A few decades ago, Christianity found itself at a fork in the road that offered two optional paths - one option was down the path called DIscipleship Way and the other down the path called Self Avenue. Self Avenue was a broad road with an easy, flat grade, and it looked wonderful - health, wealth, fulfillment, good times, and being the center of attention. Discipleship Way, on the other hand was a narrow road with steep mountains to climb, and it didn't look very appealing - dying to self, surrender, holiness, and brokenness.

So, because the majority of the church was marinated in secular culture, it chose Self Avenue. However, the years have proven that, even though this path looked fabulous to the eyes, it brought spiritual sickness and decay to the church. For those few, however, who refused to be duped by the empty promises of Self Avenue and instead chose Discipleship Way, they found that, even though the going was tough at times, this road led to everything they had ever dreamed of - deep intimacy with God, real purpose in life, and living in the holy, awesome presence of the King.

Unfortunately, the majority who chose Self Avenue were blinded to its harmful effects and kept on barreling down its path. The result? Self has replaced Jesus as the center of the Christian life, which is evidenced in many ways: sermons with "self" as the main theme; Christian book stores filled with books about "self"(how to be a good leader, how to fulfill your dreams, how to be successful, how to unleash your full potential, how to live your best life now, etc); worship services centered around "self" and our senses (major productions with the latest in multi media gadgets, music that entertain instead of bringing us with a sense of awe to the throne of God, etc); and shallow Christians who are literally clueless about the Bible and theology.

The result? We've become "self" centered, "self" reliant, "self" sufficient, "self" righteous, and "self" pleasing.

We've forgotten that life has never been, is not now, and will never be, about us. It is about Jesus. He is the center of all life. He is why we go to church. He is the one who deserves our worship. He is to be at the top of our priority list.

We've lost sight of the fact that it is in dying to  "self" that we truly find life. The apostle Paul said in Colossians 3:3: "For you have died and your life is hidden with Christ in God". And in Romans 6, Paul gives the very clear truth that, positionally, we died with Jesus to our old self and now we have to consider "self" dead.

Many people ask: "what is 'self' "?  Self is that part of me that wants to be God. It is that part of me that wants to be in charge of my life, that seeks fulfillment and meaning in life apart from God. It is the worldly part of me that desires pleasure, ease, and having everything go just the way I want it. It is me without God's presence.

Far too many Christians have taken Self Avenue and replaced Jesus with "self", and the results are frightening. The church has become powerless and insignificant in our culture.  The most powerful entity on the planet, the church of Jesus Christ, has lost its way because we have bowed the knee to "self".

Is the church in a hopeless situation? No! There is hope. But our hope, our only hope, is in an authentic move of God in His church, a move of God in revival. Only when we fall on our faces before Him and repent of our idolatry of worshiping "self" and turn back to the One who really is to be Lord of our lives will the church again be filled with His presence and power, and be used by Him to transform our society. The church must exit Self Avenue and merge onto on Discipleship Way.

My friends, it's not about us! It's about Jesus. A life lived for "self" is, at best, shallow, empty, and void of meaning. A life lived for Jesus, however, is a life lived to the utmost, and the pinnacle of human experience because nothing, absolutely nothing, can compare to living in a deep intimacy with Him. Die to self, gives the reigns of your life to Him, and find real life!!

Repentance is a key characteristic of a follower of Jesus. In salvation we repent of our sins and receive Jesus as Savior. However, our repentance isn't over with salvation. Believers in Jesus must be life long repenters because, even though we are saved by the blood of Jesus, we are not perfect and still sin. In discipleship we repent because we are already saved, and it's our heart's desire to keep our close intimacy with God and to experience His manifest presence in our lives. Repentance for a believer is crucial as we journey on the road of holiness, and as we live our lives for His glory.

Repentance, which means to change one's mind, goes deeper than confession. In confession, (which literally means "to say the same word"), we agree with God that our sins are contrary to His moral standard of holiness. But we must not stop there. After confessing our sins, we must turn away from them (i.e.: repent), resolving that, with God's help, we will not fall into them again. Repentance, simply put, means that I hate my sins, not because I got caught or because of the consequences I might have to face because of them, but because they grieve the heart of my heavenly Father. And, very importantly, repentance is seen by changed behavior. A truly repentant heart is intentional in doing whatever is necessary not to repeat the sin. It is a change of mind and a change of heart.

