The Great Divide

John 10 ;27-30 My sheep hear my voice, and I know them, and they follow me: And I give unto them eternal life; and they shall never perish, neither shall any man pluck them out of my hand. My Father, which gave them me, is greater than all; and no man is able to pluck them out of my Father's hand. I and my Father are one."

Charles Spurgeon wrote: ‘The great division between the sons of men is Christ. Here are the sheep: there are the goats. What parts them? Christ! He is the center. There is no great barrier set up, as it were, on that last tremendous day, but he Himself is the division. He shall set the sheep on his right hand and the goats on his left. Now, that which parts us tonight into two portions is our relationship to Jesus Christ. On which side of Christ are you tonight? I want you to question yourselves about that. If you are on his right hand you are among his people. If you are not with him you are against him, and so are on his left hand.’

The ‘holy tap’ came quickly when I read that. What about the goats in sheep’s clothing and the sheep in goat’s clothing?

Obviously, the goats and sheep in drag can’t fool Jesus! He is the great division among men and knows the heart of man. A goat can dress up as one of His sheep and may well fool himself and others for a time but a goat is a goat regardless of the sheepskin they may hide under. After awhile the sheepskins slides off and the real goat is exposed. A sheep in goats clothing is nothing more than a carnal Christian. They claim Jesus as savior yet throw on their goat skin when the flesh is itching. Rather like children dressing in costume at Halloween, they act out their carnal desires and ways under the goat skin, taking some sense of relief thinking no one knows who they really are. Then, throwing off the goatskin, they walk around again as a sheep. How foolish man is!

2 Pet. 1:5-11 And beside this, giving all diligence, add to your faith virtue; and to virtue knowledge; And to knowledge temperance; and to temperance patience; and to patience godliness; And to godliness brotherly kindness; and to brotherly kindness charity. For if these things be in you, and abound, they make you that ye shall neither be barren nor unfruitful in the knowledge of our Lord Jesus Christ. But he that lacketh these things is blind, and cannot see afar off, and hath forgotten that he was purged from his old sins. Wherefore the rather, brethren, give diligence to make your calling and election sure: for if ye do these things, ye shall never fall: For so an entrance shall be ministered unto you abundantly into the everlasting kingdom of our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ.

The scripture we read in 2 Peter tells us to ‘add’ to our faith walk, not try to deceive. Deception in and of itself is not of God. We know who the ‘father of lies’ title belongs to; deception is his first-born spawn. But he that lacketh these things is blind, and cannot see afar off, and hath forgotten that he was purged from his old sins.

For if these things be in you…and…for if ye do these things, ye shall never fall. Powerful key word in this scripture, IF. You see, that IF is part of our choice to be a sheep or a goat. You can call yourself whatever you want, but when there is no follow through on the IF, your cover is blown. Sheep or goat, you decide.

I Am the True Vine

Titus 2:11-12 For the grace of God has appeared that offers salvation to all people. It teaches us to say “No” to ungodliness and worldly passions, and to live self-controlled, upright and godly lives in this present age,

The reference scripture this morning is from the NIV Bible. It is plain spoken and to the point. It encouraged me to read the Book of Titus. It is a sound and basic outline for Christian living. The quoted verses above rather jumped off the page at me. In my mind’s eye I saw a bowl with the empty stem of a cluster of grapes in it. There were a few grapes left behind in the bottom of the bowl. Okay, this really tweaked my curiosity and I had to ask God to show me what that meant.  

John 15:1-8  (The Vine and the Branches) “I am the true vine, and my Father is the gardener. He cuts off every branch in me that bears no fruit, while every branch that does bear fruit he prunes so that it will be even more fruitful. You are already clean because of the word I have spoken to you. Remain in me, as I also remain in you. No branch can bear fruit by itself; it must remain in the vine. Neither can you bear fruit unless you remain in me.

“I am the vine; you are the branches. If you remain in me and I in you, you will bear much fruit; apart from me you can do nothing. If you do not remain in me, you are like a branch that is thrown away and withers; such branches are picked up, thrown into the fire and burned. If you remain in me and my words remain in you, ask whatever you wish, and it will be done for you. This is to my Father’s glory, that you bear much fruit, showing yourselves to be my disciples.

I get the connection about God, Jesus and man in the scripture from John 15…it was the reference verse from Titus and the few grapes left behind that confused me. I read the verses over and over, asking God to give me new insight and understanding. Finally, the light bulb went off over my thick head.

