Author: swimmingmonk1980

Follower of Jesus for 40 years; Married 35 years; Father of 5; a continual recipient of God's saving grace; a contemplative; enjoy nature; eventually I overcome reluctance and take risks; the greatest joy is strengthening others by helping them become fully aware of the presence, power, purpose and purity of Jesus on their behalf

First Impression vs. Divine Impression

The first step of Apocalyptic-Discpleship  is to begin asking Jesus what IMPRESSES HIM. The second step is to become aware what impresses us most and why? 

A model of Herod’s Temple created by Israeli historian and archaeologist Michael Avi-Yonah in 1966. This view would be a probable look from the slope of the Mount of Olives before the Romans destroyed the Temple in 70 AD.

41 And He sat down opposite the treasury, and began observing how the people were putting money into the treasury; and many rich people were putting in large sums. 42 A poor widow came and put in two small copper coins, which amount to a cent. 43 Calling His disciples to Him, He said to them, “Truly I say to you, this poor widow put in more than all the contributors to the treasury; 44 for they all put in out of their surplus, but she, out of her poverty, put in all she owned, all she had to live on.” 

Mark 12:41-44 (NASB)

“As Jesus was leaving the temple, one of his disciples said to him, “Look, Teacher! What massive stones! What magnificent buildings!” 

Mark 13:1 (NIV)

The prime directive of Jesus is to “IMPRESS US WITH HIS IMAGE”…that is to say, “conform us to His image”!  A “First Impression” is what we think about a person when we first encounter them or meet them. This First Impression can be an evaluation based on a brief conversation, a physical glimpse or distant gaze. Anyone who reads the Gospels for the first time would come to a First Impression about Jesus that He is a contemplative, a friend of sinners, a great communicator, compassionate, good, loving, forgiving, intense at times and He does not trust religious leaders.  His First Impression brings us back to Him as Lord and Savior to make an Eternal-Impression on us!

Basically, God in Jesus  has employed all His knowledge and all His power toward one essential mission… ‘pour all the broken pieces of Jeff’s________(add your name) spirit, soul and body  into the perfect mold of Jesus Christ’.  The real kicker is you have to create a hot enough fire to melt down all the broken pieces until Jeff_______(add your name) becomes purified  molten liquid, fluid enough to be transformed from the inside out…unfortunately this refining process is repeated over and over again!  Apocalyptic-Discipleship  is a call to pressure and fire…metamorphosis (Rom.8:29; 2 Cor.3:18)!  

We become what we behold, what we behold, we eventually worship.  

‘Apolcalyptic-Discipleship’ is Jesus calling a small group  of men or women to Himself to share life together with a common mission.   However, AD(Apocalyptic-Discipleship/Disciple) is a two-way street. Jesus calls us to Himself to “observe” and “learn” what is important to Him…giving secretly, cheerfully and giving our all!   The keen penetrating  insight of Jesus into religious life is the perspective we need to cultivate.  Jesus is a people-watcher, a people-person.  The Master already taught you can’t serve God and Mammon (money) because you will despise one or the other. The problem is the “love of money” not money in and  of itself.  Now Jesus was intensely contemplating all the people giving offerings  at the treasury-boxes.  When large gifts were given trumpets would be sounded and all heads would turn to see who exactly just gave a big donation to the Temple Foundation. 

Click Link below for a Short Clip on the Widow’s Mite

https://www.churchofjesuschrist.org/bible-videos/videos/jesus-teaches-about-the-widows-mites?lang=eng

Conversely, the two-way street of following Jesus, involves us calling out to Jesus to get His attention in order to  “look” at what impresses or influences  us.  This crucial second level communication of AD’s is where we learn ‘discernment’ to determine how we best steward our time, talents and treasures. The many good things begin to fade as the most excellent ways of God emerge for us!  Discernment for wise choices  and “discernment of spirits” is a critical apocalyptic discipline and spiritual-gift to be developed for the end of the age because religious deception will be so prevalent. 

