9am Sat — Tithing vs. Giving: CONSEQUENCES: “Believers Not Learning How to Hear the Lord”
If Success is Dependence on God, What Is Our Purpose Now?
If Success is simply actively depending on God to live His life in and through us, on His terms, what are we here for? What is our purpose? What are we doing here on earth?
This Is Life Eternal — To Know Christ!
Our purpose, our job now is to know God on His terms and in His timing. Though this may sound simplistic, we often struggle with that very simplicity; man loves to make complex what God has made simple. By making “knowing God” harder than it is, we often rob God of the opportunity to reveal Himself. Knowing God is His idea! So it is His responsibility to make Himself real to each one of us. He teaches us, and we learn — to live and move and have our being in Him.
What Does Knowing God Look Like?
Success, knowing God, will outwardly look different for each of us at different times. Since we already completely and perfectly know God in our spirit, it is only in our soul (mind, will and emotions) and in our body that the learning to know Him is taking place. This learning is three-fold: 1) learning how to go to Him to get healed (soulically and physically), 2) learning how He exposes our flesh, so He can consume it, and 3) learning to rest in and enjoy our present relationship with Him. Every circumstance in our lives contributes to these three activities.
Our purpose now is not to “do” these three things, but to depend on God to do them in and through us. God’s timeframe is totally different than ours; depending on God will require His working His patience in us. Being successful at practical Christianity will bring contentment in all things, even in the midst of turmoil and tension. In fact, it will often look like the opposite of what it is because of the misbeliefs, wounds and flesh that are being brought to the surface and exposed to His Loving Truth. For example, learning to live in His peace may appear as great turmoil to others as our control in that area is challenged and stripped. Change is hard for us and on us, but the Lord will prove His trustworthiness and lovingkindness as we allow Him to work in and through us. How and when we are changed is His responsibility.
9am Sat — CURRENT EVENTS: “What Is Your Assignment?” Follow Up w/ Personal Responsibility in Christianity and Society & Tithing vs. Giving: CONSEQUENCES: “Believers Not Learning How to Hear the Lord”
9am Sat — CURRENT EVENTS: “What Is Your Assignment?” & Tithing vs. Giving: CONSEQUENCES: “Believers Not Learning How to Hear the Lord”
Christian Success: Where Are The Role Models?
One of the ways we are motivated is by wanting to be like someone we admire. We recognize someone’s positive traits or that they have achieved certain goals that are appealing to us. So we reason that if we can do what they do we can also achieve similar goals or traits. This is a normal expectation; Christians should be able to identify role models that exemplify dependence on the Father. This is one of the reasons Jesus came in the flesh, and dwelt among us. And Paul encouraged his readers to follow him as he followed Christ; to examine his life, to see where he was depending on his God.
Unfortunately, in many, if not most cases, Christian role models in leadership positions or public ministry are either not exemplifying dependence on the Father, or they have isolated themselves from the people in such a way that we really don’t know what’s going on behind closed doors. It’s interesting that it took Jesus 30 years to learn and practice being dependent on His Father in private in order to minister publicly for three and a half years.
As we truly learn how to depend on the Father, we want to also be aware that there will likely come a time when we will be used as a role model in some capacity. We just don’t want a public ministry to be our measure of success.
When you recognize the peace, rest and confidence that comes from dependence on the Father, don’t be shy about asking how to do it. If a person is truly depending on God, His nature is flowing to and through him. Since God’s nature is, basically, to give, anyone depending on Him will be willing to mentor and instruct on how to enjoy the freedom that comes with this relationship.
Another way to test true character, especially of those in public positions of religious authority, is to check with those closest to them. Do their family, friends and co-workers feel unconditionally accepted? Loved? Valued by that person? The successfully dependent Christian will be freely giving of him or herself to those around them, according to spirit, and allow them the freedom to be who and where God has them at any given moment. (This does not mean all behavior is accepted.)
Remember though that we only truly live the Christian life as we depend on God. It is only Spirit character, flowing to and through that person’s spirit, teaching that individual on a moment by moment basis, that is to be emulated. Remembering this keeps us from putting others on a pedestal, and frees them to make mistakes as well.
What Does Success Look Like?
For the world, success will be outwardly measurable. For the Christian, it will be more subtle. In some ways, it will be a very private thing, between each individual and God. In familiar terms, the outward evidence of a successful Christian walk will be love, joy, peace, longsuffering, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness and self-control, which are by Jesus Christ, to the glory and praise of God. But what these look like will vary from person to person, often depending on what particular circumstance God has placed a person in at a particular time, and what is being dealt with. So a person could appear to be depressed, anxious, angry or may have just failed at a job and yet be successful — because he is not relying on his own strength to deal with these things, but on the Lord. This is an incredible mind-shift for many of us, but one that needs to be made, since our basis for success often drives us away from the very thing that provides true success, thus making us vulnerable to manipulation from leaders, vulnerable to attack from the enemy, and at the mercy of our flesh. We need to be careful when judging either ourselves or others as to what success looks like.
Having said this, we can look at the example of Jesus Himself to see what His success looked like to others. Somehow He stirred an entire nation with His words and His actions. What did it look like? Jesus said that if they had seen Him, they had seen His Father. What did it sound like? Jesus said that He spoke only those things that He had received of His Father. So what is the standard of success we want to look for? Do our actions and words reflect our Father, His Nature? Do our actions and words reflect contentment, wholeness and dependence on our Father alone? What this specifically will look like will need to be determined on a case-by-case basis, but as our soulical senses are tuned, we will learn to recognize those who are walking in this dependence, as well as recognize it in ourselves. Those that have eyes and ears quickened by the Lord Himself will see and hear.
For Christians, What is Success?
For many of us this is a pivotal question, since our motivation is often based on how we think we’re doing in terms of how successful we are. We want to know how we compare, if we’re meeting some standard. Worldly success is measured in terms of what is produced or accomplished: achieving great things, like the Nobel Peace Prize or earning great wealth or letters after our name. Worldly success can also be measured in terms of recognition; such as climbing Mount Everest or winning gold in the Olympics. Or even achieving and maintaining certain personal goals, such as being a good parent, spouse, or even a good Christian, according to whatever standards are accepted.
But as in so many areas, true Christian success is measured in radically different terms. For Christians, success is simply actively depending on God to live His life in and through us, on His terms. Success is our true nature working its way out into our soul and body in His time. Success is not about our spiritual relationship with God, which is completed already, but about our soulical and natural walk for our time here on earth. It is not about spiritual attainment, but about soulical and physical dependence and wholeness.
