Antichrist or Identity Crisis?

Missing the Point

If any of us read through 1 John and come to the conclusion that John’s letter promotes a defensive or fearful posture concerning the antichrist, then it is likely that the eschatology of the last Century has in some ways skewed our understanding away from John’s point. In reality, John was employing the old adage that the best defense is a good offense. And our best offense is in fully understanding who we are together as the Body of Christ as we host his presence. But let’s not get ahead of ourselves. Instead, let’s first check our watches.

The End-time Clock

While some fearfully wait for time to run out on history, we’ve forgotten that the countdown didn’t begin yesterday or even the day before yesterday. According to the Apostles, it has been running for over 2,000 years (Acts 2:17; Hebrews 1:2; 1 Peter 4:7; 1 John 2:18). If that is true, then we are currently living in the latter part of the “last hour.” Therefore, at the time of John’s letter and the centuries since that time, the spirit of the antichrist has continued his presence in the world and has manifested himself through many antichrists and in varying ways for the purpose of creating fear and bringing identity confusion (1 John 2:18, 4:3). 

Even in this point, John was less interested in identifying how the spirit of the antichrist moves through human flesh, but focused upon the power of the Holy Spirit of God residing in our own hearts of flesh.

Hearts of Flesh — His Dwelling Place

Let’s be clear! Nothing which dwells in our flesh holds any intrinsic value. As Paul says, the flesh counts for nothing. Yet, Jesus came to dwell in the flesh of man and he continues there today by residing in our hearts. God has repurposed our flesh so that it might be a suitable home for the Spirit of the living God (Romans 7:18, 8:9).

So while we don’t live according to the flesh, we live in the flesh by faith in the Son of God (Romans 8:10, Galatians 2:20). Our hearts of flesh were once evil beyond cure, but Christ has redeemed our hearts, thereby superseding the fall (Jeremiah 17:9, 1 Timothy 1:5, 2 Timothy 2:22, Galatians 5:16).

“For God…made his light shine in our hearts… But we have this treasure in jars of clay to show that this all-surpassing power is from God and not from us” (2 Corinthians 4:6-7 NIV).

It was always God’s plan that by faith, his Spirit would dwell within our hearts of flesh (Romans 5:5, Galatians 4:6, 2 Corinthians 1:22, 1 John 4:13).

“I will give them an undivided heart and put a new spirit in them; I will remove from them their heart of stone and give them a heart of flesh…. I will give you a new heart and put a new spirit in you; I will remove from you your heart of stone and give you a heart of flesh” (Ezekiel 11:19, 36:26 NIV).

As these passages attest, our hearts of flesh are a gift from God himself that he might dwell there by his Spirit. The spirit of the antichrist, on the other hand, means to deny and separate our heart’s true identity and purpose. He denies Jesus Christ in the flesh!

A Spirit of Denial

“…Many deceivers, who do not acknowledge Jesus Christ as coming in the flesh, have gone out into the world. Any such person is the deceiver and the antichrist (2 John 1:7 NIV). 

While the spirit of the antichrist does deny the physical incarnation of Jesus, we must come to understand that this deception and denial goes even further. It seeks to undermine the ongoing incarnation within believers themselves. He seeks to undermine the work of the Holy Spirit within our hearts of flesh.

John clearly says that any, not just one singular individual, which denies Jesus as coming in the flesh has been affected by that spirit’s deception. If this is true, realizing the fullness of Jesus within our hearts of flesh becomes our priority. After all, he who is in us is greater than he who is in the world (1 John 4:4). 

A Redeemed House

“Since the children have flesh and blood, he too shared in their humanity so that by his death he might break the power of him who holds the power of death--that is, the devil…” (Hebrews 2:14 NIV).

“I have been crucified with Christ. It is no longer I who live, but Christ who lives in me. And the life I now live in the flesh I live by faith in the Son of God, who loved me and gave himself for me” (Galatians 2:20 ESV).

Since we live our lives in the flesh, Jesus Christ was determined to be made in our likeness that he might break the power of the enemy and redeem mankind. He came in human flesh and dwelled among us, yet was without sin. We, on the other hand are made of flesh, but were born into sin. But because of his death and resurrection, we obtained his righteousness (Philippians 2:7, Romans 3:21-22, 8:3, 10:4, Galatians 2:16). Walking in progressive fullness of this righteousness, we make ourselves ready that we would become his mature bride.

