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We are standing

Romans 5:2 (AMP) Through Him we also have access by faith into this [remarkable state of] grace in which we [firmly and safely and securely] stand. Let us rejoice in our hope and the confident assurance of [experiencing and enjoying] the glory of [our great] God [the manifestation of His excellence and power].

While in prayer the other day a song popped into my head. It still comes up randomly and is playing over and over again at this moment. It is just the chorus, but it caused me to ponder of the meaning of this song as I was praying.

We are standing on holy ground
For I know that there are angels all around
Let us praise Jesus now
For we are standing in His presence on holy ground

I do not want to start with the first line, I want to really stress that the presence of God is not earned, and you do not need a formula to get there. If you are in Christ, then where you are now standing in His presence. We as a church do not need to sing the right songs to enter His presence. Is your mind focused on Him? What is your heart aligned with? Our atonement has already been paid for with Christ. You may still believe that it is only the elect that can go into the presence of God. It is not reserved for your Pastor or even an earthly Priest.

Hebrews 4:15-16 (AMP)  For we do not have a High Priest who is unable to sympathize and understand our weaknesses and temptations, but One who has been tempted [knowing exactly how it feels to be human] in every respect as we are, yet without [committing any] sin. Therefore let us [with privilege] approach the throne of grace [that is, the throne of God’s gracious favor] with confidence and without fear, so that we may receive mercy [for our failures] and find [His amazing] grace to help in time of need [an appropriate blessing, coming just at the right moment].

What did come to thought when I remembered the lyrics about standing in His presence? I thought of Moses and even though they were to be given the promised land, Moses desired His presence to go with them.  And He said, “My Presence will go with you, and I will give you rest,” Exodus 33:14 (MEV). Rest is found in His Presence. Rest is a place of peace. When they entered the promised land, they were physically going to have to work and fight, but they would be at rest. When I step out of who I am in Christ, that is when unrest happens. Worry, anxiety, disappointments and even a feeling of defeat can come over me.

Psalms 16:11 (AMP) You will show me the path of life; in Your presence is fullness of joy; in Your right hand there are pleasures forevermore.

Another benefit of His presence is joy. Not just a little bit of joy, but fullness of joy. Jesus even states in John 15:11 that the abiding and instructions of obedience was for, “I have told you these things so that My joy and delight may be in you, and that your joy may be made full and complete and overflowing.” An overflowing amount of joy. Does that seem too good to be true? What are you abiding in? What has your mind been focused on lately? Are you still holding on to the worries you said you had given over to Him?

We are standing on holy ground. This is not a literal ground we are standing on. This is the position we have in Christ. Moses was told to remove his sandals in Exodus because of the holy ground. This is not that. Are you good ground? Jesus referred to soil, seeds and roots. What makes it holy? When we consecrate ourselves to the Lord. When we surrender ourselves to His will and His purpose. I am good ground not because of me, but because of Christ in me. In the Old Testament the word used in Hebrew was qadash (קָדַשׁ). Garments, utensils and furniture were qadash-ed for use in the temple. It was because of Christ that we now have a different look at sanctification.

Romans 12:1 (AMP) Therefore I urge you, brothers and sisters, by the mercies of God, to present your bodies [dedicating all of yourselves, set apart] as a living sacrifice, holy and well-pleasing to God, which is your rational (logical, intelligent) act of worship.

In Hebrew, qōdesh (קֹדֶשׁ) means “holiness,” it is only after we consecrate ourselves that we can live in holiness. This is not an outward appearance. Why would He call us to abide in Him? For this very reason. He calls us His royal priesthood (1 Peter 2:9).

1 Peter 1: 15-16 (AMP) But like the Holy One who called you, be holy yourselves in all your conduct [be set apart from the world by your godly character and moral courage]; because it is written, “You shall be holy (set apart), for I am holy.”

