A Rebellious People

We are in a worldwide crisis, yet is seems many selfishly go their own way consumed with selfish ambition.  I have been distraught that over 4000 people entered the country and disregarded the Jamaican authorities’ request to report to health officials and to self-quarantine for fourteen days.  These folks, however, must feel that it is below them to comply with what seems to be minor requirements in a time when so many are becoming infected and dying across the globe from the highly contagious coronavirus.  Yes, it may cause temporary inconvenience to stay at home and be monitored, but it is for a greater good – the wellbeing of our nation.

God had showed me that pride goes hand in hand with this rebellious act.  And, God is never pleased with either.  In times of trial, the go to verse for nations in many cases is often -  If my people, who are called by my name, will humble themselves and pray and seek my face and turn from their wicked ways, then I will hear from heaven, and I will forgive their sin and will heal their land. 2 Chronicles 7:14 NIV.  The fact is repentance from our rebellion and pride has to come before God hears us from heaven, forgives our sins and heals our land.  This healing is conditional and not a right.  We can go declaring and decreeing all we like, but if our hearts are not in the right place with God, then we declare and decree in vain.  God is a gracious and merciful Father, but He will not be manipulated with eloquent words that come out of a heart that is filled with sin and is unrepentant.

Church folks speak of giving their time, talents and treasures and it has become almost cliché.  Yet, God does not require our sacrifice, but our obedience. Undoubtedly, God knows the type of fruit that comes from our hearts.  There have been several church leaders in different countries who have broken the law instituted by their various governmental bodies to limit gatherings as they believe they have a right to assemble, or that it is an act of faith to discount the rules put in place during this public health emergency.  I know I have been called judgmental and told that I don’t know what God is doing in each of these persons.  That is true, I don’t.  God may have spoken to some of these leaders to assemble in a church building.  But, we must remember that the building is not the body of Christ and God is not limited to an edifice. 

And while some were talking about the temple, that it was adorned with beautiful stones and votive gifts, He said, “As for these things which you are looking at, the days will come in which there will not be left one stone upon another which will not be torn down.” Luke 21:5-6 NASB

Jesus spoke about this happening when the end of time was near.  We must never be so quick to cherish the building, because that could disappear in the blink of an eye.  Many churches have gathered over the internet and have had spirit-filled prayer sessions and services, along with socializing while adhering to physical distancing guidelines.  I saw a video of a Brazilian church on the streets with its members several feet apart from each other praying.  It was beautiful.  Unfortunately, church activities have been linked with the spread of the disease in different jurisdictions.  One of the most concerning clusters in South Korea, developed when a lady flew into the country and unknowingly spread the disease to several congregants when she visited a church there.  In San Francisco, a third of their COVID-19 cases are linked to church activities.  When these stories go out, it can be a hindrance to the proliferation of the Gospel as church leaders continue to fight for rights instead of doing what is right in the eyes of God.  Let us not forget that God causes His sun to rise on the evil and the good, and sends rain on the righteous and the unrighteous. (See Matthew 5:45).  Put in context, this verse is about loving those who do not love you.  Should we as the children of God not love enough to set an example and help in deterring the spread of an extremely harmful disease that is bringing destruction to the whole world?

I believe God is doing a new thing in His body.  He has seen how we have made the church building an idol and how worship has become more like a rock concert, pleasing man rather than Him.  And, He is grieved.  God is using this virus to infect His church with a new found love for Him, which cannot be restricted by a physical structure.  What the enemy means for harm, God is working for good and to show His glory.  There have been many testimonies of God’s goodness during this difficult period.  Although many of us cry to Him to take us out of this trial.  He is here with us to carry us through to be stronger spiritually and closer relationally to Him and others.  God is calling us to cast our net on the other side of the boat.  It may not make sense, but we must obey instead of trying to lean on our own understanding.  He is ready to do some mighty things in and through His people, but we must be ready to change our rebellious ways and humbly submit to His will.