Repentance is a key concept taught throughout Scripture. The message of the Old Testament prophets was a call to Israel and the surrounding nations to repent of their evil deeds or God's judgment would surely come. John the Baptist's message to the people was one of repentance in preparation of the coming Messiah. The first words Jesus spoke as He began His ministry was "Repent, for the kingdom of heaven is at hand" (Matthew 4:17). In response to Peter's sermon on Pentecost, his audience asked what they needed to do to be saved, and his response was "repent...". Indeed, repentance is the key to the heart of God because it reveals a humble, broken heart. In David's great Psalm of repentance, Psalm 51, he said in verses 16 and 17:"For You do not delight in sacrifice, otherwise I would give it; You are not pleased with burnt offering. The sacrifices of God are a broken spirit; a broken and contrite heart, O God, You will not despise". This is a powerful picture of.repentance.
 
And repentance is crucial in revival. If we are to see God rend the heaven and come down in revival (see my previous post), We, His church, must fall on our faces and repent - first of our own sins, and then of the sins of our nation. We must not just talk about how bad things are in our country and how much we need revival. We must act, and that action starts with repentance. The prophet Joel cried out to the Israelites: "And rend your hearts and not your garments. Now return to the Lord your God...". (Joel 2:12-13). What a timely message for today! We must rend our hearts (repent) and forget the lip service of shallow religion. We need to get serious and humble ourselves before our holy God in transparency, humility and desperation, and cry out to Him for mercy.

A repentant heart doesn't look at others and think how much "they" need to repent and how much "they" need revival. The truly repentant person looks at his or her own heart and realizes how desperate they are in need of repentance and revival.  Rending our hearts in true repentance reveals a brokenness that God honors: "For thus says the high and exalted One who lives forever, whose name is holy, 'I dwell on a high and holy place, and also with the contrite and lowly of spirit in order to revive the spirit of the lowly and to revive the heart of the contrite."  Isaiah 57:15.

Do you see, my friends, God responds to the brokenness of repentance. America needs revival desperately. And although revival is a sovereign work of God, history reveals that He responds to the urgent prayers of His people when they come to Him in brokenness, and rend their hearts in deep repentance. "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 will forgive their sin and will heal their land:  2 Chronicles 7:14.

If God is to rend the heavens and come down one more time, we must first rend our hearts in humble repentance. Will you join me in this?

     America seems to be on the precipice of judgement. We are turning our backs on the biblical principles that we were founded on and have embraced a life style that is diametrically opposed to God's standard of holiness..
     We have slaughtered over fifty million human beings in their mother's wombs and justify it as a women's right to choose. We are now doing the same heinous crime of fetal murder to frozen embryos under the guise of scientific advancement for medical cures. We are redefining God's standard for marriage - a life long covenant between one man and one woman - and calling it progressive thinking and tolerance. The filth of pornography invades every avenue of media. Marriage and family structures are in shambles. We no longer hold honesty, humility, and integrity as attributes to be desired. And we've replaced God with "self", and worship at our thrones of pleasure and self centeredness.
     And the church, which is the most powerful entity on the planet because of the indwelling Holy Spirit, is powerless to stop this onslaught. Why? Because we have forsaken our First Love and have lusted after the world and pursued its ways. Instead of falling on our faces in humility and crying out to God in repentance for our own sins and the sins of our nation, we, the church, are busy being "emergent", thinking "outside the box", and trying to be "cool" so the world will like us. Instead of deep, passionate followers of Jesus, we have become shallow, lukewarm, and passionless. .
     We need revival! And it must start in the church of Jesus Christ. Only a revived church can become the beacon of light that will lead people out of the darkness of evil that has engulfed our nation and into the light of truth that is only found in Jesus. He is our only hope. 
     There have been three such times of revival in America's history - the First Great Awakening  from 1734 to 1760, the Second Great Awakening from 1790 to 1840, and the Great Prayer Revival from 1857 to 1858. God has done it before, not only in America but in many places around the world, and He can do it again. However, we must understand that while revival is a sovereign act of God, prayer is the key.  All the great revivals in the past have been birthed in prayer. 
     It's time for the church, the bride of Christ, to awaken from its slumber and indifference, return to its First Love, and cry out to God in the words of Isaiah 64:1: "Oh, that You would rend the heavens and come down...". It will take humility, deep repentance, brokenness, transparency, and total surrender to Him, but it is the only way. A broken, humble heart is the heart God revives. And it must start with me. It's so easy to see the need for revival in others, but it has to start in my heart, and yours. Our comparison is not with others, it is with the biblical holiness God has set as the standard for His people. And, my friends, we all fall short of that. Indeed, revival must start in each heart of God's people, beginning with me.
     What would a revived church look like? A revived church would be filled with followers of Jesus who have a passion for Him, who are hungry and thirsty to know Him deeper through His word, who are fervent prayer warriors, who worship Him genuinely from the heart, who crave holiness, who are on the journey of absolute surrender to Him, who are sold out bond slaves to Him, whose love for Him compels them to share the gospel with others, and whose main goal in life is to see Him high and lifted up. A revived church, a church blazing with the power of the Holy Spirit, could be used by God to transform our culture from the inside out. As has been recorded in revivals of the past, when God visits the church in revival, the impact of the church on society is enormous - people get saved, crime goes down, fractured marriages are made whole, strained relationships are restored, social injustices are made right, and vices are stopped immediately. In short, the miraculous happens. When our focus is on the Person of revival (Jesus), then the results of revival will follow.  
     God has done it before, and He can do it again. Is there still hope for America? I believe there is, but only in a powerful move of God in revival. Will you join me in crying out to God "Lord, rend the heavens and come down, ONE MORE TIME!!!!

