By Dr John Yates
1. Initial Impressions
What first comes into a person’s mind when they hear the expression, “Intimacy with God?
Subjectivity usually predominates. Outside of very biblically informed believers, and perhaps some “marketplace Christianity groups”, we would expect an experiential/pietistic answer.
The contemporary spirituality of wider Western culture is very comfortable with the idea of an inward relationship with God, but rejects the distinguishing features of biblical religion .
2. Friends of the King
Whilst it is not illegitimate to speak of intimacy with God , the fact that “intimacy” is not a biblical word cautions us not to begin with assumptions based on this term but to seek appropriate biblical terminology. In preparing this study two terms came to the fore, friendship and knowledge.
Classically, the mission of Christ has been summarised in terms of his three roles of prophet, priest and king . Throughout the Bible these three offices are central to theocratic government. In 1 Kings 4:5 and 1 Chronicles 27:33, for example, we encounter a position titled, “friend of the king”, this person was a confidential advisor with whom the monarch shared his mind and heart concerning all the matters of the kingdom. Such a close acquaintance prefigures the manner in which Jesus related to his inner circle of disciples.
“No longer do I call you servants, for the servant does not know what his master is doing; but I have called you friends, for all that I have heard from my Father I have made known to you.” (John 15:15). Jesus has held nothing back of all that the Father has shared with him about the rule of God through his life. In other words, the disciples are confidantes of the King in relation to the kingdom of God. The process of “making known” is vital to friendship, and is no mere intellectual matter. The following scripture is one of the highest Christological statements in the Synoptic Gospels.
“At that time Jesus declared, “I thank you, Father, Lord of heaven and earth, that you have hidden these things from the wise and understanding and revealed them to little children; 26 yes, Father, for such was your gracious will. 27 All things have been handed over to me by my Father, and no one knows the Son except the Father, and no one knows the Father except the Son and anyone to whom the Son chooses to reveal him.” (Matt 11:25-27)
The Father and Son know each other’s identity by a mutually interpenetrating innermost trust, insight and understanding of character. The emphasis is on Father-Son mutual knowledge, not something that precedes it . The Son knows the Father not in some subjective or mystical sense, but in the midst of/through the array of “all things” that have been “handed over” to him by the Father. This “handing over” involves the rule of God. Likewise, where God takes sovereign initiative in revelation, showing the things he shared with Christ to his people, this contains within it a share in his sovereign rule over everything.
The all encompassing language of “knowing” find expression at many levels, e.g. as a definition of eternal life, “you (Father) have given him authority over all flesh, to give eternal life to all whom you have given him. And this is eternal life, that they know you the only true God, and Jesus Christ whom you have sent.” (John 17:2-3)
Part of the mystery of the gospel, which is an essential aspect of the larger context of Jesus’ discourse, is that “all things” are ultimately handed over to him by his being “delivered over” to death e.g. Matt 20:18; 26:2; 27:2.
3. The Divine Council
Returning to the Old Testament imagery, a friend of the king is part of his council. This was a privilege that the prophets shared in their relationship with God. True prophets stand in “the divine council” (Jer 23:22) . This is presented in an exhaustive way, ““For the Lord GOD does nothing without revealing his secret to his servants the prophets.” (Amos 3:7). Through Jesus, this inestimable privilege has been raised to a higher level and fulfilled in the relationship between the Lord and Christians .
“Blessed be the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, who has blessed us in Christ with every spiritual blessing in the heavenly places” (Eph 1:3), this blessing is not some mere state of feeling, blessing relates to dominion, “And God blessed them. And God said to them, “Be fruitful and multiply and fill the earth and subdue it and have dominion over” (Gen 1:28). The goal of the entire rule that God shares with us is the “plan for the fullness of time, to unite all things in him (Christ), things in heaven and things on earth.” (Eph 1:10 )
Similarly, the exalted state of the believer, “and raised us up with him and seated us with him in the heavenly places in Christ Jesus” (Eph 2:6) relates to ruling. As seated with Christ, who is at the right hand of God, we have fellowship with him in his kingly rule. This is intimately related to the Great Commission “All authority in heaven and earth...go therefore....” (Matt 28:18 ff.)
“Intimacy” therefore means the participation believers have with God in the decisions he is making and enacting from heaven with respect to his kingdom coming on earth (Matt 6:9-10).
4. Entering into this
Communion with the King in the matters of the kingdom can only come by revelation knowledge. Jesus said, “If anyone's will is to do God's will, he will know whether the teaching is from God or whether I am speaking on my own authority.” (John 7:17). The “knowing” of which Jesus speaks is “to know” by acquaintance . It is to “know” that the Son has been given authority to speak (= to work) from the Father. It is to actually know (even if in part) what Jesus knows. It is to have insight into the immeasurably excellence of the Father-Son relationship in the Spirit, and that we are given a part in it! This is to be overwhelmed by the wisdom of God (cf. Matt 11:25) .
The following principle applies, “A revelation of the wisdom of God in the works of God will always lead to a willingness to work with God.” This is simply an outworking of Paul’s command, “Do not be conformed to this world, but be transformed by the renewal of your mind, that by testing you may discern what is the will of God, what is good and acceptable and perfect” (Rom 12:2). Wherever God’s will is “seen” to be “good and acceptable and perfect” men and women will delight in being a part of it. This will necessarily draw them into a form of spirituality that mirrors that of the incarnate Lord.
Since God is wholly present in his willing , the awareness of a distance between ourselves and God indicates resistance to his will. The divine indwelling intensifies as we increasingly submit to the will of the Father .
A testimony: my own transition from a “successful” ministry to a “prayerful” ministry, from “effectiveness” to “depth”. The command of the Lord was to pray constantly in all things . “It is the life which prays” (Andrew Murray)
This involves adopting something similar to what various marketplace ministries call the “Daniel lifestyle”. Not a technique/method but a way of life that breaks Babylonian (worldly/demonic) powers through intentional fasting and prayer three times a day (Dan 1:8-11; 6:10)
5. Why is this not our usual experience?
If the essence of “intimacy with God” involves rule, so does the resistance to entering into this state, people hate “being ruled” , Australians perhaps more so than anyone.
Generally, human beings resist the overtures of the Holy Spirit because they want to maintain control of their own lives . There is in the human heart a deeply held fear of losing, not the kingdom of God, but one’s own kingdom.
Living in communion with God displaces such fears , because it brings a revelation of inheritance. There is no kingdom to be gained, only one to be received. “Jesus spoke to him first, saying, “What do you think, Simon? From whom do kings of the earth take toll or tax? From their sons or from others?” 26 And when he said, “From others,” Jesus said to him, “Then the sons are free.” (Matt 17:25-26)
The kingdom belongs to the sons of the King and we have been planted in the world to receive it, “The field is the world, and the good seed is the sons of the kingdom.” (Matt 13:38). The “sons of the kingdom” are insiders at every possible level of God’s action in the universe; we are given insight into his plan, participation in the exercise of his will and the fruit of the inheritance of his rule . That God (the Father) is someone who totally shares everything with his sons is the witness of the Spirit .
Such a revelation however is deeply resisted, because the inheritance only comes through the way of the cross, “if children, then heirs—heirs of God and fellow heirs with Christ, provided we suffer with him in order that we may also be glorified with him.” (Rom 8:17). This is the foundational reason why “intimacy with God”, as expounded in this paper, is so rare.
