"They went to the Jordan and began to cut down trees. As one of them was cutting down a tree, the iron ax head fell into the water. "Oh, my lord," he cried out, "it was begged!" The man of God asked, "Where did it fall?" When he showed him the place, Elisha cut a stick and threw it there, and made the iron float. "Lift it out," he said. Then the man reached out and took it." II Kings 6:6-7
This powerful narrative explores a timeless theme that is relevant for all of us who serve the living God. In the narrative the prophet Elisha tells the company of the prophets that their common dwelling is too small for all of them, and therefore they must build another home. Imagine building a home without the consent of a building department or permits!
The company of the prophets planned to build a very simple home, but even for such a small project they required the right tools for the job. It seems that tools were a precious commodity, and in order to complete the task of building their home one of the prophets borrowed an ax head. As the man worked he lost the ax head and it flew into the Jordan River.
Well, under normal circumstances that would be the end of the ax head, and the prophet would have to go to the party from whom he borrowed it and explain to the individual what happened to his property. But the prophet does not do the expected, and neither does he do the obvious. He goes to the great prophet Elisha and tells him what happened.
The prophet goes to Elisha and tells him that he has lost his cutting edge. It is a marvelous confession. It is simple and to the point. There are no excuses offered by the prophet. It happened to him as he was engaged in the work of ministry. He did not mean to lose his cutting edge but nevertheless it happened.
Have you lost your cutting edge in the work of the Lord? You have been faithful in ministry, but at some point on the timeline of faith you realized the the cutting edge was no longer in your life. Trying to hide the loss does not work, and lying about it will never suffice.
The prophet told Elisha that he lost the ax head; he told him by faith. Elisha asked him "Where did it fall?" It is good to know that God wants to know where we lost our cutting edge. Confession is our rescue from bewildering loss. Elisha threw in a stick where the edge was lost. The cross is where we must return in order to regain our edge. The iron ax head floated up to the top of the water when the stick was throw into the water.
Iron does not naturally float because of its molecular density, and this event was a miracle. The ax head was recovered by faith. And so it is with ministry; we recover our cutting edge by returning to the cross,and confessing by faith our loss. "Lift it out," Elisha said. Then the man reached out his hand and took it. We reach out by faith to God when we lose our cutting edge. God restores what we have lost when we go before Him and tell him what has happened to us.
God loves us. Do you need to go before Him and tell Him that you have lost your cutting edge? When you go to tell Him don't be surprised if you see me there too. I go there often, and I have found that it is good to be in His presence all the time.
Beloved, don't work without a cutting edge and don't lose your cutting edge.
Blessings to you.
For more information about Dr. Rich and his teaching ministry please follow his blog and visit his website.
Saturday, December 29, 2012
Friday, December 28, 2012
The God Who Does Not Abandon
"If someone asks him, 'What are these wounds on your body?' he will answer'The wounds I was given at the house of my friends'." Zech. 13:6
These words were prophetic at the time they were penned by Zechariah. They pointed into the future and to the ministry of the Messiah. The Old Testament is a history of the people of God. Beginning with the call of Abram from Ur of the Chaldees to the ascension of Joseph in Egypt the divine purpose held fast. And when a leader arose in Egypt who did not know Joseph and therefore enslaved the people of God, God did not abandon his people. God does not abandon his own although they may abandon Him.
When Pharaoh (probably Seti) founder of the 19th dynasty 1305-1290 B.C. enslaved the people of God and enacted state sponsored genocide of them by destroying the male children God had his plan in place too. God defeated the plans of pharaoh through a male child named Moses. Moses was a common name in Egypt much like Ahmose or Thutmose. The plans of man do not succeed where they are in opposition to the divine will.
When God's people were grieving under two oppressive regimes of Ramese, 1290-1224 B.C. God had an answer for their dire distress in the presence of Moses and his powerful ministry. Their release form Egypt was hard fought and hard won. They achieved the Exodus or 'Way Out' by the power of God. In the Old Testament we are informed that Yahweh identifies with the suffering of his own. God does not experience 'compassion fatigue' with his own. We must come to know and believe that God is our necessary portion in this life. He is the vital part of our lives.
God does not only identify with the suffering of his own he takes action on their behalf. He does something about their condition and he does it because it is the pleasure of the divine will to bring and comfort to us. To those of us who have experienced tragedy, or physical, and psychic injury God's presence gives solace.
When God's people rebelled against Him in the wilderness on their way to receive the inheritance that he had prepared for them he did not abandon his own. They slandered his character and grumbled about the leadership of Moses and wanted to stone him. God still did not abandon his own. They rejected God's best for them because they lacked the eyes of faith. They had incredible empirical evidence but the evidence did not convince them of the veracity of the divine character. Faith is the substance of things hoped for and the evidence of things not seen.
Faith sees beyond the realm of the empirical and knows that it is at best finite. Faith believes in the word of God. God's people did enter the land of promise, but they assimilated into the cultural patterns of the people embedded in the land. They grew increasingly weak through cultural assimilation. Finally, they failed to worship Yahweh, and their nations were swept away.
Zechariah was a prophet of the post exile period who spoke to his people about their condition. He was intimately aware of their condition. They needed more than change of their outer circumstances. They needed more than the clever words of mere political messiahs. They needed God's redemptive work in their lives.
Therefore the God who does not abandon provided the answer to the needs of his people. God gave them his Son. The Son of God, the Iesous, was crucified by his own in the text called 'my friends.' And think about us...we too participated in this historic event. The wounds that the Iesous received were because of me too. We have gone beyond the the words of man we are in divine territory at this point. The Iesous was wounded on behalf of us all.
Blessings to You.
For more information about Dr Rich and his teaching ministry, please follow his blog and visit his website.
These words were prophetic at the time they were penned by Zechariah. They pointed into the future and to the ministry of the Messiah. The Old Testament is a history of the people of God. Beginning with the call of Abram from Ur of the Chaldees to the ascension of Joseph in Egypt the divine purpose held fast. And when a leader arose in Egypt who did not know Joseph and therefore enslaved the people of God, God did not abandon his people. God does not abandon his own although they may abandon Him.
When Pharaoh (probably Seti) founder of the 19th dynasty 1305-1290 B.C. enslaved the people of God and enacted state sponsored genocide of them by destroying the male children God had his plan in place too. God defeated the plans of pharaoh through a male child named Moses. Moses was a common name in Egypt much like Ahmose or Thutmose. The plans of man do not succeed where they are in opposition to the divine will.
When God's people were grieving under two oppressive regimes of Ramese, 1290-1224 B.C. God had an answer for their dire distress in the presence of Moses and his powerful ministry. Their release form Egypt was hard fought and hard won. They achieved the Exodus or 'Way Out' by the power of God. In the Old Testament we are informed that Yahweh identifies with the suffering of his own. God does not experience 'compassion fatigue' with his own. We must come to know and believe that God is our necessary portion in this life. He is the vital part of our lives.
God does not only identify with the suffering of his own he takes action on their behalf. He does something about their condition and he does it because it is the pleasure of the divine will to bring and comfort to us. To those of us who have experienced tragedy, or physical, and psychic injury God's presence gives solace.
When God's people rebelled against Him in the wilderness on their way to receive the inheritance that he had prepared for them he did not abandon his own. They slandered his character and grumbled about the leadership of Moses and wanted to stone him. God still did not abandon his own. They rejected God's best for them because they lacked the eyes of faith. They had incredible empirical evidence but the evidence did not convince them of the veracity of the divine character. Faith is the substance of things hoped for and the evidence of things not seen.
Faith sees beyond the realm of the empirical and knows that it is at best finite. Faith believes in the word of God. God's people did enter the land of promise, but they assimilated into the cultural patterns of the people embedded in the land. They grew increasingly weak through cultural assimilation. Finally, they failed to worship Yahweh, and their nations were swept away.
Zechariah was a prophet of the post exile period who spoke to his people about their condition. He was intimately aware of their condition. They needed more than change of their outer circumstances. They needed more than the clever words of mere political messiahs. They needed God's redemptive work in their lives.
Therefore the God who does not abandon provided the answer to the needs of his people. God gave them his Son. The Son of God, the Iesous, was crucified by his own in the text called 'my friends.' And think about us...we too participated in this historic event. The wounds that the Iesous received were because of me too. We have gone beyond the the words of man we are in divine territory at this point. The Iesous was wounded on behalf of us all.
Blessings to You.
For more information about Dr Rich and his teaching ministry, please follow his blog and visit his website.
Thursday, December 20, 2012
Prince of Peace
"For unto us a child is born, to us a son is given, and the government will be on his shoulders. And he will be called Wonderful Counselor, Mighty God, Eternal father, Prince of Peace." Isaiah 9:6
And he will be called Prince of Peace is indeed prophetic, and points to a future kingdom when the rule of men will be dissolved by its own inherent futility. The kingdoms of men have inherent entropy, and the second law of thermodynamics, (the tendency of systems to lose energy), plays havoc with political systems too. Kingdoms come and go upon the dynamic crust of the earth, but one day there will be a kingdom that will not be subject to loss of any kind.
This is not idle belief it is a prophetic certainty, and given to us in the 'prophetic perfect' by the genius Isaiah. Yahweh is so certain that his will will be done on earth as it is in heaven that he does not place his veracity at risk when he says that a reality will definitely occur in the future. In the divine realm prophetic realism takes precedence over statistical probability.
Biblical Salvation History states: "the actions of people that take place upon the finite crust of the earth are foreordained to certain limitations." We all know that the evil that is practiced upon the face of the earth causes incredible harm to the many at the hands of the few.
Yahweh has great 'books' at his disposal in which he faithfully records nefarious deeds. We might call them super servers that record the actions of people. I know that my words seem fantastic and that they are contrary to the common perception that the world is driven by political discourse, and I agree to some extent, but there is a world behind this world that will call our actions into account.
We are now beyond manipulated money systems, M1, M2, M3, and other monetary fictions. We are beyond software that tracks global economies and human behavior thereunto.
The Prince of Peace is a different type of ruler-chieftain. He is the antithesis of any ruler that preceded him in any kingdom. His very character will be inherently different. He will not rule by creating fear in order to ensure submission of his people. He will not burden people will endless trauma events in order to wear them out, and wear them down. He will not take away the hopeful light in the eyes of children, and the weakest among us will not feel threatened. The Prince of Peace will be one who brings the gift of himself.
The word for 'peace' in our text is the Hebrew word 'Shalowm' which is taken from the root 'shalom' and one of its primary meanings is completeness or soundness. It can also mean bodily wholeness. The Prince of Peace is interested in our being entire or complete. His mission will be our wholeness, and soundness without threat to ourselves. He will transform the world by his shalowm actions. Our beleaguered planet home will receive redemption from his shalowm actions too. John records in the Revelation that God holds the title deed to the earth.
But, right now the Prince of Peace can give you shalowm in your soul. He can give you completeness, and soundness. You may have, today, a gift that only God can give.
Have you believed lies that have not brought you life satisfaction? The Iesous can give you what you have been seeking and never found. Look no more. Ask God to come into your heart and grant you peace. Your miracle is before you.
Blessing to you.
For more information about Dr. Rich and his teaching ministry, please follow his blog and visit his website.
And he will be called Prince of Peace is indeed prophetic, and points to a future kingdom when the rule of men will be dissolved by its own inherent futility. The kingdoms of men have inherent entropy, and the second law of thermodynamics, (the tendency of systems to lose energy), plays havoc with political systems too. Kingdoms come and go upon the dynamic crust of the earth, but one day there will be a kingdom that will not be subject to loss of any kind.
This is not idle belief it is a prophetic certainty, and given to us in the 'prophetic perfect' by the genius Isaiah. Yahweh is so certain that his will will be done on earth as it is in heaven that he does not place his veracity at risk when he says that a reality will definitely occur in the future. In the divine realm prophetic realism takes precedence over statistical probability.
Biblical Salvation History states: "the actions of people that take place upon the finite crust of the earth are foreordained to certain limitations." We all know that the evil that is practiced upon the face of the earth causes incredible harm to the many at the hands of the few.
Yahweh has great 'books' at his disposal in which he faithfully records nefarious deeds. We might call them super servers that record the actions of people. I know that my words seem fantastic and that they are contrary to the common perception that the world is driven by political discourse, and I agree to some extent, but there is a world behind this world that will call our actions into account.
We are now beyond manipulated money systems, M1, M2, M3, and other monetary fictions. We are beyond software that tracks global economies and human behavior thereunto.
The Prince of Peace is a different type of ruler-chieftain. He is the antithesis of any ruler that preceded him in any kingdom. His very character will be inherently different. He will not rule by creating fear in order to ensure submission of his people. He will not burden people will endless trauma events in order to wear them out, and wear them down. He will not take away the hopeful light in the eyes of children, and the weakest among us will not feel threatened. The Prince of Peace will be one who brings the gift of himself.
The word for 'peace' in our text is the Hebrew word 'Shalowm' which is taken from the root 'shalom' and one of its primary meanings is completeness or soundness. It can also mean bodily wholeness. The Prince of Peace is interested in our being entire or complete. His mission will be our wholeness, and soundness without threat to ourselves. He will transform the world by his shalowm actions. Our beleaguered planet home will receive redemption from his shalowm actions too. John records in the Revelation that God holds the title deed to the earth.
But, right now the Prince of Peace can give you shalowm in your soul. He can give you completeness, and soundness. You may have, today, a gift that only God can give.
Have you believed lies that have not brought you life satisfaction? The Iesous can give you what you have been seeking and never found. Look no more. Ask God to come into your heart and grant you peace. Your miracle is before you.
Blessing to you.
For more information about Dr. Rich and his teaching ministry, please follow his blog and visit his website.
Tuesday, December 18, 2012
By My Spirit
"Not by might nor by power, but by my Spirit, says the LORD of hosts." Zechariah 5:6
This is a very powerful statement to seize upon by meditation. There is contained within these words a message of reassurance for the hungry soul. Look around you, not in a merely curious manner, but look deeply into the culture that has taken hold of you. The culture around us seeks to trick us into believing that it is all that we need for life satisfaction. Cultures are deceptively mythic. In truth, our culture needs our collective support to continue its psychic reign over us.
Long ago a perceptive writer noted that the cathode ray tube (television) is not the screen, but our minds are the screens upon which the culture inscribes its controlling myths. It is indeed hypnotic and intoxicating. The subliminal messages are fed to us beneath the conscious level and we in turn see what they want us to see. Control of our beliefs and values are in the manner of a soft dictatorship.
The religious culture likes to believe that it is somehow exempt of this soft tyranny, but it too has fallen into believing controlling myths. Systems, programs, demographics, and spiritual mapping have replaced healthy dependence upon the Spirit of God. The divine culture has been set aside for the culture of man. Not consciously, of course, but in a manner that does not displease either. It is the culture of double-think.
The world of the Spirit of God is different. Divine culture is different. God is not in competition with the world. We are to be in the world, but not out of the world as a source. Our convictions are centered in the Word of God, or they should be.
