Fear No Fear

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

He delivered us from the power of darkness and transferred us to the kingdom of the Son he loves, in whom we have redemption, the forgiveness of sins.
Colossians 1:13-14 (emphasis added)

The word for ‘transferred’ is methistémi (meth-is’-tay-mee). It means to change or to pervert. It means cause to change its place, move out of its place; translate, transfer, remove. When this word is used, you are removed. You have been turned away. You are in a totally different place than you were. New environment. New situation. New weather patterns. New neighbours. New government even. A totally new place where you were not before and are now for the first time. You have been lead aside. In some Greek writings it even was used to mean to depart from life, to die. This is not a MILD change. This is a MASSIVE, ABRUPT, and INSTANTANEOUS change.

This isn’t arbitrary. This was a planned, calculated release effected by payment of ransom. Not even a release of a stranger. No. This specifically refers to a redemption. Which has the meaning of buying back from. Re-purchasing (winning back) what was previously forfeited (lost). This is Genesis 3 instantly becoming John 19:30 leading you toward Revelation 21:1-5. There is no ‘renewal’ between the cross and heaven. There IS a change of clothes. We take off our meat sack and put on our resurrected body. But our spirit was instantly resurrected into Jesus. Our minds are able to become (through the Word and humble submission to Adonai) the mind of Messiah (1 Corinthians 2:16), full of wisdom (James 1:5) if we ask for it. The more we know the TRUTH, the more freedom we are able to walk in.

When we get saved, we do NOT give our lives to Adonai. Instead, we ACCEPT new life from Jesus. “The thief comes only to steal and kill and destroy; I have come so that they may have life, and may have it abundantly” (John 10:10). We get that abundant life. We get HIS life. “I have been crucified with Christ, and it is no longer I who live, but Christ lives in me. So the life I now live in the body, I live because of the faithfulness of the Son of God, who loved me and gave himself for me” (Galatians 2:20). We have to believe it. We have to declare it. We get baptised to symbolise that to our own selves AND to those who witness it (Romans 10:9-11). We are then saved, redeemed, and sealed by the Ruach HaKodesh (Ephesians 1:13-14).

When do we give our lives? When we choose to submit to Him. We GET new life at salvation. What’s next? You can let that new life atrophy. You can let your trust in Him weaken. You can refuse to accept the INSTANTANEOUS transition from death to life. You can fill a pew, read a psalm a day, and live out your life the same basic way as everyone else. You will still HAVE abundant life, but you will not be LIVING an abundant life. That comes with submission to the love that the Father lights in our hearts. “If you love me, you will obey my commandments” (John 14:15). This is US giving our redeemed lives to HIM. This is a day by day thing. THIS is the cross we take up. Saying YOUR WILL not mine. YOUR POINT OF VIEW not mine. Not getting caught up in our world, our situation, our training, and our education. Not even our life experience. It will NEVER end well.

When Adonai was telling the Israelites what their kings should and should not do, He had a few commands. One was this: “Furthermore, he must not marry many wives lest his affections turn aside, and he must not accumulate much silver and gold” (Deuteronomy 17:17). Solomon did not follow this. He went against it about as much as you can. “King Solomon fell in love with many foreign women (besides Pharaoh’s daughter), including Moabites, Ammonites, Edomites, Sidonians, and Hittites. They came from nations about which the Lord had warned the Israelites, “You must not establish friendly relations with them! If you do, they will surely shift your allegiance to their gods.” But Solomon was irresistibly attracted to them. He had 700 royal wives and 300 concubines; his wives had a powerful influence over him. When Solomon became old, his wives shifted his allegiance to other gods; he was not wholeheartedly devoted to the Lord his God, as his father David had been” (1 Kings 11:1-4). The word irresistibly is dabaq (daw-bak’) which means to cling to. To cleave, to keep close, to pursue, to pursue CLOSELY, to stay, and to be STUCK. Solomon’s wives weren’t just pretty gals he saw. They were princesses. They were the elite. These were political marriages. He appears to have ceased to trust in Adonai for the security of his nation. So he did a human thing. And they took his attention away from Adonai and it did NOT end well for the country or his dynasty.

There was a different king that had a problem. Solomon’s kingdom was split into Israel and Judah. Judah had Jerusalem and the Temple – the single place Adonai told them to come for offering sacrifices (Deuteronomy 12:1-7; Leviticus 17:2-4). The thing is this, though. In the courtyard of the Temple, only the king descended from David could be seated. When the three commanded festivals took place, the king of Israel would have to stand while the king of Judah would sit. The people of Israel would see their king in a subservient position to the king of Judah. “Jeroboam built up Shechem in the Ephraimite hill country and lived there. From there he went out and built up Penuel. Jeroboam then thought to himself: “Now the Davidic dynasty could regain the kingdom. If these people go up to offer sacrifices in the Lord’s temple in Jerusalem, their loyalty could shift to their former master, King Rehoboam of Judah. They might kill me and return to King Rehoboam of Judah.” After the king had consulted with his advisers, he made two golden calves. Then he said to the people, “It is too much trouble for you to go up to Jerusalem. Look, Israel, here are your gods who brought you up from the land of Egypt.” He put one in Bethel and the other in Dan. This caused Israel to sin; the people went to Bethel and Dan to worship the calves” (1 Kings 12:25-30). Adonai had given him the kingdom, but he appears to have had NO trust that Adonai would help him keep it. It was SIN from Adonai’s point of view (2 Kings 10:29). They remained there king after king for two hundred years until the destruction of Israel by Assyria (2 Kings 17:1-6).

