What now?

[jason h]

Hello all

As the title says goes the thoughts in my head recently. God has done wonderous things for me, inspite of me, over the past year in a half. I grew up in the church, read my bible on and off through the years but pretty much went off to my own ways for a number of years. After really making a mess of things, He changed everything in my life. Kinda like someone shaking you and saying what are you doing, snap out of it! Even the bible reads different now and I realize as time goes on how little I actually know. He's brought me to see how the law(or any human works based system) just reveals how sinfull you are and that you need a savior. I've been learning now how God provided Himself a sacrifice and that my righteousness is filthy rags. Also that the righteousness after coming to Christ is through Him since we are Gods workmenship created in christ for good works. I have so many questions now which I asume is the Spirit leading me to turn to the word and to God for help. One of these questions that i really am having trouble with is 'what now'? Basically there seems to be an uneasiness in anything i do with constant questions of its it ok. This sounds law like but they are the thoughts i have. Whether its coming home from work to play drums or maybe watch a movie with my wife, they surface. For a while i was comfortable with the idea that wherever we go, or whatever we do, we should consider how we are effecting the Kingdom. And im mindfull now trying to preach the gospel to those around me. but Im completely at a loss. I desire to know the truth as the word shows and Im still learning that throughout scripture there are dialectical pairs of truth, like election/freewill but Im just struggling here.

I have this feeling that the answer may not just be a clearcut hard and fast rule since God's people are everywhere in all different situations and that their lives are not going to all look the same. But in the mean time the verse 'whatever is not of faith is sin' rom 14:23 has been popping up in my mind and bothering me. Thanks for any help.

 

[stephen]

Jason Dear Friend,

I have read your post and I hear your heart, as you seek to meet the Master.

But in the mean time the verse 'whatever is not of faith is sin' rom 14:23 has been popping up in my mind and bothering me. Thanks for any help.

Put that one side just now dear friend.

Reading your post my prayer is that you 'meet Jesus' Such meeting changed my life many years ago.........if you could pursue a meeting with Him......you will never go back. I could go on.....But at the moment, feeling your spirit in your post......You need a re-encounter with Him.

It is real....thank God it is real.


Blessings to you....in Jesus.

 

[will]

Jason, as my pastor once told me, stop trying, start submitting.

That seemingly simple statement has a deep implication into our daily lives. Often time we *try* to understand and obey God, not realizing that we are counting on our own mind and might. On the other hand, we submit to a fuzzy understanding of who God is, what He is like, and so on.

These two actions causes a lot of Christians to be stunted in their spiritual growth. And the only antidote to this is a new perspective on how to grow properly.

Consider these precious passage from 1 Corinthians 1:5-9
5 What then is Apollos? What is Paul? Servants through whom you believed, as the Lord assigned to each. 6 I planted, Apollos watered, but God gave the growth. 7 So neither he who plants nor he who waters is anything, but only God who gives the growth. 8 He who plants and he who waters are one, and each will receive his wages according to his labor. 9 For we are God's fellow workers. You are God's field, God's building.

As part of his admonishing the church in Corinth, the Apostle Paul equate us with a field, whom God, in His time, through His Holy Spirit, will cause to grow. Realizing this releases me from the heavy burden to "do good" on my own strength. And made me eager to consume more Scriptures for the Holy Spirit to use to teach and guide me. Just like we eat food every day, and have no control over the digestion of the food that produces energy, we should also consume (read *and* think) about the Scriptures without getting ahead of the Holy Spirit's timing for each of us. Now that's truly submitting, it takes far less effort than we commonly thought and eventually, that will produce growth in confidence and maturity.

Growing anything takes time, and so is our spiritual life. Be patient and enjoy the opened understanding, the revealing of God's mind for us, and the increased capacity to love others that will soon follow. Then you'll start to understand what it means to be in-step with God's will.

Happy growing, brother!

 

[amadeus2]

I have this feeling that the answer may not just be a clearcut hard and fast rule since God's people are everywhere in all different situations and that their lives are not going to all look the same. But in the mean time the verse 'whatever is not of faith is sin' rom 14:23 has been popping up in my mind and bothering me. Thanks for any help.

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Eventually, we will want to get face to face with God, but as you have already been advised, you need to grow and the growth, the increase does always come from God. He may use people to accomplish His purpose, but it is His purpose.

What God is looking for is some people living without sin, but no man alone can attain that. For this we are given a Helper, the Holy Ghost. But... just receiving the gift of the Holy Ghost is not the end of the story. We need to eat and drink properly and regularly for the Holy Ghost to have the necessary raw materials to edify you, to increase you.

We eat the Word of God (read or hear scripture) and we drink the Blood, which is the Life giving Spirit (II Cor 3:6). You eat the Word and the Spirit brings it to Life within you, Then just as our flesh must continue to eat and drink naturally to remain alive and healthy and to become mature so is it with the new spiritual inner man (born again).

