This week I have decided to write about me, where I am at now and the exciting road I have been on for almost two and a half years. I hope you will stay with me, as I feel the need to once again vent. My getting a little more personal was prompted by some feedback I got on my last blog, from a man I very much respect and have mentioned in my past blogs. Also he happens to be one of the very few who care to comment: even my close friends and fellow active positional truth doctrine compatriots seldom give feed back, advice or encouragement. I've sort of gotten used to the aloneness of my adventure, but I would be less than honest if I said I did not harbor some resentment, mostly by way of feeling sorry for myself. But enough said about my feelings and on to the subject brought to mind by my loan feedback blog victim.
As I've always maintained this blog is for me, but with hope that a light may be turned on in others minds as to the possibility of a conscious life lived in the position we have been placed in by God in His Son. I do realize that the concepts I attempt to discuss are difficult for most Christians, after all we are limited by our selves, our preconceptions, both right and wrong. In my new view, from heaven, seen in my new spiritual definition of Paul's teachings it seems so clear that we The Church are a completely new creation never before imagined in any previous biblical/spiritual setting, a heavenly placed creation, given the opportunity to live in the peace of the very Son of God, where He is, ascended and in heaven; by our acquiring faith in that biblical fact, and that God wants us to abide in that position as a mind set, right here on earth. I know from past experience that takes some doing. The mess Christianity is in is very apparent. Before the reformation in about 1550 there was only a few denominations, the catholic church being the main one, and a quick review of its history will revel a lot of poor, UN-biblical teachings if not down right heresy's. Now we have the supposed enlightenment, and Christianity is now patched together with over 200 denominations. The Apostles must be rolling over in their graves at the display of convoluted teachings now being carried on in the name of Christ. No wonder Christians are confused, and the unbelieving world remains in unbelief, at least partly I think by our poor example. Christianity seems to have thrown in the towel to a worldly carnal walk, despite a very clear account in the Word of how we are to conduct ourselves by faith as new creatures, and where our hearts are to be confined by definition, in the household of God, a radical path separate from others, finding freedom in the weakness we gain, in the death of our flesh in Christ, positioned heavenly in Christ, by our faith in that fact.
A perfect example of this problem was made very clear to me by the feedback responder; throwing me into a somewhat shocking realization of my apparent inability to make myself clear in the basic contextual meaning of my blog. Or could it be that my loyal readers simply don't get it, due to the confusion fostered upon them by today's church experience. Maybe its my fault; I haven't been articulate enough; I know there's some truth in that! I suspect the real truth however is the Holy Spirit has not found opportunity in their weakness. I fear it takes a broken spirit to receive a life in Christ. I am grateful for the humbled place I ended up in the recent past, which opened the door, at least for the beginning of spiritual maturity. Although I am still very much a work in process, and that's for sure, as we all are!
So lets set the record straight: I have come to learn that I as a Christian have a responsibility to know truth. I live in a sin racked body in a sin filled world, no doubt! My flesh is very real and I have a human nature, which the bible tells me is fallen from contact with God because sin resides in my human nature or flesh. That is simply who we all are. Becoming a Christian doesn't change that. This is our personal sinful Adam inherited presence, the bible refers to as the first Adam, he is us! God loves me despite that Adam existence, but can not accept me, because I have sin. He therefore sent His Son to Die in my place so that in The Fathers estimation we would be seen as dead to our flesh in spirit, our first Adam, the sin of human nature. The Father, when I was born again, gave me a gift, called faith, seen in the replacement image in His mind of us, He established in His Son, and that is where I now am seen by God; nothing less than I am in His Son's status before God, who is in heaven, I am included. Its hard to make that concept gain traction in this world, seen in a practical way, it cannot be experienced by a feeling or emotion or a religious duty; but only by pure faith rested in, which some call positional faith; this concept is spiritual, a non material mental condition we can only hold in our mind and which by The Fathers own will is carried in the very personal existence of His Son. Any other way is going back to the old first Adams way involving law and works,or human effort. Yes creation is good yes it is beautiful, yes we must live and be a part of this world. The flesh or human nature is the body all these concepts are held in, hopefully by faith, [the only way to please God] I will perform in a way which honors His sacrifice. But the body will go away and so will this creation, all things eventually deteriorate in the material realm, so hope can only be found in faith.
