COASTING INTO HEAVEN?

"Jesus said to him, 'Rise, take up your bed and walk'" (John 5:8, NKJ).
I once heard a parable that said the Christian journey is like driving in a car on the way to heaven. As I'm traveling along, I pick up a hitchhiker who ends up being Jesus. But as we journey on together, I'm still at the wheel and He's in the passenger seat. Now He offers to drive for me, but the car is new and I'm not sure about letting this 'stranger' take over. As a result, I'm almost run over by a semi-truck, and shooting across several lines of traffic, I end up in a ditch. 

Several more mishaps later, I find myself banged up, bewildered and exhausted. Then Jesus places a comforting hand on my shoulder and asks again, "Can I drive?" The parable ends with Jesus at the wheel and blissfully we coast into heaven.

But is that what the Christian journey is really like? Is this parable a safe description of the Living Way? Why not turn from this man-made parable to follow Jesus on the streets of Jerusalem and see how He delivers us from our sins. 

It was a quiet Sabbath afternoon when Jesus found a paralytic. He laid listlessly on a mat, a helpless cripple, waiting to be healed. "At certain seasons the waters of [Bethesda] were agitated, and it was commonly believed that this was the result of supernatural power, and that whoever first after the troubling of the pool stepped into the waters, would be healed of whatever disease he had. Hundreds of sufferers visited the place; but so great was the crowd when the water was troubled that they rushed forward, trampling underfoot men, women, and children, weaker than themselves. Many could not get near the pool. Many who had succeeded in reaching it died upon its brink. Shelters had been erected about the place, that the sick might be protected from the heat by day and the chilliness of the night. There were some who spent the night in these porches, creeping to the edge of the pool day after day, in the vain hope of relief" (Desire of Ages, pg. 201). The paralytic was one of them.

And he was the worst case that Jesus saw. For 38 years he had been crippled, largely due to his own lifestyle and poor decisions. Most people back then looked upon disease as a judgment of God, so he was more than just a common paralytic. He was considered a very great sinner. As you might expect, he was all alone, bearing his misery of both physical and spiritual disease. And yet, for 38 years, he hoped and prayed that he would find relief in the waters of Bethesda. But how could he reach the pool when he was paralyzed and he had no friend to help him? In spite of it all, he pressed on, trying his utmost to reach the water's edge. But it was always in vain. Someone stronger would always get there before him and he would somehow drag himself back to his shelter, undoubtedly in great despair. 

But one day, he looked into the eyes of Jesus and saw compassion written there. And then he heard a most amazing question. Jesus said, "Do you want to be made well?" Why would Jesus ask such a ludicrous question? It sounds so strange to ask a paralytic if he wanted to get better. But before Jesus can do anything for us, He must have our permission. He will not force His way into our lives. So He gently asked, "Do you want to be made well?"

That question immediately grabbed the attention of the paralytic. Perhaps he thought Jesus was offering to carry him to the water's edge. But he also knew how infrequently the waters of the pool were stirred. So he turned away, saying, "while I am coming, another steps down before me."

But his answer didn't stop Jesus. He simply said, "Rise, take up your bed and walk" (John 5:8). Now with just a word or a thought, Jesus might have said, "Be well" or "Be healed." And it could have happened in a moment or a blink of the eye. But Jesus does nothing without our cooperation. As Christ traveled from town to town, many never knew His healing power because they never exercised faith in Him. He could do nothing in Nazareth because they looked at him and saw only a man, the son of Joseph.  So the Savior did not heal the paralytic by some kind of cruise control--where Jesus did all the work and the man did nothing.

Jesus told the paralytic, "Rise, take up your bed and walk." Now the man might have reasoned, "If you will heal me, then I will get up." But he didn't. There was no struggle in his mind. He heard the words of Christ and immediately chose to act on them. He trusted in what Jesus would do. 

God's part in this miracle was infinitely greater than the paralytic's part. But Jesus would not do for the paralytic what God expected him to do. Jesus says, "Choose for yourselves this day whom you will serve" (Joshua 24:15). But He won't do the choosing for us. We must make up our own mind to turn away from sin or to say no to temptation. And Jesus will not stand for us anymore than He could stand for the paralytic. No, we must choose for ourselves to do what God says, believing He will provide the power that brings us life and victory.

And that is what happened to the paralytic. His faith grabbed hold of the Savior's words. And he chose to do exactly what Jesus said. And as he made that choice, as he made an effort to rise up and walk, God poured life into every nerve and muscle. And that crippled man stood up on his own two feet! 

"Jesus had given him no assurance of divine help. The man might have stopped to doubt, and lost his one chance of healing. But he believed Christ's word, and in acting upon it he received strength" (Desire of Ages, pg. 203). God worked and man worked, and because they worked together, the paralytic was restored to perfect health. 

The same is true on our journey with Jesus. We can no more live a Christian life on our own than the paralytic could jump into the pool of Bethesda. We are paralyzed by the sin that lies deep in our hearts. It is an enslaving power! So we have no strength to be like Jesus or follow Him in the Living Way. We need to be healed just as much as the paralytic did. 

And Jesus is standing over us, telling us in the same way, "Rise up and follow Me. Don't wait for Me to do it for you. You must grab a hold of My Word in faith. You must believe that I make you whole. And then, move forward, doing exactly what I tell you to do. You must use your will to obey just as much as when you chose Me as Savior and Lord." And just like the paralytic, as you begin to move, as you decide to follow Jesus, He will give you His Holy Spirit and you'll have all the strength you need to obey. All His biddings will be your enablings. But you must do your part for God to do His.

