Watching Versus Waiting

Watching Versus Waiting

People use the words 'watch' and 'wait' synonymously.  However, there is a subtle difference between the two. To wait means to be in readiness or to remain at rest in expectation. To watch is to look and wait expectantly or in anticipation. You can wait while doing other activities.  Watching encompasses the concept of waiting and requires full attention from the watcher. A person may be waiting and still miss the thing they are waiting for, but this is unlikely to happen if they are watching. The following story illustrates the difference.

Gina, a young girl, asked her grandmother to watch for her as she was coming to visit that day for the weekend.  And naturally, Grandma Lisa promised she would. Wanting to stress the importance of her request, Gina repeated it several times to her grandma, asking, "You'll watch, won't you? You'll watch for me grandma, right?" Lisa, who was now becoming exasperated, responded several times that she would. On the day that Gina was due to arrive, Grandma Lisa thought, "I still have time to complete a few chores before Lisa visits, so I'll just do them and then go outside and wait for Gina and her parents." However, despite Grandma's best intentions, she became engrossed in her tasks and lost track of time. Suddenly, Grandma Lisa heard the bell. "Oh no, she thought, that can't be Gina already."  Running to the door, Lisa opened it expecting to see an excited Gina. But instead, Gina was sorrowful. "Why the sad face Gina, aren't you happy to see your Grandmother?" Grandma Lisa asked. To which her granddaughter responded, "Grandma, you did not watch for me like I asked you." "Honey," said Grandma, "I was preparing things for you, while I waited for you." "But Grandma," replied Gina, "I did not want you to wait for me; I wanted you to watch for me." She wanted her grandma to be outside expectantly looking for her.

This story reminded me of the Parable of the Ten Virgins (Matthew 25).  Christ portrayed them as standing or sitting expectantly awaiting the groom who could appear at any time.  As the night grew old, the bridesmaids fell asleep.  While asleep a loud cry woke them in the middle of the night, "The Bridegroom cometh, go ye forth to meet him."  As they opened their eyes, the night was dark, and they could barely see, so they rushed to light their lamps.  We know the rest of the story; some could light their lamps because they had extra oil. Others, unprepared with extra oil, could neither light their lamps to herald his coming nor enter in with the Bridegroom. What is represented by the oil?  Ellen White is quoted in the devotional, "That I May Know Him," with an answer to this question.

In the parable, the foolish virgins are represented as begging for oil and failing to receive it at their request. This is symbolic of those who have not prepared themselves by developing a character to stand in a time of crisis. It is as if they should go to their neighbors and say, 'Give me your character or I shall be lost.' Those that were wise could not impart their oil to the flickering lamps of the foolish virgins. Character is not transferable. It is not to be bought or sold; it is to be acquired (That I May Know Him, p. 350).

In contrast to the foolish virgins, the wise virgins had righteous characters.  So, although the wise virgins appeared to be as indolent as the foolish ones - none of them were watching for the Groom - the wise virgins had retained oil, and therefore were prepared for the wait. Living by faith, they were enabled to receive the groom.  With that said, what would have pleased the Bridegroom more: if the virgins had been waiting or watching?  Or both?

As the Groom approached the bridesmaids, he must have noticed that they had been sleeping and that five were missing.  We can only imagine his perplexity and disappointment, as he questioned, "Weren't they supposed to stay awake and light the way to the banquet hall? How is it they all fell asleep? And why were only five prepared for the delay?"  "They all knew I could come at any time. …" It did not look good.

Was this a sign of things to come?  This incident revealed that the bridesmaids became weary after the long delay. And that while they anticipated a delay, they did not expect an extended wait period.

There are things hidden deep within the recesses of each of our minds, things which only the Holy Spirit through time and circumstances can reveal to us, that we may through repentance and forgiveness, receive its blotting out. Whenever the Lord gives a promise, a period of waiting ensues before He fulfills His promise to us. His goal is neither to drive us to distraction nor to frustrate us. Instead, He desires us to wait patiently, expectantly, watching, enduring and persevering until its fulfillment.

Waiting is not a natural human tendency. We want whatever it is right now. And our selfish natures find many ways of attaining our desires. Often subconsciously we present our thinking or behavior in the most moral or rational light, as we attempt to conceal our true purpose, for self to gain the promised blessing now.

Jesus implied that in the Christian's life, waiting patiently would be an issue; that's why He went so far as to say, "When I come, will I find faith on the earth?" The delay which He is using for our good, to reveal our true hidden state to us while there is time to repent, is instead used by many to fulfill self's goals, which is to avoid true self-knowledge.

By remaining in union with the source of renewing energy or power, the Holy Spirit, we are enabled by faith to 'be renewed in the Spirit of our minds' (John 15, Romans 12:1). The battle, after all, is for our minds as well as our affections. Watching and waiting patiently are not inactive pursuits; they require vigilance, as well as resting and reposing in the Father.

"Without faith it is impossible to please Him: for he that comes to God must believe that He is a rewarder of them that diligently seek (inquire of) Him."  "You therefore beloved, seeing you know these things before, beware lest you also being led away with the error of the wicked, fall from your own stedfastness" (Hebrews 11:6; 2 Peter 3:17).

