At then end of Luke 11, Jesus pronounces two more “woes” on the religious leaders of Israel. He rebukes them for building tombs or shrines for the prophets that their fathers had killed and then for taking away the key of knowledge so that others were hindered from entering in to the kingdom of God.

The first rebuke is repeated in other places in the gospels and carries the idea once again of blatant hypocrisy on the part of the Pharisees and scribes.  Their fathers had consistently rejected the prophets that God had sent to Israel and eventually murdered many of them to silence their calls to repentance.  In the generation of Jesus, the religious leaders were building shrines over the tombs of those slain prophets.  The implied message was that the Pharisees and scribes approved of God’s prophets and would not have done what their fathers did if they had been in their place.   However, Jesus knew their hearts. These same men had already rejected the teachings of John the Baptist and were rejecting the teachings of Jesus. In a short while they would have Jesus put to death just as their fathers had done to the other prophets God had sent.

The second rebuke accused them of distorting the meaning of scripture so much that they could not recognize the Messiah when he stood in front of them and by their teaching had prevented many others from seeing the truth and understanding God’s word as well. Because they had distorted God’s word, many whom they had taught would not enter the kingdom because they would not see Jesus for who he was.  These two remaining “woes” seem like distant warnings that have no application to us today but there are warnings imbedded in these last woes for us as well.

The question has always been why did the leaders of Israel reject the prophets when they came and why did they come to hate them so much that they had most of them killed to silence their rebukes?  I believe most of the reason rests in the human traits of pride and materialism.  Pride refuses to acknowledge error and wrongdoing.  When the prophets came to Israel they were always coming to call the nation to repentance because they had rejected the word of God and fallen into all kinds of sin including idolatry. When a nation is in error it is because it’s leaders have set the tone and led the way.  To receive the prophets rebuke would have meant acknowledging sin and error on their parts and they were not willing to admit their failures.  Rather than repenting, they claimed that God’s prophets were liars and heretics and eventually silenced many,

Materialism went hand in hand with pride because the leaders were living the good life.  They lived off the taxes of the people and spent their days circulating with the rich and powerful. When you reach a place of privilege you become invested in the status quo. You like the way things are and turn a deaf ear to those calling for reform.  Not only that but many religious individuals in places of privilege see their power and affluence as God’s seal of approval on their lives.  When prophets show up declaring that their spirituality is a sham, that they need to repent, and that judgment is in the pipeline….it’s not a message that is welcomed by the religious or political establishment.  Additionally, we can all fall into the trap of interpreting scripture in a way that justifies our own views and lifestyles and that condemns those who do not agree with us.

Eventually, those leaders who postured as those who loved and honored the prophets and who faithfully opened up God’s word to his people killed Jesus and persecuted the church.  They were so certain of themselves that even the miracles of Jesus and those who followed him would not open their eyes.  Pride refuses to ask, “Have I been wrong?”  The love of money and the praise of men refuse to consider their error and to repent because it might require walking away from the good life or losing their membership card to the upper rungs of society. These leaders truly chose riches in this world over riches in the next world.  They chose the pleasure of power and the praise of men over the applause of heaven.  The scary thing is that they did not seem to recognize what they were doing.

What then are the lessons for us? First of all we must always be aware that it is possible to be wrong and possible to be deceived by the flesh and the enemy.  Because of that we should constantly be asking the Spirit of God to lead us into all truth and to continue to give us hearts that will receive correction and be quick to repent.  We should sincerely ask for accountability in our lives and seek out faithful Christians who will tell us the truth.  We should even listen to our spouse who knows us better than anyone and to our enemies who may say some things we need to hear. When we are placed in positions of power and privilege we must monitor our hearts more than ever and invite accountability from spiritual people who have the character to offer course corrections when needed.

Ultimately, loving God, setting our mind on eternal things, and maintaining a heart of humility are the  great safeguards. If we want God to speak to us and work though us in powerful ways, we must always be open to the leading of the Spirit and the course corrections he brings to us each day.  Making small corrections each day is much easier than having to turn the ship 180 degrees and making up for lost time and opportunities. As I said yesterday, there is a little Pharisee in each of us so we must always guard against a tendency to ward pride and self-justification. But in doing so, we will be blessed!

Woe to you, because you are like unmarked graves, which men walk over without knowing it.” One of the experts in the law answered him, “Teacher, when you say these things, you insult us also.” Jesus replied, “And you experts in the law, woe to you, because you load people down with burdens they can hardly carry, and you yourselves will not lift one finger to help them. (Lk.11:44-46)

In this chapter of the gospel of Luke Jesus continues to pronounce warnings and a call to repentance to the religious leaders of Israel. Jesus offers up a pointed description of these leaders by comparing them to unmarked graves that men step on without knowing what they have done.  The Jewish law pronounced anyone unclean who had come into contact with a dead animal or a dead human.  Death was connected with sin because that was the primary consequence of Adam’s sin.  After contact with the dead, an Israelite had to go though a period of separation and cleansing rituals to enter the community again or before coming into the temple area.  A Jew who stepped on an unmarked grave was suddenly unclean or defiled without knowing it.

In this section of Luke 11 Jesus pronounces a warning over these spiritual leaders because their hypocrisy not only was the antithesis of true spirituality but it also spiritually defiled those with whom they had contact.   In Matthew 16, Jesus warned his disciples to “beware of the yeast of the Pharisees and Sadducees” which was their teachings. Once again, these men looked spiritual and holy on the outside but on the inside they were full of greed, deceit, envy, and pride.  They were spiritually dead on the inside while having an appearance of godliness on the outside.  If that duplicity had affected only them it would have been enough for a warning but it also influenced others.

