February 2024 – Persecution Live

Gladness Who Creates

If eternity were an apartment, God did not need a pet to keep him company. The triune God needed nothing upon which to dote or depend. His golden existence never borrows from other suns.

Yet we read, “In the beginning, God created the heavens and the earth” (Genesis 1:1) — why? If he is so happy and blessed, why create anything at all? Because God delights to share his fullness, his happiness, his life, his love, his glory — not to complete that fullness, but to extend it to others.

“There is an expansive quality to his joy,” writes Piper. “It wants to share itself. The impulse to create the world was not from weakness, as though God were lacking in some perfection that creation could supply.” To quote Jonathan Edwards, “It is no argument of the emptiness or deficiency of a fountain, that it is inclined to overflow.” Again, Piper writes, “All his works are simply the spillover of his infinite exuberance for his own excellence” (Works, 49).

In the beginning, then, God created the heavens and the earth freely, bountifully, happily. He looked down as an artist painting — stars, fish, mountains, man — “Oh, that is good!” He creates and admires and gives and fills and blesses from a full cupboard.

His Pleasure Precedes Us

Mercifully, the Arkenstone jewel of God’s happiness is not the creature — his perfect, holy, complete joy precedes us. God’s happiness is infinite and eternal and untainted precisely because it is independent — he draws from wells we knew not of, that which always was and always will be.

Survey the pantheon of gods, and here alone we find the only Being that can satisfy the soul forever. A fulsome ocean surges within himself — Father, Son, and Holy Ghost — waters of bliss that he invites the redeemed to swim within. God has never been needy or lonely or bored. The salvation of man is a subplot, a minor theme, within an eternal drama of Trinitarian love. Baffling man-centric theologies, John Piper writes,

Within the triune Godhead (Father, Son, and Holy Spirit), God has been uppermost in his own affections for all eternity. This belongs to his very nature, for he has begotten and loved the Son from all eternity. Therefore, God has been supremely and eternally happy in the fellowship of the Trinity. (Collected Works, vol. 2, 48–49)

Here we find our glad tidings: His happiness does not depend upon us — thus he can satisfy us. None can pickpocket his pleasure. Not Satan, not the world, not our sin. “It should delight us beyond all expression,” writes Henry Scougal, “to consider that the one who is beloved in our own souls is infinitely happy in himself and that all his enemies cannot shake or unsettle him from his throne” (Life of God in the Soul of Man, 83). The triune God’s delight cannot sag or wobble; his cheerful crown cannot topple from his brow. He does not sink into despair.

Do you say or think things like this? I forgive the person but I will let God deal with them. If you want God to judge and punish them, that is not forgiveness.
Do you say things like, I forgive the person but I do not want to see them or talk to them again. How would you feel if God said to you I forgive you but I am going to avoid you and not speak to you, would you feel forgiven? That is not forgiveness. God’s forgiveness always restores.
Do you still have any anger or bad feelings toward the person? When you fully forgive the person, anger will be replaced with pity for them.
Do you still hold on to the memory of the wrong done to you thinking about it often? True forgiveness forgets, because of the healing of forgiveness the pain disappears as if it did not happen. When God forgives He forgets it forever as if it never occurred.
Do you have trouble accepting God’s love for you, and accepting God’s forgiveness? If so it could be because you are standing in judgement of another person, because you don’t have mercy, it is hard for you to believe that God has mercy and compassion for you. Forgive others and you will be able to forgive yourself, and accept God’s forgiveness in your life. “Blessed are the merciful: for they shall obtain mercy.” (Matthew 5:7)

Part of the meaning of the word blessed means to be happy, joyful, and depression free. Sometimes we may think that we have forgiven someone but we really have not. When you forgive someone then they are also forgiven by God. Again Jesus said, “Then said Jesus to them again, Peace be unto you: as my Father hath sent me, even so send I you. And when he had said this, he breathed on them, and saith unto them, Receive ye the Holy Ghost: Whose soever sins ye remit, they are remitted unto them; and whose soever sins ye retain, they are retained.” (John 20:21-23)

This is how to enter into the healing forgiveness, compassion, mercy, and Love of God, which is His grace. Get on your knees and enter into prayer for the person that has hurt you. Approach the throne of grace, in front of the mercy seat, and petition your Father in heaven to please forgive this person. Ask God almighty to pour out His grace, mercy, and compassion upon this person, and in this person. Name off every sin that has been done against you, God will reveal them to you there so you can leave them behind.

Tell God please forgive this person because they did not know what they were doing, they did not know how bad their sin was and how much pain it would cause. Just as Jesus hanging upon the cross in agony looked down on the people murdering Him and said Father forgive them for they know not what they are doing. Ask God in Jesus name, and by the blood that Jesus shed on the cross to please forgive each sin done against you individually. As you name each sin against you and ask God to forgive a ten ton burden will lift off with each one. You will know when they are all gone.

