IT IS WHAT IT IS FROM OUR PERSPECTIVE ONLY

Image result for CLIP ART SHOWING A CONQUEROR  In chapters 14-17 in John, Jesus is teaching His disciples.  This is called the Upper Room Discourse.  With all that He has spoken and taught, He sums up chapter 16 with this reminder and do we ever need to hear it today: "I have told you these things, so that in ME you may have peace.  In this world you will have trouble. BUT TAKE HEART!  I HAVE OVERCOME THE WORLD." John 16:33  The disciples have walked with Him for three years and He has taught them of the Truth-Speaker who is to come and live in them.  He wants to assure them that they are not orphans and left alone. I well remember a favorite statement of my first son who succored to the ravages of a stem cell transplant from Leukemia in January.  One day as we were talking, as I was trying to encourage him, he replied, "It is what it is!"
We do have troubles...BUT we are over-comers.

Paul also reminds us as over-comers, conquerors, in 2 Corinthians 2:14-16 , "But thanks be to God, WHO always leads us in triumphal procession in Christ and through us spreads everywhere the fragrance of the knowledge of HIM.  For we are to God the aroma of Christ among those who are being saved and those who are perishing.  to the one we are the smell of death; to the other, the fragrance of life.  And who is equal to such a task?"  This old world has so lied to us and wants us to coddle ourselves and  to retreat running in fear as if we are victims.  This Scripture reinforces the same truth which Jesus spoke...we are over-comers in Him.  

At the end of every victory in Rome, the prisoners were led in a procession an displayed as treasures of the Roman general and warfare.  The general, the victor, would be the one who headed the procession and a cloud of incense would be burned for the gods to praise them for the win.  Regardless of what this world shows us, we are the captives of the Lord Jesus for we have chosen to serve HIM, the General, and it is HE who is leading us out as VICTORS AND NOT VICTIMS!  We are HIS treasures.  HE has overcome and we are overcoming in this process called daily living!  To the world observing us, we are foolish, but we are the fragrance of life.  We are only equal to this task by the indwelling and empowering Holy Spirit within us as Christ followers.  We are in triumphal procession regardless of how we think or feel.  The real truth: It is NOT what it is!  Dear Beloved, we must align our minds and hearts with the Truth of God's Word and not sink down into the pit of defeat and morass of lies. We have been encouraged to have a renewed mind Romans 12:1.  The choice is yours.  Forever learning.  In process.  #IHAVETHREESONS.       

Comments

Post a Comment

Popular posts from this blog

THOSE SEEING CAN BECOME BLIND

Image
John 9 is the story of the healing of the blind beggar.  Not only is it a marvelous story of the miraculous healing of the man as he is given his sight, but a sad story of the religious of whom Jesus said, "For judgment, I have come into this world, so that the blind will see, and those who see will become blind ." The religious have seen the miracle, even though it has taken place on a Sabbath, and they interview the man and his parents for their stories and understanding. I find it so thrilling that the healed man speaks so articulately and logically with the religious in their "interview" with him.  His statement, " Now that is remarkable!  You don't know where HE comes from, yet HE opened my eyes.  We know that God does not listen to sinners.  He listens to the godly man who does His will.  Nobody has ever heard of opening the eyes of a man born blind. If this man were not from God, He could do nothing." What truth he has spoken to the religious wh...
Read more

REHEARSALS

Image
  I wonder how much time do I give to rehearsing God's goodness and how He has intervened in my life to "save" me from myself?  How alike the Israelites I can be, complaining about what goes wrong, how it affects me, and what I lack.  As a Christ follower, I have the Indwelling Holy Spirit to give me remembrance NOT of my complaining and grumbling, but of a recall of God's faithfulness to me.  It is recorded in Psalms 78 and 106 that " They forgot what He had done, the wonder He had shown them", "They did not remember His power--the day He redeemed them from the oppressor...", "They did not remember Your many kindnesses, and they rebelled by the sea, the Red Sea.", "But they soon forgot what He had done and did not wait for His counsel.", and "They forgot the God who saved them, who had done great things in Egypt...". Contrast with me, God's remembrance: Ps. 106:44-46, "But He took note of their distress...
Read more

A DONKEY SPEAKS!

Image
    Numbers has been full of repetitive accounts of the Israelites and their disobedience.  They have now made several laps around Mt. Sinai, many of the original people have died off, or been killed for their arrogant and presumptuous actions against the LORD, Moses, and Aaron. The overriding truth of the accounts is the merciful grace of the LORD! Moses is in his last days of leadership.  The forty years are coming to an end and they are moving toward a second attempt to enter the Promise Land.  They have been victorious in taking land, and they are moving further into the interior of the land of Moab.  The king and the residents of Moab are "filled with dread because of the Israelites.  The king of Moab, Balak, sends messages to Balaam, who is a sorcerer and is able to to place curses or blessings on others.  King Balak wants to know how to defeat "this horde" that is licking up everything around them.  Of course, he is desirous th...
Read more