For the grace of God has appeared that offers salvation to all people. It teaches us to say “No” to ungodliness and worldly passions, and to live self-controlled, upright and godly lives in this present age,

The grapes are the fruit of living in grace and walking in salvation as we are told in John 15. Everyone loves the plump juicy fruit and readily accepts it. We need the mercy of grace and gobble it up. The grapes left behind in the bowl…is that the fruit that teaches us to say “No” to ungodliness and worldly passions, and to live self-controlled, upright and godly lives in this present age?

Do we pick over the parts of grace and salvation that appeal to us and ignore the parts that aren’t convenient? Are we ‘situational’ or ‘seasonal’ fruit pickers? Are we willing ‘to say ‘NO’ to ungodliness and worldly passions’ when it suits us but leave them behind in the bottom of the bowl when it doesn’t? Let’s face it, sometimes it is just plain easier to live self-controlled, upright and godly lives in this present age than others. Isn’t it?

“…I am the vine; you are the branches. If you remain in me and I in you, you will bear much fruit; apart from me you can do nothing. If you do not remain in me, you are like a branch that is thrown away and withers; such branches are picked up, thrown into the fire and burned…”

Not one word about having the latitude and option to pick over the fruit and take only that which appeals to you do I see in that scripture. Christians are not migrant farm workers moving from vineyard to vineyard. We are to remain in me and I in you if we are to bear much fruit. Nothing left in the bottom of the bowl…..

Fruit of the Spirit 2

Psalm 143:10 Teach me to do your will, for you are my God; may your good Spirit lead me on level ground.

Still looking at the Fruit of the Spirit, we see in Jeremiah (6:19), God speaks of the disaster which is about to come, and speaks of it as "the fruit of their plans" -- that which comes from evil scheming. So the evil in us can also come to fruition. Rotten fruit.

The early church continued this concern about how those with the Spirit develop a character like Christ's. Some of them spend much of their writing time on describing what this character is. Polycarp, for instance, in his letter to the church in Philippi, wrote that the church's leaders are to have "a wide compassion for humanity", which does not put off doing kindnesses. He, like the apostle Paul, also writes about what is not a part of this character: gossip, the undermining of others, easily believing ill of others, loose sexual behavior, empty speech, quick temper, and most especially the eagerness for money. That would be more akin to rotten fruit.

Many believers, unfortunately, forgot how deeply marred we are by sin, and saw failure to live in these 'fruit' as proof that the Spirit was not at work. This resulted in a new legalism made of a decision to obey behavioral rules rooted in law, not in a soul which grew through the Spirit's work to bear good fruit.

You don't need to turn to the Law to give rise to character in ourselves and our children. You need to turn to the Spirit, and trust that the Spirit will be working overtime to change you, working literally till Kingdom come, refashioning you so you become like Christ.

The early church understood this. They didn't go around saying they had the Holy Spirit and thus needed no human teachers. They instead took each other aside and corrected each other, and those who understood the Christian way best (especially the apostles) taught it to the others. They accepted their responsibility for spiritual growth in their fellow believers. Even the apostles were not above correction, as Paul so sharply points out in Galatians. They understood that by way of mutual education and the use of discernment, in the power of the Holy Spirit, they could grow as Christians. The evidence of growth was the fruit. The "fullness of the Spirit" is when the gifts are applied fruit-fully.

Unity is a fruit of the Spirit, found in the "one anothers" of Colossians. But it is not always immediately so. Jesus' work set father against son and mother against daughter, and the Spirit takes after Jesus' ministry. In Acts 15, even though the Jerusalem Council was being guided by the Spirit, division arose. They wrestled with the matter, done with an attitude of 'show us, Spirit!' Where there is such tension, the Spirit brings reconciliation.

 
The organism of believers known as the Christian Church is able to hold, and to benefit from, the human race's many cultures, outlooks, theologies, histories and styles. Yet the Church can only be truly 'of the whole' when it embraces and sustains the whole truth. It means not just being broad in most ways, it also means being clear about what to reject. This we learn, Friends, by being sensitive to and listening for the Holy Spirit in us and allowing the lessons in ‘fruitfulness of the spirit’ to change us. Where there are believers abounding in a harvest of good fruit, there is more harmony and peace in the body. I could use more peace and harmony, how about you?

Fruitful Life

Colossians 3:12-15 (HGSB) And so, as those who have been chosen of God, holy and beloved, put on a heart of compassion, kindness, humility, gentleness and patience; bearing with one another, and forgiving each other, whoever has a complaint against anyone; just as the Lord forgave you, so also should you. And beyond all these things put on love, which is the perfect bond of unity. And let the peace of Christ rule in your hearts, to which indeed you were called in one body, and be thankful.

