence of God enriches us with blessings beyond our capability to comprehend. That is why He invites us into His presence. He wants us to be blessed and enriched. Don’t hold Him at arms length and miss the blessing of why you were created. Accept His invitation and come boldly before the throne of grace. The simple surrender of your heart in worship will be the beginning of wisdom, blessing and joy.
Drink deeply,
JP

Our Priority In Ministry

Worship is ministry to the Lord. We can sincerely offer little definition of worship. The Bible gives clear definition and examples of how our praise is to be conducted. Words like "joy" "gladness" "singing" "dancing" "playing instruments" "clapping our hands" "shouting for joy" etc, etc. give rich understanding of all that is appropriate as a means of expression when offering praise.
Worship is a different thing...
Consider the fact that no one can really tell you how to love your wife, or husband. You have to grow in that relationship experientially. There is no manual provided at a wedding ceremony that gives newly wed couples that "how to" on successfully loving a spouse.
Worshipping God is kind of the same. It has to be experiential.
And just like we can understand being created for a marriage relationship... we were created for just the same to be worshippers of God.
I cannot emphasize enough that our purpose for being created is to offer up sacrifices of praise, the fruit of our lips giving thanks, that ministers to the heart of our loving Father. Jesus emphasized this important element of our purpose by stating that the Father is seeking those who will worship in spirit and truth. Obviously God wants it; therefore, we should be quick to respond by giving that which ultimately pleases Him, rather than seeking our own methods. In the 44th chapter of Ezekiel we find that ministry to the Lord is not to be taken for granted, nor to be regarded as secondary to the value of ministry to people. Ministry to people is vital to the work of the Church, but it is never to be considered our highest priority. When looking at the passages in Ezekiel 44 we see that God punished Israeli priests for profaning the temple by taking away their rights to minister to HIM in their daily duties. This left them only the responsibilities of ministry to people.
Isn't that odd?
God left the priests with the duties of ministry to people. But prohibited them from ministry to HIM.
Most people have the impression that ministry is "all about the people."
Ministry to the Lord is our first priority in this life.
Ministry to people can become as burdensome as a prison sentence when it does not spring from ministry to the Lord first. Ministry to the Lord refreshes and energizes. Let’s take our purpose and calling seriously and enter the house of God with the desire to worship Him first and foremost. After making that our top priority, we will see that ministry to people will flourish as the result of our spending time worshipping Jesus.

Just how hard is it?

In Psalms 14:2, 3 David says, “The Lord looked down from Heaven upon the children of men, to see if there were any who understood, dealt wisely and sought after God, inquiring for and of Him and requiring him of vital necessity. They are all gone aside, they are all together become filthy; there is none that does good or right, no, not one.” (Amplified)
Wow, what an indictment. To think that from God’s perspective, there is no one who has hit the target. All have missed the mark. Every man, woman, boy and girl are on the same equal playing field of accountability before God in the sins and trespasses. We’re all guilty. This verse was later to be reiterated by Paul in his letter to the Romans 3:11, 12. No matter how good we’ve been, what admirable deeds we’ve done, or how esteemed we have become in the eyes of friends, family, Church or social circles; we are all guilty of transgressing God’s perfect law. It doesn’t matter what sin we’ve committed. To break one of God’s laws is to be guilty of having broken them all. That makes us worthy of His condemnation in judgment, which is hard for us to grasp.
I have heard people say, "I may not be perfect, but at least I haven't murdered anybody!" We want to be judged by our self-perceptions and intentions, not by our sins, and we like to define sin into categories of major and minor, acceptable and unacceptable. All the while seeing ourselves as acceptable. There are no such categories. Sin is sin, and the death that results has been the captor of us all. We must consider the greatness of the love of God in Christ who looked upon our miserable state and purposed to love us in spite of ourselves. His goodness reached into the darkness of our spiritual existence and claimed us for His own possession and prize. How great is His love. How high and how wide. How deep and how strong. For this reason alone, we should be a people who cannot wait to give great praise for His excellent greatness.
Still, we insist that God judge by our standards...
We continue to fight and insist that we be accepted on our merit and not by His good mercy.
We make this relationship so difficult while He made it all so easy.
Think about it.
Drink deeply.
JP

Inhabit our praise.