There is a lot of shallowness in the church today. We've become Christians of convenience rather than being Christians of conviction. Statistics show that most Christians are basically clueless about what they believe and why they believe it. As a result biblical holiness is bordering on extinction - the divorce rate, pre-marital sex, addiction to pornography, honesty, integrity, and unwholesome entertainment choices among Christians are just as prevalent within the church as outside it, 

Even with the wealth of specialty Bibles, Bible studies, conferences, and retreats, most Christians are an inch deep and a mile wide. We have just enough of Jesus to keep us out of hell, but not enough of Him to be true disciples. This type of Christianity is totally foreign to what Jesus expects from us. In Luke 9:23-24 He said: "If anyone would come after Me, he must deny himself and take up his cross daily and follow Me. For whoever wants to save his life will lose it, but whoever loses his life for Me will save it".  Quite a different attitude from what we see today.

What, then, does it mean to follow Jesus, I mean really follow Him? It is more than just showing up at church once in a while, owning a Bible, or dropping a few bucks in the offering plate.  It is more than talking "Christianese", praying before meals, and helping out at the church potlucks.  It is much more than any of these. Much more.

Following Jesus is an all out surrender to Him.  His will for our lives becomes our desire, and we follow Him, whatever the cost may be. Following Jesus necessitates dying to "self'" so that He can live through us. It is having a passion for Him, and desiring a deep intimacy with Him. Simply put, a follower of Jesus lives solely for His pleasure and His glory. I'm not talking "perfection", as none of us will ever come close to that. I'm talking a life long journey that we choose to be on because we love Him so much.

Jesus said it best in Luke 14:33: " In the same way, those of you who do not give up everything you have cannot be My disciples" (read my 12-29-09 post about this verse). Wow, we might be saying, this sounds pretty drastic.  What did Jesus mean in this verse?  Simple - He wants our hearts. Not the organ that is pumping in your chest as you read this blog. Your heart is the seat of who you are - the emotions, intellect, personality, talents, and uniqueness that makes you "you". When He has your heart, you discover what intimacy with him really is - the most glorifying relationship a human being can ever have. When He has your heart you find fulfillment, meaning, peace and joy in your walk on this planet, regardless of the circumstances you may find yourself in. When we die to self and surrender our hearts to Him, we find the true meaning of why we were created.

What does following Jesus look like in everyday life? Does it mean that we quit our jobs, sell all our possessions and move ten thousand miles away to a foreign mission field? Maybe, but probably not. Following Jesus is an act of our will that transfers the ownership of ourselves and our possessions to Him. He calls the shots in every facet our our lives. It is holding everything we have - jobs, money, possessions, and ourselves, with open hand, letting Him do what He desires with our lives. Whether He has us stay in our present situation or leads us to make drastic changes, our response is "yes Lord, Your will be done". A follower of Jesus is radically abandoned to him, and finds that, as He said, when we lose our lives for His sake (i.e.: surrender to Him), we actually find it.