Character is developed; it does not require us to change anything on the outside until we all the Holy Spirit to work on our inward nature. Too often we get excited of the new life in Christ that we want them to look the part. We want them to act the part. We do not point them to the one who transforms our thinking. We do not encourage them in the identity of Christ. Character is developed from the abiding. Roots cannot grow without the abiding. They will not know the deep love of Christ without the abiding. Looking holy is not being consecrated and does not lead to true holiness. We are holy ground because we have consecrated ourselves to the Lord.

Finally, I want to look at what it means to stand. Standing does not lack movement. Our knees are not locked. Our hearts are. Our minds are. We are focused on Jesus. Jesus said to go. We are to be open to the opportunities given to spread the gospel. We are standing prepared because we are standing in His presence. Angels all around is like with Elisha talking with his servant and prayed for God to open his eyes (2 Kings 6:17). We are never alone. The kingdom of God is not wishful thinking of heaven one day. When we pray “Your kingdom come, Your will be done on earth as in Heaven,” what do that mean to you? Are they religious words or our they what you truly believe? I truly believe that eternity started the moment I received my salvation. I truly believe that I am a tree of righteousness, rooted and grounded in the love of Christ. It took me a long time to realize all of it. I do not want others to have to take the long way that I did. I want to point them to the abiding. I want to tell them that consecration is not hard or complicated. I want to tell them about a choice of surrender leads to a different way of thinking. I want to let them know true character development happens when the Holy Spirit leads. I want them to really know what it means that we are standing in His presence on holy ground.

Abba, Father, Creator and Lord, You are Mighty and Glorious, worthy of all honor and praise. You are Holy. Thank You for Your Son, our Redeemer. Thank You for Your Holy Spirit, Your manifested presence here on earth. Help us to keep from over complicating what it means to be consecrated. We repent for not allowing the abiding place to be where relationship happens. It is only here that the ability to walk in real consecration and holiness happens. We want to walk in victory over sin, but we cannot do it apart from You. Today we choose to humbly draw near. We desire to qadash ourselves to You. We desire the power of purity that flows freely from Your presence, it is our heart connection to You. The nature of Christ within is imparted when we keep in step with Your Presence. We declare with our whole hearts that we are standing in Your presence on holy ground. We choose surrender today. We choose joy today. We choose hope today. We choose forgiveness today. We choose love today. In Jesus Name, Amen.

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Is it real?

Hebrews 4:14 (AMP)  Inasmuch then as we [believers] have a great High Priest who has [already ascended and] passed through the heavens, Jesus the Son of God, let us hold fast our confession [of faith and cling tenaciously to our absolute trust in Him as Savior].

Do you know what brings me back from spiraling out? Do you know what I think on to bring me back from sitting in despair? This right here. I cling tenaciously to the absolute trust that Jesus is my Savior. Some may say that I have a “bulldog tenacity” but really, I know that I am truly loved in Christ. Read the rest of that verse because I want to show you a little something about stepping out daily knowing that the presence of God is not so far away, nor is it a formula of getting there. Also, what do you define as there?

Hebrews 4:15-16 (AMP)  For we do not have a High Priest who is unable to sympathize and understand our weaknesses and temptations, but One who has been tempted [knowing exactly how it feels to be human] in every respect as we are, yet without [committing any] sin. Therefore let us [with privilege] approach the throne of grace [that is, the throne of God’s gracious favor] with confidence and without fear, so that we may receive mercy [for our failures] and find [His amazing] grace to help in time of need [an appropriate blessing, coming just at the right moment].

Jesus understands, it does not give us a warrant to freely sin. Hebrews 10:26 says, “For if we go on willfully and deliberately sinning after receiving the knowledge of the truth, there no longer remains a sacrifice [to atone] for our sins [that is, no further offering to anticipate],” so do not take this grace out of context. I want to put this out there first and foremost because I am obligated to choose how I think. Need some more proof?