And this I pray, that your love may abound still more and more in real knowledge and all discernment, 10 so that you may approve the things that are excellent, in order to be sincere and blameless until the day of Christ; 11 having been filled with the fruit of righteousness which comes through Jesus Christ, to the glory and praise of God. (Phil.1:9-11)

A wise man once said to me, “we build churches and then they build us.”  If I understood him correctly, he was saying to me be careful Jeff  to not allow church buildings, budgets, projects, programs capture your attention more than the people they are meant to serve and help.  I confess I like things, I appreciate architecture, I enjoy observing nature at all levels of flora, fauna and geology.  When bored, one of my favorite things to do is watch  predators hunt prey on YouTube.  Currently, I am desperately trying to be more powerful in my love as a son, a father, a friend, a husband and a brother!

Jesus points out people…”this widow”, we tend to point out things “Look at these massive stones and wonderful buildings”.  AD’s are more focused on loving people by using things, as opposed to, loving things and using people. All the “things”…all the stuff in this world is falling apart day by day. Our bodies are becoming tattered tents destined to ashes and dust.  The human race is created in the likeness of God, therefore, human beings are ‘eternal’. As Apocalyptic-Disciples (AD’s) we must bring a quality of being to them born of God’s Spirit. We must seek to observe people and determine exactly what it is that they need from God and then seek to bring that to them in a spirit of servanthood and love.  We must first learn to observe, then to listen, then to speak life-giving words and serve with Holy Spirit strength. 

The Lord God has given Me the tongue of disciples,

That I may know how to sustain the weary one with a word.

He awakens Me morning by morning,

He awakens My ear to listen as a disciple.

The Lord God has opened My ear;

And I was not disobedient

Nor did I turn back. (Isa.50:4-5)

The most important ‘temple treasury’ is the one located in your heart…in your spirit. Our body is the temple of the Holy Spirit. Our body may or may not be ‘impressive’ by the world’s standard, but the Holy Spirit desires  to fill our hearts with the eternal  treasures of heaven, of wisdom, of knowledge, of love, compassion, forgiveness etc. The Son of Man came not to be served but to serve us and lay his life down as a ransom for us (Mk.10:45).  

Lenten Reflection:

  • Shake-up/down: Pray your eyes will be opened to what ‘impresses’ Jesus. Talk to Him about what is influencing you and ask for His perspective.

  • Shake-off: What experience or endeavor or accomplishment have you allowed to heavily  influence your behavior or lifestyle  that is temporal in nature?  This may or may not be your endeavor or accomplishment. 

  • Shake-out:  Go and find someone and tell them about how they impressed you with a Christ-like action. Further, ask God to help you “give your all” for Him like the poor widow.

The Sermon on the Mount of Olives & the Call to Apocalyptic-Discipleship

The Mount of Olives Viewed from the Eastern Wall of Jerusalem in the 21st Century. Jesus would have taught about His Second Coming from this mountain two days before He was rejected and crucified in Jerusalem.(Mark 13) 

       “3 And as He was sitting on the Mount of Olives, the disciples came to Him privately, saying, “Tell us, when will these things happen, and what will be the sign of Your coming, and of the end of the age?” Matthew 24:3

Today is Ash Wednesday.  Ash Wednesday is built on the tradition of imposing ashes on the forehead of the Christian as a sign of repentance and faith in God through Jesus Christ. I remember as a young minister my responsibility was to gather the ‘Palm branches’ our congregation waived on Palm Sunday and place them in a bag for storage. Nearly a year later,  the night before Ash Wednesday, I would burn those branches (if I could find the bag) and prepare the ashes to wipe across the foreheads of our congregation as they took Holy Communion. 

The ashes were symbolic of the confessed sins of omission and commission that we had committed the previous year. Like Peter, our boastings often become the basis of our confession of falling short. Ash Wednesday became the gate of entering into a 40-day season of recentering my life upon the life, ministry and person of Jesus. Lent, in its truest sense, is both commemoration and a  participation in the 40 days that Jesus spent in the wilderness overcoming the world, the flesh and the devil in order to prepare for the public phase of His ministry inaugurated in the Galilee.  Lent ends on Palm Sunday with the beginning of Holy Week.

The Lenten season is never to be a lifeless tradition to replace a lifestyle of repentance and confession. When we confess our sins to God He is faithful to cleanse us and forgive us on any day of the year. The value is found in the “intentionality” of a protracted season of focus on the transformative power of Jesus by His Holy Spirit in us. “Specificity” in our spiritual growth adds focus to His particular work in our heart, mind, will, emotions and body. For example, if we have identified a stronghold of timidity in our soul, we can ‘intentionally’ and ‘specifically’ ask for the help of the Spirit of Jesus to drive this ‘cowardice’ from us to be replaced with bold-love!