6. Summary and Application
a. Intimacy is not limited to what some would call “spiritual realities”, but concerns “all things”.
b. It involves listening to God in everything, not simply about everything.
c. This requires centring/awareness to the presence of Christ in everything. This involves submission to the Lordship of Jesus within the three conversations that are continuously going on – my own thoughts, the thoughts/words of others, and the witness of the Holy Spirit.
d. Discipline in the above demands a consistent prayerful/Daniel lifestyle.
e. This requires obeying the Lord, “But seek first the kingdom of God and his righteousness, and all these things will be added to you.” (
Friday, May 7, 2010
Wednesday, March 17, 2010
Transitioning to a New Order in God
By Noel Woodroffe
This article seeks to provide a basis for understanding the process that is taking place in the global church today. All across the earth it has become very clear that there is a powerful and fundamental move of the Holy Spirit in the Church. The apostles and prophets that are being raised up by God in this hour are declaring new concepts. The message is being taken into the depths of the local churches by the pastors, evangelists and teachers who are coming into understanding and partnership with the Move of God. In many places uncertainty and even confusion has gripped the hearts and minds of many as they find that their accustomed places in the Spirit are being shaken as never before. But more than this, there is real desire in many ministries across the spiritual jurisdictions of the Body of Christ to hear, understand and receive the impartation that is flowing from heaven in increasing measure each day. One of the major problems for many leaders of ministries is the demand for transition that comes upon them, if they have to fully come into agreement with what the Spirit of God is releasing today. In this article I will lay down some basic and foundational principles that will assist progressive ministries to transition from their former spiritual emplacements to fresh and more vigorous positions in the Spirit.
Migration is a Core reality of the Church Experience
One of the central and most powerful prophetic metaphors used in the Word of God to describe core aspects of the Church experience is the picture of the journey or migration. The ancient Israelites were used by God as a national group to capture, describe and demonstrate many of the spiritual principles that operate with full power in the Body of Christ today (1 Corinthians 10:11).
The basic foundation upon which God developed all of the great transformational experiences that shaped them as a people was the foundation of the journey from bondage in Egypt to freedom in the land of Canaan. It was a process from limitation and slavery to identity and conquering. The key activating factor for the march across the wilderness was the requirement to follow the cloud of God (Numbers 9: 17 . 23). Transitioning or following the cloud of God to a new location was not a matter of choice or opinion. It was a matter of obedience. There was no other way to survive the wilderness journey. When the cloud moved, all the people moved with it.
The journey was not only geographical, moving them from one physical location to another. It was also a spiritual journey. As they traveled they came to understand more of God and His ways. They came to know His covenant ways but they also came to recognize their own identity and national structure. They left Egypt as a confused band of slaves but arrived at the border of the Land of Canaan as an organized nation and a mighty army. These are powerful spiritual principles for the Church as our cloud is moving today in a fresh advance of the Spirit. As we travel we are coming into recognition of our 'nation' structure in a new understanding of the power and authority of the Kingdom. We are being made in to a mighty spiritual army as we come into an explosive understanding of government and divine order in the Church.
Whenever we use the term: 'a move of God' we are basically saying that the Spirit of God has moved to new positions and we are being called to identify these new positions and move towards them. Even today the people of God are called to journey and migration. Therefore we can say that the history of the Church is a record of the sequence of the 'moves of God' within the Body of Christ throughout time.
What is a Movement?
A movement or a 'move of God' is built upon the core reality that the Church has realized that the Spirit of God is operating in a more advanced and different way and is calling the Church forward to new positions in the Spirit. The key factor to understand is that a . Move of God. Requires US to MOVE. It is not that the Spirit is ministering to us with a different manifestation as we remain in the same old place. When there is a 'move of God' the Church MUST move!
We can identify several general characteristics of a new move of God occurring in the Church. Of course this is not a complete and total list but will serve in this article to provide a basis for understanding what God requires of us in the midst of a move of God.
New Mentality:
Just as a computer has an operating system that determines how effectively the software that installed upon it works, so does the basic operating mentality of the Church determine how effectively we serve the Lord in our current era and do the exploits of the Kingdom in our day. In our case the 'software' would be all the activities, programs, ministry exploits, corporate behavior and actions that make up the active life of the Church. The operating system represents the prevailing concept of Christ, our perspective of what is effective Christianity in the 21st century, our belief system, our attitude to the world around us that is shaped by our doctrine and our understanding of our identity in the midst of surrounding conditions and circumstances.
If we believe that we are a weak and desperate people simply waiting to escape to heaven then we will not conceive of purposes that cause us to impact nations. If our perspective of Satan is that he is mighty, powerful and a main problem for us then we will not enter into the realm of overcoming spiritual warfare. If our concept of the Kingdom is only what Jesus can do FOR us then we will have no passion within us to accomplish HIS purposes in the earth. Spiritual mentality determines spiritual position and spiritual attitude.
In every move of God the mentality of the Church is moved and adjusted towards a more accurate biblical position.
Changing Structures and Patterns in the Church:
In every move of God the structures and patterns of the Church change. The term 'structures' involve many aspects of Church life and activity. The nature of our prayer changes from constant requests for survival to powerful declaration of our intention to overcome and finish the work of the Lord. We call this 'Governmental Prayer’. The nature of relationships between saints in the Kingdom changes as we move to purer positions of covenant as our sight of the Lord becomes clearer. Our attitude to financial matters changes, as we become more Kingdom minded and less selfish in that area of the ministry. In fact all the activities of people that constitutes a community of the Lord: a "church" begins to be adjusted by the changing winds of the Spirit. A move of God inevitably involves profound changes taking place within the structure of the Church (Luke 5: 37-39).
Changing Leadership:
When God transitions into a new era there is a general principle that the leadership of the Church comes under adjustment. This is caused by several reasons. Generally the older leadership that has become comfortable in their positions tends to resist the coming of the new spiritual positions. This creates a tension in the ranks of leadership in the Body of Christ. Also the doctrine of the 'new' truth is proclaimed and declared by a new group of revelatory preachers who come forth with a new dimension of authority. God never retreats to a lesser position of glory. Each new dimension of God comes forth with greater authority, clarity and power of proclamation. There is a gathering of people around this fresh dimension and so a movement is formed among the people.
Just as God moved from Eli to Samuel, from Saul to David, from Moses to Joshua in order to bring His people into a deeper dimension of relationship and accomplishment of His purpose so He still does today.
It is important to realize that a change of leadership does not immediately mean that God rejects all the former leaders of the past moves. Many senior leaders of past moves transition into the new moves of God and in so doing they move from a 'position' of Moses to a 'position' of Joshua. The use of the terms Eli, Saul and Moses as representative of what God is moving from, refers to the position occupied in the Spirit by these past leaders not to the actual individuals themselves. God loves all His leaders and many keep active in useful and powerful ministry even if they do not transition to the most accurate position for the current time.
Changing Expression:
A new move of God usually causes a change of how the corporate community expresses itself in the corporate worship. New songs generally are composed to capture the new understandings of God that prevail in the midst of the move. The music of the Church generally is a powerful factor for determining the 'culture' and 'atmosphere' of the local church. The way in which we worship is representative of the vision we have captured of the Lord. A fresh perspective of the Lord changes us
(2 Corinthians 3:18).
New vocabulary is developed to capture the fresh understanding. Many people are at first uncomfortable with the language of a new move of the Lord. If we look back through the history of the Church each move of God has its own particular sound and emphasis of worship and also a vocabulary that expresses the mentality of the saints in the most accurate way.
New Teachings and Doctrine:
Every new move of God produces fresh areas of emphasis in doctrine. The Pentecostal Movement, for example, brought with it an emphasis on the baptism in the Holy Spirit with speaking in tongues as the evidence of having received the baptism. This truth was always in the Word of God but was not generally taught to the people by the leaders of the time.
It is important to realize that doctrine determines the shape of the spiritual culture, the operating mentality and the activity of the Church. With the new doctrinal emphasis in the Pentecostal Movement, people sang different songs, the sound and language of the Church changed, the patterns of ministry of the pastors and elders changed and the approach to life changed in the saints. There developed a new emphasis on what became called the 'Rapture' of the Church. The same patterns of change exist in the midst of this new move of God today.
