Driving Out Punishment & Fear! GMG: Week 7: I John 4:16-21

Oh, my soul, for weeks now, the heralds have gone out telling forth the good news..... :

Have you heard it yet?

........ that the God who *is* love, loves you! yes you!?!

Have you heard it echoing in the deepest chambers of your soul?

Do you believe it?  Or do you yet fear, that in some ways, here or there, that His love is not enough!?!

What have you to fear? You have confidence in the day of judgment!  You have confidence in His healing!  You have confidence in eternal life!

Then what has gone amiss?

Why are you hurt?  Why is your face downcast?

Oh, my soul, you know right well, that yet again, you felt fear rise up this week; you have wrestled again with the pain of those who judge you harshly and even falsely?

But, my soul, that fear cannot please God!  You can only please God with faith.

But what is it that one mere soul can do?

Give thanks!

Yes, Give thanks to the Lord God's tender mercies;
Give thanks to the gentle ministries of the Holy Spirit!
You, oh my soul, have been lead down the path of righteousness in spite of this fear!
He has helped to cast it out yet again!

By faith alone!  In Christ alone!  Through grace alone!

Yes, when fear sought you out!
When fear sought to carry you away!
When fear even got a grip on you for a moment!
Yes, then you felt its punishment this week!

(for fear involves punishment!)

You whose emotions died for decades at the tender age of seven.  You, who God guided gently, and carefully back away from the Abyss of the Tragedies; Aye, back from the wild, and twisted, and ragged Abyss of Tragedies, with its jagged edges, from aberration to aberration; with its varied crevasses of immeasurable depths...........;

Yes, You.

Yes, you, oh my soul......... who God challenged and nurtured, with the challenge to learn to ...

............ feel again........

Yes, you, oh my soul, who finally feel pain!

You finally discern more quickly which pain is the inherent grief over the brokenness of life.  Which is a healthy thing!

Such pain drives you to seek to share the good news of His grace!
Such pain drives you to pray fervently for His coming-again!

But more than that!

You, oh my soul, finally discern more quickly which pain is self-destructive........ which is Punishment-Self-Inflicted...... out of fear........ of others' brokenness....... of their brokenness breaking through and hurting you, precious soul created by God, yet again.

What did the Spirit's tender mercies reveal to you this week about this?

Oh, my soul, by His tender mercies, He revealed that:

In your moment of fear, in the fear of more pain from the rejection of those who call themselves 'brothers' and 'sisters'........ In that moment, you began to thrash yourself....... self-flaggelation!!! Not out of mis-informed penance, but out of fear!

How can it be, that out of grief of pain, by focusing on the pain, we thrash ourselves further with the whip of pain provided by those who have rejected us?

But that is so much the case........

And here it is........ The Solution!:

First!  To focus on His love for us........., aye, even for you, oh my soul!

For, again, if His love and saving grace is enough to heal us from our own sin, how can His love and saving grace be insufficient to heal us from the pain of those caught up in the throws of this broken world!?!

Second!  To focus on His love for us......., aye, even for them, and oh!!! their precious souls!!!!

So now, oh, my soul!, you ought to hope for that same confidence-in-the-day-of-judgment ..... for those others around you.

Do they have that confidence yet?  If not, seek to share it with them!

Oh...... but, if they do have that confidence already?  Celebrate it with them - in spite of their frailties!  Even when their frailties hurt you, oh, my soul.........

And if they will not celebrate it with you!?!  If, as much as it is possible with you, you seek to live in peace with them - - - but they reject such peace thus far.......

Celebrate the gift of grace provided for them - past, present, and future!  Even when their frailties hurt you, oh my soul.......  For you can trust Our Father to both heal you, and to correct them in time............

But how?  By being perfected in love...

But won't they hurt us again? ...... Does that matter?  Remember, it is in all these things that we Overwhelmingly Conquer!  Yes, IN those things!  Do we need to fear conquering in these things!?!

But there is more.........  Oh, my soul, have you not heard?  Perfect love drives out fear........

Oh, my soul!  Oh, my soul!  Oh, my soul!  Do you believe it yet!?!

Call upon the Lord!  Call upon the God of Peace!  Call upon the God who is with you!  Call upon the God of Righteousness!  Call upon the God of Healing!

