Friday, April 11, 2008
Wednesday, April 9, 2008
The cult of success
Jehovah witness, Mormons, Seventh day Adventist, universalism, unity doctrine, new age, the list of cults, according to the scholars is increasing drastically. A great amount of time and effort has been spent on scrutinizing them and bullet proofing the original ‘Christian’ doctrine. I am not a cult specialist, but I observe a not-much-addressed cult called – the cult of success.
Child care, old age care, health care, education, church and pretty much everything in this materialistic world is coming under the category of enterprise and success is measured on the scale of money, profit, building and head count. And as a result, we lose the sweetness of relationship, authenticity and love in all these aspects.
The ‘success demon’ enters our brain during the childhood of our life. Parents give us the first dose of pills to make up our mind to succeed in education, then in career, in family life and so forth. In the Christian ministry, the phrases such as ‘successful minister’ or ‘successful ministry’ or ‘successful author and speaker’ are not uncommon at all. How do they measure success? By counting the people, equipments, buildings, media coverage, circulation of books etc.
Tomas Merton once said, "Be anything you like, be madmen, drunks,... but at all cost avoid one thing: 'success'." We live in a depraved world where our success is determined by the type of car, size of home and title of job.
I used to get excited by news such as Bible is America's favorite book , but not anymore, even if it is considered as a Christian or Evangelical success. I can very well get a doctorate in Biblical knowledge and still live without any clue what the Gospel of Jesus Christ really means. So why are we boastful that Bible is still the best selling book in the world? That means nothing, unless we understand the meaning of Bible passages and find the Person it points to, not just the history, literature, poetry, moral standards and principles. We have countless number of seminaries all around the world, which are supposedly producing ‘disciples’, but the sad truth is that we seldom see such kind. Instead we see puffed up knowledge and intellectualism and an increased desire to use godliness as a means of financial gain (1 Timothy 6). Brennan Manning once said, "as systematic theology advances, the sense of wonder declines."
During the time of Jesus, the Pharisees were considered as successful people. They were successful in keeping the law of God and imposing it on others. They earned the respect and admiration of society which ultimately made them the most prideful people who ever lived on the earth. Their success mesmerized them and they kept the unsuccessful people (tax collectors, prostitutes, gentiles) distant away.
Living selflessly may not necessarily bring the ‘success’ as the world sees it. The early church did not measure up the success by the size of their gathering. They were in authentic relationship with God and others, considering ‘everything in common’ was their way of life. Jesus said, do not store up your treasures here on earth because it is destined to perish. At the end all we can brag is about the size of the pile of ashes. Look, I have more ashes than you! What a pathetic situation! Jesus taught the simplest act of love and friendship which would transform people in an exciting way. Somewhere along the line we lost that, we have learned to consume and compete, but forgot to ‘live’. Schools teach us to compete in academics and win the competitive job market. Churches teach us to compete in singing, bible quizzes, scripture memorization, observance of law etc. They brag about their 'disciplined' members who can recite the entire book of Bible. I am like... So what?
Jesus said, “Let the little children come to me, and do not hinder them, for the kingdom of heaven belongs to such as these.” If you and I see a group of little children playing in a play yard, would we ever think ‘how successful they are’? I would say to myself, how cute, innocent and playful they are. That’s how God loves to see us, His children – simple, innocent and joyful. He cares only less about our finance, career, possessions, discipline, religiosity etc.
"All these I have kept," the young man said. "What do I still lack?"
Jesus answered, "If you want to be perfect, go, sell your possessions and give to the poor, and you will have treasure in heaven. Then come, follow me."
When the young man heard this, he went away sad, because he had great wealth.
That’s the problem of wealth and success. While accumulating it we wouldn’t realize how hard it would be to lose it sooner or later.
According to Wikipedia, Alexader the great was one of the most successful military commanders in history, and was undefeated in battle. By the time of his death, he had conquered most of the world known to the ancient Greeks. Alexander died after twelve years of constant military campaigning, possibly as a result of malaria, poisoning, typhoid fever, viral encephalitis or the consequences of alcoholism.
