The Damascus Road Experience: REBEL WITH A CAUSE!

The Damascus Road Experience

Saul of Tarsus, later known as the Apostle Paul, is credited as author of 13 of 27 books of the New Testament. This man was no ordinary man nor from an ordinary city. Tarsus was part of the Roman Empire, and Saul was a Roman Citizen. This would play an important part in the life of Paul, the Apostle, as he would eventually appeal to Caesar, under the laws of Rome.

Saul and Paul are paradoxical; although the same man with a changed name and a changed heart, on either side of the Damascus Road Experience and Saul’s Conversion, this man always had singular focus--he always stayed a rebel with a cause. His paradox lay in his nature, before and after his conversion; his singular focus was in his passion. This man was alway on a mission.

Saul was powerful! Saul wholeheartedly approved of Stephen’s death (Acts 8:1). Saul was so powerful, on the day of Stephen’s stoning, the witnesses placed their outer robes at his feet (Acts 7:58). And on the day of Stephen’s stoning and death, a great and relentless persecution broke out against the church in Jerusalem; and the believers were all scattered throughout the regions of Judea and Samaria, except the apostles (Acts 8:1).

Prior to the Damascus Road Experience, Saul breathed threats and murder against the disciples of the Lord. Relentless in his search for believers,he went to the high priest, and asked for letters of authority from him to the synagogues at Damascus. So if Saul found any men or women there belonging to the Way [believers, followers of Jesus the Messiah], men and women alike, he could arrest them and bring them bound, with chains, to Jerusalem (Acts 9:1-2).

Isn’t it ironic that this rebellious young man against God and our Lord Jesus Christ--this rebel with a cause, to relentlessly search for believers, arrest them, and put them in chains, would himself become a believer, be arrested, and be bound in chains. Why? Because, as Paul the Apostle, he would still be a rebel with a cause--this time on the other side of The Cross. He no longer breathed threats and murder against the disciples of the Lord; instead threats and murder were being issued against him by the religious sect in Jerusalem that had commissioned him with arrest warrants. Now the warrant was for him, his arrest, and for him to be put to death.

What a contrast between the mission of Saul and the mission of Paul. The same person, yet a different man. When saved, when we believe on Jesus Christ, we each have our own Damascus Road Experience, through The Cross. Once Saul, now Paul. Let’s be REBELS WITH A CAUSE!

Right And Wrong

Have You Ever Wanted to Do Right But Wrong Was Sitting Right There?

Guess what? You are not alone. The best of us feel this way. We have holes in our socks! What do I mean? Some of us have more obvious habits that are not God's best for us. You know; things like cigarettes in our purse, weed in our pocket, a hangover, or a few extra pounds around our waists. But some of us have well-buried, secret sins that we tend to deny because they aren't so obvious. So you see: We have holes in our socks.

I know that all God’s commands are spiritual, but I’m not. Isn’t this also your experience? Yes. I’m full of myself—after all, I’ve spent a long time in sin’s prison. What I don’t understand about myself is that I decide one way, but then I act another, doing things I absolutely despise. So if I can’t be trusted to figure out what is best for myself and then do it, it becomes obvious that God’s command is necessary.

But I need something more! For if I know the law but still can’t keep it, and if the power of sin within me keeps sabotaging my best intentions, I obviously need help! I realize that I don’t have what it takes. I can will it, but I can’t do it. I decide to do good, but I don’t really do it; I decide not to do bad, but then I do it anyway. My decisions, such as they are, don’t result in actions. Something has gone wrong deep within me and gets the better of me every time.

 It happens so regularly that it’s predictable. The moment I decide to do good, sin is there to trip me up. I truly delight in God’s commands, but it’s pretty obvious that not all of me joins in that delight. Parts of me covertly rebel, and just when I least expect it, they take charge.

I’ve tried everything and nothing helps. I’m at the end of my rope. Is there no one who can do anything for me? Isn’t that the real question?

The answer, thank God, is that Jesus Christ can and does. He acted to set things right in this life of contradictions where I want to serve God with all my heart and mind, but am pulled by the influence of sin to do something totally different.

