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Breaking Intimidation

 

Breaking Intimidation

by John Bevere

Everyone struggles with something. Many pastors wrestle with feelings of intimidation that the devil can use to paralyze and manipulate us unless we learn to overcome them. Bevere’s book is an excellent expose of how intimidation works and how to conquer it. I think it belongs on the top ten list of any pastor who may have this struggle.

“Often those who are intimidated don’t’ realize what they’re fighting. As with most of Satan’s devices, intimation is camouflaged and subtle. We feel its effects – depression, confusion, lack of faith – without knowing its root.” (p.21)

The second chapter establishes the authority believers have positionally in Christ.

“If Satan can steal or cause individuals to lay down their position of authority, then he once again has authority to operate.” (p.28)

Chapter Three deals with two extremes that must be confronted: the pursuit of power and false humility. He points out that a fear of confrontation makes us an easy prey for intimidation. (p.41)

The second section of the book focuses on exposing intimidation. Bevere points out that “intimidated believers lose their authority in the spirit.” (p.59) He states that “intimidation wants to overwhelm you with a sense of inferiority and fear.” (p.60)

“An intimidating spirit unleashes confusion, discouragement, and frustration. It’s goal is to cause you to lose your proper perspective.” (p.62)

When we are intimidated, we give up our position of authority. Consequently, the gift of God to serve and protect lies dormant. We end up unintentionally furthering the cause of the one intimidating us.” (p.68)

“An intimidated person honors what he fears more than he honors God. With or without realizing it, he submits to what intimidates him.” (p.73)

The Spirit of Intimidation

Here is an interesting quote that should make us ponder.

“In order to recognize and deal with intimation we must be settled on two issues. First, fear, or timidity, is a spirit, and second, it not from God.” (p.83)

Bevere quotes 2 Timothy 1:7, pointing out that the Greek word translated “spirit” is pneuma, which is normally translated “spirit.” This being the case, the author insists that intimidation cannot be conquered merely on an intellectual or soulical (will power) level. It must be addressed as an evil spirit in the same category as a spirit of witchcraft. He states that evil must be confronted, or it will grow ever stronger.

Bevere makes a strong case that pastors and other church leaders have a responsibility to confront persons with a wrong spirit who are attempting to control or influence the congregation. Otherwise, we are actually indirectly supporting them. The goal of intimidation is to steal the leader’s authority and use it for evil, just as Jezebel used King Ahab’s authority to do harm. Ahab had to move aside to give her room to operate.

“People who have strong personalities will use intimidation to make a lie look like the truth. You must stay in the spirit to overcome the strength of such attacks.” (p.100)

We can see these tactics operating in the political realm, too. Consider.

“Usually intimidation will accuse you of the very weakness it seeks to hide. Those who act pure outwardly but have an impure heart will always attack the pure in heart… in order to… maintain control.” (p.101)

Chapter Nine deals with the root of intimidation, which Bevere claims is the love of self. (p.119)

“The boldness it takes to break the power of intimidation must be fueled by our love for God.” (p.122)

“God does not want us running from our areas of weakness. He wants us to face them fearlessly.” (p.127)

Bevere insists that the only way to conquer fear and intimidation is to “walk” in the fear of the Lord. (p.142)

“The root of the fear of man is the love of self. When you love your life, you seek to save it. You will be intimidated by anything that threatens it.” (p.155)

The concluding chapters give practical advice for conquering the enemy of intimidation.

“We need to treat discouragement as an enemy. We underestimate its power to prevent us from obtaining the high calling of God.” (p.199)

This book will help anyone who has experienced being intimidated and used by manipulative people and spirits.

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The Starfish and the Spider

 

The Starfish and the Spider

by Ori Brafman and Rod Beckstrom

This is one of those books that I put in my top ten because it crystalized principles that we continue to put into practice.  Our church, called LifeNet, morphed from being a centralized spider organization called Liberty Church into a decentralized starfish. We did this at the leading of the Holy Spirit before I ever read the book, but reading the book helped me to connect the dots.

Most successful starfish organizations were started with what seemed at the time to be a radical ideology.  Brafman, Ori; Beckstrom, Rod A.. The Starfish and the Spider (p. 206). Penguin Publishing Group. Kindle Edition.

The “radical ideology” behind LifeNet is the notion that churches work better as small groups. I use quotation marks because this is how the church began in the Book of Acts, but because the institutional church drifted so far from its beginnings, it seems radical today to many. For us it meant jettisoning our building and launching into the uncharted waters of existing only as a confederation of small groups, which we legally named Life Community Network, or LifeNet for short.

The overall concept of the book is quite simple: centralized hierarchical organizations can be “killed” by taking out the head, as with a spider, but decentralized organizations only morph and multiply when attacked, as with starfish. You can cut off the arm of a starfish and another starfish will grow out of that arm. The authors compare the Aztecs, a centralized nation, to the Apaches, a decentralized group. The Aztecs were easily conquered by the Spanish by defeating the central government in the capitol city, but the Spanish could never defeat the nomadic Apaches, who did not have a central government, followed charismatic leaders, and could vanish into the wilderness when their villages were attacked. Interestingly, the church in China has thrived under persecution because it too is a decentralized network of small groups.

As might be expected, the book extensively compares centralized organizations to decentralized ones. It praises the advantages of decentralized starfish organizations, while acknowledging that both have their place. The authors even examine the advantages associated with combining elements of both to form hybrid organizations, such as eBay and Toyota. This echoes the ideas found in another important church book entitled And: The Gathered and Scattered Church, of which I have written a summary.

The principles contained in the book are readily transferable to the church setting, as was the case with other business books I have read over the years. (Eg. The Answer to How Is Yes by Peter Block is one of the best books on faith out there. You can click on the link above to read my summary.) Small group based churches, such as LifeNet, can profit by understanding the nature of being an effective starfish organization. I believe this was part of the genius of the early church.

Centralized organizations rely heavily on top-down decision making. Everyone beneath “upper management” must obey the directives coming down from the top, ensuring uniformity. Decentralized organizations disperse decision-making authority among multiple people or departmental teams. Individuals at a “lower level” approve decisions and then report them to personnel in “upper” management.

Decentralized organizations rely heavily on everyone buying into the same vision and maintaining open lines of communication. However, unity at the vision level does not guarantee or expect unity at the application level.

That is part of the genius of the decentralized organization. Great freedom is given to “lower” leaders to experiment and implement innovative ideas.

At LifeNet, we see ourselves as a decentralized network of small groups, which are led by, in our case, elders. As we grow larger, not all small group leaders will be elders, but they will all be pastors or shepherds – people who care about people.

The board of elders generally oversees the entire network without dictating to each small group leader exactly how to implement the vision.

Each leader has been given freedom to lead his or her group within the overall vision of the Great Commission – sharing the gospel and making disciples. How this is done varies from group to group, but the Great Commandment – loving God, one another, and our neighbor – is always at the forefront. We rely upon the Holy Spirit to guide us and to keep us from veering off into some form of legalism. We depend on the Bible to keep us from error.

We realize that true discipleship is a result of individuals making a personal commitment to follow Christ. The church exists to inspire, equip, and encourage such people on their journey.

Understanding the difference between the role and function of CEOs, catalysts, and champions is important. Catalysts are perhaps the least understand and most important. They are the ones with the vision and are critical in the creation and success of starfish organizations. The champion is the person most visible to those on the outside. Usually they are the public “face” or “mouth” of the organization, the one best equipped to share the vision and rally others to the cause. People on the outside see champions as the true leaders, not realizing that the catalyst is actually the “heart and soul” of the group. CEOs are the people gifted to bring a minimalist type of structure to the organization that will allow it to grow without losing the genius of decentralization. (See my summary of Organic Church for more on this concept.)

Most decentralized organizations become increasingly centralized over time.

This is also true for the church. History records how the early church grew and gradually adopted centralization, which was the beginning of its deterioration, which became so great that it required the Reformation centuries later to get it back on track.

The more power, authority, and wealth accrues to those who govern the overall organization, the more difficult it becomes for them to distribute decision-making authority.

The Methodist movement, which began as a decentralized organization, eventually became a top-down denomination that has gone off the rails doctrinally – too much power in the hands of the wrong people. The nation of Israel began as a decentralized confederation of tribes governed by Holy Spirit appointed judges who ruled for a season, but a desire to be like other nations drove the people to adopt a centralized government run by a dynastic king. This was because they grew weary of trusting God to raise up new judges. They wanted a permanent institution. The United States also began as a decentralized confederation of states but over time granted more and more power to a strong federal government which basically stripped the states of their original autonomy and power.

I believe their is an inherent drive in mankind to move toward centralization. I call it the Babel Principle, about which I have written elsewhere.

The motive behind this bent is that we do not like being continually dependent upon God for direction. We would rather build a system for self-government, even though it always tends toward corruption. Relying upon the Spirit to give direction continually and raise up new leaders to replace ones we have looked to in the past is challenging and exposes us to uncertainty, but that is exactly the environment in which we grow in our relationship and faith in God.

This may be the most important reason why decentralization is so good. It requires us to always rely on God.

This book is challenging, fascinating, informative, and practical. I hope you will take time to read it and ponder its message.

