Hear God's Plea With Your Heart,Through The Book of Hebrews

I have been somewhat bedridden with a sinus cold, fever and a cough that makes me feel like my bronchitis is coming back. To be able to spend time with God, I need to take two pills in the morning which allow me to feel better for a little while. I found myself stuck in Hebrews, unable to move on. Furthermore, I kept feeling overwhelmed by the revelation of His word in the Hebrews book. There are times I would read two or three verses and that’s enough for me for the day because it is too much to take all at once. So, I would close my Bible and meditate. But, in the back of my mind I am always rushing my mediation time to get to those people that I pray for on a daily basis, just because I am afraid the pills would wear off and I would be useless.

So, yesterday I was meditating after I closed the Bible, I decided not to rush myself and not to pray for anyone else. I felt the need to minister to God and I wanted the time to be about Him alone. Finally God got my attention. I realized that’s what He has been trying to do for the past few days. Then He asked me if I noticed the difference in the way I read the book of Hebrew now compare to a few years ago when He was using Hebrews to teach me about my walk with Him?  I answered yes I notice you are teaching me as if I am a pastor reading some verses to prepare a sermon. I have no idea why this comparison. It just felt like it.

The difference is when He was training me few years ago to prepare me for a walk of holiness and faith He focussed on this book with me and taught me why certain passages had to be imparted to me. He did that, to help me understand the pain I was going through. Through this kind of training with Him, I learned that when we are suffering, He uses our trials to impart this life in us. So, the frustration disappears or at least it becomes more bearable when we understand the process and all the benefits intended by God. We know the pain serve a purpose so we can focus on the goal instead of the pain.

God turned things around this time. The first time there was joy, I was learning, and the word was coming alive in my life. This time around is so painful and the only way I can describe the pain that I am feeling is that I feel like I am carrying the world on my shoulders. I am frustrated that God chose to show me these things. I am frustrated because I feel powerless. I am also frustrated because I do not know how to help people understand how important it is to heed to God’s words. As I was asking God what gives? He told me to blog about it. Honestly, that’s not what I wanted to hear for several reasons.

Right away, I thought about the last time I posted the Godly wife’s post; I lost over 500 people on Facebook. Secondly, I have a craving to be normal, even a little bit superficial so that I could attract more people. (Confession time) I hate the fact that my ministry resemble to the prophet of doom. There is a beauty in God and a beauty in being His heir that I would love to be able to talk about all the time. Yet, I know God’s plan for me is to help people understand how to get to the beauty we find in Him. That’s what we Christians tend to avoid. We want the beauty but not the pain we have to go through to get there.

Times like that, I find solace in knowing what God is asking of me is the size of a fly compare to Noah. Imagine, having to live more than hundred years warning people about something that was totally unreal to them. But, I supposed because he would have needed tons of strength to persevere in faith and to take on the ridicule that he must have been exposed to, God must have lavished His grace on him to help him keep the faith alive. I find solace in knowing that as ridiculous as I sound sometimes when I warn people of the danger of a shoddy Christianity, when it matters most, they will know that I was right. Sadly, it will be too late.

When you think about Noah, he preached every single day for over hundred years, warning people of the flood and calling them to make things right with God, yet he was not able to save a soul except the members of his family that God granted him. I would not have understood why if God did not explain it to me. You see, it is extremely important to God to use others to warn people. The funny thing is that God usually chooses people who do not like this task.  God already knows the majority of people you are warning do not care about your message. But, like He said to me before and gave me a glimpse of an image, when judgement time comes, He will have an answer for those who are planning on using “ I DID NOT KNOW” as their excuses. This is part of God being a just God.

You see, as Christians, we are so in love with what we understand with our intellect and in the flesh when in reality God’s word have to be grasped with the Spirit to understand the full scope. For instance, when we say something like, “NOTHING COULD SEPARATE US FROM THE LOVE OF GOD” people feel all warm and tingly, they get a buzz, they say amen with all the strength they have and if you post this on Facebook, you will have hundreds of “likes.” Then, they go on with their shoddy Christianity feeling really good. In reality, it is awesome to know that, but there is so much more to it that we cannot grasp with the flesh and with the intellect.

