Recovery from Wounds

Isaiah 53:5 - "He was wounded for our transgressions . . ."

wound - chala (khaw-lia') - This word pictures a piercing action that continues to the very depths of a person as a result of a wedged open place (like an event, word,etc.)

transgression - pesha (peh'-shah) - a premeditated crossing the line of God's law; rebellious act of rejecting God's authority; complete defilement of that which is holy

Jesus, the complete picture of God, was completely defiled and pierced through because of my premeditated, rebellious act of rejecting His truth and authority. His death and resurrection paid the penalty for that act. Not only did this happen once and for all for my salvation, it covers every act of rebellion I'll ever do. Now how does that cause me to respond to Him? For some, it may be a nonchalant "big deal" sort of attitude. Not for me! His love presses to challenge me beyond the usual. My heart is broken at my rebellion. The unfolding joy of knowing Hi ssacrifice for me brings a keener attention to my daily walk.

Now what does this say of our woundings in life? In earliest use of this word, it meant a sexual defilement such as rape or incest (Gen. 48:4). We know there's nothing new under the sun. Even today, the picture is happening again and again. The willful rebellious acts of people continue to wound. Whether it's in word or deed, those acts can pierce deeply.

BUT ON THE CROSS . . . the price was paid! I'm not a victim of wounding. I'm a victor over those things. His love is drawing me beyond whatever satisfaction I found at the wounded place. His mercy will not leave me there. He is drawing me into the wide open spaces of His life!

So, whether we've been the wounded or the wounder, the plain fact is that Jesus took the consequences of both acts upon Himself. His blood was sufficient to heal our pain and forgive us for our deliberate acts. It's so good to know that the Father looks at every person in the situation and is available to redeem each one.

Father,

I pray today for those of us who might be dwelling at the wounded places in our lives. Show us again that Your Son was pierced to the depths for all the willful, premeditated acts we do and have been done against us. There is nothing that You don't see or that You will not heal. When Jesus said "It is finished!", it was enough to heal, restore and reclaim all the defiled places in our lives. We ask for freedon, release and wholeness. We receive all that His work did for us!

In Jesus' name . . . Amen

Disarming Moments

Colossians 2:15 - "When He had disarmed rulers and authorities, He made a public display of them, having triumphed over them through Him."

disarmed - apekduomai (ap-ek-doo'-om-ahee) - to strip away, to cause to sink out of, unclothe

Have you ever caught someone so "red-handed" that there wasn't any other word left to be spoken? The "exposed" feeling leaves all involved almost speechless. Even stronger than the provebial "hand in the cookie jar" is the strength of what the Lord Jesus did to the "ruler of this world". (I won't give him any honor by even capitalizing his name.)

This picture of "disarmed" is more than leaving one speechless or a little embarrassed. "Disarm" means to unclothe or strip away knowing that the one being stripped will never return the same. There's a scene in "The Wizard of Oz" where the wicked witch shrinks away and all that's left is the pile of clothes where she'd been. That's the beginning of the idea of "disarm". The "disarmed" one literally sinks out of the existence from where they'd been.

While that's a good picture, we must understand that the power of the blood of the Lord Jesus is much much more extensive. It not only covers the physical body (like the witch in the movie), but also the soul and spirit of every person who believes and receives Him as Lord and Savior. As the Lord Jesus brought us into Himself (at salvation), He stripped away everything that tries to rise up against us. We are with Him above all things.

Consider these scriptures.

John 12:31 - Jesus said "the ruler of this world will be cast out"

Colossians 2:10 - "In Him you have been made complete (full), and He is the head over all rule and authority"

Ephesians 1:22-23 - "He put all things in subjection under His feet, and gave Him as head over all things to the church, which is His body, and the fullness of Him who fills all in all."

Hebrews 2:8 - "For in subjecting all things to Him, He left nothing that is not subject to Him. But now we do not yet see all things subjected to Him."

Imagine if we lived in the freedom of knowing that the enemy has no power or authority over us! The enemy's power has been completely stripped and there is nothing left but a shell of accusations. Of what power are mere accusations when you and I are "in" the Most High God? How would we approach our daily lives? What would become significant to us? Would we walk with intimidation or courage?

The Long Stretch

I Peter 4:8 - ". . . keep fervent in your love for one another"

Acts 12:5 - "So Peter was kept in prison, but prayer for him was being made fervently by the church to God."

John 3:16 - "For God so loved the world that He gave His only Son, that whosoever believes in Him should not perish, but have everlasting life."


fervent - ektenes - (eh-ten-ace) - intense, stretch out, without ceasing

love - agape (ag-ah'-pay) - an unselfish kind of love that can only be done in it's fullness by God; it prizes the recipient above the giver; it is God's willful direction toward man

The image of fervent love looks like a continuous stretching beyond the easy point of surface concerns. When God gave His Son for us, there was such intensity in His heart. The writer of Hebrews explains Jesus' fervent love this way - "who for the joy set before Him endured the Cross". Talk about stretching!

