As Good As Dead

In Hebrews 11 the writer compiles a list of people that we often refer to as the heroes of the faith.  These saints of old obtained a good report because of their belief and trust in God’s promises even though circumstances were opposed to them.

Without faith it is impossible to please God.  By faith Enoch escaped death because he had this testimony, that he pleased God.  He walked so close to God that one day he just stepped over into heaven.     

Noah and his family escaped the destruction of the flood because they believed God and acted on His instructions to build an ark.  They were as good as dead except that they obeyed God. 

Abraham and Sarah were beyond child bearing age yet God promised them a Son.  The scripture speaks of the deadness of Sarah’s womb; they were both as good as dead, yet by the miraculous power of God Sarah received strength to conceive.  After giving birth to Isaac, God told Abraham to sacrifice him upon an altar.  Isaac was as good as dead when Abraham lifted the knife but God intervened and provided a ram for a sacrifice. 

As a baby, Moses was as good as dead when his mother constructed a little boat and sent him down the river.  By the miraculous intervention of God the daughter of Pharaoh heard his cry and rescued him from the slaughter of the Hebrew children.  

Rahab the harlot was as good as dead during the destruction of Jericho.  By God’s miraculous intervention she and all her house were spared because she hid the spies and helped them escape. 

Though there are many points to be made from this list, I want to focus on the aspect of being as good as dead.  Joseph was as good as dead when his brothers threw him into a pit to die, but a pattern in scripture is revealed here.  It goes back to the death, burial and resurrection cycle that is necessary for entrance into God’s Kingdom and the subsequent increase.

Enoch stepped over into the heavenly kingdom.  Noah and his family entered into salvation and went on to repopulate the earth.  Abraham and Sarah went from being childless to having offspring numbering as the sand of the sea and the stars of the sky.  Through Isaac and his descendants would come God’s promised redeemer, the Messiah.  We also find the harlot Rahab named in the lineage of the Christ child.  Moses was used of God to deliver the Israelites who were held captive to bondage in Egypt for over four hundred years. 

All those mentioned above were in one form or another as good as dead, but by God’s intervention went on to greatness.  There are at least three types of increase revealed in the cycle of sowing and reaping, or death burial and resurrection.  Enoch received power and authority to overcome death.  Moses and Joseph increased in authority to rule and reign.  Noah, Abraham and Rahab are mentioned as having many offspring.  I am sure all of those mentioned above received an increase in intimacy with God as well. 

Everything we do is by God’s empowering grace, but it requires faith on our part to act on the promise we receive.  Taking up the cross is to be as good as dead.  In other words we are to be a living sacrifice.  Our increase in life comes as God responds to our faith with miraculous intervention to bring about His promise for our destiny. 

EVERY DAY IS "GOD AWARENESS DAY"

Living as Christ

Christ not only died for us but He died as us.  We should not only live for Him but live as Him in His place.  He took our place in death that we might take His place in life.  As He is, so are we in this world.     1 John 4:17

New Book

My new book "The Hidden Wisdom of the Cross" is now available at Amazon.com and through the Kindle Store.  Enjoy

My new book, "The Hidden Wisdom of the Cross" is soon to be released as an e-book on Amazon.com. Please see the back cover text below. 

The bible is clear that Christ has already defeated and disarmed the powers of darkness yet it’s evident that darkness continues to steal, kill and destroy like never before.  In the pages of this book you will discover the enemy’s strategy to draw God’s people away from that place of victory into a state of defeat.  We face an onslaught of darkness that conventional wisdom has no answers for.  We must walk in the wisdom revealed through the cross.  In 1 Corinthians 2: Paul declares this mysterious hidden wisdom which is reserved for our glory, a wisdom that the rulers of darkness do not understand.  If they had they would not have crucified the Lord of Glory.  We must use this same wisdom in our application of the cross to our every day life.  Jesus said if anyone wants to be His disciple they must deny self and take up the cross daily and follow Him.  Our enemy is a legalist and is empowered by the law to harass and condemn those who walk in the realm of law.  We rise far above our enemies as we choose the superior form of justice Christ introduced through the New Covenant.  Those who settle for legal justice find that the enemy continues to condemn and harass them.  Learn how to apply the wisdom revealed through the cross of Christ and keep your enemy under your feet.                    