The Scripture above is beautiful. It also seems like a tall order and almost impossible to live out. How do you get to the point where you can lay human emotion aside and walk out the forgiveness and gentleness of behavior it talks about? Fact is, on your own you can’t.

Galatians 5:22-23 (NIV) But the fruit of the Spirit is love, joy, peace, forbearance, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness and self-control. Against such things there is no law.

When Christians speak of the work of the "Holy Spirit", they are speaking about the operations of the Spirit of God in the material world we live in, and within us. But God the Holy Spirit isn't here just to hang out, or to do a miracle for sport, or bliss someone out for an hour or so. The Spirit is there to cause things to happen in peoples' lives that bring them more in tune with God's purposes on earth. When the Spirit starts changing someone, it shows as a growth in character, a change in their way of life that is good for the people they live among. This change in character and way of life is called a 'fruit of the Spirit'.

Paul's Galatians list is both something you are and something you do. It is the Spirit giving you the character of Christ; it is treating others and relating to creation as a whole in the manner of the Kingdom of God. There are other such lists in the Epistles, and they are also relevant to any talk about the fruit of the Spirit.

In 1 Corinthians 13, in the midst of Paul's description of the gifts of the Spirit, there is a section on love. While not directly about 'fruit', it is about what springs from love, and it is in much the same vein. Love is the underpinning of what the Spirit is doing, the 'why' of it.

These fruit lists describe what a Christian grows into, over time. This is the way a person lives when the Spirit is being productive within. There was no word in there about being given the Midas touch for resolving all financial woes. There are no verses about crusading for a just society, though there is something about being just. These lists are completely silent about miraculous deeds or the gifts of wisdom or knowledge or discernment as signs of the Spirit's rule within a person. The lists give no special credit to official power or office or responsibility. It sounds instead like a repeated refrain from Jesus (Matthew 7:16, 20) that one knows God's followers 'by their fruits'. Or, like the apostle Paul's urgings that the Roman church bear fruit for God, or James about being full of mercy and good fruit. Or John the Baptist, or even the proverb which says that "the fruit of righteousness is a tree of life". These matters of character are the stuff which gives life-ness to life. It is holiness taking root in you. It is something you are, not just something you do or think.

When the Spirit is at home in someone, that person will start taking on the characteristics described as the fruit of the Spirit. The Holy Spirit works to change Christians so they have the depth of character and faith the Bible talks about. It's not automatic or sudden. Like everything else in this broken world and its broken people, it's something that arises only in part, not completely, in this life. The Spirit never leaves "well enough" alone, but is always working for something better.

Momentum Required

1 John 2:5-6 But whoever keeps His word, truly the love of God is perfected in him. By this we know that we are in Him. He who says he abides in Him ought himself also to walk just as He walked.

Our driveway here at Hacienda Hill is daunting for those not familiar with it. It is not that our hilltop is so high but that the drive is steep to the ‘flat-landers’ and incredibly rough from a wet winter and spring a few years back. You need familiarity with it to know how to navigate it. It also requires momentum to get to the top. Most try to slowly maneuver their way up and it makes it harder. Seriously, you need to push through the trepidation and get some serious momentum if you are to reach the higher level.

Momentum is simply the force or speed of movement that carries an object to its final destination. If you want to break through, you need to have a certain amount of momentum. In order for a rocket to blast into space, it needs tremendous momentum to break the gravitational barrier – but with the enormous power of jet engines and rocket fuel the ship is propelled faster and faster till it breaks free of the earth’s gravitational pull.

As Christians, our challenge is gaining the spiritual momentum to break through. It requires real power. Eric Liddell, the Olympic runner once remarked that the Lord requires “muscular Christians”. Believers who are serious in their faith-walk are people who stand steadfastly against difficult obstacles, and who pray with great fervency and devotion for the causes of their Lord. This produces spiritual power for significant breakthroughs in the spirit realm.

The most ferocious battle, requiring the greatest momentum and perseverance (just like the rocket blast into outer space), will occur just before the breakthrough to victory.

We regain momentum in our spiritual life through repentance toward God, and steadfast perseverance in the specific vision and call He has given us. We need to ramp up our prayer life and exercise our spiritual regimen when we feel our momentum slipping. We need to flex our spiritual muscles and push through. There is a great victory waiting for us from His heavenly realm and we’ll see it manifested right here on Earth when we accept nothing less than breakthrough.