Randy – Wisdom From the Word

Our Father Part 3

We continue our journey through the Lord’s prayer and the subject areas of prayer it highlights. The entire prayer is again below.

⁹ In this manner, therefore, pray: Our Father in heaven, Hallowed be Your name. ¹⁰ Your kingdom come. Your will be done On earth as it is in heaven. ¹¹ Give us this day our daily bread. ¹² And forgive us our debts, As we forgive our debtors. ¹³ And do not lead us into temptation, But deliver us from the evil one. For Yours is the kingdom and the power and the glory forever. Amen. Matthew 6:9–13 (NKJV)

Here we turn two verses. ¹¹ Give us this day our daily bread. ¹² And forgive us our debts, as we forgive our debtors.

Praying for our daily bread has the obvious focus on our material needs. Yet there are other inherent implications. One is that we need to pay attention to today. That doesn’t mean we don’t plan or prepare for other days, that is basic practical wisdom. However, this is summed up in an old Sanskrit saying I recall reading a number of times over four decades ago, ‘Yesterday is already a dream, and tomorrow is only a vision, but today well lived makes every yesterday a dream of happiness and every tomorrow a vison of hope.’ How we live today affects our tomorrow. I know that to live today well I need both physical and spiritual nourishment. The physical I receive through my diet, the spiritual I received through my diet! In this case the diet is daily time spent in scripture, prayer, worship and sitting in His presence. So let’s pray for both natural and spiritual provision each day.

We now turn to forgiveness. In Matthew we have the word ‘debts’ while Luke’s version (Luke 11:4) of this prayer has the word ‘sins.’ Which makes sense given that our greatest debt in life is our sin debt. In our fallen world we have conflict and disagreement, which often leads to sin. Having been involved in mediation for over three decades and having trained hundreds of adults in conflict resolution processes, I am very aware of conflicts that require forgiveness. Yet we need to be clear on what scripture teaches regarding forgiveness. Thankfully Jesus tells us the most important piece right after giving us His model prayer.

¹⁴ “For if you forgive men their trespasses, your heavenly Father will also forgive you. ¹⁵ But if you do not forgive men their trespasses, neither will your Father forgive your trespasses. Matthew 6:14–15 (NKJV)

Jesus is clear that forgiveness is not an optional aspect of our Christian walk. What is most important here is understanding whether we choose to simply freely forgive or whether forgiveness depends on repentance on the part of the offending party. To answer that question, we need to look to scripture, not our personal preferences.

Jesus ties forgiveness to repentance. We may choose to forgive apart from repentance but that modern practice has arisen out of a therapeutic model and seems focused on the emotional impact on the offended party. However, that is an expression of Moral Therapeutic Deism, not scripture. Look at what Jesus said.

³ Take heed to yourselves. If your brother sins against you, rebuke him; and if he repents, forgive him. ⁴ And if he sins against you seven times in a day, and seven times in a day returns to you, saying, ‘I repent,’ you shall forgive him.” Luke 17:3–4 (NKJV)

Jesus, Peter and Paul all called people to repentance as the way to received forgiveness, we are called to do the same. Should we pronounce forgiveness without repentance on the part of the other they are not held accountable for their sins and we may actually be hardening rather than softening their hearts. So yes, forgive freely, when others repent and acknowledge their need for it. Note, I am not suggesting this is a simple process. Depending on the offense it may be a gut-wrenching difficult process. However, Jesus doesn’t ask us whether we feel like forgiving, He calls us to forgive because He has forgiven us and we are called to be like Him!

Our Father Part 2

We continue looking at the prayer outline Jesus provided to guide our prayers. The entire prayer is again just below.

We have thus far identified the importance of being part of spiritual family and community, along with recognizing who our Father is and the importance of location and honouring Him. Now we look at His kingdom and will.

‘On earth as in heaven’ has become a bit of a catch phrase in the prayer movement and charismatic circles. It is scriptural but it is important to understand what it does and does not mean. Jesus instructs us to pray that the Father’s kingdom would come to the earth and that His will would be done. We are called to come into agreement with this command in our prayer lives. So, what are we praying for? That requires understanding what His kingdom is and then asking for it and His will to be done here just like they are in heaven. In heaven the Father rules and reigns and His will is undisputed.

