How to Make the Impossible... POSSIBLE!

I started listening to Southern Gospel music when we moved to North Carolina, following the purchase of our Mustang GT convertible toward the end of 2014.  The car came equipped with a satellite radio and as we took our many drives around the area surrounding our new home, we perused different stations and took a real liking to the Sirius XM Southern Gospel channel, Enlighten.

Now don’t get me wrong here… I still enjoy a fairly wide variety of musical styles.  If you come over to my house, you’ll hear our home entertainment system filling the atmosphere with sounds that range from Contemporary Christian in the morning, to Southern Gospel throughout the day and Classical in the late afternoon, as well as the late evening as I read and wind down for the night!  And in the car… well, most times I enjoy listening to the local Fox affiliate news/talk radio and… you guessed it… Southern Gospel!

I think it was the harmonies, the vitality in which the vocalists seem to put into every note they sing and the complicated intertwining of the wide array of musical instruments throughout the arrangements of the compositions, that drew me to this genre of music.  I find that most of the songs tell a story of testimony that comes from deep in the heart and life of the song writers and is then transposed and personalized through the unique life experiences and styles of the groups or individuals who performs the songs.

As I continued my study this morning on the idea of Christians having personal relationships with individual scriptures that God has spoken into their hearts, I was reminded of a dynamic testimony that I heard a Southern Gospel artist give during a live recording that has repeatedly played on the Enlighten channel.

And to be honest, I don’t even remember the name of the group nor of the individual giving the testimony.  But what I’ll never forget is the emotion behind the powerful story of God’s healing hand in the life of this man.

The gentleman had been a gospel singer for many years when he was diagnosed with, what I believe, was throat cancer.  After the required surgery was completed, the doctor told the patient that the procedure had been a success, but due to the scope of the surgery needed to remove the entire cancerous area, he would have difficulty talking for the rest of his life and would never sing again!

So, after a long period of recovery and a lot of feeling sorry for himself, the man began to cry out to God, reminding Him that He had given him his vocal giftings and called him into the ministry of music… and that without a voice… he could not do what he believed he was put on this earth to do as a minister of the Gospel. 

This process went on for a while until one day, the singer began to meditate on the faithfulness of God in the Old Testament story of Job where the man of God seemed to have his whole world collapsing around his feet.  As he prayed and cried out, the former vocal artist reminded God of His faithfulness back in Job’s time and began to claim the same faithfulness of God in his own situation. 

Then one day, as he prayed aloud… he suddenly began to talk normally, without difficulty… and discovered that he was also able to sing with the same strength and range he previously had!  God had miraculously touched his body and completely healed him.  And now in the years that have followed, he tells of the faithfulness of God through his personal testimony of his miraculous healing in venues across the United States!

The thing that strikes a chord in me each time I hear this testimony, is the passion and unshakable truth that pours out of his heart!  It is totally unmistakable to me that this man had a connection or relationship with the faithfulness of God within the scriptures that he was standing on.  Beyond any shadow of a doubt, he knew that he knew that as God was faithful to Job, He could and would be to him in his particular need as well!

And the interesting part, is that the verses that he was connecting to God with… had NOTHING to do with the physical healing of his body!  I believe that this man received his healing for his IMPOSSIBLE situation because he saw and touched the same level of the faithfulness of God in making the IMPOSSIBLE in Job’s life to become POSSIBLE … through the power of Almighty God.

It would seem… and is consistent throughout the Bible… that God can use just about any scripture that we make a deep, personal and even intimate relationship with… as a conduit to meet our needs… no matter how difficult or IMPOSSIBLE they may seem to be.

I heard a statement that an older Canadian Evangelist/Missionary to the Inuit Indigenous people who inhabit the northern regions of Canada, made at church a couple of Sunday’s ago… that really made me stop and think.  Speaking from over 50 years of ministry and countess miraculous events, he declared that,

“IMPOSSIBLE should be the filthiest cuss word known to a Christian!”

Hummm…!  What do you think about that?  After his personal experience with God through the IMPOSSIBLE healing of his voice… I would imagine that our vocalist friend would most definitely agree… that the IMPOSSIBLE is POSSIBLE with God!

It is a theme that is consistent throughout the entire Bible.  The First Mention of this truth is found in Genesis 18:13-14 where the angel of the Lord responds to Sarah’s laugh when she overheard the Lord speaking to her elderly husband, while telling him that they were going to have a baby at their very old age.  The angel of the Lord stated,

“Wherefore did Sarah laugh, saying, Shall I of a surety bear a child, which am old?  Is anything too hard for the LORD?” (KJV)

The phrase “too hard” is translated into the Greek as “IMPOSSIBLE” and just happens to be the same Greek word that the angel of the Lord spoke to the Virgin Mary a few thousand years later, when he told her of the miraculous birth that she would have an active role in.  When Mary wondered how it could all come to be, he declared,

“For with God nothing shall be impossible.”

