He Opened My Closed Heart

By Hazel Holland

"I tell you the truth, when you refused to help the least of these my brothers and sisters, you were refusing to help Me." Matthew 25:45

The other day on my way to work, I stopped by the gas station to fill up because I noticed that my car was running on low.  As I opened the door, I was not only very focused on the tutoring lessons I was going to teach that afternoon, but I was also feeling very relieved that today I had given myself enough time so that I wouldn't have to rush to get to my first student on time.

Before I could get fully out of the car, I was startled by a stranger who approached me from behind.  She apologetically asked me if I could please help her with gas for her SUV that was parked at the pump right behind me.

"I'm sorry!  I didn't mean to make you jump," she offered.  I'm not homeless!" she continued.  "I can pay you back if you give me your cell phone number.  It's just that I need to get my aunt to the hospital in Fontana for some important tests and my credit card is being rejected..."

There she was, right up in my face, and I was supposed to decide if she was legitimate or not, right?  I noticed the children in the back seat of her SUV, and her aunt watching me from the passenger seat with her left arm wrapped in a bandage.

As I moved toward the gas pump beside her van, I silently prayed for wisdom as to know how to respond to this stranger's need.  "How much gas should I put in, Lord?"

Just as I was about to use my debit card, I changed my mind and handed her a five dollar bill instead.  "Hope this helps!" I offered weakly.  She thanked me warmly, then walked into the gas station to pay the attendant, and I proceeded to use my card to fill up my tank.

Although my back was towards her I could hear the gas going into her car.  It didn't take very long.  Five dollars doesn't go very far these days.

Suddenly, the Holy Spirit confronted me with my closed heart!  In an instant I knew that I was turning my back on Him.  Yes, I had given this stranger a poultry five dollars for gas so as to appease my conscience, but had I really listened to her heart... and even more importantly had I really listened to God's heart... for her?  Or had my fear of possibly being taken advantage of caused me to "wash my hands" of further responsibility?

Immediately I came to my senses when I heard her gas pump click.  I knew she was done...but my five dollars would never get her aunt to the hospital in Fontana!  Abruptly I stopped filling up my tank as the price reached $20.

"God, how much more money should I give her?" I pleaded.  At once I sensed a witness in my spirit and knew I was to offer her another ten.  So I reached into my car for the money, and turned to face her just as she was about to get back in her SUV.

"No, wait!  Here's another ten dollars" I offered.  "I'm so sorry for having closed my heart towards you just now!  Please, forgive me!" I sobbed.  "Although I'm a Christian, my heart was not open towards you because I was preoccupied with getting to work on time..." 

Now I was the one who was taking her by surprise.  "No!  No!  That's alright!  Are you sure you want to do this?  I can pay you back if you give me your cell phone number."  She smiled and hugged me tightly as the tears rolled down my face.

"No, you don't need to pay me back.  This is my gift to you.  Now you're be able to make it to the hospital," I stammered.

"Yes!  Yes!  Thank you so very much!" she warmly responded.  Then she turned around and walked back into the gas station to pay the attendant...again.

Before I got back into my car, the aunt who had been watching this whole scenario from inside the SUV mouthed, "Thank you!" and "God bless you for what you did...!"

As I got back into my car, it really didn't matter that my gas tank was only half full, because God's Spirit had filled up my love tank to overflowing!  Although my heart had been momentarily closed to the needs of a stranger, God's Spirit had healed my fear and set my heart free!

See original link to this painting: Lover and His Beloved

Failsafe Power!

By Hazel Holland

Do you remember the power crisis in California on that hot Saturday afternoon, August 10, 1996, when thousands of people in nine western states, including parts of Canada and Mexico lost power for many hours?  I do.

Two days after that power crisis the local newspapers tried to assure us that next time there was a power shortage the power system managers would determine who should receive power, and who should be cut off so that another complete blackout could be avoided in the Western power grid.  

“There are islands of power within the darkness” was how one newspaper article described this power failure.  Another commentary stated: "It is impossible to build an entirely failsafe system.” 

Since electricity is something we are all very much dependent upon, it caused quite a stir to have our natural source of power cut off for such a long period of time.  In fact the newspapers warned us that outages will become more common in the future as increased competition changes the face of the power industry.

As is often the case, what happens in the physical realm often parallels what God is doing in the spiritual realm.  So what is God saying to His children through His Spirit in regard to His Power System?  How does He determine who should receive power and who should be cut off?  In the natural realm we are told that it is impossible to build an entirely failsafe system.  How about in the realm of the Spirit?  

God’s Power System

Over the years many of us in the body of Christ have tried to "help" God manage His Power System by trying to control the work of the Holy Spirit.  We have wanted to make changes in the way He ran His Power Grid because we felt uncomfortable with the way He chose to distribute His power.  So, at times, we decided to depend on our own source of spiritual power rather than His, and wondered why we found ourselves in darkness. 

But God assures us that those who live by the Spirit will have no shortage of Holy Spirit power. "You will receive power when the Holy Spirit comes on you; and you will be My witnesses in Jerusalem, and in all Judea and Samaria, and to the ends of the earth" (Acts 1:8).

As we stay connected to Him, we are connected to His failsafe system.  Although man’s source of power has failed, and will continue to fail, God’s Power Grid will never become overloaded because of our excessive use of it during dry seasons of spiritual drought.  We will never be cut off.  For this reason we can rest in Him 24/7 knowing that His power will never fail us.