When we do not trust Adonai enough, we go with what has worked in the past. With what we ‘know’ to be good. With what we THINK is right. Or we go with whatever society is telling us is copacetic at the moment – which we all know changes as frequently as feelings, which change more than the weather. But when you change locations suddenly and dramatically, you are GOING to need some help. Try changing countries overnight. Local language, customs, laws, power sources, driving laws, and dozens of other things will all be new. Even slang is different. What’s lit here will get you a look of confusion there. We NEED help. That’s why we learn languages, learn culture, learn traditions, expose ourselves to media, read travel books, talk with people who have been there before us, and investigate things before making major decisions. Solomon and Jeroboam stepped out in their own thinking. They didn’t rely on Adonai. It was NOT a positive experience.

When we accept Jesus’ offering of life, we get instantly translated to that life. We have an INSTANT opportunity to give our lives to Him. To choose a life of trust. To decide to not make a move without Him. To go when He goes, stay when He stays, do things He says are right, refrain from things He says are wrong, speak what He wants you to speak, do what He wants you to do, and NOTHING else. It’s what Jesus did (John 5:19). A life of trust is pleasing to Adonai and a life of anything BUT trust is a life full of sin. “But the man who doubts is condemned if he eats, because he does not do so from faith, and whatever is not from faith is sin” (Romans 14:23). Being double-minded is a great way to keep yourself from receiving the best Adonai has to offer. “But he must ask in faith without doubting, for the one who doubts is like a wave of the sea, blown and tossed around by the wind. For that person must not suppose that he will receive anything from the Lord, since he is a double-minded individual, unstable in all his ways” (James 1:6-7). ALL his ways. Not some. Not a few. ALL. It is SO easy to get mixed up. To do it our way or in our strength. The Word IS always telling us to do things, right? We are asked to let Jesus do the things in and through us. HIS strength. HIS mind. HIS fruit. HIS Spirit. HIS trust even (Mark 11:22). Everything we have is FROM Jesus and THROUGH Jesus and IN Jesus (Hebrews 1:3-6).

You are in a NEW country. If you want to know what is possible, ask the KING. Ask the one in authority (Matthew 28:18-20). If we want to know what is acceptable to say or not. If we want to know what the culture calls for. If we want to know the food that’s available. The social hot spots. The places with the best prices, we need to ASK for the information. He’s not withholding anything from us. He is waiting for us to decide we live here. You can put up with a lot when you’re breezing through town. When it’s only a weekend. When you’re staying permanently, it’s different. You want the best places, the hidden diners, the stores the locals use, and all the best tips for the best life in the best places. It is NO DIFFERENT in the kingdom of the Son. Ask. It’s why He gave us the Ruach HaKodesh (John 16:13-15). Live in the knowledge of HOW the Kingdom works, WHO the Kingdom works for, and WHAT Adonai has for you. It will ALWAYS be the best – if you’ll accept and submit to Him.

Daily Affirmation Jesus IS Messiah: Psalm 138:1-6

“I will give you thanks with all my heart; before the heavenly assembly I will sing praises to you. I will bow down toward your holy temple and give thanks to your name, because of your loyal love and faithfulness, for you have exalted your promise above the entire sky. When I cried out for help, you answered me. You made me bold and energized me. Let all the kings of the earth give thanks to you, O Lord, when they hear the words you speak. Let them sing about the Lord’s deeds, for the Lord’s splendor is magnificent. Though the Lord is exalted, he looks after the lowly, and from far away humbles the proud.” The supremacy of David’s seed would amaze kings. It would take them by surprise when they saw how honoured Messiah was. When they recognised the authority that resided in Him. It would be out of the ordinary. It would be undeniable. And it would alter the currents of nations. “After Jesus was born in Bethlehem in Judea, in the time of King Herod, wise men from the East came to Jerusalem saying, “Where is the one who is born king of the Jews? For we saw his star when it rose and have come to worship him.” When King Herod heard this he was alarmed, and all Jerusalem with him. After assembling all the chief priests and experts in the law, he asked them where the Christ was to be born. “In Bethlehem of Judea,” they said, “for it is written this way by the prophet: ‘And you, Bethlehem, in the land of Judah, are in no way least among the rulers of Judah, for out of you will come a ruler who will shepherd my people Israel.’”” (Matthew 2:1-6). Jesus’ birth shook Herod. It brought wise men from other cultures with gifts of honour. It heralded bad decisions by power-hungry men. It heralded heaven-led escapes and travel plans. Jesus and His family escaped from where their enemies thought they were trapped. Jesus was honoured by rulers and teachers of wisdom. His supremacy was undeniable. Jesus IS the Messiah!

Your Daily Confession of Jesus/Yeshua’s Identity:

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

Matthew 16:16b