The Importance of "Experiential Knowledge" To Our Faith

     I fully expect that the title [alone] of this post will result in excoriation by the Religion Police, who won't be able to get past what they think I'm going to say, and be able to read with an open mind and a willing heart to listen. That term ... "experiential knowledge" ... is most often [in the realm of religion] related to the concept of gnosis and the Gnostic teachings.  And if you know anything about the history of Christianity, Gnosticism was a pretty big challenge to the new faith founded by Christ. I would like to suggest that experiential knowledge is a concept completely within the Christian faith, and does not resemble the false Gnostic teachings at all.
     But we need to begin with an understanding of what Gnosticism is before we can look to the Bible for any evidence that experiential knowledge is different, and actually coincides with our faith.  First, the word gnosis, means "Knowledge of Spiritual mysteries".  And if you have read my last blog, then you know why this term and the Gnostic movement it spawned make Christians nervous.  According to Christianity.com, "Gnostics did not call themselves by that name and there were many variations of what we now call Gnosticism. While some forms were completely unrelated to Christianity, others considered themselves a higher type of Christian [faith]. But although Gnostic beliefs varied a good deal, we can sum up a few essential points on which all of us can agree:
•  The material world is bad, the spirit world is good. The material world is under the control of evil, ignorance or nothingness.
•  A divine spark is somehow trapped in some (but not all) humans and it alone, of all that exists in this material world, is capable of redemption.
•  Salvation is through a secret knowledge by which individuals come to know themselves, their origin and destiny.
•  Since a good God could not have created an evil world, it must have been created by an inferior, ignorant or evil god. Usually the explanation given is that the true, good God created or emanated beings (Archons) who either emanated other Archons or conjugated to produce them until a mishap by Sophia (Wisdom) led to the creation of the evil Archon who created our world and pretends to be God. He hides truth from humans, but sparks of Sophia in some humans fill them with an urge to return to the Pleroma (divine realm) where they belong".
     It is not my focus to debate Gnosticism in this blog post. In fact, these ideas had implications that could not be squared with either the Old Testament or apostolic writings, which is why early Christians rejected them -and so do I! Let me make this perfectly clear -- Gnosticism has no association to my Christian faith. BUT, I cannot ignore that term "experiential knowledge" -- which often gets confused with the principles of Gnosticism -- and I want to show you that it is mentioned in the Bible, and why it does have a connection to my faith.  Experiential knowledge is not intended to imply "secret knowledge", as some Christians suggest [and why the term is so often associated with Gnosticism].
     You know that I love to dig deep and look at the words used in the Bible in their original languages.  I think we can all agree that every true Christian yearns to know more of our God; to have more knowledge about Who He is, and His Nature and Character.  The Apostle Peter says that we can have that, in 2 Peter 1:3, His [Jesus's] divine power has granted to us all things that pertain to life and godliness, through the knowledge of him who called us to his own glory and excellence.  But guess what?  In the original Greek language of the Bible, that word "knowledge" reads like this:  through the experiential knowledge [which the believer has] of the One who called us into salvation by means of His own glory and virtue [or power].  
     So what's the difference?  Why is it important that we know that experiential knowledge is valid in a believer's life?  Experiential knowledge, in Greek, is epignosis, and if you will indulge me for a moment, let me dissect the word... In comparing epignosis [experiential knowledge] with gnosis [knowledge], the epi gives the compound word a greater strength than the simple word alone possesses.  In other words, Epignosis is the complete comprehension we gain after first knowing something. It is knowing something better and more fully than I knew it before; a more exact view of a subject as I get closer to it.
     In Vine's Expository Dictionary of Biblical Words, “epignosis denotes "exact or full knowledge, discernment, recognition," and is a strengthened form of gnosis, expressing a fuller or a full "knowledge," a greater participation by the "knower" in the object "known," thus more powerfully influencing him".  The New Thayer's Greek-English Lexicon says epignosis specifically refers to Christ, i.e., the true knowledge of Christ’s nature, dignity, and benefits.
     So, how is this understanding that there is a fuller knowledge of Christ [through our faith experiences] evidenced in the Bible?  In the original Greek, Paul uses the term "experiential knowledge" 15 times in his epistles.  In 2 Timothy 2:24-25, he writes, The servant of the Lord must not be quarrelsome ... correcting his opponents with gentleness. God may perhaps grant them repentance leading to a precise, experiential knowledge of the truth.
     In Philemon 6, Paul writes, And I pray that the faith you share in common with other believers may become effective in the sphere of a full and perfect experiential knowledge of every good thing in us, with a view to [the glory of] Christ.  Paul says in Ephesians 4:13, until we all attain to the unity of the Faith and of the experiential, full, and precise knowledge of the Son of God ... Other examples are Ephesians 1:10, that the God of our Lord Jesus Christ, the Father of glory, may give to you a lifestyle of wisdom and of revelation by means of an experiential knowledge of Him, and 1 Timothy 2:4, who desires all men to be saved and to come to an experiential knowledge of the truth. And there are many others.
     By now, it should be apparent that God desires that we come to know Him through a process of personal encounters (experiences) that result in new revelations from the Holy Spirit about the mind and character of both Christ and the Father.  Knowledge that is acquired by experience over a period of time, and from which we grow and mature into an intimate relationship with the Father, is superior to knowledge just gained, or that which is not fully realized.
     Historically, Gnostics claimed Christians were a step lower than themselves in the scale of enlightenment, and that Jesus gave secret knowledge which the uninitiated did not share.  But we can see in the Bible that the knowledge is not secret at all.  It is there for all those who seek it, and through our experiences of seeking, we hope to receive that perfect knowledge of God's Holy will and the blessings which He has bestowed [and still constantly bestows] on men through Christ.  So, I am thankful for each and every experience that brings me closer to God, and to the knowledge of His full character.

2 Peter 1:8   "For if these qualities are yours and are increasing, they render you neither useless nor unfruitful with respect to an experiential knowledge (epignosis) of our Lord Jesus Christ".
     

The Fear of "Hidden Knowledge"

