It is the duty of nations, as well as of men,
to own their dependence upon the overruling power of God;
to confess their sins and transgressions in humble sorrow,
yet with the assured hope that genuine repentance will lead to mercy and pardon
and to recognize the sublime truth, announced in the Holy Scriptures and proven by all history,
that those nations are blessed whose God is the Lord.
we know that by His divine law, nations, like individuals,
are subjected to punishments and chastisements in this world.
may we not justly fear that the awful calamity of civil war, which now desolates the land,
may be a punishment inflicted upon us for our presumptuous sins,
to the needful end of our national reformation as a whole people?
we have been the recipients of the choicest bounties of heaven
we have been preserved these may years in peace and prosperity
we have grown in numbers, wealth and power as no other nation has ever grown.
but we have forgotten God.
we have forgotten the gracious hand which preserved us in peace
and multiplied and enriched and strengthened us
and we have vainly imagined, in the deceitfulness of our hearts,
that all these blessings were produced by some superior wisdom and virtue of our own.
intoxicated with unbroken success, we have become
too self-sufficient to feel the necessity of redeeming and preserving grace,
too proud to pray to the God that made us.
it has seemed to me fit and proper that God should be solemnly, reverently and gratefully acknowledged, as with one heart and one voice, by the whole American people.
I do therefore invite my fellow citizens in every part of the United States,
and also those who are sojourning in foreign lands,
to set apart and observe the last Thursday of November
as a day of Thanksgiving and praise to our beneficent Gather Who dwelleth in the heavens,
Signed, A. Lincoln, October 3, 1863
Tuesday, December 27, 2016
12.27.2016 TRANSGENDER AND THE CHURCH
from the president of HARVEST USA (caring for sexually-hurting people in Jesus' name), Tim Geiger
Transgenderism: The Shaping of Reality (a compassionate and biblical response)
on may 13, 2016, many were surprised to learn that the federal government issued a directive to schools receiving federal Title IX grants. the directive said that schools must allow trans students to use the bathroom and locker room that match their gender identity. a confusing issue on a personal level became even more confusing as it developed into a public policy issue.
the emergence of public scrutiny over gender raises questions in the minds of many christians;
why would someone identify as transgender?
what do we mean by gender?
is it possible that there are more than two genders, male and female?
how does Scripture call christians to interact with trans individuals?
How do we understand what gender is?
what is a traditional understanding of gender?
to understand what is revolutionary about current gender politics, a quick look at how gender has been viewed historically, across all cultures,is necessary. for the whole of human existence, society, with few exceptions , has affirmed a male-female binary regarding gender. in other words, an individual's (given) physical sex at birth revealed and determined with gender the person was, however those gender roles of being a man or woman were expressed in one's given cultural time period.
this view of gender understood that for a very few number of individuals (about one in every 1500 births, or .007% of the population), this binary classification was not clear at birth. a condition known as intersex, formerly known as hermaphroditism, occurs when an individual is born either with genitalia of both sexes or with ambiguous genitalia. this poses tremendous challenges for these children and their parents regarding what gender they will live out. we ought to give much understanding and compassion for these difficult situations. however, intersex conditions have not been viewed historically as evidence of multiple genders, but rather as disorders of sexual development. like someone born without the ability to use their legs to stand or walk, such a condition does not argue that there are multiple views about what legs are for.
what is the new cultural understanding of gender?
in simple terms, it's this instead of possessing one of two fixed genders for life, the new understanding is that gender is FLUID. gender exists not as 2 permanent, fixed points, but rather on a continuum ranging from male to female. one's experience of gender is no longer one gender or the other; instead, it can be entirely opposite from one's biological sex, or one can switch back and forth between two genders. the goal of this cultural redefinition of gender is to ultimately do away with even the categories of male and female. gender doesn't matter in understanding what it means to be human.
a second element of this new cultural understanding is that gender is not innate, but acquired. while a child is born with male or female genitalia, that child does not develop his or her sense of gender identity until well after birth, according to psychologists, in most individuals, psychological gender is congruent with physical sex. however, in some cases, this is not so. hence, it is possible to have an individual born with genitalia associated with one gender, but to have a psychological conception of one's gender that is incongruent with one's physical sex.
TRANSGENDER is a blanket term applied to a person whose subjective experience of gender is incongruent with his or her physical sex. because of this perceived discrepancy, a transgender individual may elect to live out his or her gender in any number of ways. one might choose to identify as a particular gender different from his or her physical sex but never take measures to surgically or pharmacologically alter his or her physical sex. someone might go through a process of using certain drugs to alter brain chemistry and hormone levels to develop physical characteristics of his or her preferred gender. or one might elect to undergo gender reassignment surgery. these last 2 processes are known colloquially as TRANSITIONING.
this particular cultural concept of gender is new and itself in a state of evolution. in 2012, the Diagnostic and Statistical Manual (DSM IV) of the American Psychiatric Association categorized the aforementioned types of gender incongruence as a psychiatric condition: Gender Identity Disorder (GID) . just 4 years ago, the psychiatric community would have counseled the GID-presenting patient to accept his or her physical sex.
when the DSM-IV was updated in 2013 (DSM-IV) the diganostic criteria for GID changed, so that most people who were previously diagnosed with Gender Dysphoria - a perceptual problem, as opposed to a disorder. now the goal of the therapist is to help patients accept their perceived or preferred psychological gender.
What is the problem with transgender?
essentially, this view of sex and gender makes the individual's EXPERIENCE AND FEELINGS primary about what it means to be a person. who I am and what I am are grounded in what i feel or believe about myself. everything else - whether Scripture or physical reality or millennia-old social understanding - becomes secondary to MY understanding of personhood. so if I FEEL as though I am another gender - whether male, female or something in-between - that is who I actually AM.
this radical view of personhood and identity comes out of the movement toward deconstructing gender and sex (as they have been traditionally and historically understood), which is the fruit of the sexual revolution that began more than half a century ago. sexual boundaries and gender understanding are seen as social constructs, imposed by tradition(religious and civil) and by those in power. viewing the issue from that worldview, the individual is elevated above society and is now seen as self-determinative and authoritative, able to choose what best fits their own perception of reality. the result of this worldview disallows any kind of objective truth from God - that the world he created has a particular design and a particular purpose within which people find God's plan, his purposes and themselves.
in the twin areas of sexuality - sexual behavior and gender identity - the church is experiencing tremendous pressure to change its understanding of what Scripture says about personhood and identity - and to subsume its authority to that of the individual. while the world sees this process as freedom and finding authenticity of self, scripture views it as the outworking of sin and rebellion that is the result of the brokenness of life. the last line in the book of Judges, 'everyone sis what was right in his own eyes, aptly describes our world of increasing chaos and brokenness.
WHAT IS GOD'S VIEW OF GENDER?
understanding the narrative of scripture when it discusses human beings, made in the image of God, as either male or female, will give us a critical starting point for entering into this discussion.
Scripture is the starting point for how christians ought to think and live. God's Word has much to say regarding gender, and makes the following especially clear:
1. it identifies 2 (and only 2) genders in creation, with no distinction between biological sex (male and female) and gender (being a man or a woman).
2. it describes the brokenness of creation in the Fall, from which gender confusion results.
Scripture identifies 2 (and only 2) genders in creation.
we see this plainly when God establishes 2 genders - male and female - by decree in genesis 1.27;
so God created man in his own image,
in the image of God he created him;
male and female He created them.
God created men and women specifically for a particular kind of relationship with one another: the covenant of marriage, where the creation of children, leading to the development of both family and society, is a major reason for our sexuality. sexual activity is connected to humanity's purpose in life - a purpose that God mentions in genesis 1.28 to manage the earth and make it a place of bounty and beauty. creating life is an essential part of this.
but the genesis story, as the anchor for our understanding of sexuality and gender, doesn't limit gender differences only to reproduction. male and female reflect God's image to the world, and particularly so when a husband and wife join together in marriage. the narrative in Genesis hints at how gender differences profoundly shape humanity and our relationships. when Adam first sees Eve, he speaks of both similarity and difference and between them a relationship grows where intimacy, transparency, mutual love and unity grow in a way unlike any other human relationship. genesis 2.21-5 Eve's designation as Adam's 'helper' speaks of a relationship of unity and shared purpose (and not, as some erroneously think, that woman is inferior to man.)
the importance of gender is not relegated only to marriage, either. a single man or woman also lives out their unique identities and personalities in the context of their maleness or femaleness. all relationships are structured and enhanced through how we relate to one another as gendered beings.
so, God has established 2 genders - male and female - generally, in creation. but, we must note that He has also established these genders particularly in the lives of each individual. that is to say, God has assigned one of the two genders to each person at his or her birth. Scripture declares that God has planned out our unique gendered identity, connected to the biological sex with which we were born.
the Psalmist in Psalm 139 says clearly that God designed each person before he or she existed:
* for You formed my inward parts; You knitted me together in my mother's womb. psalms 139.13
* 'my frame was not hidden from You, when i was being made in secret, intricately woven in the depths of the earth. v15
* 'Your eyes saw my unformed substance; in your book were written, everyone of them, the days that were formed for me, when as yet there were none of them. v16
God both declares and foreknows the gender he has given to us. examples of his are found throughout Scripture: Hagar is told she will bear a son who is to be named Ishmael genesis 16.11; Abraham and Sarah are told that sarah will bear a son and they are to name him Issac. 17.19; the angel of the Lord tells Manoah that his barren wife will soon bear a son (Judges 13.3) and Mary receives the startling news, as an unmarried woman, that she would bear a son, Jesus, who would be the messiah. Luke 1.31
these key redemptive-historical acts, while they only mention the birth of sons, nevertheless establish the fact that it is god who ordains who we are as either male or female, as either sons or daughters.
Scripture describes the brokenness of creation in the Fall, from which gender confusion results.
christians do not live in a perfect, transcendent world; they share in the extensive brokenness of all creation. in the area of sexual behavior, the numerous prohibitions in the Old Testament regarding particular sexual acts is telling. the reason why God had to spell out one sexual prohibition after another was not because He views one sex as intrinsically evil (as some think christian doctrine teaches), but because our fallen, sinful hearts are capable of doing evil even with the good things god has created.
though God's order for creation exists in fractured form, it still remains. it still matters that we live according to it. regarding gender confusion of fluidity, in Deuteronomy 22.5, the Lord tells His people that to live as if you are someone of the opposite gender is sin. for many years, Deuteronomy 22.5 was used as a proof text against transvestitism, but its meaning goes far beyond simply wearing the clothes of the other gender. the verb-object clause sued in the verse means to 'put on the mantle' of the opposite gender - in other words, to live as though you were of the other gender.
the entire narrative of Scripture, including this passage, proclaims that God created all individuals to be either male or female, and to live as a man of woman in harmony with their physical sex. (as mentioned earlier, special consideration should be given to those who are born with intersex conditions, for they will require difficult decisions that are made for the benefit of the child; but these not-binary situations, which some proclaim as evidence of a 'third' gender or sex, are evidence that God's original design is broken and not that He intended multiple forms of gender.)
Gender matters to God ans as His image bearers, it should matter to us as well. TO ALTER ONE'S BIRTH GENDER OR TO LIVE AS A MEMBER OF THE OTHER GENDER IS THEREFORE SIN - AS IT IS A REPUDIATION OF GOD'S WILL AND INTENT FOR THE PARTICULAR CREATURE.
one is reminded of the Lord's words to His rebellious people in Isaiah 29.16:
You who turn things upside down! shall the potter be regarded as the clay, that the thing made should say of its maker, 'He did not make me'; or the thing formed say of him who formed it, 'He has no understanding'?
to live outside of His design and purpose is to engage in rebellion against Him, even if that rebellion is the result of confusion and personal pain. the confusion about gender is the result of our world moving away from an acceptance of God as both creator and ruler. the implications for the individual in distress, and for society as a whole, are enormous. it is right and good and necessary that we proclaim a true view of human personhood and the benefits that come from embracing it.
Transgenderism: The Shaping of Reality (a compassionate and biblical response)
on may 13, 2016, many were surprised to learn that the federal government issued a directive to schools receiving federal Title IX grants. the directive said that schools must allow trans students to use the bathroom and locker room that match their gender identity. a confusing issue on a personal level became even more confusing as it developed into a public policy issue.
the emergence of public scrutiny over gender raises questions in the minds of many christians;
why would someone identify as transgender?
what do we mean by gender?
is it possible that there are more than two genders, male and female?
how does Scripture call christians to interact with trans individuals?
How do we understand what gender is?
what is a traditional understanding of gender?
to understand what is revolutionary about current gender politics, a quick look at how gender has been viewed historically, across all cultures,is necessary. for the whole of human existence, society, with few exceptions , has affirmed a male-female binary regarding gender. in other words, an individual's (given) physical sex at birth revealed and determined with gender the person was, however those gender roles of being a man or woman were expressed in one's given cultural time period.
this view of gender understood that for a very few number of individuals (about one in every 1500 births, or .007% of the population), this binary classification was not clear at birth. a condition known as intersex, formerly known as hermaphroditism, occurs when an individual is born either with genitalia of both sexes or with ambiguous genitalia. this poses tremendous challenges for these children and their parents regarding what gender they will live out. we ought to give much understanding and compassion for these difficult situations. however, intersex conditions have not been viewed historically as evidence of multiple genders, but rather as disorders of sexual development. like someone born without the ability to use their legs to stand or walk, such a condition does not argue that there are multiple views about what legs are for.
what is the new cultural understanding of gender?
in simple terms, it's this instead of possessing one of two fixed genders for life, the new understanding is that gender is FLUID. gender exists not as 2 permanent, fixed points, but rather on a continuum ranging from male to female. one's experience of gender is no longer one gender or the other; instead, it can be entirely opposite from one's biological sex, or one can switch back and forth between two genders. the goal of this cultural redefinition of gender is to ultimately do away with even the categories of male and female. gender doesn't matter in understanding what it means to be human.
a second element of this new cultural understanding is that gender is not innate, but acquired. while a child is born with male or female genitalia, that child does not develop his or her sense of gender identity until well after birth, according to psychologists, in most individuals, psychological gender is congruent with physical sex. however, in some cases, this is not so. hence, it is possible to have an individual born with genitalia associated with one gender, but to have a psychological conception of one's gender that is incongruent with one's physical sex.
TRANSGENDER is a blanket term applied to a person whose subjective experience of gender is incongruent with his or her physical sex. because of this perceived discrepancy, a transgender individual may elect to live out his or her gender in any number of ways. one might choose to identify as a particular gender different from his or her physical sex but never take measures to surgically or pharmacologically alter his or her physical sex. someone might go through a process of using certain drugs to alter brain chemistry and hormone levels to develop physical characteristics of his or her preferred gender. or one might elect to undergo gender reassignment surgery. these last 2 processes are known colloquially as TRANSITIONING.
this particular cultural concept of gender is new and itself in a state of evolution. in 2012, the Diagnostic and Statistical Manual (DSM IV) of the American Psychiatric Association categorized the aforementioned types of gender incongruence as a psychiatric condition: Gender Identity Disorder (GID) . just 4 years ago, the psychiatric community would have counseled the GID-presenting patient to accept his or her physical sex.
when the DSM-IV was updated in 2013 (DSM-IV) the diganostic criteria for GID changed, so that most people who were previously diagnosed with Gender Dysphoria - a perceptual problem, as opposed to a disorder. now the goal of the therapist is to help patients accept their perceived or preferred psychological gender.
What is the problem with transgender?
essentially, this view of sex and gender makes the individual's EXPERIENCE AND FEELINGS primary about what it means to be a person. who I am and what I am are grounded in what i feel or believe about myself. everything else - whether Scripture or physical reality or millennia-old social understanding - becomes secondary to MY understanding of personhood. so if I FEEL as though I am another gender - whether male, female or something in-between - that is who I actually AM.
this radical view of personhood and identity comes out of the movement toward deconstructing gender and sex (as they have been traditionally and historically understood), which is the fruit of the sexual revolution that began more than half a century ago. sexual boundaries and gender understanding are seen as social constructs, imposed by tradition(religious and civil) and by those in power. viewing the issue from that worldview, the individual is elevated above society and is now seen as self-determinative and authoritative, able to choose what best fits their own perception of reality. the result of this worldview disallows any kind of objective truth from God - that the world he created has a particular design and a particular purpose within which people find God's plan, his purposes and themselves.
in the twin areas of sexuality - sexual behavior and gender identity - the church is experiencing tremendous pressure to change its understanding of what Scripture says about personhood and identity - and to subsume its authority to that of the individual. while the world sees this process as freedom and finding authenticity of self, scripture views it as the outworking of sin and rebellion that is the result of the brokenness of life. the last line in the book of Judges, 'everyone sis what was right in his own eyes, aptly describes our world of increasing chaos and brokenness.
WHAT IS GOD'S VIEW OF GENDER?
understanding the narrative of scripture when it discusses human beings, made in the image of God, as either male or female, will give us a critical starting point for entering into this discussion.
Scripture is the starting point for how christians ought to think and live. God's Word has much to say regarding gender, and makes the following especially clear:
1. it identifies 2 (and only 2) genders in creation, with no distinction between biological sex (male and female) and gender (being a man or a woman).
2. it describes the brokenness of creation in the Fall, from which gender confusion results.
Scripture identifies 2 (and only 2) genders in creation.
we see this plainly when God establishes 2 genders - male and female - by decree in genesis 1.27;
so God created man in his own image,
in the image of God he created him;
male and female He created them.
God created men and women specifically for a particular kind of relationship with one another: the covenant of marriage, where the creation of children, leading to the development of both family and society, is a major reason for our sexuality. sexual activity is connected to humanity's purpose in life - a purpose that God mentions in genesis 1.28 to manage the earth and make it a place of bounty and beauty. creating life is an essential part of this.
but the genesis story, as the anchor for our understanding of sexuality and gender, doesn't limit gender differences only to reproduction. male and female reflect God's image to the world, and particularly so when a husband and wife join together in marriage. the narrative in Genesis hints at how gender differences profoundly shape humanity and our relationships. when Adam first sees Eve, he speaks of both similarity and difference and between them a relationship grows where intimacy, transparency, mutual love and unity grow in a way unlike any other human relationship. genesis 2.21-5 Eve's designation as Adam's 'helper' speaks of a relationship of unity and shared purpose (and not, as some erroneously think, that woman is inferior to man.)
the importance of gender is not relegated only to marriage, either. a single man or woman also lives out their unique identities and personalities in the context of their maleness or femaleness. all relationships are structured and enhanced through how we relate to one another as gendered beings.
so, God has established 2 genders - male and female - generally, in creation. but, we must note that He has also established these genders particularly in the lives of each individual. that is to say, God has assigned one of the two genders to each person at his or her birth. Scripture declares that God has planned out our unique gendered identity, connected to the biological sex with which we were born.
the Psalmist in Psalm 139 says clearly that God designed each person before he or she existed:
* for You formed my inward parts; You knitted me together in my mother's womb. psalms 139.13
* 'my frame was not hidden from You, when i was being made in secret, intricately woven in the depths of the earth. v15
* 'Your eyes saw my unformed substance; in your book were written, everyone of them, the days that were formed for me, when as yet there were none of them. v16
God both declares and foreknows the gender he has given to us. examples of his are found throughout Scripture: Hagar is told she will bear a son who is to be named Ishmael genesis 16.11; Abraham and Sarah are told that sarah will bear a son and they are to name him Issac. 17.19; the angel of the Lord tells Manoah that his barren wife will soon bear a son (Judges 13.3) and Mary receives the startling news, as an unmarried woman, that she would bear a son, Jesus, who would be the messiah. Luke 1.31
these key redemptive-historical acts, while they only mention the birth of sons, nevertheless establish the fact that it is god who ordains who we are as either male or female, as either sons or daughters.
Scripture describes the brokenness of creation in the Fall, from which gender confusion results.
christians do not live in a perfect, transcendent world; they share in the extensive brokenness of all creation. in the area of sexual behavior, the numerous prohibitions in the Old Testament regarding particular sexual acts is telling. the reason why God had to spell out one sexual prohibition after another was not because He views one sex as intrinsically evil (as some think christian doctrine teaches), but because our fallen, sinful hearts are capable of doing evil even with the good things god has created.
though God's order for creation exists in fractured form, it still remains. it still matters that we live according to it. regarding gender confusion of fluidity, in Deuteronomy 22.5, the Lord tells His people that to live as if you are someone of the opposite gender is sin. for many years, Deuteronomy 22.5 was used as a proof text against transvestitism, but its meaning goes far beyond simply wearing the clothes of the other gender. the verb-object clause sued in the verse means to 'put on the mantle' of the opposite gender - in other words, to live as though you were of the other gender.
the entire narrative of Scripture, including this passage, proclaims that God created all individuals to be either male or female, and to live as a man of woman in harmony with their physical sex. (as mentioned earlier, special consideration should be given to those who are born with intersex conditions, for they will require difficult decisions that are made for the benefit of the child; but these not-binary situations, which some proclaim as evidence of a 'third' gender or sex, are evidence that God's original design is broken and not that He intended multiple forms of gender.)
Gender matters to God ans as His image bearers, it should matter to us as well. TO ALTER ONE'S BIRTH GENDER OR TO LIVE AS A MEMBER OF THE OTHER GENDER IS THEREFORE SIN - AS IT IS A REPUDIATION OF GOD'S WILL AND INTENT FOR THE PARTICULAR CREATURE.
one is reminded of the Lord's words to His rebellious people in Isaiah 29.16:
You who turn things upside down! shall the potter be regarded as the clay, that the thing made should say of its maker, 'He did not make me'; or the thing formed say of him who formed it, 'He has no understanding'?
to live outside of His design and purpose is to engage in rebellion against Him, even if that rebellion is the result of confusion and personal pain. the confusion about gender is the result of our world moving away from an acceptance of God as both creator and ruler. the implications for the individual in distress, and for society as a whole, are enormous. it is right and good and necessary that we proclaim a true view of human personhood and the benefits that come from embracing it.
12.27.2016 DARE TO HOPE
by David Brickner in Oct. 2015 JEWS FOR JESUS newsletter
more christians have been martyred this year than at any other time in modern history. the moral decay of our culture has many believers wringing their hands while others who claim to know Christ are compromising on the clear teaching of Scripture. you might say these are dark days for followers of Christ. the prophet Jeremiah lived during a similar time in israel's history. he was charged by God to prophesy judgment on his own people because they disobeyed God by conforming to the sins of those around them; their idol worship, child sacrifices and religious prostitution had polluted the land. J spoke God's truth in power. he condemned sin and foretold judgment. the Babylonians - invaders from what we know as modern-day Iraq - would pulverize israel's armies and drag the people away into captivity.
for pronouncing such a message, J was rejected by almost everyone - and especially by his own family. they plotted to kill him. he was humiliated, publicly beaten and mocked; he was shamed as he was whipped and put in stocks in the public square. finally he was thrown in prison and flung into a deep pit, a cistern that was like a quagmire of oozing mud and filth where he lay sinking and freezing and near death.
J was broken and lonely, yet he wasn't without hope. in fact, he not only lived with a profound sense of hope, but he actually wrote a letter to the people after they were taken captive in Babylon, daring them to hope in the midst of their exile. ( see Jeremiah 29: 4-7)
how amazing that J wrote this letter at all! remember, these people had caused his pain and suffering and imprisonment.
I don't know about you, but if it were me i would have been tempted to write a letter saying, 'See. I told you so. you should have listened to me. but now you've gotten exactly what you deserve. but J doesn't do that. instead he writes to encourage them, to comfort them in their distress, to offer them good advice and hope for coping with their pain and loss. I find that striking.
and that is exactly how God responds to us. when we experience the consequences of our disobedience, He doesn't gloat or say, 'I told you so. He looks to forgive and bring about our redemption.
I was thinking about this recently as families of the Charleston massacre victims, grief
stricken over their loss, offered forgiveness to the murderer and called on him to repent and receive Christ. the whole world was amazed to see such good people. but it's not merely that they were GOOD people; they were GOD'S people.
when we choose forgiveness and grace toward those who have done us wrong, we, too, can show others what God is like. and we can do this because it is how God has shown Himself to us.
the second thing that strikes me about the prophet J is this: he gave the best possible advice to a people who had experienced complete and utter devastation. they had experienced such trauma, such profound loss, that it was only natural for them to despair of life.
but J says (if I can paraphrase), 'Hey guys. you have to keep on living. even in exile there is hope, because the God of hope promises to be with you. now you have to reshape your expectations. don't just become a hater of the situation. learn to live for what good God can make out of it.
all of us today are living in a kind of exile because ultimately our truest home is with God. yet God still wants us to live full of hope now and to do good even in our exile because ultimately we represent Him. our exile may feel like a real sense of loss. eventually life delivers the blows of loss and disappointment, even to those who are obedient, as J was. painful disappointments in our relationships may result in loneliness and alienation. or maybe things haven't turned out the way we hoped in terms of our job and career. we may be struggling with bitterness over any number of unmet expectations. some are facing declining health, even the prospect of death before we feel ready for it.
we all, at some point, realize the temporary nature of life. the things we think will make life perfect can't ultimately satisfy us. even if we have little or no disappointment in our relationships, career, etc. - even the best of the most wonderful life is tainted with temporality. and the knowledge that whatever we have on this earth is fleeting has caused many people to despair.
that's because we are made for a permanence that is found only in God's presence, a love and a joy that never fades - that is what we truly seek, even if we aren't aware of it. and that is what only He can give.
meanwhile, this is God's encouragement to us: we don't have to let regret over what we don't have rob us of the joys God is offering. but to experience those joys, we need to dispense with our fear of losing every good thing he gives us. we also need to dispense with the 'if onlys'. if only this didn't happen, if only i got that job or married that person or lived in that house. similarly, we can stop wishing that this or that didn't happen because guess what? it did.
we can never hope to avoid the pain and brokenness of life this side of heaven - yet we can live hope-filled lives because god's mercies are new every morning.
those mercies give us every reason to open our eyes and see what God has for us right here, right now. we can engage with people, be a light to the world around us and also experience and enjoy the blessings that god is offering us here and now.
not only are His mercies new every morning, but His eternal promises are secure. so taste and see that the Lord is good. he is the only pleasure that never fades away, but keeps getting better and better until that morning dawns when we stand in his presence with no more tears, no more sorrows, but only the pure, rich and ever-satisfying love of God.
we can have a measure of that experience now and tomorrow and the next day and the next. we need to believe that and declare that and order our lives around that ultimate reality. no matter how dark the horizon, we can dare to hope because we know for a certainty, the best is yet to come.
more christians have been martyred this year than at any other time in modern history. the moral decay of our culture has many believers wringing their hands while others who claim to know Christ are compromising on the clear teaching of Scripture. you might say these are dark days for followers of Christ. the prophet Jeremiah lived during a similar time in israel's history. he was charged by God to prophesy judgment on his own people because they disobeyed God by conforming to the sins of those around them; their idol worship, child sacrifices and religious prostitution had polluted the land. J spoke God's truth in power. he condemned sin and foretold judgment. the Babylonians - invaders from what we know as modern-day Iraq - would pulverize israel's armies and drag the people away into captivity.
for pronouncing such a message, J was rejected by almost everyone - and especially by his own family. they plotted to kill him. he was humiliated, publicly beaten and mocked; he was shamed as he was whipped and put in stocks in the public square. finally he was thrown in prison and flung into a deep pit, a cistern that was like a quagmire of oozing mud and filth where he lay sinking and freezing and near death.
J was broken and lonely, yet he wasn't without hope. in fact, he not only lived with a profound sense of hope, but he actually wrote a letter to the people after they were taken captive in Babylon, daring them to hope in the midst of their exile. ( see Jeremiah 29: 4-7)
how amazing that J wrote this letter at all! remember, these people had caused his pain and suffering and imprisonment.
I don't know about you, but if it were me i would have been tempted to write a letter saying, 'See. I told you so. you should have listened to me. but now you've gotten exactly what you deserve. but J doesn't do that. instead he writes to encourage them, to comfort them in their distress, to offer them good advice and hope for coping with their pain and loss. I find that striking.
and that is exactly how God responds to us. when we experience the consequences of our disobedience, He doesn't gloat or say, 'I told you so. He looks to forgive and bring about our redemption.
I was thinking about this recently as families of the Charleston massacre victims, grief
stricken over their loss, offered forgiveness to the murderer and called on him to repent and receive Christ. the whole world was amazed to see such good people. but it's not merely that they were GOOD people; they were GOD'S people.
when we choose forgiveness and grace toward those who have done us wrong, we, too, can show others what God is like. and we can do this because it is how God has shown Himself to us.
the second thing that strikes me about the prophet J is this: he gave the best possible advice to a people who had experienced complete and utter devastation. they had experienced such trauma, such profound loss, that it was only natural for them to despair of life.
but J says (if I can paraphrase), 'Hey guys. you have to keep on living. even in exile there is hope, because the God of hope promises to be with you. now you have to reshape your expectations. don't just become a hater of the situation. learn to live for what good God can make out of it.
all of us today are living in a kind of exile because ultimately our truest home is with God. yet God still wants us to live full of hope now and to do good even in our exile because ultimately we represent Him. our exile may feel like a real sense of loss. eventually life delivers the blows of loss and disappointment, even to those who are obedient, as J was. painful disappointments in our relationships may result in loneliness and alienation. or maybe things haven't turned out the way we hoped in terms of our job and career. we may be struggling with bitterness over any number of unmet expectations. some are facing declining health, even the prospect of death before we feel ready for it.
we all, at some point, realize the temporary nature of life. the things we think will make life perfect can't ultimately satisfy us. even if we have little or no disappointment in our relationships, career, etc. - even the best of the most wonderful life is tainted with temporality. and the knowledge that whatever we have on this earth is fleeting has caused many people to despair.
that's because we are made for a permanence that is found only in God's presence, a love and a joy that never fades - that is what we truly seek, even if we aren't aware of it. and that is what only He can give.
meanwhile, this is God's encouragement to us: we don't have to let regret over what we don't have rob us of the joys God is offering. but to experience those joys, we need to dispense with our fear of losing every good thing he gives us. we also need to dispense with the 'if onlys'. if only this didn't happen, if only i got that job or married that person or lived in that house. similarly, we can stop wishing that this or that didn't happen because guess what? it did.
we can never hope to avoid the pain and brokenness of life this side of heaven - yet we can live hope-filled lives because god's mercies are new every morning.
those mercies give us every reason to open our eyes and see what God has for us right here, right now. we can engage with people, be a light to the world around us and also experience and enjoy the blessings that god is offering us here and now.
not only are His mercies new every morning, but His eternal promises are secure. so taste and see that the Lord is good. he is the only pleasure that never fades away, but keeps getting better and better until that morning dawns when we stand in his presence with no more tears, no more sorrows, but only the pure, rich and ever-satisfying love of God.
we can have a measure of that experience now and tomorrow and the next day and the next. we need to believe that and declare that and order our lives around that ultimate reality. no matter how dark the horizon, we can dare to hope because we know for a certainty, the best is yet to come.
Monday, December 26, 2016
12.16 CT ON 'INVESTING IN THE KINGDOM' by Jeff Haanen
EVENTIDE ASSET MANAGEMENT has confounded the investment world with its success - ad it s pblically based principles.
51 not long ago, when reporters wrote about Robin John, the cofounder of Eventide (E)..a subtle snicker rumbled under the surface. one called him 'The Believer'; others pointed out the odd language on his Boston-based mutual Fund company's website: business as an 'ENGINE OF BLESSING' AND 'BIBLICALLY RESPONSIBLE INVESTING'.
theology as the foundation for picking stocks?
is this guy for real>
today the murmurs seem to have faded and for good reason. since its launch in 2008, E's flagship mutual fund (a pool of money professionally invested in stocks, bonds and other securities) the GILEAD FUND, HAS GIVEN SHAREHOLDERS A 13.70 % ANNUALIZED RETURN as of Sept. 30,2016, compared to 9.03% for the Standard and Poor's 500. to put that into perspective, an investor who put $10,000 into the fund at its launch would be worth $26,050 today. the Gilead Fund has been covered as a top performer by The New York Times, The Wall Street Journal and Bloomberg, among other publications. over the past 3 years, media attention has helped E explode from $50 million in assets under management to nearly $2 billion.
but there's more to Robin John(J) than a focus on profit. challenging Miltons Friedman's declaration that the only social responsibility of business is to increase profits, J says, 'PROFIT IS ONLY THE BYPRODUCT OF A JOB WELL DONE'.
J, an evangelical living in dallas, is a leader in the growing field of biblically responsible investing, which applies christian theology and social concern to investment analysis. E, founded in 2008, has garnered attention because of both its results and its uniquely faith-filled investment philosophy, driven ultimately by Jesus' command to love your neighbor as yourself.
his journey to investing, however, was fraught with vocational doubt, uncertainty and a heart-wrenching journey to India, the land of his birth...