And it is interesting to note Mary’s immediate reply.  Without any doubt or hesitation, she said,

“Behold the handmaid of the Lord; be it unto me according to thy word.”

The truth that succinctly pulls these scriptures from both the Old and New Testaments together and flows with the purpose of our post… is what they tell us is NOT IMPOSSIBLE with the Lord. 

In the original Greek, the word “ANYTHING” in Genesis 18:14 and “NOTHING” in Luke 1:37, along with the word “WORD” that Mary replied in Luke 1:38, all speak of a “rhema” word… which again, is a word that God has given the reader special significance to in their life… and would be considered to be a word or verse in the scriptures in which the reader has developed a close, personal and even an intimate relationship with.

In the literal translation of these verses, these scriptures would actually declare,

“that NO RHEMA word of God shall be IMPOSSIBLE!”

I could tell you of time and time again when God gave both Piper and I special significance and heartfelt meaning to different scriptures that we stood on and thereby witnessed miraculous events, the positive changing of seemingly IMPOSSIBLE situations or words of wisdom and peace given in the midst of challenging and/or heated situations.

And I bet that you can too!

I love those times when I just “know that I know” that the truths from certain scriptures that I hold dearly in my heart are going to see me over and through the hard times that I face… and I then love to spend time studying and talking with the Lord in my daily Bible Studies in order to grow my inner library of RHEMA words to use in my life…

How about YOU?

I hope that you had a nice weekend and are looking forward to a positive week ahead… especially when you take the contents of today’s post to heart!

Relationships

Since the beginning of the New Year, I have been working fairly diligently at the task of preparing my house to go on the market in the spring.  So far, I have deep cleaned the bathrooms, re-stained all the cabinets in the house and this last week, have been endeavoring to clean all the interior doors and frames in order to paint or touch up as needed. 

My biggest frustration in all of this though, is the realization that I can’t seem to do as much in one day as I did when I was prepping our home in North Carolina for sale some six years ago!  I hate to admit it… but I think all the physical care of my wife over the last three to four years of her life has done a number on my knees, hips and back. 

I didn’t think much about it at the time, but even though she was a small gal, the constant physical lifting seems to have finally caught up with me… Not that I regret any of it and would repeat the whole thing over again in a heartbeat!

On the positive side, all the recent time working in the house has given me a lot of time to think about my past present and upcoming future in Tennessee.  For the last two weeks I have found myself in a time warp, bringing me back to my senior year in high school, in 1970-71 when Piper and I began our dating adventures.

I’ve told the story before of our first official date where we planned to meet up at the first school dance of the year, when she, arriving (fashionably) late, came walking across the dance floor and captured not only my imagination, but also my heart as she seemed to be aglow with each step she took toward me. 

Something clicked inside me at that moment, and while I couldn’t say that I was thinking that she would one day be my wife… I did get the uncanny sensation that there was definitely something very special about her and that I did not want to let her go, but was excitedly looking forward to exploring the future… side by side with her.

It was then that our 48-year RELATIONSHIP began, and it changed both of our lives forever!  After that, every word shared, every adventure taken, every thought conceived and every dream dreamed was a memory experienced through the eyes of our loving RELATIONSHIP. 

And it was in the focus of all those high school memories that I found myself thinking about while I washed and cleaned and painted around the house.  To me, it was as if each one of those remembrances, every smile and laugh and every word spoken by her, was an integral and empowering part of the RELATIONSHIP that we enjoyed and cultivated throughout the ensuing years.

In my Christian walk, I have also come to understand the importance of enjoying and cultivating a close and personal RELATIONSHIP with the Lord.  The Apostle John incorporates this idea into his gospel when he wrote, in this familiar scripture, about the time Jesus addressed the disciples’ (as well as we modern day believer’s) questions by replying,

“If ye continue in my word, then are ye my disciples indeed; And ye shall know the truth, and the truth shall make you free.” (John 8:31-32 – KJV)

What Jesus is telling us, is that as we ‘CONTINUE’, or “stay in a given place, state, relationship or expectancy”* in His Word, we prove to be… without any doubt… His disciples indeed!  But then Jesus goes deeper by explaining that in that mode of discovery and hungering for the things of God, we will ‘KNOW’ the truth and the knowledge of “that very truth will make you free.”**  The word translated ‘KNOW’ is that familiar word that I’ve talked about before. It defines someone who enjoys a very close and personal RELATIONSHIP with another individual.

So, we see that it is a particular truth that God reveals to us in His Word, that we can put to work, in order to set us free from any personal, physical or mental/emotional difficulties, habit or disability or way of thought.. that is holding us back or inhibiting us from reaching our full potential in life.  Strong’s informs us that that word ‘KNOW’ means “to know something or someone in an absolute way,” while the Mounce Concise Greek – English Dictionary describes it as meaning “to know in such a way that is settled… whether the action be inceptive or complete.”

