WHY, OH LORD, WOULD YOU WANT ME TO LIVE?

I've been thinking too much lately. I've gone through a lot of needle holes these past months, struggling against my flesh. I know I'm dislocated. I know I'm not in the right position. I have failed.

I've been asking God the single question each day... "Why oh Lord would you want me to live?" Hehe I know this sounds like a suicidal note. But as a regenerate Christian who has learned to love the Lord and despise sin, the question makes utter sense.

Why would God want me to live? Because God needs me? Nah.. The God of Scripture doesn't need man. He is self sufficient and needs nothing from His creations. Isaiah 66:1-2 says, "Thus said the Lord - Heaven is My throne, earth is my footstool... Did I not create all things?"

Why would the Lord want me to live? Because my life is valuable? Nah.. The God of Scripture knows that my life is not a righteous life. Angels would applaud if I'd be put away so as to end my carnal mind and wicked flesh.

Why would the King of glory want me to live? Because I can give glory to His Name? Nah. He has several angels crying out day and night, "Holy, holy, holy" is the Lord. Earth and mountains praise His invisible hand. What am I compared to the Seraphim? What am I compared to the four creatures of revelation that sing unknown songs of praise? And even if His creations are granted the will to disobey His will, His glory shall be known. In heaven or hell, all life will confess His lordship and supremacy above all.

So then what is the answer.. ah.. its simple: God wants me to live so that He can demonstrate His greatness amongst others. It is the same for every man. God does not purpose His elect to live so that they can have their best lives now. He purposes His children to live to demonstrate to all creation His magnificence.

How in the world can God infinitely love an infinitely undeserving generation? Angels mutter.
Why in the world does God allow puny men that bring more profanity than praise, to live when He has a host of burning angels that praise Him for all eternity? The Seraphs cry out.

Why or How? When God takes a vile mass of humanity, forgives them, cleanses them and changes them to His image, His divine character is made visible and esteemed above all. His love, justice, holiness, mercy and sovereignty are revealed and joyfully cherished when He saves, frees and sanctifies unholy men. This is why I exist. I, along with His elect, am the living proof of God's love. I, along with His royal priesthood, am the demonstration of His holy and immutable mercy and kindness. This is my role that I share with His Church.

A jar of clay before the hands of its Maker. That's all I am.
A polished vessel of His glory. A reminder of His unconditional love. A statue that lived. A depraved soul that was set free. A man rightfully condemned but receiveth undeserved favor.

And every angel who takes a look at me, remembering my old state in comparision to my current existence, falls flat on their face, marvels at the Lord and wonders, "How great is Thy love, oh Lord? "How great is Thy mercy?" "How infinite is Thy kindness?" "How patient is Thy hand?" "How just is Thy sight?" "How sovereign is Thy will?" And the endless song goes on forever in an eternity of eternities.

LOSS OF TRUTH

No words in the language of man can fully define my current state. No paradox can explain how Paul can say that he is weak but at the same time strong. We can use all the logic of this world and conclude that "perhaps, the apostle Paul first experienced weakness then after, he experienced strength because its impossible to experience two opposing factors at the same time.. isn't it?" In the same way, we seal in different compartments the attributes of God. God is angry but at the same time, this God is love. And since we do not understand what both of these attributes mean, we declare it as a mystery that shouldn't be touched upon, hide it in the face of men and say that God can choose to be angry but instead, He loved you. Why is it that God cannot hate and love at the same time? Hate and love are not opposing factors. They are compliments. If you love children, how can you not hate abortion? If you say you love holiness and yet you are neutral and apathetic towards the things of this world then you're either insane or deceived by your own heart.

God can never be sealed in a box. He is infinite. Every attribute He has is real and at work all the time. He is not a machine wherein, He chooses to shut down His anger then loves. Both His wrath and love exists. This is what happens when we remove theology from the picture and mix the Holy Writ with the scrolls of men. The absolute concept of God is lost and what replaces it is a bunch of watered down truths that will lead your further from understanding Him and His sovereign will.

Much of the confusion that is happening today is because we have explained the things of God using the logic of man. We take a principle out of the Bible and expound it using worldly logic and godless psychology.