-Raul Diaz

RR

Raul Diaz

https://about.me/raul.diaz

She Needs a Savior

The following commentary illustrates this precious truth quoted in our lesson, "According to the Word, Christ's death was universal: it encompassed all humanity..."

She Needs a Savior

After a shipwreck, a lone female survivor was stranded, treading water in the sea with neither food nor drinking water at hand. As far as the woman could see, there was no dry land in sight. Not wanting to waste her precious energy by swimming in the wrong direction, she considered her options. Even though the crew sent a distress signal before the ship sank, anxiety arose as she realized that several hours had passed, and help had not arrived. Immersed in salty water, exposed to the harsh heat of the sun, and without food or water, she knew her chances of survival weren't good.  She, however, determined not to dwell on the likelihood of her fate if help did not arrive soon. Fighting despondency, she thought, "My only hope is that those who can rescue me heard the ship's distress signal, are on the way." However, adding to her predicament was the gnawing fearful thought that, "even if those who come rescue me, will I have the courage to get on board another ship? What if it malfunctions and sinks again? What should I do? "

Lost in her thoughts, she suddenly realized that a strange fish-like creature had been swimming around her, and to her surprise, it seemed to have been protecting her by warding off advancing predators. Cautious but curious, and with waning energy, she began to watch the creature. Eventually, as if sensing her exhaustion, the being positioned itself under her, so she could take a break from treading. Amazed, by this turn of events, yet still somewhat afraid, she decided that the creature was not there to harm her, and gratefully allowed herself to rest.

After a few moments, the creature unexpectedly brought its torso out of the water so it could face her. To her astonishment, the creature looked like a man, not a fish! Bewildered, she didn't know what to think. It was then that he spoke to her. "You need to go back to dry land, but you have a dilemma; you no longer trust sea-going vessels, so if one should come, you may not get onboard, neither can you stay in the water and survive, unless you are like me."  Slow to respond to his words due to her confusion; she eventually asked the creature, "What are you?"  To which he replied, "I am a merman."  "Well," the woman, having regained her composure somewhat, replied, "unless you have some magic to turn me into a mermaid, death is inevitable" (Implying that she wouldn't get into a rescue vessel). "There is a way," affirmed the creature.  "If I swallow you, our bodies will rest in a cocoon. After three days, we will be released from the cocoon as a newly formed me and a newly formed you."  In gratitude, she consents.

Notice, although the woman's survival in the water was impossible, the solution did not involve getting rid of the water; they found a way to live with and in the water. In this story, the woman is the individual, the water is the law, and the merman is Christ. The story is given to illustrate how we relate to the Law in our sinful condition and contrast how we relate to the Law once we choose to die and be resurrected in Christ. Paul's use of the woman in the beginning of Romans 7 (verses 1-3) is similar to our story above. Take note, however, that this survivor story represents the subjective truth of the Gospel. The objective truth, in a nutshell, is that without man's consent, Christ saved the entire world from sin.

What Paul is doing in Chapter 7, is using a story, just as we are using a story, to illustrate an event that occurred in the past, so that we can make a decision in the present to allow Christ's objective history to be ours subjectively.

The married woman in Romans 7 finds herself attracted to a single man, for whom she wants to leave her husband. In fact, she desires to marry this man instead but knows she cannot for she is already married. Perhaps we can infer from the verses that follow Romans 7:3 that her current husband is a cruel man whose intent is to kill her. But no, that would not be accurate, for, in fact, he is a loving husband. It is just that he can neither sympathize with her weaknesses in not carrying out his commands nor can he help her carry them out.

Similarly, her new love interest is a sweet, kind and loving man who not only wants her to be His but unlike her husband, he sympathizes with her regarding all of her weaknesses (Hebrews 4:15). This man is also able to help her do what she is incapable of doing on her own (Hebrews 2:17, 18). Unfortunately, our woman of Romans 7 has a dilemma.  She cannot leave her husband, and she cannot stay. Daily she is suffering a tortured existence. She cannot leave her current husband and marry her new found love without breaking the law of marriage which says "until death do you part."

The only way out is through death; but, it cannot be through murder. She cannot murder her husband, for that is illegal. And of course, if he kills her, she will not be free to marry, as she would be dead, deceased, gone, and non-existent!  So, going to her new love interest, she presents her dilemma. It's true that neither of them can do away with her husband, which represents the law, for it is "just and holy and good" (Romans 7:12).  Thus, the new love interest cannot nail her spouse (the law) to the cross. But He and she can die together, thereby freeing her from her first marriage. In effect, He tells her He will nail her (humanity) to the cross in Himself, and when He dies, she will die, and when He is resurrected, she will be resurrected in Him. This solution fills her with hope. In gratitude, she consents.  As Paul has said, "Therefore my brethren, you (the wife) also have become dead to the law through the body of Christ." It is not the law (former spouse) that dies on the cross. It is us (the entire human race) that perished in the second Adam, Jesus Christ (cf. I Corinthians 15: 21, 22; 44-47).

