The Good Soil: Turning a Believing Heart Into a Responsive Heart | revelife

                                                                                        
     Revelife Blog (a Christian Internet Community) has just published the 2nd part of my short story about Longinus, the Roman Centurion responsible for carrying out Jesus' crucifixion.  This Easter story though familiar, looks at the events of Jesus' trial and death from the perspective of a heathen Roman soldier.  I think you will find it both interesting and thought-provoking.                                                                LAW--

'Click' the links below:

http://www.revelife.com/?uni27940101-direction=n&uni27940101-nextdate=3%2f31%2f2010+10%3a26%3a0.000#module-27940101

http://www.revelife.com/724588055/the-more-subtle-miracle-of-jesus-death-part-two/?=itemrelated

http://www.revelife.com/724648280/the-more-subtle-miracle-of-jesus-death-part-three/

[My Book Web Host link has been down for several days, so I loaded this essay onto my Xanga until its back up]Image by Arlington County    http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/2.0/deed.en
       Instead, Jesus dispensed the now familiar story of the good Samaritan. We know the story line by heart: A lone man traveling by way of the rugged road from Jerusalem to Jericho, was ambushed, beaten, robbed and left for dead. Who should happen along but a man of God, probably on his way to some official priestly function. Without a moment of hesitation, he passed by the hapless victim and went on his way. Then entered a Levite--a person with the sacred charge of caring for the temple, its furniture and sundry instruments and utensils. Like the priest, rather than risking the possibility of ritual defilement from touching a dead body, he too traveled on without so much as a glance toward the fallen man. Did the priest and Levite feel they might not be able to perform their jobs at ‘church’ if they had soiled their garments or hands helping this unfortunate victim? At last, a despised Samaritan came upon the scene. Animosity was the norm between the Samaritans and Jews. However, despite this, the Samaritan "took pity on him. He went to him and bandaged his wounds, pouring on oil and wine. Then he . . . took him to an inn and took care of him." The following day he left extra monies with the innkeeper to provide for the continuing needs of the man. He then went quietly on his way.
       Originally the lawyer had asked "Who is my neighbor?" But Jesus turned his question on its ear by asking, "Which of the three do you think was a neighbor to the man? Go and do likewise." With this question, the whole dynamic is changed dramatically. The focus shifts from the people around us to us! It is no longer appropriate to wander around looking for people in predicaments matching the one in Jesus' story. Instead, we are urged by Him to look deeply within ourselves and ask, "to whom can I be a neighbor today?"
      It is easier for me--and you, if we can go out each day and look for our "neighbor" in need. That way we can soothe our consciences and rationalize our behavior when we fail to discover abandoned and bleeding victims like the one in Jesus' story. And unless we happen to live in an urban high crime neighborhood, we probably never will.
      But that's not the issue Jesus raised. The question He asked then and what He confronts us with today is, "To whom am I being a neighbor?" This question is appropriate for every person who crosses my path regardless of his or her specific set of circumstances. The issue ultimately revolves around the condition of my heart and my behavior towards the people who touch my life. I become a real and responsible ‘neighbor’ to others when I move to meet their needs out of a compassionate heart. As Paul said, "look not only to your own interests, but also to the interests of others."2 
  1. Luke 15:11-27    2.Philippians 2:3.  
http://www.turniphdpubs.byethost32.com/page52.html                                                                                                                

 
                                                                                                                                       Image by Squiqqle    http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc-sa/2.0/deed.en
losing battle for life. The distraught parents painfully explained the situation to their son and he immediately asked permission to be with his dying sister. At first they refused, thinking it would be best to spare him the pain of seeing his tiny helpless sister in her dire circumstances. However, after some careful thought and  his constant cajoling, it was decided that perhaps his requests should be honored. He was ushered into a bright sterile environment where all sorts of tubes and instruments and beeping monitors stood sentinel around and focused upon a tiny almost unrecognizable bundle of flesh. Her brother approached the incubator, and placing his hands on one of the clear plexiglass panels, began his quiet tune: "You are my sunshine, my only sunshine, You make me happy when skies are gray. You’ll never know dear, how much I love you—please don’t take my sunshine away . . . ." Whenever he was given the chance, it was always the same little ‘ditty’--over and over, in his quiet gentle lilting voice.