Call upon the Lord our Banner!  Follow His banner wherever it leads you, and faint not!

Let His perfect love fill you and overflow through you........... to all those around you......

............ in All These Things.................

And yes......... in All These Things........... Overwhelmingly Conquer.......... in Love!

Oh yes.......

Faith, hope, and love..... abide these three............... but the greatest...............


........of these.........

........................is love.........!

...........................His love......!



.....................


 


Lord, Why Am I Anxious..........

Being Glorified! - - - GMG: Wk: 5 - Romans 8:28-30

So here it is!  He is working in us, and how surpassingly great is His power working in us who trust Him, Him who has provided a light to the eyes of our hearts!  That, through the eyes of faith, we may see the riches of His glories which He has prepared for us!  And when we look through the eyes of faith, through the eyes of our new  hearts, we see that we are on the path of hope, a path called straight, running straight through our heart, heading straight Home!  Yes, Home! Where Freedom reigns!

And even before arriving Home, we find that He has already provided Freedom for those on the Path called Straight!  Freedom from condemnation and death, and freedom to eternal life, and freedom from sin, and even freedom to examine ourselves and come to Him honestly and openly......, so that.........

.....yes, so that........ we can be Free to Lift Up and Build Up a Brother - thereby helping establish peace in the Kingdom of God!

And here on this path, this path called Straight, the Mighty Warrior is with us!  Yes, our Beloved (who calls us 'Beloved'), the Mighty Warrior, who has already achieved Complete Victory - a victory He calls us to share with Him - and on our way to join in the fullness of His Victory, there are still some residual battles being waged by those who have not yet received the official news that they will finally have to submit to His Victory.......... battles through which we may draw men of peace out of the ranks of those attacking us...... or...... rather, those who have been attacking Him (unwittingly or not........)..........

And along the way, on this path called Straight, He guides us on through various battles and through our various trials - *in* which we overwhelmingly conquer through Him who loved us, trials in the midst of which He helps us to pursue those things which make for peace and the building up of one another...., in the which we find great Exultation!

.............And thusly we move on together, building up each other, being sober of spirit (knowing that a lost and dying world needs the truth of the cross and its redemptive power), being alert (watching for His soon return - and praying for it as He commanded), resisting the evil one (telling him, "May the Lord rebuke thee," - for even Michael did not rebuke the evil one himself), standing firm in our faith (which is still a gift of God)..........., for trials are a'comin.....

And thusly, we also move on together, because of the blood of the Lamb, by the word of our testimony, not loving life, even when faced with death........, and moving on together, awake, righteously, examining ourselves that we come not under judgment....... as we move Home.........

Home, furnished with an abundance of grace and glory!

.........

So then, are we prepared to walk into a realm of such grace and glory?!?!

While it is true that we will be changed in the twinkling of an eye, changed to a blessed state in which we are holy and imperishable, it is also true that He marked our horizons prior to creation (aka: predestined us), to be morphed-to-be-like/with Him, it is also true that, towards these ends, 'We know that God causes all things to work together for good to those who love God, to those who are called according to His purpose......For those whom He foreknew He also predestined to become conformed to the image of His Son.....and these whom He predestined, He also called; and these whom He called, He also justified; and these whom He justified, He also glorified!

Thus, we are 'morphing-to-be-like/with Him' - - - 'in all these things' through which we Overwhelmingly Conquer' through Him who loved us........... that we might be glorified.........

,,,,,,,,,,readied, through His handiwork in our lives, to walk into His realm of amazing grace and glory!

Oh, my soul....... are you seeking it?
Are you seeking as much Morphoses Most Glorious as you can receive each day?
Have you grown in His glory....... today?

Ode, Ode, Ode, to the redemptive power of His loving sacrifice...... which makes the Morphoses Most Glorious ........... available to us!

A Walk Through the Heart! - - - - - - - - - GMG Wk:5, Tuesday - - Proverbs 3 (esp. vs. 5-6)

Does the word 'detour' sound good to you when you are heading home, and you can hardly wait to get there?

I remember through the years, when my children were very young, when each of them, in turn, would wonder why we couldn't just go straight home, or straight to Grandma's and Grandpa's....... or - etc.  At those moments, I always brought up my father's chuckles about the phrase, 'as the crow flies.'  I never really had a sense that my children appreciated the term.... since they couldn't simply go 'as the crow flies....'

