Portrait of Faith

Last time I left off with an analogy of being licked by a gentle lamb or roaring lion. Which lick would mean more?

The Lion, of course seeing that it could kill you in one bite. “Our Lord will never be appreciated as a Lamb unless He’s first encountered as a lion? And it’s because of the Lion’s perfect wrath that there’s such a place as hell where sinners spend eternity in torment…”

God’s wrath (Hell) is awful, unalterable and eternal. Not a fun topic, but one that needs to be explored!

I really don’t like to think about Hell, but the Bible says in Mark 9:43-48 it’s place of everlasting fire that “is not quenched.” No one really knows if the fire is literal or figurative, but one thing is certain your soul is separated from God forever and will live in torment.

Hell is also a place from where you can’t return. I grew up believing in a place where you could make amends for your sins after you die in a place called Purgatory. But after I read the scriptures myself, I found no mention of such a place and no need for one because Christ took on ALL of my sins at the cross.(Luke 16:19-31)

Hell is eternal. It says in 2 Thessalonians 1:9 it is an everlasting destruction.

Jonathan Edwards , a revivalist preacher in the 1700’s, is best known for his sermon titled “Sinners in the Hands of an Angry God.” This is what he had to say.

It would be dreadful to suffer this fierceness and wrath of Almighty God one moment; but you must suffer it to all eternity. There will be no end to this exquisite horrible misery. When you look forward, you shall see a long for ever, a boundless duration before you, which will swallow up your thoughts, and amaze your soul; and you will absolutely despair of ever having any deliverance, any end, any mitigation, any rest at all.

You will know certainly that you must wear out long ages, millions of millions of ages, in wrestling and conflicting with this almighty merciless vengeance; and then when you have so done, when so many ages have actually been spent by you in this manner, you will know that all is but a point to what remains. So that your punishment will indeed be infinite.

Oh, who can express what the state of a soul in such circumstances is! All that we can possibly say about it, gives but a very feeble, faint representation of it; it is inexpressible and inconceivable: For “who knows the power of God’s anger?”

So was Jonathan Edwards’ sole purpose to scare the Hell out of you!?! R.C. Sproul believes “He [Jonathan Edwards] did this not out of a sadistic delight in frightening people but out of compassion. He loved his congregation enough to warn them of the dreadful consequences of facing the wrath of God. He was not concerned with laying a guilt trip on his people but awakening them to the peril they faced if they remained unconverted.”

Dwight Edwards says “All this is why we commit an unspeakably grave offense toward unbelievers when we highlight for them only the love of God and fail to warn them with tears of the horrors lying ahead if they remain unconverted.”

Then he asks a question. “How do you respond to the points made in this section about Hell? Do you fully accept and believe them? Do they raise any doubts or questions in your mind?

My answer: My mind believes and accepts, but my heart cannot comprehend it.

Maybe that’s why I’m guilty of not sharing my faith more. Maybe I don’t really believe my God could send people to Hell. But He does.

Yet, the good news is we don’t have to spend all eternity facing the wrath of God. Through accepting/believing in God’s son who died on the cross taking away all our sin, we receive the New Covenant and God remembers our sin no more.

Edwards says “This forgiveness means that we can look forward with absolute assurance to an endless future spent in the place where ‘there shall be no more death, nor sorrow, nor crying There shall be no more pain, for the former things have passed away. (Revelation 21:4)

Christianity is the only religion that guarantees heaven and its unending enjoyment upfront. Ever believer is guaranteed eternity in heaven- no matter what happens after we trust Jesus for salvation.”

But that’s a subject for next time.

Lord, help me not sugarcoat the Gospel, but tell the whole story of your holiness and wrath and your love and forgiveness. I know it is your wish that no one perish, and spending eternity with you is so easy. Amen.

If you’re reading this and are not sure if you died today you’d go to heaven, pray this prayer…

Holy and loving, I know that I have broken your laws and my sins have separated me from you. I am truly sorry, and now I want to turn away from my past sinful life toward you. Please forgive me, and help me avoid sinning again. I believe that your son, Jesus Christ died for my sins, was resurrected from the dead, is alive, and hears my prayer. I invite Jesus to become the Lord of my life, to rule and reign in my heart from this day forward. Please send your Holy Spirit to help me obey You, and to do Your will for the rest of my life. In Jesus’ name I pray, Amen.

