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February 6, 2010
Living Free of Offense
Mel Wild @ Feb 6, 2010 02:06 PM
 Message given at Cornerstone Church on 01/31/10

We are continuing our series titled, "Kingdom Living 101." This is part nineteen on Jesus' Sermon on the Mount (Matt.5-7).  I talked at length last week about our secret prayer life with God (Matt.6:9-13) so we can position our hearts to grow in grace.
 
This week, we are going to briefly look at verses 14-15, which is our next area of growing in grace… that’s living free of offense…


Living Free of Offense – Matt.6:14-15 
Matt.6:14-15 “For if you forgive men their trespasses, your heavenly Father will also forgive you. But if you do not forgive men their trespasses, neither will your Father forgive your trespasses.”

What we see here is quite astounding. Forgiving others was so important that Jesus’ repeats it here after saying it in verse 12… “And forgive us our debts, as we forgive our debtors. “

Jesus tied the forgiveness of our sin directly to how we forgive other’s sins against us! The fact is, an unforgiving person is an unforgiven person!

But here’s a promise from God. He has a new heart for us that cannot be offended! 

Ezek.36:26 "I will give you a new heart and put a new spirit within you; and I will remove the heart of stone from your flesh and give you a heart of flesh."

This is a promise to us if we will allow His Spirit to help us grow in this grace.

Let’s look more closely at why we should forgive… (Some of this is review)


Why Forgive?

Because when you refuse to forgive or release your anger, YOU go to jail! To use the old saying, "Holding on to unforgiveness is like drinking poison and expecting the other person to die!"

Again, because if you don't forgive then you are not forgiven by God!

We don’t hold on to unforgiveness so that we don’t open the door to Satan. For if we go to bed in our anger, the next conversation we will be having will be with the devil. 
Eph.4:26-27 “In your anger do not sin": Do not let the sun go down while you are still angry, and do not give the devil a foothold.”
When we hold on to unforgiveness, it’s like saying, “Satan please wreak havoc on my life”

Unforgiveness and offense is Satan’s greatest strategy against the Church. 
2 Cor.2:10-11 “Now whom you forgive anything, I also forgive. For if indeed I have forgiven anything, I have forgiven that one for your sakes in the presence of Christ, lest Satan should take advantage of us; for we are not ignorant of his devices.”
 
This is probably the biggest reason for church splits and problems in the church. The problem is we do seem to be ignorant of his devices by our behavior toward one another! (The body of Christ in general)

Beloved, this is a serious problem. Look at what Jesus said about the time of the end before His return…


Offense will Increase

Jesus warned that, as we near the end of the age, a majority of people will be offended to such a degree that they will fall away from the faith. 
Matt.24:10, 12 "And then many will be offended, will betray one another, and will hate one another...12 And because lawlessness will abound, the love of many will grow cold.”
We are seeing this in the body of Christ today. Many who were once on fire for God, now not even part of the body…and it usually began with offense.

According to Jesus, offense causes serious spiritual consequences: betrayal, hatred, and cold love.

Here’s what Francis Frangipane said about this (article: “How to Become Unoffendable”) “When we are offended by someone, we must go to them (Matt.5:23-25; 18:15-17). Otherwise, we will begin to betray that relationship, talking maliciously behind their back to others, exposing their weakness and sins. We may mask our betrayal by saying we are just looking for advice or counsel, but when we look back, we see that we have spoken negatively to far too many people. Our real goal was not to get spiritual help for ourselves but seek revenge toward the one who offended us. For an offended soul, cold love, betrayal, and hatred go hand in hand.”

When we hold on to our anger, our unforgiveness turns into a bitter poison. Hebrews 12 tells it this way… 
Heb.12:14-15 “Pursue peace with all people, and holiness, without which no one will see the Lord: 15 looking carefully lest anyone fall short of the grace of God; lest any root of bitterness springing up cause trouble, and by this many become defiled.”
It works this way...rather than going to the person who offended us, we begin to talk about them to sympathetic ears and, thereby, “defile” everyone around us (they take up our offense). This is evil!

WARNING: If we find ourselves talking about people this way (the Bible calls it “backbiting” – 2 Cor.2:20), we need to repent and make it right before we further defile the local Church. God will judge us for “sowing discord among the brethren.” (See Prov.6:19)

Again, Francis Frangipane on this subject… “No one plans on falling away; no one ever says, “Today, I think I will try to develop a hardened, cold heart.” Such things enter our souls through stealth and it only naïveté that assumes it couldn’t happen to us…instead of dealing with the offense, these people carry them until it disables their walk with God.”


What does it mean to forgive?

To forgive is to release control of that person or group, letting go of the anger in your heart and turning it completely over to Jesus.

So, conversely, to not forgive is to continue to hold anger against a person or group who hurt you (either imagined or real) long after the offense.


What Forgiveness is NOT…

And this is just an important in the case of abuse and when the other is unrepentant…

Forgiving a person does NOT mean you have to be in the same relationship you had with that person before, especially with one who abused you or is unrepentant (of course, if they do truly repent, you should try to reconcile the relationship.)

 
Why do people hold on to offense?

When we look at the root of offense we see that it often strikes at our virtues or sins, our values or our pride. It can penetrate and wound any dimension of the soul. We want revenge for the hurt that we perceived has been done to us.

All of this is rooted from a prideful and self-righteous spirit that refuses to resolve the issue (which is the NORMAL human weakness!).

We want grace for ourselves (“you should understand why I did what I did”) but judgment for everyone else (“there’s no excuse for what you did!”)

We may also take offense when someone tries to correct us (which may stem from our own self-rejection). So, rather than listen to someone who may be doing us a favor by pointing this relational blind spot out to us, we blame the “messenger” and walk away from the relationship.

Again, Francis Frangipane has some great advice for us… “We need to become a people who say, “Lord, show me what needs to change in me.” I’m talking about growing up. A wise man will receive a rebuke and he will prosper. But a fool rejects his father’s discipline. (Prov.15:5)”

As he says here, what we need to do is grow up! We need to learn how to walk in this “voluntary weakness” if we expect to grow in Christ.
 
 
How do we live free of offense?

First, before talking to anyone else about it, we must always go to the person who offended us (Matt.5:23-25; 18:15-17).
Matt.18:15 “Moreover if your brother sins against you, go and tell him his fault between you and him alone…”

In my experience with offense issues, I find that too many Christians don’t do this…they go to everyone but the person who offended them. They begin to show their anger to others who are sympathetic to them, who begin to take on their offense. Beloved, going to the person who offended us first is NOT a suggestion! It’s a command from Jesus…we must go to those who have offended us. To not do so is to betray our relationship with that person and block the flow of God in our lives…

So, how do we cultivate a heart that truly forgives?

First, we need to see Jesus forgiving us! 

Luke 23:34 “Father, forgive them, for they know not what they do…”

This is an appropriate verse because, in most cases in personal relationships, the "offender" didn't even know they offended you! (And this is another reason why you MUST go to them).

Again, we need to see the picture of Jesus forgiving us here…for we drove the nails in His hands and feet with our sin.

Next, we can only unconditionally love people to the degree that we have accepted God’s unconditional love for us. 
Luke 7:46 "Therefore I say to you, her sins, which are many, are forgiven, for she loved much. But to whom little is forgiven, the same loves little.”
Those who can’t forgive have no revelation of how much they’ve been forgiven…again, it’s stems from our carnal, unrenewed mind and self-righteous spirit.

Then we need to ask God to show us how He sees that person; then we release them to God. We don't seek revenge.

Forgiveness says, “God, I will put justice in Your hands.”

One more consideration here…Sometimes the hardest to forgive are the people we let into our hearts, those closest to us. It’s like an onion; we need to peel back the layers before we get totally free. We need to keep giving it over and over to Jesus, letting Him “peel” the pain of it away.

But here’s the point: we MUST do it! And keep bringing this to the Lord until we find freedom. It’s not an option.

 
Prayer of Love and Release (Adapted from FELLOWSHIP prayer)

I would like to end with an exercise to help us act on this word and find freedom from offense using a prayer based on “love” in the F.E.L.L.O.W.S.H.I.P. prayer. I want you to think about any offense you may be carrying…ask the Holy Spirit to show you. So, as a prayer, say each of these parts out loud (inside the quotation marks), and while you’re praying, think about the words…

“Father, pour out Your love into my heart by releasing the influences of the Spirit to give me revelation of Your love for me, that it may overflow in love back to You and to others. Allow me to comprehend Jesus’ love for me and to abide in it" ("abide" means stay connect to it). 
John 15:9 “As the Father loved Me, I also have loved you; abide in My love.”

(Next…) “Let me see and love myself through Your eyes. Thank you for who I am to You.” (This is not a self-centered love, but God-centered! This is our true identity...we are God's favorite ones!)

Again, our mantra… “I am loved by God, I am a lover of God, therefore, I am already successful!”

(Next) “Father, I agree with Jesus’ command and prophecy that I will love others. Let me abound in love by seeing what You see and feeling what You feel about others.” 

Matt.22:39 “…You shall love your neighbor as yourself.”

The fact is, we can only love others to the degree we love ourselves, which must come from our understanding of how God loves us. It takes God to love God. And conversely, we will hate others to the degree we hate ourselves.
 
(Next) “I praise You as my Creator and recognize that You created all the people with whom I am in relationship. You are their heavenly Father just as You are mine. They are my brothers and sisters, and You love and forgive them as You love and forgive me. You laid down Your life for them as You laid it down for me. You have a purpose for their lives just as You have for mine. Help me to love them as You love me.”

(Next) “Father, by Your grace, I commit to live my life free of offense. Therefore, I now release all who have offended me…” (Take some time now to do this now…if any come to mind, release them…)

(Next) “If possible, show me how I should resolve any relationships where there has been offense. Thank You for forgiving me and helping me to live free of offense. In Jesus’ name. Amen”

Now I’m going to pray this prayer for us…

“Lord, let us live lives that keep short accounts…as we let go of all offense to You now,, I take authority over oppression or lies of the enemy that would try to stop this…

In the name of the Lord Jesus Christ, would You remove that influence of Satan. Let your healing mercy come over us. And would You make wrong things right now…in our bodies, our spirits, our minds…and our emotions. Would You grant an impartation of the Holy Spirit to make us forgiving people…let us cultivate forgiveness by Your grace as a lifestyle.

And I know that as soon as we move from this place of freedom, there’s a foul bird of the heavens wanting to snatch any seed that the Word of God has placed in our hearts today…so, for that seed You’ve sown in our hearts, would You put Your hand over our hearts and keep the enemy from getting it…Cause it to germinate…to send out deep roots and come to full flower…In the mighty name of the Lord Jesus Christ. Amen.”
 
To download complete notes (PDF format), listen to related teachings, and hear a portion of the live worship, click here...  
 
 
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January 29, 2010
Our Secret Prayer Life
Mel Wild @ Jan 29, 2010 11:46 PM
Message given at Cornerstone Church on 01/24/10

We are continuing our series titled, "Kingdom Living 101." This is part eighteen on Jesus' Sermon on the Mount (Matt.5-7).  I talked at length last week about what it means to position our hearts to grow in grace.

Here’s what we’ll be looking at the next couple of weeks…

Developing our “secret life” in God in five key areas

   - Giving and serving – vs.1-4
   - Prayer – vs.5-13
   - Forgiving (living free of offense) – vs.14-15
   - Fasted lifestyle – vs.16-18
   - Laying up our treasure in heaven – vs.19-39

“These five areas are expressions of “voluntary weakness” because we invest our natural strengths (time, money, energy, reputation, etc.) into Kingdom purposes.” Mike Bickle


Our Secret Prayer Life – Matt.6:5-13

   READ Matt.6:5-13

First, before we get into how Jesus actually teaches us to pray, let’s make some observations about the first four verses (vs.5-9)…

Preliminary Points on Prayer

First, that Jesus assumes we will pray. But too many Christians live as if He said, “If you pray…”

 Matt.6:5 “And when you pray…”

Since so much has been said about prayer, I’m going to give you a LOT of quotes from various people who had some great things to say about why we should pray…for instance…

“Only a proud person will not ask for help” (Unknown)

(Martin Luther King, Jr.) "To be a Christian without prayer is no more possible than to be alive without breathing.”

(Paul E. Billheimer) "Satan does not care how many people read about prayer if only he can keep them from praying.”


Next, we see that Jesus tells us to pray in secret…

Matt.6:6 “when you pray, go into your room, and when you have shut your door, pray to your Father who is in the secret place…”

It’s personal and intimate… God wants a relationship with us…this particular type of prayer is not public but private…between you and God. It's not what we do on Sunday that causes us to grow as much as what we do on Monday through Saturday. Just us and God.

(William Carey) "Prayer - secret, fervent, believing prayer - lies at the root of all personal godliness."

(Samuel Chadwick) "Prayer is the acid test of devotion."


We are to believe that God will reward our diligent effort in prayer. 

Matt.6:6 “your Father who sees in secret will reward you openly…”

Heb.11:6 “But without faith it is impossible to please Him, for he who comes to God must believe that He is, and that He is a rewarder of those who diligently seek Him.”

(M.E. Andross) “Time spent alone with God is not wasted. It changes us; it changes our surroundings; and every Christian who would live the life that counts, and who would have power for service must take time to pray.”

(Evan Roberts) "Prayer is the secret of power."

(E.M. Bounds) “Prayer should not be regarded "as a duty which must be performed, but rather as a privilege to be enjoyed, a rare delight that is always revealing some new beauty."


But we are not to drone prayers repetitiously but pray in faith that God hears us. 
Matt.6:7-8 “do not use vain repetitions as the heathen do…For your Father knows the things you have need of before you ask Him.” 

(Martin Luther) "Prayer is not overcoming God's reluctance, but laying hold of His willingness."

(Jonathon Edwards) “Prayer is as natural an expression of faith as breathing is of life”


Prayer is our acknowledgment that we are weak and that God cares about us. 
1 Pet.5:6-7 “Therefore humble yourselves under the mighty hand of God, that He may exalt you in due time, 7 casting all your care upon Him, for He cares for you.” 
(Martin Luther King, Jr.) “Pray, and let God worry”

(Dorothy Bernard) “Courage is fear that has said its prayers.”

Okay, with the preliminaries out of the way on why we should pray…let’s look at how Jesus teaches us to pray. This brings us to a very familiar prayer that we probably prayed as a kid… (Often called “The Lord’s Prayer”), but what is Jesus actually teaching here? Is it a magic wand we wave at problems? If we say these words, we’re praying? Jesus is actually giving us a guideline for prayer…


How Are We to Pray? (Matt.6:9-13)

I will break it down into Seven “P’s” for prayer…

1. We must pray to the right Person! 
Matt.6:9 “Our Father in heaven, hallowed be Your name.”

 Acknowledging that only our Heavenly Father is holy and able to meet our needs.

We are to pray directly to our heavenly Father in Jesus’ name (and not anyone else!) 

John 16:23 “In that day you will no longer ask me anything. I tell you the truth, my Father will give you whatever you ask in my name.”

This means that we don’t pray to saints, to rocks, to statues…but to our heavenly Father! (The Bible expressly forbids praying to dead people!). We must understand that the Christian life is one where we have been connected directly to the Father because of Jesus. Praying to anyone else contradicts Jesus’ teaching… nothing but religious superstition that’s rooted in paganism.


2. Pray for His Kingdom power. 
Matt.6:10 “Your kingdom come. Your will be done on earth as it is in heaven.”  
That His resources that operate in heaven would come to bear upon our situation here on earth (healing, deliverance, etc.)


3. Pray to humbly position our heart. 
Matt.6:10 “… Your will be done on earth as it is in heaven.”
We position our heart humbly in submission to His Kingdom rule and reign in our lives. This means that we pray for His will to be done; not ask God to bless our will!


4. Pray for provision. 
Matt.6:11 “Give us this day our daily bread.”  
I want you to notice something… it says our DAILY bread. Like the manna in the wilderness, our provision is for today only. We have to come back to God again for tomorrow’s “bread!” Did you pray for provision yesterday? Great! Now, pray for today’s provision! And why would God set it up this way? Because He wants a daily relationship with us! Prayer is about relationship.

Here’s what Mike Bickle says about our need to pray… “God’s resources are withheld to ‘starve us out of prayerlessness.’ He jealously protects His relationship with us by not answering our need until we ask for them.”


5. Pray for pardon. 
Matt.6:12 “And forgive us our debts (sins), as we forgive our debtors.”  
We are praying for our own pardon from sin and forgiving others’ sins too…for notice what Jesus says here. Jesus tied the forgiveness of our sin directly to how we forgive other’s sins against us!

An unforgiving person is an unforgiven person! (This is why we need to pray for this! It takes God’s grace to live free of offense.) So you decide how much forgiveness you want from God!

