Posted on Wednesday, December 30, 2009                                            by Allison J

Jacob’s experience in Peniel was a remarkable one—he saw God face to face and wasn’t the same again.  Genesis 32 tells us that there he wrestled with the Lord and cried out, “…I will not let you go unless you bless me.”  I love how God asks Jacob his name—as if he didn’t already know it—but I think He asks for a very specific reason.  Before Jacob sees God at Peniel, he’s camping out before his meeting with his brother Esau the next day—the brother whose blessing he had usurped.  He had come to ask for forgiveness and didn’t quite know how he was going to be received.

Through various situations in Jacob’s past his identity had become synonymous with being a deceiver.  And so, “The man asked him, "What is your name?" "Jacob," he answered.  Then the man said, "Your name will no longer be Jacob, but Israel, because you have struggled with God and with men and have overcome"” (Genesis 32:26-28).  God wanted Jacob to recognize His old nature and die to it before receiving a new nature.  He was no longer Jacob the deceiver, but Israel, the Prince.

God isn’t in the business of renewing us—He’s in the business of making us new.  In this world, we are surrounded by a sea of normal people with ordinary visions.  Visions of bettering themselves, just as Jacob had.  He figured he would get the firstborn’s blessing, find a wife for himself, and live a nice life.  When Jacob was at Bethel, on his way to his uncle Laban’s house, “… Jacob made a vow, saying, "If God will be with me and will watch over me on this journey I am taking and will give me food to eat and clothes to wear so that I return safely to my father's house, THEN the Lord will be my God and this stone that I have set up as a pillar will be God's house, and of all that you give me I will give you a tenth"” (Genesis 28:20-22).  Interesting to see that the man who once set up parameters for believing in God later came to realize not that he might need God, but that he couldn’t live without Him.  God wasn’t content with Jacob’s “this is my plan” sort of life. 

Even many in the church today pray with an undertone of, “Lord, bless my plans.”  You don’t need God to live an ordinary life—and the Christ I know conquered Calvary to bring us an extraordinary one.  I need Him for that type of life—a life that isn’t seeking to be bettered or renewed, but one that is made new.  When Christ resurrected, the veil was torn from the top to the bottom, meaning that heaven was opened up to us and made accessible!  I’m not waiting to go to heaven to live an extraordinary life!  My Bible tells me that Christ did not live for our sins, He died for them.  Romans 6 tells us that “we have been planted together in the likeness of his death…that our old man is crucified with him, that the body of sin might be destroyed, that henceforth we should not serve sin” and that “knowing that Christ being raised from the dead dieth no more; death hath no more dominion over him.  For in that he died, he died unto sin once: but in that he liveth, he liveth unto God” (v.5-10).  Our old nature was crucified on the cross, just as Jacob had to acknowledge his old nature before he received a new identity and name.  We do not serve sin anymore!  Death no longer has dominion over us!  We live unto God and are “alive unto God through Jesus Christ our Lord” (v.11).

After Christ died for our sins He rose from the dead and His resurrected life was imputed to us: “…as Christ was raised up from the dead by the glory of the Father, even so we also should walk in newness of life” (Romans 6:4).  Now, when we stand before God the Father, we are found to be new creatures because we were given a newness of life in Christ.  And yes, in this present world we will have trouble, but you and I know a God that has overcome the world—and our faith in an Almighty God is the victory that has overcome the world (John 16:33 and 1 John 5:4).  New—not renewed.  Our names have been changed from “Jacob” to “Israel”, let’s live like it.

   Posted on Wednesday, September 30, 2009                                           by Allison J

Do you know what the “Year of Jubilee” is?  Leviticus 25 tells us that the year of Jubilee was the sabbatical year, that is, God ordained that every seventh year was to be a year of rest for the land of Israel.  The land was to rest and be uncultivated for one year, which in turn also provided all laborers with rest.  It was also the year of release—all debts between the children of Israel were to be cancelled.  The Hebrew slave was also to be set free in that year—and that slave was not only set free, but left with his family and went out to possess the inheritance that they had lost to creditors.  All land was also to be released from all ownership and returned to its original owner during the Year of Jubilee. 