Those who came into contact with these Pharisees and these other experts in the law were defiled by their teachings.  These leaders had missed the whole point of the Law.  The function of the Law had never been to save a man through works but to convince a man that he could never do enough on his own to merit salvation. Paul tells in Galatians that the Law was a schoolmaster that was designed to point us to Christ. Every sacrifice for sin at the temple pictured the death of an innocent for the sins of another.  The Law, if understood correctly, underlined the need for a Savior because there was no end to the blood of bulls and goats.  Those sacrifices had to be offered perpetually. It was like a cancer treatment that could hold the cancer in check but never really cure it so that drugs have to be administered perpetually. When a person has been cured, treatments are no longer required. The blood of Christ was the cure – one sacrifice for all time.

The trouble with the teachings of the Pharisees was that it missed the point.  They kept the emphasis on what man could do rather than what God could do. Not only did they preach a meticulous keeping of the Law but they also added many of their own laws which made the burden even greater.  On top of that, Law keeping for salvation’s sake becomes a test.  Who does enough or who keeps the Law well enough to win salvation? If only the top 10% get into heaven, then you better make sure you are part of the top ten.  Because man, in his fallen state, cannot change the heart, the religious leaders of Israel disregarded the heart and emphasized what could be done in the flesh.  So they did mountains of religious things and in doing so developed a deep sense of self-righteousness and arrogance along with a profound disdain of the “unreligious.”  If your salvation depends on your personal righteousness, then you better see yourself as righteous or you won’t be able to live with the condemnation you feel. Many Christians are still burdened with condemnation because they too have a sense that their salvation is based on their worthiness rather than Christ’s.

The ordinary man who encountered these Pharisees would not only leave that encounter with the impression that God approved of pride and arrogance and a hunger for the praise of men but would also with a sense of condemnation about his own condition. Both of those responses imparted death rather than life. Right or wrong, most people look at believers and, especially, leaders in the church as an accurate representation of both God and his standards through our actions, attitudes and teaching.

Those who have no experience with the Father will assume that we represent Jesus and all that he stands for because we are their only experience with God.  They will not only assume that we represent the Lord accurately but if they are drawn to the Father they will begin to emulate our attitudes and behaviors because they will assume that we are what God wants us to be.  If we are, in fact, what the Father wants us to be then we will impart life to those who encounter us.  If we are far from what the Father wants us to be then we will impart death…as if they had stepped on a grave.

Here is what the Pharisees missed:

• God looks at the heart of a man not his appearance and certainly not the “appearance of godliness.”
• Salvation comes through no righteousness of our own but only through the grace of God.
• We don’t need a judge who keeps score of our “righteous acts” but a Savior who saves us from our sinful acts.
• God is not interested in ritual but in relationship. Religion in the sense of law keeping and rituals actually turns us away from the heart of God because it places the emphasis on us and what we can do rather than on him.

Jesus said to watch out for the yeast of the Pharisees.  Here is the thing. We all have a little Pharisee in us because our flesh or natural man leans in that direction.  At Passover the Jews had to purge their houses of all leaven and we need to do the same from time to time by scanning our own hearts for religious pretense, self-righteousness, self-sufficiency, and any disdain we find for the “unreligious.”  If you think about it, Jesus apparently felt more at home with the “unreligious” than with the “religious” of his day.  I’m sure he still feels the same way. That’s something to think about. Be blessed today.

As we continue our walk through Luke 11 and the sorrows Jesus pronounced over the Pharisees we need to continue to check our own hearts to see where we stand with the Lord in these areas of faith.

The Second Woe

“Woe to you Pharisees, because you love the most important seats in the synagogues and greetings in the marketplaces  (Luke 11:43).

Again, we need to remember that when Jesus said “Woe” he wasn’t pronouncing a curse but more of a warning for impending sorrow and even destruction if their hearts were not realigned with the Father’s heart.  The diagnosis given by the great physician here was that these men who presumably loved God, loved the admiration of men even more.  Jesus spoke to that issue on numerous occasions.

Beware of the teachers of the law. They like to walk around in flowing robes and love to be greeted in the marketplaces and have the most important seats in the synagogues and the places of honor at banquets (Luke 20:46).  Everything they do is done for men to see: They make their phylacteries wide and the tassels on their garments long; they love the place of honor at banquets and the most important seats in the synagogues; they love to be greeted in the marketplaces and to have men call them ‘Rabbi.’ (Mt.23:5-7).

In the Kingdom of God motives matter.  These religious leaders were more motivated by the praise of men than the praise of God.  It’s not that they weren’t doing good things.  They were certainly solid citizens who lived moral lives and frequented the synagogues and temple on every occasion.  More than likely they gave generously to the temple and even gave alms to the poor. But Jesus nailed them on their motives for doing good things – “Everything they do is done for men to see.”

The Achilles heal of these religious leaders was that they wanted to fit in.  They wanted to be well thought of.  They wanted status and standing and invitations to the best events.  In a sense, they assumed that if they were pleasing to men and if they were given the most honored seats at the table then they must be pleasing to God as well. Without knowing it, they gravitated to the desires of the flesh and in doing so became insensitive to God’s leading.  Ultimately, their desire for the praise of those closest around them eventually moved them into a compromised position with the culture at large.  In order to maintain their standing among men – which included fine houses, fine clothes, and invitations to state events – they became politically correct in their proclamations and even in their theological positions.