In 2024 I wrote a post about the kingdom (http://wisdomfromtheword.ca/his-kingdom/) and said the following, “The gospel, the good news of the kingdom, is the extension of the rule and reign of the kingdom to disrupt, shift and transform culture so that the love, mercy and justice of God are on display.” My friend Mark says he presents it this way in his preaching and teaching, “The kingdom of God is the liberating invasion, the current manifestation and the future consummation of the rule and reign of God in Jesus Christ.” Thus, when we pray for His kingdom to come and His will to be done here as in heaven that is what we are praying for.

Historically the breaking in of the kingdom to our fallen world was first evident in Jesus earthly ministry, yet it is rooted in something earlier. In Eden the kingdom was present, then the fall in Genesis 3 disrupted this order and brought all creation into disarray (Romans 8:8-13). This led to the kingdom beginning to again be seen and function in the life of a man, Abraham, then a nation, Israel. As a nation Israel failed over and over to properly demonstrate His kingdom and it was opposed and lost. It was restored to a measure then Israel was conquered by the Greeks followed by the Romans. Then Jesus stepped onto the scene with the following declaration.

¹⁴ Now after John was put in prison, Jesus came to Galilee, preaching the gospel of the kingdom of God, ¹⁵ and saying, “The time is fulfilled, and the kingdom of God is at hand. Repent, and believe in the gospel.” Mark 1:14–15 (NKJV)

Under Jesus the kingdom had drawn near and was demonstrated. The most obvious sign of the kingdom was and is Yahweh’s presence. In Israel He rested between the cherubim’s outstretched wings on the mercy seat of the ark of the covenant. In Jesus the Spirit rested in and upon Him and demonstrated the kingdom in conviction, repentance, salvation, healing and signs and wonders.

In this present age the Spirit is resting in and upon His people and He has given us the authority and responsibility to demonstrate it to those around us (Matthew 28:118-20, Acts 1:7-8). This is seen in both the power of the Spirit resting upon us to touch the lives of others and in the fruit of the Spirit (Galatians 5:22-23) being evident in our individual lives as believers.

So, when you pray, Your kingdom come, Your will be done, pray with these things in mind.

Our Father Part 1

We are likely all familiar with the Lord’s Prayer, a prayer given to us by Jesus. It is sometimes referred to as the Our Father. The full prayer is below. The Lord’s prayer was originally given in a Hebraic cultural context and the original hearers understood that Jesus as a Rabbi was giving them a model prayer that covered subjects or prayer areas.

Here we will dig into it a bit. As we dig it is important to keep in mind, as the verse below notes, that Yahweh hides things for us rather than from us because He delights in our persistence in searching His word.

² It is the glory of God to conceal a matter, But the glory of kings is to search out a matter. Proverbs 25:2 (NKJV)

The prayer begins with two words, our Father. Think for a moment about what that implies. The ‘our’ speaks of community and the Father of relationship. Thus, Jesus instructed us to begin our prayer with an awareness that we are part of a larger community and family and that as believers we are to find our identity in the Father.

In heaven are the next two words. This locates where our Father resides, which also means that we are part of a community and family located in heaven. As an aside, many of us in the evangelical world seem to have a focus on ‘going to heaven,’ which may not be a bad thing, but in the end, heaven is coming to us as Jesus consummates this age and establishes His kingdom on earth.

² Then I, John, saw the holy city, New Jerusalem, coming down out of heaven from God, prepared as a bride adorned for her husband. Revelation 21:2 (NKJV)

We now come to Hallowed be Your name. Which means that while we have a Father in heaven, our desire should be to see His name and character honoured as holy and sacred, set apart. In fact, as we approach Halloween this month it might be helpful to remember that the literal meaning of the word is ‘all hallows eve.’ That is, the evening before a holy day. Similarly, holiday is an abbreviation for ‘holy day.’ Originally the only holidays were when people gathered to celebrate holy days. As part of honouring His name we do well to remember what Proverbs says.

¹⁰ “The fear of the Lord is the beginning of wisdom, And the knowledge of the Holy One is understanding. Proverbs 9:10 (NKJV)

When we honour and hallow His name we walk on the pathway of wisdom. These are some things to keep in mind as we enter into our prayer closet, the place of intercession. This is the one to whom we pray and from whom we receive wisdom.

Next week we will continue looking at the prayer Jesus gave us.

Give Me Your Heart

For about a decade now, in addition to the other places that I read in scripture, I have been reading through Proverbs every month. I have done this consistently with the exception of taking a break for one month in the past couple of years. My point isn’t to make note of how wonderful or faithful I am, it is to point out something I have missed. I will come to that.

