I Was Never Told...

I was never told growing up and being forced to go to church every Sunday that God, the Designer of the universe, desired a relationship with me. I knew that He loved me. I knew that He sent His only begotten son for my sins. But I never knew nor felt like I could relate with the Creator.

You ever look at the sky during a storm (that is if you like storms) and think, "Yeah, I know the one

who makes those. Yeah, we're friends. Yeah, we're pretty tight."

I crack myself up because I think this all the time and I am absolutely left in awe! You can know God personally! He actually wants to be part of your everyday life! This is part of the reason Jesus (God) came to earth. Just kinda sorta (sarcasm).  

You can start a relationship with God today, right now.  Just talk to Him. "Accepting Jesus

into your heart" is simply confessing you accept that you have sinned and accept His gift.

Having that daily relationship with the Lord now for twelve years (it's pretty much a marriage i.e: reason for my latest tattoo...), it is easy for me to think about what I have done for Him rather than what God has done for me. I am currently going through the Gospel of Matthew and chapter 23 is what inspired this post today. 

 Click to read Matthew 23

This is a huge, huge dagger in the gut of any religious person. Thus, I hate it when people call me religious. Yet, as much as I like to dissociate myself from religious folk I can not help but ask myself (you included):

What in me is more religious than following Jesus?

Remember religion is man's attempt to get right with God.

Jesus made things right.

He is the only way to God, the Father.

There is nothing you can do to earn this.

Through these verses I was convicted to also ask myself:

What is greater in my life, my money or my mission?

What is greater, my tithe/sacrifice or the Alter? (Jesus=the Alter)

Is what I've done or become bare more weight than God's commands?

What are your thoughts?

In verse 30 Jesus makes a mockery of the Pharisee's justification of self-righteousness: "You say you wouldn't do this or that, but oh how you do and how you are still." Check out what I mean by clicking the link above. This reminded me of when people comment: "I wouldn't have grabbed the apple in the Garden of Eden. I would have listened." First, I respond by saying it was not an apple and to go read your Bible. Second, I note that you most certainly would. We all would. Because we all do today. If there is a line to not cross, we will cross it. It doesn't matter if it was God who gave the command or nawt!

But I'm preaching to the chore right now ain't I?

These words are nothing new.

It was/is easy for religious people to point to the sinner and say: "Thank you God I am not like that guy/girl." But it is also easy for a "follower of Jesus" to point to the religious person and say: "Thank you God I am not like them!" Both stances portray exalting ourselves and justifying our actions. 

If you should boast, boast in Lord.-1 Corinthians 1: 31

That's all folks.

The Bad News

I'll admit that I was resistant to reading J.D. Greear's book, Gospel; however, I learned one very important "take home" point: Always be preaching the Gospel...to yourself.

Simple enough. Actually a hard pill to swallow. The book also encourages the reader to go back & read the four gospels (Matthew, Mark, Luke & John). Slowly I have been trucking along, but nothing summarizes it up better than the words actually of Romans 10...salvation is by faith alone.

Here's some snipbits:
"...they disregarded the righteousness from God and attempted to establish their own righteousness..."

"... if you confess with your mouth "Jesus is Lord", and believe in your heart that God raised him from the dead, you'll be saved. With the heart one believes, resulting in righteousness, and with the mouth one confesses, resulting in salvation."

"... the same Lord of all is rich to all who call on Him."

"...how can they call on him in whom they have not believed? And how can they believe without hearing about him? And how can they hear without a preacher?"

And lastly,

"I was found by those who were not looking for me, I revealed myself to those who were not asking for me."

The Good News is this, that Jesus (God in human flesh) bore all of my sins upon the cross & rose again one the third day defeating the power of sin/death/& the devil. Through Jesus I can have full access to the Father because only through Jesus am I made holy.

Many of us have heard this since we popped out the womb. Many of us either just gloss over it or add things to it. But where is that middle ground?! The ground in which you take it just like it is & allow it to work its power?

Jesus did not come to condemn you, but to save you, all who are afraid! Jesus came to heal those who were sick, all who are worried! Jesus came to forgive, all who don't care!