Since God is for us, "nothing in all creation will be able to separate us from the love of God that is in Christ Jesus our Lord" (Rom.8:39).  As long as we stay plugged into Him, we have all the power of the Spirit that we need.  

Our God is at work making sure His "customers" receive all the power they need.  In fact, God has marked His customers with a seal, the promised Holy Spirit who is a deposit guaranteeing their inheritance until their redemption (Ephesians 1:13).

In view of the fact that we are called to be the light of the world—“islands of power” that will illuminate the darkness around us, let us let the Treasure that we each carry in our earthen vessels shine forth—Jesus Christ’s’ agape love.  

He is the Light that lights up every man.  He is the love that the world is waiting to see.  Yes, we are called to be His fingers of light pointing the way to the heart of the Father that is revealed in the face of Jesus Christ.

See:   Islands of Power

God has a "Yes-face!"

By Hazel Holland

One day Thomas Jefferson and some of his friends were riding on horseback cross-country. They came to a stream that was flooded and had to cross it. At the water's edge was a man who was traveling on foot, obviously waiting for someone to help him across the swollen stream.

He waited at the edge until several of the party crossed and then asked the President to help him across. Jefferson took him on the back of his horse and carried him across the stream. On the other side, one of the men asked, "Tell me, why did you select the President for this favor?" The man answered, "I didn't know he was the President. All I know is that on some faces is written the answer 'no' and on some the answer 'yes.' His face said 'yes!' "

Here's what I want you to know today: God has a yes-face!  When you confess your sins to Him He is faithful and just to forgive you.  He removes your guilt and your sins from you forever! 

"But if we confess our sins to him, he is faithful and just to forgive us our sins and to cleanse us from all wickedness" (1 John 1:9).   

"He has removed our sins as far from us as the east is from the west" (Psalm 103:12).

(My thoughts after reading devotional from Grace Mail.)

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Empowered to Love as God Loves

 By Hazel Holland

 

"A new commandment I give to you, that you love (agape) one another; as I have loved you" (John 13:34). 

This agape love had not been previously known to us.  Jesus was the very One who introduced it when He died in our place.  He defined it with the phase “as I have loved you."

He has empowered us to love as God loves! 

See:  Facebook

Link:  What God Joined Together at the Cross

What God Joined Together at the Cross...

 By Hazel Holland

We're all familiar with the phrase that pastors use during marriage ceremonies, "What God has joined together, let not man separate".  The Scriptures tell us that when a man and a woman choose to marry they no longer are two, but become one flesh.  Therefore, what God has joined together, man should not separate (Matthew19:5-7)

I believe that this phrase, "What God has joined together..." also applies to Jews and Gentiles in Jesus Christ.  What God joined together at the cross now applies to believing Jews and believing Gentiles!

"But now in Christ Jesus you who once were far off have been brought near by the blood of Christ.  For He Himself is our peace , who has made both one, and has broken down the middle wall of separation...to create in Himself one new man from the two, thus making peace, and that He might reconcile them both to God in one body through the cross" (Ephesians 2:11-16).

Just as there is no physical wall separating East and West Germany today, so there is no spiritual wall separating believing Jews and believing Gentiles today!  At the cross they became one body in Jesus Christ.  They became the church.  Jesus Christ's blood brought down the dividing wall that separated both Jew and Gentile believers...forever!

But over the centuries respected teachers have invented false teachings that have erected the wall of separation that Jesus Christ brought down with a thunderous crash at the cross!  Some of these inventions of men have become such sacred cows within the church that they are thought to be impregnable. 

But God through His Spirit will expose the layers of error that have been laced with  truth and used to erect the dividing wall that God brought down through the blood of Jesus Christ.

Although the traditions of men continually seek to divert us away from what Jesus Christ accomplished on the cross, the One who loves us and gave Himself for our peace has joined together believing Jews and believing Gentiles into one new body-- His church.  No cunningly devised fable will ever be able to separate His Body from the love of God in Christ Jesus.

For further reading on this subject go here.

See:  Facebook

Link:  Empowered to Love as God Loves  

See Art Link:  What God Joined Together at the Cross

"Please Put Your Words in My Mouth!"

By Hazel Holland

Many years ago before I ever attended a church where people raised their hands to praise God, I received a dream from the Lord that opened my eyes to the biblical precedent for worshiping God in this beautiful way. Having previously been taught to believe that openly expressing my feelings to God in corporate worship was wrong, because it could lead to emotionalism and therefore to deception, I was very much surprised by what God revealed in this dream.

In the dream I entered a building through a set of double doors into this large room. From the back of the room where I entered it looked very much like a large gymnasium that could double up as an auditorium for meetings. It appeared to be packed full of people who were standing up with their backs to me.

As I entered through the doors and turned right, an usher was waiting for me in the back corner. He walked up to me and proceeded to take me by the right arm and walk me down the side aisle in the hopes of finding a seat...or so I thought.

When we got to the front row he walked past it, still holding on to my arm as he led me to the bottom of the steps that led up to the front of the stage. Obediently, I followed his direction as he indicated that I should go up the steps. When I reached the top step, he turned to leave and I turned around to face the sea of faces.