The Mounce definition reminds me of the memory of my thoughts and decisions made during Piper’s and my first date… as she walked across the dance floor to me.  Our RELATIONSHIP was just at the very inceptive stage… but yet my mind was settled on the fact that I was NOT going to let her get away… as far as I was concerned, she was a keeper and anything she was to say or do from that point on… would have a permanent, and prominent position in my heart as well as a special place in my personal memory.

That is precisely what Jesus was talking about when He said that we would ‘KNOW’ the truth.  That we would have a special connection or maybe better said, RELATIONSHIP with that specific word of truth that will always stay with us and come to mind in times of weakness or difficulty.

You see, Christ and His Word are one*** and He wants us to have a very close and personal RELATONSHIP with Him and His Word.  When you and I read or study the Word it is just as if He is talking to us face to face… because He is!  Hebrews 4:12 tells us that “God’s word is living and active…” ****therefore it is just as new and fresh as when it was originally penned a few thousand years ago.

Hebrews 11:6 declares that “without FAITH it is impossible to please God…”***** So once again, like in our RELATIONSHIPS with our spouses and loved ones, we should also want to please God in our RELATIONSHIP with Him… right?  And how do we do that?  Well… according to Romans 10:17, “Faith cometh by hearing (and hearing, and hearing) and hearing by the Word of God.”*****  

In plan and simple English… that means to be constantly developing and enjoying… your personal RELATIONSHIP with Him in His Word!  So just like I have all kinds of special memories of experiences that I enjoyed with Piper over the years, that speak joy and peace into my heart… as Christians, I believe that God also wants us to have countless special memories of experiences that we’ve enjoyed with Him, that bring instant showers of joy and peace into our lives!

How close is your personal RELATIONSHIP with God in His Word?  What special memories of your interaction with Him do you like to share with others…

Have a terrific weekend!  We sure are around here in Oklahoma.  Today is the first day I haven’t had to wear my heaviest winter coat with a sweater underneath in almost a week… and instead of temperatures hovering below the bottom of my outside thermometers… we are now moving upward into the 60’s again!

PRAISE THE LORD!

And… enjoy your conversations with the Lord in your Bibles today!

 

 

 

 

*Strong’s Hebrew and Greek Dictionaries

**The New Testament According to the Eastern Texts (George M. Lamsa)

***See John 1:1

**** God’s Word ©

*****King James Version

That Kind of THAT!

With the coming of Valentine’s Day yesterday, I couldn’t help but to reminisce over many of the special times that Piper and I enjoyed together over the 48 years of our relationship together… from our teenage days into our Senior years.  And as is usual for me, I found myself focusing in the wonderful 2-night holidays that we enjoyed alone throughout our marriage.  These getaways normally found us at different lodges along the beautiful Sonoma County California coast but on occasion, we also made it further north into Mendocino County.

I know that I’ve said it before, but I always enjoyed presenting my lovely wife with a special gift of clothing once we checked into our room for our stay.  Most times it was sleepwear, but I also recall a sharp outfit that caught my attention at JC Penny’s on my lunch hour one day that I thought was absolutely made for her.  It consisted of a casual pair of white dress shorts, matched with a white blouse, dotted with flowers. 

And a few years later, I also remember purchasing a pair of designer jeans for her… that after I wrapped them up… began to be concerned that they would be too small.  She was normally easy to shop for, as all I had to do was find the smallest size available.  But this time I realized that she normally wore a size 6 jeans and these were a 5!  But you know?  They fit her perfectly!

And as I thought back on those times, I realized that I don’t remember her ever presenting me with a gift… except for that of herself… and I couldn’t have asked for anything else!  With her devotion to homeschooling, church activities and just being a wife and mom… we never seemed to have much time alone together during the week.  She was one busy woman!  But when we took off to the coast together… she was all mine!  I had her undivided attention… and she had mine!

Once back at home and then throughout the rest of the year, whenever she wore one of the gifts I had given her on our holiday times together, she’d give me ‘THAT’ special look that said it all concerning our love for each other, and I couldn’t help but to smile and proudly think, “Hey, THAT’s my wonderful wife” and then get lost for moment in time, warmly reconnecting to our love and devotion to each other, highly anticipating our future… and especially looking forward to our next jaunt to the coast!

If you recall last week’s blog post, we talked of how the Scriptures point to Jesus Himself as being the TRUTH in this world.  Then we looked at John 14:6 when Jesus confirmed this TRUTH by responding to His disciple’s request for wisdom by saying,

“I AM the WAY the TRUTH, and the LIFE. No one goes to the Father except through me.” (John 14:6-God’s Word ©) 

As I continued to study this verse throughout the week, I felt led to turn back to the Old Testament when God used similar terminology as He told Moses who He was and how to talk to the children of Israel about Him.  In Exodus 3:14 God replied to Moses’ questions by declaring,

“I AM THAT I AM: and He said, Thus shalt thou say unto the children of Israel, I AM hath sent me unto you.” (KJV)

When I read this familiar verse in Exodus this week, I saw something that I had never seem before.  I realized that the word ‘THAT’ is capitalized just like God’s reference to Himself as being the “I AM.”  This discovery told me two things.  First, that the word ‘THAT’ is part of God’s official name and title and secondly, that it is just as important as the words “I AM”!

