Turn it Around

Quick Quips from this past month's Bible studying:

1. I have heard it said a plethora of times over the past years, within the Christian community, that we are not to be so heavenly minded that we are no earthly good. Well, I propose, as children of God, the ONLY way we can ever be any earthly good is to be heavenly minded. The prayer says .... Thy kingdom come, Thy will be done on earth, AS IT IS IN HEAVEN!! That means .... we are to bring the Kingdom of heaven here to earth ..... being earthly, only makes us earthly. Being heavenly manifests the Kingdom in ways that those who don't know, those who don't believe .... WILL! And, that is the point of it all .... to increase the Kingdom. The Spiritual Kingdom is Righteousness, Peace and Joy and in the Holy Ghost! The literal, physical Kingdom is WE the Children of God .... the walking, talking Ambassadors of Christ!

2."Take up your cross daily and follow me". I've heard this my whole life. Unless I'm mistaken, Jesus is quoted having said this in ALL FOUR gospels. The only thing is this - This instruction is not mentioned anywhere in the post resurrection scriptures. NO WHERE! The only mention of a cross in post resurrection scriptures is THE cross, Jesus' cross and that our glory is in it and it's finished work. Here's what I noticed in, and believe from, my study time. When Jesus said this, He was talking to Jewish people who lived under the Law of Moses, and the reason He said it to them - not any of the nonJewish people He spoke with - is because He was trying to lead them to understand that the law couldn't save them. He was trying to lead them to understand that only through the cross does salvation come. He was trying to lead them to understand that through HIS death on the cross, salvation is available to all. No where after Jesus' resurrection and ascension to heaven do the first generation saints tell us that we need to "take up our cross". No where after Jesus' resurrection and ascension to heaven do the Apostles, not even Paul, tell us we have ANY cross to bear. Jesus bore that cross on Calvary that we would not have to. To live in the pretense that we need to bear any cross is the equivalent of believing that what Jesus did wasn't enough and that when He said "IT IS FINISHED" He didn't really mean it.

3. "Faith without works is dead" does NOT mean what I have believed my whole life it means. I was always taught and have always heard that entire passage in James Chapter 2 means we are supposed to being doing for Jesus, doing for God. Jesus, Himself, said He didn't come to be served, and, yet, we good Christians run around "doing" for God, because of this one Chapter. I'm curious to know what we actually think God needs us to do for Him. What great degree of ability or intellect that we have that He actually needs. What Jesus actually instructed us to do, as He lives in and through us, is to do for OTHERS, as He has done for us. I don't believe God has ever asked any of us to do anything FOR HIM - He's never asked ME to, anyway. What He has asked of me is to walk WITH Him and allow Him to DO through me. This is what Jesus was talking about in the Gospel of John when He said "the Father does the works". It's what the Psalmist means when he said "we will not die, but live and declare the WORKS OF THE FATHER". It's simple actually, Jesus said, as far as we are concerned, the works of the Father is (singular) this - believe on Him whom He sent. There is no DO in believing - only believing. Jesus even told Martha all of her bothering over serving Him was not as "needful" as Mary sitting at His feet doing nothing. Now, the Holy Spirit will lead us into Godly behaviors and activity, but lets not get it twisted. It is all about Him. It is all about what He has done, is doing and is going to do. We ..... are either dead in our sins or alive in Christ - either way there is no I, me, we or us anywhere in it.

It's a journey .... and I grow in Him!

Kalena Studying