Up until this point in the dream everything had been quiet. But when I turned to look at the room packed out with people I saw that they had their hands uplifted to God in praise and were singing some of the most beautiful music I have ever heard. I was overcome by deep feelings of love toward God and I spontaneously raised my hands and began to join them in worship. Although in real life I had never rasied my hands in worship to God, I couldn't help myself in the dream. Tears poured down my cheeks as I experienced His tangible presence.

We continued to worship God in this manner for some time. After awhile I opened my eyes and noticed that there was a bright beam of light coming from the ceiling that was directed on to me. Being in the spotlight made the features of the people in the crowd nearest to me rather blurry. It didn't matter that they were there, because I was so locked into God's presence that everyone else kind of faded away. I wanted to worship him forever like this as I was being emersed in his glory!

In the dream I finally became aware that at some point in time the worship would stop, and I was expected to speak to this auditorium full of people. Because the room reminded me of a large gymnasium I had a sense in the dream that these were college age students.

But as I continued to worship God and bask in His awesome presence (something I had never yet experienced in real life) I became aware of the fact that I had no notes and was unprepred for what I should speak about. In real life I would never have been caught off guard like this! But up there on that stage, soaking in His presence, I had no fear of what to say even though I had no idea what I would say.I remember thinking to myself, "Ok God, I have no notes and I'm not prepared for what you want me to say. But I will trust you to give me the words you want me to speak. So please put your words in my mouth and I will tell them what is on Your heart."

Suddenly the singing stopped. A quiet hush came over the place. The moment had come for me to speak. The light beaming down on me continued to give me strength and great joy. As I opened my mouth to speak I suddenly woke up from the dream.

For the next two weeks I continued to bask in God's awesome presence that I had begun to get a taste of in the dream. I wanted more of Him. And so I began a spiritual jorney to find out what was on His heart that He wanted me to share with His beloved children.

By nature I am shy...not the kind of person that naturally enjoys being up front in the limelight. I have always been afraid of public speaking for fear of making a fool out of myself. So to be placed in front of a roomful of people and be asked to give an impromptu speech or share anything about my life off the top of my head would cause me to break out into a cold sweat!

What I am saying is that for me to feel relatively comfortable up front in a speaking situation I would have to be in someone else's body! I guess the closest I can get to that in this life is to be in the Spirit so my flesh doesn't have control. Then my natural panic is dissolved by His supernatural peace.

As I look back over the years God has been faithful to continually put His words in my mouth as He has called me in various situations to speak words from His heart into people's lives. As I have opened my mouth He has always been faithful to fill it.

If you will seek God with all your heart and wait on the leading of His Spirit, He will be faithful to give you His heart and put His words in your mouth, too.

Church Fulfills Promises Made to Israel

By Hazel Holland

The Bible reveals that God’s elect of all the ages are one people, with one Savior, and have one eternal destiny. This continuity can be seen by examining the following Old Testament passages of Scripture and noticing that promises made to Israel find their fulfillment in the New Testament church, and words spoken to Israel are applied directly to the church. 

Promise to Israel

 “Yet the Israelites will be like the sand on the seashore, which cannot be measured or counted. In the place where it was said to them, ‘You are not my people,’ they will be called ‘children of the living God.’” Hosea 1:10 (NIV)

Fulfillment in the church

 “What if God, although choosing to show his wrath and make his power known, bore with great patience the objects of his wrath—prepared for destruction?  What if he did this to make the riches of his glory known to the objects of his mercy, whom he prepared in advance for glory— even us, whom he also called, not only from the Jews but also from the Gentiles?  As he says in Hosea:

“I will call them ‘my people’ who are not my people; and I will call her ‘my loved one’ who is not my loved one,” and, “In the very place where it was said to them, ‘You are not my people,’
there they will be called ‘children of the living God.’” Romans 9:22-26 (NIV)

Promise to Israel 

“I will plant her for myself in the land; I will show my love to the one I called ‘Not my loved one.  I will say to those called ‘Not my people,’ ‘You are my people’; and they will say, ‘You are my God.’” Hosea 2:23 (NIV)

Fulfillment in the church

“But you are a chosen people, a royal priesthood, a holy nation, God’s special possession, that you may declare the praises of him who called you out of darkness into his wonderful light.  Once you were not a people, but now you are the people of God; once you had not received mercy, but now you have received mercy.” 1 Peter 2:9-10 (NIV)

Promise to Israel

“On that day I will raise up the tabernacle of David, which has fallen down, and repair its damages;  I will raise up its ruins, and rebuild it as in the days of old.”  Amos 9:11 (NKJV)

Fulfillment in the church

 ^“Simon has declared how God at the first visited the Gentiles to take out of them a people for His name.  And with this the words of the prophets agree, just as it is written: ‘After this I will return and will rebuild the tabernacle of David, which has fallen down; I will rebuild its ruins, and I will set it up; So that the rest of mankind may seek the LORD, even all the Gentiles who are called by My name, says the LORD who does all these things.’  “Known to God from eternity are all His works.” Acts 15:14-18 (NKJV)

Spoken to Israel 

“And it shall come to pass afterward that I will pour out My Spirit on all flesh; your sons and your daughters shall prophesy, your old men shall dream dreams, your young men shall see visions.   And also on My menservants and on My maidservants I will pour out My Spirit in those days.   And I will show wonders in the heavens and in the earth:  blood and fire and pillars of smoke.   The sun shall be turned into darkness, and the moon into blood, before the coming of the great and awesome day of the LORD.  And it shall come to pass that whoever calls on the name of the LORD shall be saved.   For in Mount Zion and in Jerusalem there shall be deliverance, as the LORD has said, among the remnant whom the LORD calls.” Joel 2:28-32 (NKJV)