In Romans 5:17, we (humanity) are represented both individually and corporately in Adam and Christ.  So, we were in Christ when He died and therefore, in Christ when He was resurrected (Romans 6:3–7). Accordingly, we had no say in what Adam did to plunge us into sin. We also had no say in what Christ, our Divine Lover, did to rescue us from sin.  Like our survivor story illustrates, the choice we do have, however, is whether or not to receive that gift by grace through faith individually.  In essence, when we acknowledge that we are part of Christ's body, one with Him, we begin to function in harmony with Him as the head (Ephesians 4:12–16).

You see, love is the fulfillment of the law (Romans 13:10). Christ as the divine lover has fulfilled all of that law. When our woman of Romans 7 died and was resurrected with Him (Christ), she also began to fulfill the law through Him. So, while we can neither obey the law in our weakness, nor can the law itself help us to obey, yet, when we accept Christ's history of obedience, His obedience becomes ours.

In sum, when by faith we accept our death in Christ, recognized through the symbol of baptism, we are liberated from the "dominion and jurisdiction‟ of the law. It is not abolished (as the water in our story couldn't be gotten rid of) but is placed in the mind and on the heart as promised by God (Jeremiah 31: 33; Ezekiel 11:19; Hebrews 8:10).  This is what it means to be under grace, in Christ. We can now bear the fruit of our union together. Glory be to God!

RR

Raul Diaz

https://about.me/raul.diaz

Temporizing

Temporizing

It was a very dark and cold night.  She had a dim candle to light her way to her bed.  In her days, the floors were bare ground covered with hay, which meant her feet were dirty before she went to bed.    By the side of her bed, there was a little bowl of water.  She sat on the bed, placed her feet on the cold water, and proceeded to wash them.  Immediately, she dried them with a small towel she had by a table - where she had placed the candle.  As soon as she dried her feet she put them on the bed; blew off the candle, and then she put the thick blankets over her whole body.  After a few minutes, she felt comfortable and warm.  Her body started to feel rested, and she began to feel the heaviness in her eyes.  As soon as she closed her eyes, she heard the knock at the door.  Her Beloved Lover wanted to see her.  He longed to be intimate with her and wanted to spend time with her.    She was annoyed that he woke her up.  She decided to stay quiet; perhaps he would go away.  He insistently kept knocking, and then spoke to her in a very loving way, "Please open the door, my love, and I wish to see you."  He continued to beg for entry into her room, so she finally, retorted, "Not now! The night is dark, and I already blew off the candle.  It is cold, and I am already warm under my blankets.  And, my feet are clean; I do not want to dirty them by going to the door."  Her lover was quiet for a few moments, and then said to her, "It has been a long day, I have not seen you, I long to spend time with you, and you will not regret it."  She replied to him with a stern tone, "Come back tomorrow."  There was silence for a minute.  She felt awful that she rejected him, moved with remorse, she got up, walked in the dark to the door.  After a few moments feeling her way, she found the knob.  She opened the door, only to find her lover had left.  She sobbed.  It would probably be days before she saw him again.  He may have left to see his fields far away, and would not return anytime soon.  

Does this scenario sound familiar?  If you have read Song of Solomon's, you may realize that it is a paraphrase of Songs 5: 2-6.  He left because she was temporizing.  What is temporizing?  It is to act evasively to gain time, avoid argument, or postpone a decision.  It is what we do when we do not want to be bothered, inconvenienced, or are caught unprepared.  In the latter case, we may be trying to buy some time to find a way out.  The woman selfishly and immaturely found more comfort in the warmth and cleanliness of her bed, then in the company and presence of her Beloved Lover.  She perceived she was better off in her condition, "in need of nothing" (Revelation 3: 17), by doing so she rejected the love, warmth, comfort and cleanliness that only Her Beloved Lover can offer.  

You may recall the Song of Solomon is a metaphor for the relationship between Christ the Bridegroom - the Beloved Lover - and His Bride the Church.  Christ has not come back for us, because of we - His Bride the Church - have and continue to reject Him.  We do not love His return as much as we love the things of this earth.  It is only when His Bride becomes mature in Him that He will come for her.  

Let's look at it from Peter's perspective.  Let us read 2 Peter 3:9,

2 Peter 3:9 The Lord is not slow in keeping his promise, as some understand slowness. He is patient with you, not wanting anyone to perish, but everyone to come to repentance.

Peter tells us that if the Lord is slow, or if there is any delay, it is for our benefit.  Not wanting us to perish, He is waiting for all of us - His Bride - to repent, and turn to Him.  One day His Bride will grow up and mature from her selfish and self-centered ways.  She will by answering His loving call - I stand at the door and knock (Revelation 3: 20) - and accepting His Robe of Righteousness.   That day we will want Him as much as He wants us, and we will not temporize any longer.  He will come for us, and we will be ready to leave with Him.  Amen.