Zechariah spoke to a people who needed to be encouraged about the power of God in their lives. They needed re-assurance that even though the outer circumstances seemed not to speak to their perceptions. God was there for them, but in a different manner.
Their preconceptions held them captive, and God had moved on to something new. They wanted the familiar and the comfortable, but God had other plans. God is not disposed to fit himself into our plans. Culture takes away that awareness, and replaces it with self-satisfying and godless beliefs. The Spirit of God created the world in Genesis One. God's Spirit transformed a desolate, dark and bleak wasteland into life by the power of His Spirit. I note that at no time did God seek a consult.
God is still transforming souls without consult by his Spirit. In the midst of spiritual ruin in a culture that hides ruin God is giving new life. By His Spirit, God is transforming lives by the power of Grace. By the Spirit of God you may be made new qualitatively. This newness cannot be bought. You may only acquire it by saying "yes" to God.
The Spirit of God moves into the sin-sick soul and gives new life. The Spirit of God moves into the hurting soul and gives new life. The Spirit of God moves into the anxious soul and gives new live. The Spirit of God gives hope where hope has fled.
Blessings to you.
For more information about Dr. Rich and his teaching ministry, please follow his blog and visit his website.
This is a very powerful statement to seize upon by meditation. There is contained within these words a message of reassurance for the hungry soul. Look around you, not in a merely curious manner, but look deeply into the culture that has taken hold of you. The culture around us seeks to trick us into believing that it is all that we need for life satisfaction. Cultures are deceptively mythic. In truth, our culture needs our collective support to continue its psychic reign over us.
Long ago a perceptive writer noted that the cathode ray tube (television) is not the screen, but our minds are the screens upon which the culture inscribes its controlling myths. It is indeed hypnotic and intoxicating. The subliminal messages are fed to us beneath the conscious level and we in turn see what they want us to see. Control of our beliefs and values are in the manner of a soft dictatorship.
The religious culture likes to believe that it is somehow exempt of this soft tyranny, but it too has fallen into believing controlling myths. Systems, programs, demographics, and spiritual mapping have replaced healthy dependence upon the Spirit of God. The divine culture has been set aside for the culture of man. Not consciously, of course, but in a manner that does not displease either. It is the culture of double-think.
The world of the Spirit of God is different. Divine culture is different. God is not in competition with the world. We are to be in the world, but not out of the world as a source. Our convictions are centered in the Word of God, or they should be.
Zechariah spoke to a people who needed to be encouraged about the power of God in their lives. They needed re-assurance that even though the outer circumstances seemed not to speak to their perceptions. God was there for them, but in a different manner.
Their preconceptions held them captive, and God had moved on to something new. They wanted the familiar and the comfortable, but God had other plans. God is not disposed to fit himself into our plans. Culture takes away that awareness, and replaces it with self-satisfying and godless beliefs. The Spirit of God created the world in Genesis One. God's Spirit transformed a desolate, dark and bleak wasteland into life by the power of His Spirit. I note that at no time did God seek a consult.
God is still transforming souls without consult by his Spirit. In the midst of spiritual ruin in a culture that hides ruin God is giving new life. By His Spirit, God is transforming lives by the power of Grace. By the Spirit of God you may be made new qualitatively. This newness cannot be bought. You may only acquire it by saying "yes" to God.
The Spirit of God moves into the sin-sick soul and gives new life. The Spirit of God moves into the hurting soul and gives new life. The Spirit of God moves into the anxious soul and gives new live. The Spirit of God gives hope where hope has fled.
Blessings to you.
For more information about Dr. Rich and his teaching ministry, please follow his blog and visit his website.
Thursday, December 13, 2012
The Gift of Love
"For God so loved the world (cosmos), that he gave (edoken) his only begotten Son, that whosoever believeth in him should not perish, but have everlasting life." John 3:16
The subject noun in this verse is 'Theos' and the object of the verb 'love' is the cosmos. The inhabitants of the cosmos are the objects of the love of Theos. The actions of Theos is always within the sphere of what is most needful for us. Although we may not be aware of our most fundamental need(s). Theos is aware of our most fundamental need. In a manner that stands outside of the milieu of our perception he loves us. A very close reading of this verse reveals a very powerful and radical reality. The love of Theos embraces the totality of humanity.
The love of God is not invasive. It meets the need of our deepest soul wounds, and who does not have soul wounds? God's love does invade our defenses and excuses, and it transforms our greatest bewilderment. He stands in the midst of our troubles, and invites us to bring to him our shattered hearts. Of course, this may sound strange to western ears but it is nevertheless true.
Bernie Siegel, M.D. wrote:
An even greater reality that the space/time milieu that we experience is the presence of love. We may say that love is Tao, and that is true. But the love spoken of in this passage is a one of a kind love. It is a completely foreign species. It cannot be duplicated. There is nothing that can come close to it. It is infinite beyond all adjectival descriptors. God's love is a super-algorithm that knows with infinite awareness what we lack.
Our need for this type of love is filled with curative power. Our search for meaning stops here in the love of Theos as revealed through the Iesous. Please notice that the verse does not state that we loved Theos, and he returned the intolerable compliment. God loved us when we are in active opposition to his radical display of love.
The fractal patterns that are observed in 'nature' bespeak incredible design to the most minute level. Fractal designs are evidence of the creative power of God. God's creative gift to humankind is the Iesous. He is God's love gift to us. That which separated us from God, others, and ourselves is the estrangement of sin. Sin is deeper than genetics it is ontological discontent of the human being. Sin has been defined as 'want of conformity to the revealed character of God'.
Sin creates separation within the human soul. It manifests itself in actions that are highly destructive. Behind the facade of polite social intercourse lies the reality of incorrigible selfishness. The love of God knows the truth of our condition. The love gift of God is not sentimental. It is intrinsically necessary to our condition. It is acceptance of God's love-gift of Iesous that releases us from spiritual darkness.
This gift is still available today. It is through the death of the Iesous on the Roman gibbet for our innate and forensic condition that we may receive the gift of eternal life. Blessings to you.
For more information about Dr. Rich and his teaching ministry, join his blog and visit his website.
The subject noun in this verse is 'Theos' and the object of the verb 'love' is the cosmos. The inhabitants of the cosmos are the objects of the love of Theos. The actions of Theos is always within the sphere of what is most needful for us. Although we may not be aware of our most fundamental need(s). Theos is aware of our most fundamental need. In a manner that stands outside of the milieu of our perception he loves us. A very close reading of this verse reveals a very powerful and radical reality. The love of Theos embraces the totality of humanity.
The love of God is not invasive. It meets the need of our deepest soul wounds, and who does not have soul wounds? God's love does invade our defenses and excuses, and it transforms our greatest bewilderment. He stands in the midst of our troubles, and invites us to bring to him our shattered hearts. Of course, this may sound strange to western ears but it is nevertheless true.
Bernie Siegel, M.D. wrote:
"The truth is: love heals."A year ago I read in a marvelous book called the 'Geometry of Meaning' that the universe is ultimately a construct of love. No one knows what happens before the cosmic dance of sub-atomic takes place, but we do know that something or more appropriately someone is behind the events that create mass/energy. Theos is the power behind the space/time milieu that we experience.
An even greater reality that the space/time milieu that we experience is the presence of love. We may say that love is Tao, and that is true. But the love spoken of in this passage is a one of a kind love. It is a completely foreign species. It cannot be duplicated. There is nothing that can come close to it. It is infinite beyond all adjectival descriptors. God's love is a super-algorithm that knows with infinite awareness what we lack.
Our need for this type of love is filled with curative power. Our search for meaning stops here in the love of Theos as revealed through the Iesous. Please notice that the verse does not state that we loved Theos, and he returned the intolerable compliment. God loved us when we are in active opposition to his radical display of love.
The fractal patterns that are observed in 'nature' bespeak incredible design to the most minute level. Fractal designs are evidence of the creative power of God. God's creative gift to humankind is the Iesous. He is God's love gift to us. That which separated us from God, others, and ourselves is the estrangement of sin. Sin is deeper than genetics it is ontological discontent of the human being. Sin has been defined as 'want of conformity to the revealed character of God'.
Sin creates separation within the human soul. It manifests itself in actions that are highly destructive. Behind the facade of polite social intercourse lies the reality of incorrigible selfishness. The love of God knows the truth of our condition. The love gift of God is not sentimental. It is intrinsically necessary to our condition. It is acceptance of God's love-gift of Iesous that releases us from spiritual darkness.
This gift is still available today. It is through the death of the Iesous on the Roman gibbet for our innate and forensic condition that we may receive the gift of eternal life. Blessings to you.
For more information about Dr. Rich and his teaching ministry, join his blog and visit his website.
Thursday, December 6, 2012
Competence: "Being Good At What You Do"
My wife and I have six children. Three of them are now married, and three are still at home. We chose to home-school each of them while maintaining a physical and social outlet within the context of organized activities. There were various activities, skills and interests. With six children, you can imagine, we tried them all.
When they were very young some of our children gravitated toward Martial Arts training. In addition to the physical challenges we also wanted to make sure that that could defend themselves. So this was a natural choice for our family. You see, we have five daughters and one son.
Our oldest daughter, however, took up ballet classes and became a very beautiful dancer. Our other four daughters did continue with their Martial Arts training. One of them achieved her black belt, and the other three became brown belts, a rank just below Black Belt.
Two daughters are now successful business women. One is in currently in business college and one is preparing for Law School. Our youngest is still in High School. Our son, now eight years old, is also training in Martial Arts and has recently achieved the rank of Brown Belt.
Our son was introduced to Martial Arts training when he was very young, having four sisters that were still training. In his training system there are several words that must be learned appropriate to the student's level or rank. At any point during his class his Sensei may ask the student or class the following question: "What is a Black Belt?" and the collective and sonorous reply of the students is, "A Black Belt is a White Belt that never gave up!" and the class moves on to the next exercise.
When our son moved into the advanced rank of Red Belt, his previous rank, he had to learn the meaning of the word 'Competence.' For his level of Martial Arts proficiency his material and understanding the definition of given words are required. At this particular rank or level the word 'Competence' is required. Not only must he know its definition 'being good at what you do', he must also understand the definition by providing examples of its use in practice.
I have always loved this definition because it resonates with power. At eight years old he is learning the meaning of a pivotal value in life. We consciously reinforce in him at home the mind-body skills that he is learning in Martial Arts so that he can master the skill. We can see how the value of being competent is influencing his Martial Arts training, his school work and his social behavior too.
Here is another observation that resonates with me. In our son's Martial Arts training he has to master a set of skills, and they are not easy by any means, and then he must be formally tested in front of his instructors, classmates, their families, as well as his own family. He must master or demonstrate competence in order to move forward. Just like his academic rigor, which is also based on the philosophy of mastery, he must demonstrate competence before advancing to the next level.
Our son's very accomplished Sensei has mastered three to four different martial arts, possibly more, with very high ranking. Moreover, he teaches his students to be skillful and well-rounded persons. The training is holistic. Within the structure and format that is provided, the students are challenged to stretch themselves. They are not measured against one another, but rather, challenged against themselves. Our son worked very hard to move beyond the red belt rank. He never gave up. He wanted to be competent and achieve his Brown Belt. He had setbacks, obstacles, and disappointments, but he kept on keeping on. He never gave up.
He has been studying Marital Arts for a long time and he has learned that when he has achieved a certain rank and status that is not the end. It is in fact a new beginning. He must now go on to learn new rank material. That is, he has built into his psyche a skill that will allow him to go far in life. The ability to be an apprentice.
"Many people are blocked from growing because they lack the faith to enter into an undefined situation and lack also the confidence that they will emerge with strength after taking on the temporary position of an apprentice."1 Furthermore, he is learning that growing in life requires substantive humility to risk the unknown and struggling with the hubris of what others may think of him. His mind will be open to independence.
"We must allow ourselves to enter into situations that we do not fully comprehend in advance and must trust there is a higher meaning to what we do. This hands on experiencing, often involving actions that seem unfathomable at the time, allows a kind of wisdom that cannot be transmitted through the mind alone."2
We have an eight year old who is learning the intrinsic power of this type of wisdom. He is learning the power of competence.
For more information about Dr. Rich and his teaching ministry, please follow his blog and visit his website.
1Matthew B. Schwarts, PhD, Biblical Stories for Psychotherapy and Counseling. A Sourcebook. (New York: The Haworth Pastoral Press, 2004) 81.
2ibid.
Wednesday, December 5, 2012
The Burning Stick
"Then he showed me Joshua the high priest standing before the angel of the LORD, and Satan standing at his right side to accuse him, the LORD said to Satan, The LORD rebuke you, Satan! The LORD, who has chosen Jerusalem, rebuke you! Is not this man a burning stick snatched from the fire?" Zech. 3:1-2
One of the most compelling and powerful images from the pages of the Scriptures is this one. These verses are about the grace and forgiveness of Yahweh. For all have sinned and come short of the grace of God, and we need His grace (divine favor) in our lives on a moment to moment basis. In this scene the Satan or the Accuser is there in a judicial setting seeking to impeach Joshua the high priest.
Please carefully note the language of the text. The Accuser is adroit and maddeningly clever in his courtroom manner. He stands at the right side of the high priest in order to heighten his fiendish and his malevolent mandate.
Part of the Accuser's plan is to skew perception of who we are as the community of God. We help the Accuser to gather against us when we fail to 'test all things' and believe that we can venture into any situation without the vital preparation of prayer and meditation on the Word of God.
In this scene the high priest, the man of God is on trial. We read in the Hebrew that the Satan (Accuser) stood on Joshua's right hand to satan (oppose) him. The Accuser opposes the people of God in the active voice. He pursues them relentlessly and without provocation on their part. He stands against them because they are the people of God. No one is excluded from his dogged pursuit. He is vehemently hostile to every child of God. (The Accuser tried to destroy the new born king (Iesous) through the military power of Herod the Great).
This nefarious scene is further intensified by the depiction of the high priest standing in court clothed in the garments of his office smeared in excrement. This is a symbol of obvious uncleanness. Of course the high priest is guilty-just look at him!
This court is mere formality. Is is obvious that Joshua will be found guilty of criminal acts of sinning before God with a high hand. His negligence is without question, and that is why he is the burning stick.
Sinful conduct must be judged, but by whom? The Accuser stands at Joshua's side to exacerbate his condition as the burning stick. There is no mercy for Joshua with the Accuser. As far as the Accuser is concerned Joshua may just as well be standing in the midst of an open grave. The Accuser was there to present evidence to bury Joshua. Joshua's garments are a symbol of defilement and guilt.
An unexpected event takes place in the court, however, the Accuser, with his mountain of evidence and adroit and cunning trickery is stopped in his mission to destroy Joshua. The Judge of all the earth stops the Accuser. That is, he rebukes him, and summarily sets aside the view point of hellish intrigue that seeks to supplant Joshua.
