Redefining

Oh God, the need for the eyes of our heart to be opened on a daily basis to the reality of His, the Father’s heart for us! Without the growing awareness of this truth, we will constantly lose heart and choose to capitulate. Also, we need to begin to see with ever greater clarity the reality of having Satan within our flesh. It’s imperative that Christians realize that he resides there, NOT in our spirit. The flesh is the beachhead from which Satan launches his attacks on us.

We have grown up believing that our thoughts were just that, our thoughts! But what if an enemy, lying low, disguised and camouflaged within our flesh is the one directing the thinking? He injects his poison into our souls causing us to think, “What a scum bucket I am!” (note: I do not blame everything on the devil. We do have a choice in the matter.)

The image of Christ we now bear in our spirit is trying to redefine us within our soul. This redefinition will be contested by the enemy step by step. Though perfect, we are being perfected.

I love this section of a quote by Oswald Chambers:
”No matter what changes God has wrought in you, never rely upon them. Build upon a Person, the Lord Jesus Christ, and the Spirit He gives.”

We take a quick detour into insanity when we choose the path of least resistance, i.e. tips, techniques or principles to apply to live by, rather than seeking after Jesus who intends to take the seeker for the ride of his life straight into the unknown! So much undiscovered territory lies hidden to us regarding the Father’s heart and His intentions for us. This territory will never be discovered by becoming ‘civilized, or domesticated’. Religion, no matter what its flavour or colour, will do its hellish best to castrate us as we settle for a form of godliness while lacking any real power. Power? I’m not talking about speaking in tongues or any of the attributes Christians may find empowering, nor am I referring to power in the context of right or wrong denominational status. What I AM talking about is the grace, the power to give up the right to our lives for His sake. As it is written:
“Greater is he that rules his own spirit than him that captures an entire city.”

There are so many situations or circumstances that have shaped us into people we were never meant to be, riddled with fears, insecurities, etc. This is the stuff our Father is addressing within our soul: “For this purpose was the Son of God manifested in the flesh that He might destroy the works of the devil”.

The Truth (Christ) is bringing us full circle to examine the truth vs. the lies we have and continue to believe. And the Truth shining into our souls can seem quite hellish as it reveals to us what has shaped our personality - things that have nothing to do with who we now are in Him. I feel that much of the building up the Father does, comes on the heels of His tearing down - tearing down the edifices constructed in our souls that depict anything but truth.

In the movie “Hook”, I love the part where the grown-up Peter is taken back to Never- Never Land and the children study his face. One little boy in particular manipulates Peter’s unfamiliar adult face in his hands, stretching it this way and that, only to come to this conclusion: “Oh, there you are, Peter!” In the same way, Christ is resident in our spirits. We bear His image, but it has to become real, or be made known to us.

Rich