Raúl Díaz

Posted by Ulee at 9/28/2006 07:37:00 PM 

RR

Raul Diaz

https://about.me/raul.diaz

Jesus won their Confidence

"Christ's method alone will give true success in reaching the people. The Saviour mingled with men as one who desired their good. He showed His sympathy for them, ministered to their needs, and won their confidence. Then He bade them, 'Follow Me.'" – Ellen G. White, The Ministry of Healing, p. 143.

From our Lesson:

After desiring their good, showing sympathy, and ministering to their needs, Jesus "won their confidence." Confidence in Latin is composed of the words con, meaning "with," and fides meaning "faith."

In the Greek of the New Testament the root word that is used to convey the Hebrew amn (faith, belief) is "pistis."

From Strong's Concordance:

4102 pístis (from 3982/peithô, "persuade, be persuaded") – properly, persuasion (be persuaded, come to trust); faith.

Faith (4102/pistis) is always a gift from God, and never something that can be produced by people. In short, 4102/pistis ("faith") for the believer is "God's divine persuasion" – and therefore distinct from human belief (confidence), yet involving it. The Lord continuously births faith in the yielded believer so they can know what He prefers, i.e. the persuasion of His will (1 Jn 5:4).

A Commentary on Faith:

Sewed from Jesus 

 

A woman went to buy a new dress.  She went first into a high-end store.  She saw a dress she really liked and it fit her very well, but it costs more than what she wanted to pay.  So she went into a store with more affordable prices.  She saw what seemed to be the exact dress; in fact, it was the same brand.  But it is not quite as attractive nor does it fit as well as the first dress.  How can this be?  Is it all in her mind?

 

This puzzled her so she decided before buying that she would investigate.  She contacted the company.  They told her that on the label, there is a number; the lower the number, the better the quality of the dress.  There were details considered in the production of the lower number dresses that were not taken into account in the higher number dresses.  Sometimes it was the kind and color of thread used, and the kind of stitch.  Other times it was how they cut the fabric, etc.  Two things that seem identical were not.

I find a similarity in our works. Works by faith and works from your effort may seem similar. But works of faith are different from works done in our strength. Let's consider Abraham as an example.

We know Paul opens Romans 5 with this declaration.

 

Romans 5:1 Therefore being justified by faith, we have peace with God through our Lord Jesus Christ:

The word "therefore" tells us that this statement is referring to what was said before in chapter 4.  Paul says of Abraham in chapter 4 verse 3,

Romans 4:3 For what saith the scripture? Abraham believed God, and it was counted unto him for righteousness.

Paul used the Greek word episteusen, which comes from the word pistis for faith or belief. In essence, it is saying that Abraham had faith. We know that faith comes through hearing and hearing by the Word of God (Romans 10:17). Abraham heard God's Word and believed it. When we replace "believe" with other definitions of faith, we get a better feel of what this means. Abraham heard God's word and felt appreciation in his heart. He heard God's word and trusted the word to do what it said it would; he waited and depended on the Word alone. God's word to Abraham was the substance of things hoped for, the evidence of things not seen. As a result of his belief in God's Word, Abraham was one of the elders that obtained a good report, and he pleased God (Hebrews 11:1, 2, 6).

 

The second part of Romans 4:3 says that His belief was counted unto him for righteousness. What is righteousness? Ellen White defines it as obedience to the law (1 Selected Messages, p. 367). We replace the word righteousness with the definition Ellen White provides, and it reads, "Abraham believed God and it was accounted to him for obedience to the law."  In believing God's word, Abraham obeyed the law.  Abraham's righteousness (obedience to the law) came from exercising faith in God's word.

In this context we should read Romans 5:1, where Paul reiterates what he explained in chapter 4.  Translators have interpreted it as "Therefore being justified by faith."  But, the transliterated Greek rendering of Romans 5: 1 seems to say, "Being-justified then out of-belief."  We know that the word justified means made righteous.  So we could interpret it as, "Being made righteous out of faith" -- thus there is a kind of faith that makes us righteous or obedient to the law.  Ellen White expresses the same thought in the following quote,

 

Righteousness is obedience to the law. The law demands righteousness, and this the sinner owes to the law; but he is incapable of rendering it. The only way in which he can attain to righteousness is through faith. By faith he can bring to God the merits of Christ, and the Lord places the obedience of His Son to the sinners account. Christ's righteousness is accepted in place of mans failure, and God receives, pardons, justifies, the repentant, believing soul, treats him as though he were righteous, and loves him as He loves His Son. (Ellen G. White, 1 Selected Messages, p. 367)

The prophet Isaiah tells us that, "All of us have become like one who is unclean, and all our righteous acts are like filthy rags" (Isaiah 64:6). Our righteousness falls short of the law's requirement.  We need a righteousness that is perfect since the law requires perfection.  Ellen White states that Christ's righteousness is what we are given to satisfy the laws demand of perfection. We said thus far that the only way to get this righteousness is by faith. Can our filthy faith produce a perfect righteousness?  The answer is obviously, "No, it cannot." Therefore we must obtain a faith that is perfect. That faith is the faith of Jesus. When we accept His faith, it produces in us His righteousness.  The faith of Jesus is the faith that characterized Abraham. It is the faith that those who overcome and endure until the end will have (Revelation 14:12).

