Ok, there’s so  much poetry floating around our community here, I just had to try.  I used to write poetry a bit when I was a kid and then less through my adulthood, but haven’t written in a very long time.  But this one just sorta came into my head. 

The Powers That Be

Powers

Surging through me, carrying me

To vistas of beauty,

To darkness and uncertainty.

Oh Holy Spirit, uplift.

 

Powers

Surging through me, carrying me

To deeds of goodness,

To deeds of shame.

Oh Holy Spirit, overcome.

 

Power

Surging through me, carrying me

To the glassy sea,

To the ends of the earth.

Oh Holy Spirit, increase.

 

Power

Surging through me, carrying me

To build up,

To heal.

Oh Holy Spirit, flow.

© 2006 by Gerrie Louden

Several posts back I wrote about the gifts of the Holy Spirit, and also about the fruits of the Holy Spirit.  But there are some other things that have come to my mind about the Holy Spirit that is even more important than those two.

Before Christ came, it was very rare for the Holy Spirit to be in someone.  King David probably had it, because he prayed “take not your spirit from me” (Ps. 51:11).  The prophets probably had it.  But that’s about all.

Jesus said while He was here that after he left and went to Heaven, that He would send the Comforter, the Holy Spirit.  He told the disciples to remain in Jerusalem to wait for it.  And come it did!  In Acts 2 is the description of what it was like when the Holy Spirit descended and came into several people all at once.  Witnesses were shocked by what they saw and heard.  Peter stood up and gave his first sermon to the crowd.  The particular “gift of tongues”  in that situation was, that they were speaking the many languages of all the people gathered around.  Every man heard the sermon in his own language.

After Peter preached, the people asked “what shall we do?”  Peter answered (Acts 2:38), “repent and be baptized, every one of you, and you shall receive the gift of the Holy Spirit.”

Ok, it’s a gift.  It makes some with it able to do miracles.  But what else does it do?  Why is it important?

Let’s visit baptism very very briefly.  In Mat. 28, Jesus told the disciples to go to all nations and baptize them in the name of the Father, the son and the Holy Spirit.  Romans 6:3 says we were baptized into his (Jesus’) death.  It is a symbol of repentance, death, resurrection, and coming out a new person.  So Peter said after baptism you will receive the gift of the Holy Spirit.  You can do a study about baptism, it’s not a difficult one.

But again, what does the Holy Spirit do?  Why have it in us?  Romans 8 explains some of it.

Verse 9 says, “if anyone does not have the Spirit of Christ, he does not belong to Christ.”  So in other words (and many scriptures back this up), when we have the Holy Spirit in us, we belong to Christ now.  That is what makes us Christians.  Verse 16 is a key:  “The Spirit himself testifies with our spirit that we are God’s children.” 

Romans 2 talks about the Jews and circumcision, and explains that physical circumcision is now rendered useless by Christ’s death.  The Jews thought they were the only ones who were God’s people (and up until then, they were); circumcision was a sign of being a Jew.  They were God’s children. But when we receive the Holy Spirit we become Jews “inwardly; and circumcision is circumcision of the heart, by the spirit, not by the written code.”

Ephesians 2:19 says we’re now part of the household of God.  We are his children (see above). 

(1) The Holy Spirit  makes us God’s children, makes us Christians and “spiritual Jews.”

The law was a big deal.  But what did God REALLY want to do with the law?  Not just toss it aside at Christ’s death.  No, it’s deeper than that.  Jer. 31:33 says He plans to write the law “in their hearts”.  Again, it’s circumcision of the heart.

Remember how Christ said the law of God was summed up as “love God with all your heart and love your neighbor as yourself”  ??   And remember God IS love?  And one of the fruits of the Holy Spirit (Gal. 5) is love.

(2)  The Holy Spirit writes the law of God into our hearts.

Rom. 7:6 says we should walk in “newness of spirit” and not in the old letter of the law.  Romans 8:4 says the righteousness of the law is fulfilled in us if we walk in the spirit.

As I said before, the whole chapter of Romans 8 explains a lot about what the Spirit does and is for us.

(3)  The Holy Spirit helps us understand the truth of God (I Cor 2:10-14), that we would not understand spiritual things without it.

Among the explanations of the gifts of the spirit, I Cor. 12:13 says we are “baptized into one body”.  We understand that means the Church.  So just as the spirit makes us God’s children, it makes us who have the Holy Spirit in us of one body, the Church.  (Eph. 4:4 confirms this also.)

