SEEING PEOPLE, THE WAY GOD SEES THEM – (Part 2)

Acts 10:38 – “You know of Jesus of Nazareth, how God anointed Him with the Holy Spirit and with power, and how He went about doing good, and healing all who were oppressed by the devil; for God was with Him.” NASB

If we understand that Jesus went about Blessing people, we take a giant step toward victory. However, unless we understand what Blessing is and how we Bless we will miss the point and miss the mark. We will find ourselves following religious ritual and form rather than living and demonstrating the Power that Jesus demonstrated. We will come short of the ministry and purpose He exampled.

Blessing must be understood as something that one gives to another with the view of that person being of Great Worth and Value. That is one of the essential keys to understanding the Life and Ministry of Jesus. He went about Blessing people!

That truth is easily grasped and embraced by most believers, but we sometimes fail to recognize that our LORD placed great value on those He blessed. He viewed them as being of Great Worth and Significance. Do we? Therefore, I contend that it is vital that we understand how Jesus viewed people and learn to view them with the same mind and heart. That would revolutionize not only the Church but the World including the political.

Jesus viewed people through the eyes of a Blesser. What I mean by that is that Jesus saw people as having value. I believe that one of the greatest difficulties in the modern church is we do not see people as Jesus saw or sees them.

I believe that it can be proven that most of the time the Church views people as the Pharisees did not as Jesus did and does. Jesus never saw the outer presentation He saw the person. He did not look at their exterior or their behavior. He did not look at the outer presentation or form. That is how the Pharisees viewed people, but Jesus looked beyond the faults, flaws, and blemishes and saw the heart and the true person. He looked into their soul and spirit not just their outward presentation.

Let me offer an example or illustration from the Bible. The Pharisees would look at a person and see a prostitute, a tax collector, a sinner. Jesus never did. He saw the person! He looked beyond the outer form and outward presentation and saw the person on the inside.

The Pharisee’s mind said: “Prostitutes are terrible people, so we shun them and have nothing to do with them. Tax collectors are corrupt people, so we shun them and have nothing to do with them.” Not, Jesus, He got close to them. No, Jesus did not go to prostitutes for pleasure, but He ate with and talked to ALL people regardless of their flaws. He had meals with people considered sinners. The church of that day (Synagogue) was scandalized by His approach. How could He eat with SINNERS?

This is illustrated in Matthew’s account of the conversion of Matthew the Tax Collector. If you can receive it, this account is written about Matthew by Matthew and it is also recorded in Mark and Luke. Matthew is writing about himself. That makes the way it is recorded in Matthew of particular interest.

Matthew says this, “Jesus passed by the receipt of custom and He saw a man named Matthew.” Matthew is the only one of the three that said it that way. The other two do not say, “He saw a man…” But Jesus saw the man, not the occupation or the sinfulness.

In that day the religious people considered Tax Collectors as ‘non-persons’ without souls. They considered them ‘dogs’, ‘vermin’, anything but human. After all, what human being with a smidgen of decency would become a Tax Collector, therefore they cannot be human.

Matthew, because of his occupation, found a barrier between himself and virtually everyone else in Capernaum. The Pharisees would not even look at him when they passed by. They would spit on Tax Collectors and throw their tax money down when they walked by or came to pay their taxes. Everybody cursed and hated them. He was a dog, a filthy turncoat Jew who had sold his soul to the Romans and was not extracting the taxes from his own people. The Tax Collectors were usually the richest men and the most despised in town. Nobody treated them as human beings, but Jesus did.

Thus, when Matthew writes of his conversion and gives his testimony, he was very aware that Jesus saw him as a man, not an animal and rubbish. No one else saw him that way, but Jesus did. That is one of the reasons when Jesus said, “Follow Me” he walked away from his lucrative career. That was powerful. This is what I’m talking about in seeing people as Jesus saw and sees them. He looked through them to who they really were and could be.

How do we see people? I am saying, “Oh me” and “Forgive me” as I write. I want to dig a little deeper again in the next devotional but until then, I ask the LORD to bless you and make your way prosperous.

Have a Great Day!

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SEEING PEOPLE, THE WAY GOD SEES THEM…

The more I study the Bible and study the ministry of Jesus, the more convinced I am most of the modern church is light years away from what He taught and did. That may sound incredibly negative, but I hope to take that statement and propel us into a biblical way of looking at everything. If I can be remotely successful, this endeavor will produce benefits far beyond what I or any can imagine.