Perhaps this is why the Apostle Paul says that "…whatsoever is not of faith is sin" (Romans 14:23).  Only works from faith are righteous.  So, just like the difference in the dresses, the works of those who have the faith of Jesus may look similar to those who do not, but there is a difference.  The former is built and sewed from Jesus, the latter from sinful flesh.  Furthermore, the character of those who have the faith of Jesus will be transformed into the likeness of Jesus. The question is which dress do we want to be?

RR

Raul Diaz

https://about.me/raul.diaz

How Jesus Spent "His" Time

How Jesus Spent "His" Time 

Balance as an adjective is a state in which opposing tendencies are equal. To balance an object means to position it with its center of gravity above its supports in such a way that there is no tendency for it to topple over to one side rather than to another.  The forces of gravity are equal on each side.  

In acoustics, balance is the condition in a stereo system wherein both speakers produce the same average sound levels.   In aerospace engineering, it is the equilibrium attained by an aircraft, rocket, or the like when forces and moments are acting upon it so as to produce steady flight, especially without rotation about its axes.  In chemistry, balance is to bring a chemical equation into a state wherewith conservation of mass and charge.   

We could say that balance in social terms is the point at which you can give time to all parties and activities, and they all are satisfied.  Something humanly impossible to do, but that we believe we should be able to do.  Because it is impossible, many experts say that we should learn to say, "No."  You cannot please everyone and do all things well at all times.   

From our human perspective Christ lives an "unbalanced" life.  (He said, "No," sometimes.)  He "neglected" and "ignored" His family (Matthew 12: 46 – 50).  He did not eat at times (John 4: 31 – 33).  All so that He could do the things stated in the verses enumerated in our lesson  - Matthew 4:2, Mark 1:29-31, Luke 4:16, John 2:1-11, John 12:2.  These examples give us four different categories of work: preaching, teaching, healing, and feeding.  We should note that Jesus repeatedly said that it was not He that did the works, but His Father.  Let us read from John 8: 28, 29; 12: 49, 50; and 14:10,   

John8:28 Then said Jesus unto them, When ye have lifted up the Son of man, then shall ye know that I am he, and that I do nothing of myself; but as my Father hath taught me, I speak these things.

John8:29 And he that sent me is with me: the Father hath not left me alone; for I do always those things that please him. 

John12:49 For I have not spoken of myself; but the Father which sent me, he gave me a commandment, what I should say, and what I should speak.

John12:50 And I know that his commandment is life everlasting: whatsoever I speak therefore, even as the Father said unto me, so I speak. 

John14:10 Believest thou not that I am in the Father, and the Father in me? the words that I speak unto you I speak not of myself: but the Father that dwelleth in me, he doeth the works. 

Jesus spent the time given to Him doing the Father's will.  To be able to do this Jesus prayed - sometimes all night.  Here are a few verses talking about that,  

Mark1:35 And in the morning, rising up a great while before day, he went out, and departed into a solitary place, and there prayed. 

Luke5:16 And he withdrew himself into the wilderness, and prayed. 

Luke9:28 And it came to pass about an eight days after these sayings, he took Peter and John and James, and went up into a mountain to pray. 

Luke6:12 And it came to pass in those days, that he went out into a mountain to pray, and continued all night in prayer to God. 

The prayer enabled and empowered Him to lay aside His will so he could do His Father's will, which in His case was preaching, teaching, healing, and feeding.  Christ died to self daily.  He said, "No," to Himself to say, "Yes," to the Father.  To live as Jesus lived then is to live a life doing the Father's will.  What is the Father's will for us?  The following is an excerpt of a sermon by a prominent Pastor which answers this question from Romans 12: 1 - 2.

"The question I want to ask you is, "Are you willing to present your bodies a living sacrifice?"  Romans 12:1:

Therefore, I urge you, brothers, in view of God's mercy, to offer your bodies as living sacrifices, holy and pleasing to God — this is your spiritual act of worship.

In other words, for me now onward is not to live for myself but for Christ.  Because of this, Paul says in Romans 12:2:

Do not conform any longer to the pattern of this world, but be transformed by the renewing of your mind.  Then you will be able to test and approve what God's will is — his good, pleasing and perfect will.

In other words, "do not fit yourself into the world's mold."  This is one of the biggest problems we face here.

It wasn't long after coming to America I discovered this was one of the major problems that we face here in America.  I'll tell you why.  When I go and preach the gospel to the pagans in Africa, to the Animists, and they become Christians, they know that they are saying good-bye to paganism in exchange for Christianity.  Sso it is a common practice among Africans when they are baptized to actually change their names.  They actually change their names, just like Paul did when he was converted from Judaism.  He changed his name from Saul to Paul.  What does this signify?  It means that they are no longer belonging to the world.