Applied to the church 

 “When the Day of Pentecost had fully come, they were all with one accord in one place… But this is what was spoken by the prophet Joel:  ‘And it shall come to pass in the last days, says God, that I will pour out of My Spirit on all flesh; your  sons and your daughters shall prophesy, your young men shall see visions, your old men shall dream dreams. and on My menservants and on My maidservants I will pour out My Spirit in those days; And they shall prophesy.  I will show wonders in heaven above and signs in the earth beneath:  Blood and fire and vapor of smoke.  The sun shall be turned into darkness, and the moon into blood, before the coming of the great and awesome day of the LORD.  And it shall come to pass that whoever calls on the name of the LORD shall be saved.’” Acts 2:1, 16-21 (NKJV)

Spoken to Israel

 

“You will be for me a kingdom of priests and a holy nation.’ These are the words you are to speak to the Israelites.” Exodus 19:6 (NIV)

Applied to the church

 

“But you are a chosen people, a royal priesthood, a holy nation, God’s special possession, that you may declare the praises of him who called you out of darkness into his wonderful light.” Peter 2:9 (NIV)

Spoken to Israel 

^“My dwelling place will be with them; I will be their God, and they will be my people.” Ezekiel 37:27 (NIV)

Applied to the church

^“What agreement is there between the temple of God and idols?  For we are the temple of the living God:.  As God has said: “ I will live with them and walk among them, and I will be their God,  and they will be my people.” 2 Corinthians 6:16 (NIV)

Spoken to Israel

“Speak to the entire assembly of Israel and say to them: ‘Be holy because I, the LORD your God, am holy.’”  Leviticus 19:2 (NIV) 

Applied to the church

 

“But just as he who called you is holy, so be holy in all you do; for it is written: “Be holy, because I am holy.” 1 Peter 1:15-16 (NIV)

Spoken to Israel 

"The days are coming,” declares the LORD, “when I will make a new covenant with the people of Israel and with the people of Judah.” Jeremiah 31:31 (NIV)

 Applied to the church 

“In the same way, after the supper he took the cup, saying, “This cup is the new covenant in my blood, which is poured out for you.” Luke 22:20 (NIV)

Conclusion

If the church (comprised of both Jews and Gentiles) fulfills these promises made to Israel, shouldn't we be repenting of teachings that view Israel and the church as having two distinct eternal destinies?  

According to the New Covenant there is not an eternal earthly Kingdom for Israel, and an eternal heavenly Kingdom for the church.  There is only one eternal inheritance for both the church and Israel.  That eternal inheritance is Jesus Christ! 

Link:  What God Joined Together at the Cross
Link:  Promised Land Issues 

This is the Day which the Lord has Made!

By Hazel Holland

Imagine the scene. Knowing that He would soon suffer and die as the Passover Lamb, Jesus commanded His disciples to make the necessary arrangement for this special meal. Jesus wanted to eat the Passover lamb with His disciples before He became the Passover Lamb (Luke 22:15).

The Scriptures tell us that following the Passover meal they sang a hymn, and then went to the Mount of Olives (Matthew 26:30). Did you know that the hymn that they sang has been sung by Jews down through the centuries as they have celebrated the Passover? It’s called the “Great Hallel” and is taken from Psalm 118, verses 22 and 24.

The words of this song must have been a source of encouragement to Jesus and a vivid reminder that His death would not be in vain. Knowing that the time and place of His crucifixion was drawing near, Jesus joyfully sang, “This is the day which the LORD hath made; we will rejoice and be glad in it!” Can you hear His words of victory as they echo down through the corridors of time? “The stone which the builders rejected is become the head of the corner!”

Jesus knew as He sang this song that He had a divine appointment with destiny.  He knew that He was born for such a time as this. Now His time had come. His approaching death would provide redemption for all those who would put their trust in Him. That is why He could sing in glorious triumph, just hours before His death, “This is the day which the LORD hath made.  We will rejoice and be glad in it.”

Are you rejoicing in His glorious triumph over death and the grave? You can you know! Ever since that day when Jesus chose to lay down His life for you and me, we have been forgiven of our sins and restored back into right relationship with the Father.  Will you allow God's goodness to break your heart so that you can now have an intimate relationship with Him through the Spirit?

THE LION OF JUDAH HAS TRIUMPHED!

By Hazel Holland

Jesus Christ, the Son of God, whose eyes are like blazing fire, and whose feet are like burnished bronze... whose love many waters cannot quench, has destroyed every work of darkness, and purchased men and women for God through His blood. To Him be praise and honor, glory and power forever!


(For further reading about this water color painting of Jesus Christ's triumph over death see: The Lion of Judah HasTriumphed

YES! YOU HAVE RISEN

By Hazel Holland

Yes! You have risen! Thank you Father for giving us eternal life in Your Son, Jesus Christ! I am full of joy and forever grateful!

An Urgent Call to Love our Enemies

By Hazel Holland

Recently I've been receiving, and continue to receive, repeated "pictures" in my mind of the face of Mahmoud Ahmadinejad, the president of Iran. I believe that these images that continue to interrupt my normal thought processes throughout the day are God's way of calling my attention to the desires and purposes of His heart for this leader, and for all those who have been schooled in a similar cultic mindset.

