Tag: spiritual maturity

Deeper Waters

July 29, 2017

water4

Deep calleth unto deep at the noise of thy waterspouts: all thy waves and thy billows are gone over me. Psalms 42:7

There comes a time in one’s life when the call is made to go below the surface to capture and embrace the deeper and more exquisite things of life. Things that are everlasting, things that withstand the abrasive effects of time, things with eternal importance.

What things are these? What are we talking about here?

We’re talking about purposeful life, meaningful life, life lived in light and love versus life lived in darkness, anger and contention. It is living life on the ‘high road’ and not on the ‘back road’.

This can only come by venturing into deeper waters. The deeper waters offered by God Himself.

What About The Deep?

Oceans are defined by their sheer power, invincibility and untamed nature. No man (I.e. mankind) can tame the oceans. The oceans are characterized by their depths. Mysterious life lurks within this uncharted domain. Things never to be observed by human eyes dwell here. The oceans are God’s domain.

It is noteworthy to mention the discovery of things beyond the ordinary, experiences of a deeper dimension, these places demand reference points positioned in the same.

Take for instance the oceans. An ocean seeks and establishes its identity from the depths of which it occupies. The Indian Ocean is called such because of the expanse and depths of its waters. To the Indian Ocean, deep calleth unto deep.

So, only God can be discerned by that which is created in His kind. The human soul, the eternal component of humanity, is the channel connecting the heavenly and the earthly.

As the great Psalmist of old proclaimed:

Bless the LORD, O my soul: and all that is within me, bless his holy name. Psalm 103:1

David’s cry was for his soul to bless the Lord. He desired to venture out beyond shallow religion and into deeper waters of experience with the Lord. A place where the soul commingles with the Almighty. It is the Lord’s will that His creation know and discover all that He is.

The Deep Things of God

God understands that for something or someone to discover His nature and Person can only do so from the vantage point of the eternal. This can only happen in deeper waters found beyond the shoreline shallows.

The forty-seventh chapter of Old Testament book written by the prophet Ezekiel describes a scene where waters are seen flowing out of the temple. The waters progressively deepen from the ankles, to the knees, to the loins and finally:

Afterward he measured a thousand; and it was a river that I could not pass over: for the waters were risen, waters to swim in, a river that could not be passed over. Ezekiel 47:5

Waters that sweep away anything is its path. Deep waters.

God created man in His image so that the eternal element of man (the soul) can peer into the eternal and know its Maker. One can only discover the unknown by first experiencing likeness of that which is of the eternal. Where the deep things call unto the deep.

We are only as close to God as our soul allows. The deeper we allow our soul to enter into His presence, the closer we are at one with Him. There will always be a price to pay for intimacy with God. Ask the Biblical examples such as Abraham, Jacob, Esther, Caleb, Joshua, Isaiah, Jeremiah, the Apostles, martyrs such as Stephen, and lastly of course, Jesus Christ.

But as it is written, Eye hath not seen, nor ear heard, neither have entered into the heart of man, the things which God hath prepared for them that love him.

But God hath revealed them unto us by his Spirit: for the Spirit searcheth all things, yea, the deep things of God.

For what man knoweth the things of a man, save the spirit of man which is in him? even so the things of God knoweth no man, but the Spirit of God.

Now we have received, not the spirit of the world, but the spirit which is of God; that we might know the things that are freely given to us of God.

Which things also we speak, not in the words which man’s wisdom teacheth, but which the Holy Ghost teacheth; comparing spiritual things with spiritual.
I Corinthians 2:9-13

For the Spirit is constantly exploring all things, even the deep things of God. For who is there of men who knows the things of the individual person except the spirit of that aforementioned individual person which is in him? In the same manner also the things of God no one has known except the Spirit of God. I Corinthians 2:10-11
(Wuest translation)

The Spirit of Jesus Christ is the connection between the eternal and the temporal.

