I love sharing stuff that God shows me. It blesses others, it blesses me as I process the truth, and it is biblical "Give thanks to the Lord and proclaim his greatness. Let the whole world know what he has done"(Psalm 105:1). But in this case, I wasn't praising Him as much as I was focusing on sharing. Turns out I was neglecting the personal application of this message by focusing on how to share it first. And recently, He reminded me that this message was personal, so the magnitude in which I received it might not even be for everyone. (*GASP!) Who would've thought? A personal God can give personal messages. So now, I've kept the original post for my records and personal meditation and I'm posting this draft to more generally share with you any truths I've been learning in the process. Maybe that was an unnecessary preface, but I like being transparent when I can. So if you want to know more about that then ask me! Ok here we go.
It was a while ago. I was hanging out with some friends out of town for a weekend. Spring Break I think it was. You know how sometimes you can wake up one day and look back on the day before like it was a blur? Has that ever happened and you felt convicted because the day before you can't recollect connecting with God or even allowing Him into any of your decisions? Ever felt like you've just been on automatic pilot for a while, and all of a sudden you remember where you are and who you serve? Yeah, this was kinda like that. So I woke up the next day in this foreign place that wasn't my home (You know that initial shock you get when you wake up somewhere that you forgot you fell asleep at). And as I went to read my bible in my year-bible-plan, I was in Deuteronomy at the time. I think it was Deuteronomy 11. And if not, it definitely has the heart of what I received:
The Lord spoke to me through this passage, about how we are called to be holy no matter where we are and what we are doing. There's a crazy strong allusion to the Israelites in the desert out of Egypt and the Christian "journey." And it makes sense seeing how the old covenant from Moses and the new covenant from Christ are comparative but different. One being carnal, and the other being spiritual.
- God saves you out of slavery:
- Israelites? Egypt.
- Christians? Sin.
- God blesses your possessions:
- God lives among us:
- Israelites? As a holy people through the Lord's Sanctuary (Ex. 25:8).
- Christians? As a holy people inside of us spiritually (John 14:23 & 1 Cor. 3:16).
- God instructs us to live separate and be holy for the purpose of exalting His name:
- Israelites: As a new nation of people (Ex. 19:5-6).
- Christians: As a new breed of priests (1 Pet. 2:9-10).
- God promises us a land he will provide for them where our holy calling is fulfilled as citizens:
- Israelites? The Land of Israel (Deut. 11:8-12)
- Christians? The Kingdom of God. When he either returns or our time is up, but also in the present as He uses us to establish His kingdom (2 Corinthians 5:1-5 & Luke 11:2).
I think there's something to be said about places and spiritual atmospheres. In the Old Testament, especially Genesis, when God spoke to people in certain places, they would make an altar to the Lord there and name the place. Though it's not the focus of this post, I thought it was interesting and I'm sure I'll learn more about it as I walk with Jesus.
This topic of integrity can sound really obvious on the surface, but a lot of times it's easy for me to fall into holding back my opinion or to agree to "go with the flow" of a situation because I don't want to be "overbearing" or "judgmental." But that's not the meekness that Christ preaches. That's being deceived. It's a slippery slope that leads into the pit of moral relativism, where the hope is to please everyone, or as many as possible, or those over you, or sometimes just a specific person other than God, maybe even yourself. But how can one stand for something they believe in if it's power is only relative? And what would even be the point in believing it yourself? The truth tends to be more black and white than we make it out to be.
in·teg·ri·ty... /inˈtegritē/
Noun: 1. ...is when you represent those truths, regardless of the opposition found around you.By this definition, integrity is best shown in moments of opposition. In case you still believe in a door-mat Jesus that defines "love" as doing what makes everyone feel good so that people are cool with Him here's an example that proves that pretty dead wrong:
And He entered the synagogue again, and a man was there who had a withered hand. So they watched Him closely, whether He would heal him on the Sabbath, so that they might accuse Him. And He said to the man who had the withered hand, “Step forward.” Then He said to them, “Is it lawful on the Sabbath to do good or to do evil, to save life or to kill?” But they kept silent. And when He had looked around at them with anger, being grieved by the hardness of their hearts, He said to the man, “Stretch out your hand.” And he stretched it out, and his hand was restored as whole as the other.
―Mark 3:1-5
We have to be willing to live lives as nomads. We are to be living our lives out of a tent, "so-to-speak," like Abraham. We are to be living as if this world does not satisfy us and as if we seek a heavenly citizenship (Hebrews 11:13-16). It's not an easy call. Our nature tells us that we wont be satisfied until we get A, B, or C. What has helped me immensely is Psalm 23:8 I have become a stranger to my brothers,
And an alien to my mother’s children;
9 Because zeal for Your house has eaten me up,
And the reproaches of those who reproach You have fallen on me.―Psalm 69:8-9
The Lord is my shepherd;
I shall not want.
He makes me to lie down in green pastures;
He leads me beside the still waters.
He restores my soul;
He leads me in the paths of righteousness
For His name’s sake.
Yea, though I walk through the valley of the shadow of death,
I will fear no evil;
For You are with me;
Your rod and Your staff, they comfort me.You prepare a table before me in the presence of my enemies;Surely goodness and mercy shall follow me
You anoint my head with oil;
My cup runs over.
All the days of my life;
And I will dwell in the house of the Lord
Forever.
―Psalm 23
And through this obedience, He has something to bless You with. One thing I just noticed about Deuteronomy 11 is in verses 22 to 25. He actually told them exactly what the borders of their land was: "Your frontiers will stretch from the wilderness in the south to Lebanon in the north, and from the Euphrates River in the east to the Mediterranean Sea in the west." What has God promised you? What will you receive from Him by loving Him and living in integrity?
Thanks Lord, I really needed to hear this.