Looking back through the scriptures we can see patterns of worship in the Tabernacle of David where worship was offered in the form of music and song as acceptable sacrifices. David’s heart of worship was that of a man before his time. King David utilized musicians and singers to worship 24/7 before the Lord although there was no mention of singing as a form of sacrifice or worship in the Tabernacle of Moses. Sacrifices of blood and incense were offered regularly, but neither singing nor playing of instruments was used as part of the ritual. The Tabernacle of Moses was still in operation in Shiloh during David’s reign as King, but God’s presence was no longer there. Psalm 78:60 reveals that God “forsook the tabernacle at Shiloh, the tent in which He had dwelt among men (and never returned to it again)” vs. 68 ” But He chose the tribe of Judah (Praise), Mt. Zion which He loves (to replace Shiloh as His capitol.)”
But he chose Mt. Zion… the place where David erected his tabernacle as a house of worship. It is no wonder that David was said to be a man after God’s heart. David knew that God was not interested in the sacrificed blood of bulls and goats, not really. Even though God instituted and mandated the required law of shed blood for sins. What God was after all along was a people who understood why a relationship with the King of the Universe should cause them to worship with singing and rejoicing.

God inhabited the praises of His people during the reign of David. And He still does today when we offer the sacrifices of praise, the fruit of our lips giving thanks unto Jesus, the author and finisher of our faith.
Drink deeply
JP

Expectancy!

The definition of the word “Expectancy” is as follows:
Excited anticipation: excited awareness that something is about to happen.

• an air of expectancy hung over the crowd.

If the dynamic power of the Holy Spirit is not being manifested in our services, there is no one to point a finger at but ourselves. Well-intending church goers have told me for years that if someone would change the style of music played in a worship service to more suit their liking or preferences, or if the pastor wouldn’t preach, etc. etc., then the Spirit of God would be free to do something powerful. Maybe there is some truth in their words. Still, I can't quite perceive that whether the music is traditional hymns, country/western, Hebraic, Contemporary, Rock n' Roll or Black Gospel, that God's potential to accomplish something hinges on our cultural preferences. We've replaced the necessity of FAITH with the desire for ENJOYMENT.

However, when believers assemble or attend church, without bringing a sense of expectancy, the emphasis is invariably placed on the service content and those who conduct it for its perceived success or failure. And the success or failure inevitably hinges on whether the service was "enjoyed." The ritual, tradition or service has no power in itself. To follow the rituals and traditions of a Church service requires nothing but being there. Faith is not a key ingredient to the participation of a worship service. It’s not necessarily the ritual or the tradition at fault, but the lack of EXPECTANCY in the hearts of those who are gathered for worship. That stands true for the leadership and the congregation alike.

Those who meet together with faith and expectancy will see great manifestations of God’s presence and power. God never promised that those who attend Church would find Him or see Him revealed on any level. I have seen some of the greatest demonstrations of the presence of God in services with the worst music conceivable. Musical quality or style is irrelevant to the Holy Spirit’s being present. But… FAITH is required. The Bible says, “...and you will seek Me and you shall find Me, when you search for Me with ALL YOUR HEART.” God’s Spirit operates in full potential of power and demonstration when and where PEOPLE decidedly bring a sense of EXPECTANCY to whatever ritual or tradition they practice. We should EXPECT God’s Spirit to be present. EXPECT miracles. EXPECT signs and wonders. EXPECT the gifts to operate. EXPECT power. Waiting on the ritual or tradition to change to suit your liking will only leave you waiting. EXPECTANCY is the key YOU possess that the Holy Sprit can USE every time believers assemble together. What shall it be?