None of us, when we have a choice eats only once a week or even just once a day in the flesh. To presume that a single weekly meal of God's Word will be sufficient to do the job, is not even reasonable, is it?

Our walk with God is to be daily, 24/7, isn't it? So we must give all that we can and eat and drink all that we can daily.

The scripture says to "pray without ceasing" and to "rejoice in the Lord alway". Those two things are impossible for man alone, but again, we need to ask God for help. This is why we have to Holy Ghost. What is impossible for man is very possible for God in us, if we will trust and obey without ever quenching the Spirit in us.

"But seek ye first the kingdom of God, and his righteousness; and all these things shall be added unto you." Matt 6:33

"Ask, and it shall be given you; seek, and ye shall find; knock, and it shall be opened unto you:" Matt 7:7

Glory to God!

 

[jason h]

Thanks for the replies guys. I've been presenting myself to the word nearly daily(although there have been times when I'll go a few days without) in hopes that as God sees fit and in His time He'll give the increase. It's all I've known to do. I guess I just need to learn to wait on Him.
I do percieve that He's working things out with me, and that I just need to trust Him since He knows best and is better at caring for me than I am.

Yet I am writing you a new command; its truth is seen in him and you, because the darkness is passing and the true light is already shining. 1 John 2:8

I do see over the past year how He's brought me out darkness by His word and so in light of the above verse, its sounds as though it will take time and not to worry about not always knowing since He knows. I do need to just trust and wait on Him. Thanks for the replies, jason

 

[Thiscrosshurts]

And im mindfull now trying to preach the gospel to those around me. but Im completely at a loss. I desire to know the truth as the word shows and Im still learning that throughout scripture there are dialectical pairs of truth, like election/freewill but Im just struggling here.

We should all be very mindful of what we teach or preach and also to never ever make the Lord boring or preach to someone who seems annoyed.
Since most people have access to the great library we call the internet there is no excuse for not being able to back up your position by making certain all related scripture agrees.This takes a lot of work on the internet but back in the old days you had to go to a library or buy/borrow books to research so most folks just let pastor handle the interpretation and pastor simply passed along what he was trained to believe.

The internet has allowed for rapid study and the correction of many errors but that adds the difficulty of modifying our beliefs every time the word reveals something new to us.One simple revelation can cause an avalanche to occur on one or more of our mountains of understanding.It could even cause you to have to cast a mountain or two into the sea.

So I found it's practical and safer(concerning spreading error) to have a very simple gospel to preach and when asked a question you are uncertain of to admit you are uncertain.I witness to some unbelievers who are hardened against the church and conventional preaching just makes them angry.I often tell unbelievers that I don't know something and they reply "well that's refreshing,a christian who doesnt know something".Each case is so unioque that the only way to be effective is to be filled with the word and move in the spirit.
Sometimes a simple statement about the benefits of being a believer is all that you can do.

I consider the message I used to preach 5 years ago to have some garbage,but that was better than the message I preached 10 years ago which was way better than the total garbage I was taught by a mainstream denomination 22 years ago which was way better than the mountain of dung I was taught by the church I was baptized into.I would be foolish to think I have perfect understanding now.

I think the Holy Spirit is stretching your understanding and those old wine bags just won't due.

dialectical pairs of truth, like election/freewill but Im just struggling here.

Usually intense research will render both void and it turns out to be something we never considered.So the truth is either #1 election #2 freewill or #3 something we have not considered.

I use that third one a lot.

 

[jason h]

One simple revelation can cause an avalanche to occur on one or more of our mountains of understanding.It could even cause you to have to cast a mountain or two into the sea.....

I've found this to be so true lately. You find that some things you thought you knew, you actually didnt in light of the truth of scripture versus some tradition you were holding to. But it seems you find this out as the rug is being pulled out from under you.

Usually intense research will render both void and it turns out to be something we never considered.So the truth is either #1 election #2 freewill or #3 something we have not considered.

I use that third one a lot.

Lol! I initially thought I was losing it early on since not only did I not know answers to some of my questions but that, as you've shown, more options would present themselves. Instead of 'this or that', 'right or wrong', or even a 'yes or no', I started seeing that sometimes the answer could be other than what we are choosing between. Even that some questions are wrong due to how we ask them! I pretty much thought I was getting dumber but eventually I seen that the Lord was not only showing me that I dont know so many things, but that I should just worry about preaching Christ crucified and that I dont have to know how He does everything to trust Him.

Thanks for the post Thiscrosshurts

 

[Thiscrosshurts]

Even that some questions are wrong due to how we ask them!

Actually most are not valid questions.

Sometimes I learn more from questions than answers when 5 or 6 questions sort of form a hole of muddy understanding.
Kind of like not being able to find a piece of a jigsaw puzzle but the pieces around it form the missing piece.
Almost like reverse engineering the word.

Example:
Revelation 1:3 Blessed is the one who reads the words of this prophecy, and blessed are those who hear it and take to heart what is written in it, because the time is near.


