Private Place

On December 10, 2018   /   Word of the Day   /   Leave a comment

Psalm 25: 14              Passion

There’s a private place reserved for the lovers of God, where they sit near him and receive the revelation-secrets of his promises.

There were several verses I thought of using for today’s selection before I settled on verse fourteen. For example, in verse one, David again, declares his trust in God. I could have written a lot on these words from verse three, “For how could anyone be disgraced when he has entwined his heart with you?” I’ve written quite a bit in the last few years about being intertwined with Jesus. It seems I was not the first person to be convinced on that idea.

Verse fourteen holds such promise and paints such an encouraging picture that it eclipsed even the intertwining. Although . . . isn’t there the inference of intertwined hearts in “lovers of God.” This does not speak of a far away, detached adoration. This “private place” is a love nest where those who love God gather with Him to share our joint passion. That passion is a love for all that God loves. We will gather around His Word and He will share His passion with us. We learn what is important to Him and He reveals the secrets of His promises. His love for us abounds in gifts and the treasures of His heart. He longs to have more people with whom to share them. In this private place with Him, He reveals all. It is His desire to reveal the secrets of the universe and in this private enclave, He can do just that.

The coolest thing about this private chamber is that it is open to whom ever desires to enter in. He does not have a gate keeper whose function is to keep people out. All who love Him, whose heart is intertwined with His, may freely enter and partake of the glories of His Heart. How cool is that? Why didn’t anyone tell us about this earlier. We could have been hanging out in the secret place for years. Now we know and only our own hearts can prevent us from lounging in the private place with God.

Look into your heart. Your passport to the revelation room is right there. Enter in and find the answer to every question you have. Receive the revelation of all His promises. He wants to give you all these revelations so you can enjoy the fruit of all His benefits. Come – hang out with God in the private place of your heart. Come into the garden He has set aside just for people like you where all the secrets of the universe are being revealed daily. Your spot has been reserved.

Back to Top

Great and Mighty Things

On August 7, 2018   /   Word of the Day   /   1 Comment

Jeremiah 33: 2 – 3

Thus says the Lord who made the earth, the Lord who formed it to establish it, the Lord is His name, “Call to Me and I will answer you, and I will tell you great and mighty things, which you do not know.”

Come on! It is time to shout! God has promised to give us revelation, to tell us of the great and mighty things. This is one of the greatest promises ever! The Amplified version brings out that He is not only going to tell us these amazing things, but that He is going to show them to us as well.

This declaration is made in the context of He who made the earth. In other words, Yahweh is many things; God, Father, healer, provider, etc. but in this statement, He wants you to hear Him from the perspective of the creator. He made the earth and hung it in the vastness of space. He understands how all the systems of earth and space work. He made us and knows what makes us tick. From that point of view He says “call to Me and I will answer you.” That is promise number one. If you seek Him, you will find Him.

Promise two is, when you call out to Him, not only will He answer you but He will go beyond answering to revealing. Don’t you like that? There are mysteries in the world, and for that matter, beyond the world. Your Father wants to show you all these great and mighty mysteries. Our Father wants to tell us how things work, to show us the intricacies of the universe. It is said of Einstein that the theory of relativity came to him while he was meditating, just pondering the way of things. Could it be that in that moment of silent musing, God showed him the great and mighty things that he did not know? Why not?

Like Einstein, the answer you seek may still be hidden in the stars, but no worries. You know the guy who made the stars and positioned them in heaven. Isn’t that just mind boggling? He not only is willing to reveal hidden mysteries to you, He actually wants to. So, what great mystery are you pondering? What question would you like to ask? Sometimes when you think in these terms, the everyday troubles shrink, and that isn’t a bad thing. Call Dad. He is waiting to talk with you. He has phenomenal revelations to give to whomever He can find to listen.

Back to Top

Reproach

On June 12, 2018   /   Word of the Day   /   Leave a comment

Hebrews 13: 12 – 13

Therefore Jesus also, that He might sanctify the people through His own blood, suffered outside the gate. So, let us go out to Him outside the camp, bearing His reproach.