Anytime you come before God... come EXPECTING

With all your heart, come EXPECTING.

Drink deeply,

JP

What is your praise worth?

King David knew the value of worship and had determined that he would never approach the Lord empty-handed. Worship has value. What we now understand about this covenant we have with God through the finished work of Christ is that Jesus, Himself, is the value in our praise. He is the cost. There is nothing for us to bring to the place of worship that is an acceptable offering or sacrifice unto the Lord other than our praise. To offer anything else is to be like Cain and bring a harvest of produce that he had worked so hard to raise, when the sacrifice that God required of him was not garden produce but blood. Although his offering was no doubt of great value, it was not a suitable substitute for what God required. We can offer no substitutes for what God requires. God does require the “sacrifice of praise” (Hebrews 13) from His people and will accept no replacement for it, regardless of what it may cost us.
Jesus gave His life on our behalf. He was the only sacrifice worthy to redeem sinful, broken, fallen, lost people to a right relationship with God. What gives our worship value in God’s presence is the knowledge that we could never have achieved reconciliation on our terms or merit. It was accomplished by God and God alone. Now that we have received the provision of salvation by grace through faith, let us boldly go into the presence of God and offer the required sacrifice of praise with great gratitude because we fully recognize that Jesus has done for us what we could never have done for ourselves. If you don’t know what Jesus has saved you from, your praise will have little value. If you are coming into the throne room of the Most High God under the impression that He needs to see you showcase the greatness of your own goodness and works, your praise will speak little of Him, and mostly of yourself, which is why the apostle Paul said, “We are saved by grace through faith, and not of works, lest we should boast.”
Salvation is of the Lord and not of us. Remember what Romans 3 says… “None is righteous… no one seeks God…” We contain no currency within ourselves to purchase any blessing or place of right standing with God. That is why it was done for us while we were still His enemies.
We have no standing in the presence of the Lord without the provision of Jesus’ sacrifice.
We brought nothing into relationship by our efforts. God did it for us, in spite of us. The sooner we recognize this, the sooner our praise of Him will become ignited with the fire of the Holy Spirit. I have nothing to sing about other than His great love. I have nothing to proclaim other than His mercy that is new every morning. I have no other name under heaven to exalt than Jesus. I cannot boast in God’s presence. As the prophet Isaiah said, when seeing a vision of the Lord and was immediately humbled, “Woe is me, for I am a man of unclean lips.”
An angel took a coal from the altar and seared Isaiah’s lips so that his praise could be purified. Like Isaiah, that which our lips offer is not clean. My praise is not pure. My best efforts to offer praise full of truth and zeal is and always will be tainted by my limitations and humanity. However, as the temple worship in Israel laid the pattern in type and shadow of how it is with us today, Jesus, our High Priest, gathers the offerings (sacrifices of praise – the fruit of our lips giving thanks) of the people and offers them to the Father on our behalf. I don’t even have to worry about my praise not being “good enough” or “pure enough” or “passionate enough” for God’s standard, because Jesus receives our offerings of worship as High Priest. Our praise is offered through Him purified, cleansed and perfected for God to receive, spotless and holy. That is part of His continuous ministry as High Priest of our confession. What we offer to God… Jesus is the spokesman.
How can we take anything of ourselves, our works, our rule-keeping, fragmented attempts at law abiding, and lay them at the Throne of God as though they are of value. Our works are as filthy rags. Nothing to brag about. No value. Paul said he considered his flawless practice of Judaism and law keeping as “dung.” Yet we so often insist upon doing it to try and get God’s attention or to feel good about ourselves when a good old-fashioned round of repentance would work much better.
No… we cannot substitute anything that we have done as an offering of praise unto the Lord. God doesn’t want it. He didn’t ask for it. To do so would be no different than Cain offering his hard work in the fields, when God asked for the slaying of an animal.
God lays the parameters and establishes the boundaries.
Give God what He asks for. Is it really that hard?
It can be… if we refuse to see ourselves in the same perspective that God does. But when we see that God has leveled the playing field and called us all sinners, so that He can show mercy upon us all alike… male, female, young, old, church-goers, pagans, gays, straights, blacks, whites, yellow and red, hardened sinners, not so hardened. We’re all the same in God’s eyes and we will all bow our knee to the altogether great love of God. Love that bore our guilt and punishment upon Himself, paid the debt and let us go free.
Now that kind of love is WORTH something. Recognizing that gives my praise value.
Making Him the object of my thanks is what gives my praise a richness without measure.
Priceless…
Drink deeply.
JP