I have chosen the Mark 13:1-37 to serve as a Lenten backdrop, spiritual stair-master or template of transformative fellowship with Jesus  for Lent 2021. This Olivet Discourse was given while Jesus sat privately on the western slope Mount of Olives overlooking the ancient city of Jerusalem’s eastern wall. This teaching likely happened at Sunset or in the early evening.

Please read Mark 13 silently, audibly and in various translations over the next several days and weeks. His words are spirit and life to the soul.  You can also read Matthew 24-25 and Luke 21 which are parallel passages which give details Mark does not include and vice versa. Read the events leading up to the Olivet Discourse beginning in Mark 10-16.  You will notice the Sermon on the Mount of Olives is the Last Great Discourse of Jesus other than John 14-17 (which took place likely between during or shortly after the Lord’s Supper and before Gethsamane).  

Therefore, figuratively, over the next 40 days we will climb the Mount of Olives, step by step, stone by stone, verse by verse from the 13th chapter of Mark. There are thirty-seven verses in this chapter that Jesus taught which unfold a kingdom culture and a  lifestyle which we can initiate as citizens of heaven on earth!  The Chief Cornerstone, Jesus, is the firm foundation that provides the immovable and eternal nature of the kingdom of God in a ‘shakeable’ world. The more we internalize this teaching in obedience the more stable and productive we will be for His kingdom in the difficult days unfolding in our world today. 

We must build discernment of the times, be found as faithful servants and stewards when Jesus returns at the end of the age!  This is the simply purpose of the Sermon on the Mount of Olives.

Our goal will be to build on the high ground of the  ‘unshakeable’ kingdom of God.  We will ask the Holy Spirit each day to “ create in us a clean heart”…to “restore the joy of our salvation” and to “renew an upright spirit in us” in the midst of crooked, dark and  crumbling civilization. 

At the end of each biblical devotion, I will suggest one simple prayer-action and ask two questions to facilitate intentional and specific interaction with our Lord Jesus Christ:

1. Shake-down/up: Find a place of solitude each day and pray your life will be marked with the unshakeable characteristics of the  kingdom of God in Jesus Christ revealed in each verse. For example, “the kingdom of God is righteousness, peace and joy in the Holy Spirit” (Rom.14:17).  Pray you will yield to the Holy Spirit to cultivate and build “joy” into your spirit and responses to life challenges. 

  1. Shake-off: During this season of Lent, what habit(s) can I shed or starve or crucify to redirect my time, my talent and my treasure toward the things of God? For example, ‘shake-off’ the spirit of heaviness and put on the garment of praise!

  1.  Shake-out: (Like a salt-shaker)…Today, help me to speak a word or do a good deed that will strengthen someone to consider Jesus and release  His unshakeable kingdom into their lives?

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Holy Hope!

“See how great a love the Father has given us, that we would be called children of God; and in fact we are. For this reason the world does not know us: because it did not know Him. 2 Beloved, now we are children of God, and it has not appeared as yet what we will be. We know that when He appears, we will be like Him, because we will see Him just as He is. 3 And everyone who has this hope set on Him purifies himself, just as He is pure.”

1 John 3:1-3

The First Advent of Jesus Christ was focused on the love of the Father, the hate of the world, sin, righteousness, the children of Light, the children of darkness, the pure Son of God and the devil (1 John 3:4-10).  The devil should be included in nativity scenes, lurking in the shadows of Bethlehem with the body of a dragon and the face of Herod.  In a jealous rage Herod slaughtered all male children 2 years old and younger.  This is right out of the playbook of Satan…genocide…whatever you can’t control and is a threat to your power and control ….steal, kill and destroy.  

However, I want to simply focus on the Second Advent and 1 John 3:1-3 to bring into our view the framework and focus of hope in the midst of our journey, spiritual warfare and adversity!  Check out the simple profound truths that are embedded in the rock of God’s word…

1. As children of God, we are currently being loved PERFECTLY by the Father of our Lord Jesus Christ!  No matter how difficult or disappointing your current relationship(s) may be…the simple truth is YOUR truest and deepest  needs are being considered, quantified and satisfied by the Spirit of God the Father (v1a).  