Years ago, after a horrendous experience in the infamous 9/11 tragedy, I was diagnosed with chronic fatigue syndrome (CFS).  I was told there was no cure.  At the onset of this illness, I could barely leave the bed and walking was painful because my feet were so sore.  For years I suffered with a number of symptoms in varying degrees. Some time later, I was given a set of CDs on the gifts of the Spirit to listen to and there was a sample CD in the case.  I decided to hear what was on this CD, thinking it was more along the lines of the other CDs, but it wasn’t.  The man spoke about territorial spirits that could have a negative effect on people in a variety of ways.  He said to ask God what was the territorial spirit ruling over the area I was from.  Sleepily, I queried God about the territorial spirit in Jamaica.  He responded immediately – rebellion.  It made perfect sense to me.  We have lauded many of the rebellions throughout our history.  And, indeed they were quite significant in securing the freedom from slavery.  But, we may have gotten used to rebelling.  Often we hear the cries of angry citizens on the news demanding, “We want justice,” without them truly comprehending that God’s view of justice goes hand in hand with walking humbly before Him and being merciful.  But, I digress.  Let me go back to the matter at hand.  I immediately repented of my rebellion sluggishly as I was falling asleep.  A couple days later, I recognized something was different.  There was no longer any tingling in my legs and I could jump out of bed without hesitation when I woke up ready to tackle the work for the day.  The CFS symptoms had made it challenging for me to get out of bed or stay awake in the mornings, and after days of tedious work the bottom of my feet would be so sore, it was difficult for me to walk.  But, after I asked God to forgive me of my rebellion, I was completely healed. I had repented of rebellion, not expecting this favorable result. 

Let us not be considered as the Israelites were in Psalm 78:8 -  A stubborn and rebellious generation, a generation that did not prepare its heart and whose spirit was not faithful to God.  There is punishment for the rebellious - Some became fools through their rebellious ways and suffered affliction because of their iniquities. They loathed all food and drew near the gates of death. Psalm 107:17-18 NIV.  The good news though, is God is willing to hear our cry.

Then they cried to the Lord in their trouble,
    and he saved them from their distress.
He sent out his word and healed them;
    he rescued them from the grave.
Let them give thanks to the Lord for his unfailing love
    and his wonderful deeds for mankind. Psalm 107:19-21 NIV

During this time of trial, let us walk humbly before God, asking Him for forgiveness and turning from our sin, while submitting to His will.  In His lovingkindness, He will rescue us in His time and in His way, even though we may not deserve it, but He is true to His character, a merciful and gracious God who abounds in love. 

Weapons of the Righteous – Committing Your Way to the Lord

I look back at my life and think of the numerous times I have made plans and expected God to go along with them and bless all I wanted to do.  Most times, I never even thought of asking God what His will was for me.  Therefore, I used my own wisdom and strength to come up with a strategy to carry out my own wishes. Unfortunately, it didn’t work that well for me.   Yet, all these failures were quite fortuitous as they led me to seek God more and draw closer to Him.  Now, I know that I must commit all my ways to God, and also trust Him, and He will do it (Psalm 37:5).   I may have had my plans, but God directed my path. 

In our self-will, we try to reason out God’s ways and thoughts, which are so much higher than ours. How can we truly comprehend a Father who sends a Son, who relinquishes His glory to come down to a corrupt world in order to save those who rebelled against Him, while they were being besieged by sin?  It is incomprehensible, yet we try to box in this mysterious God in our limited minds. Impetuously, we put ourselves in the position of His consultants, giving Him directives on how He should grant our wishes, like a genie in a bottle, rather than the Lord of our lives. 

Committing our way to the Lord may be uncomfortable, inconvenient, tedious or even terrifying.  The Gospel of Matthew records the mother of James and John requesting that Jesus would have her sons sit on the right and left sides of Him in His kingdom. His response was to ask if they were able to drink of the cup He was about to drink.  They said they were.   This was the same cup that Jesus asked His Father to let pass, if it were His will.  But, it wasn’t, and so Jesus drank this cup of suffering because He was devoted to the Father.  Later, James was killed serving the Lord, and John was put in exile.  They both had a hard road following their Master, but they were committed to this straight and narrow path, not deviating to the right or to the left.

Throughout the Scriptures we see men and women encountering a great deal of difficulties as they stayed the course that God had set out for them.   Isaiah went naked and barefooted for three years; David though anointed king, was on the run and living in caves for many years; Joseph was thrown in a pit and wrongfully imprisoned; and Mary had to face the shame and possibly the death penalty being pregnant out of wedlock as she carried her Savior.  There was also Jeremiah who was beaten and jailed because he was doing God’s will. 