Ephesians 2:22 says that through the Holy Spirit we’re builded together for a “habitation of God.”  In other words, God lives in us!  And that makes sense, because we all know the Spirit is one part of the description of God we call the Trinity.  So if the Spirit is in us, God is in us!

(4)The Holy Spirit in us means God is in us.    I John 3:24 “we know He abides in us by the Spirit which he has given us.” (also I John 4:13)  There are many scriptures in the old testament that talk about God wanting to make His dwelling with men.   The Holy Spirit in us fulfills these scriptures, and ultimately fulfills God’s very purpose for us.  God used to be “in the temple.”  But now WE ARE the temple (I Cor 6:19). 

There is one more thing.  Rom 8:11 and I Cor 15 seem to indicate another, really ultimate thing the Holy Spirit does.  (5)  It is by the Spirit that we will be made alive forever, the ultimate gift of salvation that Christ’s coming made possible.

To me these are the most important functions of all, that the Holy Spirit does for us and enables us to do and be.  They are the  ULTIMATE gifts of the Spirit:  being God’s children, writing the law of God in our hearts, understanding spiritual things, God in us, and best of all, ETERNAL LIFE.

Love to all, Gerrie

After I finished writing part two of Gifts of the Spirit, it came to mind that something else from the Holy Spirit needs to be addressed.

After Paul explains the gifts of the Holy Spirit, and tells the people that God gives the gifts and places people in His Body as it pleases Him, all for the purpose of having a Body whose parts work together in harmony for God’s purposes, he tells them at the very end of chapter 12:

“Eagerly desire the greater gifts.  And now I will show you the most excellent way.”   And what follows this?  The famous chapter about Love, I Cor. 13!  He says that even if you have prophecy, understanding of mysteries, and even faith enough to move mountains, but do not have love, you are NOTHING.  And even if you give everything you own to the poor or give your life as a martyr, without love, it’s worthless.  Then he proceeds to explain all about love, what it is, how it behaves, etc.  And he compares love to the most neon of all gifts, tongues, as well as knowledge and prophecy.  And nothing holds a candle to love.

Then in chapter 14, he says, “Follow the way of love and eagerly desire spiritual gifts, especially the gift of prophecy.”  And he proceeds to give guidelines for the proper use of speaking in tongues and giving a word of prophecy  in corporate worship.  He concludes with telling them that everything should be done in an orderly way, then launches into what we now call Chapter 15, which rehearses the gospel and explains the resurrection of the dead.

The reason I’m mentioning all this is to put the gifts of the spirit in perspective. Spiritual gifts are tools to build up the church.  God gives these to people according to where He wants to use them in His Body, to insert them as a “certain body part,” so to speak.  They are not the end-all-be-all to Christian life.  Having gifts of the spirit, whether you have one or more than one, does not make you a better Christian.

The first time the Holy Spirit ever entered into people en masse was described in Acts 2.  Peter said in verse 38: ” Repent and be baptized every one of you in the name of Jesus Christ for the forgiveness of your sins.  And you will receive the gift of the Holy Spirit.”

The Holy Spirit is what converts us.  It is what makes us now God’s children. In essence, it enables God to write His law in our hearts.  And how do we know whether we have it?  Jesus said, “by their fruits you shall know them.”

And the Holy Spirit bears fruit in us.  Galatians 5 explains this, and contrasts it with sinful nature.  In the beginning of the chapter he blasts the people who preached that one still had to be circumcised to be a real Christian.  He says Christ came and died to free us from the law, and if you think you need circumcision (which is the biggest symbol of “the law”), you need then to obey all of it.  It’s all or nothing.  Christ OR the law.

He says we have been freed from that.  But then warns us in verse 13, “do not use your freedom to indulge the sinful nature, rather serve one another in love.”  Then he further explains that the entire law is summed up as “love your neighbor as yourself.”

Then he contrasts the sinful nature with living by the Spirit.  These two things are opposites of each other.  We are to be led by the spirit.

The acts of the sinful nature are listed: Some are obvious, such as sexual immorality, witchcraft, idolatry… others are not as obvious, such as envy.  About 20 years ago I was reading the King James translation, where it includes in the list “outbursts of wrath.” (In the NIV it translates this “fits of rage.”)