Undoubtedly they justified their compromise with the thought that they had to meet the Romans halfway in order to stay in their leadership roles and they could only protect the faith and the faithful by continuing in their positions as leaders. They could only cash in on their political and business connections for the “sake of the church” if they continued to move in those favored and powerful circles.  In the end, they crucified Jesus for those very reasons.

Jesus is clear that man cannot serve two masters.  We cannot be friends with the world and friends with God. There will be many times when we can’t please both men and God – we will have to choose and the choice is the thing. John tells us that, “among the chief rulers also many believed on him; but because of the Pharisees they did not confess him, lest they should be put out of the synagogue:  For they loved the praise of men more than the praise of God” (Jn.12:42-43).

In our own hearts it is easy to slip into compromise with the world for the sake of getting along and even for the sake of maintaining relationships. Jesus does not ask us to go around picking fights with everyone and everything that doesn’t line up with the Bible. What he does ask is that in our own hearts we make the decision that when forced to choose, we will always choose Jesus and be obedient to him even when that choice will cost us favor at work, potentially damage friendship, or even a end a romantic relationship if you are single.

We have entered an era in America when Biblical Christianity is not popular or acceptable in many circles…even among many who claim to follow Christ.  In our culture, declaring that Jesus is the only way to heaven rather than one of many ways will place you in the camp of the intolerant.  To stand in a classroom and make a case for creationism will place you in the camp of the ignorant. To take a stand against abortion will cast you in the role of the oppressor trying to take away the sacred rights of women.  To speak out against homosexuality will define you as an opponent of civil rights and since you oppose civil rights you must also be a racist.  In the face of cultural condemnation we will, like numerous politicians, be tempted to compromise or water down our statements to avoid offense.  We will be tempted to speak in generalities and talk around clear biblical truth.

At each of those moments we will simply have to make a decision – will we seek the praise of men or the praise of God?  If you want the grace and the power of God to flow through you then check the biblical record.  God worked in powerful ways for and through those men and women who would not compromise with the world or bow the knee to the idols that kings had commanded them to worship.  Moses, Shadrach, Meshach, Abednego, Daniel, the prophets, and the apostles were all politically incorrect and inevitably placed themselves at odds with the culture they were trying to win for the Lord. But consider what God did through them.  They turned the world upside down.

We must all check our hearts from time to time to see whose approval we truly desire the most.  When we fail to speak to someone about Jesus, fail to pray for the blind woman in Starbucks, fail to seek our prayer language because our family might think it is weird, or fail to speak out against sin in our culture…it is simply because we fear man rather than God or want man’s approval more than the approval of our King.  We have all given into the impulse and we all have to guard against it for “woe” to us when we do things primarily to be seen and accepted by men.  When I know I have given into that fear then repentance is the key.  Recommit to live without compromise and ask God for the boldness to live with him as the audience we care about.

Father, give me a heart that desires to please only you and the boldness to act on that desire.   In Jesus name.   Amen

One of the most sobering passages in the New Testament is spoken by Jesus in Luke 11:37-53.  The NIV places a heading before this text that simply says, “Six Woes.”  Luke records these as a conversation Jesus had with one of Israel’s religious leaders.  It is always easy for us to point the finger at the Pharisees of Jesus’ day and accuse them of hypocrisy and legalism.  But we need to examine ourselves from time to time to see if we have slipped silently into one of the religious habits that Jesus warned  about.

In the beginning of this section, Jesus is eating with a Pharisee who questions him because he did not go through the typical ritual hand washings of the Jews before eating.  Undoubtedly Jesus passed on the ritual because he knew it would be a conversation starter with his religious host.  Jesus began by speaking a hard truth to the man.  He told them that he and other Pharisees were very concerned about washing the outside of a dish while ignoring the inside which might be full of rotten food – greed and wickedness.  He then proceeds to express six “woes” toward the religious elite of Israel.  “Woe” is not so much a declaration of judgment in the original language as it is a statement of how deplorable and pitiful their condition is because they have missed the heart of God.

The first woe describes men who are meticulous at keeping religious ordinances while treating people poorly or while being indifferent to people who are struggling or hurting.  Often the Pharisees saw sinners. broken people, the poor, and those in bondage as being in that condition because of their sin.  They often  saw their condition as God’s judgment on sinful people.   He spoke of the Pharisees as men who were so careful to keep the law that they would even go into their herb gardens to count out a tenth of the produce to meet the demands of the law and to take to the temple while, at the same time, neglecting justice and their love for God. Before we raise our eyebrows at such “religious” behavior we might ask ourselves a few questions.

How many of us are faithful in giving, faithful in church attendance, faithful in our small group Bible studies and are the first to register for every church conference but rarely give series thought to the poor or the oppressed in the world or in our communities?  How many of us have actually taken action on behalf of the unborn that are being aborted by the millions or have stood up to slumlords on behalf of the poor?  How many of us have opened our homes or our pocket books to the homeless or foster children who have been removed from abusive parents?  How many of us have actually worked at soup kitchens or serve at homeless shelters on any consistent basis?