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Jacob: Hang On Until You Get the Blessing

Jacob is one of my favorite characters in the Bible. He was a deceiver, a complainer at times, fearful, and often lacking faith; yet, God chose him to be a father of the faith, and, despite all his failures, his life ended well. Jacob should give us all hope that God can use even us for his purposes. We should be encouraged that God’s grace and mercy are sufficient to carry us through, no matter how unlikely a candidate we may be.

This teaching will examine a significant episode in Jacob’s life when he was returning to his father’s home after years of a sort of self-imposed exile. God earlier promised his mother, Rebecca, that Jacob would rule over his brother Esau.

But the children struggled together within her; and she said, "If it is so, why then am I this way?" So she went to inquire of the LORD. 23  The LORD said to her, "Two nations are in your womb; And two peoples will be separated from your body; And one people shall be stronger than the other; And the older shall serve the younger." Genesis 25:22-23 (NASB)

How he came into possession of that promise involves several unexpected twists and turns. Jacob came out of the womb as the second born of twins, grasping the heel of his older brother, Esau. Jacob’s name is a word play on “heel” and carried with it the connotation of a deceiver, a theme that played out during his life.

The reason that Jacob left his father’s home was because he had tricked his father into giving him his older brother’s blessing, which enraged Esau to the point of wanting to murder him. His father, Isaac, was essentially blind due to old age, which allowed the deception to succeed. Isaac preferred Esau over Jacob, and, according to the convention of the time, Esau, being the first born, should have received a blessing giving him first place among his brothers. But God had already chosen Jacob to have that honor, which is another theme that plays out repeatedly in the Old Testament.

God chooses unlikely people to accomplish his purposes.

It is inconceivable that Rebecca did not tell her husband about the promise God gave her; nevertheless, Isaac, who also had a history of being deceptive, as did his father, Abraham, chose the give his blessing to his elder son. He sent Esau out to kill game and prepare him a delicious stew which would set the stage for his imparting the blessing of the first born. Rebecca heard what was happening and instructed Jacob to bring her a goat to prepare for his father. Following his mother’s counsel, Jacob dressed in Esau’s clothing and somehow managed to pull off the ruse and get his father’s blessing just before Esau’s return. Below is a part of that blessing.

May many nations become your servants, and may they bow down to you. May you be the master over your brothers, and may your mother’s sons bow down to you. All who curse you will be cursed, and all who bless you will be blessed.” Genesis 27:29 (NLT)

Previously Esau had traded his birthright to Jacob for a bowl of lentil stew.

One day when Jacob was cooking some stew, Esau arrived home from the wilderness exhausted and hungry. 30  Esau said to Jacob, “I’m starved! Give me some of that red stew!” (This is how Esau got his other name, Edom, which means “red.”) 31  “All right,” Jacob replied, “but trade me your rights as the firstborn son.” 32  “Look, I’m dying of starvation!” said Esau. “What good is my birthright to me now?” 33  But Jacob said, “First you must swear that your birthright is mine.” So Esau swore an oath, thereby selling all his rights as the firstborn to his brother, Jacob. 34  Then Jacob gave Esau some bread and lentil stew. Esau ate the meal, then got up and left. He showed contempt for his rights as the firstborn. Genesis 25:29-34 (NLT)

The birthright being Jacob’s by Esau’s choice, it only stood to reason that the blessing should also be his. However, when Esau learned that once again his brother had taken what he felt belonged to him, he was distraught and furious. He determined to kill Jacob after his father died. Upon learning this, Rebecca instructed her son, with Isaac’s blessing, to leave the country and go back to her father’s house to obtain a bride. Jacob left immediately, encountering God along the way, and after reaching Rebecca’s home, ended up marrying two of Rebecca’s nieces, Leah and Rachel. There he built his family and fortune serving his uncle Laban. Eventually God instructed him to return to his father’s home.

Then the LORD said to Jacob, “Return to the land of your father and grandfather and to your relatives there, and I will be with you.” Genesis 31:3 (NLT)

This posed two huge problems for Jacob. Laban was sure to oppose the move, and the last time he saw Esau, he had murder in his heart. This brings us to another life lesson we can derive from this part of Jacob’s life.

When God tells us to do something, he promises to be with us, but that does not mean we will not encounter difficulties.

Jacob tried to escape Laban secretly to avoid a fight, but Laban hunted him down. The ensuing confrontation revealed to Jacob that God was helping him.

Laban caught up with Jacob as he was camped in the hill country of Gilead, and he set up his camp not far from Jacob’s. 26  “What do you mean by stealing away like this?” Laban demanded. “How dare you drag my daughters away like prisoners of war? 27  Why did you slip away secretly? Why did you steal away? And why didn’t you say you wanted to leave? I would have given you a farewell feast, with singing and music, accompanied by tambourines and harps. 28  Why didn’t you let me kiss my daughters and grandchildren and tell them good-bye? You have acted very foolishly! 29  I could destroy you, but the God of your father appeared to me last night and warned me, ‘Leave Jacob alone!’ Genesis 31:25-29 (NLT)

Once past this significant hurdle, Jacob still faced his biggest fear – Esau. As he approached his father’s home, he got word that Esau was coming to meet him with four hundred men. How would you interpret this news? Probably just as Jacob did… He was convinced that his brother was coming to finally get his revenge. Jacob was caught between a rock and a hard place. God clearly told him to return home, but Esau had to be met for that to happen.

God is an expert at setting up situations that require us to face our fears.

He backs us into a corner from which we cannot escape except by going straight forward. Meeting Esau seemed to be the worst thing that could happen, but God was about to turn what Jacob feared into something good.

This brings us to another important life lesson. God promises that he will work all things out for good in our lives, even the seemingly terrible things. He asks us to maintain our faith in him and his promises.

And we know that God causes everything to work together for the good of those who love God and are called according to his purpose for them. Romans 8:28 (NLT)

A secondary principle that we can derive from this verse of scripture is that we should praise God in every circumstance because we can be sure that he is at work for our good and his glory.

And give thanks for everything to God the Father in the name of our Lord Jesus Christ. Ephesians 5:20 (NLT)

Jacob did not yet know these principles. All he knew was that God was with him and his brother appeared to be on the warpath. As the confrontation got closer, Jacob took defensive steps, sending droves of animals ahead of him as gifts to appease his brother’s wrath. The night before meeting Esau, he divided his family group in the hope that perhaps some would be spared. Then he spent the night alone by the river Jabbok.

During that sleepless night, the angel of the Lord appeared to Jacob and wrestled with him. Jacob was a powerful man, having been able to single-handedly role a huge stone that covered the opening to a well. (Genesis 29:10) Despite his prodigious strength, Jacob was unable to defeat the angel, which is not surprising. God will defeat the areas of our lives where we are self-sufficient so that we learn an important lesson.

God never intended that we be self-sufficient. We were created to draw our life and strength from God.

Until we learn to bring everything under God’s benevolent rule, we will encounter God’s loving discipline. Jacob was about to learn the biggest life lesson of all.

Even in the womb, Jacob struggled with his brother; when he became a man, he even fought with God. 4  Yes, he wrestled with the angel and won. He wept and pleaded for a blessing from him. There at Bethel he met God face to face, and God spoke to him— 5  the LORD God of Heaven’s Armies, the LORD is his name! Hosea 12:3-5 (NLT)

According to the Bible, Jacob won his wrestling match, but that is a surprising twist to the story. His victory with God came because he lost to God. This is another key to life in God.

We win by losing our fight against God.

Jacob and the angel wrestled to a stalemate, at which time, the angel revealed that he had the power to defeat Jacob at any time. Imagine a father arm wrestling with his young son and pretending that it is a struggle.

This left Jacob all alone in the camp, and a man came and wrestled with him until the dawn began to break. 25  When the man saw that he would not win the match, he touched Jacob’s hip and wrenched it out of its socket. 26  Then the man said, “Let me go, for the dawn is breaking!” But Jacob said, “I will not let you go unless you bless me.” 27  “What is your name?” the man asked. He replied, “Jacob.” 28  “Your name will no longer be Jacob,” the man told him. “From now on you will be called Israel, because you have fought with God and with men and have won.” Genesis 32:24-28 (NLT)

Jacob won this match with God because he refused to give up and let go, which brings us to the main point of this article.

Never let go of God and his promises until you get the blessing.

Life often confronts us with overwhelming problems that seemingly contradict or nullify God’s love and promises. The test we often face is whether we will let go of God or cling to him. Instead of fighting God, as Jacob did, why not simply surrender to His plan and purpose? 

The cross has been called the intersection or crossing of our will by God’s. The cross symbolizes the death of our will and our desire to determine our own course or direction in life. God’s will is usually attractive to us on a deep spiritual level, but the journey toward its fulfillment usually runs counter to the comfort and ease we all want.

We inevitably will encounter the cross when we embrace God’s divine purpose. We may struggle fiercely, but we cannot win against God. So why not be wise and surrender early on?

Jacob surrendered with one condition, which we should also adopt: he requested God’s blessing.

Then the man said, “Let me go, for the dawn is breaking.” 
“I will not let you go,” Jacob replied, “unless you bless me.” Genesis 32:26

As we face the trial before us, we should tell God that we surrender to His will and purpose for our lives in the trial (as best we can) and that we want the blessing contained in it. (Romans 8:28) The old saying that every dark cloud has a silver lining is certainly true with God.