New Ministering Activity:
In a new move of God the patterns of ministering also undergo change. By ministering I mean the process by which spiritual resource in transferred into the lives of the saints on an individual level.
In the Pentecostal Movement there was a great emphasis on the laying on of hands on the believers for healing, deliverance and the baptism of the Holy Spirit. All of this is biblical and should be practiced in the Church in every era of its operations. In the Prophetic Movement in the 1980's there came a great emphasis on delivering words of personal prophecy to the saints as a fresh pathway to release to them relevant divine resource for the building of their lives. In the present Apostolic Reformation the term 'impartation' has come to a place of great emphasis. There is great release of divine resource to the individual lives of the saints as the apostolic word that is impregnated with life-giving power is decreed and proclaimed over the lives of the saints (Romans 1: 11).
Impartation is a major dimension of the apostolic.
It is important to not that each new move of God does not abandon and reject the prevailing ministry pattern of the move that has gone before but includes and practices it in the midst of the new move. Therefore it is clear to see that each new move becomes stronger and more comprehensive in its spiritual operations.
This article seeks to provide a basis for understanding the process that is taking place in the global church today. All across the earth it has become very clear that there is a powerful and fundamental move of the Holy Spirit in the Church. The apostles and prophets that are being raised up by God in this hour are declaring new concepts. The message is being taken into the depths of the local churches by the pastors, evangelists and teachers who are coming into understanding and partnership with the Move of God. In many places uncertainty and even confusion has gripped the hearts and minds of many as they find that their accustomed places in the Spirit are being shaken as never before. But more than this, there is real desire in many ministries across the spiritual jurisdictions of the Body of Christ to hear, understand and receive the impartation that is flowing from heaven in increasing measure each day. One of the major problems for many leaders of ministries is the demand for transition that comes upon them, if they have to fully come into agreement with what the Spirit of God is releasing today. In this article I will lay down some basic and foundational principles that will assist progressive ministries to transition from their former spiritual emplacements to fresh and more vigorous positions in the Spirit.
Migration is a Core reality of the Church Experience
One of the central and most powerful prophetic metaphors used in the Word of God to describe core aspects of the Church experience is the picture of the journey or migration. The ancient Israelites were used by God as a national group to capture, describe and demonstrate many of the spiritual principles that operate with full power in the Body of Christ today (1 Corinthians 10:11).
The basic foundation upon which God developed all of the great transformational experiences that shaped them as a people was the foundation of the journey from bondage in Egypt to freedom in the land of Canaan. It was a process from limitation and slavery to identity and conquering. The key activating factor for the march across the wilderness was the requirement to follow the cloud of God (Numbers 9: 17 . 23). Transitioning or following the cloud of God to a new location was not a matter of choice or opinion. It was a matter of obedience. There was no other way to survive the wilderness journey. When the cloud moved, all the people moved with it.
The journey was not only geographical, moving them from one physical location to another. It was also a spiritual journey. As they traveled they came to understand more of God and His ways. They came to know His covenant ways but they also came to recognize their own identity and national structure. They left Egypt as a confused band of slaves but arrived at the border of the Land of Canaan as an organized nation and a mighty army. These are powerful spiritual principles for the Church as our cloud is moving today in a fresh advance of the Spirit. As we travel we are coming into recognition of our 'nation' structure in a new understanding of the power and authority of the Kingdom. We are being made in to a mighty spiritual army as we come into an explosive understanding of government and divine order in the Church.
Whenever we use the term: 'a move of God' we are basically saying that the Spirit of God has moved to new positions and we are being called to identify these new positions and move towards them. Even today the people of God are called to journey and migration. Therefore we can say that the history of the Church is a record of the sequence of the 'moves of God' within the Body of Christ throughout time.
What is a Movement?
A movement or a 'move of God' is built upon the core reality that the Church has realized that the Spirit of God is operating in a more advanced and different way and is calling the Church forward to new positions in the Spirit. The key factor to understand is that a . Move of God. Requires US to MOVE. It is not that the Spirit is ministering to us with a different manifestation as we remain in the same old place. When there is a 'move of God' the Church MUST move!
We can identify several general characteristics of a new move of God occurring in the Church. Of course this is not a complete and total list but will serve in this article to provide a basis for understanding what God requires of us in the midst of a move of God.
New Mentality:
Just as a computer has an operating system that determines how effectively the software that installed upon it works, so does the basic operating mentality of the Church determine how effectively we serve the Lord in our current era and do the exploits of the Kingdom in our day. In our case the 'software' would be all the activities, programs, ministry exploits, corporate behavior and actions that make up the active life of the Church. The operating system represents the prevailing concept of Christ, our perspective of what is effective Christianity in the 21st century, our belief system, our attitude to the world around us that is shaped by our doctrine and our understanding of our identity in the midst of surrounding conditions and circumstances.
If we believe that we are a weak and desperate people simply waiting to escape to heaven then we will not conceive of purposes that cause us to impact nations. If our perspective of Satan is that he is mighty, powerful and a main problem for us then we will not enter into the realm of overcoming spiritual warfare. If our concept of the Kingdom is only what Jesus can do FOR us then we will have no passion within us to accomplish HIS purposes in the earth. Spiritual mentality determines spiritual position and spiritual attitude.
In every move of God the mentality of the Church is moved and adjusted towards a more accurate biblical position.
Changing Structures and Patterns in the Church:
In every move of God the structures and patterns of the Church change. The term 'structures' involve many aspects of Church life and activity. The nature of our prayer changes from constant requests for survival to powerful declaration of our intention to overcome and finish the work of the Lord. We call this 'Governmental Prayer’. The nature of relationships between saints in the Kingdom changes as we move to purer positions of covenant as our sight of the Lord becomes clearer. Our attitude to financial matters changes, as we become more Kingdom minded and less selfish in that area of the ministry. In fact all the activities of people that constitutes a community of the Lord: a "church" begins to be adjusted by the changing winds of the Spirit. A move of God inevitably involves profound changes taking place within the structure of the Church (Luke 5: 37-39).
Changing Leadership:
When God transitions into a new era there is a general principle that the leadership of the Church comes under adjustment. This is caused by several reasons. Generally the older leadership that has become comfortable in their positions tends to resist the coming of the new spiritual positions. This creates a tension in the ranks of leadership in the Body of Christ. Also the doctrine of the 'new' truth is proclaimed and declared by a new group of revelatory preachers who come forth with a new dimension of authority. God never retreats to a lesser position of glory. Each new dimension of God comes forth with greater authority, clarity and power of proclamation. There is a gathering of people around this fresh dimension and so a movement is formed among the people.
Just as God moved from Eli to Samuel, from Saul to David, from Moses to Joshua in order to bring His people into a deeper dimension of relationship and accomplishment of His purpose so He still does today.
It is important to realize that a change of leadership does not immediately mean that God rejects all the former leaders of the past moves. Many senior leaders of past moves transition into the new moves of God and in so doing they move from a 'position' of Moses to a 'position' of Joshua. The use of the terms Eli, Saul and Moses as representative of what God is moving from, refers to the position occupied in the Spirit by these past leaders not to the actual individuals themselves. God loves all His leaders and many keep active in useful and powerful ministry even if they do not transition to the most accurate position for the current time.
Changing Expression:
A new move of God usually causes a change of how the corporate community expresses itself in the corporate worship. New songs generally are composed to capture the new understandings of God that prevail in the midst of the move. The music of the Church generally is a powerful factor for determining the 'culture' and 'atmosphere' of the local church. The way in which we worship is representative of the vision we have captured of the Lord. A fresh perspective of the Lord changes us
(2 Corinthians 3:18).