It’s easy to work for the poor or the homeless or for the unborn one day or one weekend a year so that we can “check the box” on caring for the poor.  Serving on a weekend is a good thing but do we actually have a heart for the poor, the oppressed, and the broken? Do we give thought to injustice, poverty, and oppression on all the other days?  I find myself being very willing to serve those I know and those I am confortable with but I also find myself shying away from the poor, the junkies, the prostitutes, and the homeless. And yet Jesus  steers us in that direction on multiple occasions. Remember the parable of the sheep and the goats that were divided on the basis of their caring for the poor and visiting the imprisoned?  Jesus said, “I was hungry and you gave me nothing to eat, I was thirsty and you gave me nothing to drink, I was a stranger and you did not invite me in, I needed clothes and you did not clothe me, I was sick and in prison and you did not look after me.’ “They also will answer, ‘Lord, when did we see you hungry or thirsty or a stranger or needing clothes or sick or in prison, and did not help you?’ “He will reply, ‘I tell you the truth, whatever you did not do for one of the least of these, you did not do for me.“ (Mt. 25:43-45).

This blog is dedicated to helping every believer find freedom and healing in the Lord and to help every believer move in the power of the Holy Spirit.  But to find freedom, healing, and power we must keep our hearts aligned  with the heart of the Father.  If he cares for the poor we must care for the poor.  If he cares for the weak, we must care for the weak.  If he cares for the oppressed, we must also.  As we grow in the gifts of the Spirit we cannot allow ourselves to become self-edification societies who simply sit around and prophesy over one another in our living rooms  or keep our healing gifts within the walls of the church.

As much as we talk about relationship versus ritual it is still easy to slide into religion where we are meticulous in keeping the rules of the church and staying in good standing with the brethren while the world around us is falling apart.  The gospel, the gifts, and the power of God have not been given to the church for safekeeping but have been given to the church to be taken into the world on behalf of the oppressed, the abused, those suffering injustice, and those in bondage.  If we were honest, we would have to say that many churches want to keep “those people” out instead of drawing them in.  That is the heart of the Pharisees and that is the heart Jesus warned us about.  He also said that while tithing meticulously, they also neglected their love for God.  According to Matthew 25, we love God when we love the poor, the down and out, and all the others beaten up and discarded by the world.  The church can have great preaching, great worship, great facilities, great youth programs, great marriage ministries and so forth but if we reserve them for the saved, the members in good standing, the affluent, or those like us rather than spending them on the lost and the broken then we are close to the first “woe” Jesus uttered toward those who claimed to know God best.  I know I am prone to insulate myself from the world but I must remember that Jesus died for those still outside the walls of the church.

God give me the heart to care about those used and abused by the world and give me the love and wisdom to do something about it so that your heart might be blessed, Jesus might be glorified, and your Spirit might move with power.  Amen

Tomorrow – the second “woe.”

I’ve often talked about the need to take risks in the kingdom of God in order to grow your faith and to see miracles.  I have said that in the context of praying for healing, sharing prophetic words, sharing your faith, or commanding demons.  The premise is that when we step out and risk doing something that cannot be done without God, then God shows up.  I still believe that is true but in a small group conversation last night I was reminded that nearly all obedience to Jesus is risky.

We were discussing the astounding nature of Christ’s Sermon on the Mount recorded in Matthew 5-7. In that sermon Jesus gave a commentary on what the Jews had been taught by their teachers for 1500 years.  In a number of places in Matthew 5 he says, “You have heard that it was said….but I say unto you.”  In those sections he comments on the teachings the crowd had received about murder, adultery, divorce, taking oaths, revenge, and dealing with enemies.  His teaching was drastically different from what they had learned in the synagogues.

Under the Law the Jews had been taught right behaviors but Jesus took it all the way to the heart.  In so many words, Jesus said, “You have been taught not to murder but I’m telling you not to even be angry or use demeaning words towards a brother and if you have a damaged relationship go and heal that relationship before you even try to worship.  You have heard.  You have heard that you should not commit adultery but I’m telling you that having sexual fantasies about the woman at the office is the same thing so keep those kinds of thoughts out of your head and your heart.”

Jesus focused on our internal world more than the external and made out thoughts and the feelings produced by our thoughts that issue as much as our actions. The Jews had been taught that they could hate someone and wish them dead as long as they didn’t act on the impulse.  Jesus called them to a much higher standard and taught them to get the anger, the hatred, the revenge, the manipulation, and the pride out of their hearts before presuming to come before God in worship.

Jesus taught them and us to guard our hearts against lust; to stay in tough marriages except where there has been unrepented adultery; to avoid all spin, manipulation and half-truths in our conversations and business dealings; to turn the other cheek; to give someone more than they are suing us for, to serve more than our enemies are compelling us to serve, and to love our enemies and even pray on their behalf.

In practical terms each of these commands put us at a distinct disadvantage with unbelievers who won’t be playing by the same rules.  These unbelievers (or unspiritual believers in some cases) will likely take advantage of our godly behaviors…at least at first.   They will see our “turning the other cheek” as weakness, our refusal to speak badly of them while they slander us as naïve, and our willingness to give them more than they demand in court as capitulation.  In many cases we will feel as if we are enabling their bad behaviors through our gracious behaviors and our unwillingness to go for the jugular.