There is nothing that the devil or life can throw at us that will not ultimately work for our good. Therefore, we can face everything with the bold confidence of a conqueror. In Christ the battle has already been won.

No, despite all these things, overwhelming victory is ours through Christ, who loved us. 38  And I am convinced that nothing can ever separate us from God’s love. Neither death nor life, neither angels nor demons, neither our fears for today nor our worries about tomorrow—not even the powers of hell can separate us from God’s love. 39  No power in the sky above or in the earth below—indeed, nothing in all creation will ever be able to separate us from the love of God that is revealed in Christ Jesus our Lord. Romans 8:37-39 (NLT)

Adversity presents us with an opportunity to know God in a fresh new way.

Of course, for the Christian, the Lord is always present, but often we neglect to profit from this most amazing gift until pressed into a corner. We humans are so oriented toward self-sufficiency that we often forget about God, for all practical purposes, until we are faced with something so beyond our capacity to cope that we are forced to run to Him. God is so loving and humble of heart that He accepts us even when we come with such questionable motives.

Then Jesus said, “Come to me, all of you who are weary and carry heavy burdens, and I will give you rest. 29  Take my yoke upon you. Let me teach you, because I am humble and gentle at heart, and you will find rest for your souls. 30  For my yoke is easy to bear, and the burden I give you is light.” Matthew 11:28-30 (NLT)

God has no illusions about our motives, but loves us anyway. He is a true friend as well as our God.

In addition to being an opportunity to meet God in a fresh new way, a severe trial is also an opportunity to hear God’s voice in a way that inspires our faith. God can and will speak to us through Scripture, other human beings, our circumstances, or simply by communicating directly with our hearts.

“Keep on asking, and you will receive what you ask for. Keep on seeking, and you will find. Keep on knocking, and the door will be opened to you. 8 For everyone who asks, receives. Everyone who seeks, finds. And to everyone who knocks, the door will be opened. Matthew 7:7-8 (NLT)

When God requires that we face our greatest fears, it is time to get alone with Him and hang on until He gives us the blessing that is hidden in the trial. Never doubt that it is there. It was for Jacob. When he finally face his brother Esau the next day, it turned out well. Esau came in peace, eliciting these words from Jacob.

Jacob said, “Please. If you can find it in your heart to welcome me, accept these gifts. When I saw your face, it was as the face of God smiling on me. Genesis 33:10 (The Message)

Knowing that God truly loves us is a big key to our having overcoming faith.

Some believers have a feeling that God “loves” them, but fear that He secretly does not like them very much. We have a good reason to think this way, since we are so very well acquainted with our own faults and failings. Many of us still think we are on a performance basis in our relationship with God, and we imagine we are quite unworthy of genuine affection from Him.

The good news of the gospel, however, is that God loves us to the core, despite our very unlovable traits, and that He is favorably disposed to bless us, all because of what Jesus did for us.

When we love someone deeply, it gives us pleasure to show that love through gifts and other favorable acts. That is the way God loves us.

When a severe trial comes, for some it is a confirmation that God’s displeasure has been aroused and they are being punished. It is very difficult, if not impossible, to have overcoming faith if we think like that. Perhaps the word “trial” is part of the problem, since it brings to mind a courtroom setting in which we may see ourselves as the accused. If we substitute the word “test” for “trial,” we may obtain a better grasp of what God is doing.

Tests reveal to us what we know and how far we have come in our training and maturity.

They are meant to be passed, but, if we fail one, God does not discard us. Instead we must go back to the Book, the Bible, to study some more and then go back to God, our life coach, for some more internal work. Tests are good, not bad. God is not hurting us by sending tribulation and pressures our way: He is actually helping us. The Apostle Paul wrote:

That is why we never give up. Though our bodies are dying, our spirits are being renewed every day. 17  For our present troubles are small and won’t last very long. Yet they produce for us a glory that vastly outweighs them and will last forever! 18  So we don’t look at the troubles we can see now; rather, we fix our gaze on things that cannot be seen. For the things we see now will soon be gone, but the things we cannot see will last forever. 2 Corinthians 4:16-18 (NLT)

We cannot grow spiritually without encountering tests and pressures along the way. God wants us to use them to learn how to overcome by faith.

It’s analogous to a butterfly struggling to escape its cocoon. If someone tries to “help” the insect by tearing open the cocoon, the butterfly will be robbed of its God-given opportunity to strengthen and develop its wings. It is through the struggle to get out of the cocoon that the butterfly becomes strong enough to fly. As we encounter and struggle with tests and tribulations, our faith and ability to persevere will grow.

Dear brothers and sisters, when troubles come your way, consider it an opportunity for great joy. 3  For you know that when your faith is tested, your endurance has a chance to grow. 4  So let it grow, for when your endurance is fully developed, you will be perfect and complete, needing nothing. James 1:2-4 (NLT)

In adversity, we learn that God is faithful and true and grow strong spiritually. Most of us routinely seek to avoid or quickly escape tribulations. Rather, we should embrace any that God sends our way and seek to profit from them.

God has a purpose for everything in our lives. We just need to find it, which happens more easily when we surrender to God’s will and purpose. Our purpose is found in His purposes. In fact, it is only in the context of His sovereign will that our lives make sense. What before had been terrifying for Jacob, now became the venue in which he beheld God’s smile.

When we go through trials and tribulations with an attitude of faith and an expectation of blessing, we will come to know God in a new way and be able to see His smile.

Do we know that God is smiling at us, or do we imagine that His face is clouded, angry, or frowning in displeasure? The priestly blessing from Numbers reveals that God is indeed smiling at us, or, as the literal Hebrew says, “shining” upon us.

May the LORD bless you and protect you. 25  May the LORD smile on you and be gracious to you. 26  May the LORD show you his favor and give you his peace.’ Numbers 6:24-26 (NLT)

A smile is one of the most effective ways to communicate our pleasure in another person. God takes pleasure in His people because we are perfectly pleasing to Him in and through His Son. We are completely justified, accepted, and blessed in Christ.

All praise to God, the Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, who has blessed us with every spiritual blessing in the heavenly realms because we are united with Christ. 4  Even before he made the world, God loved us and chose us in Christ to be holy and without fault in his eyes. 5  God decided in advance to adopt us into his own family by bringing us to himself through Jesus Christ. This is what he wanted to do, and it gave him great pleasure. 6  So we praise God for the glorious grace he has poured out on us who belong to his dear Son. 7  He is so rich in kindness and grace that he purchased our freedom with the blood of his Son and forgave our sins. 8  He has showered his kindness on us, along with all wisdom and understanding. Ephesians 1:3-8 (NLT)

Yes, God is smiling at us, but do we believe it yet? Keep seeking the Lord until he shows you the truth about his amazing grace.

Don’t let go of God until you experience the blessing he has already given to us in Christ.

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Is Jesus God?

Yuval Noah Harari is an Israeli-born World Economic Forum member and a lead advisor for Klaus Schwab. Klaus Schwab is the author of COVID-19 / The Great Reset and The Great Narrative. Schwab is founder of the World Economic Forum, which has a 666 logo. Yuval Noah Harari is an openly gay best-selling author who abstains from eating meat and who is celebrated by Barack Obama, Mark Zuckerberg, and Bill Gates. Yuval Noah Harari has been praised by the New York Times, Stanford, TED, MIT, Silicon Valley and TimesTalks. Yuval is a Hebrew first name which means “father of music,” stream, brook, or tributary.” In the Hebrew Bible, Yuval (also Jubal) was the son of Lamech and Adah and a descendant of Cain who is referenced in Genesis 4:20-21. To learn more about the mindset of Yuval Noah Harari read 2nd Thessalonians Chapter 2. In other words, he embodies the antichrist spirit. I am not saying that he is the Antichrist; rather, he expresses that spirit through his words and life. He stands in opposition to God’s truth and will and uses his position to defame the Lord.

Here is a collage of quotes from this man that I will examine in this article.

“Jesus Never Claimed to Be God, He Was Basically This Hippy Guru Who Wanted to Reform Judaism. Jesus Did Not Think He Was Yahweh. Decades After He Is Dead, People Say This Rabbi Who Had a Small Following Was Actually God.” 1

The Bible chapter I referenced above, which I hope you took time to read, contains this passage.

This man will...use every kind of evil deception to fool those on their way to destruction, because they refuse to love and accept the truth that would save them. 11  So God will cause them to be greatly deceived, and they will believe these lies. 12  Then they will be condemned for enjoying evil rather than believing the truth. 2 Thessalonians 2:9-12 (NLT)

Many of us can easily discern that there is an abnormal level of deception being poured out on the earth today. Sadly, humans in general are not very good at identifying and rejecting what is false. This inability goes back to the Garden of Eden. Apparently God deliberately created us so that we need him to know what is necessary. If we look elsewhere, we will suffer for it. In his eyes, we are all children, and we know how gullible children tend to be. He wants us to freely believe him, without fear or doubt, but flatly refuse any other source of “truth” that contradicts what he tells us. Adam and Eve failed this test miserably. Today is our turn at passing it.

If what Harari said about Jesus is true, then Jesus was either a lunatic or a liar. Let me quote the great C.S. Lewis from this classic book, Mere Christianity:

Jesus [. . .] told people that their sins were forgiven. [. . .] This makes sense only if He really was the God whose laws are broken and whose love is wounded in every sin. [. . .] I am trying here to prevent anyone saying the really foolish thing that people often say about Him: “I’m ready to accept Jesus as a great moral teacher, but I don’t accept His claim to be God.”