New vocabulary is developed to capture the fresh understanding. Many people are at first uncomfortable with the language of a new move of the Lord. If we look back through the history of the Church each move of God has its own particular sound and emphasis of worship and also a vocabulary that expresses the mentality of the saints in the most accurate way.
New Teachings and Doctrine:
Every new move of God produces fresh areas of emphasis in doctrine. The Pentecostal Movement, for example, brought with it an emphasis on the baptism in the Holy Spirit with speaking in tongues as the evidence of having received the baptism. This truth was always in the Word of God but was not generally taught to the people by the leaders of the time.
It is important to realize that doctrine determines the shape of the spiritual culture, the operating mentality and the activity of the Church. With the new doctrinal emphasis in the Pentecostal Movement, people sang different songs, the sound and language of the Church changed, the patterns of ministry of the pastors and elders changed and the approach to life changed in the saints. There developed a new emphasis on what became called the 'Rapture' of the Church. The same patterns of change exist in the midst of this new move of God today.
New Ministering Activity:
In a new move of God the patterns of ministering also undergo change. By ministering I mean the process by which spiritual resource in transferred into the lives of the saints on an individual level.
In the Pentecostal Movement there was a great emphasis on the laying on of hands on the believers for healing, deliverance and the baptism of the Holy Spirit. All of this is biblical and should be practiced in the Church in every era of its operations. In the Prophetic Movement in the 1980's there came a great emphasis on delivering words of personal prophecy to the saints as a fresh pathway to release to them relevant divine resource for the building of their lives. In the present Apostolic Reformation the term 'impartation' has come to a place of great emphasis. There is great release of divine resource to the individual lives of the saints as the apostolic word that is impregnated with life-giving power is decreed and proclaimed over the lives of the saints (Romans 1: 11).
Impartation is a major dimension of the apostolic.
It is important to not that each new move of God does not abandon and reject the prevailing ministry pattern of the move that has gone before but includes and practices it in the midst of the new move. Therefore it is clear to see that each new move becomes stronger and more comprehensive in its spiritual operations.
Tuesday, March 9, 2010
Soul Cravings
Hey guys,its been fullon here! 2010 is in its 3rd month and we are trusting God its going to be our best year ever!Muse on my recent posting and leave your comments.
...He has also set eternity in the hearts of men Ecc 3:11
Every Billy Graham outreach of any kind begins with the same unnamable ache. That ache is discovered when people from every walk of life come to the end of their resources—finding themselves lost.
There is a pause, a sigh, a groan and they look up from an empty bottle of pills, or they step outside and begin a listless ramble along the highway, or they come trembling to the brink of suicide. And at that moment—at just the right moment—a message of hope comes to them.
This ache—that sense of emptiness, of having no purpose—is where many of our stories begin. Have you ever stopped to consider why we as humans crave intimacy, destiny and meaning? We are all searching for intimacy. Our search for intimacy explains our need for community, relationships, belonging, love and acceptance. We were designed to experience intimacy, loving God and each other. It’s God’s design and plan for humans to have these cravings. Soul cravings are a part of the stories of our lives. Someone has said it is God’s story and our story, woven together with themes of the Bible—from beginning to the end.
Not all senses of need are caused by bad actions. Millions feel, as the philosopher Pascal once put it, that there is a “God-shaped vacuum” in their heart. They know that something big is missing from their lives and that something is gnawing at them, prompting them to search for some way to feed that hunger. Many begin searching early in life for the missing piece and ultimately discover that it is actually a relationship---A relationship with God through his son Jesus Christ. Many have discovered that when they begin to reach out to God, He has already been reaching out to them.
...He has also set eternity in the hearts of men Ecc 3:11
Every Billy Graham outreach of any kind begins with the same unnamable ache. That ache is discovered when people from every walk of life come to the end of their resources—finding themselves lost.
There is a pause, a sigh, a groan and they look up from an empty bottle of pills, or they step outside and begin a listless ramble along the highway, or they come trembling to the brink of suicide. And at that moment—at just the right moment—a message of hope comes to them.
This ache—that sense of emptiness, of having no purpose—is where many of our stories begin. Have you ever stopped to consider why we as humans crave intimacy, destiny and meaning? We are all searching for intimacy. Our search for intimacy explains our need for community, relationships, belonging, love and acceptance. We were designed to experience intimacy, loving God and each other. It’s God’s design and plan for humans to have these cravings. Soul cravings are a part of the stories of our lives. Someone has said it is God’s story and our story, woven together with themes of the Bible—from beginning to the end.
Not all senses of need are caused by bad actions. Millions feel, as the philosopher Pascal once put it, that there is a “God-shaped vacuum” in their heart. They know that something big is missing from their lives and that something is gnawing at them, prompting them to search for some way to feed that hunger. Many begin searching early in life for the missing piece and ultimately discover that it is actually a relationship---A relationship with God through his son Jesus Christ. Many have discovered that when they begin to reach out to God, He has already been reaching out to them.
Tuesday, November 24, 2009
Be Thankful for Suffering
By Joni Eareckson Tada
As Thanksgiving approaches once again, I am reminded of so many people who are learning to be thankful despite their suffering. However I want to encourage them to go one better — I believe we can even learn to be thankful for suffering.
It is a common response to question God's goodness when we endure hardships — whether physical limitations, illness, job loss, the death of a loved one, you name it.
When I hear the question, Where is God? I am reminded of something I've learned through the years. God doesn't say, Into each life a little rain must fall, and then turn a fire hose on the earth to see who gets the wettest. On the contrary, He screens the trials that come at us, always erecting invisible fences around the enemy's fury and bringing ultimate good out of wickedness.
I wonder, how does He pull it off? I realize that we are a world of finite humans trying to comprehend an infinite God. What is clear is that God permits lots of things He doesn't approve of. That fact doesn't sit well with us, but think of the alternative. Imagine a God who insisted on a hands-off policy toward the evil barreling our way. The world would be much, much worse than it is. Evil would be uncontrolled. But thank God He curbs it.
Please know I'm no expert. There are days I wake up and think, I can't do this. I have no resources for this. I can't face another day dealing with total paralysis. But that's when I plead, Lord, you have the resources I lack. I can't do this, but you can. And He does.
The truly handicapped among us are those who start their mornings on automatic cruise control, without needing God. But He gives strength to all who cry to Him for help. So who are the weak and needy? Who are those who need this help? A brief pause in the dark shadows of recent events always allows the point to come home. It's you and me.
These can be scary times in which we live. Never have the lines between the forces of darkness and light, of good and evil, seemed so clear. Never has the world, battered and bruised as it is, seemed so vulnerable, so fragile, so unsafe. In the years since Sept. 11, 2001, and through the last two years of our shaky economy, something has become clear to me. It was something I sensed was just ahead, something that began to appear on the horizon and that grew with each day, with each hug shared, with each word of encouragement spoken.
I'd been given eyes to see . . . an adventure.
In the long shadow cast by my wheelchair —the 43 years of my paralysis —I've been granted the privilege of living at such a time. No greater shadow has ever been cast in earth's history. Today after Sept. 11 and the economic meltdown, humanity seems to have taken an on-ramp to an ever-broadening highway. It is a chance, a mandate, to remember the world's most vulnerable — the disabled —while power brokers shift the planet's levers and gears. It is an opportunity - indeed, a gift - to witness the unfolding plan of a gracious God who draws near to the weak, stays close to the afflicted, and always seems bigger to those who need him most. It is an even larger, greater on-ramp to adventure.
And my wheelchair is taking me there.