As you look at the teachings of Jesus in his Sermon on the Mount, it becomes clear that obedience to these teachings always put us at risk.  The reason we violate these teachings so often is because we sense that they will make us vulnerable to a demanding spouse or an unscrupulous business associate.  Obedience makes us vulnerable to the manipulations and aggressive behaviors of worldly people.  Just living our every day lives with the heart of Christ turns out to be it’s own risky business from the perspective of the flesh. And, just like in healing and deliverance, if God doesn’t show up in the moment, we may well be presiding over a great disaster.

The truth is that we must have genuine faith to live obedient lives.  We must trust that God will defend us, vindicate us, provide for us, give us favor, and stand next to us in a court of law if we live out the directives of Jesus.  To live out the Sermon on the Mount is to lay aside all of our worldly weapons of defense, all of our instincts, all of our aggression, and all of our own dirty tricks and play by one set of rules while the opposition plays by another.

My conclusion is that it is just as risky to turn the other cheek as it is to pray for someone in a wheel chair at Cracker Barrel. It’s just as risky to stay in a hurtful marriage hoping for God’s transforming power to change things as it is to face demons or to share your faith with the Hell’s Angels having a meal at the next table.  It’s just as risky to take the moral high road while your “ex” is dragging you into court with the dirtiest lawyer in town as it is to pronounce a prophetic word to your entire congregation.

The truth is that truly living for Jesus in any form or fashion is typically risky and will be disastrous if Jesus doesn’t show up.  But here is the good news:  Jesus always shows up because he is always with us. Even the Father has said, “I will never leave you nor forsake you.”  In fact, since he lives in us he is always present.  But will he manifest his presence when you need him most?  You will know the answer by living a life of risk which is simply a life of true obedience where doing it God’s way puts us in the Master’s hands hour after hour.

I’m reminded of the story of the man who used to walk a high wire stretched between to tall buildings in New York City.   One day he crossed the high wire pushing a wheelbarrow.  He asked the crowd if they believed he could do it again.  Of course they all affirmed their belief.  He then asked if they thought he could do it with someone in the wheelbarrow.  They also shouted yes.  Then he asked for a volunteer.  No one raised his hand.  That is the difference between faith and belief.  It takes faith to get in the wheelbarrow because you must totally trust the one who is pushing it.  It takes faith to fully live out the gospel but if we want to meet Jesus that is the only way. “Whoever has my commands and obeys them, he is the one who loves me. He who loves me will be loved by my Father, and I too will love him and show myself to him” (Jn.1421).

Hey … life is full of risks!  Be blessed today and be sure to risk a little.

In his letter to the Ephesians, it is clear that Paul expected the new identity of believers to have an impact on their lifestyle.  In several places he essentially points out that although these followers of Jesus had once been unbelievers living in the kingdom of darkness, God had given them a new identity. Since that was true, they were expected to live up to who they now were in Christ.

For instance, Paul says. “As for you, you were dead in your transgressions and sins…when you followed the ways of the world and of the ruler of the kingdom of the air…But now in Christ Jesus you who were once far away have been brought near through the blood of Christ…He came and preached peace to you who were far away…Consequently, you are no longer foreigners and aliens but fellow citizens with God’s people and members of God’s household ” (Eph.2:1-2, 13; 17,19).   Over and over Paul reminds the believers that they once were like the unbelieving Gentiles and once were living under the power of the enemy but that was no longer their condition or their identity.  Jesus had changed all that.

After describing their huge change of fortunes for three chapters, Paul begins to tell them in very practical terms how they must live as these new creations in Christ.  “I urge you to live a life worthy of the calling you have received…So I tell you this and insist on it ion the Lord, that you must no longer live as the Gentiles do in the futility of their thinking…Put off your old self…and put on the new self, created to be like God in true righteousness and holiness” (Eph.4:1,17, 22,24).

Then Paul begins to work through a list of things these new believers were to leave behind or jettison from their lives while “putting on” the garments of the kingdom.  “Put off falsehood and speak truthfully…In your anger do not sin…do not give the devil a foothold…steal no longer but work…do not let any unwholesome talk come out of your mouths but only what is helpful for building others up…get rid of bitterness, rage and anger…be kind and compassionate to one another forgiving each other…Be imitators of God and live a life of love…among you there must not even be a hint of sexual immorality…because these are improper for God’s holy people…For you were once darkness but now you are light in the Lord”  (Eph.4-5).

Paul discusses many other things that we are to “put off” and “put on” as believers. In that process there will be radical transformation. We came into the kingdom looking like the devil but we should quickly begin to look like Jesus.  It is, in one sense, a life-long pursuit but it should not take a lifetime to see major changes in our hearts and our lifestyle.  It all begins, however, with the conviction that in Christ, I am not who I used to be and since I belong to him this is how I now live.

What I have seen in my own life and in others over the years is that expectations are key.  Many of us have not been given great expectations for change in our lives nor have we been told what that change should look like.  If I go to a golf pro and ask him to fix my swing, I expect to see a change and the evidence of that change will be more distance, more fairways, and lower scores.  To get there, he must not only tell me what not to do but he must show me what the new swing will look and feel like.  That is what Paul is doing for the Ephesians.  As believers we should expect to become people who live the life Paul describes and we should see his descriptors as the normal life of a believer rather than some impossible standards we can never live up to.  We must expect transformation for us to experience it. 