6. Pray for protection. 
Matt.6:13 “And do not lead us into temptation, but deliver us from the evil one.”
Notice that we are asking God not to lead us into temptation…now God doesn’t tempt anyone, but He is a very effective teacher!

Here’s the point: When we learn to rely on God’s strength to resist sin, He protects us from the evil one (otherwise, He lets us learn the hard way!) Do we want try and resist temptation in our own strength? (How’s that working for you?) We need to pray! Prayerless people are powerless people.

(William Cowper) "Satan trembles when he sees the weakest Christian on his knees."

(E. M. Bounds) "Prayer breaks all bars, dissolves all chains, opens all prisons, and widens all straits by which God's saints have been held."

(M.E. Andross) "If the Christian does not allow prayer to drive sin out of his life, sin will drive prayer out of his life. Like light and darkness, the two cannot dwell together." (So how much freedom do you want? Pray!)


7. Pray with praise! 
Matt.6:13 “…For Yours is the kingdom and the power and the glory forever. Amen.” 
We end by acknowledging that to God alone belongs all things; all power and glory; Who alone is worthy of our praise; Who alone is our provider, our salvation, and protector.


Words of Exhortation and Encouragement

(R. A. Torrey) “We are too busy to pray, and so we are too busy to have power. We have a great deal of activity, but we accomplish little; many services but few conversions; much machinery but few results."

(A. T. Pierson) “Closet communion needs time for the revelation of God’s presence. It is vain to say, ‘I have too much work to do to find time.’ You must find time or forfeit blessing. God knows how to save for you the time you sacredly keep for communion with Him.”

(Watchman Nee) "Our prayers lay the track down which God’s power can come. Like a mighty locomotive, his power is irresistible, but it cannot reach us without rails."

(Andrew Murray) "Time spent in prayer will yield more than that given to work. Prayer alone gives work its worth and its success. Prayer opens the way for God Himself to do His work in us and through us. Let our chief work as God's messengers be intercession; in it we secure the presence and power of God to go with us."

Do you want God’s power and presence working in your life? Freedom from bondage, anxiety, worry, healing? Now you know the way to get it! We need to “lay some track” so that God’s locomotive power can reach our circumstances and lives.

Beloved, we need to be a people of prayer…it’s not really an option…


And now that we know what Jesus taught us to pray, we can pray this understanding how to communicate with our heavenly Father, casting all our cares upon Him (“pray, and let God worry!”).


The Believer’s Prayer 
“Our Father in heaven, hallowed be Your name. Your kingdom come. Your will be done on earth as it is in heaven. Give us this day our daily bread.  And forgive us our debts, as we forgive our debtors. And do not lead us into temptation, but deliver us from the evil one. For Yours is the kingdom and the power and the glory forever. Amen.” (Matt.6:9-13)  
To hear the entire message, download complete notes and hear a portion of the live worship, click here...  
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December 16, 2009
Giving and Serving
Mel Wild @ Dec 16, 2009 02:41 PM
Message given at Cornerstone Church on 12/06/09

We are continuing our series titled, "Kingdom Living 101." This is part seventeen on Jesus' Sermon on the Mount (Matt.5-7).  I talked at length last week about what it means to position our hearts to grow in grace.

Here’s what we’ll be looking at the next couple of weeks…

Developing our “secret life” in God in five key areas

   - Giving and serving – vs.1-4
   - Prayer – vs.5-13
   - Forgiving (living free of offense) – vs.14-15
   - Fasted lifestyle – vs.16-18
   - Laying up our treasure in heaven – vs.19-39

“These five areas are expressions of “voluntary weakness” because we invest our natural strengths (time, money, energy, reputation, etc.) into Kingdom purposes.” Mike Bickle
 
 
Giving and Serving – Matt.6:1-4 
Matt.6:1-2 “Take heed that you do not do your charitable deeds before men, to be seen by them. Otherwise you have no reward from your Father in heaven. 2 Therefore, when you do a charitable deed, do not sound a trumpet before you as the hypocrites do in the synagogues and in the streets, that they may have glory from men. Assuredly, I say to you, they have their reward. But when you do a charitable deed, do not let your left hand know what your right hand is doing, 4 that your charitable deed may be in secret; and your Father who sees in secret will Himself reward you openly.” 


Developing a “Secret History” with God

Dallas Willard said…“Jesus gave us the guiding principle in Matthew 6:1: “Be sure your “rightness” is not with the intent of being seen by humans.”

But this does not mean that no one can find out about our good deeds…it’s about what is our intent. In other words, if someone happens to find out you’re doing something for someone…you don’t lose your reward…

It means that we do what we do primarily for an “Audience of One!” We are doing it for God, not to be noticed.

Jesus is teaching us to grow in grace by being free from the control and opinion of others.

Dallas Willard again…“The discipline of “secrecy” will help break us from the grip of human opinion over our souls and our actions.”

And He “rewards” us even now by empowering us with more grace!

We work in secret because that’s exactly how God works!
Mat.6:3-4 (Message) “…When you help someone out, don't think about how it looks. Just do it—quietly and unobtrusively. That is the way your God, who conceived you in love, working behind the scenes, helps you out.”

We are following in the footsteps of our Father.

Principle: If you wish to be affirmed or compensated by men, then you have your reward…(you get applauded or paid)…but if from your heart, you do “as unto the Lord” (Eph.6:6-7), then your reward is from God…

So the question is… whose reward do you prefer to receive?

Because Jesus says they are mutually exclusive…you’re going to have to pick one or the other…you can’t have both. And this really changes our perspective on how we look at serving…even cleaning toilets becomes a joy! Because I’m not doing it for you…(Although I do want to bless you)…I’m doing it for JESUS!


The Servant’s Heart

Let’s look at how Jesus describes the servant’s heart…

Jesus calls us to serve Him without regard to whether people notice it, appreciate it, or even thank us for what we do…notice how He describes our attention to how we serve…
Matt.6:3 “… do not let your left hand know what your right hand is doing...”

Again, the Message paraphrase says it this way “…When you help someone out, don't think about how it looks. Just do it—quietly and unobtrusively…”

So, if we grumble and complain, or quit serving because we are unappreciated or un-thanked, we can know for certain that we’re doing it with the wrong heart!

Matt.6:1 (NASB) "Beware of practicing your righteousness before men to be noticed by them...”


Growing in Grace through “Secret Service”

God has called us all into His secret service! Here’s how we grow in grace by giving and serving in secret…

First, it’s learning to do what we do for an “audience of One” gets to the root of where we find our affirmation and identity. It forces us to look at why we do things and make the corrections so we’re doing them for the right reasons. 
Col.3:3 "For you died, and your life is hidden with Christ in God.”

Second, it helps us grow in awareness for just Who (and not what) we are living for! 

Gen.15:1 “… the LORD came to Abram in a vision, saying, “Do not be afraid, Abram. I am your shield, your exceedingly great reward.”
 
Notice what is conspicuously absent here as far as rewards. For if we’re still coming to Jesus primarily for the “stuff” instead of Him, to know Him, we still are falling far short of the life that God has for us.

Third, if we can be free from what others are thinking about us, we are then free to think of others and see them the way Jesus sees them! Thus, we fulfill the second part of the Great Commandment. 

Matt.22:39 “…You shall love your neighbor as yourself.”

Finally, maturing in Christ also means breaking free from our self-serving relationship with God.

2 Cor.5:14-15 “For the love of Christ compels us…that if One died for all, then all died; 15 and He died for all, that those who live should live no longer for themselves, but for Him who died for them and rose again.”

We will never grow in grace and become more like Christ without coming to this place of serving…we will only grow so far and stop. And we will miss most of our rewards, here and forever, because they are tied to service! It's tied to giving of ourselves to Christ and others.


The Bottom line…

So, the question remains…who do you want your reward from—both in this life and forever? (Answer wisely!) 

Matt.25:23 "His lord said to him, ‘Well done, good and faithful servant; you have been faithful over a few things, I will make you ruler over many things. Enter into the joy of your lord.’”

Every single person who names the name of Christ has gifts and talents…are you using yours for the Kingdom?

What do you want Jesus to say of you when you stand before Him? Will it be “Lord, here’s your talent back, I didn’t do anything with it…I left the work of the Kingdom up to others" or…"Lord, I did everything I could with the resources you gave me… I made the world around me a better place by shining the light of God’s love and compassion and I used my gifts to serve in the local church to bless my brothers and sisters in the Lord…and I did it ALL for YOU!" I think you know the answer. Amen.

To hear the entire message, download complete notes and hear a portion of the live worship, click here...

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December 4, 2009
Positioning our hearts to grow in grace
Mel Wild @ Dec 4, 2009 12:44 PM
Message given at Cornerstone Church on 11/29/09

We are continuing our series titled, "Kingdom Living 101." This is part sixteen on Jesus' Sermon on the Mount (Matt.5-7), and now, moving on from resisting the deadly toxins of the soul (Matt.5:21-48), we begin the next section...
 
Positioning our Hearts to Grow in Grace – Matt.6:1-39

Now we’re ready to move to the positive side of this in the Sermon on the Mount. Because it’s not enough to just try to remove the sinful areas of our lives, but to also “put on Christ!” (Rom.13:14) And He gives us specific tools to use so that we can live out the eight Beatitudes (Matt.5:1-12) and become more like Christ. Here’s what we’ll be looking at the next couple of weeks…

Developing our “secret life” in God in five key areas…

   - Giving and serving – vs.1-4

   - Prayer – vs.5-13

   - Forgiving (living free of offense) – vs.14-15

   - Fasted lifestyle – vs.16-18

   - Laying up our treasure in heaven – vs.19-39

IMPORTANT! Keep in mind that these spiritual “tools” can never earn us God’s favor. We’re not talking about earning our salvation. Second, we can never “attain” (become good enough) we can only “obtain” (receive more grace by faith). But, the point is, you can receive more Grace! (And there are at least a million levels!)

We can only help position our hearts (grow in hunger, godly attitudes) to receive more of God’s grace in the inner man.

Mike Bickle “These five areas are expressions of “voluntary weakness” because we invest our natural strengths (time, money, energy, reputation, etc.) into Kingdom purposes.”


Developing a Secret History with God

Look at what Jesus says in three different places in Matt.6…

Matt.6:4, 6,18 "4 that your charitable deed may be in secret; and your Father who sees in secret will Himself reward you openly.…6 "But you, when you pray, go into your room, and when you have shut your door, pray to your Father who is in the secret place; and your Father who sees in secret will reward you openly…18 "So that you do not appear to men to be fasting, but to your Father who is in the secret place; and your Father who sees in secret will reward you openly.”

 We are learning to do all that we do primarily for an “Audience of One!”

The main point Jesus is teaching us in Matthew six is to be free from the control and opinion of others.

Dallas Willard (“The Divine Conspiracy”) “The discipline of “secrecy” will help break us from the grip of human opinion over our souls and our actions.”

For if we can be free of what others are thinking about us, we are free to think of others and see them the way Jesus sees them! (Thus fulfilling the “love others…” part of the Great Commandment in Matt.22:37-39)

And another purpose is to break us out of the absurd notion that we tend to believe that guides our lives; that is, that God doesn’t see everything we do or even think and why we think it! Like playing the baby game of “Peek-a-boo” with God, we think as long as we have our “eyes closed” to His presence in our daily lives then He doesn’t see what we’re doing! (This is called the “Illusion of distance.” In other words, God’s “out there” somewhere, instead of living IN us!)

David had a revelation of setting his attention on God’s presence in his daily life…

 Psalm 16:8 “I have set the LORD always before me; because He is at my right hand I shall not be moved."

When we practice doing what we do for God alone, we develop a greater awareness that He sees it all anyway…it transforms our behavior and makes us more fruitful.


What does it mean to “position our heart?”

First understand that Scripture uses “soil” as a metaphor for our ability to receive God’s grace and be fruitful. (Example: The “Parable of the Sower” - see Matt.13:1-9, 18-23)

But we come to God with an “uncultivated” heart that is naturally hard and unable to receive the “implanted word” (James 1:21) properly, as we see in the Parable of the Sower…

“By the wayside” (has no spiritual understanding, caused by deception)

“Rocky” (have no depth or roots, no secret history with God. Sunday-only Christianity!)

“Thorny” (caught up in cares of this life. Other things are more important than pursuing God.)

Jesus identifies these three types of human “soil” (hearts) that keeps us from bearing fruit, and they are still very true today! Unfortunately, many believers find themselves in one of these unfruitful types of “soil.”

Likewise, in Hosea, God tells us to cultivate our “field” so His righteousness can “rain” on it… listen to what God promises here…

Hos.10:12 (NLT) "I said, ‘Plant the good seeds of righteousness, and you will harvest a crop of love. Plow up the hard ground of your hearts, for now is the time to seek the Lord, that he may come and shower righteousness upon you.’”

There are three things we are supposed to do for personal revival: first, “plant” the good seeds (be in God’s Word); second, “plow up” our hard hearts (repentance), and “seek” the Lord now (we pursue the things of God and don’t put it off whenever the Holy Spirit convicts us)

Notice who does what…we must position our hearts, God provides the showers! But it doesn’t happen without doing our part. We can’t do God’s part; He won’t do ours!

Conversely, if we resist the Spirit of Grace when He convicts us, our heart will grow harder…it will be harder to respond the next time… (We grow dull in our spirit)

So when we do our part (position our hearts), God showers His love and enabling grace upon us!


The Three Phases of Growing in Grace

Phase One: The Lord convicts us (resistance, rationalization)

If we’re like most people, at first, we say, “No” to the conviction…We figure out a way where it doesn’t mean what God wants it to mean to us. We come up with a way out and we figure out a way where we can keep doing what we’re doing, even though the Word of God testifies against us…That’s called conviction…

But, hopefully, the Spirit finally breaks through and we come to the next phase…

Phase Two: “The heart cry” (surrender and agreement with God)

We finally agree with the Word of God and say we purpose in our heart to do it…It becomes “I want to obey”…it’s the setting of the heart to obey… then, finally…

Phase Three: The “fullness” of obedience (growth, power, insight, character)

Significant obedience in our life in that area (Being brought to maturity or “perfection”) But still not 100%. This is called “growing in grace.” This is the way Jesus was talking about…

IMPORTANT! When our heart is saying “yes” (Phase two) but we haven’t yet walked out the substantial obedience (we don’t have the follow-through 100%), we’re still sincere in the Lord’s eyes.

God’s favor does not depend on total victory but on our total commitment.

This understanding is CRITICAL to our growth and spiritual health. To know that God is smiling at us when we’re seriously pursuing Him.


The Goal…

And this is the goal of growing in grace, which Jesus stated earlier in Matt.5:48…both a command and a promise; to become complete by growing in grace in every area of our lives. 

Matt.5:48 “Therefore you shall be perfect (whole, complete), just as your Father in heaven is perfect.”

And this is where the blessings and reward is…to know Christ in a deep and intimate way…and in doing so, becoming more like Him!


A Life Built on the Rock?

Having said all this, what is the “normal” Christian experience in the church today? What has been your experience? Are you getting your proverbial “money’s worth?” Is our everyday reality living up to Jesus’ promise of life built on the Rock? (See Matt.7:24-25). The following is a statement I made near the beginning of this series…it bears repeating here… please read carefully and consider… 

The reason Christians do not have a consistent walk with Christ, why there is burn-out, moral failure and frustration is not some mystery. It is because they are not consistently connecting (called “abiding”) with the person of Christ and, out of this relationship, building their lives upon His foundational teachings; especially, the Sermon on the Mount.

So if we are not experiencing what Jesus promised, then we are probably not regularly connecting with Him (daily devotional life in His Word, prayer, fasting, generous giving, laying up treasure in heaven, etc.). It’s really that simple. And this is GOOD NEWS! It means that we can do something about it! And that anyone can do this if they so desire to break free from their mundane spiritual life. But God won't do it for you (more on that in a minute!)


The Very Essence of Transformation

I shared this before in my series, “Encountering the Living Word…” This is how we really are changed…it comes down to this…(Please read carefully and consider)

The very essence of transformation is in the five to ten second daily “heart exchanges” with God where He opens our heart to new understanding.

Think about it…every “revelation” or encounter with God you may have is usually no more than a flash of 5 to 10 seconds of revelation! (Usually while in a meeting, in worship, while we’re doing one of the spiritual disciplines listed above, etc.) So, the more we position ourselves in such a way to receive these “heart exchanges” the more encounters with God we will have! We must believe the fact that, if it were up to God, He would meet with us every day! We are the one's who don't make time to meet with Him.


We Must Connect!

We take our dull, doubting, cold, and slow hearts and put it in front of His blazing bonfire of love! And the more we do this, the more we grow!