...I would pray for a calling to go into ministry, J recalls, but I didn't hear from God. so , because I didn't feel like I had a calling, I said, 'I guess I'll just make money and support those who do...
...J asked Kuruvilla (K) to pray with him, hoping for a sense of Go's call. they prayed once a week for 6 months. 'if God wants me to go into full-time ministry, that's what I'll do, J said, uncertain about working in ministry or business. together they started a house church and were joined by a Nigerian widow, Congolese immigrants and a few Harvard students eager to serve their community. soon after, Tim Weinhold (W) an entrepreneur and Harvard alumnus, visited the house church. getting acquainted after the service, K mentioned that he and some friends were thinking of starting a christian mutual fund.
'I know what a mutual fund is, said a skeptical W. who would eventually become director of faith and business for E. 'and I know what a christian is. explain to me what a christian mutual fund is.
after prayer and discussion, J and K cofounded Eventide Asset Management with the vision of 'INVESTING THAT MAKES THE WORLD REJOICE.
as the Great Recession began, the sun was setting on J's longing for a call to ministry. in response to J's question of whether to go into business or ministry, God slowly revealed His clear answer: 'BOTH'.
I'm confused, I confess on stage, as I interview John before an eager crowd at the Commons at Champa, a shared workspace in denver.
'what's the difference between
SOCIALLY RESPONSIBLE INVESTING,
VALUES-BASED INVESTING and
BIBLICALLY RESPONSIBLE INVESTING? ...
conventional fund managers look for financial strengths in making investment decisions, J says.
the problem is that profitability is a lagging indicator.
it tells investors more about the past than the future.
moreover, it doesn't show how a business made that money, whether through quality products or oppressive business practices.
conversely, moral or ethical fund managers screen out the 'vice stocks'
-pornography, tobacco, weapons or abortion
-and then look for financial strengths.
'this is the typical approach of what we might label biblically responsible investing 1.0.
its a good star J says, but it doesn't go far enough, because business can HARM not just through BAD PRODUCTS but through BAD PRACTICES.
the Biblical word for these business practices if PLUNDER, says J, who cites biblical passages that emphasize God's concern for the poor: 'because the poor are plundered and the needy groan, I will now arise, says the Lord, 'I will protect them from those who malign them. Psalms 12.5
but instead of merely avoiding companies that plunder or extract value from a community..we llk for companies with an extraordinary ability to INNOVATE AND CREATE VALUE FOR ALL STAKEHOLDERS - CUSTOMERS, EMPLOYEES, SUPPLIERS, HOST COMMUNITIES, THE NATURAL ENVIRONMENT AND SOCIETY. each of these 6 stakeholders, E believes, is a primary neighbor that business are called to serve. J dubs this POSITIVE VISION, 'biblically responsible investing 2.0.
the E philosophy, or E Business 360, is rooted in the biblical understanding that God's intent for business, investing and all vocations is to serve and, in turn, bless humankind. Weinhold, E's director of faith and business, points to verses like deuteronomy 8.18 - 'but remember the Lord your God, for it is he who gives you the ability to produce wealth and so confirm His covenant, which He swore to your ancestors, as it is today' - to show that business is uniquely able to create wealth and provide for material needs.
business does this, according to W, by creating products that solve the material challenges of human existence and by making a profit, thereby enlarging human wealth to make those products affordable and accessible.
when deciding what businesses to invest in, E considers factors often outside of typical investment analysis such as
employees
51 not long ago, when reporters wrote about Robin John, the cofounder of Eventide (E)..a subtle snicker rumbled under the surface. one called him 'The Believer'; others pointed out the odd language on his Boston-based mutual Fund company's website: business as an 'ENGINE OF BLESSING' AND 'BIBLICALLY RESPONSIBLE INVESTING'.
theology as the foundation for picking stocks?
is this guy for real>
today the murmurs seem to have faded and for good reason. since its launch in 2008, E's flagship mutual fund (a pool of money professionally invested in stocks, bonds and other securities) the GILEAD FUND, HAS GIVEN SHAREHOLDERS A 13.70 % ANNUALIZED RETURN as of Sept. 30,2016, compared to 9.03% for the Standard and Poor's 500. to put that into perspective, an investor who put $10,000 into the fund at its launch would be worth $26,050 today. the Gilead Fund has been covered as a top performer by The New York Times, The Wall Street Journal and Bloomberg, among other publications. over the past 3 years, media attention has helped E explode from $50 million in assets under management to nearly $2 billion.
but there's more to Robin John(J) than a focus on profit. challenging Miltons Friedman's declaration that the only social responsibility of business is to increase profits, J says, 'PROFIT IS ONLY THE BYPRODUCT OF A JOB WELL DONE'.
J, an evangelical living in dallas, is a leader in the growing field of biblically responsible investing, which applies christian theology and social concern to investment analysis. E, founded in 2008, has garnered attention because of both its results and its uniquely faith-filled investment philosophy, driven ultimately by Jesus' command to love your neighbor as yourself.
his journey to investing, however, was fraught with vocational doubt, uncertainty and a heart-wrenching journey to India, the land of his birth...
...I would pray for a calling to go into ministry, J recalls, but I didn't hear from God. so , because I didn't feel like I had a calling, I said, 'I guess I'll just make money and support those who do...
...J asked Kuruvilla (K) to pray with him, hoping for a sense of Go's call. they prayed once a week for 6 months. 'if God wants me to go into full-time ministry, that's what I'll do, J said, uncertain about working in ministry or business. together they started a house church and were joined by a Nigerian widow, Congolese immigrants and a few Harvard students eager to serve their community. soon after, Tim Weinhold (W) an entrepreneur and Harvard alumnus, visited the house church. getting acquainted after the service, K mentioned that he and some friends were thinking of starting a christian mutual fund.
'I know what a mutual fund is, said a skeptical W. who would eventually become director of faith and business for E. 'and I know what a christian is. explain to me what a christian mutual fund is.
after prayer and discussion, J and K cofounded Eventide Asset Management with the vision of 'INVESTING THAT MAKES THE WORLD REJOICE.
as the Great Recession began, the sun was setting on J's longing for a call to ministry. in response to J's question of whether to go into business or ministry, God slowly revealed His clear answer: 'BOTH'.
I'm confused, I confess on stage, as I interview John before an eager crowd at the Commons at Champa, a shared workspace in denver.
'what's the difference between
SOCIALLY RESPONSIBLE INVESTING,
VALUES-BASED INVESTING and
BIBLICALLY RESPONSIBLE INVESTING? ...
conventional fund managers look for financial strengths in making investment decisions, J says.
the problem is that profitability is a lagging indicator.
it tells investors more about the past than the future.
moreover, it doesn't show how a business made that money, whether through quality products or oppressive business practices.
conversely, moral or ethical fund managers screen out the 'vice stocks'
-pornography, tobacco, weapons or abortion
-and then look for financial strengths.
'this is the typical approach of what we might label biblically responsible investing 1.0.
its a good star J says, but it doesn't go far enough, because business can HARM not just through BAD PRODUCTS but through BAD PRACTICES.
the Biblical word for these business practices if PLUNDER, says J, who cites biblical passages that emphasize God's concern for the poor: 'because the poor are plundered and the needy groan, I will now arise, says the Lord, 'I will protect them from those who malign them. Psalms 12.5
but instead of merely avoiding companies that plunder or extract value from a community..we llk for companies with an extraordinary ability to INNOVATE AND CREATE VALUE FOR ALL STAKEHOLDERS - CUSTOMERS, EMPLOYEES, SUPPLIERS, HOST COMMUNITIES, THE NATURAL ENVIRONMENT AND SOCIETY. each of these 6 stakeholders, E believes, is a primary neighbor that business are called to serve. J dubs this POSITIVE VISION, 'biblically responsible investing 2.0.
the E philosophy, or E Business 360, is rooted in the biblical understanding that God's intent for business, investing and all vocations is to serve and, in turn, bless humankind. Weinhold, E's director of faith and business, points to verses like deuteronomy 8.18 - 'but remember the Lord your God, for it is he who gives you the ability to produce wealth and so confirm His covenant, which He swore to your ancestors, as it is today' - to show that business is uniquely able to create wealth and provide for material needs.
business does this, according to W, by creating products that solve the material challenges of human existence and by making a profit, thereby enlarging human wealth to make those products affordable and accessible.
when deciding what businesses to invest in, E considers factors often outside of typical investment analysis such as
employees
12.26.2016 12.2016 CT on OPIOID ADDICTION, p35
Just Say No To Shame p34f
...it is an illness that has reached epidemic proportions in our country, claiming the lives of 78 people a day, with incidences of death quadrupling between 1999 and 2014, according to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention...
an opioid (O) from the root word opium, is a class of pain-relieving drugs that can vary in intensity from fetanyl (extreme) to codeine (mild). according to the Department of Health and Human Services, more than 240 million prescriptions were written for legal opioids in 2014 - more than enough for every adult in the US to have their own bottle. from 1999-2014, the period in which opioid overdose deaths quadrupled, so too did the sales of prescription O.
the widespread nature of the opioid epidemic that reaches across typical class, race and geographical stereotypes has challenged myths of who drug addicts are. it has also widened the lens, revealing more moral actors participating in the crisis beyond the addict. years of
distorted public policy,
overworked and undertrained doctors,
intentionally misleading pharmaceutical marketing and
even watered down theology
that reduces people to disembodied moral agents instead of whole human persons created in the image and likeness of the good god have all contributed through sins of both omission and commission..
the Society of Addiction Medicine reports that 4 out of 5 heroin addicts started with prescription opioid medications, with nearly all reporting that they eventually switched to heroin because of the price...
during a follow up with my doctor, he determined that the cause of my ongoing pain and inability to eat was gastroparesis. the pain medicine I had been taking was deadening the nerve endings in my digestive tract and hindering my ability to process food. in other words, the pain medicine was now causing the pain. the more I took to relieve the pain, the more pain I felt.
that's when my doctor told me.
Tim, you need to know you are addicted to pain medicine...
my doctor continued, 'that isn't a judgment on you. i'm not saying you've done anything wrong or that you aren't still in pain. but we've been giving you this pain medicine for so long, your body is now dependent on it. it has gone from helping you to hurting you.
I relaxed. I let my defenses down and loosened my grip on my justifications.
I'm not going to just take the pain medicine away from you when you need it. but if I make that commitment to you, I want you to make a commitment to me. will you take less whenever you can? for a while you couldn't have made it without the pain medicine. now to fully heal, you need to eventually stop taking it.
I took a deep breath of relief. i wasn't 'bad'. I hadn't done anything 'wrong'. I had an new disease, a complication from my medication and I had a doctor who was there and ready to help.
(nearly 19,000 americans died from overdoses of prescription pain relievers in 2014, nearly double the number who died of heroin overdoses.)
...my employer at the time,
Sojourners, had gone far above and beyond not just legal requirements but any general expectations to ensure
I was financially secure, had access to quality health care, and
had the hope of a job to return to.
a friend who was starting a church in his living room picked me up on sunday mornings. I was still taking pain pills to get through the service, but
I stayed connected to a community defined by
openness,
honesty,
mutual vulnerability,
grace
and love.
...I remember looking at a near empty bottle of pain pills and feeling nervous and insecure. I had switched to primarily over-the -counter pain relievers and one strong pain pill a day. when my doctor told me I could still get another refill if I needed it,
I said no.
I had determined that would be my last.
it was not an easy goodbye.
the feeling was lie the tremor in your hand when your blood sugar drops.
desire spreads out to every cell of your body as if each one is making its own demand, aching and promising to be satisfied with just a little more.
most addicts are addicts because their substance of choice really does do something for the pain they experience, whether that pain is physical, emotional, spiritual, or a mix of all 3.
what I didn't realize I needed to hear and which my doctor affirmed, was that I was still a 'good' person AND I had an addiction. in a sense, I had not chosen to become an addict. addiction had chosen me.
....some who have never experienced the furious grip of chemical dependence are tempted to split the world into 'addicts' and 'non-addicts', morally bad and morally good. as I've said, I did not realized how fully I had embraced this view until faced with my own opioid addiction. now, I realize that the world is divided between addicts who have begun to face their addictions and those who live under the illusion that they have none.
all who have come to the point where they acknowledge their own shortcomings and realize that they cannot eliminate them through their own power have admitted that they too, in their own way, are addicts. the addiction might be to
food,
shopping,
status symbols,
the need to be 'right',
the need to be needed, or
the need to feel moral superiority over those who struggle with less 'societally acceptable sins.
one of the most powerful teachings the church can embrace in light of this crisis is to say, 'Let the one who is not an addict cast the first stone'.
while addiction science has made strides, there is still no silver bullet.already there are stories of innovative addicts who have found new ways to abuse the medications intended to help them. ANY APPROACH THAT REDUCES ADDICTION TO A PROBLEM OF BRAIN CHEMISTRY AND FAILS TO ACKNOWLEDGE HUMANS AS MORAL ACTORS WILL ULTIMATELY FAIL.
but leading researchers and those discussing public initiatives have gone a long way to acknowledge the importance of a BOTH/AND methodology.
..the longer that addiction is seen as a struggle for the 'sinners out there' and not at the heart of the struggle of each and every one of us, the longer this problem will make headlines and remain in the shadows. sin takes its deepest root in the cover of darkness where it is never given a name. when our affliction is named for what it is and brought into the light, that's when darkness may be overcome.
written by Timothy King
..and p44ff Crossing the Wasteland of Faith
..the faith journey is not an alone thing. it is your own faith journey, but you have to work it about in community in order to see God at work consistently.
both scripture and new scientific research confirm this insight:
loneliness kills;
friendship saves.
epidemiological studies show that isolation makes you more likely to (suffer physically, mentally...)
meanwhile, friends boost your immune system,
help you stave off all manner of disease and
could extend your life.
the same is true of our aching feeling that God is absent.
'we keep referring to dryness as something we have to get out of.
I'm not sure it is, Elizabeth says.
'It the American way:
'How do I fix this?
tell me what to do about this.
maybe the answer is nothing.
maybe the answer is to keep your arms wide open.'
Elizabeth's words recalled my conversation with Drew Bond, the fellow churchgoer who had experienced years of spiritual flatness.why not just give up, I ask him?
'Give up on the faith journey of fallowing Jesus? he asked. 'that would be a worse disaster. I did that in college and it didn't work out so well.
Jesus' disciples said much the same thing. after many of his followers had left him, he asked his close friends if they were going to abandon Him as well. 'Lord, to whom shall we go? Peter responded. 'You have the words of eternal life. john 6.68
'we just forget, Drew said. 'like the Israelites: one of the biggest mistakes they made is they forgot what captivity was like. so they complained about the desert, they complained about God giving them water from a rock and they wanted to go back to captivity.
he passed, took a breath, and smiled.
'I don't want to go back to captivity.'
..
...it is an illness that has reached epidemic proportions in our country, claiming the lives of 78 people a day, with incidences of death quadrupling between 1999 and 2014, according to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention...
an opioid (O) from the root word opium, is a class of pain-relieving drugs that can vary in intensity from fetanyl (extreme) to codeine (mild). according to the Department of Health and Human Services, more than 240 million prescriptions were written for legal opioids in 2014 - more than enough for every adult in the US to have their own bottle. from 1999-2014, the period in which opioid overdose deaths quadrupled, so too did the sales of prescription O.
the widespread nature of the opioid epidemic that reaches across typical class, race and geographical stereotypes has challenged myths of who drug addicts are. it has also widened the lens, revealing more moral actors participating in the crisis beyond the addict. years of
distorted public policy,
overworked and undertrained doctors,
intentionally misleading pharmaceutical marketing and
even watered down theology
that reduces people to disembodied moral agents instead of whole human persons created in the image and likeness of the good god have all contributed through sins of both omission and commission..
the Society of Addiction Medicine reports that 4 out of 5 heroin addicts started with prescription opioid medications, with nearly all reporting that they eventually switched to heroin because of the price...
during a follow up with my doctor, he determined that the cause of my ongoing pain and inability to eat was gastroparesis. the pain medicine I had been taking was deadening the nerve endings in my digestive tract and hindering my ability to process food. in other words, the pain medicine was now causing the pain. the more I took to relieve the pain, the more pain I felt.
that's when my doctor told me.
Tim, you need to know you are addicted to pain medicine...
my doctor continued, 'that isn't a judgment on you. i'm not saying you've done anything wrong or that you aren't still in pain. but we've been giving you this pain medicine for so long, your body is now dependent on it. it has gone from helping you to hurting you.
I relaxed. I let my defenses down and loosened my grip on my justifications.
I'm not going to just take the pain medicine away from you when you need it. but if I make that commitment to you, I want you to make a commitment to me. will you take less whenever you can? for a while you couldn't have made it without the pain medicine. now to fully heal, you need to eventually stop taking it.
I took a deep breath of relief. i wasn't 'bad'. I hadn't done anything 'wrong'. I had an new disease, a complication from my medication and I had a doctor who was there and ready to help.
(nearly 19,000 americans died from overdoses of prescription pain relievers in 2014, nearly double the number who died of heroin overdoses.)
...my employer at the time,
Sojourners, had gone far above and beyond not just legal requirements but any general expectations to ensure
I was financially secure, had access to quality health care, and
had the hope of a job to return to.
a friend who was starting a church in his living room picked me up on sunday mornings. I was still taking pain pills to get through the service, but
I stayed connected to a community defined by
openness,
honesty,
mutual vulnerability,
grace
and love.
...I remember looking at a near empty bottle of pain pills and feeling nervous and insecure. I had switched to primarily over-the -counter pain relievers and one strong pain pill a day. when my doctor told me I could still get another refill if I needed it,
I said no.
I had determined that would be my last.
it was not an easy goodbye.
the feeling was lie the tremor in your hand when your blood sugar drops.
desire spreads out to every cell of your body as if each one is making its own demand, aching and promising to be satisfied with just a little more.
most addicts are addicts because their substance of choice really does do something for the pain they experience, whether that pain is physical, emotional, spiritual, or a mix of all 3.
what I didn't realize I needed to hear and which my doctor affirmed, was that I was still a 'good' person AND I had an addiction. in a sense, I had not chosen to become an addict. addiction had chosen me.
....some who have never experienced the furious grip of chemical dependence are tempted to split the world into 'addicts' and 'non-addicts', morally bad and morally good. as I've said, I did not realized how fully I had embraced this view until faced with my own opioid addiction. now, I realize that the world is divided between addicts who have begun to face their addictions and those who live under the illusion that they have none.
all who have come to the point where they acknowledge their own shortcomings and realize that they cannot eliminate them through their own power have admitted that they too, in their own way, are addicts. the addiction might be to
food,
shopping,
status symbols,
the need to be 'right',
the need to be needed, or
the need to feel moral superiority over those who struggle with less 'societally acceptable sins.
one of the most powerful teachings the church can embrace in light of this crisis is to say, 'Let the one who is not an addict cast the first stone'.
while addiction science has made strides, there is still no silver bullet.already there are stories of innovative addicts who have found new ways to abuse the medications intended to help them. ANY APPROACH THAT REDUCES ADDICTION TO A PROBLEM OF BRAIN CHEMISTRY AND FAILS TO ACKNOWLEDGE HUMANS AS MORAL ACTORS WILL ULTIMATELY FAIL.
but leading researchers and those discussing public initiatives have gone a long way to acknowledge the importance of a BOTH/AND methodology.
..the longer that addiction is seen as a struggle for the 'sinners out there' and not at the heart of the struggle of each and every one of us, the longer this problem will make headlines and remain in the shadows. sin takes its deepest root in the cover of darkness where it is never given a name. when our affliction is named for what it is and brought into the light, that's when darkness may be overcome.
written by Timothy King
..and p44ff Crossing the Wasteland of Faith
..the faith journey is not an alone thing. it is your own faith journey, but you have to work it about in community in order to see God at work consistently.
both scripture and new scientific research confirm this insight:
loneliness kills;
friendship saves.
epidemiological studies show that isolation makes you more likely to (suffer physically, mentally...)
meanwhile, friends boost your immune system,
help you stave off all manner of disease and
could extend your life.
the same is true of our aching feeling that God is absent.
'we keep referring to dryness as something we have to get out of.
I'm not sure it is, Elizabeth says.
'It the American way:
'How do I fix this?
tell me what to do about this.
maybe the answer is nothing.
maybe the answer is to keep your arms wide open.'
Elizabeth's words recalled my conversation with Drew Bond, the fellow churchgoer who had experienced years of spiritual flatness.why not just give up, I ask him?
'Give up on the faith journey of fallowing Jesus? he asked. 'that would be a worse disaster. I did that in college and it didn't work out so well.
Jesus' disciples said much the same thing. after many of his followers had left him, he asked his close friends if they were going to abandon Him as well. 'Lord, to whom shall we go? Peter responded. 'You have the words of eternal life. john 6.68
'we just forget, Drew said. 'like the Israelites: one of the biggest mistakes they made is they forgot what captivity was like. so they complained about the desert, they complained about God giving them water from a rock and they wanted to go back to captivity.
he passed, took a breath, and smiled.
'I don't want to go back to captivity.'
..
12.26.2016 CHRISTIANITY TODAY (12.2016) magazine (CT): Where We Stand...ABIDE BY THEOLOGICAL COMMITMENTS..ON HUMAN SEXUALITY
the response was not surprising. some called it a 'purge'; others a 'witch hunt'. in october, InterVarsity Christian Fellowship (IVCF) told its 1300 staff members that they are expected to abide by the organization's theologicl commitments - in particular those on human sexuality. if a staff member disagrees with IVCF's views (which are traditionally orthodox), they are expected to resign.
we have a different name fro IVCF's action: DISCIPLESHIP.
in a recent LifeWay Research survey, 62% of churchgoing Christians - and 57% of evangelicals - said their church does not have the authority to withhold the Lord's Supper or to exclude them from fellowship. an earlier LifeWay survey found that 9 in 10 evangelicals said the church doesn't have the authority to declare they're not christians. a 2011 Barna study found that only 5 % of christians involved in a church say their church holds them accountable (the figure was about the same for members of christian small groups).
the popular belief among christians seems to be the one expressed in an open letter to IVCF, posted in full by Religion News Service, objecting to its decision: 'we understand that conversations related to marriage, sexuality and gender are critical for christians, but we also recognize that christians of mutual goodwill can have these conversations and arrive at various conclusions'.
of course they can. but that doesn't mean those christians should be discipling college students through InterVarsity, or heading up a local church college and youth ministry. that's especially true when the evangelical organization or church, after h years of study and prayer, has rightly concluded that human sexuality is a core theological issue.
and that's the rub. an open letter from the Gay Christian Network argued: 'while we sympathize with the need for religious organizations to be able to take theological positions, we do not believe witch hunts based on privately held personal beliefs are the right way to handle a sensitive issue where many christians are EVOLVING. (note - does the truth of the Bible evolve? No. Jesus said in matthew 5.18 - for truly I say unto you, till heaven and earth pass, one jot (the smallest letter in the Old Testament Hebrew language) or tittle ( a tiny extension of another Hebrew letter, daleth(sp?) SHALL IN NO WISE PASS FROM THE LAW, TILL ALL BE FULFILLED. (ie. in the eternal state following the final destruction of our earth.)
...we live in a world that listens to a steady song of absolute autonomy, with its refrains of 'my rights', 'my freedom', and 'my truth'. others advocate communities of inclusion that embrace the intellectually marginalized. at the same time, media and university elites who sing such songs are the very ones who 'excommunicate' those who don't agree with their ideas...
there is plenty of room for grace in church discipline. and forgiveness. and gentle teaching of those who have yet to make up their minds : 'Opponents must be gently instructed, in the hope that God will grant them repentance leading them to a knowledge of the truth,,II timothy 2.25
we have a different name fro IVCF's action: DISCIPLESHIP.
in a recent LifeWay Research survey, 62% of churchgoing Christians - and 57% of evangelicals - said their church does not have the authority to withhold the Lord's Supper or to exclude them from fellowship. an earlier LifeWay survey found that 9 in 10 evangelicals said the church doesn't have the authority to declare they're not christians. a 2011 Barna study found that only 5 % of christians involved in a church say their church holds them accountable (the figure was about the same for members of christian small groups).
the popular belief among christians seems to be the one expressed in an open letter to IVCF, posted in full by Religion News Service, objecting to its decision: 'we understand that conversations related to marriage, sexuality and gender are critical for christians, but we also recognize that christians of mutual goodwill can have these conversations and arrive at various conclusions'.
of course they can. but that doesn't mean those christians should be discipling college students through InterVarsity, or heading up a local church college and youth ministry. that's especially true when the evangelical organization or church, after h years of study and prayer, has rightly concluded that human sexuality is a core theological issue.
and that's the rub. an open letter from the Gay Christian Network argued: 'while we sympathize with the need for religious organizations to be able to take theological positions, we do not believe witch hunts based on privately held personal beliefs are the right way to handle a sensitive issue where many christians are EVOLVING. (note - does the truth of the Bible evolve? No. Jesus said in matthew 5.18 - for truly I say unto you, till heaven and earth pass, one jot (the smallest letter in the Old Testament Hebrew language) or tittle ( a tiny extension of another Hebrew letter, daleth(sp?) SHALL IN NO WISE PASS FROM THE LAW, TILL ALL BE FULFILLED. (ie. in the eternal state following the final destruction of our earth.)
...we live in a world that listens to a steady song of absolute autonomy, with its refrains of 'my rights', 'my freedom', and 'my truth'. others advocate communities of inclusion that embrace the intellectually marginalized. at the same time, media and university elites who sing such songs are the very ones who 'excommunicate' those who don't agree with their ideas...
there is plenty of room for grace in church discipline. and forgiveness. and gentle teaching of those who have yet to make up their minds : 'Opponents must be gently instructed, in the hope that God will grant them repentance leading them to a knowledge of the truth,,II timothy 2.25
Wednesday, December 21, 2016
12.21.2016 COMTE'S LAW AND HISTORY etc, by Rousas J. Rushdoony in The Biblical Philosophy of History
Chapter 10
note - Comte founded logical positivism, a philosophical movement that stresses the function of philosoophy as a method of criticizing and analyzing science and that rejects all transcendental metaphysics, statements of fact being held to be meaningful only if they have verifiable consequences in expderience and in statements of logic, mathematics of philosophy
100 agnostic and atheistic historiography begins with a fundamental act of faith, the faith that God has nothing to do with history. this assumption has nothing to do with science or history: it is a pre-theoretical axiom with which all factuality is approached. Lucretius stated it openly and clearly: 'the basic principle that we shall assume as our standing point is that nothing has ever been created by divine power. by this act of faith, history is declared to be man's area of operation exclusive of any divine determination or operation.
having made this assumption, these scholars then proceed to apply it to history. history becomes simply men's development and struggling in a mindless universe. this application is then taken as 'proof' or the assumption which produced this view! clearly, this is circular reasoning; it is reasoning from faith to faith and it is guilty of the very process of which it accuses the christian.
a classic example of this is Auguste Comte's (1798-1857) 'Law of Three Stages' in The Positive Philosophy. Comte denied God; therefore god's presence in history was mythological and progress in history was progress from theology
101 to positivistic science. the three stages through which each branch of knowledge passes are therefore the Theological of fictitious; the metaphysical or abstract; and the Scientific or postive. man passes from a desire for meaning to a pragmatic recognition that meaning does not exist and relity must therefore be approached methodologically and pragmatically. by this simple scheme comte applied the doctrine of social evolution (which long preceded biological evolution) to history and relegated theology to the age of myth. that Comte's general schema is still so extensively held is evidence of the power of faith over fact, because history quite clearly gives a very different picture.
we can, with a rough accuracy and for convenience, rather divide the development of thought into three very different stages as THUS FAR apparent in history.
the FIRST stage of human thought was the POLITICO-MAGICAL (PM world-view. apart from the Hebrews, this perspective governed all of antiquity and it governed the Roman Empire in the christian era and continued thereafter to govern the non-christian world . in order to understand the significance of the PM world view, it is important to know WHAT MAGIC IS. this requires a distinction between the technique and the purpose of magic. all too commonly, magic is defined in terms of its primitive techniques and thereby exorcised from the modern world view. but magic is BETTER DEFINED IN TERMS OF ITS PURPOSE; the techniques have varied from culture to culture, but the purpose remains unchanged. the purpose of magic IS TO GAIN AUTONOMOUS CONTROL OVER MAN, NATURE AND THE SUPERNATURAL, CONTROL OVER THE TOTALITY OF WHATEVER REALLY EXISTS and however it may be defined. modern science, having steadily forsaken its christian origins, is governed increasingly by magic, by a desire for a total control over reality. in the Biblical perspective, SCIENCE is a necessary activity of the godly man and society as they seek to understand and subdue the earth
102 under God and in obedience to His creation mandate. in the magical faith, man aims at total control of contempt, defiance and unbelief of God.
from the beginning of history, one of the best, if not the easiest, means of exercising this control has been through political control. as a result, magic and politics early made an alliance. and the consequence was that, IN ANTIQUITY, SALVATION WAS NOT RELIGIOUS; SALVATION WAS POLITICAL. religion was a subordinate aspect of ancient life and simply a department of state, a division of public welfare and public works. man's basic orientation was political; one can say that his religion was politics, if we use religion as the vehicle of salvation. the state and its rulers, in this PM world view, were in some sense divine: they were the controllers of the totality of reality. the politico-magical world -view, were in some sense divine: they were the controllers of the totality of reality. the PM world view thus supplanted god and religion with a totalitarian magical order.
even a cursory glance at ancient and non-christian cultures reveals the prevalence of this PM perspective. Baal worship in the Middle East was the worship of lords, natural and political, who governed all reality. the political rulers readily adopted Baalism in order to command that total control offered by this PM world view. moloch worship, with its demand for human sacrifice, was PM and Moloch literally meant 'king'. the medicine men of American indian tribes had little relationship to religion; their function was magical and medicine was one facet of their claimed control over reality. the attempts by caesaro-papism (def - the possession of supreme authority over church and state by one person, often by a secular ruler) to absorb the christian church represent attempts to reduce the church to an aspect of the PM order as against allowing the church freedom to smash that order and remake it into a religious one.
the SECOND stage of human thought has been the religious or christian one. with the coming of Christ, the religious stage, previously largely restricted to the hebrews, now
103 now moved out to command the world. the result was the immediate warfare of Christ and the caesars, an all-out battle between he PM world view and the Biblical world view. it is the custom now of the new mythologists to treat the Roman persecution of the christians as largely legendary. the reality is very different. an attempt was made by rome to wipe out christianity. at first, it was through the judicial murder of selected members and leaders. finally, it was the attempted mass murder of an entire people. it was a long and ugly battle, but the Empire, though possessing the power of the sword and using it very savagely, finally lost.
in Jesus Christ, life was restored from a PM world view to a religious one. in adam's fall, his attempt to be as God (genesis 3.5), the PM world view was met and conquered. life and salvation were restored to a religious dimension.
the result was a new historiography. the older historiography was singularly barren. it simply narrated the possession of POWER and was antiquarrian in all things else. instead of MOVEMENT and PROGRESS in history, ancient history simply cited POWER and CONTROL. St. Augustine pointed to the conflict of history, between the City of God and the City of man, between Biblical religion, between Christianity, and the PM order. history therefore has a purpose, the triumph of the heavenly city and history therefore is capable of progress. there is development in both cities, as each works out the implications of its presuppositions. the only development Plato could envision was one of greater controls over man, a communistic order, because his perspective was PM. in augustine, the goal is open to the imagination: the cities will grow, not in controls, but in their epistemological self-consciousness, and the future is therefore both certain and unknown. the
104 progress of Western history is unique in wold history; it is simply a product of the triumph of the Biblical world view, the supplanting of the politico-magical orders with the christian religion.
the THIRD stage is now in evidence, the attempt to restore the politico-magical world view. the christian world view has been introduced extensively in every continent. the slumbering PM lions are everywhere aroused. in western culture, they have been active, in the neo-platonist revivals, Aristotelianism, the Renaissance and the Enlightenment. the United Nations today is a PM world order and virtually all nations are also. the churches have been largely captured by magic and accordingly have a social or political gospel. salvation has once against become political and christian salvation is denounce savagely as irrelevant and obscurantist. the battle is joined between the state as god and God as God.
it is therefore not presumptuous to posit the rise of still another stage, since God is God and shall prevail: a triumphant christian order across the earth and the suppression of the PM world view. since God has everything to do with history, its every tomorrow is in terms of Him. there is no other history.
