"He disarmed the rulers and authorities and put them to open shame, by triumphing over them in him. Therefore let no one pass judgment on you in questions of food and drink, or with regard to a festival or a new moon or a Sabbath. These are a shadow of the things to come, but the substance belongs to Christ." - Colossians 2:15-17 ESV
The Hapax Legomenon (unique word) here is 'new moon'. The Hebrew calendar is a lunar calendar and worship was on a lunar schedule.
Festival, New Moon and Sabbath = Recreation, Cycles (or marking the passage of time) and Rest
"And it shall come to pass, that from one new moon to another, and from one sabbath to another, shall all flesh come to worship before me, saith the LORD." - Isaiah 66:23 KJV
"Likewise the people of the land shall worship at the door of this gate before the LORD in the sabbaths and in the new moons." - Ezekiel 46:3 KJV
These two passages are prophetic in nature. Many people don't mark the passage of time by worship.
At the time this is written we are closing out a month and will soon begin another. What does that mean to us?
I often look at the month coming before it arrives. I look at my birthday list and pray. I think about appointments. I gauge needs. I pay or mentally put aside money for bills that come in monthly cycles.
My devotional life is a portal into worship. It isn't me trying to better myself. It is the exploration of God's mind.
Oppression leaves a depression that is painful. An oppressor seek to exploit and to do that he or she must isolate, accuse and gain dependency. To do that integrity must be destroyed so that accusation will be internalized and isolation will be reinforced. Then exploitation can continue.
A worshipper can't be isolated. God is there. A worshipper knows accusations can't isolate unless they are internalized.
If worship has been disqualified in our lives we have believed a lie. It might be a lie about God or about ourselves... or both. It takes humility to worship. Lets humble ourselves and enter in by faith. God's light will banish the darkness. His Word will be a light for our path and a lamp for our feet on the path that echoes with praise.
In God's economy of grace we are not in bondage. We are not forced to regulate ourselves (or others) in recreation or rest. We each mark the passage of time differently and our emphasis may be different. In truth, from God's perspective, the substance of these things rests in Christ. When He becomes the focus then worship is incorporated into our cycles and our Sabbath.
--
Wednesday, November 30, 2016
Tuesday, November 29, 2016
Inaccessible Paperwork - Colossians - Part 47
"And you, who were dead in your trespasses and the uncircumcision of your flesh, God made alive together with him, having forgiven us all our trespasses, by canceling the record of debt that stood against us with its legal demands. This he set aside, nailing it to the cross." - Colossians 2:13-14 ESV
Two unique words here and the concept presented is amazing. The first is translated 'legal demands' (cheirographon - Strong's G5498) and it is a handwritten note that signifies a debt.
God has taken this personally signed document and 'nailed' (prosēloō - Strong's G4338) it down in a place that is set aside... Christ's cross.
The bank note that held a mortgage on your life can't be found anymore. They can't find the signed document. It has been put in a permanently inaccessible place.
It is much like the places that require that a person to produce a receipt with an item in order to return it. No receipt. No refund. No signed document. No prosecution.
Does God legally have anything against you? No. His court system lost the paperwork. It has been filed on the cross. You are free.
You may remember the contents but that is not legally binding.
Leviticus chapter 25 speaks of a year of Jubilee when all debts in Israel are forgiven and the land that belonged to families is returned to them if it was sold.
Jesus is our year of Jubilee.
God makes those who have believed citizens with an inheritance and he has lost the signed paperwork that would hold us in bondage.
--
Two unique words here and the concept presented is amazing. The first is translated 'legal demands' (cheirographon - Strong's G5498) and it is a handwritten note that signifies a debt.
God has taken this personally signed document and 'nailed' (prosēloō - Strong's G4338) it down in a place that is set aside... Christ's cross.
The bank note that held a mortgage on your life can't be found anymore. They can't find the signed document. It has been put in a permanently inaccessible place.
It is much like the places that require that a person to produce a receipt with an item in order to return it. No receipt. No refund. No signed document. No prosecution.