This really hit me hard.  I used to get upset about things and really fuss and rant and rave verbally.  When I read that, I decided I wasn’t going to do that any more.  And I stopped.  I just refuse to rant and rave any more…and haven’t done that in a very very long time.  The Holy Spirit convicted me and helped me change.

Then Paul explains the fruits of the spirit:  love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfullness, gentleness and self-control.  And he adds, “against such things there is no law.  Those who belong to Christ Jesus have crucified the sinful nature with its passions and desires.”

The “proof” of you being a Christian is how you treat other people, and how you behave, not whether you have prayer language or not.  If you think it’s so important that God gives you a “word of knowledge” or a “word of prophecy,” think again.  God has even spoken through a donkey (Num. 22:28)!

Jesus said that people would know we are his if we have love for each other.  He said after dividing the sheep from the goats, that what we do for others is the same as doing it to Him.

I find it interesting that in I Cor. 12 it lists 9 gifts of the Spirit, and in Gal. 5 it lists 9 FRUITS of the Spirit.  But if you put the scriptures all together, it’s very clear that the fruits of the Spirit are the most important and to be developed first and foremost.  And the use of the gifts is to be in the attitude and context of having the fruits of the spirit operating in you always.

Jesus said we would do even greater miracles than he did.  But more importantly, we are to have the MIND of Jesus in us (Phil. 2:5)  We’re to grow to be like Jesus.

I just thought these things should be mentioned, because it is so easy to get all wrapped up in the novelties and miss the whole point of God’s very purpose for us.

We are God’s children.  We should “take after” our Father.  God is love.  As scripture says, “And now these three remain: faith, hope, and love.  But the greatest of these is love.” (I Cor. 13:13)

I promised to continue where I left off in Part 1.  That was just an introduction and an explanation of where I am in the scheme of things.  I’m just sharing what I’ve learned, and I don’t mean to set myself up as a teacher.  And any of you, Pastor Phil, especially, if I get things wrong, please do correct what I say.

As I said before, the gifts of the Spirit are given by the Holy Spirit for the purpose of serving God and the church.  They are not toys or status symbols.  The major chapter where it lists these gifts is I Cor. 12.  Paul has to correct the Corinthian brethren because of their attitude toward the gifts, because they were in competition, bragging, misusing the gifts, and just generally being obnoxious about the whole thing and behaving like spoiled brat children.  In my epistles of Paul class many many years ago we were told that the Corinthian church was one of the most “gifted” churches there were, yet spiritually they were a mess.

The other thing Paul emphasizes is that these gifts are from God and it is HE who decides who receives which gift(s), for the building up of the church. This is repeated several times, it is so important. We are all part of the Body of Christ, and just as a physical body has many parts and limited numbers of those parts (only 2 eyes, for example), not everybody gets the same gifts.  (Rom 12:4-5, I Cor 12:14-31,Eph 4:12-13)

Apparently the Corinthian church was having gift-athons, where they’d all speak in tongues all at once, and compare gifts, and make each other feel bad if they didn’t have the same gifts as someone else.  Nearly the whole chapter of I Cor 14 is instructions on how to do things decently and in order and what the gift of tongues (and interpretation) is for, as well as prophecy.  Paul says in verse 5 “I would like every one of you to speak in tongues, but I would rather have you prophesy.  He who prophesies is greater than one who speaks in tongues,    unless he interprets, so that the church may be edified.”  He goes on in the chapter to explain that if nobody understands what is said, it’s useless and does no good.  And that if everyone is speaking in tongues all at once, a newcomer will say the people are “out of their minds.’ (v.23)

I’m prefacing going through the “lists” of gifts by saying these things, because I think the attitude and use of the gifts is more important than the gifts themselves.  Our prayer group leader is very spirit-filled.  He has prayer language, he has been given words of knowledge for people and engages in spiritual warfare, and has preached sermons in our congregation.  Yet he told our pastor that if he had to make a choice between having a congregation full of love or full of spiritual gifts, he’d choose the congregation to be full of love.  And I agree with this, although sometimes my enthusiasm for spiritual gifts goes wild:)  When I first received prayer language, I was so thankful and excited, I wanted EVERYONE to have it!

The other thing that is very very important is this:  these things are real.  For me they have made God seem more “real”.  The minute you accept the reality that creation demands a creator, a whole bunch of other things goes with it.  The minute you accept the Holy Bible as God’s real inspired written word, a whole bunch of things goes with it. 

