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Staying Sown

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1 Peter 1:1-2 Peter, an apostle (a special messenger) of Jesus Christ, [writing] to the elect exiles of the dispersion scattered (sowed) abroad in Pontus, Galatia, Cappadocia, Asia, and Bithynia, 2 Who were chosen and foreknown by God the Father and consecrated (sanctified, made holy) by the Spirit to be obedient to Jesus Christ (the Messiah) and to be sprinkled with [His] blood: May grace (spiritual blessing) and peace be given you in increasing abundance [that spiritual peace to be realized in and through Christ, freedom from fears, agitating passions, and moral conflicts].

The Parable of the Soils describes how Jesus’ word is received within the soil of our hearts. Some hearts are trodden down, others are thorny, or rocky. Only one of the soils receives the seed of the Word and produces fruit. Billy Graham used this parable to make the point that only one in four people who gather in our churches has actually been born-again.

What I have never thought of is that not only is our heart a garden – with seeds sown into its “ground” – we are seeds. Our lives and the way we live them are seeds. From one seed come many seeds that either bear fruit for righteousness and the Kingdom of God, or bear fruit for evil and Satans’ kingdom. Question is, Am I consciously aware that I have been sown by the Lord? Everyone quotes Romans 8:28 God works for the good for those who love Him and have been called according to His purpose. But few actually believe that promise. If we believed it we would wait for the Lord – the Sower of our lives – to bring fruit out of the pit He has buried us in. What does this all mean? In order for a seed to germinate a “pit” must be dug to plant the seed, burying it in the soil that will “entomb” it. In the Old Testament Joseph was “buried” in a pit (tomb) by his jealous brothers to be “resurrected” into becoming a ruler of Egypt. We see the same in Jesus’ life. Planted in a “pit” or tomb He burst forth 3 days later securing the salvation of the world. In speaking of His crucifixion Jesus stated: I assure you, most solemnly I tell you, Unless a grain of wheat falls into the earth and dies, it remains [just one grain; it never becomes more but lives] by itself alone. But if it dies, it produces many others and yields a rich harvest. (John 12:24). The best place to sow any seed is in the dark ground. The soil that is fertile has rotten, stinking stuff in it. It’s not clean, or sterilized. The pit, darkness, and fertile, stinking soil is actually good for the seed. In other words, all of these things are good for you – if you are God’s seed. I once heard Brad McClendon teach on this and he asked, What happens to the seed when we take it out of the pit? It dies and the transformation is halted.

Many times the Lord has led this “seed” (me, myself, and I) to a place, circumstance, assignment, difficult person, or situation – He had chosen for me; He had designed for me – to be buried. Unfortunately, I halted the process of transformation by taking myself out of the “pit” He had buried me. Sadly, over the years of ministry, I have watched people claim God’s leading to this or that – but once they started feeling the darkness of His pit, and smelled the rotten, stinking soil used to bury them – they quickly jumped out. They missed an all important truth: If you say you are a follower of Jesus then eventually you are going to have to follow Him down into the “pit;” the place where it seems the enemy has scattered you. The soulish man, or fleshly nature, is always seeking to save SELF – mind, will emotions and personality. It will avoid its death at all costs. Hebrews 12:7 states that we are to endure hardship as discipline. God is treating you as sons….You can’t be a son (or daughter) like Jesus until you learn to suffer with Jesus. Romans 8:17 affirms this fact: And if we are [His] children, then we are [His] heirs also: heirs of God and fellow heirs with Christ [sharing His inheritance with Him]; only we must share His suffering if we are to share His glory.

Matthew 13:8 reminds us: Other seeds fell on good soil, and yielded grain—some a hundred times as much as was sown, some sixty times as much, and some thirty. When I submit to this process I will bear much fruit.