"To make God's grace our own, we must act our part. The Lord does not propose to perform for us either the willing or the doing. His grace is given to work in us to will and to do [i.e. to choose and obey], but never as a substitute for our effort. Our souls are to be aroused to cooperate" (God's Amazing Grace, pg. 111). 

Temptations will come our way as we walk on this journey with Jesus, but we can resist every one; we can say 'no' whenever the devil comes knocking at our door. We can say as Jesus did, "Get thee behind me, Satan!"  For Christ has promised, "Resist the devil and he will flee from you" (James 4:8). Christ is ready to send his army of angels to fight the battle with you, to empower you to use the whole armor of God so that you may withstand every onslaught of the hosts of darkness. But He can't give you victory unless you're engaged in the battle. 

There's no 'cruise control' in the warfare between good and evil. Christ says, strap on your armor. Take the sword of the Spirit and move forward in My name, for I am with you. "I will never leave you or forsake you" (Hebrews 13:5). Jesus wants us to know that we are in the fight together! 

"The work of gaining salvation is one of co-partnership, a joint operation [between you and Christ Jesus]" (Acts of the Apostles, pg. 482). We can't do it alone. But Jesus won't' do it by Himself. "God works and man works. Resistance of temptation must come from man, who must draw his power from God" (ibid). And as we work together, uniting our effort with Christ, we will have the victory. And we'll march into the heavenly city, not through cruise control or coasting in neutral, but controlled by the Holy Spirit and working in full cooperation with Him. 

GOD'S PART is to draw me by love and kindness (John 12:32). 
MY PART is to respond to His love and seek to know Him by Bible study and prayer (Matthew 11:28; John 5:39; Jeremiah 29:13).

GOD'S PART is to convict me of my sin (John 16:8)
MY PART is to admit I am a sinner in need of God's grace (Luke 18:13).

GOD'S PART is to give me the gift of repentance (Acts 5:31).
MY PART is to confess my sins, without blaming others (1 John 1:9).

GOD'S PART is to forgive me and cleanse me of all unrighteousness (1 John 1:9).
MY PART is to accept His forgiveness and believe that I am clean and whole (John 20:31).

GOD'S PART is to give me power to obey and to keep His holy Law (Philippians 4:13).
MY PART is to live by every word that comes from the mouth of God (Matthew 4:4).

GOD'S PART is to give me the Holy Spirit (Acts 2:38).
MY PART is to bear fruit by putting God's Word into action (John 15:4,8).

GOD'S PART is to alert me when I am tempted so I can turn to Him for help (1 Corinthians 10:13).
MY PART is to submit to God and resist the devil through His power, thus gaining the victory (James 4:7,8).

LIFE IN THE HAMSTER'S CAGE

"Now to Him who is able to keep you from falling, and to make you stand without blemish in the presence of His glory with rejoicing, to the only God, our Savior, through Jesus Christ our Lord" (Jude 24,25/NRS).

If you've ever watched a hamster in a cage, you know how cute those little guys can be. They're soft, cuddly and one of the most popular pets with children. One of their favorite antics is to run on a kind of treadmill, especially at night. They scurry at top speed, sometimes literally flying out of these exercise wheels.

Whenever I watch them, I can't help but think of the phrase, "spinning your wheels." Because even though the hamsters put in tremendous effort, they never get anywhere. They never arrive at the finish line. I wish I knew what a hamster thinks when he's running like that. Does he feel trapped? Does he get discouraged? Does he ever think, "What's the use?" 

There have been times when I thought like that. I used to battle with my temper almost on a daily basis. The littlest things would set me off and I'd end up yelling and screaming at someone. But then, I began reading the Bible for the first time and discovered how horrible my anger was. I remember reading the book of James over and over again. But I found no hope in reading, "No man can tame the tongue; it is an unruly evil, full of deadly poison" (James 3:8). I already knew that. There was nothing I could do to change my temper! I tried  gritting my teeth, counting to ten, praying for victory! But nothing worked. 

I felt like a little hamster trapped on a treadmill. Running and running but getting nowhere. I'd snap and blow up at someone--even my boyfriend who was patience itself. So I'd cry out to God, begging for forgiveness and pleading for victory. But it wasn't long before I fell down again, flat on my face, blowing up again. I was trapped in a cycle of doing the same horrible things over and over. Every day was a battle  I couldn't win. And no one knew how to help me. I felt like the apostle Paul who said, "O wretched man that I am! Who will deliver me from this body of death?" (Romans 7:24)

I was a baby Christian in those days and  knew little about the Bible. It literally took me years before I discovered God's way out. Before then, I thought if I could only lick this problem, I'd be on the straight and narrow. Everything would be right between Jesus and me. And perhaps, I'd be a strong Christian with a living testimony that would lead souls to God. But I didn't realize how my temper was only a symptom of a deeper problem. 

I was a ruled by my emotions because I only had a natural heart. I loved Jesus and I'd taken some steps toward Him.  But I hadn't experienced the new birth in my life. My way of thinking had changed.  I knew a whole lot more about the Bible than I ever had before.  But the same person was still sitting on my heart's throne. I didn't realize it for many years, but Jesus wasn't Lord of my life. I was. And my life clearly showed it. 