Here are some resources to help you get started on your new life.
http://www.christianwomenonline.net/ready.html

http://www.allaboutgod.com/Sinners-Prayer.htm

To read previous posts in this series go here.

“The love that provides us with a new purity will never astonish us unless it’s seen against the bsackdrop of God’s raging fury toward sin. When he’s viewed almost exclusively as a God of love, we see forgiveness as just part of His job. That leaves His love with no punch for us, no fizz, no sparkle. Assumed Grace can never be transforming Grace.”

Wow! Dwight Edwards puts God’s love and holiness in a new light. I’ve been guilty of seeing God as a loving, though distant Father, probably becasue that’s what I knew my earthly father to be. I’ve never really wanted to look at God’s holiness and wrath as a part of His true character, but Edwards says, “We must be primed by the blazing holiness of God before His love and forgiveness will be genuinelly life changing.”

Then he asks the hardest question of all,

“Are you willing to risk coming to God as He is and not as we would like Him to be?

My answer to this question was this…For me that would mean pleading the blood of Jesus almost every hour because I sin so much in my attitude with my kids and my husband.

What’s your answer? What if you came to God as He really is wrath and holiness, love and forgiveness? Seeing God as He is instead of picking the attributes we like like side dishes on a value meal.

Here’s a paraphrased analogy for you from Edwards book.

What if you were at the petting zoo and a tame little lamb came up and gave you a lick on the hand. You’d think nothing of it. But what if a ferocious lion, who’d just escaped his cage came tearing off toward you with his mouth looking for his next lunch. Your paralized with fear, and when he’s breathe is upon you, he licks your cheek and stands by your side.Which lick would mean more to you?

The sacrifice of Jesus the peaceful lamb will never be appreciated to its full extent unless at first He’s seen as the roaring lion.

Week five of Experiencing Christ Within explores the gifts of God given to us freely through Christ by faith. The first one is purity. And I can’t say it any better than Dwight Edwards…

“The Christian life isn’t hard; it’s flat impossible. It becomes possible only when God injects His fullness into His people’s hearts-which is exactly what he’s done in the New Covenant…The divine cleansing that God provides in the New Covenant-a new purity for which only God can receive credit-is the starting point for living out our Christianity…So what does this new purity mean for us? Why is it so important?

Edwards goes on to explain that if we want to appreciate our desperate need for this new purity, we must see God as He really is, not how we think He is!

Pop Quiz…If you were going to describe God to someone who’s never heard of Him before what would you say? Maybe words like “loving Father” or “Best Friend” might be used to describe God. Though this is absolutely true about God, it is usually not a person’s first encounter with the Creator of the Universe.

In Romans, Paul describes God as being a Holy and Righteous Judge. Check it out…Romans 1:18; 2:2-5; 3:5-6,19. Go ahead. I’ll wait.

Edwards say, “One of the most common of these images is that of God who’s only love and kindness, a kind of deified Mister Rogers. God is love, but that isn’t all God is or all He’s capable of. It’s a shock for many believers to discover that His most fundamental attribute is not love but holiness-a perfect holiness that is the source of His righteous wrath.

The Bible shows us in many instances that those who encounter God for the first time, never run to him for a great big hug. Instead, because of God’s holiness, they fall at His feet or quake in His presence. Don’t believe me? Just ask Isaiah (6:1-5), Ezekiel (1:26-28), and Daniel (10:4-9) to name a few.

Take a moment to think about how you view God and ponder these thoughts until part II.

John White says, “We Christians are idolaters…We may not carve Him [God] out of wood, but we do try to forget the uncomfortable parts of Him and shape Him in to our own personal comfort

Ouch, anyone else feel the sting of this truth in their own lives?

Lord, help us see all of you! Not just the parts that are easy to embrace, but the truth of who You are, holiness, wrath and all. For when we truly see you as You are, then the weight of Your love and son’s sacrifice will have a powerful impact in our lives. Because the thought of a God who is so holy, reaching out to a sinful race and sacrificing His only son, sends a powerful message of a loving God. Thank you!

