We Live Under A New Covenant

It's important to remember as you read your Bible that what is written in the Old Testament was written under the OLD covenant. A lot of what Jesus taught before He went to the cross was also under the old covenant. In fact, most of what He taught before the cross was to make the law blaringly clear and to remind everyone just how unattainable perfection under the old covenant truly was. That's why he said things like cut off your hand or gouge out your eye if it offends (sins). That's why he said if you commit a sin in your thoughts, it's as though you've followed the thought through to completion- you have already sinned. The problem is that these things get taught as New covenant from pulpits in modern day churches. Of course no preacher will tell you (I hope) to cut your hand off or gouge out your eye, but they say it is metaphorical- that Jesus is telling us to continually war against our sinful selves. Jesus was a jew under the law when He came 2000 years ago. It was the cross that changed things. I'm not saying to throw out the teachings of Jesus in the gospels, but I am hoping to remind you that He was speaking to Jews who were under the law. 

We now live under a NEW covenant- a covenant of Grace. The apostle Paul teaches in his letters about GRACE. If you want to learn about the New Covenant, you should look to the teachings of Paul. Some people will get really uncomfortable with this and argue that the words of Jesus are more important in the New Testament. (Isn't that why they're in red?) But I would argue: aren't the words of Paul also the teachings of Jesus? Paul was chosen by Jesus and called on the road to Damascus to be Jesus' ambassador of the new covenant. So, couldn't you argue that the teachings of Paul are the teachings of Jesus? If you read the letters of Paul and hear his words in the book of Acts, you hear a message of Grace, and how awesome the new covenant really is. Don't confuse yourself on the grace issue by trying to apply Christ's pre-cross teachings to Paul's post-cross revelations. Galatians 2:20 tells us that we have been crucified with Christ. We were nailed to the cross along with Christ. Jesus was defeating sin on the cross, so being co-crucified means we are set free from sin. We are now free from the old covenant- the law. Period. There is nothing more we need to do to be free from our 'sinful nature' than to realize that we are already free in Christ, and that we are new creations in Him. New creations with the nature of Christ- set apart, redeemed, made the righteousness of God! Now that's good news!! It should be the end of striving to be better- no more metaphorical mutilations in the name of setting ourselves free from sin. If we were able to do it ourselves, there would have been no need for Christ's sacrifice. It is so wonderfully freeing to realize that the only thing required of me is to sink back into the glorious revelation that Jesus has done it all for me, and when he cried out on the cross "It is finished!", that He really meant it.

But I am getting away from what I really wanted to talk about in this post. The Old Testament. I feel a frustration sometimes over this issue. Some Christians read the OT- especially the prophets- with the paradigm that these words are for us. They pray the promises in the Prophets as though they are promises to us. It turns into sort of a mournful begging- imploring God to fulfill what He spoke through OT prophets 'for us.' I have really good news for you: unless the prophesies are about the return of Christ, they have been fulfilled! You are living in the glorious fullness of what the prophets cried out for! No more begging God to 'rend the heavens and come down' (Isaiah 64), because He's already done  it! Don't you think Jesus was the fulfillment of God coming down? (Unless, like I said, it will be fulfilled in His triumphant return) Don't pray for 'more of Jesus', because you're asking for something He can't do. He already gave you all of Himself and filled you with His Spirit. If you believe you have received Holy Spirit, how can you ask for 'more of Him'? You are full. You are in Christ (Ephesians 2:6), so how can you get closer? You can be more aware of His presence, but asking for more of Him is silly! The fullness of the gospel should be the end of striving for you. Just enjoy the finished work of the cross! It's the end of striving, the end of the law. Now your 'good works' become an overflow of joy in your union with Him, not an obligation to 'keep your salvation' or to make you more righteous. That's the mentality of the law- the thought that something you do makes you more acceptable to God. He takes you as you are- warts and all. You are His, and He's madly in love with you- just the way you are. And don't forget, Jesus said the scriptures (the Old Testament) all point to Him. Make sure that when you read the Old Testament, you are looking through the lens of Grace, not Law. It makes a huge difference, and you will begin to see fulfillment and the Love of God so much more abundantly! Instead of being a bunch of do's and don'ts, you will see the love story woven through the entire Bible. The gospel really is about Love. "For God so LOVED the world..." John 3:16. Just some random thoughts on this beautiful day. You don't have to agree with me, but give it some thought. Or to use an OT term: 

Selah. :o)

Just Be Yourself!

It’s been too long since I posted anything on here, so I thought I might post a summary of what I shared Sunday morning at Becoming Shiloh this year. (For those of you who don’t know me, Becoming Shiloh is a music festival I help organize every summer in the North Thompson Valley. www.becomingshiloh.com)

Identity:

The serpent was clever, more clever than any wild animal God had made. He spoke to the Woman: "Do I understand that God told you not to eat from any tree in the garden?"

The Woman said to the serpent, "Not at all. We can eat from the trees in the garden. It's only about the tree in the middle of the garden that God said, 'Don't eat from it; don't even touch it or you'll die.'"

The serpent told the Woman, "You won't die. God knows that the moment you eat from that tree, you'll see what's really going on. You'll be just like God, knowing everything, ranging all the way from good to evil."

When the Woman saw that the tree looked like good eating and realized what she would get out of it—she'd know everything!—she took and ate the fruit and then gave some to her husband, and he ate. -Genesis 3:1-6, The Message

The original attack in the garden was about identity- Eve’s identity and God’s identity. First: God’s- “Did God really say?” In other words, “Isn’t God a liar?” The enemy attacked God’s identity, and convinced Eve that God might not really be good, and might not be looking out for her best interests.

Second: Eve’s- “You’ll be just like God...” The enemy was attacking Eve’s identity by causing her to doubt what God had said about her. Eve is created in God’s image, and here the clever serpent convinces her that she’s not like God yet, but she could be if she ate the fruit.

It’s one of the main attacks the enemy brought against Jesus when he spent forty days in the wilderness. The attack was “If you are the Son of God.” Jesus had just been baptized and God had spoken: “This is my Son in whom I’m well pleased.” 

Don’t try to prove your identity. What if Jesus had given in? Trying to prove your identity causes you to act outside of your identity. God wants you to be you.

Every person on the face of the planet ever in history has been completely unique. You are the only one who can fulfill the destiny God has planned for you. Don’t compare yourself to others, even if they have similar gifts. Don’t try to be like them.

When God finished creating each thing, He said “It is good.”

God created you exactly how He wanted you- and you are GOOD.

This example works better in person, but I am about 5’5”, I have dark brown hair and brown eyes. I speak English. If I were standing in front of you, talking to you right now, would I have to prove this? Wouldn’t it be plainly obvious? You would just have to look at me and hear me speak to know that these things about me are true. We spend far too much time as Christians trying to ‘prove’ who we are. I believe it is an attack that the enemy still brings against us- asking us to prove ourselves- and it wastes valuable time and energy on something silly and unnecessary. Just be you, no matter what that looks like, or if it looks different from everyone else. God created you to be you.

Let your gifts flow naturally, even if it looks different from everyone else. 

People burn out and break down trying to fit into moulds.

And as a church, we try to make everything neat and tidy- we shy away from different ways of using gifts, and we try to make them fit our formula for ministry.

Be who you are. Don’t let other people dictate how you walk out your journey with the Lord.

Well, I think that’s enough to chew on for today, I’ll post the rest in the next couple of days. This is only about half of the message I shared at Shiloh. :o) Hope you enjoyed it.