Chapter 12 - The Denial of History by the Historians
to accept myth is to reject history and to make myths the premise in terms of which history is judged is to deny any validity to history.
note - Comte founded logical positivism, a philosophical movement that stresses the function of philosoophy as a method of criticizing and analyzing science and that rejects all transcendental metaphysics, statements of fact being held to be meaningful only if they have verifiable consequences in expderience and in statements of logic, mathematics of philosophy
100 agnostic and atheistic historiography begins with a fundamental act of faith, the faith that God has nothing to do with history. this assumption has nothing to do with science or history: it is a pre-theoretical axiom with which all factuality is approached. Lucretius stated it openly and clearly: 'the basic principle that we shall assume as our standing point is that nothing has ever been created by divine power. by this act of faith, history is declared to be man's area of operation exclusive of any divine determination or operation.
having made this assumption, these scholars then proceed to apply it to history. history becomes simply men's development and struggling in a mindless universe. this application is then taken as 'proof' or the assumption which produced this view! clearly, this is circular reasoning; it is reasoning from faith to faith and it is guilty of the very process of which it accuses the christian.
a classic example of this is Auguste Comte's (1798-1857) 'Law of Three Stages' in The Positive Philosophy. Comte denied God; therefore god's presence in history was mythological and progress in history was progress from theology
101 to positivistic science. the three stages through which each branch of knowledge passes are therefore the Theological of fictitious; the metaphysical or abstract; and the Scientific or postive. man passes from a desire for meaning to a pragmatic recognition that meaning does not exist and relity must therefore be approached methodologically and pragmatically. by this simple scheme comte applied the doctrine of social evolution (which long preceded biological evolution) to history and relegated theology to the age of myth. that Comte's general schema is still so extensively held is evidence of the power of faith over fact, because history quite clearly gives a very different picture.
we can, with a rough accuracy and for convenience, rather divide the development of thought into three very different stages as THUS FAR apparent in history.
the FIRST stage of human thought was the POLITICO-MAGICAL (PM world-view. apart from the Hebrews, this perspective governed all of antiquity and it governed the Roman Empire in the christian era and continued thereafter to govern the non-christian world . in order to understand the significance of the PM world view, it is important to know WHAT MAGIC IS. this requires a distinction between the technique and the purpose of magic. all too commonly, magic is defined in terms of its primitive techniques and thereby exorcised from the modern world view. but magic is BETTER DEFINED IN TERMS OF ITS PURPOSE; the techniques have varied from culture to culture, but the purpose remains unchanged. the purpose of magic IS TO GAIN AUTONOMOUS CONTROL OVER MAN, NATURE AND THE SUPERNATURAL, CONTROL OVER THE TOTALITY OF WHATEVER REALLY EXISTS and however it may be defined. modern science, having steadily forsaken its christian origins, is governed increasingly by magic, by a desire for a total control over reality. in the Biblical perspective, SCIENCE is a necessary activity of the godly man and society as they seek to understand and subdue the earth
102 under God and in obedience to His creation mandate. in the magical faith, man aims at total control of contempt, defiance and unbelief of God.
from the beginning of history, one of the best, if not the easiest, means of exercising this control has been through political control. as a result, magic and politics early made an alliance. and the consequence was that, IN ANTIQUITY, SALVATION WAS NOT RELIGIOUS; SALVATION WAS POLITICAL. religion was a subordinate aspect of ancient life and simply a department of state, a division of public welfare and public works. man's basic orientation was political; one can say that his religion was politics, if we use religion as the vehicle of salvation. the state and its rulers, in this PM world view, were in some sense divine: they were the controllers of the totality of reality. the politico-magical world -view, were in some sense divine: they were the controllers of the totality of reality. the PM world view thus supplanted god and religion with a totalitarian magical order.
even a cursory glance at ancient and non-christian cultures reveals the prevalence of this PM perspective. Baal worship in the Middle East was the worship of lords, natural and political, who governed all reality. the political rulers readily adopted Baalism in order to command that total control offered by this PM world view. moloch worship, with its demand for human sacrifice, was PM and Moloch literally meant 'king'. the medicine men of American indian tribes had little relationship to religion; their function was magical and medicine was one facet of their claimed control over reality. the attempts by caesaro-papism (def - the possession of supreme authority over church and state by one person, often by a secular ruler) to absorb the christian church represent attempts to reduce the church to an aspect of the PM order as against allowing the church freedom to smash that order and remake it into a religious one.
the SECOND stage of human thought has been the religious or christian one. with the coming of Christ, the religious stage, previously largely restricted to the hebrews, now
103 now moved out to command the world. the result was the immediate warfare of Christ and the caesars, an all-out battle between he PM world view and the Biblical world view. it is the custom now of the new mythologists to treat the Roman persecution of the christians as largely legendary. the reality is very different. an attempt was made by rome to wipe out christianity. at first, it was through the judicial murder of selected members and leaders. finally, it was the attempted mass murder of an entire people. it was a long and ugly battle, but the Empire, though possessing the power of the sword and using it very savagely, finally lost.
in Jesus Christ, life was restored from a PM world view to a religious one. in adam's fall, his attempt to be as God (genesis 3.5), the PM world view was met and conquered. life and salvation were restored to a religious dimension.
the result was a new historiography. the older historiography was singularly barren. it simply narrated the possession of POWER and was antiquarrian in all things else. instead of MOVEMENT and PROGRESS in history, ancient history simply cited POWER and CONTROL. St. Augustine pointed to the conflict of history, between the City of God and the City of man, between Biblical religion, between Christianity, and the PM order. history therefore has a purpose, the triumph of the heavenly city and history therefore is capable of progress. there is development in both cities, as each works out the implications of its presuppositions. the only development Plato could envision was one of greater controls over man, a communistic order, because his perspective was PM. in augustine, the goal is open to the imagination: the cities will grow, not in controls, but in their epistemological self-consciousness, and the future is therefore both certain and unknown. the
104 progress of Western history is unique in wold history; it is simply a product of the triumph of the Biblical world view, the supplanting of the politico-magical orders with the christian religion.
the THIRD stage is now in evidence, the attempt to restore the politico-magical world view. the christian world view has been introduced extensively in every continent. the slumbering PM lions are everywhere aroused. in western culture, they have been active, in the neo-platonist revivals, Aristotelianism, the Renaissance and the Enlightenment. the United Nations today is a PM world order and virtually all nations are also. the churches have been largely captured by magic and accordingly have a social or political gospel. salvation has once against become political and christian salvation is denounce savagely as irrelevant and obscurantist. the battle is joined between the state as god and God as God.
it is therefore not presumptuous to posit the rise of still another stage, since God is God and shall prevail: a triumphant christian order across the earth and the suppression of the PM world view. since God has everything to do with history, its every tomorrow is in terms of Him. there is no other history.
Chapter 12 - The Denial of History by the Historians
to accept myth is to reject history and to make myths the premise in terms of which history is judged is to deny any validity to history.
Tuesday, December 20, 2016
12.20.2016 THE BIBLICAL PHILOSOPHY OF HISTORY (1969) by Rousas J. Rushdoony
Rousas J. Rushdoony, editor of Philosophical and Historical Studies of the International Library of Philosophy and Theology and of the University Series (Historical Studies) is an american writer and scholar. an ordained minister in the Orthodox Presbyterian Church, he has been a missionary among Paiute and Shoshone Indians as well as a pastor. ...a contributor to many theological and philosophical journals,
he is the author of
by what standard?
freud and van til (modern thinker series)(
intellectual schizophrenia
the messianic character of amerian education
this independent republic
the nature of the american system
the myth over population
bread upon the waters
the mythology of science
foundations of the social order
Chapter 1 - The Biblical Philosophy of History
1 the question, 'what is history?', confronts the christian scholar and student today with a great urgency. accustomed as he is to believing that history is the story of what has happened in time, in terms of its major events and movements, the average man is little prepared to cope in the many new concepts of history which undergird modern historiography. in particular, Biblical scholars have indulged in the 'search for the historical Jesus' with startling results, giving a report on a 'demythologized' Jesus which bears no resemblance to the Jesus of the Bible. church historians and secular historians likewise give a version of history as totally the product of impersonal natural forces, so that God and Christ become not only abstracted from past history but very remote to the present.
what is history? out of the millions of events and persons of the past, how are certain events selected as significant? is the Battle of Stanligrad in 1942-3 as important as or more important that the Battle of Avarair in 451? on what ground do we stress the one and neglect the other? and when is an event 'history'?
the problem can best be recognized by analyzing some remarks of an important contemporary theologian, and Episcopalian layman who, since 1961, has been Associate Professor of Bible and Religion at Emory University, Atlanta, Georgia. Thomas J. Altizer holds that the 'first requirement' of any intellectual inquiry which will break the
2 impasse of modern thought 'is a forthright confession of the death of the God of Christendom, a full acknowledgement that the era of Christian civilization has come to an end, with the result that all cognitive meaning and all moral values that were once historically associated with the Christian God have collapse'. this death of god means not only that we recognize that the historic faith was mythical but that we also recognize it to be dead as an historical influence; 'God has died in OUR time, in OUR history, in OUR existence'. this means that history has a totally new meaning because God is dead. 'this meaning of 'historical' is intimately related to the modern idea of 'historicity': for, in this perspective, 'historicity' means a total immersion in historical time, an immersion that is totally isolated from any meaning or reality that might lie beyond it'. modern man's life is existential; this means 'an absolute autonomy which finally encloses him within the concrete moment itself'. in terms of this faith, history can have no transcendental meaning. the life of Jesus must be read in exclusively naturalistic terms; nothing can be 'historical' if it represents a supernatural power, act or influence. Jesus is accordingly 'demythologized', and the 'Jesus of history' bears no resemblance to the Jesus of Scripture , who is God incarnate and the Messiah of prophecy. 'total immersion in historical time' means that any and every event 'i9s totally isolated from any meaning or reality that might lie beyond it'. such a faith clearly excludes the Biblical God from ALL history, which must be read in terms of the purely naturalistic and immanent forces of the resent. this means also that the basic drives of history are natural and hence primarily impersonal, since the vast
3 reservoir of being is basically an impersonal and totally natural ocean of blind movement and energy. history therefore is both 'demythologized' of the sacred and also de-personalized.
the Biblical philosophy of history is clearly and irrevocably at odds with the modern faith. basic to the biblical philosophy is the doctrine of creation.this doctrine has far reaching implications for history.
FIRST, the doctrine of creation asserts that the universe, time, history, man, and all things are the handiwork of a sovereign, omnipotent, omniscient, and triune God.
SECOND, this means that the meaning of history is to be understood primarily and essentially in terms of that god. time and history are created by God and therefore are determined and governed by god. the ground of history, therefore, is not in time, not in a total immersion in the moment, but in eternity.
THIRD, creation is described by all of scripture as a creative ACT of god, in 6 days, and thus it must be understood as ACT, NOT PROCESS. every attempt to read process into the creation account, to turn the days into ages and make room for 'scientific' interpretations, is a surrender to process philosophies and an abandonment of the sovereignty of god. it ascribes powers to a natural process and weakens the determinative power of the creative act. the Biblical account is explicit in its description: we are told of a se4ries of perfect and final acts. we are not given a report on processes. the creative acts are not only perfect and final: they are totally supernatural. this is their offense. to give man an 'historical doctrine of creation, in the modern sense of that term, it is necessary to supplant the creative act with a creative process, so that the initiative is at the very least placed within history if not made totally a product of history. such theologians are philosophical immersionists; the only God they can tolerate is on who is immersed in history, one who is Himself a product of natural process
4 and is working together with man to conquer time and history. God and man are thus partners and co-workers in the war against brute factuality. according to Justin Wroe Nixon, 'to those, whose sentiments are voiced by Walter Rauschenbusch, God is the dynamic of progress, the central reality of a forward-moving life'. in this perspective God is not the Creator; instead, He is another creature, although a greater one, who is leading man in the battle against the forces of chaos. he has not created time and history but rather appears in time and history to give meaning to it by conquering it and reshaping it to His hopes. as a result, god is the spearhead of a revolution in time and history against the chaos and meaninglessness of time and history.
there is little question that the changes which seem imminent in our conception of the functions of god will be disturbing. but they are not lacking in promise. under their influence we shall think of God as the atmosphere and the assumption of the highest life. he furnishes its setting. He is to be found in the realm of appreciation rather than of manipulation. because he is an Order he is the vision of unrealized achievement in every realm and because he is a Person. He is yet our unfailing resource in defeat. He meets every man on the level of his own need and yet he draws us all into the corporate spiritual union of all mankind. the experience of god will probably always come to us as a medicine, a remedy for emergencies, but it will seem more and more like the glow of health and joy and the unforgettable vision which one brings back from a walk over the hills. god is the end of life, an end which is beyond life by which alone brings us to the fullest realization of ourselves in life. because he is the lure and the imperative in the Best that we know He is indeed 'the substance of all revolutions.'
5 the God of the Bible is the Creator of all things; man is in rebellion against God and His law , and the basic problem of man is sin. history is the battle of Christ versus antichrist, and man's basic need is redemption through the blood of Jesus Christ and then life in Christ and under god's law, now no longer a bill of indictment against man but a charter for life. for this perspective presented by nixon, man's basic problem is not sin against god but the need to realize his potentialities in history by conquering nature and giving it meaning, by a war against chaos. but his faith is itself an assertion of chaos, in that revolution is essential to it, and God is 'the substance of all revolutions. ' there is no need for reconciliation to this God; instead, he is our head revolutionist in uniting all mankind in gaining their goal, revolution. not a new man in Jesus Christ, but a new order, a grand revolution against a hostile universe, led by the First Revolutionist, God, is the hope of this faith. the universe is not the creation of this god but his enemy, territory to be conquered with man's help. god Himself is finite, a creature of the universe who is spearheading revolution against it, striving together with man to attain his ideals. God is thus the great process of revolution. the Jesus of this faith is an unreservedly human being like ourselves. it can be said, however, that 'God was in Christ' in that the vision of 'the Best' and all God's hopes for His great revolution found expression in Jesus. the potentialities of man and of history come into focus in Jesus. this is the BEST God and Christ that process philosophy can give us and this is clearly a Christ who cannot save by can only lead and inspire man.
FOURTH, the Biblical doctrine of creation not only asserts that creation is the creative act of god but, because it is totally His creative act, creation is totally under His government. another word for this total government is predestination
6 because our age is so thoroughly humanistic, it is in rebellion against predestination, which is simply the assertion of god's sovereignty, government and control. humanism insists that man must be in control and socialism and communism, as well as scientific planning, psychological controls and other attempts of man to control man and nature, are simply assertions of predestination by man. the only alternative to the doctrine of predestination by man. the only alternative to the doctrine of predestination is the assertion of the reign of total chance, of meaninglessness and brute factuality. the real issue is what kind of predestination we shall have, predestination by God or predestination by man? shall we accept God's eternal decree, his total planning or will we submit to man's total planning, man's dream of playing God and planner over all creation? according to the Biblical faith, God alone is god, god alone is the first cause. this means that God alone has absolute freedom and power. man's freedom is the liberty of a second cause; it is genuine liberty, but it is limited because man is a creature and it is subordinate to the total creation and determination of all things by the triune God. WHENEVER AND WHEREVER THE DOCTRINE OF CREATION IS DENIED OR WEAKENED, TO THAT EXTENT THE SOVEREIGNTY OF GOD AND HIS ETERNAL DECREE ARE DENIED OR WEAKENED AND SOVEREIGNTY AND PREDESTINATION POWER ARE TRANSFERRED INTO THE HANDS OF MAN. man, as the high point of process and evolution, becomes also the high point of history and of the power of prediction and predestination.
when men began to depart from Biblical faith, they turned to ancient classical thought with its pagan faith in natural law. the doctrine of natural law asserts the presence in nature of inherent laws which govern reality, so that law is transferred from God to nature. law is no longer OVER creation but WITHIN process. the concept of natural law, confused by christians with God's providence in nature and the total subservience of all nature to God's
7 decree and law, made great inroads into christian thinking and became the mainspring of Enlightenment faith in its rejection of the God of scripture. classical liberalism is based on this Enlightenment faith, as is modern libertarianism and conservatism. nature has, inherent within itself, its own processes and laws which govern reality. hence, man's attitude is one of laissez-faire; there must be no interference with nature's laws and controls. planning was thus transferred from God to nature. darwinism destroyed this faith in nature. the process of nature was not portrayed not as a perfect working of law, but as a blind, unconscious energy working profligately to express itself. in the struggle for survival, the fittest survive by virtue of their own adaptations, not because of natural law. nature produces many 'mistakes' which fail to survive and become extinct species and fossils. the destiny of the universe is extinction as its energy runs down.
all of this served to shatter the older faith in nature. nature as the agency of predestination was gone. it became increasingly evident to naturalistic thinkers that man must control his own evolution and also control the evolution of plant and animal life. moreover, man must create and control his own social order, so that total statism, total socialism, is 'scientific socialism', that is, socialism which recognizes that man cannot exist without predestination and therefore provides for the control of process, for total planning and predestination, by the elite men. centuries ago, Plato came to a similar conclusion and charted the course for total tyranny in his infamous Republic. the same planning and control by man, predestination by man, is again a major force in history. socialism, statist deduction,mental health programs, social security, and a variety of other statist programs provide the frameword for man's growing attempt to claim the power of predestination for himself. man seeks, in short, to become
8 his own savior and god.
FIFTH, the source of energy and power is radically different in the Biblical faith than in the humanistic creed. for the orthodox christian, who grounds his philosophy of history on the doctrine of creation, the mainspring of history is god. time rests on the foundation of eternity, on the eternal decree of god. time and history therefore have meaning because they were created in terms of God's perfect and totally comprehensive plan. every blade of grass, every sparrow's fall, the very hairs of our head, all are comprehended and governed by God's eternal decree, and all have meaning in terms of it. the humanist faces a meaningless world in which he must strive to create and establish meaning. the christian accepts a world which is totally meaningful and in which EVERY event moves in terms of God's perfect and totally comprehensive plan. every blade of grass, every sparrow's fall, the very hairs of our head, all are comprehended and governed by God's eternal decree and all have meaning in terms of it. the humanist faces a meaningless world in which he must strive to create and establish meaning. the christian accepts a worlds which is totally meaningful and in which EVERY event moves in terms of God's predestined purpose and when man accepts god as his Lord and Christ as his Savior, EVERY event works together for good to him because he is now in harmony with that meaning and destiny. romans 8.28 man therefore does not create meaning; instead, having revelled against God's meaning, having striven to be as god and himself the source of meaning and definition (genesis 3.5), man now submits to God's meaning and finds his life therein. for the humanist, the dynamics of history are in titanic man, as he imposes his will and idea on the world. for the orthodox christian , the dynamics of history are in God the Creator and man accepts those dynamics and rejoices in the blessings thereof when man accepts Christ as Savior and then follows the leadings of the sanctifying Holy Spirit. for him, the Bible is the authoritative, inspired and infallible word of the triune God.
SIXTH, the Biblical philosophy of history is grounded not only on the doctrine of creation but on the doctrine of the infallible scripture. a God who is struggling together with man against the darkness of a universe of brute factuality,
9 is of God who is struggling to realize Himself. he cannot therefore speak predictively but only hopefully, because He is not in total control. again, because He has not fully realized Himself, He is not fully self-conscious, so that His word lacks perspicuity and lucidity; it cannot be infallible, because He is neither perfect, omnipotent, nor sovereign. it can merely be an inspiring exhortation from another and leading 'freedom fighter'. but the orthodox doctrine holds to the infallible word because it recognizes that God created all things, governs all things and knows all things, and 'known unto God are all His works, from the beginning of the world'. Acts 15.18 a perfect, omnipotent and totally self-conscious God can ONLY speak infallibly: His word is INESCAPABLY an infallible word. a limited God can no more speak infallibly than he can predestine. he is not in full control of either the universe or himself.
the hostility of modernists and atheists to the doctrine of infalliblity as applied to Scripture rests on the same foundation as their hostility to predestination. man claims increasingly the right to total planning and man claims increasingly, as he refines his scientific method, the power to speak authoritatively in a creative sense....
10....SEVENTH, the Biblical philosophy of history means that time does not come out of a primeval past but from eternity. the origin of time is not in chaos but in eternity. evolutionary time emerges out of the past, gropes its way blindly into the present and moves sightlessly into an unknown
11 future. the movement of time is thus from the past to the present into the future. the movement of time, according to the Bible, is from eternity, since it is created by God and moves out of and in terms of His eternal decree. because time moves in terms of the eternal decree, when its function is finished there shall be time no more. Revelation 10.6 because time is predestined and because its beginning and end are already established, time does not develop in evolutionary fashion from past to present to future. instead, it unfolds from future to present to past. in Wood's words, 'the future is the source, it is the reservoir of time which some day will be present and then past. better stated, eternity is the source; time is predestined and therefore it moves from the future to the present to the past. 'the future is logically first, but not chronologically'.
the Past issues, it proceeds, from the Future, through the Present.
'the Present therefore comes out from the invisible future. the Present therefore comes out from the invisible Future. the Present perpetually and ever-newly embodies the Future in visible, audible, livable form; and returns again into invisible Time in the Past.
the Past acts invisibly. it continually influences us with regard to the Present. it casts light upon the Present. that is its great function. it helps us to live in the Present which we know and with reference to the Future which we expect to see.
for evolutionary time, the past is determinative. the source of time and of being is in primeval chaos, and it is primeval chaos, the great and creative Past, which has been hence determinative heretofore and it is this time and being born of chaos that man now seeks to control and determine. the
12 source of Biblical time is eternity; flowing from an eternal decree and a determined end to a determined past, it is experienced by man chronologically from past to present to future. in faith, man recognizes that God 'hath determined the times before appointed' (Acts 17.26), and he can declare in faith, 'my times are in Thy hand. psalm 31.15 the evolutionists seek to determine the future as a predestinating god, but he is also inescapably bound to a primeval chaos as less than man, he understands himself, to use ..Ban Til's phrase, in terms of a psychology of primitivism which is 'integration into the void'. his psychology wipes out 'the borderline that separated man from the beast and the beast from the inorganic world, thus reducing man to a focus of action and interaction in the sea of an ultimate irrationalism'. this concept takes away responsibility from man, for 'Man cannot be responsible to the void'. man'frees' himself from God's predestination only by positing instead an 'ultimate irrationalism' and man becomes as a result free for irresponsibility.
an EIGHTH implication of the doctrine of creation for the Biblical philosophy of history has reference to the nature of man . if nature generated man, then man is wholly passive in relationship to nature but active in relationship to any God that exists. but if God created man, man is wholly passive in relationship to God , but he is active in relationship to nature as God's image-bearer. if man is the creature of nature, then, however much he may hope to dominate and control nature, he is still basically its creature, conditioned by nature and subordinate to it. it is significant that, despite the dreams of total control.
13 the psychologies formulated by non-christian man are PASSIVE psychologies. man is made a product of his heredity and environment. his mind is passive and malleable. the mind of man has been compared to a blank sheet of whit paper and his nature seen as neutral. this neutral, bland man receives sense impressions from the world and responds to them and is conditioned by them. the explicit faith of non-christian psychology in the power of conditioned reflexes is grounded in this passive psychology; the concept of the predestination of man and his society by the elite rests on this passivist psychology of man. CONDITIONING RATHER THAN EDUCATION becomes the function of the statist school. there is a grim irony in this situation: the more the scientific state develops as a god, the more it rests on the premise that man is passive and can be subjected to total conditioning. man, in brief, is made more and more subject to nature, more and more passive in relationship to nature, while, in the 'person' of the corporate state, he wages unremitting and active warfare against God and claims the prerogatives of God.
the orthodox christian must assert, however, that, because God created man, this statist dream is a myth: it cannot be realized. man is created in the image of god and man is either a covenant-keeper or a covenant-breaker. as a covenant-breaker, man is in bondage to sin and to death; having no peace with God because of his sin, man has no peace with his fellow men and no peace with himself. he is in slavery to the state, not because he is by nature passive in relationship to his environment, but because he is in sin and is reaping the wages of sin. the destiny of covenant-keeping man is to be God's vicegErent (def -an officer appointed as deputy by and to a sovereign or supreme chief.) in Christ, to be God's priest, prophet and king over creation, to rule, interpret, understand and dedicate the world in Christ unto God the Father. man is not passive in his relationship to nature; rather, nature is passive in relationship to man's fall, and nature is passive today as man's sin lays nature waste. nature will be passive again in receiving her sabbath rests from man's hands, and it will finally share passively in man's glorification. romans 8.19-22 man is passive in relationship to God and man's sin and ruin are due to his attempts to free himself from this passivity and to become independent and autonomously active and creative. the non-christian doctrine places man UNDER NATURE and seeks to place him OVER GOD; the Biblical doctrine places man UNDER GOD and OVER NATURE in Him...
a NINTH implication of the doctrine of creation and of the ontological trinity for the philosophy of history is that all factuality is, as Van Til has repeatedly pointed out, made personal, because it is the handiwork of the personal and triune God and it derives its meaning from His personal, creative act and eternal decree. the factuality of non-christian philosophy is impersonal factuality at best and basically meaningless brute factuality. thus, the best interpretation of reality which evolutionary philosophies of history can give man reduces history to sub-personal and sub-human forces. for the Darwinist, history is the product of impersonal biological forces; for the marxist, the forces are economic, for the Freudian, psychological and unconscious. not only is the meaning of history de-personalized , but man is de-personalized as well. man begins by asserting the supremacy of his autonomous mind and reason and ends in total irrationalism. as Van Til has often stated, the fate of rationalism is total irrationalism and irrationalism rests.
15 on rationalsim. when man makes himself and his reason god over creation, he thereupon destroys all meaning in creation and leaves himself a chained and gibbering baboon, sitting in terror on a wired electric chair in the midst of a vast universe of nothingness.
every non-biblical philosophy of history ends by destroying both man and history. it begins by striving to give a better meaning to history than the one eternity provides, and it ends by robbing history of any human meaning and man of his manhood. in taking counsel against God and His decree, man effectually hurts only himself, not God...
16 ...the Enlightenment, by its savage and long-standing attack on Biblical faith, has brought about a long retreat of christianity from a full-orbed faith to a kind of last-ditch battle centering around the doctrines of salvation and of the infallible Scripture. the time has come for a full-scale offensive and it has indeed begun, to bring every area of thought into captivity to Christ, to establish the whole counsel of God and every implication of His infallible word.
for the orthodox christian, history is determined by eternity and 'the eternal does not exist for us as a principal but as a person and that as an absolute person.' moreover, 'for us God's being is ultimate, while created
17 being is, in the nature of the case, derivative. the very meaning and glory of history is its derivative. the very meaning and glory of history is its derivative nature. humanistic history is a shaking and frail ladder, resting on no foundation and reaching out into nothingness, whereas history under God rests in total meaning and purpose and gives man a glorious inheritance and destiny, for
'God from all eternity did by the most wise and holy counsel of his own will freely and unchangeably ordain whatsoever comes to pass: yet so as thereby neither is god the author of sin, nor is violence offered to the will of creatures, nor is the liberty or contingency of second causes taken away, but rather established.'
note - this last comes from the Westminster Confession of Faith, chapter III, 1 ...but i have not referenced this author's many footnotes...and probably will not in other sharing of his writing.
he is the author of
by what standard?
freud and van til (modern thinker series)(
intellectual schizophrenia
the messianic character of amerian education
this independent republic
the nature of the american system
the myth over population
bread upon the waters
the mythology of science
foundations of the social order
Chapter 1 - The Biblical Philosophy of History
1 the question, 'what is history?', confronts the christian scholar and student today with a great urgency. accustomed as he is to believing that history is the story of what has happened in time, in terms of its major events and movements, the average man is little prepared to cope in the many new concepts of history which undergird modern historiography. in particular, Biblical scholars have indulged in the 'search for the historical Jesus' with startling results, giving a report on a 'demythologized' Jesus which bears no resemblance to the Jesus of the Bible. church historians and secular historians likewise give a version of history as totally the product of impersonal natural forces, so that God and Christ become not only abstracted from past history but very remote to the present.
what is history? out of the millions of events and persons of the past, how are certain events selected as significant? is the Battle of Stanligrad in 1942-3 as important as or more important that the Battle of Avarair in 451? on what ground do we stress the one and neglect the other? and when is an event 'history'?
the problem can best be recognized by analyzing some remarks of an important contemporary theologian, and Episcopalian layman who, since 1961, has been Associate Professor of Bible and Religion at Emory University, Atlanta, Georgia. Thomas J. Altizer holds that the 'first requirement' of any intellectual inquiry which will break the
2 impasse of modern thought 'is a forthright confession of the death of the God of Christendom, a full acknowledgement that the era of Christian civilization has come to an end, with the result that all cognitive meaning and all moral values that were once historically associated with the Christian God have collapse'. this death of god means not only that we recognize that the historic faith was mythical but that we also recognize it to be dead as an historical influence; 'God has died in OUR time, in OUR history, in OUR existence'. this means that history has a totally new meaning because God is dead. 'this meaning of 'historical' is intimately related to the modern idea of 'historicity': for, in this perspective, 'historicity' means a total immersion in historical time, an immersion that is totally isolated from any meaning or reality that might lie beyond it'. modern man's life is existential; this means 'an absolute autonomy which finally encloses him within the concrete moment itself'. in terms of this faith, history can have no transcendental meaning. the life of Jesus must be read in exclusively naturalistic terms; nothing can be 'historical' if it represents a supernatural power, act or influence. Jesus is accordingly 'demythologized', and the 'Jesus of history' bears no resemblance to the Jesus of Scripture , who is God incarnate and the Messiah of prophecy. 'total immersion in historical time' means that any and every event 'i9s totally isolated from any meaning or reality that might lie beyond it'. such a faith clearly excludes the Biblical God from ALL history, which must be read in terms of the purely naturalistic and immanent forces of the resent. this means also that the basic drives of history are natural and hence primarily impersonal, since the vast
3 reservoir of being is basically an impersonal and totally natural ocean of blind movement and energy. history therefore is both 'demythologized' of the sacred and also de-personalized.
the Biblical philosophy of history is clearly and irrevocably at odds with the modern faith. basic to the biblical philosophy is the doctrine of creation.this doctrine has far reaching implications for history.
FIRST, the doctrine of creation asserts that the universe, time, history, man, and all things are the handiwork of a sovereign, omnipotent, omniscient, and triune God.
SECOND, this means that the meaning of history is to be understood primarily and essentially in terms of that god. time and history are created by God and therefore are determined and governed by god. the ground of history, therefore, is not in time, not in a total immersion in the moment, but in eternity.
THIRD, creation is described by all of scripture as a creative ACT of god, in 6 days, and thus it must be understood as ACT, NOT PROCESS. every attempt to read process into the creation account, to turn the days into ages and make room for 'scientific' interpretations, is a surrender to process philosophies and an abandonment of the sovereignty of god. it ascribes powers to a natural process and weakens the determinative power of the creative act. the Biblical account is explicit in its description: we are told of a se4ries of perfect and final acts. we are not given a report on processes. the creative acts are not only perfect and final: they are totally supernatural. this is their offense. to give man an 'historical doctrine of creation, in the modern sense of that term, it is necessary to supplant the creative act with a creative process, so that the initiative is at the very least placed within history if not made totally a product of history. such theologians are philosophical immersionists; the only God they can tolerate is on who is immersed in history, one who is Himself a product of natural process
4 and is working together with man to conquer time and history. God and man are thus partners and co-workers in the war against brute factuality. according to Justin Wroe Nixon, 'to those, whose sentiments are voiced by Walter Rauschenbusch, God is the dynamic of progress, the central reality of a forward-moving life'. in this perspective God is not the Creator; instead, He is another creature, although a greater one, who is leading man in the battle against the forces of chaos. he has not created time and history but rather appears in time and history to give meaning to it by conquering it and reshaping it to His hopes. as a result, god is the spearhead of a revolution in time and history against the chaos and meaninglessness of time and history.
there is little question that the changes which seem imminent in our conception of the functions of god will be disturbing. but they are not lacking in promise. under their influence we shall think of God as the atmosphere and the assumption of the highest life. he furnishes its setting. He is to be found in the realm of appreciation rather than of manipulation. because he is an Order he is the vision of unrealized achievement in every realm and because he is a Person. He is yet our unfailing resource in defeat. He meets every man on the level of his own need and yet he draws us all into the corporate spiritual union of all mankind. the experience of god will probably always come to us as a medicine, a remedy for emergencies, but it will seem more and more like the glow of health and joy and the unforgettable vision which one brings back from a walk over the hills. god is the end of life, an end which is beyond life by which alone brings us to the fullest realization of ourselves in life. because he is the lure and the imperative in the Best that we know He is indeed 'the substance of all revolutions.'
5 the God of the Bible is the Creator of all things; man is in rebellion against God and His law , and the basic problem of man is sin. history is the battle of Christ versus antichrist, and man's basic need is redemption through the blood of Jesus Christ and then life in Christ and under god's law, now no longer a bill of indictment against man but a charter for life. for this perspective presented by nixon, man's basic problem is not sin against god but the need to realize his potentialities in history by conquering nature and giving it meaning, by a war against chaos. but his faith is itself an assertion of chaos, in that revolution is essential to it, and God is 'the substance of all revolutions. ' there is no need for reconciliation to this God; instead, he is our head revolutionist in uniting all mankind in gaining their goal, revolution. not a new man in Jesus Christ, but a new order, a grand revolution against a hostile universe, led by the First Revolutionist, God, is the hope of this faith. the universe is not the creation of this god but his enemy, territory to be conquered with man's help. god Himself is finite, a creature of the universe who is spearheading revolution against it, striving together with man to attain his ideals. God is thus the great process of revolution. the Jesus of this faith is an unreservedly human being like ourselves. it can be said, however, that 'God was in Christ' in that the vision of 'the Best' and all God's hopes for His great revolution found expression in Jesus. the potentialities of man and of history come into focus in Jesus. this is the BEST God and Christ that process philosophy can give us and this is clearly a Christ who cannot save by can only lead and inspire man.