God’s glory. His holy presence. It’s something so many people desire. But are they really ready for it?

In the Old Testament many prophets experienced God’s glory, and it wasn’t how many Christians today imagine it to be. Most often when God entered a place, the ground shook, the Temple filled with smoke and people fell down in fear.

Isaiah was no exception. When struck with the presence and glory of God, Isaiah cried, “Woe to me! I am ruined for I am a man of unclean lips.” He recognized the awesomeness of and the sinfulness of his soul.

What would happen if we were met with the presence of the Holy God? Thankfully, God will look upon us and see the blood of his son, but still the presence of God changes people.

Thoughts on Experiencing God’s Glory

2 Corinthians 3:17-18 “We, with unveiled faces, all reflect the Lord’s glory and are being transformed into His likeness with ever-increasing glory…”

I want to be like Jesus, but I’m so far from looking anything like Him. On some days I really wonder if there is any resemblance and if He’d recognize me as his child.

Presence brings purification.

Maybe that’s my problem. I’m not changed because I don’t sit long enough in the presence of the One who can change me

Dwight Edwards says this “Nothing so invigorates our souls, so ravishes our hearts, so diminishes our anxieties, and so ennobles our existence as being supremely preoccupied with God’s greatness and presence. This is what you and I were made for.”

So how do I find the time to sit in God’s presence and absorb His glory when I’m surrounded by “stuff” to do and people to take care of? We all can’t be monks or nuns, called to hours of isolation and communion with God. So how can a normal person, a busy, stressed-out, exhausted mom experience the glory of God in her daily life? I’m still trying to figure out this answer.

Father, I want so much for your glory to be present in my life, especially in my home and parenting. Help me find the time and desire to spend it with you so I can be filled with your glory so others will be drawn to you.

Week four of Experiencing Christ Within is all about sin.

The bad news it that we’re all sinners. No one is good! Not one. When God looks down from heaven, He sees us all the same. Prostitute, deacon, drug dealer, preacher. We’re all sinners.

Sure, there are people who do not serve God and who do good. I’m not denying that. But the difference is the standard or the measurement we use to determine good.

Dwight Edwards explains it like this:

“We can easily slip into a ’street level’ view of goodness. It’s like walking down a city street sidewalk and comparing the heights of those you pass by. A few people happen to be well over six feet tall and really stand out from the crowd. But if you were to look down on the scene from atop a hundred-story skyscraper, everybody on the sidewalk would appear equally tiny.”

That’s how God sees us. We’re all sinners because of our sin nature (thanks Adam and Eve) because it goes against the very nature of God.

According to Psalm 53:2-3, “God looks down from heaven on the children of men to see if they understand, who seek God. Every one of them has turned aside; they have together become corrupt; there is none who does good, no, not one.”

[SIGH], So are we a hopeless lot, destined to live a sinful life? Yes, and no! I think the title of this chapter says it all, “The Journey to Radical Dependence.”

I haven’t finished the chapter yet, but I think the author is setting the scene for how much we need God. How much we need the saving Grace of his son. No, there is not one that is good. Not me, not you!

So why is it okay to be bad, as the title of this post suggest? Because as I see it, if we weren’t bad or full of sin, there’d be no need for Jesus. Through Christ we are forgiven and made a new. I can’t wait to see how the end of the chapter (and me) turns out!

If you spend any amount of time browsing or reading my blogs you know this question is not referring to my fundamental belief that Jesus is the Son of God.

So who is Jesus, to you?

Is He still a tiny baby in a manger who you think about once or twice a year? Someone you pray to only when you want something, and when your life isn’t going as planned?

Is He a friend in time of need, someone who sticks closer than a brother? Someone who’s there for you when everyone else seems not to care?

Is He your Savior? Someone who knows the ugliness of your sin, and loves you enough to take on your sin so you could be reconciled with God?

Is He your Lord? Someone you’ve surrendered your life to? Someone you not only love, but strive to be like and serve?

Jesus has been all these to me at different stages in my life, but right now I need Him to be Lord over my life.

I’m hoping to re-establish Jesus’ lordship over my life this next year. I’ve fallen into some laziness and bad habits in certain areas of my life which have kept me from experiencing the fullness that God has for me. I believe if Jesus regains control of these areas in my life than I will be back on the path He has for me.