And I am not just the sinner, but the fearful one! I am not just the one who is sick, but the troubled one! I am not just the one who was forgiven, but the one walking around with apathy!

Now, this "preaching to one's self" is not a substitute to preaching to others. Rather it's like what J.D Greear talks about in the regards to Paul of the Bible: "I am the greatest of all sinners!"

The reflection Paul was having, as J.D Greear had to learn, was not that Jesus (just) took upon the world's sins but MY sins. It was not just one whip my sins deserved, it was the forty+ lashes, the ripping out of the beard, being spat upon, and being nailed & hung upon on the cross (a criminal's death). And yet, if I (or you) were the ONLY person in the universe, God would have still sent His son to die in our place. Why? Because His love is that deep, that wide, & that extravagant!!!

This is both very humbling & invigorating. Or at least it should be, because nothing else in this life will ever compare to it! Not even religion.

You might retaliate & say, "Samantha, this is religion." And I would must certainly say, "I respectfully disagree."

Religion seems to create this world of it's own & impose it upon others. It is constructed & mainly conducted within four walls, full of regulations & praise of outward appearances.

Let me tell you something you might not like to hear,

But Jesus is reality.

Following Jesus is not creating your own world, but joining His already established & fully functioning one! Following Jesus is being invited to join in God's kingdom that has no barriers, no creeds, no masks! Following Jesus takes place in the heart & soul; the body & everything else automatically flows into its proper place afterwards! Following Jesus is what we were made for, not religion.

So the bad news is I remind myself everyday that I was deserving of hell-for I am acknowledging the "plank in my eye before the sawdust in my brother's." But the Good News always follows and that is Jesus won my place back into heaven. This is where I find my peace & rest for the day, this hour & eternity. This is where my joy & treasure lays now & forever. What about you?