Getting Married

Jesus and his bride have a lot in common, or at least, that’s the intention and the path that we’ve been taking for 2,000 years. Jesus is a traditionalist in the sense that he doesn’t intend to marry outside of his species. When the marriage supper of the Lamb is served, folks will see that by the Spirit, the bridegroom and the bride are a perfect match. 

As the passages above so clearly demonstrate, Jesus came in the flesh so that he could be like his bride. Then, he made the ultimate sacrifice so she could become like him—both adorned in righteousness. It was a match made in heaven.

“… He has clothed me with garments of salvation and arrayed me in a robe of his righteousness, as a bridegroom adorns his head like a priest, and as a bride adorns herself with her jewels” (Isaiah 61:20 NIV).

Does Anyone Object to This Union?

Yes…the spirit of the antichrist objects to the union of the bridegroom and the bride. He seeks to undermine her heart and thereby, undermines her actions. Her heart and her actions are to be like those of the bridegroom!

“This is how love is made complete among us so that we will have confidence on the day of judgment: In this world we are like Jesus” (1 John 4:17 NIV).

“Very truly I tell you, whoever believes in me will do the works I have been doing, and they will do even greater things than these…” (John 14:12 NIV).

“I have given them the glory You gave Me, so that they may be one as We are one…” (John 17:22 NIV).

“Whoever claims to abide in Him must walk as Jesus walked” (1 John 2:6 NIV).

If these are the intentions of Jesus Christ, then it is clear that the intentions of the antichrist will be the exact opposite. Therefore, any spirit which attempts to influence the Body of Christ away from walking as Jesus did, doing his works, manifesting his glory and being like him, is attempting to deny that Jesus has come in the flesh, specifically, our flesh. He vehemently objects to our union with Christ!

While he obviously will not succeed in the end, what damage will he accomplish along the way? Only what we allow him!

Our Identity

We cannot continue to hold theologies which agree with the spirit of the antichrist. Neither can we be so hung up on identifying times, dates, and personalities, that we lose the attention of our first love. Our identity is to be a suitable match for the one who redeemed us. If we don’t look like his bride, grown to the “whole measure of the fullness of Christ,” it is proof of the pervasiveness of the spirit of the antichrist.

As Brennan Manning said, “Be who you is, ‘cause if you ain’t who you is, you is who you ain’t.”

It’s time to see ourselves as the Bride of Christ, whose heart of flesh gladly holds and reflects the Spirit of the One who bought us.

We Have Nothing to Fear

"This is how love is made complete among us so that we will have confidence on the day of judgment: In this world we are like Jesus. There is no fear in love. But perfect love drives out fear, because fear has to do with punishment. The one who fears is not made perfect in love." (1 John 4:17-18 NIV)

Fear is the defining characteristic of the spirit of the antichrist. John was not warning us to fear the antichrist, but instead, live outside of that fear. Think about it! Have your end time beliefs caused you to fear whether you will be swayed by the power of the incarnation of the antichrist in the world? If so, then fear is doing its work! Any eschatology, however solid it may seem, if it denies or redirects us away from the sound mind we’ve been given and causes us to doubt the power of his righteousness within us, it has been in some way influenced by the spirit of the antichrist. After all, we have been given all we need for life and godliness (2 Peter 1:3).

Inside Our Hearts of Flesh

We have all we need because of the deposit of the Holy Spirit given to us (Romans 5:5; 2 Corinthians 1:22; Galatians 4:6; etc.).

“But you have an anointing from the Holy One, and all of you know the truth.... I am writing these things to you about those who are trying to lead you astray. As for you, the anointing you received from him remains in you, and you do not need anyone to teach you. But as his anointing teaches you about all things and as that anointing is real, not counterfeit—just as it has taught you, remain in him. And now, dear children, continue in him, so that when he appears we may be confident and unashamed before him at his coming. If you know that he is righteous, you know that everyone who does what is right has been born of him.” (1 John 2:20, 26-29 NIV)

Identity Confusion

Anyone who denies that Jesus has come to live within our hearts of flesh is the one who worships the antichrist more than Jesus Christ. Until we reconcile our identity in him, and his identity within us as his very own body, the very thing we have feared has already disrupted our momentum as the Body of Christ. However, and whenever Jesus returns, he will return to those who realize that he came the first time to live in their flesh. Kneeling before him in this knowledge, we will have no time to cower before any incarnation of the spirit of the antichrist. This was John’s message and as time is ticking, it is becoming even more needful that we realize that this is our true identity in Christ!