That is the one thing we must not say. A man who was merely a man and said the sort of things Jesus said would not be a great moral teacher. He would either be a lunatic—on a level with the man who says he is a poached egg—or else he would be the Devil of Hell. You can shut Him up for a fool, you can spit at Him and kill Him as a demon; or you can fall at His feet and call Him Lord and God. But let us not come with any patronising nonsense about His being a great human teacher. He has not left that open to us. He did not intend to.

The Bible makes it clear that Jesus’ enemies knew that he claimed to be God. Let me give you two examples. The first is an encounter he had with his opposition, the Jewish religious leaders. They are the first to speak in the following passage.

"Surely You are not greater than our father Abraham, who died? The prophets died too; whom do You make Yourself out to be?" 54  Jesus answered, "If I glorify Myself, My glory is nothing; it is My Father who glorifies Me, of whom you say, 'He is our God'; 55  and you have not come to know Him, but I know Him; and if I say that I do not know Him, I will be a liar like you, but I do know Him and keep His word. 56  "Your father Abraham rejoiced to see My day, and he saw it and was glad." 57  So the Jews said to Him, "You are not yet fifty years old, and have You seen Abraham?" 58  Jesus said to them, "Truly, truly, I say to you, before Abraham was born, I am." 59  Therefore they picked up stones to throw at Him, but Jesus hid Himself and went out of the temple. John 8:53-59 (NASB)

The name of God revealed to Moses was “I am who I am,” which is translated Yahweh in many Bibles. When Jesus declared to his enemies that he is the “I am,” he knew what he was doing, and so did they. That is why they immediately picked up stones to kill him.

Another example is when our Lord stood before his accusers during his nighttime mock trial before his crucifixion. The Sanhedrin’s false witnesses did not give them what they needed to condemn Jesus to death; so, as a last resort, they asked Jesus directly if he were indeed the Messiah. He did not simply affirm what they asked: he went much, much further, giving them grounds for declaring him a blasphemer. Here are our Lord’s words.

But Jesus remained silent. And the high priest said to him, “I adjure you by the living God, tell us if you are the Christ, the Son of God.” 64  Jesus said to him, “You have said so. But I tell you, from now on you will see the Son of Man seated at the right hand of Power and coming on the clouds of heaven.” 65  Then the high priest tore his robes and said, “He has uttered blasphemy. What further witnesses do we need? You have now heard his blasphemy. 66  What is your judgment?” They answered, “He deserves death.” Matthew 26:63-66 (ESV)

Now to those who do not know the Old Testament scriptures, this may not seem like much. But for those Jewish leaders, who did know the scriptures, what Jesus said was a claim to be God. The reference is to the writings of the prophet Daniel.

“I saw in the night visions, and behold, with the clouds of heaven there came one like a son of man, and he came to the Ancient of Days and was presented before him. 14  And to him was given dominion and glory and a kingdom, that all peoples, nations, and languages should serve him; his dominion is an everlasting dominion, which shall not pass away, and his kingdom one that shall not be destroyed. Daniel 7:13-14 (ESV)

Even though many claim that Jesus’ self-identification as the “son of man” was a reference to his humanity, I believe first and foremost it is a reference to this passage in Daniel. This son of man is a heavenly being who has been given everlasting dominion and will judge all peoples. This fits perfectly with the Christian position that Jesus is the God-man who died as the Lamb of God for our sins and rose again as the Lord of Lords, who now sits at his Father’s right hand, waiting for his enemies to be completely subjugated, at which time he will return as the divine Son of Man to judge the living and the dead and rule over God’s kingdom forever.

It is obvious that Harari and his interviewers are ignorant of the Bible, since they make many false statements during the interview I footnoted. Or they may simply be spinning a deliberate lie to deceive the simple. They will account to God for their haughty dismissal of Jesus’ claims and the Bible. In either case, Harari is being used as an instrument of Satan to weave a web of deception to drag as many people to hell with him as possible.

There is still time for repentance, even for Harari. Until we stop breathing or the Lord returns, we all still have hope. Let’s be proclaimers of truth, not collaborators with deception. Are you ready to align yourself with the truth about Jesus? Here is how.

Prayer

Jesus, I have finally reached the point where I am ready to acknowledge that you are Lord of all. I surrender my life to you and ask you to use what time I have left on earth for your glory. Thank you for forgiving my sins and giving me eternal life. I ask you to baptize me with the Holy Spirit and power and help me to be your faithful witness. Amen.

1 From interview at - https://armchairexpertpod.com/pods/yuval-harari-returns-again - beginning at 1:00:46.
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What do we do when we are confused and unsure what to do next?

 

 

 

God designed things so that much of life is quite mysterious. He created us with an inherent need to rely him for everything. It is not that we are stupid, but there is simply so much that we do not know, need to know, or even have the capacity to know.

The quest to know more than God is willing to share with us led to our downfall. As the old saying goes, curiosity killed the cat. The serpent preyed upon this desire to go beyond what God designed us to know when he tempted Eve to taste the forbidden fruit in order to “be like God,” knowing good and evil for themselves without having to rely on God to show them. Sadly, our Lord never intended for them or us to have that knowledge because he knew it would destroy us. It is humbling to admit we are so dependent by design.

Rather than giving us knowledge of everything, God gave us a capacity, desire, and need to live by faith.

As the old hymn says,

Many Things About Tomorrow,
I Don’t Seem To Understand;
But I Know Who Holds Tomorrow,
And I Know Who Holds My Hand.

Everyone lives by faith in something, even if it is faith that there is nothing worth believing. Faith is based on believing what is unprovable using scientific methodology. The great mysteries of life must be accepted by faith.

  • Is there a God?
  • What is the purpose of life?
  • What happens after death?
  • What do I do next?

Thankfully, faith does not have to be blind. In fact, it should not be. Faith should be based on something rock solid. God has given us his written Word, called the Bible. He has also given us the Holy Spirit.

But it was to us that God revealed these things by his Spirit. For his Spirit searches out everything and shows us God’s deep secrets. 1 Corinthians 2:10 (NLT)

The Spirit of God reveals things to us. He speaks to our hearts and opens our minds to understand the scriptures. This is the kind of knowledge that God permits and encourages.

Revelation from the scriptures and from the Spirit are gifts from God and minister life to us, just the opposite of what happened in the garden when the wrong kind of knowledge was pursued.

But sometimes God withholds what we might consider to be necessary key information, leaving us feeling alone, confused, and very unsure of ourselves and what to do next. This happened to King Saul near the end of his life. Because of disobedience, his access to hearing God speak to him through the prophets and by other means had been cut off. He came to a huge crisis and did not know where to turn. In his desperation, he resorted to consulting a medium or necromancer, one who brings up the dead for consultation. This was strictly forbidden, but he was so desperate that he was willing to try anything. He asked the witch of Endor to bring Samuel the prophet back from the dead. The result was not pretty. Samuel did indeed come back only to prophesy his impending death in battle.

When we get confused, afraid, and desperate to know what to do next, we should never resort to forbidden or occult forms of knowledge, as did Saul, Adam, and Eve. Such a time is a glorious opportunity for us to demonstrate our faith that God will reveal to us whatever we need to know.

If the Lord is not showing us anything, it is because we do not need to know.

Instead, God wants us to simply trust in him.

The Bible gives us a great example. Large crowds were following Jesus. His popularity was soaring, but knowing the fickleness of people, Jesus deliberately taught them some things that were difficult to comprehend and offensive to those who did not yet grasp his true identity as the Messianic King. When Jesus told the crowd that he is the bread of life and they must “eat” him to have life, the crowd was offended, not understanding the meaning.

Many of his disciples said, “This is very hard to understand. How can anyone accept it?” 61  Jesus was aware that his disciples were complaining, so he said to them, “Does this offend you? 62  Then what will you think if you see the Son of Man ascend to heaven again? 63  The Spirit alone gives eternal life. Human effort accomplishes nothing. And the very words I have spoken to you are spirit and life. 64  But some of you do not believe me.” (For Jesus knew from the beginning which ones didn’t believe, and he knew who would betray him.) 65  Then he said, “That is why I said that people can’t come to me unless the Father gives them to me.” 66  At this point many of his disciples turned away and deserted him. 67  Then Jesus turned to the Twelve and asked, “Are you also going to leave?” 68  Simon Peter replied, “Lord, to whom would we go? You have the words that give eternal life. 69  We believe, and we know you are the Holy One of God.” John 6:60-69 (NLT)

When life is confusing and it seems that God has let us down, that is the time fall back on what we do know.

God is good and trustworthy, and we can trust in him even when nothing else makes sense. We do not have to know everything. We just need to rely on the one who does.

To the uninitiated, living by faith without concrete proof of what is happening or going to happen, can be disconcerting. But when we learn to operate using this kind of faith, it produces a deep sense of joy and peace. God is more trustworthy than what we can see with our eyes or understand with our minds.

For we live by believing and not by seeing. 2 Corinthians 5:7 (NLT)

When we put our faith in him, he gives us a peace that passes understanding.

