962. The Things We Do for Love

This week, we take a look back at some of the things we were coaxed into thinking and doing as it was being fed to us through our legalistic religious surroundings and misunderstandings ... as we strived to do whatever we thought was necessary to make sure we were in "God's good graces." After all, we were told of the risks of potentially losing fellowship with God (although the specifics were mysteriously missing in the fine print). Do more. Pray more. We thought that maybe "more" would be enough. Maybe.

You may be able to relate to our experiences a little bit, because sadly, many believers in Christ have been in a consistent state of panic—wondering whether they are still loved by God or still accepted because of things they have done. They begin to feel a false sense of contamination—and then condemnation— and will attempt to get their compass pointed in the right direction by doing things to make up for it. Their "faith" or belief becomes centered around their dedication and commitment to God instead of what God has already done for us through His Son. There will be no need for us to graduate by earning a spiritual senior discount when we begin to understand the things that have already been freely given to us by God.



   
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961. "I'm Exhausted" (How Can I Rest in the Finished Work of Christ?)

Try harder, do more, read the Bible more, be extra dedicated to church, pray more (and sometimes pay more). Someone wrote to us to share their background of feeling obligated to spend as much time as possible working to do everything they could "to connect with God." Many of us can relate to chasing the imaginary spiritual golden carrot that seemed to dangle just out of our reach. In their words, it left them exhausted—and the enemy will use this against us—while we lose sight of our identity as a believer in Christ.

Jesus had a message for the religious workaholic: He desires to give rest. It's the opposite of exhaustion. Unlike the law that the Jews were pursuing, it's the opposite of burdensome. His yoke is not one of imprisonment, but it is light and easy. When we begin feeling spiritually or emotionally weary and overloaded, we're probably traveling in the wrong direction—and God wants to help us with that.



   
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960. The Living God Revealing Himself

God desires to reveal Himself to us. It is not something that is comprehended with the mind or intellect but is spiritually discerned. While our knowledge may grow and our minds become renewed when it comes to understanding the truth of the gospel, the revelation comes from God's Spirit to our spirit in the heart of our innermost being. It opens the spiritual eyes of our understanding.

It is not rooted in an academic approach because God's revelation surpasses knowledge and Bible philosophy or theology—and it is centered on the person of Jesus Christ. As we've been discussing, God's will for us is based more on knowing the living Christ than it is simply having knowledge about Him.



   
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959. "Flesh and Blood Has Not Revealed This to You"

Jesus asked His disciples, "Who do people say that the Son of Man is?" After they answered, He then asked, "But who do you say that I am?" Peter spoke up and said that Jesus was the Christ, the Son of the living God. Jesus declared that Peter was blessed because flesh and blood had not revealed this to him, but it came from the Father in heaven.

Peter probably wasn't even aware of his source at the time ... but he didn't hear it from another human who was trying to recruit him as a convert or a visitor for the Sunday School class. This wasn't a "one and done" where Peter would be the only person to receive such a revelation. God desires to reveal so much to us by His Spirit who now abides in the hearts of believers in Christ ... and it may be happening much more than we realize. But it all begins with not just having knowledge about Jesus, but knowing Him. It goes beyond a philosophical or intellectual belief.



   
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958. Having Knowledge of God's Love Vs. Knowing God's Love

Love may be the most talked about thing in every corner of the world while also being at the forefront of what people think about throughout their daily life. After all, we're pretty much bombarded with it everywhere we turn—at least in various forms—in our songs, books, entertainment, relationships, etc. Certainly, our churches focus much on love, especially about God's love and the importance of loving each other.

But do we really understand love? Can it even be comprehended intellectually with the mind, or does it go much deeper? Is love just a feeling? An emotion? Love exposes the naivete of atheists who are found to be in over their heads, failing to effectively explain the love factor into their silly equation of a Godless universe—because they can't resolve what they don't know or have not experienced.

What about the individual sitting near the back row week after week in the corner of the church building? Have the doctrines of men kept them from recognizing and realizing the revelation of the One who is love? Clearly, God wants us to know the love of Christ (which surpasses knowledge) and to truly believe in this love that He has for us. When our hearts begin to receive what the Spirit desires to reveal, it changes everything.




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957. Not One Command From the Law Brings Life

Stop and think about the emphasis that is placed on the topic of faith within our churches and even within multiple religions. Those who believe in a supreme being may often identify themselves as "people of faith." The Apostle Paul stated that the commandments contained within the Mosaic law are not of faith—and yet we find a tremendous emphasis being placed on small portions of that law within the Christian church.

For those who were attempting to be doers of the law, God required the Jewish people under that law to obey all of it (which no one ever did). On the flip side ... Paul told believers in Christ that if they were going to attempt to cling to even one commandment from the law (such as circumcision), they would be obligated to keep the whole law package (containing 613 line items). The result would be a falling away or distancing from grace. He also articulated that if a single law could give life and righteousness, then those things would have been provided by such a law. But life comes by faith in a living Christ—not a religious system of works that seeks to establish phony self-righteousness.



   
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956. "The Great Commandment" According to Jesus (But That You Were Never Under)

In Matthew 22, Jesus had just silenced the Sadducees at one of His press conferences. After seeing this, and after a quick huddle with his co-workers, a reporter for the Pharisees couldn't resist a follow-up question in the attempt to test Jesus when it came to the subject of something near and dear to their hearts. "What is the great commandment in the law?"

Jesus answered: "You shall love the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your mind. This is the great and first commandment. And a second is like it: You shall love your neighbor as yourself."

The corporate church world has generally made this a foundation for the Christian life. But the key words in the question that Jesus answered was "in the law" ... referring to the law of Moses which was still in effect at that time for Israel. But it is a law Gentiles were never under and was made obsolete for Israelites after the cross and resurrection. It is a commandment no one had ever kept nor has anyone successfully fulfilled it since. The "great commandment" is not the message of the gospel as suggested by those who blend the Bible into one book as if two very different and incompatible covenants were meant to be mixed together. Love is still the answer—but in a very different context.



   
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