This is what the two on the road to Emmaus experienced when Jesus opened up their minds to the spiritual reality of His Word...

Luke 24:32 "And they said to one another, “Did not our heart burn within us while He talked with us on the road, and while He opened the Scriptures to us?”

And encounters like this with Jesus are available to us every day! And this is why these five disciplines are important…to position ourselves to enlarge our capacity to receive more grace… (just like exercise)

The beauty of this is that anyone can do this! It’s not some mystical thing we can’t pursue or know when it will happen…it’s doing the things Jesus prescribes on a daily basis.

And like with a diet and exercise, we don’t exactly when we change, but we do change in the process of our new routines. You developed bad spiritual habits, now develop good ones!


We Must Decide!

There has to be a critical moment in a believer’s life when he or she refuses to live in a common way in the Kingdom of God.

God will not do this for you! He won’t wake you up in the morning to remind you to be in His Word or pray…He’s not going to position your heart for you. And no one’s going to lay hands on you to get this (but we can pray for God’s grace to be poured on you to pursue it!)


It’s Time to Wake Up!

God calls every believer to wake from their dull-hearted spiritual slumber and rise up in the newness of life promised to those who do so…

Eph.5:8, 14 "For you were once darkness, but now you are light in the Lord. Walk as children of light …14 Therefore He says: “ Awake, you who sleep, arise from the dead, and Christ will give you light.”


Where are You at Right Now?

Wherever you might be with God right now, He wants to bring you one step closer to His heart. God only ever asks us to respond to what we know now…that’s called 100% obedience…saying “yes” to Jesus in what we understand.

And we must believe that there are a million levels of growth and joy forevermore in His presence and feeling His pleasure over us (because it's true!)…

Psalm 16:11 "You will show me the path of life; in Your presence is fullness of joy; at Your right hand are pleasures forevermore.”
 
 
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November 21, 2009
Dealing with Retaliation and Hating your Enemy
Mel Wild @ Nov 21, 2009 03:21 PM
Message given at Cornerstone Church on 11/15/09

We've been delving into the heart and soul of the Jesus'  Sermon on the Mount (Matt.5-7), and for the last few weeks on resisting the deadly toxins of the soul (Matt.5:21-48). Today we will look at the last two deadly toxins... 

Matt.5:38-42 “You have heard that it was said, ‘An eye for an eye and a tooth for a tooth.’ 39 But I tell you not to resist an evil person. But whoever slaps you on your right cheek, turn the other to him also. 40 If anyone wants to sue you and take away your tunic, let him have your cloak also. 41 And whoever compels you to go one mile, go with him two. 42 Give to him who asks you, and from him who wants to borrow from you do not turn away. You have heard that it was said, ‘You shall love your neighbor and hate your enemy.’ 44 But I say to you, love your enemies, bless those who curse you, do good to those who hate you, and pray for those who spitefully use you and persecute you, 45 that you may be sons of your Father in heaven; for He makes His sun rise on the evil and on the good, and sends rain on the just and on the unjust. For if you love those who love you, what reward have you? Do not even the tax collectors do the same? 47 And if you greet your brethren only, what do you do more than others? Do not even the tax collectors do so?”

In this passage Jesus is dealing with the moral rightness of retaliating for harm done to us.

Hating our enemy deals with just who our real enemy is, seeing how God sees others, and loving them the same way (We will look at this)

In this passage Jesus is showing the Kingdom heart” response. And that brings up the question…


What is the “Kingdom Heart?”

The “Kingdom heart” is having a revelation of God’s heart…for us, and letting that love overflow to others (See Matt.22:37-39; Mark 12:30-31). And when we have God’s heart, we respond the way Jesus responds—even to those who harm us and who want to be our “enemies.”

The “L-love” in FELLOWSHIP prayer…

This is what we pray...“Father, pour out Your love into my heart by releasing the influences of the Spirit to give me revelation of Your love for me, that it may overflow in love back to You and to others.” (This is why we pray this prayer. So that we can get a revelation of this truth.)

NOTE: to download the FELLOWSHIP prayer outline, click here...

This is the essence of the greatest Commandment (Matt.22:37-39; Mark 12:30-31). There is nothing more important than this. Let's look at how this breaks out...

First, it’s first understanding God’s love for us and staying connected to it every day. Look at these words of Jesus and think about what they mean to you... 
John 15:9 “As the Father loved Me (as God the Father loves Jesus), I also have loved you (Jesus loves us exactly the same way!) abide (stay connected) in My love.”

John 17:26 "...that the love with which You loved Me may be in them...”

We are to love God with all our heart, soul, mind, and strength because that’s exactly how He loves us!

Second, our identity is found in the way God sees us. “Let me see myself through Your eyes. Thank You for who I am to You.” (FELLOWSHIP prayer)

Finally, out of this overflow we see and love others the way God sees and loves them. “Help me abound in love by seeing what You see and feeling what You feel about others.” (FELLOWSHIP prayer)

This is the foundation of the Kingdom Heart; everything else proceeds from this understanding (and we grow in this revelation)

We need to understand that to do what Jesus says here is both a command and a promise!

 John 14:15 "If you love Me, you will keep My commandments.”

The fact is, those who abide in Christ will grow in obedience through love; those who don’t won’t! John said that’s how we will know we are actually walking with Him; by our life of obedience (1 John 2:3-5). We grow in this but that’s our heart. If it’s not our heart, we don’t know Him.


The Kingdom Response

Here’s what Jesus is saying about our transformed heart. If we allow anger, contempt, and absorbing desire to be dealt with, our lives are not run by them. So when we are personally injured “our world” does not become our injury. We are not consumed with thoughts of revenge or bitterness. We know how to get free from these things.

We now have a larger view of our life and place in God’s world. We are part of God’s eternal kingdom that is must bigger than our petty problems, and we move for different reasons. Our heart is to release God’s manifest glory on the earth…His kingdom resources. And we can’t do that when our heart is filled with these poisons.

So to give examples of how this Kingdom heart responds to retaliation, Jesus gives us four illustrations…to bring these heavenly paradigms down to earth


Four Illustrations

1. “Turn the other cheek” (vs. 39) 
Matt.5:39 “But I tell you not to resist an evil person. But whoever slaps you on your right cheek, turn the other to him also.” 

 Jesus is talking about staying vulnerable; not taking things into our own hands. The point is, out of love, we will not retaliate but receive their rebuke. But it also doesn’t mean we just stand there to get continuously slapped!

This deals with our wanting self-vindication.

But this does not apply to civil governments (Rule of law or military defense). 

Rom.13:1, 4 “…For there is no authority except from God, and the authorities that exist are appointed by God...4 For he is God’s minister to you for good. But if you do evil, be afraid; for he does not bear the sword in vain; for he is God’s minister, an avenger to execute wrath on him who practices evil.”

 And it’s not talking about taking measures to defend our self or family against criminal activity, or get out of harm’s way. It’s about us trying to defend ourselves on a personal level.

2. “Give him your shirt” (vs. 40)

Matt.5:40 “If anyone wants to sue you and take away your tunic, let him have your cloak also.”

 It’s about not letting our possessions possess us!

Will we allow ourselves to be dispossessed? It’s really about who (or Who) our provider really is…where our personal security comes from…do we believe that God will take care of us?

And this is working against our covetousness and greed.

3. “Go the extra mile” (vs. 41) 

Matt.5:41 “And whoever compels you to go one mile, go with him two.”

If someone needs your help, do more than you’re asked to do. Rather than groan and act mad that someone inconvenienced you because they needed your help and then only do exactly what you’re asked to do, you do more than you’re asked with a joyful spirit!

This one works against our self-centeredness (in other words, it’s not all about me!)

4. “Give to him who asks” (vs. 42) 

Matt.5:42 “Give to him who asks you, and from him who wants to borrow from you do not turn away.”


No conditions on our help. In other words, how would you like to be treated in this situation? How would Jesus treat them? Would He help them?

Works against our conditional love for others and our stinginess.

When we must understand is that these are meant to be illustrations, not hard fast rules to govern every situation. Sometimes a different response will be appropriate if it’s done with the other’s best interest in mind (agape love). And we will know how to appropriately respond if God’s love is overflowing our hearts.


What Happens when we respond this way?

Do we just become a doormat? Everybody just takes advantage of us? Actually, something quite different often happens…first…

The dynamics of the personal interactions are transformed.

Dallas Willard “If we respond as Jesus indicates, the force of their own actions pull them off their stance and forces them to question what kind of person they are.”

Suddenly our attacker senses that they are not playing the game they thought they were. Just as anger feeds on anger, so patient goodness will normally deflate it. (You can break the cycle of anger)

Of course, in cases of extreme violence you should put yourself out of harm’s way. Remember that Jesus is talking about our heart wanting to retaliate here.


Hating our Enemies – Matt.5:43-47

We are told to love our enemies…Why? Because Jesus loves His enemies! 
Luke 6:35 "But love your enemies, do good, and lend, hoping for nothing in return…For He is kind to the unthankful and evil.”

 And we can only do this out of the “overflow” of His love for us.

And it’s about understanding who our real enemies are…and they aren’t people Christ died for! (And that includes the most despicable people!) 

Eph.6:12 “For we do not wrestle against flesh and blood, but against principalities, against powers, against the rulers of the darkness of this age, against spiritual hosts of wickedness in the heavenly places.”


Final Thoughts

We must remove these six negative toxins (anger, lust, treachery, manipulation, retaliation, hating enemies) by seeing and loving others the way God sees and love them and by putting our self-life (need for personal vindication, pleasure, and justice) into His hands.

This is the whole point. In getting rid of these toxins, we are becoming like Christ, where He did what He saw His Father do. It means to put our “self-life” to death so that we can live in Christ.

This is WHY it’s important. Getting rid of these toxins allows the resources of heaven to be released so that they may be saved and set free!

You see, when we love them like Jesus does, and respond like He does, then the Kingdom of Heaven can come in and touch this person and set them free!

The last verse in this section is also both a command and a promise; to become complete by growing in grace. 

Matt.5:48 “Therefore you shall be perfect (whole, complete), just as your Father in heaven is perfect.”

And that’s our assignment! To grow in grace and let the resources of Heaven flow through us…this is how God is glorified. Amen.

To hear the entire message, download complete notes and hear a portion of the live worship, click here...

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November 13, 2009
Dealing with Manipulation
Mel Wild @ Nov 13, 2009 12:50 PM
Message given at Cornerstone Church on 11/08/09

We've been delving into the heart and soul of the Jesus'  Sermon on the Mount (Matt.5-7), and for the last few weeks on resisting the deadly toxins of the soul (Matt.5:21-48).

And these negative deadly toxins are… 
  • Anger (murder) – vs.21-26
  • Sexual fantasy (adultery) – vs. 27-30
  • Treachery (divorce) – vs. 31-32
  • Manipulation (swearing) – vs. 33-37
  • Retaliation (eye for an eye) – vs. 38-42
  • Having an enemy (hating enemy) – vs. 43-47

So as we look at these six deadly toxins of the soul, we must see them as how they pollute our heart and soul, and how the Kingdom heart responds, rather than outward observances we do to appease God.

The first negative toxin we looked at was anger and contempt which Jesus revealed as the operation of a spirit of murder. That was a new idea but was always God’s intent…when He gave the Ten Commandments (and Jesus was there!), He meant, “Don’t operate in any level of the spirit of murder…”

And when He gave us the seventh commandment (“Do not commit adultery”), He meant not to operate in any level of the spirit of immorality.

These two topics—anger and sexual immorality—are the two major problems of the human race. And Jesus is the Good Shepherd! He is basically saying, “I’m showing you these six toxins that you’re not even aware of…that you’re feeding your spirit with and it’s really hurting you. If these toxins go on unchecked, they will eventually produce a spiritual and emotional death in you.”

The problem with the human race is that we don’t understand insidious nature of these six negatives. So, when we read these things from Dr. Jesus, we shouldn’t say, Oh no! I have cancer! We should thank Jesus! That He has pointed these things out so we can get free from them and live healthy spiritual lives…Amen!

Okay, we’re ready to move to the next negative toxin that Jesus addresses…


Manipulation – Matt.5:33-37

Matt.5:33-37 “Again you have heard that it was said to those of old, ‘You shall not swear falsely, but shall perform your oaths to the Lord.’ 34 But I say to you, do not swear at all: neither by heaven, for it is God’s throne; 35 nor by the earth, for it is His footstool; nor by Jerusalem, for it is the city of the great King. 36 Nor shall you swear by your head, because you cannot make one hair white or black. 37 But let your ‘Yes’ be ‘Yes,’ and your ‘No,’ ‘No.’ For whatever is more than these is from the evil one.”

What is the deadly toxin of Manipulation?

Manipulation = "to manipulate. To manage or influence skillfully, esp. in an unfair manner to suit one’s advantage or purpose” Usually by appealing to authority (yours or other’s), emotional high-jacking, using one’s sex appeal, etc.

To manipulate is to “bewitch” others

Witchcraft, in its purest essence, is the art of controlling others.

Gal.3:1 "O foolish Galatians! Who has bewitched you that you should not obey the truth, before whose eyes Jesus Christ was clearly portrayed among you as crucified?"


"Bewitch" (Gr.word baskaino) to speak ill of one, to slander, to speak maliciously. To bring evil on one by feigning praise or an evil eye. To charm deceitfully in order to influence others. In this particular instance, the Judaizers were using their eloquence and forcefulness of their influence to seduce the Gentile Christians in Galatia to move away from the grace of God back to the old covenant Mosaic rituals.


Jesus said don’t swear at all! 
Matt.5:34 “But I say to you, do not swear at all…”

Now, there’s different ways we do this…let’s look at some of them…first…

“Swearing” is the practice of giving oaths to lend weight or credibility to our statements (i.e., “I swear on a stack of Bibles!” or “I swear on mother’s grave!”) We do this to add credibility to our statements.  Now, there is a legitimate place for this. That’s in a court of law, but Jesus isn’t talking about that here…He’s addressing the manipulative nature of swearing and making oaths…

Or we can manipulate or try to impress others by appealing to an outside authority (sometimes called “name dropping”). We are trying to add weight or importance to what we say.

“Swearing” is also a version of what’s called the “song and dance;” when someone is trying to sell you on something. All marketing is based on this…as Will Rogers once said, “to sell you something you don’t want with money you don’t have!” (This is why so many Americans are deep in debt…you’ve been had by the media and slick advertising!)

We are constantly being manipulated by the media and the news… (Yes, the news is biased to manipulate you to think a certain way about current events.) In politics, we have “spin doctors” to manipulate events so you will like their candidate. It’s not necessarily “lies” just manipulations of the truth.

Also, swearing, or “using the Lord’s name in vain,” originally came from using the authority of God’s name in order to place a curse on another. So what we are actually doing is invoking God’s name (authority) to “damn” someone else…which, when we see it for what it really is, is evil!

But it’s not just in the world; it’s just as prevalent in the Church…


Manipulation in the Church

Spiritual leaders can use their authority to “guilt” their people into doing what they want. Because of their authority, people will do what they want just because they are the “pastor,” which isn’t a bad thing in and of itself, but it can be abused if done for the sole purpose of Pastor’s personal agenda. Cult leaders use fear and manipulation to control the minds of their followers (i.e., David Koresh or Jim Jones.)

Christians can use “prophecy” as a guise to tell others what they personally think…The “God told me to tell you…” (Then add whatever agenda you have for that person!)

Here’s what the Bible says about this…never act on a prophetic word or even a teaching without confirmation in your spirit. 
1 John 4:1 “Beloved, do not believe every spirit, but test the spirits, whether they are of God...”

1 John 2:27 “But the anointing which you have received from Him abides in you, and you do not need that anyone teach you; but as the same anointing teaches you concerning all things..."

The person giving you the word doesn’t have a monopoly on the Holy Spirit! If someone tells you, “God says you are to quit your job and go to Africa…” don’t do it unless your spirit confirms it! Much damage has been done to the body of Christ in the name of “Thus says the Lord…” Then, after confirming the word in your heart, get godly counsel in how to act on it in God’s timing.”

How then should a “word” be given?

After all, the gift of prophecy is an important resource of the Holy Spirit, so we shouldn’t throw the proverbial “baby out with the bath water.”

Remember, prophecy is for edification, exhortation, and comfort…simply offer it for their consideration and confirmation. 

1 Cor.14:3 "But he who prophesies speaks edification and exhortation and comfort to men.”

We can also emotionally manipulate by getting others to carry our offense, thus “defiling” them with our unresolved anger (which is bitterness). 

