I am reading Watchman Nee's book, "The Normal Christian Life." It is a must read, in my opinion, for any Christian. Today, we so often abbreviate what it means to be a Christian, but we never really get to the important stuff. Here Nee briefly summarizes one of those important things we need to understand.
We have learned in China that, when leading a soul to Christ, we must be very thorough, for there is no certainty when he will again have the help of other Christians. We always seek to make it clear to a new believer that, when he has asked the Lord to forgive his sins and to come into his life, his heart has become the residence of a living Person. The Holy Spirit of God is now within him, to open to him the Scriptures that he may find Christ there, to direct his prayer, to govern his life, and to reproduce in him the character of his Lord." p. 198
“I ask not only on behalf of these, but also on behalf of those who will believe in me through their word, that they may all be one. As you, Father, are in me and I am in you, may they also be in us, so that the world may believe that you have sent me. The glory that you have given me I have given them, so that they may be one, as we are one, I in them and you in me, that they may become completely one, so that the world may know that you have sent me and have loved them even as you have loved me.” John 17:20-23.
“For through the law I died to the law, so that I might live to God. I have been crucified with Christ; and it is no longer I who live, but it is Christ who lives in me. And the life I now live in the flesh I live by faith in the Son of God, who loved me and gave himself for me. I do not nullify the grace of God; for if justification comes through the law, then Christ died for nothing.” Galatians 2:19-21.
This short Youtube video has been around for a while, and I have viewed it many times, but each time I find fresh encouragement and conviction. Misty Edwards sums up the life as a Follower of Jesus so well here.
You may look at this and think that it is not what you are familiar with, but that is the problem. We often reduce this life down to the point where it is mundane. We vall short of the potential God has for us. I've been meaning to post this on my blog for a long time.
This song is a spontaneous ballad Misty Edwards often sings about the story of the Harlot from John 8. It is on her latest ablum, "The Measure of Love." This version done in the Prayer Room is as good as any. She does such a great job of telling the story and bringing it to life.
To seek God
means first of all
to let yourself be found by him.
He is the God of Abraham, Isaac and Jacob.
He is the God of Jesus Christ.
He is your God
not because He is yours
but because you are His.
To choose God
is to realize that you are known and loved
in a way surpassing anything you can imagine
long before anyone had thought of you or spoken
your name.
- Exerpt from Living With Contradiction: An Introduciton to Benedictine Spirituality by Ester de Waal
I have been on a hermitage retreat this weekend at Pacem in Terris. While there, I spent some time reading Watchman Nee's book, The Normal Christian Life. The section I have been reading is largely taken from Romans 6 and 7. Here are some quotes that spoke to me. It may be helpful to keep this verse in mind as we read these quotes.
“Or do you not know that your body is a temple of the Holy Spirit within you, which you have from God, and that you are not your own? For you were bought with a price; therefore glorify God in your body.” 1 Corinthians 6:19, 20.
"Many people think we become holy by extraction of something evil within. No, we become holy by being separated unto God." p. 102ff
"Presenting myself to God implies a recognition that I am altogether his." p. 103
"We cannot expect the Lord to live out his life in us if we do not give him our lives in which to live. Without reservations, without controversy, we must give ourselves to him to do as he pleases." p. 104-5, rf Romans 6:13
"I must first have the sense of God's possession of me before I can have the sense of his presence with me." p. 105
"When once we have made the discovery that we are the dwelling place of God, then a full surrender of ourselves to God must follow." p. 144
"Revelation is the first step to holiness, and consecration is the second." p.144ff
“In the same way, my friends, you have died to the law through the body of Christ, so that you may belong to another, to him who has been raised from the dead in order that we may bear fruit for God.” Romans 7:4.
"For our every attempt to do his will is a denial of his declaration in the Corss that we are uttlerly powerless to do so. It is a misunderstanding on the one hand of God's demand and on the other hand of the source of supply." p. 168ff
"In the matter of forgiveness we look to Chirst on the Cross; in the matter of deliverance from sin and of doing the will of God we look to Christ in our hearts. For the one we depend on what he has done; for the other we depend on what he will do in us; but in regard to both, our dependence is on him alone. From start to finish, he is the One who does it all." p. 172
“for it is God who is at work in you, enabling you both to will and to work for his good pleasure.” Philippians 2:13.