Strength for today, bright hope for tomorrow.

Because we are confident that Jesus has been raised from the dead, there is now an abiding certainty that we can trust EVERYTHING God says. We MUST trust what God has revealed. Life demands it.
If we can know one other thing that is as sure as the promises of God, it is the fact that life will continually dispense chaos, strife, trials, uncertainty and sorrow. I am not a fatalist but I have lived long enough to fully realize that we cannot live outside what is common to all mankind. Just this afternoon a dear friend called and told me her husband lost his job unexpectedly. We're seeing more and more of this in our unstable economy. Jesus words in John 8:47 says, “Whoever is of God listens to God, - Those who belong to God hear the words of God.” Because of that fact, we need to make God’s Word a greater part of our daily thought process. There is only one place to turn when in need of comfort and peace. The Word of God. There we find His promises and His purposes for our lives. There is where we find assurance, steadfastness and peace when the world becomes chaotic. It gives peace to our hearts to know that in the midst of the worst situations there is a God who is for us and not against us. Isaiah 54:10 says, “For though the mountains should depart and the hills be shaken or removed, yet My love and kindness shall not depart from you, nor shall My covenant of peace and completeness be removed, says the Lord, Who has compassion on you.” As an old friend of mine penned in a popular Christian song, “Life is hard, but God is good.”
There is always hope. Regardless of the worlds' condition, there is a place of hope, refuge and quiet rest in the presence of the Lord. And in His presence, there is a word that gives peace, strength and hope.
Jesus’ resurrection has secured our place in God’s promise.
Drink deeply,
JP