Choices

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Dear Sir: I am writing in response to your request for additional information in Block #3 of the accident reporting form. I put “Poor Planning” as the cause of my accident. You asked for a fuller explanation and I trust the following details will be sufficient. I am a bricklayer by trade. On the day of the accident, I was working alone on the roof of a new six-story building. When I completed my work, I found I had some bricks left over which when weighed later were found to weigh 240 lbs. Rather than carry the bricks down by hand, I decided to lower them in a barrel by using a pulley which was attached to the side of the building at the sixth floor. Securing the rope at ground level, I went up to the roof, swung the barrel out and loaded the bricks into it. Then I went down and untied the rope, holding it tightly to insure a slow descent of the 240 lbs of bricks. You will note on the accident reporting form that my weight is 135 lbs. Due to my surprise at being jerked off the ground so suddenly, I lost my presence of mind and forgot to let go of the rope. Needless to say, I proceeded at a rapid rate up the side of the building. In the vicinity of the third floor, I met the barrel which was now proceeding downward at an equally impressive speed. This explains the fractured skull, minor abrasions and the broken collarbone, as listed in Section 3, accident reporting form. Slowed only slightly, I continued my rapid ascent, not stopping until the fingers of my right hand were two knuckles deep into the pulley which I mentioned in Paragraph 2 of this correspondence. Fortunately by this time I had regained my presence of mind and was able to hold the rope, in spite of the excruciating pain I was now beginning to experience. At approximately the same time, however, the barrel of bricks hit the ground-and the bottom fell out of the barrel. Now devoid of the weight of the bricks, the barrel weighed approximately 50 lbs. I refer you again to my weight. As you might imagine, I began a rapid descent down the side of the building.In the vicinity of the third floor, I met the barrel coming up. This accounts for the two fractured ankles, broken tooth and severe lacerations of my legs and lower body. Here my luck began to change slightly. The encounter with the barrel seemed to slow me enough to lessen my injuries when I fell into the pile of bricks and fortunately only three vertebrae were cracked. I am sorry to report, however, as I lay there on the pile of bricks, in pain, unable to move and watching the empty barrel six stories above me, I again lost my composure and presence of mind and let go of the rope.

Choices. They determine the outcome of so many things. Some choices are weightier than others. Like who you marry, taking a job, buying a car or a house, etc. Then there are the lighter choices in life like, Do I want a third patty on this cheeseburger, buttressed by extra slabs of bacon? (Did I tell you I chose to do a Daniel Fast?) When you read the Bible you discover people making choices that have eternal consequences. Consider the temptations of Jesus in the Wilderness:

And the tempter came and said to Him, If You are God’s Son, command these stones to be made [loaves of] bread. (Mt. 4:3)

Then the devil took Him into the holy city and placed Him on a turret (pinnacle, gable) of the temple sanctuary. And he said to Him, If You are the Son of God, throw Yourself down; for it is written, He will give His angels charge over you, and they will bear you up on their hands, lest you strike your foot against a stone. (Mt. 4:5-6)

Again, the devil took Him up on a very high mountain and showed Him all the kingdoms of the world and the glory (the splendor, magnificence, preeminence, and excellence) of them. And he said to Him, These things, all taken together, I will give You, if You will prostrate Yourself before me and do homage and worship me. (Mt. 4:8-9)

3 Temptations, 3 Choices. The first was occupied with life. What do you live for? The second, what would you die for? And the final, and third choice: Who or what do you worship? Jesus made it clear what we should live: You should live for every word that comes out of God’s Mouth. Another way of saying that is to say that we should be living for a relationship with God. The second choice, requires closer inspection to understand what Jesus was referencing. In Exodus 17 the people demanded water to drink. Moses took note that they were trying, tempting or testing God. But then he adds another nuance: Why do you find fault with….? Not only were the people trying God, they were finding fault with Him. Are we willing to die not finding fault with God? The third and final choice rested squarely in Eternity. The modern church understanding of worship is that it is a song or posture. Whereas Scripture’s definition goes much deeper than that. Worship involved who or what you served. It was a lifestyle of sacrifice.

What happens in the wilderness, in the praying, and the seeking? What happens when you choose to search for Jesus outside the camp? You discover what you are living for, what you are willing to die for, and what or who you really worship. What choices have you been making?

Seeking For the Face of God

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Show Me Your Glory

“Fasting is not a tool for gaining discipline or piety. Instead, fasting is the…act of ridding ourselves of fullness to attune our senses to the mysteries that swirl in and around us. Sometimes God shows up. Sometimes he feeds us. And every now and then, He throws His wild glory before us like bursting constellations.” -Dan Allender
 

Moses said, “Please show me your glory!”, and He said, “I will make all my goodness pass before you and will proclaim before you My name The Lord…” – Exodus 33:18 (ESV)

I have never had a face to face encounter with Jesus. I have never seen his Shekinah Glory. But in my fastings, He has taken the dimness of my soul away and heaven has become so real. I remember the first fast I ever did. I was mowing lawns in Maryland and on the third day while mowing, His presence swirled around me. I felt as if I could touch the angels. It was a rare ecstasy and from that point I have been ruined for fasting. A hunger came into my life for the Presence. Gravity lost its pull on me and I made my home in rarified air. In ridding my soul of fullness, I was being attuned to the mysteries that swirled around me. The realm of dreams was opened and the whisper of God became more like a roar. And in those dreams I had a glimpse of eternity. In fasting the veil of the soul becomes very thin and it is almost like you can reach out your hand through that thin veneer and taste of the goodness of God like Moses did on his 40 day fast.
Prayer

Friend, pray with me now. Lord show me your glory! Unveil mysteries, things my natural eyes cannot not see. I ask for dreams and personal encounter with You.  Oh! Let me reach up and touch the face of God.