FOURTH, the Biblical doctrine of creation not only asserts that creation is the creative act of god but, because it is totally His creative act, creation is totally under His government. another word for this total government is predestination
6 because our age is so thoroughly humanistic, it is in rebellion against predestination, which is simply the assertion of god's sovereignty, government and control. humanism insists that man must be in control and socialism and communism, as well as scientific planning, psychological controls and other attempts of man to control man and nature, are simply assertions of predestination by man. the only alternative to the doctrine of predestination by man. the only alternative to the doctrine of predestination is the assertion of the reign of total chance, of meaninglessness and brute factuality. the real issue is what kind of predestination we shall have, predestination by God or predestination by man? shall we accept God's eternal decree, his total planning or will we submit to man's total planning, man's dream of playing God and planner over all creation? according to the Biblical faith, God alone is god, god alone is the first cause. this means that God alone has absolute freedom and power. man's freedom is the liberty of a second cause; it is genuine liberty, but it is limited because man is a creature and it is subordinate to the total creation and determination of all things by the triune God. WHENEVER AND WHEREVER THE DOCTRINE OF CREATION IS DENIED OR WEAKENED, TO THAT EXTENT THE SOVEREIGNTY OF GOD AND HIS ETERNAL DECREE ARE DENIED OR WEAKENED AND SOVEREIGNTY AND PREDESTINATION POWER ARE TRANSFERRED INTO THE HANDS OF MAN. man, as the high point of process and evolution, becomes also the high point of history and of the power of prediction and predestination.
when men began to depart from Biblical faith, they turned to ancient classical thought with its pagan faith in natural law. the doctrine of natural law asserts the presence in nature of inherent laws which govern reality, so that law is transferred from God to nature. law is no longer OVER creation but WITHIN process. the concept of natural law, confused by christians with God's providence in nature and the total subservience of all nature to God's
7 decree and law, made great inroads into christian thinking and became the mainspring of Enlightenment faith in its rejection of the God of scripture. classical liberalism is based on this Enlightenment faith, as is modern libertarianism and conservatism. nature has, inherent within itself, its own processes and laws which govern reality. hence, man's attitude is one of laissez-faire; there must be no interference with nature's laws and controls. planning was thus transferred from God to nature. darwinism destroyed this faith in nature. the process of nature was not portrayed not as a perfect working of law, but as a blind, unconscious energy working profligately to express itself. in the struggle for survival, the fittest survive by virtue of their own adaptations, not because of natural law. nature produces many 'mistakes' which fail to survive and become extinct species and fossils. the destiny of the universe is extinction as its energy runs down.
all of this served to shatter the older faith in nature. nature as the agency of predestination was gone. it became increasingly evident to naturalistic thinkers that man must control his own evolution and also control the evolution of plant and animal life. moreover, man must create and control his own social order, so that total statism, total socialism, is 'scientific socialism', that is, socialism which recognizes that man cannot exist without predestination and therefore provides for the control of process, for total planning and predestination, by the elite men. centuries ago, Plato came to a similar conclusion and charted the course for total tyranny in his infamous Republic. the same planning and control by man, predestination by man, is again a major force in history. socialism, statist deduction,mental health programs, social security, and a variety of other statist programs provide the frameword for man's growing attempt to claim the power of predestination for himself. man seeks, in short, to become
8 his own savior and god.
FIFTH, the source of energy and power is radically different in the Biblical faith than in the humanistic creed. for the orthodox christian, who grounds his philosophy of history on the doctrine of creation, the mainspring of history is god. time rests on the foundation of eternity, on the eternal decree of god. time and history therefore have meaning because they were created in terms of God's perfect and totally comprehensive plan. every blade of grass, every sparrow's fall, the very hairs of our head, all are comprehended and governed by God's eternal decree, and all have meaning in terms of it. the humanist faces a meaningless world in which he must strive to create and establish meaning. the christian accepts a world which is totally meaningful and in which EVERY event moves in terms of God's perfect and totally comprehensive plan. every blade of grass, every sparrow's fall, the very hairs of our head, all are comprehended and governed by God's eternal decree and all have meaning in terms of it. the humanist faces a meaningless world in which he must strive to create and establish meaning. the christian accepts a worlds which is totally meaningful and in which EVERY event moves in terms of God's predestined purpose and when man accepts god as his Lord and Christ as his Savior, EVERY event works together for good to him because he is now in harmony with that meaning and destiny. romans 8.28 man therefore does not create meaning; instead, having revelled against God's meaning, having striven to be as god and himself the source of meaning and definition (genesis 3.5), man now submits to God's meaning and finds his life therein. for the humanist, the dynamics of history are in titanic man, as he imposes his will and idea on the world. for the orthodox christian , the dynamics of history are in God the Creator and man accepts those dynamics and rejoices in the blessings thereof when man accepts Christ as Savior and then follows the leadings of the sanctifying Holy Spirit. for him, the Bible is the authoritative, inspired and infallible word of the triune God.
SIXTH, the Biblical philosophy of history is grounded not only on the doctrine of creation but on the doctrine of the infallible scripture. a God who is struggling together with man against the darkness of a universe of brute factuality,
9 is of God who is struggling to realize Himself. he cannot therefore speak predictively but only hopefully, because He is not in total control. again, because He has not fully realized Himself, He is not fully self-conscious, so that His word lacks perspicuity and lucidity; it cannot be infallible, because He is neither perfect, omnipotent, nor sovereign. it can merely be an inspiring exhortation from another and leading 'freedom fighter'. but the orthodox doctrine holds to the infallible word because it recognizes that God created all things, governs all things and knows all things, and 'known unto God are all His works, from the beginning of the world'. Acts 15.18 a perfect, omnipotent and totally self-conscious God can ONLY speak infallibly: His word is INESCAPABLY an infallible word. a limited God can no more speak infallibly than he can predestine. he is not in full control of either the universe or himself.
the hostility of modernists and atheists to the doctrine of infalliblity as applied to Scripture rests on the same foundation as their hostility to predestination. man claims increasingly the right to total planning and man claims increasingly, as he refines his scientific method, the power to speak authoritatively in a creative sense....
10....SEVENTH, the Biblical philosophy of history means that time does not come out of a primeval past but from eternity. the origin of time is not in chaos but in eternity. evolutionary time emerges out of the past, gropes its way blindly into the present and moves sightlessly into an unknown
11 future. the movement of time is thus from the past to the present into the future. the movement of time, according to the Bible, is from eternity, since it is created by God and moves out of and in terms of His eternal decree. because time moves in terms of the eternal decree, when its function is finished there shall be time no more. Revelation 10.6 because time is predestined and because its beginning and end are already established, time does not develop in evolutionary fashion from past to present to future. instead, it unfolds from future to present to past. in Wood's words, 'the future is the source, it is the reservoir of time which some day will be present and then past. better stated, eternity is the source; time is predestined and therefore it moves from the future to the present to the past. 'the future is logically first, but not chronologically'.
the Past issues, it proceeds, from the Future, through the Present.
'the Present therefore comes out from the invisible future. the Present therefore comes out from the invisible Future. the Present perpetually and ever-newly embodies the Future in visible, audible, livable form; and returns again into invisible Time in the Past.
the Past acts invisibly. it continually influences us with regard to the Present. it casts light upon the Present. that is its great function. it helps us to live in the Present which we know and with reference to the Future which we expect to see.
for evolutionary time, the past is determinative. the source of time and of being is in primeval chaos, and it is primeval chaos, the great and creative Past, which has been hence determinative heretofore and it is this time and being born of chaos that man now seeks to control and determine. the
12 source of Biblical time is eternity; flowing from an eternal decree and a determined end to a determined past, it is experienced by man chronologically from past to present to future. in faith, man recognizes that God 'hath determined the times before appointed' (Acts 17.26), and he can declare in faith, 'my times are in Thy hand. psalm 31.15 the evolutionists seek to determine the future as a predestinating god, but he is also inescapably bound to a primeval chaos as less than man, he understands himself, to use ..Ban Til's phrase, in terms of a psychology of primitivism which is 'integration into the void'. his psychology wipes out 'the borderline that separated man from the beast and the beast from the inorganic world, thus reducing man to a focus of action and interaction in the sea of an ultimate irrationalism'. this concept takes away responsibility from man, for 'Man cannot be responsible to the void'. man'frees' himself from God's predestination only by positing instead an 'ultimate irrationalism' and man becomes as a result free for irresponsibility.
an EIGHTH implication of the doctrine of creation for the Biblical philosophy of history has reference to the nature of man . if nature generated man, then man is wholly passive in relationship to nature but active in relationship to any God that exists. but if God created man, man is wholly passive in relationship to God , but he is active in relationship to nature as God's image-bearer. if man is the creature of nature, then, however much he may hope to dominate and control nature, he is still basically its creature, conditioned by nature and subordinate to it. it is significant that, despite the dreams of total control.
13 the psychologies formulated by non-christian man are PASSIVE psychologies. man is made a product of his heredity and environment. his mind is passive and malleable. the mind of man has been compared to a blank sheet of whit paper and his nature seen as neutral. this neutral, bland man receives sense impressions from the world and responds to them and is conditioned by them. the explicit faith of non-christian psychology in the power of conditioned reflexes is grounded in this passive psychology; the concept of the predestination of man and his society by the elite rests on this passivist psychology of man. CONDITIONING RATHER THAN EDUCATION becomes the function of the statist school. there is a grim irony in this situation: the more the scientific state develops as a god, the more it rests on the premise that man is passive and can be subjected to total conditioning. man, in brief, is made more and more subject to nature, more and more passive in relationship to nature, while, in the 'person' of the corporate state, he wages unremitting and active warfare against God and claims the prerogatives of God.
the orthodox christian must assert, however, that, because God created man, this statist dream is a myth: it cannot be realized. man is created in the image of god and man is either a covenant-keeper or a covenant-breaker. as a covenant-breaker, man is in bondage to sin and to death; having no peace with God because of his sin, man has no peace with his fellow men and no peace with himself. he is in slavery to the state, not because he is by nature passive in relationship to his environment, but because he is in sin and is reaping the wages of sin. the destiny of covenant-keeping man is to be God's vicegErent (def -an officer appointed as deputy by and to a sovereign or supreme chief.) in Christ, to be God's priest, prophet and king over creation, to rule, interpret, understand and dedicate the world in Christ unto God the Father. man is not passive in his relationship to nature; rather, nature is passive in relationship to man's fall, and nature is passive today as man's sin lays nature waste. nature will be passive again in receiving her sabbath rests from man's hands, and it will finally share passively in man's glorification. romans 8.19-22 man is passive in relationship to God and man's sin and ruin are due to his attempts to free himself from this passivity and to become independent and autonomously active and creative. the non-christian doctrine places man UNDER NATURE and seeks to place him OVER GOD; the Biblical doctrine places man UNDER GOD and OVER NATURE in Him...
a NINTH implication of the doctrine of creation and of the ontological trinity for the philosophy of history is that all factuality is, as Van Til has repeatedly pointed out, made personal, because it is the handiwork of the personal and triune God and it derives its meaning from His personal, creative act and eternal decree. the factuality of non-christian philosophy is impersonal factuality at best and basically meaningless brute factuality. thus, the best interpretation of reality which evolutionary philosophies of history can give man reduces history to sub-personal and sub-human forces. for the Darwinist, history is the product of impersonal biological forces; for the marxist, the forces are economic, for the Freudian, psychological and unconscious. not only is the meaning of history de-personalized , but man is de-personalized as well. man begins by asserting the supremacy of his autonomous mind and reason and ends in total irrationalism. as Van Til has often stated, the fate of rationalism is total irrationalism and irrationalism rests.
15 on rationalsim. when man makes himself and his reason god over creation, he thereupon destroys all meaning in creation and leaves himself a chained and gibbering baboon, sitting in terror on a wired electric chair in the midst of a vast universe of nothingness.
every non-biblical philosophy of history ends by destroying both man and history. it begins by striving to give a better meaning to history than the one eternity provides, and it ends by robbing history of any human meaning and man of his manhood. in taking counsel against God and His decree, man effectually hurts only himself, not God...
16 ...the Enlightenment, by its savage and long-standing attack on Biblical faith, has brought about a long retreat of christianity from a full-orbed faith to a kind of last-ditch battle centering around the doctrines of salvation and of the infallible Scripture. the time has come for a full-scale offensive and it has indeed begun, to bring every area of thought into captivity to Christ, to establish the whole counsel of God and every implication of His infallible word.
for the orthodox christian, history is determined by eternity and 'the eternal does not exist for us as a principal but as a person and that as an absolute person.' moreover, 'for us God's being is ultimate, while created
17 being is, in the nature of the case, derivative. the very meaning and glory of history is its derivative. the very meaning and glory of history is its derivative nature. humanistic history is a shaking and frail ladder, resting on no foundation and reaching out into nothingness, whereas history under God rests in total meaning and purpose and gives man a glorious inheritance and destiny, for
'God from all eternity did by the most wise and holy counsel of his own will freely and unchangeably ordain whatsoever comes to pass: yet so as thereby neither is god the author of sin, nor is violence offered to the will of creatures, nor is the liberty or contingency of second causes taken away, but rather established.'
note - this last comes from the Westminster Confession of Faith, chapter III, 1 ...but i have not referenced this author's many footnotes...and probably will not in other sharing of his writing.
Tuesday, December 13, 2016
12.13.2016 TAKING OUR CITIES FOR GOD (1989) by John Dawson (How to Break Spiritual Strongholds)
Chapter 2 - The Discerning of Spirits
24 'I knew that exercising the gifts of the Spirit had a lot to do with personal initiative. our will is involved, so I asked Jesus for His view of the unseen realm in my home, my office and my ministry. 'Lord, do I have blind spots" I asked. 'are there subtle influences of demonic accusation and deception that I am totally unaware of?
..some people see deliverance as the solution for everything, when the problem may really be solved through repentance, proper management or application of some other principle. 'well, Lord, I said, if there is an actual demon attacking me I trust that You will show me.
the plane landed. I retrieved my baggage and flagged down my wife as she circled the Los Angeles airport in our family van. as soon as the door opened I sensed it. I felt the oppression of an evil spirit right in the van with my wife and three sons - not possessing anybody, just lurking in the background.
as we drove out of the airport I thought back over the last 6 months. there was definitely a pattern of criticism and misunderstanding in some of our external family relationships. I drove into a parking lot and explained to my family what I was feeling. I said that what we had gone through
25 was more than the expected stress of a busy life. there was an insidious pattern of harassment that became clearer the more we discussed it. as the priest in my home, I joined with my wife in COMMANDING the spirit to go from us. immediately we sensed the departure of an evil presence.
the next day I prayed earnestly for my staff at the Los Angeles Youth With a Mission (YWAM) headquarters. as I prayed, a picture of the board room came into my mind. the directors meet in this room to seek the Lord and to make long-range decisions. in my mind's eye I could see a gloomy cloud hovering in a corner next to the ceiling. I understood that I was discerning a spirit of unbelief.
yes, that's it, I thought. every time we meet in there, everybody becomes unusually anxious about finances even though God has proved so faithful.
I suddenly became angry -angry at a spirit that would dare to accuse our generous, faithful, heavenly Father.
during the next few days, we experienced a season of spiritual house cleaning. a spirit of confusion that had oppressed a family for months was exposed and sent into the wast places (matt. 12.43) along with several other demons that had been practicing a subtle harassment right in the middle of our christian ministry.
it is no surprise that I was discovering demonic activity at a YWAM base. any effective ministry is going to be the subject of satanic attack.
Satan is a religious spirit who hangs around religious leaders and institutions. he has only 2 weapons: to accuse and to deceive. he hurls his accusations and lies with greatest effect in the religious world.
what do we see satan doing in the Bible? accusing Job, deceiving Eve, accusing the saints before the throne of God and finally tempting Jesus with a kingdom without the cross.
26 the devil built the temptations of Jesus on a subtle accusation of the character of God the Father.
satan is not omnipresent. where do you think he is right now? I think he's probably trying to accuse and deceive the christian leader who is most threatening to his kingdom. high-ranking spirits oppress christian leaders as in the incident of delayed revelation recorded in the life story of daniel. daniel was kept from a God=- given revelation because the territorial spirit over persia withstood a messenger angel for 21 days until the angel Michael joined the fight. Daniel 10
..when was the last time you truly exercised the gift of discernment in relation to your circumstances?
before you answer that question, remember some basics:
-the gifts of the Spirit represent the abilities of Jesus, just as the fruit of the Spirit describes the personality of Jesus.
-Jesus lives in you, the believer and He is able to be in you and through you everything you are not.
- He is the source of our victory over sin, our wisdom, strength, love and power.
- he doesn't give us some truth. He IS truth and He lives His life through us as we yield to His control.
one of the abilities or gifts of Jesus' Holy spirit within us in the ability to discern or see the activity of spirits in the unseen realm (I corinthians 12.10). we can choose to exercise this gift or neglect it even though we believe it is biblical.
sometimes we think that the gifts of the Spirit are the special
27 domain of 'super-mature' christians, but the truth is that they are part of God's grace expressed in order to bring all of us to maturity. you can and should stir up this gift within you. (note - how?) it may not be your special ministry emphasis, but discernment should not be neglected in your daily life.
but you might ask, how do I exercise a gift? first let's look at a gift often expressed or witnessed by christians - the gift of prophecy. many believers have been used by the Holy Spirit to impart a special word of encouragement to other believers in a home meeting or church service. when this occurs it is not a result of the Holy Spirit's grabbing the person and forcing speech from his lips. the person usually senses the beginning of what God wants to say and voluntarily yields to the Holy Spirit in expressing that thought. he begins in faith out of love for God and His people and as thought follows thought the prophecy moves to completion.
..according to the Bible our lives are lived in the midst of an invisible spiritual war. one of the most dangerous things we can do is simply to ignore this reality. we accept the Bible as true but we often live as though the battle existed on some far-off mission field, not here in our city. the fact is, there is a battle raging over your city and it is affecting you right now. our individual blind spots and vices are usually common
28 to the culture around us and that culture is influence by what the Bible calls principalities and powers (ephesians 6). in other words, you are being buffeted by the same temptations as others around you.
another thing to note is that spiritual warfare begins at a personal level and escalates through layers of increasing difficulty -from personal and family to the realm of church life, and beyond that to the collective church in the city and the national and international realms.
have you ever thought about the battle for your immediate neighborhood? for the last 10 years I have lived in the black community in Lost Angeles.
my neighbors and I have common enemies.
spirit of despair, hopelessness, depression, discouragement and rejection torment this community.
even as I write, my neighborhood is making headlines because of gang violence and mass arrests. much of his is explained by a history of social oppression, but we must not underestimate the spiritual implications. the Bible says that we are not fighting against flesh and blood (ephesians 6.12). the devastation of drugs and of violence stems from the destruction of the family and the destruction of the family is accelerated in an atmosphere of despair.
what creates atmosphere?
atmosphere is a theatrical term for the collective mood of an audience during a play, but in daily life the human spirit is sensitive to may unseen things in the spiritual realm. man is, by definition, an incarnate spirit and is sensitive to spiritual realities, including the activity of demons seeking to oppress and deceive.
several years ago my staff and I went on a prayer walk around our neighborhood.
WE STOOD IN FRONT OF EVERY HOUSE, REBUKED SATAN'S WORK IN JESUS' NAME AND PRAYED FOR A REVELATION OF JESUS IN THE LIFE OF EACH FAMILY.
we are still praying. there is a long way to go, but social, economic and spiritual
29 transformation is evident. there were times when demonic oppression almost crushed my soul. I received a death threat. my tires were slashed. I was often depressed at the sight of boarded-up houses, unemployed youth and disintegrating families, but I was determined not to run away.
today there are at least 9 christian families in the block where I live and there is a definite sense of the Lord's peace. the neighborhood is no longer disintegrating. people are renovating their houses and a sense of community is being established around the christian families.
the battle is very real. last week a neighbor discovered a loaded pistol in my driveway just before my children came out to go to school. drugs are sold all night several doors down at a house belonging to an alcoholic who is unchanged after years of prayer and ministry. these realities are a challenge to my faith, but I believe that as we continue in prayer the demons of hopelessness, violence and addiction will be driven from this place completely and my neighbors will have the opportunity to receive ministry without demonic interference.
every one of us faces demonic forces in our local environment, but as christians we are called to a much bigger battle.
WE ARE CONTENDING FOR OUR WHOLE GENERATION.
WE ARE CALLED TO ACT LOCALLY BUT TO THINK GLOBALLY.
because of massive urbanization, it is the evangelization of our cities that holds the key to bringing millions of people to Christ.
Section II -DELIVER THE DARK CITY
Chapter 3 - A Call to the City
33 I was trying to help a fellow preacher sort out his life and ministry. he was one of my staff leaders. we drove through Los Angeles discussing his gifts and the options facing him.
I don't want to minister here in LA, he said, 'I don't want to raise my kids in this environment. what an armpit! deep in my spirit I felt a righteous anger.
'why do you think we live here? I said. I'm really ashamed of you for having that attitude. are we preachers just professional religionists looking for pleasant places to settle down? my staff and I didn't move to LA for the
34 environmental benefits.
this dear brother eventually came to a place of repentance. he is now stationed in a foreign city with greater problems that LA, but there are millions of christians who choose where they will live on an entirely self-centered basis. however, christians must get Jesus' view of these cities. cities are simply huge clusters of people and Jesus goes where the people are.in His earthly ministry Jesus wept with compassion for the crowds of Jerusalem and moved among them in ministry.
over one half of the world's population lives in urban centers. in developed nations like the US, the percentage of urban dwellers is much higher. in california, for example, 91% of the population lives in cities.
my city, Los Angeles, is crowded, expensive, violent and polluted. I would rather raise my children in rural isolation or suburban convenience, but Jesus has called me here. Jesus has always been attracted to the dark places. 'but where sin abounded, grace abounded much more. romans 5.20
by the year 2010, 3 out of every 4 people on earth will live in cities, which means that cities must become the prime target of the missionary. today's church is much more comfortable sending missionaries from suburban churches to the rural villages of Africa or Central America. too many christians feel alienated by the city and see it only as a dark and evil place to e avoided, but this is not God's attitude. consider His words to the jews held captive in pagan Babylon. 'and seek the peace of the city where I have caused you to be carried away captive and pry to the Lord for it; for in its peace you will have peace. jeremiah 29.76
more than half of the people in the US live in 6% of the land area. translated, that means 88 million people live in the 44 largest metropolitan areas.
35 the larger cities are filled with a multiplicity of ethnic peoples who have turned the US into one of the major mission fields of the world. with 4 and a half million Hispanics, Los Angeles is now the second largest Hispanic city. it is also the second largest Chinese city outside Asia and the second largest Japanese city outside Japan. the list goes on. it is the largest korean city outside Korea, the largest Vietnamese city outside Vietnam and the largest Philippine city outside the Philippines.
a century ago London was the world's only supercity, but now 42 cities of the world have a population surpassing 4 million. most of these cities are either Asian or Islamic. when we add those that are marxist we get some idea of the challenge christians face in world evangelization.
it's time for us to put aside our fear and self-interest and to take bold action. I recently heard about a newly appointed pastor to a comfortable middle class church in the suburbs of Fort Worth, Texas. he proposed that the expensive church property be sold and that the congregation move its ministries to the inner city. he's no longer with that church. he didn't succeed, but his is the kind of radical idea I think is needed.
we must have a new vision of christian service. missions has always had a romance to it, with visions of primitive tribes and palm trees in the setting sun. we need to plant another dream in the hearts of our young pioneers. we must fill their minds with a more realistic and compelling picture...
Chapter 4 - Cities: A Blessing or a Curse?
many christians think cities are by nature evil places. if they were asked, they would say the city is a curse, not a blessing. however, that is not God's view. after all, the human story begins in a garden and ends in a city.
i believe god intends the city to be a place of shelter, a place of communion and a place of personal liberation as its citizens practice a division of labor according to their own unique gits. i believe our cities have the mark of God's sovereign purpose upon them. our cities contain what i call a redemptive gift.
43 ..when I am traveling and preaching, one of the first questions i ask upon arrival is, 'Why is this town here?...
there is always a reason and ..usually stems from the geography of the location...
Chapter 5 - Ministering in the City of the Future
47 20 years ago Alvin Toffler wrote a book titled Future Shock, predicting the rapid transformation of our modern cities into what he called the 'super industrial society. that future is now. he portrayed the modern urbanite as a person shell-shocked by the pace of change...
48 ...in the 19th century the first railway systems led to rapid expansion of the city, but it still retained its dominant center. in the 1960s, the downtown areas became so congested and unattractive that urban growth spread to a cluster of smaller city centers withing the greater metropolitan areas. sociologists have had to invent a whole new vocabulary to describe the changing city. from
village to
city to
dynapolis to
metropolis to
dynametropolis to
megalopolis and presently
dynamegalopolis....
Chapter 6 - Revival or Judgment - What Will It Be?
57 when my friend Floyd finished preaching and called for repentance, I was the first to my feet. during the message i had seen myself clearly and i was ashamed. I publicly confessed my sin that day and asked the others at the conference for prayer.
what was my sin? embezzlement, adultery? No, the Holy Spirit was convicting me or the sin of unbelief. in that stark moment of honesty i realized that I really HAD LOW EXPECTATIONS OF WHAT GOD WOULD DO IN MY CITY.
what do you expect God to do in your city? or, to put it another way, who is your God? is He the God of the Bible?
58 your God is only as big as what you expect of Him in space and time. what do you expect Him to do here on earth in this generation? don't tell me about the God of your theology. it's easy to say that He's all-powerful, but do you expect Him to do powerful things here and now?
Chapter 7 - The City at Harvest Time
69 we have worked our way up to this important tactical question: do we wait for the next revival or do we go into action now? obviously we are never to draw back from evangelization, for we were born to reproduce when we were born again, evangelism must be our life style.
70 ..unless you understand biblical warfare you will be frustrated, angry, confused and ineffective in your ministry to the city. you may be attempting to coordinate christian concerts, pioneer a church or reach businessmen. the principle is still the same; we need to bind the strong man and gain a place of authority over satan before we will see the full fruit of our labors.
Jesus said,'but if i cast out demons by the spirit of God, surely the kingdom of god has come upon you. or else who can one enter a strong man's house and plunder his goods, unless he first binds the strong man? and then he will plunder his house. matthew 12.28-9
if we are not using our biblical spiritual weapons, we are failing the people we are attempting to serve. one of my earliest experiences with the power of prayer occurred when i was preaching in Canadian high schools in the winter of 1973. in each city i would gain access to the campus through the christian club, and we would then use a number of creative ways to draw a crowd and preach the gospel. we had good results in all the schools, but one school in Edmonton, Alberta, was in a league of its own.
when I arrived I discovered that the whole Christian club had been fasting and praying for several days in anticipation of the meeting. the local Teen Challenge director, a pentecostal minister, had been teaching prayer principles to the students. as soon as I arrived on campus I sensed the presence
71 of the Holy Spirit.
that day the largest room on campus was packed out and God empowered me to preach as never before. at one point a heckler challenged me and mocked the gospel, but God filled my mind with the details of his life. I shouted out a list of his hidden sins until he left the room.
at the end of the message the students didn't want to leave.
the room was filled with small groups of students in earnest conversation,
may clustered around the Christians, asking questions about Jesus.
it was time to go back to class, but the students ignored the clock.
finally the principal had to ring the fire alarm,
vacate the building,
line up the students in the snow
and march them to their classes.
I felt like Paul at Ephesus during the riot of the god-makers.
seeing such results was wonderful.
the truth is, however, that this breakthrough had little to do with my preaching.
the hard soil had been plowed up by those fasting, praying students.
74 ...even if I am interceding for people who embrace and believe the lie of the enemy, such as devout Muslims, I can stand in the gap as a prayer warrior and isolate them from religious spirits or any other form of demonic oppression.
Isaiah 60 says that the people of the earth sit in gross darkness. can you imagine walking into a darkened room filled with people viewing a multimedia show - people who had never experienced anything other than darkness and the media illusions flickering before them? imagine walking in, switching on the lights and asking everybody to turn around and observe the mundane equipment responsible for the powerful illusion. THAT'S JUST HOW WE DEAL WITH SATAN.
he is a projectionist, an illusionist, a deceiver - the father of lies.
discerning the nature of principalities at work in your city can be as simple as
ASKing GOD TO TELL YOU WHAT'S GOING ON.
but God also wants us to use our minds in reasoning through the things He has already taught us and in applying them. Genesis 22.17 says, 'Your descendants shall possess the gate of their enemies.
in the Bible the city gates represented the place of entrance, authority and decision. we are promised that even the gates
75 of hell will not prevail against the church. in the next section we will examine how to discern the gates of our cities.
before attempting to rebuild the walls of jerusalem, Nehemiah carefully surveyed the damage (neh, 2.13) we, too, must get the big picture before running to the battle. in the next four chapters we will explore essential research in the areas of history, covenants, current revelation and demographics.
Section III - DISCERNING THE GATES OF YOUR CITY
Chapter 8 - Looking at History with Discernment
...you will find in the book of the records and know that this city is a rebellious city, harmful to kings and provinces and that they have incited sedition within the city in former times, for which cause this city was destroyed. Ezra 4.15
79 ask yourself the question, why is this city here? is it merely a product of geography and commerce, or does god have a redemptive purpose in mind for it? Jonah was surprised at the way God looked at Nineveh. your city is God's city. the people are made in His image. satan is an invader and a usurper operating in our territory. God did not give demons authority over your city. demons have infested the earth's atmosphere since before the creation of mankind, but they can only extend their authority into a town or an institution when people sin.
when you look into the history of your city, you will find
80 clues as to what is oppressing the people today. this is our planet and the only authority Satan has is stolen human authority. he initially gains this authority when, at some point in history, human beings believe his lie, receive his accusation and are seduced into an allegiance to his plan. an obvious example would be the spirit of greed which was let loose during the california gold rush and still dominated the culture of Los angels and San Francisco to this day.
whole countries are kept in darkness by satanic lies that have become cornerstones of a particular culture. take, for example, the struggle with rejection and the fear of authority experienced by many Australians, because their country originated as a penal colony. entering through these cruel roots of Australian history, satan has been bale to create a general distrust of all authority figures, including the highest of all who is, of course, God Himself.
the truth is that Australia is not a nation founded on rejection and injustice, but a chosen people with as much dignity and potential as any people in history. they are a people greatly loved by a heavenly Father who is calling them to healing and purpose...
81 so, through repentance, reconciliation and prayer, the present generation can work to repair the broken down walls of the city.
those from among you
shall build the old waste places,
82 you shall raise up the foundations of many generations;
and you shall be called the Repairer of the Breach,
The Restorer of Streets to Dwell In. Isaiah 58.12
RESTORING UNITY BETWEEN OUR CITY'S CHURCHES is an important part of rebuilding the wall. recently the eldership of an independent charismatic church was in prayer asking God why they could not seem to grow beyond a certain point. the Holy Spirit pointed them toward their roots as a congregation. they did some research and found that their church was birthed when a rebellious faction separated from a downtown Pentecostal church two generations ago.
when the churches of a city are in unity, they have great power to tear satan's kingdom up by the roots on a citywide level. in 1988 I had the privilege of ministering among the churches of Reno, Nevada. with an economy built on vice, primarily gambling, Reno is famous for sin.
15 churches cam together and rented the dome in the heart of downtown. after I spoke on 'Discerning the Gates of Your City', I took the history of the town as a reference point and began to expose the activity of particular spirits. the list included:
independence
isolation
self-sufficiency
withdrawal
rebellion
fear of authority
dominance
mammon
love of competition
anger
violence
depression
discouragement
covenant breaking and
false comfort
in many ways Reno is just an exaggeration of the classic
83 western town that was carved out of the wilderness by fiercely independent people. today's citizens of Reno still glory in the strength of the individual.
after the message the pastors assembled on the platform and collectively came against the powers of darkness. the first thing they did was to humble themselves. they confessed to having succumbed to the temptations of the city, not the obvious ones like gambling and lust, but the more subtle pressures from independence and isolation.
one brother told the story of his recent confrontation with a motorist. he had almost come to blows with the other driver when he remembered who he was - a pastor representing Christ. 'I almost allowed myself to be overcome by the spirit of violence and lawlessness', he said during his pray of repentance. many present identified with his confession. as other pastors led the way to the throne of grace, a great cleansing took place that day in the life of the church. then the pastors abandoned themselves to praise and intercession, which climaxed in a declaration of God's authority over Reno.
the study of a city's history will often reveal the wounds a people have sustained. some cities carry wounds of rejection or inferiority because they lost their bid to become the state capital or they were overshadowed by a more successful city nearby. WHOLE CULTURES CAN SUSTAIN A WOUND, WHICH MAY BECOME A MAJOR HINDRANCE TO THE GOSPEL.
take Mexico, for example. when dealing with a comparatively new nation like those in the Americas, we must study the experience of the first generation of the native born. mexicans are a mixture of spanish and Indian heritage.
consider the family experience of the first generation of mexicans. the father was often a whit spaniard, the mother an indian. their children were born into a gap between 2 cultures. a son, for example, wanted to be like his father
84 who is a proud and powerful conquistador, but the center of warmth and affection was his Indian mother. this foundation experience has greatly hindered the growth of the kingdom of God in mexico because the image of Father God is distorted.