We get a little nervous to get out of our comfort zone. When God is trying to grow us into new places of His Kingdom, sometimes we shrink back or become almost paralyzed in fear. The thought of our loving Father continuously stretching out Hi slove for us should be the foundation from which we do some stretching.

During my years of piano practicing, I remember my teacher looking at my really small hands. She was a little shocked when I couldn't reach the eight note stretch that, in music, we call an octave. My hands were as large as they were going to get when I reached about 10 years old. So, she suggested I do some stretching exercises. I sat at the piano day in and day out doing what she told me to do. Now, I have to tell you that I don't honestly think my fingers got longer nor the span of my hand larger. But guess what? Today, I can reach octaves!

What are some opportunities for intense stretching? The passages above mention prayer and relationships. Both of these situations involve getting outside the easy path and pressing on into more of something. Fervent love for one another doesn't allow for pettiness. It prizes the other's well being above our own. That stretched out kind of love goes on beyond the norm until results are seen in the life of another. It's that same kind of intensity with prayer. We might know of a situation that must be brought to the Father. We do whatever it takes to pray until that situation changes. When the church prayed for Peter during his imprisonment, I don't think it was a three minute event on Sunday morning! It's the intensity that comes over you when you know a friend is in need of God's hand in their situation. You just won't quit bringing it before the Father. It's called fervent prayer!

Father,
Open the eyes of our hearts to stretch beyond the easy and the routine. May Your picture of love ever press us on to stretch for one another whether it's in relationships or in prayer. We want to be people who unceasingly press on for all Your heart desires. Thank you Father, for helping us reach the octaves in fervency when others may not want to try.

To You be all glory and honor! Amen

Life In the Pond

Luke 6:45 - "The good man out of the good treasure of his heart brings forth what is good; and the evil man out of he evil treasures brings forth what is evil; for his mouth speaks from that which fills his heart." ( the KJV it says "out of the abundance of the heart, the mouth speaks.")

abundance - periseuma (per-is'-syoo-mah) - a surplus or superabundance; what is left over after something is full; there is enough and extra to spare

"Abundant mentality" is a buzz phrase that is racing through Christian circles these days. Entire sales forces are steeped in this thought process. "You are worth it!" "You deserve it!" "You can have it all!" As I look at the exceeding riches of His inhereitance in us, I don't wrestle with those statements too much until I begin to look just a little deeper. What is inside the heart of the "abundant thinker"?

My mind began to ponder this verse in Luke a few days ago. I was at my niece's house and saw a lovely pool of water. This was no ordinary pond. This was something called a "patio pond". My niece doesn't have a huge plot of land where a sprawling pond can stretch providing an ecosystem for plants and fish. Those kinds of ponds are up in the mountains near our home. Right in the city, though, was this refreshing pond. The pond has a waterfall over some rocks that poured into a pond at the bottom of the structure. The whole draw of htis pond is that after a busy day, you can sit by it, watch the fish swim and unwind from the busy day.

I began to wonder how that pond kept working. Of course I understood that there was a pump that kept the water recycling. The plan of the pond includes a complete cleaning system. But, as I stared at that pond, I wondered if that pond ever would get dry. Would it ever run out of water?

I live in a pretty arid part of the US so our 15% humidity means wet things dry up fairly fast. Evaporation is a concern that we have. As I looked at that pond, I wondered how it keeps spilling over from one place to the next. My niece explained that every other day, she had to add water or the system wouldn't continue to work. The whole ecosystem must have enough water to spill from one area of the pond to the next. There must be an abundance of water that will fall from one place to the next.

The Holy Spirit dropped deep into my heart a reminder that the "ecosystem" of the Father's Presence in me must be filled to overflowing. My life is more than just a pond that keeps refilling, but it is an abundance of what He is working in me. What I have in my "ecosystem" (my heart) is what flows out of my mouth.

If you want the things of God to spill out of your mouth to others, you must have the "system" of the Father working in you.It's pretty easy to see what is in a person's heart. Listen to them talk. As I looked at that pond, I realized that it wasn't going to hold anything that would not fit in that ecosystem. What finds a way of surviving in my heart? What do I "feed" on? Do I daily take in the Word of God? Do I want the Presence of the Father to fill me and then overflow from me? Am I full enough of Him that there is extra flowing out of me as I speak?


Father,

Show me where I have no fresh flow of You in my life. Help me hear what I am speaking to those around me. What is it telling about what is in the "ecosystem" of my heart? I want to be so full of Your living water, that when I speak, my words will declare what You are doing in me. I want that kind of abundant mentality. May the treasure (ecosystem) in my heart be so full that it flows out and blesses those around me!

Amen