Although the ultimate desires of Ahmadinejad’s heart are to kill all Jews and Christians, and destroy the western way of life, purposing to bring the world under Shariah law, the desires and purposes of God' heart towards him are not to harm him, but to bring him a revelation of the agape love of God that will ultimately change his heart. God's ways are far higher than our ways. God does NOT want to kill and destroy this man or any other man, because God does not coerce people into His kingdom. Rather, God loves all people and wants to save them from eternal separation from Himself.

As I've been asking God about all this I keep receiving reminders from Scripture like: "Love your enemies... pray for those who despitefully use you, etc.!" God's desire for us is in the body of Christ is to love and pray for our enemies, because they are people for whom He died and wants to save, heal, and restore to Himself.

This has got nothing to do with politics. It doesn't matter if we are republicans or democrats, conservatives or liberals, leaning towards the left or towards the right, or anything else in between, we are first and foremost called to be God's children. This has got nothing to do with where people stand on the positions President Obama is taking on Libya, Iran or any other place. It's not about taking the side of any human leader who espouses ideas and beliefs that we feel most comfortable supporting, but rather choosing to be on God's side... ultimately the winning side.

This is an urgent call for those of us who know God personally to lay aside our own personal fears of persecution and Shariah law coming to America. Apparently it has already made inroads into some of our courts and banking system in various places, striking fear into the hearts of those who clearly understand the goals of Islam.

This is a call for us in the body of Christ to lay aside our own personal needs, and our American way of life, and to seek first God's kingdom and what is on His heart. This is a call for us to love and pray for those who want to kill and destroy us. Most certainly we cannot do that unless we get God's perspective on them, and receive His heart for them!

The Nations are Our Inheritance

The Scriptures tell us that the nations are on God’s heart. The nations are on God’s heart because all the nations are His inheritance. He died for all the people on planet earth. “Ask of Me” the Father said to the Son, “and I will make the nations your inheritance, the ends of the earth Your possession” (Psalm 2:8).

This means that all the people in every nation that do not know the Father's heart for them are also His inheritance! He died for all, but we know from Scripture that not all people will respond in repentance towards God, and allow themselves to be broken by His goodness for them.

Since every one of the Father’s promises that were made to the Son will be fulfilled, we can be sure that this promise given to Him will be fulfilled, also. For every one of God’s promises are “Yes!” in Christ. But we need to ask Him for the nations. They are our inheritance, too. I was born in England, but have the people of England been born in my heart? Now I live in America, but have the many people of America been born in my heart?

Let’s bring it closer to home. These nations that are our inheritance are made up of diverse people of many races and different ethnic and cultural groups. They belong to different faiths, and worship God in a variety of different ways… especially here in America where freedom of religion has allowed both Jew and Gentile alike to peacefully co-exist side by side for many years.

Before 9/11 those of us living in America generally felt “protected” and insulated from the violence that we have witnessed from a distance in the Middle East over the years. However, that feeling of security appears to be dwindling fast. As we watch the nightly news we see people within the Arab world taking to the streets and calling for revolution—a revolution they hope will destroy Israel, along with the western way of life. We witness oppressed and angry people who want to take down and overthrow their own respective governments as well as ours.

Naturally these signs of turmoil and unrest in the Middle East bring about a certain amount of apprehension into the hearts of people here in America. We’re afraid that these protests could spread into our country, and bring the collapse of law and order here, and our American way of life.

So let’s get to the difficult questions. Why are we more afraid of losing the comforts of our American way of life than we are afraid of seeing people from radical Islam sell their souls to the enemy? Which is more important to God’s breaking heart—the comforts of our American way of life, or the salvation of their lost souls? You already know the answer. God first needs to change the hardness of our own hearts before He can ever use us to change the hardness of theirs.

Does this mean that the many freedoms we have enjoyed in the America way of life are slowly coming to an end? Is God allowing this so that we as believers might place our faith in the One who alone can bring us real freedom? Have too many American believers put their faith in the glory of their nation equating it with the glory found in Jesus Christ alone?

If so, then we need to repent of this idolatry and get our priorities back in order. If we fail to repent and choose to wash our hands of the responsibility we have as Christian to be His witnesses, then doesn’t it mean that we are not His after all? Although we have professed to be His, we are actually turncoats! We are on the wrong side!

The command given to us by Jesus to "love your enemies"—whether they are the enemies within our own households, or within our own state or nation, has been given to us because agape love is the chosen method that God uses to reach people’s hearts. For only agape love can break down the wall of fear and separation that exists, preventing people from knowing God’s heart for them... and hearing the truth of the gospel.

I believe that as the church receives more of God's heart, and begins to express God's agape love in radical ways towards those we consider our enemies, and begins to boldly pray for His will to be done in their hearts, some who are now Saul’s will eventually become Paul’s! Our love and faith in God will storm the gates of hell and snatch back those whom Satan has wrongly deemed as his property.

People like Ahmadinejad need to have their hearts broken by the agape love of God just as much as we do as believers. This is what repentance is all about. God is calling people everywhere to repent and turn away from sin. He's calling the church to repent for our lack of faith in expressing God’s love in authentic and tangible ways towards those who need to see it the most... those we consider enemies of the gospel. And He's calling our enemies to repent of the evil in their hearts towards God’s children because evil begets evil. Only God can bring good out of evil as people are brought into the light of the cross and see God’s goodness expressed towards them while they were unrepentant sinners.