That simple little phrase has given rise to many a moment imagining finally taking off and going somewhere 'as the crow flies.'  Today, I still love to imagine levitating out of the car and heading out - 'as the crow flies,' looking down at all of the roofs and trees, and children bicycling, and cars moving along - but not keeping up with me!

Ode to innocent desires........ a longing to go home yes, and a longing to seek adventure along the way......, but sometimes we realize we really want a straight path home - as the crow flies, as it were.

........

Yesterday, the Good Morning Girls' study 'You Are Loved' brought us to Psalm 84, where we saw that

--Godly men long to finally arrive 'home' in His courts.....

&

--the highway to Zion, which takes us home to His dwelling place, runs through our hearts!

So often, it seems that there are many detours along the way!  But is that true?  Let's check out this relatively well known verse:

Trust in the Lord with all your heart
And do not lean on your own understanding.
In all your ways acknowledge Him,
And He will make your paths straight.  (Proverbs 3:5-6)

Does He mean that the paths, or highways in our hearts, those highways that will take us home, will be made straight!?!

Well, let's look at the first couple of verses in the same chapter:

"My son, do not forget my teaching,
But let your heart keep my commandments;
For length of days and years of life
And peace they will add to you."  (Proverbs 3:1)

Okay, backtracking to my younger years again...... when those around me would debate, 'length of days and years of life and pace'....... and what that meant...., the conclusions seemed to come to this:  That this is true of the general principles of life and living......, though in some instances, in our imperfect world, tragedies thwart the natural consequences of godly living.  Though statistically speaking, I'm not on the last leg of my journey (and Lord willing I ?am/not?), I have finally come to the point in my life when I don't think of 'length of days and years of life' in terms of this life.......

Rather, those things are things I look forward to in the hereafter......  and I can hardly wait!

Really, think about it, how long are the 'length of days and years of life' in eternity?  Forever long!

And how does one hope to obtain such length of days and years of life?

Well, the *heart*, where the highways to Zion run, needs to not only remember, but follow His commndments.

Yes, I can hear the antinomians at it already:  But the law is behind us! It is no more!

True, but Jesus, after His crucifixion, just before returning to His Father in heaven, commanded the disciples to .......Go, make disciples of all nations, baptizing them...., (and) teaching them to obey everything I have commanded you.

While the 'commandments' of Jesus and/or the New Testament do not mirror each other in form......., they are still to be remembered........

There are statements made that those who persevere and/or endure receive the prize.....

There is the parable of the sower, in which some receive the seed, but not into their hearts....... their endurance is lacking........

But the endurance, is endurance in love........ without condemning others..........

...........


Here, in Proverbs 3, vs. 13, one is encouraged to read, "How blessed is the man who finds wisdom and the man who gains understanding...."

But more, in vs. 26, it says, "For the Lord will be your confidence......"

And yet more, in vs. 35, it says, "The wise will inherit honor......"

............

In order to find wisdom; in order for our confidence to be established in Him; in order that we will be wise and thus inherit honor.......... we begin simply:

"Do not let kindness and truth leave you;
Bind them around your neck,
Write them on the tablet of your heart....."  (Proverbs 3:3)

And there it is, having to do with the heart again.......

If we are faithful to 'write kindness and truth.... on the tablet of your heart'......

then........ how does that help?

Are kindness and truth not the signposts to help us remain on the straight path through the heart, that straight path which leads to Zion!?

,,,,,,,,,,thus, as kindness and truth are written on the signposts of our heart......

......He makes all of our paths straight...........

.............

He loves us enough to provide us the wisdom that leads us to kindness and truth, which in turn leads us to His dwelling place.......

Truly, His signpost work is truth.........

Truly, sharing His truth........... is kind...........

..............

May we be more like Him.............

Let kindness and truth never leave us.............

Let us love............. as He loved............. and as He stil loves.................

Let us be able to say to others, not only with our words, but with our actions, "You are truly loved!"

.

The Source of Grace & Glory!...... Wk:5 Monday, Psalms 84, esp. vs. 11-12

So the post I haven't finished for last week (just one for last week)...... has to do with the EXULTATION!!! - - - that remains after victory........

............