Does God legally have anything against you? No. His court system lost the paperwork. It has been filed on the cross. You are free.
You may remember the contents but that is not legally binding.
Leviticus chapter 25 speaks of a year of Jubilee when all debts in Israel are forgiven and the land that belonged to families is returned to them if it was sold.
Jesus is our year of Jubilee.
God makes those who have believed citizens with an inheritance and he has lost the signed paperwork that would hold us in bondage.
--
Monday, November 28, 2016
Spiritual Momentum
Getting back into studying the word of God can be like going back to the gym. There is a momentum that forms if you stick with it. Then after a period of time, your muscles develope a muscle memory.
This weekend I have been thinking a lot about Sampson and his hair. Growing out his hair was like having a momentum with God. It is a good picture of receiving grace. It is a passive action that builds momentum. Cutting it is the proactive step.
"Speak to the people of Israel and say to them, When either a man or a woman makes a special vow, the vow of a Nazirite, to separate himself to the LORD... All the days of his vow of separation, no razor shall touch his head. Until the time is completed for which he separates himself to the LORD, he shall be holy. He shall let the locks of hair of his head grow long." - Numbers 6:2, 5 ESV
Sampson was a Nazarite. If you read his account in the book of Judges you will see he was not a moral man. He broke the other parts of the vow regularly. His urges ended up bringing him into bondage.
"And the Philistines seized him and gouged out his eyes and brought him down to Gaza and bound him with bronze shackles. And he ground at the mill in the prison. But the hair of his head began to grow again after it had been shaved." - Judges 16:21-22 ESV
Things in life can stop our momentum but then our hair begins to grow again... spiritually speaking that is. God hasn't forgotten us. Our strength will return.
"You then, my child, be strengthened by the grace that is in Christ Jesus," - 2 Timothy 2:1 ESV
Yes. We can build a momentum with God... not a moral momentum. Sampson didn't have a moral life but he had great exploits with God.
Let's have a spiritual momentum by being exposed regularly to God's mind.
--
This weekend I have been thinking a lot about Sampson and his hair. Growing out his hair was like having a momentum with God. It is a good picture of receiving grace. It is a passive action that builds momentum. Cutting it is the proactive step.
"Speak to the people of Israel and say to them, When either a man or a woman makes a special vow, the vow of a Nazirite, to separate himself to the LORD... All the days of his vow of separation, no razor shall touch his head. Until the time is completed for which he separates himself to the LORD, he shall be holy. He shall let the locks of hair of his head grow long." - Numbers 6:2, 5 ESV
Sampson was a Nazarite. If you read his account in the book of Judges you will see he was not a moral man. He broke the other parts of the vow regularly. His urges ended up bringing him into bondage.
"And the Philistines seized him and gouged out his eyes and brought him down to Gaza and bound him with bronze shackles. And he ground at the mill in the prison. But the hair of his head began to grow again after it had been shaved." - Judges 16:21-22 ESV
Things in life can stop our momentum but then our hair begins to grow again... spiritually speaking that is. God hasn't forgotten us. Our strength will return.
"You then, my child, be strengthened by the grace that is in Christ Jesus," - 2 Timothy 2:1 ESV
Yes. We can build a momentum with God... not a moral momentum. Sampson didn't have a moral life but he had great exploits with God.
Let's have a spiritual momentum by being exposed regularly to God's mind.
--
Wednesday, November 23, 2016
Putting Off - Colossians - Part 46
Resurrection is mystical. I come to that conclusion again and again as I read this passage.
Our unique word is 'put off' (apekdysis - Strong's G555) it is the noun form of a verb that means 'to strip one's self' (apekdyomai - Strong's G554)
"In him also you were circumcised with a circumcision made without hands, by putting off the body of the flesh, by the circumcision of Christ, having been buried with him in baptism, in which you were also raised with him through faith in the powerful working of God, who raised him from the dead." - Colossians 2:11-12 ESV
When we believe in Jesus something truly profound happens. There is a removal, a burial and a resurrection.