“And all of us, with unveiled faces, seeing the glory of the Lord as though reflected in a mirror, are being transformed into the same image from one degree of glory to another; for this comes from the Lord, the Spirit.” 2 Corinthians 3:18.
God motivates with a vision, set fixed before our eyes. As we respond to this vision we are transformed into His image. So often we make being a follower of Jesus overly complicated.
At the most basic level, a Christian is a follower of Jesus (Acts 11:26). When we talk about being a follower of Jesus, we tend to ask, "What does a follower of Jesus do -- what do they look like?" From there we start focusing on do's and don'ts of being a follower of Jesus. A follower of Jesus prays, reads the Bible, goes to church, helps the poor. A follower of Jesus is not greedy, does not gossip, and avoids immorality. This model solidifices a list of behaviors into a standard to which we hold people. The next assumed task is to try to get people to act like followers of Jesus, which often is interpreted as applying the do's and don'ts to one's life. This is problemmatic, because most of us are inconsistent in our following of Jesus, so that brings us under judgement and exposes us to the accusation of hypocracy.
This kind of thinking also leads to a tiered idea of being a Christian. On the first level, we have those who merely acknowledge the title, and then those who have various degrees of religious behavior, and then those who talk about being a "follower or disciple" and then there are those who seem to genuinely start to resemple Jesus in the context of their life. This last category we often call "saints" -- those who we suppose have some special calling or relationship with God, ignoring the fact that the term "saint" in the Bible is typically applied to all Christians. This tiered model was never what Jesus had in mind.
Being a follower of Jesus is a statement of identity first, and a statement of action, second. What we do flows out of who we are.
Christians are followers of Jesus (Acts 11:26, 1 John 2:3-6). There are no tiers or categories implied here. We either follow Jesus and His teachings, or we are not being a Christian. Unless we receive Christ at our dying breath, we are expected to be followers of Jesus. Being a follower implies we have taken the intentional steps in agreement with the one we are following. This brings us to the idea of being imitators of Jesus.
Followers imitate the one they are following (Ephesians 5:1-2, 1 John 2:4-6, Luke 9:23). They walk in his steps, and submit to his leadership. It implies observation, which brings me to the next point.
We imitate Jesus by observing Him, by learning about him and his teaching, by interacting with him, and responding to him. This fixing our gaze on Jesus works upon us to transform us. (John 14:12; 2 Corinthians 3:18). This is where motivation comes in. We see Jesus, and imitate him, following him in his teachings and ways. Sure, we do things, but first comes the vision to the one we love; the one we are following. The vision motivates us toward transformation.
We can do nothing apart from our abiding relationship with God in love. (John 15:5; Gallatians 2:20; 3:3; Ephesians 3:17; 1 John 3:16-17, 24, 4:7-8). Again, our motivation is found in a heart motivated by the vision, which in turn produces a desire to collaborate with God.
Again, this transformation does not take place according to our religious programs and curriculum. God starts where the individual is at, and works on the necessary thing of the moment. As confounding as this might be to our religious leaders, it is the way God works. Keeping Christ central in our teachings and spiritual vision is the key in this process.
Jesus summed all the "law and prophets" (scriptural teachings) up with the love commandment (Matthew 22:37:40) -- Love God with all our being, and love others. John describes an abiding love (1 John 4:16-17). I am reminded of the Misty Edwards refrain: "God's in love with me, and I'm in love with God. That's who I am, and that's who I wll be. That settles it, completely."
Love is perfected in relation to others (1 John 4:11-12). Love is relational. Our Triune God embodies love. We abide in God and God in us as we abide in love. We love God as we love others. The Kingdom of God is a kingdom powered by self-sacrificing agape love. Jesus is the Servant of All (cf. Mark 9:35). If we are to be followers of Jesus, we need to follow him in this kind of love (Matthew 16:24-25; 1 Corinthians 13:4-17). Love is the motivating force behind in the vision.
The ultimate question each follower of Jesus will be asked is, "Did you learn to love?"
Sometimes life seems to have gaps. Not that there are really moments where there is missing data or experience, but at sometimes, time goes by and then I look back and say, "Has it really been that long?" It is hard to believe my last post on this blog was in April. In some ways, the gaps are representative of how things seem to be going for me this year, yet I have not been idle.