Here in Acts, Peter calls our attention to the ministry and life of Jesus. Jesus went about. That is about as far as some get in their consideration of the commission of the LORD to us. They go! But Jesus went about doing something. He went about doing good and healing all who were oppressed by the devil. I believe that is one of the best summations of the Life of Jesus here on earth that we can find. This is Him living His life as a True Human being and demonstrating our purpose.

I do believe that Jesus was and is the Son of God and was manifested in the flesh. However, I also believe that as He lived among us, He was among us as a True Human Being and never once did He draw upon His Deity in what He did. He came as man and did what He did as and for man. He lived and worked under the anointing of the Holy Spirit. He was our example and pattern. I want to call your attention to several important and powerful passages of scripture.

John 5:19 – “…Truly, truly, I say to you, the Son can do nothing of Himself, unless it is something He sees the Father doing; for whatever the Father does, these things the Son also does in like manner.”

John 8:28 – “…When you lift up the Son of Man, then you will know that I am He, and I do nothing on My own initiative, but I speak these things as the Father taught Me.”

By His own declaration, of His own self, He could do nothing. He was dependent on the Father and it was through the Power and Anointing of the Holy Spirit that He functioned. That is exactly how we are to live and function. He ‘went about’, but not just haphazardly but with clear direction and as directed by the Father through the Holy Spirit.

In that mode, whenever He came upon “needy” human beings, He “did good,” and that frequently manifested itself in deliverance from bondage and healing of sick bodies. He healed those who were oppressed by the devil and we live in a world full of oppression. He ‘went about’ as the one who had the ability to draw upon the Shalom of God and He was able to dispense it, through obedience.

Jesus lived among human beings with all the ills, woes, griefs, sorrows, trials, and temptations mankind is subjected to. He was able to and did Bless them. Wherever He came upon people He ‘did good’, He ‘blessed’, and He ‘healed.’ That sums up the Life and Ministry of Jesus. He was a DOER!

If you recall Jesus began His earthly ministry quoting Isaiah and said that was exactly what He was going to do. The list in the passage is a description of every way The Blessing of His Covenant is expressed in the lives and needs of people.

Luke 4:18-19 – “The Spirit of the Lord is upon Me, Because He anointed Me to preach the gospel to the poor. He has sent Me to proclaim release to the captives, and recovery of sight to the blind, to set free those who are downtrodden, 19 to proclaim the favorable year of the Lord.”

Unfortunately, too much of the Body of Christ today has a four-walls mentality and we are trying to get to heaven so that we can be like Jesus. I suggest that if we do not become like Jesus here and now, we either won’t get to heaven or we will be red-faced when we get there and discover or error.

Jesus began His ministry with this view. He conducted His ministry with this view. When He came to the end of His earthly ministry, He commissioned His follows to adopt this view and GO and DO exactly as He did. If we take His command seriously, we need to discover how and what Jesus did.

For us to even scratch the surface of understanding we will have to spend multiple devotionals on this subject. I am always concerned in blog devotionals that drawn-out teaching will extend beyond the attention of the readers. However, this is so important that I am willing to take that risk.

God bless you as you enjoy this day and we will dig a little deeper in the next devotional.

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SUNSHINE IN A SHADY PLACE…

Mark 16:1-8 – “And when the Sabbath was over, Mary Magdalene, and Mary the mother of James, and Salome, bought spices, that they might come and anoint Him. 2 And very early on the first day of the week, they came to the tomb when the sun had risen. 3 And they were saying to one another, “Who will roll away the stone for us from the entrance of the tomb?” 4 And looking up, they saw that the stone had been rolled away, although it was extremely large. 5 And entering the tomb, they saw a young man sitting at the right, wearing a white robe; and they were amazed. 6 And he said to them, “Do not be amazed; you are looking for Jesus the Nazarene, who has been crucified. He has risen; He is not here; behold, here is the place where they laid Him. 7 “But go, tell His disciples and Peter, ‘He is going before you into Galilee; there you will see Him, just as He said to you.'” 8 And they went out and fled from the tomb, for trembling and astonishment had gripped them; and they said nothing to anyone, for they were afraid.” NASB

Happy Resurrection Celebration Day! In my decades on planet earth, I have learned that it is easy to get into a rut. It is easy to do things in a predetermined mode becoming guilty of doing out of habit rather than with purpose. We are frequently reminded of the various holidays through commercialization. Each season seems to have its own gimmick or channel through with men can make merchandise on the event and largely turn our hearts from the intended purpose of the celebration. Some people do certain things on Christmas, Mother’s Day, etc. out of habit giving little to no thought of what those days truly mean.