There is an expression, ‘the tyranny of the familiar.’ We become accustomed or used to things and no longer notice them. Many years ago, I read about how we stop seeing things due to their familiarity so I went around the house and moved all of the pictures so they were a bit crooked. It broke the familiar pattern and I noticed them more, as did my wife, which led to me straightening them again! That aside, it is easy to not notice things. So, in my reading this week on the 23^rd I noticed this verse. I don’t know how many times I have read it, likely a couple of hundred at least, but this time it stood out to me, I ‘noticed’ it. I think it was the Holy Spirit’s way of getting my attention and I read it as a message to those of us who are part of His body.

²⁶ My son, give me your heart, and let your eyes observe my ways. Proverbs 23:26 (NKJV)

I know this was Solomon addressing his son, that is the historical and literal context. However, as noted above, I believe there is a spiritual application for all of us. Setting aside the issue of gender, the message to all of us is to do two things, give Him our hearts and use our eyes to observe His ways. We will get to how we are to do that, but first to some meanings. The Hebrew word for heart is the commonly used leb, which refers to the literal heart and to the metaphorical heart, the inner being. The word observe is more interesting. The Hebrew is ratsah and it quite literally means to be pleased with or delight in. In fact, my interlinear Old Testament translates the passage as, “give my son your heart to me and your eyes my ways let them delight in.” The NASB translates it as follows.

²⁶ Give me your heart, my son, and let your eyes delight in my ways. Proverbs 23:26 (NASB95)

Now to the application. Clearly the testimony of scripture in many places is that we are to give Jesus our hearts. What I want to focus on here is what it means to observe or delight in His ways, which I think is intricately linked to how and what we notice. Some of this is expressed by David in Psalm 27.

⁴ One thing I have desired of the LORD, that will I seek: that I may dwell in the house of the LORD all the days of my life, to behold the beauty of the LORD, and to inquire in His temple. Psalm 27:4 (NKJV)

⁸ When You said, “Seek My face,” my heart said to You, “Your face, LORD, I will seek.” Psalm 27:8 (NKJV)

Here David expressed his desire to behold Yahweh’s beauty and referenced the response of his heart to Yahweh’s call.

For us I am here providing some examples of observing and delighting in His ways in the lives of others, not focusing on ourselves. In these examples I used what I observed or noticed to speak encouragement into their lives. First, I was at a men’s church retreat last spring and observed the behaviour of someone I knew. He was constantly looking out for others, helping etc. After the weekend I sent him a text message saying that was the most impactful experience I had at the event. Later in person I talked to him about the pastoral/shepherding anointing I was aware of on his life as a way to encourage him, which it did.

Another example, I have a friend who carries a prophetic anointing. When I first met him a number of years ago, he was somewhat in denial about the gift he carries but as I and others spoke to him about what we saw of the Lord’s work in his life he became more accepting of the gift he carries. As we have continued our walk together, he has exercised his gift more to bless others, myself included.

I have more examples but these illustrate the point. We are called to observe what Jesus is doing in the lives of others and bless it so that it grows. So, we come to this, what are you noticing/observing Jesus doing in the lives of others? How can deepen/strengthen Jesus’ work in their lives through your encouragement?

Spiritual Victory Part 3

As previously noted, here we are looking at Galatians 5, more specifically the contrast between the works of the flesh and the fruit of the Spirit, which is followed by Paul’s exhortation to walk in the Spirit. Here we will also examine the role of repentance. Our background is that in Romans 6 we were instructed to consider ourselves dead to sin, as a recognition of what our baptism symbolized, and then to present ourselves, our whole being, to God as ‘being alive from the dead.’ We were called to live out our new life in Christ. Galatians 5 lists the types of things we are to consider ourselves dead to and what we are to be alive to, in two lists.

¹⁹ Now the works of the flesh are evident, which are: adultery, fornication, uncleanness, lewdness, ²⁰ idolatry, sorcery, hatred, contentions, jealousies, outbursts of wrath, selfish ambitions, dissensions, heresies, ²¹ envy, murders, drunkenness, revelries, and the like; of which I tell you beforehand, just as I also told you in time past, that those who practice such things will not inherit the kingdom of God. ²² But the fruit of the Spirit is love, joy, peace, longsuffering, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, ²³ gentleness, self-control. Against such there is no law. ²⁴ And those who are Christ’s have crucified the flesh with its passions and desires. ²⁵ If we live in the Spirit, let us also walk in the Spirit. ²⁶ Let us not become conceited, provoking one another, envying one another. Galatians 5:19–26 (NKJV)

These two contrasting lists are illustrative, and come across as comprehensive. I think we can find any sin we are aware of or have committed falling in or subsumed somewhere in Paul’s list of the ‘works of the flesh.’ In a similar way, what more needs to be seen in our lives to reflect Jesus beyond the list we have of the ‘fruit of the Spirit?’

