WHENEVER I HEAR HIS NAME

Have you ever grinned and felt good all over when you heard a certain person's name mentioned? Usually that kind of response comes from a personal relationship with the named. In the movie "The Lion, The Witch And The Wardrobe" the lion's name, Aslan, has this impact on the children. I have a handful of people around me that garner that type of reaction from me. But there is another person that does as well - God, in particular, God's Son - Jesus.

Jesus has done so much for me that title after title has to be named to describe our relationship. I know Him as Healer, Deliverer, Provider, Protector, Giver, Teacher, Counselor and Lover of my soul. Yet, what moves me most is knowing Him as Jesus, Yeshua - The Lord or Master Who Saves.

Just within His name we have definition. There were others named "yeshua" in the days of my Lord, but no one was like Jesus of Nazareth. Notice Jesus does not have a last name. He has a location that identifies Him. He has parents that identify Him. But He was supernaturally born and the Patriarch has one name - God.

Because of my Savior's redemptive sacrifice of Himself for my eternal relationship, I call God - Father. Jesus creates all the blessings for me. Jesus sustains me. Jesus teaches me and leads me. Jesus personalizes everything. He is The Way, The Truth and The Life. Jesus is The Door, The Doorway and The Hinge all in one. 

As this avenue to Father God, Jesus provides and allows a bold and confident approach to The Throne of the Almighty. The Holy Spirit instructed Paul to encourage the believers in Ephesus with this word -"In whom we have boldness and access with confidence by the faith of Him." (Ephesians 3:12;KJV) The New International Version states it like this - "In him and through faith in him we may approach God with freedom and confidence."

Because of my certainty in my right-standing with Father God through Christ, I have a Rock Solid foundation to stand on. He is the one who has made the promises. He is the one who has paid the price. I will not worry. I will not fret. I will not be anxious about anything, but in every situation, by prayer and petition, with thanksgiving, I will present my requests to God (Philippians 4:6). He provides the favor and plan of God for my life. And it makes my soul smile and my spirit feel good all over Whenever I Hear His Name.

GOD, THE GREAT INSTALLER

We need to trust in God's programming for our lives. When we come into this world, we automatically arrive with infected programming. But God has Virus Ware - Salvation 3.0 that He has purchased for everyone, we just have to choose to Run it. Some accept and Run the original programming - Rebel 0.0 - with eternal consequences. But if the decision is made to Trash the original programming, use God's Virus Ware and install New Creation 7.0, then there are benefits eternal. The only thing that remains is to receive a hardware upgrade - Rapture 1.0 - some time in the near future.

Looking at God as our Programmer/Installer, a summary of Psalm 139 states -

1. God knows us better than we know ourselves.
2. His presence in our lives is inescapable.
3. God saw who we would be and what we would look like in His mind's eye long before creating us.
4. God's creative "Workshop" for all that makes us who we are was our mother's womb.
5. "If only you, God, would..." was a phrase even David, in the midst of all this awe and wonder of God's control over his life had at least one of. "If only..." is a non-understanding phrase.
6. Yet, David sets the example by surrendering to God's probing, testing, gutting out and leadership.

I have surrendered to Christ's programming of my life. However, just like David, I too have a "If only you, God, would...." in the middle of my admiration for Him as Programmer, Installer or Creator. My lack of understanding has to do with the healing of a lot of dear people in my life. The immediacy which I expect from God is not immediate enough in my book. I see few instances in Scripture where Jesus delayed His compassionate action, usually a healing. I have prayed until I don't know what words to use to explain the situation or try to entreat God's heart and hands to the circumstances. 

Yet, what I am going to do? I can attest of miracles in my life and testify to God's track record of leading, guiding and directing me in His ways. The moments of not understanding are hard and frustrating. I do not ask God for Omniscience (all-knowingness), just a drop of revelation toward whatever I am going through - healing of my family and friends right now.