As a final wish, he asked his officials to put his hands outside his coffin, for people to see that he came to this world in empty hands and now leaving the world in empty hands. The story of a king who conquered major parts of the world ends there!
Apostle Paul warns us wisely in the book of Timothy, For we brought nothing into the world, and we can take nothing out of it.People who want to get rich fall into temptation and a trap and into many foolish and harmful desires that plunge men into ruin and destruction.
King Solomon had pretty much everything many wish for – wealth, power, fame, wisdom, beautiful girls (thousand wives) around him. Bible describes how the fame of Solomon's wisdom and wealth spread far and wide, so much so that the queen of Sheba decided that she should meet with him.
He searched for meaning in life from hedonism, materialism, intellectualism, and ultimately finding a lack of fulfillment from all of these “meaningless” pursuits.
He said:
"Meaningless! Meaningless!"
says the Teacher.
"Utterly meaningless!
Everything is meaningless."
What does man gain from all his labor
at which he toils under the sun?
I have seen all the things that are done under the sun; all of them are meaningless, a chasing after the wind.
I thought in my heart, "Come now, I will test you with pleasure to find out what is good." But that also proved to be meaningless.
I denied myself nothing my eyes desired;
I refused my heart no pleasure.
My heart took delight in all my work,
and this was the reward for all my labor.
Yet when I surveyed all that my hands had done
and what I had toiled to achieve,
everything was meaningless, a chasing after the wind;
nothing was gained under the sun.
Lets be careful not to take delight in all our 'work'. Lets realize that there are people who have had everything under the sun finally said it all meaningless. 'Nothing was gained under the sun' said Solomon and I find wisdom in it. Let's not be fooled by the futility of filthy success. It counts nothing to God. As Brennan Manning, one of my favorite author said, the only question we will ever be asked on the day of judgment is, 'Did you believe that I loved you?'. We all like the pleasure of achievements, compliments and praise; and many of us have moral superiority complex. It's my prayer that I want to lay it down, I want to stop entertaining my flesh, I don't want false humility either. There is pride in false humility which alienates and isolates us from real people. It is better to live as a 'failure', than living as a successful impostor who trick people and themselves to impress, achieve and posses.
Child care, old age care, health care, education, church and pretty much everything in this materialistic world is coming under the category of enterprise and success is measured on the scale of money, profit, building and head count. And as a result, we lose the sweetness of relationship, authenticity and love in all these aspects.
The ‘success demon’ enters our brain during the childhood of our life. Parents give us the first dose of pills to make up our mind to succeed in education, then in career, in family life and so forth. In the Christian ministry, the phrases such as ‘successful minister’ or ‘successful ministry’ or ‘successful author and speaker’ are not uncommon at all. How do they measure success? By counting the people, equipments, buildings, media coverage, circulation of books etc.
Tomas Merton once said, "Be anything you like, be madmen, drunks,... but at all cost avoid one thing: 'success'." We live in a depraved world where our success is determined by the type of car, size of home and title of job.
I used to get excited by news such as Bible is America's favorite book , but not anymore, even if it is considered as a Christian or Evangelical success. I can very well get a doctorate in Biblical knowledge and still live without any clue what the Gospel of Jesus Christ really means. So why are we boastful that Bible is still the best selling book in the world? That means nothing, unless we understand the meaning of Bible passages and find the Person it points to, not just the history, literature, poetry, moral standards and principles. We have countless number of seminaries all around the world, which are supposedly producing ‘disciples’, but the sad truth is that we seldom see such kind. Instead we see puffed up knowledge and intellectualism and an increased desire to use godliness as a means of financial gain (1 Timothy 6). Brennan Manning once said, "as systematic theology advances, the sense of wonder declines."
During the time of Jesus, the Pharisees were considered as successful people. They were successful in keeping the law of God and imposing it on others. They earned the respect and admiration of society which ultimately made them the most prideful people who ever lived on the earth. Their success mesmerized them and they kept the unsuccessful people (tax collectors, prostitutes, gentiles) distant away.
