Be encouraged
Peter encouraged us to follow in the footsteps of Jesus who,
when he was reviled, he did not revile in return; when he suffered, he did not threaten, but continued entrusting himself to him who judges justly. 1 Peter 2:21-23
If you are in the right, you don’t need to defend yourself. the Righteous Judge, who knows who you are and what you have done, will exonerate you.
Neil T. Anderson, Victory Over the Darkness: Realizing the Power of your Identity in Christ, pg. 204
All true forgiveness is substitutionary, as was Christ’s forgiveness of us. That doesn’t mean you tolerate sin or refuse to testify in a court of law.
You may be struggling with the question, “Where was God when all this was going on?” The omnipresent God was there and He sent His Son to redeem you from your past. The truth is, He is in your life right now desiring to set you free from your past. That is the gospel, the good news that Christ has come to set the captives free. Perceiving those events from the perspective of your new identity in Christ is what starts the process of healing those damaged emotions.
We can crucify the flesh and choose to walk by the Spirit
The flesh patterns are still imbedded in our minds when we become new creations in Christ, but we can crucify the flesh and choose to walk by the Spirit:
But the fruit of the Spirit is love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness, self-control; against such things there is no law. And those who belong to Christ Jesus have crucified the flesh with its passions and desires.If we live by the Spirit, let us also keep in step with the Spirit.
Neil T. Anderson, Victory Over the Darkness: Realizing the Power of your Identity in Christ, pg. 188
“IAN can’t help you”
RZIM’s Michael Ramsden asks, ‘Why are you a Christian?”
Have a watch because ‘IAN can’t help you!’
God knows about the hidden hurts within you that you may not be able to see. When you ask God to search your heart, He will expose those dark areas of your past and bring them to light at the right time. The Holy Spirit “will guide you into all the truth (John 16:13),” and that truth will set you free (John 8:31-32).
Some Christians assert that the past doesn’t have any effect on them because they are new creations in Christ. I would have to disagree. Either they are extremely fortunate to have a conflict-free past or they are living in denial. Those who have had major traumas and have learned to resolve them in Christ know how devastating past experiences can be.
The cries of the heart
For example, let’s say a Christian couple you know loses an infant son to crib death. Overcome by grief they ask, “Why did God do this?” Don’t answer that question. First, you don’t know the answer. Second, their question is an emotional reaction, not an intellectual inquiry. All that their words reveal is the intensity of their pain. Respond to their emotional pain with empathy. There will be ample time to give theological answers later when the emotional pain of their tragic loss has subsided.
Neil T. Anderson, Victory Over the Darkness: Realizing the Power of your Identity in Christ, pg. 180
It’s long been accepted that the breakdown of the family is a result of the West losing its religion. But Eberstadt says the opposite is true. She believes that the loss of family values is what led to the loss of faith.
Jesus did not die a gentle death like Socrates, with his cup of hemlock, much less passing on ‘old and full of years’ like the patriarchs of the Old Testament. Rather, he died like a slave or a common criminal, in torment, on the tree of shame. Paul’s Jesus did not die just any death; he was ‘given up for us all’ on the cross, in a cruel and a contemptible way.
Martin Hengel, Crucifixion [Philadelphia, Pennsylvania: Fortress Press, 1977], p. 90
In this classic message, Ravi Zacharias shares thoughts from the perspective of Easter as he delves into four gardens: the text, the context, the contest, and the conquest.
Ravi inspires with truths surrounding creation, the word, the cross, and the resurrection in presentations excerpted from the Jesus Among Other Gods group study. This presentation is a beautiful and thought-provoking reminder of all that Easter celebrates.
Neil, we’ll never forget what you did for us when our son died,” they said. “We didn’t need words; we needed love. We knew you loved us because you cried with us.
No greater love than Christ. No greater person to have at your side. No greater advocate in our lives. - WF
Expressing pain and anger honestly before God
“David’s words didn’t surprise God,” I answered. “God already knew what he was thinking and feeling. David was simply expressing his pain and anger honestly to his God who understood how he felt and accepted him where he was.”
Psalm 109
Be not silent, O God of my praise! For wicked and deceitful mouths are opened against me, speaking against me with lying tongues. They encircle me with words of hate, and attack me without cause. In return for my love they accuse me, but I give myself to prayer. So they reward me evil for good, and hatred for my love. Appoint a wicked man against him; let an accuser stand at his right hand. When he is tried, let him come forth guilty; let his prayer be counted as sin! May his days be few; may another take his office! May his children be fatherless and his wife a widow! May his children wander about and beg, seeking food far from the ruins they inhabit! May the creditor seize all that he has; may strangers plunder the fruits of his toil! Let there be none to extend kindness to him, nor any to pity his fatherless children! May his posterity be cut off; may his name be blotted out in the second generation! May the iniquity of his fathers be remembered before the Lord, and let not the sin of his mother be blotted out! Let them be before the Lord continually, that he may cut off the memory of them from the earth! For he did not remember to show kindness, but pursued the poor and needy and the brokenhearted, to put them to death. He loved to curse; let curses come upon him! He did not delight in blessing; may it be far from him! He clothed himself with cursing as his coat; may it soak into his body like water, like oil into his bones! May it be like a garment that he wraps around him, like a belt that he puts on every day! May this be the reward of my accusers from the Lord, of those who speak evil against my life! But you, O God my Lord, deal on my behalf for your name’s sake; because your steadfast love is good, deliver me! For I am poor and needy, and my heart is stricken within me. I am gone like a shadow at evening; I am shaken off like a locust. My knees are weak through fasting; my body has become gaunt, with no fat. I am an object of scorn to my accusers; when they see me, they wag their heads. Help me, O Lord my God! Save me according to your steadfast love! Let them know that this is your hand; you, O Lord, have done it! Let them curse, but you will bless! They arise and are put to shame, but your servant will be glad! May my accusers be clothed with dishonor; may they be wrapped in their own shame as in a cloak! With my mouth I will give great thanks to the Lord; I will praise him in the midst of the throng. For he stands at the right hand of the needy one, to save him from those who condemn his soul to death.
When water becomes hot, either rapidly or slowly, a normal healthy frog with all its facutlies; using its mind actively, will jump out regardless.
When water becomes hot, either rapidly or slowly, a lobotomised frog (as in the original experiment), using its mind passively so to speak, will boil to death.
Now, instead of opening up the truth of God’s Word, and actively engaging the culture with the mind, much of the Christian Church is being slowly lobotomised by the world.
- Wisdom Fish