If there is a God, there are also angels.  If there are angels, there are demons.  If Christ and the apostles healed the sick, raised people from the dead, and knew things that a man just couldn’t know (like what people were thinking, as Christ often did), then there is a power they had that we are told in the bible that we also can have.  There is a scripture that says “may the same power that raised Jesus from the dead be in you”.  It’s actually the same power God used to create the universe.  It’s an amazing power, not to be taken lightly.

These gifts just flow through us, as a manifestation of this power.  You can’t drum them up any more than you can drum up faith by yourself.  If you fake having them (like pretending you speak in tongues), I would think that comes close to blaspheming the Holy Spirit, which is the source of the real gifts. 

And these gifts connect us in a special way to God and Jesus.  We are “more directly” serving the Godhead and the church by how we use these gifts.  It is a responsibility and blessing not to be taken lightly.

Now to the list in I Cor. 12, which lists 9 of them.  Incidentally, verse 7 calls these the “manifestation of the Spirit, given for the common good.” 

1.  The message of wisdom  (some call this “word of wisdom”)

2. The message of knowledge (some call this “word of knowledge)

3. Faith

4. gifts of healing

5.  miraculous powers

6. prophecy

7. discerning of spirits

8. speaking in tongues

9. interpretation of tongues

These are all the more “famous” gifts.  Healing, miraculous powers, and tongues, are what I would call the “neon” gifts.  They’re flashy, they’re “instant” and everybody knows whether they’ve seen a miraculous power or a healing or not (gainsayers notwithstanding).  You hear someone speaking in tongues and there it is, right in front of you happening.

Prophecy, too, can be flashy, if someone publicly proclaims a prophecy and it comes to pass, there’s no denying that it was a prophecy from God.  Word of knowledge and word of wisdom, however, are more quiet, and not as “famous”.  But they are both VERY important and very helpful to people who receive words of knowledge  or words of wisdom from people with this gift.

Faith as a special gift means faith above and beyond what the normal Christian is expected to have.  Discernment of spirits is how a person can know whether someone is demon possessed or influenced.  Personally I’m getting a little braver about that one, but a whle ago I asked God NOT to give me that one, because I really don’t want to know where the evil ones are unless I NEED to know.

One time I looked up the Greek for the word prophecy in this passage, and the particular Greek word (and I don’t remember it now) means “receiving  something from the mind of God that you would not be able to learn by any natural means.”  So it doesn’t always need to mean telling the future.

Healing and miraculous powers are usually given at certain times and situations, not every minute of every day.  So a person rarely has the “gift of healing” so he/she can heal anybody whenever she/he wants to. Only Jesus did. 

Now that’s just the list in I Cor. 12.  In chapters 13 and 14 Paul explains more about the proper attitude and use of the gifts in the church.

Later in Chapter 12 (v. 27-31), also, Paul gives another list that explains peoples’ functions as parts of the body.  Sometimes these are referred to as gifts, too, but are also positions and “jobs” in the church:  apostles, prophets, teachers, workers of miracles, those with gifts of healing, those able to help others, gifts of administration, and speaking in tongues (and interpreters).  Then he says everybody doesn’t have every gift.

In Romans 12, another “list” is given (v. 6 to 8): prophesying, serving, teaching, encouraging, contributing to the needs of others, leadership, showing mercy.

There is a scripture that mentions that God gives spiritual gifts that seem to match our natural gifts (talents), too.  You all know someone who seems to have a knack for teaching and expaining things so clearly everyone can understand.  Or someone who seems to have a gift for counseling and encouraging others.

I think this is long enough.  It’s nothing new, and these things are easily studied.  I just put things together a little.  You can learn more from people who know a whole lot more than me about such things. 

The book by Jack Hayford, “The Beauty of Spiritual Language” explains all about the gift of tongues, and it helped me tremendously in my study before asking God for it.  The book, “Lord Disciple Me,” by Richard Mull, is a wonderful wonderful book about walking closely with the Lord and realizing He does, indeed, do for us and with us, the same things He did “back in Bible days”.  There are two books on healing I’ve read:  “Healing,” by Francis MacNutt, and “God Still Heals Today,” by Jim Garlow.  All of these are excellent books and would help you get a good understanding of spiritual gifts.

May God guide you in your study, grant you the Love of Christ, which is the bottom line in all this, and bless you with whatever gifts and opportunities for service He chooses to give you as part of and for service to His Body.

