unbelief
Showing posts with label unbelief. Show all posts
Showing posts with label unbelief. Show all posts

The Scarlet Thread - Pt. 6 The Promised Land

The Scarlet Thread/Luminescent
Pt. 6 “The Promised Land”

Let’s do a quick recap of how we can see the Scarlet Thread of the Gospel running through the stories of the Old Testament. God Rules in Genesis 1. We sinned in Genesis 3. God provides a way in Genesis 40. Jesus saves in the story of Exodus. But we still wander.


In last month’s article, the Israelites were just about to enter the Promised Land. They had wandered for 40 years, representing the Christian life lived apart from God. It’s like trying flip a light switch a million times when your power is out. Living without the power source is infuriating. And that’s where we enter the next stage of the Exodus story. 


The Isrealites were going after the Promised Land. It’s why they packed what they could carry, and got out of Egypt. They believed there was something better waiting for them. But what is this Promised Land for us? I’ll tell you right up front, it’s not Heaven.  There were giants in the land that prohibited them from entering. In their story, there were obstacles (people) that had to be removed from the Land of Promise, and I’m pretty there are no giants in Heaven.

The Promised Land is not heaven for us later, it is the indwelling of Christ now. And there are giants in your life that are prohibiting this.

Before we talk about how to get into that Promised Land, let’s talk about the indwelling of Christ. Truthfully, if you’ve put your trust in Him and His work on the cross, you already have Jesus indwelling you. But there’s something incredible that happens when a Christian believes this and trusts this.

If I told you that I had a magic glove at my house that move around, point at things, and pick stuff up you would say, “Sure you do. But only when your hand is in it.” You got me! But listen to this: everything that is possible for my hand is now possible for my glove. As long as my hand is working, the glove is working too. That’s the idea of Jesus Christ dwelling in us! We have His very power and deity living in us!

This is the “newness” of the Gospel. The Promised Land is meant to be enjoyed today! You have only to enter this Promised Land and enjoy the power and presence of Jesus in your life.

But how do I get to the Promised Land? How do I enjoy the power and presence of Jesus in my life? Because, truth be told, there’s a lot of times when I don’t feel either of those things. Take a look at what Joshua, the new leader of the Jews after Moses, says to the people before entering the Promised Land.

Joshua 3:9-13 9 “And Joshua said to the people of Israel, “Come here and listen to the words of the Lord your God.” 10 And Joshua said, “Here is how you shall know that the living God is among you and that he will without fail drive out from before you the Canaanites, the Hittites, the Hivites, the Perizzites, the Girgashites, the Amorites, and the Jebusites. 11 Behold, the ark of the covenant of the Lord of all the earth[a] is passing over before you into the Jordan.”

How do we know that God will wipe out the giants blocking the Promised Land? Because He’s the same God who delivered you from the slave masters of Egypt. God, who saved you from slavery to sin, will also be with you to defeat the remaining giants in your life.

Did you catch the symbolism with the ark and the Jordan River? You get in to the Promise Land of Jesus’ indwelling the same way you got out Egypt, your slavery to sin. The Red Sea split for them to get out of Egypt and Jordan River split for them to get into the Land of Promise. This symbolic crossing of these two bodies of water represent your faith in the Gospel.

Colossians 2:6 says “Therefore, as you received Christ Jesus the Lord, so walk in him,” You were freed from your slavery of sin by your faith in the Good News of Jesus Christ. And the only way you can live in that freedom is with continued faith in the very same.

As it turns out, Joshua sent two spies into Canaan who met with Rahab. She told them that Jericho had been terrified of the Israelites all along and were dreading the day Israel came for them. The victory had already been won! But they were living as if the enemy was undefeatable. They believed the fortress was impenetrable for 40 years all the while the enemy was shaking in their boots, hoping Israel never realized it!

The final question that remains is; how do I stay in the Promised Land? The story of Moses ended with him dying before entering the Promised Land. And as soon as he dies, God appoints Joshua as the new leader. And within 3 days of Joshua leading the people, they crossed the Jordan. But as they were crossing it, God gave Joshua some instruction.

Joshua 4:1-3 “When all the nation had finished passing over the Jordan, the Lord said to Joshua, “Take twelve men from the people, from each tribe a man, and command them, saying, ‘Take twelve stones from here out of the midst of the Jordan, from the very place where the priests' feet stood firmly, and bring them over with you and lay them down in the place where you lodge tonight.’”