Don’t worry about anything; instead, pray about everything. Tell God what you need, and thank him for all he has done. 7  Then you will experience God’s peace, which exceeds anything we can understand. His peace will guard your hearts and minds as you live in Christ Jesus. Philippians 4:6-7 (NLT)

So, when we are confused and unsure what to do next, it is time to find shelter in the “secret place” of God’s presence until he chooses to reveal what is the next thing we need to know. Until then we can choose to be content in knowing him.

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7: Once for All

For Christ also died for sins once for all, the just for the unjust, so that He might bring us to God, having been put to death in the flesh, but made alive in the spirit; 1 Peter 3:18 (NASB)

How important is the phrase “once for all”? I believe it would be safe to say that everything pertaining to our salvation hinges upon it.

Does that surprise you? If it does, you have not properly understood the nature of the work which Christ accomplished through His death and resurrection.

In a very real sense, the sin in the garden was a “once for all” sin. Adam’s and Eve’s failure to obey God was a one-time event that negatively impacted all of us. What some call the “original sin” resulted in the transmission of a fallen “sin nature” to every human being who would ever be born the natural way. (Jesus is excluded from this list by reason of the virgin birth.) It set in motion a horrendous sequence of events that is still whirling seemingly out of control today. (However, God is still sovereign over his creation.) The evil we see around us, that sometimes seems to strike the most “innocent” at random, is nothing more or less than the result of that original sin reinforced by the additional sins that each of us have added to the mix and which has been augmented by the malevolent interference of the Devil. Since salvation is God’s means of overcoming the power and effects of sin, it stands to reason that what God would eventually do to rescue mankind would also be a “once for all” event.

God is “Other”. By that I mean that He is very different from you and me, even though we are created in His image. Time is part of his creation,  but he is not bound by it as we now are in many ways. He sees the end from the beginning and “calls those things which be not as though they were”. (Romans 4:17) He exists outside of time but interjects himself into our historical timeline. God merges the eternal with the temporal in a way that confounds our minds. The following verse is an example of this.

And all the people who belong to this world worshiped the beast. They are the ones whose names were not written in the Book of Life, which belongs to the Lamb who was killed before the world was made. Revelation 13:8 (NLT)

If you are a believer, not only did God choose you before the foundation of the world (Ephesians 1:4), but His Son was put to death before history ever began as well.

There is an eternal reality to things before they ever show up in what we call “history”. History is the playing out of God’s wonderful plan.

That which is eternal is what is truly important. It might be said that what we do here in the present (the working out of history) is the outworking of the eternal. What happens on our timeline is also part of determining our eternity. God is sovereign and we are responsible agents. Please do not make the mistake of insisting that both of these things cannot be simultaneously true. In God they are. That which from God’s perspective was accomplished before the foundation of the earth had to take place at a given point in history as well. In the “fullness of time” (God’s appointed time), Jesus was born, lived, was crucified, and rose again.

When Jesus hung upon the cross, some eternal things were taking place that we must acknowledge and believe if we are to fully appreciate and benefit from what God did. Romans says that when Jesus died, we died. When He rose, we rose. We were placed “in Christ” so that what He experienced and accomplished is now ours. We were and are identified with Christ.

Identification is one of the most important salvation concepts in the Bible.

We were not given salvation as much as we were given a Savior. We did not receive grace so much as the Gracious One now lives inside us. We have not so much been given life as we are filled with the One who identified himself as the Way, the Truth, and the Life (John 14:6).

All the blessings of God are in a Person, and His name is Jesus. We experience all this via the indwelling Holy Spirit, God’s most amazing gift.

When Jesus died on that cross, for the believer He took care of every sin that had ever been committed or would ever be committed. Does this sound too good to be true? Think about it: when the crucifixion took place, the sins of every person who would ever live and come to believe the gospel were still in the future. How could those sins be included in what Jesus did on the cross? God, in His eternal wisdom, placed every future sin of His people on His Son. Jesus carried that heavy burden to His death. He substituted for us by taking our punishment for us. Substitution is another big concept.

Jesus was our Substitute by paying the price for our sin, but we are identified with Him in that we too died. God accomplished two things on the cross. Jesus died for us, and we died with Him.

His death for us released us from guilt and condemnation. (Romans 8:1) Our death with him released us from the power of sin and the Law. (Romans 7:4) When He rose again, we rose with Him, which empowered us to live a new life in the Spirit.

Since, then, you have been raised with Christ, set your hearts on things above, where Christ is seated at the right hand of God. 2  Set your minds on things above, not on earthly things. 3  For you died, and your life is now hidden with Christ in God. 4  When Christ, who is your life, appears, then you also will appear with him in glory. Colossians 3:1-4 (NIV)

But let’s get back to our main topic for today, the once for all nature of what Jesus did. The Greek language has more verb forms than English. The past tense can be expressed as the imperfect, which is used for repeated past actions, and the aorist, which is used to communicate a one-time occurrence. An example of this would be: “Johnny practiced (imperfect) his driving skills every day with his instructor. Eventually he got (aorist) his license.” What Jesus accomplished on the cross is always expressed in the aorist tense. It was done only once, never to be reenacted. (This is one reason why the Catholic doctrine of the reenactment of Christ’s death in the Mass is so unbiblical.) Here is how the author of Hebrews put it.

Nor did he enter heaven to offer himself again and again, like the earthly high priest who enters the Most Holy Place year after year to offer the blood of an animal. 26 If that had been necessary, he would have had to die again and again, ever since the world began. But no! He came once for all time, at the end of the age, to remove the power of sin forever by his sacrificial death for us. Hebrews 9:25-26 (NLT)

In other words, what Jesus did was permanent and eternal. When we confess our sins and ask forgiveness from God, we tap into that once for all past work of grace on the cross. I hope you can see the significance of this important truth.

Since His death was “once for all” and it took care of the power of sin “forever”, then our salvation is also “once for all”.

Once for all time he took blood into that Most Holy Place, but not the blood of goats and calves. He took his own blood, and with it he secured our salvation forever. Hebrews 9:12 (NLT)

God permanently transferred us out of the kingdom of darkness into his kingdom of light and life. (Colossians 1:13-14) He caused us to pass from death to life with the result being we will never come under condemnation again.

“I tell you the truth, those who listen to my message and believe in God who sent me have eternal life. They will never be condemned for their sins, but they have already passed from death into life. John 5:24 (NLT)

Christ removed us from the treadmill of needing to “earn” our salvation or maintain a right standing with God through our performance and placed us “in Christ,” where the work is finished.

The New Covenant was inaugurated with the death of the substitute “covenant breaker,” our Lord Jesus, who upfront paid the penalty for our failures. He actually “became” our sins, and, when he rose again, we became the righteousness of God in him.

God made him who had no sin to be sin for us, so that in him we might become the righteousness of God. 2 Corinthians 5:21 (NIV)

When he rose again, all forgiven former covenant breakers entered a right relationship with God, passed from death to life and from darkness to light. We participated in his death through identification and in his resurrection, too. It is impossible for us to go back into death and unbecome a born-again child of God.

Christ’s death and resurrection were “once for all” and so is the resultant new birth and justification.

We are now “one spirit” with God. (1 Corinthians 6:17) He lives his life in and through us. (Galatians 2:20) Now God is working in us both to “will and to do” his good pleasure as we cooperate with his grace. (Philippians 2:12-13) This ought to make us shout for joy!

Questions for Further Study and Discussion

  • Why is it important that we understand that Christ’s sacrifice for sins was “once for all”?
  • Why does the Bible tell us to confess our sins, if the provision for them was in the past?
  • In your own words, explain the difference between identification and substitution.

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6: Born of the Spirit

Jesus answered, "Truly, truly, I say to you, unless one is born of water and the Spirit he cannot enter into the kingdom of God. 6 "That which is born of the flesh is flesh, and that which is born of the Spirit is spirit. John 3:5-6 (NASB)

The spirit of man is the part of us that died when Adam and Eve first sinned. God warned Adam that “from the tree of the knowledge of good and evil you shall not eat, for in the day that you eat from it you will surely die.” Genesis 2:17 (NASB) God does not lie. They died on the inside that day; even though death did not claim their bodies and souls for many years. God’s great salvation through Christ reverses the death process. When a person places his or her faith and allegiance in Christ and His finished work on the cross and the resurrection, a new birth takes place in the spirit. God makes us new creatures inside, but the full manifestation of that miracle will not be seen until the resurrection.

Just as the death process began in the spirit and later manifested in the soul and body, our new life in Christ begins in the spirit and eventually transforms us in the soul and body.

Therefore, if anyone is in Christ, he is a new creation; the old has gone, the new has come! 2 Corinthians 5:17 (NIV)

When Adam and Eve died on the inside following their sin, it showed up in their souls (mind, will, and emotions) almost immediately. They experienced guilt and condemnation for the first time. When we are born again in the spirit, something begins to change in our souls, too.

The first thing God takes care of for us is the guilt and condemnation problem.

The Bible says that anyone who is justified by faith has peace with God. Peace is the polar opposite of guilt and condemnation.

Therefore, having been justified by faith, we have peace with God through our Lord Jesus Christ, Romans 5:1 (NASB)

This peace comes from being in a right relationship with God, which is accomplished by the removal of all guilt and condemnation. Our sins are forgiven, and condemnation is removed. In other words, we are declared “not guilty!” This happens in the spirit, even if we are not fully aware of it or believe it.