For each time I speak, I cry aloud;
I proclaim violence and destruction,
Because for me the word of the Lord has resulted
In reproach and derision all day long.
But if I say, “I will not remember Him
Or speak anymore in His name,”
Then in my heart it becomes like a burning fire
Shut up in my bones;
And I am weary of holding it in,
And I cannot endure it. Jeremiah 20:8-9

Jeremiah, no matter how he tried to stop speaking the word of God, was compelled to, as his heart was for God and His Words burned within him.   He couldn’t hold in God’s Words, he had to let it out, even though it meant that he would face persecution.  The list of suffering saints is lengthy, however, are we willing to join this roll call of committed servants of God who are afflicted in every way, but not crushed; perplexed, but not despairing; persecuted, but not forsaken; struck down, but not destroyed? (2 Corinthians 4:8-9)

 

Being committed to God’s ways is not just about the extraordinary, but also about the drudgeries of ordinary life.   It means being Christ-like when no one is looking, knowing the Father has His eyes on us at all times, while giving Him control of every area of our lives.  Even our mouths are to come under subjection to the Lord.

Now then go, and I, even I, will be with your mouth, and teach you what you are to say.” Exodus 4:12

This applies not only to Moses, who lacked confidence in His speech, but also to us who might not speak life, but death into our lives and the lives of those around us.  Speech that is committed to the Lord is wholesome and not a corrupting influence, it is good for building up and it is right on time to give grace to those who hear it (Ephesians 4:29).  All we have to do is open our mouths and let the Lord fill it with His words.  We also need to have eyes that see what God wants us to see and ears that hear what He wants us to hear. Actually, our whole bodies are to be living and holy sacrifices, acceptable to God – this is the true and proper worship, which He desires (Romans 12:1).  Paul wrote to the Corinthians asking them, “Do you not know that your body is a temple of the Holy Spirit who is in you, whom you have from God, and that you are not your own?   This question is still appropriate for today’s Christians.  We do as we please with our bodies, not acknowledging we are the temple of God, which is to be kept holy.

Holiness does not appear to be popular among many Christians right now.  It seems that it is avoided in many of our pulpits in order not to scare away people from church.  However, we can’t try to please man over God, who tells us to be holy as He is holy.  Duplicitously, we say we are filled with the Holy Spirit, then out of the same mouth we say that this is the way we are and we can’t change.  We negate the power of the Holy Spirit in our lives through our actions and words as we are merely hearers and not doers of the Word. Many of us have not come out of our grave clothes even though Jesus has given us victory over the grave.  We are wrapped up, tied up, and tangled up in our old way of life.  Not forgetting the things of the past, we cannot move forward into what God has ahead for us.   Wearied with worry, we lack endurance to press forward to the goal to win the prize of the Heavenly calling of God in Christ Jesus (Philippians 3:13-14).  God is ready to forgive us, but we won’t forgive others and even ourselves, therefore, bitterness and resentment keep their grip on us.

Jesus, after raising Lazarus from the dead, told the people to unbind him and let him go.  However, sometimes we don’t want the people who God has put around us to help loose us from sin and the mess in our lives as we fear they will hurt us, and so we feel that we can’t trust them.  We miss the point that God did not tell us to trust them, but to trust Him as He is in charge of releasing us from the bondage of our past.  They are His hands and feet.  God never created us to be alone, we are to lift the other up when one falls, sharpen each other, and encourage each other in our walk with Christ.  Yes, we may get hurt, but God heals, hence, we should commit this process to Him, in order that we will be forever transformed for His glory.   It is time to let go of the strife, jealousy, anger, selfish ambition, slander, gossip, arrogance, and disorder in our lives.  We can’t just be about ourselves.  We need to reflect Jesus to those around us.  Frequently, we are prideful, concerned about our reputation before others, rather than our representation of Christ to others.   We are to be ambassadors of Christ, who was of no repute and who was not a respecter of persons.  His love changed lives as it touched hardened hearts.   Our commitment to His way will ensure that we too value those who society deems unworthy, seek the unreachable, and love the unlovable.  

The Weapons of the Righteous – Do Not Fret

First, let me start off this post with a confession – I am a recovering fretter.  I looked up the word fret and it gave me some anxiety as it means to eat or gnaw into and to wear away. What vivid descriptions of how fretting can adversely affect the depths of our souls and our bodies.  Can you imagine that these are the effects of fretting? It should make us want to stop fretting for the rest of our lives.  To fret also means to worry, so I will use these words interchangeably throughout this post.   This post may also be a bit lengthy, but don’t worry, read it when you can and how you can.

Do Not fret About Suffering

Growing up with my grandmother, who was also a worrier, I would see her put her hand on her jaw and ask God out loud, “Why do we have to suffer so much?” This is indelibly etched in my memory.  She was a churchgoing woman, but may not have understood that she served a Savior who suffered.   Jesus had asked the Father to let the cup of suffering pass Him as He knew the torture that awaited Him on His journey to the cross on Calvary. But, it was the Father’s will, so, He did what He had come to earth to do and because of His tribulations we are now triumphant. In the NASB version, the title for Isaiah 53 is The Suffering Servant.  And verse 10 says this:

But the Lord was pleased
To crush Him, putting Him to grief;
If He would render Himself as a guilt offering,
He will see His offspring,
He will prolong His days,
And the good pleasure of the Lord will prosper in His hand.