Now while it is easy to say that we are to consider ourselves as dead to sin and alive to God, in practice it doesn’t seem to be that easy. This is where repentance comes in. The gateway to salvation is repentance. We may have heard or been told that repent means ‘to turn and go the other way.’ Yet that isn’t actually what John and Jesus were preaching.

⁴ John came baptizing in the wilderness and preaching a baptism of repentance for the remission of sins. Mark 1:4 (NKJV)

The word in Greek means to change our mind not our behaviour. A change in behaviour is the fruit of repentance. John and Jesus were both after a change in behaviour but as the outcome of a changed mind and heart.

Understanding this brings us full circle back to Romans 6. When we change our mind about how we view and understand what happened at our conversion and the implications, we engage in a corresponding change in behaviour. We need to see the works of the flesh in Galatians 5 as something we no longer are, nor need to participate in. Then as we consider ourselves alive to God our behaviour undergoes a corresponding change and the fruit of the Spirt grows in our lives.

Now, back to repentance. Imagine you are walking East, you realize you are going in the wrong direction and should be headed West. You stop and change direction. Your repentance was the realization that you were going the wrong way and needed to change direction. Changing direction is the fruit of repentance. Now there is an important qualifier. If we change direction from East to West but continue looking back East, longingly or otherwise, we will find ourselves continually being tripped up because we cannot see where we are going. We will apply this more practically.

Imagine that you struggle with bitterness toward someone over a wrong they have committed against you. You realize that it is constantly intruding on your thought life, and that you want to let go of it. So, you get alone with the Lord and repent of holding onto bitterness and pray for the individual as Jesus instructs us (Matthew 5:43-48). However, the negative thoughts keep returning, here is where we need to choose to consider ourselves dead to bitterness and alive to Jesus in this scenario. This is where our feelings begin to change. We begin to feel His peace in our lives, and we may begin to feel love toward the individual who wronged us.

Now, I am not suggesting this is an easy process. It may be very emotionally painful and it may take a protracted period of time. We may find ourselves looking back and tripping at times. However, the important element is choosing to engage in the process to walk in spiritual victory in our lives. That has been my goal in these posts on spiritual victory, the practical application of scripture to our daily lives. I trust they have been helpful.

Spiritual Victory Part 2

In my last post I highlighted the reality of spiritual warfare and using the example of discouragement pointed out that spiritual victory was found in obeying the scriptural injunction to give thanks in all things to change our feeling state and perspective. Here we will look at a key passage related to spiritual victory.

¹² Therefore do not let sin reign in your mortal body, that you should obey it in its lusts. ¹³ And do not present your members as instruments of unrighteousness to sin, but present yourselves to God as being alive from the dead, and your members as instruments of righteousness to God. ¹⁴ For sin shall not have dominion over you, for you are not under law but under grace. Romans 6:12–14 (NKJV)

Here in Romans 6 Paul directs us to not allow sin to reign in our lives, which assumes we are able to live this out. To facilitate our understanding we look at one more passage which is regularly looked at in relation to spiritual victory.

⁴ For the weapons of our warfare are not carnal but mighty in God for pulling down strongholds, ⁵ casting down arguments and every high thing that exalts itself against the knowledge of God, bringing every thought into captivity to the obedience of Christ, 2 Corinthians 10:4–5 (NKJV)

We begin connecting the dots by looking at a key Greek word.

ὅπλον hoplon; a prim. word; a tool, implement, weapon:—armor(1), instruments(2), weapons(3).^[1]

The word ‘weapons’ in 2 Corinthians 10:4 is hoplon, it is also the word used twice in Romans 6:13 and translated as ‘instruments.’ An instrument is a tool we can use. A translators note in my bible at Romans 6:13 points out that ‘instruments’ could also be translated as ‘weapons.’ So Paul could have just as easily written ‘instruments’ in 2 Corinthians 10. Now we can bring some things together.

Let me begin with a crude analogy. A hammer is an instrument that can be used to build a house or be handled as a tool to tear things down or a weapon used to harm. The use is determined by the user. In our case we need to see our bodies as both instruments and weapons of righteousness. This encompasses our thoughts, actions and attitudes.