Brown-Driver-Briggs Hebrew Definitions tells us that the word ‘THAT’ as translated in this verse is used as an “Object Clause.”  Well… I had to look that one up!  So, low and behold, I found a website entitled “Mr. K’s Grammer Planet”* where I learned that “The relative pronoun (THAT) replaces the object of the original clause.”  Which serves to confirm the importance of the word in this verse.

So… with my new-found knowledge, I found myself reading the verse with more emphasis on the word ‘THAT’… and it came out as God (and Jesus, years later) saying,

“I Am THAT (one and only) I Am!”

In Jesus’ case, I use the more descriptive version of John 14:6 as stated in the Remedy Bible along with my own descriptive aids to better explain my thoughts as,

“Jesus answered gently, “I AM (THAT one and only I AM Who is) the WAY back to my Father. I AM (THAT one and only I AM Who is) the TRUTH revealing my Father’s character and the principles upon which life is based; I AM (THAT one and only I AM Who is) the Source of all LIFE.  (and) I AM (THAT one and only I AM Who is) the BRIDGE, and no one comes to the Father except through me—because all truth revealing the Father has been provided by me.”  

When I read these “I AM” verses in both the Old and New Testaments, I sense that Jesus wants to be ‘THAT’ I AM - Who we each, individually know (through regular personal interaction and experience) as THE ONE Who blesses us by being FAITHFUL, LOVING and TRUE to His Word… throughout the entirety of our lives on this earth.

And you know what this sort of reminds me of?  My interactions with my wife (Yes! ‘THAT’ wonderful wife of mine) as I blessed her with special gifts on our 2-night holidays together… and especially as I got ‘THAT’ special look of appreciation the rest of the year, that was dripping with love and affection…

That is the same ‘THAT’ look of love and affection that Jesus asks in return from you and me… for the regular BLESSINGS that He, through His LOVE and FAITHFULNESS toward us (by His GRACE), sends into our lives!

Is Jesus and His Word ‘THAT’ Special One that you brag about to your friends and family?  He sure wants to be!

Have a great weekend!  The meteorologist on our local Tulsa TV station (channel 6) told us to enjoy the warm weather today as it is about to plummet down into negative windchills this week – complete with a nice depth of snow!  So, Fiver and I just took a leisurely walk in the (relatively) warm day (wind chills of 35) and are ready for the week ahead… which begins with a teeth cleaning and extraction for Fiver on Monday morning!

I guess that it is just another opportunity to thank the great “I AM” - Who is ‘THAT’ “I AM” - Who is always faithful to me and mine… and to YOU and Yours as well!

 

*https://mrksgrammarplanet.com/wp-content/uploads/2019/12/3-Object-Clauses.pdf

Your Legal Rights

Back in the early 2000’s I had the distinction of being one of the multitude of employees of Agilent Technologies who was let go in the third phase of the company’s major downsizing efforts.  Not too long after that event I received a phone call from an attorney representing Agilent who informed me that a temporary employee who had worked for me was suing the company for wrongful termination.  Along with the company, the individual specifically named a few persons and in particular me, as I was the Supervisor who initiated her departure from my department.

I wasn’t too concerned about the situation as I had kept good notes of my discussions with the temp worker which were collaborated by the temp agency’s vice president with whom I had numerous discussions along the way.  As part of the preliminary process, I had to spend time with the Agilent legal team and then give a deposition, under oath before both sets of lawyers.

To make a long story short, this went on for months with no court date set until a week before Piper and I were scheduled to attend a leadership training event, with our church’s leadership team to… you guessed it… right here at the Rhema USA campus in Broken Arrow Oklahoma.  The trial was set to begin during the week we were to be out of town. 

When I told the contracted attorney of the conflict, he was not pleased at all and told me that they would fly me back and forth to Oklahoma.  I reminded him that I no longer worked for the company and that the training conference was part of my job with the church.  He just kept repeating that I had to be present at the court and hung up. 

But a few days later, I received a call from an Agent lawyer (whom I knew) who told me that everything was okay and that they were going to settle out of court, so that they didn’t need to bother me anymore… and Piper and I went on to the conference out here… which in point of fact, turned out to be the life-changing event that set our course of action to move out here and attend Bible College.

I mentioned this story because our blog post today also talks about another legal deposition that was given a few thousand years ago… by Jesus Himself!