The emphasis was in the fact that the land belonged to God, and so did the people—they were His.  Emphasis not in the fact that there was restoration (and trust me, that’s important!), but emphasis in the Restorer.  Jesus is our Year of Jubilee.  Jesus came to rescue the vineyard that was sold away to the creditors and He came to rescue it for the Father.  A Hebrew’s inheritance was so sacred and precious—Naboth died unwilling to give it to King Ahab, even though he was presented with a better offer.  Jesus is our inheritance, and giving Him up is not an option.  When we read the book of Galatians, Paul speaks of an inheritance—not one of land, but an inheritance nonetheless.  Our inheritance is knowing God, being His people, and having the Spirit.  I saw myself as I read that.  I saw that I had given my “land” to creditors as I have shirked from God.  And as if that wasn’t enough, I sold myself as a “slave” because I couldn’t pay my debts.  It’s just like a modern-day debt…we budget money to pay who?  Living in the guilt of sin, being accused day and night by the “creditors” of the past…but it’s all restored in the year of Jubilee.  And the emphasis is in the One who possesses the land.  He is after all the one who conquered, possessed, and divided it among the tribes.  Surely Joshua and the army of Israelites did not succeed by their own hand.  God let his people be slaves for 400 years in the land of Egypt, and when their time to be set free came, He even hardened Pharaoh’s heart to show that it was HIM who brought them out of the “house of bondage.” 

God appreciates restitution more than the loss, so that our song reflects His goodness, His mercy, His greatness, His faithfulness.  God permits shame so that when He gives us honor, we will truly appreciate it…because He’s looking for a people who “worship Him in Spirit and in truth.”  God’s not looking for us to give Him an offering…He wants us to be the offering.  He’s not looking for a living and burning sacrifice…He wants us to be the sacrifice.  God is looking for Christians who know how to LIVE.  That means that we know that His salvation is saving us daily, and teaching us how to live.  We are the architects of our own life in Egypt, but when we walk into the Promised Land, the earth is sustained by God if only we hand it over to Him.  Reach out to the Restorer and have a “year of Jubilee” experience in your life.

   Posted on Wednesday, June 24, 2009                                                      by Allison J

If you mention the name “Ananias and Sapphira,” many are bound to know who you’re talking about.  They’re the couple who lied about the monetary gain from selling their land and God killed them abruptly.  But how about Barnabas?  Does that name ring any bells, or would anybody know his story?  The story of Ananias and Sapphira begins in Acts 5, but the last verse of the previous chapter tells us that “Joseph, a Levite from Cyprus, whom the apostles called Barnabas (which means Son of Encouragement), sold a field he owned and brought the money and put it at the apostles' feet” (Act 4:36-37).

Have you ever heard Barnabas’ story?  Have you ever heard somebody remarking on how worthy Barnabas’ action was or how it should be applauded?  He was the guy that did the right thing—and I’m not attempting to take away the value and lesson of the account of Ananias and Sapphira, I just want to complete it!  So often, in our own lives, we get preoccupied with seeing the negative that we miss out on finding and focusing on those “Barnabas-times.”  It happens with sin.  We get so preoccupied with the fact that we have fallen (and yes, we need to acknowledge our wrongdoing) that we forget to remember that God has said that the righteous gets back up again!  James doesn’t just tell the believer to “resist the devil,” he also tells them to “draw near to God.”  When the enemy is knocking on our door: let’s tell Jesus to answer it instead!  Or how about when we’re feeling weighed down?  Isaiah writes that “even the youths grow tired and weary, and young men stumble and fall; BUT those who hope in the LORD will renew their strength” (Isaiah 40”30-31a). 

When we fail to contend in the faith we “grow weary in well doing.”  Let’s get the whole picture!  Keep your nose in the Bible, knees in the ground, and eyes on Jesus!  “Offer right sacrifices and trust in the LORD.  Many are asking, “Who can show us any good?” Let the light of your face shine upon us, O LORD….Those who know your name will trust in you, for you, LORD, have never forsaken those who seek you” (Psalm 4:5-6; 9:10).