How could I exchange my heart for a new one? How could I be born again? I didn't know the verse in 1 Peter 1:23, that says "You have been born again, not of perishable but of imperishable seed, through the living and enduring Word of God." I didn't know by experience that the Bible had power in itself to give me new life! I had the answer at my fingertips all the time, but I didn't know it! I began my day with God, but it was like when you're literally starving and you're only got a cracker to nibble on. I needed more of Jesus than that!

So I began submerging myself in the Bible. I was a young mom at this time, with three active children, only about a year apart.  My hours were jam packed with cleaning and cooking, taking care of farm animals and a big garden, not to mention everything I did at church. Life was a whirlwind and I often felt like a hamster on a treadmill. But every available minute that I could spare, I spent with God. I devoured the gospels, one at a time. I saturated myself in the Lord's promises. It's almost like my Bible was hung around my neck. It went everywhere with me. And even when my hands were busy, I was thinking of God's Word and His incredible love for me.

The Bible became my lifeline to Jesus. And though I can't pinpoint the day when the miracle happened, I remember my excitement when I realized I went through a day without losing my temper. It didn't happen automatically. But as I gave myself to Jesus every day and submerged myself in His Word, I had greater strength to say no to the devil. The temptations were still there, just as large and pressing as ever. But I knew Jesus was with me. And what's even better, I knew I was with Jesus. We were working together and I was learning how to abide in Christ. When temptations came knocking, I turned away from them and Christ poured in His power. He was Lord. I was His servant and I longed to do anything for Him! 

I was quicker at turning to Jesus for help and it was easier to say, "not my will, but Yours be done."  It was easier to resist the devil. And I found I didn't need to be in charge of my life anymore. I didn't want the world pushing Jesus out of my day. I wanted to be with Him every possible minute. And the voice of His Spirit was as clear and plain to me as the voice of my husband or my children. God had changed my heart through His Word. By reading it, thinking it, and living it by the power of God's grace, my life was changed from the inside out. For Jesus took away my natural heart and replaced it with His own. His own loving heart. And I began to see victory in my life.

If you're struggling like I was and feel like a hamster in a cage, come to Jesus just as you are. Give him your natural heart and ask Him to give you a new one. Saturate your mind in God's Word, especially in the story of our Savior. Let His love wash over you and cleanse you deep within. Talk to Him as you go through your day--driving to work or washing the dishes. Keep the Lord always before you. And you'll experience life outside the hamster cage. You'll discover victory in the name of Jesus and through the power of His Word! 

DO YOU CARE?

"And the king will say to them, 'Truly I tell you, just as you did it to one of the least of these who are members of My family, you did it to Me" (Matthew 25:40).

I live in the country but quite close to the city. I have to drive to town to shop and go to church. And as soon as I get there, I feel the difference. In the city, I feel lost. I feel like a  speck among thousands of specks, unnoticed by the crowds that pass by. Before I lived on the edge of a big city, I came from a tiny town up north, where people looked you in the eye, said hello, or stopped you in the street to talk awhile. They still do that in the town where I live. 

If your car broke down at the side of the road, a man would always stop and help you out. I'm sure I never waited for more than 5 minutes. I felt like I was part of a community. People knew me. I knew them. And we were neighbors. But I don't feel that in the city. I feel like people look right through me and ignore who I am. Why are we so afraid to come close to one another?

My Dad  has been caring for my mother for several years. Because of a stroke, she suffers from severe dementia. She has forgotten who we are, even though she knows she had children. She has become a little child in her mind, carrying dolls and speaking gibberish. My Dad and Mom are housebound because of her dementia. They can't go to church anymore. The only outing my father has is when he goes to buy groceries. My oldest sister lives nearby and visits them faithfully. But otherwise, they have very few visitors. My Dad feels abandoned by his church because no one calls. No one visits them. He feels utterly alone. He recently told me how it felt. He said, "I know what it's like to be a leper in Bible times." He knows how lonely they must have been. 

People like my Dad are like the man who was robbed on his way to Jericho. He "fell among thieves , who stripped him of his clothing, wounded him, and departed, leaving him half dead" (Luke 10:30). He lay there on the side of the road, unnoticed or neglected. He wasn't hidden from view. People saw him there. A priest and a Levite passed by. They saw what needed to be done but they didn't want to get involved. So they "passed by on the other side" (Luke 10:31). It sounds like they went out of their way to do nothing.

But then the Samaritan saw him. And his heart was touched by the suffering he saw. He came close to the bleeding man and had compassion for him. That compassion was more than a feeling. It was something he did. The Bible says, "he went to him and bandaged his wounds, pouring on oil and wine; and he set him on his own animal, brought him to an inn, and took care of him" (Luke 10:34). I have spent a lot of time thinking about that Samaritan and the Living Way. And I keep coming back to those words, "he went to him." 

I tend to think that this Samaritan had somewhere to go. Perhaps, he was a businessman with appointments to keep in Jericho or Jerusalem. He probably had a family who was waiting for him to come home. But the Samaritan stopped. He went to where this wounded man was lying in a pool of blood and he did everything he could to help him. He went to him. 

Too often we wait for people to come to us before we lift a finger. We're so afraid to take the first step towards them. We rarely venture out of our comfort zones to talk with our neighbors, to knock on a door, or even say hello to someone new at church. We pass by on the other side like the priest or the Levite when Jesus needs us to go to him or go to her. We become robbers too, because we rob them of the compassion they need to be healed. We rob them by withholding God's love.

