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Turn The Tables On Me

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In 1517, an obscure Catholic priest named Martin Luther placed his life in God’s hands when he nailed his 95 theses, his 95 arguments against the Catholic church, on the door of the Wittenberg Church. There was nothing wrong with nailing pages to the door. Everything was posted there for everyone to read. It was the community bulletin board. But Martin Luther had been studying the Bible personally and realized that Catholic ceremonies did nothing to dispense grace and the church had no right to sell indulgences. Salvation is received through faith in Jesus. His 95 theses specified errors of the Catholic church in the light of personal Bible study. He began his argument by stating: Out of love for the truth and the desire to bring it to light, the following propositions will be discussed at Wittenberg, under the presidency of the Reverend Father Martin Luther, Master of Arts and of Sacred Theology, and Lecturer in Ordinary on the same at that place. Wherefore he requests that those who are unable to be present and debate orally with us, may do so by letter.In the Name of our Lord Jesus Christ. Amen. Theses 1. Our Lord and Master Jesus Christ, willed that the whole life of believers should be repentance.

As a result of this simple, but obedient action, Heaven came down, and Hell broke loose, as a firestorm of revolt, and controversy erupted within the Catholic Church, and the countries it held sway over. The 95 Theses confronted many of the injustices, beliefs, and wicked practices of the Catholic Church, its Pope, cardinals and priests. Luther’s action created a ground swell of what was later called the Protestant Reformation.

2000 years ago the greatest event in human history occurred through Jesus’ week of Passion, Crucifixion, and Resurrection. During the week leading up to His Crucifixion Jesus created His own firestorm by entering the Temple grounds and driving out the money changers, and those involved with the sale of sacrificial animals. This action ultimately led to the verdict to crucify Him.

As we have noted in earlier blogs, self-centeredness, and fear strangles faith blocking any attempts of the Spirit of God from rising within us to new heights. Our floor becomes our ceiling as our feet remain firmly rooted to the ground of self. Making matters worse is the introduction of man-serving, self centered religion. Instead of being molded and shaped into the Imago Dei (Image of God), conformed to the Image of Jesus, we only become more corrupted images of our self. Self-serving, man created religion, crucifies Jesus afresh every time it is practiced, discounting His Resurrection Power.

In 1992 a man invited me to join him and another for prayer at our church. I was on staff as a youth minister. My passion, and heart at this time was to see revival break out in our church, and country. During this season of prayer I was challenged by the Spirit of God to begin praying for revival to come to my life. I took the challenge ignorant of the adventure that awaited me. During this season of prayer, and seeking, the Lord revealed the nastiness of my bitterness, anger, unforgiveness, lust, and demonic strongholds. The final challenge came through a song I was listening to written by Mylon Lefevre, entitled, Turn The Tables On Me. The lyrics which got my attention, and the Lord used as a challenge, were the following:

My heart belongs to Jesus, But it’s trapped inside of me, Trying to live for Him, But the world won’t let me be, I know my spirit’s willing, But my flesh is not as strong, I want to do what’s right, Oh, but sometimes I’m so wrong. Buyers, sellers, Cheaters, liars, Have had their way too long inside of me. Jesus, Master, Take this temple, set me free
(Jesus, set me free) Turn the tables on me.

As I listened to this song the Holy Spirit whispered, Can you pray that? And my response? Go For it Lord! I chuckle as I write this thinking back to the arrogant, self-centered individual I was at this time. Little did I know what that simple agreement would ignite in my life, and my life has never been the same. I want to challenge the few people that read these blogs to accept that same challenge, inviting Jesus to come to your temple (Which really belongs to Him) and clean house. You don’t have to pray as violent as the song, but maybe that’s the kind of fearless, passion you need to be set free from all that has prevented you from becoming who He has made you to be. As I repeatedly state, Jesus made you for more than coming to a building, looking at the back of someone’s head, and calling it Church (or worse calling it worship). Jesus has made you for more than pre-setting your radio stations to Christian radio. Jesus has made you for more that pasting a fish on the back of your car, or wearing Christian T-shirts. He has called you to be a son or daughter of the Most High God. He has called you to co-reign with Him in this foreign country we call Earth. Don’t you desire for Jesus to loose His reformation in you?

John Hancock

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Often when we ask for a person’s signature, we will call it their “John Hancock.” This is because of the fifty-six signatures on the Declaration of Independence, one stands out above the rest. That signature belongs to John Hancock. He was the first to sign the declaration and he signed it in a large and legible script so that the King of England could read his name without using glasses. Mr. Hancock wanted it to be very clear where his allegiance lay. His commitment to his country was so clear that when King George III offered amnesty to all who would cease fighting, John Hancock was among the select few who were left out of the offer.

A similar thing happened to Moses. Its found in Exodus 34:5-7 Now the Lord descended in the cloud and stood with him there, and proclaimed the name of the Lord. 6 And the Lord passed before him and proclaimed, “The Lord, the Lord God, merciful and gracious, longsuffering, and abounding in goodness and truth, 7 keeping mercy for thousands, forgiving iniquity and transgression and sin, by no means clearing the guilty, visiting the iniquity of the fathers upon the children and the children’s children to the third and the fourth generation.”