God's "no" answer to my physical healing more than 40 years ago was a "yes" to a deeper healing—a better one. His answer bound me to other believers and taught me so much about myself. It has purged sin from my life, it has strengthened my commitment to Him, forced me to depend on His grace. His wiser, deeper answer has stretched my hope, refined my faith, and helped me to know Him better.
So I thank Him, not despite His answer, but for it. For the wiser choice, the better answer, the harder yet richer path. I thank Him for showing me that there are more important things in life than walking.
As Thanksgiving approaches once again, I am reminded of so many people who are learning to be thankful despite their suffering. However I want to encourage them to go one better — I believe we can even learn to be thankful for suffering.
It is a common response to question God's goodness when we endure hardships — whether physical limitations, illness, job loss, the death of a loved one, you name it.
When I hear the question, Where is God? I am reminded of something I've learned through the years. God doesn't say, Into each life a little rain must fall, and then turn a fire hose on the earth to see who gets the wettest. On the contrary, He screens the trials that come at us, always erecting invisible fences around the enemy's fury and bringing ultimate good out of wickedness.
I wonder, how does He pull it off? I realize that we are a world of finite humans trying to comprehend an infinite God. What is clear is that God permits lots of things He doesn't approve of. That fact doesn't sit well with us, but think of the alternative. Imagine a God who insisted on a hands-off policy toward the evil barreling our way. The world would be much, much worse than it is. Evil would be uncontrolled. But thank God He curbs it.
Please know I'm no expert. There are days I wake up and think, I can't do this. I have no resources for this. I can't face another day dealing with total paralysis. But that's when I plead, Lord, you have the resources I lack. I can't do this, but you can. And He does.
The truly handicapped among us are those who start their mornings on automatic cruise control, without needing God. But He gives strength to all who cry to Him for help. So who are the weak and needy? Who are those who need this help? A brief pause in the dark shadows of recent events always allows the point to come home. It's you and me.
These can be scary times in which we live. Never have the lines between the forces of darkness and light, of good and evil, seemed so clear. Never has the world, battered and bruised as it is, seemed so vulnerable, so fragile, so unsafe. In the years since Sept. 11, 2001, and through the last two years of our shaky economy, something has become clear to me. It was something I sensed was just ahead, something that began to appear on the horizon and that grew with each day, with each hug shared, with each word of encouragement spoken.
I'd been given eyes to see . . . an adventure.
In the long shadow cast by my wheelchair —the 43 years of my paralysis —I've been granted the privilege of living at such a time. No greater shadow has ever been cast in earth's history. Today after Sept. 11 and the economic meltdown, humanity seems to have taken an on-ramp to an ever-broadening highway. It is a chance, a mandate, to remember the world's most vulnerable — the disabled —while power brokers shift the planet's levers and gears. It is an opportunity - indeed, a gift - to witness the unfolding plan of a gracious God who draws near to the weak, stays close to the afflicted, and always seems bigger to those who need him most. It is an even larger, greater on-ramp to adventure.
And my wheelchair is taking me there.
God's "no" answer to my physical healing more than 40 years ago was a "yes" to a deeper healing—a better one. His answer bound me to other believers and taught me so much about myself. It has purged sin from my life, it has strengthened my commitment to Him, forced me to depend on His grace. His wiser, deeper answer has stretched my hope, refined my faith, and helped me to know Him better.
So I thank Him, not despite His answer, but for it. For the wiser choice, the better answer, the harder yet richer path. I thank Him for showing me that there are more important things in life than walking.
Wednesday, September 23, 2009
Is Celebrity Christianity dead?
By Lee Grady
An impressive collection of framed covers of Charisma decorate a hall around the corner from my office. Visitors often stop to admire the nostalgic lineup, which includes a 1975 issue featuring healing evangelist Kathryn Kuhlman and a 1978 cover of South African theologian David du Plessis. These magazines offer a panoramic view of the history of the charismatic movement—warts and all.
I’ll admit that sometimes I wince when I walk down this hallway to get coffee—and I cringe even more when I sort through my stash of old magazines. As much as I love to remember the old days—and to appreciate the spiritual giants we featured at times—it is painful when I realize that some people we wrote about did not finish well.
“Has the egotistical behavior of America’s limousine-driving prosperity preachers nauseated us to the point that we are actually rejecting that entire scene?”
Most of the Christian personalities we have profiled over the years still inspire me. My personal favorite of all time was the cover story we published in 2005 about Brother Andrew, global champion of the persecuted church. I’m also very proud of the cover stories we wrote about Christian heroes such as Episcopal renewal leader Dennis Bennett; Mark Buntain, pioneer missionary to India; author Catherine Marshall; Freda Lindsey, leader of Christ for the Nations; revivalist David Wilkerson; Bible teacher Derek Prince; Vineyard founder John Wimber; Ed Cole, founder of the modern Christian men’s movement; evangelist Reinhard Bonnke; Franklin Graham, leader of Samaritan’s Purse; Messianic leader Joel Chernoff; and Charles Blake, presiding bishop of the Church of God in Christ.
Yet when I look through the list of personalities we have focused on during our 34 years of publishing, there are some embarrassments. More than a dozen of them had highly publicized moral failures years after their ministries made them famous. A few of them went to jail, either for tax evasion or for other forms of fraud. Some lost their ministries because of spiritual abuse.
In recent years my staff and I have had long discussions about how to profile Christian leaders without setting them—and us—up for disappointment. We think our subscribers enjoy reading about people who have been successful—pastors, musicians, authors, athletes, businesspeople or missionaries. Yet we are less prone to do such profiles these days if we think there is any chance a celebrity might do something crazy two years from now.
We want to ask you to join in our discussion.
We are currently mapping out our editorial plans for 2010. Not all of our covers will focus on personalities because we know there are key moral and cultural topics that need our attention. But we are planning to feature up to six people on our covers next year.
A few weeks ago I stirred the waters a bit by asking this question on Twitter. The feedback was fascinating because more than half the people who replied said they didn’t want to read about a celebrity at all. Several people said they wanted to read about the faceless persecuted Christians who suffer for Christ in places like Pakistan or Afghanistan. Others said we should write about unknown ministers in the United States who feed the poor, run homeless shelters or fight child trafficking.
Of those who suggested a real celebrity Christian, the most votes were cast for California pastor Rick Warren—who is known as being a champion of the little guy. Many suggested evangelical leaders who are not even directly identified with the charismatic movement—people such as Atlanta pastor Louie Giglio or Southern Baptist soul-winner Perry Noble.
Is there a significant sea change happening in our movement? Has the egotistical behavior of America’s limousine-driving prosperity preachers nauseated us to the point that we are actually rejecting that entire scene? And have the excesses of our movement driven people away from flashy preachers and back to evangelical churches that don’t focus on the charismatic experience?
An impressive collection of framed covers of Charisma decorate a hall around the corner from my office. Visitors often stop to admire the nostalgic lineup, which includes a 1975 issue featuring healing evangelist Kathryn Kuhlman and a 1978 cover of South African theologian David du Plessis. These magazines offer a panoramic view of the history of the charismatic movement—warts and all.
I’ll admit that sometimes I wince when I walk down this hallway to get coffee—and I cringe even more when I sort through my stash of old magazines. As much as I love to remember the old days—and to appreciate the spiritual giants we featured at times—it is painful when I realize that some people we wrote about did not finish well.
“Has the egotistical behavior of America’s limousine-driving prosperity preachers nauseated us to the point that we are actually rejecting that entire scene?”