Often when I am asked about what I am doing, I answer that I have been busy. By being busy, one would think there is a lot happening to report on. However, much of the business is doing routine things: I go to work, do chores around the house, visit with friends and family, read books, watch TV and movies, and so on. These are the things of life and we fill our time up with them -- thus we are "busy."
Ironically, being busy often means that I do not have time to do what I really would like. For example, I have a number of books on my desk that I had good intentions of reporting on in book reviews on this blog. However, as these things pile up, they become a reminder of what I wish I could be doing, rather than many of the things I spend my time doing.
I am writing this with the intent to start blogging more consistently. As a result, I would like to do a quick catch up.
One of the books I finished reading is "Love Alone is Credible" by Hans Urs Von Balthasar, a Catholic theologian. I have run across Balthasar a few times in my studies, and had him on my wish list. A while back Misty Edwards posted a quote from him, and that pushed me to go ahead and read some of his books. This book is about what makes Christianity credible. When looking at what is uniquely distinctive of the Christian faith, he concludes that its teachings of love alone stands out as making Christianity credible. Balthasar explores this in detail in this book. It was an interesting read, though Balthasar has a way of making prenthetical statements within his sentences, which makes the book a difficult read. I don't know if this is typical for his writings. The book is definitely worth reading, if you are wanting to explore the topic of love and the Christian faith.
Another book I read was "Following Jesus: Biblical Reflections on Discipleship" by N.T. Wright. Wright explores what it means to follow Jesus in this excellent, easy to read, book. The book is in two parts. Part One explores Jesus, as revealed in the New Testiment books of Hebrews, Colossians, Matthew, John, Mark, and Revelation. These chapters are devotional in nature, exploring Jesus from the perspective of the writer's primary thematic emphesis on Jesus. Part Two explores the topic of Jesus as a living sacrifice. Wright includes chapters on the ressurection, renewal of the mind, temptation, hell, heaven and power, and new life-new world. I found Wright's book to be fresh and exciting. I highly recommend it to all who seek to be followers of Jesus.
One more point about Wright's book. His chapter on Hell was very interesting, as he brought in some correctives to certain common ideas of hell that are not exactly supported by scripture. It was refreshing, and actually practical. It prompted me to explore some related theologies more. I have a couple books in my "stack to read" waiting for me to find the right time.
I am currently re-reading Watchman Nee's, "The Normal Christian Life." It has been a while since I read this book, and I am still working through it. In it, he discusses the exhchanged life, as taught by Hudson Taylor. This prompted me to read the Book "Hudson Taylor's Spiritual Secret" by Dr. & Mrs. Howard Taylor. Wow, awesome book! Taylor, a 19th Century missionary to China, was a man of prayer and faith. He repeatedly, trusted all that he had and needed to God in prayer. As a result, his life powerfully shows the power of prayer and the faithfulness of God. In his total surrender to God, Taylor found the key to abiding in Christ. The book ought to change any Christian's life, and I also recommend it for those considering missionary work.
"God does not give us overcoming life: He gives us life as we overcome." To him the secret of overcoming lay in daily, hourly fellowship with God; and this, he found, could only be maintained by secret prayer and feeding upon the Word through which He reveals Himself to the waiting soul." p. 238
Taylor took to heart the promise of the Lord to give us living waters (John 4:14). That living water spring up out of his his daily walk with God, and through them, he found all he needed in the face of the many trials he faced in that life.
"Hudson Taylor stopped at no sacrifices in following Christ. "Cross-loving men are needed..." p. 214
It is not possible to do this little book justice in this short review. It is inspirational, challenging, simple, and yet, profound. It is a must read for any Christian. I am looking forward to starting Watchman Nee's "Changed into His Likeness" soon. Watch for the review.
Another book I have been reading recently is "The Fire of God," by John Michael Talbot. This hard to find little book is proving to be wonderfully good and very pratical. I have enjoyed every book of Talbot's that I have read. It is about the work of the fire of God in our lives and overcoming the "fires" of this world. I have been going through this book quickly, and hope to be done soon. Of course, I am reading a number of other books, which I will report on when I get done with them.
I guess as I refect back, I find that I have accomplished many things over the last few months, even if life's business has seemly pushed me forward in a way that causes me to lose track of time.