The nurses, medical staff and doctors still have no clue as to what was happening, but from moment to moment almost imperceptibly, this profoundly sick little girl struggled inch by inch to grasp hold in her tiny fists the fragile vestiges of life. And day by day as her brother sang, she became stronger and stronger.
How could it possibly be that a simple expression of intense devotion could have such a telling and potent effect in an equally hopeless and helpless situation? It is completely beyond our most focused comprehension. It is totally inexplicable. It is, simply stated, a miracle.

Such wondrous events occur from time to time (from my perspective, not often enough) and so, I suppose, it should not surprise us at all that something very
similar, but much more wonderful occurs constantly. It is a daily event, that is routinely missed by most and because it is so incomprehensible, it is generally
dismissed as a non-event or the invention of an overactive imagination or the expression of a desperate heart. But were you aware of God’s lullabies in the night? Listen: "Then God promises to love me all day, sing songs all through the night! My life is God’s prayer" (Psalm 42:8 [MSG]). Knowing who I am and what I’ve (I’m doing) done, why in the world would He DO that?!

All I can tell you is what I’ve heard from Him through people like David:

                                                    ". . . You created my inmost being; you knit me together in my mother’s womb. I
                                          praise you because I am fearfully and wonderfully made; your works are wonderful,
                                          I know that full well. My frame was not hidden from you when I was made in the
                                          secret place. When I was woven together in the depths of the earth, your eyes
                                          saw my unformed body. All the days ordained for me were written in your book
                                          before one of them came to be. How precious to me are your thoughts, O God!

                                                   How vast is the sum of them!" 
                                                                                                           Psalm 139:13-17 [MSG]

Somehow (please don’t ask me to explain), God knows each one of us intimately as individuals with tremendous capacities and profound potential for good things.  But He also understands completely our grossly critical condition as flawed and broken beings who are totally incapable of ordering our lives appropriately without divine help--beings perfectly unable to keep themselves alive. He is quite aware of the stark circumstances threatening our lives day by day--they are profoundly fragile, hanging by a thread. Yet vast numbers are in total oblivion of this or quite unwilling to embrace its telling truth.

Never mind--our compassionate and loving God continues His daily watch, serenading us with His gentle sustaining ditties. He was interested enough to craft
us as viable beings. Despite our unawareness, in His constant attentive vigil, He literally wills us to live another day, breathing life and vitality with every
whispered invocation and refrain of His lips. He never gives up on us, and amazingly, we come to the place where we begin to live--to really live as we respond to His gentle and loving voice.

                                                                            "And this is the real and eternal life; 
                                                                                   That they may know you,
                                                                            The one and only true God,
                                                                                    And Jesus Christ, whom you sent."
                                                                                                                              John 17:3 [MSG]
                                                                                                                                                                      

 [I’ve just finished listening to Steve Brown of KeyLife. He was in Deluth, Georgia at the Perimeter Church discussing the story of the Prodical Son in Luke 15: and I want to share some of the highlites of his talk. This was so very good–This is from the lesson A word for the Boys (Pt.I)]---Link:
                                                                                                  http://www.keylife.org/video/

Most of us could probably recall and could recount the events of this story (Luke 15:11-24). The youngest son of a Jewish family became tired of waiting for his father to die and so one day he approaches his father and asks for his share of the inheritance. The father, being wise and realizing the need of the moment, granted his son’s request. And of course, not many days hence the son bids farewell to make his way into the world.