In Romans 6 Paul’s primary point is that we break the dominion of sin over our lives by presenting our bodies to God is ‘instruments of righteousness.’ This echoes the well-known Romans 12:1-2, which Paul comes to later. However, the injunction in 6:13 also follows on the heels of Paul’s teaching on baptism. We need to see the precedent to achieve the outcome.

Paul focuses on the importance and impact of baptism in Romans 6. After explaining how going into the water is like going into the grave and rising to a new life Paul tells us that in Christ, we are called to consider our old life a thing of the past and leave it in the past. He states it this way.

¹¹ Likewise you also, reckon yourselves to be dead indeed to sin, but alive to God in Christ Jesus our Lord. Romans 6:11 (NKJV)

We are to let of the old and focus on the new. We are to see our body as in ‘instrument of righteousness’ set apart for His purposes. This obviously is to impact how we live.

We walk in spiritual victory over temptation and darkness by how we view what He has accomplished in our lives and our identification with His death and resurrection. Over two decades the Holy Spirit spoke to me and said, “Become who you are.” This meant I needed to find my identify in Jesus as a new creation. However, the qualifier is that to live out a new creation identity I need to let go of my identity as an old creation. That is the point of baptism in Romans 6. I leave my old identity, habits and views in the grave and rise to walk in newness of life keeping in step with the Spirit and renew my mind based on His word. We may at times revert to our old identity but our call is to reckon the past as dead and gone and focus on our new life in Christ. This is the path to spiritual victory. As Paul put it elsewhere, particularly in verse 6.

⁴ I thank my God, making mention of you always in my prayers, ⁵ hearing of your love and faith which you have toward the Lord Jesus and toward all the saints, ⁶ that the sharing of your faith may become effective by the acknowledgment of every good thing which is in you in Christ Jesus. Philemon 4–6 (NKJV)

Next week we will look at how to apply this in relation to Galatians 5 and the role of repentance.

^[1] Robert L. Thomas, New American Standard Hebrew-Aramaic and Greek Dictionaries : Updated Edition (Anaheim: Foundation Publications, Inc., 1998).

Spiritual Victory Part 1

I felt the need to address spiritual warfare as it is a part of our walk with Jesus whether or not we choose to embrace the battle. Knowing that, it is better to be equipped to fight and win, hence the title. I will cover a variety of areas, beginning with a practical approach to combating discouragement as I think it is at times common to all of us. However, first we need a scriptural foundation. Paul describes our battle.

¹² For we do not wrestle against flesh and blood, but against principalities, against powers, against the rulers of the darkness of this age, against spiritual hosts of wickedness in the heavenly places. ¹³ Therefore take up the whole armor of God, that you may be able to withstand in the evil day, and having done all, to stand. Ephesians 6:12–13 (NKJV)

There are a few things we can see here. The first is that Paul is pointing out that the unseen spiritual realm influences us in the natural realm. He also compared our battle to wrestling, a close contact affair. The battle is happening in and around us, not in some distant place. In addition, while Paul will later in this chapter include prayer as the covering over spiritual warfare, the primary way we fight is by how we live and by wearing the armour Yahweh provides. Unlike some sadly common practices in the body of Christ, spiritual warfare isn’t about railing at the heavens, it is about living a godly life that influences the atmosphere and lives of those around us, prayer and intercession being a part of that life.

An example of spiritual warfare is found in heeding the verses below. In particular these verses are the antidote to discouragement. As someone once said, our spiritual enemy uses two basic strategies against us, he tries to slow us down, generally through discouragement or a sense of hopelessness or futility, wanting us to give up or give in. The goal being our abandonment of Jesus calling and purpose in our life. The other approach is to push us to go beyond what Jesus is calling us to or to try and hurry His work in our lives. Abraham and Hagar producing Ishmael being a good example of the latter. Now to the verses we can apply to combat discouragement and related feelings.

²⁰ giving thanks always for all things to God the Father in the name of our Lord Jesus Christ, Ephesians 5:20 (NKJV)

⁶ Be anxious for nothing, but in everything by prayer and supplication, with thanksgiving, let your requests be made known to God; Philippians 4:6 (NKJV)

¹⁷ And whatever you do in word or deed, do all in the name of the Lord Jesus, giving thanks to God the Father through Him. Colossians 3:17 (NKJV)

¹⁸ in everything give thanks; for this is the will of God in Christ Jesus for you. 1 Thessalonians 5:18 (NKJV)

Paul directs us to have a thankful attitude and practice no matter our circumstances. Ephesians 6:14-18 outline the various pieces of armour and the role of prayer in achieving spiritual victory. When I recognize that I have His righteousness through my conversion, embrace the truth of that and then choose to direct my thinking to thankfulness I am using the armour Paul describes.