Today, we come face to face with one of the greatest events in human history – The Resurrection of the Messiah! From the time of his fall until now the devil has attempted to destroy our Messiah and our Hope. He has used every tool and device conceivable in his attempt to stop the progress and implementation of God’s Redemptive Plan.

In the Garden, he sought to destroy what God had created and steal from it the innocence and perfection. His attempt was thwarted by God and the Promise was given that the devil would only be able to inflict a nagging heel wound to Christ, but Jesus would deal a crushing head blow to him. In Israel, the devil attempted to stop the line through which the Messiah would come only to find that God would raise a champion to lead them through to victory.

Here, the disciples had been hoping that Jesus, the Messiah, had come and was going to set up His earthly kingdom. They anticipated the overthrow of the Roman government and the implementation of the Kingdom of God on Earth. Now, the devil has moved again, and Jesus has been crucified. All the Hope of the Human Race hung on the Cross and now lay in a tomb dead. Fear, disappointment, and despair were gripping their hearts. There was no sunshine in their dark world and hopelessness was gripping their hearts.

Then it happened! Heaven’s Sunshine broke through the clouds of gloom. Jesus was no longer in the grasp of death. He Has Risen! He had risen as Conqueror. He is Alive! Hope is restored! Jesus had come as man for man and lived a sinless life, died a sacrificial death as the payment for man’s sin. Now that He has risen it means that the sacrifice was accepted, liberty from sin’s bondage is assured, and eternal life is not ours! The Easter Bunny didn’t leave the prize egg, Jesus purchased our redemption and has risen to assure us of life!

Christ’s Rising Was the Resurrection of Hope. He was Who He said He was! He did What He said He would do! They knew that the sacrifice was complete and His words “It Is Finished” had new meaning. He was truly Messiah. He did hold the Key of Life. He could do all things. He would fulfill all His Promises. Hope replaced despair for the Door had been unlocked and there was they were basking in the Light of the Son as the heavenly sunshine broke through their clouds of gloom.

Christ’s Rising Was the Resurrection of Courage. Rather than hiding in fear, gripped with timidity they were now emboldened and became powerhouses for the Kingdom. They had a Risen Savior whom Death could not hold. The Door had been Unlocked! He is Alive!

Christ’s Rising Was the Resurrection of Religious Activity. Not dead formalism that is powerless, but an infusion of God’s Love and Power was coursing through their beings. They could now point to the Empty Tomb and the assurance of Life. They were Commissioned to Go to the Entire World. They were Empowered to Go to the Entire World. They were assured that we have a High Priest standing before the Throne of Heaven making intercession for us.

This Event, the Resurrection of Jesus is the Unlocking of the Door of Redemption, Access to God without a human mediator, and the Church had been enabled to become the Body of Christ in this World. The Door Has Been Unlocked – HE IS ALIVE!

May the LORD of Heaven encourage your hearts this wonderful Resurrection Day and may you never lose sight of what it means!

God bless you as you enjoy this wonderful day in Him!

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THE GOD OF THE CALL…

Exodus 3:1-22

I will not copy the entire text because of its length but hope you will it carefully read in its entirety. There is no question that there are numerous wonderful and beneficial truths that could be gleaned from these verses. Moses is an important character in this saga because of his place in history. However, the factor that is even more commanding is the miraculous appearance of the manifest presence of God and the Call He gave to His chosen deliverer.

Frequently, in the Church or Christian community, we have placed major emphasis on the Gifts, Abilities, Anointing, and Calls. We have elevated to supreme status those visible gifts, abilities, and anointing. We have often struggled, fretted over, and worried about their presence or absence and found ourselves in somewhat of a quandary regarding our own personal call. The Call of God is important. We must be appointed by the LORD and anointed by Him else we labor in vain.

We receive the Call, the Commission, the Revelation from Him and direct our focus on that. I believe that if a Call is from God it will not be something you can easily shake or dismiss. He won’t let you! However, if you attempt to fulfill that Call in human strength, knowledge, ability, and energy you will produce a dead Egyptian and experience a stint in the desert and cow pasture as did Moses or visit a prison as did Joseph.