Rejoice and Receive His Love Now! 

2. The world is trying to build your ‘avatar’ through an algorithm.  Your likes, dislikes, shopping trends, reading habits…what we surf on the NET can become a NET and TURF that the devil uses to entangle us and crowd out pure and simple devotion to Jesus.  However, the truth is your new/divine nature from the nature of Jesus is not penetrable or knowable…it is this nature we must cultivate into mature love and godliness. God’s knowledge of you trumps the limited intelligence  the demonic or world may have on you!  The world underestimated Jesus and the very tool of crucifixion became the ultimate instrument of love, releasing forgiveness and reconciliation to the Father, the destruction of the devil,  the victory of the resurrection and the hope of His return. (v1b)

Submit to God, break out of the mold of the world, Resist the devil and he will flee! 

  1.  The resurrection of Jesus is the best forecast of what you and your future looks like! Horoscopes, endless self-help/enhancement books, body modifications, pills, potions, oils etc., will never provide genuine confidence. The best version of yourself will only be realized at the resurrection. When our faith is replaced with the Epiphany of Jesus Christ at His Second Advent, we shall become in that moment similiar to Him.  We will be freed from evil, death, sickness and failure for all eternity!  This is your future. (v2)

Lift up your head, your Redemption draws near!

  1. Hope in Jesus  is the most powerful moral, mental, emotional, physical and spiritual cleansing agent in the known universe!  Biblical Hope builds a Highway of Holiness to immediately access the resources of Heaven’s Throne of Grace and Mercy in time of need. Condemnation builds a mote around a castle of darkness and despair. Healing Hope is like the leukocytes (white blood cells) in our blood. WBC’s are the cells of the immune system that are involved in protecting the body against both infectious disease and foreign invaders. Hope attacks despair, disappointment, doubt, unhinged anger, strife, fear…the list could go on and on!  Have you ever said to yourself, “ When  I grow up I want to be like him/her?”  ‘Confident expectation’ built on the character of God and His word best defines hope.  As the beloved in Christ we don’t embrace ‘luck’ or ‘wishful thinking’ to navigate the disappointments or triumphs of life.  The hope of the child of God is an anchor that is fastened in the heavens, in the throne room of God Himself…and this anchor will hold fast in any raging storm!  We can grow up, change, and transition to a higher level and quality of living by EXCLUSIVELY putting our trust and hope in the Pure One! 

Are you dirty? Do you feel soiled by this world? Are you battle weary? Are you in a job above or below your pay grade?  Has love in and around you evaporated like a dried up reservoir?  Do you think nobody really ‘sees’  or ‘knows, you? 

Let us bow down on our knees, humble ourselves before the Father….Take courage and receive a fresh impartation of hope and love from the Spirit of God. You are perfectly loved, you belong to the family of God, you are known deeply, your potential will in truth be realized…your are pure as the white driven snow of Christmas and your future is filled with an ultimate transformation likened unto the resurrection of our coming Lord Jesus Christ.

“5 and hope does not disappoint, because the love of God has been poured out within our hearts through the Holy Spirit who was given to us…13 Now may the God of hope fill you with all joy and peace in believing, so that you will abound in hope by the power of the Holy Spirit.”  (Romans 5:5; 15:13)

Christ in you, the Hope of Glory

-The Apostle Paul

(Please Share with others who may need some hope and encouragement)

Unhinged Gratitude

This expression, “Yet once more,” denotes the removing of those things which can be shaken, as of created things, so that those things which cannot be shaken may remain. (Hebrews 11:27)

Recent 2020 Earthquake in Turkey

The climate in current American politics is “unhinged”.  Since the advent of a Donald Trump Presidency  into Washington D.C. the word “unhinged” has dramatically increased in the current vocabulary of the day. Trump’s presence and leadership style has for whatever reason upset the status quo of Washington bureaucrats on both sides of the isle.

Unhinged, an adjective, is defined as “highly disturbed, unstable, or distraught”; the verb form of “ to unhinge” may be defined as either “to make unstable” or “to remove from the hinges.” (Miriam-Webster Dictionary).  