Love to all,

Gerrie

This morning I opened my big mouth about posting something about the gifts of the Holy Spirit.  So now I have to follow through!

First, let me say I’m not an expert in any way.  In fact, I’m quite a “baby” in the spirit-filled areas of Christianity.  I’m not planning (or even capable of doing so) to write some great new revelation about this subject.  My main purpose is to prompt food for thought, inspire your own study of the subject, or hope to get comments and info from people who know more than I do! :)

Years ago I was taught in my church that these things were only for the apostolic era, that the Bible is here now, and these gifts aren’t given any more.  So we were also taught that if we hear people speaking in tongues or see people being slain in the spirit, it’s either fake or of demonic origin.  We were wrong.  My (well, it’s not mine, but you know what I mean:) church doesn’t teach that any more.

Truth is, Jesus Christ is the same yesterday, today, and forever (Heb. 13:8).  He went to Heaven so he could send the Holy Spirit, as he told the apostles  He would do before he left.  So it doesn’t make sense that such a thing would stop suddenly. 

In the book of Acts when the Holy Spirit came on the apostles (and probably other disciples as well),  Peter spoke to the crowd and quoted Joel 2, where it talks about the “last days” in which people would dream dreams, etc.

In the book of Revelations, the apostle John was writing down visions he was given by the Lord.  That was in about 95 A.D., 60-something years after Jesus died.  It was definitely a “gift of the Holy Spirit” that made this book come into being.

The “list” of the 9 gifts of the Holy Spirit is found in I Cor. 12. It says they are all from the same Spirit, the Holy Spirit.  This same Holy Spirit is what comes into us and dwells inside of us at baptism or when we accept Jesus as Savior (Acts 2:38). 

Some people believe you don’t have the Holy Spirit unless you display the gifts, such as speaking in tongues.  Others say you do have it, but the gifts lie dormant inside you until they are released, or else they say there is a “separate” baptism of the Holy Spirit.  I believe the second one, mostly.

There are so many scriptures throughout the New Testament that talk about the Holy Spirit enabling us to be like Christ.  Jesus said that by their fruits you shall know them, and Gal. 5 lists the fruits of the Holy Spirit. 

So to me, the gifts are more of another set of “functions” of the Holy Spirit, not an add-on.  The Holy Spirit leads us into truth, gives us God’s mind and heart (so He can write the Law into our hearts), and also grants us the ability to (at times) do signs and wonders.

In I Cor. 12, 13 (especially 13) and 14, Paul explains that the very most important thing of all is LOVE.  That tongues and prophecies will all fade away, but only LOVE lasts forever, and only Love is the most important thing.  Elsewhere the Bible says “God IS Love,” so this makes total sense.

The gifts are for edifying the church (I Cor. 14), not for status symbols.  They are NOT toys.  Several of my friends (including a pastor friend in my denomination who has had some extraordinary experiences that would knock your socks off) have experienced or “displayed” some of the gifts of the spirit at times, but not ALL the time.  This tells me that some of the gifts are given on an “as needed” basis, usually to accomplish something God wants to do in a person’s life at a certain point in time.

When I first learned about people in my church praying in tongues, etc., I wanted to know more.  Our prayer group leader loaned me the book, “The Beauty of Prayer Language”, by Jack Hayford.  That book changed my life (November 2004).

It explained what this gift is, and what it is for, and gave lots of examples of peoples’ experiences and uses of prayer language.  After reading it, I decided I really wanted to ask God for it.

Why?  Because for me it helps me talk to God about things when I have a ton of things on my mind all at once and I don’t know where to begin.  Or when I’m real upset and none of the 4 languages I speak seem “adequate” to bare my soul at the time.  The premise is that the spiritual language is the Holy Spirit bearing witness with our human spirit to utter things for us that we can’t.

At the same time I examined my motives, because I wanted to make sure I wasn’t wanting them for toys or anything frivolous or “just to have” like a collection.

I know praying in tongues has been said to be “power” to wield during spiritual warfare or prayers for healing, etc.  And I think that is partially right.  But for me it is just as much a precious gift to be able to bear my heart and soul to our Heavenly Father and elder Brother.  It’s for me.

And I think that is why Paul corrected the Corinthians for their misuse of tongues.  They were just babbling in public to babble, to show off, and Paul said it was ridiculous because people had no idea what was being said, so nobody was being helped or edified by it, at least not without an interpreter.  That’s also why he gave guidelines i.e. allowing only 2 or 3 to speak so as to avoid confusion.  Their use of tongues was not edifying the church at all, and therefore defeating their very purpose.