But here is the problem in this country.  For years in school every morning, public or private school, we have to say, "This is one nation under God."  So it has caused a problem because we make no distinction between our culture and Christianity.  Because it's "one nation under God."  But let me ask you a question.  In practice, is this really one nation under God?  Because we have not made a distinction between the cultural patterns of our country and the Christian lifestyle, whatever the trend is of the culture, the church follows.  You look at the culture of the country and look at the direction of the church.  It doesn't take long for the church to change.  And we follow in the same footsteps, whether it's divorce, lifestyle, you name it, and this has caused a major problem.

I want to repeat there are two things of which you must be aware as a Christian.

You have died to the world.

You no longer belong to the world system.

You are living in the world, but you are not of the world.  When Jesus prayed, in John 17:15, He said:

My prayer is not that you take them out of the world but that you protect them from the evil one.

Now what's the difference.  Is the difference only in outward acts?  No.  We need to go deeper than that.  I want to give you some texts.  First go to 1 John 2, where we see the difference between the world and the church.  I will expound on this in more detail as we go along but I'm just laying the foundation.  What's the foundation?  Every Christian must realize that when you is born in the kingdom of God, you are born crucified.  That's the title of this chapter.  I've taken it from a French theologian.  He said, "Every Christian is born crucified."  1 John 2:15,16:

Do not love the world or anything in the world.  If anyone loves the world, the love of the Father is not in him.  For everything in the world — the cravings of sinful man, the lust of his eyes, and the boasting of what he has and does — comes not from the Father but from the world.

Now what did he mean by "Do not love the world"?  He did not mean don't love the people of the world.  We must love the people of the world because they are children of God at least by by the cross, even though they don't recognize it.

You cannot belong to this worldly kingdom and the kingdom of heaven at the same time.  They are two opposite kingdoms.  What does he mean by "the world"?  Verse sixteen mentions the three driving forces that control the worldly person.

"The cravings of sinful man," in some translations called "the lust of the flesh."  What he feels he wants.  He wants everything.

"The lust of his eyes."  What he sees, he wants.  He's keeping up with the Joneses.

"The boasting of what he has and does," sometimes called "the pride of life."  He always wants to go up and up and up.  He's not willing to go down.  If you don't believe me, ask an eighth grader, "How would you like to go to seventh grade next year?"  I have yet to see a young pastor of a big church who voluntarily wants to go to a small church.  Even in the church, we want to go up and up and up.

We have three kinds of missionaries.  I worked 18 years in Africa and observed three kinds of missionaries.  One is the "tourist missionary."  They are always carrying their camera.  Africa has a lot of game to offer them.  The second kind I call "political missionaries," because you cannot rise to the General Conference unless you have mission service.  So some come there for one term to qualify for promotion.  But there is a third group, "genuine missionaries" who come there to witness Christ and forget self.  That is the problem with the world.  It's looking for self.  Now turn in contrast to Galatians 5:24:

Those who belong to Christ Jesus have crucified the sinful nature with its passions and desires.

That's the mentality of the Christian.  Please turn to chapter six of Galatians.  In Galatians 6:12 Paul says:

Those who want to make a good impression outwardly [legalists] are trying to compel you to be circumcised.  The only reason they do this is to avoid being persecuted for the cross of Christ.

Do you know what Paul is saying here?  Those who are legalistic are following rules because they want to give glory to themselves.  The gospel, the cross gives glory to God and, therefore, it means swallowing your pride.  But now look at verse fourteen.  Verse twelve is dealing with the legalist but verse fourteen is dealing with the true Christian.  Galatians 6:14:

May I never boast except in the cross of our Lord Jesus Christ, through which the world has been crucified to me, and I to the world.

A Christian is born crucified.  Back to Romans 12:2-3:

Do not conform any longer to the pattern of this world, but be transformed by the renewing of your mind.  Then you will be able to test and approve what God's will is — his good, pleasing and perfect will.  For by the grace given me I say to every one of you:  Do not think of yourself more highly than you ought, but rather think of yourself with sober judgment, in accordance with the measure of faith God has given you.

Paul is saying, "Please, don't fit into the world's mold but be transformed by the renewing of your mind."  What God wants to see in you and me is a transformation of the mind.  The performance will take care of itself.  There are too many Adventists who are trying to get perfection of performance in preparation for the second coming of Christ, or the time of trouble.

So one day I sat down and I spent hours looking at every statement in the Spirit of Prophecy where the word "character" appears.  I discovered that what Ellen G.  White also teaches — which is in harmony with Paul — is the perfection of the human mind-character.  In other words, the mind set needs to be perfected, the performance God will take care of.  She calls it the cleansing of the soul temple.  Not the performance, but the soul temple.

In other words, we need to have a mind that is totally surrendered to Jesus Christ and Him crucified.  The performance God will take care of.  So what Paul is saying here is, "Don't conform to the world but be transformed by renewing the mind."  Philippians 2:5:

Your attitude should be the same as that of Christ Jesus.

"Let this mind be in you which was in Christ Jesus."  But also read verses one to four of Philippains 2:

If you have any encouragement from being united with Christ, if any comfort from his love, if any fellowship with the Spirit, if any tenderness and compassion, then make my joy complete by being like-minded, having the samve love, being one in spirit and purpose.  Do nothing out of selfish ambition or vain conceit, but in humility consider others better than yourselves.  Each of you should look not only to your own interests, but also to the interests of others.