So who is Jesus?

If you don’t know, now might be a good time to figure it out.

As I’ve been Experiencing Christ Within, I’ve also been challenged in my parenting. A while ago God led me from my restrictive, by-the-book parenting to a more Grace based parenting. It wasn’t an easy switch, and I still struggle with doling out consequences as my first reaction to parenting.

But I’ve learned over the last year that most times my kids will react positively to a positive mom. I’ve learned that I don’t have to crack the whip to get them to obey my every command. I’ve learned that my job as a parent is not to punish and give consequences all the time, but it’s to train them in the way they should go and sometimes that means listening to their grievances and offering Grace instead of discipline.

In week three of Experiencing Christ Within, Dwight Edwards touched on the subject of becoming spiritually provocative. He asked some great questions, and I want to share the thoughts I wrote in the margins about parenting.

If one of my jobs as a parent is to give my children a better glimpse of God, how can I do that? Do they need more discipline? More Grace? Initially more Grace comes to mind, but sometimes my children are so selfish and difficult. They lack respect. How can I offer MORE Grace without having them walk all over me?

But if I don’t teach my children the consequences of disobedience does that glorify God.

So what did I come up with?

I think there needs to be a balance. For my parenting personality I need to offer more grace in my discipline because I’m naturally bent toward the authoritative style of parenting. But my children need to know the consequences of their sin.

We’ve been studying Genesis and the consistent message is so clear. It’s obedience to God. Adam and Eve disobeyed and they were kicked out of the garden. God didn’t tell them they’d be kicked out before hand. (That’s one of my kids arguments. But you didn’t tell me I’d get such and such taken away…)

But focusing on God’s glory in my parenting would help me give my kids the Godly discipline they need to be trained up in the way they should go. Focusing on God’s glory would take the focus off my self, off my anger, off my kids’ disobedience and back onto God where it should be. It would help me be more patient and kind toward my kids.

And what if I started thinking this way in my marriage? In my social relationships? If we all started asking the question, how could God be glorified in this situation, think of the amazing transformation the world would go through!

If I take one thing away from this study, this would be enough!

Show me Lord, how I can glorify you today in every situation!

Week three in my study of Experiencing Christ Within is all about how our obedience brings about God’s glory.

When I think of obeying God, I think of striving to do what He wants so I can please Him and be blessed. But that’s not what this chapter is about. It’s about obeying so that the glory of God will be shown to others. It takes the focus off of ourselves and the reward (what blessing can I get by obedience?) and puts it on others and God’s glory (how will my obedience affect someone else’s veiw of God.)

Edwards uses this example:

“When John the Baptist was in the wilderness preaching about repentance to huge crowds, they asked him, ‘What shall we do?’

John could have answered with a generalized ‘Love God and do what is right.’ But he was much more specific. (Read Kuke 3:10-14) This challenging answer was designed to promote both a radical trust in an unseen God and a genuine concern for other’s needs. As people gave away thier extra to those in need, they demonstrated that their trust was not in any surplus but in a faithful God.

Later the tax collector came to John and then a band of soldiers. They too asked, “What shall we do?” John could have given the same answer he did before, but he choose applications specific to each group.

To the tax collectors he said “take only what is due you” and to the soldiers he told them to “do no violence and not to falsely accuse anyone.” This was exactly what each group was NOT doing.

He asked each group to do what was UNHEARD of in their day so that they would have an opportunity to unleash the power of God’s glory.

The bottom line for me in this chapter: Focus on God’s glory first.
The practical application: How can I give my children a better glimpse of God?

If I focus on bringing God’s glory in my home and discipline, what would that look like?

Not reacting out of impatience or in anger is the first thing that comes to mind.

Using kind words when my critical spirit rears its ugly head.

Working through issues instead of arguing.

Maybe offering a little more grace instead of discipline and asking “how can God be glorified in this situation?” instead of “How can I get my childern to do what I say?” (Ouch! I needed that one.)?

So does that mean I neglect discipling them all together? No. My children need to know that the consequences of disobeience are serious.(Just ask Adam and Eve)But I would rather have them obey me out of love and respect instead of out of fear and consequences.