What we must also know, however, is that transformation is a team sport in the kingdom of God. It takes God’s Spirit working with our desires and often takes other believers to get us where we want to go.  I promise you can’t make those changes in your own strength.  When stress and crisis come, you will default back to your old settings because your behaviors will have changed while your heart has stayed the same.  Scripture is clear that it is God who gives us a new heart. But we should also know that God will not change our hearts without us doing our part.  That means sincerely inviting him to make those changes; it means getting his Word in our heart; it means learning how to fight against the enemy; it means confessing our faults to others for prayer; it means repenting each time we find our hearts or our actions out of line with God’s will; and it means submitting to his will and his ways whenever we see it in the Word.

The promise of Ephesians is that God is ready and willing to bring our hearts and actions in line with who we are in Christ and he is willing to use the power of heaven to do so.  Paul says, “I pray also that the eyes of your heart may be enlightened in order that you may know the hope to which he has called you, the riches of his glorious inheritance in the saints, and his incomparably great power for us who believe. That power is like the working of his mighty strength, which he exerted in Christ when he raised him from the dead and seated him at his right hand in the heavenly realms,          far above all rule and authority, power and dominion, and every title that can be given, not only in the present age but also in the one to come” (Eph.1: 18-21).

That power is for you because you are in Christ.  You are his temple, his household, a citizen of heaven, a new creation, seated with him in heavenly places, a child of the light, marked by the Holy Spirit, alive in Christ, and a dearly loved child.  Ask for his power to transform you.  Expect it.  Look for it. Engage with him.  Be who you are!  Be blessed.

We are continuing to look at who we are in Christ as revealed in Paul’s letter to the church as Ephesus.  Paul continues to download the believer’s identity beginning in Ephesians 1:11 through the end of the letter.   Notice the descriptive phrases and my notes following that describe you because of your position in Christ.  These are found throughout the letter to the Ephesians.  These phrases do not just describe believers in general but describe you.

Chosen – you have been picked out of the crowd
Predestined – you were given a significant destiny before time began.  You can choose to say yes or not to your destiny.
Included in Christ – you are no longer excluded but given all things in Christ.
Marked with a seal, the promised Holy Spirit – you are set apart as belonging to God and sealed by the Holy Spirit.  This seal is a marker that identifies you as one who belongs to the King.
God’s possession – you are blood purchased and belong to the Father who is jealous for you.
Alive with Christ – once dead in your sins, you now possess eternal life.
Saved – you have been redeemed from the enemy and delivered from his authority.
Seated with Christ in heavenly realms – you share in Christ’s authority and rule with him. You once were subject to Satan’s authority but now he is subject to the authority you have in Christ.
God’s workmanship created in Christ Jesus – you have been crafted by the creator with great intentionality.
Brought near – having been far away you have now been brought close to God.
New man – you are free from your past with a new identity and a new destiny.
Fellow citizen with God’s people – you now possess all the rights and privileges of citizenship in heaven.
Member of God’s household – you are family and now share in God’s divine nature.
A dwelling in which God lives by his Spirit – you are the temple of God.
Dearly loved child – you are treasured by the Father.
God’s holy person – you are set apart for sacred service in the kingdom of God.
Light in the Lord – you have been chosen to give illumination to the world.
Child of light – you are born of truth and holiness.
A member of Christ’s body – you have purposeful connection to Christ.

All of these things and more are true of you in Christ. They are not true for everyone else but you.  They are true for you. When speaking of yourself you should say what God says about you.  It doesn’t matter how you feel.  Your feelings do not establish truth.  God’s word is truth.  When the enemy accuses, you should answer with the Word of God about you.  Ask the Holy Spirit to write these truths on your heart. When you believe what God says about you will step into your destiny and be a powerful representative of God on this planet.  Think about these things and be blessed.

In him we have redemption through his blood, the forgiveness of sins, in accordance with the riches of God’s grace  that he lavished on us with all wisdom and understanding.    And he made known to us the mystery of his will according to his good pleasure, which he purposed in Christ, to be put into effect when the times will have reached their fulfillment—to bring all things in heaven and on earth together under one head, even Christ. (Eph.1:7-10)

Knowing who we are in Christ is essential to believing God’s promises for us and for walking in the potential destiny he has determined for our lives.  The accuser tells us at every opportunity that we are not worthy of God’s love, his promises, or our destiny.  If we receive the accusation we approach the Lord half-heartedly expecting little because of our shortcomings. Often we fail to even ask for much that is ours because we walk in the unworthiness of the flesh rather than in the righteousness of Christ.

The enemy’s primary strategy is always to dig up our past and rub our nose in sins and failings that have haunted us for days or decades.  The truth is, however, that in Christ we walk in a continual state of forgiveness purchased by the blood of the Lamb.  The writer of Hebrews tells us that we have entered into a covenant in which the Lord declares, “I will forgive their wickedness and remember their sins no more” (Heb.8:12).   David put it this way.  “For as high as the heavens are above the earth, so great is his love for those who fear him; as far as the east is from the west, so far has he removed our transgressions from us. As a father has compassion on his children, so the Lord has compassion on those who fear him; for he knows how we are formed, he remembers that we are dust” (Ps.103:11-14).

The enemy accuses us of things for which there is no record in heaven. Peter declared, “Repent therefore, and turn back, that your sins may be blotted out, that times of refreshing may come from the presence of the Lord” (Acts 3:19-20).  The idea of “blotting out” is to wipe clean.  When ancient inks were used on animal skins there was no acid in the ink to bite into the skin.  It sat on the surface like watercolor on glass and when wiped with a wet rag, anything written was totally erased.  That is what God does with our sin when he blots it out.