85 list of key questions to ask when researching your city's history:
1. what place does your city have in this nation's history?
2. was there ever the imposition of a new culture or language through conquest?
3. what were the religious practices of ancient peoples on the city?
4. was there a time when a new religion emerged?
5. under what circumstances did the gospel first enter the city?
6. has the national or city government ever disintegrated?
7. what has been the leadership style of past governments?
8. have there ever been wars that affected this city?
-wars of conquest
-wars of resistance to invasion
- civil war
9. was the city itself the site of a battle?
10. what names have been used to label the city and what are their meanings?
11. why was the city originally settled?
12. did the city have a founder? what was his dream?
13. as political, military and religious leaders have emerged, what did they dream for themselves and for the city?
14. what political, economic and religious leaders have emerged, what did they dream for themselves and for the city?
15. what has been the experience of immigrants to the city?
16. have there been any traumatic experiences such as economic collapse, race riots or an earthquake?
17. did the city ever experience the birth of a socially transforming technology?
18. has there ever been the sudden opportunity to create wealth such as the discovery of oil or a new irrigation technology?
19. has there ever been religious conflict among competing religions or among christians?
20. what is the history of relationships among the races?
86 you can obtain much information about your city's history through city libraries, museums and historical societies. perhaps you could begin a filing system for clippings and notes. the prayer life of a church is much more exciting and effective when we make research a habit. you will be surprised at what God reveals to you when you are simply reading the newspaper or browsing in a bookstore.
one local church in austin, Texas, spent every saturday afternoon for a year doing prayer walks through every section of the city. this practice is one of the best ways to gain a true understanding of the people God has called us to reach. pray in every part of the city and allow god to speak to you there. see the whole city as your inheritance.
for God will save Zion
and build the cities of Judah,
that they may dwell there and possess it.
also, the descendants of His servants shall inherit it,
and those who love His name shall dwell in it. psalms 69.35-6
there is one more question i would like to leave with you.
you must ask:
is there anything in the roots of this city that could be bringing God's judgment rather than His blessing?
for example, we could ask: HAVE WE PROPERLY DEALT WITH THE SIN OF SLAVERY in the sight of God? while slavery took its course a long time ago in american history, its legacy still haunts the church today. sunday is the most segregated day of the week. integration is far more advanced in
87 the worlds of education, commerce and entertainment than in the church. is there a reason for this?
we have some unfinished business to attend to. one of the reasons for continuing racial prejudice is the unresolved guilt that still resides in the white community. it's time that the curse was lifted and that cleansing and reconciliation cam to completion. that's the ministry of Jesus and we are His body.
in one midwest city that I studied, racially inspired injustice seems to be the only major blot on an otherwise wholesome past. and it all seems to be focused on one shameful incident.
a white mob, outraged over an unsolved crime, lynched an innocent black man. people told me this story as vividly as though it had happened yesterday. thus, the incident has lost none of its power to create guilt and bitterness, even though it happened many generations ago.
repentance, reconciliation and healing could take place if christians from the black and white community joined together in identification with the sins and griefs of their forebears. if the sin is acknowledged and relationship is restored, then the authority of the lord can be exercised over the demonic forces that have been exploiting the past.
a new resident of the city might think, that's not my problem. I just moved here last year. however, when god puts you in a city you become part of the church there and you inherit its legacy, good or bad. the unfinished business of the church is now your responsibility, too.
Chapter 9 - The History of God's People/Covenants
90 ...like Josiah of old, we may be surprised to find our names written in a book: 'behold, a child, Josiah by name, shall be born to the house of David. I kings 13.2 imagine J's shock when the book of the law was found during the restoration of the temple and he discovered his own destiny.
Josiah also discovered that his people were under judgment because they had not kept their covenant with God.
now it happened, when the king heard the words of the law, that he tore his clothes...
for great is the wrath of the Lord that is poured out on us, because our fathers have not kept the word of the Lord, to do according to all that is written in this book. II chronicles 34.19,21
91 in many ways this generation is like Josiah's. WE ARE LIVING IN A TIME OF CERTAIN, BUT POSTPONED, JUDGMENT. judgment has already been declared and is inevitable but we can turn to God in humility and He will revive us and our children with us.
'because your heart was tender and you humbled yourself before god when you heard his words against this place and against its inhabitants and you humbled yourself before Me and you tore your clothes and wept before me, i also have heard you, says the Lord. II chronicles 34.27
it is a dangerous thing to lose the knowledge of the past. 'when all that generation had been gathered to their fathers, another generation arose after them who did not know the Lord nor the work which he had done for israel. Judges 2.10
93 there are 5 areas of essential knowledge in which today's christian worker must walk.
1. know the history of the church in your nation...
2. know the history of the church in your city....
3. know the history of ministry to your target subculture or ethnic group...
94 4, know the history of the type of ministry in which you are involved....
5. know the history of your movement. do not despise your roots. every israelite had a tribe. there were no independent Jews. sectarian attitudes are wrong, but denominations are biblical...
95 ...a knowledge of history can put everything in perspective. in 1976 i was wandering around the Roman Coliseum on a hot summer day. I glimpsed an ice cream vendor through the ancient stone pillars and walked toward him. when i arrived at the place i first saw him, he had vanished. i searched through the hot ruins, becoming more irritated by the minute. i wanted ice cream!
all of a sudden i saw myself in the sight of God. 'for a 1000 years in Your sight are like yesterday when it is past. psalm 90.4
here i was, a 20th century believer, moaning about ice cream in the very place where thousands of 1st century believers shed their blood for the gospel and in God's sight it was only yesterday. i was deeply ashamed.
WHAT ARE YOU COMPLAINING ABOUT? it may be something far more difficult that the absence of ice cream, but in the light of history, it may be just as trivial.
96 ...finally, a question that can apply to all 5 categories: WHERE ARE THE WALLS OF MY CITY BROKEN DOWN?
...have there ever been strong ministries in the city that rose to a certain point and then failed?
what caused that failure?
is there a pattern of defeat in the life of the church?
Chapter 10 - Prophets, Intercessors and Spiritual Fathers
for by wise counsel you will wage your own war and in a multitude of counselors there is safety. proverbs 24.6
...in every city there is a hidden eldership. you will not find this grouping of saints listed in any human book. this circle a mature believers stands in the gap until victory comes. (note - O Lord help me to be a faithful, daily intercessor.)
as Isaiah 62.6-7 says,
upon your walls, O Jerusalem, I have set watchmen;
all the day and all the night
they shall never be silent.
you who put the Lord in remembrance,
take no rest,
and GIVE HIM NO REST
until He established Jerusalem
and makes it a praise in the earth. RSV
some of these watchmen are obvious, such as veteran pastors. others may be obscure intercessors or prophetic people with a hunch. you are on to something if you find a common theme among those who claim revelation.
God...confirms a strategy through several witnesses. ..when the spiritual leaders of a city are waking in friendship and respect, then the full power of God can be released against principalities and powers.
an individual ministry or church can achieve a cone of victory within its sphere of service, but the prevailing evil spirits will dominate the secular culture unhindered until the principle of agreement based on harmony in relationships is employed.
110 ...the following is a list of questions that will help you to discover the ministries that God has placed in your city. we need to love them, serve them and humbly receive ministry from them.
1. what is the total number of churches in the city?
2. are the churches concentrated in some sections while absent in others?
3. which churches are evangelical?
4. which churches are active and growing?
111 5. are there dynamic churches present in every ethnic group?
6. look over a list of churches and see if you can discern a particular gift expressed by each congregation. what is unique about its ministry?
recently I talked to a pastor who was approached by some of his people about staring a singles' department. he was feeling stirred toward another emphasis at that time, so he recommended that they join the growing singles' ministry of the assemblies of God church a few blocks away. he did not see this as an admission of failure to produce the perfect church. he saw his brother pastor as another member of the leadership team that god had assembled to take the city.
7. obtain a list of the christian organizations in the city. do you really understand what god has called each one to do?
8. identify the senior leaders of ministries and churches. what are they saying about the state of the church? do they have a vision for the future?
9. who are the emerging leaders? what is their message?
112 in summary, then, do these 4 things:
1. know the church, its movements and the ministries given to people.
2. listen for the sound of the trumpet. 'he who has an ear, let him hear what the Spirit says to the churches'. Revelations 2.7
3. receive God-given gifts of friendship and walk in covenant with believers from fellowships other than your own.
4. join with those who call the church to unity.
Chapter 11 - Get The Facts
the heart of him who has understanding seeks knowledge. proverbs 15.14
115 it is amazing to me two uninformed we are of the basic realities around us.
do you know your city? you should have the census in one hand and the Bible in the other.
what percentage of people actually attend church?
how many people are in poverty?
why are they in poverty?
where do they live?
are there subcultures, ethnic groups, changes in the economy, an aging population?
what's really going on?
you need to know if you are going to help free your city from evil spiritual dominance.
spiritual warfare does not not operate in a vacuum. it is the air force that covers the soul winner and the evangelist and
116 all evangelism must be carefully conducted using all available information.
first, get out a map of the city. study it carefully. see if you can identify concentrations of the elderly, the homeless, students, children and so on. which subcultures are more receive than others to the gospel? why? what are the felt needs of the people of the city? gather evidence to demonstrate your conclusions.
parts of the city may vary greatly in culture, crime levels and wealth. try to determine the felt needs of each group of people.
what you research depends on your goals. a pastor planting a church or an evangelist planning an outreach will need very specific information and statistics. however, all of us are called to the ministry of intercession and thus need to have some knowledge of the big picture.
...God told Moses to get the facts as the initial step that would lead the jews into their inheritance: 'send men to spy out the land of canaan, which I am giving to the children of israel; from each tribe of their fathers you shall send a man, every one a leader among them'. numbers 13.2...
118 red tape is often the easiest way for the enemy to defeat the birth or expansion of a local church. regulatory agencies are not our enemy. they have a valid servant function, but they can be lawfully circumvented. for example, a church can get a conditional use permit for construction of a building in an area zoned by the city for another purpose.
the expense and complexity of dealing with local government is one of the most intimidating aspects of urban ministry. remember the facts that are repeated to you are not always the truth as God would see it. God has more creative ways to fulfill His word than you could ever imagine.
God can provide the money to bring your buildings up to legal standards. god can make a way through the labyrinth of overlapping jurisdictions. do not lose heart, for nothing is too difficult for him. the key is to live by every word that proceeds out of His mouth, even if human voices tel you that it can't be done.
I love the attitude of Joshua and Caleb. they loved Canaan and they were not afraid. i often have to listen to christian workers confessing that they really hate big-city urban life, and that if they stay, it will be a big sacrifice.
God showed me the root of this attitude. satan mainly attacks the urban christian through fear. we have a hard time loving the city, because we are afraid that living there may hurt us or our loved ones. but by the power of the holy spirit, we can replace fear with love. the bible ways, 'perfect love
casts out fear. I john 4.18
as you study crime statistics;
as you contemplate the enormous expense of renting a facility in the city;
as you look at abuse and abortion trends, make sure you don't take your eyes off the living God, who reigns from His throne.
ask God to fill you with His divine perspective. those statistics are actually people known intimately by Him. let
119 His Spirit move upon your spirit. let Him break your heart and fill you with compassion. let Him lift up your heart and fill you with compassion. let Him lift up your head and fill your mouth with praise. let Him fill your mind with His intention for the city.
Section IV - Learning to Fight
Chapter 12 - Born to Battle
127 so the great dragon was cast out, that serpent of old, called the Devil and Satan, who deceives the whole world; he was cast to the earth and his angels were cast out with him. Revelation 12.9
once we have discerned the gates of our city - assessed its spiritual condition - we are ready to act. the purpose of this section is to help us to understand more fully the realities of the spiritual realm we prepare for spiritual warfare by understanding our provision as believers for exercising the lord's authority over His enemies. we will then be ready to come against our city's spiritual strongholds more effectively.
human history is a story of perpetual struggle against the emissaries of evil. the question is: what are all these demons doing here anyway? how did we get to be on a planet so
128 infested with evil?
the Bible teaches that angels were created to be holy (genesis 1.31), but at some point before the creation of man, a portion of the angels entered into deliberate rebellion against God. these rebellious angels were judged by God. some were chained in hell (II peter 2.4), but others were left free to oppose God and His kingdom.
why would God do that? why would He leave a free force in opposition to Himself? i believe it is because the development of man in his ultimate potential depended on an experience with an adversary. that's right, God wanted us to learn to fight.
man is a warrior race, made in god's own image and destined to rule beside Him. intrinsic to our nature is the drive to conquer something, to control something. this desire can be perverted in lusting after power for pride's sake or converted and harnessed in the benevolent government of God's own kingdom. we are destined to rule with Christ.
fashioned from the redeemed children of Adam, a bride is emerging that will enter into the fellowship of the triune God at the marriage supper of the lamb. Revelation 19.5-9 but before eternity comes a brief experience of earthbound battle. think of god's original directive to man and woman in genesis 1.28; 'Be fruitful and multiply; fill the earth and subdue it; have dominion over the fish of the sea, over the birds of the air and over every living thing that moves on the earth. note the word SUBDUE, implying an adversarial position. God did not use a word like CULTIVATE. He knew that a person would enter his or her inheritance only by taking dominion.
God's ultimate motive was to create mankind for a loving relationship with Himself. there are 3 essential aspects to any relationship: shared presence, exploration of traits and
129 character and mutual responsibility. it is in preparation for the third category that we kind the reason for this terrestrial apprenticeship.
Bod is planning to share with us not only the intimacy of relationship but also the responsibility of governing the universe in justice and mercy. we are to govern in agape love, self-sacrificing love.
God has marked out for us a personal inheritance. our success will not be demonstrated by the fact that we lie down in death and are able to say, 'I'm still saved and my children and grandchildren are all in the kingdom. that's only part of it.
AS WE PRESS IN TO KNOW GOD, HE UNFOLDS TO US REVELATION ABOUT A PERSONAL DESTINY. WE HAVE PLACES TO GO AND PEOPLE TO BLESS. WE HAVE BEEN GIVEN A GIFT, A PROMISE AND A TERRITORY TO TAKE.
as we communicate the gospel, raise children and cultivate the earth's resources, ewe will face the harassment of demons. they have been left here by god just for us to practice on. these demons have already been defeated and judged, but our privilege is 'to execute on them the written judgement. psalms 149.9
i believe our experience parallels the experience of Joseph in the Bible. he suffered terribly through his apprenticeship for leadership because his jealous brothers came before joseph, the ruler, and heard him say, 'you meant evil against me; but God meant it for good. genesis 50.20
a time is coming when we, the bride of Christ, will be able to say to the host of fallen angels, 'You attempted to enslave us on a dark and fallen planet. you meant it for evil, but our God has used the experience to prepare us to rule.
this brings us the answer to the question; why does God
130 allow evil to be present in the earth? of course, the potential for evil is present within humankind's state of moral freedom, our freedom to choose. however, that does not address the issue of demons.
lucifer and the rebellious angels were present on this planet at thee time of the creation of the human race. since the fall of adam and eve, diabolical influence has become pervasive in human cultures because of continuing sin.
we who follow Jesus now face a task similar to the children of Israel after crossing the Jordan into the promised land. they entered into the land by faith, just as we enter into salvation by faith. then they faced the task of defeating the Canaanities.
in Judges 3.1-2, there is reference to the Canaanite tribes left in the land after the death of Joshua, followed by this interesting statement: 'this was only so that the generations of the children of Israel might be taught to know war, at least those who had not formerly known it.
DOES GOD STILL WANT US TO KNOW WAR? is it still part of His plan to develop us as warriors? yes. we are to partner with God in the battle. the New Testament believer is applying the resurrection power of Jesus. 'for the weapons of our warfare are not carnal but mighty in god for pulling down strongholds. II corinthians 10.4
this hostile environment is essential for our eternal future. mankind has been made to take dominion. it is necessary that we face an antagonist during our brief apprenticeship on earth to qualify in character to rule with Christ in eternity.
All About Evil Spirits
before going on to explore the tactics of our warfare we must become familiar with what the Bible reveals about Satan's kingdom. here is a brief summary...
131 begin by meditating on these two important passages:
He has delivered us from the power of darkness and translated us into the kingdom of the Son of His love. colossians 1.13
...having wiped out the handwriting of requirements that was against us, which was contrary to us. and He has taken it out of the way, having nailed it to the cross.
having disarmed principalities and powers, He made a public spectacle of them, triumphing over them in it. colossian 2.14-5
1. assuming that Isaiah 14.12-5 refers to the devil (as church tradition has taught), he is called 'Shining One' in that passage. from the latin translation of that title we get the name Lucifer.
2. God divided responsibility among several high-ranking angels. one of these angels was named Lucifer. he may have been an archangel, although Michael is the only one specifically called an archangel in the Bible. Jude 1.9
3. through rebellion, Lucifer fell from heaven taking one-third of the angels with Him. every free moral creature in the universe must at one time make a final decision whether to give allegiance to God or to self. L chose self. Revelations 12.7-9
4. some of the fallen angels were cast down to hell and chained until judgment day while others were left free to oppose God and His kingdom. II peter 2.4
5. L became the adversary, which is the meaning of the name satan. he is the enemy of both god and man. satan is filled with vindictive rage against the redeemed children of adam, who will rule with Christ in glory.
132 6. satan and his fallen angels were defeated at the cross and will finally be condemned. colossians 2.15; matthew 25.41
7. demons are the force operating behind false religions, idolatry, magic and witchcraft. deuteronomy 32.17; psalms 96.5; I corinthians 10.19-20; revelations 9.20.1
8. satan and demons are in a state of continual war against the church and all believers are exhorted to combat all levels of evil spiritual force in the unseen realm. ephesians 6.10-15
9. demons are permitted by god to tempt and deceive in a limited way, but they CANNOT OVERRIDE THE HUMAN WILL. I cor. 10.13; Job 1.12
10. demons are allow limited control over natural phenomenon within the earth's atmosphere. Job 1.19
11. satan has 2 primary characteristics, which are also his weapons against humanity and the church: he is an accuser and a deceiver. Rev. 12. 7-10
12. the Bible records characteristics of demonic oppression such as MENTAL ANGUISH, physical sickness, masochism, nakedness and the inability to speak. matthew 8.28-33; mark 5.1-6; luke 8.26-33; matt. 9.32
13. satan has assigned certain demons to certain territories, nations, cities and subcultures. these demons seek to pervert the people in their territory and to turn them against God.
for example, Ezekiel 28.12 contains reference to the king of Tyre. in the context of the passage, it seems that the Spirit of God is not referring to an earthly ruler but to a principality or power, such as those referred to in Ephesians 6.12
14. Jesus demonstrated His power over demons and has passed this power on to His followers. Mark 16.17; Rev. 12.11
far more important than the study of angels and demons is the study of God Himself. consider this passage from the book of Rev. 19. 4-6
133 'and the 24 elders and the 4 living creatures fell down and worshiped god who sat on the throne, saying, 'amen! Alleluia!'
then a voice came from the throne, saying, 'Praise our god, all you His servants and those who fear Him, both small and great?
and I heard, as it were, the voice of a great multitude, as the sound of many waters and as the sound of mighty thunderings, saying, 'Alleluia! for the Lord God omnipotent reigns!
this is the sound of heaven exulting over the destruction of the works of satan in the final judgment. I CAN'T WAIT! one thing is certain. TO FOLLOW JESUS IS TO MARCH TOWARD A FINAL AND COMPLETE VICTORY.
Chapter 13 - The Unseen Realm
135 'we do not look at the things which are seen, but at the things which are not seen. for the things which are seen are temporary, but the things which are not seen are eternal. II corinthians 4.18
WHAT IS THE ENEMY DOING IN YOUR CITY? true to his nature, he's probably setting fires. you can rush around putting out the fires or you can capture and sentence the arsonist.
when we look at the kingdom of god. w don't focus on the gifts but the Giver. Jesus is the center of our attention. we should take a similar approach to the kingdom of darkness.
we should not focus on the evil, while ignoring the evil one. we tend to look at problems caused by fallen angels without seeing them as the cause. in the daily newspaper we
136 read reports of gang violence, corrupt government and child abuse, without clearly establishing the connection to the very real conflict in the unseen realm.
christians are called to operate in the unseen realm. we must take initiative to take territory from satan. many believers practice deliverance on a small scale, such as the freeing of individuals, but then see large-scale problems only as consequences of social or political processes.
I am committed to political and social action, but I realize that electing good people to office is not half as important as gaining victory over principalities through united prayer.
the rightly prioritized agenda of a biblical believer should be personal repentance and holy living, leading to united prayer, to revival of the church, to awakening among the lost, to reformation of society and international missionary endeavor. this is the historic path of renewal. we must consciously move toward it in each generation.
when i look at the cities of the US, i see the christians as a group of bewildered survivors going about their daily business with little sense of unifying purpose.
in a time of war, battles are won by the strategic concentration of force. soldiers don't just attack along a scattered front. they follow a plan designed by a general with a big map and lots of information. in some of our cities, it's so long since our soldiers received news about the progress of the battle that they have stopped shooting. they are wandering around the battlefield, preparing food and generally attending to their won comfort.
Nehemiah 4.20 says, 'wherever you hear the sound of the trumpet, rally to us there. our God will fight for us'. the Israelites rebuilding the walls of Jerusalem had knowledge of what the enemy was up to and a system for co-operative action, even though they were scattered on the wall.
137 and out of each other's sight.
the modern christian needs to take the General's written orders - the bible - and read the description of the battlefield.
here is a brief summary of some of the truths about the unseen realm reveled in the Word of God that pertain to the destruction of our cities and how to stop it:
1. satan's kingdom is a limited hierarchy of evil spirits, with order, authority and chain of command.
2. high-ranking, supernatural personalities, referred to as principalities and powers in ephesians 6, seek to dominate geographic areas, cities, peoples and subcultures.
3. while God's Word tells believers to treat such beings with respect, it also commands us to take captivity captive, to bind the strong man, to plunder his good and to tear down the rule and authority of the evil one.
4. we, as believers, are given authority to overcome the enemy as a result of Jesus' victory.
5. we must strategically apply God's power based on discernment of the unseen realm.
6. we need to overcome the enemy BEFORE we employ other methods of ministry among people.
7. Jesus said, '...every city or house divided against itself will not stand. matt. 12.25 spiritual authority is present in proportion to the harmony of relationships among believers moving together toward a common goal.
'assuredly, I say to you, whatever you bind on earth will be bound in heaven, ...against I say to you that if 2 of you agree on earth concerning anything that they ask, it will be done for them by My Father in heaven. matt. 18.18-9
Section 5: Into Battle: Five Steps to Victory
'be strong and of good courage; do not be afraid, nor be dismayed, for the Lord your God is with you wherever you go. Joshua 1.9'
1.Worship: the place of beginnings
2.Waiting on the Lord for insight
3. Identifying with the sins of the City
4. Overcoming evil with good
5. Travailing until birth
Chapter 17 - Worship: the place of beginnings
Oh come, let us worship and bow down; let us kneel before the Lord our Maker. Psalms 95.6
...God directed us to Los Angeles...
166 I had an attitude problem toward the city. I took my first steps toward it only out of obedience to Jesus, but God soon changed my perspective.
as I exercised the discipline of thanksgiving, I began to receive constant revelation about the blessings of urban living and the destiny that God had in mind for my city. now I really love this city. the freeway is a magic carpet ride to new ethnic neighborhoods, museums, shows and restaurants. the cultural diversity is stimulating and the vast size of the city provides the opportunity for endless exploration, endless discovery of the new.
the most beautiful thing about this city is the presence of the people of God. I regard it as a holy privilege to be part of the church in LA. it is a church that has blessed the world with christian leadership for more than 100 years. my her identifies with the rich history of Hollywood Presbyterian Church and also with the newest Pentecostal congregations planted among Central American refugees.
having to leave LA now would be a great sacrifice. THIS IS MY TOWN. i'm not just passing through while pursuing my career goals. Jesus may relocate me, but unless he directly intervenes, my commitment is not negotiable.
my relationships are more important than my potential for personal achievement. I get angry when I see families leave their local church and all their old friends simply for financial advancement. the prophet isaiah pronounced God's judgment because of similar attitudes in his generation. 'the highways lie wast, the wayfaring man ceases. he has broken the covenant, He has despised the cities, He regards no man. Isaiah 33.8
are you as excited about your city as I am about mine? or are you just enduring in an environment that you despise? if you lack joy, repent for your murmuring and then exercise
167 the discipline of thanksgiving. as gratitude conceives praise, you will be able to look up and see the eternal purposes of God for you, your family and the church in your city.
if you are negative and downcast, you will never minister to this generation.
our primary mission is to bring hope to a generation that is so discouraged
that they cannot conceive of anything more than the fleeting pleasure of their vices.
our message to modern humanity is
'GOD IS NOT MAD AT YOU!
HE HAS PROVIDED CLEANSING AND HEALING THROUGH JESUS CHRIST!
COME BACK TO THE FATHER.
THERE IS A PURPOSE FOR YOUR LIFE.
IT IS IMPOSSIBLE TO BRING THIS MESSAGE UNLESS YOU YOURSELF ARE
FULL OF THE JOY OF THE LORD.
'do not sorrow, for the joy of the Lord is your strength. nehemiah 8.10
no longer join with satan, the accuser of your city, but lift up your heart in thanksgiving as you declare by faith the effect that the gospel will have.
Sing, O daughter of Zion!
Shout, O Israel!
Be glad and rejoice with all your heart,
O daughter of Jerusalem!
The Lord has taken away your judgments,
He has cast out your enemy.
The King of Israel, the Lord, is in your midst;
You shall see disaster no more. Zephaniah 3.14-5
DO YOU WANT REVIVAL IN YOUR CITY?
DO YOU WANT TO DEFEAT THE POWERS OF DARKNESS?
THE WAY TO GET RID OF DARKNESS IS TO TURN ON THE LIGHT,
TO ESTABLISH THE LORD'S PRESENCE IN THE MIDST OF HIS PEOPLE
THROUGH PRAISE. (see Psalms 22.3)
it's one thing to have God's strategy for the city,
but it's another thing to have God's presence within the people attempting to minister.
when Solomon completed the temple according to its design, there still remained the most important
168 event of all. God's glory needed to be manifest in the midst of united praise.
indeed it came to pass, when the trumpeters and singers were as one, to make one sound to be heard in praising and thanking the Lord, and when they lifted up their voice with the trumpets and cymbals and instruments of music, and praised the Lord.
'for He is good.
for His mercy endures forever,'
that the house, the house of the Lord, was filled with a cloud, so that the priests could not continue ministering because of the cloud; for the glory of the lord filled the house of God. II chronicles 5.13-4
at the beginning of the Olympic Games Outreach we organized a huge international praise gathering in a stadium. christians from nearly every church in the city were joined by believers from over 30 countries, until a crowd of 16,000 filled the bleachers.
it was not a concert.
it was not a time for preaching.
it was time to minister to the Lord,
to praise the one who is the only hope of humanity.
the infield was filled with people waving banners, each one dressed in a national costume. a full choir and orchestra led us in song and the evening culminated with the arrival of teenage runners who had carried a lighted torch from Plymouth Rock to LA, in order to claim the US for Jesus.
'every place on which the sole of your foot shall tread shall be yours. Deuteronomy 11.24
we were filled with the Holy Spirit and with joy as we celebrated a victory already gained. the days that followed saw an unparalleled harvest.
169 the people in that stadium were not participating in a choreographed religious frivolity. each one had been choosing to worship in the lonely moments of personal trial, but now in concert with thousands of others they could pour out their souls in adoration of the savior.
that was the night the enemy was defeated.
that was the night when the lights turned on the the darkness fled.
that was the moment when all the prayers of the previous months found their answer.
reading a report like this may produce in some people a sense of failure. you may be struggling with the stress of daily living, wondering if your life will ever count for anything, let alone bless a whole city. DON'T BE DISCOURAGED. START WHERE YOU ARE. remember spiritual warfare begins on a personal level and escalates through increasing levels of difficulty and scope:
-personal
-family
-church life
-church in the city
-national
-international
all the great victories of the church were conceived in a quiet moment of sacrificial praise, when the heart of an individual turned toward the Lord and
worshiped Him for His character alone.
THANK GOD FOR HIMSELF.
THANK GOD FOR THE PRIVILEGE OF KNOWING HIM..
THANK HIM FOR YOUR LIFE AND..PROVISION..
sometimes I am overwhelmed with gratitude for God's mercy to me.
if it were not for His mercy, I would be destroyed.
yet He has given us more than salvation. he has given us a gift with which to serve our generation,
the more you lift up your eyes in praise, the more
170 revelation you will receive about your destiny. god does not demand praise as an exercise of His own fights. He loves you. when He commands us to give thanks, He is really saying, 'Look up. acknowledge me and then you will understand.
'the fear of the Lord is the beginning of wisdom. psalms 111.10
Chapter 19 - Identifying with the Sins of the City
'Hear the prayer of Your servant which I pray before You now, day and night, for the children of Israel Your servants and confess the sins of the children of Israel which we have sinned against You. both my father's house and i have sinned. Nehemiah 1.6
184 our God is a God of patience and compassion beyond the human comprehension. his torment is poured out through the prophecy of Jeremiah.
185 why have they provoked me to anger
with their carved images,
and with foreign idols?...
for the hurt of the daughter of My people I am hurt.
I am mourning...
Oh, that my head were waters,
and my eyes a fountain of tears,
that I might weep day and night
for the slain of the daughter of my people? Jeremiah 8.19, 21; 9.1
in responding to the broken heart of God, we must identify with the sins of the city in personal and corporate repentance. when Nehemiah prayed for the restoration of Jerusalem, he did not pray for the city as if he were not part of it. he said, 'I and this people have sinned. Nehemiah 1.6-7
Ezra went even further when he said, 'O my God: I am too ashamed and humiliated to lift up my face to You, my god; for our iniquities have risen higher than our heads, and our guilt has grown up to the heavens. Ezra 9.6
both of these were righteous men. you may be a righteous person who is not involved in any direct way with the vices present in your city. but there is no temptation that is not common to humanity I corinthians 10.13 we can all identify with the roots of any given sin.
take, for example, the shedding of innocent blood in the act of abortion. you may never have participated in an abortion, but all of us have been guilty of the root sins that give place to such an activity. i can think of 5 common root that lead to abortion: lust, the love of comfort, the love of money, rejection and unbelief.
* Lust, because it is often the context for irresponsible conception.
*the love of comfort, because the decision to abort is often made simply to avoid the discomfort of preganancy.
*love of money, because of a desire to avoid financial sacrifice.
*rejection, because in her fear of rejection by society or boyfriend a woman's solution is to reject the child in her womb.
*unbelief, because we discount the existence of a just God who will surely honor a difficult but righteous decision. the voice of unbelief concludes, 'if I have this baby, it will ruin my whole life!
187...the Holy Spirit prays through us as the divine intercessor 'with groanings which cannot be uttered' (romans 8.26), but He can only exercise an authority proportionate to the yieldedness of the human vessel.
my own testimony is that the victories of my life have always come in the midst of repentance and confession. during the Olympic Games Outreach I was surrounded by reporters and television cameras from the christian media. Christianity Today and Charisma applauded, and I was interviewed many times on Christian TV and radio.
the atmosphere was one of appreciation. people wrote stories about the fact that God was raising up leadership in the new generation and that there was hope for the future. but in the midst of all that -and there was a great victory taking place - i was going through an intense, personal struggle.
I remember one night in particular.
I stood in the dark in my own backyard.
the black sky matched my mood.
I had been struggling with resentment.
now I couldn't sleep because guilt gnawed at my soul.
'God, forgive ma, I said one more time, but my own best efforts at repentance
brought only the ashes of further failure.
I knew what I should be feeling.
I should be feeling love and
I should be extending forgiveness.
but I had to admit the bitter truth: in spite of all my knowledge of right principle,
I was failing at the simplest level of my christian walk.
I'd been hurt and disappointed by a friend, and I COULD NOT FORGIVE. (note..OH GOD..me too!)