Most of the Christian personalities we have profiled over the years still inspire me. My personal favorite of all time was the cover story we published in 2005 about Brother Andrew, global champion of the persecuted church. I’m also very proud of the cover stories we wrote about Christian heroes such as Episcopal renewal leader Dennis Bennett; Mark Buntain, pioneer missionary to India; author Catherine Marshall; Freda Lindsey, leader of Christ for the Nations; revivalist David Wilkerson; Bible teacher Derek Prince; Vineyard founder John Wimber; Ed Cole, founder of the modern Christian men’s movement; evangelist Reinhard Bonnke; Franklin Graham, leader of Samaritan’s Purse; Messianic leader Joel Chernoff; and Charles Blake, presiding bishop of the Church of God in Christ.
Yet when I look through the list of personalities we have focused on during our 34 years of publishing, there are some embarrassments. More than a dozen of them had highly publicized moral failures years after their ministries made them famous. A few of them went to jail, either for tax evasion or for other forms of fraud. Some lost their ministries because of spiritual abuse.
In recent years my staff and I have had long discussions about how to profile Christian leaders without setting them—and us—up for disappointment. We think our subscribers enjoy reading about people who have been successful—pastors, musicians, authors, athletes, businesspeople or missionaries. Yet we are less prone to do such profiles these days if we think there is any chance a celebrity might do something crazy two years from now.
We want to ask you to join in our discussion.
We are currently mapping out our editorial plans for 2010. Not all of our covers will focus on personalities because we know there are key moral and cultural topics that need our attention. But we are planning to feature up to six people on our covers next year.
A few weeks ago I stirred the waters a bit by asking this question on Twitter. The feedback was fascinating because more than half the people who replied said they didn’t want to read about a celebrity at all. Several people said they wanted to read about the faceless persecuted Christians who suffer for Christ in places like Pakistan or Afghanistan. Others said we should write about unknown ministers in the United States who feed the poor, run homeless shelters or fight child trafficking.
Of those who suggested a real celebrity Christian, the most votes were cast for California pastor Rick Warren—who is known as being a champion of the little guy. Many suggested evangelical leaders who are not even directly identified with the charismatic movement—people such as Atlanta pastor Louie Giglio or Southern Baptist soul-winner Perry Noble.
Is there a significant sea change happening in our movement? Has the egotistical behavior of America’s limousine-driving prosperity preachers nauseated us to the point that we are actually rejecting that entire scene? And have the excesses of our movement driven people away from flashy preachers and back to evangelical churches that don’t focus on the charismatic experience?
Saturday, September 12, 2009
How to Hear God
By Teresa Seputis
Have you ever thought God was saying something to you, but you weren't sure it was really His voice you were hearing? Have you found yourself thinking, How do I know it was really God I heard and not my own imagination—or worse, the enemy?
God's solution is simple: "'If any of you lacks wisdom, he should ask God, who gives generously to all without finding fault, and it will be given to him'" (James 1:5, NIV). When we need to know if we are hearing God's voice, all we have to do is ask Him!
We can go to God, tell Him what we think we heard Him say, and then ask Him to confirm it or correct our hearing on the matter. God wants to give us an understanding of what He says to us because He wants to communicate with us. He is eager to teach us to correctly hear His voice.
What are some steps we can take to make sure we're hearing God?
1. Put your faith in the right thing. When I was first learning to hear God's voice, I went overboard in my need to double-check my hearing. I was so afraid I might hear God wrong that I tended to check and recheck my hearing on just about everything. I became very sluggish in obeying God because I spent so much time verifying everything I heard.
My problem was that I had placed my faith in the wrong thing. I was trusting in my ability to hear God—instead of in His ability and faithfulness to speak clearly and to correct and redirect me if I heard wrong.
I used to think that "correction" was the same as "punishment." But God revamped my thinking by reminding me of my old ice skating coach.
I really liked him. He would watch me try to execute a move and then offer feedback, saying something such as: "Your weight is drifting to the left when you turn. You need to keep it balanced over your skating foot."
I knew I had just been corrected, but I wasn't put down or made to feel small or punished. The intent of the correction was to help me excel, and as I applied what he told me, my skating improved.
God told me that I should look to Him as my coach when it came to hearing His voice. He promised that He would let me know when I got something wrong and how to correct it so I could excel in following Him. Suddenly correction became something to be desired instead of something to be feared, and I found out just how faithful and committed God is to the process of teaching us to hear Him.
2. Look for scriptural precedents. It is wise to get into the habit of checking what God says to us against Scripture. God will not say something to us that contradicts what the Bible says. There will be certain "words" we can eliminate immediately as "not from God" when we line them up against what God has already said in the Bible.
At the same time, there are many areas that the Bible does not address explicitly. Still, God is often willing to give us a scriptural precedent for what He says to us. For instance, imagine that you are trying to decide which of two job offers God wants you to accept. You believe He is telling you to take job offer No. 2, one that will put you in contact with hurting people to whom you can minister. But job offer No. 2 is a much lower-paying job than job offer No. 1, so you want to be sure you are hearing God.
You ask Him for a confirmation, and as you're considering your decision, God directs your attention to Matthew 9:12-13: "'It is not the healthy who need a doctor, but the sick....For I have not come to call the righteous, but sinners.'" Those words come alive to you, and you realize that you have just received the confirmation you need to take the second job. God will often use such scriptural precedents to help confirm His communication to us.
3. Don't fleece God. We must not give God an ultimatum about how He is to confirm His word to us. That's called "putting a fleece before the Lord," and it refers to the experience of Gideon found in Judges 6:36-40.
God wanted Gideon to lead Israel in battle against the Midianites, but Gideon was not feeling very confident in his calling—or in his hearing from God. So he laid a fleece (a sheepskin) on the floor and asked God to make the morning dew come only on the fleece, and not on the ground around the fleece. God did this for him, but poor Gideon was still unconvinced. The next night he asked God to reconfirm His word by covering the ground with dew but leaving the fleece dry. Once again, God did as Gideon requested.
Based on this passage, some people assume that they can tell God precisely how to confirm or correct what they believe they have heard Him say to them. In essence, they believe they can dictate the "supernatural hoops" through which God must jump to prove He really said what they believe they heard.
God allowed Gideon to fleece Him, but there is no indication that He was setting a precedent for the rest of us to follow. In fact, there is a strong scriptural precedent against telling God specifically what to do.
Jesus Himself refused Satan's suggestion to put a fleece before God by casting Himself off the highest point of the temple. Instead, Jesus said, "'Do not put the Lord your God to the test'" (Matt. 4:7).
When we go back to God for confirmation, we need to allow Him to choose how He will correct or confirm what we heard. It is not our place to dictate how He does this. Instead, we must trust that He will do it in a way that we can clearly recognize as being from Him.
4. Avoid making assumptions. When hearing God's voice, we need to be very careful about making assumptions. God can speak to us very clearly, and we can hear Him accurately.
But we can still go wrong by making an assumption about what God means by what He says, only to discover later that we heard God but didn't understand Him. We have to be very careful not to put words in God's mouth.
Let me give you an example of how this can happen. A close friend of mine had been praying for some time about a deep and painful rift in her relationship with her sister. Then she received a prophetic word from a lady who seemed to really hear from God.
The word had to do with the restoration of a broken relationship in my friend's life. However, the lady proceeded to assume that the relationship in question was between my friend and her husband, and she began to minister to my friend about her marriage (which was, in reality, rock solid).
The prophet had received a very keen word from God about my friend's situation, but the power of that word was almost lost when she assumed the relationship involved was with a spouse. This is an example of how we can accurately hear from God and then make assumptions that mislead others and us. We want to be careful to avoid doing that!
5. Recognize areas of "hearing loss." We need to remember that there are certain areas of our lives in which our hearing is likely to be less accurate. It is more difficult to hear God clearly in areas where we have "big stakes" in the answer, where our hearts are tremendously engaged or where we know we have a history of hearing wrong. We must double-check these areas and ask God to confirm what we've heard.