Living selflessly may not necessarily bring the ‘success’ as the world sees it. The early church did not measure up the success by the size of their gathering. They were in authentic relationship with God and others, considering ‘everything in common’ was their way of life. Jesus said, do not store up your treasures here on earth because it is destined to perish. At the end all we can brag is about the size of the pile of ashes. Look, I have more ashes than you! What a pathetic situation! Jesus taught the simplest act of love and friendship which would transform people in an exciting way. Somewhere along the line we lost that, we have learned to consume and compete, but forgot to ‘live’. Schools teach us to compete in academics and win the competitive job market. Churches teach us to compete in singing, bible quizzes, scripture memorization, observance of law etc. They brag about their 'disciplined' members who can recite the entire book of Bible. I am like... So what?
Jesus said, “Let the little children come to me, and do not hinder them, for the kingdom of heaven belongs to such as these.” If you and I see a group of little children playing in a play yard, would we ever think ‘how successful they are’? I would say to myself, how cute, innocent and playful they are. That’s how God loves to see us, His children – simple, innocent and joyful. He cares only less about our finance, career, possessions, discipline, religiosity etc.
"All these I have kept," the young man said. "What do I still lack?"
Jesus answered, "If you want to be perfect, go, sell your possessions and give to the poor, and you will have treasure in heaven. Then come, follow me."
When the young man heard this, he went away sad, because he had great wealth.
That’s the problem of wealth and success. While accumulating it we wouldn’t realize how hard it would be to lose it sooner or later.
According to Wikipedia, Alexader the great was one of the most successful military commanders in history, and was undefeated in battle. By the time of his death, he had conquered most of the world known to the ancient Greeks. Alexander died after twelve years of constant military campaigning, possibly as a result of malaria, poisoning, typhoid fever, viral encephalitis or the consequences of alcoholism.
As a final wish, he asked his officials to put his hands outside his coffin, for people to see that he came to this world in empty hands and now leaving the world in empty hands. The story of a king who conquered major parts of the world ends there!
Apostle Paul warns us wisely in the book of Timothy, For we brought nothing into the world, and we can take nothing out of it.People who want to get rich fall into temptation and a trap and into many foolish and harmful desires that plunge men into ruin and destruction.
King Solomon had pretty much everything many wish for – wealth, power, fame, wisdom, beautiful girls (thousand wives) around him. Bible describes how the fame of Solomon's wisdom and wealth spread far and wide, so much so that the queen of Sheba decided that she should meet with him.
He searched for meaning in life from hedonism, materialism, intellectualism, and ultimately finding a lack of fulfillment from all of these “meaningless” pursuits.
He said:
"Meaningless! Meaningless!"
says the Teacher.
"Utterly meaningless!
Everything is meaningless."
What does man gain from all his labor
at which he toils under the sun?
I have seen all the things that are done under the sun; all of them are meaningless, a chasing after the wind.
I thought in my heart, "Come now, I will test you with pleasure to find out what is good." But that also proved to be meaningless.
I denied myself nothing my eyes desired;
I refused my heart no pleasure.
My heart took delight in all my work,
and this was the reward for all my labor.
Yet when I surveyed all that my hands had done
and what I had toiled to achieve,
everything was meaningless, a chasing after the wind;
nothing was gained under the sun.
Lets be careful not to take delight in all our 'work'. Lets realize that there are people who have had everything under the sun finally said it all meaningless. 'Nothing was gained under the sun' said Solomon and I find wisdom in it. Let's not be fooled by the futility of filthy success. It counts nothing to God. As Brennan Manning, one of my favorite author said, the only question we will ever be asked on the day of judgment is, 'Did you believe that I loved you?'. We all like the pleasure of achievements, compliments and praise; and many of us have moral superiority complex. It's my prayer that I want to lay it down, I want to stop entertaining my flesh, I don't want false humility either. There is pride in false humility which alienates and isolates us from real people. It is better to live as a 'failure', than living as a successful impostor who trick people and themselves to impress, achieve and posses.