     If you listen very carefully, and keep your spiritual "antennae" up, you can see the latest direction that the devil is taking in keeping us Christians powerless.  I am seeing popular Christian websites condemn those Believers who are diving deep in the Word to find the "meat" of Scripture. They are hungry for a more intimate and connected relationship with God; to know Him more intently, genuinely, and powerfully.  Yet this hunger and pursuit of God -- this desire to truly "abide" in Him -- is scorned as "seeking hidden knowledge".
     That term is kind of becoming a buzz word in the attempt to warn off any Believer from seeking any knowledge of God beyond acceptable Church doctrine or man-made traditions.  If you are someone, like myself, who knows there is more to this great God we serve than what you've been taught so far, then you will probably be warned to be careful, you are straying into dangerous territory.  At the very worst, you can expect to be called a heretic, an apostate, or a false teacher.  Yet, what is so sad to me, is that my fellow Christians rarely want to listen to why I am considering something new, based on a revelation I have received concerning God's Word. They are unwilling to sit and have a thoughtful discussion, with our Bibles open, and our hearts willing to listen to each other.  It is automatically assumed that I am being deceived.
     So, I wanted to try to find [in Scripture] where this fear of being deceived originated, and why we are so distrusting of each other's faith.  The only place that I could find a warning against hidden knowledge, was in Acts 16:16, and only in the Amplified version of the Bible:  It happened that as we were on our way to the place of prayer, we were met by a slave-girl who had a spirit of divination [that is, a demonic spirit claiming to foretell the future and discover hidden knowledge], and she brought her owners a good profit by fortune-telling.  Further research told me that this "spirit of divination" was understood to be a python spirit. In Greek mythology, Python the earth-dragon (serpent goddess), was associated with the oracle at Delphi.
     I believe there are those in the Body of Christ who use this one Scripture as their basis for warning all Christians from seeking after more knowledge; as if you do, it is assumed it is only coming from an evil and deceptive spirit.  BUT, I found many other Scriptures that told of the glory of God in revealing knowledge to those who are righteous and seeking Him:
     Colossians 3:1-3 ... Therefore if you have been raised up with Christ, keep seeking the things above, where Christ is, seated at the right hand of God.  Be intent [Set your mind on] the things above, not on the things that are on earth. For you have died and your life is hidden with Christ in God.
     Jeremiah 33:3 ... Call to Me and I will answer you, and tell you [and even show you] great and mighty things, [things which have been confined and hidden], which you do not know and understand and cannot distinguish.
     Proverbs 2:1-5 ... My son, if you will receive my words and treasure my commandments within you, Make your ear attentive to wisdom, Incline your heart to understanding; For if you cry for discernment, Lift your voice for understanding; If you seek her [wisdom] as silver and search for her as for hidden treasures; Then you will discern the fear of the Lord and discover the knowledge of God.
     Matthew 11:25 ... At that time Jesus said, “I praise [thank] You, Father, Lord of heaven and earth, because You have hidden these things from the wise and learned and revealed them to infants.
     These are just a few of the verses that tell me that our Father in Heaven is greatly pleased when our hearts desire more of Him, and we are willing to "keep seeking", "set our minds on" and "search for" His hidden treasures of knowledge.  I have used the following verse over and over in my writing, but it deserves to be repeated:  It is the glory of God to conceal a matter, But the glory of kings is to search out a matter.  AND WE DON'T NEED TO BE AFRAID TO DO IT!  If we are righteously seeking to know God more, He will make sure we are not deceived.  Want to know why I believe that? If I am seeking righteousness and am obedient to God as best as I am able to in this earthly vessel, it is God revealing Himself through me; not me glorifying myself.  Now, the devil will try to get us to mistrust each other and doubt that God could renew our minds in such a way.  But isn't that what we are told to pursue throughout the New Testament?  A renewing of our minds?
     When Paul is accused of wrong thinking, or theology, what does he say in 2 Corinthians 4?  "For we do not preach ourselves but Christ Jesus as Lord, and ourselves as your bond-servants for Jesus’ sake. For God, who said, “Light shall shine out of darkness,” is the One who has shone in our hearts to give the Light of the knowledge of the glory of God in the face of Christ ...  But having the same spirit of faith, according to what is written, “I believed, therefore I spoke,” we also believe, therefore we also speak...".
     We do not need to be afraid to listen to each other when there is a desire to share what God is showing us.  The rest of Proverbs 2 (verses 6-11) should relieve any fear we have when presented with a new understanding from a righteous Believer:

For the Lord gives wisdom;

From His mouth come knowledge and understanding.

He stores up sound wisdom for the upright;

He is a shield to those who walk in integrity,

Guarding the paths of justice,

And He preserves the way of His godly ones.

Then you will discern righteousness and justice

And equity and every good course.

For wisdom will enter your heart

And knowledge will be pleasant to your soul;

Discretion will guard you,

Understanding will watch over you.

     I am not saying you have to agree with what is brought to you.  All I am saying is we shouldn't be so quick to condemn our Christian brethren of wrongdoing [or being deceived] in their search for more of God and His wisdom.  I daresay all those who are righteous have a personal view of God, and mine not be the same as yours. But I think God is big enough that He probably encompasses both our views of Him. And I believe that God will shield us from deception; all we have to do is ask.  And I think He preserves the way of the righteous and gives us discerning spirits. And above all else, I think He yearns for a people who seek understanding of Him. As for me, I don't think I will ever be satisfied with what I know of Him -- or have enough of Him -- until the day I stand face-to-face. If that means I am scorned and rejected by others of the faith, then so be it.  I will never stop praying "that the God of our Lord Jesus Christ, the Father of glory, may give me a spirit of wisdom and of revelation in the knowledge of Him" (Ephesians 1:17).

Psalm 14:2   "The LORD looks down from heaven upon the children of men, To see if there are any who understand, who seek God".

   

Am I Living A Transformed Life?

     Last week my husband and I attended one of the most interesting and thought-provoking meetings that I believe will change my Christian life.  The speaker was Dr. Jim Wilder, a doctor of clinical psychology and theology who has taught at Fuller Theological Seminary and various conferences around the world.
      He calls himself a "neuro-theologian", which means that he teaches his students to consider that what God tells us about His creation (including us) should affect how we think, act, and live.  In other words, reality as I know it, should be different if I'm going to call myself a Christian.  I should be living a new life, in God's presence, instead of in a body with a brain that hasn't caught up to the new spirit within me.
     But as 21st Century Christians, we are a product of our Church's belief systems, and sadly, churches in the West have stopped expecting anything new in our knowledge of God, and we have just become a thing (or product, or whatever you want to call us) of what we know.  For instance, it is a mantra within the Church (and it is true) that God is love.  But what does that mean to you? And how does it affect how you live your life?  Is that statement just a concept, or an idea -- or is it a force?  Has it transformed your life?

     And how much does the culture in which we live play a part in how we live out our faith? Dr. Wilder stated that it is okay if we use our culture to express our Christian views -- for instance, writing this blog, in which I am not afraid to state my theology -- but we should guard against letting the culture shape those views -- for instance, adopting a culture-friendly acceptance of all sexual lifestyles because we don't want to offend anyone, or we want to "fit in".  If we are guilty of that, then we have made God smaller than we are. But the reality is that He is smarter and bigger than we are, and He can teach us everything we need to know to live this Christian life.  However, the idea of "growing up" to be something -- like a mature Christian, for example -- has dropped out of our culture.  The Church in the West has decided that salvation is the ultimate goal, and there's no need to know or explore God any further.  Now, it's simply about being in the building every Sunday, and enjoying the other 6 days to the fullest, until we die and go to Heaven.  Shouldn't our salvation experience transform us more than that?  And how do we train these brains that are lagging behind our "born again" spirits to think and see ourselves as a new kind of people living a new kind of way?
     What is it going to take to raise up leaders in the Church, (and for those of us who are practicing our faith outside the building), to raise up people who live differently -- both in our churches, and in our families and communities? Well, Dr. Wilder says there are four habits that exceptional leaders and transformed people have developed, and they are centered around identity and belonging.  Who we are determines what we will do. And when we know who we are, and how people like us (human beings transformed by the Spirit of God in us) are to act, we are able to train our brains to develop these habits and therefore to traverse this life as God's representatives.  And what are these important habits?
     1. Remain relational.  God created us, first and foremost, to be relational.  He's a God that loves relationship with those He's created, and He desires that we relate both to Him, and to others.  The importance of this habit is that as Christians, whether you are a church leader, or an individual practicing your faith, you are going to run into problems -- either within your church or within the culture.  In the face of problems, we must remain relational to each other -- avoiding isolation, blame, and anger -- keeping our relationships bigger than our problems.
     As we live our lives here on earth, behind enemy lines, so to speak, it is important that we make our relationship with God a priority, and live our lives so that our relationships with people reflect Him; showing that relationships are more important than being right or getting results.
     2. Act Like Yourself.  Once you're a born again Christian, doing whatever you did in the past should not be an option.  You need to ask yourself, Who is the real me, now? What I've always been, or what God's creating in me?  Ephesians 2:10 expresses God's mindset perfectly (and should reflect ours):  "For we are His workmanship, created in Christ Jesus for good works, which God prepared beforehand so that we would walk in them".  We are "a new work" [spiritually transformed, renewed, and ready to be used], created by God, with Jesus as our model, and designed by God to walk out the path He has set before us.  It's a whole new way to think of ourselves, but sadly, I don't think we, as Christians, have really discovered who we are.
     3. Return to Joy.  This is not an emotional concept, as you might expect, but rather a relational one.  This is not joy in the sense of euphoria, but the recognition that "I am not alone in this; Someone is with me in this difficulty".  It doesn't mean you are going to be happy in your difficulty, but you can train your brain to understand that God is there with you.  "I am not alone in this evil world".  And this is perhaps the hardest of the habits to form, because it means that our brains have to learn to overcome anger, sadness, and fear in order to maintain that joy in the midst of our difficulties.  But Jesus was able to do it while living out His life on this earth as a man.
     4.  Endure Hardships After A Return to Joy.  This is all about remaining relational through the hardships in life.  Keeping our relationships bigger than our problems is what it means to live your life as a Christian.  When you think about it, none of us will ever face the burdens and problems that Jesus faced in dying for the world's sins.  Yet, His relationships with the Father, His Disciples, and the  broken people He healed were His primary focus.  He continued to endure each hardship that confronted Him, knowing that He was not in it alone.  If we can do that, we will live a transformed life.
     In summary, I want to say that Dr. Wilder's book, Rare Leadership, provides a much more comprehensive look at how Church leaders can transform the lives of their flocks, and how parents can use these concepts to train up their children to live transformed lives in their real identities as children of God.  Whether in our churches or our families, we need to be building communities in which God is an active participant, and so are we.  Remember, the devil is The Accuser, and he is constantly whispering in our ears that what we did wrong (our sin) yesterday is the real us.  We need to know who we are, and see ourselves as the image of what God is creating in us -- and see others as what He is creating in them.
     If we believe that God is Love, and we say that we love God, and that love is a force -- not just an idea or concept -- then we need to be asking ourselves, How is my love for God doing today?  How is my love for others doing today?  Really knowing God, as well as being in relationship with others so that we see what He is creating in them, will truly transform our lives.  We will be in genuine relationship with Him and others.  And perhaps the greatest benefit of being this new kind of people who live a new kind of way is that we will see the transformation in others -- from people who need love, into people who give it.  When our relationship with God is experienced with thankfulness and appreciation, we want to share it with others, and the relationship cycle starts all over again.  It's time we begin to see real transformation in our lives, as we come to know who we really are.

