Fear No Fear

(All scripture from the NET, netbible.org, all rights reserved)

So Jesus asked the experts in religious law and the Pharisees, “Is it lawful to heal on the Sabbath or not?”
Luke 14:3 (emphasis added)

This is the single most divisive thing in the Word in the Church after prosperity. I have NEVER understood why. Why people WANT to be sick. Why people WANT to make God hard to understand. Why people WANT to keep God on the same level as all the other things worshipped in the world. Why people WANT God to be capricious. Wouldn’t it be better to have security? To know where you stand? To have something to rely on? Something SAFE?

Think about it. The Word says that Yahweh heals. Why do we have ANY other opinion? Why do we want to put strictures and limits on these things? There are those who say the age of signs and wonders ended when the New Testament was completed and sealed. There are those who say the age ended when the last of the Twelve Apostles went to heaven. But what about the other apostles? Yes, there were only twelve who served directly under Jesus, but then there was Paul, Barnabas, Silas, Apollos, and over seventy others. What was ‘special’ about ANY of the apostles who were not directly taken from Jesus’ disciples? Were they different than us? No. Most were not. Most had NEVER SEEN Jesus in person. They had the Holy Spirit. They were sent out by a church. That’s it.

There is NO essential difference between us and the apostles OR the disciples in the scriptures. They were people who needed to be redeemed by Christ Jesus. So are we. They were ordinary men and women who preached, taught, and performed signs and wonders by the power of the Holy Spirit at the will of the Father in the Name of Jesus. How exactly is our situation different? The TRUTH is that it isn’t. The Father STILL has a will to do things on this earth. The Name of Jesus is STILL the authority to do those things. The Holy Spirit is STILL the power that does the things. So what is the difference?

Dedication. The men and women of the early church gave themselves over to the things of Adonai in a way that we – on the whole – do NOT today. That isn’t to say that we CANNOT. I am stating the fact that we DO NOT. We get wrapped up in the minutiae of running a ministry or church. The logistics. The desire to rest once we get home. The desire to relax. The chores and shopping that need doing. The raising of children. The working at jobs. All the stuff that makes up life from politics to a binge show on the weekend to a coffee with friends to a quiet meal with a spouse. These are the things we let take up our mind.

We listen to the news. We listen to doctors. We read articles about the latest scientific discoveries. We think about the things that humans have thought about. The inventions, the discoveries, the possibilities, and all the rest. We take our eyes and minds off the supernatural miraculous realities of the Kingdom of God and think more about what we see around us. What we see takes up our attention because it is there. In front of us. It’s like trying to study for a math exam while at an amusement park. Possible, but full of difficulty. The early church had the same kind of struggles. They had things taking up their lives. They had chores and shopping and decisions. They had entertainments and meals and kids and all of it. Yes, less technology. But also yes, the same NUMBER of distractions.

Are we willing to do what THEY did? Give ourselves over to the Word? Over to the Lord? Over to the things of the Kingdom? That isn’t saying that the Lord is against resting, entertainment, or kicking back and relaxing. But who is FIRST? Is it TV and then a quick verse before bed? Or is it Word first, relaxing with that, and if there’s time, something else? Is it get home and praise and worship as a fellowship time, or is it watch the shows and say a quick ‘as I lay me down’ before bed? Is it thinking about celebrities, game scores, and rehashing video games, or is it thinking about that verse, what it means, and how it could be active in your life? What is FIRST? What is PRIORITY? What do you dream of doing all day and look forward to?

The early church gave their all to the Lord. So did Moses. So did Joshua. So did David. So can we. It is a matter of heart attitude. It is a matter of where we choose to spend the majority of our mental time and effort. Are we dwelling on the Lord, or are we dwelling on the world? Being aware of what is going on is a lot different then dwelling on what is going on. Worry, anxiety, and depression are meditation on fear. Faith, love, and peace are meditation on the Word. Which one are you choosing (as much as you are currently able) to focus on? What thoughts are you rejecting as ‘not now’ and which are you accepting as ‘that is for me’?

If we focus on the Lord, we start to see that the things of the Lord are for now and today. They don’t stop. They don’t pass away. They get fulfilled and they get better and better and better. More and more. So YES it IS lawful to heal. On the Sabbath. On Tuesday. On ANY day. On EVERY day. The time of the Lord is NOW. The time of His miracles, signs, wonders, and works are ALWAYS. They ALWAYS have been. They ALWAYS are. And they ALWAYS will be. He IS the Great I AM.

Daily Affirmation Jesus IS Messiah: Leviticus 23:36-37

““For seven days you must present a gift to the Lord. On the eighth day there is to be a holy assembly for you, and you must present a gift to the Lord. It is a solemn assembly day; you must not do any regular work. These are the appointed times of the Lord that you must proclaim as holy assemblies to present a gift to the Lord—burnt offering, grain offering, sacrifice, and drink offerings, each day according to its regulation,”” The Messiah was to be the Drink-offering for us. Jesus was aware of His place in things. No one better. He proclaimed who He was many times. “On the last day of the feast, the greatest day, Jesus stood up and shouted out, “If anyone is thirsty, let him come to me, and let the one who believes in me drink. Just as the scripture says, ‘From within him will flow rivers of living water.’”” (John 7:37-38). Jesus is the water that we drink. Jesus is our Drink-offering. Jesus IS Messiah.

Your Daily Confession of Jesus/Yeshua’s Identity:

Yeshua is the Christ, the Son of the living God.

Matthew 16:16b