While we should be grateful for knowing this truth, we should know that God love for each of us is so wide, so deep and so humongous that it feels and look bigger than the world.  But, when He teaches you about His love, you realize there is an intensity to it that could cause you to suffocate within seconds of being closer to His love. The intensity you find in His love has a consuming passion, jealousy wrath etc. As you get to know Him intimately, through loving Him and walking with Him in the spirit, you realize none of these attributes are negative. In fact, the word negative does not even come to mind. You are not scared of His wrath either. His nature in you, teaches you how to accept them and see His beauty through it all. His love is as intense as His wrath and knowing the two, it brings some sort of balance in your walk with Him. But, this is not something you can grasp over night and neither in the flesh. Only as you live and walk in the spirit you learn these things at his feet. – You see, TALK IS CHEAP!

Another reason that I find it hard to have my ministry is because I know how hard it is to tell people they are in reality spiritually blind. They find so much satisfaction in “doing” Christianity. They have lots of activities in their lives, they attend church, bible study,   they feel passionate about things etc., and you cannot tell them they are spiritually blind. They simply do not understand what you are talking about. Yes, these things are good things to have in our lives, but if we remain spiritually blind throughout our Christian walk, well, a caterpillar that has not morphed into a butterfly is not a butterfly.  

Through the book of Hebrews the warning is about the Jews who remained on the side and did not want to have anything to do with Christianity. But most of the book, the writer dedicated to us Christians, to also warn us about how important to have true faith and go forward with Him for the inward transformation to take place so that we can all become butterflies. When it comes to blindness, we have an example of Job right in front of us. When I read job, I don’t care his problems stemmed from Satan having given permission by God to bring him down. What I take from the book is how we are to grow through our trials. It is how to worship God, live for Him in good or bad times and be all that He wants us to be. Even though I read the book over and over again, I cannot wait to get to chapter 42: 5-6 where Job said: “My ears had heard of you but now my eyes have seen you. Therefore I despise myself and repent in dust and ashes.” Job was referring to the eyes of his heart there. I find the book beautiful because I know without the shadow of a doubt, that we all need to go through some major trials in our lives to get the eyes of our hearts open, and only then we can say “oh I see” – Job had no idea he was spiritually blind, I had no idea I was spiritually blind either, until I was able to see. Another thing we find out is that as we can see with our spiritual eyes, we also realize we have no use for those ears we have on the side of our heads.  God wants us to hear with our hearts I remember saying “oh!” That’s why even deaf people have no excuses for not knowing you intimately.  

So, I have no intention of revealing all that God has revealed to me from the book of Hebrews. But, for the next few weeks, I will be using some of the puritan and those classic pastors like Spurgeon perhaps to blog about the book. I will make sure to include some of my own experiences and thoughts.  

I feel so lousy, I have to stop but I hope all that I said make sense and prepare some of you to learn to hear with your heart. I hope you crave intimacy with Him and that you learn to live just to know Him more.

I love you all,

MJ  

A Question on Salvation – Part 2

Excerpt from the Kindle " John Newton's Letters - A Question on Salvation"

He finds mysteries where I can perceive none. Surely, though I use the words Gospel, faith, and grace, with him-my ideas of them must be different from his. This led him to a close examination of all His Epistles, and, by the blessing of God, brought on a total change in his views and preaching. He no longer set his people to keep a law of faith; to trust in their sincerity and endeavors, upon some general hope that Christ would help them out where they came short; but he preached Christ himself, as the end of the Law for righteousness to everyone who believes.

He felt himself, and labored to convince others, that there is no hope for a sinner but merely in the blood of Jesus; and no possibility of his doing any works acceptable to God, until he himself is first made accepted in the Beloved. Nor did he labor in vain. Now his preaching effected, not only an outward reformation-but a real change of heart, in very many of his hearers. The word was received, as Paul expresses it, not with a rational assent only-but with demonstration and power, in the Holy Spirit, and in much assurance. And their endeavors to observe the Gospel precepts were abundantly more extensive, uniform, and successful, when they were brought to say, with the Apostle, "I am crucified with Christ! Nevertheless I live-yet not I-but Christ lives in me; and the life which I live in the flesh, I live by faith in the Son of God."