The earliest record (1643) we have of the use of “unhinged” flanks the tumultuous days of England that birthed the Puritian movement to flee to America and worship God in a new found freedom. Read carefully the 17th century English media comment on the political climate of the day:

Our sad Case is now such, That we have an Incensed God; an angry King; a threatening Councell; a heady Clergy; a divided Nobility; a discontented Gentry; a distempered People; a distracted Religion; an unhinged State … a defection from the Principles of sound Policy; a Parliament which should be the Redresse of all these, made quite otherwise, to us, by some that have abused it: and generally such a conspiracy; such a complying of ill Symptomes; that even Miracles must be wrought, or else we perish.

— Thomas Povey, The moderator expecting sudden peace, or certaine ruine, 1643

Our day is a similiar repeat of the unrest of our birth mother England.  The difference will be, “How will the church worldwide respond to the 21st century  instability of the USA?” 

We must accept the truth, regardless of who wins the Presidency or the majority in the Senate, the Constitution of the United States and the United States of America is “shakeable”, it will NOT endure, it will NOT stand…it will totter and tip over. On the other hand, the word of God and His Kingdom is firmly enduring forever. 

The Christian should not be surprised by the instability of governments. Consider… the conception of the nation of Israel occurred under a Pharaoh who favored Joseph and his family (Genesis 45:7-10).  Four-Hundred years later…The birth of the nation of Israel happened under a “Pharaoh who knew NOT Joseph” (Ex.1:8).  At the best times, the horse drawn chariots of world governments are escorting us to the Promise Land (Gen.50:9)….in the worst of times, they are hunting God’s people down like animals or criminals in the wilderness, on the streets and even in homes (Ex.14:9).

“Then the Egyptians chased after them with all the horses and chariotsof Pharaoh, his horsemen and his army, and they overtook them camping by the sea,“

In fact, our gratitude and confidence is built on the expectation that what can be shaken will be shaken.  Our gratitude becomes more focused and our worship is purified when things are falling apart around us! 

The Favor of men will come and go like the rain and sunshine. But God the Father’s favor found in the person of Jesus Christ and His Righteous Kingdom endures all seasons and forever…”to the praise of His glorious grace” (Eph.1:6). 

Those of us, who have come to accept the inevitable disappointment of the institutions of man, will be the most grateful and worshipful.

We must realize the fiery Presence of God will sweep away all the feeble efforts of human institutions to govern the huddled masses. The rejection of Judeo-Christian principles becomes the fuel that feeds our expectation for the ultimate victory of the kingdom of God in the earth through Jesus Christ the Lord of lords and King of kings.

Hebrews 12:25-29 See to it that you do not refuse Him who is speaking. For if those did not escape when they refused him who warned them on earth, much less will we escape who turn away from Him who warns from heaven. 26 And His voice shook the earth then, but now He has promised, saying, “Yet once more I will shake not only the earth, but also the heaven.” 27 This expression, “Yet once more,” denotes the removing of those things which can be shaken, as of created things, so that those things which cannot be shaken may remain. 28 Therefore, since we receive a kingdom which cannot be shaken, let us show gratitude, by which we may offer to God an acceptable service with reverence and awe; 29 for our God is a consuming fire.

Thanksgiving Day is around the corner…be sure to discuss with family and friends what you are GRATEFUL for in this season!!

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Election Day Benefits

This Biblical Meditation will teach you …God’s Election First Draws Us to Himself and Secondly Sends Us into the World with His Power and Love!

Today, in the United States of America, is Election Day 2020.  I cast an early ballot along with a record 100,000,000 other citizens of America. Men and women from “sea to shining sea” will vote, pray, fast, drink, shop, work and gather around TV’s much of the day. I woke up this morning stirred to write.  The huddled masses will  eagerly and fearfully await the election results for the President of the United States, Senate and Congressional winners.  The 2020 election is the most consequential election in modern history. The horses and chariots of freedom and socialism are squared off across the geo-political landscape. Our immediate future will be drastically shaped by this election for better or worse. The inevitable demise of our nation is certain under God, as are all governments. Jesus will come again to render  judgment on all nations “as a shepherd separates the sheep from the goats” (Matt.25:31-46).

In the meantime, the believers in Yeshua, those Elected by God, are commanded to pray, watch, preach, worship, serve and occupy ourselves with His loving work until He comes again (Mark 13). Whether you are politically blue or red or purple (or orange for that matter) is of little consequence from a kingdom of God perspective. The real allegiance is determined by our “readiness” to meet Jesus. We are citizens of heaven, “For our citizenship is in heaven, from which we also eagerly wait for a Savior, the Lord Jesus Christ” (Phil.3:20). 