As often is the case with youth, it took no time at all for this young man to go through everything he had been given, spending and wasting his money and resources on a lifestyle involving all sorts of extravagant, wasteful and wanton behaviors. Soon everything was gone--and he was destitute. As foolish and degrading as his behavior had been, before long this young Jewish boy found himself in a place he never would have dreamed--a most detestable circumstance, slopping hogs for a foreigner. On the verge of starvation, as he desperately struggled with the turn of events in his life, he remembered his father’s hired hands and how they were so well provided for. In that moment he decided to return home and beg his father for a place among his workers.

The father heard nothing of the boy’s request--he was too busy barking orders to his servants as they prepared for the party celebrating the boy’s return: "Quick, bring a clean set of clothes and dress him. Put the family ring on his finger and sandals on his feet. Then get a grain-fed heifer and roast it. We’re going to feast! We’re going to have a wonderful time! My son is here--given up for dead and now alive!  Given up for lost and now found! And they began to have a wonderful time" (Luke 15:22-24[MSG]).

At this point, Steve Brown injects himself into the story. Steve is an older man (older than me, and I’m 60) and he admits that he's not much of a party animal. He’s more of an observer than he is anything else. He simply enjoys all the other people who are there. And so at this party he’s watching everybody else enjoying themselves--listening to the music (surely, being at a farm, there’s got to be an old style country music band playing lively foot stompin’/knee slappin’ music), dancing, laughing and enjoying deep pit barbeque flavored foods. As the evening wears on, the band stops for a break and Steve steps outdoors to take a puff or two on his pipe. While he’s enjoying the aroma of the wisps of smoke and the coolness of air, along with the variety of night sounds coming from the farm and surrounding nature, the young man whose return is being celebrated steps out as well. There’s some small talk between the two, the young man commenting on the rich aroma of the obviously expensive tobacco of the pipe and the comfortingly familiar sounds of being home safe. Then he turns to re-immerse himself in the sights, sounds and joys of the party at hand.

               Image by Spencers Brook Farm         http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/2.0/deed.en 
chose to throw you a party! You’re celebrating with your family and having a good time today, but as I said; tomorrow’s another day. You’ll have to get down to business and there’ll be no time for a party. The party’ll be over. But--don’t forget the party and why you celebrated it!!--You were lost and have been found, you were dead and are alive!  Don’t forget the party!!

"Now son, I know you’re anxious to get back in there, but one more thing." With a twinkle in his eye, Steve went on--"Most importantly, young man, don’t forget who brought you to the party! This party--Yes, it’s about you, but really it’s not  about you. It’s about the one who threw you this party. When you arrived home, you had nothing!  Your father threw you this party and he’s the one who chose to welcome you home with open arms. If he hadn’t, there’d be no party at all! It’s about him!  He chose to receive you--he chose to be full of joy, not bitterness--to be full of tenderness, affection and love, not hatred. So, remember who brought you to the party!"

With that, Steve placed his hands on the young man’s shoulder and gently shoved him in the direction of the celebration. As he reached for the handle of the door, the young man turned briefly and Steve spoke after him--"Don’t forget!"

This wasn’t the end of Steve’s discourse. He urged his listeners to reflect on their own lives in remembering where they had come from and to remember the party their Father had thrown for them and the fact that the party had not been about them, but about their Father. He called upon them: "Remember the pigs, the slop and the stench of your lives. Remember your Father has called you to Himself and thrown you a party, celebrating your return to Him. In the midst of the difficulties you face in your service to Him, don’t forget the sweet taste of the wine, the exuberant music, the aromas and flavors of the exquisite foods--the joys of your homecoming celebration. And remember the One who has brought you to His party--Remember His love, His loyalty, His forgiveness, His acceptance and freedom!!  No one has loved you as He--No one has forgiven you as He--No one has accepted you as his own like Him! Don’t forget!!"

Yes, the party is done--it’s over. But--think about this! Think about another party--the party called "the marriage supper of the lamb".  It’s not here yet--it’s still coming, but get this--It’s going to be FOREVER!! 

                                     Adapted from a discourse by Steve Brown in Deluth, Ga.     