God has a Call for each person, but with that Call comes Preparation and the time and extent of that preparation only God can determine not man. Only God knows when we have sufficiently died to ourselves and the flesh, enabling Him to produce the needed life in us. That is where the ability to ‘having done all to stand and keep standing’ comes into the picture.

Moses was chosen by God from birth to be the deliverer of the nation of Israel. He was sovereignly placed in Pharaoh’s house to be trained so that he could lead the Great Nation of Israel. Moses came to know the Call of God and saw the oppression his fellow Hebrews were enduring and assumed. He assumed that because there was a visible need, the time must be right to act. (Acts 7:20-25). Notice, if you will, Pharaoh did not recognize the call upon Moses. Secondly, Israel did not recognize the call nor understand his actions. His timing was bad. It was his timing, not God’s. That awarded him a trip to the Midian desert and life in a tent rather than a palace.

Moses was not ready. He still had too much Moses in him. He knew too much Moses and not enough God. He knew about God, but He did not know God and there is a dramatic difference. Had he known God, He could have relaxed and waited for the LORD’s timing. Why? Because he would have known that God is Never late. God does not Call us to Fail but to fulfill His Purposes.

Moses had the call at 40 but now to prepare his heart, he would spend 40 more years in preparation on the backside of the desert in the tents of his father-in-law, Jethro. In the School of the Desert, Moses lost much of his self-consciousness and self-confidence. He no longer rushes ahead at the slightest mention of the Call or the Need. He knows that He cannot do it in his own strength, and that makes him a candidate for God’s miraculous. He is now ready to be used.

There is an incredible passage in the Book of Psalms that most read over rather than meditating on. Psalms 103:7 we read, that God “made His ways known to Moses, His acts to the sons of Israel.” There is a significant difference between ‘Ways’ and ‘Acts.’ Ways indicate heart, character, and purpose but Acts are what is done. Israel saw what God could do and would do, Moses knew His heart and why He was doing it and would continue to do it. Moses learned the Heart of God and in that the Purposes of God.

God repeated a statement numerous times in the Bible and that statement helps us to understand His heart and purpose. He said, “I am the God of Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob.” Let me suggest the following:

The God of Abraham is the God of Covenant.

The God of Isaac is the God of Promise.

The God of Jacob is the God of Transformation.

Those are not reflections of three separate Gods but works, dimensions, and acts of God needed to understand God’s heart and purpose. He binds Himself in Covenant to His word, and by His supernatural power, He performs and transforms.

If we are going to fulfill the Call of God, we must first discover the God of the Call and learn not just His Acts but His Ways. We must allow God to empty us of us and fill us with Himself. Lord, my prayer is, “Thy Kingdom come, Thy will be done, on earth as it is in heaven.” We need God to manifest Himself to us and transform us so that we become manifestations not simply representations of Him.

God bless you as you embark on today’s journey of being who He says you are!

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SUBMISSION – How Far? (Part 2)

Romans 13:1-4 – “Let every person be in subjection to the governing authorities. For there is no authority except from God, and those which exist are established by God. 2 Therefore he who resists authority has opposed the ordinance of God; and they who have opposed will receive condemnation upon themselves. 3 For rulers are not a cause of fear for good behavior, but for evil. Do you want to have no fear of authority? Do what is good, and you will have praise from the same; 4 for it is a minister of God to you for good. But if you do what is evil, be afraid; for it does not bear the sword for nothing; for it is a minister of God, an avenger who brings wrath upon the one who practices evil.” NASB

We began our venture into dangerous and controversial waters regarding this topic in the last devotional and will dive a little deeper today. It is my sincere hope and desire to show the biblical and rational balance. I warn that it may not look like it at the outset but if you will stay with me through the entire discussion, I believe you will see the balance.

Submission is not unquestioned obedience to authority. That is not biblical submission but servitude or subservience. Submission is the willingness to follow leadership or directions that do not violate what God has said to us individually, through His word or the directives of our conscience. When those conditions are not met (no violations) it is proper to submit to those having the rule over us in the home, government, job, or the church.

Conversely, when the leadership in the home, the government, the job, or the church violate what God has declared and decreed we must resist. If what is being directed is a direct violation of God’s Word and violates our conscience we must disobey and, in that disobedience, we are not being rebellious but obedient to God while disobedient to man.