To break this down a bit further, have you ever considered the role your thinking has in how you feel. You watch a sad movie and began to feel a bit morose. You watch a comedy and find yourself laughing and feeling better. There is an expression, ‘what you focus on grows.’ This is true of how our thought life influences our emotions. I once listened to a researcher being interviewed who was studying depression. He had his subjects create a composite of the saddest events in their lives, weave them into a single story and then think on these things while their brain activity was monitored. The result, they felt very said and their higher brain functions shut down. He didn’t study the opposite, having research subjects create a composite of the most joyful moments in their lives then dwelling on them but I can predict what would happen in their brains!

If we heed the scriptural injunctions around how we are to function it will lead to change in our lives. Let’s do that.

More to come.

The Face-to-Face Place

The term ‘The Face-to-Face Place’ came to me while writing my last post. It is rooted in both the Old and New Testaments as can be seen in Exodus 33 and 2 Corinthians 3.

¹¹ So the LORD spoke to Moses face to face, as a man speaks to his friend. And he would return to the camp, but his servant Joshua the son of Nun, a young man, did not depart from the tabernacle. Exodus 33:11 (NKJV)

¹² Therefore, since we have such hope, we use great boldness of speech – ¹³ unlike Moses, who put a veil over his face so that the children of Israel could not look steadily at the end of what was passing away. 2 Corinthians 3:12–13 (NKJV)

In 2 Corinthians 3 Paul makes an explicit link between the glory that Moses experienced in Exodus 33-34 and what is available to us with Christ living within us. Paul’s primary point is that we have the ability to access something greater, a growing intimacy with Jesus that will not fade away like the glory did on Moses face.

Now while the text in Exodus 33 refers to face to face communication and Exodus 34:29 refers to Moses face shining, we need to dig a little deeper into what Moses experienced. In Hebrew the word translated face also means presence. Which is what Moses experienced. When Moses asked to see His glory, Yahweh was clear that Moses had not seen His actual face nor could he see it and live.

¹⁸ And he said, “Please, show me Your glory.” ¹⁹ Then He said, “I will make all My goodness pass before you, and I will proclaim the name of the LORD before you. I will be gracious to whom I will be gracious, and I will have compassion on whom I will have compassion.” ²⁰ But He said, “You cannot see My face; for no man shall see Me, and live.” Exodus 33:18–20 (NKJV)

Now back to the connection Paul made. Given what we have just looked at we don’t need to physically ‘see’ Jesus to meet with Him face to face because it is actually about presence. We encounter Him with the eyes of our heart. Our passage below also connects to Paul’s prayer in Ephesians 1 for us to have a spirit of wisdom and revelation in the knowledge of Him.

¹⁵ But even to this day, when Moses is read, a veil lies on their heart. ¹⁶ Nevertheless when one turns to the Lord, the veil is taken away. ¹⁷ Now the Lord is the Spirit; and where the Spirit of the Lord is, there is liberty. ¹⁸ But we all, with unveiled face, beholding as in a mirror the glory of the Lord, are being transformed into the same image from glory to glory, just as by the Spirit of the Lord. 2 Corinthians 3:15–18 (NKJV)

Paul is telling both what is available and how to access this transformation. I don’t know many of us press into the face-to-face place, I simply know it is available and that I have tasted of it. I will explain.

When I think of what is available in and through Jesus I think of it in a couple of ways. The first is an illustration that came to me the other day while driving. I noticed all of the manhole covers on and the road and began reflecting on how the infrastructure that powers our city is mostly hidden. From water and sewage to electricity, it is there keeping everything functioning but most of us don’t think about it or ever access it, only a few do. Now in this case those who access to this hidden infrastructure have both the authority and responsibility to do so. For us, we also have authority and responsibility. In Jesus we have both the authority to access the face-to-face place and the responsibility. He invites us in but He never forces us.

So, what does this place look like? I think it is different for each of us. I have a friend who regularly encounters the Lord and hears His voice when spending time in scripture or working in the yard. For me, I experience His presence when I choose to simply sit in His presence focusing my heart on Him. I generally hear His voice for others while in intercession for them, in worship, or while ministering to people in being with them and praying for them.