Have you ever wondered what it would have been like to be chosen by Jesus to be one of His apostles? The kingdom of God is not a democracy, it is a Theocracy.  Jesus was not holding an Election Day atop a mountain in the Galilee and counting the ballots of the angels and spirits of “ just men and women departed” in order to determine who would be the Apostles of the Lamb. No rather, Jesus was consulting with the Father, within the Eternal Godhead, to choose out the Twelve from among the many disciples.

God’s election of us in Christ has the immediate results of the assurance of salvation. We know we have been chosen by virtue of the in dwelling Holy Spirit who speaks to our heart that we are a child of God and belong to Him. We do not have to wait for the votes to be counted over our lifetime. We are “in Christ” and He is “in you the hope of glory.” 

The Gospel of Luke records this event in time and space in Chapter 6:12-16: 

Choosing the Twelve

12 Now it was at this time that He went off to the mountain to pray, and He spent the whole night in prayer with God. 13 And when day came, He called His disciples to Him and chose twelve of them, whom He also named as apostles: 14 Simon, whom He also named Peter, and his brother Andrew; and James and John; and Philip and Bartholomew; 15 and Matthew and Thomas; James the son of Alphaeus, and Simon who was called the Zealot; 16 Judas the son of James, and Judas Iscariot, who became a traitor.

17 And then Jesus came down with them and stood on a level place; and there was a large crowd of His disciples, and a great multitude of the people from all Judea and Jerusalem, and the coastal region of Tyre and Sidon, 18 who had come to hear Him and to be healed of their diseases; and those who were troubled by unclean spirits were being cured. 19 And all the people were trying to touch Him, because power was coming from Him and healing them all.  20 And He raised His eyes toward His disciples and began saying, “Blessed are you who are poor, for yours is the kingdom of God…”

Divine Election is a profound truth in the Sacred Writings from Genesis to Revelation. God chose individuals, Israel, tribes, kings, priests and prophets for special revelation and service in His purpose. In love, God the Father chose you in Christ (Eph.1:4-5)!  You and I are loved by the Father, redeemed by the Son and sealed with the Holy Spirit for salvation yet to be fully revealed (Eph.1:3-14). 

 I pray on this Election Day you will experience the elevating and stabilizing assurance that you belong to the Heavenly Father by His choice! Further, the Father has a divine mission for you to undertake to make a difference in the sphere of your influence.

 

 

In Luke 6, the selection of the Apostles by Jesus underscores several truths about the nature of God’s elective love.   Context is everything in the sound exegesis of Scripture.  Luke 6 begins in a grainfield and ends with the eloquence of the Sermon on the Mount in the midst of a healing revival. 

A Few Principles We Can Embrace from the Doctrine of Election:

  • Election Emerges from Rejection: Luke 6 clearly records Jesus’ ministry among the Jews, especially in the Synagogues on the Sabbath, was creating a stir among the religious leaders. In the atmosphere of accusation and irrational rage,  Jesus is prompted to begin the process of choosing and forming His apostolic team to become the very foundation of the church (Eph.2:20). The Apostle chooses the apostles.  Rejection, opposition, false accusations and even persecution can be transformed into intercession, election and edification in love! Peter will later teach, “A stone which the builders rejected, this became the chief cornerstone” (1 Peter 2:4-9).  The rejection and crucifixion of Jesus is the basis of our value and election. Our rejections in life submitted to God can often prove to be the most valuable lessons we learn.

(v7)Now the scribes and the Pharisees were watching Him closely to see if He healed on the Sabbath, so that they might find a reason to accuse Him… (v11)But they themselves were filled with senseless rage, and began discussing together what they might do to Jesus.