LET ME OFFER SOME BIBLICAL EXAMPLES:

The kingdoms of this world and the glory of them are, for the most part, under the control of the ‘god of this world’, the devil. The god of this world dominates most of the human governments in existence and government affects lives. Therefore, the governments of this world are often not favorable to the Gospel of Jesus Christ and are averse to the Truth of God. In those situations, conflict is inevitable, and disobedience demanded of the conscience.

THE THREE HEBREW CHILDREN – Daniel 3:5-6.

Let me ask, “In this situation, what would you have done?” Most will say, “I would have refused to bow, but would you?” These three men were submissive and wanted to serve the king and were doing that. They wanted the best for the kingdom. They made a powerful faith declaration in (vv. 16-18) and sealed their fate with the government of man.

The Word of God prohibited idolatry and idol worship. They had a choice, they could obey the edict of man or the law of God and the price was seemingly a life or death choice. What would you have done? In Romans 13:1 we are told, “Let every soul be subject to the higher authority.” Remember the Bible and God are always the higher authority and take priority over any decree or edict of man.

In Daniel 3:24-25 we find the king perplexed and his questions and declarations are powerful. They put three men in the furnace, but he could see the fourth man in the fire, and they were all walking around unharmed by the blazing fire that killed the men who threw them into the flames.

Jesus stood with those three men in their obedience to God which meant disobedience to man. They had divine favor and divine protection. Here is something you must not overlook. After this experience, they went back to serving the King. They were only disobedient to the king’s edicts when they contradicted the Law of God!

There are many levels of authority and God clearly commands us to ‘obey’ higher authorities. We are not to go through life looking for a way to disobey but for an opportunity to obey and be submissive to proper legitimate authority with lawful decrees.

Let me offer this simple illustration before pausing. What if you had a teenage daughter and she imposed a rule over her six-year-old sibling while the mother was gone from the home. The authority of the home, while the mother was absent, had been delegated to the teenager. But, if the mother or father called on the phone and issued a new decree telling the younger child, “you can watch T.V. until 10 PM” guess which authority that younger child can obey and not be disobedient. The Higher Authority!

I am not teaching anarchy. You never take an extreme position to defend your faith. There is always a balance to be achieved and attained. I want to deal with this more in the next devotional and fear that this is growing and will take more sessions than I had intended. However, hopefully, it will be beneficial.

God bless you as you enjoy this wonderful day in Him!

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SUBMISSION – How Far?

In this series I may open the proverbial can of worms. It is clear that the Bible teaches submission but how far do we take that? What is the biblical balance and sane approach?

I am daring to enter this arena in the interest of establishing a firm foundation for relationships and in the interest of individual and family development. I am willing to endure the scorn and attacks that may come by dealing with a subject that has been abused, misused, misapplied, misinterpreted, and even denied in today’s world, Christian and secular.

It is vital that everyone understands that I do not desire to come across as an expert or a person with all the answers. I come with a heart that desires to carefully and honestly search the Scriptures in order to discover what God’s plan and purpose are. It is my desire that I desire and others are enabled to walk in the fullness of His victory and freedom as well as enjoy biblical covering and protection.

It is my desire to learn the truth and am purposed to look at more than the home, wives, husbands, children, etc. I want to apply it to the home, to the church, and the government of man. This is a matter that applies to all those areas and the job.

The question is: “How Far Do You Submit?” Another way of asking that is: “To What Degree Do You Submit?” Is there ever a point at which you refuse to submit and are compelled biblically and morally to disobey? In that situation is your rebellious or are you still submissive but submissive to the Ultimate Authority?

This passage in Romans has been abused and misused to teach unconditional obedience to any authority figure. However, I ask that you consider (v.3), and allow the Holy Spirit to draw you into the context of (vv 1-2) and apply it thusly. Are we to completely submit without resistance to rulers that are terrors and dispensers of evil works as well as those who bring forth good works?

Submission is more of an attitude than an action. It is possible to obey and not be submissive. It is possible to obey to the letter of the law, but the spirit remains rebellious. A person is not submissive simply because they are obedient. Therefore, I contend that it is possible to be obedient and rebellious at the same time.

I have had people say: “Well, I’m submitted to my husband. I’m submitted to pastoral authority, the government, etc.” Yet, their hearts were not submissive in the least. They obeyed to the letter of the law but in their heart and spirit, they were rebellious. We do that in all areas of life and some even try it with God. They keep all the rules, have their checklists and believe they are earning their way into heaven and building up brownie points with God. WRONG! God knows the heart and is far more concerned with the heart than the hand.