I suddenly saw the awesome truth. John Dawson had not become one bit better
after all these years of christian life.
staring at me from the grave was the same vain, selfish person
who had come to the cross so many years before.
it's no use putting cosmetics on a corpse, teaching it a new behavior and a new vocabulary.
no one knows how wicked he or she is until that person has truly tried to be righteous.
'God, rescue me, I prayed.
Rescue me from myself.
a familiar theme invaded my understanding: the cross of Jesus , His life for mine, the indwelling Christ. yes, I have always believed that Jesus lives within a believer. but that night in my despair
I SAW MY TOTAL NEED FOR HIS LIFE
TO BE THE ONLY EXPLANATION FOR ANY VICTORY OF MINE.
that night I came back to the cross.
I experienced again His cleansing and forgiveness.
the consequences of my sin had fallen upon the Lamb that was slain.
the blood was again sprinkled on the doorposts of my heart.
instead of perfecting righteousness in me,
He who is righteous was standing up within me and beginning to LIVE HIS LIFE.
Jesus is the only person who can truly live the christian life. that night with a new understanding,
I ACKNOWLEDGED AGAIN MY T-O-T-A-L dependence on Him.
we are by nature
189 incomplete. human beings by definition are the dwelling place of God. God has created us as a vessel for His own being. in a sense, we cannot be fully human apart from Him.
Jesus doesn't dispense His attributes to us as we need them. he doesn't give us SOME love. He is love. His life unleashed within us is the source of all victory and blessing. he is honest and quick to forgive. my only hope is consciously to acknowledge my desperate need of Him.
JESUS LIVE YOUR LIFE THROUGH ME has become my daily prayer.
my biggest problem is not demons. I am my biggest problem.
it is only when God has cleansed my own wicked heart that
PARTICIPATION IN THE REDEEMING WORK OF INTERCESSION BECOMES POSSIBLE.
IT IS THEN THAT THE POWER TO CHANGE HISTORY IS RELEASED THROUGH PRAYER.
Elijah was a man with a nature like ours, and he prayed earnestly that it would not rain; and it did not rain on the land for 3 years and 6 months.
and he prayed again and the heaven gave rain, and the earth produced its fruit. james 17-8
as you stand in the gap for your city, allow the Holy Spirit to shine the bright light of truth into the inner rooms of your soul. run from the religious deceit that would seduce you into believing that you are superior to any person. it is only by the blood of the Lamb and the power of the Spirit that we stand free from the chains of guilt and the sentence of death.
Woe is me, for I am undone!
because I am a man of unclean lips,
and I dwell in the midst of a people of unclean lips;
for my eyes have seen the King,
the Lord of hosts. Isaiah 6.5
Chapter 20 - Overcoming Evil with Good
and they overcame him by the blood of the Lamb and by the word of their testimony. Revelation 12.11
192 ...when we come against the enemy, we by faith manifest the aspect of Christ's character that is the opposite of the temptation facing us.
take, for instance, Jesus' statement regarding a particular evil spirit. 'however, this kind does not go out except by prayer and fasting'. Matthew 17.21 the admonition to abstain from food is probably because the disciples were dealing with a demon of appetite such as lust or gluttony. the power of God was hindered until they yielded themselves further to the control of the Holy Spirit through a particular step of obedience - a step involving the opposite spirit, a spirit of self-control.
fasting, however, has a greater significance as a means of overcoming the enemy. fasting is intensely difficult and sends us running to Jesus for help. when your body is screaming for food, you know you need grace to go on. denying your appetite becomes an intense personal battle. hunger and weakness humble me. I desperately need grace to maintain my commitment to abstain from food. the poverty of my self sufficiency is exposed and Christ's sufficiency is revealed instead.
the application of the cross always releases resurrection power. we are crucified with Christ and our old nature is destroyed. then Christ's life inhabits our life in victory. this is the
PRINCIPLE OF THE EXCHANGED LIFE:
His life for mine,
HIS STRENGTH PERFECTED WHEN I ACKNOWLEDGE MY WEAKNESS.
'it is no longer i who live, but Christ lives in me. galatians 2.20;
'FOR WITHOUT ME YOU CAN DO NOTHING. John 15.5
193 coming against Satan's strongholds always involves personal choices that overcome temptation. temptation serves the purpose of exposing what is really in our hearts. when we see what is in our hearts and acknowledge it honestly before god in repentance, His greater power is released...
198 ...think about your city.
*what is oppressing you and your neighbors?
*what positive actions could you take that resist the enemy in his strongholds?
*what are you responsible for ?...
199 ...along with resisting temptation and taking positive action, there is always the release of God's power when we declare out loud His RHEMA word. the greek word rhema is the biblical term for the SPECIFIC PERSONAL COMMUNICATION OF GOD WITH HIS CHILDREN HERE AND NOW. this is different from the LOGOS, which refers to the already revealed word recorded in Scripture.
since Pentecost, we have become the dwelling place of God's Spirit.
God wants us to
think His thoughts,
pray His prayers,
feel His heart,
do His work and
speak His words.
because we are the legal stewards of this planet, it is
200 important for a human being to speak out an authorization for action on the part of angels. the non-christian has lost his authority and is under the prince of this world (John 12.31), but the redeemed believer has regained the right of dominion. genesis 1.28 the accuser can no longer condemn. the blood has been sprinkled on the doorposts. exodus 12.23 judgment has already fallen on the lamb. the curse is broken. He has delivered us from the kingdom of darkness and transferred us to the kingdom of His dear Son. colossians 1.13
within our right of dominion is the privilege of speaking into existence the purpose of god as He reveals His mind to us. 'but we have the mind of Christ. I corinthians 2.16 in this way we create with God new things and destroy the works of darkness. we speak IN the name of Jesus, THROUGH the power of the Holy Spirit, Because of the shed blood of Jesus WITH the sword of the Spirit which is the Word of God.
the Bible does not depict us as passively sheltering but as consciously fighting. james 4.7 says, 'therefore submit to God. resist the devil and he will flee from you. Matthew 18.18 says, 'whatever you bind on earth will be bound in heaven'.
Chapter 21 - Travailing Until Birth
'so it was, when I heard these words, that I sat down and wept and mourned for many days; I was fasting and praying before the God of heaven. nehemiah 1.4
just as the contractions of a woman's uterus herald the beginning of labor, there are times when God's Spirit stirs our souls to seasons of intense travail. we must travail in prayer until God's purposes are birthed. this may be an exercise that is deeply personal and private or a corporate exercise, for example, as part of scheduled citywide prayer meetings. that which is conceived of god will eventually come to birth. when the united christians of a city are at this stage, it is an indicator of impending revival.
when you truly love somebody, you don't just mention that person before the Lord.
YOU PRAY UNTIL THAT WHICH IS NEEDED HAPPENS
204 UNTIL THE ANSWER COMES,
UNTIL BREAKTHROUGH.
love settles for nothing less than victory. love fills us with an earnest ambition for the desired result.
if you are praying for a family member who is in bondage, you are not released from the burden until that person is saved, set free and set in order.
THIS IS THE WAY WE SHOULD PRAY FOR OUR CITIES.
'ask and it will be given to you;
seek, and you will find;
knock and it will be opened to you. matthew 7.7
in the year prior to the Olympics Games Outreach, I would often find myself groaning and weeping with the compassion of Jesus for the people of my city. I drove the freeways with tears streaming down my face. later that year, hundreds of pastors from over 50 denominations joined with me in times of intense prayer during outreach planning sessions.
there will be seasons in the life of every intercessor. the process of physical birth is an analogy of an eternal truth. A WOMAN IS INCAPABLE OF BRINGING TO BIRTH A GREAT MANY CHILDREN IN A SHORT TIME. she must endure through a certain process which then produces the promised child in the fullness of time. the year 1983 was one of intense travail in my personal prayer life for my city. I was totally consumed by the struggle to receive that which god had promised.
the level of a spiritual victory for your city is directly affected by 2 spiritual conditions: the intensity of your desire and the size of your faith. God wants to see if you want the minimum or the maximum. do you want institutional survival or citywide revival?
the prophet Elisha took the young king Joash to a window facing east. I instructed the king to fire an arrow in the direction of the syrians and then to act out his zeal for victory.
205 then he said, 'take the arrows'; so he took them. and he said to the king of Israel, 'strike the ground'; so he struck 3 times and stopped.
and the man of god was angry with him and said, 'you should have struck 5 or 6 times; then you would have struck syria till you had destroyed it. but now you will strike syria only 3 times. II kings 13.18-9
moses did not make this mistake. his life as an intercessor was marked by intensity and endurance. moses was also a man who had his personal priorities sorted out. it is recorded in Exodus 18 that his father-in-law, jethro, taught him that intercession for the people was the first of the 6 responsibilities of leadership.
this let based on Exodus 18.19-22 has been immensely helpful to me and I keep it prominently posted on the front page of my prayer diary:
'stand before God for the people (intercession, the number one priority)
'teach them the statutes and the laws' (prepare key teachings)
'show them the way in which they must walk (long range vision)
'and the work they must do' (the plan, how we get there from here).
'select from all the people able men, such as fear God (appoint leadership)
'every great matter they shall bring to you (keep your energy for the truly important things)
the pastor of a church or the leader of a ministry will find it difficult to maintain these priorities, because prayer is essentially private. it is the one aspect of a leader's ministry that is invisible to the people we are easily tempted to a life of
206 CEASELESS BUT BARREN ACTIVITY,
because we want the approval and understanding of the people who follow us.
we must repent of the fear of man and
ask God for a life-transforming revelation of the priority of prayer.
most of us learn to pray with intensity through concern for our children. god's main method of turning a self-centered teenager into an other-centered adult is to set us in families.
the principle is this: the grace for character transformation is always a love relationship . think of the story of Jacob. he spent 14 years of indentured servitude learning to hate his own character weaknesses as he saw them reflected in the life of his manipulative uncle Laban.
why did he stay and endure this painful learning experience? answer: he was in love with Rachel, in genesis 29.20 the Bible reports the astounding grace this love provided: so Jacob served 7 years for Rachel and they seemed but a few days to him because of the love he had for her'.
love for Rachel sustained Jacob during the difficult season of his apprenticeship for leadership. eventually his name was changed from Jacob, which means 'supplanter or schemer', to Israel, which means 'prince of God'.
we rarely anticipate the surgery that god intends when we fall in love, marry and produce a family. it reminds me of a mischievous friend of mine who would always change the words of a popular worship chorus and sing, 'Grind us together , Lord, grind us together, with cords that cannot be broken.
when we are single we long for the intimacy of marriage - just to have somebody of 'my own'. we fantasize about moments of emotional and physical intimacy. eventually we may get married and face the reality of actually dividing our time, money and space with another person. that's when we discover how much we really need Jesus.
207 and then come children. tiny, poopy, little creatures that demand constant attention. Ah, but what love fills our hearts at first sight of Junior. our selfish focus on personal rights is wept away the moment those big baby eyes look into ours.
when a baby is born into a family, the parents virtually become its slaves. we clean them, feed them, warm them, protect them and sometimes we do it all night long.
during the years of their early childhood, our major concern is for the physical safety of our children. that is often the focus of our prayer life, but then they reach their teens. the day my oldest son entered junior high school, I knew that my prayer life would have to change. now I can truly identify with paul's statement in galatians 4.19, 'my children with whom I am again in labor until Christ is formed in your' NAS
GOD, OUR FATHER, USES THE EXPERIENCE OF PARENTING TO HELP US TO IDENTIFY WITH HIM. the Holy Spirit speaks to us about sharing our faith with others; but most christians approach evangelism with a heavy heart and a fear of rejection, even though a twinge of guilt reminds them that their obligation is plain.
why do we share Jesus with others?
why do we pray for people?
because people need Him?
because we look at strangers and just love them so much?
because of duty and obligation?
if you love someone, you will seek to comfort that person and help him or her at the point of greatest hurt. we have a brokenhearted Father who has entrusted us with an awesome responsibility and privilege: the expression of His love to a hurting generation.
Jesus said, 'as the Father who has entrusted us with an awesome responsibility and privilege: the expression of His love to a hurting generation.
Jesus said, 'as the Rather has sent Me, I also send you'. john 20.21 our very name is the 'body of Christ'. this means that our hands must become His hands, our eyes shine
208 with His love and our voices speak His words. as His people we represent Jesus to the world. where else will they see Him?
I have 3 children. I love to hold them, comfort them and teach them. I cannot imagine what it would be like to have no arms to hold them and no voice to comfort them when they experience pain. god has entrusted us with the awesome privilege of expressing His heart of love to His own wayward children. how vulnerable God has made Himself to us! we cannot fail His trust. we cannot ignore His broken heart over millions who still walk in ignorance of His plan of reconciliation.
HAVE YOU EVER WONDERED WHAT IT FEELS LIKE TO HAVE A LOVE FOR THE LOST? this is a term we use as part of our christian jargon. many believers search their hearts in condemnation, looking for the arrival of some feeling of benevolence that will propel them into bold evangelism. it will never happen. it is impossible to love 'the lost'. you can't feel deeply for an abstraction or a concept. you would find it impossible to love deeply an unfamiliar individual portrayed in a photograph, let alone a nation or a race or something as vague as 'all lost people'.
you may have read the testimony of praying missionaries who wept with loving compassion for the people of their calling. however, don't forget that this experience is a result of God's emotions being shared with a human hear in the place of intercession. God does not relate to commodities and abstractions. in His omnipresence, He knows and relates to individuals. he does not see a conglomerate, such as the
209 nation of China, as much as He sees every Chinese person, whom He has known intimately since conception.
DON'T WAIT FOR A FEELING OF LOVE IN ORDER TO SHARE CHRIST WITH A STRANGER.
you already love your heavenly Father and you know that this stranger is created by Him, but separated from Him,
so take those first steps in evangelism because you love God.
it is not primarily out of a compassion for humanity that we share our faith or pray for the lost; it is, first of all, love for god. the Bible says in ephesians 6.7-8, 'with good will doing service, as to the Lord, and not to men, knowing that whatever good anyone does, he will receive the same from the Lord, whether he is a slave or free.
humanity does not deserve the love of God any more than you or I do. we should never be christian humanists, taking Jesus to poor sinful people, reducing Jesus to some kind of product that will better their lot. people deserve to be damned, but Jesus, the suffering Lamb of God, deserves the reward of His suffering, which would be that none perish but that all are reconciled to the Father.
when you do open your mouth to testify to others as a love response to God, the indwelling Christ will reveal His tender heart. the apostle paul testified to this motivating work of the Holy spirit. 'for the love of Christ constrains us. II corinthinas 5.14
when we minister to people either through prayer or through preaching, we must give the Holy Spirit access to our emotions. MANY CHRISTIANS ARE UNABLE TO MOVE WITH THE SPIRIT INTO SEASONS OF TRAVAIL BECAUSE THEY HAVE A FEAR OF EXPERIENCING DEEP EMOTIONS. the root of this hindrance is the fear of losing control, yet our whole spiritual life depends on our yielding control to the Holy Spirit.
God has promised that if we follow Him, He will remove
210 our hearts of stone and give us hearts of flesh. the suffering that once made us so bitter is now the crucible in which compassion is forged. 'for as the sufferings of Christ abound in us, so our consolation also abounds through Christ'. II corinthians 1.5
the only thing that will sustain the intercessor through a long season of prayer is continual revelation from the Holy spirit. the Spirit loves the Father; the Spirit reveals the Father's compassion; and the Spirit gives us the faith to know that the joy of answered prayer will always come to those who continue in faithfulness.
one of my first experiences of learning to pray until breakthrough was a result of picking up a hitchhiker late one night. he was about 18..lonely, miserable and strung out on drugs.
I offered him a place to stay and a meal and talked to him about his heavenly Father. at one point in our conversation I felt such compassion for this you man that I didn't know if my heart could endure it. I said, 'Colin, God has loved you since the day you were born, HE HAS LONGED FOR SOMEBODY TO TELL YOU HOW MUCH HE LOVES YOU. He understands you. He knows about every hurt and every disappointment. WHEN YOU CRY, HE CRIES.
something stirred deep within his young heart. he looked at me with such longing, but he was unable to respond to the Lord that night. he had taken too much speed to sleep, so he continued his journey.
in the months that followed, my schedule took me to several countries, but the Lord had planted a seed of compassion within me for Colin that grew into a greater burden as time passed. the Holy Spirit would direct me in very specific prayer. I remember calling on god for Colin's deliverance from drugs while I was driving through a Canadian
211 snowstorm. I remember rebuking demons of sexual perversion during a prayer time in osaka, Japan.
the day I returned to Los Angeles I was greeted by an excited YWAM worker. 'Colin got saved, he said.
'which Colin? I said, guarding my hopes.
'some guy you picked up hitchhiking. he got saved today, just before you got here..
when i opened the front door of the Discipleship Training School, there he was, tears in his eyes, surrounded by students who had just led him in the sinner's prayer.
he had been in a nearby park dealing some dope when he looked through the trees and recognized the YWAM property. he remembered the kindness of the Lord to him, threw his drugs into a trash can and stumbled across the street weeping.
when a staff member responded to his knock at the door, he said, 'I want to come in. I need to get saved. and of course he was welcomed into the family of God.
during my months of prayer for Colin, I was amazed at the Holy spirit's ability to move my emotions. I had only talked to him briefly, but a supernatural energy for prayer was awakened within me. if Christ 'ever lives to make intercession for them' (Hebrews 7.25), then we must receive by faith this aspect of His life even as we have received His cleansing and His victory over sin. Christ's prayer life must be expressed through us by the indwelling Holy Spirit.
in 1971 I was a student in a YWAM school of evangelism in Switzerland and I was just beginning to understand spiritual truths. one day Loren Cunningham called a special prayer meeting for the United States, and several of us joined him in an upstairs room.
the first thing he did was to invite the Holy Spirit to deal
212 with sin. I came under deep conviction because of my judgmental attitude toward others. I confessed this openly and gained great joy immediately.
as people prayed for the US., the Spirit directed me to a particular subculture. 'O God, I payed, reveal Yourself to the rebellious children from christian homes who are now living in counterculture communes in San Francisco.
immediately after saying these words, my whole body was racked with deep sobbing. I was unable to pray another prayer. I remember thinking, how can I feel so deeply for people I have never met, living in a country foreign to me? it was my first experience of Jesus, the Intercessor, sharing with me His burden for lost people. I could feel their loneliness and confusion. I sensed what it would be like to bear a mountain of unresolved guilt, to live under the accusations of tormenting spirits.
the Holy Spirit suffers continually as He enters into people's pains and sorrows. THROUGH THE SPIRIT THE INTERCESSOR MAKES THE SUFFERING OF OTHERS HIS OWN. intercession is not a substitution for sin - that is the finished work of Jesus through the cross - but the intercessor completely identifies with the sufferer in his physical or spiritual condition. this outworking of divine love gains the release of divine power.
LOVE IS MEASURED AND DEMONSTRATED BY SACRIFICE - BY COSTLY ACTION.
LOVE CONTINUES NO MATTER WHAT THE COST. (note - Oh Holy Spirit would You, please, give me this for my dear wife, Susan)
'greater love has no one than this, than to lay down one's life for his friends. John 15.13 love identifies with suffering and endures until it is ended. Paul said,
'now if we are afflicted, it is for your consolation and salvation II corinthians 1.6
...always carrying about in the body the dying of the Lord Jesus, that the life of Jesus also may be manifested in our body.
for we who live are always delivered to death for Jesus' sake, that the life of Jesus also may be manifested in our mortal flesh.
so than death is working in us, but life in you. II corinthians 4.10-12
the patriarch Abraham received a promise from God, but then he travailed for a lifetime in receiving its fulfillment. 'and so , after he had patiently endured, he obtained the promise...Hebrews 6.15
we, too, need to endure until that which God has promised us is completed. SOMETIMES JUST HANGING IN THERE CAN BE AN ACT OF SPIRITUAL WARFARE. you must endure in the circumstance until the character of Christ is formed in you and you gain that needed place of spiritual authority.
resurrection power comes only after the cross has done its work.
self-interest,
self-promotion,
self-preservation and
self-consciousness have to die for us
to experience intimate friendship with a holy God
and to obtain overcoming authority in destroying the works of satan.
no victory is instant. I have a friend who once filled her home with needy people, many requiring deliverance from demonic oppression. she rushed from person to person, counseling and comforting until she was completely exhausted. she commanded demons to depart but continuing bondage was evident.
finally she became oppressed herself and even entertained thoughts of suicide. in this dark moment God taught here that deliverance is a process.
she turned her home into a house of prayer.
each person received counseling only when she felt
that a place of authority had been gained through intercession.
some victories were quickly gained, but others required seasons
of intense struggle.
214 I remember an early example of this principle in my life. i was standing before a large movie screen in a canadian high school auditorium. colorful posters had been posted throughout the campus, inviting students to attend a lunchtime meeting.
christian students had invited many of their friends and we were expecting a large crowd. we anticipated good results through the sharing of a powerful gospel film featuring youth issure.
at the time the film was due to begin, only a handful of students had entered the auditorium. I was discouraged.
i want around behind the screen and paced up and down praying fervently. 'Lord, bring them in. Holy Spirit, sweep down the corridors and draw students to this room. bring them to an appointment with the Father today.
I kept this up for 15 minutes with any visible result. the accuser tormented me with my failure and i almost packed up my equipment and left. then it happened. students began to pour into the room. not just christians. students of every style and persuasion.
finally there were no more chairs and students began to line the walls and sit on the floor. I stayed behind the screen and dept on praying. 'every one, Lord, every person who needs to be here, bring them in.
a line formed in the corridor outside the auditorium. a frantic school teacher began turning people away because the room had become so crowded that we were violating the fire code.
behind the screen i was weeping and worshipping. 'Forgive me, Lord, for not trusting You. I see now that You move in great power if I press in for the maximum result. Complete the work today, Lord; complete the work.
215 in the meeting that followed, God changed many lives.
30 minutes of earnest prayer is barely a valid example of honest travail, but the Lord had to start me somewhere. in the years since then I have travailed for months and even years over people and ministries that the Lord has laid upon my soul. he has graced me with a stubborn faith that contends for the promise and does not let go.
Ezekiel was given this holy stubbornness when God commissioned him to the ministry of a prophet.
behold, i have made your face strong against their faces and your forehead strong against their foreheads.
like adamant stone, harder than flint, i have made you forehead; do not be afraid of them nor be dismayed at their looks, though they are a rebellious house. Ezekiel 3.8-9
we need the humility to change direction in an instant, if we are shown to be in error and the tenacity to continue against all odds, for as long as it takes to complete the task that God has assigned to us. this 'holy stubbornness' is particularly important when praying for
breakthrough in a city.
seasons of harvest will come;
new ministries will be birthed.
however, these things will not take place instantly.
God plants within the heart of every believer a godly dream. but, like Joseph, we find ourselves walking away from the mountain of promise into the valley of apprenticeship. like Jacob we may begin the journey in human strength, but God must reduce us to an honest appraisal of our weakness before we can inherit the promise. may visions die on the road to resurrection power. God subtracts before he multiplies.
and the Lord said to gideon, 'the people who are with you are too many for Me to give the Midianites
216 into their hands, lest israel claim glory for itself against Me, saying, 'My own hand has saved me. Judges 7.2...
218 ..what is your personal vision?
is there a God-inspired dream burning in your heart?
don't give up.
let God have His way with you.
keep your eyes on the King.
receive His vision for the city,
give Him you r life and your gifts
and begin to take steps of obedience.
24 'I knew that exercising the gifts of the Spirit had a lot to do with personal initiative. our will is involved, so I asked Jesus for His view of the unseen realm in my home, my office and my ministry. 'Lord, do I have blind spots" I asked. 'are there subtle influences of demonic accusation and deception that I am totally unaware of?
..some people see deliverance as the solution for everything, when the problem may really be solved through repentance, proper management or application of some other principle. 'well, Lord, I said, if there is an actual demon attacking me I trust that You will show me.
the plane landed. I retrieved my baggage and flagged down my wife as she circled the Los Angeles airport in our family van. as soon as the door opened I sensed it. I felt the oppression of an evil spirit right in the van with my wife and three sons - not possessing anybody, just lurking in the background.
as we drove out of the airport I thought back over the last 6 months. there was definitely a pattern of criticism and misunderstanding in some of our external family relationships. I drove into a parking lot and explained to my family what I was feeling. I said that what we had gone through
25 was more than the expected stress of a busy life. there was an insidious pattern of harassment that became clearer the more we discussed it. as the priest in my home, I joined with my wife in COMMANDING the spirit to go from us. immediately we sensed the departure of an evil presence.
the next day I prayed earnestly for my staff at the Los Angeles Youth With a Mission (YWAM) headquarters. as I prayed, a picture of the board room came into my mind. the directors meet in this room to seek the Lord and to make long-range decisions. in my mind's eye I could see a gloomy cloud hovering in a corner next to the ceiling. I understood that I was discerning a spirit of unbelief.
yes, that's it, I thought. every time we meet in there, everybody becomes unusually anxious about finances even though God has proved so faithful.
I suddenly became angry -angry at a spirit that would dare to accuse our generous, faithful, heavenly Father.
during the next few days, we experienced a season of spiritual house cleaning. a spirit of confusion that had oppressed a family for months was exposed and sent into the wast places (matt. 12.43) along with several other demons that had been practicing a subtle harassment right in the middle of our christian ministry.
it is no surprise that I was discovering demonic activity at a YWAM base. any effective ministry is going to be the subject of satanic attack.
Satan is a religious spirit who hangs around religious leaders and institutions. he has only 2 weapons: to accuse and to deceive. he hurls his accusations and lies with greatest effect in the religious world.
what do we see satan doing in the Bible? accusing Job, deceiving Eve, accusing the saints before the throne of God and finally tempting Jesus with a kingdom without the cross.
26 the devil built the temptations of Jesus on a subtle accusation of the character of God the Father.
satan is not omnipresent. where do you think he is right now? I think he's probably trying to accuse and deceive the christian leader who is most threatening to his kingdom. high-ranking spirits oppress christian leaders as in the incident of delayed revelation recorded in the life story of daniel. daniel was kept from a God=- given revelation because the territorial spirit over persia withstood a messenger angel for 21 days until the angel Michael joined the fight. Daniel 10
..when was the last time you truly exercised the gift of discernment in relation to your circumstances?
before you answer that question, remember some basics:
-the gifts of the Spirit represent the abilities of Jesus, just as the fruit of the Spirit describes the personality of Jesus.
-Jesus lives in you, the believer and He is able to be in you and through you everything you are not.
- He is the source of our victory over sin, our wisdom, strength, love and power.
- he doesn't give us some truth. He IS truth and He lives His life through us as we yield to His control.
one of the abilities or gifts of Jesus' Holy spirit within us in the ability to discern or see the activity of spirits in the unseen realm (I corinthians 12.10). we can choose to exercise this gift or neglect it even though we believe it is biblical.
sometimes we think that the gifts of the Spirit are the special
27 domain of 'super-mature' christians, but the truth is that they are part of God's grace expressed in order to bring all of us to maturity. you can and should stir up this gift within you. (note - how?) it may not be your special ministry emphasis, but discernment should not be neglected in your daily life.
but you might ask, how do I exercise a gift? first let's look at a gift often expressed or witnessed by christians - the gift of prophecy. many believers have been used by the Holy Spirit to impart a special word of encouragement to other believers in a home meeting or church service. when this occurs it is not a result of the Holy Spirit's grabbing the person and forcing speech from his lips. the person usually senses the beginning of what God wants to say and voluntarily yields to the Holy Spirit in expressing that thought. he begins in faith out of love for God and His people and as thought follows thought the prophecy moves to completion.
..according to the Bible our lives are lived in the midst of an invisible spiritual war. one of the most dangerous things we can do is simply to ignore this reality. we accept the Bible as true but we often live as though the battle existed on some far-off mission field, not here in our city. the fact is, there is a battle raging over your city and it is affecting you right now. our individual blind spots and vices are usually common
28 to the culture around us and that culture is influence by what the Bible calls principalities and powers (ephesians 6). in other words, you are being buffeted by the same temptations as others around you.
another thing to note is that spiritual warfare begins at a personal level and escalates through layers of increasing difficulty -from personal and family to the realm of church life, and beyond that to the collective church in the city and the national and international realms.
have you ever thought about the battle for your immediate neighborhood? for the last 10 years I have lived in the black community in Lost Angeles.
my neighbors and I have common enemies.
spirit of despair, hopelessness, depression, discouragement and rejection torment this community.
even as I write, my neighborhood is making headlines because of gang violence and mass arrests. much of his is explained by a history of social oppression, but we must not underestimate the spiritual implications. the Bible says that we are not fighting against flesh and blood (ephesians 6.12). the devastation of drugs and of violence stems from the destruction of the family and the destruction of the family is accelerated in an atmosphere of despair.
what creates atmosphere?
atmosphere is a theatrical term for the collective mood of an audience during a play, but in daily life the human spirit is sensitive to may unseen things in the spiritual realm. man is, by definition, an incarnate spirit and is sensitive to spiritual realities, including the activity of demons seeking to oppress and deceive.
several years ago my staff and I went on a prayer walk around our neighborhood.
WE STOOD IN FRONT OF EVERY HOUSE, REBUKED SATAN'S WORK IN JESUS' NAME AND PRAYED FOR A REVELATION OF JESUS IN THE LIFE OF EACH FAMILY.
we are still praying. there is a long way to go, but social, economic and spiritual
29 transformation is evident. there were times when demonic oppression almost crushed my soul. I received a death threat. my tires were slashed. I was often depressed at the sight of boarded-up houses, unemployed youth and disintegrating families, but I was determined not to run away.
today there are at least 9 christian families in the block where I live and there is a definite sense of the Lord's peace. the neighborhood is no longer disintegrating. people are renovating their houses and a sense of community is being established around the christian families.
the battle is very real. last week a neighbor discovered a loaded pistol in my driveway just before my children came out to go to school. drugs are sold all night several doors down at a house belonging to an alcoholic who is unchanged after years of prayer and ministry. these realities are a challenge to my faith, but I believe that as we continue in prayer the demons of hopelessness, violence and addiction will be driven from this place completely and my neighbors will have the opportunity to receive ministry without demonic interference.
every one of us faces demonic forces in our local environment, but as christians we are called to a much bigger battle.
WE ARE CONTENDING FOR OUR WHOLE GENERATION.
WE ARE CALLED TO ACT LOCALLY BUT TO THINK GLOBALLY.
because of massive urbanization, it is the evangelization of our cities that holds the key to bringing millions of people to Christ.
Section II -DELIVER THE DARK CITY
Chapter 3 - A Call to the City
33 I was trying to help a fellow preacher sort out his life and ministry. he was one of my staff leaders. we drove through Los Angeles discussing his gifts and the options facing him.
I don't want to minister here in LA, he said, 'I don't want to raise my kids in this environment. what an armpit! deep in my spirit I felt a righteous anger.
'why do you think we live here? I said. I'm really ashamed of you for having that attitude. are we preachers just professional religionists looking for pleasant places to settle down? my staff and I didn't move to LA for the
34 environmental benefits.
this dear brother eventually came to a place of repentance. he is now stationed in a foreign city with greater problems that LA, but there are millions of christians who choose where they will live on an entirely self-centered basis. however, christians must get Jesus' view of these cities. cities are simply huge clusters of people and Jesus goes where the people are.in His earthly ministry Jesus wept with compassion for the crowds of Jerusalem and moved among them in ministry.
over one half of the world's population lives in urban centers. in developed nations like the US, the percentage of urban dwellers is much higher. in california, for example, 91% of the population lives in cities.
my city, Los Angeles, is crowded, expensive, violent and polluted. I would rather raise my children in rural isolation or suburban convenience, but Jesus has called me here. Jesus has always been attracted to the dark places. 'but where sin abounded, grace abounded much more. romans 5.20
by the year 2010, 3 out of every 4 people on earth will live in cities, which means that cities must become the prime target of the missionary. today's church is much more comfortable sending missionaries from suburban churches to the rural villages of Africa or Central America. too many christians feel alienated by the city and see it only as a dark and evil place to e avoided, but this is not God's attitude. consider His words to the jews held captive in pagan Babylon. 'and seek the peace of the city where I have caused you to be carried away captive and pry to the Lord for it; for in its peace you will have peace. jeremiah 29.76
more than half of the people in the US live in 6% of the land area. translated, that means 88 million people live in the 44 largest metropolitan areas.