Here's an example. A friend of mine who hears God pretty well in most areas of her life recently went through a divorce. After a "recovery period" of a few months, she met a single man who seemed to be everything she wanted in a husband. She thought she began to hear God speaking to her about this man, telling her that indeed he was the man He had for her.
I strongly suspected that this was her own heart speaking, not God, and I tried to find a gentle way to tell her this. But she thought God was saying more and more detailed things to her. She thought she heard Him tell her that her Christmas present from this man would be an engagement ring, with the wedding following shortly after that.
She was so sure she was hearing God's voice! But December came and went, and she didn't receive any Christmas present from this man—much less an engagement ring. Later he told her that he considered her no more than a casual friend.
She was devastated not only because the man was not interested in her but also because she had been so wrong in hearing God. She had failed to recognize her own heart imitating God's voice to her. She didn't double-check her hearing with God, because she so desperately wanted to hear what she thought she heard.
6. Be ready to obey. Once we hear God, it's important that we obey what we hear. There are two kinds of obedience: cheap obedience, which is obeying when the stakes are not very high or when it doesn't cost us much to obey; and expensive obedience, which is obeying when significant consequences are involved. The job decision mentioned earlier is an example of expensive obedience because it involved a choice between a low-paying job and a higher-paying one.
But money doesn't have to be the issue. For example, if you believe God is telling you to terminate a relationship because it's unhealthy, that is expensive obedience; if you've heard wrong, you put a relationship that is important to you at risk. You want to be sure you have heard from God before you do something that could require expensive obedience.
On the other hand, if the obedience required is low cost or low risk, then you should always and instantly obey. It may very well be God speaking to you, and you want to be in the habit of obeying God instantly rather than spending a great deal of time double-checking with Him first.
God understands that it can be frightening for us as we begin venturing out in hearing and obeying Him. He knows we need confirmation from Him to be sure we have really heard Him correctly. But God is not only willing—He is also eager to meet us and teach us to hear His voice. All we have to do is ask.
Teresa Seputis is an ordained minister and founder of GodSpeak International, a nonprofit missions and equipping agency dedicated to making disciples. She is the author of How to Hear the Voice of God in a Noisy World (Charisma House), from which this article was adapted.
Have you ever thought God was saying something to you, but you weren't sure it was really His voice you were hearing? Have you found yourself thinking, How do I know it was really God I heard and not my own imagination—or worse, the enemy?
God's solution is simple: "'If any of you lacks wisdom, he should ask God, who gives generously to all without finding fault, and it will be given to him'" (James 1:5, NIV). When we need to know if we are hearing God's voice, all we have to do is ask Him!
We can go to God, tell Him what we think we heard Him say, and then ask Him to confirm it or correct our hearing on the matter. God wants to give us an understanding of what He says to us because He wants to communicate with us. He is eager to teach us to correctly hear His voice.
What are some steps we can take to make sure we're hearing God?
1. Put your faith in the right thing. When I was first learning to hear God's voice, I went overboard in my need to double-check my hearing. I was so afraid I might hear God wrong that I tended to check and recheck my hearing on just about everything. I became very sluggish in obeying God because I spent so much time verifying everything I heard.
My problem was that I had placed my faith in the wrong thing. I was trusting in my ability to hear God—instead of in His ability and faithfulness to speak clearly and to correct and redirect me if I heard wrong.
I used to think that "correction" was the same as "punishment." But God revamped my thinking by reminding me of my old ice skating coach.
I really liked him. He would watch me try to execute a move and then offer feedback, saying something such as: "Your weight is drifting to the left when you turn. You need to keep it balanced over your skating foot."
I knew I had just been corrected, but I wasn't put down or made to feel small or punished. The intent of the correction was to help me excel, and as I applied what he told me, my skating improved.
God told me that I should look to Him as my coach when it came to hearing His voice. He promised that He would let me know when I got something wrong and how to correct it so I could excel in following Him. Suddenly correction became something to be desired instead of something to be feared, and I found out just how faithful and committed God is to the process of teaching us to hear Him.
2. Look for scriptural precedents. It is wise to get into the habit of checking what God says to us against Scripture. God will not say something to us that contradicts what the Bible says. There will be certain "words" we can eliminate immediately as "not from God" when we line them up against what God has already said in the Bible.
At the same time, there are many areas that the Bible does not address explicitly. Still, God is often willing to give us a scriptural precedent for what He says to us. For instance, imagine that you are trying to decide which of two job offers God wants you to accept. You believe He is telling you to take job offer No. 2, one that will put you in contact with hurting people to whom you can minister. But job offer No. 2 is a much lower-paying job than job offer No. 1, so you want to be sure you are hearing God.
You ask Him for a confirmation, and as you're considering your decision, God directs your attention to Matthew 9:12-13: "'It is not the healthy who need a doctor, but the sick....For I have not come to call the righteous, but sinners.'" Those words come alive to you, and you realize that you have just received the confirmation you need to take the second job. God will often use such scriptural precedents to help confirm His communication to us.
3. Don't fleece God. We must not give God an ultimatum about how He is to confirm His word to us. That's called "putting a fleece before the Lord," and it refers to the experience of Gideon found in Judges 6:36-40.
God wanted Gideon to lead Israel in battle against the Midianites, but Gideon was not feeling very confident in his calling—or in his hearing from God. So he laid a fleece (a sheepskin) on the floor and asked God to make the morning dew come only on the fleece, and not on the ground around the fleece. God did this for him, but poor Gideon was still unconvinced. The next night he asked God to reconfirm His word by covering the ground with dew but leaving the fleece dry. Once again, God did as Gideon requested.
Based on this passage, some people assume that they can tell God precisely how to confirm or correct what they believe they have heard Him say to them. In essence, they believe they can dictate the "supernatural hoops" through which God must jump to prove He really said what they believe they heard.
God allowed Gideon to fleece Him, but there is no indication that He was setting a precedent for the rest of us to follow. In fact, there is a strong scriptural precedent against telling God specifically what to do.
Jesus Himself refused Satan's suggestion to put a fleece before God by casting Himself off the highest point of the temple. Instead, Jesus said, "'Do not put the Lord your God to the test'" (Matt. 4:7).
When we go back to God for confirmation, we need to allow Him to choose how He will correct or confirm what we heard. It is not our place to dictate how He does this. Instead, we must trust that He will do it in a way that we can clearly recognize as being from Him.
4. Avoid making assumptions. When hearing God's voice, we need to be very careful about making assumptions. God can speak to us very clearly, and we can hear Him accurately.
But we can still go wrong by making an assumption about what God means by what He says, only to discover later that we heard God but didn't understand Him. We have to be very careful not to put words in God's mouth.
Let me give you an example of how this can happen. A close friend of mine had been praying for some time about a deep and painful rift in her relationship with her sister. Then she received a prophetic word from a lady who seemed to really hear from God.
The word had to do with the restoration of a broken relationship in my friend's life. However, the lady proceeded to assume that the relationship in question was between my friend and her husband, and she began to minister to my friend about her marriage (which was, in reality, rock solid).
The prophet had received a very keen word from God about my friend's situation, but the power of that word was almost lost when she assumed the relationship involved was with a spouse. This is an example of how we can accurately hear from God and then make assumptions that mislead others and us. We want to be careful to avoid doing that!
5. Recognize areas of "hearing loss." We need to remember that there are certain areas of our lives in which our hearing is likely to be less accurate. It is more difficult to hear God clearly in areas where we have "big stakes" in the answer, where our hearts are tremendously engaged or where we know we have a history of hearing wrong. We must double-check these areas and ask God to confirm what we've heard.
Here's an example. A friend of mine who hears God pretty well in most areas of her life recently went through a divorce. After a "recovery period" of a few months, she met a single man who seemed to be everything she wanted in a husband. She thought she began to hear God speaking to her about this man, telling her that indeed he was the man He had for her.