The premier example for us of positional faith truth in our total existence as being found in Jesus Christ is Shown in God's word. We may discover this absolute truth, when we read Acts 7:55: "But he [Stephen] being full of the Holy Spirit, looked steadfastly into heaven, and saw the glory of God, and Jesus standing on the right hand of God". If my friends you do not understand this, as Stephen did, as his his position, not only his hope, you will never be able to understand how you are to carry about your faith in function and form in the body in which your non material spirit dwells. He Stephen is consciously connected with the glory of God and the Lord Jesus Christ, which makes him personally qualified to announce where the Son of Man is; if He is seen there, then by that same vision we also are seen by God as being there, as we are in Christ. In other words,without the knowledge of your rest in position in Christ, defined by God as you in His Son seen from His side, you are subject to the world, which means by biblical definition, under this conceptual banner we are speaking of here, the system of Satan.
Please my good and faithful Christian friends, do not live your live in the hope of the next world only, or the coming new heavens and new earth, or the rapture, are consideration of world events leading to the tribulation/anti Christ or even biblical doctrines: which while they are good to study for edification and knowledge, but when relied upon of themselves often lead to sectarian strong holds. And not even your family and loved ones or the physical church functions or religious duty, and please, please do not rely on feelings are experience. While many of these things are of a biblical nature, and not to be ignored, they in and of themselves will not separate you unto Christ, who is our Christian reality in God's, plan. Remember,The Lord Jesus, as a Man [second Adam] glorified the Father on this earth, and the Father rests in that, as a Man [second Adam] He accomplished redemption. Now He has passed into heaven, as a New Adam, The second Man "us", to appear in the presence of God for and as representing us. It is our faith in Him as present there, for and as us in God's estimation, where will will find abiding rest to our souls, and not our thoughts or enjoyment of His creation, or duty's and experiences we have in ourselves, what ever they may be.
I observe three things which are the predominant characteristic of today's church/christian experience At least the churches which are filled and growing. The first, many churches are dedicated to busyness, works, activities, missions and programs. Second a emphasis on relationship, psychology, singles groups, couples workshops and recovery from bad habits. And the third the high energy emphasis on experience, emotion driven by loud music and a shouting, strutting, sweating, preacher calling for Jesus to enter in by The Spirit. Of course none today can leave out handsome people entertaining the flock with a contemporary music program and songs sung in seven verses repeated eleven times, to make sure the spirit moves, which today passes for worship. Don't get me wrong I enjoy some of these features in my flesh and even may receive spiritual edification. I am sure God can use many varieties of styles to accomplish His will, and I know the intent is good, and many of these activities are not bad in themselves, and probably even accomplish much good. But none of these types of experience will build strong mature saints, which is the main job of The Church, and the churches weakness is very apparent, by the embrace of a worldly christian culture by many of today's believers, who simply are not making their separation from the world very easy to see, remaining immature saints.Then what is our calling? How should we see ourselves to be seen, by this dark world?
For me my new life and calling started, like most Christian, being born again, and I came to believe He died for me, I was a new baby, where mostly I stayed for 36 years. We all remember that day! But how many can place the day they themselves saw that they died with Him as a new calling? Oh what a day that was for me. Being born again elicited much emotion, a pink cloud. But adopting His death as mine brought freedom, peace and joy; what better place is there? I came to realize that I must reckon [count as true] on that God ordained biblical fact,which accomplished a union of He and I, now held in my knowledge/mind of faith. It is not that I reckoned myself dead and therefore I will be dead: It is that, because I died in Him therefore I can reckon myself to have died. If you have just read that and it does not make sense to you, its because you have never been taught the most important fundamental truth of Christianity, by your happy church experience. A life changing radical realization! We do not reckon [know truth] toward death, but from death! The Bible says it: "We are dead and our life is hidden in Christ Jesus". If that's not a absolute livable truth and we do not know it or do not wish to make the effort, then I would say lets just eat drink and be merry! My prayer for us all is to gain the knowledge of our identification in Christ, and find our place positioned in Him! Thank you my friends for staying with me.
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