Monday, April 7, 2008
The life of an impostor
Sometimes I still have to try desperately to convince myself that God loves me just as I am. Yes, all the doctrines are there to help me. But beyond the lifelessness of doctrines, I want the love of Jesus to be real. I admit I am an impostor in this world, acting different roles to different people. I have one face at home, another one at work. There is nothing in this world, which would let me be just myself. I have a desperate need deep inside my heart to be loved, which would be the only thing brings fulfillment and true purpose to my life. I am a poser to the world, but I don't want to be one to my Lord. I don't want to make any false claims that I know everything about His grace and unconditional love. The truth is I still have no clue what it really really means. It takes more than a lifetime to figure out the love of Jesus. I know it is true and I am convinced that it is there, but I just don't get my hands around it most of my life.
I started the life of an impostor the day on which I was born. I showed the sings of it by crying when I was hungry. I started learning to ‘consume’ from the very first day of my life. Life taught me how to pose myself to different type of audience. I acted as a 'nice' student to earn the love of my teachers, I acted as a 'cool' guy to earn the love of my friends, I lied and exaggerated my skills to the employer to get a job; I posed as if I knew everything about the tools and skills needed to do my job and succeeded to win his approval. I did everything I can in my strength to impress the girl I met to earn her as my wife. I posed as if I am the biggest lover in the world and was quite successful in convincing her. Each success of my poser encouraged me to pose more. I could never be just myself, I always felt that the true ‘me’ wouldn't fit anywhere in this world. Nothing in this world, regardless of my posing and acting filled the hollowness and emptiness in my heart. Nothing! But I feared that, if I stop acting I cease to exist.
After becoming a Christian I became a religious impostor, acting holy and ‘nice’. Not even a single person whom I came across during the span of life thus far taught me to be authentic and real. What a stressful life to live! I tried to produce smile on my naturally smile-less face and failed. I tried to ‘be in peace’ in my naturally restless mind and utterly failed. I tried to suppress my anger to make my loved ones around me feel good, but failed miserably. Why did I try those? To earn love of others! What other proof do we need that there is a deep necessity of love in human heart? That’s the deep cry of a human soul - to be loved by somebody. They will go to any extend to earn it. The fake nature of humanity is exposed (but suppressed) in the pursuit of love. The life of a people pleaser is quite an ugly life. During the course of my life in this world, every fiber in my body learned to present myself in ‘nice’ package to the world to be accepted by it. I can never, ever be myself at my work place. I can never, ever be myself at home. I can never, ever be myself at church. It is a long journey started by trying to please my parents, then my friends, then teachers, boss, co-workers, pastor, church members, spouse, kids and it will continue till the day I die still wondering whether I really pleased any of them! The entire world is dancing around me, trying to consume everything from me, in the middle I am standing desperately unable to provide what they need. On the other hand, I play the same role of consumer to others looking for love, acceptance and approval from them. And so far none could fulfill it.
"Do you really know how much God loves you?" No, I still don’t. I know He loves me but I haven’t figured the depth of it. If I did, why the impostor is still active in me?
Why am I silent when I see injustice right in front of my eyes? Why is it still a struggle for me to say ‘no’ to others? Why I am tempted to exaggerate my resume?
God can’t do anything about the impostor, because it is a ‘false self’. It is not there in reality but I am haunted by the strength of that nonexistent being. How strange is that? When will I be truly truly free? I am almost losing my hope that it is going to happen during my life in this world. I know there is nothing hidden to God, but there are a whole lot of things hidden to others. Who I am afraid of? The impostor?
Jesus, thank you for making me a new creation. Now, teach me to live as one. Teach me to be faithful to that new being. I still don’t know how much you truly love me and as a workaround I drag this impostor all along with me all the time. The only solution to get rid of this poser is to know how much you truly love me. I want to settle on the issue of your love not just in theory but in true life. I can’t do it. So do it for me. Impress your love in my heart in a convincing way so that I can take the pressure of the poser off of my head and live a free life as you intended. I am tasting it little by little like a dog drinking from the ocean, but its not enough to get rid of the false self. I tried to find a solution in the religious world but that was the place where I met some of the biggest impostors in my life. I just don't want to be one of them. I want to run as fast as I can into your arms and know for sure that I am loved and totally accepted in my sinfulness, weaknesses and all the negatives in me. You are the one who made me as a brand new being, clothed me with your righteousness and seated me with you in the heveanlies, now I want to live that life here on earth as a true restored human, expressing your love, encouraging others to see the life on the other side of the impostor in them.