Hindrances to Spiritual Perception

 

One of the most popular prayer requests in the body of Christ myself included is that we might better see and hear what the Father is doing and saying that we might be more effective in our walk with Him and ministry to others.  Since Jesus is our role model it is fitting that we should follow in His footsteps.   

 

In John 5:19 we see that Jesus did nothing of Himself.  He only did the things He saw His Father doing.  Likewise in John 14:10 we see that Jesus spoke nothing on His own accord only that which He heard His Father saying.  Some might disqualify themselves from being able to hear and see what the Father is doing as Jesus did because He was God and we are not.  Though Jesus was with God and was equal to God from the beginning, He laid aside His equality and privileges as God to take on the form of a servant.  He (The Word) became flesh and dwelled among men.  (See Philippians 2:5-8 John 1:14)

 

Jesus was both the Son of God and the Son of man.  He was on an assignment from heaven to redeem mankind from the fall and only an innocent man could become the sacrifice necessary to pay the required price.  If Jesus had used any of His privileges as God and not faced His assignment as a man He would have disqualified Himself as the perfect human sacrifice.  Everything He did and said was as a man under the influence of the Holy Spirit.  Those who have been born again from above and filled with His Spirit have been transferred from the kingdom of darkness into the Kingdom of God’s dear Son.  Now we are the sons of God with the same Holy Spirit dwelling within and directing our lives.  Now we too can say and do what we hear and see our Father doing. 

 

If we have any disadvantage to Jesus it’s because of our past.  Jesus had no corrupt past to hinder His ability to see and hear.  The rest of us need to repent and change our way of thinking.  We need our minds renewed that we can develop hearing ears and eyes that see.  Jesus made a remarkable statement in John 9:39.  “For judgment I have come into this world, that those who do not see may see, and that those who see may be made blind.”  It is easy to understand that Jesus came to give sight to blind people but why would He make blind those who see?  Jesus was not speaking of natural eyesight but spiritual vision.  The Pharisees and religious people of that day thought they could see but Jesus revealed their blindness.  Jesus tried to convince the Pharisees even calling them blind leaders of the blind.  Most of them rejected Him as their Messiah while others saw Him for who He truly was.  The Pharisees were students of the word of God but somehow when the living word came on the scene they didn’t recognize Him.  Their spiritual blindness prevented them from entering God’s Kingdom and they became a roadblock to others who sought to enter in.  (See Matthew 23:13) 

 

In John 3 Jesus said He didn’t come into the world to condemn the world but to save it.  When Jesus said He came for judgment it was to judge or condemn the things that block spiritual vision.  There are several things that cause spiritual blindness and deafness but the main culprit is deception and hardness of heart.

In Mark 8:11-12 Jesus and the disciples had a discussion with the Pharisees who wanted a sign from heaven but Jesus did not accommodate them.  ¹³ And He left them, and getting into the boat again, departed to the other side. ¹⁴ Now the disciples had forgotten to take bread, and they did not have more than one loaf with them in the boat. ¹⁵ Then He charged them, saying, “Take heed, beware of the leaven of the Pharisees and the leaven of Herod.” ¹⁶ And they reasoned among themselves, saying, “It is because we have no bread.” ¹⁷ But Jesus, being aware of it, said to them, “Why do you reason because you have no bread? Do you not yet perceive nor understand? Is your heart still^] hardened? ¹⁸ Having eyes, do you not see? And having ears, do you not hear?

Though the disciples heard Jesus with their natural ears they did not perceive of His words.  We see in verse 17 Jesus points to a heart condition as the reason for their misunderstanding.  Hardness of heart is the major cause of blindness but what causes our hearts to become hard?

Hebrews 3:12  Beware, brethren, lest there be in any of you an evil heart of unbelief in departing from the living God; ¹³ but exhort one another daily, while it is called “Today,” lest any of you be hardened through the deceitfulness of sin.

Sin is deceitfully attractive because it appears to be the answer to our immediate need.  Unbelief is the major sin the Pharisees were bound by.  Unbelief is rooted in pride which says (I know best).  Fallen humanity needs something to elevate itself back up from the fall and pride presents itself as the solution.  Jesus warned His disciples of religious pride that puffs men up in their mind.  It falsely elevates and only sets us up for a greater fall.