If there is identity confusion in the world, it is because the Church has been fearfully drawn away from realizing its identity together in Jesus Christ, and he in us. If there is confusion concerning love, then again, the fault belongs to us and our testimony concerning Jesus has been compromised, giving the very spirit we’ve feared, unfettered access to the hearts and minds of the world around us.

“No one has ever seen God; but if we love one another, God lives in us and his love is made complete in us. This is how we know that we live in him and he in us: He has given us of his Spirit. And we have seen and testify that the Father has sent his Son to be the Savior of the world. If anyone acknowledges that Jesus is the Son of God, God lives in them and they in God. And so we know and rely on the love God has for us. God is love. Whoever lives in love lives in God, and God in them. This is how love is made complete among us so that we will have confidence on the day of judgment: In this world we are like Jesus. There is no fear in love. But perfect love drives out fear, because fear has to do with punishment. The one who fears is not made perfect in love. We love because he first loved us. Whoever claims to love God yet hates a brother or sister is a liar. For whoever does not love their brother and sister, whom they have seen, cannot love God, whom they have not seen. And he has given us this command: Anyone who loves God must also love their brother and sister. (1 John 4:12-21 NIV).

The Jerusalem Council: A Signs and Wonders Defense

After nearly 15 years on the road ministering to those outside of the Jewish community of believers, Paul found himself having to defend the grace of God shown to the burgeoning Gentile church. At the Council in Jerusalem, the Pharisees proposed that the Gentiles must convert to Judaism in order to become legitimate believers. Paul’s position, aided greatly by Peter, should prompt us all to re-examine how we perceive God’s will and his ways.

The Controversy

“When they came to Jerusalem, they were welcomed by the church and the apostles and elders, to whom they reported everything God had done through them. Then some of the believers who belonged to the party of the Pharisees stood up and said, ‘The Gentiles must be circumcised and required to keep the law of Moses.’ The apostles and elders met to consider this question. After much discussion, Peter got up and addressed them: ‘Brothers, you know that some time ago God made a choice among you that the Gentiles might hear from my lips the message of the gospel and believe. God, who knows the heart, showed that he accepted them by giving the Holy Spirit to them, just as he did to us. He did not discriminate between us and them, for he purified their hearts by faith. Now then, why do you try to test God by putting on the necks of Gentiles a yoke that neither we nor our ancestors have been able to bear? No! We believe it is through the grace of our Lord Jesus that we are saved, just as they are.’ The whole assembly became silent as they listened to Barnabas and Paul telling about the signs and wonders God had done among the Gentiles through them” (Acts 15:4-12 NIV).

Dealing with a New Kind of Believer

For centuries, the Gentiles had lived outside of God’s grace and plan (Ephesians 2:11-12). So, the Pharisees appeared, at least in their own reasoning, to have a legitimate point in seeing themselves and their traditions as the gateway for the Gentiles. Paul and Peter, on the other hand, took a position that God had already approved and accepted this new brand of believers as well as the methods by which they had been won to the Gospel—faith and the grace of Jesus amidst the presence and working of the Holy Spirit.

That was good theology then and it stands up today as well. Yet despite our agreement with Paul, there is still a part in many of us which shares the apprehension felt by Pharisee believers in their day. Consider how we would determine if a people group had truly been accepted by God. What measurements might we use and what recommendations would we make?

New Kids in Town

Recent history, relatively speaking, reveals that we ourselves have a tendency to misinterpret God’s working and movement outside of our own spiritual culture and comfort zone. While not a perfect example, the Jesus People movement of the late 1960s and early 1970s reflected a divide between a church set in its ways, and a group of hungry converts looking for a place to belong.

Despite even radical conversions, many of these young people were initially rejected and shunned by traditional congregations because they didn’t fit into the status quo. Ironically, that very group, now long melded-in, have become the new baseline for the status quo, being challenged in ways similar to their predecessors.

Validation

With all that in mind, what standards would we use today to measure and validate a ministry to a people group outside of our own culture? Likely, we would provide numbers—how many had been converted and gather on a regular basis. Also, we might give testimony as to the kind of lifestyles these new believers had left behind, proving that they had truly been transformed. We would give these and other compelling details, however, Paul gives none of these. He gives us no stats and tells us nothing of the Gentile’s lives as former idol worshipers, polygamists, sorcerers, and the like.