Christ Is the End of the Law

In a perfect world all Christian converts would be taught the concepts of Romans 10 prior to being given a Bible. Also, those raised in churches would be established in the same theological principles from this text to help ensure the foundation on which their faith is based is in Christ ALONE.
Let's read Romans 10:4 from the Amplified Bible. "For Christ is the end of the Law - the limit at which it ceases to be, for the law leads up to Him Who is the fulfillment of its types, and in Him the purpose which it was designed to accomplish is fulfilled, - That is, the purpose of the Law is fulfilled in Him - as the means of righteousness (right relationship to God) for everyone who trusts in and adheres to and relies on Him."
Well, you'd think that would just about settle it. However it doesn't.
For thousands of years people have been wrangling and fighting, arguing and dividing themselves from one another over this matter.
Adhere to the Law, or trust in Jesus?
How about a little Law, a little Jesus? Better?
How about... follow the laws that matter to me and trust in Jesus to help me do it?
How about... follow and uphold the laws that I'm strong in... thing that I KNOW I won't break, like adultery and murder or homosexuality, and when I stumble and fail in less severe areas, I can remind myself and God that I'm not TOTALLY depraved. I AM A GOOD PERSON!
Unfortunately, this is exactly the means by which so many so-called "christians" have been taught to function in their relationship with God. Which is completely dysfunctional. Since I was raised in a church that openly taught this manner of relating to God, where even the non-verbal communication smacked with the same focus on our works and performance, I found that in my own walk with God, the most difficult thing for me was TRUSTING Christ. It wasn't sufficient.
I was from a church whose members didn't "rededicate" but would completely backslide and get "saved" all over again. It was a vicious cycle. And it didn't take long for me to grasp the fact that everyone was watching to see if I would live my life according to THEIR expectations and Biblical prescriptions. Soon enough I was fully aware that I couldn't pass inspection with my peers or with God. I was forever being reminded by those around me and therefore getting "saved" again at least once a year. Always at campmeeting... didn't everyone?
Still, I needed something greater than "be good and go to church" to anchor my soul and provide a means of daily assurance that God loves me. Every week in Sunday school as children we joyously sang, "Jesus loves me this I know, for the Bible tells me so..." and yet was taught to live without the assurance of that very fact and to embrace the fear that comes with poor performance.
As a youngster and even a young adult who had been so steeped in this theological tradition, it all seemed to make sense. Verses from the Bible, "Be ye holy as I am holy." (Strong command.) To hear the requirements of the Law and commandments read from pulpits and Sunday school teachers followed by the fierce threat of retribution in passages like Deuteronomy 29:20 "The Lord will not pardon him... and all the curse that is written in this book shall settle on him; the Lord will blot out his very name from under the heavens... single him out for ruin and destruction... " was certainly what being in a relationship with God is all about. I mean, there it was in black and white.
When children hear "Jesus Loves Me" from an early age accompanied by the requirement to adhere to the Law with the punishments featured in Deut. 29 as the consequence for disobedience all in the same breath, the end result is often disasterous. It was for me.
This theological mentality followed me throughout childhood into my teen years and eventually into adulthood. I would try and do good and go to church. If I sinned, or even missed church for that matter, I was hanging from a cliff by a broken sapling with a short root system. Doomed. The cycle was endless, viscious and merciless.... it left me with no alternatives than to try and do BETTER and go to church more often! Pray harder, do more! I would pray and remind God of the good that I HAD done, believing that God was a rewarder of our works. I lived under the guilt of my sins and offenses continuously because I took the Law and commandments seriously. "Thou shalt not..." was often "Thou just did!"
After years of being as "good" a Christian as I could be, faultering all along the way, I had to face the fact that something wasn't working. I decided to step aside from my traditions and read the Bible for myself but differently this time. Asking the Holy Spirit to take off the denominational filters that kept my views locked tightly into these spiritual prescriptions of required obedience to the Law as my means of obtaining "heaven" as the reward, I picked up my Bible and started again. I searched the scriptures for something more than I had been taught. God, in His mercy, began opening my eyes to the truth about GRACE.
The book of Romans in the New Testament finally began to reveal the reality of "Jesus loves me this I know.... For the Bible tells me so" from the viewpoint of God Himself. Romans 3:20 "For NO PERSON will be justified - make righteous, acquitted and judged acceptable - in His sight by observing the works prescribed by the Law. For (the real function of ) the Law is to make men recognize and be be conscious of sin. v. 21 But NOW the righteousness of God has been revealed independently and altogether apart from law..." v. 22 " Namely, the righteousness of God which comes by believing with personal trust and confident reliance on Jesus Christ, the Messiah, for all who believe. For there is no distinction, v. 23 Since all have sinned and are falling short of the honor and glory which God bestows and receives. v. 24 All are justified and made upright and in right standing with God, freely and gratuitously by His grace (His unmerited favor and mercy), through the redemption which is provided in Christ Jesus."
Reading those words was both wonderful and tormenting at the same time when I began to face the fact that I had never allowed myself to "take the plunge" and place the whole of my faith in Christ alone without depending on myself to add anything additional to the equation for being saved. It was terrifying because my former traditions had me locked into the mentality of "I HAVE TO DO SOMETHING!" But reading the words of the Apostle Paul in Romans 3:28 "For we hold that a man is justified and made upright by FAITH independent of and distinctly apart from good deeds (works of law). - The observance of the Law hand nothing to do with justification." and further in Romans 4:5 "But to one who not working (by Law) trusts (believes fully) in Him Who JUSTIFIED THE UNGODLY, his faith is credited to him as rightouseness - the standing acceptable to God."
I could go on forever, but know I must stop somewhere and pick up on this again later...
Needless to say, in my story, I learned that it is vital to life itself to cease from trusting in my own useless and unfruitful efforts, works, deeds, rules, regulations, etc. and find the value and freedom in being acceptable with God on HIS terms through simple faith in Christ.
We will never be good enough to merit favor, blessings, gifts, or right standing with God. It's impossible. It's like a three year old climbing onto a ten inch step stool to try and reach the ceiling. But what is impossible with man is POSSIBLE with God through trusting Jesus.
The Law was simply meant to show us our inability to EVER be right with God. It showed us our failures and need for something that we could never provide for ourselves.
God knows this fully... we often act as though it somehow surprises Him that we miss the mark. It doesn't.
But He loves us anyway and sent Jesus to prove it and be the means to bridge the gap between the Laws requirements and our inability to meet them.
By placing the whole of our faith in Him... Christ is the end of the Law.
If you're caught in the same endless frustrating cycles like I was, give consideration to the
message in this blog.... the Law is not your master, and following it's endless demands and requirements is not your means to acceptance with God.
You're free from it.
Consider that your need to believe that personal goodness is necessary to go to heaven later is not as important as trusting Christ for a right relationship with God here and now. Heaven is the outcome of that simple faith.
Drink deeply.
JP