 

Out of the heart the mouth speaks.  Whatever is planted and growing in the heart will come forth like seed from the mouth.  Those who receive the word or seed will find the same things sprouting up in their own heart.  Doctrine is like seed sown that reproduces after its own kind.  The hearts of the Pharisees were so overgrown with unbelief and pride their teaching was toxic.  As Jesus spoke out the pure doctrine of God it could not take root in their hearts because of their overgrown condition. 

 

Now he who received seed among the thorns is he who hears the word, and the cares of this world and the deceitfulness of riches choke the word, and he becomes unfruitful.  Matthew 13:22

 

Though wealth is not sinful it has a deceitful tendency.  Wealth can lead one to believe they are in need of nothing while not recognizing their true condition.  The church of Laodicea in Revelation 3 is an example.  ¹⁷Because you say, ‘I am rich, have become wealthy, and have need of nothing’—and do not know that you are wretched, miserable, poor, blind, and naked.

 

Wealth empowers us to do whatever we want.  It is good if our desires are one with Christ but the Laodiceans evidently allowed wealth to rule in their lives above God.

 

 

Jesus also warned His followers of the deceitfulness of the doctrine of Herod.  Herod represents political power.  People have a tendency to rely on government to meet all their needs.  Though wealth, religion and government are all God’s idea without the influence of His Spirit in our lives these things become perverted little gods.  God’s Kingdom is not void of wealth, governing authority or religious worship but it is never used to coerce or manipulate people.  We see today how people have become so dependant upon government that they can hardly function otherwise.

 

Though there are many other ways our hearts can become hardened I will end with self deception.  Anyone who repeatedly hears the word without doing it develops a hardened heart.  James 1:22 But be doers of the word, and not hearers only, deceiving yourselves. ²³ For if anyone is a hearer of the word and not a doer, he is like a man observing his natural face in a mirror; ²⁴ for he observes himself, goes away, and immediately forgets what kind of man he was.

 

A deceived person doesn’t know it.  The Pharisees were deceived they appeared holy on the outside but were full of corruption on the inside.  Jesus came as the light to expose darkness but men loved and held on to darkness rather than the light because they didn’t want their deeds exposed.  Religious pride is likely the most powerful bondage there is.  It appears to be powerful enough to block the effect of God’s word.  Jesus told the Pharisees they made the word of God ineffective by their own traditions.  (See Mark 7:13)    

 

When Jesus said “beware” He was saying guard your heart, don’t allow any deceptive thing to harden your hearts and cut off spiritual perception.  We have seen that sin, riches, religious pride, dependence upon human government and hearing the word without doing it all contribute to blindness of heart.  These things only have power if we don’t recognize them for what they are and keep them in the dark.  Light is more powerful than darkness but we must be willing to expose our hearts to the light of Christ. 

 

If we say that we have fellowship with Him, and walk in darkness, we lie and do not practice the truth. ⁷ But if we walk in the light as He is in the light, we have fellowship with one another, and the blood of Jesus Christ His Son cleanses us from all sin.

(1 John 1:6-7)

 

 I am reminded here of a word pastor Greg Daley shared recently concerning the above verse.  He pointed out that the blood of Jesus Christ only cleanses in the light.  Anything we hide in darkness or behind a religious façade will miss the cleansing process.  Though darkness is powerless against light it appears possible to make the light and the blood ineffective by hiding our stuff in the darkness or covering it with a religious appearance.   

 

Written By John Scheda 

    

 

   

 

        

  

 

 

 

 

Two Masters

The following is my own paraphrase of the story Jesus told in Luke 16 called the parable of the unjust Steward.  A certain rich man had a manager who was accused of wasting his master’s wealth.  The master confronted him and decided to fire him.  The manager thought about his options and the slim chance of being hired with a bad reputation, so he devised a plan.  He decided to visit those who owed money to his master and cut some quick deals.  Since he had been the record keeper for years he thought the master wouldn’t notice the difference.  He agreed with them to decrease the balance they owed in hopes they would feel obligated to help him in his day of need.  When the master heard of it he called the steward in again and commended him for his shrewd skills.  Then Jesus commented: “The children of this world are wiser in their generation than the children of light.”    The Pharisees that heard Jesus speak scoffed and sneered at this because they perceived He spoke of them.  