Here is the essential truth you can stand on. You are forgiven.  Your sins are washed away.  There is no record in heaven because God remembers your sins no more. Satan brings up our past. We bring up our past.  But God does not bring up our past because our past is covered by the blood of Jesus. The enemy accuses you of things for which there is no remembrance.  The enemy is a liar.  You are forgiven and live in a constant state of forgiveness as long as your heart points in the direction of the Father.

Because of that, God considers you pure and righteous and has lavished his grace on you.  The word “lavish” means “in abundance” or “in excess.”  God has given you more grace than you ever needed.  Grace is God’s enabling power that comes to you freely because of what Jesus has done. Think of an exclusive club (if you’re a golfer think of Augusta Country Club) you always wanted to join or a university you always wanted to attend.  Being in the club would give you immense status and privileges.  Graduating from the “right” university would do the same. The catch is that you could never afford the dues or the tuition nor do you know the right people whose influence could get you in.

However, if someone loved you and paid the dues or the tuition on your behalf, you still get all the status and privileges of membership or connection even though you got there on someone else’s dime – someone else’s grace.  The enemy, of course will come along and tell you that you should not take advantage of the status and privileges because someone else paid your way.  However, They paid your way because they wanted you to have the status and privileges and they wanted you to use them and enjoy them. To spurn the advantages from the gift is to spurn the gift because it is all the same.

You are forgiven.  You are perfectly righteous in the sight of God by his grace, his good pleasure, and his desire. It is his will and his desire that you enjoy and use every blessing in heaven for his purposes and his glory.  He has given you such unique standing that not only has he made you righteous but he has shared with you the mystery of his will – the good news of Jesus Christ that saves not only Jews but Gentiles.

Peter tells us that the great prophets of old did not understand the prophecies they declared and that even angels longed to look into the things that have been entrusted to the church for declaration to the world and the spirit realm. (See 1 Pet.1:12).  You are the church.

When the Holy Spirit gives you insight into scripture and when you share that insight with others, God has given you the honor of revealing another facet of the mystery of the kingdom – not only to men but also to angels.  When you share the gospel with others and explain it to them, you are the oracle of God declaring his mysteries to both the natural and the spiritual realm. A great treasure has been entrusted to you whether you feel the honor and the responsibility or not.  So…you are righteous; you are one upon whom God has lavished his grace; you are the one to whom God has entrusted his mysteries.  You are one chosen from the creation of the world for these things.  God has planned greatness for you and he wants you to embrace that greatness.  Be blessed today knowing who you are.

For he chose us in him before the creation of the world to be holy and blameless in his sight. In love he predestined us to be adopted as his sons through Jesus Christ, in accordance with his pleasure and will— to the praise of his glorious grace, which he has freely given us in the One he loves. (Eph.1:4-6)

We are continuing to talk about who we are in Christ and more specifically who you are in Christ.  The Holy Spirit is very clear in this passage about God’s intentions for you.  You are not just a random life floating through the universe.  According to the apostle Paul, God in his foreknowledge saw a number of people who would respond to the gospel of Jesus Christ if given a chance.  And so, it was determined before the creation of the world that Jesus would die on behalf of those who would believe. If you are in Christ, then you are one of those.  If you are considering Christ, then I believe you are one of those he chose before he put his hand to the ground and formed Adam in the Garden.

In his foreknowledge, God saw your heart.  It was a heart that would respond in faith to his grace and so he created a destiny for you.  Typically, we see much less in ourselves than God sees in us but he sees the potential in you for faith and greatness in his kingdom.  Most of us don’t agree with God about our own capacity.  We can’t imagine doing anything that God or heaven would  applaud. Be careful that you don’t begin to evaluate God’s estimation of you on the basis of what the world considers greatness.  Instead, consider greatness as it is measured in heaven.

Greatness in the kingdom is first measured by the condition of the heart rather than by great deeds. In 1 Corinthians 13, Paul is clear that you could do amazing and epic things but without love they would count for nothing.  So love is greater than deeds.  Hebrews 11 is clear that faith is the real currency in the kingdom of heaven. Abraham was justified by faith, by believing God, before his “doing” was ever praised.  Faith, then, is greater than deeds. Through the prophet Hosea, God said, “For I desire mercy, not sacrifice, and acknowledgment of God rather than burnt offerings” (Hosea 6:6). So even mercy is greater than the things we do.

Before you begin to evaluate yourself on the basis of your performance and possessions…look first at your heart.  As you scan all the men and women counted as great in the kingdom of God on Hebrews 11, very few were kings and very few possessed wealth.  But even for those that did, their power and possessions were not mentioned. There faith was what caught heaven’s attention.  It was faith that made them famous in the court of the King.  The world measures greatness, even for Christians by name recognition, books published, church size and television audience. But with love, faith, and mercy in your heart your greatness in the kingdom may exceed those men and women with huge television audiences, massive book sales, and sold out stadiums.

“But a poor widow came and put in two very small copper coins, worth only a fraction of a penny. Calling his disciples to him, Jesus said, “I tell you the truth, this poor widow has put more into the treasury than all the others. They all gave out of their wealth; but she, out of her poverty, put in everything—all she had to live on” (Mk.12:42-44).  Jesus said that his woman, who by worldly standards hardly counted, was counted greater in the kingdom of heaven than all those who gave great amounts out of their wealth.