But not the Samaritan. Even though he didn't understand everything about God, he knew Him. For the kindness and compassion in the Samaritan came from the heart of God. Our Savior shows the same kind of love for you and me. "When we were bruised and dying He had pity on us. He did not pass by on the other side, and leave us, helpless and hopeless, to perish. He did not remain in His holy, happy home, where He was beloved by all the heavenly host. He beheld our sore need, He undertook our case, and identified His interests with those of humanity. He died to save His enemies. He prayed for His murderers. Pointing to His own example, He says to His followers, "These things I command you, that ye love one another," "as I have loved you, that ye also love one another." John 15:17, 13:34" (Christ's Object Lessons, pg. 382). 

Do we show such tenderness to the suffering all around us? Have we forgotten what Jesus has done for us? Or have we experienced His compassion ourselves? I can't imagine that the man who was rescued by the good Samaritan had anything but love and gratefulness pouring through his heart. I can't imagine that if he saw someone in the same condition that he'd been in that he'd pass by to the other side. When we've been touched by God's love or by His tender care, we are so full of that love that we pass it on. We see in every man and woman--and even every boy and girl--a picture of our Lord Jesus. A child for whom He died. A child like us who needs to be touched. To be touched personally by the love of God! 

This story speaks to our need to reach out to the lost, to people who don't know the Living Way to Christ. But it embraces even more. It means reaching out to the broken ones in our families or  churches. There are many who are bleeding at the side of the road who need compassionate care. Yes, they need your prayers, but even more, they need to hear from your lips that you're praying for them! They need someone to stop by and visit.  Can you take time to listen to their hurting heart? Can you show by the tone of your voice or the touch of your hand that you care? Truly care? That you're not just speaking words you don't really mean?

What was missing in the heart of the priest and Levite that they couldn't show compassion? Why couldn't they stop long enough to help this man in his suffering? What made the difference between them and the giving Samaritan? It's not such a tough question to answer if you look at the way these 3 men responded. Only one demonstrated love in action. The priest and the Levite might have known more about God than the Samaritan, but I think he was the only one who knew God! 

For "whatever the profession, no man has pure love to God unless he has unselfish love for his brother. But we can never come into possession of this spirit by trying to love others. What is needed is the love of Christ in the heart. When self is merged in Christ, love springs forth spontaneously. The completeness of Christian character is attained when the impulse to help and bless others springs constantly from within" (Christ's Object Lessons, pg. 385). 

The inner work of grace is what's lacking. We can't give love with no strings attached unless we know God. Our hearts are just naturally selfish. We put ourselves first before anyone else. We care more about being saved  and going to heaven than someone else being saved. We want to be forgiven. We want God to answer our prayers.  But that's all about me, isn't it? And it will always be about me unless the love of God is planted in my heart and I am supernaturally changed by His love. 

You see, God's love will make me like Jesus. His character will become mine. The same love Christ had will be the love that I have. The same kindness that Jesus showed--even to lepers and Samaritans--will be the kindness I show, especially toward those who are suffering. The character of Jesus will be reproduced in how I reach out to those who need God.  And it will be as  natural for me to help the needy and suffering as it was for Jesus who went about doing good. He will open my eyes to see who is bleeding on the side of the road. And I'll go to him or I'll go to her with the same compassion that Jesus shows to me. 

And then they'll see Jesus. They'll feel the touch of His hand. This world is crying for the lack of that personal touch. But we can be the ones who will hear their cry and wipe away their tears. We can be the ones to cross the road and lift the burden from their weary shoulders. If we know the love of God, we can be the one to pass it on. It's so much better than passing by on the other side. 

Cross over the road, my friend. 

Ask the Lord His strength to lend. 

His compassion has no end. 

Cross over the road.

     

A DEADLY MIX

"Now the serpent was more cunning than any beast of the field which the Lord God had made. And he said to the woman, 'Has God indeed said, 'You shall not eat of every tree of the garden?' And the woman said to the serpent, 'We may eat the fruit of the trees of the garden; but of the fruit of the tree which is in the midst of the garden, God has said, 'You shall not eat it, nor shall you touch it, lest you die.' Then the serpent said to the woman, 'You will not surely die'" (Genesis 3:1-4).

When God made a perfect home for Adam and Eve, He gave them everything to make them happy. They had each other, a garden of tame animals, a variety of fruits to sample every day. Everywhere they looked, there was wonder to delight and fascinate them. "On every leaf of the forest and stone of the mountains, in every shining star, in earth and sea and sky, God’s name was written. With both the animate and the inanimate creation—with leaf and flower and tree, and with every living creature, from the leviathan of the waters to the mote in the sunbeam—the dwellers in Eden held converse, gathering from each the secrets of its life" (Education, pg. 21).

In the middle of this garden, God placed a special tree called the Tree of Knowledge of Good and Evil. This was the only tree that God said they couldn't touch. All the others they could relish and enjoy, but this tree was absolutely forbidden. It was the only limitation God placed on them. Everything else was theirs. The Lord said, "But of the tree of the knowledge of good and evil you shall not eat, for in the day that you eat of it you shall surely die" (Genesis 2:17). 

Why would God withhold something good from His children? Why would He create something banned that was accessible to both Adam and Eve? Was He setting them up for failure? Absolutely not! Because the Tree of Knowledge of Good and Evil gave Adam and Eve the choice as to whether they would follow the Lord or not. God had created them with a free will, but without options, they weren't free. They needed to have the opportunity to choose, even if that meant God could lose them. 