35 the larger cities are filled with a multiplicity of ethnic peoples who have turned the US into one of the major mission fields of the world. with 4 and a half million Hispanics, Los Angeles is now the second largest Hispanic city. it is also the second largest Chinese city outside Asia and the second largest Japanese city outside Japan. the list goes on. it is the largest korean city outside Korea, the largest Vietnamese city outside Vietnam and the largest Philippine city outside the Philippines.
a century ago London was the world's only supercity, but now 42 cities of the world have a population surpassing 4 million. most of these cities are either Asian or Islamic. when we add those that are marxist we get some idea of the challenge christians face in world evangelization.
it's time for us to put aside our fear and self-interest and to take bold action. I recently heard about a newly appointed pastor to a comfortable middle class church in the suburbs of Fort Worth, Texas. he proposed that the expensive church property be sold and that the congregation move its ministries to the inner city. he's no longer with that church. he didn't succeed, but his is the kind of radical idea I think is needed.
we must have a new vision of christian service. missions has always had a romance to it, with visions of primitive tribes and palm trees in the setting sun. we need to plant another dream in the hearts of our young pioneers. we must fill their minds with a more realistic and compelling picture...
Chapter 4 - Cities: A Blessing or a Curse?
many christians think cities are by nature evil places. if they were asked, they would say the city is a curse, not a blessing. however, that is not God's view. after all, the human story begins in a garden and ends in a city.
i believe god intends the city to be a place of shelter, a place of communion and a place of personal liberation as its citizens practice a division of labor according to their own unique gits. i believe our cities have the mark of God's sovereign purpose upon them. our cities contain what i call a redemptive gift.
43 ..when I am traveling and preaching, one of the first questions i ask upon arrival is, 'Why is this town here?...
there is always a reason and ..usually stems from the geography of the location...
Chapter 5 - Ministering in the City of the Future
47 20 years ago Alvin Toffler wrote a book titled Future Shock, predicting the rapid transformation of our modern cities into what he called the 'super industrial society. that future is now. he portrayed the modern urbanite as a person shell-shocked by the pace of change...
48 ...in the 19th century the first railway systems led to rapid expansion of the city, but it still retained its dominant center. in the 1960s, the downtown areas became so congested and unattractive that urban growth spread to a cluster of smaller city centers withing the greater metropolitan areas. sociologists have had to invent a whole new vocabulary to describe the changing city. from
village to
city to
dynapolis to
metropolis to
dynametropolis to
megalopolis and presently
dynamegalopolis....
Chapter 6 - Revival or Judgment - What Will It Be?
57 when my friend Floyd finished preaching and called for repentance, I was the first to my feet. during the message i had seen myself clearly and i was ashamed. I publicly confessed my sin that day and asked the others at the conference for prayer.
what was my sin? embezzlement, adultery? No, the Holy Spirit was convicting me or the sin of unbelief. in that stark moment of honesty i realized that I really HAD LOW EXPECTATIONS OF WHAT GOD WOULD DO IN MY CITY.
what do you expect God to do in your city? or, to put it another way, who is your God? is He the God of the Bible?
58 your God is only as big as what you expect of Him in space and time. what do you expect Him to do here on earth in this generation? don't tell me about the God of your theology. it's easy to say that He's all-powerful, but do you expect Him to do powerful things here and now?
Chapter 7 - The City at Harvest Time
69 we have worked our way up to this important tactical question: do we wait for the next revival or do we go into action now? obviously we are never to draw back from evangelization, for we were born to reproduce when we were born again, evangelism must be our life style.
70 ..unless you understand biblical warfare you will be frustrated, angry, confused and ineffective in your ministry to the city. you may be attempting to coordinate christian concerts, pioneer a church or reach businessmen. the principle is still the same; we need to bind the strong man and gain a place of authority over satan before we will see the full fruit of our labors.
Jesus said,'but if i cast out demons by the spirit of God, surely the kingdom of god has come upon you. or else who can one enter a strong man's house and plunder his goods, unless he first binds the strong man? and then he will plunder his house. matthew 12.28-9
if we are not using our biblical spiritual weapons, we are failing the people we are attempting to serve. one of my earliest experiences with the power of prayer occurred when i was preaching in Canadian high schools in the winter of 1973. in each city i would gain access to the campus through the christian club, and we would then use a number of creative ways to draw a crowd and preach the gospel. we had good results in all the schools, but one school in Edmonton, Alberta, was in a league of its own.
when I arrived I discovered that the whole Christian club had been fasting and praying for several days in anticipation of the meeting. the local Teen Challenge director, a pentecostal minister, had been teaching prayer principles to the students. as soon as I arrived on campus I sensed the presence
71 of the Holy Spirit.
that day the largest room on campus was packed out and God empowered me to preach as never before. at one point a heckler challenged me and mocked the gospel, but God filled my mind with the details of his life. I shouted out a list of his hidden sins until he left the room.
at the end of the message the students didn't want to leave.
the room was filled with small groups of students in earnest conversation,
may clustered around the Christians, asking questions about Jesus.
it was time to go back to class, but the students ignored the clock.
finally the principal had to ring the fire alarm,
vacate the building,
line up the students in the snow
and march them to their classes.
I felt like Paul at Ephesus during the riot of the god-makers.
seeing such results was wonderful.
the truth is, however, that this breakthrough had little to do with my preaching.
the hard soil had been plowed up by those fasting, praying students.
74 ...even if I am interceding for people who embrace and believe the lie of the enemy, such as devout Muslims, I can stand in the gap as a prayer warrior and isolate them from religious spirits or any other form of demonic oppression.
Isaiah 60 says that the people of the earth sit in gross darkness. can you imagine walking into a darkened room filled with people viewing a multimedia show - people who had never experienced anything other than darkness and the media illusions flickering before them? imagine walking in, switching on the lights and asking everybody to turn around and observe the mundane equipment responsible for the powerful illusion. THAT'S JUST HOW WE DEAL WITH SATAN.
he is a projectionist, an illusionist, a deceiver - the father of lies.
discerning the nature of principalities at work in your city can be as simple as
ASKing GOD TO TELL YOU WHAT'S GOING ON.
but God also wants us to use our minds in reasoning through the things He has already taught us and in applying them. Genesis 22.17 says, 'Your descendants shall possess the gate of their enemies.
in the Bible the city gates represented the place of entrance, authority and decision. we are promised that even the gates
75 of hell will not prevail against the church. in the next section we will examine how to discern the gates of our cities.
before attempting to rebuild the walls of jerusalem, Nehemiah carefully surveyed the damage (neh, 2.13) we, too, must get the big picture before running to the battle. in the next four chapters we will explore essential research in the areas of history, covenants, current revelation and demographics.
Section III - DISCERNING THE GATES OF YOUR CITY
Chapter 8 - Looking at History with Discernment
...you will find in the book of the records and know that this city is a rebellious city, harmful to kings and provinces and that they have incited sedition within the city in former times, for which cause this city was destroyed. Ezra 4.15
79 ask yourself the question, why is this city here? is it merely a product of geography and commerce, or does god have a redemptive purpose in mind for it? Jonah was surprised at the way God looked at Nineveh. your city is God's city. the people are made in His image. satan is an invader and a usurper operating in our territory. God did not give demons authority over your city. demons have infested the earth's atmosphere since before the creation of mankind, but they can only extend their authority into a town or an institution when people sin.
when you look into the history of your city, you will find
80 clues as to what is oppressing the people today. this is our planet and the only authority Satan has is stolen human authority. he initially gains this authority when, at some point in history, human beings believe his lie, receive his accusation and are seduced into an allegiance to his plan. an obvious example would be the spirit of greed which was let loose during the california gold rush and still dominated the culture of Los angels and San Francisco to this day.
whole countries are kept in darkness by satanic lies that have become cornerstones of a particular culture. take, for example, the struggle with rejection and the fear of authority experienced by many Australians, because their country originated as a penal colony. entering through these cruel roots of Australian history, satan has been bale to create a general distrust of all authority figures, including the highest of all who is, of course, God Himself.
the truth is that Australia is not a nation founded on rejection and injustice, but a chosen people with as much dignity and potential as any people in history. they are a people greatly loved by a heavenly Father who is calling them to healing and purpose...
81 so, through repentance, reconciliation and prayer, the present generation can work to repair the broken down walls of the city.
those from among you
shall build the old waste places,
82 you shall raise up the foundations of many generations;
and you shall be called the Repairer of the Breach,
The Restorer of Streets to Dwell In. Isaiah 58.12
RESTORING UNITY BETWEEN OUR CITY'S CHURCHES is an important part of rebuilding the wall. recently the eldership of an independent charismatic church was in prayer asking God why they could not seem to grow beyond a certain point. the Holy Spirit pointed them toward their roots as a congregation. they did some research and found that their church was birthed when a rebellious faction separated from a downtown Pentecostal church two generations ago.
when the churches of a city are in unity, they have great power to tear satan's kingdom up by the roots on a citywide level. in 1988 I had the privilege of ministering among the churches of Reno, Nevada. with an economy built on vice, primarily gambling, Reno is famous for sin.
15 churches cam together and rented the dome in the heart of downtown. after I spoke on 'Discerning the Gates of Your City', I took the history of the town as a reference point and began to expose the activity of particular spirits. the list included:
independence
isolation
self-sufficiency
withdrawal
rebellion
fear of authority
dominance
mammon
love of competition
anger
violence
depression
discouragement
covenant breaking and
false comfort
in many ways Reno is just an exaggeration of the classic
83 western town that was carved out of the wilderness by fiercely independent people. today's citizens of Reno still glory in the strength of the individual.
after the message the pastors assembled on the platform and collectively came against the powers of darkness. the first thing they did was to humble themselves. they confessed to having succumbed to the temptations of the city, not the obvious ones like gambling and lust, but the more subtle pressures from independence and isolation.
one brother told the story of his recent confrontation with a motorist. he had almost come to blows with the other driver when he remembered who he was - a pastor representing Christ. 'I almost allowed myself to be overcome by the spirit of violence and lawlessness', he said during his pray of repentance. many present identified with his confession. as other pastors led the way to the throne of grace, a great cleansing took place that day in the life of the church. then the pastors abandoned themselves to praise and intercession, which climaxed in a declaration of God's authority over Reno.
the study of a city's history will often reveal the wounds a people have sustained. some cities carry wounds of rejection or inferiority because they lost their bid to become the state capital or they were overshadowed by a more successful city nearby. WHOLE CULTURES CAN SUSTAIN A WOUND, WHICH MAY BECOME A MAJOR HINDRANCE TO THE GOSPEL.
take Mexico, for example. when dealing with a comparatively new nation like those in the Americas, we must study the experience of the first generation of the native born. mexicans are a mixture of spanish and Indian heritage.
consider the family experience of the first generation of mexicans. the father was often a whit spaniard, the mother an indian. their children were born into a gap between 2 cultures. a son, for example, wanted to be like his father
84 who is a proud and powerful conquistador, but the center of warmth and affection was his Indian mother. this foundation experience has greatly hindered the growth of the kingdom of God in mexico because the image of Father God is distorted.
85 list of key questions to ask when researching your city's history:
1. what place does your city have in this nation's history?
2. was there ever the imposition of a new culture or language through conquest?
3. what were the religious practices of ancient peoples on the city?
4. was there a time when a new religion emerged?
5. under what circumstances did the gospel first enter the city?
6. has the national or city government ever disintegrated?
7. what has been the leadership style of past governments?
8. have there ever been wars that affected this city?
-wars of conquest
-wars of resistance to invasion
- civil war
9. was the city itself the site of a battle?
10. what names have been used to label the city and what are their meanings?
11. why was the city originally settled?
12. did the city have a founder? what was his dream?
13. as political, military and religious leaders have emerged, what did they dream for themselves and for the city?
14. what political, economic and religious leaders have emerged, what did they dream for themselves and for the city?
15. what has been the experience of immigrants to the city?
16. have there been any traumatic experiences such as economic collapse, race riots or an earthquake?
17. did the city ever experience the birth of a socially transforming technology?
18. has there ever been the sudden opportunity to create wealth such as the discovery of oil or a new irrigation technology?
19. has there ever been religious conflict among competing religions or among christians?
20. what is the history of relationships among the races?
86 you can obtain much information about your city's history through city libraries, museums and historical societies. perhaps you could begin a filing system for clippings and notes. the prayer life of a church is much more exciting and effective when we make research a habit. you will be surprised at what God reveals to you when you are simply reading the newspaper or browsing in a bookstore.
one local church in austin, Texas, spent every saturday afternoon for a year doing prayer walks through every section of the city. this practice is one of the best ways to gain a true understanding of the people God has called us to reach. pray in every part of the city and allow god to speak to you there. see the whole city as your inheritance.
for God will save Zion
and build the cities of Judah,
that they may dwell there and possess it.
also, the descendants of His servants shall inherit it,
and those who love His name shall dwell in it. psalms 69.35-6
there is one more question i would like to leave with you.
you must ask:
is there anything in the roots of this city that could be bringing God's judgment rather than His blessing?
for example, we could ask: HAVE WE PROPERLY DEALT WITH THE SIN OF SLAVERY in the sight of God? while slavery took its course a long time ago in american history, its legacy still haunts the church today. sunday is the most segregated day of the week. integration is far more advanced in
87 the worlds of education, commerce and entertainment than in the church. is there a reason for this?
we have some unfinished business to attend to. one of the reasons for continuing racial prejudice is the unresolved guilt that still resides in the white community. it's time that the curse was lifted and that cleansing and reconciliation cam to completion. that's the ministry of Jesus and we are His body.
in one midwest city that I studied, racially inspired injustice seems to be the only major blot on an otherwise wholesome past. and it all seems to be focused on one shameful incident.
a white mob, outraged over an unsolved crime, lynched an innocent black man. people told me this story as vividly as though it had happened yesterday. thus, the incident has lost none of its power to create guilt and bitterness, even though it happened many generations ago.
repentance, reconciliation and healing could take place if christians from the black and white community joined together in identification with the sins and griefs of their forebears. if the sin is acknowledged and relationship is restored, then the authority of the lord can be exercised over the demonic forces that have been exploiting the past.
a new resident of the city might think, that's not my problem. I just moved here last year. however, when god puts you in a city you become part of the church there and you inherit its legacy, good or bad. the unfinished business of the church is now your responsibility, too.
Chapter 9 - The History of God's People/Covenants
90 ...like Josiah of old, we may be surprised to find our names written in a book: 'behold, a child, Josiah by name, shall be born to the house of David. I kings 13.2 imagine J's shock when the book of the law was found during the restoration of the temple and he discovered his own destiny.
Josiah also discovered that his people were under judgment because they had not kept their covenant with God.
now it happened, when the king heard the words of the law, that he tore his clothes...
for great is the wrath of the Lord that is poured out on us, because our fathers have not kept the word of the Lord, to do according to all that is written in this book. II chronicles 34.19,21
91 in many ways this generation is like Josiah's. WE ARE LIVING IN A TIME OF CERTAIN, BUT POSTPONED, JUDGMENT. judgment has already been declared and is inevitable but we can turn to God in humility and He will revive us and our children with us.
'because your heart was tender and you humbled yourself before god when you heard his words against this place and against its inhabitants and you humbled yourself before Me and you tore your clothes and wept before me, i also have heard you, says the Lord. II chronicles 34.27
it is a dangerous thing to lose the knowledge of the past. 'when all that generation had been gathered to their fathers, another generation arose after them who did not know the Lord nor the work which he had done for israel. Judges 2.10
93 there are 5 areas of essential knowledge in which today's christian worker must walk.
1. know the history of the church in your nation...
2. know the history of the church in your city....
3. know the history of ministry to your target subculture or ethnic group...
94 4, know the history of the type of ministry in which you are involved....
5. know the history of your movement. do not despise your roots. every israelite had a tribe. there were no independent Jews. sectarian attitudes are wrong, but denominations are biblical...
95 ...a knowledge of history can put everything in perspective. in 1976 i was wandering around the Roman Coliseum on a hot summer day. I glimpsed an ice cream vendor through the ancient stone pillars and walked toward him. when i arrived at the place i first saw him, he had vanished. i searched through the hot ruins, becoming more irritated by the minute. i wanted ice cream!
all of a sudden i saw myself in the sight of God. 'for a 1000 years in Your sight are like yesterday when it is past. psalm 90.4
here i was, a 20th century believer, moaning about ice cream in the very place where thousands of 1st century believers shed their blood for the gospel and in God's sight it was only yesterday. i was deeply ashamed.
WHAT ARE YOU COMPLAINING ABOUT? it may be something far more difficult that the absence of ice cream, but in the light of history, it may be just as trivial.
96 ...finally, a question that can apply to all 5 categories: WHERE ARE THE WALLS OF MY CITY BROKEN DOWN?
...have there ever been strong ministries in the city that rose to a certain point and then failed?
what caused that failure?
is there a pattern of defeat in the life of the church?
Chapter 10 - Prophets, Intercessors and Spiritual Fathers
for by wise counsel you will wage your own war and in a multitude of counselors there is safety. proverbs 24.6
...in every city there is a hidden eldership. you will not find this grouping of saints listed in any human book. this circle a mature believers stands in the gap until victory comes. (note - O Lord help me to be a faithful, daily intercessor.)
as Isaiah 62.6-7 says,
upon your walls, O Jerusalem, I have set watchmen;
all the day and all the night
they shall never be silent.
you who put the Lord in remembrance,
take no rest,
and GIVE HIM NO REST
until He established Jerusalem
and makes it a praise in the earth. RSV
some of these watchmen are obvious, such as veteran pastors. others may be obscure intercessors or prophetic people with a hunch. you are on to something if you find a common theme among those who claim revelation.
God...confirms a strategy through several witnesses. ..when the spiritual leaders of a city are waking in friendship and respect, then the full power of God can be released against principalities and powers.
an individual ministry or church can achieve a cone of victory within its sphere of service, but the prevailing evil spirits will dominate the secular culture unhindered until the principle of agreement based on harmony in relationships is employed.
110 ...the following is a list of questions that will help you to discover the ministries that God has placed in your city. we need to love them, serve them and humbly receive ministry from them.
1. what is the total number of churches in the city?
2. are the churches concentrated in some sections while absent in others?
3. which churches are evangelical?
4. which churches are active and growing?
111 5. are there dynamic churches present in every ethnic group?
6. look over a list of churches and see if you can discern a particular gift expressed by each congregation. what is unique about its ministry?
recently I talked to a pastor who was approached by some of his people about staring a singles' department. he was feeling stirred toward another emphasis at that time, so he recommended that they join the growing singles' ministry of the assemblies of God church a few blocks away. he did not see this as an admission of failure to produce the perfect church. he saw his brother pastor as another member of the leadership team that god had assembled to take the city.
7. obtain a list of the christian organizations in the city. do you really understand what god has called each one to do?
8. identify the senior leaders of ministries and churches. what are they saying about the state of the church? do they have a vision for the future?
9. who are the emerging leaders? what is their message?
112 in summary, then, do these 4 things:
1. know the church, its movements and the ministries given to people.
2. listen for the sound of the trumpet. 'he who has an ear, let him hear what the Spirit says to the churches'. Revelations 2.7
3. receive God-given gifts of friendship and walk in covenant with believers from fellowships other than your own.
4. join with those who call the church to unity.
Chapter 11 - Get The Facts
the heart of him who has understanding seeks knowledge. proverbs 15.14
115 it is amazing to me two uninformed we are of the basic realities around us.
do you know your city? you should have the census in one hand and the Bible in the other.
what percentage of people actually attend church?
how many people are in poverty?
why are they in poverty?
where do they live?
are there subcultures, ethnic groups, changes in the economy, an aging population?
what's really going on?
you need to know if you are going to help free your city from evil spiritual dominance.
spiritual warfare does not not operate in a vacuum. it is the air force that covers the soul winner and the evangelist and
116 all evangelism must be carefully conducted using all available information.
first, get out a map of the city. study it carefully. see if you can identify concentrations of the elderly, the homeless, students, children and so on. which subcultures are more receive than others to the gospel? why? what are the felt needs of the people of the city? gather evidence to demonstrate your conclusions.
parts of the city may vary greatly in culture, crime levels and wealth. try to determine the felt needs of each group of people.
what you research depends on your goals. a pastor planting a church or an evangelist planning an outreach will need very specific information and statistics. however, all of us are called to the ministry of intercession and thus need to have some knowledge of the big picture.
...God told Moses to get the facts as the initial step that would lead the jews into their inheritance: 'send men to spy out the land of canaan, which I am giving to the children of israel; from each tribe of their fathers you shall send a man, every one a leader among them'. numbers 13.2...
118 red tape is often the easiest way for the enemy to defeat the birth or expansion of a local church. regulatory agencies are not our enemy. they have a valid servant function, but they can be lawfully circumvented. for example, a church can get a conditional use permit for construction of a building in an area zoned by the city for another purpose.
the expense and complexity of dealing with local government is one of the most intimidating aspects of urban ministry. remember the facts that are repeated to you are not always the truth as God would see it. God has more creative ways to fulfill His word than you could ever imagine.
God can provide the money to bring your buildings up to legal standards. god can make a way through the labyrinth of overlapping jurisdictions. do not lose heart, for nothing is too difficult for him. the key is to live by every word that proceeds out of His mouth, even if human voices tel you that it can't be done.
I love the attitude of Joshua and Caleb. they loved Canaan and they were not afraid. i often have to listen to christian workers confessing that they really hate big-city urban life, and that if they stay, it will be a big sacrifice.
God showed me the root of this attitude. satan mainly attacks the urban christian through fear. we have a hard time loving the city, because we are afraid that living there may hurt us or our loved ones. but by the power of the holy spirit, we can replace fear with love. the bible ways, 'perfect love
casts out fear. I john 4.18
as you study crime statistics;
as you contemplate the enormous expense of renting a facility in the city;
as you look at abuse and abortion trends, make sure you don't take your eyes off the living God, who reigns from His throne.
ask God to fill you with His divine perspective. those statistics are actually people known intimately by Him. let
119 His Spirit move upon your spirit. let Him break your heart and fill you with compassion. let Him lift up your heart and fill you with compassion. let Him lift up your head and fill your mouth with praise. let Him fill your mind with His intention for the city.
Section IV - Learning to Fight
Chapter 12 - Born to Battle
127 so the great dragon was cast out, that serpent of old, called the Devil and Satan, who deceives the whole world; he was cast to the earth and his angels were cast out with him. Revelation 12.9
once we have discerned the gates of our city - assessed its spiritual condition - we are ready to act. the purpose of this section is to help us to understand more fully the realities of the spiritual realm we prepare for spiritual warfare by understanding our provision as believers for exercising the lord's authority over His enemies. we will then be ready to come against our city's spiritual strongholds more effectively.
human history is a story of perpetual struggle against the emissaries of evil. the question is: what are all these demons doing here anyway? how did we get to be on a planet so
128 infested with evil?
the Bible teaches that angels were created to be holy (genesis 1.31), but at some point before the creation of man, a portion of the angels entered into deliberate rebellion against God. these rebellious angels were judged by God. some were chained in hell (II peter 2.4), but others were left free to oppose God and His kingdom.
why would God do that? why would He leave a free force in opposition to Himself? i believe it is because the development of man in his ultimate potential depended on an experience with an adversary. that's right, God wanted us to learn to fight.
man is a warrior race, made in god's own image and destined to rule beside Him. intrinsic to our nature is the drive to conquer something, to control something. this desire can be perverted in lusting after power for pride's sake or converted and harnessed in the benevolent government of God's own kingdom. we are destined to rule with Christ.
fashioned from the redeemed children of Adam, a bride is emerging that will enter into the fellowship of the triune God at the marriage supper of the lamb. Revelation 19.5-9 but before eternity comes a brief experience of earthbound battle. think of god's original directive to man and woman in genesis 1.28; 'Be fruitful and multiply; fill the earth and subdue it; have dominion over the fish of the sea, over the birds of the air and over every living thing that moves on the earth. note the word SUBDUE, implying an adversarial position. God did not use a word like CULTIVATE. He knew that a person would enter his or her inheritance only by taking dominion.
God's ultimate motive was to create mankind for a loving relationship with Himself. there are 3 essential aspects to any relationship: shared presence, exploration of traits and
129 character and mutual responsibility. it is in preparation for the third category that we kind the reason for this terrestrial apprenticeship.
Bod is planning to share with us not only the intimacy of relationship but also the responsibility of governing the universe in justice and mercy. we are to govern in agape love, self-sacrificing love.
God has marked out for us a personal inheritance. our success will not be demonstrated by the fact that we lie down in death and are able to say, 'I'm still saved and my children and grandchildren are all in the kingdom. that's only part of it.
AS WE PRESS IN TO KNOW GOD, HE UNFOLDS TO US REVELATION ABOUT A PERSONAL DESTINY. WE HAVE PLACES TO GO AND PEOPLE TO BLESS. WE HAVE BEEN GIVEN A GIFT, A PROMISE AND A TERRITORY TO TAKE.
as we communicate the gospel, raise children and cultivate the earth's resources, ewe will face the harassment of demons. they have been left here by god just for us to practice on. these demons have already been defeated and judged, but our privilege is 'to execute on them the written judgement. psalms 149.9
i believe our experience parallels the experience of Joseph in the Bible. he suffered terribly through his apprenticeship for leadership because his jealous brothers came before joseph, the ruler, and heard him say, 'you meant evil against me; but God meant it for good. genesis 50.20
a time is coming when we, the bride of Christ, will be able to say to the host of fallen angels, 'You attempted to enslave us on a dark and fallen planet. you meant it for evil, but our God has used the experience to prepare us to rule.
this brings us the answer to the question; why does God
130 allow evil to be present in the earth? of course, the potential for evil is present within humankind's state of moral freedom, our freedom to choose. however, that does not address the issue of demons.
lucifer and the rebellious angels were present on this planet at thee time of the creation of the human race. since the fall of adam and eve, diabolical influence has become pervasive in human cultures because of continuing sin.
we who follow Jesus now face a task similar to the children of Israel after crossing the Jordan into the promised land. they entered into the land by faith, just as we enter into salvation by faith. then they faced the task of defeating the Canaanities.
in Judges 3.1-2, there is reference to the Canaanite tribes left in the land after the death of Joshua, followed by this interesting statement: 'this was only so that the generations of the children of Israel might be taught to know war, at least those who had not formerly known it.
DOES GOD STILL WANT US TO KNOW WAR? is it still part of His plan to develop us as warriors? yes. we are to partner with God in the battle. the New Testament believer is applying the resurrection power of Jesus. 'for the weapons of our warfare are not carnal but mighty in god for pulling down strongholds. II corinthians 10.4
this hostile environment is essential for our eternal future. mankind has been made to take dominion. it is necessary that we face an antagonist during our brief apprenticeship on earth to qualify in character to rule with Christ in eternity.
All About Evil Spirits
before going on to explore the tactics of our warfare we must become familiar with what the Bible reveals about Satan's kingdom. here is a brief summary...
131 begin by meditating on these two important passages:
He has delivered us from the power of darkness and translated us into the kingdom of the Son of His love. colossians 1.13
...having wiped out the handwriting of requirements that was against us, which was contrary to us. and He has taken it out of the way, having nailed it to the cross.
having disarmed principalities and powers, He made a public spectacle of them, triumphing over them in it. colossian 2.14-5
1. assuming that Isaiah 14.12-5 refers to the devil (as church tradition has taught), he is called 'Shining One' in that passage. from the latin translation of that title we get the name Lucifer.
2. God divided responsibility among several high-ranking angels. one of these angels was named Lucifer. he may have been an archangel, although Michael is the only one specifically called an archangel in the Bible. Jude 1.9
3. through rebellion, Lucifer fell from heaven taking one-third of the angels with Him. every free moral creature in the universe must at one time make a final decision whether to give allegiance to God or to self. L chose self. Revelations 12.7-9
4. some of the fallen angels were cast down to hell and chained until judgment day while others were left free to oppose God and His kingdom. II peter 2.4
5. L became the adversary, which is the meaning of the name satan. he is the enemy of both god and man. satan is filled with vindictive rage against the redeemed children of adam, who will rule with Christ in glory.
132 6. satan and his fallen angels were defeated at the cross and will finally be condemned. colossians 2.15; matthew 25.41
7. demons are the force operating behind false religions, idolatry, magic and witchcraft. deuteronomy 32.17; psalms 96.5; I corinthians 10.19-20; revelations 9.20.1
8. satan and demons are in a state of continual war against the church and all believers are exhorted to combat all levels of evil spiritual force in the unseen realm. ephesians 6.10-15
9. demons are permitted by god to tempt and deceive in a limited way, but they CANNOT OVERRIDE THE HUMAN WILL. I cor. 10.13; Job 1.12
10. demons are allow limited control over natural phenomenon within the earth's atmosphere. Job 1.19
11. satan has 2 primary characteristics, which are also his weapons against humanity and the church: he is an accuser and a deceiver. Rev. 12. 7-10
12. the Bible records characteristics of demonic oppression such as MENTAL ANGUISH, physical sickness, masochism, nakedness and the inability to speak. matthew 8.28-33; mark 5.1-6; luke 8.26-33; matt. 9.32
13. satan has assigned certain demons to certain territories, nations, cities and subcultures. these demons seek to pervert the people in their territory and to turn them against God.
for example, Ezekiel 28.12 contains reference to the king of Tyre. in the context of the passage, it seems that the Spirit of God is not referring to an earthly ruler but to a principality or power, such as those referred to in Ephesians 6.12
14. Jesus demonstrated His power over demons and has passed this power on to His followers. Mark 16.17; Rev. 12.11
far more important than the study of angels and demons is the study of God Himself. consider this passage from the book of Rev. 19. 4-6
133 'and the 24 elders and the 4 living creatures fell down and worshiped god who sat on the throne, saying, 'amen! Alleluia!'
then a voice came from the throne, saying, 'Praise our god, all you His servants and those who fear Him, both small and great?
and I heard, as it were, the voice of a great multitude, as the sound of many waters and as the sound of mighty thunderings, saying, 'Alleluia! for the Lord God omnipotent reigns!
this is the sound of heaven exulting over the destruction of the works of satan in the final judgment. I CAN'T WAIT! one thing is certain. TO FOLLOW JESUS IS TO MARCH TOWARD A FINAL AND COMPLETE VICTORY.
Chapter 13 - The Unseen Realm
135 'we do not look at the things which are seen, but at the things which are not seen. for the things which are seen are temporary, but the things which are not seen are eternal. II corinthians 4.18
WHAT IS THE ENEMY DOING IN YOUR CITY? true to his nature, he's probably setting fires. you can rush around putting out the fires or you can capture and sentence the arsonist.
when we look at the kingdom of god. w don't focus on the gifts but the Giver. Jesus is the center of our attention. we should take a similar approach to the kingdom of darkness.
we should not focus on the evil, while ignoring the evil one. we tend to look at problems caused by fallen angels without seeing them as the cause. in the daily newspaper we
136 read reports of gang violence, corrupt government and child abuse, without clearly establishing the connection to the very real conflict in the unseen realm.
christians are called to operate in the unseen realm. we must take initiative to take territory from satan. many believers practice deliverance on a small scale, such as the freeing of individuals, but then see large-scale problems only as consequences of social or political processes.
I am committed to political and social action, but I realize that electing good people to office is not half as important as gaining victory over principalities through united prayer.
the rightly prioritized agenda of a biblical believer should be personal repentance and holy living, leading to united prayer, to revival of the church, to awakening among the lost, to reformation of society and international missionary endeavor. this is the historic path of renewal. we must consciously move toward it in each generation.
when i look at the cities of the US, i see the christians as a group of bewildered survivors going about their daily business with little sense of unifying purpose.
in a time of war, battles are won by the strategic concentration of force. soldiers don't just attack along a scattered front. they follow a plan designed by a general with a big map and lots of information. in some of our cities, it's so long since our soldiers received news about the progress of the battle that they have stopped shooting. they are wandering around the battlefield, preparing food and generally attending to their won comfort.
Nehemiah 4.20 says, 'wherever you hear the sound of the trumpet, rally to us there. our God will fight for us'. the Israelites rebuilding the walls of Jerusalem had knowledge of what the enemy was up to and a system for co-operative action, even though they were scattered on the wall.
137 and out of each other's sight.
the modern christian needs to take the General's written orders - the bible - and read the description of the battlefield.
here is a brief summary of some of the truths about the unseen realm reveled in the Word of God that pertain to the destruction of our cities and how to stop it:
1. satan's kingdom is a limited hierarchy of evil spirits, with order, authority and chain of command.
2. high-ranking, supernatural personalities, referred to as principalities and powers in ephesians 6, seek to dominate geographic areas, cities, peoples and subcultures.
3. while God's Word tells believers to treat such beings with respect, it also commands us to take captivity captive, to bind the strong man, to plunder his good and to tear down the rule and authority of the evil one.
4. we, as believers, are given authority to overcome the enemy as a result of Jesus' victory.
5. we must strategically apply God's power based on discernment of the unseen realm.
6. we need to overcome the enemy BEFORE we employ other methods of ministry among people.
7. Jesus said, '...every city or house divided against itself will not stand. matt. 12.25 spiritual authority is present in proportion to the harmony of relationships among believers moving together toward a common goal.