2 Corinthians 3:18     "And we all, with unveiled face, beholding the glory of the Lord, are being transformed into the same image from one degree of glory to another. For this comes from the Lord who is the Spirit".


   
   

Ephesians 2:13

But now in Christ Jesus you who once were far off 

have been brought near by the blood of Christ.

     In reference to my previous post, whatever one might understand or believe about the Atonement of Christ, I think we can all agree that there is no atonement without the shedding of blood.  And from the beginning of the Bible, in Genesis, it is obvious that blood has great significance to God.

     In Scripture, Blood is associated with the mysterious sacredness which belongs to life, and God reserved it to Himself (as having great significance to Him) when He allowed man the dominion over, and the use of the lower animals for food.  We see how important Blood is, as a life force, when God exclaims to Cain (in Genesis) 4:10, "What have you done? The voice of your brother’s blood is crying to Me from the ground".  And God gives clear instructions to Noah, after the Flood, "you must not eat meat that has its lifeblood still in it" (Genesis 9:4). 

     Then God seals the deal, so to speak, in Leviticus 17:11, when He gives instructions to Moses for Aaron and the priests in regards to His sacrificial system, "For the life of the flesh is in the blood, and I have given it to you on the altar to make atonement for your souls; for it is the blood by reason of the life that makes atonement."  

     By now, we should understand just how important Blood is to the Father.  It was blood that was applied to the doorposts and lintels of the houses that saved the Israelites from the Angel of Death ... During the sacrifices in the Temple, the blood of animals was caught by the priest in a basin, and then sprinkled seven times on the altar ... At the giving of the Law, the blood of the sacrifices was sprinkled on the people, as well as on the altar, and thus the people were consecrated to God, or entered into covenant with Him. This consecration would amount to a blood covenant forevermore between God and His people.

      This blood covenant would include the forgiveness of sins, as Jesus states in Matthew 26:28, This is my blood of the covenant, which is poured out for many for the forgiveness of sins. But I would submit to you that it is much more!  The rite of circumcision in the Old Testament was a form of blood ceremony. Apart from the probable sanitary importance of the act is the deeper meaning in the establishment of a bond of friendship between the one upon whom the act is performed and Yahweh Himself. In order that Abraham might become "the friend of God", he was commanded that he should be circumcised as a token of the covenant between him and God (Genesis 17:10-11). In Abraham's covenant, his own blood has to be shed to establish this friendship, or relationship with God.  Later, animals would be substituted, and their blood covered the sins of the people, which in the simplest of interpretations, shows us that sin is the violation of that relationship or friendship with God -- a breaking of that pledge of eternal friendship between man and God.

     And these two concepts [1) that Blood needs to be offered for forgiveness of sin and 2) it represents our eternal friendship/relationship with God] is never made more clear than, here in Hebrews 10:29:  How much more severely do you think someone deserves to be punished who has trampled the Son of God underfoot, who has treated as an unholy thing the blood of the covenant that sanctified them, and who has insulted the Spirit of grace?

     That's why I love this verse in Ephesians ... it beautifully illustrates that the blood of our Lord and Savior, Jesus Christ, was the final shedding of Blood that God required for the forgiveness of our sins; for our breach of the eternal friendship He desires with each of His created human beings. And it is the Mercy and Grace of the God we serve that after warning us (in Hebrews 10:29) of the punishment we deserve for trampling on that friendship, He gives us the exhortation and encouragement of Hebrews 13:20-21, Now may the God of peace [the source of serenity and spiritual well-being] who brought up from the dead our Lord Jesus, the great Shepherd of the sheep, through the blood that sealed and ratified the eternal covenant, equip you with every good thing to carry out His will and strengthen you [making you complete and perfect as you ought to be], accomplishing in us that which is pleasing in His sight, through Jesus Christ, to whom be the glory forever and ever. Amen. 

     May we each carry deep within our hearts, the significance of the sacrifice and the love that God, our Father, holds for each of us.  He not only offered His Son, as the blood sacrifice He demands for the forgiveness of our sins, He offered a part of Himself. And it's all because it is His heart's desire to never abolish that loving friendship He wants with us, now and for eternity.  How blessed are we?

      

How Do You Define "The Atonement" of Jesus Christ?