"Without freedom of choice, [their] obedience would not have been voluntary, but forced. There could have been no development of character" (Patriarchs and Prophets, pg. 49). There could have been no opportunity to love. For love demands a choice in order to grow and deepen. For this important reason, God planted the Tree of Knowledge in the midst of the garden.

But God never intended for His creation to know anything about evil. "God is light and in Him is no darkness at all" (1 John 1:5). He created this perfect world to know only truth and love and harmony. He created us to know Him and to be one with Him in every possible way--to be in harmony with His will, to comprehend the beauty of sacred truths, to love with a pure heart that is under the control of principle and reason. And yet, God created a tree called the Tree of Knowledge of Good and Evil.

Now, if Adam and Eve had trusted God fully, they would never have wandered close to the tree. And for them it would only have been the Tree of Knowledge or the Tree of Good. For they would have only known God through what is good and what is truth. But because there was no fence surrounding the tree, meaning there was nothing that could prevent them from going there, it could become the tree of evil if they chose to disobey the Lord. Two ways were wrapped up in that tree because it gave them two options. To choose God's will was to choose the good. To disregard what God said was to choose the evil.

Sometimes we think we need both in order to feast on the Tree of Knowledge. We think growing in God is like sitting in a courtroom where we need to hear both sides of a question in order to make a rational decision. We might even relish the stimulating discussion as we play the devil's advocate in looking at his side of the issue. Somehow, at the bottom of all this, I wonder if we think we're smarter than Adam and Eve. Exposure to error isn't going to shake us. It's not going to effect what we believe or shake our confidence in God. But isn't this presumptuous?

ARE YOU SAFE FROM SATAN'S FIRE?

The Bible says, "Can a man take fire into his bosom, and his clothes not be burned?" (Proverbs 6:27) Can I really believe that listening or watching what is evil isn't going to hurt me? And if its cloaked in a program or message that blends truth with error, what is our guarantee that we'll be able to discern which is which? And how will we stop doubts from creeping in as it once did in the mind of Eve? We've already accepted the devil's lie if we think what happened to her can't happen to us. Our nature is weakened by a long history of sin. We don't have the same strength that Eve had as she stood in perfection in the garden of Eden. Our minds aren't as sharp or as pure. Satan has more ready access to us. So we can't afford to make the mistake of thinking, "I'd never do that. I'd never be deceived. Satan can't touch me like he touched Adam and Eve." 

Any kind of fire lit by the devil will burn us! And his most deadly fire is when he mixes truth with error.

An early 19th century preacher by the name of Harry Ironside (1876-1951) once put it this way: "Error is like leaven of which we read, 'A little leaven leaveneth the whole lump.' 1 Corinthians 5:6. Truth mixed with error is equivalent to all error except that it is more innocent looking and, therefore, more dangerous. God hates such a mixture! Any error or any truth-and-error mixture calls for definite exposure and repudiation [i.e. rejection]. To condone such is to be unfaithful to God and His Word and treacherous to imperiled souls for whom Christ died." 

To expose others to such a mixture is to plant the seeds of deception and possible compromise. For truth cannot exist as truth if it is blended with error. But we may think we have the truth when we only have a deadly mix of good and evil. And if we're listening to half truths about God, what makes you think you've got the good half?

The Bible says, "Woe to those who call evil good, and good evil; who put darkness for light, and light for darkness" (Isaiah 5:20). If only I could be a prophetess, I would add, "And woe to those who mix the evil and the good and feed this mixture to God's sheep and lambs. Woe to those who taste of the forbidden fruit, thinking that this is the knowledge of God." Any Christian who feeds this mixture to God's flock may be very gifted in preaching or teaching, but he is not a responsible shepherd. A true shepherd will not give grain or hay that is tainted by anything that will cause his sheep to stumble.

"If we would not commit sin, we must shun its very beginnings" (Mind, Character & Personality, book 1, pg. 325). 

So be on your guard, for the serpent that once deceived Eve isn't restricted to the Tree of Knowledge of Good and Evil. He "walks about like a roaring lion, seeking whom he may devour" (1 Peter 5:8). Be on your guard against him and close your ears to his half-truths as you follow Jesus in the Living Way.

WHAT'S WRONG WITH THAT?

"To Him who loved us and washed us from our sins in His own blood" (Revelation 1:5).

Every morning, I was dragged out of bed by the relentless song, "Oh, What a Beautiful Morning." It came from a mantel clock that my Aunt Ronnie gave to my sister and me. Aunt Ronnie had gone on a European tour and saw this lovely clock, hand-painted in Switzerland. It didn't have the usual clanging mechanism, so common in alarm clocks. Instead it played this little song.

For a long time, it worked pretty well. I woke up with a start every time it played. It wasn't a jarring sound; in fact, it sounded like an expensive music box. But it infiltrated the silence in our room and I immediately bounded out of bed to turn it off. Now somewhere along the way, I got used to the clock and it took me longer to drag myself out of bed. Eventually, I didn't respond at all. I slept right through the song and blissfully slept in when I should've been getting ready for school. So  naturally, my mom bought me a new alarm clock because I wasn't sensitive to the old one anymore.