But what comes next........ you know....... when the battles are all finished, and the victory is finally sealed with peace...... peace from grace (for there is no peace without grace......, which is important to remember when the people cry out, "Peace, Peace......" but there is no peace......)?

Oh, what comes next is the best part:  Going Home!

How many warriors, following their king wherever He leads them, are willing to follow Him anywhere......

But....... how many warriors, still long for home.........


And that is how it is for those of us who follow The Mighty Warrior - - - the King of Kings - - - !!!!!


Do we not also long for home, even though we have not yet seen our true home....... even though we still bivouac........ yes, bivouac............  in these temporary tents of ours........ ?

But where is that home?????

"How lovely are Your dwelling places,
O Lord of hosts!
My soul longed and even yearned for the courts of the Lord;
My heart and my flesh sing for joy to the living God.
The bird also has found a house,
And the swallow a nest for herself, where she may lay her young,
Even Your altars, O Lord of hosts,
My King and my God.
How blessed are those who dwell in Your house!
They are ever praising You!"  (Psalm 84: 1-7)

So many people long for a lovely dwelling place...... a safe retreat from the world.......

And is that all wrong?

Absolutely not!

God made us with a yearning for peace, beauty, comfort, a safe place....... a place we can call Home!

But we must remember that the yearning He put in our hearts cannot be fully satisfied by anyone, or anything or any place on earth........

So while we may be home, or long for home as we know it - or merely dream of it....... is there no place we can call 'home' for the spirit of our new life here in this world????

Looking back to the psalm again....

Here we see that the swallow, in her nest, lays her young......where?  'His' altars! And finding themselves at home there, they know they are so very blessed........ so they are ever praising Him!  Singing His glorious praise..... accompanied by the rhythm of the trees clapping their hand....... what a glorious altar..../!!

Without His altars, both the altars which are their homes, and the altar which Jeshua haMashiach made effective?...... even the birds could not hope of finding escape from the struggles and corruption of this world...!!

But because of The Mighty Warrior's work on the cross...... fulfilling the work at the altar necessary to provide blood for the mercy seat????....... even those of us who brought this corruption into this world.... can find themselves 'at home at His altars.........'

O, sing His glorious praise!

Yes, we still long for the fullness of all that Home means to us....... we still yearn for more than the comfort of the shadow of 'home' that our childhood and/or dreams of a better life could ever offer........  we still yearn for more than the comfort of the shadow of the cross........

We still yearn for His dwelling place........ Home!

But like Dorothy with her ruby slippers, we have the way Home already with us.......

"How blessed is the man whose strength is in You,
In whose heart are the highways to Zion!
Passing through the valley of Baca they make it a spring;
The early rain also covers it with blessings.
They go from strength to strength,
Every one of them appears before God in Zion."  (Psalm 84:5-7)

Did you catch that?  What is more powerful than Dorothy's ruby slippers?

The highways to Zion, yes, Zion! ........ where His dwelling place is being prepared for us!

And where are those highways?  They are in our heart!

Those highways move through valleys empowered by life-giving rains, which refresh both living things and the springs that refresh them!

And those of us who have these highways in our hearts?

We have our strength in Him!  How securely will He guard that strength for us?

So securely that we will go from strength to strength!

And one day, we will all have the strength to go Home to His dwelling place......

O my soul!  What an incredible love He has for us!

...........

So, yes, it is a fine thing to rest at His altar... to rest in the shadow of the cross......
To sense the highways in our hearts........ to sense the refreshing rain there......
And the strength that comes thereby.......
But perhaps most of all......... it is a fine thing to think of finally arriving in His dwelling places......

.......

But.............

.......

Today, my flesh is sometimes weak........ and the darkness of this world looms ominously towards us....... and sometimes it even seems that I'm alone........ and His dwelling place seems so very far away....... and perhaps sometimes, it feels that it may as well not even exist..........

But at those times........ the Lord gives us something amazing!

"O Lord God of hosts, hear my prayer;
Give ear, O God of Jacob!
Behold our shield, O God,
And look upon the face of Your anointed.
For a day in Your courts is better than a thousand outside.
I would rather stand at the threshold of the house of my God
Than dwell in the tents of wickedness.
For the Lord God is a sun and shield;
The Lord gives grace and glory;
No good thing does He withhold from those who walk uprightly.
O Lord of hosts,
How blessed is the man who trusts in You!"  (Psalm 84:8-12)

What amazing thing does the Lord give us?