“Who is a wise man and endued with knowledge among you? let him shew out of a good conversation his works with meekness of wisdom. But if ye have bitter envying and strife in your hearts, glory not, and lie not against the truth. This wisdom descendeth not from above, but is earthly, sensual, devilish. For where envying and strife is, there is confusion and every evil work. But the wisdom that is from above is first pure, then peaceable, gentle, and easy to be intreated, full of mercy and good fruits, without partiality, and without hypocrisy. And the fruit of righteousness is sown in peace of them that make peace.” (James 3:13-18)

Recently God took me into the deepest realm of forgiveness that I have ever experienced. Feeling wronged by a Christian Brother, I was offended, and felt that I did not deserve the false judgments and things he was saying against me, mainly to other people. Jesus teaches us if someone has something against us to go and be reconciled to your brother before you even bring a gift to the Lord. I wanted to reconcile but it seemed impossible because we were unable and it seemed unwilling to even communicate so that we could reconcile. One night when this was a heavy weight upon my soul I began crying out to the Lord not even knowing what to say or pray. I sometimes just groaned in my Spirit and even groaning out loud at times. For about two hours I sought the Lord and His help.

At one point it finally occurred to me that the Lord must be trying to teach me something because it seems always at my lowest points of despair God gives me the greatest revelations. So I said Lord what are you trying to teach me? Within a few minutes the revelation began. I felt that I should pray what I have been teaching others to pray. That is for God to have grace, mercy, and compassion upon the person who I felt had wronged me. But immediately I thought no maybe God needs to deal with this person and “teach him a lesson”. Recognizing that this was judgmental on my part and a very wrong attitude, I proceeded to pray for him that God would have grace, mercy and compassion on him.

At that moment I felt in my spirit that I was moving into the presence of God and my burden starting to lift. I then proceeded to ask God to please forgive my brother who I felt wronged me and I started to name off each offence I felt was done against me. Each time I named an offence and asked God to please forgive him I felt a heavy burden lift from my being. When I named the last one that I could think of I was free. Immediately I felt the Holy Spirit say to me the words of Jesus “If you forgive the sins of any, they are forgiven them; if you retain the sins of any, they are retained.” I knew that my brothers’ sins were fully forgiven, not just by me but also by the Lord, and now Satan had no right and no more hold over my brother, or me, the next day we began to be reconciled. I believe that as his sins were forgiven he was set free from deception

I had always thought that I was very good at forgiveness, and I believe people that know me would agree with that because of some situations I have gone through before. But this time the Lord took me to a new dimension of forgiveness that I had never known before. Now I realize that what I thought was forgiveness was not. Until you go before the throne of grace in front of the mercy seat and plead for God to also forgive the people who have wronged or offended you, you have not fully forgiven. Just as Jesus hanging in agony on the cross, looked down at the people killing Him and said “Father forgive them, for they do not know what they are doing”. God wants us to come to that point in our life. When you get to that point you are dead to yourself, you have given up all of your rights, all your rights to be angry, hurt, offended, to punish, and to judge the other person. It is the most humbling spiritual experience I have ever had, it is very painful to cross that line of giving up all your rights and dying to yourself. But He gives more grace. Therefore He says: “But he giveth more grace. Wherefore he saith, God resisteth the proud, but giveth grace unto the humble.” (James 4:6)

But once I was there, and I felt that burden lift, I felt the most awesome blessing of God come upon me. “Blessed are the merciful: for they shall obtain mercy.” (Matt 5:7). I felt God’s compassion come all over me, and fill me to overflowing. We have to be very careful to not let ourselves become offended at other people because we will be judged the same way we judge others. “Judge not, that ye be not judged. For with what judgment ye judge, ye shall be judged: and with what measure ye mete, it shall be measured to you again.” (Matt 7:1-2)

We must forgive everyone that offends us, and everyone that sins against us. “For if ye forgive men their trespasses, your heavenly Father will also forgive you: But if ye forgive not men their trespasses, neither will your Father forgive your trespasses.” (Matt 6:14-15)

It is clear from God’s word that we are required to forgive sins that are against ourselves because our God and Father forgives, so as His children He wants us to forgive also. Forgiveness is an action of compassion, an act of love. “But love ye your enemies, and do good, and lend, hoping for nothing again; and your reward shall be great, and ye shall be the children of the Highest: for he is kind unto the unthankful and to the evil. Be ye therefore merciful, as your Father also is merciful. Judge not, and ye shall not be judged: condemn not, and ye shall not be condemned: forgive, and ye shall be forgiven: Give, and it shall be given unto you; good measure, pressed down, and shaken together, and running over, shall men give into your bosom. For with the same measure that ye mete withal it shall be measured to you again.”(Luke 6:35-38)