Believing in Jesus and what He did on the cross is an act of humility because we are saying that we need a Savior. That concept has an irresistible sharpness attached to it that 'puts off' our identity in some way. The old falls away but the next passage has us wholly falling into a grave with Christ. We are buried with Him and then raised with Him all in one instant.
Amazing.
Yes. Believing in Jesus turns us into 'stripped ones' but only for a moment because God dresses us quickly in the glory of His Son.
Today we have a choice. Will we believe? Will we let our confidence in the flesh be removed and trust in Christ for what lies ahead?
"Do not lie to one another, seeing that you have put off the old self with its practices and have put on the new self, which is being renewed in knowledge after the image of its creator." - Colossians 3:9-10 ESV
The moment of nakedness is a past tense moment. If we have believed we have a new identity that is now our true identity. 'It is Finished' is now on our account as ours. The old has fallen away and all things are new.
--
Our unique word is 'put off' (apekdysis - Strong's G555) it is the noun form of a verb that means 'to strip one's self' (apekdyomai - Strong's G554)
"In him also you were circumcised with a circumcision made without hands, by putting off the body of the flesh, by the circumcision of Christ, having been buried with him in baptism, in which you were also raised with him through faith in the powerful working of God, who raised him from the dead." - Colossians 2:11-12 ESV
When we believe in Jesus something truly profound happens. There is a removal, a burial and a resurrection.
Believing in Jesus and what He did on the cross is an act of humility because we are saying that we need a Savior. That concept has an irresistible sharpness attached to it that 'puts off' our identity in some way. The old falls away but the next passage has us wholly falling into a grave with Christ. We are buried with Him and then raised with Him all in one instant.
Amazing.
Yes. Believing in Jesus turns us into 'stripped ones' but only for a moment because God dresses us quickly in the glory of His Son.
Today we have a choice. Will we believe? Will we let our confidence in the flesh be removed and trust in Christ for what lies ahead?
"Do not lie to one another, seeing that you have put off the old self with its practices and have put on the new self, which is being renewed in knowledge after the image of its creator." - Colossians 3:9-10 ESV
The moment of nakedness is a past tense moment. If we have believed we have a new identity that is now our true identity. 'It is Finished' is now on our account as ours. The old has fallen away and all things are new.
--
Tuesday, November 22, 2016
Staying And Going
I will get back to Colossians in due season but the subject that has been on my mind lately is 'Staying and Going. Returning and Abandoning.'
It is an interesting subject and our lives are deeply affected by how we make these decisions.
"To the rest I say (I, not the Lord) that if any brother has a wife who is an unbeliever, and she consents to live with him, he should not divorce her. If any woman has a husband who is an unbeliever, and he consents to live with her, she should not divorce him. For the unbelieving husband is made holy because of his wife, and the unbelieving wife is made holy because of her husband. Otherwise your children would be unclean, but as it is, they are holy. But if the unbelieving partner separates, let it be so. In such cases the brother or sister is not enslaved. God has called you to peace. For how do you know, wife, whether you will save your husband? Or how do you know, husband, whether you will save your wife? Only let each person lead the life that the Lord has assigned to him, and to which God has called him. This is my rule in all the churches." - 1 Corinthians 7:12-17 ESV
This is passage rarely preached on Sunday mornings but how many people would profit from hearing it. Paul saw marriages. He Pastored and counseled. He saw couples who remained together but fought like cats and dogs and ones who thought it better to part ways.
We are called to peace and a redemptive mindset.
Different branches of Christianity take such different views of marriage and commitment in general. Some preach 'stay' or be stigmatized forever. Others say, 'It is none of our business. We are here and marriage is over there.' There is such a range of thought.
I have read this passage many times and I'm sure I will read it many more. I'll sit with two people who are in a battle to 'try and make it work' and we will read it together. I want marriages to make it. I believe with all my heart that God does also.
This morning I see the power of one person who believes. One person full of faith can sanctify a home. I see freedom not bondage. I percieve the desire to see the people closest to us saved from a life of self-destruction. I see a very careful leader who hesitates to say, 'Thus sayeth the Lord.' regarding this matter.