'assuredly, I say to you, whatever you bind on earth will be bound in heaven, ...against I say to you that if 2 of you agree on earth concerning anything that they ask, it will be done for them by My Father in heaven. matt. 18.18-9
Section 5: Into Battle: Five Steps to Victory
'be strong and of good courage; do not be afraid, nor be dismayed, for the Lord your God is with you wherever you go. Joshua 1.9'
1.Worship: the place of beginnings
2.Waiting on the Lord for insight
3. Identifying with the sins of the City
4. Overcoming evil with good
5. Travailing until birth
Chapter 17 - Worship: the place of beginnings
Oh come, let us worship and bow down; let us kneel before the Lord our Maker. Psalms 95.6
...God directed us to Los Angeles...
166 I had an attitude problem toward the city. I took my first steps toward it only out of obedience to Jesus, but God soon changed my perspective.
as I exercised the discipline of thanksgiving, I began to receive constant revelation about the blessings of urban living and the destiny that God had in mind for my city. now I really love this city. the freeway is a magic carpet ride to new ethnic neighborhoods, museums, shows and restaurants. the cultural diversity is stimulating and the vast size of the city provides the opportunity for endless exploration, endless discovery of the new.
the most beautiful thing about this city is the presence of the people of God. I regard it as a holy privilege to be part of the church in LA. it is a church that has blessed the world with christian leadership for more than 100 years. my her identifies with the rich history of Hollywood Presbyterian Church and also with the newest Pentecostal congregations planted among Central American refugees.
having to leave LA now would be a great sacrifice. THIS IS MY TOWN. i'm not just passing through while pursuing my career goals. Jesus may relocate me, but unless he directly intervenes, my commitment is not negotiable.
my relationships are more important than my potential for personal achievement. I get angry when I see families leave their local church and all their old friends simply for financial advancement. the prophet isaiah pronounced God's judgment because of similar attitudes in his generation. 'the highways lie wast, the wayfaring man ceases. he has broken the covenant, He has despised the cities, He regards no man. Isaiah 33.8
are you as excited about your city as I am about mine? or are you just enduring in an environment that you despise? if you lack joy, repent for your murmuring and then exercise
167 the discipline of thanksgiving. as gratitude conceives praise, you will be able to look up and see the eternal purposes of God for you, your family and the church in your city.
if you are negative and downcast, you will never minister to this generation.
our primary mission is to bring hope to a generation that is so discouraged
that they cannot conceive of anything more than the fleeting pleasure of their vices.
our message to modern humanity is
'GOD IS NOT MAD AT YOU!
HE HAS PROVIDED CLEANSING AND HEALING THROUGH JESUS CHRIST!
COME BACK TO THE FATHER.
THERE IS A PURPOSE FOR YOUR LIFE.
IT IS IMPOSSIBLE TO BRING THIS MESSAGE UNLESS YOU YOURSELF ARE
FULL OF THE JOY OF THE LORD.
'do not sorrow, for the joy of the Lord is your strength. nehemiah 8.10
no longer join with satan, the accuser of your city, but lift up your heart in thanksgiving as you declare by faith the effect that the gospel will have.
Sing, O daughter of Zion!
Shout, O Israel!
Be glad and rejoice with all your heart,
O daughter of Jerusalem!
The Lord has taken away your judgments,
He has cast out your enemy.
The King of Israel, the Lord, is in your midst;
You shall see disaster no more. Zephaniah 3.14-5
DO YOU WANT REVIVAL IN YOUR CITY?
DO YOU WANT TO DEFEAT THE POWERS OF DARKNESS?
THE WAY TO GET RID OF DARKNESS IS TO TURN ON THE LIGHT,
TO ESTABLISH THE LORD'S PRESENCE IN THE MIDST OF HIS PEOPLE
THROUGH PRAISE. (see Psalms 22.3)
it's one thing to have God's strategy for the city,
but it's another thing to have God's presence within the people attempting to minister.
when Solomon completed the temple according to its design, there still remained the most important
168 event of all. God's glory needed to be manifest in the midst of united praise.
indeed it came to pass, when the trumpeters and singers were as one, to make one sound to be heard in praising and thanking the Lord, and when they lifted up their voice with the trumpets and cymbals and instruments of music, and praised the Lord.
'for He is good.
for His mercy endures forever,'
that the house, the house of the Lord, was filled with a cloud, so that the priests could not continue ministering because of the cloud; for the glory of the lord filled the house of God. II chronicles 5.13-4
at the beginning of the Olympic Games Outreach we organized a huge international praise gathering in a stadium. christians from nearly every church in the city were joined by believers from over 30 countries, until a crowd of 16,000 filled the bleachers.
it was not a concert.
it was not a time for preaching.
it was time to minister to the Lord,
to praise the one who is the only hope of humanity.
the infield was filled with people waving banners, each one dressed in a national costume. a full choir and orchestra led us in song and the evening culminated with the arrival of teenage runners who had carried a lighted torch from Plymouth Rock to LA, in order to claim the US for Jesus.
'every place on which the sole of your foot shall tread shall be yours. Deuteronomy 11.24
we were filled with the Holy Spirit and with joy as we celebrated a victory already gained. the days that followed saw an unparalleled harvest.
169 the people in that stadium were not participating in a choreographed religious frivolity. each one had been choosing to worship in the lonely moments of personal trial, but now in concert with thousands of others they could pour out their souls in adoration of the savior.
that was the night the enemy was defeated.
that was the night when the lights turned on the the darkness fled.
that was the moment when all the prayers of the previous months found their answer.
reading a report like this may produce in some people a sense of failure. you may be struggling with the stress of daily living, wondering if your life will ever count for anything, let alone bless a whole city. DON'T BE DISCOURAGED. START WHERE YOU ARE. remember spiritual warfare begins on a personal level and escalates through increasing levels of difficulty and scope:
-personal
-family
-church life
-church in the city
-national
-international
all the great victories of the church were conceived in a quiet moment of sacrificial praise, when the heart of an individual turned toward the Lord and
worshiped Him for His character alone.
THANK GOD FOR HIMSELF.
THANK GOD FOR THE PRIVILEGE OF KNOWING HIM..
THANK HIM FOR YOUR LIFE AND..PROVISION..
sometimes I am overwhelmed with gratitude for God's mercy to me.
if it were not for His mercy, I would be destroyed.
yet He has given us more than salvation. he has given us a gift with which to serve our generation,
the more you lift up your eyes in praise, the more
170 revelation you will receive about your destiny. god does not demand praise as an exercise of His own fights. He loves you. when He commands us to give thanks, He is really saying, 'Look up. acknowledge me and then you will understand.
'the fear of the Lord is the beginning of wisdom. psalms 111.10
Chapter 19 - Identifying with the Sins of the City
'Hear the prayer of Your servant which I pray before You now, day and night, for the children of Israel Your servants and confess the sins of the children of Israel which we have sinned against You. both my father's house and i have sinned. Nehemiah 1.6
184 our God is a God of patience and compassion beyond the human comprehension. his torment is poured out through the prophecy of Jeremiah.
185 why have they provoked me to anger
with their carved images,
and with foreign idols?...
for the hurt of the daughter of My people I am hurt.
I am mourning...
Oh, that my head were waters,
and my eyes a fountain of tears,
that I might weep day and night
for the slain of the daughter of my people? Jeremiah 8.19, 21; 9.1
in responding to the broken heart of God, we must identify with the sins of the city in personal and corporate repentance. when Nehemiah prayed for the restoration of Jerusalem, he did not pray for the city as if he were not part of it. he said, 'I and this people have sinned. Nehemiah 1.6-7
Ezra went even further when he said, 'O my God: I am too ashamed and humiliated to lift up my face to You, my god; for our iniquities have risen higher than our heads, and our guilt has grown up to the heavens. Ezra 9.6
both of these were righteous men. you may be a righteous person who is not involved in any direct way with the vices present in your city. but there is no temptation that is not common to humanity I corinthians 10.13 we can all identify with the roots of any given sin.
take, for example, the shedding of innocent blood in the act of abortion. you may never have participated in an abortion, but all of us have been guilty of the root sins that give place to such an activity. i can think of 5 common root that lead to abortion: lust, the love of comfort, the love of money, rejection and unbelief.
* Lust, because it is often the context for irresponsible conception.
*the love of comfort, because the decision to abort is often made simply to avoid the discomfort of preganancy.
*love of money, because of a desire to avoid financial sacrifice.
*rejection, because in her fear of rejection by society or boyfriend a woman's solution is to reject the child in her womb.
*unbelief, because we discount the existence of a just God who will surely honor a difficult but righteous decision. the voice of unbelief concludes, 'if I have this baby, it will ruin my whole life!
187...the Holy Spirit prays through us as the divine intercessor 'with groanings which cannot be uttered' (romans 8.26), but He can only exercise an authority proportionate to the yieldedness of the human vessel.
my own testimony is that the victories of my life have always come in the midst of repentance and confession. during the Olympic Games Outreach I was surrounded by reporters and television cameras from the christian media. Christianity Today and Charisma applauded, and I was interviewed many times on Christian TV and radio.
the atmosphere was one of appreciation. people wrote stories about the fact that God was raising up leadership in the new generation and that there was hope for the future. but in the midst of all that -and there was a great victory taking place - i was going through an intense, personal struggle.
I remember one night in particular.
I stood in the dark in my own backyard.
the black sky matched my mood.
I had been struggling with resentment.
now I couldn't sleep because guilt gnawed at my soul.
'God, forgive ma, I said one more time, but my own best efforts at repentance
brought only the ashes of further failure.
I knew what I should be feeling.
I should be feeling love and
I should be extending forgiveness.
but I had to admit the bitter truth: in spite of all my knowledge of right principle,
I was failing at the simplest level of my christian walk.
I'd been hurt and disappointed by a friend, and I COULD NOT FORGIVE. (note..OH GOD..me too!)
I suddenly saw the awesome truth. John Dawson had not become one bit better
after all these years of christian life.
staring at me from the grave was the same vain, selfish person
who had come to the cross so many years before.
it's no use putting cosmetics on a corpse, teaching it a new behavior and a new vocabulary.
no one knows how wicked he or she is until that person has truly tried to be righteous.
'God, rescue me, I prayed.
Rescue me from myself.
a familiar theme invaded my understanding: the cross of Jesus , His life for mine, the indwelling Christ. yes, I have always believed that Jesus lives within a believer. but that night in my despair
I SAW MY TOTAL NEED FOR HIS LIFE
TO BE THE ONLY EXPLANATION FOR ANY VICTORY OF MINE.
that night I came back to the cross.
I experienced again His cleansing and forgiveness.
the consequences of my sin had fallen upon the Lamb that was slain.
the blood was again sprinkled on the doorposts of my heart.
instead of perfecting righteousness in me,
He who is righteous was standing up within me and beginning to LIVE HIS LIFE.
Jesus is the only person who can truly live the christian life. that night with a new understanding,
I ACKNOWLEDGED AGAIN MY T-O-T-A-L dependence on Him.
we are by nature
189 incomplete. human beings by definition are the dwelling place of God. God has created us as a vessel for His own being. in a sense, we cannot be fully human apart from Him.
Jesus doesn't dispense His attributes to us as we need them. he doesn't give us SOME love. He is love. His life unleashed within us is the source of all victory and blessing. he is honest and quick to forgive. my only hope is consciously to acknowledge my desperate need of Him.
JESUS LIVE YOUR LIFE THROUGH ME has become my daily prayer.
my biggest problem is not demons. I am my biggest problem.
it is only when God has cleansed my own wicked heart that
PARTICIPATION IN THE REDEEMING WORK OF INTERCESSION BECOMES POSSIBLE.
IT IS THEN THAT THE POWER TO CHANGE HISTORY IS RELEASED THROUGH PRAYER.
Elijah was a man with a nature like ours, and he prayed earnestly that it would not rain; and it did not rain on the land for 3 years and 6 months.
and he prayed again and the heaven gave rain, and the earth produced its fruit. james 17-8
as you stand in the gap for your city, allow the Holy Spirit to shine the bright light of truth into the inner rooms of your soul. run from the religious deceit that would seduce you into believing that you are superior to any person. it is only by the blood of the Lamb and the power of the Spirit that we stand free from the chains of guilt and the sentence of death.
Woe is me, for I am undone!
because I am a man of unclean lips,
and I dwell in the midst of a people of unclean lips;
for my eyes have seen the King,
the Lord of hosts. Isaiah 6.5
Chapter 20 - Overcoming Evil with Good
and they overcame him by the blood of the Lamb and by the word of their testimony. Revelation 12.11
192 ...when we come against the enemy, we by faith manifest the aspect of Christ's character that is the opposite of the temptation facing us.
take, for instance, Jesus' statement regarding a particular evil spirit. 'however, this kind does not go out except by prayer and fasting'. Matthew 17.21 the admonition to abstain from food is probably because the disciples were dealing with a demon of appetite such as lust or gluttony. the power of God was hindered until they yielded themselves further to the control of the Holy Spirit through a particular step of obedience - a step involving the opposite spirit, a spirit of self-control.
fasting, however, has a greater significance as a means of overcoming the enemy. fasting is intensely difficult and sends us running to Jesus for help. when your body is screaming for food, you know you need grace to go on. denying your appetite becomes an intense personal battle. hunger and weakness humble me. I desperately need grace to maintain my commitment to abstain from food. the poverty of my self sufficiency is exposed and Christ's sufficiency is revealed instead.
the application of the cross always releases resurrection power. we are crucified with Christ and our old nature is destroyed. then Christ's life inhabits our life in victory. this is the
PRINCIPLE OF THE EXCHANGED LIFE:
His life for mine,
HIS STRENGTH PERFECTED WHEN I ACKNOWLEDGE MY WEAKNESS.
'it is no longer i who live, but Christ lives in me. galatians 2.20;
'FOR WITHOUT ME YOU CAN DO NOTHING. John 15.5
193 coming against Satan's strongholds always involves personal choices that overcome temptation. temptation serves the purpose of exposing what is really in our hearts. when we see what is in our hearts and acknowledge it honestly before god in repentance, His greater power is released...
198 ...think about your city.
*what is oppressing you and your neighbors?
*what positive actions could you take that resist the enemy in his strongholds?
*what are you responsible for ?...
199 ...along with resisting temptation and taking positive action, there is always the release of God's power when we declare out loud His RHEMA word. the greek word rhema is the biblical term for the SPECIFIC PERSONAL COMMUNICATION OF GOD WITH HIS CHILDREN HERE AND NOW. this is different from the LOGOS, which refers to the already revealed word recorded in Scripture.
since Pentecost, we have become the dwelling place of God's Spirit.
God wants us to
think His thoughts,
pray His prayers,
feel His heart,
do His work and
speak His words.
because we are the legal stewards of this planet, it is
200 important for a human being to speak out an authorization for action on the part of angels. the non-christian has lost his authority and is under the prince of this world (John 12.31), but the redeemed believer has regained the right of dominion. genesis 1.28 the accuser can no longer condemn. the blood has been sprinkled on the doorposts. exodus 12.23 judgment has already fallen on the lamb. the curse is broken. He has delivered us from the kingdom of darkness and transferred us to the kingdom of His dear Son. colossians 1.13
within our right of dominion is the privilege of speaking into existence the purpose of god as He reveals His mind to us. 'but we have the mind of Christ. I corinthians 2.16 in this way we create with God new things and destroy the works of darkness. we speak IN the name of Jesus, THROUGH the power of the Holy Spirit, Because of the shed blood of Jesus WITH the sword of the Spirit which is the Word of God.
the Bible does not depict us as passively sheltering but as consciously fighting. james 4.7 says, 'therefore submit to God. resist the devil and he will flee from you. Matthew 18.18 says, 'whatever you bind on earth will be bound in heaven'.
Chapter 21 - Travailing Until Birth
'so it was, when I heard these words, that I sat down and wept and mourned for many days; I was fasting and praying before the God of heaven. nehemiah 1.4
just as the contractions of a woman's uterus herald the beginning of labor, there are times when God's Spirit stirs our souls to seasons of intense travail. we must travail in prayer until God's purposes are birthed. this may be an exercise that is deeply personal and private or a corporate exercise, for example, as part of scheduled citywide prayer meetings. that which is conceived of god will eventually come to birth. when the united christians of a city are at this stage, it is an indicator of impending revival.
when you truly love somebody, you don't just mention that person before the Lord.
YOU PRAY UNTIL THAT WHICH IS NEEDED HAPPENS
204 UNTIL THE ANSWER COMES,
UNTIL BREAKTHROUGH.
love settles for nothing less than victory. love fills us with an earnest ambition for the desired result.
if you are praying for a family member who is in bondage, you are not released from the burden until that person is saved, set free and set in order.
THIS IS THE WAY WE SHOULD PRAY FOR OUR CITIES.
'ask and it will be given to you;
seek, and you will find;
knock and it will be opened to you. matthew 7.7
in the year prior to the Olympics Games Outreach, I would often find myself groaning and weeping with the compassion of Jesus for the people of my city. I drove the freeways with tears streaming down my face. later that year, hundreds of pastors from over 50 denominations joined with me in times of intense prayer during outreach planning sessions.
there will be seasons in the life of every intercessor. the process of physical birth is an analogy of an eternal truth. A WOMAN IS INCAPABLE OF BRINGING TO BIRTH A GREAT MANY CHILDREN IN A SHORT TIME. she must endure through a certain process which then produces the promised child in the fullness of time. the year 1983 was one of intense travail in my personal prayer life for my city. I was totally consumed by the struggle to receive that which god had promised.
the level of a spiritual victory for your city is directly affected by 2 spiritual conditions: the intensity of your desire and the size of your faith. God wants to see if you want the minimum or the maximum. do you want institutional survival or citywide revival?
the prophet Elisha took the young king Joash to a window facing east. I instructed the king to fire an arrow in the direction of the syrians and then to act out his zeal for victory.
205 then he said, 'take the arrows'; so he took them. and he said to the king of Israel, 'strike the ground'; so he struck 3 times and stopped.
and the man of god was angry with him and said, 'you should have struck 5 or 6 times; then you would have struck syria till you had destroyed it. but now you will strike syria only 3 times. II kings 13.18-9
moses did not make this mistake. his life as an intercessor was marked by intensity and endurance. moses was also a man who had his personal priorities sorted out. it is recorded in Exodus 18 that his father-in-law, jethro, taught him that intercession for the people was the first of the 6 responsibilities of leadership.
this let based on Exodus 18.19-22 has been immensely helpful to me and I keep it prominently posted on the front page of my prayer diary:
'stand before God for the people (intercession, the number one priority)
'teach them the statutes and the laws' (prepare key teachings)
'show them the way in which they must walk (long range vision)
'and the work they must do' (the plan, how we get there from here).
'select from all the people able men, such as fear God (appoint leadership)
'every great matter they shall bring to you (keep your energy for the truly important things)
the pastor of a church or the leader of a ministry will find it difficult to maintain these priorities, because prayer is essentially private. it is the one aspect of a leader's ministry that is invisible to the people we are easily tempted to a life of
206 CEASELESS BUT BARREN ACTIVITY,
because we want the approval and understanding of the people who follow us.
we must repent of the fear of man and
ask God for a life-transforming revelation of the priority of prayer.
most of us learn to pray with intensity through concern for our children. god's main method of turning a self-centered teenager into an other-centered adult is to set us in families.
the principle is this: the grace for character transformation is always a love relationship . think of the story of Jacob. he spent 14 years of indentured servitude learning to hate his own character weaknesses as he saw them reflected in the life of his manipulative uncle Laban.
why did he stay and endure this painful learning experience? answer: he was in love with Rachel, in genesis 29.20 the Bible reports the astounding grace this love provided: so Jacob served 7 years for Rachel and they seemed but a few days to him because of the love he had for her'.
love for Rachel sustained Jacob during the difficult season of his apprenticeship for leadership. eventually his name was changed from Jacob, which means 'supplanter or schemer', to Israel, which means 'prince of God'.
we rarely anticipate the surgery that god intends when we fall in love, marry and produce a family. it reminds me of a mischievous friend of mine who would always change the words of a popular worship chorus and sing, 'Grind us together , Lord, grind us together, with cords that cannot be broken.
when we are single we long for the intimacy of marriage - just to have somebody of 'my own'. we fantasize about moments of emotional and physical intimacy. eventually we may get married and face the reality of actually dividing our time, money and space with another person. that's when we discover how much we really need Jesus.
207 and then come children. tiny, poopy, little creatures that demand constant attention. Ah, but what love fills our hearts at first sight of Junior. our selfish focus on personal rights is wept away the moment those big baby eyes look into ours.
when a baby is born into a family, the parents virtually become its slaves. we clean them, feed them, warm them, protect them and sometimes we do it all night long.
during the years of their early childhood, our major concern is for the physical safety of our children. that is often the focus of our prayer life, but then they reach their teens. the day my oldest son entered junior high school, I knew that my prayer life would have to change. now I can truly identify with paul's statement in galatians 4.19, 'my children with whom I am again in labor until Christ is formed in your' NAS
GOD, OUR FATHER, USES THE EXPERIENCE OF PARENTING TO HELP US TO IDENTIFY WITH HIM. the Holy Spirit speaks to us about sharing our faith with others; but most christians approach evangelism with a heavy heart and a fear of rejection, even though a twinge of guilt reminds them that their obligation is plain.
why do we share Jesus with others?
why do we pray for people?
because people need Him?
because we look at strangers and just love them so much?
because of duty and obligation?
if you love someone, you will seek to comfort that person and help him or her at the point of greatest hurt. we have a brokenhearted Father who has entrusted us with an awesome responsibility and privilege: the expression of His love to a hurting generation.
Jesus said, 'as the Father who has entrusted us with an awesome responsibility and privilege: the expression of His love to a hurting generation.
Jesus said, 'as the Rather has sent Me, I also send you'. john 20.21 our very name is the 'body of Christ'. this means that our hands must become His hands, our eyes shine
208 with His love and our voices speak His words. as His people we represent Jesus to the world. where else will they see Him?
I have 3 children. I love to hold them, comfort them and teach them. I cannot imagine what it would be like to have no arms to hold them and no voice to comfort them when they experience pain. god has entrusted us with the awesome privilege of expressing His heart of love to His own wayward children. how vulnerable God has made Himself to us! we cannot fail His trust. we cannot ignore His broken heart over millions who still walk in ignorance of His plan of reconciliation.
HAVE YOU EVER WONDERED WHAT IT FEELS LIKE TO HAVE A LOVE FOR THE LOST? this is a term we use as part of our christian jargon. many believers search their hearts in condemnation, looking for the arrival of some feeling of benevolence that will propel them into bold evangelism. it will never happen. it is impossible to love 'the lost'. you can't feel deeply for an abstraction or a concept. you would find it impossible to love deeply an unfamiliar individual portrayed in a photograph, let alone a nation or a race or something as vague as 'all lost people'.
you may have read the testimony of praying missionaries who wept with loving compassion for the people of their calling. however, don't forget that this experience is a result of God's emotions being shared with a human hear in the place of intercession. God does not relate to commodities and abstractions. in His omnipresence, He knows and relates to individuals. he does not see a conglomerate, such as the
209 nation of China, as much as He sees every Chinese person, whom He has known intimately since conception.
DON'T WAIT FOR A FEELING OF LOVE IN ORDER TO SHARE CHRIST WITH A STRANGER.
you already love your heavenly Father and you know that this stranger is created by Him, but separated from Him,
so take those first steps in evangelism because you love God.
it is not primarily out of a compassion for humanity that we share our faith or pray for the lost; it is, first of all, love for god. the Bible says in ephesians 6.7-8, 'with good will doing service, as to the Lord, and not to men, knowing that whatever good anyone does, he will receive the same from the Lord, whether he is a slave or free.
humanity does not deserve the love of God any more than you or I do. we should never be christian humanists, taking Jesus to poor sinful people, reducing Jesus to some kind of product that will better their lot. people deserve to be damned, but Jesus, the suffering Lamb of God, deserves the reward of His suffering, which would be that none perish but that all are reconciled to the Father.
when you do open your mouth to testify to others as a love response to God, the indwelling Christ will reveal His tender heart. the apostle paul testified to this motivating work of the Holy spirit. 'for the love of Christ constrains us. II corinthinas 5.14
when we minister to people either through prayer or through preaching, we must give the Holy Spirit access to our emotions. MANY CHRISTIANS ARE UNABLE TO MOVE WITH THE SPIRIT INTO SEASONS OF TRAVAIL BECAUSE THEY HAVE A FEAR OF EXPERIENCING DEEP EMOTIONS. the root of this hindrance is the fear of losing control, yet our whole spiritual life depends on our yielding control to the Holy Spirit.
God has promised that if we follow Him, He will remove
210 our hearts of stone and give us hearts of flesh. the suffering that once made us so bitter is now the crucible in which compassion is forged. 'for as the sufferings of Christ abound in us, so our consolation also abounds through Christ'. II corinthians 1.5
the only thing that will sustain the intercessor through a long season of prayer is continual revelation from the Holy spirit. the Spirit loves the Father; the Spirit reveals the Father's compassion; and the Spirit gives us the faith to know that the joy of answered prayer will always come to those who continue in faithfulness.
one of my first experiences of learning to pray until breakthrough was a result of picking up a hitchhiker late one night. he was about 18..lonely, miserable and strung out on drugs.
I offered him a place to stay and a meal and talked to him about his heavenly Father. at one point in our conversation I felt such compassion for this you man that I didn't know if my heart could endure it. I said, 'Colin, God has loved you since the day you were born, HE HAS LONGED FOR SOMEBODY TO TELL YOU HOW MUCH HE LOVES YOU. He understands you. He knows about every hurt and every disappointment. WHEN YOU CRY, HE CRIES.
something stirred deep within his young heart. he looked at me with such longing, but he was unable to respond to the Lord that night. he had taken too much speed to sleep, so he continued his journey.
in the months that followed, my schedule took me to several countries, but the Lord had planted a seed of compassion within me for Colin that grew into a greater burden as time passed. the Holy Spirit would direct me in very specific prayer. I remember calling on god for Colin's deliverance from drugs while I was driving through a Canadian
211 snowstorm. I remember rebuking demons of sexual perversion during a prayer time in osaka, Japan.
the day I returned to Los Angeles I was greeted by an excited YWAM worker. 'Colin got saved, he said.
'which Colin? I said, guarding my hopes.
'some guy you picked up hitchhiking. he got saved today, just before you got here..
when i opened the front door of the Discipleship Training School, there he was, tears in his eyes, surrounded by students who had just led him in the sinner's prayer.
he had been in a nearby park dealing some dope when he looked through the trees and recognized the YWAM property. he remembered the kindness of the Lord to him, threw his drugs into a trash can and stumbled across the street weeping.
when a staff member responded to his knock at the door, he said, 'I want to come in. I need to get saved. and of course he was welcomed into the family of God.
during my months of prayer for Colin, I was amazed at the Holy spirit's ability to move my emotions. I had only talked to him briefly, but a supernatural energy for prayer was awakened within me. if Christ 'ever lives to make intercession for them' (Hebrews 7.25), then we must receive by faith this aspect of His life even as we have received His cleansing and His victory over sin. Christ's prayer life must be expressed through us by the indwelling Holy Spirit.
in 1971 I was a student in a YWAM school of evangelism in Switzerland and I was just beginning to understand spiritual truths. one day Loren Cunningham called a special prayer meeting for the United States, and several of us joined him in an upstairs room.
the first thing he did was to invite the Holy Spirit to deal
212 with sin. I came under deep conviction because of my judgmental attitude toward others. I confessed this openly and gained great joy immediately.
as people prayed for the US., the Spirit directed me to a particular subculture. 'O God, I payed, reveal Yourself to the rebellious children from christian homes who are now living in counterculture communes in San Francisco.
immediately after saying these words, my whole body was racked with deep sobbing. I was unable to pray another prayer. I remember thinking, how can I feel so deeply for people I have never met, living in a country foreign to me? it was my first experience of Jesus, the Intercessor, sharing with me His burden for lost people. I could feel their loneliness and confusion. I sensed what it would be like to bear a mountain of unresolved guilt, to live under the accusations of tormenting spirits.
the Holy Spirit suffers continually as He enters into people's pains and sorrows. THROUGH THE SPIRIT THE INTERCESSOR MAKES THE SUFFERING OF OTHERS HIS OWN. intercession is not a substitution for sin - that is the finished work of Jesus through the cross - but the intercessor completely identifies with the sufferer in his physical or spiritual condition. this outworking of divine love gains the release of divine power.
LOVE IS MEASURED AND DEMONSTRATED BY SACRIFICE - BY COSTLY ACTION.
LOVE CONTINUES NO MATTER WHAT THE COST. (note - Oh Holy Spirit would You, please, give me this for my dear wife, Susan)
'greater love has no one than this, than to lay down one's life for his friends. John 15.13 love identifies with suffering and endures until it is ended. Paul said,
'now if we are afflicted, it is for your consolation and salvation II corinthians 1.6
...always carrying about in the body the dying of the Lord Jesus, that the life of Jesus also may be manifested in our body.
for we who live are always delivered to death for Jesus' sake, that the life of Jesus also may be manifested in our mortal flesh.
so than death is working in us, but life in you. II corinthians 4.10-12
the patriarch Abraham received a promise from God, but then he travailed for a lifetime in receiving its fulfillment. 'and so , after he had patiently endured, he obtained the promise...Hebrews 6.15
we, too, need to endure until that which God has promised us is completed. SOMETIMES JUST HANGING IN THERE CAN BE AN ACT OF SPIRITUAL WARFARE. you must endure in the circumstance until the character of Christ is formed in you and you gain that needed place of spiritual authority.
resurrection power comes only after the cross has done its work.
self-interest,
self-promotion,
self-preservation and
self-consciousness have to die for us
to experience intimate friendship with a holy God
and to obtain overcoming authority in destroying the works of satan.
no victory is instant. I have a friend who once filled her home with needy people, many requiring deliverance from demonic oppression. she rushed from person to person, counseling and comforting until she was completely exhausted. she commanded demons to depart but continuing bondage was evident.
finally she became oppressed herself and even entertained thoughts of suicide. in this dark moment God taught here that deliverance is a process.
she turned her home into a house of prayer.
each person received counseling only when she felt
that a place of authority had been gained through intercession.
some victories were quickly gained, but others required seasons
of intense struggle.
214 I remember an early example of this principle in my life. i was standing before a large movie screen in a canadian high school auditorium. colorful posters had been posted throughout the campus, inviting students to attend a lunchtime meeting.
christian students had invited many of their friends and we were expecting a large crowd. we anticipated good results through the sharing of a powerful gospel film featuring youth issure.
at the time the film was due to begin, only a handful of students had entered the auditorium. I was discouraged.
i want around behind the screen and paced up and down praying fervently. 'Lord, bring them in. Holy Spirit, sweep down the corridors and draw students to this room. bring them to an appointment with the Father today.
I kept this up for 15 minutes with any visible result. the accuser tormented me with my failure and i almost packed up my equipment and left. then it happened. students began to pour into the room. not just christians. students of every style and persuasion.
finally there were no more chairs and students began to line the walls and sit on the floor. I stayed behind the screen and dept on praying. 'every one, Lord, every person who needs to be here, bring them in.
a line formed in the corridor outside the auditorium. a frantic school teacher began turning people away because the room had become so crowded that we were violating the fire code.
behind the screen i was weeping and worshipping. 'Forgive me, Lord, for not trusting You. I see now that You move in great power if I press in for the maximum result. Complete the work today, Lord; complete the work.
215 in the meeting that followed, God changed many lives.
30 minutes of earnest prayer is barely a valid example of honest travail, but the Lord had to start me somewhere. in the years since then I have travailed for months and even years over people and ministries that the Lord has laid upon my soul. he has graced me with a stubborn faith that contends for the promise and does not let go.
Ezekiel was given this holy stubbornness when God commissioned him to the ministry of a prophet.
behold, i have made your face strong against their faces and your forehead strong against their foreheads.
like adamant stone, harder than flint, i have made you forehead; do not be afraid of them nor be dismayed at their looks, though they are a rebellious house. Ezekiel 3.8-9
we need the humility to change direction in an instant, if we are shown to be in error and the tenacity to continue against all odds, for as long as it takes to complete the task that God has assigned to us. this 'holy stubbornness' is particularly important when praying for
breakthrough in a city.
seasons of harvest will come;
new ministries will be birthed.
however, these things will not take place instantly.
God plants within the heart of every believer a godly dream. but, like Joseph, we find ourselves walking away from the mountain of promise into the valley of apprenticeship. like Jacob we may begin the journey in human strength, but God must reduce us to an honest appraisal of our weakness before we can inherit the promise. may visions die on the road to resurrection power. God subtracts before he multiplies.
and the Lord said to gideon, 'the people who are with you are too many for Me to give the Midianites
216 into their hands, lest israel claim glory for itself against Me, saying, 'My own hand has saved me. Judges 7.2...
218 ..what is your personal vision?
is there a God-inspired dream burning in your heart?
don't give up.
let God have His way with you.
keep your eyes on the King.
receive His vision for the city,
give Him you r life and your gifts
and begin to take steps of obedience.
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