God loves sinners but He hates workers of inequity. Therefore, His hatred for sin, all the condemnation of His wrath was placed on His unblemished Son. Did He hate? Yep, His hatred was there only to be appeased by Christ. Did He love? Absolutely! He did this to demonstrate His love.

God is love but this same God comes with indignation towards sin. Why can't we understand the two sides of the coin? Why can't we see God as He truly is?

Well first of all, most of professing Christians are unregenerate. Sadly, they'll never understand Scripture because as said in the Scriptures, the devil has veiled their minds so that they wouldn't see. In our unconverted states, we do not desire the truth or are willing to receive it. Therefore, we alter it to make it "receivable" and "acceptable". We fashion the truth and convert it to a deadly dose of poison.

Second of all, we've taken away the Gospel and changed the message. The Gospel is the backbone of all teaching. It does not only reveal the entire redemptive plan of God. It also presents and magnifies His holy attributes. When the true Gospel is preached, understanding how God's hatred and love compliments each other is but a small task. But since we've watered it down, no understanding comes into our minds. And since we receive nothing, we fashion a clouded understanding based on the teachings of this world. What do you get? A god who wants to save men but cannot do so. A beggar jesus who wants to do good things in your life but isn't sovereign enough to do so. A man who is totally free and is the sole determinant of his destiny.

Lastly, we've not only taken away the Gospel but we've also removed doctrine and theology from our Churches. We've decided to give what the goats want to the sheep of God. And because of this, the very flock of the Lord starves for the hard truths of Scripture. Also, by removing both theology and doctrine, we lose all means of explaining the Holy Writ. And what do we get? Godly truths explained in worldly terms that feed the flesh and starve the soul.

How we need revival desperately in this age...

THE LORD OF GLORY

What a great God do we have! No adjective in human tongue can describe the Lord of Hosts without minimizing His glory. The Gospel that commands everyone to repent and believe in the book of Mark is also the same message that portrays God’s attributes, magnifying His insoluble glory among the nations.

Hear ye Him! Hear the Gospel!

Picture this for a moment. God creates the universe. He creates the heavens and the earth. Every creation was bounded to His command. He speaks and they tremble and obey Him. He passes and they bow in reverence. Then man, created in the image of God, decides to join the devil in rebellion. A puny creation, a bag of dust believes a deception, disobeys his Maker and damns his generation for an eternity of eternities. He was cursed but not forsaken. A Saviour is to come. But man did not hold on to this hope. Adam was given a name below every other name and even the innocent land could not escape the fierce anger of God. Man no longer was an image of the Almighty. He was now a lawbreaker, a sinner, a child of wrath and a depraved fool bound in chains of inequity. Adam and Eve did not became gods as what they had intended to be. Instead, they became the opposite: the antithesis of God.

Every creature would fearfully bow and obey their Maker but man would not. He was given over to his depraved mind and he constantly sought to please himself. He wasn’t satisfied. He went on and on for decades. He instinctively knows that he has offended the Lord but man’s generation, his sons after sons, was bounded in sin. In the same way a fish is not aware how wet it is, man doesn’t know the depths of his sin. His corruption extends to every other creation that comes in contact with him. His sin has damaged his will and very nature. He couldn’t break free from the cycle nor realize his helpless and condemned state. The whole race of Adam fell and every man was given over to the great deceiver.

But a commotion was happening in heaven. The principalities of heaven, the seraphs and the angels were all murmuring in shock. Something which has never happened before is about to come to pass. The God of splendour is to come in flesh to save man from the Father’s wrath.

Angels, with mouths wide open, could not bear witness to such an act. Man deserveth death as the Scripture says. Man has offended an infinitely holy God so isn’t it right for man to be placed in a state of infinite condemnation? But the Lord spoke, “Yes, indeed. Sin deserves eternal judgment in hell. But My plans are not like yours. The condemnation that I place on man for his betrayal, I will now put on My Son, in whom I am well pleased. I will make a Name for Myself and a people for Myself. I shall give them what they do not deserve so that they will know that I alone am God and I ordain things based on My own good counsel.” The citizens of heaven shut their mouths in unbelief. They could not even raise a finger in protest. “How great is this God?!” they all pondered trembling. “The only begotten Son, who did nothing wrong, is to be punished in place of sinners? He is to drink His Father’s wrath which every man should rightfully drink for all eternity?”