I think we all struggle with 'should I stay or should I go' matters. perhaps it isn't marriage. It might be a job or a location. It might be a vocation or Church involvement. Maybe it isn't going that is the issue. Perhaps it is returning.
We are called to peace and a redemptive mindset. God has a calling. We as individuals must discern God's voice. All of us are prone to self deception but what is the Bible saying? is there a witness from the believers we fellowship with? What is the pulpit preaching? What is the witness in our prayer life? God has ways to communicate if we are listening and asking.
"For sin will have no dominion over you, since you are not under law but under grace." - Romans 6:14 ESV
This morning I take my eyes off of myself and pray for the ones around me that are together and others that are apart. Their lives are a witness to me. Some are great testimonies and others serve as warning signs that say, 'Go this way at your own peril'. and I pray for them as I look for God's mind and direction.
--
It is an interesting subject and our lives are deeply affected by how we make these decisions.
"To the rest I say (I, not the Lord) that if any brother has a wife who is an unbeliever, and she consents to live with him, he should not divorce her. If any woman has a husband who is an unbeliever, and he consents to live with her, she should not divorce him. For the unbelieving husband is made holy because of his wife, and the unbelieving wife is made holy because of her husband. Otherwise your children would be unclean, but as it is, they are holy. But if the unbelieving partner separates, let it be so. In such cases the brother or sister is not enslaved. God has called you to peace. For how do you know, wife, whether you will save your husband? Or how do you know, husband, whether you will save your wife? Only let each person lead the life that the Lord has assigned to him, and to which God has called him. This is my rule in all the churches." - 1 Corinthians 7:12-17 ESV
This is passage rarely preached on Sunday mornings but how many people would profit from hearing it. Paul saw marriages. He Pastored and counseled. He saw couples who remained together but fought like cats and dogs and ones who thought it better to part ways.
We are called to peace and a redemptive mindset.
Different branches of Christianity take such different views of marriage and commitment in general. Some preach 'stay' or be stigmatized forever. Others say, 'It is none of our business. We are here and marriage is over there.' There is such a range of thought.
I have read this passage many times and I'm sure I will read it many more. I'll sit with two people who are in a battle to 'try and make it work' and we will read it together. I want marriages to make it. I believe with all my heart that God does also.
This morning I see the power of one person who believes. One person full of faith can sanctify a home. I see freedom not bondage. I percieve the desire to see the people closest to us saved from a life of self-destruction. I see a very careful leader who hesitates to say, 'Thus sayeth the Lord.' regarding this matter.
I think we all struggle with 'should I stay or should I go' matters. perhaps it isn't marriage. It might be a job or a location. It might be a vocation or Church involvement. Maybe it isn't going that is the issue. Perhaps it is returning.
We are called to peace and a redemptive mindset. God has a calling. We as individuals must discern God's voice. All of us are prone to self deception but what is the Bible saying? is there a witness from the believers we fellowship with? What is the pulpit preaching? What is the witness in our prayer life? God has ways to communicate if we are listening and asking.
"For sin will have no dominion over you, since you are not under law but under grace." - Romans 6:14 ESV
This morning I take my eyes off of myself and pray for the ones around me that are together and others that are apart. Their lives are a witness to me. Some are great testimonies and others serve as warning signs that say, 'Go this way at your own peril'. and I pray for them as I look for God's mind and direction.
--
Monday, November 21, 2016
Not A Forgetful Hearer
I think all of us have looked at the time intently and the moment we looked away we quickly forgot the time and had to look again.
Why does that happen?
Perhaps because we are anxious about something and finding out the time is an action that is really a means to an end but does not touch that root issue so our mind discards the information.
"For if anyone is a hearer of the word and not a doer, he is like a man who looks intently at his natural face in a mirror. For he looks at himself and goes away and at once forgets what he was like. But the one who looks into the perfect law, the law of liberty, and perseveres, being no hearer who forgets but a doer who acts, he will be blessed in his doing." - James 1:23-25 ESV
This passage became very fresh to me yesterday. I always saw it as an indictment of the hearer to be a better listener but it is actually showing the difference between the hearer who has liberty and the one who doesn't.