Heb.12:15 "looking carefully lest anyone fall short of the grace of God; lest any root of bitterness springing up cause trouble, and by this many become defiled”


The Root of Manipulation

Its central purpose is to highjack people’s will and emotions, to end the argument or sway them to feel the same way we do. But whatever consent they give us will be uninformed (like “yes men”) because we have short-circuited their understanding of what is going on.

Dallas Willard said this in his book, “Divine Conspiracy”… “Making use of people by attempting to bypass their understanding and judgment, to trigger their will and “possess” them for our own purpose.”

Of course, what I’ve just done is appealed to an outside authority to possibly manipulate you into believing me! After all, isn’t just about every form of influence just some form of manipulation...So, here’s the question…


Is it Manipulation or Godly Influence?

There is a difference…here it is…

The evil form of manipulation seeks to have control over someone else for our own purpose (or get them to agree with us for our benefit only.)

Godly influence may look similar, but its purpose is to attempt to sway the other person for their own benefit.

So you’re going to have to judge whether what I am trying to get you to believe is for your own benefit or am I just trying to impress you with what I know so you can say, Gee, you’re a great pastor! You sure know a lot! Hopefully, this information is for your benefit!


Let Your “Yes” be Yes…”

Jesus goes on to say in Matt.5:37 
“But let your ‘Yes’ be ‘Yes,’ and your ‘No,’ ‘No.’ For whatever is more than these is from the evil one.”

 And Jesus’ little brother, James, echoes this same admonition… 

James 5:12 "But above all, my brethren, do not swear, either by heaven or by earth or with any other oath. But let your “Yes” be “Yes,” and your “No,” “No,” lest you fall into judgment.” 

So the opposite can also be true. We can also manipulate by not doing what other’s want.

Agreeing to things we never intend to do (which is evil!) And this is very subtle…the truth is, we don’t value others enough and we just agree to get them off our backs or some other equally evil reason!

Jesus calls us to be faithful; to do what we say we will do (or not agree to do it). He says anything other than this is just manipulation and from the evil one! James adds that we could fall into judgment by saying we will do a thing and then not do it! (Safety tip: Don’t do that!)

The bottom line is that we, as Kingdom people, need to root out the deadly toxin of manipulation and control (along with anger and lust) in our soul so that we can live with a buoyant spirit full of the life of God. We are to grow in grace and become more like Jesus, and it’s up to us to allow God to help us build our character…and that first comes from us removing these deadly toxins. God will not pull out these toxins for us; and we can’t do it without Him! Amen.

To hear the entire message, download complete notes and hear a portion of the live worship, click here...

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November 6, 2009
Dealing with Divorce
Mel Wild @ Nov 6, 2009 03:04 PM
 Message given at Cornerstone Church on 11/01/09

This is a continuation of my teaching series titled, "Kingdom Living 101" from Jesus' Sermon on the Mount (Matt.5-7). This is an excerpt from part thirteen.
 
Matt.5:31-32 “Furthermore it has been said, ‘Whoever divorces his wife, let him give her a certificate of divorce.’ 32 But I say to you that whoever divorces his wife for any reason except sexual immorality causes her to commit adultery; and whoever marries a woman who is divorced commits adultery.”

This particular passage, like so many of Jesus’ other hard sayings, has been interpreted various ways…Hopefully, I can give you some understanding of what is meant here.

Why Divorce is called Treachery

You may not have heard divorce referred this way before, but the Bible calls divorce treachery. It comes from Malachi 2…

Mal.2:13-16 “And this is the second thing you do: you cover the altar of the LORD with tears, with weeping and crying; so He does not regard the offering anymore, nor receive it with goodwill from your hands. 14 Yet you say, “For what reason?” because the LORD has been witness between you and the wife of your youth, with whom you have dealt treacherously; yet she is your companion and your wife by covenant.” But did He not make them one, having a remnant of the Spirit? And why one? He seeks godly offspring. Therefore take heed to your spirit, and let none deal treacherously with the wife of his youth. 16 “ For the LORD God of Israel says that He hates divorce, for it covers one’s garment with violence,” says the LORD of hosts. ”

But I want you to primary hear God’s heart here…He doesn’t hate the people who get a divorce…He wants two who have made a covenant to stay together so that godly children can be raised up…God hates the damage it does to all involved (as we know full well from experience)

Here’s what treachery means…first the Hebrew word… 
Treachery (Hebrew: bagad): to act faithlessly, deal deceitfully, to offend 

(Dictionary): “characterized by faithlessness or readiness to betray trust; traitorous. Deceptive, untrustworthy, or unreliable.
 
Jesus’ Views on Divorce

First, Jesus sees divorce as a heart problem (like anger and lust).

Matt.19:8 “He said to them, “Moses, because of the hardness of your hearts, permitted you to divorce your wives, but from the beginning it was not so.”

Of all the marital counseling we’ve done over the years, and even our own problems, can be attributed to hardness of heart!

Jesus does not forbid divorce but makes it clear that it was not God’s intent. It was meant to be a rare exception only in extreme cases.

Matt.19:8 “...but from the beginning it was not so.”


The Damage of Divorce

First, in Jesus’ day, a woman could be forced into divorce for any reason and left with no future hope. They would end up either at the mercy of a generous relative (mostly treated like a servant), remarry as “damaged goods,” or become a prostitute. Whereas, the man suffered no real ill effects from giving his wife the “pink slip.” This injustice is what Jesus was primarily saying to the Pharisees in Matthew 19.

But in our day, the damage is done to all persons involved, especially the children. And we all know how children are affected by the breakup of a marriage…having to be passed back and forth between husband and wife…

Dallas Willard, from His book, “Divine Conspiracy"…“Perhaps one of the hardest things for the contemporary mind to accept is that life runs in natural cycles that cannot be disrupted without indelible damage to the individuals involved”

The problem we have in America is that we want to be able do whatever we want and not have to suffer the consequence, but life doesn’t work that way. And that doesn’t mean there isn’t forgiveness, there is, but there are still the scars of a failed relationship that we will have to live with the rest of our lives.

Jesus is showing the reality of divorce; that what God has joined together cannot be separated without consequences.

Matt.19:5-6 'For this reason a man will leave his father and mother and be united to his wife, and the two will become one flesh'? So they are no longer two, but one. Therefore what God has joined together, let man not separate."

And if we understand this spiritual dynamic that goes on when God makes the two one flesh, we know that there are things that a legal piece of paper won’t undo. Again, we can receive healing but there will still be a permanent scar that people who stay together—for better for worse—won’t have to deal with…we need to understand this fact of life.

Okay, let’s look at when divorce is allowed, even necessary, according to the Bible…


Biblical Grounds for Divorce

1. When there has been marital infidelity (but divorce is not required). 
Matt.5:32 “But I say to you that whoever divorces his wife for any reason except sexual immorality…” 
When one has joined sexually with another not their spouse, there is a violation of the covenant…however, that doesn’t mean there cannot be true repentance and reconciliation. There has been many a strong marriage that has survived an adulterous affair along the way… but this violation can be irreparable if there is no repentance on the part of the violator.

2. In an abusive situation or physical danger. 
Mal.2:16 “…for it covers one’s garment with violence…” 
Since divorce involves hardness of heart, there can be violence or even physical danger. Unfortunately, it’s all too common for well-meaning evangelical pastors and leaders to counsel someone to stay in their marriage even in an abusive relationship. This legalist view has been especially abused by pastors toward women. There was one case where a woman was told by her pastor that she must not leave her husband, even though she found out he was using their marriage as a cover for his homosexuality and even started bringing his male lovers to their home, forcing her to live in humiliating circumstances. For this pastor to tell her she had to stay in this relationship is absurd and unbiblical.

3. When an unbelieving spouse walks out…Paul adds this one to the list. 
1 Cor.7:15 (NLT) “But if the husband or wife who isn’t a believer insists on leaving, let them go. In such cases the Christian husband or wife is no longer bound to the other, for God has called you to live in peace.”  
Again, like with infidelity, it’s not required, but he or she is not bound under that covenant commitment if the other walks out.

IMPORTANT: These exceptions are not three legalist biblical loopholes you can use when you’re in a marriage you don’t currently like! That again, shows a wrong heart. They are meant as safeguards to protect those in extreme situations that can do irreparable damage to their soul if they were to stay in the relationship. God meant for these reasons for divorce to be rare, not like the situation today.


Concluding Thoughts…

Jesus teaches that divorce is a heart issue (like anger and sexual lust). If anger and adultery of the heart were dealt with, divorce would be rare, if non-existent, in the Church today.

God’s Word says that divorce involves treachery, which is unfaithfulness to the covenant vows.

Jesus and the Bible make provisions for divorce but not without indelible consequences to both the husband and wife and children.

But there are conditions when divorce or legal separation is required for personal safety.

A believing man and wife who are consistently cultivating a “Kingdom heart” according to the teachings of the Sermon on the Mount is the best inoculation against divorce!



To hear the entire message, download complete notes and hear a portion of the live worship, click here...
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October 30, 2009
Let's talk about Sex!
Mel Wild @ Oct 30, 2009 05:46 PM
 Message given at Cornerstone Church on 10/25/09

This is a continuation of my teaching series titled, "Kingdom Living 101." This is part twelve and continues from my blog titled, "Dealing with our Anger." 

Understanding the foundation laid about how anger and contempt affect the soul we are ready to move on the next deadly toxin…


Sexual Fantasy (Adultery of the heart)
 
One of the things I appreciate about Jesus is that He deals with some very practical and critical issues of the deepest parts of our souls. He doesn't shy away from these somewhat "private" subjects!

Matt.5:27-30 “You have heard that it was said to those of old, ‘You shall not commit adultery.’ 28 But I say to you that whoever looks at a woman to lust for her has already committed adultery with her in his heart. If your right eye causes you to sin, pluck it out and cast it from you; for it is more profitable for you that one of your members perish, than for your whole body to be cast into hell. 30 And if your right hand causes you to sin, cut it off and cast it from you; for it is more profitable for you that one of your members perish, than for your whole body to be cast into hell.”

I don’t think I have to give you the statistics to prove that we live in a sex-saturated culture in America…everywhere you turn and everything you turn on! (T.V., Internet, your cell phone, advertising, books...) If we were to step outside our culture and look at it honestly and objectively, we would have to admit that we are obsessed with sexual imagery…in our thoughts, words, and deeds.

So when we read Jesus’ words here they seem so foreign to us, so alien…which reveals just how far we have strayed away from kingdom righteousness…that it doesn’t seem real, that it’s unrealistic…which is a lie. And unfortunately, much of the church is caught up in this lie too.

And people in the Bible have been dealing with these issues of the heart since time began.

   - Job: “I have made a covenant with my eyes…” (Job 31:1)

   - David: “I will set nothing wicked before my eyes…” (Psalm 101:3)

And up until the mid-20th century, all forms of adultery were considered wrong (Just shows how far we have fallen from godliness today!)

So how do we deal with this and obey God? Jesus gets right to the source of the problem…He says it’s our heart (what we’ve cultivated in our hearts); that all evil proceeds from the heart...

Mark 7:21-23 “For from within, out of the heart of men, proceed evil thoughts, adulteries, fornications, murders, 22 thefts, covetousness, wickedness, deceit, lewdness, an evil eye, blasphemy, pride, foolishness. 23 All these evil things come from within and defile a man.”

Notice that Jesus says these heart issues can defile us. So again, dealing with the condition of our heart is more important than what we don’t do—our outwards actions.

James said we are tempted to sin because we want to sin.

James 1:14 “But each one is tempted when he is drawn away by his own desires and enticed. 15 Then, when desire has conceived, it gives birth to sin; and sin, when it is full-grown, brings forth death.”

And Just because we haven’t “acted out” doesn’t mean we wouldn’t if the occasion was right (James 1:14-15)

Example: Suppose a most beautiful woman in the world (or most handsome, romantic man) wanted you and you could have her (him) and there would be no way anyone would find out. Would you do it?

Unfortunately, many would do it, including Christians, which reveals something very unnerving about what’s lurking on the inside of our hearts! Worse yet, there would be some who wouldn’t even see it as wrong!

If we don’t come to grips with this thing in our soul, we are basically a time-bomb ready to go off when the time is right. Where there’s enough pressure and temptation.

Of course, we should realize the fallacy of this scenario…God will see you! Yet, many Christians don’t live as though everything they do is in full view and done in the very presence of a holy God!

So many social problems would go away if everyone had a Kingdom heart…Sexual harassment in the workplace stems from adultery in the heart. Unfair treatment to those who don’t illicit sexual lust would disappear if we dealt with adultery of the heart.


The Act of Adultery is Worse

Jesus isn’t saying that since you already committed adultery in your heart, you might as well go all the way! This is also important to understand…

Sexual intercourse has a spiritual dynamic of “two becoming one” which when engaged in with someone you’re not married to (biblical harlotry or fornication) creates an ungodly “soul tie.”

1 Cor.6:15-17 "Do you not know that your bodies are members of Christ? Shall I then take the members of Christ and make them members of a harlot? Certainly not! 16 Or do you not know that he who is joined to a harlot is one body with her? For “the two,” He says, “shall become one flesh.” 17 But he who is joined to the Lord is one spirit with Him.”

Notice the comparison between sexual intercourse and your relationship with the Lord. We become one with our spouse; as we have become one with Christ (Spiritual intimacy).

We are the temple of the Holy Spirit, so to engage in fornication, (which is having sex with anyone you’re not married to) is just like when Israel had Temple prostitutes at the gate of their Temple…Our spirit and body get defiled, as well as our soul.

1 Cor.6:18-19 "Flee sexual immorality. Every sin that a man does is outside the body, but he who commits sexual immorality sins against his own body. 19 Or do you not know that your body is the temple of the Holy Spirit who is in you, whom you have from God, and you are not your own?”

Paul says it’s worse to engage in the act of adultery because not only do we defile our soul with our thought life, but we actually defile our spirit and body (See also 2 Cor.7:1) by engaging in this spiritual dynamic.

This is why cultivating good thoughts, words, and deeds are critical to having a Kingdom heart. And it also shows why so many are not experiencing the life of God today…we are drinking in this poison and defiling our Temple, grieving the Holy Spirit.


“The Adulterous Lie”

The contemporary lie is that it’s right to have sex with anyone you love romantically.

   “If loving you is wrong; I don’t want to be right!” (popular song)

Again, Dallas Willard said this about our idea of romantic love...“But often “romantic love” turns out upon examination, to be nothing more than precisely that fantasized lusting that Jesus calls “adultery of the heart.” It’s inconceivable today that the rightness and wrongness of sexual intercourse would have nothing to do with what passes as “romantic love.”

Love today is equated with feelings and sexual stimulation but, biblically speaking, the rightness of sex is tied instead to a solemn and public covenant for life between a man and his wife. And it really doesn’t matter if there is romantic love or not…that is secondary to the covenant commitment. However, true delight comes with this faithfulness! Let’s look at this…


Intimacy and Faithfulness

This combination of intimacy and faithfulness is critical to understand…

Dallas Willard again... “The profound misunderstandings of the erotic that prevail today actually represent the inability of humanity in its current Western edition to give itself to others and receive them in abiding faithfulness. Personal relationship is emptied out to the point where intimacy is impossible.”

Point: Intimacy without faithfulness is impossible; they are inseparably tied together.

Because we are free beings, intimacy cannot be passive or forced; because we are extremely finite, it must be exclusive. And all of this reveals just how shallow and scarred the soul is who betrays this intimacy with unfaithfulness to their spouse.

Which makes the notion of “if loving you is wrong, I don’t want to be right” totally absurd.

One of the most telling things about our culture is that it cannot find a compelling reason not to commit adultery. If the circumstances are right, we will find some reason that we should; that our particular situation is justified.

But like a morphine drip, we keep hitting the “sex button” hoping some intimacy will drip out…and we must be left dissatisfied because it won’t come without faithfulness.

Most importantly, intimacy is the spiritual hunger of the human soul; but faithfulness is also inseparably tied to intimacy with God.


Anger and Contempt in Sex

This is where it’s important to understand last week’s message on anger… (Part Eleven) Jesus brings ou the importance of connecting our escalating anger and contempt with our sexual unfaithfulness. Here's how it works...

Sexual delight goes naturally with faithfulness and intimacy. But anger and contempt with our spouse makes sexual delight impossible. In other words, when we let anger and unresolved offense build up with our spouse; we lose this delight that God intended for us.

Then the next step in the progression away from intimacy is that when sexual delight is lost, anger and contempt invariably leads to sexual fantasy. And our culture feeds on this dissatisfaction with supermarket magazines, romance novels, nearly all movie and TV productions, Internet…always an exercise in sexual fantasy.

And as we move away from sexual delight in intimacy, escalating degradation is needed (kinkiness, perversion, and worse!) to be sexually satisfied.