Sadly, this has been all but neglected in the most churches today, and the church has suffered because of it. No longer are we a powerful force in the world that God uses to impact our culture for the truth. Oh, how we need sold out followers of Jesus today!! Will you be on the journey of absolute surrender to Jesus and follow Him with all your heart? Will you be a living, breathing testimony of what a real follower of Jesus looks like? The world is waiting to see one.

I recently read about a major Christian university that commissioned a task force to, among other things, "provide clarity regarding the (school's) identity as an evangelical Christian university" and to establish "a common understanding regarding behavioral expectations for fulfilling roles and responsibilities in light of university values."  Wow, is it really that complex? You're a Christian university, follow Biblical standards.

Additionally, one can go to a Christian bookstore and find books on how to measure church health, how to facilitate church growth, how to pray, how to worship, how to be relevant, etc, etc. Christianity is glutted with books that, with great detail and complexity, show you how to find yourself, how ro lose yourself, how to be a leader, how to raise perfect kids. and countless volumes on how to have the picture perfect Christian marriage. For those who are strapped for time, you can buy "instant" Christianity books - thirty days to this, forty days to that, one minute Bibles, and  discipleship as quick as microwaving instant oatmeal. All of these books, whether on spiritual disciplines, theological issues, or practical living, use Scripture references to back their claims. After reading these, one's head can be spinning with facts, figures, "how to's", and loads of guilt for not doing what the "experts" say we should be doing..

Really, is living the Christian life really that complex? We sure have made something that is so beautiful, and so simple, into something that is so complicated.

Living for Jesus after you are born again is, at its core, really quite simple. It can be summed up in one word — "surrender." Jesus made this clear in Luke 9:23: "If anyone wishes to come after me, he must deny himself and take up his cross daily and follow me." Surrender is giving up all right s to yourself to Him. He calls the shots, He is in control. Your life is totally His and you live in total obedience and devotion to Him.

When we are on the journey of surrender, our lives will be holy, we will be able to integrate spirituality into every facet of life, we will know how to pray and we will glorify Him. When we are growing in intimacy with Him, which is the natural byproduct of surrender, we will be hungry for His Word, and we will build a Biblical world view on life.  Take marriage for example. The Bible is very concise about it.  Husbands, love your wives as Christ loved the church (put her first and serve her); wives, submit to your husbands (allow him to be the leader of the home as God has ordained). Pretty simple.  Yes, I know that the marriage relationship can be complicated. But just think, what if every married couple surrendered to Jesus and followed these two simple rules.  Marriage would be in a lot better shape.  

If a church is filled with surrendered believers, Jesus becomes the main focus, and it will be alive and healthy; and what is alive and healthy will grow. We won't need to hire consultants, assemble task forces or committees or follow complicated charts and graphs to see what we are supposed to do. Just surrender to Jesus and obey the Bible. That's all we need.

If it is so simple, why has Christianity taken the complicated route? Probably because surrender is not very attractive in a culture where "self" is the focus of life. As I mentioned above, surrender is giving all rights to ourselves to Jesus, but we fight this because we want to call the shots and be in control. So we take matters in our own hands and end up making a mess of something that was intended to be so simple.

Following Jesus is simple — it's all about surrender.

When God delivered the Israelites from captivity in Egypt, they were to make their home in the Promised Land - the land filled with "milk and honey". This was to fulfill God's promise to Abram (later to be known as Abraham) that this piece of land would belong to his descendants. When the Israelites arrived at the border of the Promised Land, God told Moses to send out twelve spies to scope it out. Upon their return, the twelve reported how bountiful the land was, but also reported that the land was filled with fortified cities and fierce warriors, even warriors from a race of giants. Ten of the spies said that the Israelites shouldn't enter the Promised Land because of the opposition that they would encounter. However, the two other spies, Joshua and Caleb, disagreed with the ten and stood firm on God's promise that He would give them the land. The Israelites agreed with the ten spies and were violently opposed to Joshua and Caleb, so much so that they wanted to stone them. However, Joshua and Caleb would not bend to the popular opinion of the people. God was angry with the Israelites because of their disobedience and lack of faith and, as punishment for their rebellion against Him, had them wander in the wilderness for forty years until all the adults who doubted Him died off. Of that generation, only Joshua and Caleb would enter the Promised Land. 