Grace gives liberty. Grace makes us free because the favor we are receiving is unmerited.
The free listener is present in the moment. Perfect love has cast out fear and they aren't doing things to cover themselves or in a fear based motivation.
If we are 'hearing' like a person who is checking their teeth for spinach then we will not be 'doers' because it takes liberty to even have the substance we need.
We must receive grace to give grace. Otherwise, we just impart our needs and not our provision.
Thank you, God! You have made us free. Our chains are gone. In liberty, we have a capacity for whatever You have planned today. Thank You.
--
Why does that happen?
Perhaps because we are anxious about something and finding out the time is an action that is really a means to an end but does not touch that root issue so our mind discards the information.
"For if anyone is a hearer of the word and not a doer, he is like a man who looks intently at his natural face in a mirror. For he looks at himself and goes away and at once forgets what he was like. But the one who looks into the perfect law, the law of liberty, and perseveres, being no hearer who forgets but a doer who acts, he will be blessed in his doing." - James 1:23-25 ESV
This passage became very fresh to me yesterday. I always saw it as an indictment of the hearer to be a better listener but it is actually showing the difference between the hearer who has liberty and the one who doesn't.
Grace gives liberty. Grace makes us free because the favor we are receiving is unmerited.
The free listener is present in the moment. Perfect love has cast out fear and they aren't doing things to cover themselves or in a fear based motivation.
If we are 'hearing' like a person who is checking their teeth for spinach then we will not be 'doers' because it takes liberty to even have the substance we need.
We must receive grace to give grace. Otherwise, we just impart our needs and not our provision.
Thank you, God! You have made us free. Our chains are gone. In liberty, we have a capacity for whatever You have planned today. Thank You.
--
Friday, November 18, 2016
Kidnapped - Colossians - Part 45
"See to it that no one takes you captive by philosophy and empty deceit, according to human tradition, according to the elemental spirits of the world, and not according to Christ." - Colossians 2:8 ESV
'Takes you captive' is sylagōgeō (Strong's G4812) and it is a verb that speaks about stealing people. Kidnap would work as a translation.
"For in him the whole fullness of deity dwells bodily, and you have been filled in him, who is the head of all rule and authority." - Colossians 2:9-10 ESV
"Philosophy' and 'Deity' are also Hapaxes words.
There is a force that wants to take us away but there is a divine kingdom that can give us a home. The Godhead was at home in Christ.
Here it says 'Filled in Him' but the Greek word (plēroō - Strong's G4137) means to make complete.
A kidnapping always leaves a gap or wound. People get torn away from things and have no closure. If that has happened in the past there is still a remedy because we have a home in God that is as complete as Chist is in His identity. He has no gaps in His relationships to the Father and the Spirit.
The cross was a momentary gap made to let us in. He will bear the scars of that day forever so that we can be completely accepted.
A kidnapped person is never truly a part of the system that stole them. Our rebirth make us family. We are adopted and born in at the same time.
--
'Takes you captive' is sylagōgeō (Strong's G4812) and it is a verb that speaks about stealing people. Kidnap would work as a translation.
"For in him the whole fullness of deity dwells bodily, and you have been filled in him, who is the head of all rule and authority." - Colossians 2:9-10 ESV
"Philosophy' and 'Deity' are also Hapaxes words.
There is a force that wants to take us away but there is a divine kingdom that can give us a home. The Godhead was at home in Christ.
Here it says 'Filled in Him' but the Greek word (plēroō - Strong's G4137) means to make complete.
A kidnapping always leaves a gap or wound. People get torn away from things and have no closure. If that has happened in the past there is still a remedy because we have a home in God that is as complete as Chist is in His identity. He has no gaps in His relationships to the Father and the Spirit.
The cross was a momentary gap made to let us in. He will bear the scars of that day forever so that we can be completely accepted.
A kidnapped person is never truly a part of the system that stole them. Our rebirth make us family. We are adopted and born in at the same time.
--
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