The manager in this story was given oversight of God’s people.  The manager’s earthly values differed greatly from his master’s which were heavenly.  The goal was to lead and empower the people into freedom from a debt of sin.  Rather than seeing their debt as a despised thing to be rid of he saw it as job security and a way to empower himself.  His worldly minded sense of prosperity led him to further strap obligation on the people when all along he should have led them to freedom.  The master commended him for being so adept at using worldly tactics but obviously it wasn’t something the master valued. 

The children of the world are quick to make the system work in their favor but the children of light are slow to catch on to heaven’s ways.  Their earthly mindedness hinders their understanding. They often settle for the world’s covetous ways because it makes more sense to them.  Setting people free, releases them from all obligation and even the need of worldly management.  What would a manager do without obligated people?

The master placed greater value on freedom than on earthly wealth.  The accusation against the manager was not for wasting earthly wealth but the true wealth is people and their freedom from sin.  They had been forgiven their debts but the manager was withholding the truth in fear of loosing his position and advantage over the people. 

No one can serve two masters, either he will hate the one and love the other, or he will hold to the one and despise the other.  We can not serve both God and mammon.

The manager’s goal should have been to do business with heaven, to bring the resources of heaven to earth setting free those who were bound to sin.  Transforming society includes the influence of heavenly wisdom.  It appears foolish to the natural mind but it is far superior to worldly wisdom.  When we do it right we can sow into this world and reap from heaven.  As Kingdom citizens we are not limited to this earth’s resources.  We actually open up heaven’s windows as we sow into the weak and needy of this world.  We can not follow this world’s ways and expect Kingdom results.  The key to this world doesn’t fit the windows of heaven, to receive its wisdom or resources.

Grace is the seed or the currency of the Kingdom.  As we empower the weak we reap from the Mighty One.  God has hidden the latch that open’s heaven’s windows in plain sight.  It is worldly wisdom that prevents us from seeing it.  Jesus came and sowed His life into those without strength and reaped a harvest.  The same pattern was to continue but in some cases earthly wisdom has influenced the church and hinders progress. 

We can not serve two masters, following the wisdom of this world results in further burdening people for gain.  Heaven’s wisdom is to bless and do good toward those who do not deserve it and those who cannot return the favor.  It is to set the captives free from those who take advantage of their weakness.  Jesus said in Matthew 5:46 “If you love those who love you, what reward have you?  Do not even the tax collectors do the same?”  In other words sowing into those who can easily return the favor will not return the heavenly reward.

Proverbs 19:17 says; “He who has pity on the poor lends to the lord, and He will pay back what he has given.”  What better investment can we find than to help the helpless and give to those who can not repay us?  In extending both the earthly and the heavenly commodities to empower others we reap more power from above in our own lives.

Grace is a heavenly commodity, it can not be worked for or earned but is a free gift.  It increases in our lives as we freely give to empower others.  This world’s system has molded our mindset to earn and gain through work.  That is fitting and right in the world but not applicable to the Kingdom.  Applying this principal to God’s Kingdom only leads to bondage and lack of grace.  Increase through giving or sowing into the fields of the world (people) causes a heavenly harvest.  As we empower the weak we are empowered to do greater works.

Jesus also said in Luke 16:9 Make friends by the proper use of earthly wealth so in your time of need they will invite you into their everlasting family and home. (My paraphrase)

Our use of earthly wealth to empower the weak without obligating them will make them eternally grateful to us. They will freely invite us to their home both on earth and in heaven as eternal fiends.

God has given us earthly wealth and it is a good thing.  The way we handle it reveals our true master and where our heart is.  Though heaven is loaded with silver, gold and precious stones none of it could redeem one soul.  It required the blood of an innocent man.  God’s goal is to lead all mankind into innocence.  Only the innocent can truly represent The Innocent One.  Those who work through obligation or guilt can not lead people into innocence or freedom.

Wealth is given us to facilitate that process and we dare not be distracted from the goal by it.  God has given us both seed for sowing and bread for our own food.  It takes wisdom to discern between the two.  Eating the seed which was intended to be sown will reap no harvest and we’ll soon find ourselves low on empowering grace.  In the same way to give away what was intended by God for our own life will not return a harvest.  Bread sown into the field will not bring a harvest.  Obviously this doesn’t mean we never give away food, it just requires wisdom to know what, where and when to sow.