In Numbers 14:24, God said this about Caleb: "But because my servant Caleb has a different spirit and has followed me wholeheartedly, I will bring him into the land he went to, and his descendants will inherit it".  The word "different" comes from the root word which means to loiter, or to be behind, which tells us that Caleb was totally devoted to God and followed Him with all his heart. He would not compromise what he knew to be true no matter what others said and no matter how unpopular it was. Caleb was sold out to God.

How we need Christians today who have a "Caleb spirit"!  Those who will stand for the Lord and not fold to popular opinion.  Those who refuse to be politically correct by compromising God's holy standards. Those who aren't concerned about man's approval or about being popular with others, but are only concerned with bringing glory to God.

Those with a "Caleb Spirit" have a firm grasp of the Bible, which has led to an deep, intimate relationship with God. They have a tenacious faith and an unshakable trust in Him. Oh, they're not perfect or super saints, but they are sold out to Jesus, surrendered to Him and have chosen to be His bond slaves.

As we look at our current culture, we need followers of Jesus who have a "Caleb Spirit' now more than ever. We are sliding into the abyss of immorality at the speed of light. Biblical Christianity is mocked and is being ousted from the fabric of society. Churches have compromised holiness, solid theology, and, discipleship for what is easy, expedient, and popular. And the results are evident - a world in confusion, chaos, and turmoil.

Will you be a Caleb in our culture? A voice that is strong, clear, and fearless for Jesus? Will you draw a line in the sand and make a covenant with God that you refuse to compromise the truth? Caleb's life challenges us all to be more concerned with God's glory and His approval than with our popularity and the world's approval.  Caleb stood up to the popular opinion of the day and would not back down, even if it meant being stoned to death. Will you be like him, being fearless for the truth no matter what?

In Chapters 2 and 3 of Revelation, Jesus wrote letters to seven churches in the province of Asia. Two of the churches received encouraging letters, but in each of the letters to the other five churches Jesus issued a severe reprimand for their spiritual condition and a pointed warning to either repent or reap the consequences for their actions. I wonder, if Jesus were to write a letter similar to those found in Revelation 2 and 3 to the church in America in 2011 what would He say? Would it be something like this... 

"To the angel of the church in America write. . .

The holy almighty sovereign One, the King of kings and Lord of lords says this: 'I know your deeds. ‘You have built impressive buildings that include the latest technology. You have programs for every conceivable type of person, and you are culturally relevant in every way possible. But I have this against you — you have forgotten that church is really about Me.

You have replaced spirit-led worship with well-staged entertainment so the congregation simply sits back and watches the 'show' instead of actively worshiping Me.

You have replaced uncompromised, biblically-based sermons with non-threatening, theologically light, feel-good motivational speeches that are focused on yourselves rather than on Me.

You have traded deep, probing Bible studies for the latest fad on the best-seller list.

In order not to offend anyone, you have neglected to teach theology and doctrine, and have failed to teach that discipleship includes absolute surrender, spiritual brokenness, dying to self, holiness, and unquestioned allegiance to Me.

You have forgotten that prayer is the key to my heart, and instead of seeking My face for guidance and direction you have become self-reliant and self-sufficient.

‘You have allowed the culture to influence your way of thinking so that you look, think, and act no different than the world. Divorce, viewing pornography, and sex outside of marriage are as prevalent within the walls of the church as outside of it. 

You are My beloved bride, but you have gone after other lovers — popularity, numbers and 'success'. In your quest to be culturally relevant, you have become spiritually irreverent. You have become so politically correct that you have the world's approval but not Mine. You have played a harlot with the world and have broken your covenant of love and loyalty to me.

The results are disastrous. America is falling apart morally, and you, My church, are powerless to change its course. Instead of falling on your faces before Me in humble repentance and crying out for revival, you are too occupied with being 'emergent', 'seeker sensitive', 'relevant', and 'thinking outside the box'.

Repent! I say it again, repent!

Humble yourselves before Me, and return to Me. Make Me the object of your devotion. Seek My approval. Surrender totally to Me. Cleanse yourself of the sins of compromise, half-heartedness and self-sufficiency.

Die to self so that I may live in you and use you to turn your society away from destruction and toward the truth and the peace that is found only in Me. Oh, My bride, come back to Me. I love you.