May the love of God so fill our hearts and minds that we will willingly choose to lay down our own agendas, and instead begin to carry the burden that is on God’s heart—the many people in nations like Syria, Libya and Iran who do not yet know the love of God revealed in Jesus Christ that can conquer the hardest hearts!

The Meaning of "The Package" (Excerpts from "The Naked Truth...)

By Hazel Holland

Our history as a denomination reveals that generations of Seventh-day Adventists (SDAs) have been involved, to some degree, in striving to obey the Ten Commandments, especially the fourth. The idea we inherited from our forbearers was that in order to please God we must obey His law. In the dream our striving to obey the law was represented as our holding on to endless columns of indecipherable fine print inside the magazines (packages) that were impossible to read without the aid of a magnifying glass (p. 59).

The man-made rules and teachings of Adventism that have been added to the old covenant lists of requirements for proper Sabbath observance have replaced the list that the Pharisees added, but both have caused a heaviness on the people. However, those who were carrying the packages in the dream did not realize this heaviness. As long as the content of Adventism’s package remained tightly sealed it didn’t appear to be a heavy burden to those carrying it. It was only after the content of my package was ripped open and exposed to the light of the cross that the growing “weight” of Adventism’s package became unbearable (p. 59).

I remember well my striving in the dream to hold on to Adventism’s package after the brown paper covering was ripped and the “package” contents exposed, because I supposed it was a “gift.”… As a third generation Adventist I initially felt that the special truths of Adventism had been handed down to me as a “gift” that I was fortunate and privileged to have received. Therefore, it was my responsibility to become a good steward and take care of this “package” I had received and pass it on. In a million years I would never have dreamed of discarding this “gift” or letting it fall to the ground or of throwing it away. That is why I was so horrified and dismayed in the dream when I was thrown headfirst across the top of a desk and the “package” was ripped open… (p. 34)

In the hope of disguising the darkness of the inner contents of the “package” that people were seen carrying, the corporate leadership of the SDA church has covered up the true nature of the “package” contents by making the outer covering appear attractive and desirable. In fact each generation of SDAs has tried to package Adventism’s message in such a way as to make it even more desirable and more attractive than the generation before them. However, the attractive packaging does not change the nature of what is inside the “package.”… No matter how hard we try to make Adventism’s package attractive to others, from God’s perspective Adventism’s “package” can never be dressed up to look like anything but filthy rags! (p. 35)

In essence, the graphic imagery portrayed on the front covers of the magazines ( Adventism’s package) reveal that the Adventist people are having an adulterous relationship with the law of sin and death (Romans 8:2). Fear of being lost has caused many to cling to the false savior—the Law—rather than the Groom—Jesus Christ. The futility of trusting in our own obedience instead of Christ’s obedience for us is equivalent to spiritual adultery (p. 53).

An equally offensive betrayal of His grace is the belief that He gives us the ability, through the Holy Spirit, to obey the old covenant law. I believe that God is revealing, through the imagery in the dream, a systemic problem of spiritual pornography and adultery within the body of Adventism about which most members are oblivious. Yet, unbeknownst to them, they are most certainly victims of this most subtle form of spiritual impurity (p. 54)

One of the most alluring attributes of pornography is its promise of intimacy. In fact the entire porn industry is founded upon the premise that everyone needs intimacy. So victims of pornography, having being lured in by loneliness, lust or desire, discover too late that they have become addicted to an empty, false and destructive imitation of their true needs. This false intimacy momentarily gratifies lust but leaves their deeper needs untouched as they slide toward a black hole of death. Using the pornographic industry as a metaphor for illegitimate fulfillment of legitimate needs helps to identify some of the ways in which Adventism has appealed to the need for intimacy with God through their man-made solutions (p.54).

Adventism’s foundational teachings are spiritually destructive in nature precisely because they deceive people into thinking that they will find true intimacy and acceptance with God by striving to obey the Ten Commandments. Consequently, millions have been lured into slavishly striving to obey the Sabbath of the 4th commandment. Instead of finding the true intimacy with God they desired, they strive, out of fear, to obey a poor facsimile (the law of sin and death) of the real thing—Jesus Christ (p. 54).

Since the truth of the gospel has been perverted by Adventism’s unbiblical teachings, I believe most Adventists are unaware of the fact that the brand of “Christianity” being promoted by the SDA church at large is cultic in nature. From the outside, the church looks good as its slick marketing techniques present worthy programs and admirable community endeavors that can fool the casual observer. However, all of the spin in the world is no substitute for the intimacy with our Maker that comes from living in the reality of the gospel by the power of the Spirit.” (p. 54).

Links to Book:
http://www.amazon.com/Naked-Truth-Exposing-Deception-Adventism/dp/143926662X/ref=sir
https://www.createspace.com/900000430
http://www.facebook.com/l.php?u=http%3A%2F%2Fthenakedtruth-hazel.blogspot.com%2F&h=dd5d1

Exposing Our Spiritual Blindness

By Hazel Holland

Recently the story of the rich young ruler was brought to my attention by a friend who was questioning why Jesus appeared to give this rich young man a message of "works" in order to be saved. At first glance it would seem that this story offers a seemingly endless supply of ammo for those seeking to defend the keeping of the Ten Commandments as a necessary work for salvation.