In last week’s post, we described what actually happens when, according to Psalm 40:3*, we see and thereby perceive something new about who Jesus is and what He provides for us through His Word (ie; salvation, healing, provision, wisdom, grace etc..) and then decide to receive it into our lives.  And we looked in particular at the Apostle John’s gospel in John 8:31-32 where Jesus tells us

“If ye continue in My Word, then are ye My disciples indeed; and ye shall know the TRUTH, and the (or better said: ‘that’) TRUTH shall make you free.” (KJV)

A little research on the meaning of ‘the TRUTH’ in The Cambridge Bible for Schools and Colleges informs us that ‘the TRUTH’ refers to “Both Divine doctrine (ie; the gospel message and/or teachings of Jesus as found in our Bibles - that we talked about last week) and Christ Himself.”  Jesus told His disciples (as well as you and me today) that,

"I am the way, the TRUTH, and the life. No one goes to the Father except through Me.” (God’s Word ©) 

So, Jesus acknowledges the spiritual fact that He Himself is the TRUTH and then seals the deal for you and me toward the end of His earthly presence when He declares to Pilate, Who He is and why He came into the world by declaring:

“To this end was I born, and for this cause came I into the world, that I should bear WITNESS unto the TRUTH. Every one that is of the TRUTH heareth my voice.” (John 18:37 – KJV) 

The underlying message of this statement was then repeated many years later to John in Revelation 3:14, when John as an elderly man, was told by the angel of the church of the Laodiceans, during in his vision of heaven while he was exiled to the Isle of Patmos, that,

“This message is from Jesus—the consistent, reliable, faithful and TRUE WITNESS—who is the origin of God’s creation.” (The Remedy Bible) 

The word WITNESS as used in these passages, is a LEGAL TERM that addresses an individual who is a “deponent” (Mounce Concise-Greek/English Dictionary) which in today’s vernacular describes “a person who gives testimony under oath, outside of the courtroom, in a deposition or an affidavit.”**  Sounds like my experience doesn’t it? 

You see, Jeus made a LEGAL deposition before the law of the land which officially declared Him to be the TRUTH and… following His death where He “stripped the rulers and authorities of their power” and “took back the keys of hell and of death”*** was resurrected and then seated at the right hand of God… Thereby giving every Christian the LEGAL RIGHT to all the promises declared in His Word… as discovered between the pages of yours and my Bibles!

Now, that’s not to say that the enemy of our souls isn’t going to fight like crazy to deter us from knowing about… much less receiving all that God has for us… RIGHT NOW… ON THIS EARTH – TODAY!  But that’s another lesson for another time.  Let’s get this one under our belts first!

Suffice to say… Our Bibles are LEGAL DOCUMENTS that came about through Jesus’ actions on and after the cross and are backed by the authority of the throne of God!

That’s pretty special… wouldn’t you say?  Well… that is exactly the way our Father God planned it to be for us… His children!

There will definitely be more explanation to come… but as for now… read this post through a few times… study out the verses (and others like them – by using a concordance) in your own Bibles and begin to exercise your LEGAL RIGHTS as a Christian.  Have a great weekend.  We’ve got the potential of some more winter weather this next week and the temperatures are already starting to fall… so I won’t be unpacking my shorts anytime soon!  PTL!

 

*Psalm 40:3 (The Passion Translation) “A new song for a new day rises up in me every time I think about how He breaks through for me! Ecstatic praise pours out of my mouth until everyone hears how God has set me free. Many will see His miracles; they’ll stand in awe of God and fall in love with Him!” 

**The Legal Dictionary - https://legaldictionary.net/deponent/

***See Colossians 2:13-14 and Revelation 1:18

How Do I Know Him?

One of the pastors of the church that I was live-streaming last Sunday stepped up to the microphone, in a pause during the Praise and Worship, and began to talk a little about the next song we were going to sing.  They were celebrating their annual “Rodeo Sunday” by honoring their cowboy/western cultural roots.  The large church is located in the Dallas-Fort Worth metroplex and its staff and congregation are very proud of their State’s bigger-than-life history and conservative Christian values.

The pastor took a few moments to explain that the next song, commonly sung in churches, was actually written by a very popular Country Western singer and song writer.  She discussed the point that the artist was a Christian but had struggled with alcoholism throughout his life and actually died at a very young age (29) from complications with the disease. 

Then she said something that hit a strong chord within me.  She explained that the musical artist only knew “Jesus as Savior for heaven’s sake.”  In other words, the only part of the gospel message that he really understood and applied to his life, was that he had accepted Jesus as his personal Savior and would make it to heaven when his natural life on this earth came to an end.*

The two lights of revelation that brightly flashed in my understanding was first and foremost, the question of “In how many ways, positions or areas of my life do I know Jesus” and secondly, that David’s response to God’s intervention in his life in our study verse found in Psalm 40:3, speaks directly to knowing Jesus’ will and His love, His supernatural abilities and His grace and authority in NEW areas of our lives… and what we should do about it!

