I last wrote about the idea of Jesus drawing us to Himself and us being drawn to Him. I want to go a little further. When Jesus walked on the earth He lived in two places at once but He only acted out of one place. That may sound strange but He both lived on earth and before His Father. Yet His every action flowed out of His communion with His Father. He described His dual location this way.
John 3:13 (NKJV)
13 No one has ascended to heaven but He who came down from heaven, that is, the Son of Man who is in heaven.
He then went on to describe the place He lived from.
John 5:19 (NKJV)
19 Then Jesus answered and said to them, “Most assuredly, I say to you, the Son can do nothing of Himself, but what He sees the Father do; for whatever He does, the Son also does in like manner.
Jesus acted out of this place of communion with His Father and revealed His Father. We are called to reveal Jesus. In fact Paul expressed succinctly in Colossians the reality of the source we are to live from.
Colossians 1:27 (NKJV)
27 To them God willed to make known what are the riches of the glory of this mystery among the Gentiles: which is Christ in you, the hope of glory.
Jesus being manifest through us happens by our learning to live from Him in us. Paul told us that the way to do this was to recognize where to put our focus.
Colossians 3:1–4 (NKJV)
3 If then you were raised with Christ, seek those things which are above, where Christ is, sitting at the right hand of God. 2 Set your mind on things above, not on things on the earth. 3 For you died, and your life is hidden with Christ in God. 4 When Christ who is our life appears, then you also will appear with Him in glory.
I believe based on scripture that Paul stepped into this way of life from his conversion on. I don’t believe he did it without error but it is clear that he did it. He expressed it this way.
Galatians 1:15–16 (NKJV)
15 But when it pleased God, who separated me from my mother’s womb and called me through His grace, 16 to reveal His Son in me, that I might preach Him among the Gentiles, I did not immediately confer with flesh and blood,
Just as Jesus revealed Himself through Paul He has revealed Himself through many down through the centuries and wants each of us to be part of that company. In January of 2020 I felt the word the Lord gave me for the year was, “The church needs to find her voice.” I had no idea at the time how true that would prove to be. While many seemed to feel it was about voices raised in protest, over the year I became convinced it was about finding our voice in the place of intercession before Him. As 2021 begins I feel He has emphasized Psalm 29. I encourage each of us to read it because it isn’t about our voice, it is about His voice being heard. There are many voices in our culture competing for our attention. To sort through them let us get into His presence and tune our hearts to hear Him speak. Let us pray that many will be raised up who will speak His word for this hour, that we will both hear His voice through His servants and be servants through whom His voice is heard.
Yes, Randy! For years the question, “Who/what are you being informed by?” has come to me in situations when people are espousing faulty logic, doctrine, etc. We need to hear Him speak, and always be discerning His voice, and then Lord, make our tongues
“the pen of a ready writer.” Your word has blessed me! Thank you.
Randy, what a word for the season! In the past few years, I have often thought when hearing people espouse some strange ideas, doctrines (including myself!), “who/what are is informing our thoughts, and opinions?” To know His voice, hearing and discerning, then “my tongue is the pen of a ready writer” is imperative! Thank you Randy.
Amen Rachel! Clearing hearing Him is where we need to learn to abide. I remember an old message from Paul Cain. He was going to a conference he had been invited and asked the Lord what He was doing there. The Lord said, “Nothing and don’t you try anything either.”