     All one has to do is read the various Christian-based blogs, or listen to different podcasts, and we see the differing opinions on diverse doctrines.  One of the "hot topics" of today is The Atonement, and specifically, "is healing included in the Atonement"?  And what saddens me is the ease with which proponents on either side of that debate are willing to label their counterparts as false prophets, or declare that they are teaching false doctrine.  Why can't we respect each other's exegesis instead of resorting to name calling?  Knowing that my own opinion will not please everyone, I'm still going to throw my hat in the ring because I think it is an important concept to understand. So, here goes...
     As I began my research on this subject I was surprised to find that the word atonement appears 80 times in the Old Testament (primarily in Exodus, Leviticus, and Numbers) in conjunction with the sacrificial rituals instituted by God as a means for the Israelites to make amends for their sins.  Atonement only appears once in the New Testament, and only in the King James version. Romans 5:11 reads "And not only so, but we also joy in God through our Lord Jesus Christ, by whom we have now received the atonement".  All other versions of the Bible read "we have now received reconciliation".
     But what was even more surprising to me is that there are multiple "theories" of what the Atonement is within the bounds of Christianity.  There is the Ransom theory, which originated in the early Church, particularly in the work of Origen. The theory teaches that the death of Christ was a ransom sacrifice, usually said to have been paid to Satan or to death itself, (in some views paid to God the Father), in satisfaction for the bondage and debt on the souls of humanity as a result of inherited sin.
     There is the Satisfaction theory, a theory in Christian theology that Jesus Christ suffered crucifixion as a substitute for human sin, satisfying God's just wrath against man's transgression due to Christ's infinite merit. This theory draws primarily from the works of Anselm of Canterbury. It has been traditionally taught in the Roman Catholic, Lutheran, and Reformed traditions of Western Christianity.
     Then there is the Moral Influence or Example theory, which teaches that the purpose and work of Jesus Christ was to bring positive moral change to humanity. This moral change came through the teachings and example of Jesus, the Christian movement he founded, and the inspiring effect of his martyrdom and resurrection. It is one of the oldest views of the atonement in Christian theology and a prevalent view for most of Christian history.
     There is also the Recapitulation theory, wherein Christ is seen as the new Adam who succeeds where Adam failed. Christ undoes the wrong that Adam did and, because of His union with humanity, leads humankind on to eternal life (including moral perfection).  And finally, there is the Scapegoat theory, in which a person (Jesus) or animal takes on the sins of others, or is unfairly blamed for problems. The concept originally comes from Leviticus, in which a goat is designated to be cast into the desert with the sins of the community.
     Wow!  With all these various theological theories, no wonder there is much haranguing among the Brethren!  But as always, when confronted with a question such as whether healing is included in the Atonement of Christ, I go back to Scripture and try to determine the original meanings of the words, rather than listen to 21st Century man explain their own reasonings.  So, let's consider the word atonement, as it is used in the Old Testament.  It is the Hebrew word kâphar, which means "to cover; cancel; propitiate (placate); ransom; to pardon; to purge sin".  It is the technical term used in the sacrificial rituals in ancient Israel, and at its most basic level means "a material transaction to ransom, or to buy the freedom of".
     During the sacrificial ritual, the priests would lay their hands on an animal (bull) to transfer the sins of the people to the animal.  Then it was sacrificed and its blood smeared on the altar during the Sin Offering to God. Throughout the Old Testament, the blood sacrifices provide atonement, or a "covering over" of sin; the purpose of the atonement in the Old Testament was to hide the sin from God's eyes until the crucifixion of Christ, who as the sacrificial Lamb, takes away the sins of the world.
     There are many examples of ransom (payment) made for the covering of the Israelites' sins, but here are just two of them:  In Numbers 25, Phineas makes atonement for the Children of Israel by spearing an Israelite man in the midst of orgiastic Baal worship with a Midianite woman.  The result: the plagues that had killed 24,000 Israelites stopped.  In 2 Samuel 21, atonement was needed for the sins of Saul who broke his oath to spare the Gibeonites, so King David asked what they would require as payment, and the price was the death of seven of Saul's sons.  David paid the ransom, and then buried Saul and his sons in the tomb of Kish.  God ended the famine upon the land.
     We see the clearest picture of the Old Testament concept of atonement in Leviticus, Chapter 16, where Aaron is instructed on the rituals of the Day of Atonement, celebrated only one time a year.  Only on this day, could the high priest enter the Holy of Holies in the Temple on behalf of the people of Israel to make atonement for them (for the cleansing of their sins).
     But as I am beginning to see with more frequency, the modern Church does not make a distinction between how a concept is presented in the Old Testament and how it is understood in the New Testament.  Such is the case with "the Atonement".  As I said, in the New Testament, the only time the word atonement is used is in the King James version of Romans 5:11.  Here the Greek word for atonement is katallagê, meaning "restoration to divine favor; or reconciliation".  It goes beyond just being covered, or making a ransom payment for sins; here, atonement signifies that sinners are actually made "at one" with God.  And as New Testament Believers, we receive so much more than just forgiveness of our sins.
     In fact, I have read a 1990 sermon by Graham Maxwell, in which he stated that in the 13th Century Oxford English Dictionary, the word "atonement" was being used to mean "Being at one; being in harmony" ... in other words, to restore in unity and harmony; a position of "at one-ness", if I may.  There is a verse in the Bible that I think expresses the New Testament concept of Atonement better than I can, and I like the Amplified version because it gives us the best picture of what is being revealed: For it pleased the Father for all the fullness [of His deity—the sum total of His essence, all His perfection, powers, and attributes] to dwell [permanently] in Him (the Son), and through [the intervention of] the Son to reconcile all things to Himself, making peace [with believers] through the blood of His cross; through Him, [I say,] whether things on earth or things in heaven (Colossians 1:19-20).

     Once again, I think when it comes to the question of what is included in the Atonement of Christ, we need to see it in New Testament terms, and not limit it to its meaning in the Old Testament.   Everything about Christ is the fullness of His Father ... and this includes His Atonement.  What He did for us on the Cross brings us into full unity and one-ness with the Father. So the Atonement at the Cross -- His shed blood for us -- gives us so much more than just a covering for [and forgiveness of] our sins. We receive reconciliation (mending, bringing into harmony) in all things ... on earth as it is in heaven.  If the Atonement through Jesus's blood on the Cross brings us into the fullness of God -- the sum total of His essence [or Nature], His perfection, His powers and attributes -- then it means everything of God is available to us in the Atonement, and that includes healing as well as forgiveness.  The empty tomb is a picture of ultimate healing. All sins are forgiven in Heaven, and there is no sickness in Heaven.  That is unity between earth and heaven.
     I have seen the arguments of those who try to use Old Testament examples of God inflicting illness on people (2 Samuel 12:15; Exodus 9:8-9; 1 Samuel 5:11-12; Exodus 4:11) as their explanation that healing is not included in the New Testament atonement.  But that is part of the Old Covenant and I think we can all agree that God dealt differently with sin in the Old Covenant than He does in the New -- Jesus is evidence of that. And to use Romans 9:21 (Has the potter no right over the clay, to make out of the same lump one vessel for honorable use and another for dishonorable use?) to say that "dishonor" represents God causing sickness, is distorting Scripture, to me.
     And to say that examples of sickness in the New Testament (Epaphraditus, Trophimus, and Tabitha) prove that healing is not in the Atonement is like saying that once we accept Jesus as our Savior, we should never sin again... we are still in these fleshly bodies on earth, where sickness is a weapon of the Enemy to discourage our reconciliation with God. Our Father provided a way for us to live sinless lives through the righteousness of Christ -- but we still sin. Likewise, perfect health (and healing) are available in the Atonement -- which brings us into harmony with God in Heaven -- we just have to walk out the example Jesus gave us, and look to the Father for His perfection and power to achieve it.
     I realize that my words will likely not convince someone who has staked a claim in his or her particular atonement theory.  But I'd like to leave you with this final thought ... I find it ironic that in the Old Testament, the priests laid hands on an animal to transfer the people's sin to the animal (Leviticus 16:20-22).  Yet, in the New Testament, Jesus laid His hands on the people to transfer His Father's power to heal, while they were yet sinners.  That to me, is a picture of the Atonement of Jesus Christ; restoration to divine favor.  And I believe it is always God's heart that we be whole and restored as we are in Heaven.  So, why in the world, would we try to limit God and what He has to offer us in the Atonement of His Son? Isn't that diminishing the power of His Grace? I prefer to receive ALL He has meant for me through the atoning sacrifice of His Son!

Isaiah 53:4    Surely our sicknesses He Himself bore, And our pains He carried; Yet we ourselves esteemed Him stricken, Struck down by God, and afflicted.

Matthew 8:16-17     That evening they brought to Him many who were oppressed by demons, and He cast out the spirits with a word and healed all who were sick. This was to fulfill what was spoken by the prophet Isaiah: “He took our illnesses and bore our diseases.” 

Do We Misunderstand What God's Will Is?

     A few blog posts back, I stated that I'm not sure we Christians really fully understand God's qualities or characteristics; His Nature, to be exact. And I think perhaps the most misunderstood aspect of our Father in Heaven is His Will.  In fact, I bet if you asked several different Believers to define what God's Will is, you might get several different answers.  Yet our understanding of what His Will is, or what it means, leads to our individual views of Who God is.
     It is so common to hear these days, "God, if it is Your Will, then heal me [or protect me, or provide for me, or stop the evil, or any of a number of requests"... or, "It must have been God's Will that the accident [or death, or miscarriage, or failed marriage, or any number of tragedies] took place".  Can you see that this belief system can lead to an impression of God as a Zeus-like imperial, dictatorial, and authoritative figurehead who rules our lives from a distance?
     Oh, we will say that we know God loves us, because He sent His Son to die for our sins, right? And we declare our love for Him, but often experiencing a lack of real passion in our relationship with Him.  I think the truth is closer to the idea that many see Him as a loving, yet strict and inflexible Father who decides our fates based on His uncompromising rules; that it is our role as obedient children to never question or wonder why that fate befell us. It's all laid at the feet of a "sovereign" God, who causes [or allows] things to happen.  Perhaps this is best expressed in Psalm 135:6, The LORD does whatever pleases Him, in the heavens and on the earth, in the seas and all their depths.