Scratch My Head Confusion

God delegated. Just look up the definition. He handed over the responsibility of being sanctified to us, His creation. From the beginning, after sin of course, God handed over the responsibility of being sanctified to us. That's the key though-the whole "after sin of course." After Adam & Eve, (for the sake of less arguments, I'll say "we, humanity, sinned" because face it, we would all want that some how dazzling fruit that God told us not to eat), we sinned but God seemed to have not only punished us however given us more freedom. Could we turn around & say more freedom could be more destructive in the long run? Thus, actually in some regards detrimental? Note, I say in some regards not all. I'm not getting all Communist here. Back to the point. We needed to be brought back into the fold of God, back into that friendship, & back to that holiness. How were we going to get there? Well, we didn't seem that concerned until murder entered the scene. Read the first chapters of Genesis & see what I'm talking about. Even then, however, we didn't see how that was related to the "fall" & where God wanted us to be. We did have some concept that God deserved the best, but deep down did we/they really care? Sure we were kicked out of Eden, the most beautiful garden in to world, thrown into the desert with thorns & thistles, given pain during child-birth, yada yada. Maybe we thought, "ok yah my bad. My bad. I shouldn't have done that whole disobeying God thing. I got smacked on the hand, I mean it was a pretty hard smack...but I'll live. I'm doing well for myself. I can do this whole not perfect relationship with God thing for a while." We think everything is a ok, until a few chapters (years/decades/centuries) later the going gets really tough! And again, God only seems to see the real damage done. He even claims at one point that He regretted creating the human race. Why? Because we were screwing up the earth? Because we weren't listening? Because we were hurting each other? Because He knew what our free will/independence would cost in the long run? Maybe. Maybe all of the above. I don't know, I'm not God. Regardless, something had to be done. We acknowledge this in part...a little more than before. We are then introduced to animal sacrifice. Sorry you Animal Activists, but that's how the cookie crumpled. From the laws given to Moses & the new establishing culture of "God's chosen people", we are given something we can do to try & make things better. This was grabbing a livestock, banishing your impurities upon it, slicing its throat & burning it on an altar. Sounds a bit pagan or Satanist doesn't it? Why is it another creature had to take upon our sins? Why couldn't we bare them ourselves? That would entail killing ourselves, which wouldn't get us any where because we would be unfit to enter God's kingdom, that is heaven. God regardless wanted man, although carried out through odd, almost cruel jokes one could say by our own hands= our works. Works that would have no end. Works He would later say meant nothing. So God came down. In Spirit, He dwelt among His believers in a small section of the temple called The Holy of Holies. This, this right here was a huge deal! I mean forget about this whole just one guy on a mountain somewhere talking with God that people were skeptical about & where you had to hide in the clift of the rock because God's presence was too overwhelming for you to bear! God choose to get closer to all the people & travel with them. Still this place was terrifying. Only very, very specific & special people were allowed to enter this place. God seemed to provoke fear more than anything. However, were the people just fearful because in actuality they still didn't understand the severity of their sin & the great holiness of their God? For if they really, really did, wouldn't they have stopped sinning a long time ago & repented night and day? That wouldn't be true living either; not only that, but I'm pretty sure their supplies of cows or whatever they used would run out. Then what? So God moves a little bit closer. He introduces prophets. People whom He'd personally whisper in the ears of regardless if they had entered the Holy of Holies or not. These people spoke with deep conviction & boldness. Their words unlike the ones at the temple were direct to a specific person & consequences. Note consequences can be good or bad things. I should just say the outcomes of our actions. How did "God's chosen people" respond? Oh they absolutely loved it! They rejoiced at some stranger pin-pointing their flaws & telling them what to do! That's why our churches are so packed today, right?! Wrong. The prophets of the Old Testament were the first martyrs so to speak. God knew this message would cost their lives. Yet God longed for all people, for that original deep connection...how foolish some would say. I like the line from the first Twilight movie: "What a sick lion, what a stupid lamb." In the midst of what people called "following God", He dangled something in front of them that they wouldn't come to understand even when it was right smack dap in front of them-Jesus. The trailer to this Good News was like a wade of a thousand dollars attached to a fishing wire. Every time the OT prophets would drop a conviction, there also stood that ray of sun shine only to be snatched away by another era of waiting...but then the time had finally come where God was like, "ok enough you guys, I got this. You obviously can't get this. So let me pay the tab. I know you drank way too much & can't get home. I got you." Jesus, the real star of the whole show, God in flesh came down. And we all know what happened next. If not, read your Bible-yes, that dusty book that you tucked away to the very back of your book shelf because "you went to church & didn't need it." But the question still remains-did God delegate His task of saving us in the beginning? Why couldn't have Jesus come right after Adam & Eve took a bite out of the fruit from the Tree of Knowledge (that knowledge being of good & evil)? Was it because our hearts weren't ready? Was it because our punishment of death promised to us if we ate was actually a long, slow, painful fade away from the presence of God our Father? How far gone do we have to be until we get some sense knocked into us? It's like we are/were thrown into a deep, deep dark cave but unaware of how black it was until someone lights a match some several hours later. Except make those hours, into years, in fact, make it thousands of years. Jesus was that light. And the light bulb finally turned on in our heads as we watched God's begotten son beaten & broken all because we thought we could handle things on our own. His body was beaten beyond recognition, all because we found knowledge (man made logic) to be more important than abiding in our Father. Instead of taking the rod to beat us, Jesus bore all the wrath designated for our sins (past, present & future). God didn't delegate salvation to us. He knew before He spoke Creation into existence that this day would come & yet, He still choose it to be so. God knew how to fix the relationship, He had to redeem the heart not just the hands (works/choices) of man. We needed a few thousand years to realize that was the issue-our hearts. And God's timing was perfect! New powers were opposing His people, a new era was beginning, different major religions were about to form, & God came down. God said: "I am not here for you to just please & worship. I am here to know you. I am here to take you back home because I love. I love you to the point of death. Not only that, but I'm going to do what you thought you could but couldn't, that is I'm going to put an end to the power of sin/darkness once & for all. By rising from the dead, I'm am offering you resurrection. Resurrection from this life into the rest, resurrection from your ways of thinking, resurrection from this shame & guilt." You see our God is not only a God of grace but of mercy. If there was no sin, there would be no Good News; & if there was no Good News, there would be no reason to fully love God in return. Sure we would be thankful for creation but our hearts are prone to wonder & we would soon establish a new god like a golden cow...All in all salvation, redemption, sanctification, purification and holiness could not be accomplished by your hands, nor will it ever be. This is a gift. Like the Garden of Eden, except it lives inside of us now-it's called the Holy Spirit. Yes, the same Spirit that killed any animal touching Mount Sanai and filled the whole temple with smoke because one small room behind a curtain couldn't contain God's magnificent glory! Do you understand all of this? Can your "knowledge" wrap around all of this? Can you fathom God's ways, God's goodness, God's justice & God's timing? The tree Adam & Eve ignored was the Tree of Life, the second tree in the middle of the garden. Jesus said: "I am the Way, the Truth, & the Life." Paul later declares Jesus as the second Adam (the one we are suppose to follow). I certainly can not fathom all of these things although I write about them...The Spirit just took me to Hebrews 10 & these where my thoughts... measly composed within two hours. Hebrews 10 concludes by asking us one final question in a way that I leave with you now:

how could you live ignoring ALL OF THIS?

Protection...Or Nawt

In Matthew chapter nine verse thirteen, Jesus addresses the Pharisees thoughts through a command that they failed to follow:

"Go and learn what this means, I desire mercy and not sacrifice..."

This is a reference to Hosea (one of the Old Testament prophets) chapter six verse six. Interestingly enough, the book of Hosea is well known as the book describing God's intense love for His people. The same book in the Bible in which the book, Redeeming Love, by Francine Rivers is inspired by. 

*Side note:If you are wanting to be more fascinated, enchanted, captivated by God's enormous grace for you, read Redeeming Love. 

Jesus continues to say, "For I didn't come to call the righteous, but sinners."

Can you imagine what the Pharisees thought of this response? First off I would be dumbfounded if I were in their shoes and someone just responded to something I was thinking...maybe what they were thinking revealed itself by their actions...by their facial expressions...by their attitude, body posture...religion?

The context of this verse is taken from when Jesus calls Matthew to follow Him. Matthew was a tax-collector. Thus, he was a very despised man (due to historical/cultural reasons, but also because why not?). Jesus hung out with this despised man. Jesus ate with this despised man. And because Jesus loved this despised man, Matthew gives us (people 2,000+ years later) an account of Jesus's life called none other but The Good News. 

"I desire mercy more than sacrifice." Says Jesus.

What does that mean?! would be my next inquiry as a Pharisee. Pharisees were uber students/teachers/leaders of the Jewish Law. If it didn't them, it would bug me that someone would tell me-a superstar in the Teacher's Pet realm-to go study more. "Like I don't know this...like I don't already live this...like I didn't spend my whole life in this...countless hours studying this like a crazy-mad black woman..."

Well, obviously the Pharisees didn't think they needed to study more or in fact even take into consideration what Jesus said, because a few chapters later Matthew again records Jesus saying:

"...If you had known what this means: I desire mercy not sacrifice, you would have not condemned..." -12:7

Do you know what it means?

Do you find value in Jesus's words?

Mercy basically means that "I'm letting go of the wrath you deserve."

Sacrifice basically means that "I am not worthy, you are; thus, I give you x" and fill in the x.

"I did not come to call the righteous, but sinners." Says Jesus.

Everyone back in Jesus's day believed that the ones that were "truly righteous" were the Pharisees. The people believed that the Pharisees could do no wrong; that knowing all of God's Laws, continually sacrificing in the temples, wearing elaborate robes/attire, always talking about God and His Ways some how made this small group of people "special in God's eyes." If the Pharisees didn't get to go to heaven then there was no chance for anybody else!

Yet, Jesus called them out more than anything!

Let me say all of this in another way. Jesus command/challenge was this:

• I desire letting go of your offenses, than you always bringing it up
• I desire forgiving you, than you trying to earn it
• I desire a connection with you, than your traditions
• I desire genuine faith from you, than your organized religion

A lot of times we too, people of the modern world (2,000+ years later) still think the same thoughts...both as the Pharisees and as the bystanders. We may not say it out loud but we think it and our life-styles very much reflect it..."For where your treasure lies, there your heart will be also..." 