Image by dtcchc    http://creativecommons.org/licenses/bynd/2.0/deed.en              http://www.turniphdpubs.byethost32.com/page49.html

           
Today 3 years ago I was lifted out of 'The Pit' of my 4 1/2 year deep dark depression!  I have been on the mountain top and down in the valley, but that
 "continuous low lying black-cloud" has never returned.  I thank God everyday for His kind and undeserved deliverance.
                                       [The following was written about an actual event one day after I had been pulled out of 'the Pit' in March of 2007]:

My Journal of Beginnings. . . . Happy ‘New Year’, Lynn! [Stardate: 3.05.07-1]

Tiffany’s early hour dream yesterday (Sunday March 4, 2007) was a prelude or simultaneous event with my 3:30 A.M. ‘wake up’ call from God. My customary
recitation of woe and despair (honed to a fine edge in four years’ time) was instantly transformed into an anthem of praise and thanksgiving. The God who had seemed so distant, indifferent; even hostile toward me, was suddenly close at hand, quite eager to fully embrace me in complete acceptance, love and forgiveness. There was a deep awareness that four years of crying to God had not gone unnoticed as I had presumed. He had listened to every word and had answered according to His own timetable.

As magnificent as all of this was, Tiffany’s dream was the linchpin, the element that reaffirmed the authenticity of what I had just experienced. However, I was totally unaware of her dream–until this morning. I was preparing for work today, when I received Tiffany’s email relating her dream of the previous
morning. She said in part;

"Dad,

I love you so much! . . . I rejoice to hear of the beautiful insight that God gave you [this morning] when he woke you up! : ) Also, I didn't get a chance to tell
you on the phone, but last night I had a dream with you in it. All I remember is that it was pretty happy, and you gave me the biggest, most comforting dad hug ever. It made me feel happy and safe. I love you dad! Hang in there . . . we'll keep praying, and we'll see how God decides to work.

Your liltuliphead"

I was blown completely away by the total impossibility of anyone but our great God ever pulling off such a beautiful and seamless series of circumstances in
such a marvelous manner. He had been planning this for weeks, months-- probably even for years and years. He had provided hints all along the way, but
these incidents were insignificant in and of themselves. It was only after He had pulled everything together in yesterday’s culminating event that all of these seemingly unrelated piddley happenings began to gel into mounting importance and relevance.

At work today, as I mulled over the last couple days’ events, along with these other recent and long past experiences God had woven together into a lovely tapestry of memory, the immensity of it all began to emerge. Likewise, the trip my wife and I took to Chicago in February, and one experience in particular, came to mind. During our stop at the Navy Pier, we learned that a large throng of brightly costumed Chinese people in the Chicago area were gathered together that morning to celebrate the Chinese new year (the year of the pig). Also Agnes (our daugheter 'from across the Sea'), last year’s foreign exchange student from Hong Kong had written to remind us of the Chinese new year in her e-mails from time to time in recent weeks.

So at the end of my work day today I was ready to go home to make an important proclamation. I walked through the door of our home into the kitchen where my wife Debs and my youngest daughter, Kimberly were, and boldly announced; "The Williams family will no longer recognize January 1^st as our New Year’s celebration. As of today, our  New Year will begin the week of March the 4^th. This is when I began my new life with God and is also the week that Kimberly has entered the Randolph County Art Show for the first time as a professional artist. This week will be the start of our new year! If Agnes and the Chinese can do it, so can we!"  In that instant, Debs calmly approached me and announced; "Happy New Year, Lynn!" as she thrust an envelope into my hands that had just arrived – A ‘New Year’s’ card from Agnes.

Look, what else can I say? Our God is an awesome God!

                                                    
 
               "To the praise of the glory of His grace, wherein He hath made us accepted in the Beloved!"       