However this may work in our lives, our goal is not mystical contemplation but the training of our heart, remember the centre of heart is ‘ear’ the face-to-face place is about training our heart to focus on Him, know His presence and hear His voice. This is the secret place Jesus referenced in Matthew 6:6. A recent experience I had may help to bring clarity. I was walking with a friend and sharing some things I was ‘doing’ in my walk with Jesus. I then clearly heard the Spirit speak to me, “The only thing I asked you to do is sit with Me.”

This may seem contradictory. The only He wants me to do is seemingly nothing! Yet this has been His ongoing invitation to me for years. When I take time each day to simply focus my heart on His presence, the rest falls into line. I am then drawn to prayer or other acts at various times throughout the day because I am conscious of Him with me and in me.

Let me wrap this up in an odd way by referencing a secular song. A line in an old Jackson Browne song Before the Deluge says, “Let creation reveal her secrets by and by.” As Jesus’ friends we can be privy to His secrets if we allow Him to reveal them in the ‘face to face’ place. After all, He has hidden things for us, not from us, let’s seek them out.

² It is the glory of God to conceal a matter, But the glory of kings is to search out a matter. Proverbs 25:2 (NKJV)

Servant or Friend?

Servant or friend? This is an important relational question. In John 15 Jesus made the following statement to the 11 after Judas had left.

¹⁵ No longer do I call you servants, for a servant does not know what his master is doing; but I have called you friends, for all things that I heard from My Father I have made known to you. John 15:15 (NKJV)

There are two aspects to this verse. One is that friends know things that servants don’t, that is explicit. The implicit part is the difference in relationship. We do things WITH our friends; we do things FOR our master. That is the area I want to focus on. First, we look at some other scriptural references to being a friend of God.

⁷ Are You not our God, who drove out the inhabitants of this land before Your people Israel, and gave it to the descendants of Abraham Your friend forever? 2 Chronicles 20:7 (NKJV)

⁸ “But you, Israel, are My servant, Jacob whom I have chosen, The descendants of Abraham My friend. Isaiah 41:8 (NKJV)

²³ And the Scripture was fulfilled which says, “Abraham believed God, and it was accounted to him for righteousness.” And he was called the friend of God. James 2:23 (NKJV)

¹¹ So the Lord spoke to Moses face to face, as a man speaks to his friend. And he would return to the camp, but his servant Joshua the son of Nun, a young man, did not depart from the tabernacle. Exodus 33:11 (NKJV)

These references highlight Abraham and Moses as Yahweh’s friends. It is interesting that in Isaiah 41:8 we have the same pattern as John 15:15, servants and friends. Now, we may conclude that we need to be a special individual, great leader or an apostle to be friends of God. Not so.

Here we look at an important verse about being a friend of Yahwheh, starting with the NKJV then going to the ESV and the meaning of the word ‘secret.’

¹⁴ The secret of the LORD is with those who fear Him, And He will show them His covenant. Psalm 25:14 (NKJV)

¹⁴ The friendship of the Lord is for those who fear him, and he makes known to them his covenant. Psalm 25:14 (ESV)

The Hebrew word translated as ‘secret’ in the NKJV is translated as ‘friendship’ in the ESV. Now an obvious connection is the idea that we only share our secrets with our friends, so a closer look is in order.

The Hebrew sod is the source of our English secret and friendship, yet is also has a fuller range of meaning. We still need to keep in mind that words have objective denotative and subjective connotative meanings. That is, they have a basic meaning and a contextual meaning that clarifies intent.

סוֹד sod (691c); from an unused word; council, counsel:—circle(1), company(1), consultation(1), council(5), fellowship(1), friendship(1), gathering(1), intimate(1), plans(1), secret(2), secret counsel(3), secrets(2).^[1]

Thus, what we get from Psalm 25:14 is that Yahweh is a friend to those who fear Him and that He unveils or shares secrets with them and reveals the benefits of His covenant.

My friend Evelyn stepped from time into eternity a few years ago but a couple of decades ago I asked her how she understood the fear of the Lord. She replied, “Loving Him so much I would never do anything to offend Him.” That stuck with me! I need to love Jesus and seek to never offend Him by my words and actions. Then applying Psalm 25:14 to that means that He will be my friend and share things with me.

I confess that I still at times move back and forth between doing things out of a sense of duty, working for Jesus, and doing things with Him because I enjoy being with Him. The latter is much more fruitful and reinforces a sense of purpose and value. Which takes us back to where we began. Scripture teaches us that He wants friendship with us and we get to choose our level of relationship. After all, scripture clearly states the process and the benefit of the new covenant through which we can draw near to His heart.