The Son of God descended on a virgin. Both true God and true man, He spoke. The whole world has never heard such a voice. They rebelled. They got angry. They just couldn’t believe. Everything the Son has said was against their very natures. In protest, they demanded crucifixion. Jesus was betrayed, tortured and murdered in the sight of many as the prophet Isaiah foretold. He was hated and killed without cause. The Son of God died. He died hanging on a tree as if He were a criminal. The angels were weeping but ready to bombard the earth with the justice of heaven. They were waiting for the signal to strike. It did not come. Heaven was silent until the third day. Jesus, our Captain of salvation, rose from the dead. Indeed, He has authority to lay His life and take it up again. He blesses His apostles and sends them to the world to proclaim the Good News.

He ascended into heaven. He knocked on the door once again saying “Father, it is finished!” The door opened without a sound. There was no singing. Every resident of heaven bowed in silent worship as the Lord of glory swept among them wearing human clothes. How the angels envied men who have received the greatest and most precious gift of all! With no permission needed, the Son of God took His place at the right hand of the Father. All heaven rejoiced. The time of silence has passed. In worship, every knee bowed and confessed the glory of the Lamb. They sing “holy, holy, holy” is the Lord with closed eyes and still lips. From the Son’s command, the Holy Spirit was sent to the earth to convict all men, regenerate life, dwell in every believer and prepare the chosen ones for the coming banquet.

The Lord has prevailed. The devil has lost. With little time left, Satan seeks to hide every bit of information that concerns the one true Lord. He puts away doctrine and hunts the men of God who would dare speak about the glories of heaven. He waters down Christianity until it becomes a kilometre wide and an inch deep. He presents a false image of god that comes without hostility over sin and winks over sensuality. He fashions a worldly christ in accordance to man’s demands. He creates a jesus who walks with no holiness and or a rod of righteousness. He lets morality and tradition take over Christianity so that Christians would concern themselves with their performance and ethics not to know God more based on His own testimony in Scripture. Satan continues to give theology an ugly, unpractical image so that men would not seek it and creates a masterful scheme that would go as far to deceive the very elect of God. And anyone who studies God’s Word and preaches it with no reduction is labeled as an overzealous monk who’s heavenly but no earthly good.

On the other hand, heaven continually rejoices. On bended knees, they all wonder. The seraphs, which stand in close proximity to God’s holy throne, would have to hide themselves, well dressed and veiled. They could not even look at the holiness of God with their bare eyes. And yet man, this little, disobedient and ungrateful creature, who has profaned God openly without even recognizing what he has done, upon genuine conversion can enter the Most Holy Place? Oh! How the finished work at Calvary brings sorrow and joy over the saints!

And this great Gospel, which angels could not even utter without much weeping and praise, will stem forth from unclean lips? What a privilege! What a great God! What a Gospel! What else can you desire but a great and holy God such as the One in Scriptures? What else could you possibly want? Is there any stronger pleasure than knowing and cherishing the Lord of lords and King of glory? To the wind with all your problems in marriage! To the wind with all your insecurities! To the wind will all the earthly prosperity you so desire! To the wind with all of us and praise be to the Lord!

Do you want to know what I really want in this life? In contrary to what I was last year, I no longer want to be great writer or a person who’s going to change the world. I just want to sit down and enjoy God. Yes! I just want to be with Him. I just want to be free from sin and to sit beside Him to love and cherish Him as the greatest joy of my life! Believe me or not, I don’t care much about revival or if the Church would successfully rediscover the hidden truths. I’ve worked hard for revival and I’ve always prayed for it in tears but my greatest happiness is God. I desire revival and the salvation of His elect badly but the desire of my desires is to sit alone with Him. In just six years of walking with God, I feel old and tired but at the same time, I feel as if I am the most fulfilled man on the face of this planet. And indeed I am, among a multitude of redeemed sinners.

I wait anxiously in peace for His coming. I know God has still much to do in my short life but I can't shut myself from craving the time where I would be just one with the Lord. How I wish I'd be rid of this unredeemed flesh soon and worship Him in all His fullness! How great would that day be!