Yes, He has given us the Light of Life!
Yes, He is a shield and buckler for us!
Yes, He lends us His ear!
Yes, He seeks *our* face!
Yes, He dwells in this tent with us, that we do not need to dwell in the tent of the wicked!
Yes, He gives every good thing.......

BUT THERE IS MORE!!!!!

What can be more than that?

He gives.............

Grace and Glory!

Glory!

Glory for us!?!

Glory be to God!

O, my soul praise Him!

For how blessed is the man who trusts in Him!

Yes, my soul, you are..... so, so, so loved!

How Great is His Hope! - - - - - - - Ephesians 1:17-19 - - - - - - - GMG, Wk: 2: Monday

How Great is His Hope?

And, Oh! How much that question matters!........

Because the battle wears on!..... even though the war is won!

Many of us have read about wars which have ended, but men are still fighting and dying, because they do not know that the war has been decided already.

Today, we know that the Mighty Warrior has established every foundation for Complete Victory!...... but when the battles wear on and on, sometimes without reprieve........ battle fatigue can set in!

Without His hope...... we might wonder whether the war is really won!

So, is His hope enough?

How Great is His Hope?

Ephesians 1:16b-19:

In my prayers, I keep asking the God of our Lord Yeshuah the Messiah,
The glorious Father,
to give you a spirit of wisdom and revelation,
so that you will have full knowledge of Him.
I pray that He will give light to the eyes of your hearts,
so that you will understand the hope to which He has called you,
what rich glories there are in the inheritance
......He has promised His people
and how surpassingly great is His power working 
........in us who trust Him.

There it is!  Just a glimpse into the greatness of His hope...... but what a glimpse!

It is the hope to which He has called you!  It's not a hope you have to ask for, earn, find, design, devise, establish, maintain, or otherwise provide for yourself.

He has called you to it!

Why has He called you to it?  .......  "For God so loved the world.......... that........." He has called you to a rich and glorious hope in not only His rich glories, but in how surpassingly great is His power working in us who trust Him.

Did you hear that, my soul?

You earned nothing!  He didn't need to give you anything!  But He has provided power which works in surpassingly great ways..........

And what do you need to do?

Simply receive it!

It is 'set before' you.............

Freedom! Freedom! Freedom! - - - - Romans 8:1-4 - - - - GMG: Wk 3: Wednesday

For the law of the spirit of life in Christ Jesus has set you FREE from the law of sin and of death...... (Romans 8:2)

......

Free from the law of sin and of death? And free unto what?

For the wages of sin is death, but the free gift of God is eternal life in Christ Jesus, our Lord!  (Romans 6:23)

Ode to the peril of the struggle of life and death!

And the eternality of both life and death!  Eternal joy!  Eternal suffering!

And the body of Christ should be seeking eternal life for all men of peace, for all men who will listen to and receive the gospel of peace.........

What an epic struggle it has been and will continue to be as long as this earth endures....

..........

Then, how is it, again, that we overcome death.......?

.........only with the free gift of God.......

Which is eternal............ Life.


But what is this....... 'Life'?


It begins with death!  Death to sin!

The Mighty Warrior!  He has Complete Victory!

What did He conquer?

He conquered sin and death!

He drowned death for victory!  (I Cor. 15:54 - and note, 'victory' in this case necessarily denotes a conquest..... thus, death is indeed conquered!)


Now it is our turn........ by His power.......

To Overwhelmingly Conquer through Him who Loved Us!

He who has an ear let him hear what the Spirit says to the churches.  He who overcomes will not be hurt by the second death.  Rev. 2:11
But in all these things, we overwhelmingly conquer.  Rom. 8:37
He who overcomes, I will grant him to sit down with Me on My throne, as I also overcame and sat down with my Father on His throne.  Rev. 3:21

.........

And they overcame him because of the blood of the lamb and because of the word of their testimony, and they did not love their life even when faced with death.  Rev. 12:11
.........

Ode to balancing truth.........

O my soul......... have you remembered today?

NOT because of what you have done today....... but because...... yes..... only because...

......yes....... the 'cause' is the Promised One!
......yes....... the 'cause' is and will 'be'.........Him and Him alone!

......yes....... because........