If you recall, in Psalm 40:3 David joyfully and purposely declares:

“A new song for a new day rises up in me every time I think about how he breaks through for me! Ecstatic praise pours out of my mouth until everyone hears how God has set me free. Many will see his miracles; they’ll stand in awe of God and fall in love with him!” (TPT) 

In last week’s post we talked about “Decision Points” and how there are times in our lives when we hear something from or about God that touches our hearts and gives us an opportunity to yield to this NEW direction and/or understanding of a Biblical truth that we hadn’t seen or considered before… or not!**

I concluded last week by stating that I would show you what happens when you go through the personal experiences that I mentioned in the post… so here we go…

It is actually a rather simple but yet potentially life-changing or at least life-enhancing process!  The Apostle John gives us a lot of specifics concerning the Word of God in his gospel and three epistles.  In John 8:31-32 he recorded for history when Jesus definitively stated to His followers that,

"If you live by what I say, you are truly My disciples (for) you will know the TRUTH, and the TRUTH will set you free." (God’s Word ©)

Jesus also explained what He meant when He talked about “The Truth” later on in John’s gospel in John 17:17 when He prayed for His followers to the Father just before His crucifixion, asking Father God to,

“Sanctify them through THY TRUTH: (for) Thy WORD IS TRUTH.” (KJV)

The Message Bible actually gives a little more accurate detail to the first part of John 8:32 by explaining that,

“You will experience for yourselves the truth, and the truth will free you." 

While the George N. Lamas “The New Testament According to the Eastern Texts”, best defines the implication of the second section of Jesus’ statement declaring,

“…and that very truth will make you free.”

So, according to Jesus, when we hear, perceive and gain some initial understand of a truth that is NEW to us in God’s Word, the knowledge of that particular truth has the ability to give us new found freedom, authority, deeper understanding, wisdom and the utilization of another of the countless benefits… during our life on this earth… that Jesus provided for us through His death, burial, resurrection and assumption to the right hand of God!  All we have to do is DECIDE to receive it into our lives, to take ownership of it and then to apply it in our daily activities.

But I will remind you of another important truth that I heard coming from the deep recesses of my spirit this morning… simply put…

“With great KNOWLEDGE comes great RESPONSIBILITY!”

Meaning… that God gives us… His children… wonderful revelations of the tools that He has provided for us… but does so, in order to better equip us for the activities of life as well as to better equip us to love and help others around us.

We’ve all seen the advertisements on TV that encourage us to “Drive Responsively!” Well, I believe that God in His Word is encouraging to “Live Responsively” with the ever-expanding TRUTH that we learn about from His Word… in the midst of the negative, combatant and hurting society around us. 

Let our knowledge of His TRUTH be a LIGHT emanating from you and me to our world!

Have a terrific weekend.  We’ve got warm, almost spring-like weather today, but I hear that some of my west coast family and friends are experiencing some gloomy rainy days!  So… Whatever your weather may be like… Just let His LIGHT shine through you and be the source of prevailing peace and joy wherever you go!

 

*The Scriptures teach about the different parts and/or anointings of Jesus as our Savior, healer, deliverer, provider, fount of wisdom and understanding, conqueror and the TRUTH… among many other things!

**In case you need to review or refresh your memory of last week’s post, go to: https://pjberruto.blogspot.com/2025/01/decision-time.html

Decision Time...

I have a small group of scriptures that I read aloud or ‘confess’ over me and our family first thing every morning… and in fact, have done so for going on five years now!  I use my small leather-bound Passion Translation Bible as my foundation and have the portions of scripture highlighted, underlined and surrounded by personal notes and insights that I have added along the way.

This translation has become one of my personal favorites and has seen a lot of usage since I purchased it five years ago.  Over that time a few pictures of Piper have also found their way to be inserted between the pages of the book… Gee… I wonder how that happened!

One picture in particular seems to have found a permanent place as an extra bookmark for one of the last verses I look at each morning… not too surprisingly, it’s found next to the LOVE chapter in I Corinthains 13.  It is a simple picture that some of you will recognize as one I’ve previously posted in past blog posts. 

I took the photo of Piper standing in the entrance to our big 12-person tent on a summer vacation we took in July of 1999.  We had traveled six hours from home to our favorite campgrounds located about 5500 feet up a mountain in the Sierra Nevada’s within Plumas Eureka State Park, located in northeastern California near the Nevada border.

To many who look at the picture it looks to be a normal, cute picture of Piper taken as she was exiting the tent after straightening it up before we embarked upon our morning adventures that day.  And they would be right… but there is also SOOOO much more that is physically unseen in the frame that comes alive to me each and every day as I observe the photo while reading the verse it is sitting next to in my Bible!