Focusing on God’s glory takes the focus off of myself and what I can get out of my children’s obedience. When I focus on God’s glory, it puts me in a place where I can minister the love of God and God’s power can be displayed in my relationships with my kids.

And that to me is more powerful than any form of discipline.

I’ve mentioned before how I’ve been going through the Experiencing Christ Within workbook by Dwight Edwards. I’ve done my fair share of Bible studies, but this one seems so fresh and new. I am learning so much and hope some of what I’m learning is rubbing off.

In week two, I explored the idea that people are not God’s first priority. That God’s main purpose is to show his glory!

Did you get what I just said?

We are here on earth to serve the living God and reveal His glory through our actions. Dwight Edwards says it like this, “Nothing-nothing-matters more to God than the glory of His name. He is ablaze with a perfect, pure jealousy for His reputation.”

In this “What about me?” society we live in, this could be a shock to many. I had to read it a couple of times to fully understand what was being said. How many of us, me included, have been guilty of using God to meet our needs? Even the church and the Christian book stores are guilty of “selling” Christianity as a way to be successful and happy. But Jesus never promised success or happiness. Luke 21:12 says, “…they will lay hands on you and persecute you. They will deliver you to synagogues and prisons, and you will be brought before kings and governors, and all on account of my name.”

According to Dwight, the main point of our spirituality has been forgotten. The Bible is full of examples of God trying to further his glory, not “fix” lives. Sure, he loved, cared for, protected and answered the prayers of his people, but behind every answered prayer was the revealing of His glory.

Dwight says, “So the question isn’t whether God is on our side, responsive to our call, but whether we are genuinely on His side, responsive to His call. It isn’t how God fits into what we’re doing, but how we fit into what God is doing. He is the Creator; we are the creatures…He runs the universe. We fit in.”

So the phrase this week has been “do my actions glorify God?” I’ve used it a couple of times with my kids this week and it’s really stopped them in their tracks. Now I need to start applying it to my parenting. Do my actions with my children glorify God. Well, that’s a whole other post for another day.

I’ve started on a spiritual journey that has me intrigued and excited. Revolution Within and the companion workbook Experience Christ Within by Dwight Edwards is a fresh look at God’s covenant with his people. I’ve only completed the first chapter which was very indepth and time consuming with tons of scripture references to look up, but the good thing is I’m doing this study on my own and there’s no group deadline. So I can take my time to really absorb these principles.

To sum it up I’ll quote from the workbook:

“In the Old Covenant (the law), God’s people were instructed with the repeated words, ‘You shall…’ and ‘You shall not…’

But in the New Covenant, the watchword is no longer ‘You shall,’ but God’s ‘I will’:

‘I will put My law in their minds…and I will be their God…I will forgive their iniquity’; ‘I will cleanse you…I will give you a new heart…I will put My Spirit within you and cause you to walk in My statues.’ (Jeremiah 31:33-34; Ezekiel 36:25-27)

Nothing is more fundamental to understanding and appreciating the difference between the two covenants than these two phrases.”

Did you get what the scripture is saying? For Choleric Meloncholies like me it has been the beginning of my freeing from doing, striving, trying to be perfect and right. What the new covenant says to me is that I don’t have to strive to be perfect. I can’t be perfect, that’s what the old covenant, the law, has shown us. I can’t do it, so God must! And he did by sending us Jesus.

In the old covenant we are told that obedience is our righteousness.(Deut. 5:28-33; 6:1-9,17-19, 24-25; 8:1-20, 11:8-21) In the new covenant Christ is the end of the law so there might be righteousness for those who believe. (Matthew 5:17-18; Romans 8:3-4, 10:4)

I’m just beginning to grasp the truth of this.

One of the other reasons I’m excited about this study is because it relates to my momlit I’m brainstorming. I’m beginning to realize my character is living under the old law of striving to do what’s right, but she’s failing miserably. She is easily swayed by other people’s advice, yet forgets to turn to God for the answers. She doesn’t trust herself to hear the voice of God, so she resorts to living under the old law.

So even though I will be silent (not online) tomorrow, I’m hoping when I study God’s Word, His truth will come through to me loud and clear!