Are we enjoying being in the temple of God today? Are the floors sparkling clean, the windows washed, and is the altar shiny and bright? Are all the candles lit, and is the scent of incense fresh and pleasing? Can we hear chanting, and feel the presence of the Holy Spirit there with us? Well, it sounds like I am talking about a building, but in reality I am referring to our own bodies.
If we are Christians, and true believers, then those in the world will hate us. They will dislike us because we are different... because we are new creations, but most of all because we are like Jesus Christ, and by that I mean “not of this world.” We know this to be the case because we hear it in our daily lives and in the conversation (prayer) between Jesus and God Himself.
Have you ever been to heaven? Perhaps you don’t feel that you have walked its streets, but have you ever stood atop a mountain or hill and looked out over the surroundings below? Could you hear the wind and the sounds of life there? Right now, many of you are probably thinking that I have lost my mind, but others are envisioning this scene as they hear the sounds of life, and see the heavenly scene surrounding them. Can you step into heaven and capture this moment of realized faith and glory? The problem with most of us is that we don’t stop living our busy lives long enough to look around, hear the singing, smell the fragrance, and understand where we are… friends, we are in the presence of God and that is heaven!
Jesus said that whatever we ask for in His name He will do, so why is it that we can find ourselves praying and Him not immediately responding to what we are asking? This is a common question asked about prayer, and one that causes many pastors to begin making excuses for the inaction of Jesus or silence of God. The inability to understand prayer and the fulness of the Lord’s promise based on one verse of scripture, which we often take out of context, leads to the spiritual downfall of many.
There is great mystery in the blood of Jesus, a newness that isn’t seen anywhere else in the Bible. The symbolism in the blood of communion is beyond rich, and gives us more than purification and forgiveness... it changes our lives completely, and cuts us off from the old life we were once living. The blood of Jesus requires that we make a choice to continue on as we have been, or to drink of it and be called out of the worldly life we have been living... made new in Him.
We say we love the Lord, but do we really love Him, or do we simply love studying and reading about Him? Do we really love Him or do we love talking to others about our biblical knowledge of Him? Do we really love Him, or do we just want to believe that He performs miracles in case of an emergency? Does any of this sound familiar, if so then maybe our relationship with Him might be dysfunctional in some other way. Knowing who God is isn’t faith; reciting a children’s prayer we learned a lifetime ago isn’t the prayer He expects from us. Let’s open the door of our heart to Him and love as He does.
When we look at Jesus we see a humble man, and yet at the Last Supper His disciples argued over which of them would be considered the best, or the greatest. This is an oxymoron... how can they want to be the greatest follower of a man of absolute humility? Do they desire to be the first and foremost of the least? It is human nature to want to be the best at what we do... even if it is being humble. Is humility something you struggle with? Is placing your pride and conceit under subjugation impossible? Then let’s turn again to Jesus for help.
Sometimes, when we have been serving the LORD for a while, we find ourselves going about the things He has called us to do without keeping in mind that this is the will of the LORD. When we fall victim to this snare of familiarity, it will bring discipline upon us. Going through the motions of our calling without honoring God, and seeing the blessings He intends to bestow on us as we do His will, is placing our desires before His.
How many churches are there within your congregation? How many groups with different mindsets, and various agendas are milling about one another, and often find themselves at loggerheads? This is what happens when we lose focus on maintaining ourselves in the image of Jesus Christ. This is what occurs when a marriage ceases to be of one flesh and reverts to two individuals.
What do we know about Jesus, God, and our faith? Have we read the Bible cover to cover, and memorized key scriptures? Have we taught Sunday school lessons, or preached God’s Word and the Gospel of Jesus Christ from the pulpit? Perhaps we have studied theology, spoken on the subject of Church history, or become conversant in all the councils and creeds... but does our intellectual pursuit of God bring us an inch closer to knowing Him? My real question this morning is this... “Do we know God, or do we simply know of Him?”
Do we boast of our accomplishments in faith? Do we think ourselves to be better than another because we quote more scripture, appear more saintly, or are of greater righteousness than they are? Well, if we are any of these things it is not of our doing, and if we feel boastful it is to our detriment because these things are in us as a result of our God, the Holy Spirit, and Jesus Christ alone… by our own nature we are fallen creatures.
Do you feel called to serve the Lord, but just can’t seem to satisfy yourself in the answer to His calling? Do you answer, “Here am I!”, and yet doubt the significance of what you are giving towards the effort? Well, forget the grand desires you may have, and concentrate on giving all of yourself to Him, not to bring Him glory in the earthly sense, but in every little thing He asks of you. Do His will as He would have you do it.
Once we have received the Holy Spirit into ourselves what can we expect to occur? What is it that we find within us from that point forward? It is of course accompanied by the obvious gifts that were promised like wisdom and comfort, but it is much more... we are going to know the fullness of God. We are going to receive an amazing spark of faith.
Have you ever healed someone by praying over them? Perhaps not, but if you are a believer then someone certainly prayed with you as the confession and contrition for your sins were lifted up, and you were spiritually healed by the acceptance of your faith... healed of the wretched sin-filled soul you once harbored, and joined with Jesus as a joint heir of God our Father. Sickness comes in all forms, and so does healing.