You and I are, likewise, constantly exposed to the wrath of the Accuser who wants to see us removed from our life before God. You must know that the Accuser will whisper condemnation into your heart. He will use his fiendish and twisted thoughts to unravel your faith in the Iesous. He will set you and me up in situations (temptations) that will seek to collapse our resolve to go from faith to faith. We may even find ourselves embroiled in public or secret sin, but we know that there are no secret sins. There is only the delusional behavior that believes that sin can be kept secret.
Secret sins enable the enemy to build a case against you and me. Don't play with secret sins beloved. They become diseases in the soul that eventually become obvious in the body and behavior.
The filth garments are removed form Joshua and a clean turban is placed upon his head. The defeat envisioned for Joshua by the Accuser will not come to pass. God took away the sin of Joshua, and thereby the Accuser had no case!
Beloved, come to the Iesous and receive the forgiveness and restoration that only he can provide. Will you come, today? Will you confess your need of his saving grace.
For more information about Dr. Rich and his teaching ministry, please follow his blog and visit his website.
One of the most compelling and powerful images from the pages of the Scriptures is this one. These verses are about the grace and forgiveness of Yahweh. For all have sinned and come short of the grace of God, and we need His grace (divine favor) in our lives on a moment to moment basis. In this scene the Satan or the Accuser is there in a judicial setting seeking to impeach Joshua the high priest.
Please carefully note the language of the text. The Accuser is adroit and maddeningly clever in his courtroom manner. He stands at the right side of the high priest in order to heighten his fiendish and his malevolent mandate.
Part of the Accuser's plan is to skew perception of who we are as the community of God. We help the Accuser to gather against us when we fail to 'test all things' and believe that we can venture into any situation without the vital preparation of prayer and meditation on the Word of God.
In this scene the high priest, the man of God is on trial. We read in the Hebrew that the Satan (Accuser) stood on Joshua's right hand to satan (oppose) him. The Accuser opposes the people of God in the active voice. He pursues them relentlessly and without provocation on their part. He stands against them because they are the people of God. No one is excluded from his dogged pursuit. He is vehemently hostile to every child of God. (The Accuser tried to destroy the new born king (Iesous) through the military power of Herod the Great).
This nefarious scene is further intensified by the depiction of the high priest standing in court clothed in the garments of his office smeared in excrement. This is a symbol of obvious uncleanness. Of course the high priest is guilty-just look at him!
This court is mere formality. Is is obvious that Joshua will be found guilty of criminal acts of sinning before God with a high hand. His negligence is without question, and that is why he is the burning stick.
Sinful conduct must be judged, but by whom? The Accuser stands at Joshua's side to exacerbate his condition as the burning stick. There is no mercy for Joshua with the Accuser. As far as the Accuser is concerned Joshua may just as well be standing in the midst of an open grave. The Accuser was there to present evidence to bury Joshua. Joshua's garments are a symbol of defilement and guilt.
An unexpected event takes place in the court, however, the Accuser, with his mountain of evidence and adroit and cunning trickery is stopped in his mission to destroy Joshua. The Judge of all the earth stops the Accuser. That is, he rebukes him, and summarily sets aside the view point of hellish intrigue that seeks to supplant Joshua.
You and I are, likewise, constantly exposed to the wrath of the Accuser who wants to see us removed from our life before God. You must know that the Accuser will whisper condemnation into your heart. He will use his fiendish and twisted thoughts to unravel your faith in the Iesous. He will set you and me up in situations (temptations) that will seek to collapse our resolve to go from faith to faith. We may even find ourselves embroiled in public or secret sin, but we know that there are no secret sins. There is only the delusional behavior that believes that sin can be kept secret.
Secret sins enable the enemy to build a case against you and me. Don't play with secret sins beloved. They become diseases in the soul that eventually become obvious in the body and behavior.
The filth garments are removed form Joshua and a clean turban is placed upon his head. The defeat envisioned for Joshua by the Accuser will not come to pass. God took away the sin of Joshua, and thereby the Accuser had no case!
Beloved, come to the Iesous and receive the forgiveness and restoration that only he can provide. Will you come, today? Will you confess your need of his saving grace.
For more information about Dr. Rich and his teaching ministry, please follow his blog and visit his website.
Thursday, November 29, 2012
The Blessed One
"But whosoever looketh into the perfect law of liberty, and continueth therein, he being not a forgetful hearer, but a doer of the work, this one shall be blessed in his deed." James 1:25
What is normative in the Scriptures may not be normative in practice. The Scriptures never attempt to chase the subterfuge embedded in human words, on the contrary, the Scriptures weigh human action. Human speech is also human action. Great good or great damage can come from human speech. The Bible is never dismissive of our actions. Our actions, including our speech actions are forensic.
James speaks to the community in a manner that some may not find to their liking. He is not being purposely abrasive but he is speaking the truth in love. I love the language of calling the Word of God the 'perfect law of liberty.'
In our text the word 'liberty' means complete or mature with nothing lacking. James tells the community the one who has a relentless commitment to expose himself to the perfect law of liberty as a prescriptive measure for himself will find that he will experience a powerful destiny.
First of all, he will not be a forgetful hearer. That is, he will not be guilty of spiritual negligence. This is the cause of much turmoil in the lives of the members of the community. But the fact is, spiritual negligence may be difficult to measure or detect, and it is not our duty to go around looking for it in the lives of others. We do well to attend to our own spiritual welfare.
The one who continues in the perfect law of liberty will find that his life is being transformed thereby, and that he has stepped out from the clinging muck of spiritual mediocrity. He finds that he has indeed laid hold of eternal life as a quality to be ever cultivate. The one who steps over into the realm of being a doer of the work of faith understands the immediate interpenetration of heaven and time. There is no more desire to live as though this world is all that there is.
The enemy of the faithful ones knows this and he therefore wants to snatch away the Word whenever one attempts to grow in Grace. He will steal the prayer time, he will mock the study time with fake phone calls, he will contend the time of meditation with bewildering problems that demand attention-now! He will introduce urgency where there is no urgency. He will harass and hinder as much as he can because he knows the power that we claim for ourselves when we spend time in the perfect law of liberty.
Beloved, when we spend time in the Word of God we gather nourishment for our walk of faith. We must continuously feed ourselves with the Word of God.. We have at our disposal the greatest documents ever written, and there is a mountain of evidence for their veracity and integrity. Great textual scholars, and biblical scholars have labored throughout the centuries to look into the perfect law of liberty and have not found it lacking.
We must come back to the sobering insight of James. He wants the members of the community to prosper in Iesous, and he knows that this can only happen if there is a radical commitment to look into the law of liberty. Life is filled with purpose and power when the Iesous is in control. He gives the uniquely blessed life. He has come that we may have life in superabundance.
For more information about Dr. Rich and his teaching ministry, please follow his blog and visit his website.
What is normative in the Scriptures may not be normative in practice. The Scriptures never attempt to chase the subterfuge embedded in human words, on the contrary, the Scriptures weigh human action. Human speech is also human action. Great good or great damage can come from human speech. The Bible is never dismissive of our actions. Our actions, including our speech actions are forensic.
James speaks to the community in a manner that some may not find to their liking. He is not being purposely abrasive but he is speaking the truth in love. I love the language of calling the Word of God the 'perfect law of liberty.'
In our text the word 'liberty' means complete or mature with nothing lacking. James tells the community the one who has a relentless commitment to expose himself to the perfect law of liberty as a prescriptive measure for himself will find that he will experience a powerful destiny.
First of all, he will not be a forgetful hearer. That is, he will not be guilty of spiritual negligence. This is the cause of much turmoil in the lives of the members of the community. But the fact is, spiritual negligence may be difficult to measure or detect, and it is not our duty to go around looking for it in the lives of others. We do well to attend to our own spiritual welfare.
The one who continues in the perfect law of liberty will find that his life is being transformed thereby, and that he has stepped out from the clinging muck of spiritual mediocrity. He finds that he has indeed laid hold of eternal life as a quality to be ever cultivate. The one who steps over into the realm of being a doer of the work of faith understands the immediate interpenetration of heaven and time. There is no more desire to live as though this world is all that there is.
The enemy of the faithful ones knows this and he therefore wants to snatch away the Word whenever one attempts to grow in Grace. He will steal the prayer time, he will mock the study time with fake phone calls, he will contend the time of meditation with bewildering problems that demand attention-now! He will introduce urgency where there is no urgency. He will harass and hinder as much as he can because he knows the power that we claim for ourselves when we spend time in the perfect law of liberty.
Beloved, when we spend time in the Word of God we gather nourishment for our walk of faith. We must continuously feed ourselves with the Word of God.. We have at our disposal the greatest documents ever written, and there is a mountain of evidence for their veracity and integrity. Great textual scholars, and biblical scholars have labored throughout the centuries to look into the perfect law of liberty and have not found it lacking.
We must come back to the sobering insight of James. He wants the members of the community to prosper in Iesous, and he knows that this can only happen if there is a radical commitment to look into the law of liberty. Life is filled with purpose and power when the Iesous is in control. He gives the uniquely blessed life. He has come that we may have life in superabundance.
For more information about Dr. Rich and his teaching ministry, please follow his blog and visit his website.
Friday, November 16, 2012
The Fate of the Stone Roller
"Whoever digs a pit will fall into it, and he who rolls a stone will have it roll back on him." Proverbs 26:27
In the famous work entitled the 'Myth of Sisyphus' by Albert Camus the gods have condemned Sisyphus to the endless cycle of rolling a stone uphill to see it roll down, and fetch it without end. It is his perpetual task. It is what he must do to atone for his sins upon the earth. He is to bear the fate of absurdity for which the rolling of the stone is his reminder.
The ancient wisdom writers of the Proverbs knew that before there was mythos there was logos. The writer addresses logos with the above words. Or as one perceptive writer said he addresses a sphere of action that bespeaks one's destiny.
There are actions from which there is no recourse. We all know this to be true, and yet there are those who defy commonsense and wisdom, and set themselves out to ruinous journeys. There are journeys, and there are destinies, and such persons confuse the two with course and artless reasons. Yahweh has designed the world in such a manner that even if the authorities that are in place are righteous or nefarious a person will receive to himself the reward of his actions whether good or bad.
I realize that there are those who believe that they may do whatever they desire but even delusional reality has a terminus. So, what is the writer addressing in this statement? It is well known that in Hebrew theology act and consequence are one. In other words there is unity of action and result. This is inescapable and intensely sobering.
Those who sin against others will reap the results of their heinous deeds and treachery. Yes, there may seem to be no immediate consequences to what has been done, but know that the mind of God is not a mind of flesh. He is the final Judge and he cannot be bought.
I remember reading where one ancient banker in the city of Florence wanted God the Father on his rolls as a debtor. We humans roll some very interesting stones, and we forget that they roll back with awesome results.
The universe as designed by God is one of cause and effect. Our actions are creative force. They set in motion events that will carry the power of consequent action. Here is a powerful quality of the image dei, that is, the image of God in man. We are creators. Not in the biblical sense of having fiat creative power that is reserved only for God.
It is interesting today that the clergy in general defer to death as non-being. Sisyphus was sentenced by the gods in the afterlife to a punishment of absurdity. Today, some clergy teach the absurdity of the afterlife. We should not listen to such perverted teaching. They have forgotten that theology with an undeveloped eschatology (doctrine of last things) does not satisfy the sin-sick soul, and psychologies are not metaphysically neutral.
Camus wrote of the frightful visage of the one who rolls stones:
The biblical materials state that no one escapes the wrong that he has done. God does forgive our sin, but we suffer the consequences of our actions. Therefore we hear anew the prescriptive words of the Iesous when he says "go and sin no more" or give up those sinful practices that deconstructed the integrity of your soul.
Blessings to you.
For more information about Dr. Rich and his teaching ministry, please follow his blog and visit his website.
In the famous work entitled the 'Myth of Sisyphus' by Albert Camus the gods have condemned Sisyphus to the endless cycle of rolling a stone uphill to see it roll down, and fetch it without end. It is his perpetual task. It is what he must do to atone for his sins upon the earth. He is to bear the fate of absurdity for which the rolling of the stone is his reminder.
The ancient wisdom writers of the Proverbs knew that before there was mythos there was logos. The writer addresses logos with the above words. Or as one perceptive writer said he addresses a sphere of action that bespeaks one's destiny.
There are actions from which there is no recourse. We all know this to be true, and yet there are those who defy commonsense and wisdom, and set themselves out to ruinous journeys. There are journeys, and there are destinies, and such persons confuse the two with course and artless reasons. Yahweh has designed the world in such a manner that even if the authorities that are in place are righteous or nefarious a person will receive to himself the reward of his actions whether good or bad.
I realize that there are those who believe that they may do whatever they desire but even delusional reality has a terminus. So, what is the writer addressing in this statement? It is well known that in Hebrew theology act and consequence are one. In other words there is unity of action and result. This is inescapable and intensely sobering.
Those who sin against others will reap the results of their heinous deeds and treachery. Yes, there may seem to be no immediate consequences to what has been done, but know that the mind of God is not a mind of flesh. He is the final Judge and he cannot be bought.
I remember reading where one ancient banker in the city of Florence wanted God the Father on his rolls as a debtor. We humans roll some very interesting stones, and we forget that they roll back with awesome results.
The universe as designed by God is one of cause and effect. Our actions are creative force. They set in motion events that will carry the power of consequent action. Here is a powerful quality of the image dei, that is, the image of God in man. We are creators. Not in the biblical sense of having fiat creative power that is reserved only for God.
It is interesting today that the clergy in general defer to death as non-being. Sisyphus was sentenced by the gods in the afterlife to a punishment of absurdity. Today, some clergy teach the absurdity of the afterlife. We should not listen to such perverted teaching. They have forgotten that theology with an undeveloped eschatology (doctrine of last things) does not satisfy the sin-sick soul, and psychologies are not metaphysically neutral.
Camus wrote of the frightful visage of the one who rolls stones:
"A face that toils so close to stones is already stone itself."The poet of Psalm 7 wrote:
"He made a pit and dug it out, and has fallen into the ditch he made." Ps.7:15
The biblical materials state that no one escapes the wrong that he has done. God does forgive our sin, but we suffer the consequences of our actions. Therefore we hear anew the prescriptive words of the Iesous when he says "go and sin no more" or give up those sinful practices that deconstructed the integrity of your soul.
Blessings to you.
For more information about Dr. Rich and his teaching ministry, please follow his blog and visit his website.
Wednesday, November 14, 2012
Putting Away Lying
"Wherefore putting away lying, speaking every man truth with his neighbor: for we are members one of another." Eph. 4:25
Paul always lays down a doctrinal platform before he proceeds to ethical mandates. It cannot be otherwise. New Testament ethics have a foundation grounded in the self-revelation of Theos in Iesous. Therefore we have a living foundation that abides forever more. The constantly believing ones are a new creation. They are anthropologically other and require an ethical standard that is consistent with their new identity.