Joshua 4:21-22 “And he said to the people of Israel, “When your children ask their fathers in times to come, ‘What do these stones mean?’ then you shall let your children know, ‘Israel passed over this Jordan on dry ground.’”

This really is a beautiful thing. This stone altar that they erect, built from stones gathered from the middle of the Jordan River, stood as a reminder for generations to come. And every time they looked at this altar they would remember and be thankful for God’s deliverance of them. Those stones were gathered from an impossible place. They couldn’t have built that altar if they had never crossed the Jordan River.

I think in 21st Century America we have become so logical that we scoff at any sort of emotional or spiritual ritual or tradition. But I think God feels very deeply about things, and I think He can appreciate rituals or traditions that point to Him. Not every tradition or ritual is good, and not every one of the are bad. But if it is used to remind yourself of what He has done for you then it is a very good thing.

So build your own stone altar. I think it would be a very good thing for you. It can remind you of the grace you experience then. I’ve been thinking about getting a tattoo that says, “Imago Dei”. It means “The Image of God” and it would be a reminder to me that I am invaluable because I am God’s child. I love to see people wear Christian t-shirts, because it can be a reminder every time someone asks about it. Wearing a cross necklace or bracelet might be that thing for you.

The point is to remind yourself, while you’re living in the Promised Land of Christ’s power and presence, that He is the one that brought you there and keeps you there. What’s left for you is the work of believing that. Leave behind your unbelief. You don’t need to wander in the wilderness. You’re slave masters are dead. You belong in the Promised Land. Enter in. Enjoy Christ. Trust in His power in you. Surrender to Him.
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The Scarlet Thread - Pt. 5 The Wandering

The Scarlet Thread/Luminescent
Pt. 5 “The Wandering”

This is part five of our blog series, “The Scarlet Thread.” Here’s how it’s gone so far. God rules, according to the story of Creation. We sinned and ruined Creation, according to the story of Adam and Eve. God works despite our sinfulness, according to the story of Joseph. We can be freed from the slavery to our sin, according to the story of the Exodus. And NOW, I want to share with you the story of the Israelites Wandering.

Quite frequently the Bible uses different metaphors and pictures to illustrate a truth. In the story of the Exodus, the Bible uses the picture of the Israelites wandering for 40 years in order to illustrate a dull, powerless Christian life. This is something I hear very often in ministry. It is common for someone to say they feel like their spiritual life is stuck in a desert, or a wasteland. There’s no passion, no power, and really no life to their spirituality. I think you know exactly what I’m talking about, because I believe this is something everybody experiences at some point in their Christian life. The story of the Israelites wandering in the wilderness just might hold the key to get you out of your figurative wilderness. It goes like this…

The wilderness came after the Israelites were delivered from the Egyptians. In a very real sense, the Wilderness wandering was self-imposed. It’s not like they spent 40 years completely lost without a map. They actually knew exactly where they were supposed to go, they were just not allowed to go there because of their lack of faith.

When I was in kindergarten, I experienced something similar. My school was about one mile from my house. One day, when my mom came to pick me and my brothers up from school, she had gone inside to see a teacher while we waited in the van. After a couple minutes, I also ran inside to grab something I had left. When I came back out, the worst thing imaginable to a kindergartner happened. The van was gone. My mom thought I was hiding behind the seat (something my brothers and I did regularly) and so she started on the way home.

I knew where my house was, and so I started walking in that direction. The only problem was, there was a man out on a run, coming in my direction. At that point, I panicked! I wandered back into the parking lot, and began sobbing. The whole ordeal felt like an hour, when in reality my mom quickly realized I wasn’t in the car and turned right back around to get me. I knew the direction I was supposed to go, but my fear kept me from moving in the direction.

This is what happened to the Israelites. Moses has even seen the Promised Land they were meant to travel to. But their lack of faith (fear), kept them from entering. I’m guessing you know exactly what that is like. After all, isn’t fear the most human thing about us?

See, God delivered them from Egypt, then gave them the 10 Commandments. They were on their way to Canaan, the Promised Land. Just before they arrived, they sent their spies to check it out. The spies said, “Nope. They’re big. They’re strong. They’re fortified.” God said, “Go take it!” And they said, “Mmmm, nope.”