Of course, pornography always has some element of contempt, even disgust because those being presented are obviously being used. No longer intimacy that comes from faithfulness, but now people are seen as objects to be used for our sexual gratification.

   Dallas Willard “Pornography lives in the hostile and degraded imagination along with “adultery of the heart.”


What is Not Sexual Lust

We need to make sure we clarify what we’re talking about with regard to adultery of the heart. To be tempted or attracted to someone is not wrong as an uncultivated response, anymore than the initial reaction of anger or pain. To try to stop this natural reaction would be impossible.

Jesus said whoever looks at a woman with the purpose of desiring her (or him) is committing adultery. In other words, cultivating and indulging in the fantasy is the lust Jesus condemns.


Dealing with “Our World” of Sexual Lust

Okay, if it’s wrong and harmful to our soul, what do we do to totally remove this harmful toxin of sexual lust from our lives? We first look at verses 29-30…

Matt.5:29-30 “If your right eye causes you to sin, pluck it out and cast it from you; for it is more profitable for you that one of your members perish, than for your whole body to be cast into hell. 30 And if your right hand causes you to sin, cut it off and cast it from you; for it is more profitable for you that one of your members perish, than for your whole body to be cast into hell.”

There are two important points that Jesus is making here that can be easily misunderstood…

First, Jesus is showing the absurdity of fixing the problem by removing the outward act. Some actually try to do this, figuratively speaking. They vow to never look at another woman, even if it’s their grandmother! But that hardly allows us to function as God’s ambassadors for His Kingdom to those around us (including those who may be attractive.)

And if we take it literally we must also realize that one with a mutilated stump and gouged out eye can still have an evil heart full of adultery!

But He is also saying that we should “cut out” those things or situations that consistently cause us to stumble.

What is causing you to stumble? Is it a relationship in the workplace? The Internet? Magazines, movies, your cell phone…? The Bible gives us one prescription for temptation in the area of sexual immorality…FLEE!!! (1 Cor.6:18; 2 Tim.2:22). 

You need to “cut off” those situations in your life that are trapping you. Get an Internet filter, accountability partner, don’t meet with the opposite sex alone, do whatever you need to guard your heart. Jesus is saying that we need to get violent about eradicating this toxin from our soul!


Concluding Thoughts

Jesus gets to the root issue of adultery; the condition of our heart.

“Adultery of the heart” robs a relationship of intimacy and sexual delight because of unfaithfulness (they are mutually exclusive)

And anger and contempt can lead to further degradation and bondage.

Our spirit, soul and body are further defiled by acting on sexual lust which adversely affects intimacy with God. This is why we’re told to cleanse ourselves of these defilements (See also 2 Cor.7:1)

Many are not experiencing the “pure river” of God because they are drinking in this poison and defiling their “Temple” and grieving the Holy Spirit.

Removing the deadly toxin of “adultery of the heart” is essential for developing a Kingdom heart full of delight that is intimate with God.

For some it may mean changing lifelong habitual wrong responses to sexual stimuli. You need to begin building a “wall” of purity around your inner thoughts, taking them captive to the obedience of Christ (See 2 Cor.10:3-5), which is the renewing your mind. This takes time, prayer, accountability, and perseverance, but it’s worth it!

Beloved, it is worth it! Resolve today to let the Lord work on the deepest issues of your soul and pull out these deadly toxins so that you can experience the true joy and intimacy you were meant to have in Him. Amen.

Psalm 16:11 "You will show me the path of life; in Your presence is fullness of joy; at Your right hand are pleasures forevermore."

2 Cor.7:1 “Therefore, having these promises, beloved, let us cleanse ourselves from all filthiness of the flesh and spirit, perfecting holiness in the fear of God.” 
 
 
NOTE. This message was not recorded due to technical difficulties. But you can download the complete notes and hear a portion of our live worship by clicking here... 
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Dealing with our Anger
Mel Wild @ Oct 30, 2009 05:09 PM
 Message given at Cornerstone Church on 10/18/09

This is a continuation of my teaching series titled, "Kingdom Living 101." This is part eleven and continues from my blog titled, "A New Paradigm for Obedience."
 
Now we are going to be getting into the heart of the Sermon on the Mount…

Resisting the deadly toxins of the soul (Matt.5:21-48)

And these deadly toxins are…
 - Anger (murder) – vs.21-26
 - Sexual fantasy (adultery) – vs. 27-30
 - Treachery (divorce) – vs. 31-32
 - Manipulation (swearing) – vs. 33-37
 - Retaliation (eye for an eye) – vs. 38-42
 - Having an enemy (hating enemy) – vs. 43-47

We will look every one of these in detail …Today we will look at the first one…

Dealing with our anger (Matt.5:21-26)

First, we need to look at why Jesus equates anger with murder…


What is Anger?

Matt.5:21-22 “You have heard that it was said to the people long ago, 'Do not murder, and anyone who murders will be subject to judgment.' 22 But I tell you that anyone who is angry with his brother will be subject to judgment.”

So why would Jesus say that being angry is equal with murder?

Dallas Willard ("Divine Conspiracy) said this about anger “It is a feeling that seizes us in our body and immediately impels us toward interfering with, and possibly even harming, those who have thwarted our will and interfered with our life.”

This is important to understand. Anger, in and of itself, is not sin. It is a spontaneous reaction to being wronged. It performs a necessary function like physical pain.


The reality of anger

Let’s look at the reality of anger in our culture…

Anger becomes sin when we choose to indulge it. We become an angry person. “Road rage” is a case in point…anger pent up let loose under stress.

There are currently 25,000 murders in the U.S. per year; 1,000 in the workplace…Of these, only a minute portion could’ve occurred apart from indulged anger.

For example: Have you ever wished someone you were very angry with would just “go away,” even die? That’s the spirit of murder!

"Cut at the root of anger is to wither the tree of human evil.” (Dallas Willard)

Col.3:6, 8 "Because of these, the wrath of God is coming. …8 But now you must rid yourselves of all such things as these: anger, rage, malice, slander, and filthy language from your lips.”

Once you see these emotions for what they are, the natural outcome of human choices, of people choosing to be angry and contemptuous, the continuous stream of human disasters, acts of violence can be seen for what they are.

This point was made in the book, “The Shack”… (How would you respond if your loved one was kidnapped and killed? Would you be able to deal with your outrage and finally forgive them like the author did?)

Next, we will look at the progression of anger that Jesus calls sin.


The three stages of anger – Matt.5:22

 - Sustained Anger
 - Contempt
 - Malice

Jesus is showing us that we can engage in all three of these levels of sinful anger without actually killing anyone.

The first stage when we go beyond the spontaneous reaction of anger…


Sustained Anger

“Anger indulged, instead of simply waved off, always has in it an element of self-righteousness and vanity.” Dallas Willard

Find a person who has embraced anger and you will find a person with a wounded ego.

Our need to get revenge, to retaliate, reveals our sense of self-righteousness…but this self-righteousness that comes with our anger simply provokes more anger and self-righteousness on the other side (a perpetual war of defending our pride and ego)

According to experts, the importance of self is blown out of proportion by those who indulge in anger

So we see Jesus allowing circumstances in our lives to come to a head to show us what’s inside of us…and it ain’t pretty!

To retain anger and to cultivate it is to give the devil a foothold in your life.

Eph.4:26-27 “In your anger do not sin": Do not let the sun go down while you are still angry, and do not give the devil a foothold.”

And when you refuse to forgive or release your anger, YOU go to jail!

The next level in the progression of anger…contempt.


Contempt

Matt.5:22 “Again, anyone who says to his brother, 'Raca,' is answerable to the Sanhedrin.”

“Raca” = Aramaic term for expressing contempt for someone else.

Contempt is a greater evil and deserving of greater condemnation.

The difference between anger and contempt…In anger I want to hurt you; in contempt, I don’t care if I hurt you or not. The purpose of contempt is always to exclude someone, push them away or leave them out and isolated.

Like playing the game of TAG, there are no teams and once you are “it” (or out) everyone else can justify being as mean to you as they want. This leaves a deep wound in the soul of the one who is “it.”

C.S. Lewis “In all men’s lives…one of the most dominant elements is the desire to be inside the local Ring and the terror of being left outside.”

Then the third level in the escalation of anger…malice.


Malice

Matt.5:22 “…But anyone who says, 'You fool!' will be in danger of the fire of hell.”

This one requires some explaining with our contemporary culture of name calling. “You fool,” in a biblical sense, is an expression of malice, saying you are incapable of anything good and have no worth as a human being (worthy of any punishment or harm I may inflict)

To brand someone a fool in this biblical sense was a violation so devastating, causing so much harm to the human soul, that Jesus says it justifies sending someone to hell (Gehenna – Lake of Fire). Jesus is saying it’s not possible for people with such attitudes toward others to live in the Kingdom of God


Important lessons to be learned

These are not three more points or rules on a list to be avoided. And it’s not about avoiding saying the word, “Raca” or “You fool!” If it were, we could find hundreds of ways of getting around them!

Jesus is dealing with the source of the issue of anger; what kind of people we are to become by being transformed by His love. For if we let Jesus deal with our heart, we will automatically do what’s right in a given situation…we don’t need a list of rules to govern how we will act (we “fulfill the Law” in our heart)

The point is that we learn to see people as Jesus sees them. Jesus is giving us a revelation of the preciousness of the human soul…what He died for…

This is what we pray in the “Love” part of the FELLOWSHIP prayer…(quoting) “Father, I agree with Jesus’ command and prophecy in Matt.22:39 that I will love others. Let me abound in love by seeing what You see and feeling what You feel about others.”

Finally, Jesus gives us a “therefore…” giving us two illustrations in how this kingdom heart would play out in real life situations…


The illustrations

The first illustration: reconciling with those angry with you.

Matt.5:23-24 “Therefore, if you are offering your gift at the altar and there remember that your brother has something against you, 24 leave your gift there in front of the altar. First go and be reconciled to your brother; then come and offer your gift.”

In this illustration, Jesus places the importance of reconciling with someone who’s angry with you over your ritual worship. This value goes all the way back to the Old Testament prophets.

Hos.6:6 "For I desire mercy and not sacrifice, and the knowledge of God more than burnt offerings”

But remember, this is an illustration…not about what we do before worship, it’s about the priority of reconciliation (in any situation)

Notice that Jesus doesn’t say, if he is worthy, or if he’s willing to be reconciled…He says, “First go and be reconciled…”

The point is that winning an argument or getting your way is not as important as showing God’s agape love. This kind of love always acts in the best interest of those we love…

Likewise, the second illustration is found in verses 25-26, which is reconciling with a legal adversary.

Matt.5:25-26 “Settle matters quickly with your adversary who is taking you to court. Do it while you are still with him on the way, or he may hand you over to the judge, and the judge may hand you over to the officer, and you may be thrown into prison. 26 I tell you the truth, you will not get out until you have paid the last penny.”

Jesus is not saying that we should always give in to the demands of our adversary…He is saying that agape love for them will determine how we should respond…what’s in their best interests?

Sometimes, not giving them what they want is what’s best for them. What we ask ourselves is, have I done all I can to love them?


Conclusions

Jesus is showing us how to respond without bitterness, hostility, and a merciless drive to win.

Matt.22:39 “You shall love your neighbor as yourself…”

You see, if it’s about being right and winning, we don't understand what Jesus is talking about here…

Jesus is showing us that the goodness of merely “not murdering” placed side by side with this “Kingdom goodness” of the heart looks quite empty

And the aim of the illustrations are to bring us to terms with what’s in our heart and, simultaneously, to show us the “rightness” of the Kingdom heart.
 
 To hear the entire message, download complete notes and hear a portion of the live worship, click here...
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October 13, 2009
Returning the Hearts of the Fathers to the Children
Mel Wild @ Oct 13, 2009 08:05 PM
 Message given at Cornerstone Church on 10/04/09

Mal.4:5-6 “Behold, I will send you Elijah the prophet before the coming of the great and dreadful day of the LORD. And he will turn the hearts of the fathers to the children, and the hearts of the children to their fathers, lest I come and strike the earth with a curse.”

I want to share some things about what the speaker, Pastor Jim Machen shared with us at the men’s retreat…and give my own thoughts on what the Lord is doing…

NOTE: This particular passage is ultimately speaking about “Elijah’s” role before the Lord returns to destroy God’s enemies (Armageddon campaign) and establish His Kingdom in fullness on the earth (called the “Great and dreadful day of the Lord.”). John the Baptist fulfilled this forerunner role at Jesus’ first coming (which established the kingdom in part, or spiritually); but there is a greater fulfillment before Jesus’ second coming when the Kingdom comes in fullness. And part of this “Elijah” ministry is how God is going to bring the generations together.

One thing that deeply impacted me about this weekend is that it confirmed what God has already given me—a mandate to facilitate the raising up of the next generation of leaders. So when I show you a video we saw, you will probably understand how it affected me.

1 Pet.5:8 "Be sober, be vigilant; because your adversary the devil walks about like a roaring lion, seeking whom he may devour."

Before I show this video, I want you remember that the Bible refers to the devil as a roaring lion seeking whom he may devour.” This metaphor is very evident in this film… I want you to watch carefully and think about these things…

VIDEO (Battle at Kruger) NOTE: To watch this 8-minute video on You Tube (click on link)
 
I want you to notice who the lions went after…the young…


Will we fight for our “young ones?”

I shared some of these statistics last time…

Barna (2009) “Less that 0.5% of those aged 18 to 23 – have a biblical worldview” (which means, over 99.5% don’t have a biblical worldview)

Barna (2006) "Three out of every four teenagers have engaged in at least one type of psychic or witchcraft-related activity”

So, we have less than a half-percent of our future generation with biblical values, but 75% dabbling with the occult…what direction do you think that’s going to go!

Here’s a question Barna research asked this group in 2008…

“Hey, 18-25 year-olds, what did you do last week?”
   64%...I cussed in public
   38%...I hooked up (illicit sex)
   37%...I lied
   34%...I viewed pornography
   26%...I gossiped
   25%...I got drunk
   12%...I retaliated

Barna also said in this report that adults 18-25 are nine times more likely to engage in these behaviors than Baby Boomers (born before 1964)

Barna also makes some comments in this report that bears repeating…listen carefully…

(Barna) "We are witnessing the development and acceptance of a new moral code in America" …"Mosaics” (18-25) have had little exposure to traditional moral teaching and limited accountability for such behavior. The moral code began to disintegrate when the generation before them - the Baby Busters - pushed the limits that had been challenged by their parents - the Baby Boomers. The result is that without much fanfare or visible leadership, the U.S. has created a moral system based on convenience, feelings, and selfishness.”

"The consistent deterioration of the Bible as the source of moral truth has led to a nation where people have become independent judges of right and wrong, basing their choices on feelings and circumstances. It is not likely that America will return to a more traditional moral code until the nation experiences significant pain from its moral choices."

So here’s the question for us to think about as parents and grandparents…


Are we teaching and protecting our kids from the “lions?”

Or do they know more about Ronald McDonald, the latest, hottest video games, Harry Potter, and Twilight than they do about the Bible and Jesus Christ?

   No wonder 75% of teens are dabbling in the occult!

   And this is everybody’s problem, not just the parent’s…we are all a family here.

Here’s the problem stated in the quote I just gave…

(Barna) “…The result is that without much fanfare or visible leadership, the U.S. has created a moral system based on convenience, feelings, and selfishness.”

   We have our “electronic babysitters”…the TV, video games, and latest Disney movie…

But will we take the time to teach them about the “lions?” What worldview are our children learning from these things they spend hours of their lives on?

And Sunday school won’t be enough because the culture won’t teach it to them…besides the church environment, they will mainly learn at home. I know this sounds hard…but our children’s lives are at stake! Desperate times call for desperate measures!


To the “herd” (the family of God – the church)

We are to raise up your children in the way of the Lord, not the world.

Eph.6:4 “And you, fathers (natural and spiritual), do not provoke your children to wrath, but bring them up in the training and admonition of the Lord.”


What about us “older buffalo?”

We’ve talked about the parents but what about us older, 50-plus “buffalos?” Do we just kick back and retire? We don’t care about what happens to generations after us in the church? That’s “somebody else’s problem?

Retirement is not biblical! (It was made up in the 1930’s). Listen to Jesus’ indictment to someone who had such a “take your ease” attitude…

Luke 12:19-21 “And I will say to my soul, “Soul, you have many goods laid up for many years; take your ease  (in other words, retire); eat, drink, and be merry.”’ But God said to him, ‘Fool! This night your soul will be required of you; then whose will those things be which you have provided?’ “So is he who lays up treasure for himself, and is not rich toward God.”

First of all, we need to repent from the American version of comfort and selfishness that retirement is for us to store up our treasures for ourselves and take our ease from ministry…and return to the Bible! Jesus holds us accountable.