When you have the mind of Christ, God will reveal to you what is the good and acceptable service that He expects from you.  He doesn't expect the same thing from everybody.  Different people have a different measure of faith.  Therefore, he concludes (Romans 12:3):

For by the grace given me I say to every one of you:  Do not think of yourself more highly than you ought, but rather think of yourself with sober judgment, in accordance with the measure of faith God has given you.

What's the foundation of Christian living?  It's back to the formula, "Not I, but Christ."  That is what you need to remind yourself of daily.  A Christian is justified.  He stands perfect before God.  But when does he begin to live as a justified Christian?  Now!  Daily!  Renew your minds and pray to God, "Father, you have given me your Son.  I am crucified with Him and now I want Him to live in me, and the life I now live I live by faith in the Son of God who loves me and gave Himself for me.""

-- 

Raul Diaz

www.wolfsoath.com

RR

Raul Diaz

https://about.me/raul.diaz

Compassion Of God

Compassion Of God

The author of the week in review of our lesson suggests that one of the objectives should be to "sense a desire to experience the compassion of God on a daily basis." At first sight, this sounds like a lofty objective. However, compassion is a deeper experience than what our author suggests. It begs to question: What is the compassion of God? Does God desire to sense or experience compassion or does it just happen? How does God sense or experience compassion? How can we experience it?

In the dictionary, the word compassion means a. Sympathetic feeling, b. Mercy, c. Pity, and d. an expression of sorrow for another's loss, grief or misfortune. The word used in the Bible is splagchna, which indicates no ordinary pity but the deepest emotion one is capable of, an emotion that arises from the very depths of one's being. It refers to "the inward parts," "the bowels," considered the seat of the emotions in the ancient world. Compassion goes beyond sympathy (which merely can be intellectual). Compassion comes from the inside, from the heart and even the very gut. It suggests an 'intensive' involvement with the other, like the love the father showed to the prodigal son (Luke 15:20) and the compassion exhibited by the Good Samaritan and what those who left the victim lying on the ground refused to feel (Luke 10:33). Both parables used the word splagchna, which is the compassion of God.

How does God experience it? Probably, the same way Christ did. Christ probably experienced in His body a revolt or wrench in His gut or stomach. He experienced something robust and intense. It was something He could not ignore. It moved Him to respond toward what He saw. Sometimes the response was just prayer, other times it was speaking words of comfort, and other times it was healing those for whom He felt splagchna.

In the Gospels, Christ is quoted feeling splagchna at least four times. In Matthew 9: 35,36 It says that Jesus felt compassion for the people "because they fainted, and were scattered abroad, as sheep having no shepherd." In Mark 1:40, 41 it said that "moved with compassion" He touched a leper to heal him. In Matthew 20:29-34 it says that Jesus, moved with compassion, touched the eyes of the blind men to heal them. In Luke 7: 11-15 Jesus again moved with compassion touched the bier -the frame on which dead bodies were conveyed to the grave – to resurrect the child to his mother.

Can we sense a desire for something that God experiences? Again another question is the answer. Does God desire to feel compassion? The probable answer is no. If splagchna is God's compassion, then it is born out of agape. One can only desire what one does not have. God is agape. Thus this means that God feels compassion automatically. He has no need to desire it.

Can we sense or feel splagchna? Not unless God gives it to us. You can try all you want to detect it; if it is not there, you will not sense it. The verb to sense has several meanings. According to the dictionary to sense can mean the faculty of perceiving using sense organs. TO sense can also mean to perceive by the senses.  Furthermore, to sense can be defined as a bodily function or mechanism (a sight, hearing, or smell) involving the action and effect of a stimulus on a sense organ. Lastly, to be or become aware of, and or to detect. Whatever you are sensing is either in your body, pressing against it (If it is touch or taste), or is within your range of detection (if it is seeing, smelling, or hearing). When one feels splagchna it presses against your body, like any biological need. It requires attention and response.   We release the need for compassion by submitting to what the Holy Spirit would have you do at the moment.

Then what should you do? You should pray that God fills you with a desire to submit to His righteousness and let Him fill you with His agape. As the lesson says the single force that moved Jesus was agape – agape from the belly or gut. Splagchna, as a byproduct of this, will flow automatically. You will see others suffering and immediately you will feel in your body an intense feeling that will move you to respond in the person's favor.

RR

Raul Diaz

https://about.me/raul.diaz

The Man That Came From God

"The Saviour mingled with men as one who desired their good." Likewise, the Lord sent Jonah to mingle among the Ninevites as one who desired their good.  We know the story, the Lord accomplished His purpose in spite of Jonah's refusal.  Will we be like Jonah or Jesus?  Following is a previously published commentary.