I am reading a book by Bill Johnson titled, When Heaven Invades Earth. In chapter 15 he refers to this verse in the course of his explanation about the unpopular position revival often has in the body of Christ. We know that the church leadership did not welcome Jesus with open arms. In fact, they persecuted him. So, Johnson’s assertion that Jesus was outside the popular group rather than inside does not come as a surprise. Still, I found myself rather taken aback by this scripture and the writer of Hebrew’s position that we, too, must be willing to endure reproach in order to meet Jesus where he is.

Of course, this verse refers specifically to the fact that Jesus was crucified “outside the gates” of Jerusalem. It is symbolic of his entire ministry. He never quite fit in with the established church which is amazing in itself. How could God not fit in with the church? Better question, does God fit in at our churches today? That is a frightening question.

Apparently, in order to fit in with God and with Jesus, sometimes you are going to suffer the reproach, or the criticism, of the church. This is not a comfortable suggestion. I don’t want people figuratively throwing tomatoes at me and I am pretty sure you feel the same way.

We all know that to the world of the unsaved, we are peculiar people. There is no surprise if I tell you that you may be estranged from your more worldly friends or that your unsaved family may shun you. The challenge in today’s scripture is that in order to follow the moves of Jesus, you may find yourself an outcast among your church friends. Following Jesus exacts a price and that may mean that you are an outcast among the saved. Jesus isn’t standing still. He has a big picture revelation he is ushering into the world but it comes in one little small revelation at a time. Jesus said, “I have many more things to say to you, but you cannot bear them now (John 16: 12). This scripture is so big that you just need to see it in some other translations too. Tree of Live version: “I still have much more to tell you, but you cannot handle it just now,” God’s Word translation: “I have a lot more to tell you, but that would be too much for you now,” and finally, the Passion translation: “There is so much more I would like to say to you, but it’s more than you can grasp at this moment.”

You see, Jesus has so much more to show us and tell us. That necessarily means we will have to assimilate new thoughts, new ideas. He wants to and will lead us into all truth but it is more than we can take in at the moment, more than we can absorb at one time. Therefore, he sends bits and pieces and all these are fitting together into his masterpiece. If he showed us the whole painting, it would overwhelm us. Truthfully, the little pieces tend to overwhelm us. In addition, if we truly follow him and accept the revelations he shows us, we will likely be ostracized by the church. Following Jesus tends to foil the traditions of the church. That is why the writer in Hebrews lets us know that if we are sincere about our boast to follow wherever Jesus leads, we should prepare ourselves to be outcasts even amongst our brothers.

This is a bitter pill, I know, but better to be with Jesus, even in the discomfiture of his beliefs than to be cozily ensconced in dead theology and contented church tradition. Remember how Jesus taught about not seeking man’s approval? Well, you get your chance here. As you listen to God in your heart, you are going to discover challenges to your own personal theology. You will also learn new truths in Christ and challenges to our way of doing things. We must be a people willing to follow Jesus wherever he leads and let the chips fall where they may. It ain’t easy, but it is the way!

Back to Top

Spirit of Revelation

On May 18, 2018   /   Word of the Day   /   Leave a comment

Psalm 110: 1

The Lord says to my Lord: “Sit at my right hand until I make your enemies a footstool for your feet.”

I love these Old Testament revelations of Jesus. It is common for us to talk about Jesus being seated at the right hand of the Father but think about David writing this 1000 years before Jesus arrived. Just to make it clear, the first use of the word “Lord” refers to God. “My Lord” is Jesus, the Messiah. Do you not find it amazing that David had such a clear revelation of Jesus so far in advance of his arrival?

This is the work of the Holy Spirit and believe it or not, that same Holy Spirit is alive and moving in the earth today. Very few Old Testament writers had this kind of revelation, especially about Jesus. Even fewer knew, explicitly, about the Spirit. One of the things I like most about David is the way he worked with the Holy Spirit. He is unique in his understanding of and flowing with the Spirit of God. Do you find that surprising? Well, the Holy Spirit was not yet fully revealed. The Old Testament saints were looking for Messiah. Jesus revealed the coming age of the Holy Spirit.

The power of the Holy Spirit has not diminished one jot throughout the centuries. He is still revealing powerful truths. One of the other similarities, though, is that there still is not widespread collaboration with the Spirit. He remains a bit of a mystery to many New Testament believers. Did you know you can even pray to him? Well, that may not be a huge revelation, but it may be something you haven’t thought of. He is God. He is the third person of the trinity. Therefore, if you want to walk with him and have him give you the kinds of revelations he gave David, you can. You can talk with him and ask him to partner with you. He responds well to invitations.