There is both a physical and spiritual dimension of our existence. The physical dimension (the flesh) is the lowest common denominator of life and shared by all living creatures:

All flesh is not the same flesh: but there is one kind of flesh of men, another flesh of beasts, another of fishes, and another of birds. I Corinthians 15:39

The highest realm is that of the spiritual, the God-focused existence whose dimension is limitless and eternal:

It is the spirit that quickeneth; the flesh profiteth nothing: the words that I speak unto you, they are spirit, and they are life. John 6:63

Launch Into The Deep

Jesus challenged his disciples once about going beyond the ordinary and move into some deeper waters:

And he entered into one of the ships, which was Simon’s, and prayed him that he would thrust out a little from the land. And he sat down, and taught the people out of the ship.
Now when he had left speaking, he said unto Simon, Launch out into the deep, and let down your nets for a draught. Luke 5:3-4

What did Peter find there? He found the miraculous, a place where God’s blessings flowed, where the conventional and ordinary bowed to the feet of the deep things offered by Jesus.

Who is up to the challenge to go beyond mere religion and into deeper dimensions of Godly knowledge and experience? Jesus is calling in this hour for us to go into deeper waters with him.

Pure Life

February 15, 2013

waterfall 3 Let not sin therefore reign in your mortal body, that ye should obey it in the lusts thereof. Rom 6:12

If we say that we have no sin, we deceive ourselves, and the truth is not in us. 1Jn 1:8

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No artificial ingredients
Contains no additives
Organically grown
Not a genetically modified food product
Made with all fresh ingredients
Made with 100% all natural…
Grown without pesticides, herbicides or fungicides
Water drawn from the bubbling springs of …

Such are some of the adjectives and label descriptions we find on the food products we purchase. They are meant to send us a signal that the food we are about to purchase is pure, healthy and will be good for our bodies.

Eating the right foods and being cognizant of one’s health is good stuff. We should take care of our bodies and be mindful of what we ingest or decide not to ingest. But, oftentimes we do not consider the more important aspect of our being; the eternal spiritual element. Thus, we neglect or fail to navigate what we allow or disallow into our spiritual being. Let me explain.

The Acid Test

Our stomach lining contains gastric juices that have a pH in the range of 1.5 – 3.5. In comparison, battery acid has a pH of less than 1.0. Literally, we harbor in our stomachs what amounts to a pH level almost equal to that of battery acid. Have you ever wondered and find it strange that this acid resident in our bodies does not harm our health and destroy us?

Let’s take the battery acid analogy and parallel it to the sin issue. We all have sin resident on our bodies. It is an inevitable and undeniable fact of life:

For all have sinned, and come short of the glory of God; Romans 3:23

It is inescapable that sin be resident and an occupier in our bodies, but it does not have to be the property manager! The blood of Jesus is our antidote, the blood is the attacking and neutralizing agent we have at our disposal that enables us to be conquerors and victors over the sin issue:

But if we walk in the light, as he is in the light, we have fellowship one with another, and the blood of Jesus Christ his Son cleanseth us  from all sin. 1Jn 1:7

And from Jesus Christ, who is the faithful witness, and the first begotten of the dead, and the prince of the kings of the earth. Unto him that loved us, and washed us from our sins in his own blood, Rev 1:5

True repentance means to sincerely ask God for forgiveness and TO MOVE ON. It is the Lord’s desire that we all mature in faith and not let the weaknesses of our flesh dictate our course in life.

Therefore leaving the principles of the doctrine of Christ, let us go on unto perfection; not laying again the foundation of repentance from dead works, and of faith toward God, Hebrews 6:1

The Bible lets us know that sin is serious business and not to be taken with a cavalier attitude:

And an highway shall be there, and a way, and it shall be called The way of holiness; the unclean shall not pass over it; but it shall be for those: the wayfaring men, though fools, shall not err therein. Isa 35:8

For if ye live after the flesh, ye shall die: but if ye through the Spirit do mortify the deeds of the body, ye shall live. Rom 8:13

The Cross and The Conscience

The way of holiness and the cross are intertwined. They are both needed to orient us down the only path that leads to the Pure Life, a path whose landscape is strewn with crosses; Jesus’ cross, my cross, your cross and your brother and sister’s cross. Life is meaningless outside the cross. It just cannot be circumvented.