We fear that if we are not good enough God will not accept us. We toil over what religious activity to be a part of next so people will see us as "good". Then those burnt by such actions both inside and outside the Church are left confused. They become wonders, adrift, "spiritual" in their ways; but note, all are still accountable to their Creator in the end.

What we, as religious folk, do to the Gospel (The Good News) is like what I recently did with my cell phone. 

In December I decided I wanted a really nice high class phone, so I bought one. Finally I could be caught up with the times and hip like the rest of my friends. My smart phone was sleek, thin, and superb. I thought to myself on the day I bought it that I would have this for a very long time. I was already imagining all that my phone & I would embark upon together...yeah I'm a typical young adult waaaaay to attached their phone! Well, it only made sense to me that I should protect this $600 phone so reasonably I bought a glass screen cover and a patted phone case (which looks pink when I specifically asked for Bronze). I was good to go! Except, my phone started having problems. It would freeze constantly! It would just go black during a phone call making it impossible to access the keyboard or even hangup! Half the time I couldn't even turn it on without taking the battery out! Very, very frustrating! Very, very disappointing! I tried calling support, even returned the phone to get another phone in the same model, considered changing the make/model all together, ect. Here we are at the end of June with me still fighting this so called "better technology". It was only natural that during these few months that I had dropped it a few times, leading to the glass screen protector to become cracked in several places. Yesterday, at my whits end ready to smash the phone into the eternal fires of hell, I took off all of the phone's protection-broken glass screen protector, ugly pink/bronze cushioned case cover, everything. And do you know what? My phone works perfect. It turns out my screen protector was blocking a sensor for my touchscreen preventing my phone from registering that I was beating it up, I mean accessing it.

Literally. That just happened. It's okay, you can laugh at me. 

Lone beyond, there is a point here. Like my crazy phone scenario, we encase our faith in God in a layer of protection that is really blocking the Truth.

God doesn't need your fancy robe, your big church, your monthly tithe and neither do you. He doesn't need your hours of study in Church Doctrine or PHD in Theology, and neither do you. He doesn't need your daily "hail Mary's", your check list of volunteerism, or your guitar solo you do to sing worship songs with kids in Africa...and neither do you.

In fact God doesn't NEED anything. But He wants something. More like a someone. He wants YOU. All of You. 

Why? So you can go back doing those things you were doing before? Trying to please Him being that "Super Christian" (believe it or not I was recently called this). There is no such thing. However, there is this thing called love. Not sure if you've heard of it before...it's kind of hard to explain...it's best if you ask the next child your run into...

"For God so loved the world that He sent His only begotten Son to die for them, that only if they believed they would not perish but have everlasting life."-John 3:16 

Side note: John refers to himself in third-person in His account of Jesus's life. And what he says after his name is this, "the one Jesus loved."

Maybe you need reminding of this. Go ahead say your name out loud right now and say, "...the one Jesus loved."

He loves you not for what you did for Him or can do for Him or will do for Him...it's because you are His.

Jesus is our Protection. Through Him and Him alone can we access mercy from the Father. Without Him we are just sinners...even with following all the Laws ever written...for the Law was to point us to the fact that we can not live without Him! What the Law failed to do-which was make us righteous-Jesus did upon the cross. He cleaned the slate. He covered you in grace. He came into your deepest darkest moments. He then resurrected you when He resurrected himself three days later. He trampled over death and the grave. Sin no longer has it's chains on you. You are free. YOU ARE FREE. This was nothing you did, it was all because of Him. He says come as you are; come, come, drink out of the fountain that will never yield its water! He came for you. He is here now for you. If only you trust in Him. Trust that what He says is True. For His words are nourishment to the bones, comfort to the soul and joy in your heart. 

This July 2nd will mark eleven years of me knowing Jesus personally. I continually have to remind myself what I just shared with you now. My only question is, do you know Him personally?

You can. Right here. Right now. Talk to your Heavenly Father. Confessing that you believe in who He is and what Jesus has done for your sins. Ask His Spirit to come into your life to guide you and teach His ways as opposed to man's. Then simply, listen. Open up the Word and let God answer your prayer. 

click & listen to Chris Tomlin's: "Good, Good Father"