My objective in the next few devotionals will be to attempt to demonstrate the balance in the matter of Submission. It won’t look like it in the beginning but if you will stay with me to the conclusion, hopefully, you will see a liberating truth in this difficult and controversial area.

I will pause here and pick this up in the next session. Hopefully, you will allow this discussion to ensue without having a preconceived view and remain closed-minded rather than openly and honestly consider this presentation.

God bless you as you enjoy this wonderful day in Him!

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GOOD MEDICINE…

Proverbs 17:22 – “A joyful heart is good medicine, But a broken spirit dries up the bones.” NASB

There are scientifically documented studies regarding laughter and its benefits. We are told that laughter causes the blood to flow more readily and that enhances the cardiovascular system in a positive manner. Good-humored people generally have blood vessels that expand and contract easily and are more elastic. Laughter increases the heart rate, oxygen consumption, and works the muscles of the face reducing wrinkles.

It has been documented by medical researchers such as Dr. William Fry a psychiatrist and professor emeritus at Stanford University’s School of Medicine tell us that laughter, like physical exercise, once it has been engaged in will result in a reduction of the heart rate and blood pressure. Some fitness experts compare laughter to a mild workout because of the connection to the muscles when one has a good belly laugh.

Laughter reduces stress, causes endorphins to flow allows the adrenal glands to function at peak levels. It has been documented that people who laugh often and deeply have an increase in their immune system, higher levels of antibodies and natural killer cells. One research showed that those levels remained up for up to twelve hours after hearty laughter. Laughter reduces pain, lowers blood sugar levels improves sleep, relaxation, and breathing. Laughter is not just good medicine it is powerful medicine.

If you contrast that to the negative health results of a broken, depressed, sad, gloomy, cynical attitude and spirit you will be amazed. Does that mean that anyone who doesn’t laugh is going to be sick and one who does won’t, NO! It means that overall you are healthier and certainly happier if you can and do laugh and laugh often.

I love having fun. I joke a lot but am also very serious. I find that it is far better to laugh at and during bad times than to allow them to dominate my thinking, ruin my day, and control my life. I find that when I have a good belly laugh, I am relaxed more than I could be in any other activity. I have laughed loudly in times of utter exhaustion and found that after the laughter subsided, I was renewed in my strength and ability to continue one rested as though I had gotten a good nap.

Not only those things but people who are joyful and laugh are much more pleasant to be around than a sourpuss who is always scowling, grumpy, and cynical. I try to avoid people like that in the flesh as much as possible because I like to laugh and people who don’t, really don’t want me around anyway and their attitude is sometimes infectious, and I don’t need that disease. I had someone tell me once in a major crisis that they could not believe that I could tell jokes and laugh during the situation.

I know that God gave me a sense of humor and I will see funny things in many events of life that enable me to get past the direness of it and often find solutions as a result of laughter. No, I do not make light of everything and do not consider frivolity to be appropriate for every situation, but I do find that being able to laugh is of immeasurable value.

May God help you to laugh, love, and enjoy life today and every day! BLESSINGS!

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THE VALUE OF VISION – – (Conclusion)

Proverbs 29:18 – “Where there is no vision [no revelation of God and His word], the people are unrestrained; But happy and blessed is he who keeps the law [of God].” Amplified

It is an indisputable reality that everybody has a vision. No, everyone cannot see in the natural but in life, we all have a vision. We either have a Kingdom Vision or a Survival Vision spiritually. It is either a God-directed vision or a self-centered vision. Where there is no clear corporate vision, people are unrestrained, cast off restraint, become demoralized, and run wild. It becomes like a stampede of horses running wildly in all directions. The result is discouragement and disagreement. It is an invitation to discord and disunity. Without Vision, we cannot stay on course.

In Matthew 6:33 we are instructed to “seek first the Kingdom…” That requires and demands Vision. I must see the Kingdom, have an understanding of the Purpose of the Kingdom, be Planted in the Kingdom, and allow the Master Builders to ‘fitly frame’ me into place for function. That is Vision!

At that point, it is no longer me but Him. It is not longer, what can you do for me but what does the Kingdom need? I am convinced that no person will ever rise above the level of their Vision. With Vision, you can throw your hook over a higher ledge and climb to new heights in life. It will bind you to your destiny!