He who has ears to hear, let him hear what I say to the church in America.'"

What does it mean to follow Jesus? We live in an era where many Christians are, at best, lethargic and lukewarm in their Christian walk. Jesus becomes like our car repair man.  We know He is there but don't talk to Him until something goes wrong. Then, we call Him and expect Him to fix our problem immediately. After He does, we ignore Him until another problem arises. This, my friends, is not what walking with Jesus is all about.

Walking with Jesus, being a Christian, is nothing less than an all out commitment to Him and a total devotion to Him. Half hearted discipleship is totally foreign in the teachings of Scripture. Jesus assumed that all of those who would believe in Him would be true disciples. That is why He said "If any man comes after Me, he must deny himself, pick up his cross daily, and follow Me (Luke 9:23). No conditions, no restrictions, no escape clauses.

Following Jesus means that I am totally surrendered to Him in every aspect of my life, everyday of my life, for my whole life NO MATTER WHAT. Even if my hopes, plans and dreams are shattered. Even if He calls me to a different lifestyle than I want. Even if my health is broken. Even if everyone forsakes me. A true follower of Jesus says "Lord, I will follow You, No matter what".

Allow me to use an illustration to explain what "no matter what" means. When you have work done to your house, you get a contract from the one doing the work that spells out the details of what will be done and the cost for this work.  You do not sign it until every little detail has been included. When you finally sign it, you know what to expect. However, when we trust in Jesus as Savior and are born again, He hands us a blank contract and asks us to sign it. "Wait", you say, "I'm not signing a blank contract. Jesus, you need to fill in all the details of what following You will mean. I want details! Oh, and one more thing.  Under the column marked 'cost', You wrote 'EVERYTHING'.  Why so much"?  Jesus looks at you with  a smile and says, "I'll fill in  the details as we go along the journey. And the cost you are so concerned about? When you give me control of everything in your life, you will see how little that is in comparison with what you will receive - deep intimacy with Me. Right now, just trust Me with your life. I want you to follow Me, no matter what.  Sign the contract, grab my hand and let's go!"

Does it sound scary, signing a blank contract with such a seemingly high price? If we're honest with ourselves, yes it does. But we need to remember that the One who asks us to sign it is the One who loves us with a perfect love and has our best interest in mind. When we sign His blank contract, we never lose.

My friends, what the church needs most of all right now are followers of Jesus who are hungry for Him. Those who are totally surrendered and sold out to Him.  Those who will follow Him NO MATTER WHAT; even if it means a total rearrangement of goals,dreams, career, lifestyle, and even if it means hardship and persecution. A "no matter what Christian" is so in love with Jesus that signing the blank contract is no big deal because they know the depths of the meaning of the cross, and they know that walking in the abiding presence of Jesus and knowing deep intimacy with Him is the greatest journey on the planet.

Are you a NO MATTER WHAT follower of Jesus? Have you signed the blank contract? He has given it to you and now waits for you to sign it and give it back to Him. Go ahead. Sign it. You'll never regret it. As Jim Elliott said over 50 years ago: "He is no fool who gives up what he cannot keep to gain what he cannot lose".

Grace - the key word in our salvation. We are saved by God's amazing grace. It is so profound, so incredible, so powerful, yet we often take it for granted or don't really understand it. You see, we are helpless to save ourselves, no matter how "good" we are or try to be. God's grace is His free gift to all those who trust in Jesus and His finished work on the cross for forgiveness of sins and eternal life. Ephesians 2:8-9 says;"For by grace you have been saved through faith, and that not of yourselves. It is the gift from God, not as a result of works,so that no one may boast". Indeed God's hand of grace is powerful, but what does it include? In order to help us understand the depths of grace, I like to use, what I call "the five fingers on the hand of God's grace". Here they are:.

