Leave your "little Pharisee" on the roadside.
I've found mine teaching me to lose heart at the doorways of the Kingdom.
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As I was exalting and lifting up the ancients for their exploits, admiring and praising them and comparing myself; I was also marveling at those who "turn back" or don't appreciate the amazing wonders of Jesus.
Shocked that "others" could not go the distance, my little Pharisee patted me on the back with words of praise and assurance that "you are not like them". I believed him.
My inner Pharisee always thinks I can do it better.
Better than Peter? Absolutely. No problem.
Then I reach a spot in the road, in ministry, on my journey that I just want to sit down and say "this is good enough".
A "far enough or good enough" spot is typically warm and sunny and lacking the challenges of the sufferings of our Lord. A green pasture zone that I want to cling to and hold over in; letting go of following Jesus as first love.
My little pharisee wants me to settle down into that kind of spot. Leave off following and walking and standing in the Spirit and call it "being a disciple". While Jesus moves on down the road and I loose sight of him.
Learn to recognize when the energy and zeal goes out of your walk with Jesus.
My little pharisee wants me to admire "me" for all my accomplishments. Which by the way are really Jesus' accomplishments.
"Lord, you establish peace for us;
all that we have accomplished you have done for us." Isaiah 26:8
Then he would have me chill in a "righteous passivity". I understand this place. I can understand it. A place I can rest, catch up, gather myself.
He tells me I deserve it. Tells me I earned it. "Common", he says, "you've worked hard enough, given enough."
It is all PASSIVITY for me. Agreeing with my inner Pharisee that the road is to heavy. And he is good at making it look like devotion; to settle me into passivity.
Self satisfied in my accomplishment of some religious standing, I want to pull up along side the road and let others do the lifting.
In doing so, I typically leave off
The sufferings of Christ
The Kingdom first
His righteousness first
They appear to costly for me to go on.
My flesh has the reigns at this point.
I lost Heart.
And then religion, my little Pharisee, condemnation and shame show up knocking at my door. The Door Jesus knocks on. Rev 3:20
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| We live in such amazing promise through Jesus Christ |
Then my little Pharisee starts jabbering away. Never a promise or a faith venture is spoken by him. Then my zeal starts fading. Then my initiative seems to be choked out. One thing builds on another and I find myself predicting the worst and seeking survival over HOPE, Faith and LOVE.
Losing heart is a real possibility along the roadways of following Christ.
The Apostles mention it because it is a real threat to the power filled devotion and zeal we naturally carry when clearer pictures and abundant abiding with Christ fill up our hearts and minds.Through these pathways the greats we admire went with bold and courageous faith in Christ our Lord. So also did everyone who gained eternal life through faith in Jesus Christ.
There are some ordinary things we can cling to...
Jesus, Abiding and first things. John 15Go back to running through the fields of first love.
Remember what you did at first. Restore it to your life.
Pathways in the ways of God are simply places to walk and regularly find grace, hope, faith and love. We would be wise to build our walk in such things.
1. First Love - Revelation 2 Ephesian Church
2. Kingdom and Righteousness first Matthew 6:33
3. Abiding presence and prayer - I Tim 2:1-2
Remembering that....
1. Grace is always sufficient- When the enemy, our hearts, the sheer weight of life's pressures and troubles weigh into us, a promise rings out over the noise. "My grace is sufficient". I Cor 12:8-9 Sufficient is an interesting word. Could be said to mean "always just enough". Look back over your journey with the Lord. Has there always been enough? We have enough with Jesus to walk where he leads. His grace fills us up with a measure for the moment.
"Don't let your heart be troubled, you trust in God, trust also in me." John 14:1
2. No temptation has seized us but what is common. I Corinthians 10:13
The most common grace is sufficient to lead us onward to glory, blessing and eternal life. Our Father is the perfect gardener. He knows our limitations and true boundaries. He always provides a way of escape in any temptation and he will not let us go into something beyond our ability.
Anyone with little kids knows what this is like. Parents lead children into growing opportunities but not into ways that would destroy them. If we know how to do this certainly God the Father knows how to do this with us. It is good to settle this issue early on in following Jesus. So many more doorways and opportunities for power open us to us when we know that we are "IN THE FATHERS LOVE."
3. Eternal life starts now. So does the power of every promise in Christ.
We forget what we are living for, an eternal Kingdom and eternal life in Jesus. That life starts eternally as soon as we come into the Kingdom through faith in Christ. We are living eternal life now. It is not some far off "going to heaven when you die" faith that we are living. It is a NOW FAITH. A faith actively participating in the coming Kingdom of Jesus Christ. A faith actively Going, Disciple-ing and Teaching the Kingdom in Christ through the Gospel. We are carrying this Kingdom everywhere we go. As soon as the Kingdom calling of Jesus is moved off the pinnacle of our lives we move out of the narrow way.
4. Settling for the "good enough" along the way is to leave the WAY.
There is perpetual motion in the Kingdom of God. It is marked by following Jesus. Walking in the Spirit and Teaching all who welcome us to obey the commands of Christ is the air of the Kingdom.
Go - Disciple - teaching to obey Matthew 28:18-20
The words that describe our journey in the Lord are action focused.
Go - Walk - Follow
We forget that being a disciple is follow a living Jesus. He is in motion in the earth today through the leading of the Holy Spirit.
We are called to "walk". We are called to have motion in our discipleship.
Jesus is never passive.
Jesus is not seeking a resting place. He rests in the Father.We are called into the same rest in the work of Jesus.
Hebrews 4 - there is a rest. Our salvation work is complete in Christ.
We are becoming what he has made us for.
Go for what you were made for....
We must add Psalm 144 to our list of activities.
Comments? Re-shares / thank u
Other posts that may interest you:
1.http://jeffreynoldsonedesire.blogspot.com/2015/01/7-things-enemy-devil-doesnt-want-you-to.html
Thanks for reading.
With much love in Jesus
You can do this thing! He's got you.
Jeff Reynolds ---
Brother Jeff
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