However, just as David said, so I practice praying also - "Search me, God, and know my heart; test me and know my anxious thoughts. See if there is any offensive way in me, and lead me in the way everlasting." He knows me. He has promised - "For I know the plans I have for you,” declares the Lord, “plans to prosper you and not to harm you, plans to give you hope and a future." (Jeremiah 29:11) He is sovereign and I must trust in that. He is The Designer of my body, mind, spirit and entire Life. He is God the Creator; He is God the Programmer; God, The Great Installer.

HOME IMPROVEMENT

We need to allow God to repave us. I have traveled over many bad roads in my time and to just have the road crew re-surface these bad roads will only see the issues return. Before long potholes come back with a vengeance and major cracks, bumps and dips show their ugly selves again. The underlying problem is just smoothed over for a while. What is needed is a total repaving of the area. This is where the pavement is dug down, gutted out and leveled then fresh road is poured into the cavity.

Put another way, an iceberg is said to only present five to 10 percent of its floating, mountainous self above water. While its shape, features and beauty can be observed and even admired from above the water or in public, possible dangers lurk beneath the waves with the other ninety to ninety-five percent of the iceberg. What is needed is an iceberg specialist. This would be someone who could chisel away at the ugly parts above the water and see through the water enough to remove the dangerous edges underwater.

Whether you might consider yourself a road with cracks and potholes that just keeps getting resurfaced or an iceberg that needs work above and below the waterline, we all need some overhaul in certain areas of our lives. The keys to this repaving or restructuring are (1) acknowledging your issue, (2) surrendering to God, and (3) trusting Him with the repave/restructuring process. This does not mean you will not have work to do on yourself to help in the cause, but the larger transformation or battle is The Lord's.

This lesson is all about improving and usually that involves a process. Paul reminds us of this when he stated, "And we all, who with unveiled faces contemplate the Lord’s glory, are being transformed into his image with ever-increasing glory, which comes from the Lord, who is the Spirit." (2 Corinthians 3:18). We get repaved so that our journey and the journey of others is smoother. We get restructured as that proverbial iceberg so that the unseen, underlying issues get resolved before they sink relationships faster than they sank the Titanic.

God called the believer's body His temple. Paul said in his first letter to the church in Corinth - "Don’t you know that you yourselves are God’s temple and that God’s Spirit dwells in your midst?" This is a far cry from a road or an iceberg. However, our body, mind and spirit - our temple - still has the same challenge as the road and iceberg. We can do changes to the structure of a house, but what is also needed drastically with the help of the Lord is Home Improvement.

WHEN HE CALLS YOUR NAME

When I was growing up, I could tell you without looking, who was walking from one room to the other simply by the way my family members walked. All the times I have been on a team, in a job or part of a church family for an extended period of time - I knew them. 

Because I shared so much time in my relationships, I could distinguish voices out from the opponents on the court as I played against another team. Because I saw them everyday at work, I knew the cadence of my coworkers from afar in the parking lot. Because I sang, worshiped, traveled and learned with my brothers and sisters in Christ, I knew their voice, cadence, heart and presence when they were around me - seen or not.

Has your name ever been called from where you cannot see the caller for the moment, but just by the voice you recognize the person? That is familiarity. That is relationship. That is recognition of a bond that is close enough to have developed to that level.

John speaks about Christ's voice when Jesus picturing Himself as The Great Shepherd and us as His sheep says, "My sheep listen to my voice; I know them and they follow me." (John 10:27) For the Christian today, God's Word and His Holy Spirit within the believer are how Christ mainly speaks to us. Jesus stated -  "But the Advocate, the Holy Spirit, whom the Father will send in my name, will teach you all things and will remind you of everything I have said to you." (John 14:26)

However, I believe there will come a time when ALL believers in Christ will hear His audible voice. In the first three chapters of Revelation, Christ directs His discipline and instructions toward the church because we see the phrase - "Whoever has ears, let them hear what the Spirit says to the churches." - at the end of each church encounter or dispensation or age. 

The revelation is that we do not see the church dealt with like this again in this book. In fact, the next time we see anything resembling the church, they are joined with the multitudes of all believers in Heaven awaiting Christ's Second Coming to set up His Millennial Reign on earth. 