When we can get to the place when our own personal cross becomes the only thing we cling to, the fixture and focal point in our spirit that we know we must embrace in order to make it through this life; it is then that we can begin to take in “healthy” spiritual food and head towards the Pure Life; a life that is whole and “Just” before the God of Creation.

A pastor recently elaborated on a powerful Bible passage dealing with the human conscience:

And herein do I exercise myself, to have always a conscience void of offence toward God, and toward men. Acts 24:16

As he explained, the word “conscience” is derived from a Greek word meaning “co-perception”. In essence, our conscience is comprised of two parts; our perception and the perception of another. When our perception is coupled and in synch with God and His Word, nothing will offend us:

Great peace have they which love thy law: and nothing shall offend them. Psa 119:165

When something other than God is in partnership with our conscience (do the words carnality or satan ring a bell?), our perception is flawed, our conscience becomes tainted, and inevitably offense results. In this scenario, offense blocks God from bringing true peace, and thereby, prevents repentance and forgiveness to mend a conscience gone awry. This is always not good.

Living a whole and Pure Life before God will lead one to live offense-free and have a pure conscience before both God and men (i.e. humanity). This is what a “Pure Life” is all about.

It all comes down to perception and perspective, perception of the cross of Jesus Christ. What does that cross really mean to me? What influence does Jesus’ cross wield in my life? It is a question we have to keep asking ourselves over and over again. Will what I am about to do glorify the Lord? Will this action lead me down the road of regret and condemnation?

And a cross-less Christ is a powerless Christ. Some desire the admonition and to bear the label of being a “Christian”, but deflect the discomfort of the cross-bearing that is included in the job description:

That I may know him, and the power of his resurrection, and the fellowship of his sufferings, being made conformable unto his death; Php 3:10

And he said to them all, If any man will come after me, let him deny himself, and take up his cross daily, and follow me. Luk 9:23

Outside the safeguards and protective perimeters one’s cross provides, making money will become more attractive, jobs and career ascension will grip our heart and sap our spiritual drive, worldly ambition will be our demigod, we will bow down to the goddesses of lust and pride, and be found worshiping in the groves of carnality.

Oxen Ain’t Pretty

Where no oxen are, the crib is clean: but much increase is by the strength of the ox. Pro 14:4

Oxen are dirty and not so attractive creatures. But, they are the workhorses on the farm, nothing gets done without their sheer strength and determination. But, there is a price the farmer must pay for their labor; dirt, waste, stench and inconvenience.

Let’s face it, life is messy, we are sometimes messy and people business is almost always messy (this includes church’s !).

Such it is with us. Nothing can be done without people; ministries cannot mature, church’s cannot be built and people cannot be shown the way to eternal life. We have all fallen and come up short at times. But, is this the expected norm for a child of God? Do we just except our fallen nature and continually make excuses for our failings and shortcomings? Is this what the Lord desires for our lives?

There are four things the Lord takes particular pleasure in: His people (Psalm 149:4), in the prosperity of His people (Psalm 35:27), those who fear and honor Him (Psalm 147:11), and those who live a “Pure Life” above reproach (I Chr 29:17, Psa 5:4, Eze 18:23, 32).

This tells us that the Lord wants His people to be successes. He wants to be glorified by the life and testimony of His people. But, this is an impossibility while the sin factor maintains a commanding presence in the chemistry of our spiritual composition.

We should find it repulsive and fall below our expectations to allow sin to rule and manage our lives, and ultimately, defeat God’s will and what He purposes us to accomplish for the Kingdom of God.

The power of God’s holy spirit and the forgiveness that is available through the blood of Jesus is more than enough for us to live overcoming lives and be the Victor and not the Victim. God’s grace is sufficient for all of us!

Pure Life – may the Lord grant us the grace and strength to be overcomers and live victoriously in this present challenging world.

For sin shall not have dominion over you: for ye are not under the law, but under grace. Rom 6:14

For then must he often have suffered since the foundation of the world: but now once in the end of the world hath he appeared to put away sin by the sacrifice of himself. Heb 9:26