Although this familiar story may seem to convey a message of “salvation by works”, after a more careful reading of the passage, Jesus words suddenly become laser beams of truth that affirm the goodness God’s grace. They expose the deeper issues, not only of this rich young man’s heart, but our hearts, too.

Jesus had just told the rich young man that he lacked one thing. If he wanted to inherit eternal life and have treasure in heaven he must sell all his possessions, give to the poor, and then follow Jesus. The rich young man’s face fell. He sadly walked away from Jesus because he had great wealth.

The Bible tells us that the disciples were amazed by Jesus’ words to the rich young ruler. “How hard it is for the rich to enter the kingdom of God?” (Mark 10: 23-24). Why were the disciples so taken aback by Jesus’ words? Why are we?

Why didn’t Jesus tell the rich young ruler to simply believe in Him in order to be saved? After all, Jesus told many others to believe in the One God had sent. Why were Jesus’ words to the rich young ruler so different, so puzzling? Why did Jesus seem to suggest that a “work” needed to be performed in order for him to be saved? Why did Jesus say, “Go, sell everything you have and give to the poor, and you will have treasure in heaven. Then come, follow me” (Mark 10:21)?

Material Blessings—a Reward for Obedience

While recently reading a book[1] that challenges us to seriously consider how we have manipulated the gospel to fit our own cultural preferences, I received further insight into our bewilderment over the mixed messages in this story. I believe the answer can be found in the way God established the nation of Israel under the Old Covenant.

From the very beginning God promised to pour out material blessings on Abraham, Isaac and Jacob and their descendants (the children of Israel) as they chose to obey Him and keep His law. We also know that these material blessings were withheld when Israel failed to obey God’s law. The Bible teaches us that God was forming a nation for Himself through whom He wanted to demonstrate His greatness to all other nations.

In the process of forming this nation of Israel God also established a physical place for His people to worship, and a physical place for His glory to dwell. Remember how Solomon and David amassed great amounts of wealth as they established this kingdom, and part of that wealth was used to build Solomon’s temple? After the temple was built Solomon dedicated it to God and asked God to make his glory known through His people at that place (1 Kings 8:56-66).

The prophet Isaiah puts it most eloquently when he says; “I will also make you a light for the Gentiles, that you may bring my salvation to the ends of the earth” (Isaiah 49:6).

God wanted to make His glory known to the Gentile nations. As a result of the sacrificial system that God instituted through Israel God wanted to bring hope to all people of all nations that a Deliverer was coming! But when the Deliverer came He wasn’t recognized by His own people. They had been expecting deliverance from Rome, not from sin. They had been expecting a physical kingdom, but Jesus’ kingdom was not of this world.

A New Phase of Redemptive History

Having briefly established the Old Covenant background of Israel’s material prosperity, perhaps we can better understand why the disciples were so astounded by Jesus words to the rich young ruler. Throughout Israel’s history God had been showering material blessings upon them as they obeyed His law. So why would obedience to Christ’s command to “Follow Me” lead this rich young man to lose his material possessions when Israel’s history was steeped in God doing just the opposite? Was the God of the Old Covenant different from the God of the New Covenant? What was going on?

I believe the answer lies in the radical shift that was taking place in redemptive history as Jesus spoke these difficult words to the rich young ruler. God’s eternal plan to redeem and deliver His people from sin was further unfolding as Jesus ushered in this new phase of redemptive history—a phase that would forever affect the relationship between faith and material blessings.[2]

We see this new phase of redemptive ministry clearly expressed in the way the early church loved one another and used their material possessions to bless one another—including taking care of the poor among them. We see the Father’s heart revealed in the way their actions were motivated by the law of love rather than the works of the law!

Manipulating the Gospel

Even though material blessings were promised as a reward for obedience under the Old Covenant there are no such teachings in the ministry of Jesus or the ministry of the apostles. Furthermore, since there are no explicit or implicit teachings in the New Testament that promote material blessings as a reward for obedience, the “prosperity gospel” taught in many American churches, must be “imported” from the Old Testament.

But how can we in good conscience import Old Covenant teachings that Jesus and the New Testament writers never taught because the Law of Moses became obsolete after the resurrection? Have we no sense of how we are wounding our brothers and sisters, and bringing terrible confusion to the body of Christ by our take on the health and wealth gospel? Even believers in America who struggle financially to make ends meet are apt to be told by those who have plenty that a “poverty” mentality is the root cause for their lack of material prosperity.

Where is God’s heart of compassion in all of this? How have we drifted so far from Him? By manipulating the gospel of God’s agape love to fit our own cultural preferences, many of us in the Western church have totally lost sight of the true gospel of Jesus Christ. The gospel that bids us to die to self, take up our cross daily and follow Him will never be popular in our churches, our culture, or our world.

Let’s expose more of our spiritual blindness. Unlike the Old Testament there are no verses in the New Testament where God’s children are commanded to build luxurious churches or magnificent temples for worship. That’s because the veil of the temple that represented Jesus body was torn from top to bottom the moment that Jesus died. When Jesus gave His life once and for all as the Sacrificial Lamb for the sins of the world, no more sacrifice for sin was needed.

Instead, the Shekinah glory that was once veiled behind the temple curtain in the Most Holy Place is now revealed in earthen vessels. God’s presence has been transferred to the church—not a building, but people that make up the body of Christ. We have become God’s temple in which He now chooses to dwell by His Spirit. This temple is made up of precious living stones—Jesus being the Chief Cornerstone.