I started the life of an impostor the day on which I was born. I showed the sings of it by crying when I was hungry. I started learning to ‘consume’ from the very first day of my life. Life taught me how to pose myself to different type of audience. I acted as a 'nice' student to earn the love of my teachers, I acted as a 'cool' guy to earn the love of my friends, I lied and exaggerated my skills to the employer to get a job; I posed as if I knew everything about the tools and skills needed to do my job and succeeded to win his approval. I did everything I can in my strength to impress the girl I met to earn her as my wife. I posed as if I am the biggest lover in the world and was quite successful in convincing her. Each success of my poser encouraged me to pose more. I could never be just myself, I always felt that the true ‘me’ wouldn't fit anywhere in this world. Nothing in this world, regardless of my posing and acting filled the hollowness and emptiness in my heart. Nothing! But I feared that, if I stop acting I cease to exist.
After becoming a Christian I became a religious impostor, acting holy and ‘nice’. Not even a single person whom I came across during the span of life thus far taught me to be authentic and real. What a stressful life to live! I tried to produce smile on my naturally smile-less face and failed. I tried to ‘be in peace’ in my naturally restless mind and utterly failed. I tried to suppress my anger to make my loved ones around me feel good, but failed miserably. Why did I try those? To earn love of others! What other proof do we need that there is a deep necessity of love in human heart? That’s the deep cry of a human soul - to be loved by somebody. They will go to any extend to earn it. The fake nature of humanity is exposed (but suppressed) in the pursuit of love. The life of a people pleaser is quite an ugly life. During the course of my life in this world, every fiber in my body learned to present myself in ‘nice’ package to the world to be accepted by it. I can never, ever be myself at my work place. I can never, ever be myself at home. I can never, ever be myself at church. It is a long journey started by trying to please my parents, then my friends, then teachers, boss, co-workers, pastor, church members, spouse, kids and it will continue till the day I die still wondering whether I really pleased any of them! The entire world is dancing around me, trying to consume everything from me, in the middle I am standing desperately unable to provide what they need. On the other hand, I play the same role of consumer to others looking for love, acceptance and approval from them. And so far none could fulfill it.
"Do you really know how much God loves you?" No, I still don’t. I know He loves me but I haven’t figured the depth of it. If I did, why the impostor is still active in me?
Why am I silent when I see injustice right in front of my eyes? Why is it still a struggle for me to say ‘no’ to others? Why I am tempted to exaggerate my resume?
God can’t do anything about the impostor, because it is a ‘false self’. It is not there in reality but I am haunted by the strength of that nonexistent being. How strange is that? When will I be truly truly free? I am almost losing my hope that it is going to happen during my life in this world. I know there is nothing hidden to God, but there are a whole lot of things hidden to others. Who I am afraid of? The impostor?
Jesus, thank you for making me a new creation. Now, teach me to live as one. Teach me to be faithful to that new being. I still don’t know how much you truly love me and as a workaround I drag this impostor all along with me all the time. The only solution to get rid of this poser is to know how much you truly love me. I want to settle on the issue of your love not just in theory but in true life. I can’t do it. So do it for me. Impress your love in my heart in a convincing way so that I can take the pressure of the poser off of my head and live a free life as you intended. I am tasting it little by little like a dog drinking from the ocean, but its not enough to get rid of the false self. I tried to find a solution in the religious world but that was the place where I met some of the biggest impostors in my life. I just don't want to be one of them. I want to run as fast as I can into your arms and know for sure that I am loved and totally accepted in my sinfulness, weaknesses and all the negatives in me. You are the one who made me as a brand new being, clothed me with your righteousness and seated me with you in the heveanlies, now I want to live that life here on earth as a true restored human, expressing your love, encouraging others to see the life on the other side of the impostor in them.
Thursday, April 3, 2008
Immanuel - "God with us"
Something I read in Brennan Manning's ‘Abba’s Child’ made me think what it really means by ‘God with us’.