I certainly don't want that to happen in my relationship with God! I want to remain sensitive, so I can hear Him plainly when He speaks to me. I don't want to go into some 'snooze' mode and turn off the Spirit's voice. I need to be awake to my real condition!

 The work of the Holy Spirit is to sound the alarm--to convict me of my sin and my desperate need of cleansing. In His still small voice, He points out my sin so I can turn to Jesus, where I  find reconciliation and victory. But I can silence His voice to my soul just as  easily as I can sleep through an alarm. I can become so de-sensitized to sin that I feel secure in Christ even though we may not be walking together anymore.

It could happen to me just as it once happened to King Saul. God had told him, "Now go and attack Amalek, and utterly destroy all that they have" (1 Samuel 15:2). With 210,000 men, Saul bravely led the army and wiped out the Amalekites "from Havilah all the way to Shur, which is east of Egypt" (vs. 7). But he spared Agag, the king of the Amalekites, and the best of their herds. Really, he kept back everything that was good, being "unwilling to utterly destroy them. But everything despised and worthless...they utterly destroyed" (vs. 9).  

What really amazes me  about this story is that Saul thought he was doing exactly what God said! Maybe because he did almost everything God said. And he didn't think it would matter if he wasn't so particular about every point in God's directions. Who knows how he justified this neglect in his own mind. But the reality is--one justification soon leads to another. And when Samuel the prophet failed to show up to offer sacrifice, Saul took matters into his own hands again and did it himself. 

When Samuel finally ended up on the scene, Saul approached him with incredible confidence--blinded confidence--and said, "Blessed are you of the Lord! I have performed the commandment of the Lord!" (1 Samuel 15:13) How could anyone be so blind? Were God's directions that unclear that Saul couldn't understand what was expected? God had spoken in the plainest way! It was so simple that even a five year old would have known what He meant.  God said, "Go, attack, and destroy everything." 3 simple things.

But pride blinded the king. "This victory over the Amalekites was the most brilliant victory that Saul had ever gained, and it served to rekindle the pride of heart that was his greatest peril. The divine edict devoting the enemies of God to utter destruction was but partially fulfilled. Ambitious to heighten the honor of his triumphal return by the presence of a royal captive, Saul ventured to imitate the customs of the nations around him and spared Agag, the fierce and warlike king of the Amalekites. The people reserved for themselves the finest of the flocks, herds, and beasts of burden, excusing their sin on the ground that the cattle were reserved to be offered as sacrifices to the Lord.  It was their purpose, however, to use these merely as a substitute, to save their own cattle." (Patriarchs and Prophets, pg. 629). So, pride on the part of the king and selfishness on the part of the soldiers led them to excuse or justify what they failed to do.

Excusing sin so blinded Saul that he could face a prophet, a messenger of God, and say without any qualms that he'd performed the commandment of the Lord! Incredible blindness! I wish I could have asked him, "What do you think sin is?" It's a question we really need to understand in our journey with Jesus, so we don't end up on the slippery slope that leads to destruction. Because the sad fact of this story is: Saul lost his salvation because he justified sin. One sin led to another and still another. Saul continually resisted the voice of God until he couldn't hear Him anymore! The alarm clock wasn't broken, but Saul was de-sensitized to it.

So it matters what I think sin is. What you think sin is. If our view of sin is skewed, then our whole view of salvation will be too. It will be distorted and have no saving value in our lives. It will change in our mind, at least, why Jesus died on Calvary's cross. It will determine why we even want Jesus in our lives. And it will greatly impact how we choose to live as a Christian. 

We're living in the end times when every wind of doctrine is blowing. Satan is working overtime to break down the pillars of Christianity that hold us to Jesus and keep us faithful to the end. The devil never comes out in the open for an all-out attack. He's never worked that way. Instead, he blends, ever so artfully, truth with error. He markets it through charismatic speakers, who often manipulate our emotions and captivate us with their smooth words or  funny jokes or  novel illustrations. It puts us off guard so we swallow whatever they say--hook, line and sinker--not merely the truth alone, but also the error. We take it all in.

Lately, the devil has been making great inroads into Christianity by redefining the key pillars of salvation. He uses our language--like spiritual, gospel, salvation, etc. He uses the same words, but they mean something far different than what we find in the Scriptures. Recently, I heard a well-known preacher do this in describing what sin is. He said, it's  merely a broken relationship with God--nothing more, nothing less. Now, I wouldn't object if he said this was one aspect of sin. But to limit it to merely a broken relationship is to minimize what it really is. Because if that's all it encompasses, then why did Jesus have to die? Couldn't He just come down to earth and show us how to restore our relationship? How to pray? How to have a vibrant devotional life? How to share our faith with others? Maybe if He just gave us a crash course on intimacy with God, we'd be okay and He wouldn't have to give His life to save us!

But what broke this relationship in the first place? To answer that, we need to examine another aspect of the sin problem. For if we go back far enough, we'll see that sin began in the war between Christ and Satan, in the Cosmic Conflict between good and evil.  Before Genesis 1 ever happened, Lucifer rebelled against God and His government. The Lord had given him the highest position of all the angels. He stood day and night in the very presence of God! No one was closer to the Father than Lucifer, except Christ Himself. The Bible says, Lucifer was the "seal of perfection, full of wisdom, and perfect in beauty" (Ezekiel 28:12). He was perfect in every way. And yet, it wasn't enough for Lucifer! He wanted more! Not more of God's love and holiness, but more of His power! He wanted to sit on God's throne all by himself. So he said, "I will make myself like the Most High" (Isaiah 14:!4). 