The words in the revelation are to bless the hearer.
How does the description of some event thousands of years in the future bless the readers of 100 years ago or 1000 years ago.
Eternity means always was and always will be with no beginning and no end so you can't get on or off in time because there is none.
Consider the possibility that the events revelation is describing is the conquering of our carnal mindset which is at war with God.
See if it fills any missing pieces that your questions may be defining.


Remember Jesus told Martha"I am the resurrection" right before he restored Lazarus to life.You see Martha was also waiting for a future event called the resurrection and she could not discern that the resurrection was standing right in front of her.

PS a sign that we are missing the boat is that both sides will have an equally compelling argument that a seeking one will just eventually give up trying to answer.
Theres yer sign

 

[Thiscrosshurts]

But it seems you find this out as the rug is being pulled out from under you.

Hmmm..notice a pattern here?
Why do you think trials must come.
I always say friends are for comfort and enemies are for perfection...ouch!!
I really do always say that.

Now you know why this cross hurts.
But it's a good hurt.
In Judo they teach you how to fall without getting hurt first.

 

[jason h]

Before I returned to the word, I used the exact word picture you used to help me with physics, sciences, etc. I even explainned to my wife the same thing you did. How by putting pieces of the puzzle you do know in place, sometimes you may find that the shape that is left, although not present as a piece, gives you a 'picture' of the piece. Im a somewhat slow learner, so i generally look for pictures to help me 'get' things.

Its funny you bring up revelation. For a while now I've had a thought that wont go away. I generally dont bring it up since i was affraid it may be a stumbling block since it's kinda different than what some teach. But it's basically what you just said. How parts of revelation or even some old testament prophecies pointing towards the future almost point towards an internal struggle or as you said about the carnal mind, basically the battle in ones mind as they, i dont know how to word it, pass from death into life. They still hold for future events but i find, sometimes while even trying to supress the thoughts, that they still work for an internal struggle. I supose we all have ideas and thoughts that we generally dont discuss and i wouldnt argue for my thoughts with anyone since I dont know if it's true and it seems non edifying. I think it is Rupertus Meldenius who said "In essentials, unity, In non-essentials, liberty, In all things charity."

 

[jason h]

Hmmm..notice a pattern here?
Why do you think trials must come.
I always say friends are for comfort and enemies are for perfection...ouch!!
I really do always say that.

Now you know why this cross hurts.
But it's a good hurt.
In Judo they teach you how to fall without getting hurt first.

I hear you here. I have a word picture in my mind for this thing that I've noticed. Normally being crushed by a snake is not a good thing but I find an analogy if you take the good/bad out of it. The snake is always constricting. So a moving victim mearly helps the snake along. Almost like a ratchet mechanism. You cant 'go back'. I've wondered if trials and experiences work on a believer in the same way. Shaping the mind, by God's power, to become something new. If we have the mind of Christ, then experiences or trials mearly work for us. Although most would honestly say that it isnt welcomed when they happen. At least this is what I've found and may not be a good analogy.

The person would be the mind. The snake would represent God coming to a person. The snakes constricting would represent God working ahead of the person to bring him to Himself since it is Him who utimately does the work in saving us. The ratcheting mechanism can also find its place in a verse. All thing work together for good to those who love God.... Every situation, trial, experience, etc.. continually molds us or moves us towards God or Christ likeness. Its not perfect obviously but this is generally how my mind works with ideas.

 

[Thiscrosshurts]

If we have the mind of Christ, then experiences or trials mearly work for us. Although most would honestly say that it isnt welcomed when they happen.

Yes,lets do the math

=All things work(Gods work) together for good to those who love God and are called according to his purpose.
/The work of God is to believe on the one whom he sent.
+ The one whom he sent said to overcome evil with good.

= Therefore by believing in the one whom God sent and following his commands we turn evil into good by believing the one whom he sent when he said he would work all things together for good.But if he works all things to gather for good then by default no evil can be done unto me and I will be at peace with even my enemies and so it turns out that my enemy is really the one forming Christ (light is formed in thick darkness)in me and if my enemy is filling God's desire for me to know him and since it's my desire to know God then the enemy is just a vehicle that transports me to God and his kingdom and I like my car.

And now I am looking for the enemy and there is only an empty camp with booty laying everywhere.
I could be wrong so feel free to check my math.

By an understanding only 3 scriptures it changes the landscape so much that I may have just fulfilled at least 5 scriptures that most are still waiting(2000 years now) for.
And did anyone ever really expect to overcome evil with good I have rarely seen anyone even try.

Afterthought:
If we try to picture overcoming evil with good with the carnal mind we get a silly and absurd picture like,while some guy chases me with a sword I am going to overcome him by doing his dishes and serving him iced tea when he gets tired from trying to kill me.Even Chuck Norris wouldn't attempt that, maybe Jackie Chan though.