The Man That Came From God

In 1958, a small town Pennsylvania church pastor – David Wilkerson - was emotionally moved as he read a copy of LIFE magazine that featured details of the upcoming trial of 7 teenaged members from the Coney Island (New York) based 'Egyptian Dragons' street gang. The seven boys had brutally attacked and murdered an innocent 15-year-old polio victim named Michael Farmer in Highbridge Park, leading to one of the most publicized gang murder trials of 1950's New York.   He later wrote that as he felt the Holy Spirit move him with compassion, he was drawn to go to New York in February 1958 to preach to them.  After being unable to secure visitation rights to visit the 'Dragon' gang members in jail, Wilkerson was detained while attempting to rush past security and police to gain an audience with the judge on the case. The press photographed the skinny preacher as court officers physically detained him; and by the next day, the picture would make the front page of more than one New York daily.

After this much-publicized incident, the young Pastor thought he had blown away his chances.  But, the Lord had other plans.  When Pastor Wilkerson returned to New York, his face is recognized everywhere.  God used this unusual circumstance to open the doors.  As a result of this incident, Pastor David Wilkerson became accepted by New York's toughest and most bloodthirsty street gangs as the preacher arrested for trying to help other gang members.  You could argue that gang members accepted Pastor Wilkinson as the man God sent to help them.

Jonah is also called by God to go to Nineveh.  We know the story.  He tried to escape.  But, God, in His providence, ordained circumstances to get Jonah back on track.  We know that a big fish swallowed Jonah and took Jonah to the shores of Nineveh, where the fish regurgitated Jonah out into dry land (Jonah 2: 10).  Any preacher would say, "Who would listen to a man that has spent three days in the stomach of a big fish."  Imagine how Jonah looked.  Seaweed all around him.  He was probably pale and discolored from exposure to the acid in the fish's stomach.  He probably smelled like fish.  Let us read Ellen White's narration of the events:

Once more the servant of God was entrusted with the commission to warn Nineveh. "The word of the Lord came unto Jonah the second time, saying, Arise, go unto Nineveh, that great city, and preach unto it the preaching that I bid thee." This time he did not stop to question or doubt, but obeyed unhesitatingly. He "arose, and went unto Nineveh, according to the word of the Lord." Jonah 3:1-3.

As Jonah entered the great city, he began at once to "cry against" it as he had been bidden. Lifting up his voice in warning, he declared, "Yet forty days, and Nineveh shall be overthrown." From street to street he went, all the while sounding this terrible note of warning.

God's message was not given in vain. The warning rang through the streets of the godless city, and was passed from lip to lip, until all the inhabitants had heard the startling pronouncement. The Spirit of God pressed the message home to the heart, and caused multitudes to tremble because of their sins, and to repent in great humiliation.

     "The people of Nineveh believed God, and proclaimed a fast, and put on sackcloth, from the greatest of them even to the least of them. For word came unto the king of Nineveh, and he arose from his throne, and he laid his robe from him, and covered him with sackcloth, and sat in ashes. And he caused it to be proclaimed and published through Nineveh by the decree of the king and his nobles, saying, Let neither man nor beast, herd nor flock, taste anything: let them not feed, nor drink water: but let man and beast be covered with sackcloth, and cry mightily unto God: yea, let them turn every one from his evil way, and from the violence that is in their hands. Who can tell if God will turn and repent, and turn away from his fierce anger, that we perish not?" Jonah 3:5-9.

     As kings and nobles, with the common people, the high and the low, "repented at the preaching of Jonas" (Matthew 12:41), and united in crying to the God of heaven, his mercy was granted them. He "saw their works, that they turned from their evil way; and God repented of the evil, that he had said that he would do unto them; and he did it not." Their doom was averted, the God of Israel was exalted and honored throughout the heathen world, and his law was revered."

God used the beliefs of the Ninevites to reach them.  One of the gods worshiped by Nineveh was the fish god Dagon. When the fish disgorged Jonah the coast of Phoenicia in the sight of the local fisherman on the shore, it must have been a most startling sight. The fisherman would convey what they saw to the people of Nineveh. No wonder Nineveh responded as it did, here was a messenger who was seen coming out of the mouth of a fish, one of their idols. Here was instant validity.

What is the lesson? The lesson is that God is in control, and His plans cannot be thwarted. Jonah was to preach to Gentiles, and his first converts appeared to be the sailors on the boat he was on to flee from speaking to Gentiles. God provided a fish to capture him and place him on the shore in the presence of people who worshiped a fish.

Isaiah quotes God saying,

Isa 55:8 For my thoughts are not your thoughts, neither are your ways my ways, saith the LORD.

Isa 55:9 For as the heavens are higher than the earth, so are my ways higher than your ways, and my thoughts than your thoughts.

God's methods are different than ours and more effective.  Ellen White says,

Let me tell you that the Lord will work in this last work in a manner very much out of the common order of things, and in a way that will be contrary to any human planning. There will be those among us who will always want to control the work of God, to dictate even what movements shall be made when the work goes forward under the direction of the angel who joins the third angel in the message to be given to the world. God will use ways and means by which it will be seen that He is taking the reins in His own hands. The workers will be surprised by the simple means that He will use to bring about and perfect His work of righteousness.--Testimonies to Ministers, p. 300.

Will we let Christ take the reins or will we not let go?

RR

Raul Diaz

https://about.me/raul.diaz