  • Election Elevates our Spirituality (v12): Jesus climbed a mountain to find a place of prayer and  solitude to select who among His disciples would serve as apostles. This reminds me of how Solomon’s Temple was built. The costly and gigantic foundation stones were quarried in the mines of Ancient Palestine apart from the Sacred Temple Mount. The sound of the chisel and the hammar were not to be heard in the Temple Mount.  The intercessions of Jesus is where God selects us. This knowledge of His divine elective grace is what elevates us to choose the Father in our quest to select the best among the many good things we can say and do for His glory (Col.1:9-11). Our prayer life is an essential hidden place wherein the Father chips, chisels and shapes our lives into the likeness of the character of Yeshua.  Jesus spent the entire night in prayer which points to the gravity of this decision. “Praying Through” until you get peace or hear the voice of the Father is a powerful building tool for His kingdom.  The Elective Love of God has a rhythm of both “come” to Me and “go” with Me in My name.

 

  • Election Isolates our Individuality in the midst of Community & Increases Our Sense of Belonging (vv13-16):   Personally, Jesus privately chose and publicly  called each of the 12 disciples by name.  The word “chose” means to literally “to  intentionally speak/call someone out”.  This selection can happen privately or publicly.  “This is My Son, the Chosen One, listen to Him”  was spoken by the Heavenly Father in front of Moses, Elijah, Peter, James and John (Luke 9:35). 

 In the deepest sense, the truth of Election is not simply a doctrine or timeless principle… but rather,  the Person of Jesus. God’s GRACIOUS CHOICE of us connects our person to His person in Christ. 

 

Election precedes calling, and calling precedes sending.  Apostles are “sent ones” with the authority and power of the one whom they represent. Obviously, we are not all called to be apostles BUT we are all called to be APOSTOLIC. Each of us is sent by God into our fields to work and serve His purpose. However, He also paired them up in teams of two and  a broader apostolic community of Twelve among the larger circle of disciples.  Election both distinguishes us in our personal worth but we also emerge in a community to thrust into purpose.  Eventually, Jesus would send these teams of two out into the villages to practice what He was training them to do.  Jesus, the Good Shepherd, knows us by name but calls us to live in a community.  The Father’s choice of us is meant to ‘FUEL’ our love for Him and our fellow man. 

 

  • Election Levels the Playing Field & Releases Powerful Love (vv.17-19):  The Scripture says Jesus, “came down” with the apostles and stood on “level ground” with the rest of the disciples and the large crowd from all over the Galilee region.  God chooses us to be on the same level as others. Our election is never meant to exalt one man above another man in value. We are to stand eye to eye with humanity with the love, acceptance and forgiveness of Jesus in our hearts for every tribe, nation and people. Pride is juxtaposed to humility, having no ground in the kingdom of God. All God’s leader’s are called to be “bond-servants” , free will slaves to His Majesty. This humility and servanthood both attracts hurting humanity and releases the powerful love of God to deliver and heal. We are selected to serve with love and power in the name of Jesus.

 

  • Election Positions Us to Bless (v20):  Luke dovetails the narrative of Jesus’ selection of the apostles into the Sermon on the Mount. The Apostle Paul broadcasted in Ephesians 1:3-4: 

 3 Blessed be the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, who has blessed us with every spiritual blessing in the heavenly places in Christ, 4 just as He chose us in Him before the foundation of the world, that we would be holy and blameless before Him. In love…

Our election in Christ is the fountainhead of all spiritual life. We are chosen in love to release a ‘eulogy’ over each other and hurt humanity. “Bless” literally means to ‘eulogize’. We don’t have to wait until somebody is dead to speak prophetic grace over their lives…we can start today!  Jesus chose the apostles, Jesus chose you and I to stand on “level ground” with Him to bless and build on the firm foundation of obedience to His word.  

46 “Now why do you call Me, ‘Lord, Lord,’ and do not do what I say? 47 Everyone who comes to Me and hears My words and acts on them, I will show you whom he is like: 48 he is like a man building a house, who dug deep and laid a foundation on the rock; and when there was a flood, the river burst against that house and yet it could not shake it, because it had been well built. 49 But the one who has heard and has not acted accordingly is like a man who built a house on the ground without a foundation; and the river burst against it and it immediately collapsed, and the ruin of that house was great.”

The United States of America is being shaken by the Almighty God. The rage and violence is building all around us. Satanic anger and accusation is flooding the airwaves, our communities , and our government.  Jesus warned us these days would come and HE CHOSE US TO MAKE A DIFFERENCE.  We must now climb to higher ground…pray for love and power to fill our hearts…descend in humility to our fellow man…serve with power and love… and relentlessly teach the truth until He comes again! 

Maranatha!!!