The reason I put the above in bold is that these are the words of God through The Holy Spirit to the Apostle Paul in his letter to the Romans in chapter 7 verses 14 to 25 in The Message Bible. WHHAAAT? You may be saying, “God has holes in His socks!????” No, but we do, and guess what, He knows it. Yet, He gave us the answer in Jesus Christ. God wants to mend the holes in our socks.

Your next line may be, “I don’t know about that; my socks are pretty holey.” They may be, but God is Holier than your socks! Do you believe that God can do all things? Do you believe that God is able? Let me tell what God has to say about this: “God can do anything, you know—far more than you could ever imagine or guess or request in your wildest dreams! He does it not by pushing us around but by working within us, his Spirit deeply and gently within us.” (Ephesians 3:20 MSG)

You may have a hard time wrapping your mind around the words of bold in this post, because it’s hard for you to believe that God can speak modern day English. But His Word is the same yesterday, today, and forever because the Word is Jesus Christ made flesh, and He is the same: The Great I AM!

And you may have a harder time wrapping your mind around the words of bold in this post, because what you see and are told by those wearing designer Christian labels on their persons are not these words. BUT, the bolded words of this text ARE the words of God. So don’t be fooled. Those Christians with designer labels of Christianity have holes in their socks, too! Whew! It takes the pressure off knowing that we don’t live by the will of man, but by the will of God.

You see those who have holes in their designer Christian socks are most likely offended by Bugs Bunny and Mickey Mouse facing a modern-day challenge. Yep, they have holey socks and are forgetting that we have a Holy God!

So let me leave you with God’s words, and not mine, again in modern English from The Message Bible. “So be content with who you are, and don’t put on airs. God’s strong hand is on you; he’ll promote you at the right time. Live carefree before God; he is most careful with you.” (1 Peter 5:7)

So I believe in a world that has lost its way, these are the days of the great awakening of the Amazing Grace of God!

Angels And Answered Prayer

SPIRITUAL WAR PRAYER

Reasons Why Our Prayers Seem to Go Unanswered

“And [the angel] said to me, ...Fear not, Daniel, for from the first day that you set your mind and heart to understand and to humble yourself before your God, your words were heard, and I have come as a consequence of [and in response to] your words. But the prince of the kingdom of Persia withstood me for twenty-one days. Then Michael, one of the chief [of the celestial] princes, came to help me, for I remained there with the kings of Persia.”

Daniel 10:11-13 (Amplified Bible)

VERY FEW BELIEVERS have ever given the devil, the fallen angel Lucifer also known as Satan, credit for being the powerful creature that he really is. He reigns as king over a tremendous kingdom. The kingdom of Satan is made up of depotisms, powers, master spirits who are the world rulers of this present darkness. the spirit forces of wickedness in the heavenly supernatural sphere (Ephesians 6;12). If “the god of this world” (1 Corinthians 4:4) did not fear approaching and tempting the very Son of God, Jesus The Christ, he certainly does no fear us.

I don't want to go into the complexities of the prophetic book of Daniel; but for those of us who feel that our prayers have not been heard by the Most High God or feel that our prayers are going unanswered, by the glimpse we get into the supernatural sphere, we can see that God sent the answer the moment we prayed.

In this word of Scripture, it took the angelic messenger, believed to be Gabriel, 21 days to break through the forces in the supernatural realm to get God's answer to Daniel. And if the Archangel, Michael, had not been sent to come to Gabriel's aid, Gabriel would have been detained by the wickedness of the spiritual realm for much longer than 21 days.

Daniel was in mourning for 3 weeks, going without proper food and drink. It is implied that he wasn't even bathing as he should. Daniel was distressed; he was distraught. Does seeing into the unseen realm of the supernatural help your understanding that God sends the messenger with the answer to your prayer the moment you prayed? Does it provide you comfort if you are distraught? Maybe it does not.

You may be thinking, “It has been way longer than 21 days since I prayed for my answer!” Maybe it's been more than 21 years that you've been waiting for your answer, and like Daniel, you are mourning. When we are battle worn, we are weary, and we feel defeated. But in Christ, if we stand strong in His armor in the midst of the battle, and having done all to stand firm, continue in our stance of prayer against the wicked spirits of this present darkness, victory will be ours for the glory of our God.