These were God’s chosen people; the famous Israelites! They had already been through so much. God had come through on a Promise He made a couple hundred years ago. He had brought them all this way, and at this point, they officially lost their faith in Him. As a result of their lack of faith God says, “Ok, I’m going to send you back into the wilderness for 40 years until every one of you who rejected the Promised Land dies.”

Sounds harsh, right? But it’s what God determined was necessary in order to bring the Israelites to a place of faith. Sometimes He deals with people in ways we don’t fully understand. But when we look at God’s actions in light of the big picture we can see that what He does is always for our good and His glory.

So when it comes to The Scarlet Thread, what does the wilderness represent? First off, it does not represent being lost in our sins. Remember, the Israelites were delivered from the sin masters already. So for us, the wilderness comes AFTER we’ve become a Christian. The Wilderness then represents the carnal Christian. A person who has been redeemed and forgiven by Christ and yet refuses to surrender to God’s authority. If you are not currently experiencing a beautiful relationship with God in which He reveals sin, you repent, you enjoy talking with Him, you see blessings and thank Him for them, then you might be living in the Wilderness.

Your wilderness is the twilight zone between enslavement to sin and living the full, Christian life. The Israelites enjoyed neither the comfort of their old slavery nor the milk and honey and beauty of the Land of Promise. They were dumped in the middle. Perhaps you feel the same way. It really might be the most miserable place to be for a human. The Israelites had caught a glimpse of the beautiful Promised Land. They had seen the fruitful trees, the green fields, the strong cities, the clean waters. They KNEW it could all be theirs. And yet they turned away.

They also remembered having a bed to sleep on in Egypt. They remembered that they had food to eat and water to drink back there. It was a place they called home, but they could never go back to. The pain of wandering is great because you feel like there is no place to belong and knowing every day in the wilderness is a day that could have been spent in Canaan.

Remember, they were brought OUT of Egypt in order to be brought IN to Canaan. God’s plan was for them to enjoy Canaan. And yet, they cheated themselves out of it because they had no faith. Can you imagine, today, a Christian being filled by the magnificence of the Holy Spirit, God pouring His power into them? Jesus Christ completely redeeming them and now their record is perfect. A Christian is capable of so much. But can you imagine them refusing, whether by ignorance or deliberate rejection, the beauty, glory, and power of that life?

The Israelites were promised so much, yet they chose the Wilderness. And a Carnal Christian is someone who has Christ living in them and pretends like He is not there. If you have determined that you won’t have an intimate connection with God, and that you will only take what you like from Christianity and leave the rest, then you have chosen the wilderness.

But take heart! There is good news if you are in the wilderness! There is a cure!

Three things you’ll need to do.

1. Admit you’ve lost faith. The Israelites had faith enough to free them from Egypt, but they lost that faith. They had enough faith to be saved, but along the journey, they started complaining and wishing they were back in Egypt. So they wandered for 40 years and many of them died without ever admitting to their faithlessness.

2. Appreciate the Manna. Every day, while they wandered, God sent manna for them to eat every morning. It literally just showed up laying on the ground every morning. They named it manna, because that literally means, “What is it?” And this is where it gets crazy. They described the Manna in Exodus 16:15, 31 as tasting like fresh oil and honey. Meaning Manna was a reminder that God was presently with them, but also calling them to the Promised Land. (It flowed with milk and honey). It was a small wafer that wasn’t really enough to fill them up completely.

Manna was God’s way of calling the Israelites back to Him and back to the Promised Land. Every day they had a reminder of what they were missing. What they had in the wandering was not enough to satisfy. It was simply a call to surrender to Christ and enjoy Him completely.  So what is your manna? Is there a place or time when you regularly feel convicted and challenged to make things right between you and God? Thank him for pursuing you that way. And listen to His calling!

3. The last thing to do is annihilate your unbelief. God sent the Israelites into the wilderness to wander around until all of the unbelieving Israelites died. For you, God is working to kill off your unbelief as well. He’s proving Himself to you every day. He’s sending out regular calls to come closer and deeper into Him. Perhaps you are in your own wilderness, feeling unsatisfied with where you are. Wishing you could have your sin and also wishing you could have a satisfying relationship with Jesus. Leave behind your unbelief. Listen to God’s call to you. Surrender to Him. And follow Him into the Promised Land of an empowered, fulfilling life in Christ!
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