......because 'you have the Spirit of Christ'......
......because 'He shared His Spirit with you!'.......
......because the law of the spirit of life in Christ Jesus has freed you!  (Romans 8:2)
......because of the law that requires faith, which He gave you! (Romans 3:27-31 / Ephesians 2:8)


Repent!

He came to call sinners to repentance!  (Matthew 9:13)

And now, we are to be like Him!  We are to have the Spirit of Christ!

How to be like Him?  Bringing truth and understanding about God to others!

What is it to have life?  If sin is death, then sin is to be left behind..... coupled with grace.

"Awake righteously at once - and be not sinning! For some have a fullness of ignorance about God!  I am saying this to excite your shame!"  (I Cor. 15:34)

And here in I Corinthians 15:34, He was speaking to believers...... who should have been aware of the shame that we can still experience when we fall into sin.

"If we would examine ourselves, we would not come under judgment.  But when we are judged by the Lord, we are being disciplined, so that we will not be condemned along with the world."  (I Cor. 11:31-32)

And here in I Corinthians 11:23, the Word says that we are judged by the Lord and disciplined when we have fallen into sin....... a process which demonstrates His grace, "so that we will not be condemned along with the world."

It grieves my heart so to think of young believers hearing that, because there is now no condemnation, there is also now no shame or judgment or discipline possible for the believer.

What a lie this is!!!!!  Down deep inside of one's very soul, this dangerous lie must be apparent.  It might be tucked away so far that one will not listen....... especially when their mind is shouting out Romans 8:1 so loudly that it drowns out all truth.

.........

This is not to say that the existence of sin in a believer's life must be ruled by the law.  May it never be!

This is not to say that we should be bringing cruel accusations on others in order to have them walk in shame......  even Paul, when he spoke of 'exciting shame'....... it was not for anyone to walk in shame, but rather, as gently as possible, to correct them in love - - - to encourage them to look more closely and realize where we have fallen into sin, and leave it behind, so that we would not come under judgement.  Though earlier in the same letter, he spoke of the Lord judging and disciplining......

So then the Lord is righteous and just to both judge and discipline His children, correcting them and their walk so that we will not be condemned along with the world.

But it is better to address the shame of our own sin before it comes to that:  examining ourselves that we might not come under (His) judgment.

..............

This term 'judge', in the Greek, has its roots in the word krino, which means 'discern or determine'.... and if you read through the notes at the subsequent link for 'judge', there is a sense of the meaning which can recognize goodness, or come to a negative decision which contains a rejection.....

.........

And here is the grief of it.......... that on the one hand, there are those who preach a gospel of works, while on the other hand, there is a gospel in which there is no shame left in this life........ that, sure we'll still sin, but there is no shame left for it because it is already forgiven..........

How can I Corinthians 15:34 (above) be true, and this false ?edge on the? gospel be true?

............

Romans 8:1 is true in that there is therefore now no condemnation to those who are in Christ Jesus!

yet...... Paul was not amiss in I Corinthians, when dealing with what many have called 'carnal Christians', therefore he spoke of his 'exciting shame' that believers would examine themselves and avoid judgment.

and....... Paul was not amiss in I Corinthians when he spoke of the Lord 'judging' and 'disciplining' His own for their safety.

So........ is there any way in which we ought to determine what is right or wrong in another's life?

And even to disassociate from them (if they will not respond to correction given with grace, that is)?

 "But actually, I wrote to you not to associate with any so-called brother if he is an immoral person, or covetous, or an idolater, or a reviler, or a drunkard, or a swindler -- not even to eat with such a one.  For what have I to do with judging outsiders?  Do you not judge those who are within the church?  But those who are outside God judges.  Remove the wicked man from among yourselves."  (I Cor. 5:11-12)

So........... a believer ought to examine himself to recognize his own sin and shameful behavior - and thereby correct it; that others do not need to (gently) come alongside and 'excite their shame' (to protect them from judgment from God).

And........ if a believer does not examine himself, then the Lord will judge and discipline His own so that they will not be condemned along with the world.

And........ if one claims to be a brother, and will not receive correction for immorality, covetousness, idolatry, reviling, drunkeness, or swindling....... he should be put out...... that the church's doing so is judging those within....... and sending them out .........

Then is that when God does much of His judging and disciplining, and correcting of His own, and possibly even His own Spiritual work in 'exciting shame'?

