"I Am Not a Sinner"

I have heard that in ancient Egypt, during the times of the pyramids, that the Pharaohs would be entombed with something called The Book of the Dead or otherwise The Book of the Great Awakening.  In this book were hundreds of "rules" or maxims that the soul would have to navigate at the last judgment before he could enter the abode of the dead -- something akin to the Elysian Fields concept of the Greeks.  These rules stood behind all of Egyptian civilization for hundreds of years.

Essentially, the soul of the dead would have to proclaim, "I have not sinned" before each one of these rules before he would be allowed to enter the Great Awakening.

I am quite sure that the Book of the Dead was probably a deterrent to bad behavior for the ancient Egyptians; I am not so sure that it serves such a useful purpose in today's society, where the fear of the Lord has gone somewhat out of favor among men.

While human nature would prefer to claim "I have not sinned" in regard to either Egyptian standards or those of the 10 Commandments, the truth is that "we have ALL sinned and fallen short of the glory of God" (Romans).  The problem is being convinced in our innermost hearts that we ARE truly sinners.  There is always a "reason" (excuse) for our bad behaviors, for our not being the image and likeness of God.  While it is easy to acknowledge that we are not perfect, we don't really see ourselves as "sinners" either.  After all, we are not really as bad as "some people we know."

But Jesus told us the parable of the publican and the sinner.  The one who was justified was the one who stood at the back of the synagogue, hardly daring to lift his eyes to heaven: Have mercy on me, O Lord, for I have sinned.  The one who proclaimed "I am not that bad....I am not like this poor sinner in front of me...." went away not justified and not receiving mercy.  After all, he didn't really need it!

One of the first movements of grace in us is the realization of our sinfulness.  It is the office of the Holy Spirit to "convict the world of guilt in regard to sin..." (John 16).  And the awakening of our guilt comes along with the Presence of Jesus Christ in our souls. Peter's reaction to the Presence of the Lord was to say, "Depart from me, O Lord, for I am a sinful man!"

The closer the Lord comes to us, the more aware we become of our sinfulness.  On the surface, or before our "conversion," we tend to think we are "not so bad" because we are not robbing banks or molesting children.  We tend to our business, don't drink to excess, and obey traffic laws for the most part.  Little do we glimpse into the depths of our soul, where the Spirit of God, the Spirit of Holiness, dwells. Once we begin to enter into the inner sanctuary, we begin to see who we really are, in the eyes of God --- eternally beloved, but also irremediably stained and crippled by sin.

I love, love, love the 7th and 8th chapter of Romans, where Paul says, "I don't understand myself at all -- the very thing I say I will not do is the very thing I end up doing.  And the thing I say I will do is the very thing I end up not doing.....unhappy man that I am!  I am essentially flawed at the core of my being!  (complete and unabashed paraphrase here).  

But there is no condemnation for those in Christ Jesus.  The Law of the Spirit of Life has set me free from the law of sin and death!

Before the Death and Resurrection of Jesus, we were ALL under the law of sin and death.  But now His own power works daily in us to overcome our sinful natures!  Thanks be to God when we can finally begin to see how sinful we are --- it means that the Holy Spirit is awakening us to the power of the Resurrected Christ to overcome death in our souls!

"Can You Hear Me Now?"

Why is my language not clear to you? Because you are unable to hear what I say. You belong to your father the devil, and you want to carry out your father's desire....He who belongs to God hears what God says. The reason you do not hear is that you do not belong to God (Jn. 8: 42 and 47).

Faith comes by hearing the message, and the message is heard by the word of Christ (Romans 10:17).

Jesus told Nicodemus, "Unless a man is born again, he cannot see the kingdom of God."  Obviously, from the words of Jesus in John 8, not only can we not see the kingdom until we are born again, but neither can we hear the words that God speaks until we are born again.  Jesus told the Pharisees that they were "unable" to hear because they belonged to their "father" the devil and wanted to carry out their father's desire.  By implication, then, if we are born again, "not of a father's desire, but of God," according to the first chapter of John, we will want to do our Father's desire....and we will hear the words of God.

In the New Testament, two words in the Greek are translated exactly the same in English; both "logos" and "rhema" in the Greek are translated "word" in English.  "Logos" in Greek refers to the "Divine Expression."  In the first chapter of John, it says, In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God, and the Word was God.  Jesus is the Divine Expression of the Father; by Him and through Him all things have life, whether they recognize Him or not.  Whether we are able to "hear" what God says, however, depends on whether we have been born again of water and the Spirit of Truth.