                                                                                                                                                           Ephesians 1:6 [KJV]

               
                                                                                                           http://www.turniphdpubs.byethost32.com/page47.html

[If you haven't yet, read Part I of this essay directly below!!--The despicable behavior of King David in the whole 'Bathsheba affair' makes it extremely difficult for us to conclude anything but that he clearly was guilty of 'intentional' sin.  What other verdict could we come to?!  And it is true . . . ]

God holds each of us accountable for all of our transgressions against Him. The claim of ignorance or the fact that we were unaware of our sin, does not excuse us--we are still guilty before Him (see Leviticus 4:13-14, 22-23 and 27-29). Trivializing sin is never appropriate. As I have said, sin is a serious problem--a problem for every one of us. However, through His prophet Isaiah, Yahweh God speaks;

God even recognizes something that we often forget or fail to take into account;

Do you suppose therefore, something can be said for the common remark: "I just got carried away?" No doubt about it, David quickly claimed accountability and responsibility for his sin when Nathan his friend, the prophet of God confronted him ("I have sinned against the Lord" II Samuel 12:13). But in all of this, do you suppose the sentiment of "I just got carried away" may have lurked somewhere below the surface of David’s own psyche? We could never give serious credence to such a remark (especially from a godly man) except for Paul’s rather disturbing expose’ from Romans 7:13-25. Look at the list of Paul’s personal profile:

_____

Paul concludes; "O wretched man I am, who shall rescue me from this body of death?" [KJV]. And I am convinced that King David would have retorted with a hearty "AMEN"!

Satan combines the elements of intimidation, doubt, accusation, ambition, pride, anxiety, fear, anger, need and of course, pleasure to a mix that eventually produces what we might call a 'perfect storm’ so that we are swept away into sin and condemnation. Even strong resolute determination on our part fails to withstand the tidal wave of temptation and sin and we get ‘carried away’. As Paul intimated, we become little more than a helpless bystander (so to speak) as the impulse to sin possesses us and we stand in horror and even outrage as we are overwhelmed. And to our utter astonishment, we cannot even explain how or why we behaved the way we did. Somehow, no matter how hard we try, we are ‘bound’ by sin to sin!

It seems to me that when we think of intentional sins, we (that is, us humans) think in terms of conscious choices and specific decisions to do particular actions. We see a person do a certain thing and ask; "How could they NOT KNOW--by what stretch of the imagination could that not be intentional?" But in the mind--and heart of God, what we see as blatantly deliberate, He sees as unintentional because He takes into account and consideration, the motives of people and the quality of their hearts.

Yahweh God sees two things. First, He sees the defiance, arrogance, disdain, disregard, stubbornness, contempt--the "Go to Hell, God" attitudes in the hearts of wicked men and women. Because of this there ". . . is no sacrifice for sins left, but only a fearful expectation of judgment and of raging fire that will consume the enemies of God" (Hebrews 10:26-27). The sins of these people are intentional because they fully intend to do as much harm and damage as they possibly can to God’s purposes for themselves and others. Second, He sees the contrite (remorseful), humble, broken--utterly shattered and devastated attitudes of people who have come to understand that they have failed to be what God wanted them to be, AGAIN!  They did not intend to betray or even defy God and His purposes, but found that they had done both --simply because of their humanity. I think this is where David was even in the deliberate, but tragic decisions he made in regard to Bathsheba and Uriah.

Thank God, there is the provision for sin--the precious blood of the lamb of God, Jesus Christ, who was slain for the sins of the world! (John 1:29). David, the sinner, anticipated this good news when he said;

Yahweh God released him from the guilt and burden of his sins as despicable as they were, but he did not escape the tragic consequences of his sins (see II Samuel 12:11-13). Nevertheless, I am encouraged a lot a lot  that God chose David, a sinner not unlike myself, to write these words of quiet hope. Too often I sin like David did, but I too can claim the blessing of forgiveness and pardon. And yet, this is not all!  Even those who are guilty of intentional sins are in a position to receive forgiveness from their guilt. How? By changing their intentions. This is called repentance--a changing of one’s heart--a determination to come out from hiding to openly admit one’s sinfulness, and humbly accept the gift of life that God gives through the forgiveness of sins in Jesus Christ, His dear Son!!