Tongues is what I call one of the “neon” gifts.  But there are 8 more, most of which are to be quietly wielded for the benefit of the church and its members.  We don’t get to choose which ones we get, either:)  God gives us gifts and puts us into the Body where HE decides we fit best.

That’s just background, and I’ll stop for now.  Next would be to go through the list in I Cor 12.

Hope this has been helpful, it’s just food for thought, not intended as an end-all-be-all dissertation!

Love to all,

Gerrie

Again, another post from LynnGail brings thoughts to mind to write about.  Her post about potential made so many scriptures come to mind, and I decided to share what she provoked.   One is the parable of the talents.

In the parable of the talents, three people were given various levels of talents, and told to increase them.  One of them was “only” given one talent, and he wrapped it in a napkin and buried it.  He got in big trouble for it.  Why?  Because he wasted what he had.  He had potential but never activated it.

And many more things come to mind from this.  The principle “use it or lose it.”  The scripture “to whom much is given much is required.”  Jesus told his disciples that when He comes back, he will bless the servant He finds “so doing.”  If we do only what is required of us, we are called “unprofitable servants”.

LynnGail’s mention of the forest and seeds just now also brought to mind the story of Johnny Appleseed (I recently did a lesson on him with my students).  John Chapman walked all over the midwest for several years, planting apple seeds.  He had only the clothes on his back, a cooking-pot hat, a bedroll, and a bag of seeds.  The seeds in his bag were just that, seeds, and did no good until they were planted and watered. What Chapman did was essentially a mission of love, walking all over the land and carefully choosing locations to plant the seeds, often by a river so they would grow into healthy, fruit-bearing trees.  So many people benefitted from his work.  And so it is with us.

We’ve been given the gift of Salvation by our Saviour.  We have the “seed” of the Holy Spirit inside us.  As Jimmish wrote in his beautiful poem, we are living vessels with the Kingdom of God inside us.   We have great potential.

“To whom much is given, much is required.”  How much is “much”???  Isn’t Salvation a lot?  And if you have other gifts (and really all of us do), that’s even “more”.

More than once I’ve been told to be bold and “release” the gifts I’ve been given, and the Lord will increase.  But it’s true of everyone.  We all have great potential.  

I encourage you to ask the Lord to show you where to use your talent.  To unleash the potential He’s put into you.  Maybe you haven’t actually “buried” your talent, but did you put it in your pocket?  Is it in your hand but you haven’t found a place to release it yet?  Pray for guidance.

It’s our mission of love, for the glory of the Father and the spreading of His Kingdom.  If we all released our talents and gifts (our potential), just imagine the impact it would make on those around us!

Love to all,

Gerrie

P.S. Thanks to so many of you for prayers for my aunt and uncle and for my friend Mary, for your encouraging comments, and of course, to so many in our little community for your blogs.  You have no idea how much encouragement they give when they’re needed most.  God bless you all.

 

Just some thoughts on some scriptures:

I used to hear sermons all the time (many years ago) about how a person had to be ‘called’ of God to come to salvation, that no amount of preaching could open someone’s mind unless God took the scales off their eyes, as it were.  This verse would be quoted: “No man can come to me unless the Father who sent me draws him, and I will raise him up at the last day.” (John 6:44)  Later in the same chapter, Jesus repeats it in verse 65, after explaining that what Jesus taught was spiritual knowledge: ”This is why I told you that no one can come to me unless the Father has enabled him.”  (all scriptures are NIV)

But I was surprised recently to read this verse in John 14:6:  “I am the way and the truth and the life. No one comes to the Father except through me.  If you really knew me, you would know my Father as well. From now on, you do know him and have seen him.”

Later Jesus tells the disciples that He will send the Holy Spirit that would lead them into all truth. (John 16:13).

You see, I am a member of a church who used to believe  many errors (we were a cult), but repented and came out of legalism into grace, and into the truth that Jesus is the center of salvation and that the true gospel is about what was done for us on the cross.  It’s a long story which I won’t go into here.   Let’s just say I have an extreme thankfulness and appreciation for grace and the gift of salvation and freedom from the bondage of the law.  What I believed before compared with understanding of the truth is like night and day.  I was baptized when I was 17 and attended a bible college.  I know a lot, but yet I still have things to learn, UNlearn and learn anew!