What then did he use to prove the legitimacy of his ministry to the Gentiles as well as their subsequent acceptance of his ministry? It was none other than the work of the Holy Spirit.

Paul’s Testimony

That’s right! Paul and his companions began and ended their position by providing the same vein of testimony throughout—what God had done through them by the Holy Spirit.

“… They reported everything God had done through them” (Acts 15:4 NIV).

“The whole assembly became silent as they listened to Barnabas and Paul telling about the signs and wonders God had done among the Gentiles through them” (Acts 15:12 NIV).

Peter’s testimony was not terribly different as he reminded his fellow believers that God had heard and believed in God’s grace through his own lips, which cued the Holy Spirit to fall on the Gentiles just as he had fallen on the Jews beginning at Pentecost (Acts 10:44, 11:15, 15:7-8).

Stealing God’s Glory

Many in the church today would be very uncomfortable putting this much emphasis upon themselves and their role in what God had done, feeling like it puts the attention and glory upon them and away from God. But, that was not Paul or Peter’s intention at all. It was not out of pride or a sense of spiritual superiority, but acknowledgment that God was present, confirming and affirming that their ministry to the Gentiles was valid. An example of this is found in Luke’s report of Paul and Barnabas’ ministry to the Gentiles in Iconium.

“So Paul and Barnabas spent considerable time there, speaking boldly for the Lord, who confirmed the message of his grace by enabling them to perform signs and wonders” (Acts 14:3)

Confirming the Word

Does the Gospel need such confirmation? Isn’t the spoken word adequate to convey God’s message? Paul didn’t think so.

“My message and my preaching were not with wise and persuasive words, but with a demonstration of the Spirit’s power, so that your faith might not rest on human wisdom, but on God’s power” (1 Corinthians 2:5 NIV).

The more tumultuous the times become, the more we will likely come to understand the importance of Paul’s statement. The works of God testify to who he is and what he approves. His works actually praise him (Psalm 145:10). That is why Paul relied on them as the sole proof of his ministry to the Gentiles, in the same way that Jesus had done years earlier.

Testimony of Works

“Do not believe me unless I do the works of my Father. But if I do them, even though you do not believe me, believe the works, that you may know and understand that the Father is in me, and I in the Father” (John 10:37-38 NIV).

“…the works that the Father has given me to finish--the very works that I am doing--testify that the Father has sent me” (John 5:36 NIV).

“The works I do in my Father's name testify about me…” (John 10:25 NIV).

This is also why Peter was so quick to defend Paul’s ministry to the Gentiles. He had been with Jesus and therefore understood that signs and wonders were the foremost proof of the gospel and those who proclaim it. And so, on the day of Pentecost, he echoed Jesus’ position on the subject. This testimony is further reinforced by the author of the letter to the Hebrews.

“Jesus of Nazareth was a man accredited by God to you by miracles, wonders and signs…” (Acts 2:22 NIV).

“This salvation, which was first announced by the Lord, was confirmed to us by those who heard him. God also testified to it by signs, wonders and various miracles, and by gifts of the Holy Spirit distributed according to his will”
(Hebrews 2:3-4 NIV).

Let’s keep in mind that Paul was a master theologian and could hold his own in a debate. Still, Paul realized that the legitimacy of his ministry to the Gentiles would be best represented if based primarily upon God’s approval as shown through the manifestation of the Holy Spirit. He believed that if he could show that God were in it, then he had no reason to seek proof elsewhere.

Power for Repentance

Paul’s stance was not merely theological, it was practical, reproducible and effective. He knew experientially that signs and wonders held the power to bring people to repentance and he reckoned that the council understood this as well, having experienced 1st Century ministry firsthand themselves, and by remembering the words of Jesus.

"Woe to you, Chorazin! Woe to you, Bethsaida! For if the miracles that were performed in you had been performed in Tyre and Sidon, they would have repented long ago in sackcloth and ashes” (Matthew 11:21 NIV).

Despite the fact that our theology has nearly succeeded in separating the gospel and the power of God for salvation, they are in fact inseparable. According to Paul, the gospel IS the power, therefore, the signs, wonders, and miracles are a part of the gospel, not an addition.

“For I am not ashamed of the gospel, because it is the power of God that brings salvation to everyone who believes: first to the Jew, then to the Gentile” (Romans 1:16 NIV).