Iesous is the Truth. There is no foundation other than He. There is no ethical hall of mirrors to which we subscribe, and neither do we follow situation ethics or moral relativism. We have stepped out beyond the groundless hubris of well written, and well argued obfuscation, 'full of sound and fury signifying nothing', that seeks to enslave through subtle disguise. Truth is rarely honored within a milieu that lifts up lying as the currency of the realm, and those who oppose lying may find themselves within a bullied minority.
Remember when lying was scandalous We are well beyond that sign post. Lying or falsehood rules. It is interesting to watch those who are given to lying. They are unaware that the physiology of their persons adapt to their soul's distortion by parallel physiologic-emotional contortions of the physical body. Lying introduces imbalance in the soul and in the body. In other words, when we are untrue or lie everything about us is thrown out of balance. I mean everything.
God has designed us to have balance. The opposite of truth is pseudos or falsehood. It takes great effort to build one's life around a lie. It is highly stressful. One has succeeded when one has so absorbed a lie that it becomes one's truth.
Lying destroys the person and reduces life to monstrous intrigue. One lie is used to hide another lie until lying becomes a state of being, being a 'Liar.' This is one of the greatest self-betrayals. I remember a woman who suffered from terrible headaches. She had gone to see a doctor about her headaches, and was given a prescription to her condition, but it did not work. She was a beautiful woman who lived in a very nice home, and she seemed to have everything.
However, when my wife and I met her husband we knew that something was not right with him. He had an attitude of haughty disdain and superiority, and everything he said bordered on clever repartee but his words were metallic and scolding. This man was the assistant pastor of a church we attended. One day he sat behind me at church and asked what I as reading. I told him and he began to laugh. It was later discovered that this person had 'fallen' in love with a teenage girl at the church, and began to live out his lie.
This person got one of his friends at the church to act as as witness to what was called his 'spiritual wedding' to the teenage girl. This assistant was caught, disciplined, and left the church, and his real wife's headaches disappeared. His real wife left him and moved on with her life. His real wife's spirit knew that something was amiss in their relationship, but she could not say precisely what was not right.
The liar believes his own lies. His self-molestation is complete. His idolatrous pathology of lying bespeaks the diseased condition of his soul. When Paul speaks of putting away lying it is not a suggestion. It is a prescriptive and imperative command to guard oneself from abysmal self-pollution that lying engenders.
If you have a lie that is destroying your spiritual freedom confess it to God. If you have been made party to a lie separate yourself therefrom and confess it to God. Lies distort, contort, twist, close down real relationships and enslaves the lying one.
The liar has no freedom. He has constructed his own prison. Iesous is there to give freedom to those whose lives have been ruined by lies and set adrift by the chaos thereof. The Iesous has come that we all may have life in superabundance. Ask him to set you free today.
Blessings to you.
For more information about Dr. Rich and his teaching ministry, please follow this blog and visit his website.
Paul always lays down a doctrinal platform before he proceeds to ethical mandates. It cannot be otherwise. New Testament ethics have a foundation grounded in the self-revelation of Theos in Iesous. Therefore we have a living foundation that abides forever more. The constantly believing ones are a new creation. They are anthropologically other and require an ethical standard that is consistent with their new identity.
Iesous is the Truth. There is no foundation other than He. There is no ethical hall of mirrors to which we subscribe, and neither do we follow situation ethics or moral relativism. We have stepped out beyond the groundless hubris of well written, and well argued obfuscation, 'full of sound and fury signifying nothing', that seeks to enslave through subtle disguise. Truth is rarely honored within a milieu that lifts up lying as the currency of the realm, and those who oppose lying may find themselves within a bullied minority.
Remember when lying was scandalous We are well beyond that sign post. Lying or falsehood rules. It is interesting to watch those who are given to lying. They are unaware that the physiology of their persons adapt to their soul's distortion by parallel physiologic-emotional contortions of the physical body. Lying introduces imbalance in the soul and in the body. In other words, when we are untrue or lie everything about us is thrown out of balance. I mean everything.
God has designed us to have balance. The opposite of truth is pseudos or falsehood. It takes great effort to build one's life around a lie. It is highly stressful. One has succeeded when one has so absorbed a lie that it becomes one's truth.
Lying destroys the person and reduces life to monstrous intrigue. One lie is used to hide another lie until lying becomes a state of being, being a 'Liar.' This is one of the greatest self-betrayals. I remember a woman who suffered from terrible headaches. She had gone to see a doctor about her headaches, and was given a prescription to her condition, but it did not work. She was a beautiful woman who lived in a very nice home, and she seemed to have everything.
However, when my wife and I met her husband we knew that something was not right with him. He had an attitude of haughty disdain and superiority, and everything he said bordered on clever repartee but his words were metallic and scolding. This man was the assistant pastor of a church we attended. One day he sat behind me at church and asked what I as reading. I told him and he began to laugh. It was later discovered that this person had 'fallen' in love with a teenage girl at the church, and began to live out his lie.
This person got one of his friends at the church to act as as witness to what was called his 'spiritual wedding' to the teenage girl. This assistant was caught, disciplined, and left the church, and his real wife's headaches disappeared. His real wife left him and moved on with her life. His real wife's spirit knew that something was amiss in their relationship, but she could not say precisely what was not right.
The liar believes his own lies. His self-molestation is complete. His idolatrous pathology of lying bespeaks the diseased condition of his soul. When Paul speaks of putting away lying it is not a suggestion. It is a prescriptive and imperative command to guard oneself from abysmal self-pollution that lying engenders.
If you have a lie that is destroying your spiritual freedom confess it to God. If you have been made party to a lie separate yourself therefrom and confess it to God. Lies distort, contort, twist, close down real relationships and enslaves the lying one.
The liar has no freedom. He has constructed his own prison. Iesous is there to give freedom to those whose lives have been ruined by lies and set adrift by the chaos thereof. The Iesous has come that we all may have life in superabundance. Ask him to set you free today.
Blessings to you.
For more information about Dr. Rich and his teaching ministry, please follow this blog and visit his website.
Wednesday, November 7, 2012
Cure of Souls in The 21st Century
"And it came to pass, as Peter passed throughout all quarters, he came down also to the saints which dwelt at Lydda." Acts 9:32
These words are from one of the earliest documents of church history called "Acts." The title is most appropriate and cogently bears the compelling thesis of this document. This book records the post-resurrection ministry of the Iesous through human agency.
God is not in the human repair business, He is in the business of giving new life. The Greek word for life is 'zoe' and its meaning transcends any attempt to truncate it into some formulaic framework.
Zoe has to do with participation within the very life of Theos. This is not pantheism nor is it panentheism or some kind of animistic naturalism. Zoe is the very message that Peter took to the saints that dwelt at Lydda because it is what they collectively needed.
Aeneas, a poor man whose life was in decay because he had been 'sick' for eight years was to receive the zoe blessing through Peter. Peter went down to visit Aeneas who dwelt in Lydda. Of course this was not accidental or random on Peter's part. The resurrected Iesous led him to Lydda. But why, why did the Iesous lead Peter to such a place as Lydda?
The name Lydda means 'strife,' and this attitudinal aberration was embedded in Lydda. Strife is a curious term that bespeaks bitterness, heated violent struggle, to fight, and/or conflict. Peter stepped into a dangerous environment. Hostile people dwelt in Lydda.
Aeneas lived within the belly of the beast. Hostile environments create a host of related emotional disorders and spiritual malaise. Aeneas "kept his bed" in Lydda, and he was weak in his body. Eight years is a long time to be bed-ridden from an illness.
Peter is there to speak the word that transcends all other words to him. The Word of God can go where we cannot go. The word that Peter carried to Aeneas was charged with resurrection power or Zoe. Peter knew that he stepped into a hotbed of hostility.
Hostility can become a type of emotional drug but it destroys the soul and body of the individual. Peter said to the beleaguered Aeneas, "Iesous, the Christos, maketh thee whole (iatai)." This word, whole or iatai in the Greek means: to effect, cure or make completely whole, and the removal of the controlling and destructive power of sin.
Aeneas stood up from his former condition and received new life through the powerful word. The powerful word was medicinal and unleashed the zoe that Aeneas needed. The word compelled Aeneas to stand up and walk in newness of life.
Those who live in the 21st century need this powerful 1st century word too. The zoe message of the Cure of Souls does not change. The basic need of the human soul does not change. If you live in Lydda today there is One who offers you the opportunity to step out of the old life and into a new one filled with the presence of God.
The Word of God can heal the sin-sick soul. The Word of God can make you whole or cure effectively. This is the message that will change individual lives, homes, communities, and countries.
God is still changing lives through the power of the Spirit. Do you need Him to change your life today? Ask and you shall receive, seek and you will find, knock and the door will be opened.
Blessings to you.
For more information about Dr. Josiah Rich's teaching ministry, please follow this blog and visit his website.
These words are from one of the earliest documents of church history called "Acts." The title is most appropriate and cogently bears the compelling thesis of this document. This book records the post-resurrection ministry of the Iesous through human agency.
God is not in the human repair business, He is in the business of giving new life. The Greek word for life is 'zoe' and its meaning transcends any attempt to truncate it into some formulaic framework.
Zoe has to do with participation within the very life of Theos. This is not pantheism nor is it panentheism or some kind of animistic naturalism. Zoe is the very message that Peter took to the saints that dwelt at Lydda because it is what they collectively needed.
Aeneas, a poor man whose life was in decay because he had been 'sick' for eight years was to receive the zoe blessing through Peter. Peter went down to visit Aeneas who dwelt in Lydda. Of course this was not accidental or random on Peter's part. The resurrected Iesous led him to Lydda. But why, why did the Iesous lead Peter to such a place as Lydda?
The name Lydda means 'strife,' and this attitudinal aberration was embedded in Lydda. Strife is a curious term that bespeaks bitterness, heated violent struggle, to fight, and/or conflict. Peter stepped into a dangerous environment. Hostile people dwelt in Lydda.
Aeneas lived within the belly of the beast. Hostile environments create a host of related emotional disorders and spiritual malaise. Aeneas "kept his bed" in Lydda, and he was weak in his body. Eight years is a long time to be bed-ridden from an illness.
Peter is there to speak the word that transcends all other words to him. The Word of God can go where we cannot go. The word that Peter carried to Aeneas was charged with resurrection power or Zoe. Peter knew that he stepped into a hotbed of hostility.
Hostility can become a type of emotional drug but it destroys the soul and body of the individual. Peter said to the beleaguered Aeneas, "Iesous, the Christos, maketh thee whole (iatai)." This word, whole or iatai in the Greek means: to effect, cure or make completely whole, and the removal of the controlling and destructive power of sin.
Aeneas stood up from his former condition and received new life through the powerful word. The powerful word was medicinal and unleashed the zoe that Aeneas needed. The word compelled Aeneas to stand up and walk in newness of life.
Those who live in the 21st century need this powerful 1st century word too. The zoe message of the Cure of Souls does not change. The basic need of the human soul does not change. If you live in Lydda today there is One who offers you the opportunity to step out of the old life and into a new one filled with the presence of God.
The Word of God can heal the sin-sick soul. The Word of God can make you whole or cure effectively. This is the message that will change individual lives, homes, communities, and countries.
God is still changing lives through the power of the Spirit. Do you need Him to change your life today? Ask and you shall receive, seek and you will find, knock and the door will be opened.
Blessings to you.
For more information about Dr. Josiah Rich's teaching ministry, please follow this blog and visit his website.
Monday, November 5, 2012
God Is Greater Than Our Heart
"For if our heart (kardia) condemn us, God (Theos) is greater than our heart, and knoweth all things." 1 John 3:20
One perceptive brother has rightly said that there are times when we are on the battlefield, and then there are other times when we are the battlefield.
We are masters of making ourselves hostages of spiritual perfection or some other self-righteous standard that is contrary to the Word of God. We may be tempted to believe that it somehow makes us more spiritual to fabricate an intense protocol of behavioral mandates for appropriate self punishment.
We may be fighting a conscience that is over whelmed by a sense of unworthiness because of an old sin or old sin pattern that once had claim on us. The sin may be old, but the regret of it is present tense (i.e. I am imprisoned by shame, and I dare not share it or reveal it to others. I have an intense dislike of myself, and therefore I use some form of addictive behavior to hide from myself).
Hiding me from me is a full time job, and some people may confuse my shame-based behavior with full blown narcissicism. And not only am I filled with shame, but my heart incriminates me about me. It is a merciless and truly vicious cycle.
Beloved, one must learn to practice the following truth: " ...if our heart condemn us, God is greater than our heart, and knows all things." Divine truth contains enormous power. In fact, it is power. Divine truth is our power source over the lies that seek to overthrow our lives.
Lies are unrelenting and determined in their resolve. Therefore we must in turn be resolved in the relentless study of and application of spiritual truth to our circumstances.
When my heart becomes a witness against me, and I know that I have not been engaged in a practice that deserves the discipline of the Spirit, then I must go before my Merciful and Faithful High Priest, the Iesous, for courage and support.
Unresolved conflict of the heart is not God's design for me. Therefore I must go before him and let him know when the inner brutality that I am suffering is not because of some secret sin or ungodly practice.
'God is greater' is truth that destroy's my misery and sets me free to worship Him. 'God is greater' is prescriptive and medicinal. It is redemptive and it restores my soul. It leads me to the waters of quietness. God's Word is true medicine. It is the balm that heals the weary soul.
Beloved, today remember 'God is greater.' Now go out and live free in His Love.
Blessing to you.
For more information about Dr. Rich's teaching ministry, please join his blog and visit his website.
One perceptive brother has rightly said that there are times when we are on the battlefield, and then there are other times when we are the battlefield.
We are masters of making ourselves hostages of spiritual perfection or some other self-righteous standard that is contrary to the Word of God. We may be tempted to believe that it somehow makes us more spiritual to fabricate an intense protocol of behavioral mandates for appropriate self punishment.
We may be fighting a conscience that is over whelmed by a sense of unworthiness because of an old sin or old sin pattern that once had claim on us. The sin may be old, but the regret of it is present tense (i.e. I am imprisoned by shame, and I dare not share it or reveal it to others. I have an intense dislike of myself, and therefore I use some form of addictive behavior to hide from myself).
Hiding me from me is a full time job, and some people may confuse my shame-based behavior with full blown narcissicism. And not only am I filled with shame, but my heart incriminates me about me. It is a merciless and truly vicious cycle.
Beloved, one must learn to practice the following truth: " ...if our heart condemn us, God is greater than our heart, and knows all things." Divine truth contains enormous power. In fact, it is power. Divine truth is our power source over the lies that seek to overthrow our lives.
Lies are unrelenting and determined in their resolve. Therefore we must in turn be resolved in the relentless study of and application of spiritual truth to our circumstances.