Please hear me carefully: Without an understanding of God’s Overall Purpose, His end-time agenda, His eternal purpose, and how we fit into it the pressures of life will overcome us. We will move in circles and cycles of going from depression and dejection to victory and back again. We will make laps around the mountain time and again, learning the same lessons repeatedly. A victory will be followed by a sense of frustration, lack of direction and purpose. Vision is Vital if we are going to move forward and upward into His Purposes and become Who He says we are!

It is vital that we catch and embrace God’s vision for the Church and His Kingdom. That enables us to become a House, a Building, a Habitation for God, fitly framed together not just a pile of lumber or bricks.

Vision links us together. I heard an illustration long ago that has never left me. It is reported that one horse could pull 9,000 pounds. It was assumed that two horses would then be able to pull double that or 18,000 pounds. However, when two horses were joined together in tandem, they pulled 27,000 pounds. The two linked together gained the strength and benefit of a third invisible horse. Unity provides that and as we join together in vision and work together in tandem, we have the added strength of another we do not see.

I hope you are hearing this and understand that no matter how good, noble, right, or worthwhile your vision is, if it is not linked to the Vision of the Whole it will become a source of frustration and counterproductive. Proverbs 24:10 warns, “If we faint in the day of adversity, your strength is small.”

Vision keeps us moving forward in the face of incredible difficulties and seemingly impossible odds. Vision links us together with others of like precious faith in a larger purpose than us and our limited vision.

Pastors, it is your God-given responsibility to follow the directive of Habakkuk 2:2 – “Then the LORD answered me and said, “Record the vision And inscribe it on tablets, That the one who reads it may run.”

We need Vision, God’s Vision and as we join in the pursuit of that vision, we will see the Restoration of that which was lost to the Church and we will pull down strongholds of the devil.

God bless you as you learn to walk in His Vision!

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THE VALUE OF VISION – – Part Three…

Proverbs 29:18 – “Where there is no vision [no revelation of God and His word], the people are unrestrained; But happy and blessed is he who keeps the law [of God].” Amplified

As we continue our consideration of The Value of Vision, we have discussed Who God says we are not what we manifest now. It is a contrast of His reality and ours. It is an embracing of His declaration rather than relegating ourselves to man’s view of reality.

The Bible identifies the Church as a “House” which is a “Body”, which is an “Army” made up of “People.” It is a many-membered body, and I believe that God is Restoring or Reestablishing a Glorious House in the world today.

Natural Israel had a natural house, the Temple. Peter declares that we, believers are a ‘spiritual house.’ (1 Peter 2:5). We are the Lord’s House or His Habitation. We know in 1 Corinthians 15:46 that God’s method is ‘first the natural, then the spiritual.’ The Psalmist gives a powerful revelation in Psalms 92:13-14 – That those who are “planted in the House of the LORD, will flourish in the Courts of our God. They will yield fruit in old age; they will be full of sap and very green.” They will flourish and produce fruit abundantly!

Tragically, the Church has too frequently become nothing more than a lumberyard or a brick pile filled with unconnected and unassembled pieces of lumber or bricks (living stones). We have not been a House or the Building of the Lord. Paul addressed that in Ephesians 2:21-22 – “In whom the whole building, being fitted together is growing into a holy temple in the Lord; 22 in whom you also are being built together into a dwelling of God in the Spirit.”

Can I ask a silly question? Have you ever seen a building in the natural grow? We have seen extensions or additions but the building itself did not grow, right? Yet, the Bible tells us that this Building of the Lord will grow spiritually. Can you imagine an Army where each soldier did his own thing? Can you imagine the chaos in a family where every member did his or her own thing? What about a business or a corporation? That also applies to a society and a nation. There must be order, direction, and purpose or failure is guaranteed. Disorder produces chaos and failure.

Acts Chapter Two is germane and important to this discussion. It not only tells us about salvation but gives instructions as to how believers are to relate to each other and how God’s House is going to be constructed. It teaches us how we come together to form God’s House.

After Peter preached, they asked, “What must we do?” Great question. He told them to repent, be baptized, and receive the Holy Spirit. That was the beginning, not the full revelation. In verse 40 we discover, “and with many other words he did testify and exhort.” He went on to show them how to be saved from the crooked generation in which they were living. If we truly desire to avoid becoming nothing more than a solidarity piece of twisted lumber that is of no value, we need to hear Peter’s message.