   Posted on Wednesday, May 6, 2009                                                          by Allison J

I’ve had a bout of forgetfulness lately.  Actually…to be completely honest, it’s been going on for a good year now.  Addicted to sticky notes and memo pads, unless I plug it into my planner or set up the reminder on my cell phone’s calendar then something is bound to be forgotten.  But, aside from keeping appointments, or remembering to do something, is my notorious question, “Have you seen my keys?”  Yes, I am one of those people, thank-you-very-much.  The thing is—and don’t laugh—I check my purse for the darn things and don’t find them, but when I come back five minutes later, somehow, they’re there!  How about you?  Have you ever looked for something and it really is there but you totally miss it?   

Scripture tells us that after Abraham sent Hagar away she wandered in the desert.  I can only imagine how physically, emotionally, and spiritually exhausted she was. Dejected, lost, and dehydrated, she had resigned herself, and her son Ishmael, to a morbid fate.  But so often we look for something and it’s actually right in front of us.  Genesis 21 tells us that God did not create a well—He merely opened Hagar’s eyes to see it and made her a promise.  That’s the God we serve.  He’s the God who opens our eyes to see what our sin-scaled, fear-laden, and preoccupied eyes won’t let us see.  Whether it be distraction or distress, lost keys or seeking His direction, may He open our eyes to see.

   Posted on Wednesday, March 4, 2009                                                      by Allison J

I have been seeking lots of direction lately.  Barrages of questions crash against my mind—counsel and memories pace back and forth in my head.  The prophet Jeremiah wrote, “Let us examine our ways and test them, and let us return to the LORD” (Lam. 3:40).  I have often found that even in my earnestness to seek out guidance, it can consume my thoughts and distract me even more.  That’s why Jeremiah says, “and return to the Lord.” 

In the first chapter of Mark we read that Jesus healed Simon’s mother-in-law and it seems that as news of that spread, that, as Mark records it, “the whole town gathered at the door.”  Jesus healed many people that night, but not all of them.  Scripture tells us that very early in the morning Jesus sought out a place where he could be alone—and then He prayed.  He could have said that He had no time to pray because he had too much to do, as Mark records that Simon and some others come looking for Jesus exclaiming that many more are seeking Him out.  No, Jesus prayed because there was so much that awaited his attention.  Jesus, the Son of God, found it necessary to withdraw himself from the crowds to speak to His Father about direction—about focus on purpose and goal.  Jesus had a ready answer when Simon tells him of the many awaiting his healing touch because He had communion with the Father.

I have realized that in the maze of my many questions, I have gotten so caught up in wanting to know the answer itself that I have forgotten to seek out the sweetness of the journey with God in getting there.  “Our adversary majors in three things: noise, hurry, and crowds.  If he can keep us engaged in “much-ness” and “many-ness,” he will rest satisfied” (R.J. Foster).  And it’s not that there’s anything wrong with being occupied, but when the frenzy of anything consumes us, we can get lost so easily. 

I remember a dynamic preacher I once heard that said prayer was “entertaining God.”  What a fascinating thought!  He told the story of Abraham “entertaining God” in Genesis 18.  Abraham was sitting outside of his tent when he noticed three men standing nearby.  He needed to make the request of the three angelic figures to not pass him by, and when he did, and took the time to “entertain God,” the Lord then revealed to Abraham His will and His secrets.  Prayer is, in a sense, preparing a feast for God and washing His feet as Abraham did.  It is saying “God, don’t pass me by.”  Like a waiter, Abraham stood by and celebrated the presence of the pre-carnate Yeshua.

In the frenzy of my seeking, instead of hosting God, I was letting Him “pass by.”  The power in prayer is asking God to be visible through our visibility, to touch through our touching, to love through our loving, to speak through our speaking—and in addition to getting answers as Abraham did, others will see and know that it could not have been you and will recognize and glorify our Father in heaven.  In entertaining God through prayer we allow Him to open up our barrenness—it is when fire comes down from heaven and gives life to the dead bones.  When I examine my ways and test them, and return to activate God in this little clay temple of mine, I can say, “O Lord, you took up my case; you redeemed my life” (Lam. 3:58).