Archive for the ‘Uncategorized’ Category
Spritual VS Religious
Saturday, August 15th, 2009OK, first of all let me say that though I AM ordained into ministry, I’m not a professional preacher, lecturer, theologian, or even philosopher. If my reasons seem shallow tell me, question me, challenge me! I’ll discuss them with you. I won’t allow crassness, foul language, or crudeness on my site, but otherwise anyone is welcome to comment.
Ok, that being said, I’m going to start with a concept that we have been learning at church of late.
The concept: Man is not bi-partate (of two parts) but tri-partate (of three parts)
The background: This comes directly from the Bible in many locations, but more recently Watchman Nee wrote about this in The Spiritual Man and The Latent Power of the Soul both are very good books. I don’t know that I agree 100% with everything in them, but that’s OK.
One thing that I definitely do agree with is the fact that man is made up of three parts.
First we have the flesh, the body. It’s the way we as persons interact with the world around us. The flesh contains our senses, taste, touch, sight, smell, and hearing. It’s how we interpret the physical world and environment around us. The flesh has physical needs, wants and desires. the flesh can lust, fear, and rage. It can’t put an explanation as to why it lusts after a certain person, or hungers for a certain thing, the lust is animal in it’s very nature, and on an even playing field with most animals.
Second, we have a soul. Now the soul is eternal, it was created to last forever, and it’s where the “who” that is us lives. the soul is the me, the ID, the who I am. The soul listens closely to the flesh, if the flesh says I want food, the soul says how about ice cream, if the body says I’m tired, the soul says sleep. The soul is the brains of the outfit, even if it’s often as much a follower as a leader.
Third, for those who have been born again, saved, delivered from sin, the self and the world, there is the Spirit. The Spirit helps us interact with the spiritual realms as much, or probably even more than the flesh interacts with the physical realms.
It all seems well and good, till we come to realize that the flesh and the spirit hate each other. One is dead to the other. The flesh is death to the spirit, while the spirit is foolish and ridiculous to the flesh. The two simply can’t stand each other. The flesh says I’m hungry, the spirit says we need to pray. The spirit says, Strive for holiness, the flesh says I want to roll in the things of the world.
OK so, we have 3 parts, all different, what is the point?
The point is that depending on which part of YOU you look at the world from you have a very different perspective. It’s similar to what I used to do as a small child. I would cover one eye and focus on an object, then make the object “jump” simply by shutting that eye and opening the other. My perspective on the object changed from one eye to the other. Our perspective on situations in life change depending on which set of eyes we are using to look at it; Are we looking with physical eyes at the physical world and the situations there, or with soulish eyes, the eyes of analysis and argument at a situation that affects me, myself, and I, or perhaps we are looking with spiritual eyes at how the situation is in fact being used by a loving Father to help shape and mold us into His image?
Not everyone is willing to even recognize that there is a whole other set of eyes beyond the physical and the intellect. They may even go so far as to say that people who believe that there are spiritual eyes do not have intellectual eyes… it’s unfortunate that they who are blind (some by choice, some by chance) to a whole aspect of their life, feel that others who are not are blinding themselves to the aspect that they see as the most important.
Does that sentence make any sense? Probably not.
I’ll add more to this later… if you want to hear more comment.
The difference between living death and living life!
Wednesday, January 28th, 2009This past weekend I got to attend the funeral of a wonderful man! I say I GOT to attend becasue that was how it seemed. It was a priviledge to be there to see him off to Glory. Max lived his life with the sole purpose of leading others to Christ. He didn’t stand on corners and preach, he didn’t coerce you into believing what he said, he simply lived life, and that life convinced so many people that they wanted the same Jesus in their life that Max had.
There were many tears, sadness for ourselvs that Max won’t be there to greet us when we come in the church sanctuary, that he won’t be there to give the advice that he was so excellent at dispensing, only when asked. But there were just as many laughs, remembering the fun things that Max did, or looking at pictures of him dressed as a pirate, a clown, or raggedy Andy, I think all to please his lovely wife Bea!
We went to the graveside service, there were tears, we all know we are going to miss him terribly, but when I was walking to my car, I was listening to the people still gathered near the grave. They were laughing, chatting, talking, it sounded like a family reunion instead of a funeral.
That’s how I want it to be when I die. I want people to be happy. I want them to miss me, but man I want them to know that I’m in heaven and that they don’t have to be afraid.
Max, I’ll miss you! I really will, but I also know you will be there when we walk through those gates!