This is a book review for Joshua Choonmin Kang's book, Deep-Rooted In Christ: The Way of Tranformation.
The book title caught my eye, though I had not heard of Joshua Choonmin Kang, the pastor of Oriental Mission Church in Los Angeles, California. However, he is one of the many people endorsed by Richard Foster.
I enjoyed this book very much. It's focus on being deep-rooted in Christ resonated well with where the Lord has taken me in my walk. It reminds me of Ephesians 3:14-21 and John 15. Writing from the perspective of the contemplative tradition, Kang shows how the various spiritual disciplines can come together, along with the work of the Holy Spirit in us, to form Christ in us and to root us deeply in Christ.
You can look at the table of contents to get a sense of the message it has (see the link to Amazon.com). I found the book to be an easy read, which was good as a devotional. It is not exactly a how-to book, but then it connects the spiritual disciplines with the process of being rooted in Christ. In some ways it is very practical. I suspect it is one of those books I will have to read a few times.
I am struck by how Kang writes from experience, not just intellectual knowledge. He reflects on the ways of God and the person who God wants us to be. This can be both exciting and challenging, as we fall short of the goal. Tranformation is a process, and this book is about that process.
At one point he reflects about the wilderness. "Where does God devleop a servant? In the wilderness." (p. 73) "In the desert those who have trusted only in themselves and others learn to put their faith in God. The Word of God and the Holy Spirit are the teachers. Yes, the curriculum is devoted to suffering, but that's where the lambs become lions. That's where ordinary people become extraordinary men and woment of God." (p. 74)
I highly recommend this book, and being deep-rooted in Christ is very much a part of what it means to practice Christ.
I Burn For You. This is a short article by Misty Edwards on the love of God. We hear things like this, but do we really believe them? Yet, scripture tells us:
Jesus himself said:
This is the reason Paul's prayer for the Ephesians shows up so often in notes and posts to people. Love. We cannot know it fully, yet we can be deeply rooted in it, and we can pursue love through our relationship with the God who is love.
Last night I was reading in "Deep-Rooted in Christ" (previously referenced) and I ran across the following statement.
"Every spiritual leader needs discernment about God's time. ... In Issachar, one of the twelve tribes of Israel, there were 'those who had understanding of the times'..." (p. 77)
This struck me as one of those, "does it really say that" moments so I looked up the reference. Referring to David's army at Hebron it says:
Of Issachar, those who had understanding of the times, to know what Israel ought to do, two hundred chiefs, and all their kindred under their command. 1 Chronicles 12:32
There it is. One of those little bits of information barried within scripture.
Reading on in "Deep-Rooted" Kang observes:
One distinguishing characteristic of those who are spiritually trained in the desert is their willingness to move only on God's timeline, to respond only God's voice (p.78)
True enough. As previously noted, we need to learn to wait on the Lord. God's people are not always good at waiting. I know I'm not. Yet we need to learn to wait. As we learn this, I have found that I enter the period of waiting with a sense of expectancy, knowing that God will respond.
It strikes me that there is also another side of the "waiting coin." Sometimes we are given an opportunity, and God's people are not ready, or willing, to respond. When Israel sent the twelve scounts into the promised land, ten came back saying "no way" and two came back saying, "let's go!" The ten prevailed, and Israel spent 40 years more wandering in the desert while God waited for those stubborn people to die off (Numbers 13 &14). Yet, this is what the Lord said of Caleb, of of the two.
But my servant Caleb, because he has a different spirit and has followed me wholeheartedly, I will bring into the land into which he went, and his descendants shall possess it. Numbers 14:24
We need to be willing to follow the Lord wholeheartedly.
While there are times when we need to wait on God, there are many other times God seems to have to wait for us. Many times when this happens, God just finds someone else to do the work, or the work goes undone.
I was reflecting on what causes God's people to not do what the Lord asks of them. All kinds of things came to mind: sin, pride, gossip, desentions, resentment, unforgiveness, fear, unbelief, etc. Then I realized all these things can be summed up as a lack of surrender.
We need to learn the way of surrender, the way of the cross. We need to learn to walk humbly and wholeheartedly with the Lord (cf. Micah 6:8). Then we will see God do the things we long for in our lives, churches, and current situation.
When we learn to surrender, then we will learn to know what time it is.