It is true--good intentions are never enough! But. . . they do count for something in the eyes of Yahweh .

God be praised !
         

                                                                                                                               Image by dtcchc       http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nd/2.0/deed.en 
Very little, if any thing was left unsaid--or, to chance. Two or three examples might suffice: The description of the tabernacle, the materials that went into it and the processes involved in its building, in addition to who was to be responsible for its maintenance and transport, etc. were precise. The various sacrifices were explicitly enumerated with clear instructions concerning how they were to be offered, by whom and under what distinct circumstances they were to be accomplished. Nothing was left to the imagination even within the realm of very personal behaviors. Leviticus 18:, 19: and 20: illustrate how even intimate and casual interactions among the people in a wide variety of circumstances were to be carefully managed and regulated.

And so it shouldn’t surprise anyone that what God deemed to be sin, how it was to be viewed and what must be done to appropriately deal with it, would also be the subject of extensive and painstaking instruction. The book of Numbers (chapters 5:, 6:, 9: and 12:-31:) offers especially clear and direct instructions on sin, its consequences (through what we might consider, extreme measures) and what Israel was required to do to avoid those consequences. 

                                 

In the past year or so, this chapter has especially intrigued me. I admit that I am still in a ‘quandary’ regarding this passage and its implications for us today. So, if you will be patient with me, this post will consist of a few comments regarding an issue I consider vital, interspersed with several questions that I still have not fully processed or answered.

The quote enumerates the kinds of sins with which Moses, the priests and people of Israel faced, and its clear assertions seem to indicate that God places sin in two distinct categories. As far as Yahweh God is concerned, sin is a reflection of the heart and for Him, all sins are either intentional or unintentional. There seems be no place for some nebulous, in-between category. Is that an appropriate conclusion? [if you will, read Numbers 15:15, 22-31].

Particular sacrifices were specified to be offered for unintentional sins. But for intentional sins--sins emanating from a heart of defiance and deliberate blasphemy, there was no provision for pardon. The only option available for a person in this circumstance, was that he/she be "cut off from [among-(KJV)] his people" (v.30). This is a recurring phrase throughout Scripture and may, depending on the context of the reading, refer to a temporary exclusion from the community of Israel, a permanent exclusion or actual execution (usually by stoning) of the guilty party. From God’s perspective, no sin was to be absolved save those He deemed unintentional.

Now comes the really ‘sticky’ part of the whole issue of sin–an issue that I believe is both very important and one that I have had a great difficulty resolving in my own mind. Just what distinctions must be made between intentional and unintentional sin? We can understand how the inadvertent touching of a corpse or walking over a grave (Numbers 19:16) might be considered unintentional. But what about the vast majority of sins that people commit? How is it possible to place them within the realm of unintentional sin? (Never mind the human propensity and capacity to do this very thing).

Take the whole sordid affair (literally) between King David and Bathsheba (see II Samuel 11:). David saw the lovely form of Bathsheba’s body as she bathed atop a nearby building. He made arrangements to have her brought to him. He had sex with her. Once it was learned she was pregnant with his child, he saw to it that Uriah, her husband was hustled back to Jerusalem from the battlefield so that David’s sin could be covered up. His scheme was stymied by the honorable behavior of Uriah who refused to enjoy the comforts and pleasures of being home with his wife, and so David returned Uriah to the battle field with the very instructions to Joab, his commander, that eventually resulted in his own death.

Now, how could these sins of David be anything but intentional?!  Is it at all possible that any of them might fit the profile of an unintentional sin? With the clear understanding that David consciously chose to do the things he did, how are we to decide? Can we reasonably conclude that some of a person’s inappropriate behavior resulting from consciously deliberate choices  are unintentional sins while most of them are not? Are all of them intentional?  What then, is our primary criteria for determining what is or is not intentional?!  It just seems to me that there is only a minuscule number of sins that we could even begin to place within the realm of unintentional sins.       

          [What do you think God thinks about all of this?  Check out Part II's answer above!]