The Holy Spirit is moving in this age for those who have the requisite awareness. He wants to integrate into your life and activate all his spiritual gifts with you and for you. Seek him, invite him, talk with him daily. He is there with you right now and will gladly walk as closely with you as he did with David, even as closely as he partnered with Jesus.

Back to Top

Sun, Moon, Jesus

On January 30, 2017   /   Word of the Day   /   Leave a comment

Isaiah 60: 19

No longer will you have the sun for light by day, nor for brightness will the moon give you light; but you will have the Lord for an everlasting light, and your God for your glory.

Your sun will set no more, neither will your moon wane; for you will have the Lord for an everlasting light, and the days of your mourning will be finished.

I love the book of Isaiah. I am definitely going to look up Isaiah when I get to heaven and tell him how much I enjoyed his book and how much he helped my life. Isaiah saw Jesus. He had a revelation of his coming unlike anyone else in the Old Testament. Jesus said, “I am the Light of the world; he who follows Me will not walk in the darkness, but will have the Light of life” (John 8: 12). That is what Isaiah told people. One is coming, he share, who is brighter than the sun, whose light will never fade.

When God speaks, it is sometimes difficult for us to take in the fullness of his communication. Is this passage by Isaiah and statement of Jesus purely metaphorical? If it is, it is good enough. Jesus is the light which lights your life. I don’t doubt if you met Jesus in person, though, that he would be a bright radiant light. In heaven there is no darkness ever because the sun is the light.

I think these two passages of scripture are as big as you believe them to be. I believe Jesus’ light is also life and it glows within you bringing you health and well-being. Could he really light a dark alley for you. If you need it, then yes. Isaiah saw Jesus and saw his radiance. He saw that the sun and moon were no longer the light sources upon which we would depend. Jesus is the light which fuels the sun; he is the everlasting. I guess that means that the son fuels the sun.

Am I suggesting that you no longer need light bulbs in your house? Well . . . I am not there yet, but were you to believe big enough, maybe so. What I really want to share with you today is Isaiah. I don’t know what he saw but he saw something magnificent. We too can live in the kind of revelation he did. Also, through his words, we may see Jesus more clearly. We may even see ourselves more clearly. What mysteries are revealed to us through Isaiah and the other writers of the Bible when we pause and let the light shine on us? I am ready for us all to see “all truth” and be inspired by the glory of the Lord.

Back to Top

Offense

On September 6, 2016   /   Word of the Day   /   Leave a comment

Matthew 11: 6

And blessed is he who keeps from stumbling over Me.

Do you find yourself amazed that Jesus would speak such words? I do. But in Romans 9: 33 Paul quoted a passage from Isaiah, “Behold, I lay in Zion a stone of stumbling and a rock of offense, and he who believes in Him will not be disappointed.” Isaiah was prophesying about Jesus. Paul, in his writing, confirmed that this prophetic statement from Isaiah had been fulfilled, that Jesus was the stumbling block. Now if Jesus is a cause for stumbling then it must be that we need to take some pains to not offer people offense. In fact Paul told us as much himself, “Give no offense either to Jews or the Greeks or to the church of God” (1 Corinthians 10: 32). So, we are to make an effort not to offend others. However, that can also operate as a chilling effect on speech in the church and personally, I find that a troubling situation as well. Some pastors will not preach on certain topics, even though they are Biblical, because they are afraid of offending someone in their congregation. Many pastors will not even preach on tithing for that reason which I find sad because they are really stealing from their parishioners by not sharing God’s economic plan with them. You can hardly blame them, though, because some of those offended people may be influential. Certainly, there are people who will make their displeasure known in very clear language. This is not as it should be.

We are a body but we do not all believe the same. That is evident in the number of denominations we have and even divisions among denominations. Were the truth to be told, most of us do not believe exactly the same as we did some years ago. That is called growth and maturity. We must, therefore, make a decision for unity despite differences of opinion and even differences in revelation. We must choose not to be offended by new thoughts or varying opinions. We are all at different places along the journey and we need to be able to share our thoughts, beliefs and revelations without offending others or being criticized for our seeking of truth.

