Yesterday’s
declaration was liberating for me because the majority of my saved life I
understood Matthew 5:39 -- But I say to
you that you must not oppose those who want to hurt you. If people slap you on
your right cheek, you must turn the left cheek to them as well. (CEB) in
its literal sense, that if an offender slaps you, you should be a good
Christian and take it offering the other cheek.
This is not to say that someone actually taught that but the inference
of passivity in the “church”, including but not limited to the COGIC, is a
reality. I am not a violet person but I
cannot say with certainty that I would have been able to allow someone
permission to play on my face though I believe I would have tried during my
super religiousness. We discovered
yesterday that the primary focus of this text is dealing with offenses. I believe the underlying message of Matthew
5:39 is not to take ownership of any type of offense by holding onto it,
cultivating it until you have manifested the act of revenge, blame, hurt, etc. Using the example of a slap to the face ranks
pretty high on the list with regards to offenses especially when we consider
the message it sends. Instead, trust God
and let it go because holding onto it (them) will not change the situation or
make you feel better. Giving yourself permission
to forgive which ushers in freedom is far less costly than anger which can
produce mental and physical reactions. Believe
it or not, you are fighting from a different position, when you fight from the
place of liberty, peace and control.
There’s more than one way to fight a battle.
We
also discovered that:
·
From
the moment we begin to consider giving our lives to Christ the battle begins to
dissuade you from making the commitment;
·
That
battle is with yourself and the enemy (aka the devil, the accuser, etc.)
·
Salvation
is free to us, but it was purchased with the blood that Jesus shed at the
whipping post and Calvary’s hill;
·
Without the
shedding of our Lord’s blood, there could be no remission (pardon,
forgiveness, etc.) of sin. Hebrews 9:22
·
There
was blood in so we could be brought into the family of God and all
that represents. For God bought you with a high price. So you must honor God with your
body. 1 Corinthians 6:20 (NLT)
That’s a promise from God, but just
because it’s a promise doesn’t mean that things will be handed over to us on a flowery
bed of ease. Just as the Children of
Israel had to fight for the Promised Land given to them by God, there are promises
that we are going to have to fight for.
Joshua 1:5-9 (CEB): No one will be able to stand up against you
during your lifetime. I will be with you in the same way I was with Moses. I
won’t desert you or leave you. Be brave and strong, because you are
the one who will help this people take possession of the land, which I pledged
to give to their ancestors. “Be very brave and strong as you
carefully obey all of the Instruction that Moses my servant commanded you.
Don’t deviate even a bit from it, either to the right or left. Then you will
have success wherever you go. Never stop speaking about this Instruction
scroll. Recite it day and night so you can carefully obey everything written in
it. Then you will accomplish your objectives and you will succeed. I’ve commanded you to be brave and strong, haven’t I? Don’t be alarmed or terrified,
because the Lord your God is with you wherever you go.” Why did they have to
fight for their promise, why do we have to fight for ours? I won’t pretend to know the mind of God who
can certainly snap his finger, blink an eye, etc. and, “wah-lah”, we have
whatever it is we asked for (e.g. a spouse, a home, restored health, reconciled
relationships, successful business, peace, freedom, etc.). But how many of you would really appreciate
what you have if everything was “just” given to you? As a whole we appreciate the things we have
to work/struggle for far more than the ones we are given.
Tania Not Tanya Moment: Joshua
1:5-9 above God tells Joshua to be brave and strong three different times
within those five verses. As a rule, when something is repeated it is God’s way
of emphasizing a point. God didn’t tell
Joshua about all of the drama he would encounter, but he certainly gave him
confidence and forewarned him on the “D.L.” prior to the challenges they would
face on their way to Promise. He gave
Joshua instructions on an as needed basis so as not to overwhelm him and Joshua
obeyed even though he didn’t fully understand everything that was happening
and/or in those times that didn’t make sense: like telling a natural born
fighter who is also a skilled warrior, to march around Jericho in complete
silence or crossing the Jordan with no boat but when they ultimately walked through the Jordan River on dry
land.