Conclusion

Paul’s testimony in conjunction with that of Peter and James led to an open hand of fellowship between the Jewish and Gentile believers. The council weighed Paul’s testimony of signs and wonders along with the council of Peter and James. They determined that the Gentiles need not convert to Judaism and follow Mosaic law in order to be accepted. They were, however, given guidelines concerning food and sent them joyfully along to their Gentile brothers in the worthy hands of Paul and Barnabas.

Paul said that he didn’t want the faith of the Gentiles to rest on man’s wisdom, but on the power of God. At the council at Jerusalem, he also demonstrated that he wanted the faith FOR the Gentiles to rest on the power of God, and so it did.

Successful Healing Evangelist Falls

There is a well-known healing evangelist who after becoming as successful as any of his contemporaries, was found to be flawed to an extent that it ended his ministry. You might have read about him. Unfortunately, despite all of the success he achieved praying for those sick of all kinds of maladies, he will none-the-less be remembered, not for those things, but for falling from his high position. What do we conclude about such a person? Were all those healings just false signs, and does his fall make this person a false teacher? Can anything they ministered be trusted and accepted? Doesn't this type of situation confirm our skepticism concerning  the ministry of signs and wonders?

Keep in mind that when Jesus sent out his twelve disciples to heal the sick, raise the dead, cleanse the lepers, and cast out demonic influences, he knew that these men were imperfect, yet he sent them out anyway. And, all twelve returned with glowing reports of what they had accomplished (Mk 6:13, 30)—all twelve including a man named Judas Iscariot. Yes! This is the successful healing evangelist who fell. I'm reporting the news a little late (by 2,000 years) so that I might make a point. When the disciples returned to Jesus, there is no indication that anyone of them fell short of Jesus' expectations. They were all successful healing evangelists, including Judas. 

Furthermore, after his resurrection, Jesus gave us what we refer to as the Great Commission. He did not feel the need to take into account Judas' actions and downgrade or eliminate the supernatural aspect of the commission, simply because Judas failed to live up to his potential. Instead, he announced that certain signs would follow those who believe. And after Pentecost, Peter and John did not decline to pray for the lame man at the temple, reasoning that by his actions, Judas disqualified supernatural ministry. They not only successfully prayed for this man's healing, after being reprimanded for doing so, the apostles cried out to God for even more powerful signs and God obliged them (Acts 4:30-33).

So let's not let a good reason, the failings of others, become a bad excuse for not adopting what Paul calls the proclamation of the full Gospel with the power of signs and wonders (Ro 15:18-19). 

God’s Magnetic Power of Healing

“I tried prayer for healing a couple of times, but it didn’t work”

It’s easy for us to become discouraged, disenchanted, and even dismayed with supernatural healing. Some have tried it and it just didn’t take. Others may have even seen positive results, but had the malady later return. And, while others continue to experience success from prayer for healing, these reports often discourage those who seemed to have experienced defeat, rather than being encouraged by them. It makes healing seem more like magic which works, presumably for some, but not for others. While I can’t address every concern about healing, I hope that the following sheds some light on the subject.

Perception is Everything

The more we become familiar with God and his ways, especially when it comes to healing, the more we will become aware of the nature of both. God and the power he uses to affect his creation are invisible, not unlike the power of magnetism. While this comparison is somewhat imperfect, it is a good place to begin in understanding how God works.

Magnetism

Magnets, as we know, attract metals. If we place a piece of metal in direct proximity of a magnetic force, there will be an attraction, right? If there isn’t an attraction, we might assume that what we believed to be a magnet wasn’t really a magnet after all and so, we disregard it altogether. The fact is, however, that magnets only attract certain types of metals. In addition, there are more than just one type of magnet. In other words, we need to look beyond the surface of things, especially when making a comparison between a natural force and God’s supernatural ways.

Electromagnetism

While magnets occur in nature, there are other kinds of magnets, ones which rely on the power of electricity. If one coils a conductive wire around a metal rod and attaches the ends of the wire to the positive and negative posts of a battery, those efforts will produce an electromagnet where before, no magnet existed at all. The magnetic field it produces is dependent upon the energy flowing through the wire. For this reason, an electromagnet is a much better model for understanding healing.