Such a change of views and sentiments, I pray God-that you may experience. These things may appear uncouth to you at present, as they have done to many who now bless God for showing them what their reason could never have taught them. My divinity is unfashionable enough at present-but it was not so always; you will find few books, written from the area of the Reformation, until a little before Laud's, that set forth any other. There were few pulpits until after the Restoration from which any other was heard. A lamentable change has indeed since taken place; but God has not left himself without witnesses. 

You think, though I disclaim infallibility, I arrogate too much in speaking with so much certainty. I am fallible indeed; but I am sure of the main points of doctrine I hold. I am not in the least doubt, whether salvation is by faith or by works; whether faith is of our own power or of God's operation; whether Christ's obedience, or our own, is the just ground of our hope; whether a man can truly call Jesus Lord-but by the teaching of the Holy Spirit. I have no more hesitation about these points, than I should have were I asked whether it was God or man who created the heavens and the earth!

Besides, as I have more than once observed, your sentiments were once my own; so that I, who have traveled both roads, may have perhaps some stronger reasons to determine which is the right, than you can have, who have only traveled one.

I now come to the two queries you propose, the solution of which you think will clearly mark the difference of our sentiments. The substance of them is,

1st, Whether I think any sinner ever perished in his sins (to whom the Gospel has been preached) because God refused to supply him with such a proportion of his assistance as was absolutely necessary to his believing and repenting; or without his having previously rejected the incitements of his Holy Spirit? A full answer to this would require a sheet. But, briefly, I believe, that, all mankind being corrupt and guilty before God, he might, without impeachment to his justice, have left them all to perish, as we are assured he did the fallen angels. But he has been pleased to show mercy-and mercy must be free. If the sinner has any claim to it-so far it is justice, not mercy. He, who is to be our Judge, assures us, that few find the gate which leads to life, while many throng the road to destruction.

Your question seems to imply, that you think God either did make salvation equally open to all, or that it would have been more becoming his goodness to have done so. But he is the potter-and we are the clay. His ways and thoughts are above ours, as the heavens are higher than the earth. The Judge of all the earth will do right. He has appointed a day, when he will manifest, to the conviction of all-that He has done right. Until then, I hold it best to take things upon his Word, and not too harshly determine what it befits Jehovah to do. Instead of saying what I think, let it suffice to remind you of what Paul thought, Romans 9:15-21.

But, farther, I say, that unless mercy were afforded to those who are saved, in a way special to themselves, and which is not afforded to those who perish-no one soul could be saved. For fallen man, universally, considered as such, is as incapable of doing the least thing towards his salvation, until saved by the grace of God-as a dead body is of restoring itself to life. Whatever difference takes place between men in this respect, is of grace, that is-of God, undeserved. Yes, his first approaches to our hearts are undesired too; for, until he seeks us, we cannot, we will not seek him, Psa. 110:3. It is in the day of his power, and not before-that his people are made willing.

Where the Gospel is preached, those who perish, do willfully resist the Gospel light, and choose and cleave to darkness, and stifle the convictions which the truths of God, when his true Gospel is indeed preached, will, in one degree or other, force upon their minds. The cares of this world, the deceitfulness of riches, the love of other things, the violence of sinful appetites, their prejudices, pride, and self-righteousness either prevent the reception, or choke the growth of the good seed. Thus their own sin and obstinacy is the proper cause of their destruction. They will not come to Christ-that they may have eternal life.

At the same time, it is true that they cannot, unless they are supernaturally drawn by God; John 5:40; John 6:44. They will not and they cannot come. Both are equally true, and they are consistent. For a man's cannot, is not a natural inability-but a moral inability. It is not an impossibility in the nature of things, as it is for me to walk upon the water, or to fly in the air-but such an inability as, instead of extenuating, does exceedingly enhance and aggravate his guilt. He is so blinded by Satan, so alienated from God by nature and wicked works, so given up to sin, so averse from that way of salvation which is contrary to his pride and natural wisdom-that he will not embrace it or seek after it! And therefore he cannot receive it, until the grace of God powerfully enlightens his mind, and overcomes his obstacles.