JUSTIFICATION   This is a legal term that, simply put, means that our guilt is gone. Romans 4:25-5:1 says: "He who was delivered over because of our transgressions, and was raised because of our justification. Therefore, having been justified by faith, we have peace with God through our Lord Jesus Christ".  The eternal weight of our sin has been lifted from us through the blood of Jesus as He took our guilt on Himself, and we go free. Think of it like this...you are in the Supreme Court of Heaven and the Heavenly Supreme Court Justice sits on His throne to determine your eternal destination. The prosecuting attorney, Satan, stands up and presents an eight hour detailed case of every sin you have ever committed, accompanied with exhibits and documentation. Finally, when he is done, he glances at you with  a smug look of victory and wheezes, "the prosecution rests". Now it is the defense's turn. Jesus your defense attorney stands up and gives only a three sentence case as He says "This person has repented of his sin and has trusted in me as his Savior. I took His guilt upon Myself at the cross. He is Mine". And then he sits down. The Supreme Court Judge asks you to stand up, looks you in the eye and pronounces His verdict: " You are declared innocent because the debt of your sin has been paid in full. Your guilt is gone. You are free to enter into My heaven". That's justification!!

REDEMPTION   This is a word taken in the context of the slave market when a slave obtained his or her release through the paying of a ransom.  Romans 3:23-24 says: "for all have sinned and fall short of the glory of God,  being justified as a gift by His grace through the redemption which is in Christ Jesus;  and Colossians 1:13-14 says :"For He rescued us from the domain of darkness, and transferred us to the kingdom of His beloved Son,  in whom we have redemption, the forgiveness of sins".  We have been redeemed not with money or material things, but with the blood of Jesus. You see, a price had to be paid for our sins, and God set down the mandate that blood had to be the price: "And according to the Law, one may almost say, all things are cleansed with blood, and without shedding of blood there is no forgiveness (Hebrews 9:22).  A pretty steep price to pay, a price that we couldn't pay. Only perfect blood could pay the price . The only perfect One is God, but God is Spirit. How could this be done? The incarnation of God. Jesus, the second person of the Trinity became man to shed his blood so that the price of redemption could be paid. Because we are redeemed by Jesus' perfect blood, our redemption is eternal. The price has been paid in full and cannot be "refunded".

PROPITIATION  This literally means to gain or regain the favor of; an expiation.  1 John 2:2 says: "and He Himself is the propitiation for our sins; and not for ours only, but also for those of the whole world", 1 John 4:10 says : "In this is love, not that we loved God, but that He loved us and sent His Son to be the propitiation for our sins". and Romans 3:25 says: "whom God displayed publicly as a propitiation in His blood through faith...". Propitiation basically means that Jesus' sacrifice on the cross totally satisfied the demands of our holy God. God accepts the blood of His Son on our behalf and because He does so, the enormous barrier of sin that separated us from having a relationship with God has been obliterated. We can now come into the presence of the Father through the blood of His Son.

RECONCILIATION  This parallels propitiation and means to change from enmity to friendship.  2 Corinthians 5:16-21 says: " Therefore from now on we recognize no one according to the flesh; even though we have known Christ according to the flesh, yet now we know Him in this way no longer. Therefore if anyone is in Christ, he is a new creature; the old things passed away; behold, new things have come. Now all these things are from God, who reconciled us to Himself through Christ and gave us the ministry of reconciliation, namely, that God was in Christ reconciling the world to Himself, not counting their trespasses against them, and He has committed to us the word of reconciliation. Therefore, we are ambassadors for Christ, as though God were making an appeal through us; we beg you on behalf of Christ, be reconciled to God. He made Him who knew no sin to be sin on our behalf, so that we might become the righteousness of God in Him.  Think about your checkbook. When you receive your bank statement the balance of the bank is different from what you have in your checkbook. In order to make sure you have the correct balance you must reconcile your balance to the bank's by adding and/or subtracting outstanding checks, deposits, and other charges. Thus you bring the two into agreement. The same with us and God. He is the standard and we must be reconciled to Him in order to have a relationship with Him. Jesus brought us, sinners condemned to eternal hell, into agreement with God's holy standards by dying on the cross for us. The result? We are now have a wonderful relationship with God!

SANCTIFICATION  This means to set apart. 1 Corinthians 6:11 says: " Such were some of you; but you were washed, but you were sanctified, but you were justified in the name of the Lord Jesus Christ and in the Spirit of our God". and Hebrews 10:10 says: "By this will we have been sanctified through the offering of the body of Jesus Christ once for all".  SInce we have been justified, redeemed, propitiated, and reconciled, we are now children of God. We have the indwelling Holy Spirit who gives us everything necessary to live a life of holiness that brings honor to God. We are His people belonging to Him, and now we must choose to be His bond slave and turn away from enslavement to the world. We must consider ourselves dead to sin and alive to Christ, because we have died with Christ to our sin (Colossians 3:3; and see my 4/8/10 blog  "Dying to Self - the Key to Life").