When my heart becomes a witness against me, and I know that I have not been engaged in a practice that deserves the discipline of the Spirit, then I must go before my Merciful and Faithful High Priest, the Iesous, for courage and support.
Unresolved conflict of the heart is not God's design for me. Therefore I must go before him and let him know when the inner brutality that I am suffering is not because of some secret sin or ungodly practice.
'God is greater' is truth that destroy's my misery and sets me free to worship Him. 'God is greater' is prescriptive and medicinal. It is redemptive and it restores my soul. It leads me to the waters of quietness. God's Word is true medicine. It is the balm that heals the weary soul.
Beloved, today remember 'God is greater.' Now go out and live free in His Love.
Blessing to you.
For more information about Dr. Rich's teaching ministry, please join his blog and visit his website.
Friday, November 2, 2012
Sacred Silence in the Midst of Too-much-ness
"Truly my soul silently waits for God; from Him comes my salvation." Psalm 62:1
The poet of this psalm knows that there are times when the solace that we need cannot originate within our common milieu. This life and its many problems and trials may at times push us to the very edge of reason and then beyond, and then we dread the woeful tyranny of the irrational.
The test that we are experiencing right now is filled with the smarting demand of "too-much-ness" and we fear collapse before its awful claims upon us. There is the desire to find respite and refuge until our season of unapologetic disquiet is over. Alas, however, the too-much-ness that seeks to devour increases its terrifying pounding upon the doors of faith.
"Will I have to see this experience to the end?" asks the person of faith, or "I've been so faithful," or "I have wept over this situation so often is there no answer for me?" There are no more clever spiritual answers to call upon because they proved inadequate and insipid.
You see that the people around you have accumulated experiences that have wearied their resolve to face this life with unbending courage but their eyes reveal another story. The mysteries of life have a way of sculpting us into mysteries unto ourselves when we are overtaken by its too-much-ness.
The poet of this psalm removed himself from all other sources of 'comfort' because he found himself molested by their inherent limitations. Experiences do not come to us custom made or tailored to fit our preconceptions. The poet knew this to be true. He said that his soul silently waited upon Elohim.
Elohim means the "Strong One." In Hebrew pictograms, El is represented by an ox or bull symbolic of a strong one. The poet is very specific in his choice of names for God. He knows the 'face' of God that he needs at this time. The language is telling: "Truly my soul silently...for Elohim." He is in that sacred space and sacred time that buffers the outside events that buffeted him, and insulates him so as to suspend anxiety.
He is now able to wait for the Strong One with remarkable expectation. 'Truly my soul waits in silence,' offers powerful insight into the spiritual discipline of the poet. He knows that Elohim will come to him, and provide his great spiritual need. Silence is not easy when one is in great need, but silence, sacred silence in the midst of 'too-much-ness' is necessary.
Blessings to you.
For more information about Dr. Rich and his teaching ministry, please follow his blog and visit his website.
The poet of this psalm knows that there are times when the solace that we need cannot originate within our common milieu. This life and its many problems and trials may at times push us to the very edge of reason and then beyond, and then we dread the woeful tyranny of the irrational.
The test that we are experiencing right now is filled with the smarting demand of "too-much-ness" and we fear collapse before its awful claims upon us. There is the desire to find respite and refuge until our season of unapologetic disquiet is over. Alas, however, the too-much-ness that seeks to devour increases its terrifying pounding upon the doors of faith.
"Will I have to see this experience to the end?" asks the person of faith, or "I've been so faithful," or "I have wept over this situation so often is there no answer for me?" There are no more clever spiritual answers to call upon because they proved inadequate and insipid.
You see that the people around you have accumulated experiences that have wearied their resolve to face this life with unbending courage but their eyes reveal another story. The mysteries of life have a way of sculpting us into mysteries unto ourselves when we are overtaken by its too-much-ness.
The poet of this psalm removed himself from all other sources of 'comfort' because he found himself molested by their inherent limitations. Experiences do not come to us custom made or tailored to fit our preconceptions. The poet knew this to be true. He said that his soul silently waited upon Elohim.
Elohim means the "Strong One." In Hebrew pictograms, El is represented by an ox or bull symbolic of a strong one. The poet is very specific in his choice of names for God. He knows the 'face' of God that he needs at this time. The language is telling: "Truly my soul silently...for Elohim." He is in that sacred space and sacred time that buffers the outside events that buffeted him, and insulates him so as to suspend anxiety.
He is now able to wait for the Strong One with remarkable expectation. 'Truly my soul waits in silence,' offers powerful insight into the spiritual discipline of the poet. He knows that Elohim will come to him, and provide his great spiritual need. Silence is not easy when one is in great need, but silence, sacred silence in the midst of 'too-much-ness' is necessary.
Blessings to you.
For more information about Dr. Rich and his teaching ministry, please follow his blog and visit his website.
Tuesday, October 30, 2012
Nehemiah: Change Agent for Yahweh
"...one of my brethren came with men from Judah; and I asked them concerning the Jews who had escaped who had survived the captivity, and concerning Jerusalem." Nehemiah 1:2
Nehemiah was God's man for a difficult time and situation. Up until the time of this visit from the men of Judah Nehemiah's life was one of worldly success. He enjoyed prestige and power. There was nothing that he could not have at his disposal, and yet he had not answered his name.
This situation was changed by the visit from the delegation of Judah. Their visit would change Nehemiah's life forever.
Notice carefully that it is Nehemiah who asked the question that contained his destiny. Their answer contained compelling dialectical tension that burdened the heart of the king's cup-bearer. Nehemiah would now see that his life as he knew it was under divine suspension.
The position that he had enjoyed, and the power that he had enjoyed was for this new season in his life. Yahweh had embedded him in the king's palace, and in the king's presence for the coming strategic movement of Salvation-History regarding the walls of Jerusalem. God had embedded his man in Persian culture and when the time came for divine action to set in motion powerful political forces to do his will, Nehemiah was raised up.
The words of the group fastened upon the soul of Nehemiah, and would not release him until he was stirred into action. The report of the condition of Jerusalem and its walls were not mere social gossip. They did not travel 800 miles for a little chit chat. Their journey was burdened with a message of dire purpose, and it was specifically for Nehemiah.
They brought a message to Nehemiah that when spoken unleashed a powerful vision. The word of God was given to the man of God who intrincically knew what to do. Nehemiah grieved over the message that he heard. He wept, and mourned, and he fasted, and prayed. This word was 'dabar' for Nehemiah. Dabar is a Hebrew word that means event or creative action. When Nehemiah said yes to God he answered his name which means 'Yahweh Comforts.'
When an individual is overtaken by a dabar event his/her 'ordinary' life is collasped or set aside. For instance these words are found in Jeremiah: "The words (dabar) of Jeremiah..." Jer.1:1
In Jeremiah the dabar denotes an event that happened to the prophet or it can mean a series of events that places the individual in a unique situation of unparalleled power or intensity.
Has Yahweh called you for a remarkable work? Are you fearful of stepping into the milieu of divine will? Are you hesitating because Yahweh has not revealed his complete plan to you? Are you convicted by the condition of those around you and are troubled by the broken down lives (walls) in ruin? Perhaps you are Yahweh's change agent for such persons. Has Yahweh called you to be his change agent in your community?
Blessings to you.
For more information about Dr. Rich and his teaching ministry, please follow this blog and visit his website.
Nehemiah was God's man for a difficult time and situation. Up until the time of this visit from the men of Judah Nehemiah's life was one of worldly success. He enjoyed prestige and power. There was nothing that he could not have at his disposal, and yet he had not answered his name.
This situation was changed by the visit from the delegation of Judah. Their visit would change Nehemiah's life forever.
Notice carefully that it is Nehemiah who asked the question that contained his destiny. Their answer contained compelling dialectical tension that burdened the heart of the king's cup-bearer. Nehemiah would now see that his life as he knew it was under divine suspension.
The position that he had enjoyed, and the power that he had enjoyed was for this new season in his life. Yahweh had embedded him in the king's palace, and in the king's presence for the coming strategic movement of Salvation-History regarding the walls of Jerusalem. God had embedded his man in Persian culture and when the time came for divine action to set in motion powerful political forces to do his will, Nehemiah was raised up.
The words of the group fastened upon the soul of Nehemiah, and would not release him until he was stirred into action. The report of the condition of Jerusalem and its walls were not mere social gossip. They did not travel 800 miles for a little chit chat. Their journey was burdened with a message of dire purpose, and it was specifically for Nehemiah.
They brought a message to Nehemiah that when spoken unleashed a powerful vision. The word of God was given to the man of God who intrincically knew what to do. Nehemiah grieved over the message that he heard. He wept, and mourned, and he fasted, and prayed. This word was 'dabar' for Nehemiah. Dabar is a Hebrew word that means event or creative action. When Nehemiah said yes to God he answered his name which means 'Yahweh Comforts.'
When an individual is overtaken by a dabar event his/her 'ordinary' life is collasped or set aside. For instance these words are found in Jeremiah: "The words (dabar) of Jeremiah..." Jer.1:1
In Jeremiah the dabar denotes an event that happened to the prophet or it can mean a series of events that places the individual in a unique situation of unparalleled power or intensity.
Has Yahweh called you for a remarkable work? Are you fearful of stepping into the milieu of divine will? Are you hesitating because Yahweh has not revealed his complete plan to you? Are you convicted by the condition of those around you and are troubled by the broken down lives (walls) in ruin? Perhaps you are Yahweh's change agent for such persons. Has Yahweh called you to be his change agent in your community?
Blessings to you.
For more information about Dr. Rich and his teaching ministry, please follow this blog and visit his website.
Thursday, October 25, 2012
Hold Fast
"Beware lest any man spoil you through philosophy and vain deceit, after the tradition of men, after the rudiments of the world, and not after Christ." Col. 2:8
In the 1960's a theological movement in western culture claimed that 'God is Dead.' The Time cover story of April, 1966 was entitled "Is God Dead?" and featured these words in crimson red against a black back-ground. The theologians behind this movement echoed Nietzsche's eulogy of hubris in the 'Gay Science' and proceeded to create, as it were, a theology without God. They wanted to create a post-christian theology for a post-christian world.
As I looked up some information on two of the three theologians who were at the epicenter of this movement I found that two had passed into history one of which as recently as (March 2012), and one is still alive. What is significant to me is that they caused an incredible amount of controversy in the time, and shook the faith of many, many people.
Think about all of the violence and social upheaval during that time, and how our country was at war both abroad and at home. We as a country was in the midst of an identity crisis, and we were rent asunder as a nation. We were in the midst of a cultural civil 'war' and in need of a word from on high. Instead of a word from on high the words 'God is Dead' created an epic spiritual tsunami.
During the time of Paul there were men who equally sought to overthrow the faith of others by teaching seductive lies that tantalized the soul, but did not edify or build up the latter. Paul told the saints at Colosse that they must beware of the Gnostic philosophy that taught asceticism, the worship of angels, and initiation into various levels of spiritual insight, and ultimately spiritual perfection.
Paul wanted the saints to know that not only were these teachings seductive, but they were also empty and filled with delusion. I have learned over the years that trendy theologies come and go, and those who follow them are ultimately left betrayed by the experience. Beloved believe not every spirit, but test the spirit to see if it is of God.
Paul also warned that we are to test everything, and not just some things. Watch your emotions and do not allow your emotions to lead you astray form the Iesous. Hold fast to the Iesous, and he will hold fast to you.
Your soul-life is precious, and there are those who want to steal your hope by telling you that God is Dead.
God is not dead. Mark Twain once said, "The rumors of my death have been greatly exaggerated" and let me say that the rumors of God's death have been greatly exaggerated. The Iesous said, "I am he that liveth, and was dead; and, behold, I am alive forever more, Amen; and have the keys of hell (hades) and of death." Rev.1:18
Hold fast to the Iesous, and stand off from the empty philosophy of those who want to manipulate and control you for evil ends. The Iesous has given all for you when he died on the cross. It is to our eternal benefit that we hold fast to Him. If you find that you do not have the strength to hold fast to Him ask and He will grant to you the faith to remain faithful.
Blessings to you.
For more information about Dr. Rich and his teaching ministry, please follow his blog and visit his website.
In the 1960's a theological movement in western culture claimed that 'God is Dead.' The Time cover story of April, 1966 was entitled "Is God Dead?" and featured these words in crimson red against a black back-ground. The theologians behind this movement echoed Nietzsche's eulogy of hubris in the 'Gay Science' and proceeded to create, as it were, a theology without God. They wanted to create a post-christian theology for a post-christian world.
As I looked up some information on two of the three theologians who were at the epicenter of this movement I found that two had passed into history one of which as recently as (March 2012), and one is still alive. What is significant to me is that they caused an incredible amount of controversy in the time, and shook the faith of many, many people.
Think about all of the violence and social upheaval during that time, and how our country was at war both abroad and at home. We as a country was in the midst of an identity crisis, and we were rent asunder as a nation. We were in the midst of a cultural civil 'war' and in need of a word from on high. Instead of a word from on high the words 'God is Dead' created an epic spiritual tsunami.
During the time of Paul there were men who equally sought to overthrow the faith of others by teaching seductive lies that tantalized the soul, but did not edify or build up the latter. Paul told the saints at Colosse that they must beware of the Gnostic philosophy that taught asceticism, the worship of angels, and initiation into various levels of spiritual insight, and ultimately spiritual perfection.
Paul wanted the saints to know that not only were these teachings seductive, but they were also empty and filled with delusion. I have learned over the years that trendy theologies come and go, and those who follow them are ultimately left betrayed by the experience. Beloved believe not every spirit, but test the spirit to see if it is of God.
Paul also warned that we are to test everything, and not just some things. Watch your emotions and do not allow your emotions to lead you astray form the Iesous. Hold fast to the Iesous, and he will hold fast to you.
Your soul-life is precious, and there are those who want to steal your hope by telling you that God is Dead.
God is not dead. Mark Twain once said, "The rumors of my death have been greatly exaggerated" and let me say that the rumors of God's death have been greatly exaggerated. The Iesous said, "I am he that liveth, and was dead; and, behold, I am alive forever more, Amen; and have the keys of hell (hades) and of death." Rev.1:18
Hold fast to the Iesous, and stand off from the empty philosophy of those who want to manipulate and control you for evil ends. The Iesous has given all for you when he died on the cross. It is to our eternal benefit that we hold fast to Him. If you find that you do not have the strength to hold fast to Him ask and He will grant to you the faith to remain faithful.
Blessings to you.
For more information about Dr. Rich and his teaching ministry, please follow his blog and visit his website.
Tuesday, October 23, 2012
God's Rest
"For he that is entered into his rest, he also hath ceased from his own works, as God from his." Hebrews 4:10
The writer of Hebrews has a profound knowledge of ancient Jewish history. He knew that the original Exodus generation suffered from self-induced misery because of failure to trust in the character of Yahweh in spite of incredible concrete evidence.
