Let’s start with a bit of unmasking. My emotions at this moment are in disarray.
I’m frustrated about reoccurring issues and relational problems that feel at
this moment hopeless. I feel like I am on a merry-go-round and can’t see far
enough ahead to have hope of getting off.
I’ve got more. Call me if you want to hear them. Frankly it’s a struggle
to believe the Gospel for myself at this moment! But!!!!
Let me add a big HALLELUJAH! Thankfully the previous
woes are not the true story or the end of the story! They are just the “noise”
of the ‘sark’. What is the ‘sark’? It is the mind or the (perspective/understanding)
of the flesh. We all have a choice to listen to the “noise” of the mind of the
flesh or to the still small voice of Holy Spirit and Jesus in our true heart. 5 “Trust God from
the bottom of your heart; don't try to figure out everything on your own (or
listen to the ‘sark’). 6 Listen for God's voice in
everything you do, everywhere you go; he's the one who will keep you on track.”
(Proverbs 3:5-6, Msg)
Let’s learn more about the ‘sark’. It all started in a garden called Eden. You
probably don’t remember; but, you were there generationally. Our ancestors;
Adam and Eve, were in perfect harmonious fellowship with God, walking with Him
daily and freely interacting on a heart to heart level. That means they shared
their hearts with one another with no interference from the ‘flesh suit’ they
were in. It gets better.
They had no knowledge
of ‘evil’ or the illusion of the ‘good’ of self effort/righteousness. They had
no need to have other gods, idols or ‘religious’ systems. These had no sway or
relevance to their lives. They didn’t even exist! They lived in sweet communion
with God, their selves, each other and nature. God, in His grace provided for
all contingencies and/or life events. Wow!
They/we had no need
for filters or masks. True self or authentic self was intact, innocent and
pure. All of the mind games we have to deal with; manipulation, deceit,
outright lying to self and others were not on their radar. They walked in pure
unfiltered, unadulterated, child-like simplicity and innocence.
Sounds really good to
me! Where do I sign up? Wait, there’s more to the story. God gave them only one
rule or boundary and that was only for their protection and safety. God was not
co-dependent, so the one rule was non-negotiable. By the way, it is still
enforced!
That boundary is;
“there are two trees in the center of the garden” and you are not to eat from
the one called, “the tree of the knowledge of ‘good’ and ‘evil.’” “For when you
eat of it you shall surely die.” “But, you are always welcome to feast on the
tree of ‘life’”. The tree of the knowledge of ‘good’ and ‘evil’ is where the
‘sark’ comes from! After tasting of that forbidden fruit we ‘die’ spiritually and
lose awareness of our true innocence and identity in Him. That’s what God said
and that’s what happened and is still happening! ‘Good’ is the enemy of His
Best-The Gospel of Grace!
Here-in is our major
problem! We are duped into choosing to break that one boundary. At that moment,
Satan (the knowledge of ‘evil’) and all of the negative, harsh, shaming,
shunning, wounding, worldly, and religious systems are now in play (the
knowledge of ‘good’). And they are not friendly!
Along with that
deadened mindset of the ‘sark’ (leaning on and relying in the knowledge of
‘good’ and ‘evil’) mankind (we) ultimately demanded their own way; which was
not a pretty picture. Participating in ‘gross’ evil and twisted behavior with
one another, angelic beings, demons (fallen angels), and the darkness of our
understanding led to all manner of debauched ‘so-called’ living.
They/we demanded the
need to/for Kings and/or Tyrants to ‘rule’ over them/us. All manner of the
‘Law’ came into being to ultimately convince them/us that we could not live
apart from the Gospel of Grace, “The Tree of Life.” All man could seem to
produce was missing the mark of their true identity in Christ,
broken/dysfunctional relationships, pain, self-medicating behaviors, dis-ease
and addictions.
From that deadened
mindset or life perspective (‘sark’-mind of the world/flesh) and world view we
forfeit the understanding of the ‘tree of life’. We also live in the spirit of orphans! We believe we don’t belong
and find it problematic to attach or bond appropriately in relationships.
There is only one
solution to this self induced fate. We
must be awakened by/to the life giving and grace-full truth that God in His unending
matchless love makes readily available. That is God’s plan ‘A’. It is the
Gospel of the Garden. And that is the beginning of the revelation of the Gospel
of Grace!
There never was or
never will be a Plan ‘B’! The awakening
to the ‘Gospel’ comes as we encounter the eternal Love, Mercy and Grace of God.
Jesus has been knocking on the door of your heart ever since you were knee high
to a grasshopper! The awakening of Jesus is only received by a willful change
of mindset from relying on the ‘sark’ to simply faithing and trusting in this
Gospel of Grace! All of the Old Testament saints/believers saw this Gospel by
their eyes of faith, afar off!