We can't forget that we, as true Christians, are a persecuted Church in the face of the rampant wickedness of the people of this world. We live in a culture of sin and abominations against the Holy Spirit; we live in a culture that ranks with those of Babylon and of Sodom and Gomorrah. The culture of the world is turned against the faith of true Believers, yet we must continue to pray; we must continue to come boldly before the throne of God with our requests.

“Keep on asking and it will be given you; keep on seeking and you will find; keep on knocking [reverently] and [the door] will be opened to you. For everyone who keeps on asking receives; and he who keeps on seeking finds; and to him who keeps on knocking, [the door] will be opened.”

Matthew 7:7-8 (Amplified Bible)

We live in intense times of spiritual warfare. We ARE being persecuted for our faith, but continue to stand in the full armor of God in the midst of this battle. God never promised that weapons would not be formed against us, but promised that NO weapon formed against us would prosper. He never promised that locusts would not eat up the years, but that He WILL restore the years the locusts have eaten. God never promised us no shame, but that He would give us a double portion for our FORMER shame.

“Wait and hope for and expect the Lord; be brave and of good courage and let your heart be stout and enduring. Yes, wait for and hope for and expect the Lord.”

Psalm 27:14 (Amplified Bible)

And all God's people say, “Amen and Amen!” There IS power in the Blood of the Lamb, Jesus Christ. Let's not forget that though the battle rages all about us, victory is ours in The Lord! And, don't forget that your answer was sent the moment you faithfully prayed.  So we need to be brave and of good courage; we need to wait for and hope for and EXPECT the Lord!

Focus Not On Your Circumstances But On Christ

Don’t Make Your Problems Bigger Than Your God

When Peter walked on water not only were the seas turbulent, but so were the times. John the Baptist had just been beheaded. Those who believed he was a prophet were distraught.  After the execution of John, the people turned to Jesus. This is how 5000 men, plus their women and children, came to be fed with five loaves of bread and two fish found among the throngs in the hands of a small child.

These were also superstitious times. Herod, who had executed John the Baptist told his attendants that Jesus was John raised from the dead; Herod attributed the miracle working power of Christ to the resurrected spirit of John the Baptist. The crowd was following Jesus because they had seen the miracles He continually performed upon those who were sick. And, as the feast of the Passover was approaching, Jesus knew this crowd of followers meant to seize Him and make Him their king; yet, it was Herod who was the ruthless Roman king of Judea and the Jews.

These were times characterized by conflict, disorder, and confusion. Times that were neither controlled nor calm, just like the seas that Peter would walk upon. The feast of the Passover was approaching, and this meant so was the crucifixion of Christ. The times of Christ were at a climatic crescendo, increasing in their intensity; and Jesus' disciples, including Peter, were surrounded by this turbulence.

It was in the midst of these difficult times that Peter, the disciple who would deny Jesus Christ three times in one night in the near future, walked upon water surrounded by stormy seas. It was Peter, with the other disciples, Christ directed to get into the boat and go before Him to the other side, while He sent the crowds away and went up into the hills by Himself to pray. It was Peter, a fisherman who knew the sight of an approaching storm that would evoke stormy seas, who obediently got into the boat with the others. And, it was Peter who Jesus would reach out His hand to catch and hold as he sank in the stormy seas, saying to him, “O you of little faith, why did you doubt?”

After saying this very thing to Peter, it was the same Christ Jesus who would say to Peter in the next breath of the Bible, “You are Peter, a huge rock like Gibraltar; and on this rock I will build My church, and the gates of Hades shall not overpower it. I will give you the keys to the kingdom of heaven.” And the same Christ who would immediately, in the next breath of Scripture, turn away from Peter and say to him, “Get behind me, Satan! You are in my way; for you are minding what partakes not of the nature and quality of God, but of men.”

I think Jesus was controversial with Peter because he was building the character and faith of Peter to be like the rock of Gibraltar. In this time nearing Jesus Christ's crucifixion on the cross at Calvary, He was preparing Peter for his God-given destiny, and that was to be the rock upon which to build His church. He was teaching Peter to keep his focus not on his circumstances, but on Him, Jesus the Christ.