Along with what was physically captured in my click of the shutter that day, is a whole lifetime of memories associated with our 48 years of life together.  And each morning, the Lord seems to pull out one from the immense pool of memories in my heart and allow me to reflect on and enjoy that special moment from our past.

Today… for whatever reason… I found myself thinking about all the miles… probably thousands… in which we held hands and walked together, from the hollowed halls of Montgomery High School, to the neighborhoods surrounding Chico State University, to the different neighborhoods we lived in …in three different states… over the years!

I have many reflections of Piper and I purchasing various new pairs of walking and exercise shoes for her at Big Five Sporting goods in Santa Rosa as well as at Academy Sports and Outdoors here in Oklahoma… But that is just the tip of the iceberg of the memories of things we saw on the walks, the discussions we had and the love that seemed to flow like electricity between the grip of our hands!

The point of this personal story is about the different things that people see when they look upon a picture, observe or experience a physical event or even when told a set of facts about most any subject matter.  Our scripture verse from the Old Testament book of Psalms, chapter 40, verse 3 graphically defines this phenomenon.  If you’ll recall, David describes his response to a personal hardship in his life when the Lord rescued him from a traumatic series of events, and declared with great enthusiasm,

“A new song for a new day rises up in me every time I think about how God breaks through for me! Ecstatic praise pours out of my mouth until everyone HEARS how God has set me free & (1) Many will SEE His miracles & (2) they’ll ‘STAND’ in awe of God & (3) ‘FALL’ in love with him!” (The Passion Translation)  

I took the liberty to add some study aids to the verse in order to help differentiate parts of the statement and be of assistance to you in case you wanted to do some studying on your own, before our continuing blog post next week.  Each one of the three ‘&’s’ are potential DECISION points for the listener and/or reader of this verse of scripture.  In this teaching, David details a supernatural event that occurred in his life… with the expressed desire that it would act as a point of DECISION for those who hear it.

First of all, he joyfully tells of the fresh new song of joy that overtakes him whenever he thinks about the goodness of God with His intervention into his situation.  Then he describes how different people will personally respond to his heart-felt, joy-filled, miracle-filled, singing of praise to God.

He begins by declaring the obvious… that everyone around him will ‘HEAR’ the message he is delivering… but then he goes on to point out… that not everyone will (1) ‘SEE’ from their heart and discern the super-natural miracle of God that occurred and submit to and/or allow themselves to let go of whatever would hold them back and (2) ‘STAND’ in AWE of God and then (3) ‘FALL’ in love with Him (and eagerly pursue the new, close-knit and personal relationship that will develop and grow between them).

The word ‘SEE’ among other things, talks of the ability “to perceive, have the vision of, to discern (the spiritual significance for their lives), to be able to distinguish what they are seeing apart from the world’s view, and to desire to present themselves to God!” (Brown-Driver-Briggs Hebrew Definitions)  So, therefore it describes an interpretation that goes beyond what one is physically observing with their eyes alone.

Just like with my example of the photo of Piper at camp.  People who look at the picture have to make the DECISION to just ‘SEE’ what their eyes observe or to take an extra moment or two and allow their hearts to perceive or discern beyond the context of what the frame displays.  And to be honest… from my personal experience… it doesn’t really matter if the people knew her or not.  When she got sick… I was surprised at how many of the individuals who regularly interacted with her… really did not have an accurate picture of who she was or what she really stood for (or they just simply refused to accept it… because it didn’t necessarily agree with their narrative or viewpoint).

David seems to be telling us that when those DECISION points come around in our lives… that we need to DECIDE if we are going to open ourselves up to God’s personal influence in order to potentially expand and enrich our self-worth, outlook on life and the way with interact with others… or just keep the status quo! 

Each one of the three DECISION points in David’s teaching opens the door for the next DECISION we need to make and helps to keep a fresh and ever-increasing place of Christian maturity in our daily walk with God… as well as with our family, friends, neighbors and those strangers we see in the course of our daily lives.

So… What DECISION will you make when those decision- making situations arrive in your life?  I know for myself… that I want to KNOW more, SEE more and DO more for the kingdom of God… HOW ABOUT YOU?

In NEXT WEEK’S BLOG POST, I’ll share some thoughts on what actually happens with us when we make the right DECISIONS to seek and follow through on God’s directions for us.

In the meantime… keep a sharp eye out for the opportunities for DECISIONS that God presents along the way…  & Have a great weekend!

Exercising a New Song...

For as long as I remember, I have always had a close connection with music.  It probably couldn’t have been helped since my mom was very musical.  I have fond memories of our big Silvertone Hi-Fi console radio/turntable sounding throughout the house with tunes and news from her favorite local radio station (KSRO) as well as records… both 33 rpm LP’s or 78 rpms from her old 1940’s big band and Frank Sinatra record collection (which I inherited).  She also loved to sing and play the piano, having been part of a popular girl’s trio in High School and a founding member of the St Eugene’s Cathedral Choir.