As we believe the
Gospel of Grace for ourselves daily we again feast on the tree of life! All of
the prophets pointed to the moment in history when Jesus would come as Emmanuel (God with us), Lamb of God (who takes away the sin of
the world), Savior (Who cleanses,
forgives, restores and redeems all of our brokenness and shame), Lord of Lords/King of Kings (who ends
the rule of self-induced kings or tyrants) and the Logos/Word of God (Christ in us, the hope of glory)!
It gets better! The moment Jesus was raised from the dead after
being the sacrificial Lamb of God on Calvary’s Cross and Ascended to the
Father’s right hand in Glory the Mystery, hidden for the ages could be
revealed! Every tribe, tongue,
nation, and people group was/is now awakened to their inclusion in this Gospel
of Grace! Let’s let The Apostle Paul, the Apostle of the Gospel of Grace lay
out this Mystery.
Ephesians Chapter 2
2:1 Picture where God found us. We were in
a death trap of an inferior lifestyle, constantly living below the 1blueprint
measure of our lives. (1Sin is hamartia, which comes from ha + meros, meaning
without form or without our allotted portion.) 2:2 We were all part of a
common pattern, swept along under a powerful invisible influence, a
spirit-energy that adopted us as sons to its dictate through unbelief. 2:3 Throughout
that time every one of us were warped and corrupted in our conduct snared in a
jumble of forbidden lusts, driven by the desires of the senses, totally engaged
in an expression of a life ruled by mind games; it was as if a twisted passion
parented a universal breed of people.
2:4 None of this
could distract from the extravagant love of
God; he continued to love us with the exact same intensity. 2:5 This is
how grace rescued us: sin left us dead towards God, like spiritual corpses; yet
in that state of deadness and indifference, God co-quickened us together with
Christ. Sin proved how dead we were (the law confirmed it!) Grace reveals how
alive we now are (the gospel announces it!) Before anyone but God believed it,
he made us alive together with him and raised us up together with him. (We had
no contribution to our salvation)!
God’s master-plan unfolded in the mystery of the gospel
declaring our joint inclusion in Christ’s death and resurrection; God found us
in Christ before he lost us in Adam! [Eph 1:4] In the
economy of God, when Jesus died we died. God saw us in Christ, in his death and
resurrection before we saw ourselves there! He declared our co-resurrection
with Christ 800 BC [Hos 6:2]!) 2:6 (As much as we were co-included in his
death,) we are co-included in his resurrection. We are also elevated in his ascension to be equally
present in the throne room of the heavenly realm where we are co-seated with
him in his executive authority. We are fully represented in Christ Jesus. (Our
joint position in Christ defines us; this can never again be a distant goal to
reach but our immediate point of departure.) 2:7 (In a single triumphant
act of righteousness God saved us from the “guttermost” to the uttermost.
Here we are now, revealed in Christ in the highest possible
position of bliss! If man’s sad history
could not distract from the extravagant love of God,) imagine how God is now
able for timeless perpetuity (the eternal future) to exhibit the trophy of the
wealth of his grace demonstrated in his kindness towards us in Christ Jesus.
Grace exhibits excessive evidence of the success of the Cross.
2:8 Your salvation is not a reward for good
behavior! It was a grace thing from start to finish; you had no hand in it.
Even the gift to believe simply
reflects his faith! (You did not invent faith; it was God’s faith to begin
with! It is from faith to faith, [Rom 1:17] He is both the source and
conclusion of faith. [Heb 12:2]) 2:9 If this could be accomplished through
any action of yours then there would be ground for boasting. 2:10 We are
engineered by his design; he molded and manufactured us in Christ. We are his
workmanship, his 1poetry. (God finds inspired expression of Christ in us. The
Greek word for workmanship is 1poeima.)
We are 2fully fit to do good, equipped to give attractive
evidence of his likeness in us in everything we do. (God has done everything possible to find
spontaneous and effortless expression of his character in us in our everyday
lifestyle. The word, 2proetoimatso, translates a notion that God has prepared a
highway for us to lead us out like kings, just like the Oriental custom, where
people would go before a king to level the roads to make it possible for the king to journey with
ease and comfort. [Isa 40:3-5])
2:11 Remember where you came from; (not only
were you spiritually dead but) it wasn’t long ago when you were still
classified as non-Jewish, judging on the surface you had nothing that linked
you to them. They sneered at you because you didn’t share their distinguishing
mark of circumcision, which was their claim to fame! 2:12 During that time
you were distanced from the Messianic hope; you had nothing in common with
Israel. You felt foreign to the covenants of prophetic promise, living a life
with nothing to look forward to in a world where God seemed absent.