Our growth as disciples happens in a large part because we become educated in what the Scriptures reveal about the person and work of Christ in our lives and begin to believe it.

Don’t copy the behavior and customs of this world, but let God transform you into a new person by changing the way you think. Then you will learn to know God’s will for you, which is good and pleasing and perfect. Romans 12:2 (NLT)

If a murderer, while waiting on death row, were to receive a visit from the family of the one he murdered and received forgiveness from them, he would still be under the sentence of death at the hands of God’s earthly minister of justice, the government. His sin would have been forgiven, but his guilt would remain. Jesus did an amazing thing for us. God’s justice and wrath were both satisfied when He bore our sin on the cross. God’s wrath was appeased, resulting in forgiveness. This is called “propitiation”. God’s justice was also satisfied, resulting in our justification.

To be justified means to be declared “Not Guilty”! Our names were cleared of all crimes under which we stood convicted and sentenced to die.

That is why Jesus boldly proclaimed:

I tell you the truth, whoever hears my word and believes him who sent me has eternal life and will not be condemned; he has crossed over from death to life. John 5:24 (NIV)

Paul’s words in Romans completely agree.

Therefore, there is now no condemnation for those who are in Christ Jesus, Romans 8:1 (NIV)  [* See note at end of chapter.]

The purpose of the Law is to condemn us for our sins and drive us into the arms of our Savior, our Lord Jesus Christ.

Before this faith came, we were held prisoners by the law, locked up until faith should be revealed. 24  So the law was put in charge to lead us to Christ that we might be justified by faith. 25  Now that faith has come, we are no longer under the supervision of the law. Galatians 3:23-25 (NIV)

When we come to Christ and receive justification, the condemnation produced by the Law is removed.

Because we have received Christ’s own righteousness, there is nothing left for the Law to condemn.

This is the reason why we can “walk” or live in the Spirit of grace rather than under a set of laws. Sin gains its power in our lives when we succumb to the accusations of the devil and condemnation for our failures pointed out by the Law. In 1Cor.15:56, Paul wrote that “the law gives sin its power,” meaning that God’s prohibitions stimulate the “flesh” to rebel, and, after we sin, it seeks to keep us focused on our failures and under a cloud of defeat. Instead, we are to focus on our Lord and the freedom we have in Christ, allowing the Spirit to work inside us to change our inmost desires into conformity with God’s will. And when we do sin, we are to admit it and repent, but not get mired down in condemnation. Sadly, many believers either do not understand this great truth or simply do not believe it.

It is important that we grasp that justification and the removal of condemnation were accomplished in the realm of the spirit. Our souls (hearts and minds) often feel quite condemned when we fail to live up to God’s righteous standards. Unless our souls are trained to believe what God’s Word says about justification, we will quite likely fall back into a works mentality and measure our worthiness and right standing before God in relation to our perceived success in living uprightly. This kind of Christianity is filled with frustration and condemnation and is not what God meant for us.

God wants to lift us out of legalism into a new realm of walking by the “law of the Spirit of life”.  (Romans 8:2) For this to happen, our minds must be renewed to think correctly. The end result with be that we live free of condemnation and the struggle of legalism while actually becoming more godly through the working of the Holy Spirit.

Therefore, there is now no condemnation for those who are in Christ Jesus, 2 because through Christ Jesus the law of the Spirit of life set me free from the law of sin and death. 3 For what the law was powerless to do in that it was weakened by the sinful nature, God did by sending his own Son in the likeness of sinful man to be a sin offering. And so he condemned sin in sinful man, 4 in order that the righteous requirements of the law might be fully met in us, who do not live according to the sinful nature but according to the Spirit. Romans 8:1-4 (NIV)

It is impossible to “walk” in the Spirit while under condemnation.

Condemnation makes us withdraw from God and others, just as happened with Adam and Eve in the garden. They hid from God after sinning and becoming aware of the guilt and failure. Many Christians today are hiding from God because they do not understand justification. Even when we fail miserably, we are encouraged to “draw near” to God to receive his forgiveness, affirmation, and help. It is when we are most obviously a “failure” that we need God the most. He will never reject us because Christ has totally satisfied the requirements of the Law on our behalf. Our relationship with God is sealed and secure. The more we draw near to God, the greater is the liberating and transformative work of the Spirit.

This Lord is the Spirit. Wherever the Lord's Spirit is, there is freedom. 18  As all of us reflect the Lord's glory with faces that are not covered with veils, we are being changed into his image with ever-increasing glory. This comes from the Lord, who is the Spirit. 2 Corinthians 3:17-18 (GW)

The new birth is a hidden work of God in our inmost being, the spirit, but ultimately this salvation in seed form will grow and manifest itself in every area. It is like leaven that works its way into the whole batch of dough.

We must have confidence that what God begins in us, though seemingly small and hidden, will eventually conquer and result in our transformation into the image of Christ.

And I am certain that God, who began the good work within you, will continue his work until it is finally finished on the day when Christ Jesus returns. Philippians 1:6 (NLT)

This is what God has planned all along.

And we know that in all things God works for the good of those who love him, who have been called according to his purpose. 29 For those God foreknew he also predestined to be conformed to the likeness of his Son, that he might be the firstborn among many brothers. 30 And those he predestined, he also called; those he called, he also justified; those he justified, he also glorified. Romans 8:28-30 (NIV)

From this passage we see how the salvation that begins in the spirit will eventually result in a day-to-day transformation of our thinking and behavior (the salvation of the soul) and finally be manifested in the glorification of our bodies in the resurrection (the salvation of the body). The salvation of the Spirit can be termed a “past” salvation because it was accomplished once for all through Christ some 2000 years ago. The salvation of the soul is “present” because new grace is needed each day as we believe and apply what Christ has done for us. Paul calls this “working out our salvation” in Philippians 2:12. The salvation or glorification of our bodies is in the future. In the next meditation, we will look in more detail at the “once for all” nature of the salvation of the spirit.

* Note pertaining to Romans 8:1 - Later Greek manuscripts added the phrase "who live according to the Spirit", but this addition is not in the earliest manuscripts. We must remember that the Word of God AS ORIGINALLY WRITTEN is the infallible message from God. I suspect later editors who did not fully comprehend the grace of God could not abide such a wonderfully freeing message and felt compelled to add in the legalistic terms that once again seek to place the reader on a performance basis with God rather than allow him or her to fully enjoy the grace of God. John 5:24 has no such addition and further confirms that the earlier manuscripts were correct.

 

Questions for Further Study and Discussion

  • Why would a lesson entitled “Born of the Spirit” end up focusing on freedom from condemnation?
  • How would you explain the difference between forgiveness and justification?
  • Do you think that a person who feels condemned by God can live in the freedom God intends? Why?
  • If you were trying to help someone who feels condemned, what would you tell them?

Click here to see the other articles in this series.

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5: Spirit, Soul, and Body

Now may the God of peace Himself sanctify you entirely; and may your spirit and soul and body be preserved complete, without blame at the coming of our Lord Jesus Christ. 1 Thessalonians 5:23 (NASB)

A proper understanding of the relationship between spirit, soul, and body is a master key to help us unlock the mysteries of salvation.

According to Genesis, God created mankind in His own image.

So God created man in his own image, in the image of God he created him; male and female he created them. Genesis 1:27 (ESV)

God is a Trinity – one God consisting of three distinct Persons – the Father, Son, and Holy Spirit. This is clearly revealed in the Bible, even though the word “trinity” is never used. We too are one person having three distinct parts – spirit, soul, and body. This too is revealed in scripture. Just as it is sometimes difficult to distinguish one Person in the Godhead from another, since they are all one God; likewise, the lines sometimes get blurred when we try to differentiate between our three parts. With God, one of the easiest ways to keep the Members of the Godhead separate in our understanding is to focus on what each Person does. Similarly, if we highlight how God’s great salvation affects each of our parts differently, it will become clearer to us that they are indeed distinct.

Using the language of building, God the Father is the architect of salvation. He planned it long ago before the creation of the world. Jesus is the contractor, so to speak: He came and put the plan into action, doing the difficult “hands on” work. The Holy Spirit is the marketing agent and administrator. He is “selling” the completed work to prospective customers. This is a very inadequate and somewhat inaccurate description of salvation, but it gives us an idea in plain language of the distinct roles of each person in the Godhead.

Father God planned salvation. Jesus accomplished it. The Holy Spirit applies it. The Father chose us. Jesus died for us. The Holy Spirit draws us.

Reconciliation to the Father is the goal of salvation. The cross and resurrection are the means of salvation. The Holy Spirit is the agent of salvation, applying to our lives everything the Father planned, and the Son accomplished.

Then the LORD God formed man of dust from the ground, and breathed into his nostrils the breath of life; and man became a living being. Genesis 2:7 (NASB)

When God created Adam, he took dust and formed it into a body. Then He breathed His Spirit into that lifeless substance, and Genesis says that Adam became a living soul. As I understand it, a soul is the result of the combination of spirit and body. Spirit is breath or wind. We all know what a body is. The soul is harder to define, but many have settled on three main components – mind, will and emotions.

God’s salvation impacts each part of our being and is marvelously complete.

We will look at what God has done for each separate part in more detail in coming chapters, but, for now, an overview is helpful.