So, sometime between Christ dealing with the churches and the church in Heaven coming back WITH Him on white horses (Revelation 19:11-16) - there must be a transporting, a transformation, a glorification, a snatching away - A Rapture (1 Thessalonians 4:13-18). The two events are not the same. There are two "Comings" by the same person - Christ Jesus. 

The first one is Christ coming FOR His Bride, The Church or true believers. Jesus appears in the heavens or mid-air and never touches the ground. Christ delivers the church from a seven-year judgmental time on earth called The Tribulation Period. This coming is filled with love and compassion.

The Second Coming of Christ refers to when, as a warrior, Jesus comes WITH all His believers in Heaven and actually places His feet on the Mount of Olives (Revelation 19; Zechariah 14:4; Acts 1:10-11). Wrath and vengeance are on His agenda as He returns. This begins His earthly one thousand year reign of earth from Jerusalem with all knowing Him as King of kings and Lord of lords.

Therefore, I believe this Rapture of the Church is symbolized by Christ's calling to John in the beginning of the fourth chapter of Revelation - "After this I looked, and there before me was a door standing open in heaven. And the voice I had first heard speaking to me like a trumpet said, “Come up here,..." (Revelation 4:1).

In my experience, if you Know Jesus, you Know eternal goodness and grace. On the other hand, No Jesus, No eternal goodness and grace. The question with eternal significance in view of all this information is - do you have a relationship with Christ to begin with? You have to have a relationship with Jesus before you can know His voice. Then when you have that relationship you will need to be in His Word and be sensitive to the leading of His Spirit, especially to distinguish from false teachings. Christ will want you to develop your physical and spiritual ears so you can hear - When He Calls Your Name.

THE ANSWER REMAINS THE SAME

A huge fact jumped off the page as I studied Matthew 4:1-11 - the devil attacked at the end of Christ’s fast of 40 days. I am sure that the devil has attacked many believers during their fast and/or trying seasons at different times throughout the experience. However, beware for the post fast or post wilderness attack.

Scripture records that following forty days and nights of fasting, the devil approaches - “After fasting forty days and forty nights…The tempter came to Him..." (v.3). We are not told how long Christ was going to fast, but we do know that at the end of forty days and nights, Satan personally approached and tested Jesus, because he personally left - "Then the devil left Him and angels came and attended Him."

The enemy started by attacking Christ’s Sonship - “If you are the Son of God,".  He then used the condition of fasting/hunger to test Christ's power of Provision to meet the physical needs – "tell these stones to become bread.” Jesus begins His response with “It is written…”. This was like Christ saying, "I quote myself...". He referenced His Word to the devil in the wilderness trials for our benefit. Jesus stated,

“Man shall not live on bread alone, but on every word that comes from the mouth of God.”

In other words, physical needs are not the only thing required to live by, however every word you hear from God is required for life.

In the second approach, the devil attacks Christ’s protection by throwing and twisting God’s Word back in Jesus’ face. The devil's goal was the demise of Christ from atop the temple. The devil said,

“If you are the Son of God, throw yourself down. For it is written: ‘He will command His angels concerning you and they will lift you up in their hands so that you will not strike your foot against a stone.’”

Again, leading with "It is written...", Christ answers with a matching Word - "Do not put the Lord your God to the test." Powerful is the written word and that was not the way He was foretold to die.

Before we come to the last testing of Christ, we must understand two very important things. First, Christ humbled Himself when He took on flesh. Paul spoke about Christ emptying Himself in Philippians 2:6-7. 

“He did not consider equality with God something to be used to His own advantage; rather He made Himself nothing by taking the very nature of a servant,”

Second, for a time, the devil is the ruler of this world. John takes care of identifying "the prince of this world" and labeling him as "condemned" in three places - John 12:31; 14:30; 16:11. The devil is the only identifiable character that fits this role of temporary, diminished ruler.

So, in the last part of Christ's testing, He and the devil were on a very high mountain. This second high place was high enough to see all the kingdoms of the world. Power was offered to Christ by the devil. “All this I will give you if you will bow down and worship me.” God was tempted to worship. Not going to happen. In addition, Jesus was tempted to worship a fallen being that was originally created good by Christ, whose future is damned and whose kingdoms are temporary. 