     Now that is an extreme [and rather cold] view of our Father in Heaven, but I would guess that far too many Christians see Him as a milder version; an aloof and remote God.  But I think the perfect picture of Who God is, is presented in Luke, Chapter 5, in the short exchange between Jesus and the Leper.  In verses 12 and 13, we see Jesus's illustration of God's will: While He was in one of the cities, behold, there was a man covered with leprosy; and when he saw Jesus, he fell on his face and implored Him, saying, “Lord, if You are willing, You can make me clean.” And He stretched out His hand and touched him, saying, “I am willing; be cleansed.” And immediately the leprosy left him. 
     Remember, we must accept that Jesus only did what He heard the Father tell Him.  So, here the Leper acknowledges the power that Jesus has [from the Father] to heal, and says all it will take for him to be cleansed of this dreadful disease is that it be God's Will. Jesus's response? I am willing. Which means the Father was willing, too.  But I want to give you a richer [and I think more accurate] picture of this exchange.
     This is the translation of the Leper's request (and Jesus's response) as rendered by Dr. Kenneth Wuest, Teacher Emeritus of New Testament Greek at the Moody Bible Institute:  Sir, if you have the desire in your heart, you are able to cleanse me.  And having stretched forth His hand, He touched him, saying at the same time, My heart desires it. Be cleansed at once.  Do you see the difference in these two interpretations?  The English is more reserved and detached, while the Greek reflects the heart of God.  It is His desire -- His longing, His yearning, His eagerness, His enthusiasm, His determination [welling up from His heart], in this instance, to heal. But no matter what the circumstance we are facing in life, it is important to understand that God's will comes from the desire of His heart for us, which is always what is best for us -- not some detached decision that might or might not benefit us.
     In the case of the Leper, I have heard the logical question asked, "But how do we know that God wants everyone to be healed?  Couldn't it just be His desire or will for this one particular man"? Good question! But the Bible shows the desire of God's heart [which is His will] in the circumstances surrounding Cornelius's conversion in Acts, Chapter 10.  Here, Peter states that God is no respecter of persons, or as the Amplified Bible says, "Most certainly I understand now that God is not one to show partiality [to people as though Gentiles were excluded from God’s blessing], but in every nation the person who fears God and does what is right [by seeking Him] is acceptable and welcomed by Him".  So, God doesn't pick and choose those whom He will grant blessings to.  If we earnestly seek Him, it is always His heart's desire to bless each one of us.
     So why do bad things happen to people? If it is the desire of God's heart to bless those who seek Him, why do Christians suffer loss and defeat?  And that's where it gets particularly tough for many Christians.  But here's how I see it.  If someone suffers in this life, there are only three possible reason's ... 1) It is not the desire of God's heart to bless them [which we've already shown Scripture doesn't support]; 2) the person's free will played a part; or 3) it is the result of satan, who is the god of this world, and he found a way to steal, kill, or destroy God's intended blessing.
     Now, here comes the next question which always arises ... But God is sovereign, and he could have stopped the person's free will or the devil's schemes, and because He didn't, then shouldn't we surmise that God allowed the suffering?  People always want to go back to the example of Job and point out that God allowed the devil to torment Job.  But we misunderstand what is going on.  When God says to satan, "Behold, all that Job has is in your power...", we should discern that God wasn't giving satan power over Job (or allowing him to make Job suffer) ... satan already had the power, because he had dominion over the whole earth [from Adam and Eve's surrender in the Garden]. God was simply stating the facts and is saying, we're playing by the established rules.  You can destroy all the blessings I have given him, and my servant Job [still] will not curse me.  In fact, at the end of the Book of Job, God is mad at Job's friends, saying, "“My wrath is kindled against you and against your two friends, because you have not spoken of Me what is right as My servant Job has".  In effect, you have misrepresented Me! You've been trying to lay all the blame for Job's misfortune and suffering at My feet, and that is wrong!

     Let me try to put God's will in a more modern perspective.  God's establishment of the family dynamic mirrors the relationship between our Heavenly Father, and us, His children.  We can agree that in a perfect world, parents exercise authority over their children.  Let's say a family exists of a father, mother, and several children.  It is the desire of those parents that all of their children follow God's ways, and they teach them Biblical principles and what they expect of them.
     But one of the daughters decides to walk a different path; one that pleases the world, instead of her parents.  By her own free will, she begins making choices that result in drug addiction and repeated arrests.  So, are we to lay the blame at the feet of the parents because they "allowed" this to happen?  Or was it their daughter's free will that resulted in her suffering?  Or was it that the devil tempted her with escape through drugs in order to destroy her relationship with both her parents and God? The blame lies at the feet of either the daughter or the devil, not the parents, who only desired the best for their daughter and gave her the ground rules by which she could enjoy a blessed life!  The same model works in the spiritual world.  When tragedy or suffering occurs, it is NEVER the desire of God's heart; it is not His will!  Either the person made a free will choice that brought on the result, or like Job, we live in a world that is under the dominion of satan and he roams the earth looking for someone to kill, steal, or destroy.  He can work with the person's free will, or he can simply use the power he has to attack us.  It is up to us to resist him, while continuing to honor and glorify God,
     I guess the reason I am so passionate about viewing God's Nature correctly is that it saddens me when He gets the blame for the sadness, misery, and tragedy in this life.  We are made in the image of the Son whom He dearly loved [and therefore, what He desired for the Son, He desires for us].  And I would challenge anyone who believes that God caused [or allowed] His own Son's death. It was Adam and Eve's free will choice to disobey God that began the Israelite's long road of disobedience and ultimately led to Christ's crucifixion [and to God's glory, His resurrection].  Was it the desire of God's heart that His Son die such a horrific death? No! But once the dominion of this earth was handed over to satan, God cannot violate His own rules and take that dominion back until He sends His Son a second time with power and glory to defeat evil for all time.  But we tend to believe that "God's will" is His plan, [as in, it was His plan that Jesus go to the Cross in order to provide a way for  us to escape God's wrath].  And that is a much different understanding than seeing God's will as His heart's desire.
     Ultimately, it is the desire of God's heart that all men seek Him, and through confession and repentance, come into the Kingdom of God, partnering with Him to exert the Kingdom's influence on satan's dominion here on earth.  But while satan still rules this earth, the Bible tells us he is the god of this world, ruler of this world, and the prince of the power of the air.  He does not have ultimate authority over this world; but operates in this world within the boundaries God has set for him.  And God has set boundaries for Himself, too ... God is a God of order and harmony (1 Corinthians 14:33). So, to say that "it is God's will" when bad things happen is just not in keeping with His heart's desire or His Divine Nature.  Everything about God [including His will, or the desire of His heart] is good and acceptable and perfect.  Bad things -- evil, tragedy, trials -- come from the Enemy and/or our own sin nature.  Let's give God the praise He is due, and not dishonor His reputation [as was done in the Book of Job] by allowing Him to be falsely accused.

Romans 12:2    "Do not be conformed to this world, but be transformed by the renewal of your mind, that by testing you may discern what is the will of God, what is good and acceptable and perfect". 
   
   
   
      

John 20:21-23 ... The Authority To Forgive Sins

Then Jesus said to them again, Peace to you; as the Father has sent Me, I also send you [as My representatives]. And when He said this, He breathed on them and said to them, Receive the Holy Spirit. If you forgive the sins of anyone they are forgiven [because of their faith]; if you retain the sins of anyone, they are retained [and remain unforgiven because of their unbelief].

     This is an interesting passage, whereby the risen Jesus is appearing to the Apostles, who are hiding out in an undisclosed room in Jerusalem, fearing retribution from the Jewish religious leaders and the Roman government because of their association with the crucified Christ.  Although they had spent nearly three years with Him, and Jesus had tried to prepare them for this time, you can imagine their confusion, dashed hopes, and fear of what the future might mean for them.

     But in these verses, Jesus appears to them to calm them, bring them peace, and remind them of their mission to co-labor with Him on behalf of the Kingdom of God.  He then breathed the Holy Spirit on them, and gave them a very important and precious gift: the authority to forgive sins.

     I know that is a foreign idea to us 21st Century Christians, and it certainly is not taught in the Church as a matter of our authority.  And I can hear the naysayers now ... Where do you get the idea that we have the authority to forgive sins? Isn't God the only One who can forgive us our sins? That second question sounds exactly like the Pharisees in Mark, Chapter 2, who, upon hearing Jesus tell the paralytic that his sins were forgiven, asked, “Why does this man speak that way? He is blaspheming; who can forgive sins but God alone?” I am sure there are some within the Body of Christ who would assign the same doubt to my statement that we can forgive sins. But let me see if I can explain my understanding of these verses in John...