And the LORD God commanded the man, saying, “You may surely eat of every tree of the garden, 17  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 2:16-17 (ESV)

On the day Adam sinned, just as God promised, he died. His body did not die, nor did his soul. That leaves only one other part. His spirit, which had been alive to God in a special way, was cut off from its source of life, God, when Adam sinned. This was evidenced by his and Eve’s hiding from God in the garden and their sudden awareness of their own nakedness. Many think the first humans’ nakedness may have been previously covered by God’s glory, which was removed because of sin. Regardless, their consciousness had been defiled. They became all too aware of their own shame and sinfulness; whereas, before they had been gloriously innocent before God and able to fellowship with Him without fear, guilt, or shame.

The spirit was the first part of man to die and needed to be the first part restored.

The spirit is the most God-like part of a person. We know from Scripture that God is Spirit. (John 4:24) The spirit is the innermost core of a human being, the part of us that is intuitive and able to connect with God naturally. I started to write “supernaturally”, but God’s intention for the spirit of man is that it would always be able to connect with Him; therefore, it is its “natural” function.

When we are “saved” the first thing that happens is a rebirth of the spirit.

"That which is born of the flesh is flesh, and that which is born of the Spirit is spirit. John 3:6 (NASB)

The spirit is restored to the perfect condition it had before sin. (Hebrews 12:23) The spirit within is given access to God’s presence once again. (Ephesians 2:18) Believers are hidden with Christ in God (Colossians 3:3), and this in the spirit, or should I say, Spirit. When we are born again, our spirit is joined to God’s Spirit (1Cor.6:17), and it is hard to distinguish them anymore.

The body is the last part of us that will be restored completely. This will happen at the resurrection.

Until then we live in a world that still suffers from the aftershocks of that first sin. God’s judgment upon our race still stands. Even born-again Christians still die physically. People get sick. Evil is all around us, and our bodies often suffer the most. As we wait for the glorious day when these mortal bodies will be transformed into glorious spiritual ones, we can experience God’s provision of healing and strength. Nevertheless, the glorification of our bodies is a future event for which we confidently wait. In the meantime, we live in imperfect bodies that are still subject to the fallout from sin.

As mentioned before, the soul is the combination of spirit and body. If you are tracking with me thus far, I imagine you see where I am going next. We have a problem here.

A saved person has a huge inner conflict. We have a perfect spirit combined with a body that is still subject to the fallout of sin.

(Paul calls it a “body of sin” – Romans 6:6 & 8:10.) What do you think will be the result when we combine the two? Paul describes our inner conflict in Galatians Chapter Five.

But I say, walk by the Spirit, and you will not gratify the desires of the flesh. 17  For the desires of the flesh are against the Spirit, and the desires of the Spirit are against the flesh, for these are opposed to each other, to keep you from doing the things you want to do. 18  But if you are led by the Spirit, you are not under the law. Galatians 5:16-18 (ESV)

The soul or mind is where the battle rages.

Our spirits always desire to do what is right, but our “flesh” or sin nature, which derives from the unredeemed body that is not yet glorified, never wants to do what is right. (* See note at end of chapter.)

So I find it to be a law that when I want to do right, evil lies close at hand. 22  For I delight in the law of God, in my inner being, 23  but I see in my members another law waging war against the law of my mind and making me captive to the law of sin that dwells in my members. 24  Wretched man that I am! Who will deliver me from this body of death? 25  Thanks be to God through Jesus Christ our Lord! So then, I myself serve the law of God with my mind, but with my flesh I serve the law of sin. Romans 7:21-25 (ESV)

The ”inner being” is the spirit, with which Paul’s mind agreed. However, the pull of the flesh, which comes from the unredeemed body, works against the desires of the spirit. This makes born again people somewhat spiritually “bipolar.”

We are pulled in opposite directions, and we must learn to lean on the Holy Spirit to overcome the pull of the flesh.

Jesus recognized our weak condition when he said:

"Keep watching and praying that you may not enter into temptation; the spirit is willing, but the flesh is weak." Matthew 26:41 (NASB)

What God did for our spirits was done once and for all on the cross. We can say it is a “past” salvation. What God will do for our bodies at the resurrection is in the future, but what God wishes to do in our souls is in the present.

Every day we need to access fresh grace for that day. Our victory in the daily battle for our souls hinges on our confidence in what God did in the past and what He will do in the future. You can also see what a glorious day it will be for every believer when we shall be given glorified bodies that will not be in conflict any longer with our perfected spirits. There will no longer be any inner turmoil or struggle between “flesh” and spirit. We will have been completely saved!

For our citizenship is in heaven, from which also we eagerly wait for a Savior, the Lord Jesus Christ; 21  who will transform the body of our humble state into conformity with the body of His glory, by the exertion of the power that He has even to subject all things to Himself. Philippians 3:20-21 (NASB)

 

* Note: I am not suggesting that the body is evil, but only that it has been corrupted by sin. The body was part of God's original creation which was good. Jesus came in the flesh, which showed again the inherent goodness of the body. Jesus' body was not compromised like ours by sin since He was born of the Holy Spirit and the woman. Apparently, the sin nature is transmitted through the man, the governmental representative of the human race. Jesus did not have the inner conflict caused by having a perfect spirit and a sin corrupted body. The fact that God will one day glorify our bodies further establishes that God regards these bodies as "good" and worth saving. Let me also emphasize that my theory of the soul is not something you must believe in order to benefit from this teaching. To me it makes sense and helps me understand. If you have a better model, please share it with me.

 

Questions for Further Study and Discussion

  • What questions do you have regarding spirit, soul, and body?
  • Do you think that Genesis 2:7 and 1 Thessalonians 5:23 adequately support this doctrine?
  • Do you understand the significance of the past, present, and future aspects of salvation?
  • How is our daily transformation impacted by believing in what God did in the past (justification) and what he will do in the future (resurrection & glorification)?
  • How would you attempt to explain the battle we all have between flesh and spirit?

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4: The Nature of Revelation

"For this is the will of My Father, that everyone who beholds the Son and believes in Him will have eternal life, and I Myself will raise him up on the last day." John 6:40 (NASB)

The spiritual condition of an unsaved person is spiritual blindness and deafness to the things of God. Jesus addressed this issue with the Pharisees who believed they could see but were blind. This is a common deception for religious people who are not born again. Religion, as I am using it, is our attempt to know and be accepted by God through using our own efforts, rather than by receiving by faith the gift of forgiveness and eternal life offered in Christ.

Then Jesus told him, "I have come to judge the world. I have come to give sight to the blind and to show those who think they see that they are blind." 40 The Pharisees who were standing there heard him and asked, "Are you saying we are blind?" 41 "If you were blind, you wouldn't be guilty," Jesus replied. "But you remain guilty because you claim you can see. John 9:39-41 (NLT)

A blind person cannot see where to go and does not know what to do to be saved. When a religious person, who has never received a revelation of Christ, tries to lead another to salvation, the result is disastrous.

Jesus replied, "Every plant not planted by my heavenly Father will be rooted up, 14 so ignore them. They are blind guides leading the blind, and if one blind person guides another, they will both fall into a ditch." Matthew 15:13-14 (NLT)

We cannot know God unless he opens our eyes, unstops our ears, and softens our hard hearts. When God does this for us, we can see, hear, and understand spiritual things, which results in our seeing or knowing Christ in a totally new way.

But people who aren’t spiritual can’t receive these truths from God’s Spirit. It all sounds foolish to them and they can’t understand it, for only those who are spiritual can understand what the Spirit means. 1 Corinthians 2:14 (NLT)

When we see Christ for who he truly is, it fundamentally changes us on the inside. The new birth and revelation go hand in hand.

Jesus answered and said to him, "Truly, truly, I say to you, unless one is born again he cannot see the kingdom of God." John 3:3 (NASB)

We can easily tell which plants were planted by the Father from those which were not: the first has a revelation of Christ, and the latter has only religion.

Those who are religious end up opposing those who have revelation and faith. (Galatians 4:28-29)

Then he asked them, "Who do you say I am?" 16 Simon Peter answered, "You are the Messiah, the Son of the living God." 17 Jesus replied, "You are blessed, Simon son of John, because my Father in heaven has revealed this to you. You did not learn this from any human being. Matthew 16:15-17 (NLT)

So how does a spiritually blind unsaved person gain sight through revelation? Only the Holy Spirit really knows, but those of us who have had our eyes opened can testify that it happened.

The wind blows wherever it wants. Just as you can hear the wind but can’t tell where it comes from or where it is going, so you can’t explain how people are born of the Spirit.” John 3:8 (NLT)

The man healed by Jesus of physical blindness in John Chapter 9 did not know how Jesus did it, but he knew he had been healed.

The mechanics of revelation are not necessarily for us to know, only the results.

I remember when I first “saw” in my heart that Jesus is Who the Bible claims. I don’t know how God did it, but suddenly I “knew” that Jesus is alive, risen from the dead, and the glorious Lord. Before that life-changing moment, I heard my girlfriend, who is now my beloved wife, share the gospel with me. I deeply considered whether I wanted to pursue knowing this Christ. I honestly asked Christ into my heart and life, if He were indeed real, and I asked Him to reveal Himself to me. From all this, you can see that receiving revelation is not a passive thing; at least it wasn’t for me.

Only the Holy Spirit can open our eyes, but, as far as I can tell, we must be active in our pursuit of Christ in some form or another.