Now, we can retire from our job or business. It’s not talking about that. We’re talking about ministry here, serving the Kingdom of God and our responsibility to the next generations.

In the West, we have produced this arbitrary thing called “retirement,” meaning, I will take my ease from everything. And in the body of Christ it’s the same. Who cares about the next generation…that’s somebody else’s problem now…I’m going to Florida! (or insert your favorite retirement location)

In the Old Testament, the 50-plus priests no longer served on the front lines, but they were the mentors and counselors. They helped the younger priests to learn how to serve… (John wrote Revelation when he was in his 90’s!)

Why is this important? It’s the older generation has more freedom to minister, more money to support, has more of life’s wisdom to share…but it’s NOT so you can squander it spending on yourself! God holds us older generation accountable with what we do with those in our care (under 50)

And the younger generations need more than your money…they need your time, your leadership…it’s not a time to check out! Beloved, this is NOT a time to sit back and take your ease! The stakes are too high.

The older generation needs to mentor the next generation so they can disciple our “young ones.”

2 Tim.2:2 "And the things that you have heard from me among many witnesses, commit these to faithful men who will be able to teach others also.“ (Note that this is showing four levels of discipleship.)


And one more thing we can learn from this film…

Stay in the “herd!”

There is safety in the local body; the enemy picks off the loners. We need to be safely tucked in the local body of Christ more than ever. It is our pride (or ignorance of the danger) that isolates us from the local body of believers in the church (Prov.18:1).

If you remember, even the biggest buffalo ran away from the lions by themselves…it was only in the mass numbers of the herd that they overcame their fear to save the baby. If we are going to successfully navigate these treacherous times we are living in, we need each other!

Now, back to the men’s retreat… We took idea of the hearts of the fathers to the children and the children to the fathers to “heart” (you might say!) So, the question remains…


Will we answer the call? Mal.4:6

Will we make the commitment to raise up and protect the next generations from the lions and teach them how to do the same? (2 Tim.2:2). Will we take the time and think about them?

NOTE: Testimonies from several of the men can be heard on the audio portion.

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October 3, 2009
A New Paradigm for Obedience
Mel Wild @ Oct 3, 2009 12:22 AM
From Kingdom Living 101 - Part Ten. Message given on 9/20/09

Matt.5:17-20 (NLT) “Don’t misunderstand why I have come. I did not come to abolish the law of Moses or the writings of the prophets. No, I came to accomplish their purpose. 18 I tell you the truth, until heaven and earth disappear, not even the smallest detail of God’s law will disappear until its purpose is achieved. So if you ignore the least commandment and teach others to do the same, you will be called the least in the Kingdom of Heaven. But anyone who obeys God’s laws and teaches them will be called great in the Kingdom of Heaven. 20 “But I warn you—unless your righteousness is better than the righteousness of the teachers of religious law and the Pharisees, you will never enter the Kingdom of Heaven!”

This is a critically important part of the Sermon on the Mount because it is so misunderstood, distorted, or ignored. We, Charismatics (who believe in the fullness of the Spirit and the gifts are for today) always like to point to how free we are in Christ…that we are “Spirit-filled,” Spirit led…While there is truth to that, what it really amounts to is lawlessness and a renegade form of obedience to Christ…

In other words, “I’m free from the Law which means I can do whatever I want and still be a Christian and no one can tell me what do…” many call that “being led by the Spirit.”

This paradigm is very popular in America today, which is why so many self-proclaimed Christians are not even attending a church service nor are they part on any local expression of the body of Christ…

But Jesus had a very different view about obedience than what’s popular today…

“But I warn you—unless your righteousness is better than the righteousness of the teachers of religious law and the Pharisees, you will never enter the Kingdom of Heaven!” Matt.5:20

So we need to understand how this works…what the Law means to us and what it doesn’t mean…


Jesus equates lawlessness with not knowing Him

Matt.7:21-23 “Not everyone who says to Me, ‘Lord, Lord,’ shall enter the kingdom of heaven, but he who does the will of My Father in heaven. Many will say to Me in that day, ‘Lord, Lord, have we not prophesied in Your name, cast out demons in Your name, and done many wonders in Your name?’ And then I will declare to them, ‘I never knew you; depart from Me, you who practice lawlessness!’"

This is why the “sinner’s prayer” can create a false sense of security…it separates obedience and knowing Christ from true salvation. And why you can’t judge a person’s relationship with Christ by their outward ministry.


The New Testament equates lawlessness with not knowing Christ

1 John 1:6 “If we say that we have fellowship with Him, and walk in darkness, we lie and do not practice the truth.”

1 John 2:3-4 “Now by this we know that we know Him, if we keep His commandments. 4 He who says, “I know Him,” and does not keep His commandments, is a liar, and the truth is not in him.”

1 John 2:5-6 “But whoever keeps His word, truly the love of God is perfected in him. By this we know that we are in Him. He who says he abides in Him ought himself also to walk just as He walked.”

James 3:19-20 “You believe that there is one God. You do well. Even the demons believe—and tremble! But do you want to know, O foolish man, that faith without works is dead?”


False Teaching on Grace

Grace has been perverted (by some popular teachers) to excuse staying in sin instead of being the power to live a godly life.

Titus 2:11-12 “For the grace of God that brings salvation has appeared to all men, teaching us that, denying ungodliness and worldly lusts, we should live soberly, righteously, and godly in the present age”

In other words, we need grace to fulfill the Law until heaven and earth pass away (Matt.5:20)

Lawlessness is the spirit of antichrist.

2 Thess.2:7-8 “For the mystery of lawlessness is already at work...8 And then the lawless one will be revealed…”

Increased lawlessness is a sign of the end (Close to return of Christ)

Matt.24:12 “And because lawlessness will abound, the love of many will grow cold.”

2 Thess.2:3 "Let no one deceive you by any means; for that Day will not come unless the falling away comes first…”


The Falling Away… (2 Thess.2:3)

Let’s look at our current condition as the Church and see the trends according to Barna research…the findings are pretty alarming…

Barna (2009) “9% of self-described American Christians have a biblical world view; 19% of “born again” Christians”

Barna (2006) "Although large majorities of the public claim to be "deeply spiritual" and say that their religious faith is "very important" in their life, only 15% of those who regularly attend a Christian church ranked their relationship with God as the top priority in their life.”

Barna (2006) "The notion of personal holiness has slipped out of the consciousness of the vast majority of Christians. While just 21% of adults consider themselves to be holy, by their own admission large numbers have no idea what "holiness" means and only one out of every three (35%) believe that God expects people to become holy.”

And, btw, in case you “have no idea,” here’s what it means…Holiness (Gr. Hagiasmos) "consecration, purification, sanctification. To live set apart for Christ in heart and lifestyle.

Heb.12:14 "Follow peace with all men, and holiness, without which no man shall see the Lord."

But the future looks even bleaker for biblical values…(shared before)

Barna (2009) “Less that 0.5% of those aged 18 to 23 – have a biblical worldview”

Barna (2006) "Three out of every four teenagers have engaged in at least one type of psychic or witchcraft-related activity”

So, we have less than a half-percent of our future generation with biblical values, but 75% dabbling with the occult…what direction do you think that’s going to go!

There is a departure from loving the Truth, which is setting up the world, and possibly many professing Christians, for the Antichrist…

2 Thess.2:9-12 “The coming of the lawless one is according to the working of Satan...10 and with all unrighteous deception among those who perish, because they did not receive the love of the truth, that they might be saved. 11 And for this reason God will send them strong delusion, that they should believe the lie, 12 that they all may be condemned who did not believe the truth but had pleasure in unrighteousness.”

This is why we’re having to defend sin issues today like homosexuality and people living together who are not married…when just 50 years ago, no one questioned these biblical truths… people departing from the truth in an accelerated way.

And we have false teachers and Internet sites trying to show that they are not wrong…it’s a strong delusion…and many will end up in hell because of it.

Listen…if you don’t learn to love the truth, in the coming days you will be deceived…the deception will be so strong as we approach the end.


So…what does Jesus mean here?

Matt.5:17-18 (NLT) “Don’t misunderstand why I have come. I did not come to abolish the law of Moses or the writings of the prophets. No, I came to accomplish their purpose. 18 I tell you the truth, until heaven and earth disappear, not even the smallest detail of God’s law will disappear until its purpose is achieved.”

The Law is the representation and nature of the person of God—which Christ demonstrated perfectly (Matt.5:17)

Question…Did Christ end the Law of does it end in Him?

Rom.10:4 “For Christ is the end of the law for righteousness to everyone who believes.”

“End” (dictionary) = "to constitute the most outstanding or greatest possible example…”

The Greek work for “end” is telos = "the end to which all things relate, the aim, purpose."

So, the answer is, NO, the Law was not eliminated with Jesus…it finds its ultimate end in Him! He is the ONLY law-keeper…the source of righteousness and how we obey God…


The difference is where the obedience comes from

Rom.10:3 “For they being ignorant of God’s righteousness, and seeking to establish their own righteousness, have not submitted to the righteousness of God…”

Means trying to earn God’s favor is self-righteousness and rebellion to God…missing God’s grace

Heb.8:10 “For this is the covenant that I will make with the house of Israel after those days, says the LORD: I will put My laws in their mind and write them on their hearts…” (Quoting Jer.31:31)

So, God’s new covenant with Israel, and with us through Christ, is not doing away with the moral Law, but allowing God’s righteousness to live out in us! (To have a heart to obey)


Legalism vs. Walking in the Spirit

I will list several points of distinction here…

Both look almost exactly the same in many ways on the outside. Both will pray, read their Bible, tithe, pray, fast, do good works. The Pharisees did all these things yet they didn’t know Jesus.

But one is effective and the other is not! Legalism is full of rules and death, frustration, and guilt…

And the difference is not “law vs. no law.” Again, Christ didn’t do away with obedience…

Here’s the difference…

Legalism is trying to attain righteousness by the Law from the outside-in… (by our works)

Walking in the Spirit is fulfilling the Law from the inside-out! (by the Spirit)


The Purpose of the Law

First, the Law first convicts us of sin and shows us the utter futility of attaining righteousness by our good works (Rom.10:3)

The Law leads us to Christ (Gal.3:24), causing the surrender of our will to Him, which always leads to “incarnating” His righteousness in our lifestyle (increases as we grow in grace.

There is no such thing as a “lawless Christian;” that would be a contradiction in terms!

1 John 2:3-4 “Now by this we know that we know Him, if we keep His commandments. He who says, “I know Him,” and does not keep His commandments, is a liar, and the truth is not in him.”

How do we walk in obedience?

Some practical points…

We fulfill the Law through agape love.

Gal.5:14 "For all the law is fulfilled in one word, even in this: “You shall love your neighbor as yourself.”

And we can only do this by staying “connected” (abiding) by the Spirit (Gal.5:16), receiving God’s love for us (John 15:9), and out of the overflow, loving others like God loves them. This is why I spend so much time teaching on understanding how God infinitely loves you…having daily devotion in His Word and prayer…that’s the source…and from connecting with Christ, we become like Him!


Three phases of growing in grace

Phase One: The Lord convicts us (resistance, rationalization)

If we’re like most people, at first, we say, “No” to the conviction…We figure out a way where it doesn’t mean what God wants it to mean to us. Where we can keep doing what we’re doing, even though the Word of God testifies against us…That’s called conviction

But, hopefully, the Spirit finally breaks through and we come to the next phase…

Phase Two: “The heart cry” (surrender and agreement with God)

We finally agree with the Word of God and say we purpose in our heart to do it…we move to “I want to obey”…it’s called setting of the heart to obey… then, finally…

Phase Three: The “fullness” of obedience (growth, power, insight, character)

Significant obedience in our life in that area (Being brought to maturity or “perfection”) But still not 100%...it’s most of the time…

This is called “growing in grace.” This is the way Jesus was talking about…

IMPORTANT! When our heart is saying “yes” (Phase two) but we haven’t yet walked out the substantial obedience (we don’t have the follow-through 100%), we’re still sincere in the Lord’s eyes

God’s favor does not depend on total victory but on our total commitment. This understanding is CRITICAL to our growth and spiritual health; to know that God is smiling at us when we’re seriously pursuing Him. Then we will walk in greater truth and greater joy and freedom! (John 8:31-32). Amen.


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October 1, 2009
Dealing with Unforgiveness
Mel Wild @ Oct 1, 2009 11:49 PM
 Message given at Cornerstone Church on 9/13/09

I shared parts of this message two years ago but felt we need to cover this area again. We’ve been talking about being in a battle with principalities and powers. And unforgiveness is one major area in the body of Christ where we’ve given the enemy a foothold, which I will cover today…

What is unforgiveness?

Unforgiveness is when you continue to hold anger against a person or group who hurt you (either imagined or real) long after the offense. So sustained anger and unforgiveness are essentially the same thing.

Why should I forgive?

Because when you don’t forgive others from your heart, you go to “jail!” And holding on to unforgiveness is like drinking poison and expecting the other person to die!

Hanging onto anger opens the door to Satan…

Eph.4:26-27 “In your anger do not sin": Do not let the sun go down while you are still angry, and do not give the devil a foothold.”

First, notice that the Bible says it’s okay to be angry or offended…as long as you deal with it before the sun goes down! But if we go to sleep on our anger (continue to stay angry), the next conversation we will have is with the devil.

Another scripture that shows Satan’s hand in unforgiveness… (Interestingly, it’s right after the “weapons of our warfare…taking thoughts captive…2 Cor.10:3-5)

2 Cor.2:10-11 “Now whom you forgive anything, I also forgive. For if indeed I have forgiven anything, I have forgiven that one for your sakes in the presence of Christ, lest Satan should take advantage of us; for we are not ignorant of his devices.”

It says we should not be ignorant of the enemy’s devises but many of us are! When we refuse to forgive, we are basically saying, “Satan, please come into my life!”

Jack Deere – (audio clip) A story about a woman with a problem with anger and unforgiveness
Played this clip two years ago…from a conference I attended in 2005, where the speaker, Jack Deere, relates a story about a women who had undealt with anger…(on audio recording of message)

Notice that he said these demons had a legal right to be there…you see, we are the who give Satan permission to torment us.

The Unforgiving Servant – Matt.18:21-35

(Brief overview of the story)…servant owed 10,000 Talents ($10 Million dollars today’s dollars)! Begged for mercy and was let go; but his servant owed him 100 Denarius, which is about $200…but he wouldn’t forgive his servant…So the master found out…then starting in verse 32…

Matt.18:32-33 “Then his master, after he had called him, said to him, ‘You wicked servant! I forgave you all that debt because you begged me. 33 Should you not also have had compassion on your fellow servant, just as I had pity on you?’

You see, the real problem is that we don’t understand how much we were forgiven even though we don’t deserve it… Did you hear me? We didn’t deserve forgiveness from God…

Continuing on…
“And his master was angry, and delivered him to the torturers until he should pay all that was due to him. So My heavenly Father also will do to you if each of you, from his heart, does not forgive his brother his trespasses.”

Being given to the “torturers…”

Notice what it says here…Again…it says that this unforgiving man was…“…delivered him to the torturers…“So My heavenly Father also will do to you if each of you, from his heart, does not forgive his brother his trespasses.”

Notice also that it doesn’t just say forgive, but if we don’t forgive from our hearts…

What are some of the “Torturers?”

How does this show up in our lives? (Besides anger) It shows up as boredom, anxiety, frustration, depression, powerlessness, fear, bondage, addictions, and demonic power…And it doesn’t stop there…

Unforgiveness turns into bitterness…

Which poisons everyone around you…

Heb.12:14-15 (NIV) “Make every effort to live in peace with all men and to be holy; without holiness no one will see the Lord. See to it that no one misses the grace of God and that no bitter root grows up to cause trouble and defile many.”

We are hurt by someone, but rather than resolve it, we hold on to the anger, which often turns to bitterness…then we let others know about our anger (to get them angry about it too!). In this way, we “defile” those around us.

And here’s the problem…anger often goes undetected

Anger and unforgiveness often hides or masquerades as something else…And as we heard in the story, there was no prior indication of a demonic presence behind the lady’s anger

Famous forms of anger denial…

“I’m not angry…I’m just hurt!”
   Hurt is anger held inside.

“I’m not angry…I just want things done right!”
   Which means, I’m a major control freak and really upset because some things are out of my control now…

“I’m just being honest”
   The only trouble with brutal honesty is that it’s more brutal than honest! Our real motive is to get revenge by hurting the other person.

We need revelation…

The reality is, because of my ability to deceive myself, I need the Lord to show me where I still hold anger in my heart.