Discovering Our Metal

Not every metal is affected by magnetic attraction. While iron, nickel, and cobalt are susceptible to a magnetic field, metals like brass, aluminum, and copper are not. And so, an object containing an amalgam of metals might be only mildly attracted to a magnetic force, simply because it does not contain enough iron or other attractive metals. Distance is also a factor for the further away the metal is to the magnetic field, the weaker the attraction will be.

When Healing Doesn’t Come 

As you can see, there are a number of factors which might prevent an attraction between an electromagnet and a metallic object—some which can be easily observed or reasoned, and some which cannot. In our search for answers, we’re not attempting to find a place of blame, but to prove the spiritual law that God heals and that he can heal us. As I said, magnetism and even science, makes for an imperfect comparison to the power of God to heal. But, like science, the nature of God is discoverable. He hides things not from us, but for us that we would seek to know and therefore, find.

The Tenacity of Edison

Thomas Edison is famously quoted for saying that he didn’t fail when searching for the best filament to use in the electric lightbulb, he just found 10,000 ways that wouldn’t work. Eventually, he did find the right filament and you’re likely benefiting from his tenacity right now. Jesus also praised the value of tenacity when he told a parable, just to underscore the idea that we should, “…always pray, and not give up” (Luke 18:1 NHB). Not giving up doesn’t necessarily mean that we try the same thing over and over, although it may. Consider the workings of an electromagnetic experiment. For everything to work properly, one would have to assure that the power source were in order and that the wires were attached properly to the terminals. The wire must also be tightly wound around the metal rod with no overlap. Then there’s the nature and the proximity of the metal to consider. We can’t give up, especially because healing is part of the atonement that Jesus paid for.

From Magnets to Medicines

Have you ever had a headache that just wouldn’t go away? You took all sorts of pain relievers, but they just didn’t make a dent in your headache. Or have you been to a doctor for some sort of fantom pain or lack of motion and they told you that they could find no cause? And yet, I bet you’ve taken pain relievers since those times of failure and have visited a physician again, despite the lack of success previously experienced. With this track record, how is it that we can so easily give up on God saying, “I tried it once, but it didn’t work,” or “My knee felt better instantly and for a couple of weeks, but then the pain came back?” God doesn’t mind if you come back and ask again, just like he doesn’t mind if you have to take another does of acetaminophen.

You Are the Magnet, and I Am the Steel

Perhaps we return to medicine so readily, despite its imperfections, simply because we have become familiar with dealing with its imperfections. And while we understand that God is perfect, we are apprehensive in dealing with the fact that we are not. We don’t always know how to become a piece of metal that is in position to be attracted to God’s healing power and because of our ignorance, we actually repel his power by relying on the power of our own reasoning. While we might believe that our power to repel God’s attraction pales in comparison, in a fallen world, the opposition can be enough to counteract attraction. 

A Positive Force

Electromagnetism makes for an adequate model for divine healing at least in the respect that it shows God’s willingness to attract us. But, we must pursue that attraction and not give up. We must seek to find, knock for doors to open, hunger and thirst that we might be filled, and eagerly desire and pursue what the Gospel freely provides. It is not enough to know that God’s power is available and inexhaustible, we must realize our responsibility to make sure his power is connected to the means by which we’re seeking to be drawn towards the healing he provides. Seek and discover the connections needed. Don’t give up on the attraction. Be the steel that allows Him to pull you and your circumstances towards his ability to affect them and bring healing.

I Smell Fire

I've just finished listing to, and have been greatly impacted by the audiobook, Supernatural: The life of William Branham. The vibe I picked up from this highly-detailed biography of one of the Churches' healing pioneers, contains a similar and familiar scent, reminding me of what I've read concerning other revivals of the past. And while I've heard a number of voices saying that what God is doing now and is about to do will be a "new thing," it is being birthed by the same fire which ignited Pentecost as well as the subsequent seasons of revival which followed behind it. 

It is said that those who do not study and learn from history are doomed to repeat it. I would add that those who fail to study the past will be less able to comprehend what is possible for us today and in the future. God wants to show and do more among us than we can ask or imagine, but we must at least maintain a healthy and growing baseline so that we can expect the greatest level of the "More" that he would like to show and do.

I don't believe that anyone could accuse me of operating in a gift of intercession. I have always seemed to struggle through to try to generate a disciplined prayer life. However, sometimes praying for God to move among us can be as simple as coming into agreement with what he has put in front of us and made plain concerning his intentions. I believe that he has released and sparked something that should not be too hard for us to detect, and with which we can resonate. They say that animals can readily smell and detect a coming forest fire and act accordingly, even when the fire is small and undetectable by humans. Can you catch the scent of something beginning to burn? If so, follow that scent!