 

It sounds so cruel that the Father was pleased to crush the Son.  But, it was for a great purpose and because Jesus took our sins to the cross, we now have eternal life and no more shackles of sin.  We are free!!!

 

As followers of Jesus, we too must obediently take up our own cup of suffering and carry our cross.  Before you think I am being fatalistic and pessimistic, please let us go to the scriptures. 

But He knows the way I take;
When He has tried me, I shall come forth as gold. Job 23:10

These things I have spoken to you, so that in Me you may have peace. In the world you have tribulation, but take courage; I have overcome the world. John 16:33

Consider it all joy, my brethren, when you encounter various trials, knowing that the testing of your faith produces endurance. And let endurance have its perfect result, so that you may be perfect and complete, lacking in nothing. James 1:2-4

We need not worry when suffering even though it can be quite painful, since God knows what we are going through and is using the trial to take out impurities from us to make us come out as pure gold.  Now, I am not there yet with James to count it all joy when I encounter trials of many kinds, nonetheless, I know God is working things out of me and in me, so that I lack nothing in Him.   We can have peace in the midst of turmoil knowing that Jesus is with us whether in a small disturbance or a major storm.  We just have to be courageous and focus on Him, not shifting our gaze.  But, if we do take our eyes off Him and start to sink, He is ready to pick us up with His mighty hands. Moreover, we are more than conquerors in Christ because He has overcome the world. So, why worry when Jesus Himself tells us not to worry?

Do Not Fret Just Obey Jesus

For this reason I say to you, do not be worried about your life, as to what you will eat or what you will drink; nor for your body, as to what you will put on. Is not life more than food, and the body more than clothing? Look at the birds of the air, that they do not sow, nor reap nor gather into barns, and yet your heavenly Father feeds them. Are you not worth much more than they? And who of you by being worried can add a single hour to his life? And why are you worried about clothing? Observe how the lilies of the field grow; they do not toil nor do they spin, yet I say to you that not even Solomon in all his glory clothed himself like one of these. But if God so clothes the grass of the field, which is alive today and tomorrow is thrown into the furnace, will He not much more clothe you? You of little faith! Do not worry then, saying, ‘What will we eat?’ or ‘What will we drink?’ or ‘What will we wear for clothing?’ For the Gentiles eagerly seek all these things; for your heavenly Father knows that you need all these things. But seek first His kingdom and His righteousness, and all these things will be added to you.

“So do not worry about tomorrow; for tomorrow will care for itself. Each day has enough trouble of its own.” Matthew 6:25-34

Three times in this passage Jesus tells us not to worry because the Father is taking care of our needs.  Then, why do we worry?  I believe it is because we are a rebellious generation.  If we do not obey God, then we are rebelling against Him and not trusting Him.  Remember, I am speaking to myself here too.  I know not worrying when all goes wrong may not be natural to us as it comes easily and it may seem a bit odd if we are not fretting in times of intense trials.  But, Jesus often calls us to go counterculture and even against our accepted beliefs.  When He told Peter and His fellow fishermen to go back out after a night of hard work, which had yielded no results, it did not make sense, but Peter wisely responded, “I will do as You say.” Luke 5:5.  It is time do what Jesus says and not worry, even though we are prone to do so.  He has given us this command because He loves us and understands the ill-effects of fretting.

Cease from anger and forsake wrath;
Do not fret; it leads only to evildoing.
For evildoers will be cut off,
But those who wait for the Lord, they will inherit the land. Psalm 37:8-9

Yikes!!! I seriously am making a decision not to fret.  Not only can it lead to evil coming out of our anger, but it can be physically debilitating.   WebMD highights some of the ailments we can have from stress resulting from worry – heart problems, high blood pressure, asthma, obesity, diabetes, headaches, depression, gastrointestinal problems, alzheimer’s, accelerated aging, and even premature death.   Jesus is all about life.  It is the enemy who comes to steal, kill and destroy.  Therefore, why are we giving him an open door to cause havoc in our lives by worrying? God has told us not to worry, so just do it.

Do Not Worry About Loved Ones

Many of us worry about loved ones going astray, but we must not forget that God loves them more than we ever could and we need to leave them to Him.  Sometimes our helping could be hindering and we become enablers, therefore, we need to keep on looking to Jesus and not their issues.

