Using others as pawns in the vision, mission or purpose God’s given you …
Never turns out well.
For you or for them.
Author: Plumbline Faith
Simple Truths from a Lifetime of Service to the King of Kings
Although there are mysteries in the Bible, it is not “mystical”.
What God chooses to reveal there – including Himself – is accessible to all who simply repent, embrace His forgiveness, submit to the authority of His word and relate together in healthy local fellowships.
The mystical fringe, however, is driven by their own angst, anxiety and insecurities …
To go “deeper” or “beyond” the simple truths of Scripture by dismissing elementary repentance, basic forgiveness, Biblical authority and functional churches …
Which is why they never seem to find the authentic Christ of Scripture.
Don’t be led astray by them.
We make room for God’s blessings …
By giving our regrets to Him.
Unfortunately, the biggest hindrance to church as the New Testament shows it …
Is church as we’ve come to know it.
Expediency denies the efficacy of God’s sovereignty …
And is not a Christian value.
Hollow existential ideologies distort Christ and His Word to appease prevailing sensibilities …
And lack actual spiritual power.
An unresolved past will thwart your future.
To find resolution:
Acknowledge before God – verbally and fully – the hurts, wrongs or regrets your heart’s been carrying;
Openly give or ask for forgiveness as appropriate – in your own words – whether of others or from God;
Then quietly and reverently bundle up the related burdens of your heart and release them in your spirit to the Lord;
Once you do and the Lord takes them, ask Him who you are to Him and how He sees you.
Then stay quiet before Him and let your spirit gently receive His empowering truth and peace in return.
Often the listening ear and patient encouragement of a trusted, Godly friend can help.
Ultimately, though, closure and freedom are always your choice.
Those who claim that the Holy Spirit no longer convicts them of sin because of grace …
Know not grace.
Mercy can be an amazing wellspring of good …
Or a naïve enabler of evil.
Discernment makes all the difference.
God wants us to occasionally chill out by taking time out …
So our emotional batteries don’t run out.
Obedience is not just believing what God says we should …
But also doing what God says we ought.
Daily, I see how God delights in creating beauty from wrecked lives.
My role is to let Him do it His way …
By recognizing that His mercies are not all up to me.
Cynicism is often a convenient excuse …
For lazy.
Be wise.
Don’t sacrifice the lifelong joy of authentic …
For the short term thrill of illicit.
I really, truly do love the Church.
I just don’t like what typically masquerades these days as the Church.
“Church,” “pastor,” “preach,” “teach,” “tithe,” “worship” and “ministry:”
Although you keep using those terms …
I do not think they mean in the New Testament what you think they mean.
Yet you claim to follow the New Testament as God’s written word.
How can that be?
It is not reasonable to ultimately rely on reason …
When its legitimacy ultimately depends on reason seeming reasonable.
Absent a transcendent God who alone can immanently define all – including the foundations of logic and meaning – because He alone created all …
“Reason” apart from God ultimately leaves us stuck with ourselves in circular absurdity.
Those who claim that their relationship with Jesus is all about their relationship with Jesus …
Know not Christ.
Faith isn’t about believing God will do what you think He ought …
But trusting He will do what He says He will.
Let’s see:
Morning cup of coffee. Check.
Log on and notice all the social media posts about the latest outrage du jour. Hmmm.
Wisely decide to wait a few days until the real facts come out. Priceless.
In the meantime, continue to live a life that makes a difference in this world by loving God and obeying His commands. Eternal.
Joy seldom comes without risking failure …
In love, faith, business and all of life.
The fruit of the Spirit are rooted in …
Truth and virtue.
The best bulwark against human authoritarianism in all its many forms …
Are the precepts of God’s written Word.
By which, history shows:
Free men stand;
Liberty springs; and
Tyrants fall.
It seems their “apostolic worker” gigs ain’t been turning out so well, with failure after failure to sustain local organic church in their own lives, home towns and elsewhere …
So from the ashes of their prior mutual promotion networks like House2House …
Frank Viola, Milt Rodriquez, Jon Zens and their buddies announced today that they will seek to revive their itinerant ministries through a new marketing alliance called:
Higher
Existential
Revelation
Elevated and
Transformed
Into
Christ
In a joint statement issued April 1st, Frank Viola, Milt Rodriguez and John Zens explained:
“We hope this will allow us to extend our influence to even more organic, simple churches around the world, with similar results.”
New books, blogs and seminars to follow …
😉
Until we stop using narcissistic labels like “ultimate”, “grand”, “deeper”, “insurgent”, “radical” and “beyond” to describe our faith …
And learn to walk humbly with God and others …
We’re not much good for His Kingdom …
Or anything else.
Plumbline Faith 