What God needs is for us to be ready and equipped for a full-fledged fire, not so that we can extinguish it but so that it might consume us up. Some of us have fears and insecurities, which on a personal level, have held us back. And while the fire comes to test us (something which might initially generate some fear and apprehension), it comes primarily to burn away those things which have hindered us. Unlike its natural counterpart, supernatural fire creates more opportunities than what it consumes.

So against nature, we must turn towards the coming fire so that we can be part of it. This is how all revivals of the past were encouraged and maintained. We cannot let this one fail to burn because we're sitting amidst damp wood, or have surrounded ourselves with a moat of stagnant water so as to bar the flames from coming. We must welcome them. It seems counter-intuitive but these flames bring life, not damage. Remember how the flames of fire rested on the disciples' heads at Pentecost? The fire did not come to destroy but to do its work in them, eventually spreading outwards to those around them. Let's let it do that same work in each of us.

SAME FAITH

Is there a different faith required for those believing for relief from great financial need than those who are believing for a family member to be freed from substance abuse? Is there a difference between the nature of faith it takes to pray for others to be healed and the nature of faith it takes to receive healing for ourselves? I contend that the faith is the same, but that its application and the roadblocks to apprehending that faith may differ depending upon the situation. Paul says that there is one faith (Eph 4:5), and that the same faith that saves the Jews, saves the Gentiles as well (Ro 3:30). It is that, “Same Faith” which I want to talk about.

Faith is not something we produce out of our will. While faith can be stirred up and encouraged—something we should spend more time thinking about—we have absolutely no power in ourselves to create faith so that God will answer our prayers. Zilch! There is truth in the idea of believing “more,” but not in the context that we can believe “harder.” Think back to when we first met the Lord. Somehow, we heard the Word of the Gospel and were able to believe it. And this, the greatest miracle of all, did not come because we had all the answers.

We heard the Word and were empowered to believe in Jesus Christ as the only mediator between God and man. We believed that he was just who he said that he was and somehow, we believed that he would adopt us into his Kingdom. How could we believe all that through what little had been presented to most of us? I contend that in that moment, it was the power of that faith, a faith which could be argued as being “little faith,” which translated us from the kingdom of darkness into the Kingdom of his dear Son! And, it was also “little faith,” perhaps as small as a mustard seed which empowered Peter to walk on the surface of Lake Galilee. Because of who Jesus is, anything is possible for those who believe, that is, those who apply their faith in Jesus (Mark 9:23). And that’s where the difference lies.

We apprehend our faith in Jesus based upon the task or need before us, but our focus must be upon Jesus—who he is, what he’s done, and how he is the same yesterday, today, and forever. Hebrews calls faith, the, “…Confidence in what we hope for and assurance about what we do not see” (Heb 11:1 NIV). We have confidence in what we hope for, and are assured about what we do not yet see before us only because of Jesus. This is not a different faith from that which saved us, it is merely an extension of that same faith.

I love the HELPS Word Study available on biblehub.com as they do such a good job of illuminating the original text. Here’s what they say about the word translated as “little faith.” They note that “little faith,” (oligópistos), is a compound word meaning “little in number”…”faith.” In context of its five appearances in the New Testament, it is used as a rebuke each time the disciples failed to hear what Jesus was saying and failure to put their faith into practice, that they had little or few occurrences or few applications of their faith.

So Jesus was not chiding them for not ramping up enough faith, or trying to push the right “faith buttons,” but was admonishing them for not putting their faith into practice by acting upon what he had said. While we can’t produce faith out of thin air, something we sometimes try to do, we can exercise, practice, and expand upon the faith we’ve been given. The more we do, we’ll move from being those who have little faith, to those who walk in faith…and isn’t that the goal? If that little bit of faith was enough to get us saved when we were still yet sinners and his enemies, how much more is available to us now through that very same faith, now that we have been reconciled to him? (Ro 5:8-11) So let’s drop all pretense and simply say, “Jesus, I believe you. Show me how to practice my belief in you because I am in need.” Remember, a bruised reed he will not break and a smoldering wick he will not snuff out (Mat 12:20). Draw close to him, using the same faith that brought you in, and he will draw near to you. That’s how Paul could say…

“…I have been crucified with Christ and I no longer live, but Christ lives in me. The life I now live in the body, I live by faith in the Son of God, who loved me and gave himself for me…Did you receive the Spirit by the works of the law, or by believing what you heard? Are you so foolish? After beginning by means of the Spirit, are you now trying to finish by means of the flesh? Have you experienced so much in vain—if it really was in vain? So again I ask, does God give you his Spirit and work miracles among you by the works of the law, or by your believing what you heard?…He redeemed us in order that the blessing given to Abraham might come to the Gentiles through Christ Jesus, so that by faith we might receive the promise of the Spirit” (Galatians 2:20, 3:3-5, 14).