That brings us to the Purpose of Vision. Vision links and gives direction. Nothing is ever accomplished without definitive vision. NOTHING! In our text verse Proverbs 29:19, we can read it from numerous translations and possibly gain an even greater understanding.

In the KJV – “Where there is no vision, the people perish…”

In the NASB – “Where there is no vision, the people are unrestrained…”

In the CSB – “Where there is no vision, the people run wild…”

In the ESV – “Where there is no vision, the people cast off restraint…”

Another – “Where there is no vision, the people are demoralized…”

Those are just a few of the ways this reality is translated. Each of those renderings has an element of truth, but when linked together they give a clear picture of the Importance of Vision. In simplicity – Vision is the Ability to See!

We will consider Vision more time in the next devotional but until then we will pause and allow you to prayerfully meditate upon what has been presented. Hopefully, you will take each session and link them together as you ponder the Word.

God bless you as you enjoy this wonderful day in Him!

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THE VALUE OF VISION – – Part Two…

Proverbs 29:18 – “Where there is no vision [no revelation of God and His word], the people are unrestrained; But happy and blessed is he who keeps the law [of God].” Amplified

Let’s continue in our pursuit of the unveiling of The Value of Vision in the Body of Christ and our individual lives. I suggest that few would argue that the Church in the Book of Acts was not a powerful, dynamic, living organism that impacted its world in a very real way. It was not a ritualistic religious organization, as the Sanhedrin had become. It was a living organism that was leading people of the bondage of darkness and liberating them from the control of the devil, freeing them from legalism.

The Early Church, as it is called, was impacting its world with its message, ministry, and life. It was a visible manifestation of the Life, Power, Purpose, and Ministry of Jesus. Although its message was not embraced by all it was, Feared (Acts 5), Respected (Acts 17:6), Triumphant and had experienced the Authority and Power Jesus Promised. (Luke 19:10; Mark 16). It had vision, revelation, and understanding. They were able to see what needed to be done, where to go, and the power to do the works Jesus did.

It does not take great theological insight to know that that picture has not been the picture of the modern church for a very long time. Far too much of the Church World has been little more than a fort holding, retreating, and often a frightened entity. Too often churches and believers have, in their fragmentation lived in trepidation, not victory. There has been the ritual, program, and form, but too often little power to truly overcome and pull-down strongholds. That may offend some, but it is what I see and believe that God has more for His Glorious Church that Jesus declared He was building.

What does all that have to do with vision? Everything! We are instructed in Matthew 6:33 to “seek first, the Kingdom…” We are also instructed to pray for the Kingdom to come on earth.

Let me ask some pertinent questions and hopefully, you will get on board this train as we pursue His purposes. What good does it do to seek the Kingdom if we do not know what it is? That would make us blind leaders of the blind. (Matthew 15:14). How would we know if we have found the Kingdom if we don’t know what the Kingdom looks like, or how it operates?

Those questions are a significant part of my foundational basis for seeking to better understand Spiritual Vision. In order for us to have Vision and have that Vision plugged into God’s Purposes enabling us to impact our world, we must open our hearts to the Big Picture and realize that Vision is mandatory. Vision requires divine revelation!

We are directed in Scripture to Possess the Land. The Land represents the Promise of Place of Promise. I ask, “How can we accomplish that objective if we are in the dark as to – What the Promise is. What the Purpose is. What our Place is?”

The First Adam lost our inheritance and dominion, but the Last Adam (Jesus) won it back at the Cross. The Bible reveals that our Victory, Power, Purpose, and Position was lost by man (Adam), regained by the man Jesus, and is to be enforced by man (The Church).

Christ in us is the Hope of Glory. We are told that “as He (Jesus) is, so are we in this world.” (1 John 4:17). We are informed that “Greater is He that is in us than he that is in the world.” (John 14:12). The Bible speaks of our Spiritual Weapons (2 Corinthians 10:4) and reminds us that we are “more than conquerors” (Romans 8:37) and that we are ‘seated with Him in heavenly places.’ (Ephesians 2:6). That is Who God says we are. We must allow that Vision to explode in our hearts and minds if we are to become what He says we are!

I have only scratched the surface of what is in my heart and ask that you take the thoughts I have presented, study them, meditate upon them, and prayerfully join me again tomorrow as we continue this journey.

God bless you richly as you enjoy this wonderful day in Him!

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