     It is very important that we have a clear understanding when it comes to the dynamics of the relationship between the Father, the Son, and us.  Over and over, Jesus declares in the Bible. I only do what the Father tells Me ... I only do what pleases the Father ... I only do what I see the Father doing ... I only say what I hear the Father saying ... If you've seen Me, you've seen the Father.  Therefore, Jesus is an exact representation of the Father.  And here, in John 20, He is telling the apostles, Now, you're MY representatives; meaning by extension, they are representing the Father, too, just as Jesus did.  Furthermore, Jesus tells the Apostles that all authority on Heaven and earth has been given to Him and their Commission is now to teach all the nations what He has taught and commanded them to do -- i.e., we now represent Jesus!

     But there is another aspect of our relationship with Christ and how we represent Him.  In 1 Peter 2:9, the Bible calls us a royal priesthood, a holy nation, a people for God’s own possession, so that we may proclaim the excellencies [the wonderful deeds and power] of Him who has called you out of darkness into His marvelous light.  Remember, God instituted the priesthood in the Old Testament as the means by which His chosen people could be forgiven their sins.  The priests served a particularly important function in the sacrificial system that brought the sins of the Israelites before God to be forgiven.  But in the New Testament, Jesus became our High Priest and the ultimate, once-for-all sacrifice, so that system is no longer needed.  However, as it is revealed in 1 Peter 2 and Revelation 5,  we are to still serve God as priests of His Kingdom, bringing people "out of darkness and into His marvelous Light (Jesus)".

     That is what I believe Jesus is telling us here in John 20... He is our High Priest, and as His representatives here on earth, we serve the Father's Kingdom as His priests.  So how does that work, and what are our duties as priests?  Have you ever known someone who has given their life to Christ, and declared Him their Savior, yet cannot seem to receive His forgiveness of their sins, even after they have confessed and repented?  Even though their salvation is certain, there is some area of their life that satan still holds in bondage, and they are mired in self-condemnation? 

     Even though the Bible tells us that Jesus has forgotten their sins, as far as the east is from the west, they still feel He is distant and they don't feel forgiven.  I believe John 20:23 declares our position as the royal priesthood and Jesus is giving us permission to declare to that tortured Christian that if they have faith, their sins are forgiven.  On the other hand, we must take our holy priesthood very seriously (as the representative of Christ), and when it is clear that a sinful lifestyle has not been confessed or repented for, and Jesus has been rejected, then we have no authority or duty to forgive anyone's sin.  Very simply, for me, John 20:21-23 is Jesus defining a priestly duty, and since we are called to be a royal priesthood of God's Kingdom on earth, it is part of our allegiance to our High Priest.  

     But, here's the thing ... the powerless Church, today, is all too eager to call themselves priests of the Kingdom, but only in the sense of a noun, and not as a verb -- meaning there is an obligation to act out our identities as priests, (and representatives of our High Priest) and to be willing to take the sins of a fellow Christian and wash them in the blood of Jesus, pronouncing those sins forgiven.  If that sounds anti-Biblical, think on this.... Are we not in Christ, and Christ in us?  Did He not take all sin upon Himself, and by His Blood we are forgiven and healed?  If Christ is in us, we can take those sins and present them to Him, being confident of His mercy and grace upon all who believe in Him.

     Personally, in our deliverance ministry, my husband and I have often reminded someone being oppressed by spirits of unworthiness, inadequacy, self-condemnation, shame, or guilt that their faith in Jesus Christ as their Savior, and their confession of their sins allows us, as His representative, to speak Jesus's forgiveness into their life.  In that, we serve both our God and our fellow man.  That's why God sent Jesus, and that's why He sends us.  

That Which Has Been Is That Which Will Be

     Solomon was correct when he made that statement in Ecclesiastes 1:9.  He's better known for the last sentence in that verse ... So nothing is new under the sun ... and I found that out as I did some personal research into the history of my family's faith.  I hope you will indulge me as I share my discoveries, because I was surprised at how much I recognized in their experiences. What I found out in the life of the Church in my great-great-great grandfather's time is being mirrored in today's Body of Christ.
     I have long been interested in trying to figure out my family's disparate modes of faith.  Unlike many families who can look back on a long line of ancestors whose love of the Lord was passed down through the generations, there was no unified profession of faith in my childhood home. My mother was a Believer and from an early age, I knew about Jesus, as she somehow found a way to introduce Him to me and then send me and my siblings to Vacation Bible School programs.  She was a stay-at-home mom with no car and five young children to care for, so I'm not sure how we were transported, but she got us there.  My father was not a Believer, although he supported our exposure to Church, and, as the oldest of the five, he instructed me to watch out for my brother and sister as he dropped us off at Sunday School.  My Mom stayed home with the babies... not exactly a "family experience".

     My maternal grandmother was a strong and faithful woman, but she lived three states away, so the most influence she could have was giving me a Bible at the age of 12 (which I still have today).  I know she prayed for us. and I'm sure it was those prayers that finally bore fruit when I accepted Jesus as my Savior as an adult.  So, I knew my mother's side was certain of their faith.  But what about my father's side of the family?  And it is that research that led me to my interesting conclusion that Solomon was right.
      You see, my father loved searching our family's genealogy, and before his death, he sent me a copy of a microfiched 1870 article on my four times great-grandfather and his six sons.  The patriarch of the family was a man named John Dodgson, whom the article said "came over in a ship from England with a gang of boys in 1821" to settle on a farm in Illinois.  The article also said "If there is anything peculiar to the Dodgson family than another, it was their uniform piety and strong adherence to churches".  It was John's first son Thomas who would be my direct ancestor; Thomas's daughter Mary would marry a man from whom I received my maiden last name.  But it seems that Mary Dodgson's faith in God did not translate to her new husband's family, nor down the generations to my father.
     So I read, with fascination, about the consistency of faith in John Dodgson's family, and I marveled at the level of their devotion to God.  John was quoted as saying [regarding his conversion experience], "If the house in Old England were yet standing, he could still go and point within six inches of where the Lord, for Christ's sake, pardoned his sins!"  And it was "his great care and prayer" that all six of his sons would come to know and love the Lord as he had. He lived to see those prayers answered. But, it makes me sad that down through the generations, that family devoutness was diminished, and my father, John's great-great-great-grandson, was neither schooled nor encouraged to know Jesus.
     But what was as equally fascinating as my ancestors' piety, was the description of their faith.  Throughout the article there were references to "warm times in Wesleyan Methodism", and after some investigation, I discovered that warm referred to dramatic experiences of conversion, including what today is referred to as "being slain in the Spirit", or instances of fainting as the Holy Spirit comes upon a person.  And not surprisingly, there developed a schism within the Methodist Church, between those who believed this reaction was Biblical and those who accused them of being led astray.
     As I read further in the article that chronicled the faith of the Dodgson family, it was revealed that the religious differences within the local community resulted in a debate between Church leaders, the Rev. J.M. Peck and the Rev. Peter Hobson. Peck took a stance that "a little learning is a dangerous thing" and referred to the Believers who agreed with Hobson as infidels, and he feared that "a great many would be shaken in their faith and never find their way back".
     By the way, my ancestors concurred with Rev. Hobson, whom the article went on to call "a Boston Investigator" man in religion.  What did that mean?  Here's what I found out ... "In religion, it [a Boston Investigator[ is the fearless advocate of open and fair investigation, opposed to every species of coercion for the dissemination of opinions, and rejecting all theories as erroneous, that will not bear the test of reasonable examination, however strongly they may have entrenched themselves under the barriers of antiquated formulas, tributary customs, or a pretended divine revelation . . . . Our object is to call the attention of the public from the visionary dreams of superstition and fanaticism, which has too long infested the moral world, to things of known realities, or facts that may be known, which tend to promote the happiness of man in his present state of being, the only state of which we have any knowledge. We wish to not interfere with religion by any coercive means, or any legal enactments: but to leave it entirely to support itself, and to stand or fall upon its own foundation. Its kingdom is professedly not of this world then it should have nothing to do with worldly affairs; but let it be supported wholly by spiritual means, by argument, by persuasion, and not by law".
     Maybe, I'm misunderstanding what this is telling me, but it seems as if we are seeing the same old struggle in the Church here ... on one side is the group who oppose Believers seeking a greater knowledge of God and who prefer to hold to man's traditions and doctrines over any new revealed understanding of God through His Word -- and on the other side is the group who support the freedom to reasonably examine Scripture by being a good Berean (rejecting anything not backed up by Scripture); and seeking spiritual guidance from the Holy Spirit as to God's revealed Truth.
     Furthermore, my research revealed there was another major division between these two groups: Peck took a stance in favor of strict predestination doctrine, while Hobson believed in God's gift of free will to accept or reject Him.  And it looks like for the better part of a century, my family fully and enthusiastically sought and accepted God. And within the next century, that faith had deteriorated to a rejection based on apathy.
     I don't know what all contributed to the lack of faith in the next three generations of my family.  But I think it is clear that one of satan's favorite schemes is to get the Church involved in endless debates over man's traditions and doctrines instead of truly seeking God.  He gets Christians to focus on each other, rather than our Savior, and encourages us to find fault; each thinking they have found the true path to Heaven's gates. None of that persuades the Unsaved to seek out the Church or to find hope in Jesus.
     I am just thankful and grateful that God never stopped pursuing me.  And it shows me that God can overcome generations of indifference and denial; that there exists in the heart of every man or woman the desire to know our Creator.  My great-great-great grandfather, Thomas Dodgson, didn't accept Jesus until he was 40 years old in 1837, and exactly 150 years later, my faith was established as an adult, too. What is ironic is that the schisms that were occurring in the Church prior to the Civil War are the same ones that the Church is experiencing today.  Satan's playbook never changes.  But he also has not achieved the complete victory he is seeking.  There will always be those in every generation who reject the devil's temptations and answer Jesus's knock at the door.
     But as Solomon expressed in his wisdom, the generations don't seem to remember what has occurred before them, and so are destined to repeat the futility of their struggles.  I thank God that He is patient and compassionate, and willing to wait on those of us who come to Him late. I am also grateful to have this history of my family's faith because it shows me that God truly desires to lose no one ... I am the evidence of that.

