Net Work Part 1

Being Christ like sometimes becomes thwarted and clouded by personal agenda, tainted opinion and/or a judgmental attitude.  At it's basest definition Christianity is taking on the mind of Christ in order to pursue His example and to mimic His character.  It requires an attitude of humility, a determination to obey and a vivacious desire to embrace change.  Fortunately for us becoming Christ like doesn't mean losing our own identities.   In fact when we read about a Peter, or a Paul or a John we can see that God used who these men were at their core.  He just shifted their paradigm.  I have been a Christian for most of my years.  Yet, I am now learning what it really means.  I went through a judgmental phase where I watched everyone's behavior closely and applied the Word of God to their lives for them in my own mind.  But there is a saying, just keep living.  The things that we may judge someone on today can easily become our issues tomorrow.  For today's blog consider St. John chapter 21 and Hebrews 11:1.

Now faith is the substance of things hoped for, the evidence go things not seen (Hebrews 11:1). 

The above well known scripture should excite and ignite every Christian into ministering to the needs of others. The passage holds within it the keys to the kingdom and the opportunity to access and to operate in the power of God in order to loose things and to bind things.

Chapter 21 of St. John is the well known story of when a few disciples were fishing and had caught nothing--seeing that they had caught nothing, Jesus advised that they cast their nets on the right side of their boat.  Upon obeying they were instantly gorged with so many fish that it became difficult for the disciples to pull the fish into the boat.

These passages are related in that they help us to gain an understanding of what faith is and how it should be applied within the context of becoming Christ like.  It's almost a simple equation.  Peter, Didymus, Nathanial and the other fishermen hoped for fish.  They worked hard for the fish only to turn up with nothing to show for all of their hard work.  Jesus came to them and gave a command to try the other side of the boat.  The men followed the command and their nets were filled.  In this instance the obedience that the men exercised when they followed Jesus' command proved their obedience.  So the equation would look something like this O(F+W)=H.  O = obedience, F=faith, W=works and H=things hoped for.

In our quest to complete the equation and to experience those things that we hope for, there are some faith blockers.  The biggest faith blocker is disobedience to the Word of God for us.  When we fail to obey our work is in vein.  There is no yield.

Another major faith blocker is something not in the above equation, but that does appear in chapter 21 of St. John.  It is a failure to mind our own process with Jesus.  Observe verses 20-23 which discuss Peter's concern over another disciple's relationship with Jesus.  Peter saw another disciple talking to Jesus, asking Jesus questions and communing with Jesus.  Peter asked what was going on.  Jesus basically told Peter to mind his own business.  Each Christian has his/her relationship with Jesus and Jesus knows what to do in each of our lives to bring us to the place where we can be used by Him for His glory.  He knows what to say to us and what we have to go through.  He knows how to get us to experience all of the pieces of the equation.  He is God alone.

Weapons of Mass Destruction Part 1

I spoke with a new friend recently.  Interestingly, I called to check on her and to encourage her so I thought.  In fact, my new friend educated me on what it means to be encouraged.  She reminded me that my ultimate goal in this life is to be like my Father and to be about doing His business.  She encouraged me to forgive, to stop having expectations of people and to focus on the power of God to change my situation through prayer and supplication.  After our conversation my heavy burden was lifted. 

My burden was hurt plain and simple.  Like so many Christians, I had been hurting and unable to let it go.  I had been blinded by it and started feeling justified in my destructive behavior because afterall, I was the victim.  But my friend spoke the Word of life that jarred me back like being shocked with a spiritual defribultor.  Our conversation's focus was no longer about my ache to be accepted, understood and comforted by people, but it turned to a question that God had put in my heart months ago; who do I serve?  I came to the conclusion that if I say and believe that I serve the one true and living God, then it is for God that I live and for God that I die and I will no carry the burden of hurt and disappointment.

God brought 2 Corinthians 10 to my heart.  Consider the first 8 verses of this scripture:

¹Now I Paul myself beseech you by the meekness and gentleness of Christ, who in presence am base among you, but being absent am bold toward you:
²But I beseech you, that I may not be bold when I am present with that confidence, wherewith I think to be bold against some, which think of us as if we walked according to the flesh.
³For though we walk in the flesh, we do not war after the flesh:
⁴(For the weapons of our warfare are not carnal, but mighty through God to the pulling down of strong holds;)
⁵Casting down imaginations, and every high thing that exalteth itself against the knowledge of God, and bringing into captivity every thought to the obedience of Christ;
⁶And having in a readiness to revenge all disobedience, when your obedience is fulfilled.
⁷Do ye look on things after the outward appearance? if any man trust to himself that he is Christ's, let him of himself think this again, that, as he is Christ's, even so are we Christ's.
⁸For though I should boast somewhat more of our authority, which the Lord hath given us for edification, and not for your destruction, I should not be ashamed:

This scripture, while familiar, now seems so new to me.  As I read it I observed the undertones of what Paul was saying.  People were talking about him.  They were talking about how unimpressive Paul was in person.  They were saying that he looked frail and didn't speak as well as his letters presented him.  That maybe he wasn't living in the full power of God.  But Paul retorted, "It doesn't matter how I look, and while I am tethered to a physical body, my weapons and my fight are spiritual." 

These weapons that Paul shared are obedience, forgiveness and love.  Like Paul realized when he was penning this letter, I now understand that in order for God's will to be manifested in my life, I must focus all of who I am on obtaining and detinating these weapons of mass destruction.  In verse 8 Paul advises that he could boast about the power of God in his life, but that's not the point.  The power is for the edification and uplifting of the body of Christ.  In verse 7 Paul emplores good Christian people to look toward more than the outward appearance of a person to know if they belong to Christ.   He asks people to realize that if you in your own imperfection can say that you belong to Christ then perhaps so can others.  Verse 6 advises that upon the total completion of our own obedience to God then we can judge someone else's disobedience.