My dad also loved to sing but… as some would say… “couldn’t carry a tune in a bucket!”  But that didn’t stop him from singing his heart out at church or around the piano during the holidays when my mom would play our family’s Christmas Carol favorites.

She tried for years to teach me the piano, only except I was more interested in singing the words of the song than learning the notes to play.  But I did learn to become somewhat proficient in playing the guitar in Jr High and started a band with my talented brother and a couple of my friends that I kept together in various forms throughout High School.

And speaking of High School, I fell in love with a cute and talented gal who could play just about anything she picked up… but her real passion was the piano.  She was classically trained from her early elementary years and continued through High School and Jr College.  She also, like my mom, loved to sit down at her piano and play.  Piper though, was much more proficient in her piano training and would easily play different styles of music, ranging from rock and roll tunes when she sang with my band a few times, to funny kid’s songs, to both the old hymns and the contemporary praise and worship songs of the church, and of course, the classical masterpieces, that she would occasionally learn just for me as personal gifts to me!

Music therefore became a major part of who Piper and I were in our homelife and ministry.  As an adult I have wonderful memories of standing and holding one of the church Hymnals and singing in the service at Piper’s Baptist church that we attended for many years before moving and actively participating in the Charismatic/Pentecostal realm of Christianity. 

In these churches, I have a multitude of personal experiences where the Holy Spirit moved during the praise and worship part of the service.  In the midst of these moves I have seen phenomenal signs, wonders and miracles happening throughout the congregation.  It was during some of these times when I received many of my most meaningful revelations from the Lord, directions for life and personal healings and restoration.

I firmly believe that those wonderful times in singing and worshipping the Lord are exactly the type of events that David wrote of in Psalm 40:3 where he stated from personal experience that,

“A new song for a new day rises up in me every time I think about how He breaks through for me! Ecstatic praise pours out of my mouth until everyone hears how God has set me free, and many will see His miracles; and they’ll stand in awe of God and fall in love with Him!” (TPT) 

I have also come to learn that these mountain-moving and extraordinary times of the touch of the Holy Spirit are not limited to community church gatherings, where all the participants are flowing in one accord, as they did in the upper room on the day of Pentecost in Acts 2:1-41.  They are also available to individuals who take the time in personal acts and words of praise and worship in thanksgiving unto God for His miraculous interventions in their lives.

The Apostolic Bible Polyglot Interlineal Greek Old and New Testament Bible translates Psalm 40:3 into English as,

“And He put a new song into my mouth, a hymn to our God, and many shall see and shall fear (be in awe of and revere) and shall hope (or rather: put their expectations) upon the Lord.”

It is interesting to note, that the word “SONG” is defined as “a leather bag used as a bottle or container in which water and wine was kept.”  Water and wine in the Bible are many times associated with the Holy Spirit in both the Old and New Testaments.  Therefore this “New Song” David talked about from his personal experience, is seen as a vessel through which the Holy Spirit is present and then honored and worshipped as an act of thanksgiving to God for specific interventions in our lives.

Albert Barnes in his Notes on the Bible explains that “The idea (of the New Song) is, that God had given a new or fresh OCCASION (or vessel) for praise… for an act of surpassing intervention on the part of God that the language used on former OCCASIONS and which were adapted to express the mercies then received, WOULD NOT be sufficient to convey the sense of gratitude felt for the present deliverance (or miracle-filled, wonder-filled events in your life).

“…And So…” as one of Piper’s and my Sociology professors would say at the beginning of every lecture… Just how do we do this… or achieve this level of high praise where the Holy Spirit is drawn into our presence?  Well… the answer, once again, is also found in the definition of the base word from which our word “SONG” is taken from… meaning, “to exercise one’s self” or “to attempt something by exerting effort.”

Therefore, by putting the two definitions together you could say that “The New Song” is a vessel or occasion from which to exert energy in giving our whole self in praise and worship… with thanksgiving, to God for His joyfully miraculous interventions into our lives.”   So… Yes Folks!  It takes effort and commitment to spend the time necessary to achieve this place in your worship to God! 

But you know?  It is worth the time, the effort and the whole-hearted yielding of ourselves to Him!  I would also venture to say… at least as far and Piper’s and my experiences went… It was very rewarding as well as quite fun and enjoyable!

You will NEVER catch me saying that my Christian Walk is dull and boring!  Just the OPPOSITE to be sure!

We’ll be discussing many more exciting aspects of this Psalm in the weeks to come!  So, stay with me and keep your seatbelts cinched up tight!

Have a terrific weekend.  It’s getting cold around these parts with another Arctic Blast presenting itself over the next few days.  Fiver and I just came back from our afternoon walk… and while Fiver enjoyed it… my face felt like shards of ice were hitting it with the freezing cold northern winds!  Whew!  Stay warm my friends…