Born in Bethlehem
"The virgin will be with child and will give birth to a son, and they will call him Immanuel"—which means, "God with us." - Matthew 1:23
That was the words of the prophet Isaiah hundreds of years before the actual event took place. Majority of the Christian community believe Jesus was God in flesh and was born to Mary in Bethlehem, which is right on according to the Bible. But one of the common misunderstanding Christians possess is that God came to be with us just 33 years.
The God of the universe, by whom all things are created, came down from heaven, leaving His glory behind for a while to live as a man among us. He wasn’t just a man who was 'enlightened' while sitting under a tree, but he had been always enlightened before He even appeared to us. He wasn’t someone who became 'divine' at age of thirty, but He was always divine. He wasn’t just a prophet but the originator of all prophecies. He wasn’t just a Jewish Rabbi, but He was the cause for a Jewish generation in the first place. He wasn’t like the Old Testament High Priests, but much better High priest who entered the real Holy of Holies forever. He was God, I mean that baby in that manger was God. He is the God whose glory was hidden behind the curtain and now revealed unto us, ultimately He Himself tearing the curtain from top to bottom, removing any barriers or the need of mediators to approach Him.
Why did He come?
Sure, He came to die. But is that it? No, to rise from the dead. Sure, But is that it? No, to ascend to heaven to be at the right hand of God. Sure, but is that it? No, Here is the thing: He came to die, to be buried, to be raised, to be ascended to heaven AND to come back in the person of Holy Spirit to dwell in those who believe forever! Sadly, many miss the significance of the last part of His ministry - permanently dwelling in believers. That entire doings of Him from death to the indwelling is what makes godliness possible among us. Nothing less could have done it.
Jesus came back in the person of Holy Spirit on the day of Pentecost
The day of Pentecost has to have a lot more significance than Christmas. On Christmas, Jesus came to live here for some years and go back; but on the day of Pentecost He came to live in us forever. Just prior to His ascension to heaven after the resurrection, He told His Disciples that it is good that He is going away, so that He can send Holy Spirit. In other words, He can come back in a mightier way to indwell in the multitudes forever. That is what happened on the day of Pentecost. It's interesting He called that person ‘comforter’. A comforter is one who comforts, not the one who put burden upon people. He came so that we can be comfortable (peaceful, restful).
Christ in us – the hope of glory
That’s the ultimatum of His ministry on this earth. Nothing less. His death was a prerequisite for His life to be given to us. Many believe ‘Christ in us’ is a positional truth or just a theological truth. Was His death positional? Was His resurrection positional? If those were real, this is also real. Our body is His temple and He lives in us. Literally. The life we live is His. In Him we have our being. We could still act stupid by asking Him to ‘come down from heaven’, ‘come closer to us’ etc. Hello? He is IN us! How can He come ‘closer’ than that?
Why would He dwell in us?
We all want to ‘feel’ spiritual. We like ‘feel good spirituality’, so we sing and dance to convince us we can still ‘feel’ His presence. There is nothing wrong in singing and dancing, but don’t mistake it for the true spirituality. True spirituality is far beyond our emotional experiences. There will be times in our life where we lose the sense of all our 'experiences' and feel blank, in such moments we need the truth to sustain us. And what is the truth? The truth is that the life of Christ Jesus is in us and He will never leave us nor forsake us. True spirituality is the realization and assurance of Christ’s life in us forever, which enables us to have a quiet confidence to rest in our soul. It is quite the opposite of the ‘bumper sticker spirituality' where everything seems to be about external but deep inside they are dead as a hammer. If Jesus meant to establish a show biz Christianity He could have done it by sitting in heaven by giving some instructions to follow. He didn’t have to come and dwell in us. Isn’t it quite obvious that He did it for a reason? Isn’t that a good reason to believe that He is truly interested in a relationship with us? The cry of our soul in hollowness and emptiness is answered in Jesus and in His life in us. It is in Him we stop wandering. It is in Him our deep need for love is fulfilled. He is faithful to lead us into rich pastures. I love this Savior! He didn't just save me from hell but gave me a life to live right here, right now. He made my heart lovable and it is my desire to spend the rest of my life enjoying the riches I have in Him.