1 John 2:4-6 (AMP) Whoever says, “I have come to know Him,” but does not habitually keep [focused on His precepts and obey] His commandments (teachings), is a liar, and the truth [of the divine word] is not in him. But whoever habitually keeps His word and obeys His precepts [and treasures His message in its entirety], in him the love of God has truly been perfected [it is completed and has reached maturity]. By this we know [for certain] that we are in Him: whoever says he lives in Christ [that is, whoever says he has accepted Him as God and Savior] ought [as a moral obligation] to walk and conduct himself just as He walked and conducted Himself.

I am not to put on my Jesus costume, I am to allow Him to transform my character and nature. This is an inside out transformation and it takes surrender and trust. It is not overnight that this happens, transformation is a process (2 Corinthians 3:18). From reading any of this, would Jesus have allowed hurt to hinder forgiveness? Would He have kept Himself from serving? We He have allowed His mind to rehearse anything that was not true? Do you believe Jesus is real? Do you believe He did the hard stuff for us? If so, then what is hindering you from walking out your salvation? What is keeping you from going freely into the throne room of grace and mercy? I am not talking about a prayer closet experience. I am talking about living a life of God surrounds me, is within me, and has got me.

James 3:2 (AMP) For we all stumble and sin in many ways. If anyone does not stumble in what he says [never saying the wrong thing], he is a perfect man [fully developed in character, without serious flaws], able to bridle his whole body and rein in his entire nature [taming his human faults and weaknesses].

I am not perfect. I have flaws. I make mistakes. The key is not to wallow in those flaws and mistakes. The answer is to rely on the power of the Holy Spirit within you to overcome them. Jesus overcame so we could overcome. The only perfect man is Jesus. I am not Sister Jesus; I am secure in who I am in Jesus. Can you decide to grow? Can you decide to help other imperfect people like me grow? I want to help the imperfect person like you are to grow. I want to let you know that the Perfect One gives me the privilege to stand in the throne room of His Presence. We are the temple of the Holy Spirit (1 Corinthians 3:16, 1 Corinthians 6:19), individually and collectively. I take His Word as truth and really believe all that it says, so much so, that I choose to surrender areas of my life that did not line up with what it says we should be like. Is that extreme to you? Can I tell you that I forgive faster because of it? Would you like to hear about the joy in my life because of the surrender? I may be tenacious to some with my relationship with Jesus. He has made my life so big because of it (Ephesians 3:20). Will you just believe that it is real and walk in the freedom too?

I want to give you a little insight into what this looks like. It is not complicated. We have complicated this so much that we either quit or go into extreme grace, making everything about surrender null in our lives. I have lived under the umbrella of condemnation (my right to live how I sit fit). I had to choose to live a surrendered life. It was not easy at first, I have had to grow in this. This is what grace does. Grace empowers us to hold fast to the Word and allows the growth to happen. Stop trying to help the Word out by making excuses or quitting. Do you really want all that God said is yours through Christ Jesus? Do not stay chained in captivity when the keys to your bondage have already been given to you.

Can you see the throne room? Can you see the Majesty of who God is right where you are now? Can you feel the peace and joy permeating from the inside out? It is real, you are not imagining this. This is the life that He wants you to live. So live free through surrender!! It is real!

2 Corinthians 3:18 (AMP) Now the Lord is the Spirit, and where the Spirit of the Lord is, there is liberty [emancipation from bondage, true freedom].

Father, Elohim, Creator and Lord, You are everything that is and will ever be. You are Holy. Today, we honor You through our worship. Thank You for sending Your Son to restore our relationship with You. Thank You for the Holy Spirit, the third person of the Godhead, who dwells within and among us. We are grateful for the throne room of grace and mercy, Jesus gave us the ability to stand free. We repent for the times we sought Your face only when we needed something. We seek not just Your blessings but You. We choose to love as You love, to see the best in others, and to live selflessly. We surrender our hearts and minds to You, desiring to offer our whole selves as a living sacrifice, holy and pleasing, as an act of worship. Through Jesus we can forgive freely and love deeply. We choose love today. We choose hope today. We choose forgiveness today. We choose joy today. In Jesus Name, Amen.