The most frightening result of our dogmatic refusal to listen to different points of view or to entertain new ideas is that we cannot receive revelation from God. Did I say frightening? I meant terrifying. There is little that causes my heart such trepidation as to think that I nor others can receive the fresh revelation of God. There have been so many times when Father God has shown me something new out of a verse that I thought I knew very well. He keeps peeling back layer after layer showing me that He has more depth than I have ever grasped before. I live from revelation to revelation. That is the glory of Christ, Christ revealed. In John 14, verse 21 Jesus promised that whoever loves him would be loved by him and the father and that he would “disclose Myself to him”. Glory to God! Now, when Jesus reveals himself to you, then by definition it means he is revealing, disclosing something you did not know before. So, if we have an attitude of offense then we will never be able to receive the revelation of Jesus. God forbid! In other words, if we cannot accept or at least tolerate new or different ideas, then Jesus cannot show us anything we do not already know. We are destined to be ignorant. I would hate that destiny for myself and I grieve its ownership by the church. How can we train others or lead them to truth if we are ignorant? How can the church be a might force for good if the world sees us as closed minded and foolish? Certainly, it is the height of foolishness to think that we can evangelize a world when we cannot even get along with each other because of different or new ideas.

It takes a decision to avoid being offended or put off by a different theology. It also requires a bit of self-esteem. No one can make you believe something you do not wish to so why get all upset over someone’s thought which differs from yours? It may be that you will agree with that person sometime down the road when you have had time to think about it and do your own research.

My prayer is that we will embrace all that God wishes to show us in these last days. I pray that we will encourage our pastors and teachers to spend time before God learning and seeking all that God would reveal to us and that we will urge them to share these new revelations with us despite the chance that we may be challenged. I further pray that we will remove the spirit of offense far from us both individually and corporately and that we will in turn embrace the spirit of unity and goodwill.

Back to Top

Divine Revelation

On September 18, 2015   /   Word of the Day   /   Leave a comment

Galatians 1: 12

For I neither received it from man, nor was I taught it, but I received it through a revelation of Jesus Christ.

The Apostle Paul did not have the advantage of walking with Christ the way Peter and John did. That is one of the reasons he is so important to modern theology and thought. Like us, everything Paul learned, he had to learn by revelation from Christ. 

Don’t get me wrong though. I am not saying that we can’t and don’t learn from the teachings of other people. We can receive revelation through other people and we receive revelation through the scriptures. Paul was well steeped in scripture himself having been trained at the most preeminent school available. However, he also knew how to get alone with Jesus in the spirit and receive divine revelation from him. 

Paul tells us in today’s passage that what he taught he received directly from Jesus as a divine revelation. Paul’s training taught him how to meditate in the scriptures and how to connect with the divine source. If you look at Paul’s teachings you will see that he often quoted Old Testament Scripture. My take on this is that He would pray and meditate on the scriptures. He would quiet his soul as we can observe David doing through the Psalms. In this quiet, meditative state, Paul connected with Jesus in the spiritual realm. Jesus taught him about the Kingdom of God; where it is, how it operates, and how we function in it. Then Paul must have lined these teachings up with scripture to make sure that what he received by divine revelation was consistent with what God spoke throughout the generations. This is the reason that Paul tied his teachings back to the Old Testament. Those old teachings were anchors for the revelation he received through his direct connection with Christ.

Paul’s experience is an exact model for us today. We do not get to walk in the flesh with Jesus either. However, Jesus is just as alive and just as real today and to us as he was to Paul in his time. We also need to receive divine revelation because we cannot sit at the campfire and ask him questions. We have two hindrances though; time and knowledge of the scriptures.

After Paul had his Damascus road experience he went away to the desert of Arabia to be alone. His whole theology, all of his education and training had been turned upside down by his spiritual encounter. He needed answers so he went to the desert to meditate and to be alone with Christ. Jesus met him in the quiet of his solitude and Jesus revealed himself to Paul. 

I am suggesting that we all need Jesus speaking into our lives. It is through the quiet, contemplative time spent with Jesus that we discover the bread of life. While not ignoring scriptures, we all need to connect with Jesus in the way that Paul did. In that connection is revelation for our lives.

Back to Top