Sure signs we are holding anger in our hearts

Here are some ways we can detect that we have anger hidden in our hearts…You know you’re angry or have unforgiveness when…

1. When we’re having lengthy conversations in our mind about someone who hurt us.

2. Physiological symptoms manifest when we’re around a certain person.
      Sick feelings, shortness of breath, pain, depression…

3. When we look at someone and think that they are 100% bad.
      No redeeming qualities…

4. When our reactions are totally out of proportion to an offense.
      When we scream at one of our kids for doing something inconsequential…that should tell us we’re not dealing with some anger our hearts…

5. When we want something bad to happen to someone and/or we’re glad when we hear that something bad did happen to them.
      Jesus calls that murder in the Sermon on the Mount (see Matt.5:21-22)

Is it ever okay to not forgive?

Jesus goes out of His way to answer the question in the negative...

Matt.6:12, 14, 15 "and forgive us our sins, as we have forgiven those who sin against us...14 “If you forgive those who sin against you, your heavenly Father will forgive you. 15 But if you refuse to forgive others, your Father will not forgive your sins.”

I want you to notice the obvious and meditate on it…your forgiveness from God is totally dependant on you forgiving others!

How do we know we’re free from holding anger in our hearts?

If we’re going to become like Christ, we need to see how Jesus responded to hurt and betrayal…in Matt.26, we see Jesus in the Garden, and Judas is coming to betray him…what are the first words out of Jesus’ mouth?

Matt.26:50 “But Jesus said to him, “Friend, why have you come?” Then they came and laid hands on Jesus and took Him.”

Now, you and I might say things we don’t mean, but Jesus never did…He meant those words…and He was saying them to the man who betrayed Him.

We know we’re free from anger when we truly hold no ill feelings in our hearts toward those who’ve hurt or betrayed us.

Those who hurt us most are the people we let into our hearts, those closest to us…So it may not be that easy to just let go and give it to God all at once. Sometimes, it’s like an onion, we need to peel back the layers before we get totally free (we need to keep releasing it…)

What forgiveness is not…

Having to be in the same relationship you had with that person before, especially with one who abused you or is unrepentant.

What forgiveness is…

Releasing control of that person or group, letting go of the anger in your heart and turning it completely over to Jesus.

How do we find the freedom to be able to forgive from our hearts?

How do we get out of jail so that we can live the life God meant for us? We need to see Jesus forgiving us…

Luke 23:34 “Father, forgive them, for they know not what they do…”

Here’s Jesus carrying the man who drove the nails in His hand (referring to picture)… and that man is me! That’s Jesus saying to me, Friend…”

Exercise: Pray for revelation…
Let the Lord to show you a person or a group that you need to let go of and give to God…You may not have anyone come to mind…maybe you have all your accounts settled in your relationships…that’s good…I don’t want you to try to search relationships…make something up or try to figure it out…I want you to get a clear picture of Jesus on the Cross saying, Father, forgive them, for they know not what they do…” and while you do this, let Him interrupt the vision and bring someone to mind…And if anyone comes to mind, start the process...”Father, I forgive this person right now and I release any hold on them…Father, forgive me for holding on to anger in my heart toward them…”So take a few moments now to let the Lord show you…

Prayer:
“Lord, where You’ve done that, we thank You for bringing these people to mind…let us live lives that keep short accounts…Let us out of jail now…as we let go of these people now to you…and I take authority over oppression or lies of the enemy that would try to stop this…

In the name of the Lord Jesus Christ, would You remove that influence of Satan…let your healing mercy come over us…would You make wrong things right now…in our bodies, our spirits, our minds…and our emotions…in the name of Jesus! And would You grant an impartation of the Holy Spirit to make us forgiving people…let us cultivate forgiveness by Your grace as a lifestyle…

And we know that as soon as we move from here, there’s a foul bird of the heavens wanting to snatch any seed that the Word of God has placed in our hearts today…so, for that seed You’ve sown in our hearts, would You put Your hand over our hearts and keep the enemy from getting it…
Cause it to germinate…to send out deep roots and come to full flower…
In the mighty name of the Lord Jesus Christ. Amen.”
 
 
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September 10, 2009
Understanding the Father Heart of God
Mel Wild @ Sep 10, 2009 06:40 PM
To hear the entire message, download complete notes and hear a portion of the live worship, click here...
Message given at Cornerstone Church on 9/06/09 

In this installment of what I’ve been sharing the last few weeks, I felt the need to share about the Father heart of God…I find that many Christians do not have this revelation so my hope is that you will get it today!


Jesus came to reveal the nature of the Father to us…

John 14:7-9 “If you had know Me, you would have know My Father…He who has seen Me has seen the Father”

Jesus came to reveal the Father to the human race and to offer a relationship with Him. Now, He wasn’t saying that He and the Father are the same person, but they are of the same nature and character (two persons of the triune Godhead). The way Jesus interacted and how He felt about people was exactly how the Father felt about them.

Most people understand that Jesus came to die for our sins (which is true!)…but that was not His only assignment…for He said Himself in John 17:26…

John 17:26 “I have declared to them Your name (the Father), and I will declare it…”

And this is what I want to briefly look at today…


The Holy Spirit came to reveal the nature of the Father to us…

Rom.8:15 “You have received the Spirit of adoption by whom we cry out, “Abba Father.”

The good news is, this was not only Jesus’ mission to His disciples while He was on the earth 2,000 years ago, but He also sent the Holy Spirit to US so we could understand the Father’s heart.

“Abba” literally means “Papa.” It is term of endearment; respectful yet affectionate and intimate. The Holy Spirit is the “Spirit of adoption living in us who wants to give us an “Abba” revelation of Father God!


A New Paradigm of God

Understand that Jesus totally changed the way people looked at God. The Jews only understood the distant and unapproachable transcendent God of Genesis.

Philip said, “Show us the Father, and it is sufficient for us…” (John 14:8) They had no context for God other than one who was distant and transcendent.

The tragedy is, many Christians today only have this revelation of a distant unapproachable God. They live a “disconnected” form of Christianity; distant and filled with form and ritual but lacking the profound interaction of intimacy with God’s heart that is available to them every day.

But Jesus and the Holy Spirit came to reveal the tender, compassionate and a loving Father who desires intimacy with us; One we can approach with reverent confidence. Yet, most don’t see Him this way in the body of Christ.

So here’s a question for you to ponder…


Which “Father” are you coming to?

Many Christians don’t worship the Father God revealed in the Bible, but subconsciously project an image of their experience with their own earthly father (or lack thereof). We project the brokenness of our own earthly father, whether he was cross with us, abusive, controlling, distant, or just negligent…and even if we had a good father, he wasn’t perfect. All of this presents itself to us to skew our understanding of our heavenly Father.

I submit to you that many Christians are not intimate with God because they don’t understand the His true nature. And this is why so many hide from God in their weakness and brokenness, rather than hide in Him

So, we need to see God the Father in a new light…the one HE presents in His Word…because if we see Him the way Jesus described Him and demonstrated His nature, we would never be the same! In other words, we need an “Abba” revelation of the Father…


The “Abba” revelation of the Father

Rom.8:15 “You have received the Spirit of adoption by whom we cry out, “Abba Father.”

Being “adopted” biblically speaks of a legal position of privilege in which the child became an heir of the family, name, resources, and estate. And by our new position in Christ as adopted children, the Spirit convinces us that we can encounter God’s heart in a unique way as our “Abba.”

And this must begin with a revelation of the nature and depth of the Father’s love.

John 17:23 "...that the world may know that You have sent Me, and have loved them as You have loved Me.”

This means that the Father feels the same way about you as He does Jesus! Think about this…how much do you think God the Father loves Jesus? (Really think about that) How much? And then, how much does He love you? (Hint: EXACTLY the same!)

Our lives are broken and unsettled without a “stabilizing anchor” until we know the embrace of the Father as our “Abba.” Beloved, until you get this, you will not make a consistent connection with the heart of God…you will have a “religious” life with some success…but you will never have the life Jesus came to give you. And most people don’t run to God with all their heart because they don’t really know Him this way (because if you did, you would!)

And we need assurance that we are enjoyed by God even in our weakness…and that’s what I want to get to next…


The Father’s heart toward the Prodigal
   Lessons from the parables of Luke 15

Luke 15 gives us the clearest picture of the nature of the Father toward those who have drifted away from Him. First, we need to understand WHO they are written to!

All three parables are about God’s people who return to Him while still broken in their compromise and sin…
   
   - Lost Sheep (vs. 4-7)
   - Lost Coin (vs. 5-10)
   - Lost Son (vs.11-32)

Understanding these parables is critical to understanding the Father’s heart (which means the Father’s heart toward you)

The first parable in Luke 15…The lost Sheep… (see vs. 4-7)

Luke 15:4-7 “What man…having a hundred sheep…does not leave the ninety-nine…and go after the one? 5 When he has found it, he lays it on his shoulders, rejoicing…6 he calls together his friends…saying to them, “Rejoice with me, for I have found my sheep which was lost! 7 There will be more joy in heaven over one sinner who repents…”

Notice that the joy in heaven is over one of HIS SHEEP who repent and return to Him…

The next parable is the “the lost coin…” (see vs.8-10). Notice that Father God’s response is the same to those who turn to him.

Luke 15:10 “Likewise, I say to you, there is joy in the presence of the angels of God over one sinner who repents.”

Last, we get to the very popular “Prodigal Son” or “the lost Son” parable (see vs.11-32). But what many miss is that this parable is not about the prodigal son as much as it is about the nature of the Father’s love!

It reveals that the Father feels compassion over the prodigal on the day they repent…

But it also reveals how we want to put ourselves on probation, which is why we hide from God.

Like the Prodigal, after we “come to ourselves” (repent, which means to sober up from our foolishness, to be the real “us” in Christ again) we want to put ourselves on probation.

Luke 15:17 “When he came to himself, he said…18 I will arise and go to my father, and will say to him, “Father, I have sinned… 9 and I am no longer worthy to be called your son. Make me like one of your hired servants.”

This speech of his sounds all humble but it actually reeks of self-righteousness! And like the Prodigal, we make deals with God, and because of our self-righteousness, we want to somehow earn His favor instead of accepting it by faith.

Of course, this works the other way…the devil uses our innate self-righteous need to “save ourselves” to convince us we’ve gone too far…we can’t come back… (which is called a LIE!)

You don’t think this is true? I see born-again Christians do this all the time! And that’s why it makes their spiritual lives are so uneven. Why there’s so many period of broken fellowship with God.

We rehearse our probation speech…we think in our heads…”If I can just straighten up for “x” amount of days, weeks…THEN God will smile on me again…and I won’t even think about praying for people for…two weeks!” Then, after their subconscious probationary period is over, they will stick their religious heads out again with a measure of confidence (until the next time!).

And Satan is right there to help us rehearse our probation speech!

But notice how the Father will have NONE of that! Look at the Father’s response at the moment the son returned…

Luke 15:22-24 “But the father said,…”Bring out the best robe…and put a ring on his hand…23 And bring the fatted calf here and kill it, and let us eat and be merry; 24 for this my son was dead and is alive again; he was lost and now is found.” They began to be merry…”

He is saying, “Put your probation speech away…I’ve been waiting for you!”

First, notice the language…he says “my son is alive again! He had fallen away, got distracted with a lot of things in this world…but I waited…and now he’s back! It’s a language of compassion, celebration and great joy!

And I want you to notice what the Father immediately does with the son….

- The “best robe” signifies the highest honor and place of position.

- The family “ring” (signet ring) signifies full authority to sign checks, use the father’s resources.

And these were restored on the very day the son returned! No probation!

We must realize that if we think that we must earn Father God’s acceptance or favor, we have fallen from grace. We can only receive His love by faith.

Remember, God does not confuse spiritual immaturity with rebellion. He will accept our wholehearted return to Him whatever that means to us! We can be 100% obedience by simply responding to God positively in what we understand at the time. He will grow us up!

And we must not dwell in our failures but reach ahead for what God has for us! Look at what Paul says…

Phil.3:13-14 “Brethren, I do not count myself to have apprehended; but one thing I do, forgetting those things which are behind and reaching forward to those things which are ahead, 14 I press toward the goal for the prize of the upward call of God in Christ Jesus.”

This was a man smitten by the Father’s love…he got it!

And let me let you in on a little secret…you never arrive! You only learn how to reach ahead more effectively…


Everyday is a new day with Father God!

Lam.3:22-23 “Through the Lord’s mercies we are not consumed, because His compassions fail not. 23 They are new every morning…”

It doesn’t matter that you were acting like the antichrist and the false prophet when you came in here… Father God…Abba…is waiting for what you’re going to do now…today!

Where are you at with Father God today, beloved? Have you been out squandering your God-ordained destiny in prodigal living, doing “your own thing?” Have you been projecting an earthly father of your experience on your heavenly “Abba” Father? Would you like to know the Father’s heart for you? Don’t put yourself on probation. Run to Him right now! Let the Father love you and put His best robe on you and His family ring…let the celebration begin!

PRAYER
“Father God…Abba…Papa…forgive me for not fully accepting the fact that You love me like you love Jesus…and forgive me for putting myself on probation with You…for making You distant and unapproachable…but here I am today!…I will receive Your infinite love for me by faith…I’m running into Your arms…receive me, Papa…reveal Yourself to me…thank You for loving me…thank You for sending Jesus to die for my sins so that You could be my Father…I love You!...Holy Spirit…fill me now with the Father’s love…reveal the Father’s heart to me…and seal these things now in my spirit, in Jesus’ precious name I come. Amen!

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September 4, 2009
How to Be Encouraged in the Lord
Mel Wild @ Sep 4, 2009 04:07 PM
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Message given at Cornerstone Church on 8/16/09 

“…but David encouraged himself in the LORD his God.” 1 Sam.30:6 (KJV)

Introduction:
I would like to share what is basically “part three” of what God has had me share right now. First, we are to stand strong in the Lord, second, we are to know that prayer makes a difference, and today, I want to briefly talk about how to encourage yourself in the Lord (because no one else really can!) This is critical to keep ourselves strong and out of the enemy’s traps.


Finding Strength in Adversity

1 Sam.30:1-3 “David and his men reached Ziklag on the third day. Now the Amalekites had raided the Negev and Ziklag. They had attacked Ziklag and burned it, 2 and had taken captive the women and all who were in it, both young and old. They killed none of them, but carried them off as they went on their way. 3 When David and his men came to Ziklag, they found it destroyed by fire and their wives and sons and daughters taken captive. 4 So David and his men wept aloud until they had no strength left to weep. 5 David's two wives had been captured—Ahinoam of Jezreel and Abigail, the widow of Nabal of Carmel. 6 David was greatly distressed because the men were talking of stoning him; each one was bitter in spirit because of his sons and daughters. But David found strength in the LORD his God.”

First, a few observations…

Obviously, David was having a very bad day! (How many have had days that seem like this!) Everything went wrong and it was his fault. David was in great distress. He’d really messed up as a leader, even lost his own family, not to mention, everyone else’s family, too! And the people were even thinking of stoning him…(that’s a bad day!)

The reason I bring this story up is because a situation like this would destroy most people (and often does in the body of Christ)

Question: How would you respond to a situation like this? What would be your first reaction? How would you try to fix the problem? Really think about it…

Most people respond to great distress in one of three ways:

- The first way is to just go deeper into depression and despair and fall apart. (They fizzle)

- The second is to try and figure out how to take control of the problem (They fight)

- The third way is to just run away and starts over somewhere else! (They take flight)

And let me ask you another question…why do you think God allowed this to happen to David? And, of course, what we are really asking is why He allows these kinds of things to happen to US…


Where discouragement comes from

Before we go into the solution, I want to make a couple of points…

First, discouragement comes from the enemy.

1 Pet.5:8 "Be sober, be vigilant; because your adversary the devil walks about like a roaring lion, seeking whom he may devour.”

We need to know that discouragement does not come from the Lord, or by coincidence, it comes from the enemy. Not usually directly but he does have six billion people to use! He is called the “accuser of the brethren” and he wants to devour you, to make you give up.

As I shared with you a couple of weeks ago (“Stand Strong in the Lord”) Satan’s main strategy is to come between (divide) or to hinder what God has purposed for you.

Second, discouragement means that we are walking by sight, not by faith.

2 Cor.5:7 “For we walk by faith, not by sight.”

The second thing about discouragement is that if you’re discouraged and distressed you can absolutely know for certain that you are not trusting God. Of course, there is, no doubt, a very good reason for this and it can seem overwhelming, but nonetheless, the truth is, you are being driven by your circumstances and living by what you see. (And when we realize this, then we can do something about it!)

There is also a good chance that you are in self-pity and focused on yourself instead of God.