Later, when he brought his rebellion down to our planet, he deceived Eve with that same insidious poison--that she could be like God--not in terms of His character, but to have His power. Power for herself! And because he convinced her that God was somehow withholding something good from her, she believed what he said. And she took the forbidden fruit that God said not to touch and she ate it. She later gave some to Adam and he joined the rebellion. 

The story of man's fall in the garden points out only too well that sin is a God-defying attitude where we assert our independence and do what we want, irrespective of what God says. And this attitude is what we see throughout Scripture. As the Bible says, "Sin is the transgression of the law" (1 John 3:4, KJV). It means disregarding God's will and replacing it with what I want for myself. 

The history of Saul is only one example of the sinner choosing to be his or her own boss--or we might even say his or her own God. And this is what fractured or severed our relationship with Jesus. 

Sin is not simply a relational problem. It's not just that I fail to spend time with Jesus every day. It's not just that I don't love Him. It's an act of rebellion against the law of God. This law reveals who God is and what He expects from His children of grace. "God is love" (1 John 4:8). And that's exactly how His Law is summarized. This law couldn't be changed anymore than we could change God. So when man broke it--by disobeying God's commandment in the garden of Eden--man's relationship could only be restored through death. Because the terms of the broken law is that someone had to die. God says, "The wages of sin is death" (Romans 6:23) And Jesus chose to do that for us. 

The death of Jesus on Calvary's cross draws me into a intimate relationship with Him. His love for me is displayed there because He took my punishment. He paid the price for my sins, for my rebellion against the God of heaven, for defying His Lordship in my life and breaking His Law of love. Without His death, I will remain dead in my sins. I will be lost without Christ's saving blood! 

And the blood of the cross speaks volumes to me about what I have done to my Savior! It shows me the utter ugliness of sin. It's not merely that we're not getting together every day. My sins are more personal that that! I am striking Jesus in the face when I insist on my own way, when I lose my temper, when I lie my way out of something that I messed up on, when I gossip about a neighbor. My sins crucified the Lord of Glory! THAT to me is the most graphic definition of what sin is.

But if I walk away from the cross and turn from the 10 Commandments (which God wrote with His own finger), how will I know what sin is? I can define it anyway that I want! But the life stories of people in the Bible give a much broader definition of the makeup of sin and what it does to my relationship with Jesus. It's not a simple one sentence definition. It's much broader than even what I'm sharing today. And unless I understand the full scope of what sin is, I can easily follow in the footsteps of people like Saul and think I'm obeying the commandment of the Lord when I'm really rebelling and sinning against Him.

So, if you're asking yourself, "What's wrong with that?"  I hope you'll remember Saul and my quiet alarm clock. Please go to Calvary if you want to see the nature of sin and what it really costs. And kneel before the cross, knowing that your sins put Jesus up there. If we keep looking at our Lord's bloody sacrifice, we'll see ourselves as we truly are and sin for what it really is. And as long as we don't resist, we'll be drawn to the blessed Savior. And His love will change our lives. 

My Prayer
Dear Father, please keep me more sensitive to Your Word. When Your Spirit speaks to my heart, help me to obey You quickly. Give me Your gift of repentance that I may turn from my sins. Open my eyes so I can see how ugly they truly are. Keep my heart tender so nothing will keep Me from following You. In Jesus' Name I pray, Amen.

DO YOU KNOW ME?

"And this is eternal life, that they may know You, the only true God, and Jesus Christ whom You have sent" (John 17:3).

Many of us believe God is real. Some believe He's only watching from a distance, with very little interest in what's happening down here. But actually, God is very interested and is seeking to have the most intimate relationship with you. The whole Christian life centers around that relationship. But what kind is it? 

We enjoy many relationships in our lives--with our husband, our wife, our friends, our parents, even our pets. But not all of them are on the same level. And none of them are what you would call a saving relationship, which is what the Father wants to have with you. What sets this relationship apart from all the others?

Jesus said, "this is eternal life, that they may know You, the only true God, and Jesus Christ whom You have sent" (John 17:3).  Eternity depends on knowing God, knowing Him personally, and for who He really is. But how can we know Someone that we can't see face to face? 

Most relationships out there are built on 2 important pillars--communication and time. Because relationships boil down to spending quality time together. It takes time to get to know another person, to know what they're really like--not merely what they project on the outside but what they're like deep down inside. What are their thoughts, their dreams, and their fears? In talking and doing things together, we discover who they are, bit by bit. 

But spending time together also means they become part of our life and we become part of theirs. We share more than just time and conversation. We share a life together. And that's what intimacy is all about--when we feel so safe with another person that we can be transparent with them. We don't put up any fake fronts, like we do with a stranger. We can be ourselves.  And we end up opening doors to the private side of our life that very few have entrance to. Now if you're very blessed, you may have a friend like that. And if you do, you have an inside edge in understanding the intimate relationship Jesus wants to have with you. 

Spending time with Jesus every day builds that kind of transparency. When we open up our Bible, Jesus shares His heart with us. And when we pray, we share our heart with Him. A daily Quiet Time with Jesus, as I like to call it, combines time and communication. And this consistency in connecting with Christ is the bedrock of our relationship with Him! Without prayer and Bible Study, there's no spiritual life. We may feel we love Jesus. We may be drawn to Him. But without a daily encounter with God, we can't be a Christian. We can't know God. It's just impossible. That's why the devotional life is crucial in following Jesus and the Living Way. 