Yahweh provided concrete evidence through persuasive events, and situations that would allow his people to conclude that they were valued and loved. However, for some reason they were unable to consistently place trust in the character of Yahweh. Their collective 'trust' in Yahweh proved to be tenaciously anemic and distressingly episodic.
This collective attitude of unbelief in spite of the immediate support of Yahweh revealed a deeper reality at work within the community. Their action of consistent unbelief toward the Grace-action of Yahweh reveals a shallowness and arrogance that opens for us a powerful window into the psychology of groups. There was a settled and self-destructive attitude of unbelief.
Unbelief is bankrupt of hope, and without hope the soul-life is consigned to agonizing self-molestation. The people of Yahweh would not allow themselves to enter into his rest because that would not give up symbiotic idolatry.
Their symbiotic idolatry was unbelief in the character of Yahweh. Symbiotic idolatry invaded their minds and hearts, but it did not benefit them in any manner. Therefore Grace-action was lost upon them as a community. Unbelief blinded them unto death. Although, it did not appear to them that this was the case.
Their unbelief had a cumulative price. They struggled against their unbelief and did not see it. Yahweh's provisions were never enough to convincingly win them away from the silent and inward terrorism of unbelief. Their dismal practical atheism wore them out. They wallowed in self-defeat, and it culminated in radical spiritual indifference. They sacrificed appropriate obedience to Yahweh and became emotional basket-cases.
Their emotional excess was the end result of a process that germinated as suspicion and matured into the bitter fruit of unbelief. Their works (practical atheism) exhausted and demeaned them as a community. Yes, they had the Ark, the Tent of Meeting, the Furniture of the Tent of Meeting, the Priesthood, the system of Sacrifice, the Torah, etc., but their hardness of heart undermined the spiritual content of Yahweh's provisions.
They could not enter into His rest because of unbelief. The one, however, who enters into Yahweh's rest has ceased from his own works. That is, he has stopped the madness of struggling to find rest in his efforts. Success has never been enough to satisfy the thirsty soul. There has to be more than 'success.' What shall it profit a man if he gains the whole world and lose (ruin) his soul? Or what shall a man give in exchange for his soul?
The Exodus generation failed to enter into the rest of Yahweh because "...the word preached did not profit them, not being mixed with faith in them that heard it." Hebrews 4:2
The rest that Yahweh gives is sufficient for our needs. His rest sets me apart from the exhausting struggle of sinful unbelief. His rest takes up my soul fragmented by the abuses of this life, and gives me purpose (telos), and makes me whole, or a compete person.
There is rest in God that heals the sin sick whole. There is rest in God that makes me whole. The rest of God is available to you today.
Blessings to you.
For more information about Dr. Rich and his teaching ministry, please follow his blog and visit his website.
The writer of Hebrews has a profound knowledge of ancient Jewish history. He knew that the original Exodus generation suffered from self-induced misery because of failure to trust in the character of Yahweh in spite of incredible concrete evidence.
Yahweh provided concrete evidence through persuasive events, and situations that would allow his people to conclude that they were valued and loved. However, for some reason they were unable to consistently place trust in the character of Yahweh. Their collective 'trust' in Yahweh proved to be tenaciously anemic and distressingly episodic.
This collective attitude of unbelief in spite of the immediate support of Yahweh revealed a deeper reality at work within the community. Their action of consistent unbelief toward the Grace-action of Yahweh reveals a shallowness and arrogance that opens for us a powerful window into the psychology of groups. There was a settled and self-destructive attitude of unbelief.
Unbelief is bankrupt of hope, and without hope the soul-life is consigned to agonizing self-molestation. The people of Yahweh would not allow themselves to enter into his rest because that would not give up symbiotic idolatry.
Their symbiotic idolatry was unbelief in the character of Yahweh. Symbiotic idolatry invaded their minds and hearts, but it did not benefit them in any manner. Therefore Grace-action was lost upon them as a community. Unbelief blinded them unto death. Although, it did not appear to them that this was the case.
Their unbelief had a cumulative price. They struggled against their unbelief and did not see it. Yahweh's provisions were never enough to convincingly win them away from the silent and inward terrorism of unbelief. Their dismal practical atheism wore them out. They wallowed in self-defeat, and it culminated in radical spiritual indifference. They sacrificed appropriate obedience to Yahweh and became emotional basket-cases.
Their emotional excess was the end result of a process that germinated as suspicion and matured into the bitter fruit of unbelief. Their works (practical atheism) exhausted and demeaned them as a community. Yes, they had the Ark, the Tent of Meeting, the Furniture of the Tent of Meeting, the Priesthood, the system of Sacrifice, the Torah, etc., but their hardness of heart undermined the spiritual content of Yahweh's provisions.
They could not enter into His rest because of unbelief. The one, however, who enters into Yahweh's rest has ceased from his own works. That is, he has stopped the madness of struggling to find rest in his efforts. Success has never been enough to satisfy the thirsty soul. There has to be more than 'success.' What shall it profit a man if he gains the whole world and lose (ruin) his soul? Or what shall a man give in exchange for his soul?
The Exodus generation failed to enter into the rest of Yahweh because "...the word preached did not profit them, not being mixed with faith in them that heard it." Hebrews 4:2
The rest that Yahweh gives is sufficient for our needs. His rest sets me apart from the exhausting struggle of sinful unbelief. His rest takes up my soul fragmented by the abuses of this life, and gives me purpose (telos), and makes me whole, or a compete person.
There is rest in God that heals the sin sick whole. There is rest in God that makes me whole. The rest of God is available to you today.
Blessings to you.
For more information about Dr. Rich and his teaching ministry, please follow his blog and visit his website.
Sunday, October 21, 2012
Do Not Repay Evil for Evil
"Alexander the copper-smith did me much evil: the Lord reward him according to his works: of whom be thou aware also; for he hath greatly withstood our words." 2 Tim. 4:14-15
Paul's words in this verse need to be carefully considered. They are much more than an acknowledgement of some vague, and ill-defined action of someone against his person from the past. These are words of confession. The individual is named and identified, and so is his rancid behavior. Paul is not one to minimize the hurtful and demeaning power of sinful actions, and neither should we.
Alexander, whoever he was, had sinned against the person of Paul. In fact, Paul said that "Alexander did me much evil" without feeling the need to add an a pseudo-empty statement that Alexander was a nice guy. Paul was not one for torturous self-victimization. Paul knew that Alexander's actions defined who he was. There was no ambiguity here or an attempt to rationalize, or explain away the tenacious reality of Alexander's actions.
In fact, Paul's word for evil that Paul uses is 'kaka' in the Greek Text, and it is an extraordinary word that means one who is evil, or engages in malicious actions, and as such seeks to harm others. The word evil is general, and therefore subject to ambiguity, but 'kaka' both exposes the character of the individual, and the nature of the actions that are a result of the inherent nature.
Paul could have become embittered by the actions of Alexander, and allowed him to drain the energy from his powerful and prolific life, but he chose otherwise. Paul chose to name the sinful action. Naming the sinful action that someone has done to you is the beginning of healing. Naming the sinful action as confession does not turn it into inward aggression or self-destructive hostility.
Naming the sinful action whether done to you in the ancient past, or recent past, or today releases you from pent up rage and resentment. Paul has identified for us appropriate self-care, and appropriate self-therapy. In other words, Paul knew who had done what to him, and he decided not to sacrifice his spiritual balance upon the altar of unforgiveness.
Paul did not want Alexander's spiritual plague to infect his spiritual progress, and power. Paul knew that he could have allowed Alexander's actions to create a wound within his heart but he said 'No' to slavery of the spirit. If Paul had repaid Alexander 'evil for evil' he would have surrendered himself to sinful actions and behavior. Remember how King Saul treated David? Do you remember that Saul threw spears at David and tried to pin him to the wall? But David never threw a spear at Saul. David put Saul's actions toward him into the hands of God.
Paul is following David's example by saying of Alexander 'the Lord reward him according to his deeds.' This is not nonsense this is good sense. Are you being very productive and prosperous where you are? I f so, you will have an Alexander somewhere to harass you. Can I get an Amen?! Let me explain that releasing your Alexander's behavior toward you to God is not passive. It is a spiritually mature action. You have decided to choose life.
Today, beloved, if you have an Alexander seeking to undermine you choose life. This is a great mantra. "I choose life" and Alexander's action's will be upon his on head. He who digs a hole will fall into it. Choose life today. Go do something positive for God, others, and yourself today.
Pneumatikos is read throughout the world will you join us and become a member of our community?
For more information about Dr. Josiah Rich and his teaching ministry, please visit his website.
Paul's words in this verse need to be carefully considered. They are much more than an acknowledgement of some vague, and ill-defined action of someone against his person from the past. These are words of confession. The individual is named and identified, and so is his rancid behavior. Paul is not one to minimize the hurtful and demeaning power of sinful actions, and neither should we.
Alexander, whoever he was, had sinned against the person of Paul. In fact, Paul said that "Alexander did me much evil" without feeling the need to add an a pseudo-empty statement that Alexander was a nice guy. Paul was not one for torturous self-victimization. Paul knew that Alexander's actions defined who he was. There was no ambiguity here or an attempt to rationalize, or explain away the tenacious reality of Alexander's actions.
In fact, Paul's word for evil that Paul uses is 'kaka' in the Greek Text, and it is an extraordinary word that means one who is evil, or engages in malicious actions, and as such seeks to harm others. The word evil is general, and therefore subject to ambiguity, but 'kaka' both exposes the character of the individual, and the nature of the actions that are a result of the inherent nature.
Paul could have become embittered by the actions of Alexander, and allowed him to drain the energy from his powerful and prolific life, but he chose otherwise. Paul chose to name the sinful action. Naming the sinful action that someone has done to you is the beginning of healing. Naming the sinful action as confession does not turn it into inward aggression or self-destructive hostility.
Naming the sinful action whether done to you in the ancient past, or recent past, or today releases you from pent up rage and resentment. Paul has identified for us appropriate self-care, and appropriate self-therapy. In other words, Paul knew who had done what to him, and he decided not to sacrifice his spiritual balance upon the altar of unforgiveness.
Paul did not want Alexander's spiritual plague to infect his spiritual progress, and power. Paul knew that he could have allowed Alexander's actions to create a wound within his heart but he said 'No' to slavery of the spirit. If Paul had repaid Alexander 'evil for evil' he would have surrendered himself to sinful actions and behavior. Remember how King Saul treated David? Do you remember that Saul threw spears at David and tried to pin him to the wall? But David never threw a spear at Saul. David put Saul's actions toward him into the hands of God.
Paul is following David's example by saying of Alexander 'the Lord reward him according to his deeds.' This is not nonsense this is good sense. Are you being very productive and prosperous where you are? I f so, you will have an Alexander somewhere to harass you. Can I get an Amen?! Let me explain that releasing your Alexander's behavior toward you to God is not passive. It is a spiritually mature action. You have decided to choose life.
Today, beloved, if you have an Alexander seeking to undermine you choose life. This is a great mantra. "I choose life" and Alexander's action's will be upon his on head. He who digs a hole will fall into it. Choose life today. Go do something positive for God, others, and yourself today.
Pneumatikos is read throughout the world will you join us and become a member of our community?
For more information about Dr. Josiah Rich and his teaching ministry, please visit his website.
Thursday, October 18, 2012
Character Crisis
The prophet Hosea wrote these words during a time of erosion of the national character: “My people are destroyed for lack of knowledge…” Hosea 4:6
Character is a very interesting word. There is a Latin form of the word [L. character], and a Greek form of the word [charakter, from charassein, engrave]. Character is a description of the traits or qualities of a person.
I seem to remember a bellicose voice in recent political history stating that ‘character’ doesn’t matter. That was indeed a fascinating attempt to deflect and disarm the warrant of a tenacious situation. Moreover it was a specious attempt to introduce a dialectic of moral relativism into a vacuous moral dualism.
We live in a time when the national character is ‘at risk.’ The most outrageous behavior is vaporized by explanatory word formulas obnoxious with fetid compromise. We are still, however, Americans, and while our country is not perfect, it is still our country. Shadowy creatures point out our flaws as a nation, but do not consider that perhaps there might be character flaws within their own person.
What does it mean when a mirror is only held up for me to critique who I am? I believe that mirrors should be universal, and two-sided so that the one holding it up could also look at himself or herself as the case may be. Characters, mock and harangue our freedoms while seeking entrance into the body politic. They are chagrined by our collective dissent to mockery coupled with sonorous demands.
George K. Simon Jr., Ph.D., in his book entitled “In Sheep’s Clothing: Understanding and Dealing with Manipulative People” believes that we are in a ‘character crisis.’ He wrote these poignant and disturbing words:
“The drive for power, self-advancement, and dominance is in all of us to a greater or lesser degree. Unfortunately, in this land of virtually unlimited opportunity, there are growing numbers of character-distorted individuals trying to achieve these ends without doing the hard work necessary to secure them in a socially responsible and productive manner. So, we have individuals who instead of educating themselves and “fighting” fairly for a niche in the competitive marketplace, settle for violently competing with their brothers for control of the streets in their neighborhood. We also have individuals who, failing to prosper to the degree they desire in the established “system, ” ally with others in counter-culture groups, which, under the guise of commitment to some lofty ideals, wage war on the establishment…The biggest reason that our country as a whole is losing its once outstanding character is because there are fewer and fewer people of sound character inhabiting it.”
Years ago, in my community an oak tree of substantial size had fallen on the grounds of a school yard. Of course, this event took everyone by surprise, and fortunately there was no one on the school grounds at the time. Some investigation was done on the oak tree and it was discovered that while the oak tree appeared healthy on the outside, it was filled with decay on the inside.
And so it goes…, “The integrity of our society cannot be maintained if this trend continues much longer. The greatness of our nation’s character can only be determined by the degree to which its citizens develop, maintain, and display character in their daily affairs.” We must once again, as Americans, dare to standby, stand firm, and boldly proclaim the intrinsic value and power of character. Character has always been the gold standard of the American people. It has always been from the foundation of our character that we have been the universal role model for the world.
Beware of the mediocrity that heralds our stinginess while enjoying our freedoms. Let’s fight the good fight for the integrity of character together for our country. America that has given so much to all of us.
The Kiss of Betrayal
"...Iesous said unto him, 'Iouda (Judas), betrayest thou the Son of Man with a kiss?" Luke 22:48
The Iesous has continued the upper room experience on the Mount of Olives. There is an unbroken continuity between the events of the upper room and the agonizing prayer vigil. Here in the garden, his impeccable and sinless person enters into the terror of the unspeakable. Indeed, the text clearly expresses the intensity of his mindset. He was in 'agony' a word that means combat. He was in an intense spiritual battle that claimed his entire being.
The reality of the cross could be explained to no one. His prefect neurons, his soul that did not know the intrinsic power of sin-missing the mark of righteousness had produced the physiological reaction of sweat and blood as powerful witness of the internal struggle that consumed his being. After he concluded his great prayer vigil the passion door is swung open wide, and the feet of treachery step forth emboldened by the temple police and the purse of mammon at his side.