God has destined you for greatness because he saw something in your heart through which he could do great things.  To say you were predestined simply means that he created a potential destiny for you before creation.  Of course, you can say no to any part of the destiny you choose, but you can also say yes. God loved you before you were ever conceived and arranged for your adoption before the first sunrise ever lit the eastern horizon.  On top of that, God did not feel compelled to adopt you because it was the “right thing” or the “righteous thing” or because you were pitiful.  He adopted you because it pleased him and because he wanted to.

In the days that Paul penned his letter to the Ephesians, a father could disown his own biological son if he determined to do so.  However, a father could never disown one he had adopted because the adoption was not by accident although a natural birth could be.  Adoption was by choice and the Father would always stand by that choice.  God is not undecided about you.  You are undecided about you.  He saw your potential for greatness before you were conceived. It’s up to you to step into the greatness he has destined. He will make you into whatever you choose by your choices. Whatever you say yes to or no to in the spiritual realm will limit God or release God to do all he has planned for you.

Here is the key – accept God’s evaluation of who you are and your potential for greatness. Focus on your relationship with the Father and a heart that pleases him.  The rest will take care of itself because it is the heart that will make you great or keep you small in the kingdom. Then ask God to make you everything he has seen in you.  Give him control and say yes to every challenge and opportunity because those will be steppingstones to your destiny.  Be blessed today knowing who you are and that God has been involved in your life longer that the earth has whirled through space.

Praise be to the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, who has blessed us in the heavenly realms with every spiritual blessing in Christ. For he chose us in him before the creation of the world to be holy and blameless in his sight. In love he predestined us to be adopted as his sons through Jesus Christ, in accordance with his pleasure and will— to the praise of his glorious grace, which he has freely given us in the One he loves. (Eph.1:3-6)

The apostle Paul began his letter to the believers in Ephesus by immediately praising God for the things he has done for every believer.  He says first that, as a follower of Jesus, you have been blessed in the heavenly realms with every spiritual blessing in Christ.  As you read through Paul’s letter you will find the phrase “in Christ” in numerous verses.  Paul always reminds us that what we have is found only in our relationship with Christ. He quickly points out that because we are in Christ we have numerous spiritual blessings that rest in heavenly realms.  Paul isn’t saying that one day when we get to heaven we will receive these blessings that have been waiting for us there.  Although we will have blessing stored up and waiting for us, many of those blessings are available to us now.

The fact that these blessings are in heavenly realms doesn’t mean they are out of reach because the Kingdom of Heaven is within your reach (See Mt.3:2).  You are a citizen of heaven now (Phil.3:20).  The emphasis on the heavenly is that you have blessings and promises that no man can take away.  Not only that, the nature of your blessings are eternal – there is no expiration date like an old gift card or coupon. Your heavenly blessings are good whenever you need them.

Think of these spiritual blessings as heavenly resources that are accessible to you through faith in Jesus.  Of course, eternal life is huge but then so is the very presence of God living in you by his Spirit. The Spirit himself is willing to deposit in you power, health, wisdom, peace, joy, love, encouragement, intimacy with the Father, revelation, truth, and all kinds of amazing spiritual gifts such as mercy, leadership, administration, creativity, prophecy, tongues (your language for the spirit realm), knowledge, healings, and more.  Each of these blessings is available to you through faith and desire.  These spiritual treasures are for you now not just for after the funeral.  Because they are spiritual in nature they surpass all gifts and blessings available in the natural realm and you have access to the spiritual realm because you are spiritual.

Paul is also quick to point out that you were chosen.  If you ever participated in team sports you understand the power of being chosen.  You were chosen because the coach or the team captain saw value in you. He saw potential and greatness in you or you would not have been chosen.  He also saw desire and he knew that your desire to be on the team and to play well would drive you to do more and be more. God saw something in you and you were chosen. Not only were you chosen but you stepped up and accepted the invitation. The text goes on to say that you were chosen to be “holy and blameless in his sight.”  In many ways this is a mystery.  But Paul also tells us that “God made him who had no sin to be sin for us, so that in him we might become the righteousness of God”(2 Cor.5:21).

Many of us feel our weakness and our tendency to sin.  We feel unworthy of the blessings of God.  By faith you must accept that God, in his foreknowledge, saw something in you that prompted him to choose you, make you righteous and wholly acceptable by the blood of his Son, give you standing in heaven and make the blessings of his kingdom available to you on earth.  When you feel unworthy, you are feeling your flesh but God relates to you through your spirit.  You see yourself through your flesh but God sees you through your spirit and your spirit loves the things of God even when you are unaware of it (see Rom.7:21-22).  In his sight you are holy and blameless.

That doesn’t mean we can live anyway we choose. We are also told, “because by one sacrifice he has made perfect forever those who are being made holy” (Heb.10:14).  By the sacrifice of Jesus you have been given the standing in heaven of being perfect (sinless, righteous, pure) while he is making you holy.  God is committed to making you like Jesus.  He wants you to not only have a position of holiness but a condition of holiness as well. However, while he is doing that you can still come before him as a perfect son or daughter of God expecting his help and access to your spiritual blessings in time of need. (See Heb.4:16).

Paul then goes on to tell you that you were predestined before the foundation of the world to be adopted.  What in the world does that mean?  We’ll talk about that in the next blog. But in the meantime remember who you are in Christ. Think about it.  Chew on it. Start to speak it by faith and be blessed.