But this brings me to your second query,

II. Do I think that God, in the ordinary course of his providence, grants his assistance in an irresistible manner, or effects faith and conversion without the sinner's own hearty consent and concurrence? I rather choose to term grace invincible, than irresistible. For it is too often resisted, even by those who believe; but, because it is invincible, it triumphs over all resistance, when God is pleased to bestow it. For the rest, I believe no sinner is converted without his own hearty will and concurrence. But he is not willing-until he is made so. Why does he at all refuse? Because he is insensible of his lost and dreadful condition. He does not know the evil of sin, the strictness of God's law, the majesty of God whom he has offended, nor the total apostasy of his heart! He is blind to eternity, and ignorant of the excellency of Christ! He thinks that he is whole, and sees not his need of this great Physician! For salvation, he relies upon his own wisdom, power, and supposed righteousness.

Now, in this state of things, when God comes with a purpose of saving mercy, he begins by convincing the person of sin, judgment, and righteousness; causes him to feel and know that he is a lost, condemned, helpless creature; and then reveals to him the necessity, sufficiency, and willingness of Christ to save those who are ready to perish, without money or price, without doings or deserving. Then he sees faith to be very different from a rational assent; finds that nothing but the power of God can produce a well-grounded hope in the heart of a convinced sinner; therefore looks to Jesus, who is the author and finisher of faith, to enable him to believe. For this he waits in what we call the means of grace; he prays, he reads the Word, he thirsts for God as the deer pants for the water-brooks. And, though perhaps for a while he is distressed with many doubts and fears, he is encouraged to wait on, because Jesus has said, "Him who comes unto me, I will never cast out."

On Kindle for $1.99 Only

The obstinacy of the will remains while the understanding is dark-and ceases when that is enlightened. Suppose a man walking in the dark, where there are pits and precipices of which he is not aware. You are sensible of his danger, and call after him; but he thinks he knows better than you, refuses your advice, and is perhaps angry with you for your importunity. He sees no danger, therefore will not be persuaded there is any. But if you go with a light, get before him, and show him plainly, that if he takes another step, that he will fall to his death-then he will stop of his own accord, blame himself for not minding you before, and be ready to comply with your farther directions. In either case, man's will acts with equal freedom-the difference of his conduct arises from conviction.

Something like this is the case in our spiritual concerns. Sinners are called and warned by the Word; but they are wise in their own eyes, and take but little notice-until the Lord gives them light, which he is not bound to give to any, and therefore cannot be bound to give to all. Those who have it, have reason to be thankful, and subscribe to the Apostle's words, "By grace are you saved, through faith; and that not of yourselves, it is the gift of God."

I have not yet half done with the first sheet! I shall consider the rest at leisure; but send this as a specimen of my willingness to clear my sentiments to you as far as I can. Unless it should please God to make what I offer satisfactory, I well know before-hand what objections and answers will occur to you; for these points have been often debated; and, after a course of twenty-seven years, in which true religion has been the chief object of my thoughts and inquiries, I am not entirely a stranger to what can be offered on either side.

What I write, I write simply and in love; beseeching Him, who alone can set a seal to his own truth, to guide you and bless you. This letter has been more than a week in hand; I have been called from it I suppose ten times, frequently in the middle of a period or a line. My leisure, which before was small, is now reduced almost to nothing. But I am desirous to keep up my correspondence with you, because I feel an affectionate interest in you, and because it pleased God to put it into your heart to apply to me. You cannot think how your first letter struck me-it was so unexpected, and seemed so improbable, that you should open your mind to me, I immediately conceived a hope that it would prove for good. Nor am I yet discouraged.

When you have leisure and inclination-write. I shall be always glad to hear from you, and I will proceed in answering what I have already by me, as fast as I can. But I have many letters now waiting for answers, which must be attended to.

I recommend you to the blessing and care of the great Shepherd; and remain, etc.