When Peter kept his focus on Jesus Christ, he walked on water; when he perceived and felt the strong winds of his circumstances, he sank to the point of sure death. But, Peter cried out, “Lord, save me!” And instantly, Jesus reached out His hand and caught Peter. Then, they got into the boat, the wind ceased, and the boat crossed to the other side.

How does this relate to you and me? God allows us to go through bad times to bring us into something better. He allows storms to come against us to make us rock strong in our faith. Some things can only be learned in the storm; yet the storm can only take us where God allows.

So, don't focus on your circumstances, but keep your eyes focused on Christ; don't make your problems bigger than your God; don’t slip into the seas. He will calm the storms in your life, and He will take you to the other side. Turbulence is part of our destiny to get us where we are supposed to be. Don't be afraid of those seas. Stand strong!

The Standard Which Sin Is Measured...

I am a Sinner

Yet to what degree?

By what standard

Is my sin measured?

Is it by you,

Or by me?

So many point a finger

If I fracture any law

Shouting
IMMORALITY!!!

And acknowledging my flaw;

But the law I've read says,

Guilty of one ~ GUILTY of ALL!

BIG SIN, little sin

Again, to what degree?

By what standard

Is my sin measured?

Is it by you,

Or by me?

And Oh MY Word, MAN Forbid,

I should feel a sin coming on…

When I look around for compassion

And find most "Christians" gone!

Thank GOD, for other sinners

Who never leave me behind ~

Because they know heaven would be empty

If it wasn't for our kind!

To what degree is sin measured?

As far as the east is from the west;

And there's no way that can be measured,

Because it’s infinity and doesn’t exist…

So let’s not point fingers

Instead let’s point to The Cross

Where Jesus shed His blood

To redeem the sinful lost

A price so willingly paid

He didn’t count the cost!

So by what standard is my sin measured?

I believe it’s only by my God.

When Strangers Are Kinder Than Those We Know

Most of us have heard about THE GOOD SAMARITAN, if just the phrase or in concept. Since I've joined blogging communities, I've been reading about pain in people, because on-line strangers are being kinder to them than those who call themselves family and friends. This got me thinking, and when I think, I put myself out on a precipice because I don't always know what reaction I'll receive when I publicly communicate my thoughts...but here goes anyway...and I did some digging into the Biblical account of the parable of The Good Samaritan. In order to understand it better, I looked into commentary on it. I found this link:
Commentary by Bob Deffinbaugh, Th.M. on THE GOOD SAMARITAN (Luke 10:25-37)

I want to use Mr. Deffinbaugh's words before my own, because they ring so true. He comments on what the text does and does NOT say. In the story, Jesus tells us, "A certain man was going from Jerusalem down to Jericho, and he fell among robbers, who stripped him of his clothes and belongings and beat him and went their way, [unconcernedly] leaving him half dead, as it happened." I think we would all agree, this is a horrible set of circumstances that came upon this man. Jesus goes on to say, "by coincidence," a Priest, a Levite, and a Samaritan happened on the scene. Mr. Deffingbaugh puts it like this:

While Jesus makes it clear that the two travelers (the priest and the Levite) are Jewish, and that the hero is a Samaritan, we are not told the racial origins of the victim. The reason is simple—it doesn’t matter. And if it mattered to the first two travelers, it should not matter to us. The only thing that matters about that man is the one thing we’re told about him—that he is badly hurt and in need of help! The man had been mugged. Robbers overtook him, beating him badly and stripping him of his clothes, and then leaving him lying by the road, half-dead. This man needed help, badly. That’s what matters; and that’s what the text tells us. It isn’t matter whether it is a Jew who needs help or a Gentile. There is a human being lying by the road, who is seriously wounded and who desperately needs help.

Mr. Deffingbaugh continues to say, "We are told that two of Judaism’s finest specimens come upon the injured man as they make their way along the same road. These two men seem to be there by chance (see verses 31 & 32). I take it that this means they did not have any pressing business, which might have hindered them from stopping to render aid. These two men—the priest and the Levite—belonged to an elite Jewish class; both of them were religious professionals. In today’s vocabulary, we might say that one was a prominent pastor and the other a well-known televangelist. If anybody was expected to carry out the Old Testament law, it would be these men."