In all honesty I believe that
somewhere along the journey some of us misinterpreted the instructions and the
rest of us fell for the old “name it and claim it okie doke” and the “if God said
it, I believe it and that settles it” doctrine.
To be clear, if God speaks to me I can stand assured that he will come
through, but it doesn’t guaranty dramaless acquisition of the promise. Therefore sending in your $26.99 for the
special anointed Kleenex or paper towels will make all your prayers come true;
or responding to the inbox/text messages (that are nothing more than electronic
chain letters) which promise you’re gonna receive a blessing today or an angel
is going to visit you if you send the message back to the recipient and 16 and
a half other gullible recipients. We run
around naively believing that were goin’ in the enemy’s camp and get our stuff
back instantaneously without any challenges, drama or suffering. People, stop.
Please stop. Is it possible to
take your stuff back from the enemy with no drama? Of course, anything is possible
with God, but most likely you’re gonna have to fight to get there (the enemy’s
camp). Chain letters of any sort, $26.99
for a blessing, etc. is not the word of God.
We don’t pay for God’s blessings and/or sending or responding to text
messages doesn’t guarantee anything other than the possibility of you exceeding
your text message limit or getting a response from somebody asking who you. If you are strong and courageous enough to go
into the enemy’s camp you might encounter some landmines or booby traps that
might give you some war wounds, but that won’t take you out if you bum-rushed
the enemy and you took the Trinity along with you. There is no magic to salvation and believing
God for the desires of your heart, it takes work, courage, faith and fight. You’re gonna have to put on your armor, helmet,
combat boots, strap yourself with your weapons, hunker down and fight for what
you want. That’s real talk right there
and it was free, today. Can I get a
witness up in here; up in here? Look ‘atcha’
neighbor and say: “neighbor, she got that right.” Go head, I’ll wait.
How do we fight the spiritual
battle? First we’ve gotta have a clear
mind so we can connect with God and get our battle instructions. It’s important that we pray, but it is also
important that we meditate on the word of God, his promises for us and our
desired outcome. God never intended for
you to fight alone, that’s a trick to keep you off your game.
Identify the enemy? If you don’t identify the enemy you may end
up fighting the wrong thing or person and perhaps that’s why you don’t have the
results or the promise. Who/what is the enemy?
Notice I said “the” instead of “your”.
We need a plan: Fail to plan; plan
to fail.
· How are you going to fight? Silently? Aggressively?
· When do you fight? But
Moses told the people, “Don’t be afraid. Just stand still and watch the LORD
rescue you today. Exodus 14:13a (NLT)
· What weapons? Praise,
the word of God, shield of faith, helmet of salvation, fasting, shoes of peace,
all of the above.
· Do you need help?
Intercessors, accountability partner, your pastor and/or other leaders.
· How long? In his kindness God called you to share in
his eternal glory by means of Christ Jesus. So after you have suffered a little
while, he will restore, support, and strengthen you, and he will place you on a
firm foundation. 1 Peter 5:10 (NLT)
· I saved the best for last:
Ask God for help: Proverbs 3:1-6
(NLT): My child, never forget the things I have taught you. Store my commands
in your heart. If you do this, you will live many years, and your life will be
satisfying. Never let loyalty and kindness leave you! Tie them around your neck
as a reminder. Write them deep within your heart. Then you will find favor with
both God and people, and you will earn a good reputation. Trust in the Lord
with all your heart; do not depend on your own understanding. Seek his will in all you do, and he will show
you which path to take.
I want to close on this don’t just
fight to fight, don’t just fight haphazardly, but fight a good fight, make your
Daddy proud. I’m out of time but you’re
not, Fight the good fight for the true
faith. Hold tightly to the eternal life to which God has called you, which you
have declared so well before many witnesses.
1 Timothy 6:12 (NLT)
In His New and Excellent Service
Tania
Not Tanya
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