I strongly suspected that this was her own heart speaking, not God, and I tried to find a gentle way to tell her this. But she thought God was saying more and more detailed things to her. She thought she heard Him tell her that her Christmas present from this man would be an engagement ring, with the wedding following shortly after that.
She was so sure she was hearing God's voice! But December came and went, and she didn't receive any Christmas present from this man—much less an engagement ring. Later he told her that he considered her no more than a casual friend.
She was devastated not only because the man was not interested in her but also because she had been so wrong in hearing God. She had failed to recognize her own heart imitating God's voice to her. She didn't double-check her hearing with God, because she so desperately wanted to hear what she thought she heard.
6. Be ready to obey. Once we hear God, it's important that we obey what we hear. There are two kinds of obedience: cheap obedience, which is obeying when the stakes are not very high or when it doesn't cost us much to obey; and expensive obedience, which is obeying when significant consequences are involved. The job decision mentioned earlier is an example of expensive obedience because it involved a choice between a low-paying job and a higher-paying one.
But money doesn't have to be the issue. For example, if you believe God is telling you to terminate a relationship because it's unhealthy, that is expensive obedience; if you've heard wrong, you put a relationship that is important to you at risk. You want to be sure you have heard from God before you do something that could require expensive obedience.
On the other hand, if the obedience required is low cost or low risk, then you should always and instantly obey. It may very well be God speaking to you, and you want to be in the habit of obeying God instantly rather than spending a great deal of time double-checking with Him first.
God understands that it can be frightening for us as we begin venturing out in hearing and obeying Him. He knows we need confirmation from Him to be sure we have really heard Him correctly. But God is not only willing—He is also eager to meet us and teach us to hear His voice. All we have to do is ask.
Teresa Seputis is an ordained minister and founder of GodSpeak International, a nonprofit missions and equipping agency dedicated to making disciples. She is the author of How to Hear the Voice of God in a Noisy World (Charisma House), from which this article was adapted.
Tuesday, July 28, 2009
The New Evangelical Movement
By Sam RodrÃguez
21st-century agenda must include reconciling transgenerational differences.
The decision by California’s Supreme Court to strike down the state’s ban on same-sex marriage revealed more than judicial activism run amok. Besides usurping the majority’s will, it exposed what is present even in the evangelical church: the differences of opinion between Millennials (those born after 1980) and previous generations on many cultural issues. Current surveys related to the evangelical community all exhibit a division based on one simple factor: age.
Warren Beemer, president of Third Day Generation Youth Network, confirms the ideological divide: “Many young people in the evangelical community between 13 and 25 years of age see same-sex marriage as a civil rights issue and not as a moral issue. From Will and Grace to Madonna and Britney’s kiss to A Shot at [Love With Tila] Tequila—an MTV program about a bisexual woman finding her love partner—[it] all speaks to the deliberate attempt to change the hearts and minds of an entire generation.”
Hollywood isn’t the only propagandist targeting the younger generation. Public education in California, for example, teaches students that the rights sought by gays and lesbians are equivalent to African-Americans’ struggle for civil rights. “Leaders such as Niger Innis from the Congress of Racial Equality, one of the nation’s oldest civil rights organizations, repudiate the notion,” says Bob Adams of the Alliance For Marriage. “How one can equate over 200 years of slavery ... to the legalization of a sexual act in the privacy of one’s bedroom is beyond me.”
Other issues similarly expose the generational differences. Though most evangelicals 35 and older regard sanctity of life and traditional marriage as bedrocks for the community, younger evangelicals include alleviating poverty and tackling global warming as integral parts of the evangelical 21st-century agenda. Does this mean the end of the movement as a sociopolitical presence in America? Or do the differences signal the emergence of a new movement with a broader coalition and a distinct DNA?
“We’re at a crossroad where we can either split or understand the importance of our core values and build a broader coalition,” says Mathew Staver, dean of Liberty University School of Law. “The signs are actually promising to recapture the evangelical base, but it’s about transgenerational communication. ... Without abandoning our core values on marriage and life, we can appreciate the fact that the gospel encompasses ... the poor, aging and God’s creation itself.”
Undoubtedly, America still needs an evangelical movement that will serve as a firewall to the egregious usurpers of our core values. Yet unlike past alliances, we must truly represent the mosaic of God’s church in America.
To build such a firewall to thwart the viruses, Trojans and invaders we have today, the new evangelical movement needs to reconcile the kingdom salvation message of Billy Graham with the social-justice transformational spirit of Martin Luther King Jr. We can win the next generation and launch a new Jesus movement if we defend traditional marriage and simultaneously repudiate homophobia, stand up for life, address poverty, preach the gospel of salvation and incorporate biblical stewardship of God’s creation. It cannot be “either-or”; it must be “both-and.” Only a multiethnic, transgenerational, biblically committed coalition can push back on Satan’s charge in our nation.
21st-century agenda must include reconciling transgenerational differences.
The decision by California’s Supreme Court to strike down the state’s ban on same-sex marriage revealed more than judicial activism run amok. Besides usurping the majority’s will, it exposed what is present even in the evangelical church: the differences of opinion between Millennials (those born after 1980) and previous generations on many cultural issues. Current surveys related to the evangelical community all exhibit a division based on one simple factor: age.
Warren Beemer, president of Third Day Generation Youth Network, confirms the ideological divide: “Many young people in the evangelical community between 13 and 25 years of age see same-sex marriage as a civil rights issue and not as a moral issue. From Will and Grace to Madonna and Britney’s kiss to A Shot at [Love With Tila] Tequila—an MTV program about a bisexual woman finding her love partner—[it] all speaks to the deliberate attempt to change the hearts and minds of an entire generation.”
Hollywood isn’t the only propagandist targeting the younger generation. Public education in California, for example, teaches students that the rights sought by gays and lesbians are equivalent to African-Americans’ struggle for civil rights. “Leaders such as Niger Innis from the Congress of Racial Equality, one of the nation’s oldest civil rights organizations, repudiate the notion,” says Bob Adams of the Alliance For Marriage. “How one can equate over 200 years of slavery ... to the legalization of a sexual act in the privacy of one’s bedroom is beyond me.”
Other issues similarly expose the generational differences. Though most evangelicals 35 and older regard sanctity of life and traditional marriage as bedrocks for the community, younger evangelicals include alleviating poverty and tackling global warming as integral parts of the evangelical 21st-century agenda. Does this mean the end of the movement as a sociopolitical presence in America? Or do the differences signal the emergence of a new movement with a broader coalition and a distinct DNA?
“We’re at a crossroad where we can either split or understand the importance of our core values and build a broader coalition,” says Mathew Staver, dean of Liberty University School of Law. “The signs are actually promising to recapture the evangelical base, but it’s about transgenerational communication. ... Without abandoning our core values on marriage and life, we can appreciate the fact that the gospel encompasses ... the poor, aging and God’s creation itself.”
Undoubtedly, America still needs an evangelical movement that will serve as a firewall to the egregious usurpers of our core values. Yet unlike past alliances, we must truly represent the mosaic of God’s church in America.
To build such a firewall to thwart the viruses, Trojans and invaders we have today, the new evangelical movement needs to reconcile the kingdom salvation message of Billy Graham with the social-justice transformational spirit of Martin Luther King Jr. We can win the next generation and launch a new Jesus movement if we defend traditional marriage and simultaneously repudiate homophobia, stand up for life, address poverty, preach the gospel of salvation and incorporate biblical stewardship of God’s creation. It cannot be “either-or”; it must be “both-and.” Only a multiethnic, transgenerational, biblically committed coalition can push back on Satan’s charge in our nation.
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