LOVING AND CARING FOR THE LORD

While we wait for the physical manifestation of Christ Jesus, how does Jesus reveal Himself on earth today? Who is Jesus on earth? The answer is two-fold - 

1. those who follow Christ, considered to be the Church of the living God and
2. the hungry, the thirsty, the lonely stranger, the unclothed, sick and imprisoned.

God prayed for unity in His twelve disciples then all believers as His representation on earth during the Church Age. 

"Sanctify them by the truth; your word is truth. As you sent me into the world, I have sent them into the world. For them I sanctify myself, that they too may be truly sanctified.

Jesus Prays for All Believers

My prayer is not for them alone. I pray also for those who will believe in me through their message, that all of them may be one, Father, just as you are in me and I am in you. May they also be in us so that the world may believe that you have sent me. I have given them the glory that you gave me, that they may be one as we are one— I in them and you in me—so that they may be brought to complete unity. Then the world will know that you sent me and have loved them even as you have loved me." (John 17:17-23)

Not only are we The Lord's body represented here on earth, but we are also His care and compassion stretched forth to those hurting in life. And those hurting in life are Christ also. Jesus desires to minister to His own suffering people - He paid the price for All, not just some. In empathizing with them, being with them and leading us to them - The Body of Christ on earth can and will grow larger and stronger. Jesus says in Matthew 25:35-36, "For I was hungry and you gave me something to eat, I was thirsty and you gave me something to drink, I was a stranger and you invited me in, I needed clothes and you clothed me, I was sick and you looked after me, I was in prison and you came to visit me." Christ works on "Both Sides of the Tracks" to grow His kingdom. 

The second we stop loving and caring for the hungry, thirsty, stranger, unclothed, sick imprisoned and one of the least of our brothers or sisters is the moment we stop growing individually, corporately and Loving And Caring For The Lord. 

THE MANNA HIDDEN BY FAITH

Ever heard a song that you have not heard in a while and exclaimed - "Wow! That was great! I really missed that song. I have not heard that one in a while."? I usually proceed to play that song many times over. 

Have you ever met back up with a friend you have not seen in a while and said, "Man! I have really enjoyed hooking back up with you and spending this time together. I missed this." I have done this, not because of purposeful neglect, but life. I also find myself afterward trying to schedule more time with that person. 

And have you ever stayed away from a certain food by chance only to find out how much you miss it when you come upon it as an ingredient in a dish at a restaurant or such? I have and then I start craving that food regularly.

We, as Christians, need to be diligent about our quality time spent with The Lord. I am guilty of neglect in this area. For whatever reason, I will get distracted from meeting with The Lord - for a purposeful, meaningful, one-on-one time-frame. Then the next time I enter my office to meet with Him, I find myself literally shaking from the starvation of my spiritman. And I find myself saying something like - "Lord, being in your presence is wonderful again, but help me not to wait so long to have these times of refreshments and consultations. They are taxing on my spiritman."

The Lord provides help in the in-between times and I am eternally grateful. Jesus said to John in Revelation 2:17 - 

• "...To him that overcomes will I give to eat of the hidden manna..."

While the definition of the word "overcomes" has a finality over its opponents about it, the tense of the word is continual. The first part of this verse could read - To him or her that will continually overcome or be victorious...

"It isn't acceptable to win a single battle but then lose the war because of a slack, unguarded attitude. Christ was calling on believers to continuously remain victorious. He was admonishing them, as He does each of His children up to the present day, to be permanently and consistently undeterred in their efforts to overcome and to obtain a lasting victory over sin in their lives." (p. 773, Sparkling Gems from the Greek 2, Renner)  

The second part of this equation is the promise that comes from being persistent in our overcoming, in our victorious living - "I [Christ] will give to eat of the hidden manna." The Manna is angel's food, it is literal bread and it is Christ Himself. The Manna is Provision from God, whether it be sustenance for the body, mind or spirit. "...for the children of Israel, this miracle was an everyday event that occurred for 40 years. In fact, an entire generation of young children was born during that time period who grew up thinking it was normal for 4,500 tons of manna to appear each morning out of thin air (see Exodus 16:35)!" (p. 776-777, Sparkling Gems from the Greek 2, Renner) But now, "we live by faith, not by sight" (2 Cor. 5:7).

Russ Taff sang a song called - Table In The Wilderness. This analogy rings so true. However, Christ's Table can not only be found in our times of struggle, but also on a daily basis at a regular meal-time or meet-time schedule. "There is a divine supply of provision for us---a supernatural, heavenly touch---that will replenish and strengthen us, enabling us to overcome the most difficult circumstances. But we must continually draw near to His table and eat the heavenly 'bread' He has set before us [His presence and His Word]." (p.777, Sparkling Gems from the Greek 2, Renner) Today we may not see so plainly about things, but one day we shall see perfectly clear (1 Cor. 13:12). Until that day, we must continually persist in our overcoming, remembering and claiming the promise of provision in The Manna Hidden By Faith.