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Heart Check Moments Ahead

A couple of weeks ago we were doing a “Highlight Night” with our youth group. This is a night when we invite our youth to bring their Bibles and we all share scriptures that we have highlighted. Then if that scripture was something we want to highlight, we get a highlighter and highlight it ourselves. We ask them what spoke to them about that particular scripture.

One such passage was James 4:11 (NKJV) Do not speak evil of one another, brethren. He who speaks evil of a brother and judges his brother, speaks evil of the law and judges the law. But if you judge the law, you are not a doer of the law but a judge.

Such a strange scripture for a teenager to have highlighted, right? Our teens are looking at us. I used this opportunity to teach a little. I explained to the teens that the Book of James was a letter written by James to a group of Jewish converts to Christianity. That we can be just like this group if we do not keep our hearts aligned with Philippians 4:8 (AMP) Finally, brethren, whatever things are true, whatever things are noble, whatever things are just, whatever things are lovely, whatever things are of good report, if there is anything praiseworthy – meditate on these things.

I did point out that, yes, we are known by the fruit that we bear. That although we are not of the world, we should not look like the world. I did remind them that the Jesus spoke to us about when we see a fellow Christian sin (Matthew 18:15). All of this is in love. One thing is we have free will.

Can we believe that God still changes hearts? Look at what Paul says in 1 Timothy 1:12-16 (AMP): I thank Christ Jesus our Lord, who has granted me (the needed) strength and made me able for this, because He considered me faithful and trustworthy, putting me into service (for this ministry), even though I was formerly a blasphemer (of the Lord) and a persecutor (of His church) and a shameful and outrageous and violent aggressor (toward believers). Yet I was shown mercy because I acted out of ignorance and unbelief. The grace of our Lord (His amazing, unmerited favor and blessing) flowed out in superabundance (for me, together) with faith and love which are (realized) in Christ Jesus. This is a faithworthy and trustworthy statement, deserving full acceptance and approval, that Christ Jesus came into the world to save sinners, among whom I am foremost. Yet for this reason I found mercy, so that in me as the foremost (of sinners), Jesus Christ might demonstrate His perfect patience as an example or pattern for those who would believe in Him for eternal life.

Can we believe that God still changes hearts?

Why did the verse our youth member strike a chord with me? Maybe they have had an experience like I did. Many years ago I was in an argument with a leader in our church. I forget what it was about, but their response was because I did not agree, and they were above me in leadership, that I was going to hell. Heart check moment! I told them I guess both of us were, since neither of us had worked out this love thing yet.

Let’s look at James 4:11 but in the Passion Translation: Dear friends, as part of God’s family, never speak against another family member, for when you slander a brother or sister you violate God’s law of love. And your duty is not to make yourself a judge of the law of love by saying that it doesn’t apply to you, but your duty is to obey it!

Brothers and sisters in Christ do not have to agree to show love. We violate love when we judge. Remember that tomorrow on election day and every day. I am not anxious about who wins. I have been anxious about how the “church” is going to treat one another. I have seen so many posts from both sides, by supposed followers of Christ, and it breaks my heart. You will be known by the fruit that you bear. Remember that. I care more about the unbeliever watching that my own rights!

Prayer for tomorrow: Father, let us see each other the way you see us. You said that everything is permissible for us, but not everything is for our benefit. It is through your drawing that we are lead to what is for our benefit. Let us be mindful of you tomorrow. Let us be mindful of the sacrifice your Son made. That we have a High Priest is able to sympathize and understand our weakness and our temptations, yet knowing what it is like to be human, did not sin. It is with great confidence that we approach your throne of grace. We have confidence and do not fear of what is to come. You can do the impossible within us! We praise and thank you in Jesus Name, Amen!