So reading John 14:3 after having memorized John 6:44 is amazing.  At first it seems impossible.  You can’t come to Jesus without the Father drawing you, but then you can’t come to the Father except through Jesus! 

On the surface these two verses sound contradictory or like an impossible circle.  If you have to come through Jesus to the Father but can’t come to Jesus without the Father, how DO you get saved? 

The apostles didn’t understand it, either.  In John 14 after saying what is in verse 3, Philip asked Jesus to “show us the Father”, to which Jesus answered that “I am in the Father and the Father is in me.” (v. 11)

Before that, he told the Pharisees (after telling them they are not His sheep), he said in John 10:30, “I and my Father are one.”

When He was on earth, Jesus deferred to the Father. He told the Pharisees that He did the miracles in the Father’s name. He said He said he came to reveal the Father to us. He said He was going to the Father. But then after his death and resurrection we are told that Jesus’ name is center, that to Him every knee will bow.  He now sits at the right hand of the Father, interceeding for us and defending us against the “accuser of the brethren.”

We are told in Acts 4:12 that we can’t be saved by any other name but Jesus.

Summed up, it sounds like Jesus and the Father together do the “process” of calling us, opening our minds and hearts and then we accept Jesus as our savior and are saved.  Jesus said whatever we ask the Father in His name will be done. 

In His last night on earth, Jesus asked the Father to “protect them by the power of your name — the name you gave me — so that they may be one as we are one.” (John 17:11, NIV).

I would suppoe that it’s almost simultaneous that the Father draws us to Jesus and then Jesus becomes the way to the Father.  We then receive the Holy Spirit that guides us into truth. We are to have Christ’s mind in us (Phil. 4:5).

And we are all of us, the children of light, brethren of Jesus, to be one as Jesus and the Father and the Holy Spirit are one.    Wow.   Just think, if every person on earth was in the Lord….one mind… peace on earth. 

 

I just read LynnGail’s post about What is a Blessing?  She wrote about Jacob asking God for a blessing, which God gave after Jacob admitted who he really was.  Thoughts came to mind while reading her post.

Right after Jacob admitted who he was, God CHANGED HIS NAME.  Gave him a new identity.  The name Jacob means “supplanter”.  This word means “take the rights of another, especially through underhanded tactics” — (from Dictionary.com).  God changed his name to Israel — which means “to prevail, to overcome, victor”, because he had prevailed with God. (got this from Eliya.com, which has a concordance and a lexicon in it).  In that early pre-dawn confrontation, God asked his name, then told Jacob that from now on he would be Israel, because he had prevailed with God.  And his life was never the same again. Through him a whole nation came into being, and a whole geographical area eventually was blessed. And ultimately, his descendant David was the “seed” from which our elder Brother Jesus was born, which is the ultimate, ultimate blessing for ALL.

In essence, when we accepted Jesus into our hearts, or when we were baptized, God CHANGED OUR NAME.  We were the children of the father of lies, Satan, and at baptism/conversion, we became children of God.  We were of the world, and then became “of the Kingdom”.  When you are born to, or adopted by a set of parents, you take on their family (last) name.  We, in essence, have “God” as our “last name” now.

Like I said in my other posts, Jesus is our Big Brother and we are to grow up to be just like Him.  And in doing that we become like the Father.  A piece of Him is in us through the Holy Spirit, just as pieces (heredity) of our parents is inside us physically.

Our ultimate blessing is our inheritance from our Heavenly Father: salvation. Heaven. Eternal Life.  We didn’t have to fight to get it like Jacob did his, ours is a gift.  But we DO have to fight to keep it.

These are the thoughts reading LynnGail’s post brought to mind, from sermons I’ve heard, Bible college, etc. Love to all, Gerrie

 

 

I’m writing right before I go to bed because this is on my mind.  Pastor Phil usually writes a devotional blog every week day.    He mentioned his wife Ruth being sick.  He didn’t write a blog today.  I’m worried.  Keep praying for her.

Now it could be something he has to do in his other duties, but worrywart me just wanted to write and say we have to keep praying.  Hopefully we’ll hear some good news soon from Pastor Phil or Josh (wordflyerJosh).

There is something else on my mind, about healing.  But I need to write when I’m more awake, which will be tomorrow morning:)

Love to all in Him,

Gerrie