Christ’s response was three-fold. First, Christ rebuked the devil from His presence by his new name, Accuser - “Away from me, Satan!”. Second, Jesus made the declaration He had been true to all along – “For it is written…”. Finally, the Son of God proclaims what instructions are written to follow – “Worship the Lord our God and serve Him only.”

The challenge to turn the stones into bread during the testing of Christ in the wilderness doubted God's Provision. The dare to jump from the top of the Temple doubted God's Protection. The invitation to worship Satan for all the earthly kingdoms doubted God's invested Power in Christ. 

Testing has at its core doubt and hope in something or someone. With the devil, doubt is planted to give you a sense of not measuring up concerning a test. With God, hope is injected to realize our potential through trial. In addition, all of the tempting was targeted at two human vulnerabilities - (1) being alone and (2) any supposed weaknesses (nourishment, protection and power).

After all this time, the answer remains the same. "It is written..." - provides, protects and promises power that we desperately need in our lives.

"It is written..." must be the Christian's war cry. Our foundation, our source, our sustaining force must be The Belt of Truth that holds everything together and upon which all the weapons of warfare hang. Christ Jesus is the way, The Truth and the life. All power to destroy the enemy's attacks and temptations is found in God's Word and thwarted by verbalizing "It is written...".

The Spirit led Jesus into the wilderness to experience these temptations and possibly other trials during His forty day fast, on our behalf. The Word of God, which was Himself in the flesh, now physically responded to each temptation by declaring the truth of the matter. The Answer Remains The Same - "It is written....".

HONORED

Have you ever blatantly disobeyed your parents? Perhaps you did not care for a rule that was established and wanted to challenge their system. Maybe you desired to see how far one can go like many kids do. But when it comes to testing boundaries on a God-based relationship, the consequences are dire indeed. 

Unfortunately, I fall into both categories of people - I have deliberately disobeyed my parents and I have deliberately disobeyed God. The specific reasons do not matter, the fact is the reasons are always selfish. 

Genesis 3:6 says,

"When the woman saw that the fruit of the tree was good for food and pleasing to the eye, and also desirable for gaining wisdom, she took some and ate it. She also gave some to her husband, who was with her, and he ate it."

Notice that the woman "saw that the fruit of the tree was good for food". The word "saw" here deals with reasoning. The next part of the sentence relates to vision when Eve observes "the fruit...was..pleasing to the eye." Eve reasoned or thought about the words the serpent had spoken. The devil had earlier said to her about taking the fruit - 

"You will not certainly die,' the serpent said to the woman. 'For God knows that when you eat from it your eyes will be opened, and you will be like God, knowing good and evil.'" (Genesis 3:4-5)

She concluded from the serpent's remarks that the fruit on the tree - 

1. had benefit for her body, 
2. was pleasing to her flesh (her eyes) and 
3. was desirable for special wisdom -  

and knowing God's instruction, disobeyed Him. The concern is a matter of honor. Was Eve and Adam going to honor their relationship with God and keep or obey the one - Thou Shalt Not? God did mention consequences if they did violate this honor system. In the same line of thought, how much value do we place on honoring our relationship with God and the forbidden behavior He declares for us?

Just as Eve reasoned away her disobedience by making the fruit beneficial and pleasing for herself, I too have done the same kind of procedure with some of my failings - I found a way to justify sin. Isaiah 5:20 warns us about this kind of thinking and lifestyle, he says - "Woe to those who call evil good and good evil, who put darkness for light and light for darkness,..."

Why any of us, me included, feel like we have to sow our wild oats and have a rebellious season in our lives - I will never know. Perhaps this is a cultural, societal, genetic seed that has been planted long ago. Some of us, like myself, have not had this wild oats season, but have had pot-holes of disobedience scattered throughout their lives. 

We come into this world selfish and remain self-centered until we allow God to transform our thinking (Romans 12:3) and create in us a clean heart (Psalm 51:10) with Him at the center as a new creation (2 Corinthians 5:17). 