What’s more, we, as God’s temple of living stones, have been commissioned by Jesus to carry this gospel of the Kingdom to the ends of the earth. We have been chosen to become the carriers of God’s goodness to the world. But unless we know God and have His heart of agape love for others, including our enemies, He cannot use our brokenness to carry the Light that will dispel the darkness. If we don't have His heart, we will misinterpret and continue to manipulate the simple gospel that He has commissioned us to take to the world. For without His agape love we are nothing more than resounding gongs and clanging cymbals (1 Corinthians 13:1).

Relationship and Intimacy

As I write these words the imagery of the disciple John leaning his head upon Jesus’ chest at the last supper comes to mind along with these two words—relationship and intimacy. I believe that God wants us to understand the urgency of the hour. Unless we press into Him and have our ears tuned to hear the heartbeat of the Father that compelled Jesus to go to the cross because of the agape love that He has for all people, we will misunderstand His heart. We will not be able to identify with the things that break God’s heart becomes our hearts will eventually become cold and hardened to the love of God.

Although the rich young ruler had been schooled to believe that he would be saved by keeping the law, his great riches did not give him the assurance of eternal life that he desired. That is why he asked Jesus what he must do to inherit eternal life. Although he had kept the Ten Commandments from childhood, he knew something was lacking in his heart. Do we sense that perhaps something is lacking in our hearts, too?

Just as Jesus met the rich young ruler where he was at, He will meet us where we are at. Although Jesus knew that the rich young ruler had kept the commandments from His youth up, Jesus never told him to keep the commandments in order to be saved. Instead he exposed the young man’s heart issues that were motivated by the works of the law—rather than the law of love.

But wasn’t the rich young ruler’s great wealth a sign that he had been blessed by God because of his obedience to the law? That’s how people interpreted material blessings under the old order of things, but the old order of things has passed away. The new order of things has come.

God’s Goodness Changes Hearts

A radical shift has taken place as Jesus directs us to look at the only One who is good—God! A radical shift has taken place as Jesus reveals that His kingdom is spiritual, not material. A radical shift has taken place as Jesus tells us plainly that His kingdom is not of this world. His kingdom is ruled by the law of love—not by the works of the law!

Suddenly the rich young ruler’s world began to crumble when Jesus confronted him with his deeper heart issues. We’re not told if he ever had a change of heart and accepted Jesus as His Lord and Master, but we are told that it is the goodness of God that leads us to repentance. It is God’s goodness revealed in Jesus Christ that will bring us to the end of ourselves so that the agape love of God might live in us.

For this reason, I believe Christians, especially in America, are being called to repent of the way we have been exporting a false gospel that equates faith in Christ with material prosperity. Understanding that Jesus died the death that we deserve so that we can live the life that He alone deserves ought to radically affect, not only our love relationship with Him, but also the way we express love to one another.

The Bible tells us that Jesus is our very great reward—a reward that we cannot earn, and that we don’t deserve, but is freely given to us because of the agape love of God. Since all our needs are met in Him, shouldn’t this alter the relationship between our faith and our material possessions? A faith that works by love does not guarantee us material blessings, but faith in Him does open the door of our hearts to the agape love of God so that we can know His heart and be a blessing to others.

That’s what Jesus wanted for the rich young ruler. He wanted that rich young man to begin to experience the hidden treasures that are stored up for us when we bless others for their sake instead of our own. When the rich young ruler saw that he would have to let go of his material kingdom before he could experience the riches of God’s spiritual kingdom, he walked away. He couldn’t do it. God’s goodness must first change His heart.

Radical Repentance

I want to believe that the seeds of truth that Jesus sowed into the rich young ruler’s heart that day took root and accomplished what Jesus desired for them to accomplish—a revelation of the goodness of God that eventually changed his heart, and caused him to embrace the risen Lord. I want to believe that it will be the same for us in the church. Only when God’s goodness changes our hearts will we hear His call to repent. Only when God’s goodness changes our hearts will we be able to identify with God’s kingdom and reveal His love to the world.

Just for the record, Jesus was not condemning the rich young ruler for his riches or us for our acquisition of material things. Material things in and of themselves are not evil. Rather, Jesus is seeking to radically change our perspective on our possessions, as we open our hearts to the needs of the world around us. As we allow Him to change the desires of our hearts we will be led by the Spirit to give of ourselves, our resources, and our time for the glory of God’s kingdom.

Let’s remember that in God we have a King who guarantees for us a kingdom. His kingdom of agape love will last forever. It cannot be shaken because it is not of this world (Hebrews 12:28). We are heirs to this spiritual kingdom, and co-heirs with our older brother, Jesus Christ. Everything in God’s Kingdom has already been given to us, and everything we have and are already belongs to Him.

“Father, in view of this truth we choose to allow Your goodness to expose the blindness in our hearts so that we can radically repent of the things that we have done in Your name, but not with Your heart. Lord, when everything is shaken that can be shaken, and you have removed the last vestiges of dross from our lives, may the one thing that cannot be shaken remain—our faith in Your goodness towards us that continues to expresses itself in works of agape love.”

Notes:

[1] David Platt, “Radical”, p. 116.

[2] Ibid. 117.

The Truth is not a Package!