Those are the five fingers on the hand of God's grace - justification, redemption, propitiation, reconciliation, and sanctification. What a marvelous grace we have been given. The next time you sing "Amazing Grace" remember the incredible truths that are inherent in God's grace.

We've heard it said quite frequently that Christianity isn't a religion, it's a relationship, and this is a true statement. However, in the context of today's society, this statement is woefully inadequate. With the wealth of technological communication such as texting, Twitter, and Facebook, relationships are, at best, shallow and impersonal. Face to face communication has been replaced by pounding the keys of a twenty four square inch "phone", and heart to heart communication has been replaced by generic "current status" updates on social network web sites. The "personal" touch in human relationships is quickly barreling into extinction.

Thus, when we tell people that Christianity is a relationship with Jesus Christ their minds grasp the current definition of what relationships are - a distant, impersonal, shallow acquaintance, and this doesn't seem like such a big deal to them,. But this is far from God's definition of what a relationship with Himself really means. Nowhere in the Bible does one find God desiring a shallow relationship with us. On the contrary, He desires us to have a deep, intimate relationship with Him. The Bible says that when we trust Jesus as Savior, we are adopted into the family of God and become His sons and daughters, and we can thus come to Him as Abba, Father (Abba is Aramaic and conveys the idea of "daddy"). Galatians 4:6 says:" Because you are sons, God sent the Spirit of his Son into our hearts, the Spirit who calls out, “Abba, Father.” 

One of the incredible realities of the cross is that Jesus reconciled us to the Father. This reconciliation brought us, who were alienated from God because of sin, back into fellowship with the eternal, almighty God of the universe. Romans 5:10 says: "For if, when we were God’s enemies, we were reconciled to Him through the death of His Son, how much more, having been reconciled, shall we be saved through His life! ".  Jesus talked about this intimacy in the upper room discourse the night before He was crucified.  Jesus said in John 17:20-21: "My prayer is not for them alone. I pray also for those who will believe in Me through their message that all of them may be one, Father, just as You are in Me and I am in You. May they also be in Us so that the world may believe that You have sent Me. " , and He said this in John 17:26: "I have made You known to them, and will continue to make You known in order that the love You have for Me may be in them and that I Myself may be in them.”  How wonderful is that!

The sad fact is, however, that very few Christians ever experience the depth of this wonderful relationship with God.  Far too many settle for a relationship with God that is shallow and distant. Intimacy with Him, which He desires us to have, eludes them all of their lives and they miss out on the greatest relationship one can ever hope for.

But, what is intimacy with God? It is not some mushy, hyped up, brainless emotion, nor is it just an academic understanding of facts about Him. Intimacy with God has its foundation in our intellect and then builds on this knowledge with our experience with Him. It is a healthy balance of our intellectual understanding which leads us to be in awe of Him  and our emotional experience which leads us to be in love for Him. 

Practically, intimacy with God is living each day in the reality and power of His presence. It is knowing Him, really knowing Him, and understanding just how much He means in your life. It is acknowledging who you were without Him, who you are now with Him, and grasping hold of the powerful truths of the cross. It is spending time with Him every day and talking with Him about everything throughout the day. It is having a hunger and thirst to know Him more and surrendering every aspect over life to Him. In short, it is falling in love with Him because of who He is and what He has done for you.

How does someone develop this intimacy with God? Well, it sure doesn't come by osmosis. Like any relationship it takes time and effort. First we must want it, crave it, and not be satisfied with where we presently are in our relationship with Him. Then we must be intentional in doing the things that will build this intimacy: read the Bible - this is God speaking to us; pray - this is us conversing with Him; worship - this is us acknowledging His place in our lives as our All in All; serve - this is us experiencing His power through our lives as we partner with Him in mission here on earth; surrender and die to self - this is giving Him total control of our lives.  Those believers who walked in intimacy with Him practiced these disciplines, which made them hungrier and hungrier to know Him more.

Are you walking in intimacy with our marvelous God? Would you define your relationship with Him as shallow or deep? As "Facebook" or as face-to-face? Remember, intimacy isn't reserved for only the "super saints", it is God's desire for all of His kids.
Are you hungry for God, and are you willing to be intentional in building an intimate relationship with Him? He's waiting for you with open arms.