Welcome to the New Wine Bar

Greetings... I've thought for the longest time that I should NOT join the millions of those who feel compelled to put their thoughts and ideas online. The idea that my contributions would be buried under vast mountains of cyber sand and gravel without ever being discovered and read by anyone was my essential cause for demotivation. But lately I've had a change of heart. Certainly the Apostle Paul (one of my great heros, along with Luther, Calvin and other great reformers and free-thinkers who impacted history) would have loved the possibilities available through the Internet. The people that could have been reached and touched at the click of a keyboard. Endless...

Not that I think my perspectives, ideas, viewpoints and insights are equal to those as Paul, Calvin, Luther, etc. but heck, you never know until you lay it out there who will be touched or provoked by my offerings until they're given.

With that in mind... I present the "New Wine Bar." I unapologetically use the term "bar" in my blogspot title and affiliate it with things "Christian, spiritual, religious, etc." with a purpose. It is meant to be what it is... a bar... a place where people gather to partake in something they enjoy... a place where conversation is optimum and ideas are welcomed, heard and laid out among friends. A place where people come to DRINK IN the New Wine of Jesus and be filled. Satisfied. Refreshed. If the concept offends you, there are certainly countless other blogs online that are more suitable to your taste. Find them.

The themes that will be reoccuring are LOVE, GRACE, MERCY, FAITH, RIGHTEOUSNESS, PEACE, JOY, ABUNDANT LIFE, FREEDOM, LIBERTY, SPIRITUAL GIFTS, PRAISE and WORSHIP.

There will be times when the ideas offered will be as simple as a children's Sunday school lesson, others will be as controversial as it can possibly get. Some will certainly find the entries more offensive than my blogspot title. But that's OK.

My grandfather used to love to look at me and quote the Bible saying, "The earth is the Lord's and the fullness thereof, the world and they that dwell therein..." The smile that remained on his face long after quoting that verse always left me knowing that his faith in the God who owns EVERYTHING meant him too... and also me. He never let me forget that. It established hope in my heart and joy in my soul. My future belongs to the Lord who owns everything and reigns over all his creation with great love.

Check back with me now and then... leave me your thoughts and reflections on postings whether you agree or not.

But always remember that Christ is our mediator and common denominator as well.

I will not judge you, who does or doesn't serve the same Lord.

But I will LISTEN to your views. I may respond by agreeing or disagreeing. That is my choice and priviledge.

Together we will drink deep at the New Wine Bar.

JP