Judas drew near to the Iesous and kissed him. Betrayal is always filled with contradiction. Both the act of betrayal and the actions subsequent the discovery of betrayal are convoluted. Betrayal is a lie with a thin cloak. At some point in the past, someone said yes to a sinister design to solicit ruin for an unsuspecting individual or party. As with Judas the one who decided to become a companion to barbarous intent was seemingly close to you or intimate in some manner.
Judas walked with the Iesous for over two years, and he had heard his words, and had witnessed his deeds of power. But the mind forged shackles of betrayal that forged upon the silent anvil of acrimony and selfishness. It is the kiss that seals the completeness of treachery. The kiss of betrayal reveals the split in the heart of the betrayer. The betrayer keeps up the outer form of the relationship while knowing that he or she has destroyed the soul thereof.
It is their own self-deception and self-dissolved ways that renders them unaware that their behavior before the actual discovery of the act of betrayal had already exposed their malevolence.
Have you, perhaps, been victimized by betrayal? Are you still trying to make sense of the kiss of the betrayal? You wanted to believe that the betrayal was not so bad because after all there was the kiss. But the kiss was merely formal. It was icy because it was devoid of real love. Iesous knew that the kiss of Judas was empty, and that it was used to point him out to the temple authorities.
To this day you believe that the loved ones who betrayed you loved you. They used you in some manner, but kissed you, for your sacrifice. But you find that when they could no longer use you they abandoned you, and you could not move on in life.
Beloved do not let the kiss of betrayal cut off your life any longer. Bring all of your cares to God, for he does love you and will never abandon you. The love of God can and will heal the wounds left by the kiss of betrayal.
Blessings to you.
For more information about Dr. Rich and his teaching ministry, please follow his blog and visit his website.
The Iesous has continued the upper room experience on the Mount of Olives. There is an unbroken continuity between the events of the upper room and the agonizing prayer vigil. Here in the garden, his impeccable and sinless person enters into the terror of the unspeakable. Indeed, the text clearly expresses the intensity of his mindset. He was in 'agony' a word that means combat. He was in an intense spiritual battle that claimed his entire being.
The reality of the cross could be explained to no one. His prefect neurons, his soul that did not know the intrinsic power of sin-missing the mark of righteousness had produced the physiological reaction of sweat and blood as powerful witness of the internal struggle that consumed his being. After he concluded his great prayer vigil the passion door is swung open wide, and the feet of treachery step forth emboldened by the temple police and the purse of mammon at his side.
Judas drew near to the Iesous and kissed him. Betrayal is always filled with contradiction. Both the act of betrayal and the actions subsequent the discovery of betrayal are convoluted. Betrayal is a lie with a thin cloak. At some point in the past, someone said yes to a sinister design to solicit ruin for an unsuspecting individual or party. As with Judas the one who decided to become a companion to barbarous intent was seemingly close to you or intimate in some manner.
Judas walked with the Iesous for over two years, and he had heard his words, and had witnessed his deeds of power. But the mind forged shackles of betrayal that forged upon the silent anvil of acrimony and selfishness. It is the kiss that seals the completeness of treachery. The kiss of betrayal reveals the split in the heart of the betrayer. The betrayer keeps up the outer form of the relationship while knowing that he or she has destroyed the soul thereof.
It is their own self-deception and self-dissolved ways that renders them unaware that their behavior before the actual discovery of the act of betrayal had already exposed their malevolence.
Have you, perhaps, been victimized by betrayal? Are you still trying to make sense of the kiss of the betrayal? You wanted to believe that the betrayal was not so bad because after all there was the kiss. But the kiss was merely formal. It was icy because it was devoid of real love. Iesous knew that the kiss of Judas was empty, and that it was used to point him out to the temple authorities.
To this day you believe that the loved ones who betrayed you loved you. They used you in some manner, but kissed you, for your sacrifice. But you find that when they could no longer use you they abandoned you, and you could not move on in life.
Beloved do not let the kiss of betrayal cut off your life any longer. Bring all of your cares to God, for he does love you and will never abandon you. The love of God can and will heal the wounds left by the kiss of betrayal.
Blessings to you.
For more information about Dr. Rich and his teaching ministry, please follow his blog and visit his website.
Monday, October 15, 2012
An Intense Spiritual Enemy
"Be sober, be vigilant, because your adversary the devil, as a roaring lion, walketh about, seeking whom he may devour." I Peter 5:8
There are official or sanctioned realities that are proscribed by others as necessary or vital for our lives. However, experience and time have a way of playing at the edges of official beliefs, and even perhaps fraying our theological, and or our philosophical superstructure.
Usually when this happens it is time for us to grow up, and move on to a new level of spiritual maturity. The great theologian Abraham moved out of Ur of the Chaldees because Yahweh summoned him elsewhere. Yahweh offered him no physical map, but he led him by the spiritual map of faith. The greatest theological insights are given in this manner.
In II Kings 6:17 the prophet Elisha prays that the servant whose eyes are only limited to seeing the physical phenomena of "an army with horses and chariots... surrounded the city" may see anew with spiritual perception. "And Elisha prayed, O Lord, open his eyes so that he may see the Lord's Army" and the Lord opened the servant's eyes, and he looked and he saw the hills full of horses and chariots of fire all around Elisha." The servant was granted spiritual perception by the Lord through the prayer of Elisha. The servant could then see that God's presence was greater than the presence of the enemy.
And so it is with us today because we live in a time that has banished the real enemy to the outer boundaries of the faith. The Diabolos is less real or not real at all to our narcissistic culture. Some may not think that he is not real because they do not believe in immaterial realities. For them only what is visible is real. The enemy of our souls does not care whether or not he is seen as real because unbelief in his existence does not diminish his power to havoc the souls of people.
Peter, the wise and spiritually mature under-shepherd, tells the constantly believing ones that spiritual discretion is mandatory in the life of faith. We must also watch or be ever on guard because the Antidikos which is another name for the Diabolos is very real. As the Antidikos the Diabolos is our tenacious adversary in a lawsuit, or one who seeks to overthrow our testimony of faith. He is looking for grounds of impeachment against us. He follows us as a devoted companion gathering information for a case against us.
He desires to swallow down whole the spiritually unwary. His intent against us is cunning and sinister. Therefore we must counter his activity with a radical devotion to the appropriation of the Word of God. The intake and metabolism of the truth is the consummate weapon of our warfare. On the other hand, those who do not will find themselves causalities in the war for our souls. Their lives will be characterized by passive mediocrity. They will have little or no strength to fight the good fight of faith. They will depend upon mere shallow outward conformity while inside their souls they are in a state of present conflict.
I say these things in love and truth because the Diabolos is not seeking to take prisoners of war. He is walking about as a roaring lion seeking those who he may swallow down whole. Get serious about your spiritual life. Be on guard for our intense spiritual enemy-Diabolos.
Blessings to you.
For more information about Dr. Rich and his teaching ministry please follow his blog and visit his website.
There are official or sanctioned realities that are proscribed by others as necessary or vital for our lives. However, experience and time have a way of playing at the edges of official beliefs, and even perhaps fraying our theological, and or our philosophical superstructure.
Usually when this happens it is time for us to grow up, and move on to a new level of spiritual maturity. The great theologian Abraham moved out of Ur of the Chaldees because Yahweh summoned him elsewhere. Yahweh offered him no physical map, but he led him by the spiritual map of faith. The greatest theological insights are given in this manner.
In II Kings 6:17 the prophet Elisha prays that the servant whose eyes are only limited to seeing the physical phenomena of "an army with horses and chariots... surrounded the city" may see anew with spiritual perception. "And Elisha prayed, O Lord, open his eyes so that he may see the Lord's Army" and the Lord opened the servant's eyes, and he looked and he saw the hills full of horses and chariots of fire all around Elisha." The servant was granted spiritual perception by the Lord through the prayer of Elisha. The servant could then see that God's presence was greater than the presence of the enemy.
And so it is with us today because we live in a time that has banished the real enemy to the outer boundaries of the faith. The Diabolos is less real or not real at all to our narcissistic culture. Some may not think that he is not real because they do not believe in immaterial realities. For them only what is visible is real. The enemy of our souls does not care whether or not he is seen as real because unbelief in his existence does not diminish his power to havoc the souls of people.
Peter, the wise and spiritually mature under-shepherd, tells the constantly believing ones that spiritual discretion is mandatory in the life of faith. We must also watch or be ever on guard because the Antidikos which is another name for the Diabolos is very real. As the Antidikos the Diabolos is our tenacious adversary in a lawsuit, or one who seeks to overthrow our testimony of faith. He is looking for grounds of impeachment against us. He follows us as a devoted companion gathering information for a case against us.
He desires to swallow down whole the spiritually unwary. His intent against us is cunning and sinister. Therefore we must counter his activity with a radical devotion to the appropriation of the Word of God. The intake and metabolism of the truth is the consummate weapon of our warfare. On the other hand, those who do not will find themselves causalities in the war for our souls. Their lives will be characterized by passive mediocrity. They will have little or no strength to fight the good fight of faith. They will depend upon mere shallow outward conformity while inside their souls they are in a state of present conflict.
I say these things in love and truth because the Diabolos is not seeking to take prisoners of war. He is walking about as a roaring lion seeking those who he may swallow down whole. Get serious about your spiritual life. Be on guard for our intense spiritual enemy-Diabolos.
Blessings to you.
For more information about Dr. Rich and his teaching ministry please follow his blog and visit his website.
Thursday, October 11, 2012
The Object of Biblical Mindfulness Meditation (Iesous)
"Looking unto Iesous the author and finisher of our faith: who for the joy that was set before him endured the cross, despising the shame, and is set down on the right hand of the throne of God." Heb. 12:20
There is an intrinsic demarcation between the constantly believing ones and the cosmos-world. It is due to the reality of a vital relationship with God. I say vital relationship with God because it is in fact a living, organic, and dynamic relationship that we possess. One can possess a vital relationship with God despite one's circumstances. (Read Job)
Circumstances are powerful experiences whether good or bad as subjectively evaluated. The writer to the Hebrews knew that adversity can be a compelling witness of the seal of God in our hearts. This seal is not visible to us and, we are not conscious of its presence, but it is there in our hearts.
We must lay aside every weight and the sin that doth easily beset us, and run with endurance the race that is set before us. We have need of endurance. We know that this race is not given to the swift and neither is it given to the strong. Indeed, it is given to those who submit to the lessons of divinely allowed trials. These trials teach us to leverage the resources of God.
The greatest resource of God is the person of Iesous. The divinely tested character of Iesous is our archetype of endurance. We must learn to maintain a protracted gaze upon the person of the Iesous. This is a prescription for our spiritual well-being.
Remember, beloved when Peter wanted to step out of the boat and walk to Iesou he was not told that this was impossible. On the contrary, he was told "Come" and he moved out of the boat by faith. Iesous is the object and content of biblical mindfulness meditation. He is the Parakletos or the Comfortis for the believer. He is the Strong One who comes along side of the threatening circumstances and me. He encourages me in may trials. He walks with me in the fiery furnace of affliction, and I emerge therefrom without the evidence of being fire-scorched, and neither is there the distinctive smell of smoke upon my garments. I am more than a survivor, I am a super-conqueror through Iesous. Get to know your Savior. Get to know Iesous.
Peter's protracted gaze upon Iesous enabled him to walk by faith and, not by sight. We will be tested by storms, but we have God to strengthen and encourage us within the storms. It is when Peter took his gaze off of the Iesous, and tapped into the 'impossible lobe' of his mind that he began to sink into the watery abyss.
Looking to the Iesous heals my doubt and irresolute ways, therefore changes my character to be more like Him. Remember, we become what we behold.
Blessings to you.
For more information about Dr. Rich and his teaching ministry, please follow his blog and visit his website.
There is an intrinsic demarcation between the constantly believing ones and the cosmos-world. It is due to the reality of a vital relationship with God. I say vital relationship with God because it is in fact a living, organic, and dynamic relationship that we possess. One can possess a vital relationship with God despite one's circumstances. (Read Job)
Circumstances are powerful experiences whether good or bad as subjectively evaluated. The writer to the Hebrews knew that adversity can be a compelling witness of the seal of God in our hearts. This seal is not visible to us and, we are not conscious of its presence, but it is there in our hearts.
We must lay aside every weight and the sin that doth easily beset us, and run with endurance the race that is set before us. We have need of endurance. We know that this race is not given to the swift and neither is it given to the strong. Indeed, it is given to those who submit to the lessons of divinely allowed trials. These trials teach us to leverage the resources of God.
The greatest resource of God is the person of Iesous. The divinely tested character of Iesous is our archetype of endurance. We must learn to maintain a protracted gaze upon the person of the Iesous. This is a prescription for our spiritual well-being.
Remember, beloved when Peter wanted to step out of the boat and walk to Iesou he was not told that this was impossible. On the contrary, he was told "Come" and he moved out of the boat by faith. Iesous is the object and content of biblical mindfulness meditation. He is the Parakletos or the Comfortis for the believer. He is the Strong One who comes along side of the threatening circumstances and me. He encourages me in may trials. He walks with me in the fiery furnace of affliction, and I emerge therefrom without the evidence of being fire-scorched, and neither is there the distinctive smell of smoke upon my garments. I am more than a survivor, I am a super-conqueror through Iesous. Get to know your Savior. Get to know Iesous.
Peter's protracted gaze upon Iesous enabled him to walk by faith and, not by sight. We will be tested by storms, but we have God to strengthen and encourage us within the storms. It is when Peter took his gaze off of the Iesous, and tapped into the 'impossible lobe' of his mind that he began to sink into the watery abyss.
Looking to the Iesous heals my doubt and irresolute ways, therefore changes my character to be more like Him. Remember, we become what we behold.
Blessings to you.
For more information about Dr. Rich and his teaching ministry, please follow his blog and visit his website.
Tuesday, October 9, 2012
Don't Give Up
"And let us not be weary in well doing: for in due season we shall reap if we faint not." Galatians 6:9
The standard Pauline approach is to elucidate doctrine, and then establish the ethical conduct that should flow from it. The Galatian believing ones had been under fierce assault from those who sought to teach them an erroneous, both/and, gospel in radical contrast to the uncompromising, either/or, teaching of Paul. There is no dialectical formula to the Gospel.
The battle for spiritual integrity is hard. The battle for spiritual fidelity can result in the 'Shaking of the Foundations.'
The enemy of our Faith will sometimes press upon you very reasonable and sensible suggestions why it is understandable under the circumstances that you should quit. People will understand, after all they have witnesses your great struggle for the Faith. When we desire to quit our minds can conjure up any number of reasons to quit the journey.
We were never promised that the journey would be easy or without treachery. Our hearts may long for the comforting illusion of the so-called comfort zone. We must remember that our comfort zone is no where on this earth, it is in Iesous. Paul knew this as the controlling dynamic of his life. Conflict in this world makes us desire the comfort of our real home. We are not out of the cosmos-world as a source.