Psalm 71:18    "So even to old age and gray hairs, O God, do not forsake me, until I proclaim Your might to another generation, Your power to all those to come".

Why Is It Wrong To Seek More Of Our God?

     I am becoming increasingly aware of Satan's scheme to divide and separate us from fellow Christians.  As I hinted at in an earlier post, it is far too easy to cast aspersions on other Believers, and throw around the label of "false teacher".  It seems that if you can get 5 or 6 people to agree with you against the theology of another Christian, then you are warranted in calling their interpretation of Scripture "false".

     But today I want to narrow my scope of discussion as to why so many in the Body of Christ find fault with a Christian who desires to seek more knowledge, understanding, and wisdom about God.  In fact, if anyone in the Body attempts to go beyond the accepted level of understanding in the group, then the level of fear increases also -- the fear that any new interpretation or revelation from Scripture might lead the entire group into deception.  So more often than not, the discussion is shut down and the seeker is cautioned to "play it safe" by not bringing up any controversial ideas or -- heaven forbid -- a bigger picture of God and His Nature.  Satan wins as the group's level of knowledge and understanding is kept at the lowest common denominator.

     I can only speak for myself, but I believe that my hunger to know more about God and my desire to seek more of Him comes from the Holy Spirit.  I do not believe my flesh has any instinct to seek God, nor do I think that the devil would be encouraging me to do so, either.  That being said, I am fully aware that whatever new knowledge or understanding I discern must be compared to Scripture and be stamped with the Holy Spirit's seal of approval... something that, if you have developed a relationship with Him, you easily recognize. We should never let our pride think the devil won't try to distort any revelation we might receive from God, but if you know and trust the Lord's presence in your life, there is no reason to fear being deceived.

     But here is what I would like to ask my fellow Christians to consider: in the Bible there is a difference between knowledge, understanding, and wisdom.  Proverbs 2 gives us a sound Biblical explanation of these three terms ... My son, if you will receive my words and treasure my commandments within you, Make your ear attentive to wisdom, Incline your heart to understanding; For if you cry for discernment, Lift your voice for understanding; If YOU SEEK her as silver and search for her as for hidden treasures; Then you will discern the fear of the Lord and discover the knowledge of God.

     I would first like to make the comment that [to me] it appears that we are encouraged to seek wisdom and understanding, for there we will discover the knowledge of God.  That word "discover" implies finding something in the course of a search.  We are to seek and search for knowledge and understanding of who our God is, and when we grow that relationship, He will impart His wisdom to us, instructing us in His ways.

     If I may, here's one way that I think we can discern the differences in all these terms:  

1) KNOWLEDGE is the facts as stated in the Bible; for example, Jesus's statement, "These signs [attesting miracles] will accompany those who have believed: in My name they will cast out demons, they will speak with new tongues; they will pick up serpents, and if they drink any deadly poison, it will not hurt them; they will lay hands on the sick, and they will recover” (Mark 16:17-18).  Jesus plainly states the facts that describe those who have believed [and will believe] in Him.

2)  UNDERSTANDING is the ability to translate meaning from the facts.  Now consider that after Jesus had risen, He exhorts His Disciples, saying, “All authority has been given to Me in heaven and on earth. Go therefore and make disciples of all the nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father and the Son and the Holy Spirit, teaching them to observe all that I commanded you; and lo, I am with you always, even to the end of the age.” After studying and comparing Scripture, I am able to understand that we, as disciples of Christ, are to observe [and do] all that He commanded we would do as Believers -- cast out demons, speak with new tongues, heal the sick, etc. Furthermore, we need not be afraid of the Enemy -- even if we drank deadly poison, the power of God can protect us. And ALL Believers can hold on to this promise, because that power will be with us until He returns at the end of the age.

3) WISDOM is knowing what to do next, given an understanding of the facts and circumstances.  Acts 5:16 is a perfect example of the wisdom of the Apostles after Jesus's ascension.  They were performing those "signs" that Jesus said would accompany those who believed and followed Him: "Also a multitude gathered from the surrounding cities to Jerusalem, bringing sick people and those who were tormented by unclean spirits, and they were all healed". They knew what to do next after receiving Jesus's commandment and understanding its implications for the Kingdom of God.  And since God doesn't change (neither His Principles, Nature, or Character), we should be continuing these "signs" as Believers.

     But here is what I have seen and experienced amongst the Body of Christ ... there are many in the Church who can recite facts and quote Scripture.  But, it is possible to have knowledge, and lack understanding and wisdom. Someone might have the facts, but not know what they mean, be able to connect the dots, or know what to do next.  And I honestly think there are far too many Christians who don't trust their relationship with God and are unable to move from Knowledge to Understanding.  They are so afraid of being deceived that they need a Chapter and Verse, word-for-word declaration of God's concepts and principles, or they are unable to discern His Truth.

     I tend to agree with Charles Spurgeon, who once wrote, "Wisdom is the right use of knowledge. To know is not [necessarily] to be wise. Many men know a great deal, and are all the greater fools for it. There is no fool so great a fool as a knowing fool. But to know how to use knowledge is to have wisdom".  Even the Bible says, A scoffer seeks wisdom and finds none, But knowledge is easy to one who has understanding (Proverbs 14:6).  To move from Knowledge to Understanding greatly expands a Christian's Faith.  Then to discern and trust this Understanding to be the Truth of God, will cause Him to impart His Wisdom. 

     I guess I just find it discouraging when fellow Christians -- whether it be pastors, teachers, or a person who sits in a Bible study class -- tell me that I am not to seek "hidden knowledge" because the "Canon has been closed" and there is no new knowledge to be found.  I will agree that God has not inspired any men in the 21st Century to write additional Books of the Bible, and we should neither add nor take away from what has been written.  But, nowhere in the Bible do I see God telling me that I am to no longer seek new understanding of Him. Like Paul's letter to the Colossians, I wish for our hearts to be encouraged, being knit together in love, [so that we can] reach all the riches of full assurance of understanding and the knowledge of God's mystery, which is Christ, in whom are hidden all the treasures of wisdom and knowledge. We are to REACH the "full assurance of understanding and the knowledge of God's mystery", which tells me we aren't there yet. We are to stretch out and extend ourselves toward that wisdom and knowledge, out of a hunger and desire to receive the full measure of Christ.