But merely putting in the time isn't a foolproof way to build intimacy. It also depends on how we respond to the Word of God. Do we receive it as the Thessalonians did? Paul says, when they heard God's Word, they received it and "welcomed it, not as the word of men, but as it is in truth [as it really is], the word of God [the word of the Living God] which also effectively works in you who believe" (1 Thessalonians 2:13, words in brackets added for emphasis). 

"Just to the degree in which the word of God is received and obeyed will it impress with its potency [its strength and power] and touch with its life every spring of action, every phase of character" (Ministry of Healing, pg. 136). Because to know Jesus in a saving way or to have a saving relationship with Him is to be "vitalized by spiritual knowledge, to practice its words. Without this, all else is valueless" (Signs of the Times, 1/27/98). 

That's why Jesus says, "Not every one who says to me, 'Lord, Lord,' shall enter the kingdom of heaven, but he who does the will of My Father who is in heaven" (Matthew 7:21). For when we know the Lord, our lives testify to the presence of Jesus in our life. People will see that we have been with Him. We're no longer the same selfish or worldly person that we used to be because "to know Jesus requires a change of heart. No unconverted person, in his natural state of depravity, loves Christ. A love of Jesus is the first result of conversion" (Daughters of God, pg. 240). 

But what kind of love will that be? What will it look like?  It's possible to say 'I love Jesus' and shout at my kids day after day. It's possible to say those words, to profess a relationship with Christ, and yet deny Him by the way I live.  So my love must be more than just a profession of Christ, it must go beyond saying 'I love Jesus' or 'I'm a Christian.' The love that reveals a saving relationship is a love that's seen through obedience. We love Jesus enough to call Him Lord. And that means I'm not calling the shots, I'm not doing what I want. I'm following every word that God says, and walking as He walked. 

For Jesus says, "If you love Me, keep My commandments" (John 14:15). True love for God is seen in true faithfulness to His perfect will. It's seen in a transformed life that's captivated and captive to the Word of God. "Now by this we know that we know Him if we keep His commandments. He who says 'I know Him,' and does not keep His commandments is a liar, and the truth is not in Him" (1 John 2:3,4). But, on the other hand, "whoever keeps His Word, truly the love of God is perfected in him. By this we know that we are in Him" (ibid). You see, obedience, loyalty and faihfulness are all the same thing and they're the litmus test when we examine our hearts to know if we truly know the Lord. This is how I can tell whether I've got a saving relationship with the Lord Jesus Christ.

It's not just about feeling. When I first fell in love with my husband, that's all we had. Strong feelings for one another. We didn't know Jesus when we first met so our relationship was pure emotion.   Fortunately, it didn't stay that way. And the only reason it changed was because we accepted Jesus into our lives. Now, feelings play an important part in a relationship, but it can't last if that's all there is. And sometimes, that's what happens in a relationship with Jesus. Some people rely so completely on feeling that they never learn what it means to be His disciple. And Jesus says, "Whoever of you does not forsake all  that he has cannot be My disciple" (Luke 14:33). Our relationship has to move beyond feeling to get to living faith.

And faith is not feeling. It's not just believing a list of facts about Christ. It's a gift of God that reaches inside and changes our heart. Without saving faith there's no saving relationship. There's only a lifeless form of godliness. And that kind of relationship is self-centered. It still takes pleasure in worldly entertainment. It's satisfied with hearing about Jesus or thinking about Jesus, but it knows nothing of His saving power. 

"Those who possess this religion regard sin so lightly because they do not know Jesus" (Messages to Young People, pg. 106). When we know Christ as He really is, we'll be radically different. We'll reflect the love and holiness of our Savior because He is in us and we are in Him. We've let Him in the front door of our heart and He's now our welcome Guest. His Word is treasured in our life; it's our lifeline to heaven. And everything that Jesus asks or even commands is no longer a burden, but our greatest delight! Because His love consumes us and transforms us! And it's so evident to everyone who knows us. They can see the fruit of our saving relationship with Jesus. The same love of Christ is there, the character of God is glowing, and there's peace where there used to be only distress or despair. There's victory where there used to be sin and rebellion. 

To know Jesus is to be like Jesus. To know Him is to reveal His character to the world. So do you know Christ or do you only know about Him? It all depends on how you receive His Word. Do you live by what He says? Are His words changing your life at home? Does your family see more kindness and patience in you? Do you show true humility or do you pursue your own agenda in your own way? Can others see the love of Jesus in how you treat others, even those who disagree with you?  "Love to Christ cannot exist without corresponding love to those whom He came into the world to redeem. Love to Christ must be the principle of our being, controlling all the emotions and directing all the energies" (Testimonies to the Church, vol 3., pg. 396). 

"Beloved, let us love one another, for love is of God, and he who loves is born of God and knows God" (1 John 4:8). So let us love to spend time with Jesus every single day. Let us receive His Word into our hearts and live by them. Let us obey all His commandments because we love Him. Let us shine with the same self-sacrificing love that He showed on this earth. Love for God, love for our families, love for those who don't love us, and for those who don't know God. These are the fruits of a saving relationship with Jesus. They're also the terms by which we can know if we truly know Him. 

Take time to measure your life with the character of God. And seek a saving relationship with Jesus every single day until He comes. For this is what eternal life is all about!