2:13 But now, wow! Everything has changed; you
have discovered yourselves to be located in Christ. What once seemed so distant
is now so near; his blood reveals your redeemed innocence and authentic genesis. 2:14 It is in him that we are one and at
peace with everyone; he dissolved every definition of division. 2:15 In
his incarnation, he rendered the entire Jewish system of ceremonial laws and
regulations useless as a measure to justify human life and conduct. In that he
died humanity’s death all grounds for tension and hostility were entirely
removed.
The peace he proclaims reveals one new human race, created and
defined in Christ, instead of two groups of people separated by their ethnic
identity and differences.
2:16 Both parties are fully represented and reconciled to God in one human
body through the cross. He reinstated the former harmony; all opposing elements
were thus utterly defeated. 2:17 On that basis he made his public appearance, proclaiming the good news of peace
to universal mankind; both those who felt left out in the cold (as far as the
promises and covenants were concerned), as well as to those who were near all
along (because of their Jewish identity),
2:18 Because of Christ both Jew and Gentile now
enjoy equal access to the Father in one Spirit. 2:19 The conclusion
is clear, you are no longer frowned upon as a foreigner; you are where you
belong and part of an intimate family where no-one is suspicious or inferior.
2:20 Your lives now give visible definition to the spiritual structure,
having been built into it by God upon the foundation that the prophets and
apostles proclaimed.
The first evidence of this building was Jesus Christ himself
being the chief cornerstone.
(He is the first visible testimony form.) 2:21 In him every one of us are like 1living Lego
blocks fitted together of the same fabric (1conversation), giving ever
2increasing articulation to a global mobile 3sanctuary intertwined in the Lord.
2:22 In him you are co-constructed
together as God’s permanent spiritual residence. You are God’s address!
Toit, Francois Du
(2012-07-02). Mirror Bible (Kindle Locations 4029-4037). Mirror Word
Publishing. Kindle Edition.
There are two more
awesome gifts that are the absolute guarantee of a successful journey with Jesus!
He (in this wonderful Gospel of Grace) has given us a new heart and baptism
into Christ and his Holy Spirit.
25 “I'll pour pure water over you
and scrub you clean. 26 I'll give you a new heart; put a new spirit in you.
I'll remove the stone heart from your body and replace it with a heart that's
God-willed, not self-willed. 27 I'll put my Spirit in you and make it possible for
you to do what I tell you and live by my commands.” (Ezekiel 36:25-27, Msg)
This “new heart” is the center of the total personality, especially with reference to intuition, feeling, or emotion: In your heart you know I'm an
honest man.
It is also the center of emotion, especially as contrasted
to the
head as the center of the intellect: His
head told him
not to fall in love,
but his heart had the final say. And it gives us the capacity for sympathy;
feeling; affection: His heart moved him to help the needy. Most important, this
heart is the Throne Room of Jesus in our Spirit man-the core of our life! It is where we can best hear God!
His Holy Spirit empowers our soul
(mind, will, and emotions) to live in harmony with God’s perfect will for our
life! Holy Spirit is like the ‘governor’ on a truck. He shows us that which will
harm us or cause a ‘spiritual wreck’. He also leads and guides us into all the
truth. That’s not all; Holy Spirit produces the gifts needed for the Body of
Christ to be light and salt for the world around us! Also, Holy Spirit is the
source of the character of Christ (fruit of the Spirit) to be flourishing
through our day to day walk as a follower of Jesus!
Being ‘born again’, awakened to the
Gospel of Grace is when we begin the incredible journey of being Sons and
Daughters of Jesus’ Father. We are adopted into the bosom of His heart and
share equally with any and all in the family of God-now and forevermore! We
actually enter into the same relationship that Jesus, Holy Spirit and Father
have always shared! This is truly the apex and pinnacle of our existence and
destiny! Following is the decree of our destiny
and the declaration of our identity!
“I'll show up and take care of you as I promised and
bring you back home. 11 I know what I'm doing. I have it all planned out -
plans to take care of you, not abandon you, plans to give you the future you
hope for. 12 "When you call on me, when
you come and pray to me, I'll listen. 13 "When you come looking for me, you'll find me.
14 I'll make sure you won't be
disappointed." God's Decree. (Jeremiah 29: 10b-14a, Msg)
“To
seal our sonship God has commissioned the Spirit of Sonship to resonate the
Abba echo in our hearts; and now, in our innermost being we recognize Him as
our very dear Father.” (Galatians 4: 6, The Mirror)
Now go and share this awesome Gospel with
all in your sphere of influence! 18 “Jesus,
undeterred, went right ahead and gave his charge: "God authorized and
commanded me to commission you: 19 Go out and
train everyone you meet, far and near, in this way of life, marking them by
baptism in the threefold name: Father, Son, and Holy Spirit. 20
Then instruct them in the practice of all I have commanded you. I'll be with
you as you do this, day after day after day, right up to the end of the
age."(Matthew 28: 18-20, Msg)
In the Grip of Grace! Ron Ross, Copyrighted
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