THE GREATEST FREEDOM

Christianity is not a religion of restraint. It is a religion of freedom. Sure it restrains the flesh but hey! isn't your soul more free with the shutting of the flesh? Christianity is to remove every snake wrapped around you and to untie every rope holding you back. It is freedom from this world, from worries, from carnality and from the agony of an eternal judgment.

The greatest freedom is to be a slave of a perfectly holy God. What a privilege it is to be a slave of the Lord! A slave to a gracious God no longer worries about himself, his needs or his future. They are all taken care of! He does not have plans to prosper himself nor does he indulge in absurd activities that bring no real fruit. He no longer enjoys the pleasures of this world. He no longer finds his generation attractive or relevant. Because the gracious Master promises to provide everything, the only concern a slave of God has is to do His Master's will. No wonder Christ could cast down any burden! Isn't He the only load? Oh, Jesus is my great load that brings no heaviness! How light is His heavy yoke!

"Seek ye first the Kingdom of God and its righteousness and the rest will be added unto ye."

How the world is truly veiled as Scripture foretells! Woe to the world's definition of "liberty"! How foolish to assume that the more you are dressed in accordance to our sensual culture, the more relevant and liberated you are! Is this not proof that you are a slave to sensuality? And how wicked to proclaim that freedom is to be under no law! Even if grace is under no law, it is not lawless and neither does it produce lawless men!

"A slave of God... Seek ye first... Cast unto Me your burdens... Do not concern yourself with the things of this world... My yoke is light... My grace is sufficient... A slave of God" I find such truths so liberating. I no longer have to concern myself with what to eat or where to live by. I don't even have to worry if I worked hard enough or think that "maybe this could have happened if I was better". No, His grace is sufficient and I am but a slave under a sovereign God. All I am about is complete submission to His will as the Holy Spirit drives me into His hands. I don't have to concern myself with the world, with reputation or with the the carnal things of this planet. I run this race, spending all of my energies on conforming to His will. That's all. That's all my life is about. Doesn't that bring unspeakable joy and comfort to a regenerate heart? Doesn't that fill your day with madness? To be free from worries? My dear Christian, no angel or demon, not even death or hell can bother your sleep. If you are of the Lord, rejoice and be glad! Esteem His Name, cherish His Kingdom and press on the things that further His glory. That's your only concern. That's your only life. And even in doing His will, there is also a promise of sustaining grace. As if salvation were not good enough, the Father provides more than the escape of judgment! He provides the greatest gift: Himself. What unspeakable joy, unmerited privilege and unbelievable honor to be a slave of God!

Live and be free.

BLESSED IS HE WHO LOOKS AT THEE

I am grieved with the things that I witness in modern day Christianity. I wish to write something that will talk about the greatness of God but how can I when my heart, transformed by the grace of our Lord, is buried in sadness? There is comfort, peace and joy in knowing God but to see His elect struggling in ignorance, how can I not weep? How can I not weep over the fact that this great God who is infinitely worthy of praise is not highly esteemed?

But in my weeping I find the greatest comfort and joy in my life. My soul is resting at the sovereignty of this holy God who maketh earth a mere footstool. I can rest, knowing that He, above all things, can do anything that He pleases in accordance to His good and holy will. What majestic God! What a Lord who governeth this universe?

There are so many days were I would stop mid-sentence in prayer. Before the throne, with empty hands and in the shallowness of my mind, I would lay and say nothing. I would just look into Him and say, "blessed is he who looks at Thee".

Even the Seraphs could not look at this infinitely blessed God without covering themselves and trembling in reverence and yet I, by the merit of the Lord Jesus, can stand justified without the veil of separation. What magnificent proof that God blesses those whom He wishes to bless, under no obligation and solely based on His own holy will!

Oh, how I wish His Church be rekindled! How I wish for the time where the King would step in and take His rightful place in this new order who seeks to deprive the selected lambs of their precious food. Oh I wait anxiously in peace! Those who switch hard meat with junk and those who water down sweet honey into a bunch of spoiled filth, know that the Lord has restrained His wrathful hand in accordance to His own pleasure. And those who have been given over to the Spirit which empowered Christ, preaching madly and feeding His lambs faithfully with the food that cometh not from man's mouth, know that the Lord whom you serve shall come soon in full glory. Fast, keep yourselves pure and be encouraged that His Word shall not come back in vain without its purpose accomplished.