Through an empty Tomb
Tuesday, December 16th, 2008Recently, a group from our church was privileged to go to Israel. I had the wonderful privilege of taking my 16 year old son with me. I think that there will be more to come from that, but for the meantime it was just a great time to spend with him.
The day we went to the Western Wall to pray, I was standing with my face against the wall, praying. I was praying to God that I felt I was there at that wall, not only in my body, but spiritually. My calling is standing at that wall, waiting, I know that He has called me, I know that I am waiting , ready to obey what He commands, but I also know that there have been no words of direction. So, I stand with my face to the wall, waiting.
While I was standing there, I had a vision (I guess I’m getting old) I saw the western wall dissolve and I could see the Holy of Holys on the other side. I was surprised, I was moved, I didn’t move away from that wall for some time. Later we were in the Shorashim shop, owned by our friends Moshe and Dov Kempinski. they have some truely unique and beautiful, biblical artwork, There was a painting there that showed what I saw, the wall dissolving away and the Holy of Holies on the other side.
I didn’t quite know what to say to that, other than what better place is there to be, than with your face to a place that God said, The God of Heaven not just some god, but the God!) that He would ALWAYS hear prayer in that place. It’s not such a terrible place to be stuck, in fact I think it’s a wonderful place to be. the more I think about it, I don’t mind being there, I wonder what God might have for me, but right now, I know, that if I will jsut pray, humble myself and pray, God will hear my prayers. my face is to that wall where He will ALWAYS hear prayers!
I left that day in wonder, and I’m in deeper wander each and every day, the next day we got up early and went on the via delarosa, the way of suffering, we went to the garden tomb, I don’t know if it is THE place where Jesus died and was buried, but I’ll tell you God gave us a taste of world-wide revival!
We were listenign to our guide, a group from Brazil was over my left shoulder they were in a time of praise and worship, and the Holy Spirit was moving in their singing and praise, it works in me now! Off to my right, there was a group that I think was from Italy, a young lady got up to testify, and the power of the grace and mercy of God that was flowing through her words made me want to shout, it almost makes me want to shout now!
Another group form somewhere, korea maybe, was in the garden also, they were praising and worshiping and blowing shofars and God was in their praise. After our guide finished we started singing, praises to God, then Brett Berry, started to sing, “The Old Rugged Cross”, in the Garden tomb, not 30 feet from the empty tomb. Most of us had our eyes closed singing, but I started to hear other voices I looked up, there were brazillians, italians, koreans, and others all stanindg with us, singing in their own languages, the words to the Old Rugged Cross. There was oneness even though we didn’t understand the words, we were in unity, in oneness, it was such a taste of World-wide revival! Wow.
About that time, I had more of my vision, I realized that I was looking not jsut through the wall, but through the tomb as well, my way into the Holy of Holies is through the empty tomb!
I didn’t know what all that meant, and I still don’t but I got some more of it just this weekend at church. I realized that Jesus said, “I am the way, the truth, adn the life, no man enters unto the Father but by me.” I have known for all my adult life, that I was crucified with Christ (I learned later in life that I don’t, adn shouldn’t be crucified with him daily, it’s already finished, I was buried in him, and then raised in his likeness in the resurection of life. That resurection is what allows me to enter into the Kingdom of Heaven, into the very throne room of God, the very heart of the Holy of Holies. I am not in the tomb, I am alive in Him, (as long as I stay in Christ) my carnality was buried in Him and did not rise, I dont’ drag it with me, it goes to nohing when I leave it in the tomb. My life is full of joy and unspeakable riches when I simply remain in Him.
That is how my entry to the Holy of Holies is through the empty tomb, it’s how I can go into the Father, knowing that I’m nto worthy, but that my King died in my place so that I might go to the Father. I go to the Father, not to beg or plead, not to bring petitions (there are times for those prayers) I go to praise Him, to love Him, to adore Him. I go to proclaim to Him the great and mighty works of His son, the Lord Jesus who died in my place, that I might come to the Father. I can lift my face to the Almighty God of heaven and smaile into His eyes of love and mercy, not because I’m equal to the task, not because I’m capable, but because my King died in my place, because He said that if he be lifted up he would draw all men to him and as a result I can look at my father, the God of glory, the creator of the universe the make and master of All and know that He loves me! Not because I’m worthy, but because the blood of the lamb that was slain makes me loveable. It washes all sin from me and allows me to felloship with him on a level more closely attuned to the way God intended to commune with Adam.
Praise God!