At first it appears to be pretty pompous of the Lord. But when we seek to connect to the Lord, listening for His still small Voice to teach us, He will lead us to the Truth, guiding us beyond what offends our natural minds. As I sought Him He surprised me with His answer. Numbers 6:24-27 “The Lord bless you and keep you; The Lord make His face shine upon you, And be gracious to you; The Lord lift up His countenance upon you, And give you peace.” ’ “So they shall put My name on the children of Israel, and I will bless them.” God places His Name upon His people through His Word. Add to that this revelation: Psalms 138:2 I will worship toward Your holy temple and praise Your name for Your loving-kindness and for Your truth and faithfulness; for You have exalted above all else Your name and Your word and You have magnified Your word above all Your name! God magnifies His Word above His Name. Let that sink in. Reading this for the first time you immediately think of the Scripture, and that would be right. Yet consider that Jesus is the Living Word of God. In essence, God was exalting Jesus – the Word above His Name, and writing His Sons’ Name onto the heart of Moses. And don’t forget Acts 11:26 …and in Antioch the disciples were first called Christ…..ians. Jesus put His Word in their hearts along with His Name! The good news for us is that God writes His Name – Jesus, Yeshua – on our hearts through His Word. Through our obedience and surrender in our wilderness; and in our dying spiritually to ourselves through prayer, fasting, seeking, submission, and obedience. As we meet Him – the Word, outside the camp, at Christ’s crucifixion, He is, and will continue to write His Name – His Word – His Story – on our hearts. That’s pretty powerful.

Don’t Pass Me By

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A man recounts a time when he had to enter the military while the draft was still in place: I didn’t enlist in the Army — I was drafted. So I wasn’t going to make life easy for anyone. During my physical, the doctor asked softly, “Can you read the letters on the wall?” “What letters?” I answered slyly. “Good,” said the doctor. “You passed the hearing test.”

In the last meditation, The Call of the Wilderness, we discovered the call to seek God through prayer and fasting is a call to seek to join Jesus in the wilderness. This call turns into a series of tests similar to Jesus’ temptations in the wilderness. We see this “testing” taking place throughout Scripture. In Marks Gospel it states: And having seen that they were troubled and tormented in [their] rowing, for the wind was against them, about the fourth watch of the night [between 3:00-6:00 a.m.] He came to them, walking [directly] on the sea. And He acted as if He meant to pass by them,…(Mark 6:48) In the Gospel of Luke another account is given of Jesus passing by: As He came near to Jericho, it occurred that a blind man was sitting by the roadside begging. And hearing a crowd going by, he asked what it meant. They told him, Jesus of Nazareth is passing by. (Luke 18: 35-37) Another passage in Luke reveals a similar theme: Then beginning with Moses and [throughout] all the Prophets, He went on explaining and interpreting to them in all the Scriptures the things concerning and referring to Himself. Then they drew near the village to which they were going, and He acted as if He would go further. But they urged and insisted, saying to Him, Remain with us, for it is toward evening, and the day is now far spent. So He went in to stay with them. (Luke 24:27-29)

When we are seeking God through prayer, fasting, or simply trying to draw nearer to Him, it appears that Jesus has passed us by. Even more painful than this is the news of someone He hasn’t passed by. The news that he has healed them, come near to them, or performed some outrageous miracle – while you sit alone with no answer. Jesus has passed you by – or so it seems.

Truth, we know is more than a concept, but a Person – Jesus, the Christ. And Truth lies hidden in these moments in which it appears Jesus has passed us by. Truth lies hidden in the Gospel accounts that apply to all of us who may feel neglected, or hidden in the wilderness. In the passage of Jesus walking on the water there’s an overlooked detail. Jesus had sent His disciples to go ahead of Him in their boat to the other side so that He could pray. While praying a storm broke out. This storm was no ordinary storm. Many scholars believe it was demonic in origin. It is a known fact that the location of the Sea of Galilee, which is 686 feet below sea level, and surrounded by mountains (Mt. Hermon rises to the altitude of 9,232 feet), that unusual and violent storms break out on its waters. Waves have reached levels of 70 feet or more. While encountering this storm, seasoned fishermen assumed they were going to die. Just hours before they had watched as Jesus miraculously fed 5000 men (not counting the numbers of women and children) fish and bread. Now all of that seemed a distant memory as their small, sailing boat was tossed by the winds in the middle of the sea. Mark’s account suggests that, since they were sailing against the wind, they were “straining at rowing,” a word which conveys the sense of torture, or distress. They had endured this nautical torment for “three or four miles” (Jn. 6.18), and were still no closer to their ultimate destination. Both Matthew and Mark indicate that the disciples were still enduring this hardship “in the fourth watch of the night” — somewhere between three and six in the morning (Mt. 14.25; Mk. 6.48)! Yet, while they were at the end of their strength, Jesus appears, walking on the water. To make matters worse, it appears, He is going to pass them by. But take notice: they were at the end of their strength. When it appeared that the blind beggar was going to be passed by he cried out for the Lord to have mercy on him. The crowds attempted to silence his enthusiasm but this only encouraged him to cry louder. The disciples on the road to Emmaus were kept from recognizing Jesus and when it appeared that He was going to keep walking, they urged and insisted that He remain. They all passed the test. They didn’t give up in their seeking, and they didn’t give in to feelings of rejection and self-pity. A demonic storm, darkness, physical blindness, pressure from crowds to be silent, and the crucifixion, and death of Messianic salvation were not enough to prevent them from seeking.

In the silence of the wilderness what will you do? Will you keep rowing, crying out, and urging and insisting that Jesus stay with you? Our wilderness is not made for our soul, or carnal man. It is designed to cause our spirit man to rise up and be strong. Are you rising up to meet with Jesus? Are you passing the tests?