     Indeed, Paul expresses this same concept in his letter to the Ephesians:  And He gave the apostles, the prophets, the evangelists, the shepherds and teachers, to equip the saints for the work of ministry, for building up the body of Christ, until we all attain to the unity of the faith and of the knowledge of the Son of God, to mature manhood, to the measure of the stature of the fullness of Christ, so that we may no longer be children, tossed to and fro by the waves and carried about by every wind of doctrine, by human cunning, by craftiness in deceitful schemes. Rather, speaking the truth in love, we are to grow up in every way into him who is the head, into Christ, from whom the whole body, joined and held together by every joint with which it is equipped, when each part is working properly, makes the body grow so that it builds itself up in love.

     But what are we to do when the apostles, the prophets, the evangelists, the shepherds and the teachers are not equipping us to do the work Jesus commanded us to do?  What are we to do when they discourage our hunger "to attain the knowledge of the Son of God"?  The Scripture says UNTIL ... telling me that it is a process that we are to pursue until we reach maturity and grow up IN EVERY WAY into Christ. 

     And, yes, we are not to be "tossed to and fro" by every kind of doctrine, by human deception and misunderstanding, or by deceitful schemes or methods.  But notice that this caution is given to people described as "children" in their understanding.  We are "to grow into mature manhood"... and how do you do that?  By increasing your knowledge and understanding!  By seeking to know more of our God!

     It is my sincere prayer that the Body of Christ will throw off the fear that our Enemy is more powerful to deceive us than our God is faithful to reveal Himself if we seek Him.  And I also pray that we quit attacking each other because our levels of understanding and wisdom may be different.  Why can't we celebrate that there are those among us who are seeking Him and wish to share Him with the Body? Until we begin to move from childhood to maturity in our knowledge and understanding, the Enemy has us right where he wants us .... alienated from a fuller life with God.  With our whole hearts, let us seek Him!

Psalm 53:2    "God has looked down from heaven upon the sons of men to see if there is anyone who understands, who seeks after God".

     

Connecting The Dots: There Is Power In God's Grace

     I have been receiving a huge download from the Holy Spirit as I seek more understanding of God and His Nature and Character.  I admit that the thoughts are coming at such an accelerated speed that I find myself flipping from Scripture to Scripture to determine if what I am understanding is confirmed by God's Word.  And I want to make it perfectly clear ... what I am about to share with you is from my own study of God's Word.  This is my opinion, and by no means, should you accept what I say without doing your own study.  But I am also declaring to you that I believe it is inherent upon [and necessary for] every Believer to search out God for themselves.  He has given us His Word as a revelation of His Character and His Divine Nature, and far too many of us rely on our pastors, popular ministers, and online articles to define God for us.
       I have been convicted in my heart that there is so much of the basic foundation of God's qualities and character that we really haven't figured out for ourselves.  Oh, we know all the words and probably use them often in our attempts to explain our theology: Sanctification, Justification, Redemption, Salvation, Faith, Grace.  But, do we really know what they mean from God's perspective?  Or put another way, do we search the Scriptures to understand how they are to be applied to our relationship with Him; that they are not just doctrines, but real dispensations from God to be applied in growing towards Him?
     For instance, I can say that I am saved by the Grace of God.  But do I fully understand the implications of God's Grace?  If you are like me, you've always understood the accepted definition of Grace as God's unmerited favor.  Grace has been defined as the following: We have received forgiveness of our sins through Christ's death on the Cross, and there was nothing we did to deserve it.  Grace has been given to us out of God's love and mercy; it's a gift.  And that's usually as far as most Christians go with their understanding of Grace... it's a gift... and if you will allow me to apply a grammatical attribute, it's a noun.
     And here is the astounding revelation I received as I did a deeper study on the Hebrew (Old Testament) understanding of the word Grace, and the Greek (or New Testament) interpretation.  In the Old Testament, the word for Grace is the Hebrew word chên.  And, indeed, it is a noun, and it does mean a favor; whatever is pleasant and agreeable.  What's more, there is no alternative word for Grace in the Old Testament --- everywhere it is used, it has the same meaning.
     In the Old Testament, Grace is usually applied in terms of "give favor" -- But the Lord was with Joseph, and extended kindness to him, and gave him favor in the sight of the chief jailer (Genesis 39:21); "obtain favor" --  I will grant this people favor in the sight of the Egyptians; (Exodus 3:21), or "find favor" -- And Joseph found grace in his sight, and he served him; and he made him overseer over his house, and all that he had he put into his hand. (Genesis 6:8).
     The Hebrew word chên comes from the word chânan, which includes the meaning to bend or stoop in kindness to an inferior. Strong's Concordance also says, "Generally, this word [grace] implies the extending of "favor", often when it is neither expected nor deserved".  So, this seems to tell me that the modern Church's understanding of Grace is in line with the Old Testament perception.
     But when I looked at how God applies the concept of Grace in the New Testament, I saw a dramatic change.  Grace becomes a verb! And just like in the Old Testament, there is no alternative word or meaning for God's Grace -- everywhere it is used it means the same thing.  And the Greek word for God's Grace is charis.  At its root it indicates an act of favor on the part of the giver, and thanks on the part of the receiver.  Charis is related to sins and the attribute of God's Grace that they evoke.  It is God's Mercy (the free gift of forgiveness of sins) and compassion that recognizes the misery that our sin brings us.  It is God's tender sense of our misery that displays itself in His efforts [Grace] to lessen and entirely remove our misery.  God's Grace is applied; it is bestowed; it is His power to equip us for ministry.  This is what is shown us in Hebrews 4:16 ... Therefore let us draw near with confidence to the throne of grace, so that we may receive mercy and find grace to help in time of need.  God's grace is a weapon in our spiritual war with the devil.  It is help in time of need, which implies [to me] that God's power is behind it.

     And it is imperative [in our understanding of Grace] that we recognize it to be a way that we live our lives.  And we must agree that God has an ability we do not have -- to resist sin.  Therefore, living a righteous life is not from our own ability to resist sin, but God's ability to do a work in our heart that helps us to say no to the temptation.  Grace empowers us through our relationship with God.  Put simply, when we pray for God's Grace to never commit a particular sin again, it is His ability NOT to do it that invades our heart and enables and empowers us to stop the sin.
     What about our free will? When God activates His Grace in our heart (His ability to not commit the sin), our will has a choice --- continue in our pursuit of that sin, OR come into agreement with God and let His ability (power to resist the sin) become our motivation.  This is the true understanding of that oft-quoted Scripture in 2 Corinthians 12:9 ... but He has said to me, “My grace is sufficient for you [My lovingkindness and My mercy are more than enough—always available—regardless of the situation]; for [My] power is being perfected [and is completed and shows itself most effectively] in [your] weakness.” Therefore, I will all the more gladly boast in my weaknesses, so that the power of Christ [may completely enfold me and] may dwell in me. When God's Grace is activated in New Testament Believers, there you will find the power of Christ.
     Grace is the manifestation of God's ability in any situation!  When the Apostle Paul wrote, By the Grace of God, I am what I am, I believe he was saying that Grace was the Ability of God surging through his veins and empowering him to do the work he did.  Paul was plugged into God's Grace all the time. That's how he lived! And we can live that way, too!  Every time we come to a challenge, we should ask ourselves, "Do I want to tackle this with my own ability [my own strength, wisdom, power], or with Jesus's?"
     I find it interesting that the first and last use of the word Grace in the New Testament involve our Lord Jesus Christ: And the child continued to grow, and become strong, increasing in wisdom; and the grace of God was upon Him (Luke 2:40); and The grace of our Lord Jesus Christ be with you all. Amen (Revelation 22:21). In both instances, it is the power and ability of the Almighty God [exhibited through Jesus Christ] that is being manifested.  Let me be clear -- I accept the truth of God's unmerited favor in my life.  But I don't want to settle for only that portion of His Grace.  It want it all!  I want His ability to resist sin to invade my heart, and I want His power to be manifested in all the works I do for His Kingdom.  I recognize my own weakness and come into full agreement with Him; calling upon His Grace to be applied, to be bestowed, and to empower me to live a righteous life that pleases Him. That is what Jesus did, and He is Grace personified.

Acts 20:24   "But I do not account my life of any value nor as precious to myself, if only I may finish my course and the ministry that I received from the Lord Jesus, to testify to the gospel of the grace of God".