BUT...as Mr. Deffingbaugh continues, I see these family and friends, that those in pain are blogging about--in an attempt to seek refuge and solace from their hurt, in these elitist men.

The priest came upon the injured victim first. He could see the man lying by the side of the road as he approached. Rather than to get involved, the priest deliberately walked on the other side of the road, so as not to get too close to the battered victim. I suspect that the priest carefully focused his eyes straight ahead or in the opposite direction of the injured man, so that he would not see his suffering. He did not check to see of the man was alive or dead. He did not ask the man if he needed help. He did nothing that would enlighten him about this man’s condition, and thus his need. For this priest, ignorance was indeed bliss.

The Levite was no different than the priest. He came upon the injured man some time after the priest. His actions were a virtual re-play of the scene with the priest. He passed by the suffering traveler on the other side, so that he would not feel obligated to do anything to help him. If the priest and the Levite felt any emotion at the sight of this man, it was probably revulsion at the sight of his injuries and deplorable condition.

The critical difference between the Samaritan, the priest, and the Levite is their compassion, or lack of it. So far as the attitude of the three travelers toward this man and his condition this the only difference the text indicates. The text tells us that the priest comes along and says (so to speak), “Yuk!” and he turns away. The text says virtually the same thing about the Levite. He comes along; he looks briefly, and then he turns aside. He doesn’t get too close. He doesn’t say, “Are you still alive?” He doesn’t listen for a heartbeat, or try to get a pulse. He doesn’t say, “I’ll send an ambulance.” He does not say, “I’d like to help you, but if I touch you, I may be ceremonially defiled.” He looks, and he says to himself, “How disgusting,” and he walks away. It is the opposite of compassion. It is repulsion. He doesn’t want to know any more about this man.

Personally, I'm hearing this in story after story of how unfaithful family and friends are to those in need and pain, and some in desperate circumstances--have been left beaten, broken, and left poor by illness or other devastating circumstances. BUT, thankfully--at least in the Biblical account, along comes The Good Samaritan. Mr. Deffinbaugh tells us in his commentary that Samaritans were despised by Jews, yet...

He drew near to the victim, rather than to veer to the far side of the road. He treated the man’s wounds and bandaged him. The Samaritan does not seem to have had a first aid kit in his saddle bag; rather the wine, the oil, and perhaps even the cloth he used to bind the wounds came from his own food supplies and clothing. He placed the wounded man on his own mount, and brought him to an inn, where he spent the night caring for the man. The Samaritan had to continue his journey, but he did not let this keep him from providing care for the injured traveler. He paid for the victim’s room in advance, and saw to it that the innkeeper looked in on the recovering victim. He promised to return, and to fully reimburse the innkeeper for any additional expenses. There is nothing more the Samaritan could have done to minister to the man on whom he had compassion.

This Samaritan reminds me of our on-line supporters. Christ said it was the Samaritan who was the neighbor of the man whom had fallen into the hands of robbers, because he was the one who showed mercy toward him. When those in our physical space prove not to be compassionate or merciful toward us, I believe its okay to garner on-line support. In the safeness of mercy, compassion, and grace in cyberspace, we can learn what choices we should be making in allowing people into our physical space. We should only allow those within our borders, space with more intimacy involved, whom are safe and demonstrate safety with compassion and mercy. Let's make friends who are Good Samaritans and learn that not all family comes with birth.

A Poem on Forgiveness

I'd been wrestling with long-term unforgiveness and deep-rooted anger. The Lord gently dealt with me on this issue, and He let me know that my anger was not between me and others, but between me and Him. From our discourse, and based upon Psalm 130, came this poem. I wrote this in December 2013; it was a struggle letting go, letting God...and being still and knowing that He is God. My prayer now is the words the Holy Spirit led me to write take root within my spirit, and becomes words that I truly comprehend and an attitude that I can extend toward others. Lord, help me to forgive others, as I have been forgiven. Amen.