“Let us therefore come boldly unto the throne of grace, that we may obtain mercy, and find grace to help in time of need.” (Hebrews 4:16) “For every high priest taken from among men is ordained for men in things pertaining to God, that he may offer both gifts and sacrifices for sins: Who can have compassion on the ignorant, and on them that are out of the way; for that he himself also is compassed with infirmity. And by reason hereof he ought, as for the people, so also for himself, to offer for sins.” (Heb 5:1-3)

“And above all things have fervent charity among yourselves: for charity shall cover the multitude of sins. “(1 Peter 4:8)

For more about forgiveness see our message about how we are “Called to Be Royal Priest” at www.seekgod.org/message/intercession.html

Forgiving and Forgetting – Freedom from the Past

Jesus said, “Peace be with you! As the Father has sent me, I am sending you.” And with that he breathed on them and said, “Receive the Holy Spirit. If you forgive anyone his sins, they are forgiven; if you do not forgive them, they are not forgiven.” When you fully forgive, God’s peace will rest upon you, and the Holy Spirit will comfort you.

A root of bitterness can grow up in a person because of unforgiveness. This root can be buried deep inside your heart and can block the flow of God’s love from penetrating deep within your heart. It also blocks the flow of God through you, making it difficult to experience God’s love for others. Unforgiveness is a major cause of depression, many people have unforgiveness but are not even aware of it because it is buried so deep inside. Sometimes people do and say things that hurt us very deeply. Sometimes we are hurt by the ones that are closest to us. Sometimes people are hurt in childhood, at the most vulnerable time of life, leaving wounds that we think are healed but they have left scars that still remind us of the wound.

These painful hurts can be buried so deep within us so that we may be unaware that we are still carrying some resentment toward the person who hurt us. Unforgiveness is a form of pride that rejects God and invites Satan in. “Be ye angry, and sin not: let not the sun go down upon your wrath: Neither give place to the devil.” (Ephesians 4:26-27 KJV)

“Follow peace with all men, and holiness, without which no man shall see the Lord: Looking diligently lest any man fail of the grace of God; lest any root of bitterness springing up trouble you, and thereby many be defiled.”(Hebrews 12:14-15)

Unforgiveness is an unforgivable sin allowing Satan an open door into your life. “For if ye forgive men their trespasses, your heavenly Father will also forgive you: But if ye forgive not men their trespasses, neither will your Father forgive your trespasses.” (Matthew 6:14-15)

Jesus says; “But I say unto you, Love your enemies, bless them that curse you, do good to them that hate you, and pray for them which despitefully use you, and persecute you; That ye may be the children of your Father which is in heaven: for he maketh his sun to rise on the evil and on the good, and sendeth rain on the just and on the unjust. For if ye love them which love you, what reward have ye? do not even the publicans the same? And if ye salute your brethren only, what do ye more than others? do not even the publicans so? Be ye therefore perfect, even as your Father which is in heaven is perfect.” (Matt 5:44-48)

“Bless them which persecute you: bless, and curse not. Rejoice with them that do rejoice, and weep with them that weep. Be of the same mind one toward another. Mind not high things, but condescend to men of low estate. Be not wise in your own conceits. Recompense to no man evil for evil. Provide things honest in the sight of all men. If it be possible, as much as lieth in you, live peaceably with all men. Dearly beloved, avenge not yourselves, but rather give place unto wrath: for it is written, Vengeance is mine; I will repay, saith the Lord. Therefore if thine enemy hunger, feed him; if he thirst, give him drink: for in so doing thou shalt heap coals of fire on his head. Be not overcome of evil, but overcome evil with good.” (Romans 12:14-21)

“But love ye your enemies, and do good, and lend, hoping for nothing again; and your reward shall be great, and ye shall be the children of the Highest: for he is kind unto the unthankful and to the evil. Be ye therefore merciful, as your Father also is merciful. Judge not, and ye shall not be judged: condemn not, and ye shall not be condemned: forgive, and ye shall be forgiven.” (Luke 6:35-37)

Helmet of salvation

And take the helmet of salvation…. The helmet obviously protects our heads and in particular, our minds and is simply the knowledge and reassurance we have of our salvation. Because we know Jesus not only in the Scriptures, but also in our hearts, this is our protection against doubt and anything else that would seek to undermine our faith. Romans 8:15-16 reads “For you did not receive the spirit of bondage again to fear, but you received the Spirit of adoption (sonship) by whom we cry out Abba Father”. The ways to keep our helmet firmly intact are chiefly to have a good Bible knowledge (through regular reading), but more importantly, to make sure that our actual personal relationship with the Lord is alive and meaningful.