Do not quit. I say this to you as one who has been tempted to quit, and find other less demanding and financially more rewarding work. I don't have to tell many of you of the powerful darkness that can sometimes demand surrender or at least compromise. "Its ok to compromise," some say to you. "God understands" the power of the flesh, or "don't be so extreme."
Paul wants us to realize that we must stand firm in the midst of the conflict. We are sometimes brought upon the world stage for ridicule and reproach. There are times when we may be tempted to feel shame for a situation that has come suddenly into our lives. Stand firm beloved, and do not lose heart or faint away. The trial of your Faith is precious before Iesou.
Be assured that we shall reap a great reward if we do not give up, and leave the battle field. Most certainly real ministry is thankless, and filled with hurt. In due season we shall reap if we do not give up.
What are you facing today that has you thinking that the struggle is too hard? Who is asking you to compromise your marriage or relationship with God? Who has compromised you, and made you feel that you cannot get back to God? Remember that the Good Shepherd leaves the ninety-nine sheep and goes after the one that went astray.
We have within us the resurrection power of Iesous to provide us with the strength that we need to persevere through trials and charge on to victory. Before you give up, look up. Stand fast beloved and watch the salvation of the Lord. He will renew within you a right spirit.
Blessings to you.
For more information about Dr. Rich and his teaching ministry, please follow his blog and visit his website.
The standard Pauline approach is to elucidate doctrine, and then establish the ethical conduct that should flow from it. The Galatian believing ones had been under fierce assault from those who sought to teach them an erroneous, both/and, gospel in radical contrast to the uncompromising, either/or, teaching of Paul. There is no dialectical formula to the Gospel.
The battle for spiritual integrity is hard. The battle for spiritual fidelity can result in the 'Shaking of the Foundations.'
The enemy of our Faith will sometimes press upon you very reasonable and sensible suggestions why it is understandable under the circumstances that you should quit. People will understand, after all they have witnesses your great struggle for the Faith. When we desire to quit our minds can conjure up any number of reasons to quit the journey.
We were never promised that the journey would be easy or without treachery. Our hearts may long for the comforting illusion of the so-called comfort zone. We must remember that our comfort zone is no where on this earth, it is in Iesous. Paul knew this as the controlling dynamic of his life. Conflict in this world makes us desire the comfort of our real home. We are not out of the cosmos-world as a source.
Do not quit. I say this to you as one who has been tempted to quit, and find other less demanding and financially more rewarding work. I don't have to tell many of you of the powerful darkness that can sometimes demand surrender or at least compromise. "Its ok to compromise," some say to you. "God understands" the power of the flesh, or "don't be so extreme."
Paul wants us to realize that we must stand firm in the midst of the conflict. We are sometimes brought upon the world stage for ridicule and reproach. There are times when we may be tempted to feel shame for a situation that has come suddenly into our lives. Stand firm beloved, and do not lose heart or faint away. The trial of your Faith is precious before Iesou.
Be assured that we shall reap a great reward if we do not give up, and leave the battle field. Most certainly real ministry is thankless, and filled with hurt. In due season we shall reap if we do not give up.
What are you facing today that has you thinking that the struggle is too hard? Who is asking you to compromise your marriage or relationship with God? Who has compromised you, and made you feel that you cannot get back to God? Remember that the Good Shepherd leaves the ninety-nine sheep and goes after the one that went astray.
We have within us the resurrection power of Iesous to provide us with the strength that we need to persevere through trials and charge on to victory. Before you give up, look up. Stand fast beloved and watch the salvation of the Lord. He will renew within you a right spirit.
Blessings to you.
For more information about Dr. Rich and his teaching ministry, please follow his blog and visit his website.
Thursday, October 4, 2012
Iesous 'Smears Over' My Disquieting Thoughts (Anxiety)
"When anxiety was great within me, your consolation brought joy to my soul." Psalm 94:19
At a recent meeting with clinical chaplains one of them, a man that is close to my heart was in attendance. This wonderful man was an attorney in his former life, but now he is ministry. He had lost his wife to cancer about 5 years ago. He is still grieving his loss, but he is also thankful that he had her in his life all those years. He loved her so very much, and the feeling of being blessed that she had chosen him as her life partner was a constant source of amazement to him. He misses her greatly. He has a close relative who has been diagnosed with cancer, and he has anxiety over the outcome of this situation.
A member of my family is in the midst of trouble. She is one of the greatest treasures of my life. I know that he knows this to be true, but she seems to be running from herself. An unfortunate relationship has left her "a day and a night in the deep" and she is kept from sinking into the deep by God. I bear anxiety over this situation, and He is keeping me too.
A dear friend of our family was diagnosed with cancer and she was also pregnant. She was told that she had to give up the baby in order to save her life. She said no to giving up the baby and they waited as long as they could so that the baby could be near as possible to full term. We had collective anxiety over this situation. We prayed fervently that God would move in the midst of this situation and bless. He answered our prayers. She delivered a health baby, and then started the other treatment protocol. It is now several years later, and she is doing well, and her son is doing well too. God is good to us.
The poet of this psalm is no stranger to what we experience. He knew the power of anxiety to control our lives. Anxiety has been defined as, fearful concern, uneasiness, and apprehension. The poet said that he experienced disquieting thoughts, and he found himself floundering in uncertainty. He could not get control over the threatening witness of his thoughts. Fear had taken root in his heart, and he could not get free.
He therefore turned to God and found in Him the source of consolation that he so desperately needed. The word 'consolation' in our text means to stroke, and God did this for the poet, and not only did God stroke the beleaguered poet with merciful concern and love HE also renewed his soul with delight.
This word 'delight' is a powerful tool because it means to 'smear over, to smear the eyes shut.' God smears over the weary eyes of my soul with His healing and restorative balm so that I might see Him. God enters into my tenacious anxiety and smears His peace over my soul.
Beloved, do you need God to relieve you of some dogged and persistent anxiety today. Seek Him out in prayer. Ask and you shall receive, seek and you will find, knock and the door will be opened. Blessings to you.
For more information about Dr. Rich and his teaching ministry, please follow his blog and visit his website.
At a recent meeting with clinical chaplains one of them, a man that is close to my heart was in attendance. This wonderful man was an attorney in his former life, but now he is ministry. He had lost his wife to cancer about 5 years ago. He is still grieving his loss, but he is also thankful that he had her in his life all those years. He loved her so very much, and the feeling of being blessed that she had chosen him as her life partner was a constant source of amazement to him. He misses her greatly. He has a close relative who has been diagnosed with cancer, and he has anxiety over the outcome of this situation.
A member of my family is in the midst of trouble. She is one of the greatest treasures of my life. I know that he knows this to be true, but she seems to be running from herself. An unfortunate relationship has left her "a day and a night in the deep" and she is kept from sinking into the deep by God. I bear anxiety over this situation, and He is keeping me too.
A dear friend of our family was diagnosed with cancer and she was also pregnant. She was told that she had to give up the baby in order to save her life. She said no to giving up the baby and they waited as long as they could so that the baby could be near as possible to full term. We had collective anxiety over this situation. We prayed fervently that God would move in the midst of this situation and bless. He answered our prayers. She delivered a health baby, and then started the other treatment protocol. It is now several years later, and she is doing well, and her son is doing well too. God is good to us.
The poet of this psalm is no stranger to what we experience. He knew the power of anxiety to control our lives. Anxiety has been defined as, fearful concern, uneasiness, and apprehension. The poet said that he experienced disquieting thoughts, and he found himself floundering in uncertainty. He could not get control over the threatening witness of his thoughts. Fear had taken root in his heart, and he could not get free.
He therefore turned to God and found in Him the source of consolation that he so desperately needed. The word 'consolation' in our text means to stroke, and God did this for the poet, and not only did God stroke the beleaguered poet with merciful concern and love HE also renewed his soul with delight.
This word 'delight' is a powerful tool because it means to 'smear over, to smear the eyes shut.' God smears over the weary eyes of my soul with His healing and restorative balm so that I might see Him. God enters into my tenacious anxiety and smears His peace over my soul.
Beloved, do you need God to relieve you of some dogged and persistent anxiety today. Seek Him out in prayer. Ask and you shall receive, seek and you will find, knock and the door will be opened. Blessings to you.
For more information about Dr. Rich and his teaching ministry, please follow his blog and visit his website.
Tuesday, October 2, 2012
No Night There
"And the gates of it shall not be shut at all by day: for there shall be no night there." Rev. 21:25
The apocalyptic vision of John is filled with conflict and hope. He has written the great document called the 'Revelation' in order to comfort harassed believing ones who have experienced formidable persecution because of their Faith.
The God who cannot lie gave this series of visions to John that he may know that the great "LIE" of unaccountable human autonomy will wear out.
The lie, the great lie that started in Gan-Eden, and the subsequent history of the rise and fall of so many civilizations founded on tenacious hubris. At the end of man-centered history the intrinsic darkness thereof was caused to cease by divine fiat. The Light shined into the darkness and the darkness the was not powerful to overtake it.
The word for darkness in the Greek Text is 'skotia' and it means the consequences of darkness. This is the essence of the matter for John. His theology is characterized by contrast and dichotomy. Light verses darkness, life verses death, eternal life verses eternal death nothing is ever given over to doubt. God cannot lie, therefore his word is always trustworthy.
The malignant power of darkness has sank into the abyss from which it emerged. The powers of darkness are overcome by the Wrath of the Lamb. I've always marveled over those words 'The Wrath of the Lamb.' Even the Psalmist-Poet wrote that 'He that sits in the heavens laughs' at the insistent and feeble rhetoric of men who believe contrary to commonsense evidence that independent of God he may live forever. The ingrained lie is not easily removed-it is in fact the primal idolatry.
John can see that the day of darkness is gone and the Day of God is here, and all of the Universe is relieved of the stress of man's imposed rule. The sacred space now extends to all of the universe. God is ALL in All and the removal of human power and oppression is greeted by inexpressible joy by the redeemed of the Lord. Fear has been consigned to the flames of woe-everlastingly so. MAD or mutually assured destruction will be a forgotten story. This was all once upon a time. Now, however, the Iesous reigns in glory.
God shall wipe away all tears. Amen.
For more information about Dr. Rich and his teaching ministry, please follow his blog and visit his website.
The apocalyptic vision of John is filled with conflict and hope. He has written the great document called the 'Revelation' in order to comfort harassed believing ones who have experienced formidable persecution because of their Faith.
The God who cannot lie gave this series of visions to John that he may know that the great "LIE" of unaccountable human autonomy will wear out.
The lie, the great lie that started in Gan-Eden, and the subsequent history of the rise and fall of so many civilizations founded on tenacious hubris. At the end of man-centered history the intrinsic darkness thereof was caused to cease by divine fiat. The Light shined into the darkness and the darkness the was not powerful to overtake it.
The word for darkness in the Greek Text is 'skotia' and it means the consequences of darkness. This is the essence of the matter for John. His theology is characterized by contrast and dichotomy. Light verses darkness, life verses death, eternal life verses eternal death nothing is ever given over to doubt. God cannot lie, therefore his word is always trustworthy.
The malignant power of darkness has sank into the abyss from which it emerged. The powers of darkness are overcome by the Wrath of the Lamb. I've always marveled over those words 'The Wrath of the Lamb.' Even the Psalmist-Poet wrote that 'He that sits in the heavens laughs' at the insistent and feeble rhetoric of men who believe contrary to commonsense evidence that independent of God he may live forever. The ingrained lie is not easily removed-it is in fact the primal idolatry.
John can see that the day of darkness is gone and the Day of God is here, and all of the Universe is relieved of the stress of man's imposed rule. The sacred space now extends to all of the universe. God is ALL in All and the removal of human power and oppression is greeted by inexpressible joy by the redeemed of the Lord. Fear has been consigned to the flames of woe-everlastingly so. MAD or mutually assured destruction will be a forgotten story. This was all once upon a time. Now, however, the Iesous reigns in glory.
God shall wipe away all tears. Amen.
For more information about Dr. Rich and his teaching ministry, please follow his blog and visit his website.
Monday, October 1, 2012
Doublethink: The Institutionalization of Sexual Harassment
I have received training as a Sexual Assault Victim Counselor and Advocate in accordance with the Governor’s Office of Emergency Services and in compliance with Evidence Code 1035.2 of the State of California. During one training session the assistant DA told us of a case in which a young man was brought to trial for sexual assault upon a minor female. There was an incredible amount of evidence presented in the trial by the assistant DA, and other evidence that was not admitted by the judge in the case.
In spite of the evidence, the jury unanimously voted the young man not guilty. After the trial, the jury waited in the hallway, and gave ‘high fives’ to the individual who opportunistically took advantage of a minor female who must not only bear the indelible wound of the sexual assault, but who must also carry the reality of the insult to her person dealt out by the system that was suppose to protect her rights.
In an article entitled “Ending Men’s Violence Against Women” Ted Bunch said, ” The U.S. Department of Justice reports that men will rape 1 out of 6 women and commit more that 300,000 acts of rape and sexual assault every year. It is estimated that 84% of rape and sexual assault goes unreported. In addition, more than 80% of those women and girls will be under the age of 25. It is a fact that more than 3 out of 4 rapists will know the women they rape. Men are responsible for a multi-billion dollar industry that supports and promotes the commercial sexual exploitation, enslavement, and trafficking of women. The overwhelming majority of the men that do enter the criminal justice system do not experience prosecution and the small percentages that are prosecuted receive little or no penalty.”
This blog in entitled Doublethink because it is a term that adequately depicts our current situation. Doublethink is a term that I learned from a book called ‘Soul Murder’ by Leonard Shengold, M.D., in which he discusses the nightmarish nature of child abuse with clinical insight and prophetic power. Doublethink means the ability to hold two contradictory beliefs at the same time, and affirm both without conscious tension.
Our culture has mastered this psychic split as manifested in laws that decry the sexual exploitation and abuse of persons, and yet under free speech support the rights of those who publish materials that portray horrific images of persons being hurled into the abyss of moral ruin for the ‘pleasure’ of others.
There is little if any realization that such malevolent intrigue and preposterous behavior may go on indefinitely. Our universe, such as we know of it is organic. It is not merely composed of physic-chemical forces. It has an intrinsic ethos that is self-correcting. The belief in a moral continuum that allows for unrestrained moral license protected by the arcane reasoning of legal fiction will some day collapse under the weight of its own frightful misdeeds.
In the editor’s introduction to ‘The Grand Inquisitor’ these words are found speaking of the cardinal in the book: ” He suffers from the very deception the he has to practice.” So it is with those who fantastically believe that they may reduce others to mere objects and not walk away grandly lacking what they have stolen from others-’Soul Murder’ is a mutual affair.
For more information about Dr. Rich and his teaching ministry, please follow his blog and visit his website.
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