It is God’s good pleasure to limit salvation to those whose eyes he opens.

At that time Jesus prayed this prayer: “O Father, Lord of heaven and earth, thank you for hiding these things from those who think themselves wise and clever, and for revealing them to the childlike. 26  Yes, Father, it pleased you to do it this way! 27  “My Father has entrusted everything to me. No one truly knows the Son except the Father, and no one truly knows the Father except the Son and those to whom the Son chooses to reveal him.” Matthew 11:25-27 (NLT)

No one deserves to receive revelation from God. No one is good enough or smart enough.

It is always a supreme act of mercy when God opens blinded eyes.

It is also very humbling to us as the recipients of his mercy. No one can boast that they were able to know these things on their own.

Paul the Apostle was a man who received a revelation of Christ in a dramatic fashion. He was actively pursuing Christians to torture, imprison, and kill them for their faith. Was he pursuing God, too? The answer has to be, “Yes”. Although he was misguided, he really did wish to please God. The point is that God knows the human heart and will reveal Himself to those who seek him.

'For I know the plans that I have for you,' declares the LORD, 'plans for welfare and not for calamity to give you a future and a hope. 12 'Then you will call upon Me and come and pray to Me, and I will listen to you. 13 'You will seek Me and find Me when you search for Me with all your heart. Jeremiah 29:11-13 (NASB)

The Pharisees believed that they already knew God because they had their Law and religion.

Many who attend Christian churches today are modern day Pharisees. They grew up in the church, know the language and the Bible, and are members of the church. They hear sermon after sermon and mentally agree with what is said, but they have never received a revelation of Christ from the Father.

This is the most dangerous place to be in the world. It is a form of self-deception that inoculates a person from ever really hearing the gospel. It’s as if their hearts are closed to any possibility that they might be still lost. Only the Holy Spirit can bridge the chasm between their deception and the light of the glory of the revealed Christ. It begins when we realize we need to be saved.

Is there any record that this has ever happened before? Yes, Paul is the supreme example. God gave him to all religious people as an example of what God can do for the most obstinate of people. Humanly it is impossible, but with God all things are possible. You may know people who are in this condition. If so, you should pray for them to have their spiritual eyes opened to receive a revelation of Christ. More importantly, we should ask ourselves, “Have I ever had my eyes opened?” If not, we should earnestly seek God until we know that we have.

Questions for Further Study and Discussion 

  • Share your testimony of how Christ was revealed to you.
  • Explain why you think God uses revelation to separate those who are really His children from those who are not.
  • What is our role in the process of having our eyes opened?

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3: The Nature of Salvation

Therefore they said to Him, "What shall we do, so that we may work the works of God?" 29 Jesus answered and said to them, "This is the work of God, that you believe in Him whom He has sent." John 6:28-29 (NASB)

Faith in Christ is a spiritual “work.” How is this so? Many conceive of faith as a blind leap into the unknown in hope that we might be right. Others think that belief in Christ is acknowledging key truths about him, such his suffering, death, and resurrection. But is that the version of belief to which Christ referred?

Perhaps the most important aspect of faith is our understanding through revelation who Jesus is, and this must result in something more, if our faith is genuine – our allegiance to him.

When we see him for who he is, it fundamentally changes us and inspires us want to serve him.

This is what my Father wants: that anyone who sees the Son and trusts who he is and what he does and then aligns with him will enter real life, eternal life. My part is to put them on their feet alive and whole at the completion of time." John 6:40 (MSG)

The more we know about Jesus and what he did, does, and will do for us, the more we love him and desire to be loyal to him.

True faith produces a life of adoration, surrender, and obedience, which results in spiritual transformation.

This will continue until we die or he returns. The final piece of the puzzle will be our glorification at the resurrection. We will discuss this more later.

Many people fundamentally misunderstand of the nature of salvation, which can easily lead to legalism, which is a man-made attempt to reach God or stay right with God. Some imagine Christ’s death and resurrection provided us with a clean slate from which to begin again. Their understanding is that God erased the list of things we did wrong (sins), but since then has been writing our new sins on the blackboard. We had a clean slate, but it is starting to fill up again. This kind of thinking led Constantine to delay his water baptism until his deathbed, hoping that the slate would be clean at death, giving him a sure entrance into heaven. This feeds into the Roman Catholic doctrine of Purgatory, which is the belief that after death we enter a place of suffering until our sins are purged and we attain the moral purity required for entrance into heaven.

What is wrong with this concept? Several things, but let’s concentrate on two right now. First, we need to understand that our problem is not so much “sins” as it is “sin”.

Yes, we will be held accountable for the individual sins we commit, but the far deeper problem is our inherited sin factory which propels us into sinful thinking and behavior.

We can erase our slates clean every day, but, by nightfall, it will have begun to fill it up again. This propensity is called the “flesh” by Paul.

I have discovered this principle of life—that when I want to do what is right, I inevitably do what is wrong. 22  I love God’s law with all my heart. 23  But there is another power within me that is at war with my mind. This power makes me a slave to the sin that is still within me. Romans 7:21-23 (NLT)

Thankfully, Jesus took my sins upon Himself on the cross, but my “sin” had to die, too.

My sin “nature” had to be crucified because there is no reforming it.

Like a leopard, it cannot remove its spots. This is why in the previous lesson I pointed out that we cannot actually know just how sinful we really are. Even if we are spiritually cleansed somehow, the “flesh” lurks under the surface, ever ready to rear its ugly head and do something despicable. Even our best attempts at righteous living need to be made righteous by God. (Isaiah 64:6)

Salvation then is not a mere erasing of the slate, but an execution. The old man, flesh, or sin nature had to die.

For when I tried to keep the law, I realized I could never earn God's approval. So I died to the law so that I might live for God. I have been crucified with Christ. 20 I myself no longer live, but Christ lives in me. So I live my life in this earthly body by trusting in the Son of God, who loved me and gave himself for me. 21 I am not one of those who treats the grace of God as meaningless. For if we could be saved by keeping the law, then there was no need for Christ to die. Galatians 2:19-21 (NLT)

There had to be a complete exchange of life for life. Jesus died in our place (substitution), putting to death our old man (identification), and placed in us His Holy Spirit.

The Bible calls this receiving a “new heart” or being “born again” in the spirit. Christians are indeed “little Christs” who carry about in themselves the life of Christ.

Salvation is an exchange of our sin for His life. It is not erasing a blackboard. It is smashing the blackboard because it is irrelevant now.

God does not mark iniquities any longer.

LORD, if you kept a record of our sins, who, O Lord, could ever survive? 4  But you offer forgiveness, that we might learn to fear you. Psalm 130:3-4 (NLT)

We have been released from the system of works that keeps track of every right and wrong for an impending day of reckoning. Jesus took the condemnation and punishment for all our failures and sins upon Himself, and instead we have been given the Christ life within. The “sin nature” still lurks, waiting for an opportunity, but it no longer has the right to control us.

We must engage in a continual battle of the spirit (Christ’s life within us) against flesh (the residual inclination toward sin that is somehow linked to our Adamic bodies) until the day of our resurrection, but our true identity now is the new life of Christ that indwells us.

Another aspect of our salvation pertains to family. For those of us who are born again, born of the Spirit, and born of the Father, what really matters is who is our Father now.

Our salvation depends on being born into the family of God.

For you have been born again. Your new life did not come from your earthly parents because the life they gave you will end in death. But this new life will last forever because it comes from the eternal, living word of God. 1 Peter 1:23 (NLT)

Rather than being weighed in the balances in a system of works in which we can never measure up, we are born into a family where our acceptance is based on our all having the same Father. Blood is thicker than water, they say, and when it comes to the Kingdom of God, I would rather be a beloved “son” than a frustrated “keeper of the rules.”

Our access to the throne and heart of our heavenly Father, our Abba, is based on our being identified with His beloved Son, the Righteous One, Jesus. Our relationship with Abba is the same as Jesus’ because it is His Spirit within us who cries out, “Abba, Father”.

God sent him [Jesus] to buy freedom for us who were slaves to the law, so that he could adopt us as his very own children. 6 And because you Gentiles have become his children, God has sent the Spirit of his Son into your hearts, and now you can call God your dear Father. 7 Now you are no longer a slave but God's own child. And since you are his child, everything he has belongs to you. Galatians 4:5-7 (NLT)

To conclude, we must see salvation not as a second chance to “get it right” but as a life exchange and an adoption because we had no possibility of ever “getting it right”.

God knew we were hopelessly flawed; so, He provided a salvation that is not dependent on us but on Christ. If we are going to be good disciples, we must cast aside our vain attempts to measure up by keeping the Law and accept the marvelous provision of Christ’s life within as our only source of righteousness and acceptance and our key to obedience and victory. This is truly Good News!

The key for us, then, is faith. The way we do the works of God is by believing on Christ and His promises, declaring allegiance to him, and trusting in His Spirit to live the Christ life through us.

Questions for Further Study and Discussion

  • How would describe faith or belief in Christ?
  • Why does our salvation demand an execution?
  • Why do some people call Christianity an “exchanged life”?
  • Why does our salvation depend on being born again into God’s family?
  • What would you tell someone who struggles with trying to be “good enough”?
  • What do you see are the most fundamental differences between the Old and New Covenants?

Click here to see the other articles in this series.

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