Whenever we listen to deceptive voices, attempting to twist God's Word so that sin is attractive enough for our disobedience, we substitute what God intended for our lives with our own selfish ambitions. Could you imagine the intentions God had IF Eve and Adam had not listened to the serpent, had not disobeyed God and had not eaten the forbidden fruit? A perfect relationship and a perfect world would be here.

However, even as a new creature in Christ we still have outside impressions or influences toward disobedience that we need to run far from. Let us dive into God's Word and seek out His promises for whatever He has for us or desires to communicate to us. Let us honor our relationship with God and His Plan for us.

Let us not, for whatever reason, replace God's goodness, mercy and favor in our lives with even a pothole of our own justified sin. His relationship, instructions, will and Word in our lives are what desperately need to be Honored.

KEEPING IT SECRET

There are some positions in our jobs and within The Church that places the individual or group front and center with much, if not all, of the attention. When public speakers like The President or a Pastor address their audience, all eyes are expected to be on them. 

However, Christ has instructed that the lives of Christians not resemble this look-at-me spirit that haunts all of us from birth. Right at the beginning of the chapter Jesus gives His opening declaration -

"Be careful not to practice your righteousness in front of others to be seen by them. If you do, you will have no reward from your Father in heaven."

Notice the warning - Pride. "Be careful not to practice your righteousness in front of others to be seen by them." Christ alerts those who are "righteous" to Not Exhibit with prideful intent their right standing with God in front of others. Do not have a haughty spirit about your faith. Do not stick your nose up in the air concerning your calling. Do not compare anything of yours to anything of anybody else. This is the work of Pride and Pride always comes before a fall (Proverbs 16:18).

Notice the reward - there is none, IF you "practice" or make your behavior consistent as "to be seen by them". Jesus gave us this - If...Then lesson by saying, "If you do, you will have no reward from your Father in heaven."

In particular, Jesus emphasizes three areas of our lives that should be private - giving to the needy, prayer and fasting . He re-verifies this strong instruction before each area of our lives that should be privatized. (Matthew 6:1-18)

Giving to the needy is supposed to be done in secret. Having our intimate prayer time with Christ needs to be done behind closed doors. Fasting needs to look like we are not fasting. There is a secrecy between you and God, in particular on these matters. In all three areas Jesus said as a result of obedience - "Then your Father, who sees what is done in secret, will reward you." So, the next time that - "to be seen by them" spirit comes on you, especially in the areas of giving, praying and fasting - don't showboat and consider Keeping It Secret.

MY GOD IS NOT A GENIE

My God is not a genie. He has a will. He has a plan. He has all-power. He has all the resources. However, my God is a gentleman. With a little influence from Him, He allows us to make the decision to follow Him in the first place. All the remaining decisions made in our journey of faith should and need to be consulted with God with self put on the shelf.

There were many times in Scripture, especially when Christ was here, that His immediate answer to a situation was given. That instant-answer has detonated as an immediate response society today. I have found myself coming very close to treating my God as a genie - where I call on Him, make my wishes and put Him back in my pocket for the next challenging day.

I keep learning that everything is a process, especially in faith and relationships. The acquisition of a goal or answer to a question is a process, at times the process is extremely short in length - almost immediate. Other times the process could be what seems eternity in fruition. However, God said He would work with us, beside us, inside us and on us. Our part in the this faith journey is two part - (1) trust God has a plan for our lives and (2) walk out His precepts while figuring that plan out.

Salvation is a process. Those who call themselves Christians were "wooed" or courted by God at one point when they were unbelievers. There were people and things God placed in their lives to give them the opportunity for a relationship with Jesus. Christ's own life on earth was a process of fulfilling prophecy, teaching, healing, not dying before the appointed time and setting up the next stage of His Presence on earth - the church age.

There are many other processes that Christians have to walk through in understanding God, understanding ourselves and in understanding God's plan for us. Some of these processes are God's healing, family dynamics within the church and our placement in the kingdom in regard to our calling. While I am sure of God's ability to immediately resolve all development, I must trust in His Will, in His Plan, in His Process because My God Is Not A Genie.