¹⁸ For on the one hand there is an annulling of the former commandment because of its weakness and unprofitableness, ¹⁹ for the law made nothing perfect; on the other hand, there is the bringing in of a better hope, through which we draw near to God. Hebrews 7:18–19 (NKJV)

Let’s embrace this ‘better hope’ and draw near to His heart in friendship and work with Jesus instead of for Him.

NOTE while writing this the term ‘The Face to Face Place’ came to me, that is what we will explore next week in understanding the furtherance of the friendship with Jesus.

^[1] Robert L. Thomas, New American Standard Hebrew-Aramaic and Greek Dictionaries : Updated Edition (Anaheim: Foundation Publications, Inc., 1998).

Our Impact

Here I am going to address our impact on not just our culture but our environment. First, I need to lay out the concept of our impact and then connect it to scripture. Early in my career I was introduced to the idea of Systems Theory, more specifically Family Systems Theory, the way events and structures play out in a family setting. Later in some of my studies I came across the history of it and found pieces of it could be traced back to the early Greek thinkers of two millennia ago. The basic idea of Systems Theory is how different components interact and influence one another, whether that be family relationships or the parts of a car engine. My goal here is not a treatise on Systems Theory, rather it is to connect some dots.

A good example to illustrate Systems Theory is to imagine a mobile hanging over a child’s crib. The parts are all connected so that if one part moves it affects all of the other parts of the mobile. No part moves independently because they are all interconnected.

Now for a dot. I don’t know if you have ever considered our impact on our culture and weather. I think about it from time to time and will explain the connection. First, I remember decades ago listening to John Wimber speak and he referenced the sanctifying presence of godly individuals. He said in one county in California there was a deeply devout and godly man and you could feel the difference in the spiritual atmosphere when you crossed the county line to where he lived. This was different in a good way and Wimber attributed it to this man’s sanctifying influence in and on the area.

In scripture we see this concept, for good and bad. The first example is the fall, seeing that Adam and Eve’s sin affected all of creation. Paul expresses it this way in Romans.

¹² Therefore, just as through one man sin entered the world, and death through sin, and thus death spread to all men, because all sinned Romans 5:12 (NKJV)

¹⁹ For the earnest expectation of the creation eagerly waits for the revealing of the sons of God. ²⁰ For the creation was subjected to futility, not willingly, but because of Him who subjected it in hope; ²¹ because the creation itself also will be delivered from the bondage of corruption into the glorious liberty of the children of God. ²² For we know that the whole creation groans and labors with birth pangs together until now. ²³ Not only that, but we also who have the firstfruits of the Spirit, even we ourselves groan within ourselves, eagerly waiting for the adoption, the redemption of our body. Romans 8:19–23 (NKJV)

Their sin, mor specifically Adam’s, affected not just their lives but the cosmos. We see the pattern in Yahweh’s dealings with Israel throughout the Old Testament. Sin brought judgment and destruction, godly behaviour brought blessing. Yahweh expressed it this way. Delineating a clear link between the behaviour of Israel and whether or not there would be blessing on the land.

¹³ When I shut up heaven and there is no rain, or command the locusts to devour the land, or send pestilence among My people, ¹⁴ if My people who are called by My name will humble themselves, and pray and seek My face, and turn from their wicked ways, then I will hear from heaven, and will forgive their sin and heal their land. 2 Chronicles 7:13–14 (NKJV)

We see the pattern expressed very succinctly in Proverbs.

¹¹ By the blessing of the upright the city is exalted, but it is overthrown by the mouth of the wicked. Proverbs 11:11 (NKJV)

³⁴ Righteousness exalts a nation, but sin is a reproach to any people. Proverbs 14:34 (NKJV)

Seeing this pattern in scripture causes me to reflect on the impact we have on our communities, cultures and nation. This extends from our interactions with our neighbours to natural disasters. I think we need to weigh the impact and influence of our behaviour. Systems Theory is expressed in scripture in terms of impact, as scripture tells us that righteousness exalts and sin corrupts. Just like the effect of one part on all parts of a child’s mobile, there is no private behaviour. Sin and righteousness, private or public have a spiritual impact.

Given that, I pray that we are blessing our city, that our lifestyle of righteousness is affecting our neighbourhood and nation in a godly direction. I pray that through prayer and/or other actions that we moving to end things like abortion and corruption. Our calling is to be salt and light. Salt is a preservative and light drives back darkness. May we be both.