Born in Bethlehem
"The virgin will be with child and will give birth to a son, and they will call him Immanuel"—which means, "God with us." - Matthew 1:23
That was the words of the prophet Isaiah hundreds of years before the actual event took place. Majority of the Christian community believe Jesus was God in flesh and was born to Mary in Bethlehem, which is right on according to the Bible. But one of the common misunderstanding Christians possess is that God came to be with us just 33 years.
The God of the universe, by whom all things are created, came down from heaven, leaving His glory behind for a while to live as a man among us. He wasn’t just a man who was 'enlightened' while sitting under a tree, but he had been always enlightened before He even appeared to us. He wasn’t someone who became 'divine' at age of thirty, but He was always divine. He wasn’t just a prophet but the originator of all prophecies. He wasn’t just a Jewish Rabbi, but He was the cause for a Jewish generation in the first place. He wasn’t like the Old Testament High Priests, but much better High priest who entered the real Holy of Holies forever. He was God, I mean that baby in that manger was God. He is the God whose glory was hidden behind the curtain and now revealed unto us, ultimately He Himself tearing the curtain from top to bottom, removing any barriers or the need of mediators to approach Him.
Why did He come?
Sure, He came to die. But is that it? No, to rise from the dead. Sure, But is that it? No, to ascend to heaven to be at the right hand of God. Sure, but is that it? No, Here is the thing: He came to die, to be buried, to be raised, to be ascended to heaven AND to come back in the person of Holy Spirit to dwell in those who believe forever! Sadly, many miss the significance of the last part of His ministry - permanently dwelling in believers. That entire doings of Him from death to the indwelling is what makes godliness possible among us. Nothing less could have done it.
Jesus came back in the person of Holy Spirit on the day of Pentecost
The day of Pentecost has to have a lot more significance than Christmas. On Christmas, Jesus came to live here for some years and go back; but on the day of Pentecost He came to live in us forever. Just prior to His ascension to heaven after the resurrection, He told His Disciples that it is good that He is going away, so that He can send Holy Spirit. In other words, He can come back in a mightier way to indwell in the multitudes forever. That is what happened on the day of Pentecost. It's interesting He called that person ‘comforter’. A comforter is one who comforts, not the one who put burden upon people. He came so that we can be comfortable (peaceful, restful).
Christ in us – the hope of glory
That’s the ultimatum of His ministry on this earth. Nothing less. His death was a prerequisite for His life to be given to us. Many believe ‘Christ in us’ is a positional truth or just a theological truth. Was His death positional? Was His resurrection positional? If those were real, this is also real. Our body is His temple and He lives in us. Literally. The life we live is His. In Him we have our being. We could still act stupid by asking Him to ‘come down from heaven’, ‘come closer to us’ etc. Hello? He is IN us! How can He come ‘closer’ than that?
Why would He dwell in us?
We all want to ‘feel’ spiritual. We like ‘feel good spirituality’, so we sing and dance to convince us we can still ‘feel’ His presence. There is nothing wrong in singing and dancing, but don’t mistake it for the true spirituality. True spirituality is far beyond our emotional experiences. There will be times in our life where we lose the sense of all our 'experiences' and feel blank, in such moments we need the truth to sustain us. And what is the truth? The truth is that the life of Christ Jesus is in us and He will never leave us nor forsake us. True spirituality is the realization and assurance of Christ’s life in us forever, which enables us to have a quiet confidence to rest in our soul. It is quite the opposite of the ‘bumper sticker spirituality' where everything seems to be about external but deep inside they are dead as a hammer. If Jesus meant to establish a show biz Christianity He could have done it by sitting in heaven by giving some instructions to follow. He didn’t have to come and dwell in us. Isn’t it quite obvious that He did it for a reason? Isn’t that a good reason to believe that He is truly interested in a relationship with us? The cry of our soul in hollowness and emptiness is answered in Jesus and in His life in us. It is in Him we stop wandering. It is in Him our deep need for love is fulfilled. He is faithful to lead us into rich pastures. I love this Savior! He didn't just save me from hell but gave me a life to live right here, right now. He made my heart lovable and it is my desire to spend the rest of my life enjoying the riches I have in Him.
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