WHEN OUR HANDS ARE FULL

I have given up. I had a dream once. It started my junior year in High School. From those years until recently I had bouts of depression about this unfulfilled dream in my life. I truly thought this was a God-given path for my life. I heard sermons and teachings about hold on to the dreams God has given you, but now I was well past that point.

It's funny, you hear one preach - hold on to the promises of God and then you hear another preach - surrender everything to The Lord. What am I supposed to do - hold on or let go? Plus, these sermons usually come one right behind the other. Some time ago I decided to surrender my dreams to God - I decided to let go. 

I say this as a consideration, not as a certainty for everyone, maybe your dream is really your dream for your life and not God's. In Matthew 10:39, Jesus says, "whoever loses their life for my sake will find it." "The word 'loses' was translated from the Greek word apollumni, which mean to release--as to release one's rights to something. But the key is not just forfeiting your own dreams and desires, but rather doing it 'for Jesus' sake'." (p.767, Sparkling Gems From the Greek 2, Rick Renner)

We all have preconceived ideas of how we think our lives should go. Those ideas usually turn into big dreams. In my situation - I put my dream on God and demanded a narrow scope of a certain career from Him when The Lord had so much more in store for me. Mr. Rick Renner had a similar experience and came to the conclusion - "to receive what He desired to give, we first had to release what we were holding on to and surrender to what He wanted to do in and through us." (p.768, Sparkling Gems From the Greek 2, Renner) Yes, I would go to school, receive my degree and enter the workforce in my field of study, but I have not lived out my dream. 

However, recently when I surrendered my dream to Him and His sake and/or His cause, the The Lord has been revealing that my education, work experiences and relationships have all been to set me up for His Plan, to fulfill His Dream for my life. Believers need to make sure they are believing in the promises of God, found in His Word, and not displace their own promises, found in our own plannings and imaginations, through The Lord. God's favor, promises, plan and dreams for our lives are hard to hold - When Our Hands Are Full.

ROOTS AND ICEBERGS

I have an analogy for us today. A tree has many roots, but then the roots themselves have a plethora of branches off of them. The tree receives the nutrients needed to live from its root system. If there is toxic soil that the shoot-offs of one root soak up, then the root will become polluted and eventually the tree will become contaminated. So, not only is the planting of a tree in good soil important, but the tree cannot continue to focus on the healing of one root. The problem here becomes one of neglecting or overbearing the other roots to compensate for the ailing one and create an unhealthy balance in its root system.

We are the trees in life. We have many roots that support our lifestyle, but some roots are well known for being a catcher of  all our attention and a leader to all sorts of suffering in our lives. Roots can be very similar to Icebergs. You can see the top of both and be enticed by what is on the surface, but there is so much more beneath the Root and the Iceberg that could be potentially harmful. In writing his first letter to Timothy, Paul instructs his young protege - "Those who want to get rich fall into temptation and a trap and into many foolish and harmful desires that plunge people into ruin and destruction. For the love of money is a root of all kinds of evil. Some people, eager for money, have wandered from the faith and pierced themselves with many griefs. But you, man of God, flee from all this, and pursue righteousness, godliness, faith, love, endurance and gentleness. Fight the good fight of the faith. Take hold of the eternal life to which you were called when you made your good confession in the presence of many witnesses." (1 Timothy 6:9-12)

Notice that having money or even lots of it is not the problem - the issue is the obsession of money, "Those who want to get rich" and "the love of money" as their constant focus. This continual focus becomes "a root of all kinds of evils" that drains the rest of our root system - family, friends, faith, etc... down with it.

The Answer is Christ as our "streams of water". Psalm 1:1-3 says, "Blessed is the one who does not walk in step with the wicked or stand in the way that sinners take or sit in the company of mockers, but whose delight is in the law of the Lord, and who meditates on his law day and night. That person is like a tree planted by streams of water, which yields its fruit in season and whose leaf does not wither— whatever they do prospers."

Our part now should be to turn Psalm 1:1-3 into a sincere prayer to The Lord. When we approach Him wholeheartedly on this subject, His Word promises - 

1. we will yield fruit in season (character type of fruit)
2. our leaf will not wither (our strength, peace and outward appearance will not fade) and
3. our works or deeds will be blessed like Joseph.

If we, as trees, are stationed by Christ's living water - His Word and Holy Spirit - with all our roots going down to receive their nourishment from Him, then the whole root system will be healthy and the whole tree will be prosperous. 

In the second part of the 1 Timothy 6 passage, Paul does not leave us hanging, but supplies us with what kinds of roots we should have. Paul says, But you, man of God, flee from all this, and pursue righteousness, godliness, faith, love, endurance and gentleness. Fight the good fight of the faith. Take hold of the eternal life to which you were called when you made your good confession in the presence of many witnesses."

Everything that we consider as grounding in our lives, as important for living - finances, family, friends, food, and so forth - needs to be nurtured with the flow or direction of The Holy Spirit. If our roots get nourishment from anywhere else we endanger the whole tree. So, always consider The Source of nourishment in every root of every root system, especially your own - Roots And Icebergs.