When the book of Romans says that the message is heard by the word of Christ, the Greek word used is "rhema" -- the living and active spoken word.  We are "born again" by the spoken word of Jesus Christ.  As He spoke to Lazarus in the tomb, "Lazarus, Come forth," so also He speaks into the darkness of our dead hearts, "________, come forth," and we awaken to new life.  At one point, we were "dead" to God and "alive" to sin, but by spoken word of Christ in our hearts, we are now dead to sin and alive to God.

If the Divine Expression, or the Word of God, seems "dead" to us, we need to go to the living and active word of God -- Jesus Christ-- asking that our ears and eyes be opened to the kingdom of God.  The kingdom was present on earth with the Presence of Jesus Christ, and yet so many could not see it or hear it in Him.  They did not "belong to God," and so they fulfilled the words of Jeremiah: "You foolish and senseless people, who have eyes but do not see, who have ears but do not hear (5:21).

Through Him, we are made children of God and learn to hear the words that God speaks.

I used to wonder how people "got faith" when I heard sermons about how important faith is.  "How do you "get faith?" I wondered.  Now I know that we will believe the words of God only after our ears have been opened by the Holy Spirit poured into our hearts by the word of Christ.  It's a living, loving thing -- rhema -- not a dead word that is spoken to us by Jesus.  If we want Scripture to come alive to us, let us go to the only One who is able to open the book to us -- Jesus Christ.  If we ask, He will not refuse -- He will baptize us with the Holy Spirit and with fire (Matthew 3:11).  We will hear the words He speaks and come out of our graves.

The Resurrected Life

How grateful I am for the Resurrection of Jesus Christ!

Jesus promised us that He would be with us always, even to the consummation of the world. The Resurrection makes that possible --- and believeable!  He "tabernacled" with us, dwelt with us face to face, so that we could see Him, touch Him, love Him, and speak with Him as a man speaks with a friend.  And He said He would never leave us orphans.

The human stories of the Old Testament were a testimony in themselves:  God is present -- and acting -- in human history.  He is Emmanuel -- God with us!  But still, it was hard for us to believe and to trust.  Maybe, after all, these were "just stories," as some of my friends attest.  Maybe God was "with" Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob, but maybe not "with " us in the same way.  

But as John says, now we have seen Him, have beheld the glory of the only-begotten Son, Who has revealed to us the love of the Father in the Parable of the Prodigal Son, and even more, not in a parable at all, but in the reality of the crucifixion.  The Son of God crucified for love of us!  We have seen it for ourselves.  In fact, we have even taken part in it by our sins.  

But the story has another ending in the Resurrection.  Now He is truly with us always.  He is with me today, in my very human life, in my comings and my goings, in my staying at home and working in my garden.  In the cooking and the precious little cleaning I do.  He is praying in me to the Father, and breathing in me His very personal Spirit, making me see the world and the people around me through His eyes.

His death was in fact my death -- the death of "the empty way of life handed down to us by our fathers, the death of the Adam nature in my soul, the nature which caused me to see others as "other," as different, the nature which always wanted to hide from the good God Who loves me, the nature who constantly chooses the fruit of the Tree of Knowledge of Good and Evil.

Now He lives in me, daily putting to death all that is not the image and likeness of God in me, and daily raising in me the new creation, created to be like God.  When I run from the Presence of God, He gently goes in search of me, bringing me face to face with Father Who loves me.

Psalm 103 says, "Praise the Lord, o my soul; all my inmost being, praise His holy name.....and forget not all His benefits:

He forgives all your sins

and heals all your diseases;

he redeems your life from the pit

and crowns you with love and compassion.

He satisfies your desires with good things,

so that your youth is renewed like the eagles's.

The Lord works righteousness

and justice for all the oppressed.

Here the writer is speaking to his very soul --- that is, to his own heart, mind, and will -- and reminding himself of all that God is doing for him on a daily, even on a moment by moment, basis.  This, to me, is the Resurrected Life of Jesus in us.  Every single day, every single moment, He lives within me, "working righteousness" and healing, teaching, consoling, encouraging, satisfying my desires, renewing my youth like the eagle's.  The ministry He carried out on earth 2020 years ago, He continues daily in my soul -- as if I were the only person He needed to tend to.  And in the process, He transforms me by the power of His resurrection from an earthly to a heavenly creature!

What return can we make to Him for all He is doing for us?  We can allow Him to continue to do in us all that He wishes to do!