.................

While I hold firmly to the obvious scriptural quotes above, .......... :

This last question is a question ----- not a statement of dogma............  I welcome responses..........

Pray for me, pray for the church, pray for our souls to respond with wisdom, and pray for His soon return!

..........

SO FREEDOM!  FREEDOM!  FREEDOM!

The freedom is from condemnation.

The freedom is from death.

The freedom is to eternal life........ after the second death has passed us by unscathed!

The freedom is from sin........., but with it comes the freedom to self-govern..........

To 'examine self' ourselves.........

What kind of love does that require?  A freedom loving love indeed..........., and not a controlling one.

.........

But if a brother is walking towards slavery...... in the flesh......... those who are spiritual are to help awaken his sensibilities to shame with a kindhearted spirit.......... in order that he will have ample opportunity to return to their proper course of freedom......

To.......... freedom from sin, and from death, and unto righteousness.......

Truly, FREEDOM, FREEDOM, FREEDOM ........ Indeed!


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To Rejoice! -or- to Weep! -or- to Cheer!

LONG TERM PROJECT - WORD STUDY PROJECT

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How much of this choice (to rejoice, to weep, and/or to cheer) is really effective without the 'us', the 'our', and the 'we' of the body of Christ being engaged together?

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How to know when to rejoice, when to weep, and when to give cheer when showing mercy? (Romans 12)

So, the question between rejoicing and weeping, that does not seem so complicated.......

But what is this 'showing mercy' by giving cheer?  While I have some sense of this, I feel challenged to grow more....... perhaps much more, in understanding this both in principle and in action.......

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This is not an entry to declare having arrived....... at anything........ but more just an entry to declare the question itself.......

Thus, this is a 'catchall' blog to which I hope to add extra verses over time..... (in three sections after a bit of thinking out loud......):

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Rejoice with those that do rejoice, and weep with them that weep.  

Be of the same mind one with another....... (ooooo, good clue there......, leaves me thinking of the informal study one author wrote out past the page and onto my heart - once upon a time in my life - again, not having arrived, but my heart is set on growing in this:  the study?  who was the person in a given crowd who the most people felt comfortable being around, and why?  ....... the answer left me a bit stunned:  the person who people were most comfortable being around did simply this:  they ate at the same pace as the people around them...... if they were eating with a fast eater, they ate quickly; if they were eating with a slow person, they ate slowly...... so, 'be of the same mind one with another'....? this is somewhat clear..... - not automatic for me, but somewhat clear.....)

But to show mercy by giving cheer? My mind wanders to the lovely girls who bathed my father when he was on his deathbed in ICU.  They cheerfully chatted together while still showing both my comatose father and myself great respect and regard...... happy to serve my father by bathing him and doing all they could to make him comfortable before they moved on to cheerfully serve another........

That picture is quite clear to me .......

But how those principles apply to other scenarios?

When to move from rejoicing, to weeping, to eating quickly, to eating slowly, to being a bit sombre, to being cheerful while showing mercy?

That is not so much my grace.

I so admire those two girls who ministered to my father.  They are on my heart and mind often.  I desire to be more like them, and to think, "What would they do in this case, or that?" - - - not to idolize them, but to try to see if the spark-of-God that is so strong in them in this area might help me to leave behind my past, and press on to grow at least somewhat in this area in my own life.......

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Towards that end.......

REJOICE

Rejoice with them that do rejoice and weep with them that weep. (Romans 12)

If anyone loudly blesses their neighbor in the morning, it will be taken as a curse.  (Proverbs 27:14 NIV)

WEEP

"Now instead, you ought to forgive and comfort him, so that he will not be overwhelmed by excessive sorrow."  (II Cor 2:7)

SHOW MERCY WITH CHEERFULNESS

"Now instead, you ought to forgive and comfort him, so that he will not be overwhelmed by excessive sorrow."  (II Cor 2:7)

Ann Voskamp said of this verse:  "The King James Version uses the phrase 'swallowed up with overmuch sorrow." As I pursued the thought, I discovered that overwhelmed is the same Greek word that Peter uses when he says that Satan seeks to "devour" us (I Pet 5:8).  "Lord, is my grief over my failure excessive sorrow? And does it make me vulnerable to enemy attack and accusation?"  I asked."