But the fact is, God is actually allowing you to fall apart so you will stop trusting in yourself! For God only allows trials and crisis to come up in our lives in order to reveal things in us that He wants to heal (and that’s encouraging!)


David’s response

Now let’s look at how David responded. He responded in two ways…

1. David decided to be encouraged.

First, when we look at David’s (second) response, we need to see that he decided to be encouraged…for there was no one else around to encourage him. Which is good news…because we don’t need to wait for others to do this for us…we can do this any time, any day!

2. David did not try to encourage himself in himself, but in God!

This should be obvious but we must bring attention to it, it’s important to see that he didn’t encourage himself in himself…but in the Lord his God. In other words, our answer in distress in not to turn inward but upward!

You see, it was not just about David, for David had a covenant with God, and that made this whole business God’s business.


How to be encouraged in the Lord

How can we apply this to our lives and be like David…a man after God’s own heart? Let’s look at seven points (of many more points that we could pick!)


1. Recognize that you don’t have to stay discouraged.

Psalm 42:5, 11; 43:5 “Why are you so downcast O my soul? Why are you so disturbed within me? Put your hope in God!”

Now, who is the psalmist talking to? He is speaking to his own soul!

Yes, you DO have a choice! It’s called believing a LIE when you think you don’t or that only a doctor can fix it.So be encouraged in the fact that you don’t have to stay discouraged!


2. Remember, like David, you have a covenant with God so it’s HIS business.

Psalm 95:7 "for He is our God and we are the people of His pasture, the flock under His care.”

He is committed to taking care of you. You need to decide to trust His Word instead of your feelings. Do you believe that? …Really?


3. Stop giving voice to your discouragement!

2 Cor.10:4-5 “.. casting down arguments and every high thing that exalts itself against the knowledge of God, bringing every thought into captivity to the obedience of Christ”

I shared this in my message, “Stand strong in the Lord,” we must learn to stop and think about what we’ve been thinking about!

2 Tim.1:7 "For God has not given us a spirit of fear, but of power and of love and of a sound mind"

Fear is from the enemy, not God. And it doesn’t belong in our lives. And when we fear, we haven’t been made perfect in love (1 John 4:17-18). This is why we need to remind ourselves the truth about how God loves us… “I am loved by God, I am a lover of God, therefore, I am already successful!” (Because it’s TRUE)

Remember, whatever you magnify gets bigger…and that’s up to you…and that leads to the fourth thing we can do…


4. Meditate on God and His Word.

Psalm 119:15-16 “I will meditate on Your precepts, and contemplate Your ways.”

Isa.26:3 (NLT) “You will keep in perfect peace...all whose thoughts are fixed on you!"

To “meditate” literally means to murmur or “move the lips” (which means reading them out loud). And your mind can only focus on one thing at a time. When you use your voice to meditate on the Scripture, it focuses your mind on what you’re reading. Why? Because you need to hear the truth for a change!

Read the FELLOWSHIP prayer out loud. THIS is your biblical “self-talk” (You can download a copy of this prayer list on our website at www.thatchurchonthehill.com on the webpage for this message).

POINT: Everyone meditates on something. But it’s usually not healthy things. So, you need to change the meditation of your heart. (And you CAN do this). This is also why a daily devotional life is so important.

Do you want peace and joy in the midst of trouble? It’s not a secret or some complicated mystery. It’s very simple. Put your focus on the right things!

Phil.4:8-9 "Finally, brethren, whatever things are true, whatever things are noble, whatever things are just, whatever things are pure, whatever things are lovely, whatever things are of good report, if there is any virtue and if there is anything praiseworthy—meditate on these things. 9 The things which you learned and received and heard and saw in me, these do, and the God of peace will be with you."


5. Run to God in worship not away from Him in your fear!

Psalm 61:1-2 "Hear my cry, O God; attend to my prayer. From the end of the earth I will cry to You, When my heart is overwhelmed; lead me to the rock that is higher than I.”

Psalm 32:7 “You are my hiding place; You shall preserve me from trouble; You shall surround me with songs of deliverance."

There is a critical mistake that many Christians make. They do the exact opposite of what would solve their real problem. We need to learn how to hide in God instead of hiding from Him.

You need to put on some worship music and begin to worship God and pray in the Spirit (tongues) and sing your heart out! Begin to thank Him for all He has given you (family, kids, salvation, live in a free country, etc.) Thank Him for all His benefits! (Psalm 103)


6. Put the full armor of God on! (Eph.6:11-18).

Eph.6:11-13 "Put on the whole armor of God, that you may be able to stand against the wiles of the devil. For we do not wrestle against flesh and blood, but against principalities, against powers, against the rulers of the darkness of this age, against spiritual hosts of wickedness in the heavenly places. Therefore take up the whole armor of God, that you may be able to withstand in the evil day, and having done all, to stand.”

Again, I discussed this in “Stand Strong in the Lord” but we have an enemy and we need to get in the fight and stop getting beat up! According to this (vs.14-18), we have the truth of God’s Word, the righteousness of Christ and the gospel of peace working on our behalf…we have the helmet of salvation, shield of faith to put out his fiery darts (lies!) the sword of the Spirit which is His Word to counteract his lies and take thoughts captive (we have to know His Word to wield it). And finally, we have prayer and supplication in the Spirit. This is why praying in our prayer language is so powerful.


7. Always remember whose strength you are seeking!

Eph.6:10 "Finally, my brethren, be strong in the Lord and in the power of His might.”

For we are not trying to be strong in ourselves, keeping the proverbial stiff upper lip, lifting ourselves up by our own bootstraps, and all that nonsense. We are learning how to find God’s strength in us! We call upon Him to be strong in us! All of our hope and focus is on Him!

Beloved, if you’re discouraged right now, be encouraged! God is trying to teach you something wonderful during this tough time. He’s trying to teach you how to run to Him, how to find your strength in Him…how to strengthen yourself in the Lord! Put these very practical points into practice and watch Him work in your life! (Even if your outward circumstances don’t change. He will change you in the midst of your circumstances!). So be strong in the Lord and in the power of HIS might! Amen.

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August 21, 2009
Stand Strong in the Lord
Mel Wild @ Aug 21, 2009 07:21 PM
 To hear the entire message, download complete notes and hear a portion of the live worship, click here...

Message given at Cornerstone Church on 8/16/09
 
Eph.6:10-13 “Finally, my brethren, be strong in the Lord and in the power of His might. 11 Put on the whole armor of God, that you may be able to stand against the wiles of the devil. 12 For we do not wrestle against flesh and blood, but against principalities, against powers, against the rulers of the darkness of this age, against spiritual hosts of wickedness in the heavenly places. 13 Therefore take up the whole armor of God, that you may be able to withstand in the evil day, and having done all, to stand.”

The book of Ephesians gives you an answer from God’s perspective about every kind of relationship…
 - The sovereignty of God and our relationship to Him
 - Our relationship to each other in the Church
 - Our relationship in the marriage, family, and work
 Then Paul moves to one more thing….our relationship to the enemy

"Finally, my brethren…" Paul is saying here, understand who we are and our relationship to each other, then after all this, he goes on to say we’re going to have to face an enemy who’s seeking to destroy all what I just told you about…he seeks to corrupt, to defile, to destroy…he wants to stop everything God is trying to establish in us

We are in a war!

Eph.6:12 “Put on the whole armor of God, that you may be able to stand against the wiles of the devil.”

And if you’re not fighting this battle you’re probably losing it!

We need to have a consciousness that we are in a war… we are the people that the devil hates and he is seeking to take advantage of our human weaknesses. Most Christians are not taught this and/or they do not live their lives as if they are in a war.

We want option “B” where we can be neutral and sit on the sidelines and avoid any spiritual conflict…but we don’t have that choice! And it’s deadly to think we can just do this. Whether we like it or not, we are in a war. This is much like the war on terror today. There is an enemy determined to cause us and the people we love harm whether we want to fight or not.

I want to share a dream I had. I rarely have dreams I remember but I can still remember this one vividly. I hadn’t thought much about it until I was doing the FELLOWSHIP prayer one day in the part where we ask for dreams, visions, etc. (Light of glory) and the Lord interrupted me and said “I gave you one…” So, I wrote it in my journal. Here’s the dream…

My dream (6/28/09) “I had a troubling dream where I was in a dark damp room that looked like either an old basement or a garage…there were shelves on the wall and I noticed what looked like large snakes (Pythons, Boa Constrictors) on the shelves but they didn’t seem to be moving. At first they looked like they were dead or fake, but then I saw them start to move…the first one slithering along the shelf and I noticed it had a big bulge as if it had eaten something. Then I saw that the other snakes were attacking and eating what looked like cats. I was afraid that they would get our cats, but to my surprise, my cat was fighting them off. Realizing the danger, I looked for something to kill the snakes with but when I went to get a weapon I looked on a table and there were several like axes, machetes, and so forth, but they were all dull. I remember being very frustrated by it…then the dream ended.”

I have prayed for the interpretation and meditated on this dream since then…and this is what I believe the Lord was showing me…

- The snakes are the enemy… (Python, etc.)

- They didn’t look like they were moving, even looking like they were fake at first, because no one was paying attention to them… and some didn’t even believe they were real.

- But they were eating “cats” who symbolized Christians…They were picking off Christians and causing them to walk away from their calling, choking out their spiritual life…eating their destiny and purpose.

- But some were fighting them off…those who were spiritually discerning...but it was still a struggle.

- The dull axes and weapons represented that our spiritual senses were not “sharpened” in discernment, not only being unaware of what the enemy was doing but also “dull” in using God’s weapons to effectively resist the attack and defeat him.

- And the tragedy was that this didn’t have to be so…for the Bible and the Holy Spirit is very clear on this, not only to help us fight off the enemy but to win!

Beloved, we are in a war! And we’re in the place like the situation after D-Day in WWII. Germany was virtually defeated at D-Day, yet in that last year or so were some of the bloodiest and fiercest battles of the war! (Battle of the Bulge, etc.) And even though Hitler was defeated, if you went strolling down some street unaware in France you very likely would get shot!

Likewise, the enemy is defeated at the Cross, but the war on this planet is NOT over! In fact, Satan knows he can’t beat God but he thinks he has a loophole…which is God commitment to our free will. And Satan wants to stay in control of planet earth through the fallen nature of man and God’s commitment to his freewill.

So Paul is saying in Ephesians 6 that this is D-Day! Stay alert! The Kingdom of God has invaded enemy territory, the enemy’s back has been broken, but the fighting is NOT over! And if we are naïve enough to think that because Jesus defeated Satan at the Cross that we don’t have to fight, we will be a casualty one way or another! But we don’t need to be a victim. That’s not God’s intent…but most Christians seem oblivious to this danger or try to hide from the battle…but either option is not healthy! (What you don’t know, or don’t want to know…WILL hurt you!)

Our enemy is NOT flesh and blood!

 Eph.6:12 “For we do not wrestle against flesh and blood, but against principalities, against powers, against the rulers of the darkness of this age, against spiritual hosts of wickedness in the heavenly places.”

Do you believe this? Really? In America we don’t like to believe this…we’re too sensible and intellectual…we don’t really believe in what we can’t see or figure out…that’s for somewhere in Africa or something like that…

You see, Satan wants us to fight flesh and blood. He wants us to fight people, churches, and political parties, ideologies…to divide and separate. The devil is always trying to point out something is wrong with someone or something else.

Paul uses an interesting word here… he says we “wrestle” You see, many take the idea of spiritual warfare and put it off somewhere out there in the far off distance…in the netherworld…but Paul says we wrestle…But you can’t get any sport that is in more direct contact than wrestling! The enemy is not “out there” somewhere…he is in our thoughts…manipulating our emotions…pulling our strings… (NOTE: by “devil” or "enemy" I mean any demonic stronghold, principality or power in Satan’s kingdom of darkness.)

He’s near enough to know our weaknesses and vulnerabilities…he will use our fear and pride against us…and he won’t quit until we give up. And in Paul’s world, people usually wrestled to the death…it was a life and death struggle. So we need to take these things seriously.

It is not my intent to teach on spiritual warfare today but to point these things out so you will fight (and win!)…and we need to at least know the nature of our enemy. But not fighting is NOT an option!

The enemy and his strategy

First of all, this is who we are fighting…
Eph.6:12 “…principalities, …powers, …the rulers of the darkness of this age,…spiritual hosts of wickedness in the heavenly places.”

We can learn a lot from the enemy’s strategy against us by looking at the devil’s name…and his kingdom does his will in these things…

Devil (Greek word diabolos) = “one who accuses, slanders, who casts either himself or something between in order to separate…”

He wants to separate you from your spouse, from other believers, to separate us from our union with God because he knows that a house divided cannot stand. He uses gossip, slander, accusations to divide and conquer…and much of the Church plays right into his hand.

Then, we have the other name for him…
Satan (Greek word satanas) = “One who opposes, adversary…”

He will also oppose the purposes of God for your life…if you have a prophetic word from God, he will oppose it…He tries to block your communication with God. He will use our past failures, false expectations, disappointments to defeat us…to make us give up.

So, the enemy seeks to divide and oppose the purpose and promises of God for your life. And this is how so many believers are being “eaten” by this adversary, yet we are supposed to be more than conquerors! (See Rom.8:37) Why do we let him do this to us?

Our weapons are mighty in God!

2 Cor.10:3-5 “For though we walk in the flesh, we do not war according to the flesh. For the weapons of our warfare are not carnal but mighty in God for pulling down strongholds, casting down arguments and every high thing that exalts itself against the knowledge of God, bringing every thought into captivity to the obedience of Christ”

I want you to notice where the battle is…it’s in our thoughts…how we believe…what we believe…about God, others, about ourselves…we must love the truth no matter how contrary it is to the culture we live in…we must learn to trust God more than man.

If we don’t know the Word of God and have a biblical worldview, we will be in some form of bondage…we will succumb to his lies…we will be “eaten…” (The opposite of John 8:31-32)

The seventy that Jesus sent out were shocked that they actually had authority over the devil! (Luke 10:17-19) Wow! It really works!

When you are attacked by these things, do YOU take authority over it in Jesus’ name? Yes, you have authority! And sometimes we have to at least start with the “Word in our mouth” before it comes out from our heart (Rom.10:8). It still works!

Having done all…stand!

Eph.6:13 “Therefore take up the whole armor of God, that you may be able to withstand in the evil day, and having done all, to stand.”

God wants us to bring to bear the weapons of the Kingdom upon the enemy to defeat him in our individual lives and corporately, but we must put on our armor! We must be armed. We don’t go to battle in Bermuda shorts and flip flops!

No matter how tough it gets, we are to stand! We don’t give up no matter what…we keep seeking, we keep on knocking, until we get a breakthrough (Matt.7:7). And we receive strength to stand by waiting on the Lord! (Isa.40:31)

Two critical keys to remember about the fight we are in…

First…and this is critical…We must fight from our position in God, not based on our current circumstances, experiences, or spiritual maturity.

Eph.2:4-6 "But God ...made us alive together with Christ...6 and raised us up together, and made us sit together in the heavenly places in Christ Jesus.“

Second, we must bring the Kingdom of God to bear on our situation!

Matt.6:10 “Your kingdom come. Your will be done on earth as it is in heaven.”

Let me ask you…is there sickness, depression, fear, anxiety in heaven? NO! We can be honest with our situation but at the same time pray for God’s Kingdom to come to bear on our situation.

Remember…you are NOT a victim; you are more than a conqueror in Christ! And whatever you magnify will get bigger! So magnify Jesus and not your situation.

Prayer:
“Heavenly Father, thank You that, through Jesus’ precious Blood, You have saved me and seated me in heavenly places with Christ, having given me mighty weapons and power to fight the enemy of my soul. (This MUST be said out loud) “In the name of Jesus Christ of Nazareth who came in the flesh, and by the power of His Blood, I take authority over…(name situation or sickness) and command it to come into line with the Kingdom of God. Let God’s Kingdom come and His will be done in (your body, family, situation, etc.) as it is done in heaven! Thank You, Father, in Jesus’ name!”

“Now, Holy Spirit, please remind me in the future to use this authority You’ve given me whenever I feel Satan’s oppression or begin to hear the “arguments” against the truth of Your Word in my thinking. Also remind me to take up Your armor (Eph.6:14-18) everyday and resist the schemes of Satan steadfast to the end (1 Pet.5:8-10), praying that Your Kingdom come and Your will be done in every situation in my life. Amen.”

Effective prayer doesn’t mean ignoring the reality of your current negative situation (sickness, oppression, etc.); it means having complete faith in God’s power to change it and proactively bringing to bear His Kingdom resources into that situation from your position of authority in Christ. And when His kingdom touches anything, disease, sickness, and oppression HAS to go! And in the meantime, remember…after having done all you know to do, to stand.
 
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