There’s a lot of faith found in those passages. Believing what we hear from God is Paul’s prescription for the Galatians and for us, that we might receive the promise of the Spirit in our lives…the same Spirit that Jesus said would be with us and alongside of us, so that he could remind us of what Jesus is saying, that is, what we have heard (Jo 16:13-15). That’s what Jesus rebuked his disciples for, they were not listening to and heeding what he said by putting their faith into practice. And where do we get that kind of faith? As believers, we all have that kind of faith already, but we must cultivate it. It is not a different faith for those other, more faith-like Christians, it is the measure of faith given to each of us as a deposit that we might expand upon it in our lives and affect those around us. That’s who we are and we can always start right where we’re at, especially if we feel faithless and full of failure. That might actually be the very best place to begin, understanding that it even those with faith as small as a mustard seed can uproot a tree planted in the earth, and replant it in the sea (Luke 17:6). So, start by taking what Jesus has said and begin by putting him front and center, relying upon his faithfulness. Start digging up that, “Same Faith” today!

Is It Today Yet?

I was recently in a conversation where the idea that God still speaks today was in question. The person making the point believed that God only speaks today through his written word. That logic, however, creates quite a conundrum because the Bible, gives no indication that God would or has ever stopped speaking. Jesus Christ is, after all, the same yesterday, today, and forever (Hebrews 13:8). After his resurrection and ascension, he, along with his Father and the Spirit, are found speaking to believers in various ways up until the final pages of the New Testament.

It is today with which we should be most concerned, but before we go there, let’s first dismiss the idea that God could lose the will or the ability to speak, that he has had his larynx legally tied in a knot, or that he has taken a vow of silence seeing that everything that he had wanted to say had finally been written down. I’m finding that reasoning very difficult to support, especially since God also indicates in his written word that even inanimate objects like rocks could cry out if necessary (Luke 19:40). In addition, we're told that the blood of Abel, though dead, is still able to speak (Hebrews 11:4). And if God does not speak today, how were any of us enabled to answer his call?

As I read them, the Scriptures indicate that God is a God of and for all seasons and dispensations, not a God of the past only. Furthermore, the written word, which I am told is the only means by which God speaks today, promises us that in these last days, Jesus is indeed speaking (Hebrews 1:1-2). Since the time that this passage was written, the only thing which has changed in the new, everlasting, and final covenant is that there have been more last days added to the tally. As long as we are his sheep, we should be hearing his voice (John 10:27). While yesterday is gone, eternity starts fresh each morning, becoming a day which the Holy Spirit calls, “Today.” And according to the author of Hebrews, as long as it is called, “Today,” we are called to encourage one another, keep our hearts soft and on target, and of course, hear God’s voice (Hebrews 3:7-15 NIV). Everyday is “Today,” yet, we’ve not yet excelled in keeping our hearts from getting hard and have a long way to go to perfect the art of encouragement. Is that merely because we’ve not responded well to his voice, or is it because we have come to deny that he is even speaking?

So while it is one thing to acknowledge that the Bible contains the very thoughts and expressions of God, we must not fall prey to the notion that God no longer speaks today. He has not imposed a gag order on himself, freezing himself in time while posting his instructions for life on the outside of the fridge. For all intents and purposes, many have put God in just such a box, unintentionally rendering his voice as the dead author of a living autobiography, instead of a very present voice which makes his word alive in us. God did not speak from the beginning of creation so that we might one day receive his thoughts in written form alone. Instead, he recorded all those things so that we might seek out and listen to his voice. Today, if you hear his voice, don’t let your hearts become hardened for as long as it is called, “Today,” his living voice still speaks…at least that’s what the Holy Spirit says. 

"Today, if you hear his voice, do not harden your hearts" (Hebrews 3:7 NIV).