Recently, while babysitting four of the children I work with, the three year old was going through her rebellious stage with me and I wasn’t having it.  She did exactly what I told her not to do and she fell.  I didn’t budge.  I stayed seated as she cried, while her seven year old sister went over and brushed her off gently as I gave a watchful eye.  She brought her to sit on her lap as she comforted her.  It was quite a touching scene, but I still didn’t say anything.  Soon, my little repentant three year old came closer to me and said, “Aunty Nicky, I going to behave.”  She was welcomed into my lap where she fell asleep peacefully.

Now, before you go saying I am a mean ogre, I never let her out of my sight.  I saw that she had no cuts or bruises, and all her limbs were in place.  Well maybe her ego was bruised, but she had to learn a lesson that she must face consequences for disobedience.  God does the same with us.  Sometimes we feel that He is much too silent in our misery.  Yet, He is always near.  We want Him to fix things right away as we lean on our own understanding, failing to realize that His ways are not our ways, and that through our trials He is redirecting our paths back to Him, the safest place we could be.  If we are not being disciplined by God, then that would be a cause for concern as God is a good Father who disciplines the ones He loves and who He accepts as His children. 

 

Stop worrying and desperately trying to get your loved ones out of their mess.  Instead, through prayer, bring them to the throne room and leave them at the Father’s feet.  In addition, let it sink in that persistent prayers and anxious prayers are at opposite ends of the spectrum.  Persistent prayers focus on God, while anxious prayers focus on the problem. 

 

Do Not Worry About Evil People

I know this can be a tough one, because sometimes we feel that we are bombarded by mean rude aggressive people who slander us and gossip about us.  But, there is no need to worry.  Psalm 37: 1 tells us Do not fret because of evildoers, be not envious toward wrongdoers.  For they will wither quickly like the grass and fade like the green herb.  If anyone should worry it should be the evildoers, so we need to make sure we are not doing evil.

Persons who do wrong to us can leave deep wounds, but we need to forgive and seek healing from Jesus, for by His stripes we are healed and He has come to heal the brokenhearted.  Back in high school, there were girls who would laugh at me and say my hair looked like a wig.  You may think, “Well its only hair, what’s the problem, move on?”  However, to a teenage girl who lacked the cool gene that was another point of hurt and it was not until I was around forty that a former classmate told me many girls wanted to have hair like mine.  All that time I took worrying about my hair looking like a wig and trying to figure out what to do to make it look “normal” was pointless.  I should have just walked proudly in who God created me to be, whether I looked like I wore a wig or not.  Lesson learned.  Don’t worry about what people are saying, or trying to please others.  That is a tactic used by the enemy to destroy our identity in Christ and to get us out of God’s will.

Some may be going through much worse than what I did and may have to face bullies at school or even on the job.  Many folks are mistreated in their place of employment and even in their own homes, and may feel that they have many adversaries coming against them. But, when King David faced a similar situation he was not worried, as he confidently stated,

I will not be afraid of ten thousands of people
Who have set themselves against me round about.

Arise, O Lord; save me, O my God!
For You have smitten all my enemies on the cheek;
You have shattered the teeth of the wicked. Psalm 3:7-8

David had no worries, as His confidence was in his God, who could shatter the teeth of the wicked.  We don’t need to worry either when we put our confidence in the Lord.  Plus, many of our antagonists’ bark is bigger than their bite.  It is difficult to have a good bite when toothless.  God has already done it.   We don’t have to worry.

Do Not Fret Because Nothing Is Stronger Than God

Here in Jamaica, I often hear people say, “The devil strong, eh?”  Seriously?!! No devil, demon, or problem is ever stronger that the Father, the Son, or the Holy Spirit.  We unintentionally exalt the devil above God by being great publicists when we give exposure to his diabolic deeds.  Let’s change our perspective and put our focus back where it belongs, on Jesus, who is the King of kings, the Lord of lords, the great Miracle Worker, who makes a way where there seems to be no way.  Now, He is Someone worth talking about.  

God allows us to go through tribulations so that He can draw us closer to Himself.  He uses whatever trials the enemy throws at us as a tool to smooth off our rough edges and to make us into His image.  The Master Potter has got us in His hands.  The Lord knows when it is pruning season as He is the Expert Gardener, who knows pruning is painful for us now, but in the future as a result of it, we will bear much fruit. Consequently, we don’t have to worry because God is in charge.  Through Him we are not defeated victims, but vibrant victors radiating His glory.