My restless heart has found its satisfaction in Thee, Lord of Lords. Do as you please. May we, Your elect, be less and broken as You become the only One that matters in us. May we be lost in love and passion for You and the things you care about. May we be dead and alive, restless and peaceful, mourning and celebrating and finally, one with You in reverence worship and truth, as You had made us a part of Thee.

HEARTCRY MISSION CONFERENCE

This is another "must see" video of HeartCry Mission Conference sharing the work of God and what is truly essential in missions.

HeartCry Mission Presentation 2006 by Paul Washer



LINK: http://myspacetv.com/index.cfm?fuseaction=vids.individual&videoid=15242003

LOVE IN THIS WORLD

Love in this perishing world is also perishing. The only way to sustain our love for our loved ones is to continually seek the grace of God through His Word. Do not believe is trivial things such as "True human love lasts forever". The only love that will last for eternity is the love of our Father. Anything we define as love that is outside of our Father's love is absurd. Our love, as powerful and heartfelt as it may be, is only a shadow of God's love and fidelity for His people. If we still have not accepted that our love is bound to fail, we will only be disappointed at our failures.

"But lo, I am here" says the Lord. It is true that we fail but it is also true that God, in this life or the next, is with us. Yes, we may utterly fail in our duties or lose control in anger with our loved ones but God, who is faithful, will make things right for His children. In a sense, we are to accept that we are failures. But now that we have the Lord in our new regenerate life, we are to enjoy victory.

For children, love your parents failingly, accepting that you cannot love them as God does but victoriously, accepting that by the grace of our Lord, anything is possible.

For young men, seek to love your young women in a godly relationship that is fully grounded on the Word of God. To love them means to lead them in spiritually and to cut down anything in your relationship that is of the flesh. In diligence and humility, with trembling knees and a worshiping heart, continually approach God's blessed throne together in prayer for guidance, renewal and sustenance.

For husbands, love your wives with continual dependence on God and His Word. Persevere and believe that God has a purpose for everything. Seek also to depend on one another in everything. Be as one body, one mind and one spirit as you worship Him daily.

For grandfathers, its time to pass your love, memories and wisdom to the next generation. Be glad, your time here is almost up.

Have peace with the Lord.

Mike

GROWING UP

One thing I can say about growing up is this: its not what we think. In my early Christian years, I have so craved to grow. I wanted to mature quickly. I wanted to be on fire. I wanted to be smart. I wanted to be strong. In the end, I realized that I wanted everything but God. I was in love with the fellowship, the maturity, the preaching and the knowledge you gain in the circles of Christianity. I never realized that there is only one thing that really matters: God.

In our growth as regenerate folk, no amount of desire, effort or works can truly make us grow. Unless we fully understand that spiritual growth is by the grace of God alone, He will not allow us to move on the the next level. Our God, Who is a Consuming Fire, will never allow us to grow until we have realized that it is by His power alone that we can grow. He will destroy anything, even the good things, that take your heart away from Him or replace Him as your source of strength.

There are many times where the knowledge that I gained took the place of God in my life. You know what He did? He showed me the failure of all my knowledge until I was down on my knees begging for His grace to sustain me. There were also many times in my life where my desires to be matured got the best of me. It was as if all there was to Christianity was growth and maturity. You know what He did? He prevented me from advancing further to stop me from enjoying the power of regeneration. Whenever we take our eyes off Him, He shows up and does what He always does to those He loves: prune. To truly grow means to be pruned constantly by the Vine Dresser. Spiritual growth means to becomes less of this world and more like Christ.

The Lord knows how I deeply desired power in the form of knowledge, supremacy in the form of faith and maturity in the form of emotional discernment during my early stages. During those years, I was still drenched with the world which also explains why I mentioned power and supremacy in such a way. I didn't realize that it was all up to God. I didn't realize that it was all about Him. I didn't realize that I was in the way. I was arrogant and self-centered. I created an image of Christianity thats all about "who is the greatest among us" rather than "who is the least among us". I've went through many roller coasters trips just to understand these truths. I was adamant on doing it my way. I thank God that He is sovereign and that indeed, no stubborn man can bend His will.